by BlaQue
“I promise I won’t rat you out, Takiya. Now please tell me what happened last night because I don’t remember anything,” I said sheepishly. I wanted to kick myself for giving in to her so easily, but that was nothing new. I had always given in to her and today was no different.
I swear if you ever tell a soul about this you’re gonna regret it,” she threatened.
“I swear I won’t say anything,” I said, desperate to know what she’d done.
Takiya giggled and my blood ran cold in my veins. For some reason, I knew I had just made a deal with Lucifer himself.
“Remember that bitch ass bouncer from last night?”
I nodded my head up and down slowly. “Yeah, I remember him,” I said carefully. All of sudden, I remembered the threat Takiya had made the night before to the rude bouncer. She had told him to watch his back and something told me she meant every word of the threat.
“Well, let’s just say we paid him a visit after you thought we called it a night.”
“What do you mean we paid him a visit, Takiya? Now is not the time to be vague. What did you do?”
Takiya giggled again and it made my skin crawl.
“I told him he was gonna regret trying to play us for a fool. After you dropped Cassandra and Vernita off, we left out and waited for the fat fuck to leave the club for the night. When he wobbled his steroid injected ass to his car…we shut him up for good. I bet he won’t call another woman a bitch. If he does, it will be with pen and paper because he doesn’t have lips to call anyone anything anymore.”
“What do you mean he doesn’t have lips? I’m so confused,” I said shivering.
“You can’t be that dumb, YaSheema. I cut off his lips and tongue so he can’t ever call another woman a bitch again. I left him in the parking lot of the club; and if he’s lucky, someone found his bitch ass leaking beside his car where we left him.”
“What the fuck do you mean we? I ain’t have nothin’ to do with that shit!” I jumped up and stripped out of my blood-stained clothes in a panic. I heard footsteps outside my door. I looked at my arms and upper torso which were covered in brown, dried blood and quickly threw on my robe. I couldn’t let Uncle Neko or Aunt Rhina see me like this. They would both surely freak out. As soon as I slid the bathrobe over my body, there was a knock on my bedroom door.
“YaYa, are you up? Breakfast is ready,” I heard Aunt Rhina chirp from the other side of the door.
“I’ll be right down,” I said, trying my best not to break down. I wanted to fling the door open and confess what Takiya had done; but there was no way that Rhina or Uncle Neko would believe me. Knowing Rhina, she would haul me off to the police station her damn self.
“I think you should just let things be. If you tell either of them anything, it could mean trouble for all of us. You should just let things be the way they are and keep it moving; because if you don’t, you will pay the consequences.”
I sunk back down on my bed and thought about what Takiya said. I didn’t want to take the fall for a crime I didn’t remember committing. After thinking on it long and hard, I tried rationalizing things. I couldn’t remember doing any of the things Takiya said we did. If I couldn’t remember doing them, then I was convinced that I hadn’t done them. This wasn’t the first time that Takiya had tried to sway me to believe something other than the truth. I crept out of my room and tiptoed out down the hallway to the bathroom. I turned the shower on as hot as it would go and got in. I scrubbed my skin raw.
“Just in case,” I said out loud. I think I was trying to make myself believe that I hadn’t done anything Takiya accused me of doing.
Boy, oh boy, was I wrong.
Chapter Ten
Gone
Neko Reynolds
The day I had been dreading was finally here. It was the day YaSheema was leaving for D.C. No matter how hard I tried to keep her from attending school in the District, the more she protested. I eventually gave in and I’m starting to regret it. My stomach keeps flip flopping and something is telling me I made a huge mistake.
Today was the day I drove my niece to D.C. and dropped her off for college. The thought of leaving her there made me feel queasy. Rhina fixed breakfast and we were waiting for YaSheema to join us before we hit the road. Rhina had even gone through the trouble of packing lunch for us so we didn’t have to buy food while we were on the road. I think she knew I was nervous about going home. D.C. held a lot of bad memories for me and I didn’t want to revisit any of them.
