Christmas in the Hood (10 page)

The expression on Grandma’s face when she had seen the money for the kidney transplant had been worth every moment Gigi spent hustling. She thought about the stash she still had left and tried to figure out how to get rid of it, but sleep overcame her.

The next day, Grandma began feeling ill to the point she could hardly get out of bed. Already weak and experiencing shortness of breath, Grandma’s heart palpitations had started up again.

“Grandma, I really think you should go to the hospital,” Gigi said. “I’ll keep you company.”

“No,” Grandma refused. “It’ll go away.”

For two days, Grandma lingered around the apartment in the same condition. Concerned about her health, Gigi and Andrew finally convinced Grandma to go to the hospital. Reluctantly, she agreed.

At the hospital doctors put Grandma through a battery of tests. A few hours later, the test results were back, and the news was grim. Wasting no time, the doctor admitted Grandma to the hospital.

“Her kidneys are failing fast, thanks to her poor diet,” the doctor informed Gigi and Carmen, who stood in the hallway outside
of the older woman’s hospital room. “Not to mention, the disease has weakened all her major organs, including her heart.” He paused to look at the chart. “And I see here, she was already suffering from palpitations. She needs that transplant.”

“Will she get better after the operation?” Carmen asked, almost pleading.

The doctor shook his head. “I can’t make any guarantees,” he said.

“Why not?” Gigi asked.

“Her body could reject the new kidneys.”

“So she could die after the surgery?” Gigi asked.

The doctor frowned.

“I’m sorry, but there’s always a risk associated with this kind of surgery.”

“Isn’t there anything we can do?” Gigi asked, starting to grow hysterical. “I wanna speak to the fucking head of the hospital.”

Carmen did her best to calm down her emotional daughter. “No matter what, we have to remain positive.”

Gigi wanted to spend the night, but she and her mother agreed that Carmen would stay and Gigi would come back the next day to relieve her.

*  *  *

Later that same night, Chico’s black BMW rolled through the tollbooth headed to Randalls Island, a desolate strip nestled between three boroughs—the Bronx, Queens, and Manhattan. The place was frequented as a lover’s lane because of its remoteness.

Slowing down near a baseball field at the south end of the island, Chico pulled off the asphalt road and drove onto the snow-covered grass. He parked near a stand of trees.

Andrew was in the passenger seat and right away noticed Joe’s red BMW sitting a few feet away. He scanned the dark deserted park, noticing the huge trees lining the field were casting even darker shadows.

Fighting the bitter winds blowing across the open field, Chico pulled the knitted cap over his ears as he stepped out. He glanced at Andrew, who was already out the car. “Ready to earn yo’ stripes?”

“No doubt,” Andrew replied without hesitation.

Chico screwed a silencer onto the barrel of a .38 special and then passed it to Andrew. “Don’t use it ’til I say.”

Andrew was so busy eyeing the revolver, he didn’t bother to acknowledge him.

“You deaf?” Chico asked.

“Nah, I got you.”

About twenty feet from where they stood, to the right of the baseball field, was a small cinder-block structure. On the left side of the unit was the women’s bathroom and on the right side was the men’s.

When Chico and Andrew entered the dimly lit men’s room, Joe had Rob seated on the dirty toilet with one arm handcuffed to the metal drainpipe. Standing in front of the stall, Joe kept a watchful eye on him.

Seeing Chico, Rob’s blackened eyes widened, and a shudder racked his body. “Yo, Chico, w-wh-what the fuck’s going on?” he asked, his voice cracking in fear.

“Get a load of this nigga,” Chico said, looking at his younger brother, Joe. “Like he don’t know.” He turned his attention back
to Rob. “The day you violated Grandma, you should’ve slit yo’ own wrist and saved me the time.”

“C-Ch-Chico, I swear to God, it wasn’t me,” Rob pleaded.

“You fucked up—told the wrong nigga yo’ business. Now it’s come back to bite you in the ass.”

Rob had made the mistake of telling one of his boys from the block about the foiled robbery attempt. That person had then ratted him out to get in good with Chico and Joe’s team.

“Looks like yo’ friends are worse than yo’ enemies,” Joe added.

“I-I-I know I fucked up, man,” Rob stuttered, “but let me make it right. Don’t kill me. I’ll make it right, Chico.”

“How you gonna make it right?” Chico asked, pointing to the gun-toting Andrew. “You shot poor little Andrew in the head. He’s blood to me.”

