The Dirty Divorce (17 page)

After callin’ Carlos’ phone all night and not gettin’ through, I began to worry and called Denie. She told me she hadn’t spoken to Lisa, so I was immediately concerned. I let Denie know that I would be catchin’ the first flight back to D.C. and for her to make sure she was at home when I got there. Juan’s sloppiness had the potential of compromisin’ the entire empire that I’d worked so hard to build, so I knew it was best for me to make the trip back east. Just as I was packin’ my bag to leave, my phone rang. It was Carlos.

“Man, I’ve been callin’ your damn phone all night Los, what’s up?”

“Sorry man. My flight ended up getting delayed, then when I got in town, I had to calm one of my bitches down who was threatening to tell Marisol some shit, so things just got out of hand.”

“So, you couldn’t call to tell me that shit? Why didn’t you just answer?”

“The bitch took my phone and wouldn’t give it back.”

“Man, why didn’t you deal wit’ that bitch after Juan?” I asked.

“I know, Rich. I fucked up.”

“So, what’s up wit’ Juan?”

“Well, I tried to go see him early this morning because I knew visiting hours start at eight o’clock, but I forgot that they go by last names over at the D.C. jail. Since his last name starts with an S, he can only get visits on Monday and Wednesday. I gotta wait until tomorrow. You might have to fly back, because the shit looks worse than I thought.”

“What do you mean?”

“After talking to Lisa, it seems as if Juan got caught with 500 grams of heroin, and that shit doesn’t seem right. You need to come back and talk to Juan yourself and see what’s up. He might not open up to me.”

“Heroin? What the fuck? We don’t…” I was so pissed off, I was about to say some stupid shit over the phone. I didn’t deal wit’ heroin…strictly coke, so I wasn’t sure what the fuck my son was into. “A’ight, man. You stayin’ in D.C. or you comin’ back out here?”

“I’ma chill out here for a minute to see what’s good. I got some shit to take care of anyway.”

“Well, I’m about to head out to the airport. My flight leaves at 8:20 a.m., so I should be in D.C. by 5:30 p.m. How was Lisa when you saw her?”

“Umm…she’s cool.”

“Oh, she wasn’t trippin’?”

“She’s always tripping, but I can understand this time. You know how she feels about Juan,” Carlos replied.

“Shit, she’ll be a’ight. Just come pick me up from National around 5:30 and maybe we’ll be able to see what’s really good. I’m about to call my lawyer in a minute to see what we can do about gettin’ Juan released.”

“Cool.”

When I hung up wit’ Carlos, Jade was sittin’ on the edge of the bed, butter ball naked and ready to serve me somethin’ good. She was a little upset that I was leavin’, but after I gave her some of this good dick, she was back to normal. I let her know that if I had to stay longer than a week, I would fly her back to the East Coast, which seemed to satisfy her…for now. She was even in good spirits when she drove to the airport and dropped me off.

While waitin’ to board my flight, I called my attorney John Leach, to see if there was anything he could do for Juan. I wanted my son to be released as soon as possible.

“Yes, John this is Rich Sanchez. How are you?”

“I’m fine. What can I do for you? Haven’t heard from you in a while.”

“I know, but that’s a good thing. Well, it was a good thing because now I’m gonna need your services.”

“Well Rich, you know I might have to refer you to my sister Sherise, because I can’t represent both you and Lisa in this matter.”

“In what matter? I’m callin’ you about my son, Juan. He was arrested a couple of days ago. What the hell do you mean you’re representin’ Lisa, what’s goin’ on?”

“Well, Lisa came by the office 8 o’clock this morning and hired me in your divorce case, so that’s what I thought you were calling about. I apologize. She didn’t mention anything about Juan getting into any kind of trouble.”

My blood began to boil. “What? Why didn’t you call me after she left?”

“Rich, why would I call? I thought you might’ve been aware of this,” John tried to explain. “Besides, she’s my client now, so there’s the aspect of confidentiality.”

“Man, all the money I’ve given you over the years and you’re goin’ to work for my wife. Did you forget that I pay your ass a damn retainer fee? Is that what she used?” When John didn’t respond quick enough, I continued rantin’. “Fuck you and that confidentiality shit. You know what, I’ll find someone else to take care of my son’s case for me. I don’t need you to do shit, and by the way, I might have your sister represent me in other ways.”

