“You had to get thirty stitches in your arm, Nadia. Not to mention the black eye, broken nose, and bruises all over your body. The police came to talk to you, but the medicine they have you on has kept you sleeping so much. What happened baby?” She asked in a concerned tone.
I thought back to everything that led up to me being here and tears immediately came to my eyes. I couldn’t believe what Shannon had done to me. It’s even harder for me to believe that Kevin was right there with her. He was right when he said that she would never leave him. She’s his fool, and he knows it. But for him to even think that I set him up has me madder than anything else. My mama sat there staring at me waiting for me to answer her question.
Before I could say anything, the door opened, and a nurse walked in with the machine to check my vitals. I had a bandage on my arm, so she had to help me sit up. My mother excused herself to the hallway to let her do what she needed to do. Another lady walked in soon after to change the bedding on my hospital bed and clean my room. She looked familiar to me, and I tried hard to place her face. I waited until the nurse was done before I started talking to her.
“You look familiar, but I can’t think of where I’ve seen you before,” I said looking up at her. My lip was swollen, so I hope she understood what I was trying to say.
“I don’t know. I live uptown with my boyfriend. Maybe you’ve seen me around that way before,” she answered.
“My friend does hair uptown at So Xclusive, but I don’t really know too many other people around that way.”
“Yeah, that’s Bryce’s shop. He’s cool with my boyfriend, Vamp. Co-Co does my hair,” she said smiling.
That’s where I know her from. She was in the shop a few times when I was there. That’s not what piqued my interest though. The name Vamp rang a bell loud and clear. According to Candace and numerous other people, Vamp has been looking high and low for Kevin and Kyle. They supposedly robbed him and a few other people, and he wants them in the worse way.
“Where is your boyfriend at now?” I asked. She looked at me sideways, and I had to quickly explain myself. “Oh, it’s nothing like that. I have some info that he might be interested in.”
“What kind of info?” She asked with her hand on her hip. I could tell that she was ready to check me, but she didn’t have a reason to.
“I really don’t want to tell his business like that,” I replied.
“Baby, there’s nothing you can say that I’m not aware of. I know everything about his business,” she clarified.
“Well, I heard that he’s been looking for Kyle and Kevin.”
“Yeah, they robbed him and his brother,” she responded. I guess she really does know everything.
“Well, I know where they live,” I replied.
I still wasn’t buying that story that Shannon gave me about them moving. That was probably her way of throwing me off because she knew that she was going to attack me. Even if they did move, they aren’t that hard to find. I don’t want the police to get involved. Jail is too good for them. If everything goes like I hope it does, Shannon will get hers too.
“Okay, but what’s in it for you? Why would you give them up to somebody that you barely know?” She asked skeptically.
“Aside from Kyle crossing me and stealing my money, Kevin is the reason why I’m in here. He and his girlfriend jumped me,” I said trying to fight back tears.
She looked at me with pity in her eyes, but I could tell that she was still unsure. After a few minutes, she pulled out her phone and dialed a number. She talked to the person on the phone in code, but I knew that it had to be Vamp. She talked for a little while longer before handing me her phone.
“He already knows who you’re talking about so don’t say names,” she instructed. I took the phone from her and did something that I never thought I’d do. I snitched on Kevin and Kyle, telling Vamp everything that I knew. He thanked me for the info, but it was my pleasure. I couldn’t wait until they were met with the same fate that Kevin and Shannon tried to deliver to me.
CANDACE
“Girl my nerves are bad as hell,” I complained to Brooklyn as Co-Co and I rode around with her and her kids. Dominic is going crazy about her changing her last name on all of her documents, so we went with her to handle her business. She was able to use their temporary marriage license to get everything done. We’d just left from meeting Dominic at the bank. He added Brooklyn’s name to the bank account and the house that they’d just purchased. He wasn’t divorced when they first got it, so he waited until it was finalized. We’re now on our way to Mrs. Liz’s house for lunch, and I’m a nervous wreck.
“I don’t know what you’re scared of. You’ve been around Mrs. Liz a million times,” Brooklyn said.
