Tales of the Hood (13 page)

When I got to the studio my agent was in a meeting with some very important-looking men I hadn't seen around here before. I didn't want to get involved and have him nagging in my ears so I went in the booth and started to freestyle; call it a little warm up. I didn't have anymore projects planned yet so I was free to just enjoy the moment. After a few minutes the men came out and stood watching me in my zone. I was so into the beat that I didn't realise until I opened my eyes. I put the headphones down and went to greet the men. I was developing a more professional approach to communication now but I still had that urban streak in me. I had to tone it down as I found that the best way to build certain relationships.

“How you lot doing? My name's Jayden,” I said, shaking their hands.

“Yes we have been talking about you, Jayden. We have listened to some of the tracks on your recent album and have a proposition for you,” they replied casually.

“Okay, let's hear it.”

“My name's JP and this is Curtis. We're contractors from America and we would like to sign you to our music label. Your music is quite inspirational and considering your background the talent you possess is what we're looking for; fresh and original,” explained JP.

“So what's the catch?” I replied sceptically. This seemed too good to be true.

“No. We're more serious than ever. This would mean you would have to move to America for a significant period of time as things would be accessible but it is your choice. Be in no rush to make a decision. The bottom line is that you're the talent and you have to decide what route you want to take,” he elaborated. In my mind I still thought they were pulling my leg but in my heart the brightest glow was shining.

“Wow. I'll definitely get back to you on that one,” I replied, as I broke out in a huge smile.

“Well your agent has all the details so hopefully we will talk soon,” the said before shaking my hand once more and being led out by my agent.

When they were gone my agent came back in smiling.

“Jayden this is the offer of a lifetime. Going to America could make you bigger than ever. Give you the leverage to take Hip-Hop to new heights,” he emphasised.

“I know I know but leaving London behind will be difficult. The whole idea of the album was to inspire those less fortunate on the streets; the youths that have nothing. Leaving would just mean I'm neglecting those who support my music. When I spoke about moving away I didn't mean across the Atlantic,” I replied, sitting down with my head tilted back.

“I still think you should consider it. I mean he did say it would only be for a certain period of time. Plus it's a great way to expand your audience. Why don't you go home and put your feet up? You've done a lot of hard work which is finally paying off for you,” he said genuinely.

I smiled and punched him friendly on the arm. “Ill catch up with you soon boss.”

“See you soon,” he replied.

As I walked up the road I saw Holly leaning on my car, facing the opposite way. “What do you want now? Was it you that thought it was funny to scratch up my car yeah? You're lucky I don't like the idea of going to prison because trust me I would have given you the beating you deserve a long time ago,” I said, remaining calm and collective.

“Stop with the threats, Jayden, they don't go down very well with me. It's a free country and I can do what I like, when I like,” she replied cheekily.

“This is my car so the best thing to do now is to move before you make me have to get physical when I really don't want to,” I replied, gradually heating up. She approached me and laughed in my face. It wasn't just any laugh. It was the laugh of evil. The image that taunted me so long ago appeared again. The red, blood-stained wall that represented hell. The endless depth of pain I could name no one to be responsible for. I had a suspect but no evidence. I didn't want to exchange any more words with her so I pushed her off my bonnet and sat in the car.

“Have a nice drive home,” she grinned.

I turned on the engine and wound down my window. “If you don't move out the way in two seconds I won't hesitate to run you over,” I said, more serious than I had ever been. She moved swiftly out of the way as I geared up to drive but looking in my rear view mirror I saw her smile and wave.

Getting closer to home I stopped off at the nursery to pick up Shakira. It was her first day and I wanted to see the smile on her face as I walked in. I grabbed her coat and bag off her peg then went in to the hall where she and the other children were playing. I scanned the scattering feet for the one I was looking for; my little princess. When I found her I waited for her to notice me. As she glanced around she caught sight of me and came charging into my arms.

“Hello gorgeous. You ready to go home?” I said, feeding off her elation. I packed up her things and put her coat on. She waved goodbye to the staff and we made our way to the car. “Did you have a nice day at nursery?” I asked as I strapped her in the back. She nodded lightly and said nothing more. As we drove home I felt the need to turn on some music for some entertainment. There was nothing better than a long drive to some good music. I bent down for a moment to push in the stereo. When I looked up there was an old man crossing the road and I was barely metres away from hitting him. A gasp ripped through my chest as I swerved out the way. I slammed on the breaks with full force but the car wasn't stopping. I didn't know what was going on but I knew if I didn't do something now me and Shakira would crash into an oncoming tree. I swerved again and the car turned on its side and skidded along the road. The sound of the friction was grinding as we slid before coming to a standstill. I blacked out for a couple of seconds before waking up in agony. I tried to move and make some contact with someone but my head was pounding. Shakira was crying so that was a good sign. I reached up and stroked my forehead. There was blood dripping down my face; briefly reminding me of the night Maurice got raped. That wasn't my main concern right now. We needed to get out. Fuel was probably leaking and the impact had probably caused a small fire already. As spectators closed in on the scene I unbuckled my seatbelt. My head pulsated rapidly with every move I made but I had to get Shakira out before things got even more dangerous. I lifted up my foot and kicked out my side window with all the strength I could gather.

