“I didn’t implicate your husband in anything. I was asked a question and I answered it.” Ari shrugged.
“All these years later and you’re still salty. I get it, you were in love with the nigga and he didn’t love you back. That’s life. Boss was home with me when your brother got killed and his phone activity showed that. My husband has been trying to give you hoes a pass but that’s not my life right now. I’ve been trying to keep it cute but y’all insist on bringing out the bitch in me. This is my first and last time saying this to you, so please tune in. Keep Boston’s name out of your muthafucking mouth before your mama be throwing dirt on another casket. For once in his life, my husband is gonna have a happily ever after and I’m gonna make sure of it. And yes, bitch, I just threatened to end your miserable ass life,” Indigo fumed as she frowned at her.
Ari wanted to have a snappy comeback and, usually, she would have. It wasn’t Indigo or her threat that she was afraid of. It was the man who she was married to that she feared. Although she assumed that Boss had something to do with her brother’s death, Ari wasn’t positive. It wasn’t worth putting her family in jeopardy of retaliation, so she had to let it go.
“Yeah, I hear you,” Ari said as she opened her car door.
“Hearing me is one thing but I need you to understand what I just said,” Indigo replied as she stopped her from getting in.
“Look, maybe I jumped to conclusions but my brother was murdered!” Ari yelled as her eyes filled with tears.
“I get it Ari and I’m sorry for your loss. But, you can’t just send the police at my husband based on an assumption. Coming here was the last thing that I wanted to do. I understand all too well how the grief process works and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”
“I apologize to you and Boston if I went too far. I just want the person who killed my brother to be caught. This has nothing to do with personal or past feelings,” Ari swore.
“Yeah, I seriously doubt that but it’s all good,” Indigo said as she walked away and got into her car.
She watched until Ari pulled off before she did the same. Ari claimed that no personal or past feelings had anything to do with it, but Indigo wasn’t convinced. When Boss left her alone for good, she had no shame in what she said or did. Ari did everything that she could to hurt him, but nothing worked. Indigo drove home, convinced that Ari would no longer be a problem for them.
“I guess everything went okay since it don’t look like you been in a fight,” Boss said when Indigo walked into the house.
“I told you that I wasn’t going there to fight. I know how to communicate without my hands,” Indigo laughed.
“I’m hungry as fuck baby. You ready?” Boss asked her.
“Yeah, I’m ready,” Indigo replied, right before they walked out of the house.
They met Bear and his girlfriend at Drago’s for dinner and drinks. Indigo loved the bond that Boss and his father had formed. It was almost like no time had passed at all with the way they laughed and joked with each other. After dinner, Boss took his car home and Bear dropped them off by Indigo’s father. When they got there, the front door was wide open as Ivy’s fiancé, Antonio, and two other men carried things out to a black pickup truck.
“What’s going on daddy?” Indigo inquired.
“He’s moving out. I guess he found out that what you said was true. The engagement is off and the house is going back on the market,” Irvin whispered as he stood to the side and let Antonio pass.
“Good. He can do better.” Indigo frowned.
She didn’t even feel bad that she was the cause of her sister’s engagement falling apart. Ivy had been doing shady shit to her for years and she was over it. When Indigo walked into the house, Ivy was sitting on the sofa with red swollen eyes. She got up and stormed upstairs when she saw her, and Indigo wasn’t mad that she left. Her father went to get their bike keys and walked them out to the garage right after.
“Y’all be careful out there. It’s dark,” Irvin said, right before they pulled off.
Boss and Indigo went by Draco and Jaci for a while before they went home. After taking a shower, they found something to watch on tv. When Boss’ phone rang, he ignored the call, just like he’d been doing for the past three days. He didn’t answer toll free numbers and he wasn’t about to start.
“Is that the same number that’s been calling you?” Indigo asked.
“Yep,” he replied dismissively.
When Indigo got in the bed, he pulled her close as their movie started to play. About an hour later, his phone rang displaying the same number and she decided to pick it up. Indigo listened to the automated recording and her heart fell when she heard what was being said. She was sure that her face gave away how she felt because Boss was staring at her.
“What’s up?” Boss asked her. She wanted to say nothing, but they didn’t lie to each other.
“It was something called Vine,” Indigo replied, temporarily confusing him.
“Vine?” Boss repeated with a frown.
“Yeah, I guess you signed up for something,” Indigo said, trying to downplay everything.
When realization set in, he wanted to know exactly what they said. Vine was a victim notification system that someone told him about. It notified the families of victims if there was a change in the status of an inmate related to their case.
“Yeah, I signed up for it like two years ago. I wanted to keep up with that bitch ass nigga who killed my uncle. What did they say?” Boss asked.
“He’s out,” Indigo replied in a low tone.
She held her breath, thinking that Boss was about to have an outburst but he never said anything. He looked like he was deep in thought for a while before he got up and grabbed his blunt from the dresser. He went outside on the balcony that was connected to their bedroom and sat down. Indigo waited for almost an hour before she got up to go check on him. She stood in the doorway and just watched him for a while.
