by Mike Sanders
As it stood, the funeral was four hours away and Sapphire had not left the bed, not even for the viewing of the body the night before. Many thought she would not show up for the funeral. She was totally broken.
“Let’s take a long, hot bath.” Justice stood up and gently helped Sapphire off the bed. Justice went into the bathroom and turned on the water to just the right temperature. Then she took out the Dove bubble bath mix and poured it in the tub. As the bubbles started to form and the water rose, Justice continued to stir it with her hand so that there would be an ample amount of bubbles in the tub. She turned the water off, walked back into the room, and saw Sapphire, who was slowly making her way to the bathroom.
Once inside, Justice was at ease as Sapphire undressed herself, got into the tub, and relaxed for a few minutes before washing her body. Justice stood at the door to give her some privacy, but kept an eye on her to make sure that she didn’t try anything stupid. Sapphire asked Justice if she could wash her back for her.
As she washed her girl’s back Justice noticed the healed scars and dark areas where she once had multiple bruises from being beaten like a dog by Carlos’s henchmen two years prior. Justice also washed her hair and in doing so, she felt pity in the pit of her gut as she saw the permanent scar that ran from Sapphire’s right temple all the way below her jaw line. If Sapphire’s complexion were not so dark, you wouldn’t have to look so hard to notice it. Justice had seen the scar many times before and each time it was like seeing it for the first time all over again. That scar told a story that Justice tried so hard to forget, but couldn’t. She admired Sapphire for her strength and determination. She had fought for her life after that beating and had won against the odds. How someone could forgive the people who were responsible for such brutality was beyond Justice’s comprehension, but Sapphire had forgiven and moved on.
Justice finished helping her girl bathe and get prepared so that she could be ready to bury her mother. After she bathed, Sapphire stood up and Justice handed her a towel in which Sapphire proceeded to dry her body.
After putting on her bra and panties, Sapphire put on the black blouse and skirt that Justice had laid out for her.
Justice jumped in and out of the shower after she was confident that Sapphire would continue at the pace she was going and she too got dressed and put on her black dress. When Justice looked at the clock, it was time to get to the church.
***
The rain was pouring and Justice had barely pulled the Audi into the parking space when a man rushed to open her door. “Oh hell no!” she cursed when she realized that man was Carlos. She recognized the smile under that umbrella anywhere and promptly locked the door. Instinctively, she reached for her purse but forgot that her gun was not in her possession. She wished she had it because she was not afraid to be the cause of a double funeral. Although Carlos had shown signs of remorse for his past actions, she still didn’t fully trust the man and had no idea of his intent.
“Please . . . Y’all let’s not do this,” Sapphire started to beg. “I just wanna get this over with.”
Justice saw the despair in Sapphire’s eyes and she realized that she too wanted to get this over with so that she could get back home and take care of business. Justice sucked her teeth and let out a loud sigh before unlocking the doors. She opened her door hard, hitting Carlos on his knee. “Shit!” he cursed as he hopped in place on one leg for a moment.
Carlos adjusted his umbrella to shield Justice from the rain once she was to exit the car. “Good mornin’” He greeted and beamed those pearly whites that she had once fell so weak for. As Justice carefully climbed out of the car, she subtly noticed how good Carlos looked in his tailored suit and fedora. Once out of the car, Justice mumbled, “Make a bitch act up if you want to,” as she looked him dead in the eyes. Her heels had her towering over Carlos by an inch or two. “I still won’t hesitate to show my natural black ass . . . house of God or not. Keep that in mind.” She knew Carlos was anxious as hell to try to talk to her, but she was still not ready to cross that bridge. Therefore, she tried to nip it in the bud.
“Look, ma.”
“Justice, my name is Justice and whateva you gotta say to me can wait ‘til after the funeral. Just let me and my girl go lay her mama to rest in peace.” Justice snatched the umbrella from his hand, leaving Carlos with only the fedora to shield his head from the downpour. Justice rushed over to Sapphire’s side and opened her door and Sapphire stepped under the umbrella. They quickly walked off so they could get to the front of the line and inside the church to start the processional.
