The Devil Is a Lie

by ReShonda Tate Billingsley

  “Look,” Todd said wearily, “can we change the subject? I came here to get away from the drama, so can we talk about something else?”

  “That’s cool,” Lincoln said, shrugging. “Did you see the Rockets game last night?”

  “Nah,” Todd said, relieved. “I missed it, but I wanted to see the highlights.”

  “Hey, Tannie, put on ESPN,” Lincoln shouted.

  Tannie, who was at the other end of the bar, stopped fixing a drink, picked up the remote, and began flipping through channels.

  “Man, you missed it,” Lincoln continued, not taking his eyes off the TV. “Tracy McGrady owned that court. I’m telling you, he…Wait!” he yelled to Tannie. “Go back, go back to channel thirteen!” Lincoln shook Todd’s arm as he pointed toward the TV. “Look! Isn’t that Nina?”

  Todd peered up at the television, and his heart stopped at the sight of his ex-wife on channel thirteen’s ten o’clock news. She looked as beautiful as ever with her honey brown hair in the spiral curls he liked so much. His smile faded as he noticed the tall, muscular, dark-skinned man standing next to her, looking like Mr. Olympia.

  “Tannie, turn that up!” Lincoln shouted down the bar.

  Tannie complied, and the two friends walked to the end of the bar to get a closer look at the television.

  “What are they doing?” Lincoln asked.

  “I don’t know,” Todd responded. He felt a small pain in his heart as he saw Nina and the man lovingly hold each other’s hands. It’s not like he hadn’t expected Nina to move on. Thanks to his cousin Shari, who still kept in touch with Nina, he knew she was in a serious relationship, but to actually see it hurt him. Nina’s grandmother Odessa, a small but feisty white-haired woman, stood next to her.

  They watched as a heavyset man in a too-small suit talked at a podium.

  “So,” the man said, “it is my pleasure to present to Ms. Nina Lawson a check in the amount of eight point six million dollars as the newest winner of the Texas lotto.”

  Todd and Lincoln exchanged shocked glances.

  “Do you know her or something?” Tannie asked when she noticed their expressions.

  Todd was too stunned to reply.

  “Th-that’s his ex-wife,” Lincoln said, speaking for him.

  Nina came to the podium and began talking about what she planned to do with her winnings and how happy she and her fiancé were.

  “I can’t believe that’s your ex-wife,” Tannie said, now just as much into the press conference as Todd and Lincoln were.

  “Yeah, that’s his now very, very rich ex-wife,” Lincoln said, turning to stare at Todd.

  “Wow, she’s pretty. Why’d you two break up?” Tannie asked.

  “He left her,” Lincoln answered. “For another woman. A crazy woman.”

  “It’s more complicated than that,” Todd mumbled.

  “You left her for Pam?” Tannie asked, pointing at the television. “The same Pam you’re always in here complaining about?”

  Todd had to sit back down on the bar stool.

  “Yeah, he did,” Lincoln said, shaking his head. He had always liked Nina and had told Todd at the time that he’d been a fool to mess over her.

  They watched as Nina and her fiancé accepted their mock check for 8.6 million dollars.

  “You know what, Tannie? I think my boy is going to need a pitcher of vodka. Eight point six million dollars? And he’s so broke he can’t pay attention. Oh yeah, it’s gonna take a whole lot of liquor to process that.”

  4

  The news hadn’t been off ten seconds, and already Nina’s phone was blowing up. Both of them. Her cell phone and the house phone were ringing simultaneously.

  Rick was pacing back and forth across the living room. “It’s starting already.” He rubbed his hands over his head, something he did whenever he was frustrated. “I told you we shouldn’t have gone on television. We should’ve just let them send us the money.”

  Nina pressed Ignore on her cell phone, but before she could set it back down, it was ringing again. She hated to admit it, but Rick was right. Why hadn’t she thought about the consequences? Her friends were always telling her she was impulsive, and she was starting to believe they were right. At least Nina had contacted an attorney, who was helping her handle the winnings. He’d had her form a corporation to claim her money and had even explained the amount of additional taxes she’d have to pay if she gave Rick half the money like she wanted to. He didn’t try to stop her, though, from going on TV.

