White Lines (38 page)

He saw the terror in her eyes—fear mixed with regret—and he let go of her face. He looked in her eyes. “I still love you, Sunny. But now, your shit is out of control. Now, you’re
always
high. You’re high right now. You can’t control it no more. And as much as I hate to admit it, you need help now.”

He wiped her
eyes.
And he felt himself almost want to cry. But Dorian wasn’t the crying type. He manned up, and bit his lip to stop it from shaking. “I feel responsible, because I knew, and I didn’t stop you. I didn’t have the heart to stop you—”

Sunny had the hiccups from all her waterworks. She hadn’t said a word so far, and she felt the need to try to explain. “It’s not your fault, D. I got myself on this shit. I was just…”

“I know how it happens. I seen the shit a million times. But as long as you seemed to be in control, I was giving it to you, on the low. I might as well have been putting it in your hand. And then when you started being high
every
day, I couldn’t stand seeing you so twisted all the time. I couldn’t stand to be around you. I couldn’t watch you like that—destroying yourself. But I loved you so much that I never had the heart to walk away from you.”

Sunny wiped her eyes and looked up sadly at Dorian. “So is that why you’re still fuckin’ with Raquel? Because you think I got a problem?”

Dorian hugged Sunny. “You do have a problem,” he said. He kissed her on the forehead, and took a step back from her. “And yeah, that’s part of it. But I can’t place all the blame on you. I made a big mistake. I was fuckin’ with Raquel; I won’t insult your intelligence and deny it. I was fuckin’ her. But only because I could. And I’m sorry for that. I let her weaken me. But I still don’t love her. You’re still my angel, Sunny. You’re still my heart. Even with you using that shit, and stealing my dough … I got it bad for you, ma. I can’t walk away from you. And I’m telling you now I ain’t letting you walk away from me.” He looked like he meant it, and Sunny was so happy to hear him say it. She didn’t want him to let her leave. She wanted him to make it all right. Dorian pulled her into his arms. “But you gotta stop. You gotta get this under control.”

Sunny nodded, clinging to Dorian for dear life. “I will. I’m gonna stop, I swear.”

He rocked her in his arms, told her that he still loved her, and pulled her toward their bed. Dorian undressed her slowly, and made love to her for the first time in months. They did it right there on the bed on top of all the clothes she had thrown across it in her haste to leave. They were blind to all the scattered debris, and for the moment they were above their problems. It seemed like they had rediscovered each other, and they loved one another with a passion that took their breath away. Drenched in sweat, and drained, they lay together afterward, knowing without saying it that this was a new beginning for them. They had finally stopped ignoring the truth.

As they lay there together, Sunny finally admitted that she needed help. Dorian promised her, swore to her, that he would be by her side every step of the way. He was finished with Raquel. He swore on his life.

They dressed for the party, and drove there holding hands in the car. When Born arrived with Jada on his arm, the party went wild. He and Jada looked great together—she in a skintight black Gucci dress, and Born in black denim jeans and a black button-up and black Timbs. Both
of them were dripping in diamonds so clear and large that they gleamed in the moonlight. Born walked in smiling, and stayed that way the whole night. The music was a blend of all the decades in which Born had lived. Starting in the seventies and going all the way through to the nineties, the deejay kept the party going. They had a huge birthday cake with Born’s picture on it, and everyone on board the beautiful ship sang happy birthday to him. When the singing and toasting died down, and the deejay brought it to the present-day with B.I.G., Kim, Foxy, and the Wu, Dorian pulled Born aside. He brought him down to one of the lower decks, and into a room way in the cut.

When Dorian turned the knob and Born entered the room behind him, he was confused by what he saw. At the table sat all of Dorian’s crew: his two brothers, Sunny’s brother who worked with him, Zion—the man who had introduced him to Dorian in the first place—and all his cohorts. Around this table sat the inner circle. The trusted few. The only people with whom Dorian really broke bread. In all, there were eight men who joined Dorian around the table. Powerful men. All of them had proven themselves trustworthy and sincere. Every one of them was his family.

