by Jackie D.
“That’s what most men say,” Justice informed.
“After he hit me even though we had a house full of people this last time, I couldn’t take it anymore. I had to leave; I didn’t want my boy’s growing up thinking it was okay to beat women. I’ve already seen abusive behavior in my son Kareem.” Skye was still too embarrassed to talk about the rape. “It’s amazing what can happen when you give a man control over your life.”
“It was good that you got out Janelle,” Justice replied in a soft tone.
“I should’ve left a long time ago.”
“Did you ever try and call the police after one of the incidents?”
“Are you crazy? He would’ve killed me for sure if I’d done that.” Skye looked down then ran her hand through Payton’s soft, curly hair. “Things got ten times worse when I got pregnant with my daughter. He didn’t want me to have her.”
“Did he beat you while you were pregnant?”
Suddenly a tear raced down Skye’s cheek. “For the first three months. He was so pissed off that I decided to keep the baby,” she said after wiping her face. “Can you believe he even insisted on naming her when she was born? How crazy is that?”
Justice looked at Skye. “Janelle I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to open up more, just know that you can trust me.” When Skye nodded her head, Justice gave her a sincere look. “Can I ask you a really personal question?”
“I guess.”
“How old are you?”
“Thirty-four…why?” Skye inquired.
“Because you don’t look a day over twenty-five.” Justice also wanted to tell Skye how beautiful she was, but decided against it.
“Thanks.” It was hard for Skye to accept the compliment since she’d managed to let Sandino lower her self esteem.
“Janelle, you’re safe here. It’s time for you to start over and look out for yourself. You’re a great mother. Most women aren’t strong enough to leave, but you put your kids first and that says a lot about you.”
“I can’t thank you enough for all your help, Justice. I’m so glad to be free and have control of my own life.”
Skye felt the tears building up once again. Soon they were flowing down her face. At that moment, Justice went against the rules by walking over to Skye and giving her a hug. He couldn’t deny her beauty or his attraction to her as she cried on his shoulder. Both of them were so embraced in the hug, they didn’t notice Mercedes standing in the door way.
“What the hell are you doing, Justice?” Mercedes questioned with a cigarette in her hand.
Justice looked up. “What have I told you about smoking inside the house? There’s a designated area outside for that.”
Mercedes took a short puff. “The hell with that, I’ve been having a stressful day. But don’t try and change the subject. What are you doing?”
“This is none of your concern, Mercedes. Mind your business and close the door behind you,” Justice responded.
“What do you mean it’s none of my concern? That shit is against the rules. Are you willing to jeopardize all that we’ve built here for her?” Mercedes replied.
Skye wiped her tears away as Justice walked toward the door. “We’ve built? Are you serious? Go put that damn cigarette out,” he said, before closing the door. After walking back to his desk and sitting down, Justice continued. “Sorry about that Janelle. Mercedes can be so unprofessional at times. Anyway, our Domestic Violence Program will help you move, find a place to live, a job and get on your feet.”
Skye looked at Justice knowing he was right; she had to get a job and support her family. She couldn’t stay at the shelter forever, especially since she couldn’t keep Kareem and Jordan out of school much longer.
Once their session was over Skye went back to her room and put Payton to sleep. Afterwards she laid across the bed thinking about the hug she shared with Justice. She couldn’t seem to get it out of her mind, his arms felt so good, so safe…so right.
Instantly, her vision on their embrace was quickly erased when her sons came running in the room telling her to come look at the T.V. Skye had no idea why they were so emotional and pulling her down the hall in such a hurry.
When they reached the family room and saw Sandino’s picture posted next to the Channel 5 news anchor, her eyes widened.
“Sandino Washington, a Defensive Tackle for the Miami Dolphins was arrested last night on a gun possession and aggravated assault charges after a shooting that occurred in a South Beach night club, and has resulted in one injury. Stay tuned for more details.”
As soon as the news went off, Skye and the boys realized that they couldn’t react or show any emotions while other people were around. They listened as one of the women made a comment about how she couldn’t understand why pro ball players and celebrities made all the money and still got arrested for doing stupid shit.
Moments later, Skye, Kareem and Jordan headed outside and walked toward the front yard. In complete shock, the boys stood speechless.
“Can’t we go home now?’ Kareem asked.
“No, we can never go back home Kareem,” Skye answered.
Kareem shrugged his shoulders. “Why not, he’s locked up and can’t hit you anymore.”
“Because he might post bail and get right back out. I can’t take that chance.”
Clearly upset, Kareem stormed back inside. Jordan on the other hand could care less.
“I never want to see him again anyway. I hope they throw away the key,” Jordan said. He kissed his mother on the cheek before walking back inside as well.
Skye knew Sandino’s high price lawyer would probably get him off, but she couldn’t help but smirk when thoughts of him being behind bars invaded her thoughts. Maybe this is a sign that things might just go my way after all.
As Skye continued to walk around outside, little did she know Mercedes had entered her room without permission. Mercedes puffed on her cigarette as she walked over to Payton asleep on the bed and stood over her. She brushed her hands threw Payton’s hair.