“Can somebody come here and help me quick . . . Anyone! Please!” I shouted out to the crowd. A short stubby man came to my aid. “I have my daughter in the back and I need to get her out. I'm going to unbuckle her and pass her out to you okay? Then I'll find a way out,” I explained, panting relentlessly.

“Yeah but you need to hurry because your car is leaking fuel and It's not looking good,” he replied throwing off his jacket.

That was another worry added onto me. If I wasn't quick the car could blow up, killing all three of us. I leaned back and tried to unbuckle her car seat. She was moving so much I couldn't even see. My arms were hurting and my co-ordination wasn't on point. I felt like I was taking forever. “Shakira you have to keep still for Daddy so I can take you out okay?” Her worried eyes foreshadowed mine as I undid her belt and pulled her towards me. Through the broken window I gave her to the man and he ran onto the pavement. I tried to open my door but it was dented in so my only option was to climb through the window to. People shrieked in horror as I struggled to get my slim frame through the window, slicing my skin on fragments of glass. When I was finally out of the wreckage I stumbled over to the pavement and sat there with Shakira in my arms; thanking the lord for such a lucky escape. My arms and chest were deeply scratched but all I cared about was us being safe. I tried to sooth her horrified expression; the expression of fear. For her to experience something like this at such a young age must have been unimaginable. A man should never see their daughter cry.

No sooner had I got out the car burst into flames. The smoke and flames were so intense. The heat caressed my face softly as I retreated further back. I couldn't believe that five seconds longer in that car and we would have been dead. What had happened? I needed to know.

I woke in a hospital bed filled with shock. Yesterday was eventful in a way that I could not comprehend. One minute I was picking up my daughter then the next I was in my car on my side with her piercing scream around me. I looked around the white room and saw Shakira sitting up in a bed next to me doing a puzzle with Vanessa.

“Is she alright?” I asked.

“Yeah she just had some cuts and bruises but besides that she's fine. How are you though babe? You were in quite a bad way yesterday,” Vanessa asked, coming over to my bed.

“I'm holding up okay. I just don't know what happened. Have the police come around?” I questioned. I was desperate to know if they had any idea on what had happened.

“Yeah but you were sleeping. You've had a nasty knock on the head so they said they will come back when you're awake and up for talking.”

“There's no point me asking how the car is then. Seeing how I sat there and watched it go up in flames,” I said, reliving the devastation all over again.

“Let's not worry about the car. The insurance will cover that. You just need to rest up and get better so you can tell the police what they want to know,” she said reassuringly.

A couple of hours later the police arrived to ask me some questions. “How are you feeling today Jayden?” one of the policewomen asked.

“Been better but I'm okay.”

“Good. My name is PC Jenkins and I would just like to ask you a few questions about yesterday to determine the cause of the crash. Is that okay with you?” she said politely.

“Yeah course, go ahead.”

“Well first of all we would like to hear your version of events before we move on. You can start when you're ready.”

“I left the studio at about 4p.m. and drove to pick up my daughter from nursery. When we were driving back home I bent down for less than a second to put in the stereo. I looked up and there was an old man crossing the road so I pressed the brakes in order to let him go past. The car kept moving so I swerved out of the way and tried the brakes again because I was heading directly for a tree, but the car still didn't stop so I swerved a second time and that's when it landed on its side. When I recovered from my daze I kicked out my window and unbuckled Shakira and passed her out to one of the men standing by. Then I crawled out of the window and less than ten seconds later the car blew up in our faces,” I explained, as if I was experiencing it all over again.

“Okay, thank you for that. We have had our team check the breaks of your car and they seemed to have been tampered with. That would explain the reason why the car didn't stop. What we would like to know now is who else has access to the car involved in the accident?” she continued.

“Only me and Vanessa,” I replied.

“So do you know anyone that could have tampered with the car when you were in the studio or in the nursery?”