But what made this all the more intriguing to Born was that every man’s wifey was present also. The women sat around the table, each woman beside her man. Born noticed Sunny standing and smiling near the head of the table, and Jada was beside her. Dorian handed Born a box wrapped in black paper with a white bow on it.

Born smiled. “What’s goin’ on?”

Dorian smiled back. “Everyone in this room is part of the Family. The men you see seated around this table are my partners, guys who I do business with. But they’re also the niggas I would go to war with, no questions asked. There’s an attorney, Grant Keys, who works for the D.A.’s office in Brooklyn.” Dorian motioned toward a very well-dressed and conservative-looking man seated next to Zion. “He can get you a bail hearing in the middle of the night if you need it. My nigga has judges in his pocket who he can call on if we need it. He can also let you know when a case is stacked against you, or what loopholes you can use
to get out of some shit. Zion, as you know, is a bricklayer like us. But he’s also making legitimate money in the music industry, with his production company. He knows a lot of people on both sides of the law, and you never know when you might need his resources.” Dorian went all around the table, introducing each man and explaining his role in their organization. Born was fascinated.

“This is my crew,” Dorian explained. “These women are their other halves; therefore, they’re also part of my crew. There’s a lot of power in this room. You read about some of us in the
Daily News,
and you hear about some of us on the street. We come from the same grit, and we made something out of nothing. We may not always use the same tactics to get money, but we get it nonetheless. And we stick together. We make things happen for each other. But there’s a couple things you should know before I go any further. First of all, I don’t welcome nobody into my crew I don’t trust.” Dorian counted off with his fingers. “Second, I don’t fuck with niggas who don’t get money … and I mean
all
the money.” Laughter trickled throughout the room.

Dorian grinned at his friend, who reminded him of his younger self. “And third, I don’t like a nigga who can’t be humble. Some niggas let their hunger for power overshadow their loyalty to their friends. They get larceny in their hearts, and there’s no larceny in our crew. Now, over the past few years, I’ve trusted you with a lot of money. There’s been situations where I showed you that you can trust me as well, and that I have your back as long as you got mine.” Dorian nodded his head for emphasis. Born remembered the situations Dorian was referring to as well, particularly when Celly had plotted to set him up. He was grateful for all that Dorian had done for him. “And I know that you’re a humble man, and you’re loyal. So this is for you.” Everyone waited patiently as Dorian motioned for Born to open up his present.

Born tore open the wrapping, and opened the box to reveal a large platinum ring with a very distinctive design. The face was covered in diamonds so large they glistened. Dorian explained. “This ain’t just a birthday present. It’s your medallion. You’re part of the crew now. We don’t draw attention to ourselves with big chains with symbols, or have a
special handshake. We don’t dress up in all kinds of colors, or none of that. We wear our rings, and these are our medallions. There’s only nine other rings like that one, and every man in this room has one of those rings. If you need something, there’s someone in this room who can make it happen for you. And you will be called on to make shit happen for some of us at times, too. We do our shit quietly, and we wear our medallions proudly. So, here’s yours, my nigga. Welcome to the Family.” Born was moved beyond words at this gesture, and Jada stood smiling proudly. Born put on his ring, and gave Dorian a handshake and a hug as applause filled the room. Sunny raised her champagne glass in a toast, and everyone in the room returned the gesture. They toasted to Born, the newest member of the crew, and everyone sipped their champagne in unison.

It was a beautiful moment, and one that Born would never forget. Jada walked over and hugged him. He smiled at her, and thought she looked more beautiful than ever as she smiled back at that moment. She showed him her own “medallion”—a smaller, feminine version of Born’s ring that she wore on her right ring finger. He smiled, knowing without being told that the women getting rings was all Sunny’s idea.

Dorian and Born spoke privately after the crew’s meeting. “Born, I want to let you know that I’m taking some time off to focus my attention on Sunny. She found out that I was fuckin’ Raquel, and I almost lost her.” Dorian shook his head at how close he had come to losing Sunny. “I gotta do what I can to make shit right, so I’m asking you to step up to the plate. I need you to be my eyes in the back of my head, so to speak. Take the reins and hold me down.”

