“Hey,” he said just as the house phone rang. “You want me to get that?”
I just shrugged. He picked it up and spoke for a few seconds, then handed me the phone.
“Who is it?” I asked.
“Some woman,” he said.
I sighed and grabbed the phone. “Hello.”
“Hey, Jasmine. It’s Jessica from DC Records,” she said, sounding more professional than I had ever heard her.
“Hey,” I said.
“Please hold a moment for Ron.” She didn’t even wait for me to respond before she put me on hold.
Ron came on the line a few seconds later. “Jasmine, how have you been?” he asked.
“Not good,” I said.
“Yeah, I heard about your brother,” Ron said. “I’m real sorry to hear that. Did you guys get the flowers we sent to the funeral?”
“Yes,” I said, not knowing if we had or not. “They were really nice. Thank you.”
He was silent for a second. “We’ve left several messages for you. You’re supposed to be in the studio today recording. You also missed two other recording sessions, as well as deejaying Teen Scene.”
I shook my head, trying to figure out why he was pressing me when he knew my brother had died.
“Look, I can’t do it right now,” I said. “I’ve got a lot going on.”
“I understand, but business is business. I expect you in the studio this afternoon.”
“Whatever,” I said, and hung up on him.
Kyle and I sat around watching TV until my parents got home that evening. I said goodbye, then headed to my room, where my cell phone was beeping, indicating that I had a message.
Actually, I had about thirty of them. A few were from friends from school offering their condolences, but there were some about gigs I had lined up that I hadn’t shown up for. There were three from T, as well as a few from the guy whose twenty-first birthday I was supposed to deejay. There were also several from both Ron and DC, all of them sounding kind of threatening.
I ignored them all. Just as I was about to turn off my phone, it rang, and without thinking, I answered it.
“It’s about time,” someone said.
“Who is this?” I asked.
“Oh, so it’s like that? You just take my money and then pretend you don’t know who I am?”
“Who is this?” I repeated.
“Who do you think it is?”
“Look, I don’t have time for games. Either tell me who this is or I’m hanging up.”
“It’s Jeremy. You were supposed to deejay my twenty-first birthday party two weeks ago.”
“Oh,” I said. “Look, I’m real sorry. I have some personal stuff going on right now.”
“Why is that my problem?” he said. “I looked like a fool. I spent all this money on a party and didn’t have a DJ the whole weekend.”
“I’ll pay you back,” I said, getting ready to hang up.
“I know you will,” he said. “Even if I have to come over to your house and get it myself.”
“You don’t know where I live,” I said, laughing to myself.
“You wanna bet?” he said, and rattled off my address.
“How’d you know that?” I asked. I had had him send his money to Loretta’s house. Then it hit me. “Loretta gave you my address?”
“Yeah,” he said. “When I couldn’t get in touch with you, I called her. She refused at first, but then I offered her a grand, and she told me.”
“Look, I told you I’ll get you your money,” I said.
“But can you get me back my reputation? People all over Queens are laughing at me. I had to set up a boom box for my party.”
The image made me laugh, which only made him angrier.
“Oh, so I’m funny to you? Keep on laughing. I’m going to be someone someday, and when I am, I will ruin you.”
“Fine,” I said. “I’m already dead anyway.”
A week later, Kyle talked me into going to the movies. I really didn’t want to go, but he insisted it would be good for me to get out of the house. We went to see some comedy that had me laughing so hard my sides hurt. I felt guilty all the way home for having a good time so soon after my brother was gone.
The next morning, Mama came and woke me up.
“How are you doing?” she asked, stroking my hair.
“Okay,” I said.
“I’m glad you went out last night.”
I didn’t respond, and I guess she saw the guilt on my face, because she said, “Baby, life has to go on. As hard as it might be for us to move forward, we don’t have much of a choice. Derrick wouldn’t want us to stop living.”
A tear slid down my face. “Why’d he leave me, Mama?” I asked, clinging to her.
She started crying, too. “I don’t know, baby. I don’t know.”
“I don’t know what I’m feeling. One minute I feel guilty because I was yelling and screaming at him right before it happened, and the next I’m angry at him for not getting a better car. If he wouldn’t have been out there fooling around with it, he would still be here with us.”
She stroked my hair. “You can’t do this to yourself. Don’t beat yourself up, baby.”
“But I didn’t even get to tell him I loved him,” I said, crying harder.
“He knows, baby. He knows.”
We sat in silence for a long time, just holding each other. Finally Mama said she was going out for a while, and she asked if I wanted to come, but I wasn’t in the mood.
I got up to take a shower, and while I was in the bathroom, I realized I needed to be near my brother. I quickly got dressed and headed to my car, but then I changed my mind and got into Derrick’s car and headed to the cemetery.
It was the first time I had been there since my brother had been buried almost a month ago, and it took me a few minutes to find his grave. The marker wasn’t in yet, so someone had set up a wooden cross with Derrick’s name on it. I sat in the cool dirt and just talked to him for what seemed like hours. It was the best I had felt in weeks.
