Stalker

by Brenda Hampton

  He came from the back, zipping up his pants and placing his gun back in the holster. “Done,” he said. “Now, let’s get the fuck out of here.”

  I was down with that. We rushed out of the house and hopped in the car. Eric was breathing hard; so was I.

  “That wasn’t so bad, was it?” He spoke with a wicked grin on his face. “Both of them are history, and you can now live free and move on with your life, Miss Lady.”

  My face twisted. I looked at him like he was crazy. “What do you mean by both of them are history? I only asked—”

  “Yeah, I know. You only wanted me to take care of her, but I took care of him too. After he left your house last night, I followed him and handled him as well.”

  My stomach felt queasy. I wanted to fucking cry. My heart was beating fast. I could barely speak.

  “Wha . . . What did you do to him, Eric? Please, God, no, don’t tell me you killed him.”

  A confused look washed across his face. “I thought that was what you wanted. Didn’t you want him dead too?”

  “No no no!” I pounded my fist against the dash. “No, Eric! It was not what I wanted! I wanted you to kill her, not him! What in the hell did you do to him?” Tears rushed to the rims of my eyes. This couldn’t be happening. There was no way in hell Brent was dead.

  “Listen, you’d better calm the fuck down. I did this shit for you!” Eric darted his finger at me. “You need to be a little more appreciative of my hard work. I wanted to make this look like a murder-suicide, so I knocked him off and put him in the basement while she wasn’t here last night. After I drop you off, I’m coming back to take her body downstairs with his. Whenever they’re found, that’s what it’ll look like.”

  I could’ve died, right then and there. No, this fool didn’t kill my Brent. No, he fucking didn’t! I hopped out of the car and rushed back inside. I had to see this shit for my damn self. Maybe I could save Brent. Maybe it wasn’t too late for him. Damn Eric for doing this! I hoped like hell that what he’d said wasn’t true.

  Unfortunately for me, when I found the basement door and hurried downstairs, I saw Brent. His body was lying on the cold concrete floor. He was flat on his stomach and wasn’t breathing at all. In tears, I ran over to him and fell to my knees. I turned him over and tried to pull his heavy, limp body on my lap.

  “I’m sorry, baby,” I said, rubbing his handsome face. “I’m sorry that he did this to you. I didn’t want him to do this. You have to know that I didn’t want this for youuuuu!”

  Eric rushed down the stairs, but I paid him no mind. All I wanted was Brent. I lowered my head, covered his mouth with mine, and tried to breathe some life into him.

  “Come on, baby,” I cried. “Wake up! You’ve got to get up! I need you. Now that she’s gone, I need youuu!”

  “For the record, bitch, I’m not gon’ anywhere. And the only person who needs to wake up is you.”

  My head snapped up. Standing right behind Eric was Lajuanna. My face scrunched, and when I looked down at Brent, his eyes popped open.

  “You’re done,” he said. “This is over, and your ass will be going to jail for a very long time.”

  What in the hell did he just say?

  I was shocked beyond words. This couldn’t have been happening—had I really been set up like this? Reality kicked in when Brent stood up and Lajuanna rushed into his arms. She cried hard, as he held her in his arms and rubbed her back.

  “It’s okay, baby,” he said softly. “It’s over. It’s all over with.”

  “Thank God,” she said. “I hope that bitch rots in hell.”

  I remained on the floor like a mannequin. That was until Eric came over and lifted me off the floor. He reached for his handcuffs, before placing my hands behind my back.

  “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used . . .”

  My mouth hung open as I listened to him read me my rights. I stood like a zombie. He was real rough with me too, and when I tried to snatch away from him, he yanked my arms, straightening me up real quick.

  “Step forward and let’s go,” he spoke through gritted teeth. “If you try anything stupid, I will hurt you, you understand?”

  I didn’t doubt him. And as I inched forward, eyeing Brent, Eric yanked my arm. He pulled me up the stairs where I was now in the presence of several more officers, including the white chick who had come to my house, claiming to be Eric’s wife. The pieces of the puzzle were finally coming together. I was set up . . . big time.

  Chapter Seventeen

  As I sat in an interrogation room with my hands cuffed behind my back, Eric sat across from me, leaning back in his chair with a grin on his face. He had been talking shit to me for the past ten minutes, but I hadn’t said a word.

  “So you see, Abby, the first time I set my eyes on you, I knew you were a liar. Trouble was written all over you. I’m paid to know when people are bullshitting me, and I could see right through you. Not once did you have me fooled, and in addition to that, I’d known Brent from college. He just wasn’t the kind of man you were making him out to be. So me, him, and his beautiful wife had a serious discussion one day. They didn’t know how to stop you, but I did. You were good, baby. In every single way, you were masterful.”

