Betrayed (3 page)

“Ask Momma. Get out of here!!” Trevor suddenly screamed.

“What's up with you, Trevor?”

“Meow.”

“Beyonce pounced on my bed. I would've killed that cat a long time ago if Momma wasn't going to kill me afterwards. Who names a stupid cat Beyonce?”

“Whatever. Put Momma on the phone so she can tell me what a liar you are.”

“Hmph, you're gonna have to wait because Momma is at the beauty shop getting her hair done and Dad's on campus.”

“A'ight. Don't let me come home and find your crusty butt in my room. I don't want to have to do a Chris Brown on you.”

“That's wrong, Asia. Chris didn't mean to hit Rihanna.”

“Whatever. I'm out.”
Click
. Asia put her cell phone away. The girls laughed.

“I can't wait to meet your brother,” Afrika said.

“He's a trip but we're closer than close. Remind me to pick up a present for him. His birthday is next Friday. He graduates from high school next year, and I'm sure he's going to come to Central since both my parents are alums.”

“Really? My mother also went to Central, but she left after her first year. I don't know why. She transferred to Hampton University, which is where she met my dad before he joined the Army as a Lieutenant. Asia, our lives have so many parallels.”

“It's scary, isn't it?”

“Since we're about the same age, maybe our parents' paths crossed. When is your birthday?”

“December sixteenth,” Afrika said proudly.

“Nikki, you won't believe this.”

“Don't tell me your birthday is on the same day as mine. If it is, I'd have to wonder whether or not one of us was adopted. Because that would truly mean we are twins.”

“No,” Asia started. “How about ten days younger than you? I was born the day after Christmas. That means our mothers were pregnant at the same time.”

Afrika remained quiet as she sat at the stoplight. She reflected on her mother's reaction when she saw Asia earlier. For some unknown reason, seeing Asia was like a trigger…a reminder of something her mother wanted to forget. The way she acted, someone would've thought she was on the verge of having a nervous breakdown. Or was it all an act?

“Earth to Nikki.”

“Sorry, girl. I was in another world.”

“Obviously.”

“You were saying that your birthday was…”

“Ten days after yours.”

“Well, that proves that we were meant to be best friends; sisters.”

“I don't know about you, Nikki, but my freshman year is going to be on. I've got a great new best friend, we're both on the cheerleading squad, and all that's left is to find the man of my dreams like my mom did her freshman year.”

“I'm going to concentrate on my studies. I'm going to be a stock broker on Wall Street.”

“Sister CEO. Finally, there's something we don't have in common,” Asia said. “I say go for yours. My mother didn't get her degree right away because she was pregnant with me, and at first aspired to do nothing but be a mom and nurture me. But she did go back to school after a year off and studied hard. She's a psychologist, analyzing everything that doesn't make sense to
her. My mom is also a life coach. It's big business, and she has a high-profile clientele. It wasn't until later in her life that she found her real niche.”

“What is that?”

“She's a genealogy specialist and loves getting families together. You have to attend one of our family reunions. They're big events; especially since my mom found relatives we didn't know we had from every corner of the globe. She's like a bird picking worms out of the ground after a good rain.”

“I definitely want to meet your mom.”

“I'll check to see when she gets home. Maybe we can run over there later.”

“Just let me know.”

M
imi unpacked a few boxes that contained her porcelain figurines. She gently unwrapped the packing material from around each piece and carefully sat them on the built-in shelf in her living room. Opening another box, she pulled out a family picture of her, Raphael, and Afrika when she was five years old.

They were an attractive family—Afrika, in her long, curly pigtails and candy apple ribbon that matched her taffeta dress, Raphael, in his Army dress blues, and her, in her favorite Jones New York suit. They were the perfect family and their lives were full and prosperous. Mimi's husband made full bird, Colonel, two years ago and the other love of her life was now in college.

She remembered the day she met Raphael. It was blazing hot, and she had only been in Hampton a few days. With a baby growing inside her womb, Mimi decided to go to summer school so that she wouldn't get behind when the baby came.

