Always in My Heart

by A. C. Arthur

  “Three people,” Rico said, shaking his head. “Three deaths because of a traffic stop. Are you kidding me?”

  “That’s all we know for now. More details are bound to come out once the cops really get into their investigation,” Sam said.

  Rico nodded. He took a few steps away from Sam and Karena, closing his eyes as he came to a stop. Eva. Her face was all he could see when he closed his eyes.

  He turned back to Sam. “Is Eva still here? Do you know where she is?”

  Sam nodded. “When we got here one of the nurses told us that the family had gone to the chapel. That’s where we were coming from when we saw you. They’d already left.”

  “I’m going to her apartment,” Rico said and was walking away without waiting for Sam’s response.

  He had to get to Eva now. Nothing else mattered but her. He’d think about the rest later. He’d find out exactly what happened to Makai and decide then what he wanted to do about it, but for now, it was just about her.

  #

  It was over.

  Eva went into Makai’s bedroom and slammed the door. She fell onto his bed face-first and sobbed brokenly into the pillows. They smelled just like him which only made her tears come faster and her chest heave more painfully. If she had bothered to turn on a light and looked around she would see him everywhere in this room. From the posters of NBA and NFL players to the desk in the corner with every bobble head character from the newest Star Wars movie lined across the edge as if they were ready for some futuristic battle. It was all Makai.

  He loved sports, playing and watching them. Movies were his next favorite, sci-fi or action. He read a lot, but listened to music even more. He loved eating collard greens and creamed spinach, but hated brussel sprouts with a passion. When he was twelve, he’d come home from school crying because he was short and stocky and the boys talked about him in gym class. That next summer, as if the Almighty had heard his plea, Makai had gone through a growth spurt and by the time he returned to school in the fall he’d grown four inches and had slimmed out considerably. He’d kept that tall and slim physique by playing ball or running. He hadn’t had a girlfriend since Patricia, almost seven months ago. He wanted…

  Eva shook her head, because it was no longer what Makai liked, had gone through or what he wanted out of his life. He was gone now.

  The call had come just as she’d stepped out of the shower. She’d been painting all day long, trying like hell not to think of the fact that Rico seemed to be ignoring her. Over the last few weeks she’d grown accustomed to talking to him via text or email. Kenya had even inquired that she’d never known Eva to check her email on her phone as much as she was doing now. Of course, she’d told Kenya that was due to the upcoming show and needing to correspond with her agent on a daily basis. That hadn’t been a total lie, but each time she opened that inbox she’d looked specifically for his name. Who would have ever thought she would become friends with a man like Ricardo Bennett? Things had happened so fast with them and yet, they hadn’t seemed to happen at all. There would be no romance between her and Rico and she’d accepted that, taking the friendship as the best they would get. He hadn’t answered her text last night or her ‘good morning’ text from this morning.

  She’d had to move on, going into her room to paint a new picture, letting her mood guide the moment. A break for lunch sometime in the afternoon and then she’d remained in that room until almost nine that night. Her dinner had been a slice of bread smothered in peanut butter that she’d finished as she’d gone into the bathroom to take a shower. She’d felt relaxed and ready for bed as she dried off. Then she’d slipped into her pajamas and went out into the living room to get her bed ready. That’s when her cell phone rang.

  Her heart had skipped a beat at the thought of it being Rico. But he never called her and she never called him. She’d answered, not in a million years thinking that it would be an emergency room nurse calling to tell her that her brother had been shot.

  It was a traffic stop, that’s what one officer said when she arrived in the emergency room. She’d barely managed to get the words out when she’d dialed Kenya’s number, but her friend had immediately responded that she would meet her there. They’d demanded to see Makai immediately. Instead, a man in a suit had come over and ushered them into a smaller room, down the hall from the main waiting room. That’s where they were seated when the first nurse came to see them.

