Her Sweetest Revenge 3

by Saundra

  I could not believe this was happening. This new Rochelle showed no signs of the old one. She was completely unpredictable. I took a step back, but then without thinking I moved forward. I had to try and I didn’t care who saw. “Look, I just wanted to speak. You ain’t gotta trip like this.”

  “Yeah, whatever, just get back before you get me and my new man shot.”

  I froze. I could not believe those words had left her mouth. That hit me like a ton of bricks.

  “What the fuck you just say to me?”

  Rochelle stepped toward me. “Bitch, you heard me.”

  “You know what. Whatever drugs you are on got you saying stupid shit. So I’ma bounce . . .’cause you trippin’ right now.” I turned slowly and walked away to leave. But before I could take a step, Rochelle rushed me.

  Hood, Kalil, and others that were standing around pulled Rochelle off me. With tears pouring down my face, I turned to face Rochelle, who was screaming and fighting Kalil. My heart was torn to pieces. It was all clear to me. All of this was my fault. I was the reason for her undoing. My revenge had cost Rochelle dearly.

  Chapter 18

  “Hey, girl,” Trina spoke as I opened the door and let her in. She had stopped by to visit me and watch a movie. She had been unable to make the club the night before because her sisters had a party, so she hung out with them.

  “Come on, let’s go in the den. I thought we could watch Baggage Claim.” Hood had found me a good bootleg copy from the screening company, so it would be just like watching it at the theater.

  “Oh yeah, I haven’t seen that yet.”

  “Me either, but from what I hear we ain’t miss much.” I repeated what Monica and Ma had told me. They had gone to the movies to see it and Ma said it was a horrible movie for gullible teenagers. Monica had shrugged her shoulders and agreed. But I decided we could watch it and make our own review.

  I had popped some popcorn and grabbed us some Cokes right before she arrived, so we were straight. We sat down and relaxed in the den as I started the movie and the credits rolled.

  “So, girl, I ran into Rochelle last night at the club and she tripped out hard on me.”

  “What happened?”

  The last thing I wanted to do was relive it because I was so hurt, but I had to tell Trina. She had known Rochelle for a long time. She also knew how close Rochelle and I were and that there was nothing that could come between us, or at least that was the way it was until recently.

  “I don’t know. I saw her and I approached her simply to speak and she went crazy on me. She even rushed me like she wanted to fight me.”

  My eyes beat back the tears as they tried to form in my eye sockets. I had cried all night. I refused to cry today.

  “Who? Our Rochelle?” Trina was shocked. “Damn, that is wild. But, Mya, it is going to be okay. Rochelle needs her space for a while so that she can figure some things out. That’s all.”

  “I know, that’s what everybody keeps telling me. Stuff is just crazy right now.”

  I opened my Coke and took a swallow, hoping to melt the knot that was forming in my throat.

  “So how is Monica doing since moving in with Rich?”

  “She’s cool, I guess.” I rolled my eyes in the air. “Every time I see her she seems happy. So for now that is how I’m gone chop it up.”

  Trina smiled. “That’s a good way to look at it. Oh, by the way, we missed the deadline for the hair show.”

  “I heard, but Reese called me the other day and said that they are probably going to redo them because there were a bunch of mess-ups. So they will let me know.”

  At this point, I really didn’t care about the hair show. I had other things going on that were more important, like the situation with Rochelle. I just was not feeling it, no matter how hard I tried to force it.

  “Okay, cool, we might still have a shot, then.” Trina seemed relieved. I knew she was excited about doing the hair show because last year had been so successful.

  “But I really was not tripping, though. To be honest, if we had missed it, it’s because shit just been crazy. And you know I can’t do it without Rochelle; it just won’t be the same.”

  “I know. Let’s just hope she is better by then, it’s still a long way off.” Trina shook her head sadly but then smiled. “Shit, we turned up last year, had a fucking ball.”

  As I remembered the good time we had, I could not hold back my smile. “Yeah, we did.”

