Anderson Place

episode 168

2012-02-09T07:34:00.000-08:00

William Meeks stood in front of the large tinted window in his office and stared off into the busy city below. All he could think about was how he was going to try to get thru the next few weeks until reporters lost interest in the shooting. To his relief they all seemed to be satisfied with the story that he told about Ivy thinking there was an intruder and accidentally shooting their housekeeper. More than anything, William was worried about the girls. Staci in particular had been spending night and day at Grace's bedside waiting for her to become lucid enough to speak to her.

Ivy was set to be released in a few hours and he debated on whether or not he should go pick her up or if he should let Jenefer take her home to pack for rehab.

In the midst of his thoughts , his cell phone rang.

"William Meeks." He answered in his usual formal tone.

"Daddy. It's me, Jenefer. I'm trying to get mom discharged but she refuses to leave unless you come pick her up. She said she wasn't leaving this hospital with anyone but you."

William let out a long sigh and rubbed his brow.

"Why is she being so damn difficult?"

"Oh, daddy, you know how she is. She says it wouldn't look right if you didn't pick her up. She thinks people will assume there's something wrong with your marriage and the reporters will be all over it.I keep telling her she's paranoid, but she won't budge. Can you please come help me get her out of here." Jenefer turned to Ivy, who was sitting next to her trying to grab her phone.

William could hear Ivy in the background.

"I'm not leaving wthout you William" she said.

William took another deep breath and said, "I'm on my way."

Jenefer turned to her mother and said, "Mom, he's on his way. Now will you please get dressed?"

Satisfied that her husband was coming to pick her up, Ivy jumped out of bed and ran into the bathroom to change.

Relieved, Jenefer stepped out into the hall and walked right into her sister. Staci seemed to be in another world.

Jenefer noticed that Staci hadn't put on the change of clothes that she had brought from home. Staci hadn't really said much of anything since the whole incident had occurred.

"Staci, why didn't you change into the clothes I brought for you? You look awful." Jenefer tried to get a smile out of her sister, but it didn't work.

"Staci, what's wrong? Is Grace ok?" Jenefer tired to read Staci's expression and it was making her nervous that she was so quiet.

Staci took a deep breath and stared off into nowhere.

"Grace had an existing condition that they didn't know about. That's why the surgery took so long and why she's been in and out of consciousness. They think the surgery might have been too much for her to handle. It's still touch and go with her." Staci seemed to be reading from a script since she never made eye contact and there was no emotion in her voice.

"She might not make it. It doesn't look good. "

Jenefer couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"WHAT? I thought they said the surgery went well and that she woud make a full recovery. Oh, my God!" Jenefer's hands began to shake as she tried to catch her breath.

Staci just stood there, still staring off into space ,as she let the tears roll down her cheeks.

Jenefer walked over to her sister and held on for dear life. The two women stood in the hallway, locked in an embrace for what seemed like an eternity to them. After about 10 minutes of silence, Staci pulled away.

"Jen, I need to ask you something." Staci still couldn't look her sister in the face.

"Ok....what is it?" Jenefer began wiping her tears away.

"Do you think Daddy has ever been unfaithful?"

"Staci, why are you asking me that? That's crazy! Mom and Dad have been together since college." Jenefer looked at Staci as if she had lost her mind.

"That doesn't mean anything, Jen. Something could have happened that we don't know about." Staci kept looking down at the handkerchief that Grace had given her at her for Christmas.

"What is wrong with you Staci? With everything that's going on, why are you even thinking such a thing?" Jenefer still refused to let the possibilty settle in her mind.

Staci finally looked up at her sister.

"I had a conversation with Grace the night she was shot. I overheard her on the phone with someone talking about Daddy and being there for his Grandbaby."

"What? You must have misunderstood. That doesn't even sound right." Jenefer shook her head in disbelief.

"I'm telling you what I heard , Jen. She said Grandbaby." Staci insisted.

"Ok, well did you ask Grace what that was about?"

"Yes, I did."

"And what did she say?"

"She gave me some nonsense about a piano." Staci looked insulted.

"Piano? What the hell does a piano have to do with anything?" Jenefer was obviously confused.

"I asked her what she meant by Grandbaby , and she froze at first. Then, she claimed it was a slip of the tongue and she meant to say Baby grand as in piano."

"What?" Jenefer started to laugh.

Staci didn't find it funny.

"Stop laughing! We could have another sibling floating around somewhere and a niece or nephew and not even know it. I know Grace was lying. She did that nervous laugh thing and kept saying that she must be getting old to have her tongue slip that way."

"Well, did you press her on the subject?"

"No, the phone rang and she said she had a family thing to tend to. Then she patted me on the head and ran out of the house. That's when I tried to call Daddy but I couldn't get him so I went looking for him and by the time I got back, the police and ambulance were at the house."

"I still think you're mistaken, Staci. There's no way that happened and we never got wind of it." Jenefer looked at her mother's door.

"Ok, well explain why Grace kept telling me she wanted to explain something to us but it wasn't her place. She said that to me three times since she came out of surgery."

"Oh, please. That could mean anything. And besides, she's medicated. She's probably dreaming or she thinks you're someone else." Jenefer still refused to accept Staci's explaination.

"That's why I'm gonna ask Daddy."

"Good, and then I hope you come back to reality. He's on his way to pick up mom."

Just then a nurse walked into Ivy's room with her discharge papers.

"Well, I'm gonna go get mom squared away and get her out of here. Then,I'll be back to see Grace."

Jenefer got up and walked back into her mother's room where Ivy was getting her paperwork from the nurse and gathering her things.

Staci stood in the hallway for a few minutes then William arrived.

"Daddy, I need to talk to you." Staci blurted out as soon as she made eye contact.

Something in the way she said it, made William a little nervous.

"Ok, sweetie. Let me get your mom to rehab and then we can talk." William kissed Staci on the cheek.

"No, Daddy.I need to talk to you now."

"About what sweetheart? Can't this wait?"

"No, it can't wait daddy. It's about your Grandbaby!" Staci insisted.

The color drained from Williams face when he hear his daughter speak those words to him.

"Staci, I-" William was at a loss for words.

Ivy heard William and Staci in the hallway and ran out of the room.

"What are you doing Staci? People can hear you out here!" Ivy jerked Staci by the arm and started pushing her into her private room.

"You knew?" Staci asked her mother."Did you shoot Grace because she knew too?"

"Staci, you're being ridculous!" Ivy insisted.

Just then out in the hallway, there was alot of commotion.

"Code blue!" was being shouted as hospital staff raced down the hall.

"Room 628 is crashing!" a nurse called out.

"Oh my God! That's Grace's room!" Staci screamed and raced down the hall with Jenefer and William right behind her.

Episode 167

2012-02-09T07:24:00.000-08:00

Junior helped QT in the house, and into the bathroom to get cleaned up. Her face was damp and flushed. She looked as if she needed to puke again.

"Yo, aim at the toilet." as Junior guided her head over the hole in the floor.

QT sat there for a moment, dry heaving. "I think I'm done."

She crawled to her room, into her bed, and pulled the comforter up to her neck.

"Why is it so cold in here? Can you turn the heat up?" QT begged Junior.

He'd never seen QT like this before. The thermostat was on 75 degrees before he hiked it up to 80.

"Do you need me to get you something from the store?"Junior asked sincerely.

"A Vernors. My stomach hurts." QT said, as she balled into the fetal position.

Junior headed to Walmart just down the street. He knew he could've gone to at least one of the convenience stores he passed on the way, but Walmart was his favorite place to shop.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jonathan and Kelly sat in their living room for over an hour, pondering. Neither of them could figure out who could've and/or would've sent Kelly that pic. Growing tired, Kelly needed a break.

"I gotta pick up a few things to put in Boo's lunch." Kelly said.

"Ok. Guess it ain't no sense dwelling, huh? Can you get me some more protein powder?" Jonathan said, shaking off the bad aura.

"Yup! Boo should be up from his nap in a minute."

Kelly grabbed her keys and walked out the door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Junior walked down the aisle carrying only a red hand basket, anticipating to do some light shopping. He placed the Vernors in the basket and decided to look for a bottle of Pepto Bismol to maybe help settle QT's stomach. He was casing the shelves when he quickly turned around at the calling of his name.

"Hey Kelly. Wassup?"

"Nothing much. Just picking up a few things ... getting my baby some allergy medicine. Got an upset tummy?" Kelly asked, pointing at Junior's hand.

"Oh, cuz ain't feeling good, so I'm hoping this will help."

"Who? QT?"

"Yeah. She got sick out of the blue."

"Hmmm... Maybe it's something she ate or a virus that's been going around." Kelly suggested.

"I don't know." Junior said, befuddled. "We didn't eat nothing at the Coney Island, so that can't be it."

"Well, tell her I said hey, and I hope she feels better soon, ok?" Kelly turned to walk away. "Talk to you later."

Junior thought fast. He didn't want Kelly to leave.

"I see you still wearing that ring." Junior said the first thing that came to his mind.

"It's ... complicated." Kelly stuttered.

"Look, I'm not trying to get in your business, but I just wanna tell you to be careful." Junior said, intently, staring into Kelly's eyes.

Puzzled, Kelly asked, "What do you mean be careful? Do you know my husband?" She took a step back.

"No, not at all, but I know 'of" him.' Junior said in a clandestine manner.

"Ok, I'm confused? You know 'of' him but don't know him? How do you know anything about him then?" Kelly said slightly irritated.

"I'm sorry, Ma. I don't mean to make you upset. I'm just saying to watch yourself. That's it. Your man is not who he say he is." Junior patted his coat pockets and pulled out a business card. "Here, holla at me sometimes."

Kelly took the card and walked away.

Episode 166

2012-02-09T06:56:00.000-08:00

Marshall was frustrated, he had hoped that Marsha didn’t have a relapse. They had come so far, but he knew she was still having the occasional black out. But when it came to full personality change, she had not done that in years; at least to his knowledge.

Marsha was a sweet child. She never wanted for much. She just hit a few rough patches in her youth, but none were of her own doing. She was just a product of her circumstances. She had no control of who her parents were, and the repercussions that meant for her.

“What are you going to do?” yelled Ricki, as she placed her hands over her face. “What did she do to Christopher? I am confused Marsh. Why is she not up here, why do we not have her?”

“Erica please, calm down, I am handling this. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” Marshall hesitated.

“Okay,… your making sure I am okay. Yeah that’s me, Mrs. Okay. Marshall I got my ass beat! I am in the fucking hospital, like some bait waiting for the next hungry fish! Yes, I am just fucking peachy Marshall!” she laughed with a sigh of irritation. “Oh yeah, by the way Marsha is killing people again. Sounds like a great fucking day to me, how about you?”

“Erica, your mouth, really? Is all that necessary?” asked Felecia.

“Sorry mom, is my mouth the issue here? You're right, I am cussing, let me handle that. I'll just kill a few people today. Since that’s acceptable for you all. I promise my crazy ass is the only sane person in this room. Ya’ll are straight psycho.” hissed Ricki. "I always thought it was me. But ya’ll some real suspect motherfucker’s and yes that included you ma. I am sick of having to deal with the consequences of your actions and no one seems to care about me. You know, I do matter. I am beginning to wondered how much Marsha really matters to you all though. For a moment, I thought I was only pawn in this game, you all are playing. But I am starting to believe there may be a few more. I was actually being selfish.”

Erica became silent as she glanced around the room, her mom, Mary and Marshall stood still seeming unfazed by Erica’s last comment.

“You need to rest,” asserted Marshall. “You're doing to much.”

“If ya’ll leave me the hell alone, maybe I could. I just need to see Marsha.”

Erica froze looking at Marshall. Her stare was cold. She closed her eyes, ignoring any continued conversation. Erica understood that she would soon have to answer for her choices, she was preparing herself for that. She knew the road ahead was not going to be easy, but easy was not a luxury she was accustom to anyway.

It was obvious that she was going to have to do more to protect herself and her family. She loved Marsha more than anyone could believe. From the moment she first held Marsha in her arms, the love she has had for her consumed her. Erica may not be the typical mother you would expect, but she has done the best with the little she has had to pull from.

Episode 165

2012-02-06T12:18:00.000-08:00

Auto made a B-line straight for the crap tables and just as he approached C-Lo looked up and saw him.

“Cuzzola” shouted C-Lo. The two men embraced as it had been a while since they last seen one another. “What’s poppin baby boy?”

“Shit it ain’t nothing to a boss! What are you doing here? How long have you been here? And why haven’t you called anybody?”

“Damn, you sound like one of them broads.” C-Lo chucked. “I have a bit of bid-ness to tend to. I have only been here this long,” he said pointing to his stack of chips. “I wasn’t sure I’d be here this long, the person I was meeting hasn’t been answering the phone so I stopped in here to kill a lil time. Make my trip worth wild ya dig.”

“I heard that fam, well peep this here I am confident I can make your that much better! I got three hoes in the shower upstairs right now primed and ready & trust me when I say they are down for whatever.”

“Well if they are up there ready, what the fuck you doing down here dawg?”

“My solider needed a suit of armor.”

“Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight, well shit lemme get my loot & we can get to it. No need in keeping the pussy waiting these tables will be here all night! Not to mention I’m always strapped” said C-Lo as he patted his breast pocket. “Never know when I’m gonna have to test the merchandise!” C-Lo collected his winnings from the table and assured the onlookers he would return.

The two men made their way to the gift shop purchasing a few miscellaneous items before heading back upstairs. Once they arrived in the room there was no time being wasted. He was not expecting a call but Auto turned off his cell phone and turned up the clock radio to none other than the WHIP. The women knew what they wanted and had every intention of giving it to them. Auto assured the women as long as they could satisfy them the money would continue to flow.

The men were enjoying themselves passing the women back and forth sampling a little bit of this & a little bit of that, exchanging banter between themselves.

“Man you have to try this” said Auto as he was hitting one girl from the back while another was taking care of his runway.

“Yeah I got to try something cause she ain’t it” replied C-Lo as he tossed the woman to the side that was on top of him. “She’s just wasting my time, I can’t even cum!”

The other two ladies giggled as the girl with C-Lo began to blush with embarrassment. She attempted to plead her case by saying, “well wait daddy, I can do better.”

C-Lo began to laugh hysterically and said “naw, I’m straight on you lil mama!”

Auto obliged his cousin by sending his “runway girl” over to him. “Take care of my cousin” he said to her as he smacked her on the ass when she crawled over towards C-Lo.

Everyone appeared to be getting back into the swing of things when the DJ disrupted the groove by making a dedication. “I would like to take the time to make a dedication… Gangsta Lean goes out to our very own Antwan Swanson who was killed earlier this evening in a house fire”. Auto instantly went “soft” tossing the two women off of him not being able to believe the news he had just heard.

Episode 164

2012-02-02T16:55:00.001-08:00

"I cannot believe you're not here yet and you're not answering your phone." Lisa said angrily to Blake's voicemail, again.

She left at least thirty messages. But after the last one, she told herself that was the last time she was calling. She would not allow herself to keep sweating somebody who obviously wasn't trying to be sweated.

"All that talk about how you're not like them other cats, you're different and know how to treat a lady is just some bull." Lisa continued. "I confided in you, and you know I don't trust females, so I don't have any female friends. And you know the only person I consider a friend is my brother which, if his ass wasn't in jail, I could rely on him and not you."

Lisa clenched her teeth and shook her head as she walked along the sidewalk outside the jail.

"But that's alright though. You won't hear from me again. Better yet, lose my fucking number!!!" Lisa pressed END with such force the color left her finger. "I can't believe I trusted that dude." She mumbled under her breath.

She knew she could have easily called her mother or father and asked them to come get her, but she didn't want to burden them. She was always so quick to rely on them and, for once, wanted to prove that she was an adult and could handle herself. The thought crossed her mind to catch a cab, but she knew it would cost way more than the money she had in her pockets.

Preoccupied by scrolling through her phone, and entertaining the thought of calling one of her ex's for a ride, she heard a somewhat familiar voice.

"Hey ma'am. What you still doing here?" The light skinned lady with red hair and freckles shouted from her SUV.

Startled, Lisa quickly looked over her shoulder in the officer's direction. "Still waiting on my ride." Lisa said with much disappointment.

"Damn! Where they coming from, Ohio?" The officer joked. "Where do you stay?"

"Dearborn, borderline Detroit, but my car is at my job in Detroit."

"I can give you a ride, if you want. It's getting dark. You shouldn't be out here by yourself." The officer offered.

Lisa didn't think long and hard about it. She was tired of waiting on Blake.

"Ok." Lisa hopped in the passenger seat. "Thanks. I really appreciate it."

"It's cool." The officer smiled. "Us sistahs have to look out for one another. Shit is crazy out here."

Lisa was surprised at how comfortable she felt. Maybe it was because this lady was older, more like an aunt figure. She looked around the super clean SUV in adoration. Its cream, heated leather seats felt good against Lisa's rear end and thighs. The truck had wood-grain paneling throughout and TV's nestled in each of the headrests. Lisa stole a glimpse of the officer's gear. She was wearing baggy jeans, Polo boots and a casual "Sheriff's Department" jacket.

The officer caught Lisa looking.

"I clean up good, huh?" She laughed at herself. "I be rushing to get outta that uniform and bulletproof vest. That shit is heavy, weighs you down. Now, I feel freeee."

Lisa softly chuckled. She looked out the window as they drove down 94 East. She was thinking of a nice, long, warm bath, when her thoughts were interrupted.

"Do you know how to bowl?"

"Um, a little bit. Both my parents bowl, and almost everybody in my family. I just like going to the bowling alley for they wing dings." Lisa added.

Smooth jazz softly emitted from the speakers. The more Lisa looked at the officer, the more she got the feeling that she knew her...but she had no idea from where.

"My bad. I am so rude. My name is Marla. You getting in cars with strangers and shit. Didn't your mom teach you not to talk to strangers?" Marla kidded, which she did a lot.

"Right...right. Well you offering rides to strangers, so you just as bad." Lisa retorted, jokingly. "Believe me, I already texted my mom and gave her the description of your truck and your license plate number, just in case. And, I'm Lisa."

"Shit, I aint mad at'cha." Marla said, impressed. Pleased to meet you Lisa."

They exchanged dialogue for the next thirty minutes before reaching the barbershop.

"My car is right there." Lisa pointed.

Marla pulled up on the side of the car.

Lisa dug in her purse and pulled out her wallet. "Thanks again." She handed Marla a $20 bill.

"Girl, you betta put that money away." Marla refused.

"Are you sure? This is a big ass truck and you know gas is high as hell." Lisa insisted.

"Yes, I'm sure. Now, hurry up and get in the car. This don't look like the best neighborhood." Marla urged.

Lisa literally hopped out the gargantuan truck and shut the door. Just as she opened her car door, Marla rolled down the passenger window and said, "Give Devlin a big hug and kiss from me," and she pulled off.

Episode 163

2012-02-02T16:50:00.000-08:00

Trish sat in the backseat of a taxi trying to figure out why she couldn't reach Jayden. After the doctors finished patching her up and doing the rape kit, Trish talked them into letting her go home.

She dialed Jayden's number again, and again. It went straight to voicemail. Determined not to leave another pathetic message, Trish disconnected the call and wiped the tears from her face.

"I can't believe you just left me there like that. You could have at least stayed to make sure I was ok during the rape kit procedure." Trish mumbled to the picture of Jayden on her cellphone.

Mateo greeted Trish when she pulled up to the front of Anderson Place.

"Hey, Miss Trish. How are you? Whoa.....what happened? Are you ok?....Let me help you up to your apartment." Mateo paid the cab driver and helped Trish get into her apartment.

Once inside, Mateo offered to make her a cup of tea while she took a shower and helped her get settled in her bedroom.

"Oh Mateo, thank you so much for helping me get settled. You are so sweet for doing this" Trish sipped her tea.

"No problem, Ma'am. I know Miss Jayden isn't home yet and you look like you've been through so much. I just wanna make sure you're safe and comfortable so you can rest. I know you need it." Mateo pulled the covers up to her chest.

"Do you need anything else? I can stay until Miss Jayden gets home, if you need me to." Mateo noticed how obviously shaken Trish was.

"Oh, thank you. I-I don't think you should stay. I know you have other things to do." Trish wanted to be alone so she could cry.

"Really, it's no problem. I just have to make sure security finishes the rounds. They know how to reach me if there's a problem. I'd really feel better if you let me stay. I don't wanna change the locks until Miss Jayden comes home."

"Change the locks? Why do you wanna change my locks?" Trish asked, nervously.

"Ma'am? You came home without any keys. I assumed you lost them. That's why I let you in." Mateo watched as Trish's eyes became as big as silver dollars.

"Oh shit! My keys! Where are my keys? My wallet! They know where I live!" She tried to jump out of bed.

"Calm down Miss Trish! It's ok. I'm gonna stay until Miss Jayden gets home and change the locks myself. I won't let anything happen to you. Relax. Please." Mateo tried to push Trish back down in the bed but she started swinging.

She was having flashes of the gunmen and her kidnapping.

"Don't touch me! Don't touch me! Leave me alone! Fuck you! Get off of me! Get off of me! Somebody help me!" Trish's arms and legs were flailing as she screamed to the top of her lungs.

Mateo finally gained control of her arms.

"Hey! ...Hey! ...... Calm down. You're safe, Miss Trish. It's me, Mateo. Please, relax. You're ok. Nobody's gonna hurt you. I promise."

Mateo took Trish in his arms and began to rock her until she came back to her senses. Seeing her that way made him think of his past and how he had been in this position before. He knew, without being told, that Trish had been raped.

"I know you don't wanna talk about what happened to you, and I understand. But if you ever need me to find the puta that did this, I'll gladly take care of his punk ass!"

Mateo looked Trish dead in the eye and wiped the tears from her face.

Trish couldn't speak. She just nodded her head.

"Now, you sit tight. I'm gonna go get my lock kit and I'll be right back. I'm staying until Miss Jayden gets home and that's that."

Mateo got up and headed out of the room with his fists balled up.

All of a sudden Trish noticed how quiet it was and it made her uneasy. She kept fighting thoughts of those men finding her and letting themselves in her apartment with her keys.

The voices seemed to echo in her head and she kept thinking that she could still smell them all over her.

