Mama Dearest

by E. Lynn Harris

  “I need to talk to you, Yancey,” Dalton said. He whispered and it sounded like he’d been crying.

  “I promise to call you once I finish the shoot. Bye, Dalton,” I said as I clicked off my phone and the power.

  Right before I opened the door I was struck by the strangeness of the moment. I was suddenly very afraid. It was like I was going on the most important audition of my life and I so needed this role. Here I was meeting my daughter in some fancy hotel that she was able to afford but I couldn’t afford to buy a bottle of water in. Was this God’s sick sense of humor, giving Madison everything I’d longed for even before I was her age?

  I pushed open the door and walked into the suite. I saw Derrick looking out the large picture windows and spotted Madison coming from a door on the left side of the room. Our eyes met and there was suddenly a moment of silence and stillness and I felt like I was standing in wet cement pumps. I couldn’t move. I was struck by how beautiful she was in a young sort of way. When I was her age I was awkward in my beauty.

  Madison’s gaze remained fixed on me and I stared back. She was wearing a form-fitting cotton candy pink sweater dress with dark brown trim and looked poised and confident as a seasoned performer. She didn’t look like a teenager. I noticed her light eyes with a rim of darkness around the pupils and long hair that cascaded in soft waves right below her shoulders. Madison was really a beautiful girl.

  “Yancey, you’re here,” Derrick said as he walked toward me but stopped and put his hands on the small of Madison’s back and pushed her toward me. She was smiling and there was no look of forgiveness in her high-cheekboned face.

  “Hello Derrick,” I said. My first words were easy but I felt on the verge of nervous laughter. Not that there was anything funny about this situation but I didn’t know what to do. When my eyes met Madison’s again, I felt them drop down and focus on the expensive Persian rug in the middle of the room.

  “Yancey, I have somebody I want you to meet. This is Madison.”

  I nervously stuck out my hand toward her and said, “It’s very nice to meet you, Madison. I’ve heard a lot of good things about you. Congratulations on your success.”

  “Thank you,” she said in soft sweet voice. Her eyebrows expressed a skeptical arch.

  “Why don’t we sit down? Yancey, would you like something to drink?”

  “Just some bottled water will be fine,” I said as I spied the sofa and the two chairs facing it. Should I sit on the sofa and hope Madison joins me or take a place alone in one of the chairs?

  Madison settled my dilemma when she sat on the sofa and then patted the spot next to her and said, “Daddy, sit here.”

  “Let me get Yancey’s drink, darling. Would you like something, Madison?”

  “No, Daddy. Thank you,” she said politely.

  Just as I was getting ready to tell Madison that I’d bought her CD and really enjoyed it, two cameramen came from the bedroom. I heard the door open from behind me and I turned to see Cale and my cameraman walking into the suite.

  “Excuse me but you must have the wrong suite,” Derrick said.

  “We’re with Yancey,” Cale said.

  “Yeah Derrick, I forgot to tell you I would be bringing them. We’ve been shooting all day for my reality show that I told you about,” I said while eyeing Madison from the corner. I saw her leap from the sofa and rush toward Derrick, shouting, “What is she trying to do, Daddy? She’s using me for herself. Don’t let her do this, Daddy.”

  “Madison, calm down. I’m sure we can solve this and finish our meeting.”

  I moved toward Madison and Derrick, reaching toward them as I said, “I’m sorry. I didn’t think this would be a big problem. You will get to approve the footage.”

  “Yancey, you should have told me,” Derrick said sadly.

  “Then you should have told me that you guys were going to have cameramen as well, Derrick. What’s with the double standard?” I said.

  “Get her out of here,” Madison said as she looked at me in pure disgust. The first meeting was not turning out like I expected.

  “Don’t worry, I will leave,” I said. I was a little sad but I suddenly thought what great television this would make and I hoped Cale was getting shots of Madison and me at all the right angles.

  I heard Madison mutter, “I can’t believe this.” Derrick was telling her that everything would be okay as I headed toward the door with Cale and the cameraman still filming the look of disappointment I felt this moment deserved.