“Are you ok?” Rhina said in her sexy, thick Latin accent. The sound of her voice ordinarily made my dick stand to attention, but my mind was in other places. I barely noticed Rhina staring at me.
I snapped out of my thoughts and focused on my wife who was standing in front of me with her hands on her thick hips.
“Neko, are you gonna be alright? You’ve been real quiet for the past few days and I don’t like it.”
“Huh? Yeah. I’m fine. I think I might be coming down with something,” I responded, hoping I could hide the lie I was trying to feed her.
“I think you’re nervous about taking that trip back home. Maybe we should just fly her up North and ship her things to her. I know D.C. harbors a lot of bad memories for you, but maybe her going up there will show her whatever it is that she is looking for. You know…sooner or later, she is gonna go if she is that determined to make her way up there. There is really nothing we can do to stop her, Neko,” Rhina said, rubbing my shoulders.
“I know. I just don’t want her to…” I stopped myself from finishing my statement. Even Rhina didn’t know everything about my family and why I had flown the coop to Atlanta. She knew bits and pieces. I never gave her the full rundown of my family history. I figured the less she knew, the better off we’d all be.
“I don’t want her to get caught up in the city life. She ain’t built for it. You know we were raised up there. YaSheema is a country girl. I just don’t want anyone taking advantage of her up there,” I said, trying to disguise my worry with another lie.
“Papi, you’re gonna have to let her go. There’s nothing you can do about it but pray for her well-being. Just focus on the fact that she is going to school and she wants to make something of herself. Be content that she is making the right decision by going to school. Who knows…this might be a good experience for her. Just think of all of the good things that can come from her going to school, Papi. We get to be all alone. We can do it all over the house and not worry about YaSheema and her friends catching you bending me over the counter in the kitchen and banging my back out,” Rhina said, seductively nibbling my ear.
Rhina’s long, soft hair tickled my neck and the reaction that I was used to having toward my wife returned. I felt my manhood rise and stand at attention. Rhina knew just what I liked and always gave me what I needed right when I needed it. Her small hands found their way to my crotch and she started massaging my dick right there at the kitchen table.
“See, Papi…our niece going away could be good for all of us,” Rhina giggled as she worked her hand up and down my shaft through my pajama pants.
Right when I was ready to take my wife up on her offer to bend her over the counter, we heard YaSheema making her way down the staircase to join us for breakfast. Rhina took a seat at the table with a wide grin across her face while I scooted my chair up to hide my woody from my niece. If YaSheema had caught us in the act, she would have been grossed out. She never liked seeing Rhina and I affectionate with one another; so her catching us in the act would’ve driven her crazy.
I sipped my coffee and tried to pretend that I wasn’t about to fuck my wife right there in the kitchen when YaSheema walked in. When I looked up at YaSheema, she seemed somewhat vacant. She wasn’t acting like today was her big day to move out on her own. She took a seat at the kitchen table and just sat there.
“Well, good morning to you too,” I said sarcastically. YaSheema didn’t seem to think my joke was funny. She didn’t even crack a smile. Inste
ad, she raised her eyebrow in my direction and then pushed her eggs around her plate. Rhina must’ve picked up on YaSheema’s behavior too because she gave me a disapproving look.
“Is everything alright, YaSheema? You don’t seem like you’re well,” Rhina said to her.
“I’m fine. I think maybe I’m nervous about the move,” YaSheema responded, pushing her eggs in circles.
YaSheema had a spaced-out look on her face. She was there physically, but I could tell something was troubling her internally. “You know it ain’t too late to stay here in Georgia for college. There are plenty of good schools down here that you can attend. With the kind of grades you have, it should be no problem transferring to one of the schools here,” I said, making one last ditch attempt to keep my niece close to me.
