by Tiana Laveen
“Yeah… and I think you’re drunk right now. Walk the line, all the way to the exit, and lock the door behind you.”
The woman burst out laughing, but the act was faker than her ass.
“Cute… you’re so funny. I can kinda see what he saw in you. Well, kinda.” She shrugged. “He’s addictive, isn’t he, baby? Six feet and five inches of tattooed sex appeal… and he’s filthy fuckin’ rich. But not all of his money came honest. That’s blood money, baby.”
Sky swallowed as her eyes narrowed on the woman.
“You’re a good girl, aren’t you? You probably have a lot of pride, right? You want the best for your community… for your people. You’ve never dated anyone like Lazarist before. He is definitely different, isn’t he?” The woman’s voice softened as if she were drifting in a daydream. Sky wanted to run her away, make the woman shriek and bail, but she couldn’t. Worse yet, now she was curious as to what this woman was driving at. Worry filled her and this time, no birthday dance would make it go away.
“He can fuck so beautifully, right? It’s rough, hardcore music with silk and satin and nibbles and bites against your neck… It’s a long, hot, roving tongue against your eager pussy and it’s a big, juicy cock that takes your fuckin’ breath away—every.single.fucking.time he shoves it inside you! He’s a beast in bed, with me being a former porn star…” She laid her hand across her chest, her expression proud. “I think that says a lot because honey, I’ve slept with some truly talented men.” She chuckled. “He’s perfect… even with that big mouth of his and the terrible temper, like a two-year-old havin’ a fit. He’s magnificent, in spite of it all. A bit too amazing, right?”
“Spit it out or shut up. I’m sure you’ve been told that a lot right after the money shot during your movies.”
“Oh damn baby, what a funny little girl you are.” The woman grinned, her expression tight and creepy.
“A little girl I am not. I’m all woman, Mimi. Please don’t underestimate me. You don’t know me. You don’t know me at all.” They glared at one another. Sky put her free hand on her hip and cocked her knee, as if resting on the broomstick she had in a death grip. She rolled her eyes and channeled her inner beast.
“Mimi, some of us actually take care of ourselves,” she spat, “so we look youthful for our age. We don’t look all used up and tossed away like old tissues full of semen. And for the record, please let it be known… I’m a woman who will take this goddamn broom and beat you within an inch of your miserable, worthless, trifling, mothafuckin’ cum guzzling, random dick ridin’ life. You got it? Don’t come up in here thinkin’ you are getting Ms. Manners. I’m Ms. David Banner, ’bout to turn into the Hulk, so you’ve got about five damn seconds to drop a dime or I’m going to dance all over your fuckin’ face, stomp you into a one-dollar wine cooler because that’s all you’re worth. And then I’ll sweep you up into this dustpan and toss you out the window for a proper burial.”
The woman’s expression morphed into one of pure shock.
“Fine. I’ll get right to it.” She clasped her hands together. “And just so you know, everything I am about to tell you is 100% fact. I gave Lazarist a chance to rectify this situation before I came to you. I have not heard from his attorney, so I believe he has called my bluff. He hasn’t answered my calls, either. I have not been faring well in court with him, so if I am going down, so is he. I am going to walk away with something because a loser I am not…” The woman’s eyes grew incredibly dark. “You know what they say.” She shrugged. “A woman scorned… Anywho, do you remember hearing about the Loren Housing division in Brooklyn?”
“Yes, who didn’t? Like so many other historical places, it was taken down by gentrification. Greedy people as usual.” She grimaced.
“Yes, exactly.” The woman smiled. “Well, guess who was behind that? Guess who bought that property, had all of those poor Black people kicked out and got his greedy big ass tattooed paws on all of that fuckin’ money?”
Sky felt her blood running cold. The Loren Housing Project had been one of the few places some people could afford to live. It was also a historical spot; the land once had a large mansion on it that housed runaway slaves who’d managed to make it up North.
