Page 9 of Welcome to the Heart Of A Maniac
Stepping through the rotating doors, I headed to the main part of the library where the books were located and there she was, standing behind the desk with her glasses in her hand, cleaning them with a piece of yellow fabric.
I slipped next to one of the shelves and observed her from afar. She squinted at something on the computer and a woman walked up to the desk. She flashed her a smile that went from ear to ear before engaging in a conversation with her. With me being so far away, I couldn’t hear what was being exchanged. The woman wrote something down on the desk and walked off.
She slipped her glasses back on her face and stepped from behind the desk, grabbing one of the carts filled with books and made her way toward the shelves. I eased around the back and smelled her before I even made it to the aisle next to her. Stopping, my ear perked toward the shelf. I saw a book slide into an empty space just inches away from me. I leaned down on thenext shelf where there was an empty space and saw her standing there.
Her face couldn’t be seen—just her breasts. She placed the book into the empty space, closing off my access to her. I searched the shelf for the next missing book, and she made her way to it, humming a song that I couldn’t quite make out what it is. Her hand lifted there, I stroked the back of it and she yanked away, releasing a gasp.
“Hello?” Her voice was soft, filled with worry. I wasn’t about to cause harm to her. That’s the least of her worries. “Is someone there?” She leaned down, and I moved out of the way where she couldn’t see me. “Am I tripping?”
You damn sure ain’t, babe.
She slid the book onto the shelf and then headed to the other end of the library with me close behind her. For the next ten minutes, I followed her lil ass all over this library. People stopped her to ask her questions. She handled them with ease. The way she stroked the letters on some of the front of the books, I sensed that this is something she genuinely loves doing.
“Aye?” a guy called out to her, stopping her in her tracks. She shouldn’t have stopped unless he addressed her correctly. That’s some I’m gon’ have to teach her ass. Shit, fucking with me, she won’t be answering any niggas. I’on give a damn if it did have something to do with work.
“Yes?” she replied softly and offered him a smile. Nigga’s eyes wandered her frame and my ears turned hot. He know damn well he wasn’t about to ask her shit that has to do with books. He better got the fuck outta here before the coroner be coming to pick his ass up.
Her back was facing me, so she couldn’t see me. I stepped out into view, mugging him, waiting to see what bullshit left his lips. He glanced at me over her shoulder and then took his attention back to her.
“I’ve been coming in here for a while and finally got enough courage to come up to you and ask you—” His words cut short when I removed my strap from my waistline and waved it in the air. His jaw muscles clenched, and his eyes expanded just like a deer caught in headlights. If he didn’t get the fuck away from her, he was gon’ be caught in these bullets.
“What are you looking at?” She turned, and I jumped back behind the shelf, not wanting her to know that I was here.
“N-n-never mind,” he said. When I poked my head back around the shelf, he was long gone. That nigga hauled ass up outta here.
She went back to the desk, and I left out of the library, satisfied. The next time that I see her, I’m gon’ approach. Everything is about the right timing.
Later that night
I pulled into the parking lot of Spotless Kings Detailing and cut the engine. My high beam lights shone through the glass door into the darkness before they turned off. Stopping here wasn’t on my list of shit to do tonight, but once Murda called me and let me know that I needed to come pay this mufucka a visit, I headed this way.
Normally, Murda and Grim handled all this shit. They were the muscle. I came out only when necessary. This bitch was short on cash and said that he had a way to make up for it, but he’d only speak to me about it. Nigga had a lot of balls for someone who was seconds away from meeting his maker.
When I hit up Wicked about the shit, he told me since he’s been such a long and loyal customer for me to come and hearhis ass out. If it wasn’t for Wicked, his ass would already have a fucking bullet in his ass.
Getting out the car, I neared the door. Peering inside, shit was dark as fuck. I couldn’t see anything. There was no sign of movements. For a second, I thought this nigga was playing me ’til I saw one of the lights switch on in the back. Gripping the doorknob, I turned it and the door opened.
Removing my strap from my waistline, I stepped over the threshold and trudge in the direction of the light down the hallway. Stopping in front of the cracked door, I used the barrel of my gun and pushed it in. Trayvon sat there at his desk with Tyree sitting in the chair across from him. Both of their heads whipped in my direction once they heard the door creak.
“Maniac.” Trayvon tossed his hands up in the air. “I’m glad you could make time to come and see me.”
“You got two minutes.” Tyree looked away from me. From the bounce of his leg and the shaking of his hand, I can tell this stupid ass mufucka been taking the products and sniffing the shit right up his fucking nose. That’s probably why they were short on the cash.
“That’s more than enough. You want to take a seat? Do you want anything to drink?” He released a nervous chuckle. “I may not have anything that you’re used to, but I think I have some whiskey over there on the?—”
“One minute,” I interrupted him. He knew that I wasn’t here to have no fucking drink with him. My trigger finger is itching and if he didn’t have something that’ll make up for the twenty thousand that he’s short, they’re both just as good as dead.
“Okay! Okay!” Trayvon took his eyes to a picture resting on his desk. Tyree’s leg bounced harder. I can feel the rhythm through the floor. “I have something that I can offer that’s greater than the money we owe.” He turned the picture frame around and my eyes zeroed in on the woman on it. She sat therein front of a green and red Christmas tree wearing a large green sweater that fell off her right shoulder and green knee length socks. Her hair was pulled up in a bun on top her head, but in that photo, she didn’t have the bang. Her glasses were black, square frame instead of clear.
I snatched the frame from the desk and took a closer look. Her smile glowed with joy. Wide, bright, and genuine.
“I can’t believe you’re doing this,” Tyree finally spoke. I smacked him in the back of the head.
“Stop interrupting grown folks,” I told him, not taking my attention off the picture. It’s insane that I didn’t even know anything about her. We’ve been working with Trayvon for years. It’s like he’d been keeping her a secret. “What are you trying to say?” I asked Trayvon.
“A man like you can use a woman like Wren.”Wren.“I promise you, having her is priceless. I’ll trade you her for our debt, and I promise that we won’t miss another payment again.” His dark eyes shifted to Tyree. “Isn’t that right, Tyree?”
“Wren isn’t gon’ go for this,” Tyree made known.