When I finally looked up, I realized it was starting to get dark, so I headed home.
I went to start Derrick’s car, and the engine just sputtered. I couldn’t help but laugh. It was like Derrick was playing a joke on me through his stupid car. After a few more tries, the car still wouldn’t start, so I called home, happy when Daddy answered.
He promised to come get me, and as I looked around at the cemetery, which seemed to be getting darker by the second, I decided to wait outside the gates. I had seen too many horror movies where bad things happened to people in cemeteries, and I was not trying to be a victim.
It seemed to take Daddy forever, but he finally came and got Derrick’s car started. He offered to pick us up something to eat, so after making sure I made it home safely, he drove off.
When I saw Mama’s car in the driveway, I couldn’t help but smile. I realized she was right: we had to keep on living.
“Mama,” I called, walking through the front door. I headed to the den, where I heard the television. “Mama.”
She still didn’t answer, so I figured she was in the bathroom. I was just about to head toward the back of the house when I noticed Mama sitting in a chair in the corner.
“Hey,” I said, stepping into the room.
It took me a second to process that her mouth was covered with duct tape and her hands were tied behind her back.
“Mama,” I said, rushing over to her, but before I could make it, a man stepped out of nowhere and pointed a gun at her head.
chapter 12
I just knew I had to be dreaming. I shook myself, praying that I would wake up to find that the last couple of months had been a dream, but when I felt myself being forced onto our sofa so I was facing Mama, I knew this was a nightmare come to life.
“You okay, Mama?” I asked.
“Shut up!” the man yelled.
I quickly did what he said, but I stared at Mama, silently communicating my que
stion.
She nodded, which made me feel a little better.
We sat there in silence for the longest time in the dark, and I tried my best to make out the man’s features. Something about him seemed really familiar, but I wasn’t sure who he was.
It finally occurred to me that Daddy should be home any second, which kind of scared me. I didn’t want this man hurting my parents.
When I finally heard Daddy’s key in the lock, I breathed a sigh of relief. The guy hadn’t bothered to tie me up, and I thought about running, but I figured he’d shoot me before I even made it to the door, so I called out instead.
“Daddy, help!” I yelled.
I guess something in my voice let him know I was serious. By the time he made it to the den, the man was standing over me with the gun pointed at my head. For some reason, I wasn’t scared. Actually, the thought of seeing my brother again brought me some peace.
Daddy took in the scene pretty quickly and held up his hands.
“Man, you can take whatever you want. Just don’t hurt my family,” he said, slowly making his way into the room.
The guy just gave this weird laugh and shook his head.
“Your family has been hurting me for years,” he said.
That was the most he had said since I had walked into the house, and it finally hit me where I knew the voice from.
“Ron?” I asked.
He quickly looked at me. Realizing his cover was blown, he walked over and switched on the light, then pulled off his black skull cap.
“Chubby?” Daddy said. “Man, what are you doing?”
“What does it look like I’m doing?” he said. “I’m sick and tired of your family messing things up for me.”
I looked back and forth from Ron to Daddy. “You know each other?” I asked.
Ron snorted. “I guess you can call it that.”
I looked at Mama and saw recognition in her eyes, too.
She tried to say something, but the tape was still covering her mouth.
Ron walked over and snatched it off, and Mama screamed in pain. Daddy took that chance to rush him, and he was able to tackle Ron to the ground and begin punching him. I had never seen Daddy so angry, and I watched in fascination for a few seconds before it occurred to me to call 911.
The operator had just taken my information when Ron managed to flip Daddy over and stand over him with the trigger cocked.
Without thinking, I threw down the phone and raced over. “Why are you doing this?” I yelled.
My question stopped him, and he turned to me. “Because once again the Richardson family is about to mess up my career.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked.
“First your mother ruined my career years ago when she talked your daddy out of the deal I set up. Then your brother messed things up when he told you not to sign with DC. I thought I could just get rid of him and that would get you back in line, but no, you still decide you don’t want to show up for sessions. Do you know how much money we’ve lost on you?”
I stared at him, my mouth wide open. “You killed my brother?” I asked softly.
“You’re right I killed him, just like I’m about to kill your pathetic parents. You guys make me sick. Your father and I were going to be famous years ago, but your mother had to get pregnant. It’s all your brother’s fault that I didn’t get my record deal.”
We all just stood there staring at him, but it was like he didn’t see us. He was sweating, and his eyes were wide.
“I hate this family!” he screamed. “I want you all dead. Do you know I’m about to lose my job because of you? If I don’t get Jasmine into the studio tonight, I won’t have a job tomorrow. Do you know how long I’ve been working to build my career?” he asked, but none of us bothered to respond. “Do you?