Trish was about to go take another shower when the phone rang. Even though it startled her, she picked it up before it rang the second time.

"Jayden?" Trish blurted out.

Click.

"Dammit! Did I hang up on you, Jay? Please, I need to talk to you." Trish was about to dial Jayden's number when the phone rang again. And again, she picked it up before it rang a second time.

"Hello?"

Click.

"What the hell?" Trish looked at the caller i.d. to see who had hung up on her.

The caller blocked their number. The moment she saw that, her hands began to shake.

"Oh my GOD! They know where I am. They're coming back to get me and they wanna make sure I'm home!" Trish turned out the lights and ran to the window to see if she could see anyone. She heard movement in the parking lot but she couldn't see where it was coming from.

"Oh God...oh God...Oh God.....I gotta get outta here" Trish put her hands over her mouth and ran into the walk in closet to throw on some clothes.

The phone stared to ring again. Trish froze as if her movement was causing it to ring. After the fourth ring she thought she was gonna lose her mind. She started hyperventilating and sweating . Finally the answering machine popped on. When it was time to leave a message, there was no one there. There was no click. There was no sound.

Trish grabbed some emergency cash and her cell phone and headed towards the door, but stopped in her tracks when she heard noises in the hallway.

Jayden's gun was in the nightstand so she ran back to get it. Just as she pulled it out of the drawer she heard the front door open.

"Oh GOD! NO!" Trish turned towards the bedroom door and shot twice with her eyes closed.

The next thing she knew, the gun was knocked away and Mateo was on top of her.

"You almost shot me! What are you doing with a fucking gun?" Mateo was visibly shaken and out of breath as he helped Trish get up from the floor.

"Oh my God!.....Mateo.....I'm so sorry! I didn't know it was you. "Trish began sobbing uncontrollably.

"It's ok. I know you've had a really bad thing happen to you. I'm just glad you're a lousy shot." Mateo smiled at her.

"It's too much.....just too much." Trish felt as if she was going to faint. Instead she ran to the bathroom and threw up.

Episode 162

2012-02-01T08:02:00.000-08:00

Naomi paced back and forth at the police station. Her desk was cluttered with files from the most recent unsolved shootings. “Something just doesn’t make sense,” hissed Naomi.

Naomi had been spending most of the last few nights going back and forth between the hospital and the police station. She was a hard-nose detective, but unlike most who drank coffee, Naomi sipped on hot cocoa. She struggled with the fact her case load was getting thick and her coworkers were still picking on her about her cocoa addiction.

She wasn’t in the mood, Jason’s shooting was eating at her, she could feel it under her skin, like the bite of a recluse spider eating at her tissue and causing unceasing agony. She knew there was more to the shooting and there was a message with a lead left on her cell, “This is about Jason, I know what happened and I left something for you at the bus station.”

The number was unlisted and the anticipation of her trip to the bus station had her on end. But now it was cocoa time!

As she sipped, her mind went to her place of refuge, her thoughts drifted to better times, making love to Jason, his smile, his touch, his sense of humor. Her cocoa time was quickly becoming disheartening as she thought of what could have been. Now she could never have these moments, in her mind or in reality. She had to find out who tried to killed him, this was more than a case and this was personal.

As she snapped back to reality, fellow Detective Jerome Thomason, tapped her on the shoulder. “Sorry about Jason, Coco, let me know if you need anything,” She handed him her cell phone and said, "You wanna help tell me if you recognize the number."

To her surprise, she could see it on his face he did recognize the number. She had to do everything in her power not to let on she noticed. As she took another sip of her cocoa. “No, he said as he shuffled, away, “Again sorry about Jason.”

“Really?” Her heart was so into Jason’s shooting but she knew to keep things straight she needed to keep things just business.

“Its Maria Diaz,” said Jerome as he sat at his desk.

“I knew it was her. I could feel in my bones.”

“Coco nobody else ever calls your personal cell with leads but her,” laughed Jerome as he began to look at the files on his desk.

“Rome, its not funny.”

“Coco I didn’t say it was. I just find it quite surprising that you believed that it would be anybody else. It is what she does. That is why you asked me, right”

“I asked…” she said as she was interrupted

“You asked because as your partner you know it is my responsibility to know the whereabouts of Maria Diaz at all times.”

“Sure, that’s why I asked.”

“Coco..” Jerome huffed as he stood. “Mimi, come on girl quit playing.” Jerome could tell by Naomi’s body language that she was truly uncomfortable.

He walked backed over to her desk leaning against it edge.

“Naomi, I understand fully that this situation with Maria is weird and unnerving. But she hasn’t been wrong yet. And you know this. Whatever debt she feels she owes you, has her connected to you in some crazy kind of way,” explained Jerome

“Ah yeah, she knows something about every freaking case I have.” Naomi muttered.

“She believes she is a psychic. I somewhat think she has to be.”

Episode 161

2012-01-27T13:38:00.000-08:00

Windee was taken aback when she got Dice's message about Winsdee. She was so full of emotions she called to her mother's house and Windell answered the phone which of course was a relief to her because without knowing what condition she in, she wasn't really prepared to tell her mother that she was in the city.

"Mama is sleep Prodigy" is how Windell answered the phone.

"I figured as much, I called to speak to you Smart Ass" she retorted.

"Oh wow, whatever did I do to deserve this?"

"Look, I don't have time for your foolishness. I wanted to tell you I know where your sister is now do you want to go with me to get her or not?"

"What?"

"You heard me, she's here in the city. As a matter of fact she's with Peanut, we need to hurry up so are you in or out?"

"Hell yeah I'm in and what the hell is she doing with your man? Is he double dipping? Hitting both of yall?"

"He's not my man, and she is not his type! I will explain all that when I get there. I'll be there in less than 5 so come on out. I don't want to wake Mama or Mello." She didn't give him time to respond she merely hung up. What neither of them realized was that Mello had answered the phone at the exact time as her uncle and had heard the whole conversation.

Windell jumped up already in his sweatpants, grabbed a crisp white tee and began to lace up his Jays. Not knowing what to expect he put a box cutter in his pocket along with a few other just in case items because he had no idea what the situation was. Then he thought about the fact that she was with Peanut and it kind of put him at ease so he began to unload his pockets.

Mello hung up the phone and was rather angry at her Uncle for the way he spoke about her mother although she knew in her heart if Winsdee had any idea Peanut was into Windee she'd be all over him in an attempt to change his mind. She stared out the window as she watched her Auntie pull up and her Uncle run out. She waited about 5 minutes and decided to sent her Aunt Windee the video she had seen on the internet of the fight. She wanted them to know that she knew but didn't want them to waste time trying to talk to her, because they needed to get to her mom before her mom got Peanut.

********************************************************************

Once they arrived at the casino as promised Peanut offered to get Winsdee her own room, she politely declined stating some bullshit reason like she didn't feel safe alone. They went up to his suite and he showed her the bathroom so that she could get herself together.

She marveled at his suite, it was almost as if you could see the dollar signs in her eyes. She was sure she'd found the perfect trick or golden ticket as she liked to call them. She couldn't rather decide to take a bath or get in the shower. She stood and stared at herself in the mirror horrified at her appearance. Trinity had really snuck her ass good and the crazy part was she had no idea why, but she did know that it wasn't over! She decided on a bath realizing the Jacuzzi tub would provide a little relief to some of the pain she was feeling after she saw her black eye. She was even more mortified when she began to think of the things she'd just shared with Chris and the way he deserted her.

"I told him he has a daughter and she's been kidnapped by a pimp and he just left me there. C-Lo will probably be here in a few hours. I've got to get myself cleaned up and get this trick turned out and all the way on my team before he arrives." She whispered to herself while waiting on the tub to fill. "Mello is much better off thinking he's dead, than knowing he's a coward!"

Peanut was on the other side of the suite when he decided to call his little brother.

"D, yall good?"

"Yeah bro, I mean as good as can be expected. You aight?"

"Whoa what does that mean?"

"When we were in the club Trin's mom called me, long story short Antwan, Trinity's husband is dead! Her mom and a few others had been calling Trinity and she wasn't answering so they thought she was with him in his parents house when it exploded."

"Damn bro, is she ok? Do you need me to come over there? Where is she?"

"Naw patna you've got your hands full with Miss Thing and if she shows up at my door I can't be responsible for what Trin does to any of us!" Both men began to chuckle. "She's in the tub talking to her mom on the phone."

"Well in that case, how are you lil bro?"

"Who me? I'm good."

"C'mon son, you know I know you better than that!"

"How am I supposed to help her brodie? How do I help the woman I love, the woman I should be married to mourn her husband?"

"Look man, you and Trinity belong together there is no question about that. You did some fucked up shit, she did some fucked up shit, but at the end of the day yall are together right now like that shit never happened..."

"Pause! I know damn well you aren't comparing what I did to what she did? I was out of my mind nigga, I was just coming to as she walked in there is no way I was trying to fuck that girl for real!! She fuckin got married dog! She ran out on me, didn't let me explain & married the first nigga she bumped into when she ran outta my spot!"

It was right then at that very moment he realized she was standing behind him. She stood there silent as the tears streamed down her face. She was emotionally raw, she could no longer be tough. She was so weakened by his words and the anger in her voice she merely slid down the wall onto the floor. She balled up in the fetal position and began to sob uncontrollably.

Episode 160

2012-01-26T07:43:00.000-08:00

"Kai, lets go surprise your family!" Jazz blurted out after they picked up what was left of their deposit for the apartment they didn't get.

Mekkai looked at her with his eyebrows raised but he didn't respond.

"Come on Kai.....you know you wanna see Rosa. You talk to her just about every day and she's always telling you how much she misses you and can't wait to feed you. " Jazz tried to break Mekkai's mood.

"I'm not in the mood for a family reunion right now Jazz." Mekkai sat stone faced as he made his way through the streets of downtown Detroit.

"Ok, well what are we gonna do then? I already know you don't wanna go see my family. We gotta find some place to go until we hear from Dice and Trinity." Jazz stared at Mekkai waitng for a response.

Mekkai glanced over at her.

"What?"

"Don't, what, me nigglet! Where are we going? Are we just supposed to wander around aimlessly while Dice and Trinity finish gettin' busy? You know how they do." Jazz was completely turned around in her seat and as close to Mekkai as she could get.

"Dammit Jazz! Will you just be quiet for a minute! I don't wanna talk right now. I wanna know what the fuck Sophia did with my money!" Mekkai never took his eyes off the road.

"Well, why don't we go visit your Abuela? Rosa will know where Sophia is and probably knows what happened to your money." Jazz turned back toward the windshield and let out a sigh.

"You know I don't wanna see her when I'm mad. She won't stop pressing me until I tell her what's wrong and then she'll try to fix it. Besides, I'm not trying to see Mateo as soon as I get my ass off the plane."Mekkai scrunched up his face and shook his head.

"Naw....I'm good. His punk ass won't do nothin' but rub it in and I'll have to tag his ass again."

Jazz turned from the window and closed her eyes.

"Mateo...." Jazz whispered to herself as she rubbed her fingers across her lips.

"Yeah, that muthafucka Mateo! I ain't forgot what he did and he knows not to fuck with me again." Mekkai started biting on his lip.

Jazz broke out of her mini daydream.

"Kai, don't do that. It was a long time ago and everything worked out the way it was supposed to. Nobody went to jail. You got out of all that mess without a scratch, and we got to go to New York where you got your first patron and your pieces began to sell like hotcakes. Shit, Mateo even straightened up from what Rosa said. She's so proud of him for finally growing up and turning into a man."

"Man? Bullshit! Mateo is a lying , greedy,sneaky, dirty mothafucka who don't give a damn about nobody but himself. Shit Jazz, you act like you don't remember the low down dirty shit he used to do. He even tried to break US up. Lyin' bastard had you thinking I was messin' around with Trinity. That nigga had me and Dice ready to go to blows and you was ready to pull all yo girl's hair out. Te had a lot of shit going on."

"Te? See you just called him Te! You used to be so close and now y'all hate each other with a passion. Family shouldn't be like that. Y'all gotta fix it. Linda would have wanted it that way."

"Don't bring my mother into this shit. She wasn't here to see how Mateo turned out so you don't know what she would have wanted. Anyway, your family is all fucked up too so why you tryin' to fix mine?" As soon as the words left his mouth, Mekkai wished he could swallow them.

Jazz didn't say a word. She just sat quietly and stared out the window.

"Mi amor... por favor.... perdoname......My love, please for give me. I didn't mean to go there."Mekkai reached for her hand but Jazz refused to surrender it nor would she look in his direction.

"Babe.....look at me.You'll always have me. I'll always be here for you. I promise." Mekkai squeezed her wrist and then pulled into a parking structure.

Jazz looked around.

"Where we goin'? Why you pull in here?"

"Cause I'm hungry and Steve's Soul food is across the street. Don't you want some of them ribs? Or them smothered pork chops?" Mekkai began licking his lips.

"Well, it has been awhile....and I could eat something." Jazz looked at Mekkai out of the corner of her eye.

"You think you slick! Everytime you put your foot in your mouth, you take me to get soulfood. Even in New York, you found your way to Sylvia's whenever you were in trouble." Jazz pushed his hand away.

"I'm o.k., Kai. I know you weren't trying to hurt me. I'm o.k., but I know at some point we're gonna have to talk it out and I'm gonna have to deal with the fact that both of my parents chose drugs and alcohol over me, and there was nothing I could do to save them." Jazz took a deep breath and opened the car door.

"Let's go get something to eat." Jazz forced a smile in Mekkai's direction and they both got out of the car.

'If we don't hear from Dice in an hour, I'm just gon' go back to that Comfort Inn we passed and holla at him tomorrow. I don't know what's goin' on around here. I hope they wasn't nowhere around that shooting. You know how the media likes to shove that shit down our throats. ....especially if you got a little money and people know yo' name" Mekkai laughed as they crossed the street.

"Aaaaay, Girl ! You better watch your ass crossing these streets and quit looking at your damn cellphone! Facebook gon' get our asses ran the fuck ova!" Mekkai yelled as he pushed Jazz the rest of the way across the street.

"Well, I think I know why Dice ain't got back to you yet. He's been busy breakin' up fights in the club!" Jazz replayed the video for Mekkai.

"Daaaaaaaammmn! Yo girl got some skills!!" Mekkai laughed.

"I need to call Trinity to see what happened!" Jazz redialed Trinity's number as they entered the restaurant.

"I'ma go to the bathroom first. Let me know if she answers the phone." Mekkai made his way to the men's room while Jazz waited in the front of the restaurant hoping Trinity picked up her phone.

"Jazz?" a voice came out from behind her right shoulder. Jazz turned and looked him dead in the face.

"Mateo."

Mateo walked towards Jazz and kissed her dead in the mouth.

"Welcome home." He said to her and walked out of the restaurant.

All Jazz could do was stand there with her hand over her mouth and watch him walk away with a smile on his face.

Episode 159

2012-01-25T09:30:00.000-08:00

When Dayna married Duke, she promised that she would do anything to make and keep him happy and satisfied. Unlike her first marriage, she considered herself truly fulfilled. Duke is hard-working, witty, attentive, and quite mature for his age. Being almost ten years his senior, she was instantly attracted to those positive attributes.

She never imagined in a million years that Duke would fall for someone like her. Though she relished in the fact that she had the banging body of someone in her twenties and looked damn good for a cougar, she had her doubts.

The night she met Duke, she saw how all the young women flocked to him. He had swag unlike no other. His clothes were always clean and crisp. His shoes were always fresh. He kept his hair closely trimmed to match his thick, full beard. Before he opened his mouth to speak, she thought he was all about running game...but he wasn't.

Holding to her commitment, Dayna didn't hesitate when Duke asked her to open her mind to swinging. Everything seemed to be going well until Dayna speculated that Duke may have been violating the rules that they put in place, specifically #1:

DO NOT CONTACT/ENGAGE WITH PARTNERS WITHOUT THE PRESENCE AND/OR KNOWLEDGE OF THE OTHER MATE.

Dayna tried to shrug off her suspicions, but couldn't help but notice Duke's atypical behavior. After they'd finished their rendezvous, Duke was usually content for at least a couple of weeks. Lately, he'd been asking Dayna more frequently if they could get in contact with Sarah and Brian, to which she reluctantly obliged. She thought Brian was cute and decent in the bedroom, but he was nothing compared to her man, Duke. Apparently, Sarah agreed.

Doing something that she'd never done before, Dayna casually went through Duke's phone because he had recently begun "locking" it. Little did he know that she knew the code and passwords to most, if not all, his stuff. That's when she saw numerous exchanges between him and Sarah. At first, she was going to keep her cool and not mention it because she was secure in her marriage and trusted her man. But one message in particular ruffled her feathers:

HEY SARAH. U JUST DON'T KNOW HOW STRONG OF A HOLD U HAVE ON ME. HOW IS UR DAY GOIN?

Dayna felt her blood pressure elevate and her face get hot. She took a few deep breaths in and out until her heartbeat was back to normal.

"I've got to get to the bottom of this shit!" She professed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Man, we've known each other since we were youngsters. I would not purposely hurt somebody I know you care about." Drew tried to convince Blake.

"Ionno, bruh. I mean, I had no clue you was a hitman either and we supposed to be cool." Blake shot back.

"Again, I told you I was in a situation and didn't know..." Drew paused then continued. "Look, you are my brother. We go way back. I will apologize from here on out if I have to. But trust me when I say I'm done with that life and I never meant to hurt her."

"I believe him, Blake." Shauna chimed in.

Blake looked over at Shauna then at Drew. "Awite then. If the Miss is good, then I am, too."

Blake and Drew man-hugged it out.

"I still gotta pick my friend up from the jail. So, can I trust y'all to be chill until I get back?" Blake asked them.

"I'm good." Shauna and Drew said in unison.

"Cool." Blake grabbed his coat and headed out the door.

Not feeling 100% comfortable, Shauna made sure to keep her distance from Drew. She stayed positioned closely to the patio door, just in case she had to roll herself onto it to escape.

"I know I said it a billion times already, but I'm really sorry." Drew walked over to Shauna with his arm extended. Just as he got close he said, "What is she doing here?"

Drew was looking out the patio door and into the parking lot. Shauna turned to see what he was looking at.

"Who? What?" Shauna asked.

She was taken back to that dreadful day.

"Oh shit!" Shauna panicked. "Why is she here? Aww man. Are y'all setting me up?"

"You know who that is?" Drew inquired.

"Isn't that Blake's ex-wife? That looks like the same car that showed up at my house a few months ago." Shauna remembered.

"No, we're not setting you up. Maybe it's not even her." Drew attempted to blow it off.

"Then why did she just pull off right when Blake did?" Shauna said sarcastically.

"Fuck, that is her. I know that custom-made license plate anywhere." Drew hurried up and called Blake.

"BLAKES," Shauna murmured as she caught a glimpse of the plate.

Episode 158

2012-01-24T09:34:00.001-08:00

“His recovery is impeccable,” smiled the nurse. “I didn’t think it was possible, but Dr. Knox is right on the money and Jason can go home today.”

Mary’s eyes twinkled with happiness. “My baby gets to go home, where he needs to be.”

“Ma, what we say about that baby stuff," sighed Jason.

“Baby I know you a man. But you always gone be momma’s baby.”

“Really ma.” Jason held his laugh in, as his chest still tinged with pain.

“Hello,” a voice called out, as Jason and his mother looked to the door, that voice said, “I hear you're leaving.”

“Yes,” nodded Jason, as he looked directly into Marsha’s eyes.

As Marsha approached Jason’s bedside, Mary tapped her wrist. “Can I talk to you sweetie, for a second?”

“Ma…, really are you about to TSA Marsha too! You've patted down everybody coming in here, including the nurses….”

“Its none of your never mind, mind yo business boy.”

“Sure,” said Marsha, as she gave the its okay wink to Jason.

Mary and Marsha walk outside Jason’s room. Mary signaled for Marsha to have a seat next to her in the black padded chairs that were against the wall.

“How are you?” asked Mary.

Marsha smiled, “Better.”

“Your mom said the last few days have been a bit much for you. Are you sure you should be out? You know you don’t have to be tough for us.”

“I am fine Mrs. Mary. But I get that you are concerned for Jason, so am I.”

“Hummmm? You sure?”

Marsha stood, “Mrs. Mary, Jason is a really good friend of mine and I just want to see him get better.”

“Marsha I get that you believe that you all are really good friends, but it is obvious to many of us that something else is lurking beneath the surface of this ‘really good friendship’. And at some point, you are going to need to acknowledge it.”

“We have,” Marsha insisted.

“Marsha, you are capable of a lot of things, and hurting Jason is at the top of that list. I love you baby, but you really have a lot going on right now and so does he.”

“You're right, we both do. And what so crazy is I am starting to get a better understanding. You and my mom stopped us from seeing each other before. I haven’t quite figured it out yet, but it's starting to make sense.”

“There is nothing for you to figure out child, just be careful. My son adores you.”

“Mrs. Mary.”

“I am sorry Sha, so much has happened and I am seriously worried about the both of you.”

“I understand, I can take care of myself though.”

“That’s what I am afraid of."

Episode 157

2012-01-19T05:38:00.001-08:00

Auto had just finished a set at Niki's Lounge in Greektown. He had filled in for one of his DJ friends from their sister radio station. Although he knew it was a bad idea, he couldn't resist the casino lights calling him from across the street. Auto had a major gambling problem, but he, as most addicts do, felt as though tonight was going to be his lucky night. "I just finished a bomb ass set, I'm looking good, feeling good. I'll just take this $100 and see what it do," is what he told himself as he walked towards the bright lights. Once inside, he headed towards the roulette wheel and slid the dealer five $20 bills. As luck would have it, he doubled up immediately, which sent him into a frenzy. Before he got up from that table he was up $12,000, but gave $10,000 right back to them. He made the decision to walk away when three shapely women walked by him, and one of them waved. He told the dealer he'd be back as he gathered his remaining chips and followed the women to the slot machines.

