The people milling in front of the building immediately turned their attention to Coco. They said nothing, but stared at her as if she was speaking a foreign language. She heard them mumbling to themselves before one of them spoke.
“I just got out here and thought it was an abandoned car,” one said.
“Yeah, I seen some bum took ’em wheels off,” another person said.
Coco hissed then walked back to where Deedee stood, gathering her wits. She watched in abated silence while Deedee dialed her uncle’s number. They spoke for a beat. Then Deedee went into the dash and pulled out a card. Shaking her head, she dialed for roadside assistance. The girls shared a cigarette while waiting for the tow truck. They saw the same man who had fixed the flat tire. He was now pushing a supermarket-shopping cart containing four tires.
“Y’all wanna buy some tires. What up? I know you could use some wheels,” he greeted.
Both Coco and Deedee glanced at him then back at each other. Coco flicked the cigarette and examined what was in the shopping cart. She saw Deedee’s brows furrowed in a scowl of anger. Coco raised her hand to stem the emotional outburst she coming from Deedee, but it was too late.
“You can’t be serious! Your ass must be bugging!” Deedee said.
“Easy yo,” Coco said.
“But Coco, he can’t be serious. Those look like the damn tires that were on my car.”
“They may look like yours, but these are mine,” the man said.
“Really…? You cannot be serious,” Deedee said, sounding angrier.
“They’s mine,” the man said.
“I’m calling the police,” Deedee said, eyeballing the man.
She saw his disheveled aura. His jeans were old and dirty, his shoes and shirt were equally torn. Life seemed to have knocked him into a dark corner, from where there was no return. Deedee continued looking the man up and down. Then she heard Coco’s interference.
“How much are the tires, yo?”
“They regularly go for fifty dollars apiece, but I could let you have them for one-fifty,” the man said.
“Are you for real, a hundred and fifty dollars…? They look like the tires that were on my car.”
“A’ight, take it or leave it,” the man said, walking away.
“I’m calling the police,” Deedee said, pulling out her cell phone.
“We’ll take them for forty and give you ten bucks to put them on, yo.”
The man paused and seemed to be pondering Coco’s offer. Deedee was at wit’s end and was about to let off screaming on the shabbily dressed man. Coco put her hand over Deedee’s mouth, restraining the irate teen.
“A’ight, I gotta go somewhere so let’s be quick,” he said and started unloading the wheels.
The tires were a perfect fit. In no time, the man had the tires back on the car and Deedee reluctantly paid.
“Throw another twenty in and I hook you up with some wheel locks. If you gonna park in this neighborhood you gon’ need ‘em,” the man said.
Deedee was steaming, throwing daggers at him through an icy, evil stare. Coco shook her head, looked the man up and down then said, “We’ll take it, yo.”
“You can spare a cigarette? I’ll pay you back once your friend pay me.”
“No, that’s all good, yo.”
The girls got in the car and drove away. Deedee waited and joined traffic. Her wrinkled forehead made it clear that something was bothering her. She wanted to say it but didn’t. Coco did it for her.
“I know what you’re thinking, yo.” There was a long pause before Coco continued. “You’re thinking that those tires were yours and you just got sold your own tires.”
“By a damn tire thief,” Deedee added, guiding the car through the midday traffic of the busy city streets. “You should’ve charged him for that damn cigarette.”
Eric sat in his studio listening to the new songs Coco had done. His eyes were closed and his ears perked up at her rhymes. He smiled at Coco’s metaphors and the hard-edged rhymes about her life. Her soothing voice was thrilling, but compassionate, delicately offsetting the reality of her hip-hop opera. Eric was enjoying the music when his cell phone went off. He would not normally allow any disturbance when he was in the listening room, but this time he made an exception.
“Hello, Sophia. I been trying my damndest to reach you…” he said, answering the call.