Immediately I thought of Holly's name. She was leaning on my car when I left the studio and the way she was acting was kind of weird too. “Yeah I remember now. A girl named Holly was leaning on my car when I came out of the studio. She and I don't get along so that could have been the reason why she was there,” I suggested.

“Okay that's a start. We will be going to Holly Jackson home with a warrant to search for any unusual items and for questioning. If you think of anything else please don't hesitate to call us. Thank you for your time and we'll leave you to get some rest,” she finalised before they all left.

Why hadn't I thought of it earlier? Obviously she was out there for a reason so I should have known. I should have known that something wasn't right. “Jay you didn't tell me Holly was near the car. You know that bitch is unpredictable. How did you not feel that something was dodgy?” Vanessa said, highlighting my stupidity even further.

“I know. I didn't think it was anything big because she was just chatting shit as usual. Talking in riddles that I couldn't and didn't want to understand,” I said disappointingly.

“At least if they can link her to this then she's off to prison and That's one less person we have to worry about in our lives,” she said, trying to see the light at the end of a bleak tunnel. I knew Holly and Jamal were smart. They would find a way to avoid the consequences of their actions just to trouble me that bit more.

“Has the doctor said when it would be alright for me to leave?”

“Yeah they said that you could leave later today if you're feeling up to it but there's no rush,” she replied, kissing my forehead.

“I'm more than up to it. I hate hospitals. I want to go home and have a long shower,” I said making movements.

***

We left a few hours later and I was so relieved. I sat in front of the TV wondering what if. What if I hadn't got out of the car in time? What if no one had been there to help? What if everything I worked so hard for was ripped from me in an instant? I couldn't come to grips with how close we were to dying. I knew that now I had to make the most of life because you never know when it could be gone, just like that.

Vanessa was in the shower so I got Shakira dressed and planned for us to go wedding shopping. It wasn't long before we tied the knot so I thought we'd better get a move on. I was in the right mind set for it and I knew Vanessa was too. Today I wanted to go to the church and get an official date set for the wedding and to look for a venue for the reception. I also wanted to get all the decorations so they were ready for the day. I don't know why but now I just wanted to get married as soon as possible. Life was too short to take the long route so I thought about pushing the date forward to the earliest it could go. Maybe to the next week if possible but I didn't know if we would be able to make all the arrangements by then. Guess we would have to see how it went before I made any quick decisions.

“Hurry up we have places to go!” I shouted to Vanessa from the bottom of the stairs.

“Yeah I'm ready, I just have to put on my coat. Where are we going anyway?”

“I thought we should do some wedding shopping and look for the church and a venue for the reception. Are you up for it?” I asked, waiting for the unnecessary comment to follow.

“You've changed your tune about the wedding haven't you?” she replied sarcastically.

“Yeah I know. I just want to get married to you. Is that a crime now?” I laughed.

“Course not you fool. C'mon I'm ready. Let's go,” she said, strutting through the door.

We walked up the road and caught sight if a little church standing across the road from us. “That church looks alright. Do you want to check it out?” Vanessa asked.

“Yeah I'm up for anything,” I replied, analysing the building in my own way. When we walked into the church it looked reasonable but ancient. Then again, Vanessa was traditional I was contemporary.

“I like it. It has a cosy feel to it don't you think?”

“Yeah it's alright,” I agreed. “It's close to home so everything would be easy to transport. Let's see what the priest is saying,” I added.

“Excuse me, we're looking to get married and we were wondering how much the church would cost us?” asked Vanessa politely. It never fails to fascinate me the way women can switch from a raw tone to prestige pronunciation in seconds.

“Well for a nice couple like you how does £650 sound? We don't get many people wanting to marry here so it would be a pleasure,” he replied.

That price sounded great. We had a budget of £15,000 and we'd landed ourselves a church for £650. Even though I had money I valued it too much to spend it unnecessarily. “Yeah that sounds perfect. Could we possibly arrange a date for sometime within the next three weeks please?” I said, quickly intercepting before Vanessa could.

“Jay what do you mean the next three weeks? I thought we were going to wait a while so we had time to get everything done properly?” she asked, bewildered by my haste.

“Well there's been a change of plan. I want to get married sooner rather than later. The crash has made me think about things differently and I want to set my commitment in stone,” I replied affectionately before turning back to the priest.

“We have Wednesday three weeks from now available if that's suitable for you?”

“Yes that would be fine thanks. We'll have everything sorted by then,” I said confidently.

“What are your names so I can put you down for your specified date?”

“Jayden Daley and Vanessa Nixon.”

“Okay very well, I shall see you both three weeks from now then. Have a nice day and God bless you both,” he said, before processing our payment.