“You know what? I’m just going to have to show you, because you guys think I’m playing with you.” He cocked the trigger again and began swinging the gun wildly. Daddy and I backed up, but Mama was still tied to the chair and couldn’t move.
Ron swung to face her.
“I can’t stand you. You knew I loved you, Pat, and you went ahead and married this fool anyway. You knew how I felt about you. Then you had the nerve to get pregnant by him and have him mess up my career. Now that your son is dead, have you been hurting the way you hurt me?”
Mama just looked at him as tears streamed down her face.
“What have you done?” she finally whispered.
“Yeah, it doesn’t feel good, does it?” Ron said, smiling.
“Ron,” Mama said, and she looked at the floor like she was searching for the words.
“Patricia,” Daddy said in that warning tone he saved for the times when we’d better do what he said.
“No, baby. It’s past time he knows,” she said.
“Pat, don’t you see this man is crazy? That’s the reason you didn’t tell him then,” Daddy said.
A look of calm came over Mama’s face. “It’s time,” she said, just as we heard the police sirens.
“What are you guys talking about?” Ron said.
Mama took a deep breath. “Derrick was your son.”
Ron was still stunned as police led him away in handcuffs, but his shock didn’t have anything on mine.
After the officers questioned us, we sat around in silence for what seemed like forever. It wasn’t until the phone started beeping that I realized it was off the hook, so I replaced it and then turned to Mama.
“Were you ever planning on saying anything?” I asked quietly.
She just shook her head.
“So all this stuff about Daddy quitting the band to take care of you and Derrick, that wasn’t true?”
I looked back and forth between my parents, and finally Daddy said, “It’s true. I loved your mother long before she hooked up with Chubby. Around the time she found out she was pregnant, we realized Chubby was crazy, and she decided she didn’t want to have anything to do with him. When he cheated me out of some money, I knew it was time to go. Your mother and I talked, and we agreed to get married and raise Derrick together. We didn’t want any interference from Chubby—Ron.”
I didn’t know what to say.
“Look,” Daddy said, “as far as I’m concerned, Derrick is my son. I was there from the minute he was born, and I’ve been there every step of the way. Just because he’s not mine biologically doesn’t mean anything to me.”
“Am I yours?” I asked quietly.
My parents just looked at me.
“What kind of stupid question is that?” Mama asked. “Of course he’s your father.”
“How am I supposed to know what the truth is anymore?” I shouted. “You guys have been lying to us for years.”
“Speaking of lying,” Daddy said, “is there something you want to tell us?”
It took me a few seconds to figure out what he was talking about.
“I was going to tell you about the record deal,” I said, “but then Derrick was killed, and well, I just never got around to it.”
Daddy just took a deep breath and sighed. “How many albums is it for?”
“Five,” I said.
“Are you crazy?” he shouted. “Why would you sign that type of deal?”
“Because they were the only ones offering it,” I yelled right back.
Daddy ignored my tone. “What are the terms of the agreement?” he asked, running his hand down his face.
“I’m not sure,” I said.
“Where’s the contract?”
I tried to remember, but I couldn’t, so I shrugged.
“You need to call Henry,” Mama said softly.
“Don’t worry about it,” I said. “I signed the deal, so I’ll honor it.”
Mama ignored me. “Go call your brother,” she said.
Daddy left the room without saying another word.
Mama and I just sat in silence.
“We’ve made a real mess of things, huh?” she finally said.
When Daddy came into the room, he took one look at us and grabbed us both.
“We’re going to be okay,” he said, and I really believed him.
Once we finally settled down, Daddy said Uncle Henry wouldn’t be able to come over until the next day, because he had some huge meeting that evening.
I slept in the bed with my parents again that night, and we stayed up talking about Derrick and trying to figure out what the future held.
The next morning when I woke up, the first thing I saw was the television broadcasting a picture of Ron being led to a courthouse.
Apparently, when I had called 911, our whole conversation had been recorded, so they had his confession of killing my brother on tape. The anchor also said that there was evidence that Ron had murdered Lenny the nightclub owner.
I just shook my head in amazement. I had never been so close to someone so evil.
I had just come out of the bathroom when the phone rang.
“Hello,” I said.
“You okay?” I couldn’t help but smile at Kyle’s concern.
“I’m fine,” I said. “Yesterday was crazy.”
“I’ll be right over,” he said.
I started to protest, but I realized I really wanted to see him.
By the time Kyle arrived, reporters were standing around in our front yard and our phone was ringing off the hook. Mama and Daddy had decided to take the day off, and we were seriously thinking of unplugging the phone when it rang again. I glanced at the caller ID and saw T’s number, and I answered more out of curiosity than anything.
“Hey,” he said. “I’m surprised you answered.”
“I’m surprised you called,” I said with an attitude.
“Look, I heard about what went down last night and about what Ron did to your brother. I just wanted you to know that I’m really sorry.”
“Why would you be sorry?” I asked.
“I feel like I’m partly to blame,” he said.
Spin it Like That Page 14
