Insatiable (24 page)

A
few days after having the stroke, Gran had another and was now on a ventilator. With Gran out of commission, Aunt Bennie had brazenly stepped out of the closet. She brought her female lover to Gran’s hospital room. The woman’s name was Sheila. She was attractive with long reddish locks. Though she was taller than Aunt Bennie, Terelle surmised that Sheila was the
woman
in the relationship.

Aunt Bennie’s lesbian relationship was too much for Terelle to absorb; she thought she would pass the hell out when Aunt Bennie kissed Sheila on the lips right next to Gran’s bed. She didn’t want to be judgmental, but damn, anyway you looked at it—that shit just wasn’t cool! Couldn’t Aunt Bennie have at least prepared her for such a shocking revelation? Couldn’t she have pulled her to the side and confessed that she liked chicks before bringing Sheila to Gran’s room? It seemed like an inappropriate time to finally admit she was gay. Terelle would have appreciated a little time to marinate on the subject.

It was a wonder the spectacle of all that lesbian kissing and hugging didn’t cause Gran to snap right out of her coma. Terelle kept her eyes fixed on Gran because she expected her grandmother at any moment to rise up in a fury and start pulling out the trachea and all the other tubes and wires that kept her alive so she could cuss Aunt Bennie out. If Gran had caught sight of her daughter with her lips pressed against the mouth of another woman, she would have somehow gathered the strength from somewhere to give Aunt Bennie a beat down like no other.

But Gran had remained silent and still—she remained in a vegetative state and Terelle knew her grandmother wouldn’t be with them much longer. Aunt Bennie also knew, and apparently had accepted the fact, which is why she risked flaunting her lesbianism. Oh well…live and let live. That had always been Terelle’s motto.

A few hours later, Terelle left the hospital dealing with the sad realization that she had lost her own mother a long time ago and would soon lose her grandmother as well.

In that melancholy state, she’d stopped to pick up the mail from the mailbox in the vestibule of her apartment building. Standing out among the bills and junk mail was a large manila envelope addressed to Terelle Chambers, Nursing Assistant. Terelle’s pretty face crinkled in confusion.

Too curious to wait until she was inside her apartment, she’d ripped the envelope open as she climbed the flight of stairs.

She gaped at the nine and a half by twelve-inch photograph she pulled from the envelope. Turning it upside-down, she viewed it from different angles as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing. She desperately needed her eyes to focus—to stop playing tricks on her. She squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them again, but there was no denying what she saw. With a sinking feeling, she had to admit that what she held between trembling fingers was a photograph of Marquise. Naked. Lying on his back with his legs spread open—dick hanging to the side—in someone else’s bed! He was obviously sound asleep for in a waking state he would have never allowed himself to be photographed butt-ass naked.

Danita!
The name exploded in Terelle’s mind. With rage building, she examined the photo closer and wondered how Danita could afford such a richly furnished bedroom. Project dwellers, she thought angrily, paid little to no rent and minimal utilities and apparently could afford to hook up their cribs with the best of everything.

Terelle grabbed the phone feeling so shaken, she kept pushing the wrong numbers as she tried to call Marquise on his cell.

With unsteady hands, she tried again—slowly and deliberately this time. But she got a recorded message—Marquise’s cell was no longer in service. Unbelievable! This was an emergency—a dire emergency—and his phone had been cut the fuck off! What the hell was going on? It seemed every aspect of the world she thought she knew was crumbling before her eyes.

She tried to calm down. Perhaps it was just a joke. Someone had sent her a photo of a Marquise look-alike. Heart pounding, she chanced another peek at the picture and winced. Without question, it was Marquise. Moreover, it was his unmistakable dick. For even in a limp state, his dick was thick, long, and slightly curved. She cried out in anguish and flung the photo across the room. Her head began to throb. She massaged her temples and walked back and forth whimpering and murmuring that Marquise was a no-good…slimy…dirty…whore…bastard. And she hated his fucking guts.