Born nodded, and assured Dorian that he had his back. “I got you, man. You know that.”

Dorian looked at Born. He raised one eyebrow, and looked at his young apprentice intently. “I want to offer you some advice. And listen carefully to what I’m saying.” Dorian placed one hand on Born’s shoulder, and looked him square in the
eyes.
“Don’t let your business get in the way of your relationship. Keep your eye on Jada. Pay attention to her. Make sure she’s keeping her nose clean.”

Born nodded his head, figuring that Dorian was advising him to make sure he didn’t neglect Jada the way he had neglected Sunny. He didn’t catch the hidden meaning in Dorian’s warning. Birds of a feather tended to flock together. And although Sunny had never told him outright that Jada was using cocaine, Dorian figured that she probably was. She and Sunny spent most of their time together. And Sunny spent most of her time getting high. Two plus two equals four. He hoped that Born would heed his warning. The two men went off to find the women they loved, and rejoined the party.

All evening Dorian kept Sunny close to him. Jada didn’t seem to mind the fact that they didn’t slip away to get high like they usually did. She was distracted, anyway. Jada clung to Born for most of the night, explaining Ava’s absence as due to illness when people asked. She looked like she was quietly playing her position with a smile on her face that night. But in truth, she had so much on her mind. Jada didn’t tell Sunny about Ava discovering her secret, and she suffered that night, once again, in silence.

Sunny was reclaiming her love affair with Dorian. She made up her mind that night that she was going to kick her habit. She had a great man who had her back, and she felt she could face anything. Anything in the world.

Days turned into weeks, and weeks into months, as Sunny and Dorian began to piece her back together. She stopped partying, and Dorian let Born handle most of the business. What they needed to focus their attention on was their relationship, and they both recognized that. They still had love between them, and a relationship worth salvaging. So, they began to do just that. Every day, Sunny was tempted. Dorian did his best to fill the void that getting high had left, by substituting it with love. He told Sunny he was proud of her. That she was beautiful, and that she looked like an angel. She
was
his angel. Every day was a clean slate, he told her. And every day he told her that he was proud of her. That she was stronger than that poison. Sunny took it one day at a time, and before she knew it, it had been two months since Dorian had revealed that he knew the truth of her addiction. Sunny hadn’t taken a single hit. She was so proud of herself. And now, to make things even better, she found out that she was pregnant. Sunny had gone to her doctor, complaining that she was throwing up violently. She thought it might have been withdrawal from the drugs. But the doctor confirmed what she had secretly known in her heart. She was pregnant.

She couldn’t wait to tell Dorian. She got home after her early morning appointment and waited. She knew that Dorian would be home before noon to check on her. Sunny was in the kitchen making him breakfast for when he returned from his early run to handle business. He walked in, looking just as he had when she first met him. This was one of the two faces of her baby. When he was being Dorian the distinguished businessman, he was always well dressed, in expensive clothes, jewels, and footwear. But when he was being D the ruthless hustler, he wore the uniform of the streets. He entered wearing Timbs, dark jeans, and a hoodie. The hood was pulled low on his head, concealing his face somewhat. He stomped in, with his sexy and confident stride, and Sunny was ecstatic. Unlike the old days, she didn’t concern herself with where he’d been. She was beginning to trust Dorian so much more. He no longer went to pick DJ. up personally from Raquel’s house. He would send one of his soldiers to do it, telling Raquel to have him ready in time for someone to come and get his son. He had no phone conversations with Raquel unless Sunny was there, and the phone was on a speaker. He wasn’t taking any chances. He loved Sunny that much. And since their confrontation, she had changed back to the woman he had fallen in love with. She was sexy again, not moody. She was his princess once more, and Raquel wasn’t going to have the opportunity to ruin that again. He was grateful for the new start he and Sunny had been blessed with. Dorian nurtured her slowly back to the normalcy of being clean.

He couldn’t take his eyes off of her. And then he couldn’t keep his hands off of her. Their lovemaking was intense, just like it had been in the beginning, and Dorian and Sunny found themselves hungering for each other like never before.