  CHAPTER

  33

  So I finally get to meet the infamous Donnie Ray,” Ava said as she slid into the booth of Wilson’s Restaurant.

  “Don’t you mean famous, Ava?” Donnie Ray eyed Ava like she was a plate of Sylvia’s fried chicken and waffles with syrup dripping all over it. “Lyrical told me you were an older lady, but she didn’t tell me about them hips you got there. You look like you could teach a young gent a few things in the bedroom.”

  “You know that’s right, Donnie Ray, and flattery will get you everywhere. I see how you got Lyrical to do your dirty work for you.” Ava was a bit surprised how attracted she was to Donnie Ray. He was dripping in thug-boy sex appeal with heavily muscled arms. Donnie Ray was dark as a Tootsie Roll with multicolored tattoos mapped over his neck and arms. The contrast of his white T-shirt with matching du-rag and baggy jeans completed his thug ensemble. “I hear you packing too. A girl could do a lot worse.”

  “Let’s get to business before I have to get one of these famous biscuits they make in here and slop you up, Ava. Tell me, what you need?”

  Just like that, Ava was all business. In a hard prison tone she informed him, “I need enough drugs to get somebody sent up for a long time. What would that take?”

  “So, you want to make it look like they dealing big time?”

  “If that will get them sent up for a long time.”

  “Then I think we ought to do some crack or liquid cocaine,” Donnie Ray said as he peered down over his dark glasses. As he came closer to Ava, the smell of his body aroused her. The smell of musk and cheap cologne created the sweet aroma of sex, and Ava thought she might arrange a private visit with Donnie Ray after her vaginal rejuvenation. Ava had researched several doctors who could perform the procedure that would tighten and enhance her vaginal muscle tone. As she gazed at Donnie Ray intently she bet he could make her pussy hum like it belonged to a sixteen-year-old girl.

  “Liquid cocaine? That sounds dangerous.”

  “It’s cool, but it’s just an easier way to transport it before you turn it into the hard stuff. Turn that shit into lil rocks.”

  “Oh, I get it. Is that expensive?”

  “Let’s just say it’s higher than giraffe pussy,” Donnie Ray said with a husky laugh.

  This was a world she knew nothing about. “How long you been dealing drugs?”

  “Now, Ava, you know I can’t answer no questions like that. How do I know you’re not wearing some wire between those beautiful legs of yours? You might have a wire hugging those plump titties I see.”

  Ava tilted her head with a haughty diva air. “Why would I do that when you’re trying to help me?”

  “I don’t know, but I don’t trust anyone completely. Lyrical will tell you I might look dumb, but I’m a long way from it. I’m a biz-ness man.”

  “I’m sure you are.” When he turned on his thug persona, he gave her the chills. He was a lot tougher than she thought. “So, you say this shit is expensive. How much is this going to cost me?”

  “I don’t know yet, but I know you’ll come up with whatever I need.”

  She read his doubt right off, and answered it. “Yeah, money is no problem with my business partner. When can you get it?”

  “Whenever you need it.”

  “You won’t tell Lyrical about this, will you?”

  He gave her a penetrating look. “No, I don’t tell that girl all my business. How did you get her to introduce you to me?”

  A
va laughed carelessly. “I knew from your pictures that you were a muscular guy, and I told her when I get my fortune back, I might need a bodyguard. It didn’t take much. Lyrical is pretty simple.”

  “That’s my boo, but you right. She’s a couple sandwiches short of a picnic basket.”

  “I think Lyrical might be missing some pickles, too, but I think she means well.”

  He leaned back, spreading his arms across the back of the booth. “So, when you gonna let me show you Harlem, Ava?”

  “Show me what?” she asked, startled by the change in subject.

  “What you want to see?”

  “Are you flirting with me, Donnie Ray?”

  “I’m just doing my thang, girl.”