Terelle felt lightheaded. If she didn’t talk to Marquise soon she was going to go ballistic and start breaking up every damn thing in the apartment—starting with his shit.

She called his cell again. Listened to the recording again.

In a stooped position, she yanked open the doors to the cabinet under the kitchen sink, rummaged around until she found a hammer. Then, with hammer in hand and walking like a zombie, she proceeded to the bedroom. Terelle gripped up Marquise’s precious Cartier watch, placed it on the nightstand and smashed it into smithereens.

The apartment was pitch black. Terelle sat in the dark and listened to Marquise’s hard footsteps as he climbed the steps that led to their apartment. Smirking, she waited with wicked anticipation while Marquise fiddled around with his keys, trying to locate the one that would open the door. She enjoyed hearing the rattle of the chain that prevented his entering the apartment.

“Terelle,” he yelled through the cracked open door. “Open the door—why you got the door locked up with the chain?” Annoyance coated his words.

She calmly walked to the door and slid the photo through the opening.

“What the fuck is this?”

“Take a good look,” she said tonelessly.

Marquise quietly studied the picture, then laughed. “You mad about this? Babe, this is a joke Jocko and his boys played on me. If you don’t believe me, you can call him right now…”

“Fuck you, Marquise. If that’s true, then this situation is worse than I thought. Because if Jocko took this picture then I have to accept that being in jail for two years has turned you into a fuckin’ faggot. So whatchu sayin’—you one of those homo thugs? Huh? You on the down low?” The venomous words came through lips that were twisted in rage. Marquise flinched, then quickly recovered, his eyes ablaze in self-righteous indignation.

Feeling safe behind the chained door, Terelle took pleasure in watching his mounting rage. He gnawed on his lip furiously, his mind raced, his eyes darted wildly as he tried to figure out a way to break through the door to wring Terelle’s neck.

“That’s bullshit and you know it,” he finally said. His voice was ice.

“Whatever. But check this shit out…you’re creating a disturbance. Keeta’s asleep and I was trying to get some sleep. So take your cheatin’, whorin’ ass back to the bitch or faggot you been fuckin’ around with.”

Marquise flinched again at the word,
faggot,
but forced himself to speak in a soothing tone. “Babe,” he said, “I swear to God, I’m not lyin’. Why don’t you calm down and let me explain?”

“No.”

“Well, can I at least come in and get my things?” he pleaded.

“Hell no! The lease to this apartment is in my name. That means all the contents—everything in here belong to me. Now if you don’t hurry up and get the fuck away from my door I’m gonna call the police.”

“You gonna call the cops on me after I worked all day?” He exploded. “I’m tired as hell and all I got is the grimy work uniform on my back. You gonna do me like that?”

“Damn right. That’s exactly how I’m gonna do you. And that’s a small thing compared to how you been doin’ me!”

“Yo, this ain’t the time to be feedin’ into this bullshit. I told you some muthafucker is playing games. Babe, after all we been through, do you think I would fuck up this relationship?” He spoke humbly—desperately. “Open the door and give me a chance to explain?”

“What you’ve done to me is a crime, Marquise. You’ve been fuckin’ everything that moves ever since we were teenagers…and I’ve been taking your shit for all these years. The way you treat me is a fuckin’ crime and I want justice. The way I see it…your whorin’ ass deserves to be behind bars, and I can make it happen with one phone call. Feel me?” Terelle asked sarcastically. “So…stop pushing your luck and get the fuck away from my door.”

A dispirited figure, Marquise smiled bitterly, turned and walked away.

T
he elevator was crowded. Noisy support staff conversed loudly, made inane jokes and laughed uproariously about absolutely nothing. It was too early in the morning for such merrymaking. Kai despised them all with a passion.

“Hey, Terelle. Where you been, girl?” someone yelled.

Kai’s ears perked up when she heard Terelle’s name.