I was pleased with what we'd accomplished so far. Now we had to look for a venue and that was all the major arrangements out of the way. At first I thought about having it at the same place where I had had my party because it was big and had everything we would need. Not to mention the price wouldn't be too high but going back there would be like walking down memory lane all over again and I didn't want that for the best day of my life. Instead we decided to find a place closer to the church which would make it easier for people to move around. Life was all about convenience. All we had to do now was to decide on the theme of our wedding; get the decorations; sort out the food and drink, and get the invitations out there. When I went over it in my mind again it sounded a bit much to get done in three weeks but I knew I could handle it.

We went to the shopping centre and arranged for the flowers and the food to be delivered earlier on the day so people could start getting the place ready. We chose a green and white colour scheme so the decorations represented peace, which is all we wanted for our day. By the end of it we had spent nearly all our budget and all that was left to buy was my suit and Vanessa's dress. We split up and looked for them separately. I found a nice fitted white suit in a store that was just what I was looking for. I made arrangements to get it ready and picked up the next day. I tried it on and looked in the mirror, looking at the boss staring back at me. It reminded me of how I had looked when I got my suit for my party. I just knew the day was going to be smooth. I could feel the good vibes already. I bought a small green handkerchief to fit in my breast pocket and that was my outfit sorted. As for Vanessa she didn't tell me what she had bought because she didn't want to spoil the surprise, so together we looked for Shakira's garments; arranged for transport then left for home. It had been a hell of a long day but being with my fiancé and my daughter felt so nice. It was the three of us bonding how a family should.

***

Whilst making final arrangements in terms of entertainment for the wedding, the police came to the house. “We have charged Holly for attempted murder,” the PC spoke boldly.

“But how did you know it was her?” I said surprised.

“When our team processed your vehicle we found her fingerprints on the brakes. Also when we searched her flat we found the tools used to tamper with the car. We don't know if she was working alone or with help but that was enough evidence to charge her,” he explained.

“Oh so how long is she looking to spend in the cell if she's found guilty?” I questioned eagerly. I wanted to know that she was going to be gone for good.

“Well depending on the judge she could get seven to twelve years if found guilty however she would only serve half her sentence if circumstances are good,” he added.

“Good, she deserves every damn minute of it,” said Vanessa coming to sit next to me. I agreed with her completely. Holly tried to kill me and, to make it worse, Shakira got caught up in the silly feud. I felt guilty. If she didn't go jail and I caught up with her, I would be the one rotting in the cell. I couldn't understand how she had so much hatred for me. I hadn't done anything to her besides be honest about her ways. Sometimes the truth hurts. The police finished up their conversation then left. I sat there thinking to myself that justice was done but she was only a puppet:
that's one hater I won't be seeing for a while but there's still one left; the one of most significance.

***

Everything was set. Catering and decorations were ready and today was the day that I was getting married. I'm not going to lie, on the days leading up to today I did have doubts. I'm young and dedicating my life to one person already. It seemed surreal. I didn't want to make such a commitment to Vanessa and then end up breaking my vows. I had to pull myself together. I loved her and I knew I wanted to be with her. I pushed those thoughts out my head and left them in the house as I got into the car to go to the church. My heart began to race as we got closer and closer. When I arrived many people were standing outside waving and cheering. I was shaking hands left right and centre as people commented on my suit and Vanessa as my upcoming bride. I saw old family friends; people from my primary school; high school; and even the Crime Scene made the effort. Even fans took time out of their day to see my entrance. Everyone was here to support me. It was a wonderful atmosphere. After a while the priest called everyone in to the church to take their seats and members of my marriage party to take their places. I stood up at the front alone; waiting for my blushing bride to walk through those doors and hoping the day would be a success. I didn't have a best man because from when I was young I told Maurice that that was his position and he was irreplaceable.

The soft music started and the doors opened. Vanessa came gracefully down the isle with her granddad on her arm. He'd travelled all the way from Jamaica to be here which I thought was beyond generous. She looked gorgeous; amazing; stunning. There wasn't just one word that could describe her. Seeing her in that white dress made me proud to be her future husband. When she stood next to me I couldn't help but beam blissfully.

“We are gathered here today to witness the marriage of Jayden and Vanessa. If anyone knows of a reason why these two should not be married please speak now or forever hold your peace,” he spoke swiftly and clearly. There was a long pause. I waited to here the sound of someone say something but there was nothing but silence. The priest carried on, “Vanessa, do you take Jayden to be your lawful wedded husband, to love and cherish him, be caring and faithful?”