When I hung up, I was beyond pissed off. Lookin’ around, I noticed I had an audience of people in the airport lookin’ at me, but I didn’t care. I can’t believe Lisa is really tryin’ to go through wit’ this shit, I thought. I was ready to get back home so I could put my foot so far up Lisa’s ass she wouldn’t be able to walk straight. That bitch was trippin’ if she thought she could leave me that easy.

****

When the plane landed six hours later, I turned my phone on and dialed Carlos to let him know that I would be in baggage claim within ten minutes. Makin’ my way through the airport, the gift shops were full of Valentine’s Day motifs for the upcomin’ holiday. I definitely wasn’t in the mood for that shit at all. Valentine’s Day could kiss my ass right about now.

Carlos pulled up in his rental as soon as I walked out the terminal. Opening the back door, I threw my bag inside and hopped in the passenger seat. Carlos knew me well and could tell I wasn’t in the best mood.

“These punk ass police had me circle the damn airport three times,” he informed.

“My bad, I was waitin’ for my luggage. So, what did Lisa tell you about Denie? I forgot to ask you that earlier.”

“Shit, apparently that might be the reason why Juan got locked up. Juan saw Denie and some nigga going back and forth outside a club. Juan stepped up to the dude, and pulled out the hammer on him. Denie started defending the nigga and Juan pulled off driving crazy. Got pulled over, and the rest is history.”

“Who was the nigga Denie was talkin’ to?”

Carlos shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“So, have you talked to anybody to see what’s good?”

“Naw, I ain’t heard shit yet.”

Carlos seemed nervous for some reason. “Why you actin’ all crazy, Los?”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. You just seem like you actin’ a little weird. Like real hyper and nervous. Have you been sniffin’ some of that shit? I told you about bein’ around me after you fuck wit’ that mess. I’m tellin’ you man, you need to chill out wit’ that.”

“No, I haven’t been doing anything. I just got some shit on my mind, but it’s cool.”

“You and Marisol a’ight?” I asked.

“We cool, it’s all good.”

Wit’ so much on my mind, I didn’t have time to try and pry some more information out of him. I knew somethin’ was goin’ on, but figured I had to deal wit’ that later. I had enough bullshit goin’ on. If he hadn’t done anything before comin’ to get me, he probably needed some shit to ease his mind. I hated that my man was into dope, but as long as it didn’t affect the business, I was cool.

On the way to my house, I made a couple of phone calls and tried to get Juan released, but wit’ the seriousness of his charges, a couple of folks said they would get back to me. When we pulled up to my house several minutes later, I got upset all over again. The thought of Lisa’s dumb-ass usin’ my retainer money toward divorcin’ me, instantly set me off. I already had in my mind, when I walked in the house that I was goin’ to smack the shit out of that crazy bitch for fuckin’ wit’ my money. She had started to really get out of hand lately, and I felt it was time to show her there were consequences for fuckin’ wit’ my doe.

Carlos dropped me off because he didn’t feel like dealin’ wit’ me and Lisa’s drama. As I looked around, I wondered why my truck was in the driveway instead of the garage. Nelson knew to place my shit in the garage instead of outside. Just when I was about to call Nelson, I quickly shook my head. Hold up. If that bitch fucked up my truck, it’s gonna be a problem. Rollin’ my luggage up the pavement, I became even angrier the closer I got to the door. Takin’ out my key ring, I quickly slid it in the front door, but it didn’t turn. I did a double take to make sure I was usin’ the right key, then it dawned on me…Lisa had changed the fuckin’ locks. Tryin’ to keep my cool, I knocked on the door.

However, no one answered. Within seconds, I was bangin’ like the damn police.

“Lisa, open the fucking door!” I yelled.

“What, Rich?” Lisa shouted through the door a few seconds later.

“Open the damn door, Lisa!”

“No. Since you want to go around fucking all these other women, which got me raped, then fuck you. Not to mention, you hit me for the last damn time. It’s over!”

“Lisa, stop fuckin’ around!”

“Who said I was?”

“Where’s my daughter?”

“She left. Call her cell.”

I started bangin’ on the door again. This time I was kicking it as well. “I’ma beat your ass Lisa, open this fuckin’ door!”

“Now, I’m really not opening the door,” she replied.

“Oh, bitch you think I’m playin’ wit’ you? Wait ‘til I catch your ass!”