  “He’s being taken into surgery,” she said to Eva when Kenya had all but pounced on the poor woman. “He sustained three bullet wounds, one to the shoulder, one in the thigh and one in the abdomen. He’s lost a lot of blood, but the surgeons are working on him now and I’ll come back with an update as soon as I know something.”

  Her name was Gwen and she’d walked over to Eva, taking her hand in hers as she spoke softly. Eva had only been able to nod as worry and fear had clogged her throat. Kenya, on the other hand, was not nearly as calm and made sure everyone in the emergency room knew that. Eva had sat in that chair for almost an hour, rubbing her hands together, lowering her head and whispering the same prayer over and over again.

  “Not him, Lord, please, not him. Not tonight. Not this night. Please.”

  Over and over she said the same words as she began to rock back and forth. It was chilly in the room and she’d only worn a short sleeved shirt. It had taken all her coherent thought to put on a bra and shoes before grabbing her purse and leaving the house, so her outfit was actually her pajamas. Eva didn’t care, all that mattered was Makai. He had to walk out of the hospital, he simply had to.

  But he hadn’t.

  Her eyes were puffy and irritated from all the crying, but she couldn’t stop. Makai was dead. He would not come home again. He was gone because the shot to his thigh had ripped through his femoral artery and he’d bled to death on the operating table.

  They’d let her go into another room to see him because when Gwen had returned to deliver the news Eva had fallen to the floor, screaming that it wasn’t true. This room was super quiet and warm, as if it were made comfortable just for Makai. Kenya had stood to Eva’s right, while Gwen stayed near the door. Makai lay there with blood on his neck and face. She couldn’t see anything else because of the light blue sheet they’d used to cover him. His eyes were closed and he looked as if he were sleeping, but Eva knew that he’d never wake up again.

  “Not tonight,” she whispered, turning her face to the side so that she could suck in air and exhale.

  Rolling onto her side Eva pulled her legs up into a fetal position and continued rocking. Makai was gone.

  Tonight. He’d died tonight.

  She couldn’t think of anything else.

  So when the door opened she didn’t hear it. When it closed quietly she didn’t bother to move. And when his strong arms wrapped around her, picking her up from the bed and sitting her in his lap, she didn’t speak.

  Rico held her tight, kissing her forehead as he whispered, “I’m so sorry, baby. So very, very sorry.”

  She grabbed his shirt, clenching the material in her hand as she looked up at him through tear-blurred eyes.

  “He died tonight,” she said, her voice sounding weaker than she’d ever heard it before. “Ma…Makai died tonight.”

  Rico nodded. “I know, sweetie. I’m sorry. I know he’s gone.”

  He was kissing her forehead again, his arms going tighter around her now. Eva shook her head. She pulled on his shirt and made him look at her again.

  “My parents died tonight. All those years ago on this night, they were taken from me and from Makai. And now…”

  She couldn’t speak another word, the tears came too quickly, the pain pulsed too deeply.

  #

  Six days later.

  “Did you see Nadja in the church? Now she knows that’s the last place her trifling ass belongs,” Kenya said.

  She was lighting a cigarette as she talked, and took a puff, breathing out the first streams of smoke as her statement ech
oed throughout the room.

  Eva had a headache. She’d had one every day since that night at the hospital. However, in the days following that Rico had been there with a glass of water and aspirin. He’d stood next to her, holding her hand at the funeral home and when the funeral director had asked for a check Rico had written one. She had life insurance and she’d been sure to say that immediately, but the funeral director was not going to wait until the policy had been processed and for the insurance company to issue her a check. So Rico had paid for it, and she’d let him because her meager savings account was not prepared for a hit like that.

  He’d stayed at her apartment every night, holding her in his arms and letting her know that it was alright for her to sleep. That he wasn’t going to leave her.

  To their credit, Kenya had been there every day as well, as were Sam and Karena. Monica and Alex had stopped by too.