“Your lover boy did that. If you don’t believe me, look into property records. The online search is free. Remember all of those crying children on the news? Homeless… displaced… They never showed the ring master, the guy running the circus, pulling all of the strings. He didn’t give a damn about anyone but himself.”
Oh God! How could Lazarist do something like that?! What kind of person would do that?! Please tell me this bitch is lying. She has to be!
“You honestly didn’t think Lazarist is as wealthy as he is just because of the club, did you?” The woman frowned, then burst out laughing. “So naïve… No, no, no, baby. Now, he’s honest about many things, but he always keeps a few secrets… that’s his nature. A hunter never lets the prey know where all of his weapons are, sweetheart. Just when you think you know him completely, there’s some big bombshell he’s got squirrelled away, a dirty little secret. Lazarist owns lots of properties, but that one right there, yeah… that was his biggest windfall yet.”
Sky did everything in her power to not react, to show no emotion.
“I don’t believe you. Get out. Now.”
She prayed her tone didn’t deceive her. The woman smiled so smugly. She turned to walk away, then paused.
“Oh, and one more thing, princess… He’ll keep on being your knight and shining armor until you tell him that his shit stinks… He’ll keep on treating you like a queen, until you dare to defy his authority… He’ll keep on wining and dining you, spoiling you rotten, treating you and your family and friends like you’re the best people in the world, until you break his rules. He’s a control freak. He’s domineering. He’s alpha on steroids. He’s sadistic. He’s greedy. And he will break you the fuck down, Thumbelina. Run. Run as fast as your little dancer feet will carry you…”
At that, the woman turned on her heels, then disappeared out the door, the same way she’d come…
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The Day the Sky Fell on the Lion
(What is a King of the Jungle without his Queen?)
SKY STOOD THERE shouting at him in his home, gripping a bunch of papers in her hand. She was in his living room, her laptop secured firmly under her arm. Wearing a pair of yoga pants, an oversized t-shirt, and a scowl on her face, there was no way in hell this would end well. Lazarist had known something was up when he’d tried to call her multiple times but it went straight to voicemail. Sky was mad as hell, but he wished he hadn’t seen this coming. Somewhere deep inside, he’d already spotted the writing on the wall. It was his own damn fault for not listening to his inner self, the one that told him to make this right before it was too late. But pride was a hell of a drug…
“And that’s why I told you I can’t stand men like you! You are a true asshole in every sense of the word! Only thinkin’ about yourself! Heartless! You had me totally fooled! I shoulda never fucked wit’ you in the first place! You ain’t shit, you know that?!” She kept on going, waving her finger in his face as she went completely the hell off.
Lazarist couldn’t get a word in edgewise. His brain swelled with increased pressure and stress, and he realized something right then. A headache was born, taking full effect. This had only been the first of many Mimi attacks. She’d unleashed the one she believed would upset his woman the most—and boy had she been right. Strange how women were able to tune into each other’s weak points so well.
But he’d had enough. It was time to take control of the situation because he’d be damned if this broad, no matter how much he loved her, was going to stand in his living room and go off on him like this without some sort of rebuttal.
“SKY! PLEASE!” His voice boomed as he held his head and pointed towards the couch. “Be quiet. Sit down and listen to me!”
She suddenly drew silent, her
eyes narrowed as she seethed, but she did as he asked and plopped down on the couch, while casting him hateful glances from over her shoulder.
“I read everything, you son of a bitch,” she began again as she set her computer beside her and slung her purse onto the table. “I didn’t let that bitch see me sweat; as you say, I played it cool, but you better believe I left work right afterwards and did my own research. Regardless of the messenger herself being who she is, the message was correct. You can’t blame anyone but yourself for this! Those people had nowhere to go, Lazarist, and you displaced them. If you’ll do that to all of those people, then who’s to say you won’t turn on me, too?! There’s no possible way you could explain yourself out of this—so don’t even bother!”