The women were standing there chatting up a forth friend about the lack of money they had made at the club that evening. It was obvious they were exotic dancers. Auto gave each of the chicks $25 so they could continue playing the slots as he began to converse with them. By nature, Auto wasn't much of a looker, which is probably why his career choice was radio. However he did have the gift of gab, and as most women today would see it, he had no issue trickin' to get what he wanted. Hell, he often preferred it that way. Therefore, there was no issue or mystery involved. He paid for what he wanted! After about twenty minutes or so he approached the ladies with the possibility of "making some extra money". Three of the four women were down with that. He assured them he'd secure a room so they didn't even have to leave the casino, and that's just what he did.

Once he received his room key, he escorted the ladies upstairs smacking each one on the ass so there was no mistake what kind of party this was about to be. Once they entered the room, he ordered the ladies to shower. While they were showering he called Antwan, who's phone went straight to voicemail. "Twan, whassup man? Holla atcha boy! I'm at the Greektown Casino in room 1032 and I got three naked bitches in the shower, come on down and get wet dog!!! Don't be trying to get all mushy and shit about your damn wife, this shit is already paid for," he began to laugh. "Let's get it," and then he hung up. As he began to get undressed he realized he didn't have any condoms so told the ladies he'd be right back, he was going to run downstairs and grab some. Auto may have been a trick but he was no fool. So, before he left, he went in each woman's purse removing her driver's license just in case they wanted to be slick.

Once he hit the casino floor again his palms began to itch. He was having a hard time choosing between the money and the pussy. As he walked by the crap tables he heard, "And that's why they call me C- Mutha Fuckin Lo, Chi Town's finest baby"! He quickly turned to look and just as he suspected, there sat his mother's favorite nephew C-Lo, sitting at the table with stacks of chips and a gang of hoe's.

***********************************************************

"Excuse me? What the hell did you just say? What do you mean? I don't understand." exclaimed Trinity.

"He's dead Trinity, that's why everyone has been calling you. You're Mom thought you were with him which is why she called me." Dice explained.

"What happened? How did this happen?"

"There was some explosion at his parents house. When they came to check on it, his truck was parked outside and the house had been reduced to rubble. One of your sweaters was on his passenger seat so they thought you were in there with him, the fact that they'd been calling you and getting no response had them in a whirlwind."

"Dead?" she repeated. "Dead, like never coming back?"

"Is there anything I can get for you? Is there anyone you want me to call?"

Trinity sank down in the tub, she felt so emotional yet emotionless. She had spent most of her teenage years loving Antwan, but she knew she didn't love him as a wife should love a husband. All of a sudden, she was overcome with guilt. Here she sat in the tub of the man she truly loved, who's wife she should've been, attempting to grieve for someone she hadn't loved since high school.

Dice exhaled deeply as he stepped outside the room so she could process what had just been said to her. He also needed to think of what his next move should be.

Trinity began to sob softly at the loss of Antwan, not so much for herself as for his parents. They depended on him so much. "He was the light of their lives and that light had been smothered, smothered in their home, because of a message his mother left him," she said to herself. She knew that she should call them, but she was unsure of what to say. She envisioned the conversation in her head.

"Hello Mother Swanson, this is Trinity."

"My baby, oh my sweet precious baby is gone!"

"Yes ma'am, I know."

"Why did you let him come here alone? Where were you, I've been calling you for hours?"

"Well we got into a physical altercation after you called him, so there was no way I was going to go anywhere with him."

"What do you mean a physical altercation?"

"I mean your punk ass son choked me and threw me up against a wall and I told him to get his shit and get the fuck out of my house!"

Dice entered the room and interrupted her thoughts. He was carrying a towel he brought from the dryer. As if the towel waiting on the towel warming rack in the bathroom weren't warm enough. "I know you may not be hungry, but I got some food out here from your dad's restaurant and you need to eat. I will take you home if you want to go, I can understand if you don't want to be here right now."

"Wow it's that simple huh, you just put me out? I thought we were going to spend the night together Dyson." She stood up and he watched as the suds rolled down her body. "Do you want me to go? Is that what you're saying?"

"Hell naw that's not what I'm saying! If I had it my way, you would never leave, but I would understand if you were feeling some kind of way about being here with me, under these circumstances." He walked towards her with the towel.

"Dyson, you know this marriage was a sham. You know I let my bruised ego push me into doing something that I really had no intention on ever doing right? You know that you are the only man I have ever really loved. I was prepared to tell him that. I was prepared to walk away from him and run to you, if you would allow me to do so..." Once again her thoughts were interrupted this time by her ringing phone.

"Trinity, please answer the phone. Talk to your mom, I'll be waiting in the living room when you are done."

Episode 156

2012-01-18T08:43:00.000-08:00

"10 years of marriage....10 years.....I gave that nigga 10 years." Toya repeated to herself over and over again as she sat outside Blake's apartment.

"I hope he likes the design I carved into his car when he sees it in the morning," she laughed to herself.

While Blake was getting Shauna checked out of the hospital, Toya decided to express herself artistically in the hospital parking lot.

A large penis with very small testicles now decorated the hood of Blake's new car.

"Remember how you once told me that a man's car reflects what kind of man he is? Well, I had to make a small modification since you wanna act like a big dick with little balls!" Toya laughed hysterically.

"Oh, and 'Miss I didn't know he was married', is gonna need more than a few bandages when I get my hands on her ass!" Toya sat in her car and watched the shadows move across the windows of Blakes apartment.

She sat thinking about the way he dismissed her at the hospital, and began to cry.

She thought about the way he ever-so-carefully helped Shauna get in and out of the car, and how he was taking her to HIS house to recover. The thought of Blake being that tender with any woman drove Toya crazy.

"He used to be that way with me. He used to brush my hair away from my face and look in my eyes. He used to make me feel safe, and now all I feel is the need to make him suffer." Toya stared at the window hoping to see his face.

"And what the hell is Drew doing over here? Is he introducing this bitch to his boys now? Is that what this is?" Toya's grip on the steering wheel got tighter and tighter.

"I should go up there and kick his ass! But I know he probably told Mateo not to let me up to see him. Shit! His nosey ass WOULD be on duty tonight. I guess I'll have to wait until the other guy comes on duty." Toya said calmly to herself.

Toya looked around the parking lot and then back at the building. She saw Mateo standing in the doorway looking in her direction, so she started her car and drove down the street to a construction site. She waited 15 minutes then drove back to the lot. This time, she parked further away trying to avoid Mateo's survey of the parking lot. She saw Blake's car was still parked just as she noticed him on his way out of the building.

"What the fuck is this? He left that bitch in his house? Did you move her in, Blake? " Toya started up her car.

She watched as Blake pulled his car out of the parking lot, then she followed him to the stop light. As soon as the light turned red, she got out of her car and threw the brick she took from the construction site right through his back window. It was so loud that it sounded like a gunshot. Blake's foot instinctively hit the gas and he made a sharp turn around the corner.

Satisfied with her destruction, Toya got into her car and drove back to the apartment building.

"Now, since Blake wanna play house. I guess I have to play landlord and start evicting bitches!" Toya reached over and pressed play on her cd player.

"It could all be so simple......but you'd rather make it hard......loving you is like a battle....and we both end up with scars....." Toya sang along with Lauryn Hill with tears rolling down her face. She pulled out her cell phone and began dialing Blake's number, being careful to block hers and just as Lauryn got to the end of "Ex Factor", Blake answered the phone. But all he could hear was Lauryn Hill singing "Care for me....care for me....you said you care for me.....there for me... there for me.....said you'd be there for me .....cry for me.... cry for me ....you said you die for me...give to me..... give to me ......why won't you live for me..... " then a click.

Toya replayed the song again and said to herself, "I guess you'll have to die for me."
__________________________________________________________________

Ivy Meeks woke up in the hospital with an I.V. in her arm. Her vision was blurry but she could see that both of her daughters were in the room with her. The relief lasted only a brief moment when she realized that they were grieving. Surely, they had to know that she killed their father. Before they realized she was awake, she tried to think of a way to explain it to them.

"Mom?" Jenefer squeezed Ivy's hand.

"Is she waking up?" Staci asked as she moved closer to the bed.

"Mom, can you hear me? Staci and I are right here. Can you hear me?" Jenefer pleaded.

Staci had wiped just about all her make up off. Both of Ivy's children were hovering over her bed wearing sweats, ponytails, and no makeup. Any other time, this would've caused Ivy to explode. The mere thought of her daughters being seen looking so common, as she liked to call it, would have sent her into a tirade. But since she had done the unthinkable, she saw no reason to scold them for their appearance.

Ivy could hear her daughters for a few moments and then the ringing in her ears got more and more intense. She couldn't pretend that she was asleep any longer and she let out a loud moan.

Staci pushed the call button and a nurse appeared. Ivy couldn't hear what was said but she watched the nurse leave and reappear with the doctor.

"Mom, the doctor needs to look at you. We'll be right outside, ok?" Jenefer stood and walked with Staci outside the hospital room.

"I can't hear! "Ivy shouted at the doctor.

"Mrs. Meeks. Calm down. It's not uncommon for there to be ringing in the ears when you've been firing a gun."

After a quick exam the doctor wrote a few things on Ivy's chart and walked out of the room.

"Your mom will be fine. A little alcohol poisoning, and her ears are ringing from shooting that gun, but her hearing will return soon. We've pumped all the alcohol from her stomach and her vitals are back to normal, so, we're just gonna keep her here a little longer for observation. I know it's been a rough night for you girls, but the police have some more questions for you concerning the gunshot victim." The doctor pointed to the area where two police officers were waiting.

"Doctor, can you tell us if they got the bullet out? Was the surgery successful? When can we visit?" Staci asked as they approached the waiting area.

"All I know is the surgery went well and they expect a full recovery. You should be able to visit in an hour or so." He said as he walked towards the nurses' station with Ivy's chart.

Ivy sat in her bed staring out the window. Bits and pieces of the previous night replayed in her head, and she began to cry.

"Oh William....I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to kill you. I love you." she sobbed into her hands.

"Well, you sure have a funny way of showing it!" William stood in the doorway glaring at his wife.

"Oh my GOD! ....William!.....I thought you were......" Ivy screamed.

"Dead? You thought I was dead, didn't you? Well, ya missed!" William walked up to her bedside.

"You missed me....but you sure as hell didn't miss Grace! She's in surgery right now Ivy! Because you're a selfish, jealous bitch!" William got right into her face.

"And you know what? I think I should just tell the police that you did it on purpose. I think I should tell the TRUTH, Ivy! I should just tell them that you wanted to kill someone last night and let them haul your alcoholic ass to jail!" William screamed in her ear.

"Can you hear me now?" he asked with his head tilted to the side.

Ivy was in complete and total shock. She couldn't speak, she couldn't move. Her shoulder length blond hair looked to be standing on end, her blue eyes were the size of dinner plates.

"I'm done, Ivy." William began to walk back out of the room.

"Wait!...William please!.....I'm sorry!....I'll go back to rehab!...I'll do anything you want! Please don't let them take me to jail!" she pleaded.

William didn't bother turning around. When he opened the door, Ivy saw Edna standing in the hallway. William walked straight to her, and put his arms around her. Their embrace was the last thing she saw when the police came in to question her.

Episode 155

2012-01-17T16:29:00.001-08:00

Skyy lied back on the bed, texting as many people as she could, even those she hadn't talked to or heard from in months. She didn't wanna watch television. She didn't wanna read a book. She texted her cousin Tyler.

Whr r u?

Seconds later she got a response.
omw ovr my friend house. whts up?

nuttn. bored az f@ck!

want me 2 come gt u

HELL YEA!!!

She continued scrolling through her phone until she came across Tammy's number. She quickly got angry once she realized she hadn't called her back yet. So, she decided to send her a text.

if u care, i'm stayn ovr aunt maxine's 4 good. i called u & it keep goin 2 voicemail. i just wanna knw 1 thng...y dont u luv me???? -Skyy

Immediately after she hit send, she got a message from someone on Facebook.
Hi Skyy,

You don't know me, but I think we're cousins on your dad's side. Gimme a call, 313-555-2375.

Niecy

Skyy and Niecy has the same last name. Skyy clicked through Niecy's pics in an attempt to jog some type of recollection but got nothing. She had not seen this person before in her life, but her eyes lit up at the mere thought of possibly getting to meet the other side of her family.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Junior and QT rode for a while in silence. He looked over at her as she blankly stared out the window.

"Why do you hate her so much?" He asked curiously, making sure to keep his eyes on the road.

QT didn't even have to ask who Junior was talking about.

"See, that's the problem with niggas. Y'all think because a girl is cute and shit that she's so innocent. Her ass is not innocent." She answered defensively.

"No, we don't think that. But what we do think is that women can be petty as hell...and you still didn't answer the damn question."

QT turned and looked at Junior.

"Why, Junior? Why the fuck do you care? Do you like her or something?"

"I mean, I'll be lying if I said she wasn't cute." Junior smirked. "But that's not why I'm asking though."

"See, that's what I'm talking about. Niggas a'int shit." QT scolded then turned again to peer out the window.

"If you hate her so much, why you let her come over your crib and shit? That's some fake shit."

QT didn't answer. She was in a daze.

"Oh, you a'int got nothin' to say about that, huh?" Junior continues.

He looked over and noticed that she has zoned out. He snapped his fingers in front of her face; she snaps out of it.

"What? What's up? Why you snapping your fingers in my face, damn?"

"Cause I'm still waiting on you to answer the question, nigga."

"What question?"

Junior is confused. He can tell by the expression on QT's face that she's clueless.

"What the hell...Are you all right? You don't look too hot."

QT's face was damp with sweat. She began fanning herself.

"Shit, it's hot in here. Turn the mother fucking heat down." QT says as she sets the knobs to the coolest setting. "All of a sudden I don't feel too good. What were we talking about?"

Before the car came to a complete stop in QT's driveway, she opened the passenger door and started to vomit.

Episode 154

2012-01-13T09:28:00.000-08:00

As he approached the beautiful downtown skyline, C-Lo began to call Winsdee's phone. She wasn't answering and this began to bother him. So after the 4th try, he began to leave her nasty messages.

"So bitch, you are really trying my patience! You must have forgotten who you are dealin with. You do know you have all of 20 minutes to call me back before bad shit starts happening right? Make it snappy hoe! Don't make me get ugly!!"

Five minutes later he called back.

"You do know I will kill that little sneaky bitch right? Better yet, maybe I'll just put her on the stroll to replace the money you are fucking up while parading around this bullshit ass city!"

Three minutes after that.

"I'm not playing with you Bitch! Me and the boys are gonna have to sample young Mello's goods to make sure she's worthy of being one of my girls! You know I only want the best, and you know how I like it!! She'll have sucked and fucked us all before dawn!!" He began to laugh. "You better hope she's good at it or I'm going to put two in her ass real quick!!"

Once he arrived downtown, he followed the signs that lead him to the Greektown Casino. He could recall Winsdee telling him how she enjoyed walking the streets of Greektown at night. He figured he could check out a few things while he waited on her call. He knew something must have happened, but what, he was unsure of. Did she find out he was bluffing about Mello? He doubted it, since she hadn't called him cursing. He tossed his keys to the valet driver along with a $50 bill, telling him to keep it close and he went inside. He wasn't in there long before he had set his eyes on some potential "talent," as he liked to call them.

He made room for himself at the Craps table. He handed the dealer $10,000 and waited for the exchange. All eyes zeroed in on him and that is honestly the way he liked it. He had no fear in his heart of being there alone, "Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiid I'm C-Lo," he thought to himself.

******************************************************************

Peanut extended his hand to Winsdee to help her up. She reluctantly accepted it.

"Allow me to help you, I'm Tech Sergeant Percy Knutt," he grabbed a purse off the floor and asked, "Is this your handbag?"

"Yes, it is and thank you Seargent." She was mesmerized when she looked into his eyes. All of the background noise began to disappear and she had almost forgotten what just transpired. She then ran her fingers threw her hair and realized it was a mess. "Oh my Goodness I look a mess, I've got to get out of here." She turned to look at Chris and he was no where to be found. "You've got to be shitting me!" she screamed. "First, that crazy bitch attacks me, then my ride bails, this is pure bullshit!!"

"Don't worry about it, I'll get you home," said Percy, flashing his infamous Knutt smile.

"I can't get in the car with you, I don't know you," she said coyly.

"I understand that, if you don't want to go with me, at-least let me arrange for you to get home safely. My conscious won't allow me to just leave you here like this." He pulled out his cellphone and unbeknownst to her, began to call Windee.

"Seargent, put your phone away that is not necessary. I don't live here in town I actually just got here..."

"Listen, I'm not trying to be funny or fresh. I too just got in town I have the Presidential Suite at the Motor City Casino. It has two bedrooms and plenty of space. I can take you there if you want to get cleaned up. I am even willing to get you your own room if it would make you feel more comfortable. In the morning we can sort out the mess, and I'll drop you off wherever you want to go."

Her eyes got huge when he mentioned the presidential suite. Her inner hoe was taking over. He wasn't bad looking and she could tell from his posture that he really was a solider. Hell, she had put herself in much riskier positions, besides, worse case scenario, he could help protect her when C-Lo finally arrived. "Okay, let's go."

"I'm just going to let my brother know I'm leaving. I don't want him to think I've just abandoned him." He extended his hand to her again and she took it following him to where Dice stood.

"D, man I'm about to get her outta her. You alright?"

"Yeah Bro, I'm cool you better hurry before Trin comes out of that bathroom and sees you hand and hand with her."

Dice turned to Winsdee and said, "I hope you feel better Ma."

Peanut leaned into Dice and said "Have Trin call Windee, I'm taking her back to my hotel. If you can stop Trin from pouncing on her, you all can meet us there."

"Naw, I doubt we'll make it, but I will be sure Windee does! I have got a much bigger problem on my hands now. Call me if you need me."

*********************************************************************

Jayden approached Trinity and extended her hand. "Hello, I'm Jayden Alexander, you're Trinity right?"

Trinity glanced up at the well dressed woman standing before her. "It appears I am at a disadvantage because I don't you Miss Alexander," she said as she took her boxer stance.

"I'm the new attorney for all things Anderson Place." Jayden replied, while extending her card. "I saw what happened out there so I just wanted to let you know if you need me, I'm available to you. I live in Anderson Park Place as I assume you do, I'm in 7A, so no matter the hour, know that I am available." And just like that Jayden exited the restroom.

**********************************************************************

The ride back to Dice's condo was tense...he knew he had to tell her and quickly. JR was not as sensitive to the situation.

"T-baby, you know you didn't have to leap on that girl like that, she didn't even know it was coming." JR snickered.

"Fuck that Bitch, and Imma jump on her punk ass every time I see her! I've never liked that hoe, and she's made it worse!"

"Really JR?" Inquired Dice. He knew she wouldn't stop if he had told her Winsdee left with Nut, so he took it upon himself to call Windee and let her know the deal.

Once the pair of them stepped inside his apartment, he led her into the bathroom where a bath had already been drawn. He helped her get undressed.

"Dyson, are you going to join me?"

"Uh, Trin, I'm not sure that's a good idea right now. I need to talk to you and it's really important."

"Look Dice, it's been a helluva 24 hours. I agreed to come back here with you and I thought we were going to enjoy ourselves. Do you really want to ruin the mood with some heavy ass conversation? If you want to chastise me about Winsdee hoe ass then that shit can wait til another day."

"Trinity".

"Dice I'm serious."

"Trin, will you..."

"Will you just join me?" she flicked a bubbles at him.

"Dammit Trinity, will you just shut the fuck up and let me say what I have to say."

She was stunned by his raw emotion and the tone he took with her, but she was also well aware she needed to listen to whatever was coming next. She sat straight up in the tub.

"What is it? What the hell do you need to tell me Dyson?"

"Look, Trin, I'm sorry about that but I really just need you to pay attention to what I am about to say..." he took a deep breath. "While you were in the bathroom after the fight with Winsdee your mom called me..."

She cut him off again. "I am not speaking to her right now and I really don't want to hear anything she has to say...wait is my dad ok?"

"Yes, Trin he's fine...It's Antwaun..."

"Fuck him too! I don't wanna hear shit about..."

"He's dead Trinity!"

episode 153

2012-01-11T20:15:00.000-08:00

Mateo stood in the kitchen of his 2 bedroom apartment and stared out the window, as he did every morning at 5am.

His 5 foot 10 frame cast a shadow on the wall that reminded him how he was alone with himself once again. He watched the the headlights on the road begin to increase as commuters made their way to their respective jobs.

After a few more sips of coffee, it was time for his morning workout. Mateo grabbed his keys, then headed out the door and down the elevator to the fitness center on the first floor of Anderson Place. Every morning on his way to the gym, he checked to make sure the security guard was still on duty and awake. He refused to let anyone risk his job as assistant manager of the building. He really thought of himself as the manager, since he was the one in charge of everything. He loved having a luxurious apartment rent free, as well as access to some of the cities most beautiful, wealthy and discreet women.

As he made his way into the gym, he noticed there was only 1 other person working out, Sarah Grant.

Mateo smiled when he saw her running on the treadmill and abruptly turned and locked the doors . Sarah exited the treadmill and made her way to the sauna with Mateo following right behind her.

Before they got a chance to be all the way inside, Mateo felt Sarah reach back and grab is crotch.

"Where have you been, Papi?" she whispered.

"Show me how much you missed me," Mateo whispered back, as he began to grind his manhood against her backside.

"No , en espanol, por favor! You know it drives me crazy when you speak Spanish in my ear." Sarah closed her big blue eyes and waited for his Spanish tongue to twist and contort words in a way that made her quiver with desire.

"Mostrar lo mucho que me extranaba." Mateo translated as he kissed the nape of her neck.

Sarah's legs began to buckle so she braced herself against the wall in the doorway of the sauna.

She could feel her spandex Capri's being pulled down, as Mateo grew more and more aroused.

"Oh GOD, I want you so bad," she whispered as she turned around to look at his very muscular chest. Not to mention the bulge in his pants.

"Entonces, que vas a hacer? Muestrame!" he whispered as he pulled his fully aroused penis out of his sweat pants.

"What are you gonna do? Show me!" he said again in English.

Sarah could hardly contain herself. She was so entranced with Mateo's body that she couldn't speak. She began massaging him and salivated every time it throbbed.

Mateo stood there watching her drive herself crazy for a few moments and then whispered, "Lamerlo. Lick it!"

Before he got the words all the way out she was on her knees licking and sucking on him like she was possessed.