“I know, but that was before I was in a relationship with her son,” I replied. Mrs. Liz was so happy when she found out that David and I were in a relationship. She said she thought that she would be dead and gone before he ever settled down. She invited us to lunch and begged us to bring my brother along. She loves Co-Co’s outspoken attitude. She also loves the fact that he keeps her laughing.
“Can your mother-in-law even cook Brooklyn? I don’t want to throw good food away, but I will if it’s nasty,” Co-Co said.
“Yes, she cooks very well. And don’t you go in there acting a fool Co-Co,” Brooklyn warned.
“Oh no ma’am, you can take me back home if there’s going to be rules. I have to be myself no matter where I am. You need to be telling that to baby Chucky back here with his bad ass,” Co-Co replied.
“Don’t talk about my baby. He is not bad, he’s just active.”
“Girl, you can miss me with that active shit. Dennis the menace looks like a saint compared to him,” Co-Co said making me laugh.
As soon as we pulled up in the driveway, David and Dominic’s brother and sister ran out of the house to grab the kids. I looked down at my ringing phone and declined another call from an unknown number. I’ve been receiving them for two days, but I never answer. I would have thought that the caller would have given up, but they never did.
“Hey y’all,” Nyla said as she grabbed Dominque’s car seat. Ivan took DJ, and we all went into the house together. Brooklyn was very familiar with Dominic’s family, so she went off to the kitchen while I nervously took a seat on the sofa. Co-Co’s ignorant ass grabbed the remote and started flipping through channels on the TV.
“Boy, put these people stuff down. How you come in somebody’s house and just start touching shit?” I asked him.
“Girl please, I’m not about to sit in here and look stupid. This is your mother-in-law’s house. You need to make yourself comfortable too. You see Brooklyn walking through this bitch like she owns it,” he said.
“Brooklyn is Dominic’s wife so she can do that.”
“Where is this shyness coming from all of a sudden? You’ve never been scared of anything before in your life so don’t start now. Just be you and fuck whoever doesn’t like it,” my brother said.
I smiled and nodded my head in agreement. Co-Co is very blunt, but he always knows what to say to make me feel better. I don’t have a problem with being myself, but all of this is new to me. I’ve never been in a real relationship, so I’ve never had to meet a man’s parents. Mrs. Liz is cool, so I know that we’ll get along just fine.
“Why are y’all sitting in here looking all uncomfortable? I’m not a stranger, so please don’t act like it,” Mrs. Liz said when she walked into the living room.
“Candace is scared that’s why,” Brooklyn said with a mouthful of food. I wanted to curse her out, but I held my tongue.
“I know she better not be scared. I’ve seen you in action a million times, and I know you’re not shy,” Mrs. Liz said looking at me.
“I’m good, but this is a first for me. I’ve never been in the company of a man’s parents before,” I admitted.
“This is a first for me too. David has never had a girlfriend before. I’ve never allowed him to brin
g any of his hoes to my house even though he probably wouldn’t have anyway. He really wants us to get to know each other, and I’m all for that. I can tell that you’re just what he needs. You don’t take any shit from him just like me. Maybe y’all can give me some more grandbabies. Don’t let Brooklyn and Dominic beat y’all. They’re already up on y’all by two,” she said laughing.
“I don’t know about all of that. We’re not ready for babies yet,” I replied.
“They might not be ready, but they have a lot of fun trying. I hear them all the time,” Co-Co said.
“Alright, don’t be putting everybody in my business,” I said feeling slightly embarrassed.
“Whatever,” he said brushing me off. “I don’t mean to be rude Mrs. Liz, but is the food done? That’s really the only reason why I came.”
“Co-Co,” I yelled looking at my brother like he was crazy. His ass is just too embarrassing.
“What?” He asked feigning ignorance.
“Leave him alone. I love his honesty. And yes Co-Co, the food is done. You can help yourself,” Mrs. Liz said with a smile. She didn’t have to tell him twice. He damn near ran to the kitchen with Brooklyn hot on his trail.
“Come on and get you something to eat Candace. And you are welcomed to come here anytime you want to. Don’t feel like you have to be with Brooklyn to come and visit,” Mrs. Liz said as she stood up from the sofa.