“Then why the hell are you here?!” He put his hand on his hip, waiting. All she did was purse her lips and shake her head at him in disgust. “I’ll tell you why since all you want to do is scream and yell at me, and not let me tell my side of things. You’re here because you want an explanation, a reasonable one, so let’s cut the bullshit!” He waved his arm frantically about. “Can’t you see what she’s doing, Sky? She’s trying to drive us apart, force a wedge between us!”
Sky turned away, averting eye contact. She crossed her legs, and her body shook ever so slightly. She looked both enraged and worried. He couldn’t much blame her.
“Baby, look.” He chanced a couple of steps towards her, his voice low. “Here is what happened with that deal, okay? Yes, those families were put out, but it was happening anyway.
“I had no idea until everything was finalized because the original company buying the property, Sky, pulled out at the last minute. Not because they cared, but because of the bad publicity. I naively stepped in with my money but was unaware of the back story until the very last second. What the news conveniently didn’t report is how I rectified the situation after I found out what was happening!”
She slowly turned back towards him—listening now. Thank goodness!
“I own an apartment building in Queens. I told you about that. The area is actually really nice, and I was renovating it at the time, so a lot of the apartments were empty. I do not take care of the management, but it’s mine,” he explained. “So, do you know what I did?
“I put all of those families in there for six months with all the utilities and everything paid, free of charge, and then I gave each family $1500 towards their moving expenses once that six month period was over! It was way nicer than where they were at, so yeah, it wasn’t in Brooklyn anymore but I made sure they had roofs over their heads, all right? It cost me a hell of a lot of money!” The frown on her face slowly faded. “I don’t have proof for that besides bank statements, but I’ll be more than happy to try and dig all of that up, even though this happened almost ten years ago.”
Silence stretched between them for a long while.
“I… I don’t think that’ll be necessary,” she finally said, a clear look of relief on her face.
He disappeared into the kitchen, poured them both a glass of red wine, and returned to her. She took it timidly, her hand shaking ever so slightly.
She didn’t need to say how she’d intended to break up with him that night. She’d shown him how her nerves were shot to hell and the whole mess was killing her inside.
Fuck you, Mimi. You did this shit! I am coming after your ass with a vengeance!
“So, you see, yeah, it happened… but not the way it was portrayed.”
Sky nodded, but he could see she was still all worked up, irritated beyond belief.
“Let me tell you something… I am going to handle this, okay?” He gently pulled her arm, forced her to look him in the eye. “But it’s going to take me some time. So, what that means is, I’m going to have to come clean to you about a few things.”
A look of concern creased her expression. His heart began to pound a mile a minute.
“What?” she questioned softly, her tone letting him know she couldn’t take much more. He clasped his hands and dropped his head. His robe fell open and he didn’t bother closing it.
“I, uh, I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t like acknowledging things I have done and said that really don’t paint me, I guess you could say, in the best of light. Mimi has some dirt on me… and it would only matter to someone like you… someone I want… someone who makes me happy… someone I love. So, I’m going to take my friend Tobias’ advice and just take her power away. The way to do that is to air all of my dirty laundry, Sky… to tell you everything she possibly could so I could wring this situation out and make it dry.”
He gulped his wine down until there was not a drop left and placed the empty glass on the table.
“I’m not sure I’m ready for this.”
He shrugged. “I’m not ready for this either, Sky. I don’t want to do it… but I know it’s better that you hear it from me.” He took a deep breath. “A few years ago, right before I met Mimi, I had an affair with the wife of one of the New York Yankees. It was just a rumor, but it was true… not one of my finer moments.”
He closed his eyes, rested the back of his hand across his forehead, and flopped back on the couch.
“So… did you think that was okay? What’s the story behind that?”
