Pandora's Box

by Coffee

  “About that. I already called Jessica and she’ll do a double to cover both her and Bonita’s shift today but how long she can do that, I don’t know.” Alverda looked at the schedule for the week from her phone.

  “I can always fill in to compensate for being short staffed.”

  “Well, you know I have two applications on file from a couple of weeks ago. Both ladies passed the preliminary phase. I can check their references and then push them through to you for an interview.”

  “That sounds good. You can do their background check once I give the thumbs up on the candidates. And if all pans out, we can have either one on schedule by the end of next week. Call them today and let’s set something up for tomorrow afternoon. Have them meet me at La’ Madeline’s on St. Charles for a lunch/interview.”

  “Okay, I’ll set up the exact time and text it to you as well as fax you their resumes. Is there anything else?”

  “No, I believe we have things covered.”

  Minutes later, Bonita’s mother came and the nurse advised that one of them had to leave.

  “We’ll both go,” Minnie told her before turning back toward Bonita. “I’ll check on you tomorrow.”

  The ladies stepped out and walked over to Yuriah who stood to his feet when he saw them. “How is she?”

  Minnie shook her head. “She looks bad but she’ll be okay in time.” Minnie dropped her head, grabbing the bridge of her nose and then looked back up at him. “Baby, Alverda is going to need a ride to the office to pick up her car. I’m going to close the office today.”

  “You don’t have to do that, Minnie. I’m going to stay my shift.”

  “Alverda, you don’t have to do that. Are you sure?” Considering what happened, she had to ask.

  “I carry mace, a hunter’s knife and a .22 everywhere I go. I will blind, stab and shoot me a m’fer before I let them stop what I do. I have children to feed. But don’t you worry. I’ll be careful, for sure, but mama didn’t raise no punk.”

  Yuriah liked her guts. “Well, in that case, you’ll be there when my friend, Kamal, arrives with a security team to install some cameras.”

  “Yes, I’ll be there, Mr. Leblanc.”

  “Let’s get going.” Yuriah escorted the ladies to his truck.

  Fifteen minutes later, they were dropping Alverda off.

  “You’re sure you’re going to be okay?” Minnie asked for the second time since they got inside of the vehicle.

  “I am. The office is fine, your husband checked that out for himself. I’ll call you if I need you.” Alverda began walking away before Minnie had the chance to question her safety another time.

  After seeing her inside, Yuriah turned to Minnie. “Baby, don’t get alarmed, a’ight. But I need to know has G’Corey tried making any contact with you? Letters, emails, your parents, anything?”

  Minnie answered immediately. “No, why? You think he is behind this?”

  “I’m not saying all of that. But what I am saying is you would tell me if he tried reaching out to you, right?”

  “Of course.” Minnie looked over her shoulders. “Baby, I’m getting scared. Do you think he is going to show up and harm me next?”

  Yuriah pulled her face close to his. “No, baby, I won’t let no harm come to you. I’ll protect you with my life, beleed dat. Matter of fact, don’t get riled up. It was just a question and you said he hasn’t. We’ll leave it at that, a’ight?”

  “Okay.” She looked worried still.

  “Give me a kiss.”

  She obeyed but the kiss was weak.

  “A better one.” He needed to stir Minnie’s emotions to a happier place.

  She gave him a longer kiss but he wasn’t satisfied.

  “Nah, take me home so I can show you the type of kiss I’m talkin’ ‘bout.” He gave her a phony displeased look.

  “You’re so bad.” Minnie cracked a small smile.

  That was a start for him. Protecting her went far beyond making sure she was physically okay but that she was mentally safe from harmful thoughts as well. So, he planned to get her mind right before meeting up with the fellas to have a round table discussion.

  Because whether it was G’Corey or not, he much rather be safe than sorry.

  ***

  G’Corey walked into the kitchen to get a cool compress for his eye. It was throbbing unbelievably. He went to open the freezer’s door but was distracted by the sound of running water. Shutting off the faucet, he noticed a thawed out piece of meat in the sink. Figuring it would do a better job than bulky ice cubes in a towel, he tore off the plastic, removed it from its package and used it instead.

