FIVE
Deedee lay awake, staring at the bright sunshine streaming through the window. She was turned to the side, her hands clasped beneath her knees, drawn up to her chest. She watched as the sun’s rays brought a flight of birds into focus. Their wings flapped as they sat on the windowsill, feeding on breadcrumbs that she had put there.
She observed that the large birds pounced on the food and devoured it before the smaller birds had a chance. The smaller birds hovered above the feeding flock, afraid to participate. Deedee was tempted to scare the large birds off, throw some crumbs to the smaller ones. She would have done it on any other day. Today she rested her head against the soft pillows, and pulled the cover up so she wouldn’t see the birds. Yet the rays still shined through.
Finally she got up and went to the kitchen. Deedee poured a glass of juice, spilling some on the white tabletop. Then she saw the two coffee cups and noticed Sophia sitting there.
“Sophia, I didn’t see you. I’m sorry. Uncle E. is here also?”
“Yes. He’s upstairs, I think. He was about to make breakfast, but I guess I’ll have to do it.”
“You’re not a bad cook,” Deedee teased. “But I’m not really hungry.”
“Well, how about some shopping, you know?” Sophia asked with a wink.
“Aren’t you working today?” Deedee was a little excited at the new suggestion.
“No, I’m off today, honey. I have time,” Sophia said with a smile.
“Y’all need money for shopping?” Eric announced his presence. He had been standing, unnoticed. Deedee looked rested, he thought. “How much?” He asked, barging into the conversation at exactly the right time.
“Well, ten thousand dollars would be nice, wouldn’t you say, Dee?” Deedee turned and looked at both of them. They looked as if they were waiting for the punch line. Oh what the hell, I’ll play along, she decided. Deedee shook her head from side to side and snapped her fingers.
“You know, I could handle that very well.” The words tumbled out. They were meant to be spontaneous, but the pause lasted longer than she intended. It was like a bad joke. She felt her timing was off. “So, who’s gonna do breakfast between y’all?” Deedee asked as she seized the moment to patch things up.
“Well, Eric had promised to earlier,” Sophia said with a smile.
“Nah, nah. It ain’t going down like that.” Eric smiled and his eyes widened as he turned to look at Sophia. “Sophia,” he said with a big grin, “you owe me.”
“Alright,” Sophia sighed. “But this will be all the cooking I do today.” She returned his smile.
“Okay,” Deedee said. “Why don’t we all eat out?”
“Sounds good to me,” Eric said.
“Sophia?” Both niece and uncle asked at the same time.
“Sure, sure,” Sophia said.
“You guys go ahead. I’ll see you on the outside,” Deedee said.
“Uh-huh, we’re not going for that,” her uncle said, smiling. “We know you’re gonna lock yourself in the room. Oh, no. You’re coming right now.”
“No, I won’t be long. I’m just gonna get a coat. I promise.”
“Its pretty warm outside, honey,” Eric said. He reached out to hold her, but she resisted, twisting her arms free of his hands.
“Get your coat, Dee,” Sophia said. “Maybe I should get one while we’re downtown. Yeah! And I saw this nice Versace the other day. Hmm, hmm,” she said. Deedee smiled and ran upstairs.
Sophia and Eric went outside. It was quite warm. The humidity was working its way slowly up the scale. The sun’s brightness made the morning glow with life. Eric, with the press of a switch, disarmed the car alarm and unlocked the doors to the Range Rover. They got in and waited for Deedee, listening to the radio.
“How much are we getting?” Sophia asked.
“We?” Eric asked.
“Stop being such a cheapo.”
“Cheapo?”
“Yes. Stop being a cheapo. Tell me how much we’re getting.”
“Alright, alright. I’ll tell you after breakfast,” he said.
They waited in the car, listening to the radio, teasing and laughing at each other. Deedee emerged from the front door. She locked it and turned on the alarm. As she walked toward the car, they both noticed that instead of her usual fitted jeans and ribbed blouse, she was wearing a pink, baggy, cotton warm-up suit and a maroon spring coat. They looked at each other.
“Let her be,” Sophia said then she yelled out the window. “C’mon girl, hurry. I’m starved.”