  I swallowed the lump in my throat and turned my head to the side. Maybe I had been masterful, but in the end, it surely didn’t feel that way. I hated that it had come to this. The last thing I wanted to do was sit there and listen to Eric tell me how I’d been played. He gloated about his little plan, and he just couldn’t shut his big freaking mouth.

  “I have to ask if all of this was worth it. Was Brent Carson really worth it? You just couldn’t leave him alone, even when he told you that he didn’t want to be with you anymore. Sometimes, Abby, you just have to walk away. There is a reason for everything, even if it sometimes hurts too damn bad.”

  I remained quiet, but if he kept at it, I had something for him.

  “I’m not saying that Brent’s actions were right. He was dead wrong. Wrong for how he treated you, but you shouldn’t have done the shit you did. That was totally uncalled for, and somebody could have gotten killed. You were lucky, damn lucky, that it wasn’t you. And in the end, you lost out big time. I doubt that you’ll ever see your daughter again, and what about your little precious grandbaby? You’ll be lucky to see pictures of him. She had a boy, by the way, and you were too busy in Brent’s business that you didn’t even know that. So, I have to ask you again . . . Was Brent Carson really worth it?”

  I answered when I gathered spit in my mouth and shot it at his face. It dripped down his face like a slow tear. He wiped it, then got up and grabbed the back of my neck. He slammed my head on the table, holding me down so I wouldn’t move.

  “Was he fucking worth it, you stupid bitch? You fucked your life up for what? Nothing! For a man who didn’t give a damn about you! He didn’t give a shit, Abby, and all you had to do was walk away! You should have left him alone and let him be with the woman he truly loved!”

  My face hurt as it was pressed hard against the table. I knew what he said was right, but it was just the way he’d said it that hurt. He released my neck, and when I sat up straight in the chair, tears rolled down my face.

  “Aw, so now you want to cry about it. Why are you crying, Abby? It’s too late for those tears, and you know it.”

  The door opened and the white officer, his so-called wife, came into the room. She gave Eric a folder, then she looked at me.

  “Is he being nice to you?” she said, waiting for a response. Just to fuck with Eric, I responded to her question.

  “No, he’s not being nice. But he was real nice when he had his dick in me.”

  “Well, that’s how some men are, sweetheart. They’re mean and ugly, like I was when I came to your house that day. And for the record, I would never be married to an asshole like him.”

  She laughed. So did he.

  “Get out of here,” he said. “And I have b
een nice. Real nice, considering all that she’s done.”

  The woman officer closed the door. Eric sat back down to examine what was in the file. He rubbed his chin and nodded his head.

  “This doesn’t look good, baby. You’re in a whole lot of trouble. I have to ask if you even want to call an attorney.”

  I just stared at him. He knew I was fucked. An attorney couldn’t save me; I wasn’t about to waste my time or money on one. If the court wanted to assign me a public defender, so be it.

  Eric closed the file. “So you still won’t talk to me, huh? What if I put you on this table, open those pretty legs, and stick my tongue where the sun don’t shine? Will you talk to me then? I would hope so, especially since you always used to talk when we, you know, did the wild thing.”

  I wanted so badly to tell this fool how bad his sex really was. But what good would that do me right now? None. I kept quiet, hoping that this would all be over with soon. Unfortunately for me, though, Eric tortured the shit out of me. He kept going on and on about what I had done, about Brent, about his wife, about Kendal and my new grandbaby. When Eric spoke of him, it brought more tears to my eyes. I was hurt. Devastated, more like it, because this was all on me. Kendal needed me. I failed her. I failed myself, and I failed her child.

  “For the last time,” Eric said. “Was your fight to conquer Brent Carson worth it?”

  I took a deep breath, looked him straight in the eyes, and finally answered his question.

  “With all my heart, yes, he was.”

  Eric reached out and slapped the shit out of me. My head jerked to the side and hung low.

  Not saying another word, he opened the door and walked out.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Being in orange had become my new black, and being in jail was no picnic. I wanted a do over, but unfortunately for me, I wasn’t going to get it. This was now my reality, and now, Brent and his wife had gotten their happily-ever-after. Me, on the other hand, I got nothing. Nothing but a hard-ass bed, terrible food, and mediocre pussy sucking every now and then. The only good days came when Kendal and my grandbaby visited me. They’d only done so twice. She didn’t have to, because Lord knows I had dropped the ball on her as a mother. I didn’t see it then, but I sure as hell saw it now. I had time to reflect on many things. If I could turn back the hands of time, I most certainly would.

  I sat in my orange jumpsuit in the visiting quarters waiting for Kendal and my grandson, Miguel, to come see me. He was adorable, and it always brightened my day just to be able to hold him in my arms. I was sure that Kendal would, eventually, stop bringing him here to see me. But for now, I savored every little minute we had together.