  “It’s not like we had a choice anyway,” Nina said meekly. “The lotto rules say we have to take part in the press conference. Besides, Mr. Abernathy said he didn’t think going on TV was that big of a deal.”

  “That’s because your attorney is a money-hungry publicity hound who just wanted the cameras to get a shot of him, too,” Rick snapped.

  “He was my father’s friend for years,” Nina protested.

  “And? From what you told me, your father was questionable himself, so his friends had to be just as shady.” As soon as he said it, Rick looked like he wished he could take the words back. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to speak bad of the dead.”

  Nina pursed her lips. Her father had been dead ten years, but she still loved him like crazy. Her mother had been sent to prison for drugs when Nina was just seven years old. Nina and her sister, Yvonne, had been raised by their father and grandmother. Their mother had banned them from visiting her in prison, saying she didn’t want her daughters to see her there. And after she was released, she’d moved to Chicago and, last Nina heard, had gotten wrapped up in drugs again. If not for her grandmother Odessa, Nina didn’t know how she would’ve survived all these years. Her grandmother was the first person she called after confirming the winning numbers. Odessa had been genuinely happy for Nina’s win, but like Rick, she thought it was a mistake to go public.

  Rick sat down next to Nina. “Baby, I’m just worried. I think we really messed up by taking this thing public.” He jumped as the cordless phone rang again. He picked up the phone, pushed the Talk button, then quickly pushed the End button. “I mean, do you really think this is gonna stop?” He tossed the phone onto the coffee table.

  “It’s probably just people calling to congratulate us.” Even Nina knew that was wishful thinking. She came from a pretty big family, and she was expecting to have relatives coming out of the woodwork, hoping to get in on the winnings.

  Rick scoffed at that innocent idea. “Yeah, the very first call was from your cousin Luther. You haven’t talked to him in how long? Do you really think he was just calling to congratulate you?”

  Nina laid her head back against the sofa. Rick was so right. No doubt Luther was calling for money. Even so, she didn’t see what the big deal was. She had been so excited, and she planned to share with her family anyway. Then Mr. Abernathy had told her that going on TV would be great publicity for her real estate business, which she still planned on moving forward with. She’d already found a building before winning the lottery and was just waiting on loan approval from the bank.

  Nina’s best friend, Michelle, had also advised against going public. Michelle was a researcher for a local television station, and she had looked into past lotto winners. Many of them said their lives changed for the worse after winning. How could that be? Nina wondered.

  “Look, what’s done is done,” she said, finally deciding to stop beating herself up about it. She’d just won 8.6 million dollars. They needed to be happy, not stressing over begging relatives. “Let’s go out and celebrate.”

  Rick sighed, giving in, even though he was still upset. “Okay, you’re right. Let’s not harp on it. But mark my words, we’re gonna regret this.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let’s go someplace real nice.” She planted a kiss on his lips.

  He finally flashed a genuine smile. “What about Vargo’s?” he said. “You usually have to have reservations, but I’m sure once we let them know who we are, they’ll squeeze us in.”


  “Look at you, already getting the big head,” Nina joked.

  He pushed out his chest with mock overconfidence. “Do you want to go or not?”

  “I do, but isn’t that place really expensive?” She was all for celebrating but didn’t think they needed to splurge just yet, especially because, technically, they didn’t have the money in hand. A new law mandated a three-day hold on the check disbursement from the Lottery Commission so they could make sure Nina didn’t owe the government any money or have any liens against her.

  “Yes, Vargo’s is expensive, but we can afford it now,” he said patiently. “So go get dressed in your nicest outfit. And hurry up. It’s already six thirty.” He spun her toward the stairs and popped her on the behind.

  She headed toward the stairs but stopped at the bottom step and turned back toward Rick. “Should we really be going to Vargo’s when we haven’t even gotten the check yet?”