“You saw how he stabbed me. You would’ve done the same thing if you was in my shoes.”

“I told you to leave it alone,” Chico said, cutting off the pleading man, “but you didn’t heed my advice. Now you gotta suffer the consequences.”

Rob looked to Joe for help. “Come on, Joe. What about all the work I done put in? That shit don’t mean nothin’?” he pleaded, tears rolling off his chin.

“It means you should’ve known better,” Joe said. “When you violated Grandma, you violated us.”

“Andrew, put this nigga out his misery,” Chico said, giving the trigger-happy teen a nod.

Rob braced himself as Andrew stepped forward and pressed the silencer to his forehead.

“Please, man …” Rob managed to say before Andrew pulled the trigger. A small red flower-shaped hole blossomed right above his brow, leaving blood splatter on the stall’s dingy white tiles.

Chico spit on the slumped corpse. “Now that’s what I like to see,” he exclaimed, getting a rush from the bloodshed. “Straight to the point. No boring speeches and shit.”

*  *  *

Gigi and Andrew went to see Grandma the next day.

The large hospital bed seemed to swallow their grandmother as she rested.
Grandma does look sick
, Gigi thought as she studied the older woman closely. Her rosy cheeks and bright complexion were now pale. Gigi could tell her grandmother was in a lot of pain, but, no matter what, Grandma never complained. Forcing a smile, she just lay there, suffering in silence.

Gigi sat on the edge of the bed and leaned in to kiss her grandma’s sweaty forehead.

Grandma looked up at her grandkids with tender love in her eyes, and said, “I’m glad y’all are here.”

After a few minutes, Andrew excused himself, claiming he had to use the bathroom.

When he left the room, Grandma cupped Gigi’s hand in her own. “Gigi, I need you to do something for me. I want to see Andrew’s lawyer. I wanna make a statement,” Grandma said.

“Why?” Gigi asked.

“Don’t ask questions,” Grandma said. “Just do it. Please.” Gigi made the call, and Andrew’s lawyer dropped whatever he was doing and made it to the hospital within an hour.

“Now, you take this down,” Grandma said to the lawyer, pulling herself up to a sitting position. “I want to make it known that
I
was the one selling the crack. My grandson didn’t have nothing to do with it.”

Andrew inhaled sharply. “Grandma, I told you, you don’t have to do this. I already took the rap for it. It’s not like we haven’t been hustling anyway. How you think we got the money for your surgery.”

“Is that true, Gigi?”

Gigi nodded.

“My heart was right.” Grandma sighed, and she beckoned for Gigi to come over. After Gigi was settled on the bed, Grandma gave her a hug. “Didn’t I tell y’all not to sell drugs on your own?” she asked.

Gigi nodded. “We did it for you,” she said.

Grandma sighed. “Promise me you’ll never do it again. You’re a smart girl. I don’t want y’all to go down the same path I did. You can make something of yourself. Promise me you’ll do that. Both of you.”

“Okay,” Gigi said.

Andrew nodded reluctantly.

“I’ll need you to act as a witness to this statement,” the attorney said, turning to Gigi. Gigi nodded.

Grandma finished giving her statement, and when the lawyer left, Gigi looked at Grandma.

“You shouldn’t have done that, Grandma,” Gigi said, choking back her tears. “You’re gonna get better, and when you do, they’re gonna send you to jail.”

“Gigi, I can’t let Andrew end up in prison for my drugs,” Grandma said. “I was trying to make a better life for you and your cousin, not make it worse.”

“And you did,” Gigi replied. “If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have money for college.”

Grandma shook her head. “What about Andrew? My poor baby’s facing time ’cause of me. I failed you both.”

“It’s okay, Grandma,” Andrew said. “You did what you had to do, just like I did what I had to do. Trust me, I’ll be okay.”

“When you get better, we’ll all put this behind us,” Gigi said, tears running down her cheeks.

“No, Gigi, I’m not getting better.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Promise me … when this is over, you’ll leave this crack shit alone and finish college,” Grandma said. “Promise me, you’ll live your life the right way. Don’t do what I did. I never wanted this for ya’ll. Look at me, cursed with this illness for all the wrong I’ve caused, at least when I’m gone, no one—in hell or on Earth—can ever say I didn’t keep food on our table.”