  Twenty minutes later when Skittles came inside from dropping Man Man off at school, she saw G’Corey stretched out on the sofa, resting.

  Is that my T-bone steak? This bitch! She walked over to him. “Excuse you, your hoeness, why do you have my…”She pulled the meat cutlet off of him and leaned back and then forward for a closer look. “Ooohh, bitch! Who clocked you?” Skittles inquired, seeing his swollen eye with a nasty gash above it.

  He gave her the side eye with the good one. “I tripped.”

  She smacked her teeth. “You sound like one of them hoes that be tryin’ to cover up for a man that’s beatin’ that ass. Real talk. Who tagged you and why you didn’t grab a frozen fuckin’ bag of peas instead of dinner my steaks?”

  He reached into his pocket, crumpled up a twenty and threw it in her direction. “Buy another one and shut the fuck up.”

  She picked it up off of the floor and slid it into her pocket. “I’ll buy another one but shutting the fuck up, I can’t do. So, same question as before. Who dotted your eye?”

  “Why? You gon’ kick they ass if I give you a name?”

  “Fuck no. I just got my nails done.” She wiggled her fingers in front of her face.

  “Well, don’t worry about what the hell happened, then?” G’Corey booted her up.

  “Don’t get mad at me ‘cause them N.O. dudes stomped yo ass first thing after breakfast.”

  “Whatever, man, I bet you I can wear yo ass out.”

  She swung his feet off of the sofa so she could have a seat. “I’d like to see you try it, you no hands havin’ hoe.”

  Skittles grabbed the remote off of the table and cut the television on. One of her favorite episodes of Martin was playing. “Ooh, I didn’t miss my part. It’s ‘bout to come up,” she told an uninterested G’Corey.

  She was laughing and pointing at the screen saying each person’s part, line for line when her cell began ringing.

  Ring! Ring!

  Skittles ignored it.

  “Yo, who’s that?”

  She ignored him, too.

  “You so fuckin’ ignorant.” He swiped her phone out of her purse.

  “Don’t touch my shit.” She yanked it out of his hands, lowering the television’s volume while cutting her eyes at him.

  “Hello!” she answered roughly.

  “Hello, may I speak with Tabitha Henry?”

  She raised a skeptical eyebrow. No one called her by her government name except her mother, Sallie Mae or the IRS.

  “Who’s calling?” Skittles was seconds away from taking a message for herself.

  “This is Alverda Robertson with Angel Health Homecare…”

  After Skittles wrote down the time and place she was to meet with Minnie, G’Corey snatched the piece of paper from her hand.

  “Thank you very much,” he grinned.

  “So now what?”

  “If she calls you again, don’t answer. I got it from here on out.”

  Chapter 24

  One month later…

  It was 5 a.m. While most people were asleep, Eli was in the la la land found between Blu’s thighs.

  There was no hair pulling, shit talking, ass smacking or other rough housing going on. It was the purest form of sex there was. Him on top of her, going in and then out.

  His strokes were slow, her clamp was tight. His mouth was
open, her eyes were shut. His groans were audible, she couldn’t speak. However, their heartbeats were in tandem.

  He stared down at her face but the darkness enveloping the bedroom wouldn’t allow him to see her biting down on her lower lip.

  Her lips parted. “Oooh, bae, I’m—ohhhhhhh!” A strong tingle waved from the top of her head ending at the tip of her toes.

  Her walls spasm’d around his shaft, creating a warmed waterfall that could be felt beyond the condom he wore.

  She wrapped her legs around his waist and he quickened his pace as he too was about to release.

  His body jerked the moment his cum came shooting out of him. It was so strong it caused his body to vibrate and his lips to tremble.

  Blu grabbed him on both sides of his face, pulling him down toward her. “I love you.” She kissed him without needing to hear him say it back.