After agreeing to meet with her later that evening, Eric returned to listening to the talented teen. He took mental notes of the areas in the song that needed stronger lyrics, his head nodded to the rhythm of the bass-heavy beat. Eric felt his heartbeat rising, he slowly realized that wanting to see Sophia became urgency. His pulse raced with precision tempo of the pounding drum and bass.
Later, he was walking back to his office and he saw Coco and Deedee strutting into the studio. He was smiling when the girls approached him.
“Uncle E,” Deedee shouted, hugging him.
“Hi Deedee, what happened?”
“You’re not going to believe this but I…” Deedee’s voice trailed as she glanced at Coco.
“Hi, Mr. Ascot—”
“Something must really be wrong because I’ve told you a thousand times already that it’s cool to call me Uncle E. Uncle Eric. Coco’s still calling me, Mr. Ascot and you’ve got that look. Tell me what’s up.”
“Oh, it’s really nothing to be concerned about, Uncle,” Deedee quickly said.
Eric smiled at his niece and addressed the artist whose music he had just heard.
Deedee wandered out of the office, Reggie, racing out of the recording studio, bumped into her.
“Hey Dee,” he said, holding her to prevent her from falling.
“Oh my…” Deedee said, shaking her head and maintaining her balance. “Are you in a hurry or what?”
“Yes, sorry I gotta get the disc from ah… The boss, he was listening to some of the tracks Coco did. Sorry to almost run you over, Dee. I mean I never meant to,” Reggie said, guiding Deedee away from the studio’s entrance.
They walked away, heading in the direction of Eric’s office. Inside the recording studio, Tina adjusted her lipstick and fixed her tight skirt about her. Then she peeked from behind the door, and seeing no one, she walked out. Tina was chatting on her cell phone while toting a small breakfast tray, sashaying through the office.
“Uh huh, it’s going down, I tell you…” Tina loudly continued on her cell phone.
Meanwhile, Eric glanced up when he saw Deedee and Reggie laughing and walking into his office. He was still giving Coco his review of her work. The talented teen listened intently to Eric’s advice and smiled.
“Good looking, Uncle E,” she smiled confidently.
“That’s what we do… Polish it, and we’ll make it shine,” Eric said before acknowledging his niece. “Hey Dee, lemme get at you,” he said to her.
“Okay Uncle E,” Deedee smiled.
“Good job, Reggie. Take that disc and make it mo’ better,” Eric said. He glanced at Coco before continuing. “Coco knows exactly what to do.”
“No doubt, yo.”
They walked out of Eric’s office, leaving Deedee standing at her uncle’s desk. Eric waited until the door was closed before speaking.
“I’m meeting Sophia later and… Well I don’t know what she has to tell me but it’s probably not good. How d’you feel? She told me about meeting with you.”
“Just watch out for whatever it is she’s trying to pull. I don’t know if she’s a friend or an enemy.”
“Everyone’s got an opinion. No matter what, it belongs to them. And neither of us cannot change it. They have to be willing to reconsider or…”
“Uncle E. She’s the one who needs the lecture not me. She’s hiding behind the fact that she’s working at a law firm and her business associates are asking her to cooperate in a personal matter and she’s chosen the side of business over a friend and former…”
“Former partner she was engaged to.”
> Eric smiled at Deedee. He realized that she was cornered by her concerns, and he tried to set her free with a disarming gesture. It didn’t seem to work and Deedee’s mind was still brooding when she heard her uncle’s voice.
“We’ll work that out. I also want you to ease back on spending. Matter of fact, spending is a wrap for the month with your last spree, or I’ll be forced to take your card.”
“Okay Uncle, I understand,” Deedee said in a steady tone of voice.
She stared at her uncle’s face searching for answers to ease the discontent she felt. Then she heard another jolt to her senses.
“You’re really chummy with Reggie…?”
“Yes we’ve hung out a few times. Nothing serious though—”
“Let’s keep it like that. He’s just a schoolboy trying to be the man. He’s not in your—”
“I can think and make decision about boys, Uncle!”
