by Honey
“I’ll send her home with the driver,” Josiah finally said. “The girls and I will hang out here a little while longer. J can give us a lift home later on.”
“Rev will like that.”
“I’ll be right back.” Josiah stood from the table and kissed his mother’s cheek. He patted his father’s back on his way over to Mink and the girls. When he reached their table, he touched Mink’s shoulder, and she visibly flinched. “Are you okay, baby? You seem offbeat.”
“I’m fine. It’s been a long day, and Gem is being Gem. You need to get her before I slap her little disrespectful behind into next week. She’s getting on my nerves with her whining and temper tantrums, JoJo.”
“Come here, Gem.” He held out his arms to his daughter.
Gem stood from her chair and rushed into her daddy’s arms. She buried her face into the crook of his neck when he picked her up. “Mommy is being mean to me. She pinched me because I didn’t like the sweet potatoes.”
“She pinched you?”
Gem lifted her head and looked at Josiah head-on. She nodded with tears in her eyes before she rolled up the right sleeve on her pretty lavender dress and showed her father a red mark.
Josiah kissed the small bruise. “I’m sorry, sweetie. Your mother shouldn’t have pinched you, but you can’t be sassy, baby. Respect your parents and all other adults. Okay?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
Josiah looked down at Mink with anger bubbling in his blood. “Nelson is going to drive you home. The girls and I will chill here with Rev, Mama, and J. We’ll see you later tonight.”
Mink stood abruptly, gripping her designer clutch bag. Then without a word, she stormed toward the exit of the fellowship hall.
“Come on, Treasure,” Josiah coaxed, placing Gem on her feet. He picked up his baby girl from her seat. “Let’s go and talk to Nana and Papa.”
* * *
“Are you sure about this, Mrs. Bishop?” Nelson, the driver asked. “Mayor Bishop expected me to take you home and not to this neighborhood. It doesn’t look very safe in this neck of the woods. Let me take you home, ma’am.”
Nelson had just parked on a street lined with abandoned houses and discarded trash. Young men wearing sagging pants on bodies covered with tattoos stood on every corner. A pimped-out car blasting loud gangsta rap sped past the limousine. The deafening bass line thumped so hard that it caused the luxury stretch to rock from side to side. A pack of stray dogs ran behind the car, howling into the early-evening air. The graffiti on the sides of outdated buildings was beyond vulgar.
“Please don’t get out of the car, Mrs. Bishop. I want to take you home. I have a niece who’s around your age, and I wouldn’t want her hanging around here.”
Mink sucked her teeth and waved the older man off. She licked her lips as she watched a stocky guy with cornrows slap hands with a young woman in the familiar secret handoff. She wanted a taste of whatever he’d given her so she could shush her demons. Mink exited the car all of a sudden.
“Mrs. Bishop, please—”
She slammed the car door and ran across the street in her platinum designer stilettos without looking back. “What’s good, man?” Mink asked as she sashayed toward the stocky guy.
He turned and took her in, licking his lips. “What’s up, ma? What can a nigga do for you, bae?”
Noticing the way the guy’s eyes were roaming all over her body reminded Mink that she was wearing over two thousand dollars’ worth of designer clothes and triple that amount in jewelry. But it wasn’t her clothes the hustler was interested in at all. His eyes had already stripped her down to her flesh. She was virtually naked when he closed the gap between them and reached out to remove a wayward strand of hair from her face.
Mink shivered slightly. “What do you have?”
“You don’t look like no rock star or a weedy. I bet you want some of that H. Yeah, you into that smack.”
“You got some?” Mink’s heartbeat accelerated five times over its normal rhythm just thinking about getting a hit. She hadn’t used since last weekend because Josiah had dragged her and the girls from one event to another Saturday. Then he’d insisted that they join him for church service and dinner today. Mink needed a fix right now because the craving was driving her bat-shit crazy.
“Nah, I ain’t got none, ma, but I can get my hands on some. You look like you rolling in dough and shit. I saw you hop outta that limo in your expensive gear and fancy pocketbook. Who are you, sexy thang?”