  “But don’t worry, all this negativity will pass. We will get back to that. Just you wait and see.”

  I wanted to be confident, but it was hard. At this point, things just did not look good. Getting comfortable, I leaned back and readied myself for the movie.

  Chapter 19

  All sadness aside, today was a day for shopping, and I was at one of my favorite stores, Saks. I walked in ready to max out. I welcomed my first glass of champagne with open hands. Leslie had beat me to the store and was already on her second glass.

  “Dang, I thought you would never show up,” she complained, just as I knew she would.

  “Just blame it on the traffic.” I sipped.

  I set my sights on tops first. Crosby Derek Lam had my attention. I strolled over with Leslie on my trail. I knew she was ready to talk. “These tops are too cute.” I had picked out two just that easy.

  “I know, I already picked out several for myself,” Leslie added.

  “How could you start without me?” I thumbed through the selection.

  “There is a fix for that and it’s called being on time.”

  “Whatever.” I stepped back and sipped out of my glass again.

  “So, I have made up my mind to move to Chicago. I will be taking a flight out to go look at some cribs.”

  I stopped for a minute, looked at her, and sighed. But in the end, I agreed. “I guess if you have thought it through. It can’t be all bad. I’m going to hate to see you go, but you have my support.”

  “Awww, thanks, friend.” Leslie smiled and gave me a side hug.

  “But if that nigga don’t treat you right, you betta drop his ass and I mean quick!”

  “Trust me, you know I will,” Leslie agreed.

  “And are you going to at least let us meet him before you move?”

  “Well, I don’t know if he will be able to come out anytime soon. Besides, I don’t think Hood would approve of him, being close friends with Rob and all.”

  I kind of understood where she was coming from. But Hood was no fool, he knew she had to eventually move on with her life.

  “Hood will be cool. He knows what you have been through and he wants you to be happy.” I tried to assure her.

  “Speaking of new dudes, you know I heard Kalil be on that white that he slangin’. He krunk off his own shit and I think he got Rochelle on that shit, too. That’s why she actin’ all crazy.”

  I’m not sure why Leslie had to bring this up, especially when I was starting to enjoy myself, but that bit of news made my heart drop. Tears formed in my eyes and I was unable to hold them back. Covering my mouth, I started to weep from deep down. Hearing that Rochelle was using drugs took me back to how I used to feel when my mother was getting high.

  Leslie reached out, grabbed my drink out of my other hand, and set it down. Wrapping her arms around me, she hugged me for comfort. After a few minutes, I gained my composure and released myself from her embrace. There was a side of me that Leslie knew nothing about, but it was starting to burn inside.

  “If he does anything to hurt her, I will make sure that he pays.”

  The look in my eyes sent a shudder through Leslie. I watched as it passed through her.

  Chapter 20

  After hearing the news about Rochelle, I couldn’t continue shopping. I told Leslie good-bye, jumped in my Mercedes, and headed to my mother’s house. I drove all the way there with clouded vision from the many tears that fell. My heart was so heavy it weighed me down. Instead of knocking on the door, I used my key and walked insid
e. I found Ma sitting on the living room couch watching television. She looked a little surprised to see me.

  I wanted to hide the tears but my face was all puffy, so there was no way I could. Ma raised up off the couch with concern. “What’s wrong?”

  I was unable to control the shaking in my voice. I cried as I told her what Leslie had told me about Rochelle using drugs.

  “What can I do to help her?” I needed to know if there was anything I could do to save my friend.

  Ma’s hurt was lying wide open at this point; she wanted to help me but she had to be honest. “Not much you can do, at least not yet. But that’s only because you are one of the last people she wants to hear from right now. Reach out to Wynita, she will listen to her.”

  I knew that would not help, either. Rochelle was as stubborn as a mule when she was in her right mind. She was a thousand times worse right now.

  “Where is Dad at?”

