Aquilla got up and walked out to the living room where, of course, she could still see a whole street of news reporters through the crack of the curtain. This was absurd. Three days now, they were pretty much camped from daylight till dark. They even had food delivered. Crazy, that’s what it was.
“Quill’s on TV,” Reese exclaimed, running back to the kitchen, taking two steps at a time.
“Fuck. Shit, I mean, sorry,” Seri tried apologizing for the language as she ran to the front door where Aquilla stood on the front lawn.
Seri walked beside of her. “What the hell are you doing?” she whispered through gritted teeth.
“I’m getting rid of these people, once and for all.”
“Shelby, how does it feel to be back at home with your family?” someone yelled, and then the shouting started. She couldn’t understand what any of them were saying. They spoke so loud and on top of one another.
Aquilla raised her hands in a stop notion. Her eyes darted around, counting only the people holding microphones, there were nine of them all together.
“I’m going to answer one question from each of the reporters, IF you leave as soon as your question is answered. As soon as your question is answered, I need you to get in your vehicle and leave us alone,” she explained.
The reporters all started yelling out their questions again. She did the same hand motion, silencing them once again.
Seri smiled at the power that Quill thought she carried. She kind of did. They were listening to her.
Aquilla pointed to one lady.
“Shelby, did you ever try to find a way to escape your abductor?” she asked.
“No. I was raised as his daughter. I never knew I was taken from any family.” She couldn’t say her family. Her father and Julius were her family.
“What was your reaction when you found out?” the lady asked.
“You had your one question. You need to leave now,” Aquilla demanded.
No way. This was breaking news. She wasn’t going anywhere, not until Aquilla crossed her arms and refused to say another word, anyway. The rest of the reporters started yelling at her to leave so that she would continue to answer their questions.
“How did you feel when you found out that the father you were raised by was shot and killed?” a guy called after she pointed to him. Seri sensed her stiffened posture. She slid her arm over her shoulder in a supporting manner.
Aquilla felt a feeling of aporia, a crazy emptiness like when you realize that something you believed isn’t actually true. And then things feel even more weird when you realize that actually, the thing you believed might be true and might not — and you’ll never really know. She knew now. She knew more than she ever cared to know.
“How would you feel if your father was shot and killed?” she asked. “You can go now,” she said, dismissing the dumbass.
Seri dropped her arm as Liz walked to the other side of Aquilla. Aquilla wanted to step away from her when she felt Seri’s arm being replaced with her mother’s. She didn’t want her to touch her.
Aquilla continued to answer the disturbing questions, and watched one by one as the reporters left. Seri was not only gratified by Quill’s ability to hold it together and answer the tough questions that she knew were destroying her inside, but was also amazed. She couldn’t believe how she nervily walked out to that yard, tackling the mob head on, and getting them to do what she wanted them to do. She held the upper hand, she led the questions, answered how she felt compelled, and dismissed them, one by one.
It took only 25 minutes and the flock was gone. Three days of camping outside was put to rest in 25 short minutes.
Aquilla stepped away from her mother’s hold and walked back to the house. She needed a moment. She needed to be alone and sort out the confusing feelings. Her dad smiled a reassuring smile as she passed. Reese patted her back as she stepped through the door.
Seri wanted to go to her, but didn’t want to step on her mother’s toes.
“Do you want to go to her?” she asked. Somebody needed to, whether it was her or Seri. Somebody needed to make sure she was okay.
“I don’t know what to say to her,” Liz admitted.
Seri smiled. “Just let her know that you are there for her,” she explained.
Aquilla tried. Where the hell were these tears coming from? They were really starting to piss her off. She quickly wiped them away when she heard the tap on the door. It wasn’t Seri. Seri wouldn’t knock. What the hell? Couldn’t they just leave her alone?
“What!?!” she yelled.
Liz opened the door and sat on Seri’s bed. She wasn’t sure what to say. She could tell that she was crying. She wished she could wrap her in her arms and tell her that it was all going to be okay. Had it been Reese, she would have done just that. She couldn’t do that with Aquilla. Aquilla would push her away.
“I am so proud of you. Where the hell did you learn to demand that much respect? I need you to come and help me with my second graders,” she decided.
Aquilla smiled a warm smile. She knew none of this was her fault. She knew that her mother felt as though all of her years were robbed from her. They were, and no matter how much Aquilla didn’t want to be there, none of it was the fault of her first family. They were the victims in this fucked up mess.
“I was raised around a lot of power,” she admitted.
Liz didn’t respond. No response was needed. She knew she was there for her and that was her main goal. She wasn’t going to push her. She was going to try her best to let her do the walking (baby steps) while she prayed that she would be okay. She stood, kissed Aquilla on top of the head and left her.
Seri too left her alone for almost an hour before going to talk to her.
“Hey,” she said, moving her feet from the foot of her bed.
“Geesh, sit on your own bed,” Aquilla demanded, sitting up
Chapter 12
“Monica just called. She’s running late. You’re going to head out with your mom and sister. Monica and I should be there by five,” Seri explained.
“No, I’m not. I will go with you and Monica.”
“Quill, please go with your mother. It’s only about an hour drive.”
Aquilla got off the bed and walked past her, down the stairs and to her mother. Seri could only shake her head. She knew where she was going and she knew what she was up to. Seri was sure she had never met a more obstinate person in her life. She rose to follow.
Seri stood behind Quill, trying to give Liz an apologetic smile.
“Is it okay if I wait and ride with Seri and Monica?” she asked her mother.
Liz wanted to demand that she ride with her and her sister. She didn’t. She couldn’t. She knew it would only push her away more.
“I really wish you would ride with us. There is this little trailer that sits beside Benson road with the best eggrolls ever.” Yeah, like she was going to bribe her with an eggroll.
“I’m not really that hungry. I’ll just ride with Seri.”
Seri was thankful that Aquilla was still there once Liz headed out. She hadn’t thought about being left alone with Manny. That could have been bad, or really good. She needed away from her dad. She wanted to do dirty things with her dad. God, she needed to get laid. How much longer was she expected to stay there?
Manny wasn’t too happy about the situation either. He had let himself get a little excited about being left alone with her. He too needed away from Seri.
The three of them sat out on the front porch, waiting for Monica’s arrival. Emmanuel brought them out a cherry Popsicle, and within a couple of minutes, they all looked to be wearing red lipstick.