“Hi, Melanie. I took some time off; my grandmother had a stroke,” Terelle responded softly.

“Oh. That explains why Marquise has been walking around lookin’ so sad,” Melanie said.

Curious, Kai craned her neck to witness the look on Terelle’s face. She wanted to see the effect her package had on Marquise’s fiancée.

Without expression, Terelle gave Melanie a shrug. There was no visible indication that her world had been shattered. She looked at peace—serene.

Irked, Kai sucked her teeth and exited the elevator when it reached the fourth floor. As she passed the residents’ dining room, she thought her heart would stop.

Marquise was in the dining room, mopping the floor. She stepped inside and gasped in shock. He looked absolutely horrible! He needed a shave and his uniform looked as if he’d slept in it. His haggard appearance hurt her eyes. To see him looking so disheveled and forlorn was startling. Her first instinct was to flee the gloom-filled room, but she didn’t. She had to make up for what she did. It was time to put him out of his misery and welcome him back into her life. After all, she’d wanted to teach Marquise a lesson, not destroy his life. She loved him and it was time to let him know.

“Marquise.” She whispered his name.

He looked up, gave her a vacant stare and resumed mopping.

“Marquise, can we talk—privately?”

He stopped mopping and regarded her with hooded evil eyes, which shocked her. She’d expected him to flash one of his sexy smiles.

“What’s there to talk about? I lost my girl—my daughter. Everything I own.”

“I want to talk about us. I didn’t mean to…”

“You didn’t mean to what? Send my girl that fucked-up picture?”

“I was angry. You lied to me. I was just trying to get even.”

“Okay, well you got even. You won; it’s over. Now, roll out—I’m busy.” He pushed the mop across an area he’d already cleaned.

Kai didn’t budge from where she stood. “I miss you. I miss what we had.”

He spat out the words, “We ain’t have shit!”

“You’re upset. You couldn’t mean what you’re saying. Call me later so we can try to sort through this mess. Let me make up for what I did…I can help you.” She moved toward him.

Marquise drew back. “No thanks. Now, excuse me…I’m tryin’ to git my work done.” Marquise pushed the industrial mop bucket past Kai. Leaving Kai alone in the dining room, he went into the utility room down the hall and slammed the door.

Unprepared for his rejection, Kai felt disoriented. Getting Marquise back wasn’t going to be as easy as she’d thought.

At the end of the shift Kai waited for Marquise in the parking lot. Prepared to offer him a ride home, she was stumped when he slid into the passenger seat of a black Camry driven by one of his male co-workers. Quickly gathering her wits about her, she decided to follow the car to find out what Marquise was up to.

Weaving through rush-hour traffic, Kai tailed the Camry.

After cruising Girard Avenue for about twenty blocks, the car slowed and made a right turn onto Merion Avenue in West Philly. Kai turned right also. The Camry came to a complete stop in front of a dilapidated wood-framed row home that screamed for a new coat of paint and had crumbling concrete steps leading to the front door. The majority of the houses on the narrow, desolate street were uninhabited shells with boards at the windows and doors. The houses that were still occupied were in desperate need of repair.

Kai brazenly maneuvered the Benz beside the Camry and gave Marquise a big smile.

Marquise rolled down the car window. “You stalkin’ me or somethin’?”

“Are you ready to talk?” Kai asked sweetly.

“I told you…I ain’t got no rap for you.” Marquise turned to the driver. “Thanks for the ride. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The driver, recognizing Kai from the nursing home, turned to Marquise and shrugged in bewilderment. His expression implied he would appreciate being enlightened as to why the sophisticated social worker from the job had followed him and Marquise to the ’hood.

“Yo, I’ll talk to you tomorrow, man.” Marquise got out of the car without providing an explanation. With an open palm, he tapped the hood of the Camry, indicating the driver should move along and give him some privacy to handle his business.

Reluctantly, the driver pulled off. Marquise sauntered over to Kai’s car.