“Damn, Uncle Neko! How many times do we have to go through the same thing? I’m going to Howard in D.C. and there’s nothing you or anyone else can do to stop me,” YaSheema said, rolling her grey eyes that mirrored my own and sucking her teeth. Then she glared in Rhina’s direction. Over the past few months, she had gotten real comfortable with talking to me in an aggressive manner and I was getting tired of her mouth.
“I think you should watch your mouth, YaSheema Nicole. I ain’t one of your lil’ friends; the last time I checked, I was frontin’ the whole bill for your education and you ain’t gonna sit here and disrespect me,” I said, taking my stance. I had to put my foot down because she was getting carried away.
“I know who paid the bill. You’ve reminded me at least ten times in the last twenty-four hours. How could I forget?” she shot back.
“You know you act just like…” I stopped mid-sentence. I knew I was about to say something I was about to regret and since we were on the verge of taking a nine-hour drive back into the last place on Earth that I wanted to be, I figured I had better chill and refrain from telling YaSheema that she was acting like her crazy ass mother.
“I act like who, Uncle Neko? Who do I act like? Is it my mother you refuse to tell me anything about? Or is it my father that you never mention without cringing? Which one is it?” YaSheema shot back. Her voice was raspy and serious. Her eyes bore holes in me and I just couldn’t take the tension and I damn sure wasn’t about to get into the same argument that we always got into about her parents. Instead, I pushed away from the kitchen table and walked out before things escalated any further. I was already on the verge of telling her some shit she shouldn’t know. I almost told her the truth she had been searching for. I headed up the stairs and I heard Rhina trying to calm YaSheema down.
“I ain’t driving to D.C. with him acting like that. I can take the trip on my own! I’m eighteen and I am more than capable of making the journey by myself,” YaSheema said, still ranting.
“You know your uncle and I love you very much, YaSheema. We’re just trying to protect you; that’s all,” Rhina said, trying to diffuse the situation.
“Protect me from what? How am I supposed to know what to look out for if ya’ll won’t tell me anything? You two keep treating me like I’m fragile.”
“I think maybe the two of us should take that trip to D.C. together. I think your uncle needs some time to cool down. He’s taking it hard that you’re leaving. You’re the only baby we have and now you’re all grown up. It’s hard for him to let you go. I know you won’t believe this, but it’s going to be hard for me to let you go too,” Rhina said sincerely.
“But don’t you have to work?” I heard YaSheema ask Rhina. I knew she wasn’t her aunt’s biggest fan, so I knew she would be against riding nine hours up I-85 with her. I felt dirty listening in on their private conversation, but Rhina was saying everything I felt. I wanted to protect my YaSheema. She didn’t know what kind of world I’d rescued her from, but I guess it was time for me to let her go and do her own thing. I had to find myself and now it was her turn to do the same.
“That’s the good thing about having your own practice. You get to call the shots. So…how about it? I could drive you to D.C. and take a flight back in your uncle’s place,” Rhina offered.
“I don’t think Uncle Neko will let you take me. He’s already bent out of shape over me going. You taking me to school would be the icing on the cake,” YaSheema said to Rhina, finally calming herself down.
“Let me worry about that. Besides, I got people in D.C. That’s where I was born and raised and I ain’t been back since me and Neko relocated here. Let me make a few phone calls to get someone to cover my patients while we’re away and throw a few things in my bags and we can be on the road by noon. How’s that sound?” Rhina bargained with YaSheema.
“I guess so. I just don’t want Unc mad with me,” I heard YaSheema mumble. I couldn’t see her face, but her voice spoke volumes. It was time for me to let her go. I heard Rhina making her way out of the kitchen and I took the steps two at a time to avoid being caught eavesdropping. I made it to the bedroom in enough time to flop down on the bed and pretend I hadn’t been listening in on their conversation right as Rhina made it to our room. Rhina eased her way over to where I was sitting and sat down next to me.
“Papi, I think we need to talk,” Rhina said, looking me in my eyes. I loved this woman. Rhina was the only woman who could make me put up my playa’s card. She had been there for me when I was at my lowest point. I loved her for always taking on my burdens and responsibilities and making them her own. She was tender and loving and that was something I had never felt before. I had been in love only one time before Rhina and that was with Pinky, who was long gone.
