Kendra couldn’t ignore Wiz’s tempting request. Besides, she figured she owed him more than that, so Kendra gave in.
“Okay. Just tell me how to get there. I’m on my way,” Kendra said excitedly.
Wiz gave Kendra his address, and, as promised, Kendra was there in twenty minutes flat.
Wiz met her at the door, holding a bottle of wine.
“Welcome to my humble abode. I’ll be your server Mr. Belvedere,” Wiz joked.
They shared a laugh. Wiz guided Kendra through his home. “I hope you’re hungry because I slaved over the phone and ordered a lot of food,” he said.
“Mmm. It smells delicious. What are we having?” Kendra inquired, licking her lips.
“Glad you asked. We’re having a feast, straight from Italy- spaghetti and chunky meat lasagna with all the right herbs, chicken Alfredo, salad, bruschetta and your choice of red or white wine,” Wiz said, looking at Kendra and smiling.
“Oh, wow! I don’t think I’ll be able to eat that much. I’ll just have a sample of all you have.”
Kendra was very modest because she most definitely didn’t want to pig out and scare the man.
Trent drove around his neighborhood for more than a hour. He wasn’t sure, but he could have sworn that a souped up Monte Carlo was following him. Trent had it in his mind that he would play a game of cat and mouse, and he knew for damn sure he wasn’t going to be the mouse. Trent made a quick left turn on National and another left on Robertson. Every turn Trent made, the MC made as well. Trent was going over eighty miles an hour. Instead of turning on Cadillac, he smashed to Guthrie, making a right at Corning Street. Trent hit the lights, pulled behind an apartment building, and waited for the MC to pass. He, then, reached under his seat and grabbed his.357. He sat it on his lap with his finger on the trigger. As soon as the Monte Carlo drove past, Trent waited for a couple minutes. Then, he pulled out of the alley, making sure he kept a short distance. When he was sure that they knew he was following them, he took his gun, aimed, and started shooting. He blew the back tires out, and he shot again. This time, the bullet shattered the back window and grazed the driver’s head, causing the driver of the MC to crash. Trent drove past the car to see if he could recognize any of the assailants, but the only thing he could see was the color black. Trent knew it was just a matter of seconds before the ghetto bird came lurking, and he knew that whoever was chasing him wasn’t going to say anything. Since he knew everyone in the neighborhood, he didn’t have to worry. They damn well wasn’t going to talk. Trent wasn’t sure what the assailants wanted. He figured that they must’ve wanted money and knew where he lived, so, instead of going home or to his mom’s house, he drove to Nicole’s, thinking no one would think to find him there. Trent tried calling Kendra, but she wasn’t answering, so he sent her a text message, giving her instructions not to return home and saying that he would explain later.
“Excuse me while I take this call,” Wiz said as he stepped away from Kendra and into the living room.
As Wiz walked away, Kendra felt her phone vibrate. Because she didn’t want to be rude, she was just about to turn it off when she saw that it was a text from Trent. After reading the text from Trent, Kendra swallowed hard on air. She became flushed with fear, and her heart skipped a beat. She tried to regain her composure before Wiz returned to the room.
In the next room Wiz was displeased with the conversation he was having with one of his boys because their plan to rob Trent hadn’t gone as planned. Wiz grew furious when he found out that Trent had put one of his henchmen in the hospital. He knew he was going to have to take matters into his own hands.
“Is everything alright?” Wiz asked, stepping back into the dining room.
Still stunned, Kendra wore a blank stare on her face. He could tell that something had happened while he was out of the room.
“Huh? Oh, I’m sorry. I…I have to go. Once again, you have managed to make my day brilliant. Thank you,” Kendra said, leaving out the door.
Kendra called Trent once she was in her car. The second he answered, she asked, “Hey, baby. Are you okay?”
“I see you read my message. Just do as I say. Please go back to your mom’s house until further notice. I’ll see you inna minute,” Trent told Kendra.
Before she could get a word out, the phone went dead. Kendra didn’t understand what was going on, but she listened to her man and drove to her mother’s house where she patiently waited for Trent to come. Even though Kendra was worried, she couldn’t keep her mind off of Wiz. Everything seemed so right about him. He was so pleasant, and that was what she liked. Kendra couldn’t wait to see him again. While she was deep in thought, Trent walked in.
“Hey, Ken. We need to talk. This is some serious business,” Trent told Kendra as she followed him to the den.
“What’s going on, baby?” Kendra asked, taking a seat on the floor next to the couch.
“Look, ma, I have to be honest about some shit that has been going on,” Trent said as he shifted his position on the couch. “I was followed home today, but I’m not sure who was following me.”
Trent’s mind went back as far as he could remember. It just didn’t make sense that someone would follow him. He knew JD’s people weren’t really concerned about him. Out of the blue, he yelled out, “Marquise! I’ll kill that nigga!”
Kendra looked at him as if he had lost his mind. Soon as the words left his mouth, Trent shook his head and said, “Nah, can’t be. That nigga knows where I keep my stash.”
Kendra looked at Trent for some type of answers. She wanted to know why her life and home were in danger.
“Ken, look. Before you came back home, I had a money dispute with a nigga downtown. He didn’t wanna pay, so I had to body his ass. Come to find out, he had my money plus my dope,” Trent explained.
“I can’t believe you, Trent. I can’t believe you would put your family in harm’s way. What were you thinking?” Kendra said angrily, shaking her head. “Trent, you do stuff without even thinking. You got niggas chasing you ‘cause you decided to play God and end someone’s life?” Kendra was pissed. She really hoped to start an argument, so she could have an excuse to leave. She had unfinished business to attend to, and Wiz was the name.
“What about my clothes, Trent? You don’t expect me to go to work wearing the same thing I wore yesterday, do you?” Kendra asked.
Trent sighed and took a deep breath. Then, he answered, “Alright, lil mama. I’ll take you shopping when you get off work.” Trent was getting worked up.
“No, Trent! I don’t want to shop. I just want my things. Why can’t we just get my things?” Kendra whined just like she did when she wanted to get her way.
“Damn, Ken! Stop it with the bullshit! You’re fucking acting like a dumb bitch, like you don’t know the game.”
Trent was enraged. He was five minutes from going off on her, but he knew it would have caused a big ass argument, and he wasn’t going to allow her to take him there. He knew he had brought this on them, but he really didn’t want to hear “I told you so,” especially not from his girl. Trent humbled himself before he spoke out.
“Baby, try to understand that this is a very crucial time. We can go back home in due time. I just wanna make sure things die down before we go back,” Trent explained.
Kendra nodded her head in agreement. Then, she said, “Well, I’m tired. I’m about to take a bath then, I’m going to lay it down.”
She gave him a peck on the lips and headed to the bathroom. Kendra ran water in the tub and added bubbles. After filling the tub, Kendra slipped and let the warm water envelope her body. She replayed her life and thought of how she had let herself get back into the same situation. She grabbed a pen and a notebook from the side of the tub and wrote to her dad. It had been a long time since she’d had any communication with her father. Nia went twice a month to visit him, but Kendra hadn’t built up enough courage to go since she’d gotten older. Kendra really blamed her father for being incarcerated. Even though it wasn’t his fault, she still blamed him for not being able to be in her life every day. She needed him right at that very moment in her life. Kendra needed guidance. She thought a letter would be a perfect way to reconnect with him.