  He then collapsed, laying sprawled on top of her for a time before he pulled himself out of her and removed the soiled prophylactic, tossing it in the wastebasket right next to his bed.

  Eli then repositioned himself back on top of Blu and found his comfortable lay between her legs. She stroked the waves against his scalp, putting him into trance that he wouldn’t awake from for hours to come.

  Hours later…

  It was close to nine o’clock when Elias found himself on the other side of the bed, tangled in his sheets and alone.

  “Blu?” He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he walked through the house stark naked in search of her.

  She stepped out of the kitchen and into the hallway when she heard her name. “Bonjour, sir. Happy Valentine’s Day.” She greeted him with a peck.

  “Happy Valentine’s Day to you, too, boo.” He smiled when he saw her dressed in an apron only.

  “You’re just in time. Come with me.” She directed him into the dining room and placed the cup of coffee she had in her hand on the table where she wanted him to sit. “Have a seat, bae. I’ll be right back.”

  A few minutes later, Blu returned with a platter sized plate. She sat before him a stack of heart shaped pancakes topped with sliced strawberries and whipped cream, fluffy scrambled eggs, bacon and smoke sausage.

  She then disappeared again to retrieve a ramekin of butter and the dish of syrup as his condiments.

  “You’re not eating with me?” Eli questioned when he didn’t see her bring anything in for herself.

  “Of course, but I had to serve my man first.” She kissed his forehead. “Be right back.”

  When she reentered, she had removed the apron, matching her boo’s skin attire.

  “Damn, boo. Anybody ever told yo lil’ skinny ass you sexy as fuck?”

  She blushed. “Not really. Only the dude at my cleaners, and the guy at mechanic shop, or how ‘bout the—”

  “No, how ‘bout you can get these hands if you keep playin’ with me.” Eli threw his sets up.

  “I don’t want it.” She flinched and shielded herself behind her hands.

  They both laughed and soon after their banter stopped, they dived into their meals, having conversations about any and everything.

  After they had gotten their fill of breakfast, Elias had something he wanted to give Blu.

  He wiped his mouth with his napkin. “This was good, boo, but now it’s time to show you what ya boy working with.”

  Blu started dancing in her seat, making her upper body wave like an ocean’s ripple. “Heyyyy!”

  “I’ma give you a clue. If you can solve it, then you can get it, ya heard me.”

  She smiled brightly, rubbing her hands together, excitedly. She was a kid at heart and ready for the games to begin. “I’ma Blue’s Clues genius, bring it on.”

  “A’ight. You’ll find what you’re looking for in the same place R. Kelly was trapped in.”

  “Too easy!” She shrilled as she pushed her chair back and headed to his bedroom’s closet.

  Blu searched high and then low but didn’t find anything there, so she moved the next one in the hall.

  Nothing there.

  “Oh, my God. Quit playing, Eli!” She ran past him with her hands waving in the air and her titties bouncing as she headed upstairs.

  “Have fun up there.” Eli shouted loud enough for her to hear him as he headed back to bed.

  After she opened all the gifts he bought her, he was sure she’d reward him with a special bedroom thanks.

  Two hall closets? Empty. Guest bedroom’s closets? Empty.

  Finally, she walked into Peaches’ bedroom and her closet was also empty but when Blu looked over at her dresser, it was full.

  “Awwwww!” Blu fawned over the stack of boxes exquisitely giftwrapped. The colors were bright and the bows were big.

  Peaches, you have a good man for a father.

  Taking a few seconds more to admire the arrangement, she noticed a small gift bag from Kay Jewelers. Blu smacked her lips, already knowing who that was for. “Really, Eli?”

  She reached inside and discovered two small gift wrapped boxes within along with a sealed card.

  Blu stood there with her eyes closed, trying to rationalize why he would treat another woman on her day, or period. But everything in her said there was no justifiable reason.

  She snatched the bag and trotted down the steps, marching into his bedroom.

  “Took you long enou…” His smile went down just like his semi-erection when he noticed the expression on her face. “What’s the problem now?”