  “Would you stop worrying? Please? We can max out the credit card now since how we’re going to pay it is no longer an issue.” Nina had recently added Rick to her credit card and bank account. He couldn’t qualify for an account on his own because he’d messed up his credit in college. She’d been real nervous about it, but so far he’d exercised extreme caution in using the card. He’d also been real careful about how he spent the money in the bank, even though he regularly deposited his paycheck.

  Nina grinned widely. “You’re right about that, huh?”

  Rick walked over, picked her up, and spun her around. “Yeah, baby. Our money troubles are officially over. Let’s go get dressed.”

  Rick called Vargo’s and secured a reservation while Nina went to get dressed. Twenty minutes later, she had pulled her hair in an upsweep and was wearing her nicest cocktail dress, a deep green V-neck number that she knew Rick loved.

  “Wow,” he said as she walked down the stairs. Nina couldn’t help noticing how rickety the railing was. Oh well, she thought. They’d no longer have to put off repairs because they couldn’t afford it. The thought made her beam even more.

  “You like?” she asked, striking a pose.

  He nodded. “You look amazing.”

  “Like a million bucks?” she purred.

  “Like eight point six million, to be exact.” He kissed her lightly and guided her toward the door.

  5

  Nina and Rick had just swung the door open to leave when they were swarmed by Nina’s older sister and two of her cousins.

  “Girl, you are out of order!” Yvonne yelled loud enough for all the neighbors to hear. She was dressed in her usual loud colors—a gold spandex halter top and brown leggings with lace around the ankles. Yvonne had a beautiful figure and didn’t hesitate to flaunt it.

  “How you gon’ win all that money and not let somebody know?” she snapped.

  Nina fought back a groan. Rick, on the other hand, didn’t try to hide his irritation. Since the day they’d met, Rick and Yvonne had been like cats and dogs, always going at it. Yvonne didn’t like Rick, and the feeling was mutual.

  “Yvonne, we were just going out,” Rick said, pushing Nina out the door.

  Yvonne jumped in front of her sister, blocking her path. “To celebrate? That’s what I’m talkin’ ’bout. Where we goin’?” She smacked her lips like she was ready to party.

  “We ain’t goin’ nowhere,” Rick replied.

  Yvonne ran her fingers through her long two-tone burgundy weave and scowled at Rick. “I do think I was talking to my sister. My blood.” She pointed a finger in his face. “You just a dude passin’ through.”

  Nina knew she needed to step in, as she always did whenever they started in on each other. “Yvonne, what’s going on?”

  Before her sister could answer, Nina’s twin cousins, Janay and Janai (their mother liked the name so much she gave it to both of her girls), stepped forward.

  “How is my favorite cousin?” Janay asked, hugging Nina.

  Janai quickly followed suit. “Yeah, girl. How you doin’?” The twins wore matching Rocawear denim tube dresses with UGG boots. Like Yvonne, both were smacking on large wads of gum and looking like they were heading to a hoochie convention.

  Nina narrowed her eyes, trying not to let the disdain she was feeling show on her face. “I’m doing the same as I was yesterday, last week, and last year. But of course, you couldn’t’ve cared less how I was doing then.” Even though the twins were thirty, just like Nina, they were Yvonne’s running buddies, probably because they were just as ghetto as she was. Janai and Janay had never cared for Nina, saying she always thought she was better than everyone else—even though she didn’t. But they were definitely changing their tune now.

  “Nina, you look good,” Janay said, ignoring her remark. “Did you lose weight?”

  “Actually, I gained ten pounds since you saw me last,” Nina said drily.

  Rick exhaled in disgust. “Nina, we need to be going.” He motioned toward the car. “They’ll cancel our dinner reservations if we’re late.”

  Yvonne planted her hands on her hips. “So y’all ain’t gon’ invite us to dinner, for real?”

  “We’re not inviting you. For real,” Rick stressed.

  Nina knew she needed to diffuse the situation before the hostility flared out of control. “Rick, baby, can you go on to the car? I’ll be there in a minute.”