“Come here,” Boss said as he held his arms out for her.
When she got closer, he pulled her onto his lap and hugged her tight. His thoughts were trying to consume him again and he was trying hard to fight it. He was in a good place and he didn’t want anything to interfere with his happiness. He and Indigo were married, living in the home that they grew up in. Nothing, especially his thoughts of the past, was supposed to take precedence over that.
“I remember my mama sitting on this balcony for hours just thinking or writing in her journal.” Indigo smiled.
“Yep, with a glass of wine or a daiquiri,” Boss chimed in.
“You tried to give my poor mama a heart attack. She wanted to kill you that day when you jumped off the balcony and into the pool,” Indigo said, shaking her head.
“I almost had a heart attack when I dislocated my damn shoulder and ended up in the emergency room,” Boss laughed.
He and Indio reminisced on their childhood and all the good memories that they shared in their house. They spent hours on the balcony, just like Precious used to do. When Boss got quiet, Indigo knew that he was in his feelings again.
“Are you okay baby?” Indigo asked him.
“Yeah, I’m good. I’m in a much better head space than I was a few years ago. The nigga did his time and it’s over as far as I’m concerned. I gotta start letting shit go Indie. It’s not helping me to keep holding on to the things from my past,” Boss replied, shocking her with his reply.
Dr. Everette was a beast and she knew that it was her who got him to start thinking that way. A year ago, Boss would have been out for blood and he wouldn’t be satisfied until he got it.
“I’m so proud of you, baby,” Indigo said as she kissed his cheek.
A little while later, they went inside and got into bed. Indigo was tired, so she was sleep in a matter of minutes. Boss laid around in the dark with a million thoughts running through his head. Since he couldn’t fall asleep, he got up and went downstairs. He went into the hallway closet and grabbed his shoebo
x before sitting down at the kitchen table.
Boss pulled out the contents in the box and smiled when he looked at the pictures of himself with Precious and Indigo. No matter how much trouble he got into, Precious never made him feel bad about it. She would always smile and let him know that everything would be okay. She was stern but in a loving kind of way. She never had to yell or hit them to get her point across. They got punished all the time, but it never lasted long.
He also had pictures of himself with his uncle Ray, Kissy and Draco. Boss had come a long way and he was thankful. At one point in his life, he couldn’t even look at the box that the pictures were in without getting emotional. Boss’ smile faded when he pulled out a few newspaper clippings that he’d been holding onto for years. The papers were yellowish in color now but the print was still visible.
“Guilty verdict handed down in the death of a transsexual man,” Boss said as he read the headline to the story that covered his uncle’s murder trial.
He stared at the picture of the man who had been convicted. Boss didn’t know why he looked familiar to him because he’d never seen him before. Maybe it was because he’d stared at his picture every day for years. Boss had pictures of his mugshot, as well as him being led into court. He didn’t remember anything about the trial because he didn’t attend. By then, he was living in the group home where his mother dropped him off at.
“Rest in peace unc,” Boss said as he looked at the last picture that he and his uncle took together
He put everything back in the box and returned it to the hallway closet. Once he got back upstairs, sleep was nowhere on his mind. Boss woke Indigo up and tried once again to make the babies that he desperately wanted.
“D o you want some breakfast before you go?” Amanda asked her son.
“No, I’m good,” Justice replied.
“You know I love you being here but I hope you find something that you like. I know that you’re used to having your own space,” Amanda replied.
“Yeah, but I’m not in a hurry. I want to make sure I get what I really want. This is not an overnight decision,” he noted.
“That’s true. Good luck baby,” Amanda said before he walked out of the house.
A few months had passed since Justice moved to Florida and he was adjusting well. He’d made a few friends as a result of hanging out with his brother all the time. His parents were just happy that he’d left New Orleans, especially after being shot. His mother told him about her conversation with Indigo and she was upset with him for lying to her. Justice ended up telling them the entire story and they were afraid for him. They begged him not to get the police involved for fear of retribution. They didn’t have to tell him twice because he didn’t have any plans to do that. Justice had everyone believing that someone tried to rob him and he stuck to his story. His co-worker unintentionally corroborated his lie since he had been knocked out and stripped in the parking lot. Justice wasn’t raised that way and he wasn’t in the streets like that. No woman was worth almost losing his life. He was over it all. He put Boss, Indigo and the entire ordeal behind him.
Justice still worked for the Lexus assembly line but things were different now. He made more money being a supervisor at the Florida location and he didn’t have to work as many hours. He was able to have a life but he still wasn’t dating anyone. After the way Indigo did him, he had too many trust issues to even try. He was in the process of trying to buy a house and his realtor had asked him out several times. He never put her in his business but he always had an excuse as to why he couldn’t go. She was a beautiful single woman with no kids and a great job. Besides fear, there was no reason why he couldn’t take her up on her offers. He was on his way to meet up with her now to look at a few places that she thought he would be interested in.