Deedee quickened her step. Her plain white tennis shoes, moving with matching socks, emphasized her pace. She slid through the open door and the vehicle seemed cramped and crowded to her. She lowered the window.
“I’m ready,” she announced with a sigh of relief.
“For food? Where?” Eric asked.
“Let’s go to the pancake house on Lex,” Deedee suggested.
“That sounds delicious,” Sophia said.
The vehicle rolled toward Main Street. Eric made a right and hit the expressway. “I brought these for the trip,” Deedee said handing out breakfast bars to Eric and Sophia. Sophia and Deedee closed their eyelids immediately after downing the breakfast bar. Forty five minutes later they awoke and found themselves on Lexington Avenue. Eric was pulling easily into a parking spot. Sophia awoke, blinked and watched as Deedee alighted from the Range.
She put her hands in her coat pockets. She completed her disguise by donning a white Colorado Rockies baseball cap worn backwards. While Deedee and Sophia were seated in the buzzing waffle house, Eric remained outside, conversing on his cellular.
“Good morning. You ladies ready to order?” A smiling waiter greeted. “Something to drink maybe?”
“Well—”
“I’ll have hot chocolate with whipped cream,” Deedee buzzed.
“And two regular coffees. Thanks,” Sophia added. “Let me go get that guy. Cause if we let him, we’ll eat right through his conversation. Music business,” Sophia said as she left the table. She returned a few lonely minutes later with Eric.
“Hey, don’t you like the hot chocolate? You’re looking sad, girl.” Eric had been standing next to her for a while. Deedee had been unaware of this. She was buried too deep into her thought to even have noticed.
“No, it’s alright. I was just thinking.” She felt compelled to explain her mood. Sophia had been at times like a mother to her. Now she treated her as a friend. The reason was clear. Deedee did not want to start thinking too much about it.
“Well, think of how you’re gonna be spending five thousand dollars, baby.” Sophia said and then winked.
“Five thousand dollars?” Eric repeated incredulously. “Where you gonna get all that dough from?”
“Well, how much then?” Sophia asked with mock annoyance. “I thought you said…”
“Okay,” Eric said.
“We settled on…” Sophia pouted. Deedee stared. Eric fumbled for a number. Then, finally, he turned to Deedee.
“Dee, what do you think? Five G’s, or not?”
It made Deedee smile, just knowing she would have five thousand dollars to spend. Wow, she thought, I could shop for days, non-stop.
“Well, five sounds all right, but I was looking forward to the ten grand,” she joked. Her joke made her uncle smile. He was happy that Sophia had concocted this little scheme, and that it had brought a smile to his niece’s face.
Deedee reflected. The humor was sick, but a five-thousand-dollar shopping spree sounded good. It probably would bring a smile to anyone’s face. But she knew not even ten thousand dollars would erase the bitter and ugly experience, and her memories of the cruelest people she’d ever met.
“What are you having, Dee?” Eric asked attentively.
The waiter and Sophia also looked concerned. What are they staring at, she wondered?
“Oh, I’ll have two German pancakes, and eggs. Sunny side up.”
“Anything to drink?” the well-mannered waiter asked.
“Yeah. We’ll all have apple juice,” Eric said. His cellular phone rang, and he sprang out of his chair. He left the table and headed outside, away from the other patrons.
“Yeah, Eric, this is Busta. How’re you?” The caller asked.
“I’m fine. I need a major hit. We gotta talk.”
“Well, let’s meet at Geez at about seven. Eric, I’ve got these crazy nice girls you gotta hear. And as a matter of fact, they’re all dimes.”
“That’s fine,” Eric said. “See you then.”
He folded the black instrument and shoved it into a front pocket of his jeans.
“Alright,” he announced, back at the table.
“What did she want?” Sophia teased.
“It wasn’t her,” Eric said. “It was Busta. Got to meet with him later. But first we’re gonna eat, and then spend some money.”
The meal arrived and they all settled into breakfast. Deedee was afraid she wouldn’t be able to stomach the food, but German pancakes were her favorite. After one bite, she succumbed to the pleasures of the meal.
After a hearty breakfast, Deedee and Sophia took Eric on a shopping extravaganza that really cost him over ten thousand dollars. He also had to carry nearly all of the shopping bags. When the clothes became too much to carry, they returned to the parking lot and stowed the bags in the Range Rover.