The words had jumped out quicker than Deedee could control the thought. She stared at her uncle’s silent reaction and realized the shock was deeper than anticipated.
“Really Uncle…? I have it under control. I know all about sex,” she said deliberately.
They looked at each other, and were both concerned about the statement in different ways. Deedee saw it one way and Eric saw it totally differently. Standing at her uncle’s desk, Deedee continued searching for answers. She wanted to ask him about her mother’s disappearance, but that would just be opening old wounds that she was trying to keep closed. And now, she could no longer shop when she was feeling depressed.
His desk was framed with papers and pads of notes. It was as disorganized as her thoughts. She boldly fought back the tears of despair. Her mind was being dragged to a place where she was not willing to go.
“I’ll be responsible,” Deedee sighed.
“Okay, I guess. I mean what more can I say,” Eric said.
It was times like this one that made him miss Sophie’s wisdom. He didn’t want to lose his niece. But he had to respect her wishes. Respect begets respect, Eric thought, sitting at his desk and watching Deedee.
She waved and walked out of the office. Prancing, she disappeared into an elevator and quickly walked to her car. Then tires screeched as Deedee drove away. She was still thinking about the conversation she had with her uncle. Before she realized what was happening, Deedee found herself on the Long Island Expressway. Speeding, she was pulled over and escaped with only a warning from a friendly officer. She quietly made her way to Eric’s summer home and parked.
Deedee walked into the huge home and sat in the kitchen. The place was recently renovated and cleaned up. Fresh paint and marble couldn’t cover up the pain Deedee was feeling. She wandered to her room and changed into her bathing suit. Then she walked out to the poolside and dove into the fresh water. Deedee’s shapely legs kicked while she did several laps. Her thoughts drifted and soon she had left her uncle and Sophia behind.
He was probably going to stay in the city overnight, Deedee surmised. She sat poolside thinking of throwing a party. She started dialing on her cell phone, but Coco’s number just rang through to her voicemail. It dawned on her that she was dialing Coco’s number for the sixth time. Coco was the only friend she had. The call rang through to Coco’s voicemail.
Deedee hung up without leaving a message. She stared at the huge mansion. A lot had happened here after she was raped. Deedee felt herself going down in the dumps of her thoughts to the place where she had hid the horrid experience. It was then that her cell phone rang and she jumped to answer. Checking the caller ID, she answered in disappointment.
“You don’t sound too happy to hear from me…”
“Hey Reggie… Are you and Coco in the studio still recording…?”
“Coco was here and left. Your uncle bounced too and I was just finishing up…”
Deedee heard chuckling in the background. Her ears perked but she was unable to tell if it was music playing.
“Hmm, hmm… Hey, so ah… Reggie. If you want, bring some friends, stop by it’s gonna be a pool party. I’m out in the Hamptons. I’ll text you the address.”
“So you want me to bring some bottles or…?”
“You can bring whatever…”
Again Deedee heard noise in the background. She strained trying to identify the sounds, but Reggie’s voice was too loud.
“Okay, text me the address and we there…”
Deedee heard what Reggie was saying, but she was too busy listening to the noise in the background. The humming caused by the dial tone jolted her back to reality. She sent the text with address and directions.
21
Neither of them saw the unmarked cars covering the eatery where they met. The small restaurant downtown was his choice. It was supposed to be a clandestine meeting between exes, but it was wired for more. Eric had already swallowed two shots before Sophia walked into the quiet eatery. He watched the room light up as if it were smiling to meet her acquaintance. Sophia walked to where he sat and greeted him first with a handshake then they hugged. Their embrace ended abruptly when she shrugged.
“You smell really lovely,” Eric said, breaking an awkward silence.
“You certainly look more dapper than ever,” Sophia smiled sarcastically. “You’ve been busy huh, Eric?” she nonchalantly replied.