  “I bet you are, but you don’t have to show me Harlem if you’re trying to get a little piece. I might give you some of that as a little bonus,” Ava said with a sinister smile.

  He wasn’t impressed. “That ain’t no bonus, girl. Donnie Ray gets plenty of pussy. But it’s something about you that makes me want to give you a shot. You remind me of this lady I used to lay the pipe on when I was thirteen. That old girl taught me some tricks.”

  She shot back sternly, “First of all, Donnie Ray, don’t use terms like that old girl, and second, you ain’t been taught no tricks like I teach tricks. You ain’t had no cat as tight as Ava’s pussy.”

  He laughed uproariously. “Now, that’s what Donnie Ray is talking about.”

  A glint of gold sparked in the back of his mouth, turning her off. He was just a lowlife thug, she reminded herself. “So, text me on the number I gave you when you get the stuff.”

  “So you tryin’ to make this happen fast?”

  “As soon as you can make it happen,” she growled. “The sooner I can get this bitch off the streets, the better.”

  “Sounds like somebody really pissed Miss Ava off bad.”

  “And it isn’t good to ever make Ava mad. But I’m sure you know that, Donnie Ray.”

  He flashed another shark smile. “Donnie Ray only wants to make Ava happy. You look like a lady that know how to take a nigga if he treat her right.”

  “For the record, I don’t date niggas, Donnie Ray. You think I could dress like this if I was hanging with the homeboy?”

  “Now, Ava, you know us thug boys know how to lay pipe right.”

  He slid his hand right next to hers on the table. The sweat on it made her recoil. “This conversation is veering in a direction I don’t need it to go in. Just text me when you get the stuff. Then we need to get a less conspicuous place to make the deal.”

  “Less what?”

  “Less conspicuous, Donnie Ray. It means not a place like this out in the public for all to see,” Ava said.

  He bobbed his head, grinning. “Oh, I see you like to drop those two-dollar words every now and then, but that’s cool. I’m always interested in learning new shit. Never know when I might need it.”

  “Well, you’ll have to get somebody else to tutor you, sir, because when I get through with this deal I’m heading to the West Coast.”

  “Cali. I love Cali. Every time winter hits this motherfucker, I say I’m going to move out there.”

  “You should do that. That might make Lyrical want to move out there.”

  “Who said anything about Lyrical? I’m going to Hollywood and I don’t need some female tagging along. Besides, Lyrical can’t leave New York without permission of the state.” He pulled himself upright at that thought. “Hey, don’t you have the same rules?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You’re on parole. How you gonna leave the state?”

  “I know people,” Ava said as she scooted out of the booth.

  He slouched back down again, watching her as she marched to the door. “I bet you do, Ava. I bet you do.”

  CHAPTER

  34

  Can you believe she did that?” Madison asked Caressa as the two of them thumbed through a stack of pastel cashmere sweaters at the Ralph Lauren store on the Upper East Side. The manager had closed the store to the public for a half hour so that Madison could pick up a few items as a limo driver waited outside.

  “I don’t quite understand why you’re upset, Madison. I think it’s great that both of you are going to have reality shows,” Caressa said.

  “But she didn’t ask my dad’s permission.” Madison got upset every time she thought about those big camera lenses sticking in her face. “I thought this was about meeting me, her daughter, but it was clear to me that it was all about her and how she can use my fame,” Madison said as she moved toward a rack of plaid skirts.

  “I don’t know what the big deal is, Madison. We know that your show is going to be better. I think you should have let her do it.”

  Madison put down a skirt on the counter and put her hands on her hips. “You’re supposed to be on my side, Caressa. Stop taking up for her.”

  “I’m not taking up for her, Madison. I’m just pointing out that you missed a great opportunity to start a relationship with your mother. That’s something you’ve wanted for a long time, and I just want you to have that.”

  “Maybe it’s not all that it’s cracked up to be,” Madison said as she picked up a navy blue leather belt.

  “I don’t think you should give up so quickly.”

  “That’s easy for you to say. You already have a mother who loves you. I try to meet mine and what happens? I find out she’s a user.” Despite her best efforts, tears were forming in her eyes.