“Thank you, uncle,” Deedee said and planted a kiss on Eric’s sweating cheeks.
“You are more than welcome,” he said, returning the kiss.
“And thanks, Sophia. I love your style.”
“You’re welcome, sweetheart.” She opened her arms. Deedee lunged forward for the hug. “Movie, anyone?” Sophia asked as Eric started the car.
“How about dinner and a movie?” Deedee suggested.
“Well...” Eric looked at his watch. “Why don’t the both of you go ahead and I’ll catch up to you later?”
“You tired of us already?” Sophia asked. A smug expression belied her feelings.
“No, no,” Eric answered taking the bait. “I’ve got to meet with Busta.”
“Uncle Eric, you know we’re not gonna make it to the movies if we wait around for you and your business.” Deedee sounded disappointed.
“Alright, here’s my phone.” Eric gave Sophia the cellular. “Let’s synchronize our watches. Its six-forty p.m. At exactly eight-thirty p.m., I’ll call you, and we’ll catch the nine p.m. movie.”
“Okay. Sounds good,” Deedee said.
“Yeah, because if you get in a meeting and you get on this phone,” Sophia said, pointing to the black instrument, “it’s all over.” They all laughed.
Eric eased the car out of the parking lot and headed uptown to Cozy Geez, a night time hangout for the famous and infamous.
“Be careful, Babe,” Sophia said. Eric kissed her soft, moist lips.
“See you later, over dinner. You guys decide what movie y’all wanna see.”
“Don’t forget to call us, Uncle E.,” Deedee said as he gently clasped her hand in his.
“I will, sugar. Eight-thirty, right?”
“That’s right,” Deedee called. She watched Eric cross the street, dodging traffic. He walked by the dark-suited bouncers and through the brown wooden doors. There was no need for a search. Eric Ascot was one of the city’s hottest music producers.
Things had been difficult after his brother’s death, but Dennis had left him with good connections. Eric had produced one of the year’s best rhythm-and-blues albums. This raised him from ordinary contender and left him in the running for Music Producer of the Year.
Eric strolled to a table for two in the rear. The waiter brought him his usual, straight Hennessy with a twist of lemon.
“Good evening, sir,” the waiter said.
“Yeah, yeah.” Eric faced the door. A sudden commotion arose. It was Busta’s usual fanfare.
Busta blustered his way to the table. “Why they always feeling on me? Who they should be searching, they don’t. Motherfucking faggots,” growled Busta. His huge grin eclipsed his anger. “What’s good, E?” He threw his arms around Eric in a hearty hug. “Damn, you better start working out before you get like me, man.” Busta said as he landed soft punches to Eric’s midsection.
“I can never get as large as you, Busta. What’s really good?” Eric asked. His own mock-punch landed softly on Busta’s protruding stomach. “This town ain’t big enough.”
The waiter returned.
“Two Heinekens and another shot of...” Eric paused, seemingly lost in thought. He and Busta were both distracted by a beautiful brown-skinned girl who sashayed by them.
“Hennessy, Sir,” the waiter volunteered. He went off to get the drinks.
“Hot damn!” Busta exclaimed, turning his back on Eric as a sexy something glided past. She gave Eric ‘the eye.’
“Leave that alone, E. That spells nut’n but trouble. Leave that to me, man. I can use some o’ that type o’ trouble.”
“Yeah alright, if you say so, man. Damn! If you say so.” Eric said while his hand toyed with his chin
“Yeah. How’s Sophia?” Busta asked.
“Doing well. She’s heaven-sent.” Eric said and slung a shot to his throat.
“No, she was Busta’s blessing,” Busta corrected. “Things good with da biz?” Busta tossed back his shot of cognac. He slammed the heavy shot-glass down on the table with a bang. Eric did another and then both eyeballed the place as they sipped beer. The place was crawling with every flavor of sexy ladies ever assembled on the planet tonight. Busta spoke to Asian twins for awhile. Eric thought it was interesting.
He had known Busta since High School. Busta had always been into hustling everything from drugs to numbers to girls. Eric wasn’t sure how Busta met Sophia. He was always into a little bit of this and a little bit of that. Eric motioned to the waiter to bring more drinks.