She strolled onto Hampton's campus to register, and coming out of the cashier's office was the most handsome man that she'd ever seen. Mimi could tell he lifted weights; he had muscles that not only popped from underneath his cotton shirt but the rest of his body as well. He was tall, but not too tall that she couldn't reach up and put her arms around his neck and swap kisses with him in her dreams. He had a thick head of cold, wavy, black hair.
She didn't want him to catch her looking at him, but when she came out of the admissions office, he was standing off to the side like he was waiting for somebody. What she didn't know was that he was waiting on her—maybe to make her acquaintance or get a sandwich and a cold drink at the student lounge. Mimi looked at the picture again. She smiled. Besides the sandwich and cold drink, she gave herself to Raphael on the first day they met. In her heart of hearts, she knew he was going to be her husband.

On the marble mantle above the fireplace that separated the living area from the ultra modern kitchen with its black and white decor, Mimi sat the picture. Before taking her hand away, she glanced back at the picture, brushing Afrika's face as if it were flesh, then focused on her eyes, imagining that there were two of them. Someone once said that each person had a twin in the world, but the likeness of Asia to her own daughter was too uncanny.

Mimi dismissed her thoughts and finished unpacking. She stacked the empty cartons out back in the storage area in a corner. She glanced around, measuring with her eyes to see if she'd have enough space to place a few more things she wanted to store. In doing so, she saw a red book that occupied a corner all by itself. Mimi picked up the telephone book and thumbed through the pages, finally deciding to take it inside the house.

With the book in her hand, Mimi plopped down on the suede couch, one of the few things she had bought for the house, and put her feet up under her. She lifted the cover and fingered the first few pages, finally getting up enough courage to flip to the white pages. She looked at it and allowed her eyes to slowly scan the page as her fingers did a slow crawl, serving as a guide. When she neared the “Ch's,” she abruptly pulled her finger out of the book and slammed it shut.

Mimi threw the phone book down and ran up the stairs to her
bedroom and closed the door. No one could calm her nerves like Raphael. She reached for the phone and dialed the country code for Germany but set the phone down after thinking better of it.

Mimi laid across her four-poster white bed in a fetal position. The peach-colored walls with white trim soothed the tension she felt. Moments later, Mimi's eyelids were limp and sleep overtook her.

Instead of blacking out, she was consumed by a dream that had manifested itself many times before over the last nineteen years. Her eyelids fluttered as she imagined a medium brown, medium height woman emerge from a shadow and knock on a door. She was dressed in a white, loose-fitting cotton blouse with a red camisole underneath and blue leggings. A man opened the door, dressed in only a pair of sweatpants, his chest bare, and pulled the woman inside, closing the door behind him. She tried to leave, but the man blocked the door.

His breath smelled like a refinery; he was obviously drunk. There was small talk and then an argument ensued. There was lots of yelling, shouting, and pointing fingers. And as if the man had superhero strength, he picked up the woman and threw her on the sofa. He tore away her clothes like a savage beast and pulled down his pants and…

Huffing and puffing, Mimi jerked up, swinging her arms wildly with sweat covering her face before finally stopping to stare at nothing in particular. She grabbed her heart, crossed her arms over her chest, finally lifting her legs over the side of the bed in attempt to keep from shaking.

Mimi eased off the bed, stood up, and walked slowly to the bathroom like she was a mummy or high on drugs. She gasped at the sight of herself.

“Okay, Mimi,” she said out loud, rinsing her face and blotting
it with a cold cloth. “Pull yourself together, girl. You're making more out of this than there is. You're imagining things. Afrika is going…is going…”

Mimi rushed from the bathroom, ran downstairs, and grabbed her BlackBerry. “I'll send her a text. Yeah, that's what I'll do.”

A, this is Mommy. I really like Asia; she seems like a very nice girl. I'm not trying to alarm you, but be careful about getting too involved with her and her family. Take some time to meet other kids instead of having one exclusive friend. Love you. Mommy.