“You need to forgive that man,” Sapphire said weakly while they got to their place in front of the procession line.
“What?” Justice bit her tongue to keep from going off on her best friend at her mother’s funeral. She couldn’t believe the words coming out of Sapphire’s mouth, and she still couldn’t believe Sapphire didn’t feel some kind of way for how Carlos’s men had beaten the brakes off of her ass.
Just the sound of Carlos’s voice took her back two years. Past scenes played in her mind like a movie. Briefly, she remembered the war that had gotten started that eventually caused the demise of innocent people. Carlos may not have pulled the trigger, but his anger and rage at the wrong niggas caused people to lose their lives over something that had nothing to do with them as far as Justice was concerned.
“I’m just saying,” Sapphire said solemnly, “I have forgiven him and moved on and you need to do the same. After all, we are in church and my mama would have a fit if she could see how you’re acting right now.”
Justice wanted to rebut, but she knew Sapphire was right so she said nothing. Out the corner of her eye, she saw where Carlos and another man who looked almost identical to Carlos, along with Supreme were getting in line behind Sapphire’s family and her mother’s friends. As Justice stared at the younger man beside Carlos, she squinted. I know that ain’t Warren lookin’ all grown an’ shit. The last time she had seen him he was running behind Carlos and his boys, begging to get into trouble.
Because of her charitable work in the community and how well known Mrs. Evans was, the church was packed beyond capacity. The doors were opened and Sapphire and Justice were ushered in first. They were led to the front of the church where the casket was. Once in front of the casket, the reality of her mother being gone washed over Sapphire like a riptide. She lost it! Justice tried her best to hold her up. Through the tears, Sapphire managed to look down inside the open casket and saw her mother’s still face. Sapphire’s emotions were so overwhelming; she could no longer contain the vomit that was coming up from her stomach. She threw up everywhere.
***
Justice and Sapphire stepped foot into the limo to go the burial ground where her mother would be buried. The family had opted to give Sapphire her space and the driver put up the privacy screen so Sapphire wouldn’t be disturbed. She and Justice sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity before Sapphire finally spoke. She looked up at Justice and sniffled. “When I go, I wanna go in peace. I don’t wanna have any regrets and I don’t wanna hold any animosity. I wanna have a free heart . . . just like I know my mamma did. I’mma be all right because I know where she at. She up there rejoicing right now.” Sapphire let a weak smile splay across her lips as she looked toward the roof of the car. She blew her nose into a handkerchief and then looked back over at Justice. “It took me a minute to forgive Carlos, but I did and I think you should, too.”
Oh, here she goes with this forgiveness shit, Justice harped in her mind as she thought about how nice and friendly Sapphire and Carlos had been toward one another. It was as if she had forgotten all that he had done to her. Something just didn’t seem to click with that shit. “I’ll work on it,” Justice nonchalantly replied as she looked out the limo window.
Just then, Sapphire’s phone rang. She looked down and saw a number with a 305 area code. Now is not the time, she thought then pushed the ignore button and told Justice “Look at
it this way.” Sapphire sniffled a little. “You still wanna get Tan, right?”
Justice was astonished by how fast Sapphire wanted to talk about revenge when she was just talking about forgiveness. Nevertheless, Justice would rather talk about murdering Tan than thinking about Ms. Evans being minutes away from being stuffed in a hole forever. And if this meant getting her girl’s mind off of it for a minute then she had no problem continuing the conversation. “Yeah, you know I want that bitch.”
“Carlos told me that he still deals with Tan, even though she ain’t his main supplier anymore.”
Justice sat up. “Oh really?”
“We talk. Carlos tells me a lotta things. Just like a man to tell all his business. Sometimes, I think he tells me more than he realizes. A spiteful bitch would . . .” She cut her sentence short. “Neva mind. But anyway, I think he’s still tryna convince me to forgive him, not believing that I already have.”
