Staten Marek
The shattered look on Cambrie’s face broke something inside me. I’d suspected what I called Rossi out on not long after I heard Cambrie talking to her father. I didn’t want the shit to be true, but just knowing it could be meant it jeopardized what was happening between us. Hyperventilating and using the wall to support herself, she sank to her knees with her hand pressed into her chest, trying to inhale.
“Shit!” Sol hissed, rushing around the counter to go to her.
She’d offered to help with the dishes when Cambrie left the room, and the glass she held slipped from her hand.
“Cam, it’s OK, sweetie.” Kneeling, she grabbed her arm and looked her in her eyes, which were wide as two saucers, as she motioned to her throat. “Get me a paper bag!” Sol yelled over her shoulder.
Sprinting over to a drawer where I knew I kept bags for sack lunches, I reached in for a white paper bag and took it over to her. “Cam, take this.” Sol snapped the bag open and put it up to Cambrie’s face.
She grabbed both sides of it with her hands and held it to her mouth to take deep breaths. Within a minute or so, her breathing had returned to normal, but her glossy eyes were filledwith pain. Resting her head against the side of the door frame, her hand dropped to her lap, still gripping the paper bag as Rossi wheeled herself around the counter to join us.
“How are you feeling?” Sol asked, stroking her knee with concern.
Cambrie continued to pant, those deep, almond-shaped eyes drifting to mine as I stood behind my auntie. The doubt and fear residing in that gaze had my heart throbbing against my chest, waiting for her to speak. Licking her lips, she caught her breath and gripped the paper bag tighter in her hand.
“Did you know?” she asked, voice just a whisper as it cracked. “All this time?”
“Cam—” I inched forward.
“Answer the question.” This time, she was stern, and fire blazed behind her orbs.
“I didn’t know at first,” I admitted. “I heard you that night with your pops and I suspected, but I wasn’t sure, and honestly . . . I didn’t want to be. I didn’t want to be the reason you got that look in your eyes right now.”
She blinked away tears and sniffled as Sol held her hands out for her.
“Come on, let’s get you on your feet,” my aunt insisted.
Cambrie reluctantly accepted her help just as Nadia, Tavi, and Saga strolled up behind her. In a matter of minutes, I’d forgotten that she was here and that was the reason I’d come in the kitchen going off on my mama. The hurt lingering in Cambrie’s eyes hit me harder than I ever expected, and all I wanted to do was take it away. That’s what she did for me. She made everything better with a glimpse, a touch, just walking into the fucking room. Confusion marred both Tavi and Saga’s faces.
“What’s wrong with her?” Nadia asked, turning up her nose.
There was no empathy or concern, and it was obvious that Cambrie was shaken up about something. Nadiaonly saw who she thought was her enemy. Worry lingered over my son’s face as he narrowed his eyes.
“You OK, Cambrie?” Saga queried.
“I think . . . I need some air.” Pivoting quickly, she marched to the front of the house.
I heard her snatch up her keys from the hook near the front entrance before bursting outside.
“I’ll check on her.” Sol sprinted off behind her, and I brought my fingers to my forehead to massage the stress lines growing.
“Fuck!” I bellowed, slamming my fist against the counter.
“Okay, what is going on?” Nadia raised her hands in the air and looked between me and my mama.
“None of your fucking business.”
“Excuse you? You do not have to be rude, Staten! Despite whatever you feel, I am still the mother to your children!” she spat.
“Daddy, you’re always telling us not to be mean. Mommy just asked a question,” Tavi vocalized. Ignoring them, I turned to my mother, head down, completely guilt ridden as she should be. Kneeling so that we could be eye level, my jaw locked when I rested a hand against the arm of her chair. I’d never been disrespectful to her, but she’d crossed the line today.
“You happy now?” I asked in a low growl.
“Staten, I?—”
“Are you happy now!” I repeated, startling her and everyone else in the room.