  “Yeah, Rick. Go on to the car.” Yvonne sneered.

  Rick looked like he wanted to go off, but Nina gently put her hand on his chest. “Please, I’ll be there in a minute.”

  He stomped off to the car.

  “I don’t know why you stay with him,” Yvonne snarled, watching him go.

  “Yvonne, don’t start.” They’d had this conversation so many times, Nina had lost count. She and her sister weren’t even that close, but since Yvonne was the older of the two sisters, she never hesitated to give her two cents.

  “Whatever.” Yvonne knew when she was beaten. “So, what’s up? How you gon’ win the lottery and not tell your sister?”

  “Yvonne, I tried to call you. But neither me or Grandma Odessa could get in touch with you.”

  “That’s because we been in Miami celebrating our birthday,” Janay announced, giving her sister a high five.

  “It was off the chain,” Janai echoed.

  “Well, don’t get mad at me, because I tried to call and couldn’t get you. What’s wrong with your Cricket phone?” Nina asked.

  Yvonne curled her lip and tsked. “Why you gotta say it like that?” She turned toward Janay. “‘What’s wrong with your Cricket phone?’” she said mockingly before turning back to Nina. “Everybody ain’t got good credit like you. T-Mobile isn’t doling out phones to everybody.”

  Nina sighed. Why wasn’t she surprised? When she’d tried to help her sister buy a house last year, she’d found out that Yvonne’s credit score was 450. It was no wonder she couldn’t get a cell phone with a decent carrier.

  “If you must know, ol’ siddity girl, my Cricket phone is off because I’m broke,” Yvonne said. “Of course, that was before my sister won the lotto.”

  “But you had enough money to go to Miami?” Nina asked incredulously.

  “Please,” Yvonne said, waving her off. “Janay’s man paid for our trip.”

  Rick started blaring the horn.

  “Okay, I need to be going,” Nina said. “Yvonne, I do plan on giving you some money. Call me tomorrow and we’ll talk about it.”

  Yvonne squealed in victory as Nina headed down the walkway toward the car.

  “What about us?” Janay yelled. “We family, too.”

  Nina didn’t bother looking back as she got in the car and took off.

  6

  Todd slumped into his seat at the kitchen table. He had fumbled his way through most of the workday. Today had been the day from hell. Of course, he was still in shock over the news he learned last night about Nina winning the lottery. But then, first thing this morning, his mother had called to tell him that the doctor wanted
to meet with them about his grandmother Hattie. They’d put her in a hospice after she suffered a stroke. Although she’d recovered, she was suffering from cardiomyopathy and was waiting on a donor so she could have a heart transplant.

  Todd shook off thoughts of his grandmother. She was going to be fine, he told himself as he glanced at the phone on the kitchen table.

  He had debated calling Nina to congratulate her, but then he thought she probably had everyone trying to call her. She did have some outlandish family members, and Todd had no doubt they were trying to claim their share.

  So he had decided not to call her; although Nina’s winning the lottery had been the catalyst to start him thinking about her again, his feelings for her purely genuine.

  Leaving Nina was his biggest regret. They’d been together since high school and had even attended college together at the University of Texas at Austin. He had a track scholarship; she an academic scholarship. But they both were so happy to be away from home (and her overprotective grandmother) that they hadn’t studied like they were supposed to, and by their sophomore year they were both flunking out.

  Todd finally gave up on school and moved back home to Houston. After another semester, Nina followed. They lived together against her grandmother’s wishes, and like most young couples, they struggled. They married at twenty-one, way too young. Todd loved Nina but he reached the point where he started feeling like he was missing all that life had to offer. He wanted to go out with his boys. He wanted to have fun. Being married meant having a boring, uneventful life. She worked in real estate. He got a part-time job at a radio station. Eventually he was promoted to director of music relations, his salary skyrocketed, and he was invited to all the hottest parties, where he worked hard to make contacts for his future dream of opening a talent management company. Even though he was unhappily married, he hung in there with Nina and was faithful to her for seven years. Then he met Pam.