  MADISON STORMED INTO THE room. “Can you believe the nerve of her, Daddy?”

  Derrick looked up from his computer. “What are you talking about, Madison?”

  “Yancey bringing a camera crew to our first meeting. What kind of woman is she? First she wants to meet me, and then she wants to use me.”

  “Well, you had a crew there as well. Sounds like a case of like mother like daughter.”

  Madison took a seat in the chair next to his desk. “She’s not my mother. Yancey Braxton is just the woman who gave birth to me. I know now she is not interested in getting to know me but just trying to save her sinking career.”

  “And you’re trying to build yours. Sounds similar to me, Madison.”

  Madison crossed her arms, annoyed that her father was not taking her side. “She should have asked me if she could bring cameras.”

  “Did you ask her if you could tape the meeting?”

  “No, I didn’t and I don’t see why I had to.”

  “I suggest you guys try and meet again. Without cameras.”

  “I don’t ever want to see Yancey again!” Madison shouted.

  “Bring your voice down, young lady,” he said, reminding Madison who was really in charge.

  “I’m not going to do it, Daddy. And you can’t make me!” Madison said.

  “I’m only suggesting that you owe it to yourself to hear what she has to say. Yancey is a decent woman. She’s been through a whole lot in recent years, things you don’t even know about and even if you did you wouldn’t understand. That’s why I’m asking you to give her another chance. “

  “Decent? Another chance? Do you know how that sounds, Daddy? This is the woman you said you once loved dearly.”

  “I did once love Yancey. I’ve always told you that you were conceived out of love. That was the truth. Someday, when you have children you might regret not getting to know your birth mother.”

  “I met her and I immediately knew I didn’t like her. She was such a phony, more interested in talking to the camera than to me. I’m so happy that I got all of my traits from you and not some spoiled over-the-hill actress. Why couldn’t I have a mother like Ms. Nicole? She really loves her children and I can tell that when she talks about them.”

  Derrick knew better than to press the issue further. Nothing would be resolved at this rate. “Let’s go get something to eat. We can discuss this later.”

  “We don’t ever have to talk about this.”

  “What
ever, Madison,” he said, switching off the computer. “What do you want to eat?”

  “Chicken strips and fries.”

  “Okay, grab your jacket and I’ll call for the car.”

  “Can we bring Caressa?”

  “Sure, honey. That’s fine.”

  “Great,” she said, returning to her bubbly self, “let me call her.”

  CHAPTER

  35

  I was going to do a little shopping for fall and the show, so I went to my closet to get some cash from the bag Marcus had asked me to keep a few days before. I loved having this cash at my disposal.

  While I was getting a couple of stacks of money, I couldn’t help but notice a little plastic bag with white stuff in it. I picked it up and inspected it in puzzlement. Then I saw many more of them. My first thought was that this couldn’t be what I thought it was, but how could I be certain? I decided to go straight to the source.

  I located my cell phone and pulled up S. Marcus’s name and hit dial. After a couple of rings he picked up.

  “Hey, lovely lady, would you believe I was just talking about you? That means you’re going to live a long time.”

  I didn’t respond to his pleasantry at all. “That’s good to know. Marcus, I think we have a problem here.”

  “What kind of problem, sweetheart?”

  “You know that bag you asked me to keep?”

  “Of course.”

  “I was looking through it because I was going to put some of the money in my bank account and pick up a few items, when I saw these little plastic bags with white stuff in them.” My tone was curling like barbed wire. “Can you tell me what it is? What is going on?”

  For a moment there was dead silence on the phone. I called out S. Marcus’s name to see if he was still there. When he answered, I could tell there was a difference in his voice, like he’d been caught.

  “What is this in the bag?” I demanded.

  “Don’t worry about that, Yancey,” he said quietly. “I need to get the bag back ASAP.”

  “Marcus, please tell me that you didn’t leave some drugs in my house. Are you dealing drugs?”