  “After that stunt she tried to pull, I can’t believe she had the nerve to show her face. Did she say anything to you?” Kenya asked.

  Eva had been sitting by the window, staring out at the traffic on the street, her thoughts on their own track. Kenya was still talking. It seemed she’d been talking non-stop this week. After a second of trying to figure out what her friend had said, Eva replied, “Yes. She expressed her condolences.”

  “The nerve!” Kenya continued. “I still don’t trust her. You know she saw Rico there. What if she tries that blackmail stunt again?”

  “She won’t,” Rico said.

  He’d been in the kitchen with Sam and Karena unpacking all the food that had come from Sam’s parents’ restaurant. She would have to remember to send them a card, Eva thought. She had lots of cards to send out.

  “How do you know that for sure? People like that don’t change their stripes,” Kenya quipped.

  “I paid her a little visit explaining that it would be in her best interest to drop any ideas she had of getting money from the Bennetts or bothering Eva again,” Sam said, coming into the living room to take a seat on the couch.

  “But you never know,” Kenya insisted.

  Sam shook his head. “I think she’ll think twice before trying again. Her home life will be at stake if she doesn’t.”

  “It’s done, Kenya. I’m not worried about her anymore,” Eva stated.

  Kenya took another puff from her cigarette. Eva watched her. Kenya had given up smoking five years ago.

  “Well, I’m going to change and go downtown to join the protests. You should think about showing up, Eva. They’ve been out there since the shooting and a statement from you would be good,” Kenya told her.

  “I don’t know,” Eva said.

  “What do you mean you don’t know?” Kenya asked. She’d already stood and was going to retrieve her purse from the table where she’d put it down.

  “I just left my brother’s funeral, Kenya. The last thing I want to do is be around a lot of people,” Eva replied.

  Kenya held the cigarette between her fingers now, pointing toward Eva. “Those ‘people’ are out there to show their support of you and all that you’re going through.”

  “Maybe we should talk about this tomorrow,” Rico suggested as he’d come to stand by Eva.

  “Tomorrow won’t change what happened,” Kenya continued. “That cop shot and killed Makai and I don’t care that he did have the nerve to bring his sorry ass up in here yesterday!”

  Eva had known that would come up. She’d been dreading talking about what had happened just moments before she’d left the house to go to the viewing.

  “I agree with Rico, Kenya. Why don’t we all talk about this tomorrow?” Karena suggested. “Today has been such a trying day already.”

  Kenya apparently was not trying to hear that and Eva watched with growing concern.

  “Nobody cares what his guilty conscience has to say. He killed Makai and that’s the bottom line. I hope they toss him in jail for the rest of his life!” Kenya yelled.

  Everyone in the room looked at her, but no one spoke again. Eva figured nobody knew what to say. Kenya had been there for Eva, always. Since the day they’d met there had been nothing that Eva had gone through that Kenya wasn’t there to support her with. And through the years Kenya had come to love Makai as if he were her own younger brother. All of this meant that Eva could definitely relate to how Kenya was feeling. She was hurt and grieving, and for that reason, Eva decided to keep her voice level and calm as she spoke.

  “I don’t want to join the protests, Kenya. I was actually thinking of pleading with the public to go home and get on with their lives,” she spoke slowly, her hands shaking just a little.

  “Are you crazy? Was I at that hospital by myself? Did you not see what that cop did to Makai?” Kenya asked, shaking her head in disbelief.

  Eva remembered. She doubted that in a million years she would ever forget the sight of her brother lying dead with blood on his neck and face on that bed. She also hadn’t forgotten the night she’d learned of her parents’ death. The hollow burning in the center of her chest was identical. Still, she couldn’t forget the sound of Officer Alfred Peterson’s voice as he’d spoken to her yesterday afternoon right here in her living room.

  “I want to extend to you my deepest sympathies,” he’d said, holding the flat cap he’d snatched from his head the moment he entered the apartment in both his hands.