“What a cute baby. Too bad she belongs to that bitch,” Mercedes said, blowing smoke. She removed the blanket. “Wonder how upset that bitch would be if I...”
Looking back to see if anyone was coming, Mercedes tapped the cigarette causing hot ashes to fall on Payton’s bare leg. Before she could start wailing, Mercedes quickly covered her mouth.
“Ssshhhh be quiet. It couldn’t have hurt that bad.”
No sooner than Mercedes removed her hand, Skye walked back into the room. When she saw Mercedes leaning over her baby with the cigarette, she went crazy.
“Why the hell are you in my room?” Skye asked. When she noticed ashes on Payton’s leg, she was infuriated. “Did you pluck fucking ashes on my baby? Bitch, are you crazy? Did you try to burn her?” She quickly picked Payton up.
“Ain’t nobody touch your precious baby. The ashes must’ve fallen by accident. She was crying, so I came to help your ass out. Who leaves a baby unattended?” Mercedes turned around and walked toward the door.
After laying Payton back down on the bed, Skye walked up behind Mercedes and pushed her on the floor. “Don’t you ever put your fucking hands on any of my kids!”
“Bitch, you’re gonna regret putting your damn hands on me,” Mercedes said jumping up. She dove on Skye and they locked onto one another like two pit bulls.
Mercedes swung hitting Skye in the face several times. Skye then jumped on top of her and put her in the choke hold. With visions of Sandino beating her all over again, she completely lost it. She started choking Mercedes until Justice ran into the room.
“What the hell is going on, break it up ladies!” he demanded.
He attempted to pull them apart, but Skye grabbed a chunk of Mercedes hair and tried to rip her scalp out.
“Tell this bitch to let go of my hair Justice!” Mercedes pleaded.
“Janelle please, there’s a no fighting policy at the shelter,” Justice responded.
At that mom
ent, Skye let go. She didn’t want Mercedes to be the cause of her family getting kicked out.
“This shit ain’t over,” Mercedes said, leaving her room.
Chapter 13
4 Months Later
Shortly after 1:00 am Skye heard a loud pounding sound at the front door. She jumped out of bed and grabbed the baby before quickly proceeding down the hall. By the time she made it to Jordan and Kareem’s room they’d already ran out wondering what was going on as well. Despite months of a peaceful household, the entire family was still on edge.
“How did he find us? Isn’t he still in jail?” Jordan asked. It didn’t take much for everyone to know who he was talking about.
Skye didn’t know what to think as the banging continued. “Oh my God Kareem, did you call him? Did you tell him where we were?” she yelled. “How could you?”
Before he could answer, someone yelled, “Cobb County Police! Open the door now!”
As her eyes increased, a part of Skye was relieved that it wasn’t Sandino while the other half still questioned what they wanted. Hesitantly, she walked over and opened her apartment door. Within seconds, her small, barely furnished living room was swarming with four officers wearing dark blue police jackets.
“Get on the floor now!” one of the white officers yelled with his gun drawn. With dirty blonde hair and thick eyebrows, he reminded Skye of Justin Timberlake.
“What’s going on?” Skye screamed while her sons instantly dropped to the floor. Before she had time to ask anything else, they were handcuffed behind their backs.
Moments later, a female office appeared and took Payton out of Skye’s hands as she was forced to the floor and handcuffed as well.
“This is a beautiful baby. Too bad she has to live in a home like this,” the female officer said in a sarcastic tone.
“A home like what? What are you talking about?” Skye questioned.
“Ma’am we have reason to believe there are drugs inside this residence,” another officer responded. Unlike the Justin knockoff, he was slightly overweight.
Skye frowned. “Drugs? Oh no, you must have the wrong apartment, we just moved here a few months ago. You must be looking for the people who used to live here before us or something. There must be a mistake.”
“We know how long you’ve lived here. Trust me, we know everything that goes on in this neighborhood,” the chubby officer informed.
He placed a search warrant down in front of Skye’s face. She tired to look up at the paperwork, but everything seemed to be a blur.
Skye laid handcuffed on the floor as they proceeded to search the apartment. She then looked over at her sons. Jordan had a scared expression on his face while Kareem had a guilty expression on his. He turned his head when he saw Skye looking in his direction.
“Do either of you know what’s going on?” Skye tried to whisper. However, the female officer quickly told her to be quiet.
Skye watched as the officers tore the apartment inside, out. They searched every room, every piece of furniture, and even dismantled Payton’s crib.
“This is crazy!” Skye yelled franticly.
At that moment, the overweight officer helped Skye up off the floor and removed her cuffs. He then walked over to Jordan, helped him up and removed his as well.
Skye thought they were gonna remove Kareem’s next until a black guy with bad acne and an old, dingy, Rocawear sweat shirt walked into the apartment and headed straight toward her oldest son.
“Do you remember me?” he asked.
Kareem looked at the officer and lowered his head.
“Don’t be shy now, son,” the officer continued. “We just met each other yesterday. You couldn’t have forgotten me that fast.”
When Kareem still didn’t respond, the pimpled face officer helped him up, then politely told him that he was under arrest.
Kareem instantly looked at Skye, but never said a word.