“Ok, thanks,” I said as I followed behind her. Before I got to the kitchen, my phone rang again displaying Ms. Cheryl’s number. I started not to answer, but curiosity got the best of me. I hope she doesn’t ask me about Nadia because I can’t tell her anything. I not only unfriended her on Facebook, I unfriended her from my life.
“Hey Ms. Cheryl,” I said when I answered the phone.
“Hey Candace, Nadia said she’s been trying to call you, but you didn’t answer. She said it was maybe because she’s calling from the hospital’s phone, and you don’t recognize the number.”
“Yeah, I keep seeing an unfamiliar number calling my phone. Who’s in the hospital?” I asked.
“She is, somebody attacked her, but she doesn’t know who. She’s got a broken nose and a black eye, not to mention the cut that required thirty stitches. She asked me to call you. She wants to see you,” she said.
Nadia and I are no longer friends, but my heart goes out to her. I can almost guarantee that all of this has something to do with Kyle or Kevin’s trifling asses. It’s bad enough that she dealt with Kyle, but she turned around and started dealing with his brother too. I’m sure Ms. Cheryl doesn’t know about us falling out, and I’m not going to tell her. I’ll leave that up to her daughter.
“I’m at my mother-in-law’s house right now, but tell her that I’ll come later. Text me the information,” I said right before disconnecting the call. I’m not sure why my presence is being requested, but I’m going just to see what she has to say. I joined Ms. Liz and everybody else in the kitchen for a very eventful lunch thanks to my brother.
****
Later on that night I stepped off of the elevator and headed down the hall to Nadia’s hospital room. I saw her mother standing in the hall talking on her cell phone. When she saw me coming, she ended her call and held her arms open for me.
“How is she?” I asked as I gave her a hug.
“I know she’ll feel better since you’re here. I don’t know what happened with y’all, but I know it’s probably something that she did. And for you to not know that she was even in here lets me know that it’s something serious. I’m so tired of trying to figure out what’s going on with her. My sisters came down with me to pack up her stuff. I told her that she was going back to Virginia with me even if I have to drag her ass back,” Ms. Cheryl said.
I nodded my head in understanding, but I didn’t reply. I left her standing in the hall and made my way into Nadia’s room. As soon as the door opened our eyes met. I wanted to cry when I saw the shape that she was in. Her face was so swollen that she was barely recognizable. One of her arms was wrapped up and put into a sling, and the other was black and blue with bruises. Her nose looked crooked, and her lips were swollen to twice their normal size.
“What happened to you Nadia?” I asked as I walked closer to her bed. As angry as I was with her before I couldn’t resist the urge to hug her. She looked like she’s been to the pits of hell and back. She used her one free arm to hug me back as she burst into tears. I pulled away and grabbed some Kleenex from the table and handed them to her.
“I’m so happy that you came to see me Candace. I just wanted to see you one more time before I left to go to Virginia. I can’t stay here anymore. I did so much wrong to so many people. It’s best if I just leave and start fresh somewhere else. I just had to apologize to you for everything that I’ve done. You’ve always been a good friend to me, and you didn’t deserve what I did to you. I was jealous, but I know in my heart that you didn’t have anything to do with Dominic getting with Brooklyn,” she cried.
“I forgive you Nadia, but you really need to get yourself together. Dominic moved on a long time ago, but you never did. I know that you can’t help who you love, but you can’t make somebody love you back,” I said.
“You’re right and I know that now. I also know that Dominic is really happy with Brooklyn. I saw it in his eyes the very first time I saw them together. I’m not surprised that he divorced Kennedi to be with her. That’s where his heart is.”
“Who did this to you Nadia? Your mama said that you didn’t know, but I know that’s a lie.” She looked away because she knew I was right. She’s gotten herself into something that she doesn’t want her mother to know about.
“I don’t want to get the police involved. I just want to put all of this behind me and get out of New Orleans.”
“Telling me is not getting the police involved. I won’t tell anybody whatever you tell me. I know that Kevin and Kyle had something to do with it. I just need you to confirm my suspicions.”
“I’m so stupid Candace,” she cried. “I started messing with Kevin and Shannon found out. He thought that I set it up for Dominic to fight him, but I swear I didn’t. He sat there and watched while she beat me with a padlock and sliced my arm open.”