  “I know that I’m probably the last person you want to see or hear from right now, but I had to come,” he’d continued.

  Eva had looked to Rico in question, wondering why he’d opened the door and let this man into her home. The officer’s picture and bio had been splashed over every news channel, local and international, since the night of the shooting. He’d been hailed a good cop, giving twelve years of service to the NYPD. He was a father and a husband and a devoted member of his Baptist church. In other words, he was not a killer. Yet, Makai was still dead.

  Rico had held her hand while Sam and—who Eva would later learn was Sam’s brother Detective Cole Desdune—had stood near the door.

  “I don’t understand,” she’d said with a shake of her head.

  “I know,” Officer Peterson replied instantly. His hands continued to twist that cap, ringing it tightly. “I don’t either. I mean, I was there and I know I shouldn’t be here. My union reps and my lawyer advised against it and so did my captain.”

  He was shaking his head too. “But I couldn’t stay away. I couldn’t not tell you how sorry I am that things turned out the way they did.”

  “That you killed my brother,” she said slowly as if they all needed to remember that fact.

  Peterson nodded. “You’re right. I fired the shots that killed your brother and if I could take it back, I want you to know that I would. Things just happened so quickly. There were so many shots and—”

  His shoulders heaved then and the man that stood more than six feet tall with slightly graying hair and thick lips, dropped his head and cried. Cole had stepped up behind him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

  “I’m just sorry,” was the last thing Officer Peterson had said to her.

  He’d walked out of the apartment with Cole going behind him.

  “I don’t understand,” Eva had said again, her eyes filling with tears as she looked to Rico.

  “The police department’s investigation is complete,” he told her. “They’re having a press conference in a couple of hours. Cole’s friend on the force thought you should know what they’re going to say first.”

  Eva hadn’t wanted to know, and then she knew she had to hear it, for Makai’s sake. She let Rico lead her to the couch where she sat down. Rico sat beside her, still holding her hand, while Sam came over to kneel in front of her.

  “On a Thursday afternoon a police report was filed stating that the record store where Makai worked was robbed by three males,” Sam said. “Early Friday morning, three dead men were found in an alley, two blocks away from the music store. Responding to a tip that the murders were relat
ed to the robbery, Officers Benile and Peterson pulled over the truck registered to the manager of the record store. Other officers had tried contacting the manager by phone and had gone to his apartment earlier in the day. An APB was put out on the manager and his vehicle. Benile and Peterson were heading back to the station when they pulled up behind the truck and ran the tags. They initiated the stop, watched the truck pull over and then that’s when all hell broke loose.”

  Eva had been openly crying by then.

  Sam continued, “The store manager was driving the truck. As soon as he stopped, he jumped out and began shooting. The officers fired back. At some point Makai, who was the passenger in the store manager’s truck, stepped out. Peterson saw the gun in Makai’s hand and continued firing.”

  “No,” Eva had said. “Makai does not have a gun. Why would he need a gun? He was a good student, a good man. He wouldn’t need a gun.”

  Sam nodded. “The gun didn’t have any bullets in it,” he told her. “But it was seen in Makai’s hand and found near his body at the scene. Bullets from that gun had also killed one of the men they’d found in the alley. The other bullets from that murder were from the gun the store manager had.”

  “Wait a minute,” Eva said, lifting a shaking hand to wipe her face. “Just wait a damn minute. You’re trying to tell me that my brother and his store manager killed the guys that broke into their store and then the police killed them?”

  Sam sighed. “I’m telling you that the official report is going to state that the officers were justified in returning fire. Officer Benile was killed in the line of duty.”

  “So was Makai!” Eva yelled.

  “I know that, Eva. I know,” Sam continued. “The statement is going to be that the shooting was justified and the police department has officially ended their investigation. The district attorney may look into it to see if Officer Peterson should be charged.”

  “He shouldn’t have come here,” Eva began saying. “He should not have come here.”