“Are you serious? He’s not a drug dealer. He wouldn’t dare have drugs in this house!” Skye shouted.
“Well, I’m afraid you’re wrong because we found this inside the sock drawer of your son’s room,” the blonde haired officer chimed in. He held up what looked like two ounces of cooked crack cocaine. It was already bagged in 20’s. “The room with the bunk bed’s…that is his room, right?”
Skye’s heart rate increased when she realized that drugs had been found in her home. “Yes, but…”
The blonde officer cut her off. “That’s what we thought.”
When the officer continued to escort Kareem toward the door, she lost it. “My son can’t go to jail, he has school tomorrow!”
“Ma’am your son should’ve thought about that before he sold drugs to an undercover cop,” Mr. Acne replied.
Skye was floored. She couldn’t believe what he’d just blurted out. “Are y’all at least gonna let him put on some pants and shoes?” Skye managed to say as Kareem walked outside with only a t-shirt and basketball shorts on.
The cold, brisk January air was well under forty.
“I’m sure he’ll be issued some flip flops,” the female officer stated as she handed Payton back.
“What’s going to happen to my son?” Skye questioned with tears in her eyes. “Where are you taking him?”
“He’ll be transported to the Marietta Youth Detention Center since he’s under age,” the female officer informed her.
At that point all Skye could do was shake her head as she watched the officer’s escort her oldest son out of the house and place him in the back of a police car.
Once the car pulled off, Skye grabbed her prepaid cell phone. Is this how the new year is going to start, she thought. “Justice, I need you!” Skye screamed in the phone when he answered.
******
Skye looked around her trashed apartment in complete disbelief. After staying in the shelter for another month after Sandino got locked up, she was happy when Justice was finally able to help her find a job along with her current home in Marietta, Georgia. Although the two bedroom apartment wasn’t as fabulous as her Miami mansion, Skye was proud to call the place her own. Even though Justice bought her a few pieces of furniture for Christmas and had even given her some items out of his personal home and the shelter, Skye couldn’t wait until she saved enough money to buy another T.V, and a dining room set. Eating at wooden fold-out tables had already taken its toll on them.
When they first moved in, it took a while for everybody to get used to living in a cramped space and a neighborhood full of Spanish people. They’d gone from a spotless home to a place where they saw an occasional roach, but it would just have to do until Skye got on her feet. She and Jordan dealt with it, but Kareem didn’t like living there at all. He started staying out all night and even skipped school a few times, but always assured Skye he would get his act together whenever she went off. Up until now, Skye was happy that she had a piece of mind, but apparently Kareem was going to be her next problem. She knew he’d been hanging with some of the local neighborhood boys, but she never thought in a million years that he would get in trouble for selling drugs. He was definitely turning into someone she barely knew.
She often wondered if Sandino was still locked up. Not knowing the circumstances, Skye prayed that he never saw the streets again, so she could really move on with her life comfortably. She asked Kareem almost every day if he’d talked to his father again. She feared that since Kareem was so rebellious right now, he might end up calling Sandino, but each time her son promised her that he hadn’t. Skye just hoped Kareem’s word could be trusted.
Skye glanced at the oak wood dresser and all the drawers that had been pulled out, when her mind suddenly drifted to Justice. Remembering when he and his cousin helped move the furniture inside, she thought about how Justice had really been there for her and the kids since they moved in. Skye also couldn’t deny the fact that she missed seeing him at the shelter every day and was really starting to like him.
As Skye continued to think, J
ustice knocked on the door five minutes later.
After asking who it was, Jordan slowly opened the door, then walked back to the couch with a sad look on his face.
“She’s in her bedroom,” was all he said.
Justice looked around the house. “What happened? Is everything okay?”
Jordan just shrugged his shoulders and continued watching T.V while Justice walked off. He headed down the hall past the boy’s room noticing that it had been completely ransacked. Both twin mattresses were off the bunk beds and clothes were scattered all over the floor. Wondering what happened since Skye refused to tell him over the phone, he knocked on her bedroom door.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, Justice.”
Skye placed her newly cut hair behind her eyes. She’d finally retired the wig. “Come in.”
When he walked inside, Justice watched as Skye placed a pair of shoes back inside her closet then glance at Payton who was on the bare mattress asleep. He could tell Skye had been crying.
“Did somebody break in here? Where’s Kareem? Talk to me,” he grabbed Skye and hugged her.
She instantly crumbled in his arms. “The police came to the house looking for Kareem. They found drugs in his room.”
“What?” Justice asked in shock.
“They arrested him. I need to go bail him out, but you know I don’t have that type of money,” Skye informed.
“Don’t worry about that, I got you,” Justice replied. “Where did they take him?”
“To some detention center.”
“There’s only one in Marietta. I know where it is, let’s go,” Justice quickly replied.
After grabbing her purse, Skye called and asked her neighbor Lydia, who lived on the first floor if Jordan and Payton could come over and stay with her while she ran out. She was Payton’s babysitter and also came over and tutored Jordan on his Spanish sometimes, so Skye knew that after giving the woman twenty dollars the fact that it was after two a.m. didn’t matter. Lydia was also nosey so Skye was sure that her neighbor knew exactly where she was going.