“The biz is great. You know no one can touch my sound,” he said, smiling as he bragged. The waiter placed two shots on the table and removed the empty glasses.
“What is it then, man? You don’t look right. Is Sophia putting pressure on you about that marriage thing? You know when women gets near thirty; they gotta know the man with them is willing to make ‘em legal.” Busta said. He breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Eric chuckle.
“It’s not like that between me and Sophia. I love her and…”
“So when you gonna marry her? I introduced her to you what four years now?”
“My man, Busta, let me tell you. I sing your praises and wish you the best on a daily. You did me a solid. When I set a date, you’ll be the first to know.
“So if it ain’t Sophie and it ain’t the music biz, what da fuck you said we were gonna meet on, Eric.”
“It’s my niece, Deedee.”
“Tell me, she strung out on crack? Is it ecstasy? Lemme know…”
Eric with tears in his eyes watched Busta’s face contorting through deep emotions also. That was the reason for the tears when Eric said: “Deedee was raped by some dirty muthafuckas,” Eric tried to restrain his emotion.
“Who? What da fuck are you talking about, E.? Get da fuck outta here!” Busta stared disbelievingly. “When did that shit happen? You know who the fuck them low lives are. Shit gotta be dealt with.” Busta said.
Eric picked up the slender shot-glass and sighed heavily. He raised his eyebrows and his nostrils flared in anger. Busta sensed the fire burning inside him.
“No doubt about that.” Eric replied.
“When did that go down?” Busta asked much louder now.
“Over this past weekend,” Eric said. The words left his mouth dry. He raised the glass and flung the liquor to the back of his throat. His lips came together in a smacking sound.
“She knows who did it?”
“She said some guy called Deja. Well, she didn’t say anything. What happened...Well, she woke up screaming, and when I got to her room, she said she was dreaming that Deja was trying to rape her again.”
“So there’s your man,” Busta said.
“Well, that’s the reason I wanted to see you. I wanted to know if you ever heard of him.” Eric said then stared as Busta sipped and pondered.
“I know of him. He’s small time.” Busta said after a while. “Just another crack dealer the world can do without. He hang with some West Side peeps. That’s who be supplying him. Let’s bag that muthafucka,” he continued. “Bum ass nigga! His boys who be hanging wid him may all be packing, and he probably packin’ a nine or sump’n. He’s on his hustle E., but da muthafucka is a rapist. He’s got to go. Let’s hit…”
“I can’t be involved, see. Sophia got me legal, and I can’t just be doing anything to fuck that up,” Eric said sitting back.
“Don’t even concern yourself with all that worry. I’ll know how to handle this. He’s down with those West Side peoples. There might be some difficulty. It’s gonna cost you a small amount. Put up the price tag and I’ll hook it up.”
Eric picked up his beer and gulped. He motioned to the waiter for more. He picked up the fresh beer and watched as Busta did the same.
“Six grand,” he said.
The bottles clinked as Eric and Busta toasted their new deal, and Eric sipped his beer with a renewed sense of calm. He knew the problem would be taken care of. Busta was deeply connected in the street. Both men burped and laughed, releasing the tension.
“A-h-h” Eric said. “This spot still gets crowded. Haven’t been up in here in a while.”
“Yep, it’s the same. Ain’t too much changed. These fine looking ladies keep me coming here, four, five, six times a week.” Busta agreed.
“You need to find you a nice wifey and settle, big man.”
“Nah, I ain’t that lucky. But you need to come down to the talent show, E. we having it in a couple of weeks.”
“Oh, you still involved with that?”
“Fridays is open-mike night at the club. Do something for the kids, you know? Come through and check it out. There’s a lot of energy in there, I’m telling you, E-money.” Busta said and sipped.
“Alright, I’ll pass through, check things out.”
“Any Friday. Matter of fact, come for sure in two weeks we’re having the finals of the talent competition. I’ve got these girls, ah… Coco an’ Da Crew. Eric, you’ve got to see them. They are all the way live. They got flavas. I’m saying, E. they’re dimes too.”
“Sounds good,” Eric said. He checked his watch. Eight-fifteen. A good time to call and see what the girls were doing.
“I gotta make a call.” Eric began to rise.