The room was quiet except for the sound of Sarah slurping and Mateo taking deep breaths.

The more she licked and sucked the more she got excited. She held on to Mateo with one hand and used the other to prepare herself for Mateo's entrance.

He loved watching her please herself while she pleased him.

"Oh my GOD, you taste so fucking good! I can't wait to get this big Spanish cock inside me! Give it to me now!" she demanded.

Mateo was only happy to oblige. He stood her up, turned her around and pressed her up against the wall. She squealed with delight.

Then he stuck his manhood between her thighs to tease her. He brushed ever-so -gently against her throbbing lips. He cold feel how wet she was. Mateo stuck his fingers between her legs and began to massage her clit. Sarah moved her hips to his rhythm as her anticipation grew . He plunged 1 finger inside and she let out a deep sigh.

"I need more . Please, please, give me more," she begged.

Another finger went inside and she spread her legs wider so she could feel every inch of him.

When Mateo knew she was more than ready for him he pulled his fingers out, grabbed her hips and thrust himself as deep as he could inside her.

"Oh-my-GOD!" Was all Sarah could say as she and Mateo worked out a strong rhythm.

Mateo grabbed her blond ponytail and pushed her to the limits of ecstasy. He could feel her about to explode so he went into overdrive and began whispering to her in Spanish.

"De verdad lo quieren? Tomalo! Y cuando me corro, quiero que tragarse esa mierda como si fuera un champagne de mierda os despojaron puta!"

The sound of their bodied slapping together and Mateo speaking to her in Spanish was enough to put her over the edge. Sarah exploded and her juices began to run down her legs. Mateo pulled out and spun her around so he could complete his task. Sarah was only too happy to assist him. She was right back where she started. Licking and sucking on him like there was no tomorrow. After only a few moments Mateo reached his climax and watched Sarah slurp and swallow until there was nothing left.

Sarah stood up and smiled the most satisfied smile while she watched Mateo put his "weapon" away.

"What do your tattoos mean?" she asked.

"That was a long time ago. They don't mean anything now." he said annoyed.

"How come you won't tell me?" she pressed.

"Because it's none of any one's business. We aren't supposed to get 'involved' remember. It's just sex. Nothing more." Mateo began to walk out of the sauna area.

"Wait. I thought that since we've been doing this for awhile now , that maybe we should share a little more of ourselves. After all , I DID go get tested for HIV and everything for you. Don't I at least deserve to know something about you?"

Mateo turned and shook his head.

"See , I knew this would happen. You let this big Latin dick cloud your judgement and your memory. When we made this arrangement, we BOTH agreed that we shouldn't get too personal. Feelings get involved and shit gets messy. You said you could handle it. You just wanted to get laid while your husband was away on business. Remember? And as far as the testing goes, that was for BOTH of our benefit. I wanted to make sure neither one of us was risking our lives. Getting tested once a month isn't asking a lot for some peace of mind. Besides, I can't continue sleeping with you. You're getting attached. I think we should just end it now."

"Oh GOD, No! Mattie! Please don't! I'm sorry. I won't ask any more questions. And I'll keep going to the clinic to get tested so you know I'm not sleeping with anyone else. I promise I'll keep it strictly sex and that's it." Sarah pleaded.

"Uhm....no. I don't think you can handle it. Besides, your husband will be home soon. We were gonna have to end it anyway. But hey, I'll still see you around the building. It was fun while it lasted." Mateo stuck his hand out to shake hers.

"Are you really ending it?" she asked, looking defeated.

"Yeah, I think it's best." he nodded.

"Well can I get a hug?" Sarah opened her arms to receive him.

"No. A clean break is best. Besides, we don't touch that way. No hugging, no kissing, no saying 'I love you. You remember the rules," Mateo scolded.

"Ok, I guess you're right. Maybe we can make another arrangement in the future?" Sarah asked looking for one more chance to to be pleasured by him.

"Oh, I think not. What's done is done. It's time we both moved on." Mateo bent over to pick up his keys.

"Ok, well at least tell me what you whispered to me right before I came. It sounded so sexy that I want to remember it." Sarah pleaded with her big blue eyes.

"You really wanna know?" he asked

"Please tell me."

"Ok, I'll tell you. "

Mateo walked over to Sarah and began to whisper in her ear.

"I said ,You want it. Take it. And when I cum I want you to swallow that shit like it's fucking champagne you spoiled bitch!"

The color drained from Sarah's face as she watched Mateo stand back and smile in her face.

"Oh, and uh...don't get to thinking that I crossed the line and try to get me fired or tell your husband some dumb shit. Remember our first encounter involved a video camera and I'm just dying to have your hubby critique it for me. Hell, we could premier it for all the tenants in the building if you want. Or better yet, do a double feature since I'm not the only man you've been caught with on video, down on your knees."

Mateo chuckled .

"Please put your clothes back on. I need to unlock the door. You have a good day Mrs. Grant." Mateo nodded and whistled his way back out into the workout area to unlock the door.

He stretched and then hopped on the treadmill. As he watched himself in the mirror , he could see Sarah scurry out the door with her towel wrapped around her face.

He knew she was upset but he didn't want to think about her anymore. She had served her purpose, so he put in his ear plugs and blasted his Ipod.

"Dumb bitch." he whispered to himself as Chris Brown's "Look at me now" began to fill his ears.

"She'll be alright. Besides, I need to be free just in case the new tenant needs to make an arrangement too!" he laughed to himself.

Episode 152

2012-01-10T20:53:00.001-08:00

Lisa hesitated before she answered her cell phone. She could have easily ignored it, but would have immediately felt bad about it. She and her mother are close, like sisters. Her mom is always there for her, even when she doesn't make the smartest decisions.

"Hey Ma," Lisa forced excitement to enter her voice.

"Hey, where are you?"

Lisa's deafening pause didn't go unnoticed.

"Huh?"

"You heard me. Where...are...you?"

Lisa's mom said as if talking to a 2-yr-old.

"Um, Ma, that's really not important. I took care of everything and I'm just trying to get a ride to my car. Don't worry." Lisa crammed her words together.

"Wait. Slow down. What happened? Are you in trouble?"

Lisa bit off the acrylic on her nails and spit them on the ground.

"Depends on what you consider trouble."

Apparently not in a joking mood, Lisa's mom said sharply, "Girl stop playing with me. There's something we need to discuss, now!"

Lisa stopped damaging her nails and got serious. "What? Is Devlin ok? Are you and dad ok?"

"Yes, stop worrying. We're all fine; however, Devlin did find 'the box'.''

Lisa paced the parking lot of the jail, waiting for her ride. "Box? What..." just as fast as the words left her tongue, she quickly remembered. "Nooooo! How, Ma? I thought you had it safely buried and tucked away."

"Me too. It was hidden under tons of shoe boxes in the back of the closet. I cant help it your son is nosey."

Lisa panicked. She kept the box from Devlin until she felt he was old enough to understand what happened...to both her and his father. She was nowhere near ready to share with him that she went to jail for killing his dad.

"So, what did he say? Did he see everything?"

"Yes!!!"

"And what did you say?"

"I kinda blew him off. I was so in shock, I didn't know what else to do. I just told him to stop meddling and put the box away."

Lisa fanned herself, though she was outside in the cool air. "Wow. Wow. Um..." Lisa searched for words. "What am I gonna do, Ma?"

"You have no choice but to tell him now. He's a smart kid Lisa, just be honest with him. I know you wish it was later rather than sooner, but hey, all things happen for a reason."

Lisa knew her mom was right. She respected and leaned on her mother's wisdom and knowledge through the years. She knew she had to confront this challenge head on, no matter how painful.

"Ok, thanks Ma. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"I know you will, honey." Before she hung up she asked, "Oh, wheres your brother? His phone is going straight to voicemail."

Lisa sighed and looked to the sky for relief.

"Um, he's in jail. Love you, mom. Bye!" She hurried and hung up the phone.

She'd been waiting for Blake for over an hour and was way beyond pissed. Though, for whatever reason, he was no longer answering her calls and texts, she was confident he'd show up. To kill time, she walked to the jail's lobby.

"Hi, I was wondering if you can give me some information on Cedric Peabody please?"

The chubby officer behind the counter looked stoically at Lisa.

"What kind of information?" He replied dryly.

Not trying to get re-arrested, Lisa remained polite, "Can you tell me what he's being charged with and what his bond is, please?"

Lisa looked on as the officer used his snausage-sized index fingers to roughly peck the keys.

"Child support...and unless you have $20,000 or the judge lowers his bond, he'll be here for a while."

"$20,000?" Lisa repeated loudly. "For what child? He doesn't even have..."

The officer interrupted, "We don't have that information, but you can call the court and ask them."

He scribbled on a sticky note and passed it to her. Lisa stepped outside and called the court.

"Hold on one second. Let me grab the file." The friendly lady said on the other end.

Moments later she returned.

"Ok, thank you for holding. It says here the complainant is..." The lady struggled with the pronunciation. "Here, I'll just spell it for you.

"Lisa hung up the phone and stared at the name she had just written down. "Who the hell is Quadesha Taylor?" She said aloud to herself.

151 Episode

2012-01-10T07:26:00.001-08:00

Ashley and Dontay went back in forth in conversation for about ten more minutes before leaving the hospital. There was no way in hell that Dontay was going to let Ashley control the situation like this. He talked her into taking a break from the hospital, with her mother’s approval. The drive back to his place was a bit unusual. Dontay just couldn’t handle the fact the he felt rejected. Ashley shook him like a wet dog. After pulling into the parking slot, Dontay turned the radio down but didn’t turn off the car.

“Dontay?”Ashley questioned.

“What,” Dontay asked with frustration.

“Ohhh watch it, remember I am supposed to be relaxing for a bit right. This was yours and mom’s idea,” said Ashley.

“My bad it is just…,” Dontay paused.

“Tay, seriously why are you trippen? Did one of your Clingon’s or your groupies call. I mean. I will give you your space, I don’t have to be here.”

“See, that’s it right there,” said Dontay as he turned the car off and got out of the truck, Ashley followed behind him.

“Dude, you’re not talking…how am I supposed to know what you are dealing with.”

“I’m good Ash, relax,” sighed Dontay. His ego was crushed.

Upon entering Dontay’s Apartment, the awkwardness continued. Ashley attempted to sit down and chill on the couch. But Dontay’s mood was still ever present. He went into his bedroom and sat quietly at the edge of his bed. Why was the fact that Ashley said the very thing he had planned to say, bothering him. Was it control, or the fact that she said it first? I mean, this is what he wanted, so why was this so difficult. Or was it a deeper issue? Dontay began to wonder if maybe his feelings were a bit deeper then he was willing to admit. He snickered, hell naw, there is no way that he was in love with Ash, not like, love love anyway. Yes, he cared about her and loved her like a friend, but it wasn’t more than that. But then he thought, if it was more than that, how the hell would he know. He had never been in love before.

“Tay?” softly spoke Ashley as she stood at the threshold of Dontay’s bedroom.

Dontay lifted his head.

“Ughh, why are you sluggish, Tay,” fussed Ashley as she walked toward him. She stopped directly in front of him. “What do you want to do, Dontay. I know you're mad at what I said. It is so freaking obvious.”

“You think you know me,” asserted Dontay.

“That’s because I do,” laughed Ashley as she sat next to him on the bed, jabbing him in his side. “You are so spoiled, damn. You do realize you can’t have everything, right.”

“Who said I wanted to have anything,” questioned Dontay.

“Dontay,”she chuckled as she stood and walked. “Don’t front now, after all your school boy pouting. I get it, you want me. Heck I want me too sometimes.”

“Girl please,” said Dontay as he stood and approached her. “I am a grown man, and it's you that wants me.” He placed his fingers on the side of her mouth. “Is that drool.” He said as he rubbed his fingers together.

“Ain’t nobody studding you Dontay. Haha you got a funnies.”

He stood so close to her that she was breathing in his breath’s.

“You good, Ash?” He said as he leaned forward and whispered in her ear.

“I am fine,” she whispered.

“Umm are you? You strong right,” he said as he began to kiss on her neck. “Sorry, I thought I saw something. This isn’t bothering you right Ashley, because you're fine right. That is what you said.”

He kissed her neck softly, not wanting to scare her off. He wanted her so badly it hurt. As he kissed her delicious neck, He realized she wasn’t going to scare off so easily. As a matter of fact it was as if she wanted him to kiss her, to make her squeal with pleasure. It’s as if she knew he wanted her as badly as he did, and she didn’t stop him at all. He kissed her neck again, this time more firmly, licking it a bit as he did. She just leaned back into him, letting him enjoy her neck.

He began to back her slowly onto his bed as he continued to kiss her eagerly, his desire for her increasing by the second, while he began caressing her breasts. He quickly pulled her shirt over her head, stopping from the kiss just long enough to free Ashley of her shirt. He reached behind her and unclasped her bra, taking it off continuing to kiss his way down from her lips, down her neck, down to her cleavage. He pulled back momentarily to look her in her eyes. He could see that he had stirred something inside her, deep inside her. She was weak, weak for him.

He slipped one hand slowly down Ashley’s body, down over her flat smooth tummy as if to memorize the feel of her skin and the shape of her body, down to her pants. He then started to kiss his way down her body, letting his kisses follow the same pattern his hand had taken just a few seconds earlier, while he unbuttoned and unzipped her pants.

Dontay again looked at her intently before he went any further to see if Ashley wanted him to stop. She said nothing, she just looked him in the eyes. He knew she wanted him to continue, so he did. He carefully took her pants off, leaving her panties on just long enough for him to admire her beautiful almost-naked body.

He decided to tease her. He needed her to know who the boss was and it most surely was not her. He lowered his head between her thighs. He kissed his way slowly, tantalizingly from her left inner thigh, just above her knee to her right inner thigh, kissing her warmth through her panties. She let out a slight moan as he kissed her moistness through her panties. This must have been too much for her, because she began to beg him to make love to her, to relieve her of what he had built up inside her.

"Dontay," said called out.

Dontay smiled down at her, as he slid her panties off her, revealing her stunning welcoming loveliness. As he stared at it lovingly, he could see from the way it glistened he had really turned her on. He again lowered his head to her love tunnel, taking a moment to breathe in its alluring aroma. Again wanting to tease her, he licked from the top of her sweet spot to the bottom, making sure not to enter her with his tongue just yet. He did this several more times until she began to whimper and wriggle her hips to meet his tongue, to make his tongue enter her. He just looked up at her and smiled again, continuing his tongue-tease of her love. Before he could apply much pressure to dart his tongue in and out of her juicy goodness, her body began to shake and shiver, while an explosive orgasm took control of her. Dontay slowly tongued her as her orgasm passed through her, wave after incredible wave.

Episode 150

2011-12-27T09:10:00.000-08:00

Mello lay across the bed thinking about everything but nothing really specific. She wondered what the coming days would bring, however, she knew that she was safe and that was all that really mattered to her.

She cared about her mothers well being, but in the same breath, was relieved that she was free of her. She didn't really have many positive memories of life with her mom. She had told Mello years ago that her father was killed in car accident on his way to the hospital to see her birth.

All she had was a picture of him and her Mom sitting on a stoop, and an old t-shirt that read "Mello 36" that he had given to her mom after one of his basketball games. She imagined him in her mind, how different her life would've been if he were still present.

She went over to her duffle bag, took the T-shirt out, held it close to her face and inhaled. It smelled of a combination of sweat and Fahrenheit cologne. 36 is the number she used in basketball her whole life, she did what she could to be as near to him as possible.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a ding on her laptop. She flipped it around to see one of her friends was talking to her via facebook."Wtfyd?""Chillin, u?""U aiight?""Yeah I'm str8""U touched down ok?""Yeah what part of I'm str8 & chillin didn't u get""When u comin back?""Y u askin me all these ?'s, We already discussed this?""That was b4 yo ass was all over the news""I'm not coming back, send me the link"BadasHell Jones is now offline.Well what the..., Mello thought as she began to surf the net herself. She found the news cast which displayed her as a missing person. "They used good footage of that last game", she chuckled. It saddened her to see the look of despair on the face of her coach. She knew he genuinely cared about her.

She decided to checkout a few of her favorite gossip sites. When she arrived at Mediatakeout.com she saw this article and it floored her, because she had seen that same woman but the battery in her phone was to low to take the picture. She then ventured over to Worldstarhiphop and clicked on a link for Rapper Dice tries to break up a girl-fight in a Detroit bar. It had been uploaded 3 mins prior to her arrival at the site. When she viewed the fight she screamed... "Mama"!

episode 149

2011-12-21T20:46:00.000-08:00

William Meeks took a deep breath before he turned the key to his house. He knew that Ivy would be there waiting and ready to fight. He looked at his cell phone and shook his head at all the missed calls he refused to answer from her.

"38 missed calls....really Ivy?" he said to himself.

He took a deep breath turned the key and pushed the door open. The house was quiet, but he took no solace in it. He knew what was waiting for him when he finally came to the room where he thought his wife would be waiting.

William walked down the long foyer and into the living room. There was no one there. Then he walked into the kitchen where he was sure to find Grace, but she was gone too. Puzzled, he began to walk up the winding staircase looking for any sign of someone being in the house.

When he finally reached the top of the stairs, he heard movement. It sounded like ice in a glass.

"Ivy? Sweetheart is that you?" William pushed the door open and saw a shadowy figure sitting on the chaise in front of the fireplace.

"Why are sitting here in the dark , Ivy?" he asked as he moved toward her.

"I thought you liked dark," she softly replied.

"Ivy, what are you talking about?" he asked

"I'm talking about you. You son-of-a-bitch!" she screamed.

"Ivy! What-"

"Don't you say a word, you selfish bastard! I know you went to that damn hospital to see your black whore!"

"Ivy, when did you start drinking again? You know you are supposed to call your sponsor when you get the urge. I don't want you to have to go away again."

"Haha! Really, William? You don't want me to go away? Are you sure? Then maybe you can spend some quality time with your other family," Ivy stared at him as if she was stone cold sober.

"Ivy, give me the glass please." William reached for the glass and Ivy pulled away from him.

'No. You know what William? You're the reason I started to drink in the first place. You and your fucking secrets pushed me to the bottle!" Ivy got into Williams face.

William ran his fingers through his dark, thick, curly hair and let out a long sigh.

"Oh, I'm sorry William. Did I strike a nerve?" she said ever-so softly.

"Ivy, just put the glass down and lets get your sponsor here so we can get you back on the road to your sobriety," William tried to take the glass again but without success.

"You know what Billy? I thought I could deal with anything as long as you loved me. But when I realized that I wasn't enough for you, it was too late. We already had the girls, and I was finally getting the lifestyle that I always wanted. I feel like you tricked me William."

"Ivy, this is stupid! Put down the damn glass and call your sponsor!" William tried once again to take the glass away from his wife.

"Oh, you want me to put down the glass? Ok, William, I'll put it down!" Ivy turned and threw the glass at her husband.

"Are you out of your mind?! What the hell is wrong with you tonight?"

Ivy stumbled to her feet and ran towards her husband.

"I hate you! You selfish black bastard!" Ivy began swinging her arms wildly , slapping William in the face and hitting any other parts of his body that was exposed.

William struggled to get her under control. After only a few short minutes, Ivy was tired, out of breath and sobbing like a baby.

William walked her over to the bed and sat her down. Without saying a word, he picked up the phone to call her sponsor. Ivy slapped the phone out of his hand.

"Oh no you don't! I know what you're doing. You think you're going to send me away again, don't you?" Ivy began grinding her teeth.

"Ivy, you know I have to call. You need help." William said as he tried to remain calm.

"I don't need help. I need for you to stop acting like you give a damn about me. I need for you to stop being so careless with my feelings and our whole existence. Do you have any idea what would happen if the press or anyone with a grudge got wind of any of your secrets? And what about the girls? Do you ever think about them William? Do you ever think about how they would feel to find out that their father was unfaithful and fathered a bastard son with the help?" Ivy stared him right in the eye.

"Ivy, we don't need to-"

"I wasn't finished! Stop talking and just listen dammit! Everything we have is a lie, William. Everything except our girls. We can't go back and fix it. We've lived it for so long that there is no way we can live in the truth of our own existence.

Had I known when I met you that you weren't a white man, I never would have given you the time of day. You hid that from me until I fell in love with you, married you and had your child. It wasn't fair for you to do that William. I felt like I didn't get a choice in the matter. Then your secret became my secret.

We had just began this wonderful life and meeting important people and establishing some status in the community. How was I supposed to explain to people that my husband is part black? Then I would have to tell people that my children are bi-racial and have them shunned away from the best schools and robbed of opportunities that they so richly deserve." Ivy stared at the duvet cover on her bed as if she was having a conversation with it.

"Ivy, enough of this strolling down memory lane. The past is the past and you really shouldn't try to play the victim. You could have left at any time. You didn't owe anyone any explanation as to why you chose to leave, but you wanted to stay because the money was starting to flow heavily and you loved everything it brought with it. So don't make me and the girls your reasons why you had to live a lie all these years. You want honesty?" William leaned into Ivy's face. "You stayed for THE MONEY!"

Ivy reared back and slapped him so hard across the face that you could see her hand print.

"God dammit , Ivy!" William grabbed her hands and threw her down on the bed.

"You better not hit me William. You know the police don't take kindly to black men hitting white women! Hahahahahahahah!" Ivy began to laugh uncontrollably.

William looked over at his wife sprawled out in the middle of their bed smelling like vodka.

"Drunk bitch." he mumbled under his breath.

"Bitch? You know what William? Fuck you! Fuck you, your black mother, your black bastard son, and his black whore of a mother! Fuck you all! I can destroy your whole world! I am going to get me a lawyer and fuck up your whole company . I'm gonna take this house, your company, all your real estate property here, California, New York, and Florida! I'm gonna get it all , and then let's see how much that black bitch wants you. Let's see how the family reunion turns out. They'll scatter like roaches when they find out you have NOTHING, and have to go back to living in the ghetto with them!" Ivy taunted.

"I'm not doing this with you tonight Ivy.Call the damn sponsor and shut the hell up!" William picked up the phone and Ivy slapped it out of his hands again.

"I hate you! I hate what you've done to my life William!" Ivy sobbed into her hands.