Looking over the message one more time, Mimi nodded her head in approval and pressed
SEND
.

It was almost as if Afrika had been sitting at the other end waiting for Mimi's text. In under a minute, Mimi received a reply from Afrika.

What's up with you, Mommy? You're acting weird. I really like Asia. You have nothing to worry about. Love, A.

Maybe it was the quiet in the room that sent chills down Mimi's spine, but Afrika's diss in her text message made her shiver. “Afrika,” Mimi said out loud, “Mommy knows best.” She needed proof, but in the meantime, Mimi had to protect Afrika at all costs. Mimi typed another message, looked at it, and hit the
CANCEL
button.

“H
ey, Asia. Where are you?” Afrika asked as she let her backpack drop from her shoulders to the floor of her dorm room, while she held onto her cell phone.

“Hey, girl, I'm at the dining hall. I was famished and came straight from class with some of the other girls on the squad. Hurry up; I'll wait for you.”

“Okay. I'll be right over after I pee.”

The dorm suite was home to eight girls. There were two persons to a room, and they all shared a kitchenette that housed a refrigerator, a small stove, and a three-seater sofa and one chair. Afrika and Asia lived in separate suites but down the hall. Afrika liked her roommate, but she and Asia had more in common.

Afrika packed her books for her remaining classes. She took one last look in the mirror, smoothed down the edges of her hair, swished her ponytail, sucked her teeth, and winked at herself. Glancing around the room, she seemed satisfied that she had all she needed.

The sun was high overhead. Students strolled across campus, eager to get a bite to eat or head to their next class. Even though school had been in session for a month, Afrika was enjoying her freshman experience so far. She walked proudly as she made her way across campus.

“Asia,” a male voice called. “Asia, Asia,” the voice called out again when Afrika didn't stop. “Asia.”

Afrika turned around, her ponytail slapping her in the face. A couple of feet away stood a handsome, middle-aged man, with thick black sideburns, closed-cropped brownish-black hair, wearing a red linen jacket, a red and white striped shirt accented by a white collar and cuffs, and black Hugo Boss slacks. Afrika smiled and then looked him up and down. She came to her senses when she realized the man was staring straight at her—through her.

Squinting, the gentleman pulled back his head, unsure that the young lady who stared back at him was who he thought. “Asia?”

“No, my name is Nikki.”

“I'm sorry…I've mistaken you for my daughter. She resembles you a little.”

“You mean, Asia?”

“Yes, do you know her?”

Afrika walked over to where the man stood. She had to agree with the talk on the yard that Asia's father was definitely fine. “Yes, I know Asia. We're on the cheerleading squad together. Everyone says we could pass for twins.”

“Well, they say that everyone has a twin in the world. Excuse my manners. I'm Mr. Victor Christianson.”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Christianson. My mother says the same thing about having a double somewhere out there in the world.”

“Is your mother from around here?” Victor asked, as he watched Afrika with renewed interest.

“We came here from Kansas. My dad is a Colonel in the Army and he just left for Germany. My mom moved to Durham to be close to me.”

“Oh, I see. Well, it was nice meeting you, Nikki. If we can assist you in the Admissions Office, don't hesitate to stop by.”

“Thank you, Mr. Christianson.” Afrika waved goodbye.

Victor turned and walked in the opposite direction, but stopped, turned, and watched as Nikki walked away.

T
HE CROWD HAD DWINDLED IN THE CAFETERIA BY THE TIME
Afrika reached it. She got a tray and headed for the pizza station. Her mother said she was going to turn into a tub of cheese if she didn't leave the pizza alone and start eating some vegetables. When it came to pizza, she wasn't discriminating—Domino's, Papa John's, Pizza Hut—you name it.

“Nikki,” Asia called from across the room, waving her hand.

Afrika headed straight to the table and joined the group. “Asia, I met your dad a few minutes ago. I was on my way to the cafe when he called your name, thinking I was you. You should have seen his face when I finally turned around.”

“I bet he had the same look on his face that your mother had when she saw me.”