“Yeah, lemme go use the bathroom.” Busta pushed the table away. They walked toward the men’s room. New arrivals made the small place feel smaller. Eric descended the steps to the public phone and dialed the number of his cellular. Deedee answered.
“Hi uncle. Are you ready?”
“I’m ready.”
“We’re on our way.”
“Okay.” He hung up, stepped into the bathroom then went back upstairs. Busta was shaking hands. Eric went back to his table and dropped a fifty-dollar bill. He gestured to Busta, I’ll be outside, and pointed to the exit. Busta, still shaking hands, acknowledged Eric and engaged the smooth chick with the sexy walk.
A lazy evening breeze greeted Eric when he stepped outside. It dragged the humidity down, made the air a little cooler. The moon glowed orange, its ascent caught in the setting sun. Busta came out and gave Eric another hug and a firm handshake.
“Need a ride somewhere?” Busta asked.
“No, Sophia is on her way with Deedee. We’re gonna check out a flick.”
“Alright, good seeing you, E.,” Busta punched Eric’s stomach. A bit too hard, Eric thought.
“Yeah, take it easy.” Eric countered a straight, hard, right to Busta’s exposed gut. They flinched, and took a fighter’s stance, then laughed and parted like men who have been friends since childhood. They were familiar with each other’s weaknesses.
The valet brought Busta’s black Lexus around and Busta handed him a tip.
“Stay cool,” he called to Eric and jumped into the car. Eric waved and with a blast of his horn, Busta was gone. In traffic, he picked up the car phone and made his call.
“I need a hit record. Crack dealer on back. The A side with the West Side syndicate. Deja, as in deja vu.” Busta clicked the phone off and placed it on the seat next to him.
“Muthafucka,” he hissed under his breath, “you’re as good as dead.”
He steered through light downtown traffic. Dennis and I were like brothers, he mused. He loaned me money when no one else would. No bank, bad credit, and being a young, black man—that equals no loans, no legal funds. But Dennis took a chance. He financed twenty thousand dollars, the money to start the club. Now he’s dead. The club’s doing good, but I never really got a chance to pay him back all that money. I would have done this one my damn self, for free. That crack-slinging muthafucka raped Deedee. She’s like my own daughter. If Dennis hadn’t moved fast, I could have been her father. Dennis had too many women to keep count.
Sophia stopped at the curb where Eric stood.
“Come around and drive, baby,” she said, and moved over as Eric hopped into the driver’s seat.
“How was your meeting, Uncle E.?” Deedee asked. Eric saw she was decked out in a black Versace dress.
“All good. It went well, thanks,” he said. “You look wonderful in that dress.”
“Thanks,” Deedee answered. “But didn’t you like the multi-colored one like this one, Uncle E. You liked it earlier.” By now Eric had headed the car into traffic and she was speaking to the back of his head. “Oh well,” Deedee said. “I’m glad you think this one is nice.”
Eric peeked at her in the rear-view mirror. Her face showed no change in expression. He looked at Sophia for support, but she avoided his plea for help.
“What movie are we gonna see?” Eric asked.
“Well, we narrowed it down to two,” Sophia said. “Which one do you vote for, Deedee?”
“The first one.” She was flippant. Sophia frowned.
“I’m sorry,” Deedee quickly said. “I mean the one we discussed first.”
“Okay, that’s cool,” Sophia said. “I haven’t seen that one yet, and I’m sure Eric hasn’t either.” Sophia addressed Eric. “It’s ah, ‘Kill Bill’.
“I’m down. I’ll enjoy any movie. It’s just hanging with you guys that’s cool,” he said with a quick glance at Deedee.
In the theater, Eric’s nose tingled at the overpowering smell of hot buttered popcorn. “Get the tickets,” he said. “I’m gonna get on the food line.”
He nearly jogged to the concession stand. On the ticket line with Sophia, Deedee heard two guys behind her comparing notes. She assumed they were discussing her.
“But da bitch up front is all that,” loudmouth Number One said. Number two agreed sternly. “Yeah, she right. She got that shit going on.”
Sophia heard this, but she had a clearer idea who the guys were discussing.
“Look!” She rolled her eyes in the indicated direction. She recognized Danielle, from Da Crew. “She must think she’s all that,” Sophia said as she inspected Danielle. She drew every eye, and every man’s approval. The women were less enthusiastic, but they feasted their eyes on Cory Miller, her escort. He was a student athlete at Seton Hall University.