“Yeah, what do we need to talk about, Rhi?” I asked, knowing fully well what she was going to say, but I couldn’t let on that I had heard the entire conversation.
“I think I should take YaSheema to D.C. Before you say no, hear me out please, Papi,” Rhina said, rushing her words so I wouldn’t interrupt her. “I think it would be good for us both to take the trip together. You, of all people, know we ain’t been on the best of terms. Maybe she and I can work on our relationship; you can cool off and she will get to school. What do you say?” Rhina asked, taking my hand.
I looked my beautiful wife –who hadn’t aged a bit since the day we met – in her big, brown eyes and smiled. “Baby, I think you should take her to D.C. It will be good for all of us.”
Rhina jumped in my lap and hugged me tight. “Thank you, Papi. I will make sure she’s checked in when we get there. I might even stay a couple days. I got family I haven’t seen in years. I’m sure they’d be happy to see me too!”
I tried to hide my scowl. I don’t know why I gave in so easily. I should have protested or something, but I couldn’t. They both seemed so adamant about going, and now Rhina was making a mini-vacation of the whole thing. My stomach started churning and my gut was telling me to put my foot down and demand that neither of them left Georgia; but my heart was soft on both of these women and I couldn’t tell them no. I plastered a fake smile on my face and pretended I was happy about releasing the two women I loved the most into the wilds of Drama City without me.
Chapter Eleven
Dread
Life of Regret
I woke up in the front seat of my car inside of the mini garage of the guest house. Thank God I didn’t leave the muthafucka’ running or I may have died from carbon monoxide poisoning. I looked around the tiny carport and tried to remember how I had gotten there. The last thing I remembered was catching the liquor store. As soon as I had the bottle of Don Julio in my hands, I popped the cork out and took long gulps of the tequila until my throat burned. Trying to remember how I had gotten home was making my head spin.
I pulled the keys from the ignition and noticed the bottle I purchased the night before was down at my feet and it wasn’t completely empty; so I reached down, scooped up the bottle and headed inside. When I got inside, I couldn’t think of doing anything better than finishing off the bottle and sleeping clear into the next day. I stumbled through the hallway and into the kitchen and searched for a glass. I could
n’t help but laugh at myself when I realized that I hadn’t even bothered to wash the dishes. I hunched my shoulders and found a glass on the counter that didn’t have cigarette or blunt ashes in it and rinsed it out before I retreated to my room. As soon as I kicked off my pants, there was a knock at my front door. I sucked my teeth and hoped that whoever was on the other side would just go away. I wasn’t in the mood for any pep talks or anyone chastising me. I grumbled and opened the door, forgetting that I was only in my boxers. Crack was standing there with a look of disdain written on his face. I guess I would have looked at him funny too if the shoe were on the other foot. I know I was a sight to see standing there in my drawers with a liquor bottle clenched tightly in my hand.
“You care to cover up my nigga and let me in? We need to talk,” Crack said with a serious tone in his voice.
I sucked my teeth and moved aside. I knew he wasn’t going to leave me alone to enjoy my bottle until I let him say his piece.
“I would have dressed for the occasion if I knew I was having company,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. I could see Crack wasn’t interested in any of my dry humor and he barely cracked a smile.
“Dunny, I keep telling you your behavior is gonna land the both of us in the dog house with Queen. When I said I do to her, I promised myself to never end up there again. She told me about the business opportunity she offered you last night,” Crack said, pushing a pile of dirty clothes aside on the worn couch as he took a seat.
“If you came here to talk me into taking that bogus job, you wasted your time, man. That shit ain’t for me. You and I both know I don’t have no business trying to teach anyone anything about music. My whole career went down the toilet when I got mixed up with some chick and her estranged family members. I don’t qualify!” I said, twisting the cap off of the bottle and taking a long gulp from it.
