Page 42 of See No Evil

Mama was right about one thing: I ain’t any good. If Desiree knew the truth, she’d be afraid of me. Maybe I should be afraid of me, too…

Chapter Thirteen

Legend blew outthe black candle in his bedroom as ‘Ivana Santilli’s, “Sun + Moon = Tomorrow,” played from a small CD player in his bedroom. The CD player belonged to an old friend of his that had passed away while he was in prison many years ago. On occasion, when he was feeling sentimental, he’d pull it out and play one of the CDs Lil’ Petey had. This was one of 8 of them. He grabbed his jacket, and pulled the hood over his head before stepping out of his apartment into the drenching rain with his satchel under his arm. He drove the long drive in silence, and pulled up to the old office building, with only one light on. Shining bright in the back. He lit a cigar, headed to the spot. And stood outside the front door. Waiting.

The door soon opened. Two men stood there with rifles. He opened his jacket, showing no weapons, then made his way down the hallway. His steps echoing throughout the place. Ortiz was on the phone when he entered. The old man quickly ended the phone call, grinned at him and slowly got to his feet.

Legend pulled out the money, slapped it in his hand.

“That’s it. The end. When do I get my ticket and my itinerary?”

“In three hours. You’ll be able to use it whenever you are ready.” Ortiz counted the cash, sniffed the money and slipped it into the desk drawer.

“After tonight, we are to never speak again, unless you wish to take my offer to join my organization.” Ortiz handed him a cigar.

“My feelings and position on the situation still stands. I’m out of that lifestyle. This would’ve been enticing a few years ago. I’m in a different headspace now. Got too much to lose, and what I got mapped out for me now? There’s a lot to gain.”

Ortiz grinned, but it was sinister, dark and evil.

“Legend, you’re not being true to yourself. You’re a natural born killer like myself. You’re a leader. People like us rule the world. We follow no man. Don’t fight your true nature. Killing. Dominating. Winning. It’s in your blood…”

“Family is what you make it. Myrealbrothers didn’t come out my father’s nut sack, or my mama’s womb. Most of the people that share my bloodline stabbed me in the back. A stranger in a classroom saved my life. Two different women. Two different times in my life. One was a teacher. The other a fellow student. Really, they both were teachers, only one didn’t know it. Church. My lesson has been learned. Blood ain’t thicker than water, Ortiz, and water ain’t nothin’ but two tears in a bucket. Game recognize game. Monsters invented time. We watch clocks and body rock. It’s Slaughter time.”

And then, he walked out, cigar in hand…

…A couple of weeks later

Desiree looked atMama, and her lips curled right before her mouth popped open, allowing a boisterous cloud of laughter to erupt. There the woman was in her car, white-knuckling the steering wheel as if she were going clean off a cliff.

“Mama, you said you wanted me to teach you to drive. We go through this every time. You said you were for real this time, butyou’re wimpin’ out on me again. Look at yo’ face! You’d think I’d asked you to drive to the moon and then parachute from Pluto.”

Mama sat there with her short, salt and pepper relaxed hair combed all to one side—like the old-fashioned wraps from the hair salon. Her thin eyebrows were drawn in with a brown pencil, and her lips were lined in dark brown, too. Mama was small at the top, and bottom heavy. She was tall, and her ass was her claim to fame. Large gold hoop earrings dangled from her ears, and she rocked leopard print leggings with a black tank top, one of her favorite leisure time outfits. As for her perfume, she liked wearing her signature Opium, by Yves Saint Laurent. The fragrance filled the car, mingling with that of the spearmint gum she was smacking on.

“Desiree, I’m tryin’ to do this, but what if somebody hits me, or I get too close to another car?”

“Mama, you ask the same thing every time. Now, we both agreed that you ain’t gonna be the next Bubba Wallace, but if you can get to work, the store, and the doctor, then that’ll do it.”

Mama’s life had been hard, spanning years of addiction, codependency, and abuse. Now, she was working at a factory, picking and packing, and was nine years clean and sober. She’d always wanted to learn to drive, but the older she got, the more afraid she became.

“…Okay. I sho’ could use a cigarette and some hot tea to calm my nerves, but I’m ready,” she said with a smile, exposing her front gold tooth. Minutes later, she finally pulled out of the Walmart parking lot, with Desiree’s instruction.

“Keep your foot on the gas. That’s good… Okay, a light is comin’ up… brake… Mama, put your foot on the brake… yeah, you got it…” And so they went.

Desiree’s phone buzzed with a text message. She glanced at it and smiled. It was from Legend. But her smile faded when she read it. He was canceling on her—again.

They’d arranged to get together twice that week, but he kept saying she couldn’t come, and to make matters worse, he hadn’t attended the school lecture the day before. His first missed class. She’d asked him about it, and all he offered was that he’d overslept. That didn’t sound like him. Legend was pretty strict with himself when it came to school and work. When they spoke on the phone last night, he seemed fairly normal, but something was amiss.

Her mind began to play with her. Did he have a girlfriend he’d been hiding? Or worse yet, a wife?

Her stomach clenched at the thought. There were a few other women in class who seemed to suspect they were an item, and little snippy, passive-aggressive, jealous comments were sometimes tossed her way from one woman in particular who’d made it clear she had a raging crush on him. An attractive White woman who looked like a blond Kim Kardashian. Was Legend seeing her on the side, too?

This is strange… somethin’ is wrong. Now that we’ve had sex a few times, is he done with me? Is that all he wanted? She hated thinking that way, but she’d been down this road before, and the trip was never any fun. Suddenly, he was too busy for anything.

But why does he keep callin’ and texting me then if he doesn’t want me no more? I don’t like these mixed messages. Don’t nobody need this shit right now. This man chased me relentlessly, trying to get me to give him a chance, and then he turns around and starts acting like this? I’m startin’ to regret messing with him!

Even their late-night phone calls, which were typically full of jokes, sharing stories, and passion were now brief. He even seemed a bit short-tempered at times, more so than usual, as though he didn’t want to tell her what he was up to if she asked, or where’d he been.Is he selling drugs again?

“Mama, watch out!” Mama slammed on the brakes, forcing them both to swing forward.

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