"I can't do this anymore. I'm so tired. There's only one way to make it stop. I did everything I could to be a good wife and mother for this family, but it's not enough. It was never enough" Ivy's words slurred together.

William stood in the center of the room and waited for her to calm down. He could hear footsteps coming up the stairs.

"Ivy, please call your sponsor. She can help make it stop. The new number is on the note pad in the nightstand. Come on, call her before the girls see you this way." William pleaded.

"Yeah, it's in the night stand. I'll get it. It's gonna fix everything." Ivy mumbled and she crawled across the king sized bed to the night stand.

"Hello?" said a voice out in the hallway.

William turned to open the door just as Ivy pulled the gun from the nightstand and fired.

3 deafening shots rang out before Ivy dropped the gun and passed out.

William screamed "Oh my God! " as the door fell open and Grace fell into his arms.

Episode 148

2011-12-21T13:33:00.000-08:00

Kelly sat in the living room, waiting for Jonathan to get home. She couldn't figure out for the life of her who would have sent her that picture of Jonathan and Miguel. She hopped up and began pacing the floor. She knew that if that picture ended up in the wrong hands, Jonathan's life could be destroyed, better yet, their family.

When she heard the jingling of his keys, she ran and opened the door.

"Hey Kells. You happy to see me?" Jonathan said at the abrupt way Kelly flung the door open.

"Hey, yeah, um, we have a bit of a problem."

"I don't like the sound of that. Is this a somebody in the family is sick problem or a grab my pistol problem?" Jonathan said humorously.

That's what Kelly adored most about Jonathan. He is very funny and entertaining. She learned this early on when they started dating. They had so much in common and got along perfectly to where getting married, quite naturally, soon followed. Jonathan admitted to Kelly that he'd had homosexual thoughts for several years but never cheated on her. It wasn't until he met Miguel that it was confirmed. He said that he had never felt for any man the way he feels about him. Since he and Kelly are best friends, he knew that he had to be straight up with her.

A year into the marriage, Kelly felt something was off with Jonathan but couldn't put her finger on it. In her eyes, a gay man looks like Boy George, Sylvester, or Wayman in a Low Down Dirty Shame, not Jonathan. His six foot frame and genetically toned physique is what first caught Kelly's eye. His creamy beige colored skin, full goatee, and bald head were the second things. His mannerisms aren't effiminate, nor does he speak as if he's trying to sound like a woman, which was why Kelly was in total shock when he disclosed to her his preference. She'd thought that his lack of wanting to have sex with her was because he was abandoned, molested or neglected as a child --not that he was gay.

They've come to an agreement that they're going to "stay together" for the sake of their son Max. Included in the agreement is that they are not to speak of it to anyone in their family until Jonathan is ready. They're to keep their outside affairs private and be extremely careful about the company they keep. So, getting that anonymous picture is why Kelly is baffled about Jonathan's carelessness.

They both sat down on the couch. Kelly pulled out her phone. "Look!"

Jonathan gasped loudly. "What the? Where did you get this?"

"That's just it. I DON'T KNOW! It was sent anonymously."

"Get the fuck outta here!" Jonathan stood up, staring at the image of him and Miguel in a lip lock. "I was very careful."

"Uh, so you thought. I can't believe you would kiss him in public, Jonathan."

"I'm 100% sure I checked my surroundings before doing so. Furthermore, it was a simple peck. That's it. This picture makes it seem like we were throwing down."

Kelly chuckled lightly. "That's besides the point. The point is, now someone else knows about you, and clearly doesn't have enough balls to come forward and say who they are."

Jonathan sat back down and massaged his temples. "This is messed up on so many levels. I don't want my kids at school to see that. That's nobody's business." He said furiously.

"I know, Jon. So, what are we gonna do now?"

"Hell if I know. Guess we gotta wait it out and see what happens."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey, bro...long time no see...you good?" Were the overlapping exchanges between Blake and his good friend when he opened the door.

"I can't complain...I can't complain." Blake said as he shook his head. "Come in. I got somebody I want you to meet."

Blake guided his friend down the short hall and around the corner to the living room, where Shauna was still munching on Doritos. "Drew, this is my friend, Shauna. She's the one I was telling you about that's in some trouble."

Their eyes locked briefly before Shauna dropped the bag of chips, spinned her wheelchair around and darted towards the balcony. Blake looked at Drew then ran after her.

"Whoa. Whoa. Where the hell are you going?" Blake asked struggling to keep Shauna seated.

"So, you're in on it, too?" Shauna screamed loudly as tears poured down her face. "Does he have the whole fucking city in the palm of his hands."

"What are you talking about? Calm down, please!" Blake looked at Drew. "Do you know her, man?"

Drew nodded. "But I had no idea this was your girl, Blake, I swear."

Shauna was trembling like a leaf. "He's the one I was telling you about who held me captive in my home. And even pistol whipped me a couple of times."

"What is she talking about, bro?" Blake asked Drew. "I thought you were a bodyguard. Are you a henchman, now?"

"Look, it's not like that. I fell on hard times and agreed to do a job for someone. That's it. I had to play the role." He looked over at Shauna. "I am deeply sorry, but I had to prove I was worthy of doing the job or else I would've gotten handled."

"Man, I called you over here to help when you're apart of the problem." Blake yelled and pointed at Drew then turned to Shauna. "S, you got to believe me. I had no idea that he was into that other shit. He is my boy, since we were kids. I will not let him hurt you ever again."

"Yo, I'm not that dude. That shit is behind me. I thought I was going in to handle one thing but it turned out to be another. That motherfucker Ced is crazy, for real, and needs to be dealt with. So whateva you need me to do to take him down, I'm in."

Episode 147

2011-12-20T13:29:00.001-08:00

“Take her up to her mother,” said Marshall as he walked over to Christopher.

Neahvon looked at Marsha, he wasn’t quite sure what he was getting into. He had been told just to keep her company and to keep an eye on her. But Marsha didn't seem to need any assistance. She seemed to have her situation all under control.

As Marsha walked toward the elevator her tense body began to relax. She stretched out her fingers, and cracked her neck slowly, shivering.

Marshall yelled toward her, “Nine Nine”

Marsha inhaled and froze still. Neahvon looked at her but it seemed as he was looking right though her.

“Just take her in, she will be fine,” said Marshall.

Neahvon took Marsha’s limp hand and guided her onto the elevator. As the doors closed Marsha leaned against the elevator wall.

“I’m tired,” sighed Marsha.

“You should be, you've been through a lot,” said Neahvon.

“I know, my mom, Jason…this has all just been crazy…”

“Your dad, that guy?” Neahvon added.

“My dad, what?” Marsha questioned

Neahvon stood silent unsure of her questioning. She had just seen her father how could she not know what he was talking about. Neahvon understood that there was a lot more going on than he'd first thought..

“I haven’t seen my father in year’s, if that’s what your wondering. I doubt he will make it here to see my mom.”

“Oh, my bad I didn’t mean to pry,” insisted Neahvon as the elevator doors open and he directed Marsha to step out.”

“You're fine, it’s no biggie,” answered Marsha.

They approached Erica’s room. Marsha was extremely apprehensive, especially after the way their last convo went.

“Do you mind if I go in by myself,” asked Marsha.

“Naw, dat’s your mom’s, take your time.” said Neahvon. He thought if anything, she needed time.

“Thanks, I will be back out in a bit.”

Felecia saw Marsha enter Erica room, she walked toward Neahvon.

“Hello young man, how are you?” asked Felecia.

“I'm good,” answered Neahvon.

“How’s my granddaughter,” asked Felecia.

Neahvon pointed toward Erica’s door.

“Yes, Marsha,” she explained.

He looked at her nameplate, Dr. Felecia Knox. He recognized her name.

“Yes, I think she’s alright now.”

“Young man, I can tell by the way you looked at her when she went into that room that all is not well. I am sorry we are meeting this way. But I don’t have time for you to beat around the bush. You obviously know more than you need to, I just need you to cut the bull.”

“Ms. Knox. I…”

“Son, I just need to know what you have seen so I can take care of my grand baby, do you get that. Please let me know that you get that.”

“She flipped, I don’t know any other way to say it. It’s like she has multiple personalities.”

“She does,” replied Felicia.

Episode 146

2011-12-16T09:38:00.000-08:00

Chris immediately jumped out of his seat tossing his hands in the air as if he were under arrest. He did not want the three men trailing behind her to think he had done anything to provoke this. "That bitch is crazy" he screamed aloud to no-one in particular.

Trinity pounced on top of Winsdee like a cheetah knocking her out of her chair and on to the floor. Pounding her head into the ground with each blow. Winsdee was no punk but she did not stand a chance as she was totally blindsided by this ass whoopin she was receiving. Dice grabbed Trinity in an effort to pull her off of Winsdee and caught a sharp elbow to the face. He could taste the blood in his mouth. "Trinity" he yelled as the music came to a screeching halt. He grabbed her again successfully this time, but he pulled them both up because Trinity would not let go of Winsdee's hair. It was securely wrapped around her left hand and she continued to pound her with her right. Peanut grabbed Winsdee in an effort to separate the two as JR stood semi between the ladies.

Jayden couldn't help but notice the commotion going on behind her and zeroed in on Chris. She couldn't believe he was out with yet another woman. She marched over in disbelief. By the time she got through the crowd Trinity had released a bleeding Winsdee and was screaming at Chris again.

"How could you Chris? Marsha loved you with her heart and soul. Not only were you cheating with your ex, now you are here with this gutter bucket bitch! This bitch isn't worth the spit falling out of her mouth."

"And you, you trifling ass hoe" she turned to Winsdee. "Everybody and they mama is looking for your dumb ass and you are out here galvanting with someone else's husband. Your mother is in dismay, thinking you are dead or worse, but no you in the streets blocks from her crib tramping around. Fuck you both! You bastards deserve each other." Once again she yanked herself away from Dice and headed towards the restroom.

JR turned to Dice and said "Do you want me to destroy a few of these camera phones or just go get the car? You know this shit is gonna be on every blog site possible tomorrow."

"Damn, it sure is but I can't worry about that now I've got to get her outta here. Before she gets locked up"

"Bet" said JR as he walked towards the door.

Dice could feel a vibration in his pocket, "what now" he said to himself. He had missed a multitude of calls including Makkai and Trinity's mom. He opted to call Mrs. Jackson first.

"Dyson" she said hysterically, he could tell she was sobbing out of control.

"Ma, what's wrong?" he questioned heading towards the owners office.

"She's gone Dyson, my sweet baby girl is gone"!!!!

"Whoa ma, what are you talking about?"

"I've been calling her and so has Ant's mom. His car was parked outside her house and the house has been burned to the ground! We are sure he was inside but with her missing too they are presuming them both to be dead. We haven't talked since I refused to be apart of her sham of a marriage and now my baby is..."

Dice gasped, "Ma, she's with me, she's safe and she is with me. They got into an argument yesterday and he went to his parents house but she is with me, well she's in the bathroom but she's alive and well Ma. A lot has been going on so I am sure she wasn't ignoring either of you probably not getting a signal on her cellphone."

"What? She is with you? Thank you Jesus. Are you sure she's ok?"

"Yes ma she is".

"Can you break it to her or should I come to you guys?"

"No ma, you are in no position to drive. I will tell her and I'll be sure she calls you as well. I can't guarantee she will call you tonight but if not it will be first thing on the morning. I promise."

"Don't leave her Dyson, no matter what she says don't leave her alone."

"I won't, I promise. You lay down and get some rest. I'll take care of Trinity, you have my word!"

"I know you will baby, you always do" she said as she hung up.

Episode 145

2011-12-15T04:50:00.001-08:00

After Blake got over the initial shock of what Shauna was divulging to him, he shifted the gear from park to drive on his white, 2012 Chrysler 200.

"How did you get hooked up with someone so dangerous?" Blake asked, puzzled.

"By the time I found out, it was already too late." Shauna gazed out the window.

"I'm going to help you take care of this." Blake swept Shauna's hair behind her ear.

"No, Blake. I can handle this. I don't want you to get hurt."

"How, Shauna? How are you gonna handle it, by rolling him over with your wheelchair?" Shauna shot Blake a glare.

"I haven't worked out the details, but I'll come up with something."

"Call the police and have that nigga locked up. He is crazy, S."

"Don't you think I know that, Blake?"

Blake shook his head in disbelief as he pulled into his assigned parking spot. He got the wheelchair from the trunk and headed into the building. "Whats up Mateo?"

"Mmm huh." Mateo said with a smirk as he nodded.

"What was that about?" Shauna asked when they got out of earshot.

"Mateo's ass just nosey. That's all."

"Mmm huh!" repeated Shauna. "Now, don't you start." Blake said as they waited for the elevator.

"He prolly thinking look at this gigolo strolling in here with another chick."

"Strolling is right," he pointed at the wheelchair, "But I don't even be bringing girls here like that."

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. He fumbled with his keys as he became distracted by his cell phone continuously ringing.

"Um, you might wanna answer that." Shauna said sarcastically.

"Can I roll you in the house first, please?"

"Alright now. I'm not gonna keep being the butt of your jokes," she said playfully.

"Then what about...nah." Blake started to pick on her some more but opted not to. "I'll be right back." He pushed Shauna into the living room in front of the TV and handed her the remote as he stepped into his room and closed the door.

He scrolled through his phone and went to his most recent missed call then hit send.

"Hey you. I was in the middle of something. Are you Ok?" Blake said to the person on the other end of the phone.

"No, I'm not Ok. I'm at the jail. Can you come pick me up?"

"Jail? Wha..why are you there?"

"For a warrant for an unpaid traffic ticket. But I don't really wanna get into all that right now, so, can you?" Blake got silent. "Um, like I said, I'm kinda in the middle of some..."

"Oh, I get it. You with another girl right now."

Blake started stuttering. "No, its not like that. Trust me. She's just a friend going through a rough time. That's it."

"A friend, huh? Have you had sex with this "friend" before?" Before he could even answer, Lisa cut him off. "You know what? Never mind. Forget I even asked."

"Lisa, baby, please, don't be like that. Look, let me get her situated and I'll be on my way, Ok?"

"How long is that going to take?"

"Not too long, just gotta make a phone call real quick. Which jail you at?"

"Washtenaw County."

"Damn!" Blake said loudly. "Ima have to stop for food and water on the way, shit. You sure you don't have nobody else to ask? I mean, I don't mind, but if somebody can get there quicker..."

"No. I don't wanna call my parents. I don't have any friends like that, and my brother got locked up, too."

"What they was running a 2 for 1 special or some shit?" Ok, I'll hit you back in a minute."

"Ok."

They hung up.

Blake pushed a few numbers and made another call.

"I got a friend that's in some trouble. I need you to come over and look after her for me for a couple of hours."

Blake exited his bedroom and joined Shauna.

"I see you found the kitchen." Blake said to Shauna, who was drinking a tall glass of Tang and snacking on Doritos.

"Yup!"

"Ok, so, check this out. I got another damsel in distress I gotta tend to..."

"No, you can't leave me here!"

"Hold up...hold up. I got you covered. I called a good friend of mine who's a bodyguard and good with protecting people and shit like that, and asked him to come over."

"I don't know about this Blake. Why cant you just take me with you?"

"I...don't think that's a good idea, but, I'm telling you, my boy knows what he's doing. He's protected celebrities like Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston. This is his thang. This is what he do. Trust me, Ok?"

Shauna was still not convinced but felt as if she didn't have much of a choice. "Whatever, I need to charge my phone."

"Right, right." Blake scurried into the kitchen, opened up a miscellaneous drawer and pulled out a wad of chargers. "Take your pick."

Shauna went through almost all of them before finding one that matched. "So, how long you plan on being gone?"

"I just need to pick someone up from jail, drop 'em off at home and boom, I'll be back here. Do you want me to fix you something to eat? I can burn in the kitchen?" Shauna shook her head. "Nah, I'm fine."

Thirty minutes passed and there was a knock at the door. "That should be my boy now."

episode 144

2011-12-14T08:52:00.000-08:00

Toya stood in the hospital hallway and watched Blake walk away with the woman who destroyed her, "forever". A sharp pain went through her chest right before her stomach began to churn.

She put her hand over her mouth and ran to the nearest bathroom. She had barely made it inside before she lost her breakfast.

When she stepped out of the bathroom stall to clean herself up, she looked in the mirror and began to sob. She couldn't believe that she was still affected by Blake. She couldn't believe that the sight of him with Shauna could make her react in such a physical way.

She stood in the mirror and tried to fix her hair and make up, but she was trembling and crying so much that she couldn't get it together. She kept having flashes of Blake standing at the alter waiting for her. She remembered all the plans they made, and the promises he had broken.

"Fuckin' liar! I can't believe all the shit he told me, and I fell for it like a dumbass!" Toya said to herself as she felt the anger begin to grow.

"And this bitch trying to tell me that she didn't now he was married....She must think I'm completely stupid! That bitch knew he was married! Both of them can kiss my en-tire ass!"

Toya 's anger grew even more when she could see herself clearly in the mirror.

"And look at this shit! My hair is all fucked up. I threw up on my new outfit. And all this damn cryin' got me lookin' like 'Ricky the Raccoon'! His bitch ass ain't worth all this shit and neither is that hoe he left me for!"

Toya could hear herself getting louder and louder and was wondering if anyone in the hallway could hear her talking to herself.

"This nigga done drove me crazy. I'm really in this bathroom cussin myself out in the mirror. I need to get the hell outta here."

Toya reached into her purse and found a hairbrush and scrunchy. She brushed her hair into a ponytail, threw some water on her face, dried it off and dusted it with a little pressed powder. After she applied a little lip gloss, she cleaned her shirt as best as she could and then used to hand dryer to dry the wet spots.

She looked at herself in the mirror almost satisfied with her quick fix. The only thing left to do was to get rid of the smell, so she reached down into her purse again, and pulled out her Smooth as Ice body butter and rubbed it into her hands. The scent of Love Spell filled the room and she was ready to go.

On her way out the door, Toya glanced in the mirror one last time and said, "Ok Blake, I got you. The way I used to love you, is the way I hate you now....Stupid Mutha-fucka! You messed with the wrong bitch!"

Toya blew herself a kiss and walked out with a thoughtful smile on her face.

...................................................................................................................................................................

"Don't you think we should've told someone when our flight was getting in? It would have been nice to have someone meet us at the airport." Jazz whined to Mekkai as they made their way through Metro Airport.

"Babe, it wouldn't be a surprise if we told everyone we were coming. Besides, I tried to call Dice and I'm not getting through." Mekkai talked over his shoulder since he was walking in front of Jazz.

"Why you walkin' so fast? You know my legs ain't that long and you act like somebody is about to rob you or something," Jazz quickened her pace trying to keep up.

"Jazz, I'm tryin' to get to our bags. You know I hate leaving other people in charge of my things. Plus, we back in the 'D', thieves are everywhere! I've been robbed before and I ain't lettin' nobody take anything else from me. I'll beat a nigga ass fa real!" Mekkai walked even faster.

Finally, when they made it to the baggage claim, Mekkai's phone rang.

He didn't recognize the phone number even though it was a local call.

"Hello?"

"Mr. Duarte?"

"Yes, this is Mr. Duarte."

"This is Mr. Claxton. We spoke on the phone about the apartment for rent."

"Oh, yes Mr. Claxton. I'm glad you called. I was hoping I could get the keys in the next couple of days. We literally just got off the plane and..."

"Mr. Duarte, I'm sorry. I won't be able to rent the apartment to you after all. "

Mekkai frowned at Jazz.

"What do you mean you can't rent us the apartment? I sent you the money. "

Jazz kept listening in as they grabbed their bags and headed for the car rentals.

"Uhm no sir, I received only a partial payment. I was actually calling to see where you wanted me to send the refund, minus the application, credit and background check fees of course."

"Naw, Mr. Claxton. I sent the money Western Union to my cousin Sophia and she told me she took care of it."

"Sir, I only received half of what we agreed on. The security deposit was $500. The first and last months rent was $1600 plus the $50 application fee and $50 credit and background check both of which is non-refundable. The total came to $2200. I only received $1100."

Mr. Claxton's voice got deeper and more controlled.

"What do you mean $1100? I sent the entire amount! Are you trying to pull something on me because I wasn't here to hand the money to you myself?"

Mekkai put his mouth as close to the phone as he could get it.

Jazz stood to his left listening in disbelief.

"Well, Mr. Du-arte! If you had just mailed me a check, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

"And I told you, Mr. Clax-ton! I don't have a checking account. I don't trust banks! This is some bullshit! Where the hell is my money?!" Mekkai's tone had passers-by looking at him like he was going to explode.

"Look Sir, I don't have your money. I suggest you check with your cousin , Sophia. In the meantime where would you like me to send your refund? May I send it to the contact we have on your application? Oh wait, that would be your cousin , Sophia Duarte. Maybe that's not a good idea." Mr. Claxton chuckled to himself.

"What the fuck are you laughin' at? I don't see shit funny! Don't mail me shit! I'm comin' to pick it up in person! ....Haha, hell!" Mekkai was so intense that Jazz was afraid to ask any questions.

"Mr. Duarte, I must warn you that violence won't be tolerated. Besides, you're angry with the wrong person. I'm sorry we couldn't do business but my assistant will have your check ready whenever you come in." The nervousness in Mr. Claxton's voice was subtle but still present.

"Ok. I'll be seeing you real soon. Have my shit ready! I'm on my way NOW!" Mekkai hung up the phone and snatched the car rental keys from Jazz.

"Come on , Jazz! After we get this money, we gotta find Sophia and ask her what the hell she did with my muthafuckin' money! Then we need to look for another place to stay! Shit! I knew comin' back here was a mistake!"

Jazz was quiet until they found their rental in the lot.

"Kai...maybe you should call Dice again. He said we were always welcome to stay with him."

Jazz spoke as softly as she could hoping to soothe his anger.

"Didn't I tell you that Nigga ain't answering his fuckin' phone! Besides, I'm yo man! I'm the one that's gonna put a roof ova yo head. Not anybody else!" Mekkai slammed the trunk down and clenched his teeth.

