“You’re nothing but a crack whore!” Nicole screamed.
Trent grabbed Nicole by the waist. “You lost your damn mind, Nicole,” Trent said, trying to gain control of the situation.
“Nigga, you lost your mind! Your dick was just in my momma’s mouth! Let me go, you nasty bastard,” Nicole demanded. “And to think that I was going to get an abortion, but I’m gonna fuck up your life like you just fucked up mines.”
“Bitch, is that a threat?” Trent asked as Nicole tried to wiggle her way away from Trent’s grasp.
“Fuck a threat. It’s a fucking promise.”
Nicole ran to her room and locked the door behind her. She knew it was only a matter of time before he kicked in her door. Nicole hurriedly threw on her sweats and a hoodie. As Trent was kicking in the door, Nicole grabbed some money from Trent’s bag and hopped out the window just before Trent kicked the door down.
The alarm blaring from the phone indicated that it was time for Kendra to get up and get ready for work. Still drained, Kendra looked at her phone. She had thirty minutes to get ready and leave for work. Kendra cursed because she had overslept. She wiped out her eye boogers and rushed to the bathroom. Kendra did something that she dared not do normally, but time wasn’t on her side, and she no other choice, so she took a hoe bath. After brushing her teeth, Kendra brushed her hair back the best she could into a ponytail. She put on her Ralph Lauren pantsuit, grabbed her keys and briefcase, and was out the door. Kendra finished dressing along the way as she drove downtown to family court. She made it to court fifteen minutes late and spent another ten minutes waiting in line to be scanned by security. After she checked in, she ran to the elevator, praying all the way that this day would just hurry up and be over with.
“Ms. LaSalle, do you have the Atkinson case with you?” her boss asked once she stepped off the elevator.
“Yes, ma’am. I surely do,” Kendra said, opening her briefcase and handing her case over.
Court lasted far beyond what Kendra had anticipated. During the trial, the judge called for a recess, so Kendra made a beeline out the door. She spotted a food truck across the street, and smiled because she couldn’t take her hungry pangs. Kendra sat at a bench next to the court, eating her food and texting Wiz. It had been two days since she had been in his presence, and it was hurting her.
“There you are. I was looking all over for you,” the receptionist from her job said. “The judge has extended the recess. We’re not expected back here until next month.”
“Yes!” Kendra said excitedly when she realized that there was no need to go to the office because she only had an hour more on the clock, so, according to her, her day was finished.
“See you Tuesday,” Kendra said with a smile.
After a long day of court, all Kendra wanted to do was kick off her shoes and relax her feet. She was hoping to meet up with Wiz, but she hadn’t heard from him since she’d left the hotel. When she had texted him earlier, he didn’t respond. Maybe he’s busy, she thought.
Pulling back up to the house, Kendra sucked her teeth when she saw Trent’s truck parked out front. She was hoping like hell that he would be in and out because she wasn’t ready to face him.
Chapter 10
It was time to put things into action. “Fuck everything and everyone else. I’m tired of being played in the background. Time for me to play upfront,” Nicole said.
Since the night she found her mother sucking Trent’s dick, payback had become the only option. “I got my ass beat constantly just to be told I’m not your bitch. Negro, please!” Nicole said. She was fed up. First and foremost, Nicole called Section 8.
“Thank you for calling the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles. How may I help you?” the man stated.
“Yes, how do I go about reporting negligence?” Nicole asked.
“What kind?’’ the man asked.
Nicole huffed. Then, she said, “Never mind.”
She hung up the phone. Nicole thought clearly about the situation. She wasn’t ready to be homeless. Then, she thought about her younger brother and sisters. Where would they go? She had to think of something else, but, in the mean-time, she had a bigger fish to fry.
Wiz wasn’t trying to ignore Kendra’s texts or calls on purpose. Since he’d been spending all his time with her, he had lost his main focus, but seeing Trent last night reminded him of the task at hand. For him, it was both business and personal, and whoever got in the way got dealt with.
Wiz sat on his oversized chair, freaking his Black & Mild, contemplating his next move like he was playing a game of chess.
“Yo! We gotta move this thing forward as soon as possible, fam,” Wiz said to his partner.
“Yeah, nigga. We coulda had this bitch by now, but you’re playin’ Captain Save-A-Hoe and fallin’ in love,” he said.
Wiz didn’t respond because he knew his friend was right. Wiz nodded his head in agreement and said, “I hear ya. Let me get at shawty myself, though.”
“Aight, nigga. You the boss,” he uttered.
Kendra was nicely dressed in a pair of Seven jeans and a brown sweater with matching Gucci boots and hat. She had a few errands that she needed to run. She needed to pay all the utility bills, stop at the grocery store, and put some clothes in the cleaners. After finishing her errands, she decided to visit Trent’s parents. It had been awhile since she had spoken to Mrs. Moore since her mother had passed away, and, right then, she needed a hug.
Kendra rang the door-bell. As she waited for someone to answer the door, she shifted from one foot to the other.
“Who is it?” a voice yelled from behind the door.
“It’s Kendra,” she answered.
The door flew open. “Oh, hey, Ken!” Treniyah said, giving Kendra a hug. “Come inside. How have you been?”
“I’m okay. I could be better, but I’m good,” Kendra answered half-heartedly as they walked to the family room.
“Is your mom around?” Kendra asked, facing Treniyah.
“Yeah. She’s taking an important call right now,” Treniyah responded.
Kendra removed her jacket and shoes and sat on the lounge.
“Well, look what the wind blew in,” Mrs. Moore announced as she entered the room. “Girl, give me a hug.”
Kendra stood up and hugged Mrs. Moore. Kendra and Mrs. Moore talked for a few hours. Kendra missed the bond that she and her mother had, but the comfort of Trent’s mother felt great.
“You just stop by here anytime you need to. You don’t need Trent to come over,” Mrs. Moore continued as Kendra wiped the tears that were forming in her eyes. “Just let those tears fall, baby. I know you really haven’t mourned your mother’s death. Just let it all out.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Moore. I really needed to get that out. It hasn’t been easy these past few months, but I’m maintaining,” Kendra responded.
She grabbed her things and made her way for the door. Kendra had time to think things over on her drive back home. She thought she was being overly dramatic with Trent. She wanted to put everything behind her and move forward, but she was going to have her cake and eat it, too.
“I’m so sick of being lonely every night while my man is out with his homies. I wanna know how it feels to loved,” Kendra sang and bobbed her head to every lyric of the Field Mob song as it played on the radio. She was just a few houses away from the Moore’s home when she saw someone that she had wanted to see for a long time. She stopped her car so abruptly that the tires screeched against the pavement. Her eyes were fixed and locked on Nicole. Kendra had always known that Nicole liked Trent, but she never thought that he would pay her any attention. She knew this was the Nicole who had texted Trent a few months back. Kendra decided that she would put an end to all of it as she double parked in the middle of the street. Kendra got out the car and walked to where Nicole was standing. On the inside, Nicole was fuming, but she was happy that Kendra wanted to talk to her, which made her part a lot easier.