“I promise, Grandma. Believe me, I was only in the game to help you out. I know this ain’t the way.”

Suddenly, Andrew punched his fist into the wall. “Shut up!” he barked, fighting back tears.

“Calm down, Andrew,” Gigi demanded.

“Grandma’s coming home and shit’s gonna continue like it was. We gonna keep making this money!” Andrew shouted, before storming out the room.

Gigi knew this was the beginning of the end. She knew there was a chance Grandma would not survive after the operation.

“Andrew’s right. You’re gonna be fine,” Gigi assured her, struggling to believe her own words. Praying for the best, she hugged Grandma tightly.

*  *  *

Gigi lay in bed with Mel that night, and, long after he had fallen asleep, she thought about Grandma and all that the older woman had done for them. Grandma was right. They all deserved better. She vowed that she was going to finish school and get her life together, and take care of Andrew.

The next day, Gigi arrived at the hospital for her daily visit, carrying a beautiful bouquet of flowers and two huge Get Well balloons. Stepping out of the elevator, she headed down the long corridor toward her grandmother’s hospital room. She walked into the room and found Grandma’s bed empty. Taking a deep breath, she tried to stop her racing heart from beating so fast.

She must be getting her dialysis treatment
, Gigi thought as she left the room and walked down to the nurse’s station.

Approaching the nurse seated there, Gigi rubbed her sweaty palms on her blue jeans and asked, “Is Lola Lewis being treated for dialysis? She’s not in her room.” Gigi bit her lip, impatiently awaiting the nurse’s reply.

“Are you a relative?” the nurse asked solemnly.

“I’m her granddaughter. Why?”

“Hold on just a second.”

Rolling back from the desk, the nurse wheeled around in her swivel chair and spoke to a doctor standing behind the station. The older man glanced up from the chart he had been examining
and stared at Gigi over his thin-rimmed glasses with sorrow in his dark eyes. The grim expression on the doctor’s pale face said it all.

With tears rolling down her face, Gigi already knew what he was about to tell her before he said a word.

“Come with me, please,” the doctor said, nodding toward a spot off to the side where they could have more privacy.

Squinting, Gigi tried to stop the flow of tears. She tried to keep the doctor from speaking by tossing her hand up and turning her face away from him. Gripping the ribbon on the balloons tightly, Gigi braced herself for the bad news.

“I’m sorry, Miss Lewis, but your grandmother had a fatal heart attack. She expired early this morning. We tried to reach you—”

Unable to contain herself, Gigi dropped the flowers she was holding and collapsed on the floor sobbing. The balloons floated up to the ceiling. Deep wails racked her body as she curled up into a fetal position.

With solemn expressions on their faces, the doctor and a hospital orderly helped Gigi back to her feet. Waving away the orderly, the doctor let her cry on his shoulder. Gasping for air, Gigi was inconsolable as a continuous flow of tears fell from her face onto his white coat.

Finally finding the strength, she pulled away, her eyes red and teary, staring blankly at the doctor as he gave her his condolences.

“I’m sorry, dear. I wish there had been something I could have done.”

“Thank you,” Gigi managed as she turned to walk away.

Lost in a daze, Gigi trailed through the hallways, then stepped into an enclosed phone booth in the hospital’s main lobby. Pulling the glass door shut, she sat on the metal stool and wept
hard again. The pain of losing Grandma was just too much to bear. She was doubled over, lost in her grief.

“Grandma, Grandma,” Gigi cried out repeatedly, knowing she would never see the older woman again. “What am I gonna do now?”

Gigi wished she could hear her grandmother’s loving voice one more time. Then the thought hit her, Grandma died without any family by her side. Gigi wished she had been there, holding Grandma’s hand when she took her last breath. The last thing she had wanted was for her grandmother to die alone.

After grieving a few more minutes, Gigi tried to regain her composure for the walk back to the train station.
Grandma’s in a much better place
, Gigi thought, pulling herself together.

Exiting the hospital, Gigi still didn’t know what she would do without Grandma. A car horn beeped, and she looked up to see Chico’s black BMW waiting at the curb.

“How’s Grandma?” Chico asked as she approached, then he saw the agony etched on her face. “Aww, don’t tell me.”

“She’s gone,” Gigi said.

Chico dropped his head into his palms. When he finally looked up again, tears were rolling down his cheeks. “I loved that woman. You know she was like a mother to me.”