"Damn, Kai! I hate it when you act like this! Sometimes you can be so sweet and loving but when you get like this, it scares me. I don't know why you're takin' it out on me. I was with YOU when all this happened. We can stay in a hotel for a few days until we figure out where we're going but if you don't call Dice, I'm calling Trinity. Then you can be pissed off by YOURSELF 'cause I'll go stay with my girl." Jazz got in the car and slammed the door.

Mekkai hated the thought of Jazz leaving him and the door slam brought him back to reality.

When he got in the car, he pulled out his cell and dialed Dice again.

Episode 143

2011-12-13T06:46:00.000-08:00

Terrance sat tired, gazing at Casey, his wife. Thoughts began to swirl around his head.

“What are you smiling about T?”, questioned Casey. “Seriously, you look suspect.”

“Actually, I am just adoring my wife, and I am thinking about all the ways I can appreciate her, from her head to her toes.”

“Um you just want to have sex. So put up the mop and bucket and quit trying to clean it up……”

“Is it such a terrible thing for a man to want to be with his wife?”

“Terrance, quit playing…you just want some nookie. Going without was a struggle for you.”

Terrance grinned devilishly.

“Sex sidebar,” Casey giggled. “Bay your phone has been mighty quiet.”

“Your are right,” he acknowledged as he pulled his phone out of his pocket.

“No signal”

“I think I was hearing ghost beeps,” she laughed. “ I am so used to your phone going off constantly.”

“Let me go out side and check my messages. I didn’t even notice it. I need to make a few calls anyway.”

As Terrance stepped outside of the emergency doors, his phone began to glitch up with bleeps. Once they stopped, he saw he had a few missed call from his mother. Instead of listening to the messages he just called her back.

“Ring Ring”, the phone sounded.

“Terrance, where have you been. I have been trying to reach you?”

“I am at the hospital, Detroit Receiving.”

“Then why are you calling me, why aren’t you in here.”

“In here where ma?”

“In Key Key’s room!”

Terrance turns to see Casey walking toward him.

“Key Key’s room?”

“Yes Terrance its 204, I swear I said it on the message I left you.”

Terrance was very confused and wasn’t quite grasping what his mother was saying. Why was Key Key at the hospital? What happened?

“I will see you in a sec ma,” said Terrance as he hung up the phone.

Casey could tell that something wasn’t right. “Baby, what’s wrong?” She said as she placed his hands within hers.

“Key Key is here.”

“Your mom brought her up so we can tell her we're married.”

“No Case… something happened. I guess she was admitted. I don’t know what happened.”

“Where is she Terrance?”

“204”

“Let’s get to Key Key, she's gonna be okay.”

Terrance and Casey headed toward Key Key's room.

Episode 142

2011-12-02T05:41:00.001-08:00

With the confidence that he could handle her, C-Lo decided against assembling a small team of men to travel with him to Detroit. All he really cared about was getting Winsdee to return with him. He honestly had no clue where Mello was, he wasn't even sure that using her as a pawn would convince Winsdee to give up her location or come to him, but luckily it worked. He floated down the freeway in his 2000 Pearl Cadillac El Derado with his best friend "Blunt". The car was so smokey it was a wonder he could see out of the windows. There was a mixture of Ronald Isley, UGK, Young Jeezy and R. Kelly blaring through the speakers. He had just hit Ann Arbor when the lights began to flash.

"Driver pull over," was all he heard. He could tell the officer was using a Megaphone. "Driver, pull over immediately and turn off your engine".

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck," yelled C-Lo as he drifted off to the shoulder.

"Driver, turn off your engine, roll the window down, remove the keys from the ignition, place them in your left hand and hold both hands out the window." The officer had already called for back up and cautiously approached C-Lo's vehicle with his side arm drawn.

"Slow down Playgirl there is no need for all of that," C-Lo replied to the officer through the cloud of smoke.

"Do you know that marijuana is illegal sir?"

"I got a card for that."

"License and registration please Sir".

He handed her his license and began to talk to her real slick like most Chicago Pimps, by the time he was finished, she'd recalled her request for back up and they had exchanged numbers. She informed him her shift would be over in a few hours and they had set up a location to meet shortly thereafter.

*****************************************************************************************

After arriving at the honeycomb hideout, Shelly drew herself a nice warm bath. She stared at her naked body in the mirror almost as if it were the first time she'd seen it. She began to twist & turn to make sure she could see it from all angles. She began to wonder why Antwan didn't find her worthy. The longer she stared, the angrier she became. She stood there until she heard the water spilling over on the floor. She put a couple of towels on the floor, kicking them around to sop up the water. She got in the tub and began to reflect.

She met Antwan in chemistry class. He was a beautiful shade of brown with a killer smile. Looking at his physic she could tell he was a jock. "He has got to be dumb as hell," she whispered to her home girl. The very next voice she heard was that of her professor.

"It's time to determine your partners for the semester. Rayshell, stand up. I want you to partner with Antwan.

Episode 141

2011-12-01T04:49:00.000-08:00

Grace paced back and forth as she looked out the window of her employers immaculate kitchen.

Grace had worked for the Meeks for many years and had seen and heard just about everything.

Some of those things she happened upon purely by accident. That was the case when William Meeks and her sister Edna were having an affair. She saw them both in the pool house while Ivy Meeks was at a baby shower for one of her friends.

Grace was so upset that she had seen them together that she didn't talk to either one of them for 2 days. Finally, when Edna asked her why she was so quiet, she had to let it out.

"I can't believe you Edna! Have you lost your mind?"

"What's wrong with you Grace? I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, really? So how come it took you so long to go out there and clean the pool house the other day? Nobody has even been in there for months. It's shouldn't have need much more than dusting."

Edna's face went blank. She wanted to keep her secret a little longer because she knew Grace wouldn't approve.

"What? You spying on me now? I'm grown and whatever I do is MY business. Don't worry about me." Edna tried to act as if she had everything under control.

"Ok, Miss grown woman, what are you gonna do when his wife finds out she's been paying you to sleep with her husband? She's gonna fire yo dumb ass and probably mine too cuz I'm your sister!"

Edna dropped her head because she knew Grace was right. She knew how cruel white women could be when they felt like they have been embarrassed and betrayed.

"I'm sorry Grace. I didn't mean for it to happen."

"Really? This is some old slave master mess right here. I can't believe you fell for it? Mama always warned us about this. Hell, I told you I had a couple of close encounters myself and I told you to steer clear of the men! They can't help themselves when they have frigid wives who only wanna spend money and impress people. They get lonely and then they see us and all our curves and get hot and bothered. Before you know it, they got you in a room by yourself and they promise you the sun and the moon if you give it up and keep the secret. I just can't believe you fell for it."

"You don't understand Grace. He really loves me. He's told me so much about himself and his family. He even said that he wants to pay for me to go back to school. His wife don't love him. You know Ms. Ivy only wanna be rich. She don't know nothin' about love."

Grace looked at her sister and burst into laughter.

"Fool! Did he tell you that? He told you he LOVE you? And you believed him?" Grace laughed loud and hard but she was terrified of anyone finding out.

"Lord, chile. You need to end it before you get pregnant!" Grace put her arm around Edna.

Edna laid her head and Grace's shoulder and said , "Too late." Both women began to cry.

Grace stood there in that kitchen and relived that day while she waited for her sister to call from the hospital so she could pass the message on to Mr. Meeks about his granddaughter.

As she watched the wind blow the tress in the yard , the phone rang.

"Edna? Is everything ok?"

"Yeah, KeyKey is fine. They said it was food poisoning. They're ready to release her."

"Praise GOD. I hope that's all it was. Thanks for getting back to me. I'll call Mr. Meeks and let him know the good news. He was so worried about that baby."

"I already talked to him. He was on his way up here!"

"Oh Lord...what is he thinking? What if Ms. Ivy had found out?"

"She was with him arguing with him not to come. Grace it was a big mess. I'll tell you all about it as soon as I get this baby home and settled in."

"Ok, you take care of her and I'll be there as soon as I can. But you know, with all that's said and done, I have to give Mr. Meeks credit. He was willing to risk everything to make sure his grand baby was alright. I'll talk to you later. Bye." Grace hung up the phone but when she turned around Staci was standing behind her.

"Grace, who were you talking to? And why did you say that my father has a grand baby?"

Both women just stood there staring at each other.

Episode 140

2011-11-29T18:34:00.001-08:00

"Don't cry. It's gon' be alright." Ced assured Lisa. "I'ma get you out, so don't even trip, ok?"

Lisa looked over at her big brother. "Um, the last I checked, you got cuffs around your wrists too."

"I know, but I got connections. We aint gon' be up in there overnight. I promise you that."

Lisa shook her head as she stared at her cute, new jeans with the ruching at the ankles, her beige and black beaded top, and her gold, sparkly pumps. "All of this because of a stupid speeding ticket I forgot to pay and ended up suspending my license."

"Do you trust me?" Ced asked.

"Of course I do. What kinda question is that?"

"Then stop worrying. You will not have to spend another night in jail...EVER!"

When they pulled up to the County Jail, one officer guided Lisa to where she needed to go to get prepped, while the other did the same to Ced. Lisa sulked as she was separated from her source of protection. Ced noticed and quickly reacted.

"Baby girl. Be strong, ok? You're gonna get outta here."

Lisa was taken into a room where she was told to strip her clothing off and replace it with a puke green-colored jumpsuit. From there, she was taken to Booking. Now with shackles on both her ankles and wrists, she kept her composure as she sat across from the female officer.

"Do you know why you're here?" The light-skinned officer with freckles asked.

"Yes ma'am."

"Well, that's a good thing. Most of the time we get mothafuckas that come up in here that don't have a clue." She looked over at her sidekick for validation. "You got here just in time. You wanna know why?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Please stop calling me ma'am. Shit, I'm old, but I aint that old." The officer cracked a smile. "You got here just in time because you'll be able to see the Magistrate today at 1 o'clock instead of having to sit your ass in jail and not see him for the next couple of days. That's good, right?"

"Hell yeah, I mean, yes ma'am..."Lisa almost forgot where she was.

"Girl, you good. My ears won't bleed if you cuss. Shit, if they did, I'll have blood coming out both my damn ears as much as we cuss around here." She and her buddy laughed.

Feeling a little more comfortable, Lisa asked, "So, what's going to happen next? Am I going to need to call somebody for money?"

"Well, that depends on what he sets your bond at. Let me see something." The officer scanned through the computer. "Oh, you're here for a punk ass DWLS. More than likely the Magistrate will reduce your bond to a PR. But don't fucking quote me. I'm just going by what I normally see."

"What's a PR?"

"Personal Recognizance. Which basically means he lets you out without paying any money and you betta bring yo ass back to your next court date."

The officer's sidekick tapped his watch.

"Ok. Ok. Take her to lockup."

Lisa's eyes practically bulged out her head. "Lock...up? I thought you said..." She said as her voice cracked.

"Relax. It's just a holding cell where you wait until the Magistrate calls your case. Alright?"

Lisa acquiesced. She trusted what the light-skinned lady with red hair and freckles told her. She sat in the cold, smelly cell until it was time to face her fate, and was filled with jubilation when she was finally released.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"She'll be all set to go home in a few hours, Mrs. Harris," said the doctor.

"So, that's it? I don't have to do anything special when she gets home?" Key Key's grandmother questioned.

"Besides staying away from solid foods, she should be fine. Keep her on a clear, liquid diet until her stomach is feeling better."

"What did I eat to get food poisoning?" Key Key asked softly and with little energy.

"We don't know baby, but I'm going to take good care of you when we get home. Ok?" She kissed her forehead.

"You gave your grandmother quite the scare passing out like that."

"Yes she did. Is that normal when people get food poisoning?"

"If they're temperature gets really high, yes, which was the case with Keshania. We want to monitor her for, maybe, a couple of hours before she's discharged.The nurse will be right in to give her some juice. Do you like apple juice?"

Key Key nodded and smiled.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"A dude?" Junior asked QT as they walked to the car.

"Yes, a dude." She asserted.

"Are you sure?" That's not something you wanna say about somebody unless it's for real."

"I bullshit you not...There they go right there. Hide." They crouched behind a big dumpster. "See?"

Before Jonathan and Miguel embraced one another, they checked their surroundings. QT sneakily peeped her head over the dumpster and snapped a picture.

"What the hell are you doing?" Junior grumbled.

"What does it look like, fool?" QT pushed a few buttons then put the phone in her pants pocket.

Junior's phone beeps. "Why did you send it to me?"

"Because...I need you to send it to Kelly from your phone."

"Why from my phone?"

"I can't send it from mine. She knows my number."

"Why send her a picture? Why don't you just go to her and tell her you saw him?"

"Because, women never believe that shit. They always think some salt in the game and that you want their man. So, to get right to the point, she can see for her own eyes."

"Fuck that. I'm not getting in the middle of that shit. You do it yourself. What is sending her a picture gonna prove anyway?"

"Alright nigga. I'll do it myself." She fetched the phone from her pocket. "All I gotta do is go to my settings and hide my ID...just...like...that!" She pressed send.

"Man, that's your cousin. I think you shoulda just told her. Women...y'all so unstable, I swear." Junior made sure the coast was clear then headed to his car.

QT followed closely behind. "I just want her to see that her life aint no better than anybody else's, with her stuck up ass."

Episode 139

2011-11-29T13:49:00.000-08:00

The flash of light in the hallway was blinding. Movements were quick and precise. In less then thirty seconds, Marsha was laid against the wall.

“Marsha,” Neahvon hollered.

“Ne venez pas {do not come},” hissed Marsha!

As Neahvon approached Marsha he realized she was not alone on that hospital floor.

“Pere {Father}?” Marsha called.

“He’s your Father?” Neahvon questioned as he looked away from her. “Your people asked me to watch her, you didn’t think it was important to tell me she was your daughter. Ya'll didn’t think this was information that I needed to know. Your daughter, are you serious?”

Marsha slid up the wall more, interlocking her arms around the neck of Christopher.

“Let him go Sha, is he unconscious,” asked Marshall.

Neahvon was shaken up and confused by Marsha's demeanor.

“Non, il n'est pas -- {No he’s not},” smiled Marsha.

“Snap out of it child,” said Marshall as he looked at Marsha.

“Quoi? (What?),” questioned Marsha.

“sept un cinq neuf { seven one six nine } break sha break," said Marshall as he placed his hand on her left shoulder.

“Dad?” asked Marsha.

“Baby?” Marshall sighed.

Marsha screamed as she looked down and noticed that she was holding a man that seemed to be unconscious. “What the hell,” she squealed as she pushed Christopher off of her. “What just happened? Who is he? Why is he on me?" She said as she stood and began to wipe at her clothes frantically.

Marshall looked at Neahvon as if not to acknowledge what just happened.

“Neahvon, are you okay too?” asked Marsha noticing that he looked frazzled. She walked closer to him, but he back up. Marsha stared puzzled. “Did I do something?”

“No baby you didn’t," answered Marshall.

“Dad, I know I asked why is he here,” as she pointed to Christopher,

"but why are you here?”

“I came to see your Mother, and this young man here," as he looked at Neahvon, "was pointing me in the right direction,” answered Marshall.

“Yea, I was coming to check on you when he told me who he was," replied Von.

“Why was I holding that man, and is he hurt?” asked Marsha.

“The power went out sweetie, I think you all ran into each other. I'm not sure, but go up to your mom’s room. This young man and I will make sure that he gets the medical attention he needs. I know your mother would like to see you.”

“Something doesn’t feel right Dad. I just don’t know what it is."

“It’s okay baby, you might've hit your head in the commotion, you'll be okay.”

“I love you Marsha.”

“Je t’aime pere {I love you dad}!”

Episode 138

2011-11-23T07:46:00.001-08:00

Jayden sat in the bar taking shots of 1800 with Patron Margarita chaser and reflecting. She reflected on all aspects of her life but at this particular moment was totally focused on Trish.

"I can't believe she lied to me. She looked me right in my face and told me they raped her. Obviously to cover up the fact that she's been fucking some dude. I am a human lie detector or did she forget!?!?!"

She wondered how long Trish had been cheating on her. Obviously long enough to screw up Marsha's marriage. Her thoughts instantly turned to Marsha and the lust kicked in. Marsha looked nothing like Trish, she in fact looked rather homely. But Jayden was sure underneath her frumpy way of dressing, there was something special.

"Hit me again," she said as the bartender walked by.

"Ma'am is there someone you would like me to call for you?" She replied.

"Yes, thank you. Could you call Jose Ceurvo and tell him either his drinks aren't working or you are pouring them too damn slow!"

She slid a double shot over to her and said, "I just think you are beautiful, way too beautiful to cry in this drink alone." The bartender touched Jayden's rainbow colored wrist band before saying, "My shift is over in an hour. If you don't mind, I'd like to keep you company, maybe ease your pain."

**************************************************************************

After spending an eventful day with Windee and her family, Peanut picked up the phone to call his little brother. They hadn't really spoken today. For the most part, they haven't even had a real conversation since he arrived in town.

"D, what up doe?"

"Hey bro-mo whass poppin?"

"I need to holla at you for a minute. We need to politic."

"Ok, whassup?"

"Man come on, you know I am not about to talk to you on this phone. I'm here nigga I'm not oversees. Where are you & I'll come to you?"

"I'm leaving Receiving with Trinity..."

"Whoa whoa whoa, wait, what? I thought you were all in a remote area? What is going on? What happened?"

"One of her co-workers was shot and another co-worker's mother was stabbed, so we came back."

"Shit, sounds to me like she needs a new damn job!" They both chuckled. "So, where are yall going?"

"Uh, well, I think I need to feed her..."

Trinity interjected, "Please stop talking about me like I'm some animal and who are you telling all my business to?"

"Put her on the phone D."

"Trin, how are you baby?"

"Hi Nut! I could be better, but, then again, it could be worse so I won't complain."

"I heard that love. So check it, I need to holla at y'all and you know I don't do the phone thing. So, is it ok if I meet y'all somewhere?"

"Yeah, Big Brother. You know there is always time for you in my life. I could use a drink though. Can we meet at the Centaur Bar? It's right behind the Fox Theater."

"Bet, I'll see you in a few sweetie."

"Hey Nut...should I call Windee?" Trinity giggled.

"Oh it's like that huh? Is this a double date? Oddly enough, I just left her. We've been together all day."

"And the plot thickens..."

"Naw Boo. It wasn't like that. Mama Winnie is the only girl for me." They both burst out in laughter."

"See you in a minute Nut!"

When they arrived at the bar they saw Peanut walking inside, so JR let Dice and Trinity out while he parked the car. Once inside Trinity walked right up to the hostess.

"Hey T-Cubed" said the hostess.

"Hey girl, I need my spot in the back their are 4 of us."

"Not a problem give me one minute." The waitress scurried off.

"Damn Sis you got a spot? That's wild as hell. That means you are in here way too damn much." Peanut laughed.

"Shut up, it ain't even like that. You would be amazed at the places I have spots. In my line of work, my press pass is more important than a key to the city."

"Where's your shadow D? I could be trying to kill you?" Peanut continued to joke.

"He's parking the car, and I think I could hold you off until he gets here."

"You need to hire a driver man. Quit pimpin JR into being your everything. Security, Driver, Assistant, Maid." At this point Peanut was laughing hysterically.

"What's so funny? I wanna laugh." Said JR as he approached the group just in time to be seated.

"Sorry T, I didn't know you were coming so I had to move a few things around." The hostess said as they watched a group of angry women being re-seated.

They sat down and ordered a few drinks while making small talk before Peanut told them what was going on with Windee. Trinity was in awe. Her friend needed her and she was so wrapped up in the drama she created for herself that her ace didn't want to bother her with this life altering news. They were in mid conversation when she noticed Chris sitting on the other side of the room with some woman who was obviously not Marsha. She rose to her feet. As she did, the three gentlemen she was seated with. stood too.

"Sneaky Mother Fucker" she said out-loud to no one in particular.

"What's wrong? questioned Dice as JR stepped in front of her.

"That's Chris" she pointed in his direction. "Marsha's cheating ass husband!"

"Whoa, lil mama don't go running your ass over there. As you sit at this table with 3 men none of which you are married to."

"Are you fucking kidding me right now? JR please get out of my way before you make me..."

JR stepped to the side and Dice grabbed her elbow as she attempted to walk away..."Trin."

She snatched her arm and went marching over and as good little soldiers the men followed her in case Chris wanted to jump bad.

"So Marsha is going through the worst time of her life and you are out here living it up with some bitch?" Trinity said as she turned to face the woman. "Winsdee? Am I being punked?" That was all they heard before Trinity began to lay hands on Winsdee.

Episode #137

2011-11-22T20:04:00.000-08:00

William Meeks walked around in his office ringing his hands. He was never good at hiding anxiety. Long complicated business deals didn't phase him. Multi-million dollar purchases made him giddy. He could even handle Ivy when she started talking about divorcing him and suing him for all his money.

William learned very early in his life that he had the ability to persuade people to see things his way. He was a master of illusion. He was handsome and charming, and most people found it very hard not to like him.

William was used to being in control and could quickly find his way from the beginning of a problem, to a solution that always ended in his favor.

The only time his vision became clouded was when it came to family problems. He wasn't as sure of himself when his feelings were involved.

William continued to pace back and forth in his office and every so often, he would glance at the photo of Staci and Jenefer when they were little girls. He adored his daughters, but the picture always made him think that it was incomplete. As much as he loved his girls, he wished he could proudly display a photo of his son.

He wished he had made better choices in his younger life. The guilt of having a son that he didn't raise ate a little piece of him every day. He loved the idea of having a son, but his ambition , his drive, and his wife made it impossible for him to be the father he wanted to be.

William paced more and more and rubbed his hands harder and harder as the voice echoed in his ear...... "You need to be here William! This is your family too!"

He thought he could handle just waiting for a a phone call to get updates, but it was becoming incessantly unbearable. William threw his hands in the air, grabbed his suit jacket and headed for the door.

Just as he stepped out into the hallway, Ivy appeared.

"Where are you going William? I thought we were going to meet Todd and Sandy."She asked

William looked at his wife, took a deep breath and said, "I'm going to the hospital. Something terrible has happened."

Ivy already knew what he was talking about. She felt a sharp pain go through her stomach.

And with her jaws clinched, coldly replied , "Over my dead body! Those people are NOT your concern and you'd better keep in mind the consequences and repercussions if you show up at that hospital to play concerned father. I won't have it! The press will eat us alive!"