Justice smiled as she realized that her ex-boyfriend might really be trying to make amends. If all else failed, he would at least be her best option to get to Tan. Therefore, she decided that it might be worth getting close to Carlos to get to her goal.
After a short ride to the burial site, the limousine stopped. Justice looked out of the window and saw the rain still falling and the tent set up in preparation for where the services were going to be. She looked at Sapphire, glad to see that she was more composed than at the church.
Their door opened and a hand reached in and Sapphire stepped outside. Justice followed and realized that her hand was in Carlos’s. They walked to the burial site and for a moment Justice was still mad at Carlos for everything, but then she decided that maybe Carlos wasn’t so bad . . . for now. Sapphire took her seat at the head of her mother’s casket and Justice and Carlos sat next to her like a grieving couple.
This is wrong, Justice thought, Carlos should be sitting next to Sapphire consoling her, not trying to console me. Justice had put aside her own grieving for Ms. Evans to be there for her friend and she realized it was a nice gesture that someone had thought of her feelings.
The burial service was fast and short with the pastor reminding everyone that death was a necessary part of life and that they all would pass through that tunnel someday. Justice didn’t want to think about her mortality, so she turned her thoughts to home and her business. She briefly wondered what was going on at Phire & Ice.
As Justice rose up to get her flower, she spotted a silver Jaguar creeping along the street. A light-skinned chick that greatly resembled an enemy was behind the wheel. “Can’t be,” Justice mumbled to herself.
“What was that?” Carlos inquired, as he looked in the direction that Justice’s eyes were focused on.
“Oh, nothing. I just thought I saw a dead bitch driving.”
The venom in her voice did not go unnoticed by Carlos. Justice stared as the car made an abrupt stop, then eventually crept off in the direction it was going in.
Justice and Sapphire watched the rest of the service continue, complete with the casket being lowered into the ground. Other mourners patted her and Justice on the back as they watched the dirt being thrown on the casket. “You ready to leave?” Carlos asked them.
“No,” Sapphire said as she looked up. “I’mma stay until they throw the last speck of dirt on her grave.”
Carlos walked away and Warren turned to walk off. Preme had already limped ahead. Justice watched Carlos and his goons walk away. She looked back in the direction where she thought she saw Tan’s car and realized that she might be extending her stay in Charlotte.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Tan and To’Wanda rode down Statesville Avenue after picking up some money from one of Tan’s workers. She had a little over an hour to make it to the bank so she could deposit the money along with the receipts from the construction company so the money could be “washed and dried” over the next few days.
Her phone rang and she recognized the theme song from Looney Toons that she had assigned to Loon for his ringtone. To’Wanda busted out laughing. “You know you wrong.”
“It’s how I feel, baby.” Tan paused to pick up the phone. She put Loon on speaker so To’Wanda could hold the phone while she talked and drove. “Speak.”
“I know who did that shit at the hotel . . . and I’mma handle it,” Loon boasted over the loud noise that sounded like a live band in the background. Tan and To’Wanda looked at one another and shook their heads.
“Where are you at?” Tan asked.
“Huh?”
“Where you at?” Tan repeated herself.
“I’m at the strip club gettin’ some lunch,” Loon shouted over the music, while watching the girl on stage make it clap.
“Why you call me and you can’t hear? Hit me back when you leave.”
“Aiight, ‘cause you gonna wanna hear this.”
To’Wanda gave Loon the tone and she handed Tan the phone as she put it back in her purse. “Dumb motherfucker’s gonna make me kill his ass sooner than I anticipated,” Tan spat as she struggled to see out of the window. Even with the windshield wipers on high speed, it still looked as though they had gone through a laser car wash instead of driving through a busy street. Everyone was driving at a slow pace and To’Wanda hadn’t even wanted to come out of the house, but she compromised because Tan hadn’t said anything when she went back to Marques alone for some more dick.