When he pulled up to the first house, the realtor, Shyla, was already there. Justice got out of his truck and walked inside of the home. He smelled her perfume before he saw her and that was something that he had started to look forward to. He loved a good smelling woman and she had him mesmerized with just her scent.
“Damn, this is nice,” he observed while looking around.
The living room was huge and the fireplace was a nice touch. He could see himself having a huge television mounted on the wall to watch all of the football and basketball games.
“Yes, it’s newly constructed and it’s well below your price range.” Shyla smiled.
“What about the neighborhood?” Justice inquired as he continued to look around.
“Mostly older couples and retirees. You’d probably be the youngest one on the block,” she answered.
“That doesn’t sound like a bad thing,” Justice said as she continued to give him the grand tour.
Out of all the houses that he’d seen, he liked that one the most. The four bedroom, three bath home with patio was perfect for entertaining guests. Still, he wanted to see the others, just in case he had a change of heart. Once Shyla locked up the property, he followed her out of the subdivision and on to the next one. Justice was bobbing his head to the music in his car when his phone started to ring. He had to do a double take when he looked at the screen and recognized the number. He no longer had Indigo’s number programmed, but he still knew it by heart. He was shocked that she was calling him but he was curious as to why.
“Yeah,” Justice said when he answered.
“Justice, hey, this is Indigo,” she said in her soft, sweet voice.
“I know who it is. I’m just trying to figure out what reason you could possibly have to be calling me,” he snapped irritably.
“Look, I won’t hold you long. I just called to say a few things that’s been on my mind,” Indigo said.
“Does your husband know that you’re calling me?” he asked, putting emphasis on the word husband.
“I wouldn’t have called you if he didn’t,” Indigo answered.
“I’m listening,” Justice replied impatiently.
“First, I just wanted to apologize,” Indigo said, making him chuckle sarcastically.
“Wow, really Indigo. And just what are you apologizing for? Are you sorry that you fucked your best friend behind my back for only God knows how long? Or are you sorry that he shot me?” Justice questioned angrily.
“Neither. I’m apologizing for staying with you when I knew that I was in love with another man,” Indigo answered.
“Yeah, well, you could have kept that shit to yourself,” Justice fumed.
“Just hear me out and you can hang up whenever you want to,” Indigo said.
“What else is there for me to hear?” Justice asked.
“I just want you to know that you didn’t do anything wrong Justice. You were a good man and I can’t dispute that. I can’t even blame it on you working so much because that was just an excuse. If our relationship was as solid as it should have been, none of that would have mattered. It wasn’t you; it was me. I really didn’t want to hurt you because you didn’t deserve it. I let my guilt make decisions that my heart should have made. This call might seem pointless to you but I felt that it was necessary. I just don’t want another woman to have to suffer for the mistakes that I made. You’re gonna be a great husband and father one day and that I’m sure of,” Indigo rambled.
Justice held the phone, speechless and in shock. He wasn’t expecting her to say any of what she’d just said, but he appreciated it. Truthfully, he thought that he did do something wrong to make Indigo cheat on him. Hearing her say that their breakup wasn’t his fault gave him a little relief. Justice didn’t realize how much he needed to hear that until now. She gave him closure and that was necessary in order for him to move on. He was already letting his past dictate his future and he didn’t want that to be his reality. Growing old alone was not how he pictured his life. Still, there was something else that had been bothering him that he needed clarity on.
“I know that this is irrelevant right now but I just need to know,” Justice said.
“Need
to know what?” Indigo asked.
“Were you and Boston messing around the entire time that we were together?” Justice questioned, hoping that she didn’t say something that he really didn’t want to hear.
“No, we weren’t. Truthfully, we dated years ago when we were teenagers but things didn’t work out. We started up again when we went to Miami but nothing ever happened before then,” Indigo replied, satisfying him with her answer.
“Damn, man. I really appreciate you calling Indigo and I owe you an apology too. No matter what transpired between us, I had no right to put my hands on you. I wasn’t thinking clearly at the time but you didn’t deserve that. Things didn’t work out for us but I wish you all the best,” Justice replied before he hung up the phone with a smile.
Admittedly, he still loved her but he knew that the feelings would go away eventually. Indigo had moved on and, now, it was time for him to do the same.
Justice looked at a total of five properties that day but he was still sold on the very first one. He and the realtor went to look at it again and he was ready to make an offer.
“Now, we just have to wait. You’re the first person to put in an offer, so that’s a good thing. Maybe we can go out and celebrate when you close on it,” Shyla flirted with a smile.
“Why wait? How about dinner and a movie tonight? I mean, if you’re free,” Justice replied, surprising her with his forwardness.
“Yeah, I’m free,” she said, trying to hide her excitement. She didn’t want to sound like she was too pressed.
“Cool, well, let’s handle this business so you can go home and get ready for our date,” Justice replied with a newfound confidence.
To Boston, With Love Page 27