The beautiful couple was on their way to the concession stand. They got closer and Cory’s eyes flashed. He paused in front of Deedee.
“What’s up?” he asked.
Danielle sniffled and walked on. Cory shrugged his shoulders and followed her.
When Sophia saw his shoulders, she said to herself, “Wow.” Then irrepressibly she blurted, “Oh, he’s all that.” She searched for a reaction, but Deedee only raised her brows.
I won’t say anything, Deedee thought when Danielle walked by her. She and Sophia reached the head of the line and she concerned herself with the tickets. Then a minor commotion broke out. Danielle hurried toward her.
“I knew it was you,” she said. A lobby full of people watched the encounter.
“Yep, nice dress,” Danielle continued. “You seem to be, all healed,” Danielle said, eyeing Deedee incredulously.
“Well, thanks. Just a good makeup job, thanks to my good buddy,” Deedee answered. “Danielle, right?” she asked. Danielle nodded.
“Yes, I’m Danielle,” she said, testily. She extended her arm and Sophia shook her hand.
“Nice to meet you, Danielle,” Sophia said. Her smile did not betray the yearning not to shake Danielle’s hand, but to grip it tightly, squeezing her rings between her fingers. Sophia resisted. She’s only a kid, she thought. “You’re very beautiful. You guys know each from school?” Sophia asked.
“No, not really. We met over the weekend,” Danielle said. Sophia’s smile changed to a frown. She perked up her legal ears.
“She gave me and my two girlfriends a ride to the club,” Danielle said. She looked to Deedee for any hint to stop, or elaborate. Deedee was weary and turned to Sophia then said.
“Yeah, I picked them up and drove them to the club.”
“I was too mad when I heard that shit they did when you and Coco left the club,” said Danielle. “I’m sorry, those bastards will pay,” she said as an afterthought.
Deedee stared at her. She nodded and grimaced.
Then Danielle told Sophia, “Yeah, but I know Coco should have done something, you know. Everyone knows us. I mean, Coco at least had to have seen or done sump’n, ya know? She just let that shit happen to this innocent girl.”
Deedee turned away. She couldn’t believe what Danielle was saying. She sounded as if she was blaming Coco for the rape.
“I mean, Coco…Coco is, like, very well known. I mean, we’ve performed at that club several times. I don’t know,” she said touching her black tights with newly manicured, multi-colored fingernails.
“Well, maybe she saw who was there,” Sophia said.
“Coco probably couldn’t do anything,” Deedee said exasperated.
“C’mon. Coco was dead drunk,” Danielle said. “That’s why she couldn’t do anything. She was drinking the whole night.”
“Even if she wasn’t, it really wouldn’t have made any difference,” Deedee said as she looked away. “They had guns. I really don’t wanna talk about this right now. So let’s just drop it,” she said abruptly.
“Okay. Sorry for bringing it up.”
“That’s okay,” Deedee said, looking up and finding two pairs of eyes examining her.
“Well, here comes the popcorn,” Sophia said as Eric rejoined them.
“Here, let me help you out, dear,” Sophia said and helped herself to some popcorn. She noticed Eric’s roving eyes checking out Danielle’s figure. “Have you checked her out enough?” Sophia whispered as she elbowed him in the ribs. Eric lowered his eyes to the floor.
“Danielle, this is Deedee’s Uncle Eric,” Sophia said then turned to face the others. She positioned herself to block Eric’s view of Danielle’s tight frame. Danielle became perky. She rushed toward Eric, extending her right hand.
“You’re Eric Ascot. Pleased to meet you. I’m Daniella. I think you’re the best.”
Eric smiled. Sophia compressed her lips and raised an eyebrow.
“Pleased to meet you, Daniella,” Eric said reaching out to shake her hand.
Deedee looked away. She saw a small video arcade off to her left. Two small kids challenged each other. The machine soon turned their game into a battle. Now Cory joined the group, also bringing popcorn. After introductions, they headed off to separate movies. Sophia detected Eric admiring Danielle’s rear end a second time.
“You need to start going to the gym, baby,” she said, and gave him a harder jab to his gut.