“Rich, you got ten seconds to leave. If not, I’m calling the police!”

Lisa knew all she had to say was somethin’ about the police and I was out of there.

“That’s a’ight, bitch. I’ll be back!” I yelled before pullin’ my luggage toward my truck.

I gave it a quick inspection before I pulled out my spare key, jumped inside, and screeched out of my driveway. As mad as I was, I wasn’t in the mood for anybody’s bullshit. Lisa stood in the window of the livin’ room lookin’ at me wit’ a huge smile as I pulled off. I couldn’t believe she’d actually threatened to call the police on me. She’d stooped to a new low, and my love for her was turnin’ into hate. Drivin’ down the street, I thought of goin’ to Baltimore to see Honey, but then an image of my mother framed my mind. Instantly, I felt guilty. I hadn’t seen my mother in over a month, so I decided to go over to her house for a quick visit. Maybe I should stay wit’ her ‘til I can figure some things out, I thought. Just as I was about to call my mother, my cell phone rang, it was Denie.

“What’s up, Baby Girl?”

“Hi Daddy, are you back in town?”

“Yeah, I just left the house. Your mother changed the fuckin’ locks, so I’m on my way to your grandmother’s house.”

“What do you mean she changed the locks? I was just there this morning and my key worked fine.”

“Well, I guess your mother has had a busy damn mornin’.”

“I gotta see you. I’ll meet you at Grandma’s house.”

“Okay, Baby Girl. I think she would like that. She hasn’t seen either one of us in a while.”

Makin’ my way across town, I tried callin’ my mom, but didn’t get an answer. Thinkin’ that she might’ve been takin’ a late bath, I called back at least three more times, but she still didn’t pick up. I immediately began to worry because she always answered the phone. It was obvious I couldn’t depend on anyone to check in on her, especially not Lisa. My mother really never cared for Lisa, but they made their relationship work on the strength of me.

I pulled into her driveway twenty minutes later, and took a deep breath before I got out of my truck. Knowin’ I was about to get a lecture, I really wasn’t in the mood for an argument or any more drama, but I had to take this one for the team. My mother was definitely disappointed in the lifestyle I’d chosen, but more than that she always stressed to me the importance of the, you only have one mother rule. I cherished both my mother and my daughter, but lately my focus had been off, which had me feelin’ guilty. As I used my key to try and surprise her, I opened the door and was overwhelmed by an awful stench. It smelled as if the trash hadn’t been taken out in days.

“Ma! Hey, Ma!” I called for her from the foyer.

When I entered the livin’ room, I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw her asleep in her rockin’ chair. Tryin’ not to wake her, I crept up behind her and noticed that she’d fallen asleep holdin’ her favorite picture of me and my dad. Not knowin’ how long she’d been asleep, I knew it was best that she got in the bed, so I kissed her forehead to wake her. However, I didn’t get a response. She was stiff and cold as ice.

“Ma, no, Ma. This can’t be happenin’. No, Ma,” I repeated.

I was too late. She was gone. Her heart failure must’ve given her a run once again. I picked her up out of the rockin’ chair then laid her on the floor. As I held on to her lifeless body, tears streamed down my face. How long has she been dead? I thought to myself. The fact that she’d died alone had my heart achin’. I couldn’t bring her back. Wit’ all the money and power that I had, the things that ruled my life, there was nothin’ I could do to get back the time I’d lost with my mother. I just wanted to hold her and never let her go.

“Daddy, what’s going on? What’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Denie asked when she finally walked in.

“She’s gone. My mother is gone.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Lisa

I couldn’t believe that Mama Sanchez was really gone, and that today was her funeral. Apparently she’d passed away in her sleep from a heart attack. I couldn’t imagine how Rich must’ve felt when he found his mother dead. We had our differences over the years since she never saw the wrong in her son, but I still loved her. A part of me felt bad for pushing Rich away during this difficult time in his life. I hadn’t even called to say I was sorry to hear about his loss. Hell, I wouldn’t have even known his mother had died if Carlos hadn’t told me. Everything seemed to be spinning out of control lately. With Juan being denied a bail due to his previous charges and now Rich’s mother dying, our family just couldn’t seem to catch a break. Even Denie had moved in with Rich at his mother’s house, and wasn’t talking to me either. I thought it was crazy how everyone was blaming me for trying to move on with my life, but regardless of what anybody thought, I was going through with the divorce.