“Aye, you think this is the church where they were having the funeral for that bitch’s mama?” Tan asked as she slowed and made a right to enter the church where the funeral procession was leaving. Tan drove all the way to the end and then put her blinkers on so she could follow the procession.
“I don’t think so.” To’Wanda looked outside, but of course, she couldn’t really recognize anyone who looked like Sapphire. “You think Justice knows Sapphire’s mother died?”
Tan looked at her as if she was stupid. “Why you think I asked if this was Sapphire’s mama’s funeral? You know it ain’t because a bitch lookin’ for Sapphire. I know that bitch every move. If I wanted her, I could’ve been gotten her ass. She ain’t no threat. It’s that bitch, Justice. I bet you that bitch here, too. I need to murk her right there in that church and they can continue the funeral service with an extra body.” Tan’s Spanish was getting thick and To’Wanda knew she was getting heated. There was no telling what she would do.
To’Wanda shook her head. She thought to herself if Tan was to do something stupid, there was no way in hell she was getting out in the rain to jump on the driver’s side so she could play the get-a-way driver. Hell to the naw! She didn’t sign up for that shit.
As the cars moved, Tan followed the procession to a burial ground just a few blocks away. They all drove up to the burial plot and when they pulled over and parked, Tan parked right behind them. To’Wanda looked at her as if she was crazy. “So if you see her, you gonna just kill her right here, just like that?”
“I should, shouldn’t I?” Tan glared over at To’Wanda as if she had just made a wonderful suggestion. She knew murder wasn’t To’Wanda’s forte, and she really didn’t want to show To’Wanda that beastly side of her, but if the opportunity presented itself she would definitely capitalize on it.
Tan pulled out of the parking space and drove along the street to get a closer look at the burial. She wanted to make sure she was at the right funeral.
“You serious right now? This is insane.” To’Wanda had tried to reason with Tan as she continued to creep forward.
Tan looked at her and rolled her eyes. As the car crept along, Tan strained her eyes to try to get a good look but the rain was a distraction. All of a sudden, her eyes widened as she saw Carlos standing next to someone who looked like none other than her target. “Wow!” Tan laughed at the irony of the sight before her. I knew that bitch would show her face. “I told you she was here!” she excitedly stated as she turned to To’Wanda. To’Wanda sat up, looked past Tan, and spotted Justice as well. She immediately got nervous because sh
e knew Tan’s blood was boiling.
“Yo, you spazzin’ right now,” To’Wanda said as she sat back in the seat and crossed her arms while rolling her eyes at Tan. She was getting upset because her job was to count money, help launder it, and when necessary assist with the delivery of work to Tan’s minions. Being an accessory to a conspiracy to commit murder was not in her job description. To’Wanda may have been a hood chick and loved hood niggas and bitches, but she was a lover at heart. The last thing she wanted was for someone to get murked, even if they did cause her to be tied up and smacked around for a minute. Nevertheless, she knew Tan wanted to get Justice because she was more than certain that one day she would come after her for killing her brother.
Tan felt as if killing Monk was just a wound to Justice. Moreover, her father had always told her that there was nothing more dangerous than a wounded animal left alive. Tan came to an abrupt stop as she ran over a hump. “Damn, I didn’t see that muthafuckin’ speed bump. Shit!” Tan cursed, realizing that she had blown her cover and there was a good chance she had caught someone’s attention.
“Fuck it!” Tan said. “If it was them, and I’m pretty sure it was, then they just got their lives saved.” Tan continued to creep slowly and drive in the rain away from the burial service. She looked in the rearview mirror to see if anyone was pointing at her. Realizing her paranoia was getting the best of her, she started laughing. “Why the fuck am I trippin’? I can touch that bitch anytime I want, but I should’ve been took my ass to Chicago and got rid of that chinky-eyed bitch.”
“You know you couldn’t up and do that. It was too soon. Now enough time has passed that you won’t be suspected,” To’Wanda stated. Although she didn’t want any part of the violence, she knew not to refute Tan.