William looked at his wife, rubbed his hands together and said "You're right Ivy. The press would eat us alive.

Ivy relaxed her face, tucked her arm under her husbands and began walking towards the elevator.

"Now that we've settled that, let's get going. I don't want to keep Todd and Sandy waiting. How would we ever explain going to the hospital to look after those people?"

William and Ivy stepped into the empty elevator and as the door closed, William Meeks looked at the snobbish smirk on his wife's face and sharply said, " You don't have to explain anything darling, because you're not going. I'm going alone."

The surprised look on Ivy's face was the last thing Mr. Meeks assistant saw when she returned from the restroom.

136 Episode

2011-11-22T10:29:00.000-08:00

Felecia and Mary stood at Erica’s bedside. Mary looked at Felecia as if to ask permission to move forward with questioning. Felecia nodded with approval.

“What the hell happened Erica?” Mary asserted.

“I was attacked. What do you think happened?” responded Erica.

“What we do know is that you aren’t telling us everything,” snapped Mary.

“What the fuck else you want to know cause I would seriously like to know why I am always the fucking pawn. Why ain’t they snatching and beating ya’ll asses? How about that shit? Answer that?”

“Erica, we have had our fair share of issues and we have handled them accordingly," responded Mary.

“Oh yeah, I forgot, my mom and her best friend are hired guns.”

“That is not what we are,” snapped Felecia.

“I am so sorry mother. That’s what you were, right? So you all ain’t planning on killing anybody in the near future, right? You all have found Jesus and changed for the better, I see,” Erica said facetiously. “I mean, how many kids are accustomed to walking in the basement to find men tied to tables and chairs? But that’s my life, what I am used to. But I'm messed up and you all have the nerve to say I have issues.”

“Are you bitter?” Mary asked as she leaned into Erica. “You act as if you weren’t bred for this shit. You act as if you weren’t afforded the same fucking opportunity to get out as everybody else. You made choices and now you are dealing with the consequences. Quit acting like you were not aware of the family business.”

“Aware?” Erica asked “I was born into this.”

“Yes you were,” said Felecia as she grabbed Erica’s hand. “And don’t you forget that.”

“Mom, I ..” said Erica as she was interrupted.

“Not now Erica. I know I didn’t give you the best life.”

“Of course not, you saved that for Marsha," laughed Erica.
Felecia released Erica’s hand. “That’s what you think? You chop up her life as easy. She only has it easy now because she can’t recall the hard life she really had.”

“Blah blah blah, mom. I don’t wanna hear her sad story, because obviously mine don’t mean shit,” said Erica annoyingly.

“Ricki, quit acting like we don’t care about you because you know we do,” stated Mary. “Just tell us what you know Ricki. You were trained for too many years not to have any information. Your gift is amazing.”

“My gift, more like my curse. Yes I remember, I remember everything. They thought I was blacked out for a period of time. I slowed my breathing down to pretty much nothing,” Erica paused and looked at Felecia. “What you need to be most concerned about is the fact that Jac is back and she says you all have something that belongs to her.”

Episode 135

2011-11-21T17:34:00.001-08:00

Aunt Brenda put all of Skyy's church dresses and London Fog coats in garment bags and most of her other items in big suitcases. She didn't pack everything because she knew Maxine would replace her clothes, plus some. She was sad to see her go but knew it was necessary for her to be around more of her family and get the answers she deserved.

Skyy had been going to church since she was a little girl. Aunt Brenda believed that's what was lacking in Tammy's upbringing and refused to allow Skyy to fall prey to the cruel world; it seemed to be working so far. By the time Tammy was Skyy's age, she had already been pregnant. Skyy showed no interest in boys. All she was concerned with was getting good grades and playing basketball. Skyy and Tammy were polar opposites. Aunt Brenda was convinced that Skyy must've taken after her father, whoever he is.

She and Tammy's mother were the closest of all the sisters. They were so close that they married brothers and entertained the thought of having a double wedding, but their parents opposed. So, they all went to the Justice of the Peace instead. Immediately after, the sisters tried to get pregnant at the same time, so their kids could play together, attend the same schools, and maybe grow up to be best friends like they were. That dream was short-lived once Aunt Brenda found out she was unable to bare children. She and Uncle Jessie didn't sulk nor wallow in regret. They lived their lives to the fullest up until the day Uncle Jessie died unexpectedly. He loved and treated Tammy and Skyy as if they were his seeds, and even stayed with Aunt Brenda after discovering she played a major role in why his brother abandoned his family.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Since Sarah was a teenager, she was always told that she "acted Black" and had a body like a "Black" girl. All of her friends were Black and she watched BET faithfully. When she was offered an opportunity to work at Michigan Works in an urban neighborhood, she gladly accepted.

Her boyfriend of two years, Brian, stuck out like a sore thumb when he came in to add his name to the talent bank. She thought he was the cutest thing with his white skin, freckles and naturally curly dark hair. His faded, baggy jeans had rips in them and were frayed at the hem from having kissed the ground one too many times. He looked free-spirited, like a bohemian. Like her.

Early on in their relationship, it was established that it would be an open one. They've seen too many couples fall prey to mundane, monotonous sex lives...and they wanted no part of that. One person is not physically capable of fulfilling a mate's wants and needs. A person may be spectacular at performing oral, but is terrible when it comes to penetration. For instance, Sarah refers to Brian as the Cunnilingus King. The second he places his tongue on it, he practically jolts her to an orgasm; however, when it's time to make the bed rock, he's lackluster. She loves his passion, his attentiveness, his sensitivity. But she wants somebody who can work his magic stick...like Duke.

Sarah and Brian met Duke and Dayna at a private swingers party. They were voyeurs the first time they went and quickly participated in full swap. After swapping with Duke and Dayna a few times, the couples would invite each other over to their homes. Duke was exactly the missing piece to Sarah's puzzle. He knew how to put it down...proper. Sarah and Duke had met each other on a solo mission before the party, unbeknownst to their partners. So, when the time came for all four of them to meet up, it was not a coincidence, but Sarah and Duke introduced themselves to one another as if it were their first time.

Episode 134

2011-11-18T12:35:00.001-08:00

"Uh Yeah Case, what's up?" Trinity replied as she stood and begin to walked with Casey.

"So, did you happen to get the interview?" Casey snickered. "Or are you on your way?" she glanced out the window at Dice.

"Yes, I think I have everything you need," disregarding Casey's insinuation.

"What's up with Tasha Smith? I am guessing it's not too much since he hasn't taken his eyes off you since you got here."

"Oh shit, I mean snap Casey I didn't even ask him about her...it honestly slipped my mind."

"Well I guess that means you aren't done then right?"

"I guess not, I'm sorry I was just a little distracted."

"A little distracted huh, I understand. It's been a tumultuous day for us all. As your girl I have sympathy for you, as your boss I am empathetic to your situation but Tellinit is still our priority. This is the cover story Trin."

"I know Casey, I am not trying to make excuses. I was just being honest, Tasha Smith was the last thing on my mind. With the night I've had I'm proud to have accomplished as much as I have. I will ask him about her now and that will conclude our interview."

"I know Jason was going to do the shoot for you. I will assign you another photographer, unless."

"No Casey it's fine, you will have the cover story and photos 1st thing in the morning. I will messenger them to you."

"Messenger, by messenger do you mean Mateo?" They both chuckled. "You act like we don't live in the same building." Casey continued to laugh.

"Yeah we do but I have other plans. I'm not going home tonight, I'm not really trying to see Antwan right now. I don't know if he's there but I know I WON'T be."

"About that," Casey's body relaxed a bit more, she put her arm around Trinity and they walked over to the other side of the room as if it were more private. Trinity could tell Casey was now in "girlfriend" mode. "You know we got the LobbyGuard System installed, so if you are really fearful, we can add him to the list of people not permitted to enter the building."

"Thank you for your concern Casey. I don't want to lock him out yet, I'll give him 48 hours to get his shit 1st. As a matter of fact...," Trinity whipped out her cell and text Antwan.

"U hve 48hrs to get ur shit outta my spot b4 I have it removed. Time started ticking the second u put ur hands on me!" She pressed send so hard she thought he could feel it.

"Trinity, if you need me or...,"

"Casey, I'm fine trust me. You know as I do that getting married was a bad idea, who just marries a man they haven't seen in 6 or 7 years. I wonder if I can get it annulled stating diminished mental capacity." Again both ladies chuckled and Trinity rose to her feet. "I better go see Jason."

"Trinity, life is too short to be unhappy. You have to do what's best for you. If there is someone out there," she flashed a quick look at the door then back to Trinity, "that makes you happy and completes you, you owe it to yourself & your husband to be honest enough to move on. If Antwan really loves you he will understand, and I believe he ultimately wants what's best for you...even if it isn't him."

Trinity threw her arms around Casey. "Thank you for your support Casey! Now take heed to your own words before Terrance gives in to one of those scallywags!" She winked, "We got married! In the hospital chapel not long ago. We'll have to go get the license Monday morning, but we did it right here in front of God oh and Jenefer." She grinned and blew a kiss at Terrance.

"Congrats Casey!!! I thought I was going to get to make a big deal out of your wedding...we need to have the post marriage, before it's truly legal, bachelorette party. I'm devastated you two didn't wait for me, but...,"

"Love wouldn't let me wait," she smiled.

Trinity looked at Dice then Terrance before getting back to Casey and whispered, "hold on to him." As Trinity walked past Terrance she bumped him and said, "Welcome to the family and please don't make me have to kill you," as she exited the room.

Trinity went in to see Jason. Although there was a guard posted at his door, Dice stood there as if he too were on the payroll. The guard starred at Dice for a moment and was attempting to make small talk when JR approached them.

"J-Boogie!!! Is that you fam?"

"Cuzzola, hey man whatchu doin here?" JR stated as he gave the guard dap followed by the infamous man hug.

"Workin man, workin, what about you?"

"Same here fam, this is my mans Dice, Dice this is Cuz, didn't yall meet at that picnic before they put Anderson Park Place on the Isle?"

"Oh yeah, I knew you looked familiar. You're the rapper right?" Cuz questioned as he extended his fist to Dice.

"Yeah that is one of my many talents," Dice said before turning to JR. "She is inside with Jason, I'm not sure how long she gone be. I'ma take her back to the condo with me, she doesn't want to go home...,"

"I wouldn't let her fine ass go home either Dice. I don't know where home is but I'd make it anywhere she is," said Cuz as the 3 men erupted in laughter.

Trinity spent about an hour with Jason before deciding it was time to go. Her mother in law called her 3 times after the text she'd sent Antwan and Trinity had no intentions on calling her back until after he had completely moved out. To add insult to injury, Trinity's mother began to call. She hadn't spoke to her mother since she the day before she got married.

Episode 133

2011-11-17T09:25:00.000-08:00

Ever since she was a child Staci was very good at pushing her mothers buttons. No matter how patient she tried to be, Ivy Meeks could never get Staci to behave like proper lady. "She must get it from her father's side of the family", is what she would tell herself every time Staci went too far.

William Meeks ,on the other hand , could get her to do anything. She was always so polite and agreeable with her father. Both girls had more respect for him then they had for their own mother.

When Ivy first meet William, she knew she wanted to marry him. He was tall, good looking and very smart. She knew that some day he was going to make a big success of himself and she wanted to be there when he did.

Ivy sat on the terrace of the huge estate she shared with her husband and stared off into the garden. She thought about how much she felt like an outsider in her own family. She had spent her whole life helping her husband obtain all his success and painted the most perfect picture of what a man of his stature should look like. They had amassed a fortune in real estate, investing in businesses both large and small. They were well respected in society as well as the business world and had been featured in magazines as one of Michigan's top ten movers and shakers.

Their family life looked as if they lived in a fairytale land. Ivy Anderson was born into an average middle-class family. Her parents seemed happy until she was 12 years old. That was when they fell on hard times.

Her father, Jeff Anderson, lost his job at the newspaper he worked for and struggled to find work. The stress led to major disruptions in the house and before long, he began to drink. Her mother, Nora, did the best she could working as a cashier at the local grocery store as well as cleaning office buildings after hours.

Ivy was forced to endure the chaos that became her life. She missed spending time with her mother. She missed feeling safe and secure. She hated thinking that her father was going to come home mad because he couldn't find a decent job and then start an argument with her mother. She hated it even more to think that he was gonna come home drunk and completely ignore her.

There was no love or laughter in the house. Her older brother Jeff Jr. was a few years older than her so he stayed away from home as much as possible. Then one day, he left and never came back. She was left all alone to deal with the nightmare that had become her life.

After 2 years of odd jobs , Jeff Anderson finally landed a steady job at an advertising agency. He even stopped getting drunk. Ivy thought things were going to get better. But they didn't.

One night she heard her parents arguing about an affair. At first she couldn't understand what they were saying and then it came out clear as a bell.

"You cheated on me with a nigger! After all I've done for you and this family to keep us going, you cheat on me with a nigger woman?....... Get out! I will take care of Ivy and you can run back to the ghetto with your Nigger bitch!"

That was it. Jeff packed his things as he was gone. Ivy spent her teen years immersing herself in school work and swallowing her mother's bitterness.

By the time she graduated, she had a scholarship to Michigan State, where she met William Meeks. The moment she saw him she knew that if she married him, she would never struggle or be lonely again. She saw her perfect family in him every time he smiled and she fell for him, hard.

By the time their first daughter was born, he was making enough money so that she didn't have to work. They had a beautiful home and her dream of the perfect family was coming true. Then she uncovered 2 secrets and had to face reality. The picture wasn't as pretty as it seemed.

Ivy continued to sit on her terrace and watch as the garden was being tended to, and listened to some of her African American help laugh and joke while they were going about their work.

The thought of them enjoying themselves made her uneasy. She found them loud, crude and intrusive people. But as long as she was paying, she was in control. On occasion she would run across one that was down right defiant and the thought crossed her mind.......

"Yep, she must get it from her father's side of the family"....

Episode 132

2011-11-15T15:36:00.001-08:00

When Shauna woke up from surgery, Blake's face was the first she saw.

"Hey," she said, sounding as if she'd been asleep for months.

"Take it easy Kathleen Turner. Here." Blake joked as he reached over and poured some water in the styrofoam cup that was filled with ice chips.

She slurped it down in record time then asked for more.

"How do you feel?" He asked.

She wiggled around to make an accurate assessment. "I'm guessing I'm still a lil high from the meds, so ask me again later," she forced a smile on her face.

"The doctor said you can be released after you woke up. You'll have to be monitored for a while since both of your feet are mummified. What the hell happened to you Shauna?"

"I'll explain later."

"There's sleeping beauty," said the doctor as she entered the room. "How are you feeling? Are you still groggy?"

"Yeah, a little."

"I bet. You had some pretty ugly gashes on your feet. I stitched 'em up pretty good, but you're going to have to take it easy for a few months while they heal, ok?"

Shauna nodded.

"Have your husband here do all the housework for a change, huh?" The doctor laughed and patted Blake's shoulder.

Blake started to correct the doctor but decided against it. "So, she's free to go, right?"

"Yup, her belongings are in the plastic bag under her bed. If you'll help her get dressed, the nurse will be right in to give her some scripts, all right? Take care." The doctor exited.

Shauna sat up slowly. "She's a chipper thang isn't she?"

Blake smiled. "We may have to invest in a wheelchair. I'm not gone be carrying you around everywhere," he kidded.

"And I don't expect you too, silly. That's what the crutches are for."

"You should've told them you still got the ones from the time you got shot at." Blake hunched over and clapped his hands as if he'd told the funniest joke of the century.

"Just childish...I tell ya." Shauna shook her head in disbelief.

"Naw, you know I'm just playing. I'm trying to lighten the mood. This is a serious situation. You know I tell jokes when I'm nervous."

Blake helped Shauna put her clothes on. The nurse came in with her scripts and discharge papers. Blake followed behind the nurse as she wheeled Shauna to the entrance of the parking garage.

"I'll wait here while you get the car," the nurse said.

He pulled the car up and helped her in the passenger seat. "Do you wanna go by your place to get some extra clothes?"

"NO!" She yelped.

"Ok. That's it. Get to talking."

She closed her eyes then rambled non-stop. "My real name is Tammy, I legally changed it to Shauna a few years ago to escape a guy who was abusive and I told him and this other guy that they were Key Key's father which her real name is Nyla and really her real father is the guy who's abusive and held me hostage in my house and I escaped with no shoes on which is why my feet are like this and now I know he's looking for me because he just wants his daughter back."

Blake pulled over to the side of the road, looked at Shauna then said, "So, you're on the run?"

Episode 131

2011-11-15T09:43:00.000-08:00

Marsha walked down the hallway approaching the elevator to her mother’s hospital floor.

“Marsha,” softly said a male voice.

Marsha stood still, recognizing the voice she heard. A chill ran down her spine, as she stood frozen. It couldn't be who she thought it was. So many years had passed. So many things had changed. Why would he be here? Why now?

“Shay,” the same voice teased her.

“Do not call me that,” Marsha growled as she slowly turned around.

“Aww baby. It’s been such a long time since you’ve seen your Uncle Christopher,” he continued to approach her.

“You're no family of mine,” Marsha replied as she began to brace herself for what was to come.

“But we share so many memories Shay,” said Christopher as he now stood within five feet of her.

“We didn’t share anything, you took,” said Marsha as her eye began to fill with tears. She began to feel dizzy. Then there was an overwhelming sense of peace. “Pourquoi êtes vous ici?” {Why are you here Christopher?”}

“Vous” {You} Christopher laughed. “But you knew that.”

Marsha noticed Neahvon entered the hallway. She didn’t want him to be involved in this. He steadily approached.

Marsha walked toward Chris and whispered, “Ne déplacez pas et ne dites pas un mot.” {Do not move and do not say a word.} She paused as stepped to the right of Christopher. “Von, give me a sec. I will be back in the waiting room in a few minutes.”

Neahvon shook his head as if to disagree, “Actually, I need to see you now,” He said as continued toward her.

“Merde,” {Shit} Marsha hissed. The lights in the hallway began to flicker. Marsha looked at Christopher. “He has nothing to do with this.”

“Comment puis-je savoir?” {How do I know?} asked Christopher. “Et je n'ai pas de soins” {And I do not care}

Christopher for a moment looked as if he was going to grab Marsha, but then he stepped back. The lights began to flicker more.

“You are here,” asked Christopher.

Marsha stood confused not understanding the question.

“I have been waiting to kill you,” smiled Christopher.

Marsha whispered to Christopher, “Not here, not now.”

“I am not talking to you, child,” sneered Christopher.

The lights flicked until everything went black, there was a scuffle.

Episode 130

2011-11-10T17:20:00.001-08:00

Winsdee hung up the phone in disbelief. She had no clue what her next move should be. Could she really trade herself for Mello? She put on a slinky teal knit cowl neck dress and grabbed the vintage poison ring C-lo had given her. She slid open the lid, stuck her right pinky nail inside and sniffed the contents.
She whipped out her phone scrolled through the contacts until she rolled up on what she was looking for. She was unsure of what to say but she didn't have anyone else to call. The phone rung twice before it was answered.

"Hello"

"Hi Chris, did I catch you at a bad time?"

"Who is this?"

"Oh, I'm sorry it's Winsdee."

"Hey pretty lady, I'm sorry I'm just a little distracted. What's up?"

"I'm sorry I wasn't trying to disturb you, I just didn't know who else to call." She began to sob.

"Oh no baby it's cool. What's up? Where are you?"

"I'm staying at a friends place on American near West Chicago. She's not here and..."

"Text me the address, I'm leaving Receiving Hospital, so I'll be there within 15 minutes. We can go get a drink or something."

"Ok see you soon."

Chris wondered what was going on with Winsdee and why she felt comfortable enough to call him in her obvious time of need. Although this left him perplexed, it was a welcomed distraction. He needed something to take his mind off Marsha, Felecia & Trish.
When his navigation told him he'd reached his destination he thought it was a joke. He looked around at the burned & vacant houses. It didn't look like anyone lived in any of the houses on the street. He picked up his phone to call her back to confirm he was in the right location but before his call was complete she opened the front door.
He hopped out of the car as she sashayed down the steps. He studied her hour glass figure. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him on the cheek as a greeting before he opened the door of his cranberry red Taurus for her.

They arrived at the Centaur Bar downtown. After several drinks Chris was shocked when he discovered Winsdee had a teenage daughter. She didn't appear to be old enough for that, which means she had to be a teenage mom. She talked freely and openly with Chris about Mellodee. When he inquired about Mellodee's dad, Winsdee got quiet and began to stare out the window.

"He's not apart of her life."

"Well that is truly his loss. She sounds like a great girl and any man would be nuts to leave the pair of you out in the world alone."

"Thank you Mello, you have no idea what it means to me to hear you say that."

"You're welcome, wait what did you just call me?"

Winsdee exclaimed "Shit" as she leaned down pretending to pick up her napkin. And that's when he saw the tattoos on her chest.

"What the fuck is going on here?" he demanded to know. "Do I know you?"

"Christian Carmello Clay, do you recall your first trip to Chicago? You stayed the summer at your Aunt's house..."

"The girl next door? You're the girl next door!!" The epiphany hit him like a ton of bricks.

"Yes, I am and my Mellodee is your daughter, I call her Mello. I know this is a lot for you to digest and this is not how I wanted you to find out but she's in trouble. She's been kidnapped and is being held for ransom...they should be here in the city within the next 4 hours..."

Episode 129

2011-11-10T06:01:00.000-08:00

“Jazz! Where you at?” Mekkai shouted as he rushed into his apartment and threw his gym bag in the corner.

“Jazz! Donde` esta`?”

Mekkai heard the sound of water coming from the bathroom as he made his way down the hall.

His six foot frame stood in the doorway of the bathroom as he stared at a silhouette of the love of his life while she took her shower. His chestnut brown eyes gleamed when Jazz began to sing. He loved the sound of her voice ever since they were in high school. She had the ability to sound like almost anyone she wanted to but he loved HER voice. The voice she used in the shower.

“He loves me…especial-ly differ-ent…ever-y time …” Jazz softly sang a Jill Scott song as she lathered and rinse her petite 5 foot 2 frame.