  Kendal, on the other hand, was doing well, considering all that had happened. She had a job, she and her boyfriend lived together, and she even mentioned something about marrying him. I would miss that day too, because for the next thirty-five years, this place was my new home.

  Feeling kind of bad today, I cracked a tiny smile as Kendal came into the room carrying Miguel on her hip. He was playing with a toy and was already getting so big. I was hurting inside, but just so Kendal wouldn’t notice, I did my best to hide my pain very well.

  “Hello, Mama,” she said as I stood to greet her. “How are you today?”

  “I’m hanging in there.” I reached out for my grandson, giving him a big kiss. “Muuuuah! Those cute little chubby cheeks are to die for. I love, love, love you!”

  Miguel giggled as I sat him on my lap. I looked at Kendal. “I love you too, you know?”

  “I do know that, and I wouldn’t be here if I thought otherwise. You just made some really bad mistakes, Mama. Real bad, and nothing that anyone said or did could stop you from wanting Brent so badly.”

  “I know, but can we please not talk about him? I don’t want to talk about him right now. I’d rather talk about what you’ve been up to, how you’ve been, and what your plans are.”

  “I’m doing well. I wish I had a better job, but you already know how that is. I’m going to start looking for another one soon, but my search is going to be outside of St. Louis. That’s what I came here to tell you. I’m planning on moving away from here because the job market is slow. I can do better in a place like Atlanta, or possibly North Carolina somewhere.”

  That wasn’t good news to me. Kendal was all I had. If she went away, I was sure her visits would come to a halt . . . as would the money she’d been putting on my books.

  “It’s funny how I’m in a position where I have to count on you to take care of me. And even though your move disappoints me, please go live your life to the fullest. I’ll be okay in here. Jus . . . Just visit when you can and be sure to send me some pictures of my grandbaby. I want to see him grow up. Grow into a fine young man.” I paused to look at Miguel who was busy with his toy. “Has your father seen him?”

  Kendal shrugged. “Only one time, believe it or not. You know how he is. He doesn’t have time for anyone but himself. But that doesn’t bother me anymore. It is what it is.”

  I reached over and touched Kendal’s hand. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. We both failed you, but I’m glad that you turned out to be an awesome and caring young lady. If that’s because of Barbara, then I have to thank her for that. She came through for me when I didn’t have my head on straight.”

  Kendal tried to spare my feelings. “Listen, Mama, I can’t sit here and give Barbara all of the credit. You were a great mother until Brent came along. Something about you changed, and while you don’t want to talk about him, we have to. I don’t want to push this under the rug any longer, and even though I made many attempts to get through to you before, you just never listened.”

  “Kendal, if I don’t want to talk about him, I just don’t want to talk about him. It’s best that my memories of him stay buried. I hope you can understand that, can’t you?”

  “I do, but do me a favor, Mama. This may sting, but pick up Miguel for me. Look deep into his eyes, examine his features, especially his nose. Then tell me who you see. Who do you see when you look at him?”

  Kendal’s words made me nervous. I examined Miguel’s features as she had asked. Even looked at his hands and feet, since his shoes were off. On the bottom of one of his feet was a birthmark. It was in the exact same spot as the one on Brent’s foot. Miguel’s eyes were similar. So were his nose and brows. My heart started to pound against my chest. When my eyes shifted to Kendal, she was nodding her head.

  “You rarely questioned why I didn’t like him. I had my reasons, but mainly because he had raped me one day while you were gone. I was afraid of him. That’s why I left for good because you refused to get rid of him. My boyfriend, Micah, is the only one who knows the truth. I thought my baby was his, but when Miguel was born, Brent was written all over him. I was crushed, but Micah is helping me raise Miguel as his son. That’s all he’ll ever know. I ask you to keep this secret between us because I don’t want any of us to hurt anymore because of that damn Brent Carson.”

  I was still. My dry lips stuck together. My eyes were without a blink, and my stomach was in a knot. I wanted to scream. Wanted to cry. Wanted to run out that door and go kill Brent, but I would only get so far. My emotions were about to take over, so I handed Miguel back to Kendal. I stood and kissed them both.

  “Good-bye, Kendal, and don’t you ever come back here with your baby again. Thank you for sharing that with me. All I can say, again, is, I’m sorry.”

  I walked away, didn’t dare look back. And when the guard opened the door for me, I was escorted to my cell where I slowly lay on the cold, hard bed and looked at the ceiling. I closed my eyes and could hear Eric yelling those five words at me, “Is Brent Carson worth it?”

  Hell no, he wasn’t. And in thirty-five years, I would make him pay for all of this. Then again, revenge had never been mine. There was no question in my mind that Brent’s mess would catch up with him and the punishment would be dire.

  Brenda Hampton, Stalker