  “Hmmph, girl, his ass ain’t never home. This house is quiet as hell since Monica and Imani left. You could hear a pin drop.”

  For some reason, her humor almost made me laugh. I needed that, but at the same time it made me worry about Dad. I decided to keep what I saw at Big Nick’s place to myself. The last thing I wanted to do was have Ma worry.

  “Maybe we should go out and visit Monica and Imani soon.” My tears finally started to dry up.

  Smiling, she agreed with me. We sat and talked for a while and she made me a fire-grilled cheese sandwich. On my way to the house, I gave Mrs. Wynita a call and she sounded so happy to hear from me, I had a hard time bringing myself to tell her about Rochelle and the drugs.

  She surprised me by saying that Rochelle had come by earlier in the week to see Tiny, but she had not seen or heard from her since. I assured her that everything was going to be okay and that Rochelle would soon be back to her old self. Mrs. Wynita agreed, because she had been praying for her. Now that I believed, and it gave me hope.

  Chapter 21

  Damn, Dad’s bullshit was really starting to get on my nerves. Now his PO was calling me looking for him, like I carry him around on my damn hip all day. I gave the PO a bullshit reason about him being out filling applications for another part-time job to go along with the one he worked at the salon. Really, I was in the same position as he was, I had no idea where in the hell Daddy was. Hell, I never knew where he was. He had not been to the salon once in the past week, but everything else kept me so busy that I didn’t even have the time to notice.

  But today I had to give him a call because his PO sounded pissed; Dad had not showed up to his scheduled appointment. That was a no-no and Dad knew better. I just did not understand what had gotten into him. I scrolled through my contacts, found his name, and hit the call button.

  “Hey, Baby Girl,” he answered on the second ring.

  “Dad, where are you?” I twisted up my nose at his calmness.

  “Just out running a couple of errands. Why? What’s up?”

  “Ahh well, your PO just called. Did you forget that you had an appointment with him today?”

  “Shit . . .” He paused. “Yeah, that was today. It kind of slipped my mind. What did you tell him?”

  “I told him you were out looking for another job to go along with this one. I didn’t know what else to say.”

  “Well, good lookin’ out. I will give him a call and see if I can reschedule.”

  “Dad, you can’t be missing your appointments. That is not cool.” I was agitated. To me it seemed like he was being careless for no reason at all. Did the fact that he could be back up in prison mean anything to him?

  “Baby Girl, I know. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to make you worry.”

  His apology made me feel a little better, but I was not done.

  “What about around here? You haven’t been here all week! Not once, Dad. What if they got somebody watching the salon to make sure that you are working? You got to be more careful.”

  “I hear you, Baby Girl, and I will, I promise.” He sounded sincere.

  “All right. Well, I will see you tomorrow.” I was frustrated as hell and I felt a slight headache coming on.

  “Mya.” I looked up to see Nora coming in.

  “Hey,” I spoke back.

  “Aye, I’m about to head out and grab me and Pam something for lunch. You want me to bring you something back?”

  “What are you getting?” I asked. Before sitting down, I rubbed my forehead, and Nora sensed that something was bothering me.

  “A catfish plate.” She was watching me. “Are you okay? You seem a little frustrated.” She was clearly reading me like a book because I was on edge for real.

  “Nah, I’m cool. But you know, it’s one of those moments when you could use a drink in the middle of the day.”

  We both chuckled at the same time. “Yeah I feel you,” Nora agreed.

  “But other than that, I’m good. Let me grab my purse. I’ll take one of those fish plates and get me some extra tartar.” I went to grab my purse just as Leslie strolled in. I was surprised to see her. She was supposed to be headed to Chicago.

  “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at the airport?”

  “I’m on my way. I just stopped by to get my eyebrows done. I can’t go nowhere looking like a fool. I didn’t have time yesterday, so I figured now was as good a time as any to get them done. Good thing your chair is free.” She dropped her Coach bag down on the counter and sat in my salon chair.

  “Hey, Leslie,” Nora spoke.