Her glance at the two shot glasses had been a misleading clue. Eric’s expression remained unshaken. He still loved Sophia and was studying her. She remained silent and her body bent seductively as she sat down under his glare. A dull silence fell on them and for a few moments. Eric chuckled and broke the tense silence.
“Oh, you’re talking ‘bout these glasses…?” he asked, looking down at the table.
A waiter brought garlic bread and a bottle of red wine. Sophia’s sarcastic smile turned into a full-sized pitiful chuckle by the time she spoke.
“If it was just drinking, you’d be fine. But it’s all this other stuff…” she let her voice fade when she saw the waiter coming back.
He showed Eric the bottle and popped the cork after Eric’s approval. The waiter poured two glasses.
“Are you ready to order?”
“The steak is great…”
Sophia raised her hand. Eric paused and waved at the waiter. He nodded then walked away. They waited until he had completely disappeared before lifting their wine glasses in silence, and barely looking at each other. Eric and Sophia sipped the wine. The red liquid disappeared down their throats like the good times they had. The after taste left their minds reeling.
“You’ve been very bad, Eric,” Sophia scolded. She took another sip, carefully metering her words. “I wish there was another way I could say this but I have to be honest. I know you did a lot of things under the guise of helping your niece. But some of those things were about Eric being selfish.”
Sophia picked up her glass and this time she was staring at Eric’s face. She drank the rest of the wine then poured herself another glass.
“What are you talking about?”
“You did a lot of things because it was about Eric Ascot!”
“Such as…?” he asked, tugging at his collar.
“Such as … Your Armani suits are not gonna cover up all the shit you been up to.”
“What have I been up to, Sophia. Since you know all this shit about me. Spill it!”
“Well let’s see where should I begin?” Sophia gulped her wine. “Hmm let’s start with… Ah… Killing, I should say, being involved in the alleged murder of your niece’s mother. You were involved in Busta’s murder. He was your best friend. Your name and gun came up in the murder of a police officer that was investigating you. Do you want me to continue…?”
“Go ahead. Be my guest.”
“After having an affair with a minor, Danielle, your niece’s best friend, she was murdered and somehow is probably connected to this murder-for-hire organization that I know you have used.”
“First of all she wasn’t a minor. She was ninet
een…”
“Oh wow, I guess that makes you look good. You are nearly twice her age.”
“It was something that happened. And those murder charges are all based on circumstantial evidence.”
“Well, here’s something else that happened. Not only do they have you on tape planning to cover up some type of killing, but they have a witness that can put you at the scene of at least two of the murders…”
“What? That’s bullshit! That idiot Rightchus, he’s a fucking liar!” Eric snarled too loudly.
His reaction caused the restaurant to stir when his fist collided with the table’s California oak top. Other diners in the eatery shot looks of concern at Eric and Sophia. He angrily gulped his wine while returning their stares.
“I remember when you used to be such a decent guy. Now I really don’t know who you are, Eric.”
“You know me Sophia. We been together for seven damn years. I’m the guy you were gonna marry…”
“Okay what about your nemesis, huh? He carved his name on my back with his cigarette lighter, Eric.”
“I offered to pay for the surgery—”
“What about the mental scar. It still burns, Eric.”
“I’ll heal all that—we were in love—”
“Yes, were… But that guy I loved has since left the building. Now what’s left is someone that not even I know.”
The fourth glass of wine slipped down easier, soothing Sophia’s parched throat. Eric watched her pour another glass, emptying the bottle. She drank her wine and drained the glass. Then she got up and walked away from the table taking her handbag with her.
“Where are you going?”
“I’m leaving. I want to get far away from you Eric!” she spat.
Sophia kept walking while other diners peeked at the couple’s lives heading to disarray. Eric dropped a few bills on the table.
“Sophia, wait up,” he said.
“It’s too late. It’s over, Eric.”
She walked away to the exit. Eric jumped up and was about to start after her, but the waiter intervened. Checking the money on table, he pointed to his hand. Eric was about to walk outside after Sophia, but collapsed in his seat.
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