“Dig this…whatever we had is over…”

“Is this your current abode?” she asked, interrupting him.

Incomprehension furrowed his brow.

“In other words, is this where you’re staying now?” Crinkling her nose in disgust, Kai nudged her head toward the shabby house.

“Don’t worry ’bout where I’m stayin’,” he snapped. “Look…” He took a deep breath. “Just leave me alone…please.” He waited for Kai to pull off.

“I’m not going anywhere until you give me an explanation for your drastic change of heart. Everything was going so well until you lied…”

“Listen. I ain’t got to explain a muthafuckin’ thing, but if you insist…” Looking thoughtful, he chose his words with care. “Yo, dig this…I think you crazy and I fucked up by messin’ wit a nut like you.” He made a snorting sound, then turned and walked away.

Though his unkind words caused her enormous discomfort, Kai kept a straight face. She refused to believe for a second that Marquise had actually stopped caring for her. He was furious with her, but he’d get over it once they were alone and made the sexual connection that was the glue in their relationship.

Refusing to drive away, she stubbornly sat in front of the house and peered at Marquise through her tinted window. She watched as he rang the doorbell and was admitted by a shadowy female figure.

Enraged that he could so easily dispose of someone as refined and well bred as she to run into the arms of yet another impoverished and ignorant ghetto-girl, Kai hastily parked the Benz. Ignoring the doorbell, she pounded on the door with her fist.

“Who the hell is bangin’ on the door like that?” Kai heard the woman ask.

“Let me handle this, Ayanna,” Marquise said as he yanked open the door.

“Yo, what the fuck is your problem?”

“You’d better ask yourself that question because if you don’t return the watch you stole from me, you’re going to have a huge problem.”

“You lyin’ bitch; you know I didn’t steal no watch from you!”

“What’s goin’ on, Marquise?” With a baby on her hip and a young toddler tugging at the hem of her tight denim skirt, Ayanna squeezed past Marquise to get a look at the woman causing the ruckus at her front door. Thrown off by the fact that the troublemaker was meticulously coifed, well dressed and was most definitely not from the ’hood, Ayanna squinted in confusion.

“Excuse me, Miss,” Kai said calmly. “I truly apologize for causing a disturbance in your home, but the man you’re involved with is a thief. “

“Stop lyin’! You gave me that watch,” Marquise bellowed.

“I ain’t involved with Marquise,” Ayanna protested. “Jalil is my man. Marquise is Jalil’s best friend. He’s just chillin’ with us ’til he can straighten out his situation at home.”

“You don’t have to explain nothin’ to her,” Marquise angrily informed Ayanna.

Kai dismissed Marquise with a look and directed her conversation to Ayanna.

“You should know that he stole a very expensive watch from me and I believe he’s hiding it in your home…”

Ayanna’s mouth fell open as she shot Marquise a look of stunned disbelief.

“I really hate to involve you,” Kai continued, “but you’re harboring a criminal and I’m going to have to alert the authorities.” Kai flipped open her cell phone and pushed the first digit of 9-1-1.

There was a hint of fear in Ayanna’s eyes. She pulled Marquise to the side and whispered, “I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m not tryin’ to get caught all up in the middle of no bullshit. If she sends the cops here and they start diggin’ in my business, they’ll find out that both you and Jalil are staying here. If they report me…I could lose my Section 8. Where would me and my kids stay if that happens?”

Marquise didn’t have an answer.

“I hate to do this, Marquise. I’m really sorry, but you’re gonna have to go,” she said loud enough for Kai to hear.

Satisfied, Kai smiled.

“Do you want me to call Terelle and ask her if you can come back home?” Ayanna offered.

Marquise shook his head. “When Jalil gets home…just tell ’em I said I’ll hollah when I git myself situated.”

Ayanna nodded sadly as Marquise made his slow and solemn exit. Kai trailed him. Once outside, he hurried past Kai and headed for the bus stop around the corner.