  She extended the bag form her body and lifted it to her eye level. “You tell me. Why are you buying your baby mama a Valentine’s gift?”

  “”Don’t start, Blu. I always get her a friendship gift on today.”

  “You know it’s one thing to spoil your daughter, it’s another thing to pamper her mother. You said I need to adjust my thinking, well so do you. Some shit has to change between y’all now that I’m your girl?”

  “There’s a lot of shit me and Samiyah don’t do because of my relationship with you but nothing is going to satisfy you until she is x’d out of the picture but that ain’t happening.”

  “I didn’t ask you to remove her from your life but what you’re saying is she’s more important than me?”

  “No, you’re saying that.” Elias shook his head, lifted his covers and looked at his limpness. “You be on some real dick softener type shit, bruh.”

  “Tsss. It’s nice to know you’re taking me for a joke.”

  “A’ight, it’s whatever you say ‘cause I ain’t even ‘bout to go back and forth with you. You want to finish having a good rest of the day or what?”

  She put the bag down and threw her hands up. “It will be impossible to do, considering I’m going home.”

  Blu opened his closet door to retrieve her luggage off to the side, containing a week or more of clothes and personal items.

  When she pulled it out, she saw several boxes giftwrapped in different hues of her favorite color blue, but she was so disgusted with him that she didn’t bother acknowledging them. She simply got dressed and headed for the front door.

  She had him tight. In his mind, there was no need to spazz out the way she would so he had to give her some parting words. He got her attention with the call of her name.

  “Blu, every time you get heated you bounce. Keep that shit up and one day you gon’ walk away from me and I won’t be bothered by it.”

  She looked at him as she contemplated his words before she dropped her head. Looking back to him, she said, “Well, I suppose we’re going to see if you’ll be unbothered or not.” Blu opened the door and left.

  At Samiyah’s house…

  Lil’ Acacia had been crying non-stop for the last thirty minutes and Samiyah couldn’t help but cry along with her. Everything had been giving her the blues over the last three months.

  She found herself suffering from depression. She was on and then off at the flick of a switch.

  Her mind was unstable. Her heart was broken. Her back was hurt
ing and her ankles were swollen. Nothing was going her way and now her baby was draining what little sanity remained with her incessant whining.

  She walked over to Lil’ Acacia and pulled her out of her jumper. “Baby, what do you want?” Samiyah cried literal tears.

  After spending five minutes trying to find the answer, her doorbell sounded. She placed her back into her jumper and left out of the living room to answer it.

  When she opened the door, she saw that Elias was dressed in the amorous colors of red and white, holding bags in both hands.

  Samiyah wiped her face dry. “Hey, E.”

  He heard the baby crying in the background. “Is Peaches being a handful again? “

  “That’s the short answer, but I’ll be fine. So come on in.”

  “What’s wrong with Peaches?” He walked into the living room.

  “Samiyah shut the door behind him and followed him into the living room. “I wish I knew so I could give it to her.”

  Elias stopped by his daughter before going into the kitchen “What’s bothering my baby, huh? You wanna stop hoopin’ long enough and tell daddy all about it? A’ight, let me put this up and I’ll be right back.”

  He turned around to step off and no sooner than he did, he spun around when she went from fussing to calling his name.

  “Da da da da da da da da da…” Peaches started clapping.

  Elias froze in place and listened as she kept saying it over and over. Then the biggest smile graced his face. He put the bags on the floor where he stood and turned to grab Peaches.

  “Samiyah, you hear this? She goin’ hammer.”

  Da da da da da…

  Samiyah cupped her hands together. She was happy to hear her call out for Eli but she was most excited that she was no longer hollering.

  “She stopped crying at the sight of you. Let me find out you got her spoiled.”

  Elias was touched with pride. “Is this her first time saying this or has she done it before now?”

  “This is the first time I heard it.” She smiled then looked at the dew in his eyes. “Are you about to cry?”

  “Neva dat, but this makes me feel like I want to. I love this lil’ girl. You just don’t know how much she changed me.”