“That’s not important. This is,” Mink whispered, reaching inside her clutch. She pulled out a wad of cash. “Now, where can I get what I want? I need some of that good shit.”
“Oooh snap! You got that paper! Let’s roll out. I’ma take your fine ass to holla at my boy, Prince. Dude’s got that fire.”
* * *
“You were knocked out cold when the girls and I got in last night.” Josiah wrapped his arms around Mink’s waist and kissed the back of her neck. He immediately felt her back muscles tighten and contract against his chest. “What’s wrong, Mink? Lately, every time I touch you, you tense up.”
Mink dried her hands on a dish towel and turned around to face her husband. She’d been battling withdrawals since early morning. She was still nauseated and extremely irritable. Plus, her stomach was cramping like hell, more than likely signaling the onset of her cycle. “I’m tired. We had a full weekend, so I’m still trying to recover. I’ll go back to bed after I take the girls to school.”
“I’ll take the girls to school, baby. Better yet, I’ll help them finish getting dressed and feed them breakfast too. Go on back to bed now.” Josiah kissed Mink’s lips.
“Are you sure, JoJo?”
“Yeah, baby. I got this.”
* * *
As soon as Mink heard the garage door close, she got up, ran to the dresser, and ransacked the bottom drawer. Her entire body was trembling violently with anticipation. She needed a hit in the worst way. It was Monday, so she wasn’t supposed to be shooting up, but she was cold and nauseated as hell. There was no way around it. She was a sick woman, and heroin was her medicine. She looked at her left arm. It was sore and covered with dark bruises, so she decided to tap a vein on her right arm. With shaky hands, she secured the pink elastic band around her arm before she emptied the vial into the syringe. It had been nice of her new friend, Prince, to give her a parting gift before he put her in a cab home yesterday. She owed him big time.
Mink injected the needle into her vein, unleashing the drug she loved into her bloodstream. She welcomed the numbness before the airy, floating sensation. She was soaring, feeling like a dove in flight. All of her problems, insecurities, and troubling thoughts were back on earth as she ascended to her favorite place where everything was beautiful. The pitiful cries of the baby ceased too. Life after a dose of heroin was so refreshing, even though it was only for a while. Why couldn’t it last forever?
Mink dropped to her knees and stared into space. She wanted to sleep so she could avoid the guilt that was soon to come. She would deal with it and a thousand regrets later on after the withdrawals and anger. So she gathered her dope paraphernalia and returned it all to its hiding place. She would discard the vial and syringe later, but before the girls arrived home from school. Right now, she needed to retire to her bed.
* * *
“That is why we need to keep guns out of the hands of repeat offenders and hold family members of the mentally ill accountable when their loved ones manage to get their hands on their firearms. If your spouse or your son or daughter or anyone in your household has mental health issues, it is your responsibility to secure your firearms and ammunition in a place where he or she is unable to access it. And if you fail to do so, you should face serious consequences.”
Josiah paused when the audience applauded and verbally expressed their agreement with the content of his speech. He was grateful for a moment or two to catch his breath. He didn’t feel well. The nagging burning sensation in his lower
abdomen was stronger than it had been the last two days. Something was wrong. Josiah was sure of it each time he had to stuff his hand inside his front pocket behind the podium to scratch his dick and balls through his pants and underwear. This shit wasn’t normal, and neither was the cloudiness he’d noticed in his urine this morning. And it stank like hell. The itching and burning below were annoying, and they were making it difficult for him to complete the final two points of his speech. But he would press his way to the end. Josiah gritted his teeth through the pain and secretly scratched his sensitive and very swollen penis and testicles through the remainder of his speech. At the conclusion, he received a boisterous round of applause.
“What’s wrong, JoJo?” Jeremiah asked. He positioned his body to block a throng of people with questions from his brother the moment he ended his speech. “You don’t look good.”
“Something is wrong, J,” he answered faintly, wincing through the pain. “I need to get to the emergency room.”