He shook his head. “No, it wasn’t okay, but I was thinkin’ with my dick, baby. Men, we don’t think the way you all do. It’s got less to do with emotions and more to do with what we want at any given time. I didn’t love her… I mean, I cared about her, but it was nothin’ that serious. Bottom line, she liked how I made her feel. She felt neglected by her husband. I was being romantic with her, showering her with attention, and well, she liked my dick game, too. We had a lot of physical chemistry. They ended up getting a divorce over it, and that’s when the guilt came in for me, because they had a couple of kids together. I broke up a family… and if there is a such thing as karma, I definitely got mine when Mimi entered the picture. Anyway, I have had more than a few affairs with married women, Sky, but that happened a long time ago…”
“So you lack morals and character. Big surprise.”
At first, he thought the lady was serious, but then he saw her lips curl in a grin.
“I’m not like that anymore. I’m serious. That was really selfish on my part. I can admit that now. I’m not making an excuse for it, either, but their marriage had been screwed up way before I entered the scene, but I still take accountability for putting the final nail in the coffin. She’d been the man’s wife after all… and if someone was fuckin’ my wife, regardless of whatever issues we were personally havin’, I’d probably try to kill whoever came between us.”
“You’re only telling me this stuff because Mimi would beat you to it, right? Not because you really think it’s the right thing to do. You’d take this to your grave, wouldn’t you?”
He tried to figure out what she wanted or expected. Regardless, though, he was going to continue to tell the truth, no matter how badly it made him appear.
“Yeah, I wanna beat her to the punch. If I’m to be completely honest with you right now, that’s exactly right. This stuff doesn’t benefit you to know, in my opinion. But at the same time, who am I to say what you would think is important to know about me and what’s not?” He shrugged. “I can’t really take that choice away from you… and just because I don’t see it as pertinent doesn’t mean you might not. It shows the type of morals I had, I guess you could say… but there’s always more to it than that, Sky. Sometimes, as ridiculous as you think this sounds, it wasn’t just about me, all right?
“I like to make people happy, and even though what I did was wrong, that woman had a need, we were attracted to one another, and even if it was only for a few months, I made ’er happy. It sounds fucked up, I get it, so there it is… I’ve told you, but I’m tryna explain what was going on in my mind, too. Nah, I wouldn’t want you to know this stuff though… which proves that I knew it was wrong. Who in the hell would want to be seen in a negative lig
ht? Especially when I love ya so much and I don’t want cha to think I’m some scumbag.”
His brows furrowed and his heart beat fast. “I’m human, Sky. I’m a man. I’ve made mistakes… a lot of ’em. I’ve done a lot of good too though; I just don’t go around tellin’ people about it all the time. Yeah, I like to show off and be praised, but the shit that really moves me, that makes me wanna ask what the fuck the President is doin’ to change this place, to make it so we all can live and survive in peace, I don’t broadcast that, all right? I don’t tell people about the donations I make, none of that. It’s nobody’s business but mine and God’s.”
They sat there quietly for a spell, then she reached for her wine and took another sip. Setting it down, she turned just so and looked him in the eye.
“I’m not innocent, either. Yes, we’re both human and we both have made mistakes in the past and you know what? We’re going to keep making mistakes, Laz, in the future. The difference is, we have to learn from that stuff, Lazarist. I know that you genuinely care about people… and that’s what matters to me.” She placed her hand over her heart. “What’s important is that you learn from the past, don’t keep repeating it, and try to do better in the future. See… I saw you, so I know who you really are. For a minute, I lost balance… I stumbled, baby… Mimi got me off track.” She smiled sadly. “But I know what you do under the bright blazing sun, and I know what you do in the dark of the night.
“I saw how you helped that poor guy Mateo at the restaurant. I saw you pickin’ up gourmet food in your club one night and walking outside to give it away to the homeless at two and three in the morning.”
He had no idea she was aware of that; it wasn’t something he shared. To Lazarist, despite him enjoying being in the limelight, going onto social media posting pictures and updating statuses of, ‘Look what I did’ seemed rather unnecessary, and took the authenticity right out of the act. When he gave, he gave from the heart, not to receive accolades.