“What do you mean he watched?” I asked.
“He had to be watching because when I got the best of her he came and pulled me off. He slammed me to the ground so hard that my entire body went numb,” she replied.
Listening to her made me happy that things between him and Brooklyn never went any further than two sexual encounters. Her brothers would have killed him if he ever did some shit like that to her.
“His punk ass is wrong for that shit. David should have let Dominic finish him off at the bar.”
“I have something else to tell you. It’s been weighing on my mind for months, and I have to clear my conscience,” she said.
“What?” I asked as I pulled a chair up next to her bed.
“I overheard Kevin telling Kyle that he’s the one who caused the accident with Taylor and Brooklyn a while ago. I swear I wanted to tell you, but I didn’t want you to know that I was dealing with Kyle. He was saying that he thought it was Bryce at first. He felt bad because the kids were in the car, but he wanted to get back at Brooklyn for breaking things off with him. I even saw the damage to his truck to prove it.”
I sat there in stunned silence. We racked our brains for weeks trying to figure out who could have done something like that. Kyle and Kevin crossed our minds, but we couldn’t be too sure. Bryce even thought that it could have been Tiffany, but none of us had any proof.
“Wow, so what else have you been keeping from me?” I asked my ex best friend.
“That’s all that I know. I promise I would tell you if there was anything else. That’s the least I could do considering all the drama that I’ve caused you,” she replied.
“Well, I appreciate all that you’ve told me and I’m sorry about what happened to you. But honestly, you shouldn’
t let Kevin and Shannon get away with what they did. I know you don’t want to get the police involved, but I think you should. They could have killed you out there, and nobody would have ever known,” I told her.
“I guess I never thought about it that way. Maybe I’ll fill out a police report when they come back to talk to me in the morning.”
“Yeah, I think you really should. Moving to Virginia is the best decision that you’ve made in a long time. Good luck with everything,” I said as I stood to my feet and prepared to exit.
“Candace wait,” she said stopping me when I got to the door.
“I know we’ll probably never be best friends again, but do you think that I can call you sometimes?” She asked sounding hopeful.
“You can call, but I won’t promise that I’ll answer,” I replied before walking out of her door and out of her life. Nadia and I had been best friends since forever. If something so small as my cousin being with her ex could make her turn on me, then I really don’t need her in my life. I said my goodbyes to her mother and took the elevator back down to my car. At least my visit wasn’t a total waste of time. She answered a question that we’ve been trying to get answered for months. I pulled my phone out and called to tell David everything that she had just told me.
KENNEDI
I sat on my living room sofa and enjoyed the strawberry cheesecake that I’d just purchased from the deli near my house. I was fresh out of the shower and enjoying a movie that I just tuned in to on Lifetime. I’m a little over a week away from having my baby, and I can’t wait. My doctor told me that it could be any day now, and I’m ready. I decided to go with the Minnie Mouse theme for my baby’s room. That’s one of the only themes that has everything to go with it. That bitch Brooklyn called herself trying to shop for my daughter, but I wasn’t having it. After she had sent Mrs. Liz here with all the bullshit that she’d purchased, I had Tiffany to help me drop it all off at Dominic’s office. It’s crazy because I went out and purchased some of the same things that I sent back. I just didn’t want anything from Brooklyn. She may be Dominic’s wife, but I’ll be damned if she picks and chooses what our daughter will wear. That happened over a week ago, and I haven’t heard anything from them since then. I’ve tried calling Dominic a few times, but he never answers the phone. I ended up using the money that Tiffany gave me to get what I wanted my baby to have. Tiffany and her dad also got a lot of stuff for her, so I’m satisfied for now. I can’t wait until I give birth to my daughter. If Dominic thinks I’m a pain in his ass now, it’s going to be ten times worse once I have his daughter. Brooklyn better get ready because I promise to make their lives a living hell. I got up to get me a bottle of water when my doorbell rung. I’m not expecting anyone so I looked out the window to see who it is. I saw Tiffany’s car parked next to mine, so I opened the door for her. As soon as I saw her I could tell that something was wrong. She brushed past me without speaking and went straight to the kitchen.
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