“I’ll tell Connor to have Nelson bring the car around.”
“Nah nah nah . . . I need you to take me, J. But we can’t go anywhere in Atlanta.”
“What the hell do you mean?”
“Take me to your car. Then send Connor and Nelson home so that we can get out of here.”
“What the hell am I supposed to tell all these damn people?” Jeremiah growled through clenched teeth.
“Tell them the truth. I’m under the weather.”
Chapter Twelve
“Jeremiah?”
His head snapped toward the soft voice. He stood and hurried over to the nurse, anxious for an update on his brother. Jeremiah was exhausted and mad as hell. It was after one o’clock in the morning by the time he and Josiah arrived at the emergency room of the University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital. And they were expected back in Atlanta for an interfaith prayer breakfast in just a few hours. Once again, Jeremiah sensed that Mink was dragging Josiah down into a rabbit hole.
“Is my brother okay?”
“He wants you to come in and speak with him and the doctor. Follow me, sir.”
When Jeremiah and the nurse reached treatment room 9, he tapped on the door once and entered. The doctor was in the middle of giving Josiah instructions about one of three prescriptions he held in his hand. The word chlamydia almost caused Jeremiah to punch the wall, but he took a few cooling breaths to dial his anger back until the doctor finished his spiel and left the treatment room.
“I know, J, so you don’t have to say anything. Just get me out of here. I need to settle the bill in cash and find a twenty-four-hour pharmacy somewhere around here so I can get these prescriptions filled. That transaction will have to be handled in cash too. My reputation will be at risk if I do it any other way. I feel a little bit better since the nurse gave me a shot, but I need these meds to pull through.”
“This is it, JoJo! You get rid of Mink, and you better do it as soon as we get back to the A! I’m sick of this shit!” In a flash, Jeremiah’s rage turned into sadness, and fear crashed down on him. He broke down in tears. Mink’s actions were now affecting him. “I know you love her, JoJo,” he whimpered over uncontrollable sobs from his soul. “But she is going to destroy you. It’s chlamydia today, but it could be HIV or even AIDS next time. I can’t lose you, man. I love you. Don’t you get it? We’re one for life, JoJo.”
Josiah left the examining table and walked across the room to comfort his twin brother. He wrapped his arms around Jeremiah tightly and held on. Watching his brother cry for him had triggered his tears. They squeezed each other and cried silently as time slipped away.
“Promise me you’re going to leave her.”
“It’s over, J. I swear.”
* * *
“Where the hell have you been all night? It’s seven fifteen in the morning. What’s going on, JoJo?”
Josiah removed his suit coat and tossed it on the love seat and continued stripping out of his clothes. “It’s funny that you should ask. You see, thanks to you, I was in a damn hospital in Birmingham being treated for chlamydia!”
“I don’t have chlamydia! If you’ve got that nasty shit, one of the whores you’ve been dealing with behind my back gave it to you!” Mink sprang from the bed and rushed toward him.
He shoved her out of his face. “I’m sick and tired of your shit, so save your lies and drama for someone stupid, Mink. I have never cheated on you. You contracted chlamydia from some thug while you were out there drugging, and then you brought it home to me! Take your ass to the doctor today and get treated. Then come back here, pack your shit, and get the hell out of my damn house!”
“I’m not going anywhere! But if I do, Gem and Treasure are coming with me. You will not keep me from my children! Never!”
Josiah snapped like a madman, grabbing Mink by her neck with both hands and slamming her back against the wall. “You have kept yourself away from those girls more times than I can count. Every damn time you start feen-ing, you leave and hit the streets like a typical junkie. And then you bring your ass back to this house like you’ve been away on a mercy mission overseas or deployed in Afghanistan. So don’t play games with me, Mink. You don’t care about our children, you selfish bitch! You don’t even give a damn about yourself. Heroin is your life’s priority, so go out there and shoot as much as you can into your veins. I don’t give a damn anymore because I’m done with you. And if you go anywhere near Gem Ariana or Treasure Lorielle, I’ll have your ass arrested.”