Kai got in her car and began to follow Marquise. “Where are you going, Marquise? Are you going to try to reconcile with Terelle?” she taunted.

He stopped walking. “Stop followin’ me, you crazy bitch! Just leave me the fuck alone.” He balled his fists as he approached the car. “I should smash you in your fuckin’ grille for causin’ all this trouble in my life.”

“Is that a threat?” She twirled her hair; her eyes gleamed with excitement. “I don’t take threats lightly and neither do the police. Look, I know Terelle’s address and I believe my watch is hidden somewhere in her squalid apartment. She lives on the corner of 55
^th
and Kingsessing Avenue—right?” Kai snapped open the clasp of her Fendi bag and pulled out a Palm Pilot.

Marquise blinked rapidly. “Leave Terelle outta this.”

Kai pushed buttons. “Should I recite the address?”

Frustrated, he shook his head. “Naw, that ain’t necessary.”

“Consider yourself forewarned because I’ll be at her front door with the police in a few minutes. So…if that’s where you’re headed, perhaps you should reconsider.”

Marquise placed his palm on his forehead and shook his head in frustration. “I can prove you bought that watch for me. All I have to do is go back to that jewelry store in the casino and talk to the dude who works there. He’ll remember me.”

“You accompanied me to the store, but I paid for the watch and had it insured. I’ve already reported it stolen and the insurance company won’t pay until there’s an investigation.”

Marquise looked down in disgust. “Whatchu want from me?”

“I want you! I miss you and I want you back in my life,” she said softly.

“You talkin’ crazy. You never had me—we was just fuckin’ around. I was honest at the door—I told you I was engaged.”

“That’s in the past. You’re not in a relationship now, so can we please move forward? It’s cold out here…you’re homeless and without clothing. Why won’t you let me help you? Just come home with me—please?” Kai clicked a button to unlock the car doors.

“You must be out of your muthafuckin’ mind; I’m not goin’ nowhere wit your crazy ass.”

“Nor are you going anywhere without me. You want to run back to your trashy little ghetto girl as if
I’m
the second-class citizen? You should be honored to be in my presence.”

“Honored!”
Marquise said indignantly. “Yo, you be tryin’ to put it out there like you all high class and shit, but you ain’t nothin’ but a smut. I don’t give a fuck what you drive, what kinda clothes you wear or how much cheddar you got in your bank account—you still a skeezer.” Marquise was silent for a moment, then muttered to himself, “I can’t believe I played myself like this.” He bit down on his lip and let out a mirthless laugh. “I shoulda seen the signs from jump—the way you was ridin’ my jock…followin’ me around…throwin’ presents and dough at me…Man, that shit ain’t normal—that’s that fatal attraction shit.” He shook his head in self-disgust. “Yo, Mommy…ain’t no honor in none of this. I’m gonna feel
honored
when I can make things right wit my baby—Terelle.”

“Nice speech,” Kai said, clapping her hands together. “I’m touched by your, uh…soliloquy.” Smirking, she placed her hand over heart theatrically. “I’m truly touched, but let me make this abundantly clear…if you don’t come home with me—if you try to go back to your tacky girlfriend, you can kiss your freedom goodbye.” Kai paused, then continued in a frosty voice. “And your little girlfriend can kiss her freedom goodbye as well.”

Confused, Marquise frowned. “Terelle ain’t got nothin’ to do with none of this.”

“If you humiliate me by leaving me for that crude ghetto trash, I won’t feel vindicated until you’re both handcuffed and carted off to jail.”

Marquise looked as if he’d just eaten something extremely distasteful.

Delighted by his obvious discomfort, Kai continued. “That’s right, ex-convict,” she taunted. “I know my watch is at your girlfriend’s apartment. And believe me, I won’t hesitate to have you and the mother of your child locked up for receiving stolen property!”

Marquise’s eyes widened in disbelief.