  “What’s up?” Leslie spoke as she brushed her Brazilian hair out of her face.

  I walked over to Nora and handed her the money. I noticed that Nora had a look on her face as she watched Leslie. It was a look of familiarity, like maybe she knew her or something. Something about the look was strange, or maybe I was just reading her wrong. I put the money in her hand and she bounced.

  “So what are you plans when you first get there?” I turned to Leslie.

  “You know, see my man, have lunch, do some shopping, then whip it on him before the night is over. Tomorrow will be strictly business. We are supposed to be meeting with a real estate agent at ten in the morning. He arranged for us to look at like six houses and if none of those work out, we are booked to look at several more the following day. After that, I will be back on a plane flying here to get packed and ready to start my new life.”

  “Hmmmph, I guess you have it all planned out.” I grinned.

  “I guess you can say that. Life is short. A plan is the best thing I need right now.”

  “That could be true.”

  I pulled her head back and started working my magic on her eyebrows. Before long they were on point and she was out. I thought about what she said about life being short and having a plan. These days, I didn’t think much about plans like I had done in the past. I guess there was no time for thinking any more.

  Chapter 22

  After a long day at the salon, I was happy to get home and find out that Hood was already there. That was the perfect ending to my long, grumpy day. Stepping into the foyer, I heard the television up loud and I could tell by the actor’s voice that he was watching American Gangster, one of his favorite movies. I rounded the corner and smiled at the sight of him. He looked so relaxed. I loved when we were home together.

  “Hey, babe.” He looked up at me. “Come on over here and sit next to me,” he invited with a welcoming grin.

  “I don’t mind if I do.”

  I kicked off my shoes and strolled over. Bouncing down next to him, I leaned my head all the way back and our lips met. His lips were warm and inviting. I tingled all over. Only Hood could make me this way.

  “Ummm,” I moaned, savoring his taste.

  Before he could control himself, his hands were under my shirt and cupping my breasts. In no time, my pants were on the floor and were quickly followed by my Victoria’s Secret panties. I mounted him and went for the mountaintop. Panting and out of breath, we kissed each other deeply. Our
lovemaking always left us speechless. Cradling me in his arms, we went back to watching the movie.

  I don’t know when I dozed off, but the ringing of Hood’s cell phone was what stirred me. I was so sleepy that my body fought not to respond. But eventually my left eyelid opened halfway. Reluctantly, Hood grabbed his cell and looked at the caller ID. I lifted my head off of the pillow a bit so that I could look at him. I could see he was not happy about being disturbed.

  “Damn! I told them niggas I was chillin’ tonight!” He finally hit the answer button and barked into the speaker, “This betta be good!”

  He was quiet and his eyes roamed the room as he listened to the caller on the other end. I noticed he became irritated and his breathing uneven. I knew this call was not good. I rose up.

  Hood then sat up and put both his feet flat on the floor. “Tell her we can set it up in two days. That is when Lonzo will be back on point.”

  I could hear the person on the other end disagreeing.

  “A’ight, fuck it. Set it up with her in two hours. But if she is one minute late, it’s off. No questions asked.” Hood was final and he ended the call.

  The only thing on my mind was that “she” word he was using again. Who was she? Hanging up the phone, Hood started babbling that he had to step out. Something about Quad and one of his spots. To me it sounded like blah, blah, blah.

  “Why can’t Lonzo do it?” I didn’t want him to leave. I wanted to sleep on the couch in his arms all night.

  “Lonzo is out of town for a few days, and besides, Quad requested me,” he informed me.

  I did not like the sound of that. Who the fuck was she?

  “Requested?” I spat. “What makes that bitch think she can request you? Hmmph, you need to check that ’cause Detroit ain’t even her city.”

  Hood continued strapping up his Jordans, which had been residing next to the sofa. He looked up at me. “I know, but shit already stupid right now. I’ma handle it.”

  He was up on his feet and kissed me. And just like that, he was out.