Chapter 93
Lovely
“Auntie L, are you ready yet?” DeShawna asked for the tenth time in five minutes.
“Yeah, I’m ready.” With a smile I opened the door. She had been pacing back and forth the entire time it took me to bathe and get dressed.
“What’s the big surprise?” I asked.
“My lips are sealed.” She pretended to lock her mouth and throw away the key.
“Well, I have some cookies-and-cream ice cream that says otherwise.”
“I’m not telling.” She laughed. “And besides, you don’t have any ice cream anyways.”
“Girl, you are something else.” I laughed too.
“Come on.” She pulled me down the stairs.
As soon as we entered the living room everyone yelled, “Surprise!”
“Oh, my God!” I smiled. “Nichols? Coco?” Do it and Maine were standing there too, but they weren’t the surprise. Seeing Nichols and Coco was a reminder of the things I missed about Detroit.
“Hey, girl!” Coco hugged me tight. “I missed you so much.”
“I’ve missed you too,” I replied. Being that I was still a fugitive on the run, I couldn’t exactly call or go see her the way I wanted to.
“Hey, baby.” Agent Nichols smiled and wrapped her arms around me as well. “I hear you’ve been having some rough times. Do you want to go somewhere and talk with us?”
“Not right now. Let’s just enjoy the moment,” I said, before releasing their embrace. “Maine, you did this for me?”
“Yeah.” He nodded. “I thought seeing some familiar faces would make you feel better.”
“Thank you,” I mouthed. “How are my godsons?” I asked Coco.
“Both of them are getting big, girl. Their asses aren’t my little babies anymore.”
“I can only imagine.” Although I smiled, there was a sadness beneath it all. In addition to missing my godchildren grow up, I had also come to the realization that our children wouldn’t be close the way she and I always imagined they would be.
“Auntie L, let’s open your presents,” DeShawna urged.
“I got some presents, too?” I grinned, completely enjoying every moment of this reunion.
“Well, since we missed your last birthday, it’s only right.” Coco giggled. “Open mine up first.” She handed me a box wrapped in black paper with a pretty silver bow.
“Drumroll please.” I made the sound while unwrapping the box to reveal a photo album. The pictures inside chronicled our life together from childhood up until I was arrested. There were pictures of my parents back in the day when things were good and pictures of my sisters, too. Upon stopping on a photo of Tori, I paused. “She would’ve been eighteen this year.”
Ding-dong! The sound of the doorbell broke up the sad moment. Everyone in the room was relieved.
“Oh, that’s the pizza I ordered. Lovely, can you get the door?” Maine looked up from the call he was making on his cell phone.
“You stay there, baby. I’ll get it,” Agent Nichols insisted.
“Make sure you check it before they leave!” I hollered. That was something I did religiously whenever I ordered delivery. There was nothing like sitting down to eat, then realizing your food wasn’t right.
Boom! The small explosion completely caught everyone by surprise. Although there was no fire, the smell of smoke and burnt flesh quickly filled the room. “What the fuck was that?” Although I was screaming, I could barely hear myself due to the ringing in my ear. In slow motion I watched as Maine and Do It ran toward the front door. After getting my bearings, I followed suit. That’s when I realized what happened.
“Shit!” Maine yelled at the sight of Nichols’s headless body in the middle of our foyer. Blood was everywhere.
“Keep Shawnie in there, Coco,” Do It instructed.
“Oh, my God!” Never had I seen something so disturbing in all of my life. The explosion had not only blown her head off, but it burst her chest cavity open as well. On cue I threw up.
“Lovely, get back!” Maine hollered before examining the other pizza boxes lying on the floor. He wanted to make sure there were no more live bombs.
“I can’t believe this shit!” Had I gone to the door to get the pizza, that would’ve been me.
“Fuck!” Maine pounded on the floor. “We’ve been made by the Mexican Mafia!” He looked up at me. I knew then that getting out of here alive would prove to be a struggle.
“This was a warning. We need to get the fuck out of here now.” Maine paced the foyer.
“Where are we going to go? We won’t get off this island alive.” Although I’d directed the statement to Maine, my eyes were fixed on the corpse before me. Seeing Nichols in this state caused pain to rip through my body as I was plagued with death yet again. “How many more people do you think I have to lose before the Lord realizes I’ve had enough?”
“Lo, this wasn’t your fault.” Do It took a seat on the floor beside me.
“She was here because of me. She went to the door because of me.” I pointed at myself. Guilt was weighing heavy on my chest.
“Everyone needs to go upstairs and pack a few bags.” Maine stopped pacing. “When nightfall comes, we’ll move.” He unbuttoned his shirt and placed it over what was left of Nichols. Then he proceeded down the hallway to his study and closed the door.