* * *
“Hush now, Treasure. You’re going to be fine.”
“Mommy, don’t leave!” The child wrapped her arms around her mother’s legs, preventing her from moving.
Gem stood emotionless several feet away next to her father taking in the whole scene.
“Let me go, sweetie. As soon as I get settled, I’ll call Daddy and set up a time for us to meet for a visit.”
“Noooo! Mommy, stay here with me and Gem and Daddy.”
Mink rolled her eyes sharply at Josiah as tears and snot poured down her face. He turned his head, seemingly unfazed that his baby girl was crying and pleading with her mother not to abandon her once again. The child didn’t want Mink to leave, but unfortunately, she had no other choice. Josiah wanted her to leave the home they’d shared for most of their marriage because of her drug use and presumed infidelity.
As expected, Mink had tested positive for chlamydia, and she was now on three different medications to remedy the sexually transmitted disease. She had contracted it when she was out on one of her sneaky weekend visits to the streets a few weeks ago. She’d lied and told Josiah that she was at an NA meeting. The worst thing about the situation was that Mink had no idea who she’d gotten chlamydia from. The guy hadn’t bothered to give her his name. Their interaction had been limited to dope and payment. The tall, lanky guy with a bald head and beady eyes had raped Mink after she’d gotten high off of his drugs and didn’t have the money to pay him. She had offered him a handful of rare gold coins from the girls’ collection and a diamond pinky ring that Jeremiah had given Josiah for his birthday a few years ago, but the dude didn’t want those valuables. So he took what he wanted from Mink.
Josiah walked over and pried Treasure’s tiny hands away from her mother’s legs. “Mommy will see you soon, but she has to go now and get settled in her new place. The Uber car will be here any minute.” He picked the child up as she cried, kicked, and screamed bloody murder at the top of her voice. He handed her to Jeremiah.
Uncle and nieces headed upstairs, leaving Mink and Josiah facing each other awkwardly in the foyer.
“I never cheated on you, JoJo. He raped me.”
“I’m sure he did, Mink, but he couldn’t have laid a finger on you if you had been home with your husband and daughters. You put those girls and me at risk every time you go back to the streets.”
“Do you think I want to be an addict, JoJo, huh? Is that what you believe? Do you honestly think that as a child I dreamed of growing up
one day to become a goddamn junkie?”
Josiah rubbed both hands down his face and sighed. “I know you didn’t plan to become an addict, but you did, and I ain’t able to handle it anymore. And I have to protect my children because I damn sure didn’t protect myself. You’ve got me walking around here with my junk burning and itching like a damn fool. I won’t give you the opportunity to bring physical harm to my girls, though.”
“I would never hurt my babies.”
“I can’t take the risk. You’ve left them home alone before. Anything could’ve happened to them. You may never hurt them intentionally, but who knows what you’ll do when you’re high out of your mind on that stuff? That’s why you’ve got to get out of here, Mink.”
“JoJo, please don’t put me out. Help me.”
“I can’t help you, Mink. You’re going to have to help yourself. I’ll pay your rent and all of your utilities at your apartment. I’ll even buy your food and pay your cell phone bill. But what I will not do is give you money to use to buy drugs and alcohol.”
“Okay.” Mink nodded. “Why can’t I take my car with me?”
“I don’t trust you, girl,” Josiah told her, laughing. “If you get a craving that’s strong enough, you’ll pawn the car for a fix in a heartbeat. I can’t take that chance.”
A car horn honked outside the house. Josiah looked out the window. “Your driver is here. I’ll help you with your luggage.”
“Take good care of my babies, JoJo.”
“The girls will be taken care of. Between Mama, Miss Gladys, Gypsie, and J, I have more than enough reliable help. But, I, their father, will be their primary caretaker.”
Josiah carried two large suitcases out to the car and went back inside for the third one. Mink followed him, balancing two duffle bags. After they loaded the car, they faced each other.
“No matter how terrible of a person I am and in spite of my substance abuse issues, I love you and those girls with all my heart, JoJo.”
