For the Strength of YouÂ?

Ten Months Later

Fe-Fe stood at the gravesite holding her two-month-old baby girl, Tammy, with grief resting in her heart. Next to her stood Monica, holding her six-week-old baby boy, Anshon, and she too had grief resting in her heart. They were both paying their respects to someone they cared about deeply and missed.

Monica placed a single red rose on the gravesite as tears rolled down her cheek. After they said their silent good-byes, they both turned to hug each other.

“You be safe, okay?” Fe-Fe said.

Monica wiped her eyes. “I will, Fe-Fe. Just stay in touch with me.”

“I promise,” Fe-Fe said before she turned to leave.

Monica watched her best friend slowly walk away. She was happy for Fe-Fe and Wood C, who were now together. Fe-Fe had legal custody of her twins again, and the five of them lived up in Richmond, Virginia.... Really it was six if you wanted to count the new seed Wood C had baking in Fe-Fe’s oven.

Fe-Fe hated lying to Monica about Wood C being li’l Tammy’s father, but little did Fe-Fe know, Monica knew the truth. The baby looked too much like Anshon for anything to be denied.

As Wood C neared his gleaming 300C, he opened the door for his queen then kissed her lightly on the lips. They both waved good-bye then slowly pulled out of the quiet cemetery, and that was Fe-Fe’s and Wood C’s ending.

As for Deck, he was still in Selma. He now ran a barbershop on Raiford that supported his brand new triple-wide trailer out in Southern Estates. He no longer took up space in Wood C’s 300C passenger seat. He now had Anshon’s Chevy.

Larrisha and her brother Von moved to Los Angeles.

Monica neared the shiny QX56 then wiped her teary eyes. She leaned over to kiss her baby. A few moments later, they were heading for I-95 South to begin a new life down in Miami, Florida. Tammy had made her promise her before she died that they would take the spot in Miami as soon as Anshon got out of the game.

“Well, baby,” Monica said, looking up to the sky, “I guess this is it.”