Mekkai ‘s grin widened as he watched and listened and began to take his clothes off. The sight of Jazz’s honey colored skin covered with lather was irresistible to him. Besides, he needed a shower anyway after the workout he had on the basketball court.

Just as Mekkai opened the glass shower door, Jazz saw him and screamed.

“Aaaaahhhhhh! You scared the hell outta me! I’ma kick your black ass!” Jazz threw her shower sponge at him.

Mekkai laughed, “You can only kick me in one cheek then since I’m only half black. The other part is Puerto Rican remember, Mi amor?”

“Well fine, then let me rephrase that. I’ma kick your Negro-rican ass! How about that?” Jazz reached over and patted him on his backside and he pulled her close to him.

“Damn you sexy!” Mekkai whispered in her ear in between kisses.

“We don’t have time for this, Kai” Jazz whispered back.

“Yes we do. If we miss our flight, we can get the next one. Por favor, mi amor just relax. Detroit will still be there tomorrow.” Mekkai whispered as he backed Jazz against the shower wall.

Jazz could never resist Mekkai when he whispered Spanish in her ear or looked into his eyes. He was always able to hypnotize her with his ridiculously long thick lashes.

“We really need to be on time, Kai. Aren’t you excited to see everybody? All our friends and family?” Jazz pushed Mekkai away.

“Damn Jazz! Why do you have to bring them up now? I’m trying to make love to you and you wanna talk about everything and everybody except you and me, right here, right now. I just wanna enjoy you before we go back to drama in the D!”

Mekkai tried to kiss Jazz but she pushed him away.

“You really shouldn’t project negative things like that. It’s been so long since we’ve been home and all I want to think about is everyone being happy and getting along. NOT ancient history!” Jazz pushed past Mekkai and got out of the shower.

“Damn!” Mekkai said to himself. “Mi amor, lo siento. I’m sorry. We’re gonna have a good time. I’ma be good. Prometo. I promise.” Mekkai followed Jazz into their bedroom with a towel barely wrapped around his well-chiseled body. Water droplets clung to the smooth hairs on his chest as he made his way to Jazz.

“I’m already nervous about going home. Please Kai, I just need you to help keep me from freaking out. I want this to be a good move for us. We’ve had so many things happen over the past few years that I just feel like I need to get back to my roots. I need to get back to myself. To us.” Jazz said as she clinched her towel and stared off into space.

Mekkai put his arms around her and kissed her forehead.

“I know babe. We will be fine. YOU will be fine. I promise I’ll do everything in my power to make this work out for us.”

Mekkai caressed her face.

“Promise?” Jazz looked into Mekkai’s eyes.

“Prometo. I promise”, Mekkai kissed her softly and let out a long sigh.

Jazz wrapped her arms around Mekkai and buried her head in his chest so she could listen to his heartbeat. It always soothed her.

Mekkai lifted her head up, kissed her softly and let his towel hit the floor. Their kisses grew deeper and deeper and then Jazz’s towel dropped to the floor.

“Te amo bebe`”, Mekkai lifted Jazz up and laid her on the bed.

“I love you too Kai”, Jazz whispered as she pulled him close to her.

She wanted to lose herself in the lovemaking and not think about the past. She didn’t want to remember the reasons she left in the first place. She didn’t want to think about what she was running away from now. The confusion was too much for her to bear. Mekkai was the love of her life. The first man she'd ever been with. The only one to believe in her the way she needed them to. He loved her more than anything and wasn’t afraid to show it. She didn’t want to hurt him. She loved him and didn’t want to lose him, so it was time for them to leave New York. It was time for the sake of Mekkai’s art career, for healing some past wounds, for getting back to the things and people that could fortify them, but most of all, to get away from a potential problem that could destroy her relationship.

“Kai, promise me you’ll never leave me. I love you so much”, Jazz said in between deep kisses.

“Never”, Mekkai whispered.

Episode 128

2011-11-08T19:00:00.001-08:00

"Boy, stop snooping and put that back where you found it," Devlin's grandmother scolded. Second-guessing her actions, she continued, "I apologize for yelling, but you're too young to understand."

"Yes ma'am." He walked over to the closet and knelt down to the wooden box. When he heard his grandmother going down the stairs, he retrieved his birth certificate, folded it and the newspaper clipping and stuffed them in his pants pocket. After dinner, he proceeded like normal. He took his bath and layed down on his bed watching television until he fell asleep. But before he did that, he looked at the clipping one more time.

15-year-old Lisa Peabody was charged and convicted as a minor for the murder of 17-year-old Quintonio Luckett. Witnesses say the couple were in a heated argument when Peabody stabbed and killed Luckett. Sources say the debate was over the couple's infant son.

Devlin recalled seeing that name somewhere before. When he looked at the birth certificate and saw that his father's name was the same as the person's in the clipping, he cried, silently.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Shit, we can't leave yet." Lisa remembered. "I gotta call somebody to come lock up the shop."

"What kinda shit is that?" Ced said impatiently.

"I'm usually not the last one to leave. Let me text Terrance."

"Yeah, text that nigga." Ced encouraged as he paced the floor.

"Ok, somebody will be here in a minute."

"Is that nigga coming?"

"Would you calm yo ass down. No, he's not coming. He's sending Duke."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Duke and Dayna were still lying on the floor basking in their good lovemaking when he got a text from Terrance. Niggas in Paris by Kanye' and Jay Z blared from his phone.

"Nooo," Dayna whined. "I'm not ready to get up."

"Me either babe. Hold up a sec."

He peeled himself off the floor then extended his arm to help his wife up.

"That's T. He need me to lock up the shop. Said his baby's in the hospital."

"Do you want me to ride with you?"

He wrapped his arms around her waist then said, "No, but I got something you can ride." He pecked her on the lips.

"Boy, you so nasty...but I like it."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lisa was standing in the door when Duke pulled up. "There he go."

"Hey everybody," Duke spoke.

Ced and his boy nodded.

"Thank you so much Duke. I'm sorry about this, but T had some kind of emergency."

"Yeah, Key Key in the hospital. But it's no problem. I don't live that far from here."

"Wait a minute, did you say Key Key's in the hospital?"

"Yeah, he didn't get into detail. He just said that and asked me to come lock up. That's it."

The three of them bolted out the door, leaving Duke behind.

"Do you want me to drive or do you wanna drive?" Lisa asked Ced.

"My man's will drive. Get in."

Lisa hopped in the backseat and almost jumped back out when she saw a man sitting next to her.
"Damn, what took y'all niggas so long." The other man from Ced's crew asked.

"Just shut the fuck up and ride, aight ?"

"Man, I been sitting here for almost an hour."

"What's your point? Matter fact...get the fuck out. Stop the car." Ced barked at the driver.

"Man, you be on some bullshit, Ced." The guy got out and slammed the door.

"That was so mean." Lisa asserted.

"Baby girl, just mind your business, please."

The driver ran several red lights and stop signs before Lisa noticed.

"I know we're in a hurry, but we need to make it there alive, please and thank you."

"Chill. Everybody know the police don't pull you over in Detroit."

In a split second, they heard the sound of a siren.

"Fuck! Can this day get any worse." Ced asked rhetorically. "Nigga, I hope you a'int riding dirty."
"Naw man. Everything is registered, including this." He patted his hip and rolled down the window.

"License and registration please."

"I'm sorry for running that light, but my boy's little girl is in the hospital." The driver explained as he handed him the documents.

"You need to get your tail light fixed." The officer glossed over the driver's statement.

"I'll do that tomorrow morning, Sir."

The officer looked over in the passenger seat at Ced then in the back at Lisa. "I need your ID's too."

They handed them over and the officer went back to his vehicle. Ced massaged his temples in an attempt to calm himself.

"I'm telling you now, I'm not bailing yo ass outta jail. I told you you gotta be legit if you wanna roll with me. I don't have time for this shit."

"Just relax Ced. Here they come now." Lisa said coolly.

"I need all of you to step out of the vehicle." Said the original officer.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me." Ced got out unwillingly.

"Here you go." The officer handed the driver back his license and registration. "You two, turn and face the truck. Sir, place your hands behind your back."

"For what?" Ced asked.

"Mr. Peabody, you're under arrest for an outstanding warrant for failing to pay child support."

"Child support? I don't have no fucking kids.What are you talking about?" Ced tried to plead his case as he was forced into the squad car.

"And you, ma'am, have an outstanding warrant out of 14A District Court in Ypsi for driving while license suspended." The other officer said.

"Fuck." She whispered under her breath.

"You can post $7500/10% with me right now or I have to take you into custody, too."

Tears streamed down her face as he walked her to the car and sat her next to her brother.

Episode 127

2011-11-07T19:03:00.000-08:00

Staci laid on her king size bed frustrated; she new that her mother would of never hit Jenefer. Though she also knew that Jenefer would've never had the gumption to talk to their mom in that tone. She repositioned herself on her goose down white comforter.

Staci wasn’t jealous in her mind of Jenefer, she felt she more so pitied her for her life style choices. She never quite understood why Jen was so concerned with those who had less, as if it was their fault. Staci felt if those people wanted more, they would have more and because they didn’t have more, meant that they didn’t want more. Staci’s thoughts were interrupted by a knock at her door.

“Yes,” she said annoyed.

“May I enter?” asked Grace.

“Sure,” answered Staci.

Grace has worked for Meek family for over 30 years. Although Staci would never admit it, she was the closest image of a real mother that she had.

“Can I see your face Staci?” asked Grace.

“It’s fine Grace. You know I can handle more than that,” Staci chuckled.

“I don’t think its funny Staci. You don’t deserve to get hit. Though you should be a bit more respectful to your mother.”

“Grace, please. Mother doesn’t even know what respect is, nor does she need it.”

Grace shook her head.

“She doesn’t respect you Grace. Does she?”

“This is not about me child, this is about you and your mother.”

“Grace, just let it go, its a waste of both of our breath. The only thing that women can do right by us is to continue to pay us.”

“Child, I must continue to pray for you.”

“Don’t you have anything else better to do with your prayers Grace? Don’t waste your God time on me. I doubt he is that fond of me and my lady like ways.”

“Staci,…focus child. Let’s see,” spoke Grace as she walked over to Staci desk. “Didn’t you tell me yesterday you need me for some research paper you were doing for school?” Grace picked up a medium sized box and placed it on Staci’s bed.

Staci snickered, “Yes, I did. I am always surprised how you don’t ever forget anything.”

“Don’t be, because I recalls a many of things. But that child, is neither here nor there. Now what do you need for your school project?

************************************************************************************

Casey looked around the hospital family waiting room and noticed that it looked like the “Tellinit” office. Her complete staff was about 90% accountable and there was nothing other then AP personal in sight. She knew that she couldn’t let this time go unused.

Casey stood, “Excuse me.”

The room became quiet, all eyes focused on her.

“I know we are here because of circumstances that are truly unbelievable. I also know that because of this we all have a lot going on. I am here not as Casey your friend but as Casey your boss. I realized we probably needed to handle some things while we are all here, are you all okay with that?”

Jenefer, Trinity, Marsha nodded in agreement, as they hadn’t been in the room together more then five minutes but they understood Casey’s point.

“I know you all have your personal projects that you are working on, and if you all can let myself or Jenefer know where you are with those, we would truly appreciate it. Also, if by chance you need some time off,” Casey glanced at Marsha. “ I have no issue with this. We just need to figure out as a staff, who is going to fill in for whom. Now, last but not least, next week’s blog online cover story is the DNA 23&ME we had talked about briefly last month. If you all can stop by the office at some point and pick up your test. They are in and as we agreed we will use our stories to get the story out to the people. We also have extras for your friends and family. That’s it ladies, carry on.”

Casey sighed with relief knowing she had just checked one thing off of her to do list. She walked over to Trinity, noticing that Dice was standing right outside of the room. “You have a sec?”

Episode 126

2011-11-04T07:58:00.000-07:00

"Go for Shelly" she said as she always did when she answered the phone.

"What happened to nice and quiet? I knew I should've sent someone else, this shit was way to personal!"

"Don't be gettin mad at me, you wanted him out of the way...he's out of the way. This way it'll look like an accident. Trust me, this will be open and shut."

"It better be! Where are you?"

"I just crossed back into Ohio, passing Alexis Road."

"Baby girl, you need to lay low for a few. I know you think this was a simple in and out but I still want you to disappear for a minute. Go to..."

"Daddy, I got this. I'm going to camp out and I know where to go, but I don't think its wise for me to tell you where I'm going. I'll be in touch in a few days."

"Now you sound like my baby girl!" He said with pride. "I know you know what to do. I taught you well! Is that Ape still with you?"

"No sir, I thought it'd be better if I were alone. You were right, this was personal and I need to process it. I'm not sure when I'm coming back Daddy, but I will call you in a few days to let you know I'm ok."

"I really don't like you being alone Shells, but I do understand and can respect your decision. Do you need anything?"

"No sir, I have everything I need in the car with me. I love you and will talk to you by the weeks end."

"Shells, I love you. Be safe and remember, believe none of what you hear..."

"And only half of what you see! Bye Daddy."

"Bye Baby".

*********************************************************************************

On the ride back to her Nana's house Mello told her family all she could about the last time she saw her mom, including the fact that she was with C-lo. It was not uncommon for her mom to get mixed up with some man and virtually forget about her. But this time was different. You could tell she wasn't really trying to do that anymore, but it seemed the more she came home or mentioned needing to be there for Mello, the angrier and meaner he got. When she would come home, 24 hours wouldn't pass before he was banging on the door and dragging her back out with him. Mello was unsure of what exactly they were doing, but she was kinda sure her mom didn't want to be doing it.

Once they entered the house Mama Winnie sat her children down at the kitchen table along with Percy and told Mello to go make herself comfortable, "until the grown folks were finished talking." Mello obliged her grandmother, she was grateful they had stopped yelling at her for not telling anyone she was here.

"She's staying here and I am not letting her out of my site until we find Winsdee" said Mama Winnie as she wiped away her tears. "Where is she? What has this De-Bo done to my baby?"

"It's C-lo Mama", said Windee. "Don't you worry about it I am going to find out where my sister is!"

"Get the fuck outta here Windee, you know you could care less where she is, you don't even like her!" Windell blurted.

"Enough" shouted Mama Winnie as she rose from the table! "Have you lost your damn mind" she questioned while staring at Windell. "You absolutely know better than that. I know you're upset but you will not take that tone nor use that language in my home, or in my presence for that matter. Boy, I am your mother! I brought you in this world and I will take you out! Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes Mama. I am sorry, I was not trying to disrespect nor upset you."

When Windee opened her mouth to retort Peanut gently laid his hand upon hers and began to rub it gently before speaking. "Everyone's emotions are high right now. And I know this is none of my business but..."

"Percy now you just hush with that none of my business mess!" Mama Winnie's statement was interrupted by an overflow of tears.

Percy immediately rose to his feet and began to comfort her. After a few minutes she said "Since Windee is acting like she don't know what time it is, will you be my boyfriend?"

Mello was on her way into the kitchen and burst out laughing as did the rest of the room.

"Mama Winnie you know you are the only girl for me" he said as he squeezed her tighter and winked at Windee. "Who needs her when I have you?" he said as he dipped her and planted a big kiss on her forehead.

"Nana got game!" giggled Mello. "TT you just gone let her swoop in on your man like that?"

"Let me" replied Mama Winnie "I love your TT but she can't compete with all of this" as she ran her hand down her body from head to toe.

Again the room erupted in laughter.

**********************************************************************************

Trinity sat in the car wiggling for the longest time before giving in to nature. "I'll be right back JR. I need to use the restroom."

"The public ones are being renovated Trin, you are gonna have to go up to the condo."

"Of course it is JR. Why wouldn't it be? You might wanna warn him so he can sneak the bitches out the back before I get up there!" She retorted in a smart ass kinda way.

"Really Trin?" he replied as she slammed his car door.

She smiled and waved before vanishing into the building. It had been seven months since she had been inside these walls. She stood outside his door for what appeared to be an eternity, not wanting to go inside. When she finally got the courage to knock on the door, it opened before she could raise her hand, and there he stood. "Damn" she thought to herself, "every time I blink this mofo gets sexier."

"Is it okay if I use your bathroom?"

"Of course you can, don't be like that. By Monday, you'll have to ask whomever has four grand a month if you can use the bathroom."

Trinity darted past him into the four thousand square foot condo, just barely having to bend the corner to reach the closest of the the three bathrooms. After she finished washing her hands, she realized there was no towel, so she went into the kitchen where Dice was sitting on top of the breakfast bar playing with a roll of paper towel.

"Oh so you're going to rent it out? And may I have one of those?"

"Yeah, the housing market sucks so I'll rent it out til someone buys it. It's really bitter-sweet. I want to keep it there are so many memories here, which is the same reason I want to get rid of it."

"I can totally understand", she said as she looked around the empty space and trailed her hand along the exposed granite. "Well, I'll let you get back to what you were doing. Thank you for allowing me to use the bathroom." She turned to walk away and Dice grabbed her arm.

"Hold up Trin."

"Yes, Dyson."

"You know I love it when you say that! You are the only person in the world that can say that shit and make it sound so sexy. Hell you are the only person besides Mom Dukes that can say that shit and get away with it."

She pushed the hair from her face and looked up at him in awe. "JR is waiting for us, we have to go...I'm sorry I keep saying we. I have to go Dyson. I appreciate all you've done for me; driving me to Saugatuck, giving me the interview again and for listening to what I had to say. Again I apologize for not allowing you the opportunity to grieve for our baby as you should have been allowed to do."

"I need you" he began to plant small kisses all over her face. "I want you" he continued to kiss her, "more than that I love you, you were made for me!"

The passionate adrenaline was flowing through their bodies. She knew he meant every word he uttered. She ran her hands up his shirt in an effort to remove it as her shirt simultaneously hit the marble floor. He picked her up and sat her on the counter top. His kisses down her neck sent her into ecstasy. She pulled his beater over his head and there he stood bare chest in Timbs and Levi's just like she liked him.

"Call from JR" shouted Dice's phone.

"Damn" he shouted back.

"You better get that, don't worry I'll be right here when you get back" she laughed because his phone was in his pants pocket.

"Damn right you will" he said as he wrapped one arm around her waist, kissed her again while grabbing his phone with his free hand.

"D"

"We good"

"I bet! Aye, you know I don't like riding dirty like this with you. I just wouldn't have made it to the airport in time. I'm gonna switch cars. I'll be right back."

"Take your time...Matter of fact I'll just drive. I'll call you when we leave and you can meet us there."

"I don't know about that D, it's still not safe out here."

Dice walked away from Trinity. "Aye nigga whatchu tryna say? I ain't no bitch. I'm very muthafuckin capable of taking care of myself and my girl!"

"Whoa whoa Supa Nigga, I'm not questioning your manhood. I know what da fuck it is! All I'm saying is you are who you are and she may or may not have a target on her back. You my muhfucka and you know how I feel about her. You pay me to do a job so will you let me do my damn job please and thank you?"

Dice couldn't help but laugh, "did you just call me Supa Nigga? We're good, we'll meet you there and you can hover over us and drive us around mom."

JR was laughing too. "Fuck you very much Mr. Roundtree. I'll see y'all in a minute."

When he returned Trinity had put her shirt back on. "Whoa wait what happened?"

"Reality happened Dyson, I was so caught up I forgot why I came back here in the first place. I've got to get to the hospital."

"Shit you're right, but damn I just want to..."

She put her fingers to his lips. "Let me go check on Jason and I promise to come back when I leave."

"WE will go see about Jason and you will spend the night with me when we leave."

She kissed his lips and grabbed his hand before saying "I love you too! Now get your shit and let's go!"

Episode 125

2011-11-01T17:35:00.001-07:00

QT stared at herself in the mirror, looking for any trace of that shy, innocent, soft-spoken girl from ten years ago. She knew she needed to get her life on track but just didn't know how. As she canvassed her face, she came across something that displeased her. She noticed that her once soft, golden, flesh-colored lips are much darker than they used to be...practically bordering that of the color of charcoal. She gasped aloud at the discovery and rubbed her fingers across them as if to erase it away. Her big, bright green eyes had dark, heavy bags underneath. She looked well beyond her age.

"Girl, you gotta get your shit together. You too damn pretty for this," she told her reflection.

"Yo, QT! You ready?" Junior yelled from the living room.

"Just wait a minute, nigga. I'm almost finished," she snapped back as she made her way to meet him.

"I'm tryna help you out. You know Michigan barely got any jobs, so I wanna get there early."

"What'chu mean you tryna help me out? Your sorry ass need a job too. Don't make it seem like you doing this for me." QT smiled then gently hit Junior upside the head before they walked out the door.

When they finally arrived at Michigan Works, they sat at two neighboring computers. But, QT needed assistance...a lot of assistance. She lacked the basic skills necessary to navigate a computer. One of the specialists saw her struggling and offered a hand.

"Do you know how to operate a computer?" The specialist asked.

"No."

"Do you know how to type?"

"No."

"Ok. What type of jobs have you had in the past?" The specialist inquired sincerely.

"Look, I ain't never had a job, ok?"

Junior shot QT that stop-you're-embarrassing-me look.

"That's ok." The specialist assured. "Come with me."

She took QT over to her cubicle and motioned for her to have a seat.

"We offer several programs here that teach basic keyboarding, customer service skills, office programs, filing, alphabetizing and many other skills essential to gaining entry level positions. Does that sound like something you're interested in?"

QT nodded her head then said, "Yes ma'am."

"All right." The specialist pulled out some brochures. "We hold classes every day of the week, at different times of the day. So, if you miss one, you can easily catch the next one later on that day or some time during the week."

She slid the pamphlets to QT, who picked them up and eyed each one suspiciously. "Are these free?"

"The brochures?"

"No, the classes?"

"Oh. Silly me. Yes. Yes, they're free." The specialist laughed at herself, her pale white skin turning beet red. "The next class starts at 1 o'clock. If you want, I can give you the paperwork to get started."

"Well, um, I think my cousin has something to do. And he's my ride, so..."

"I totally understand. Ok, Ms?" The specialist extended her hand.

"QT, I mean, Quadesha."

"Ms. Quadesha, hopefully I'll see you tomorrow then."

They shook hands. As QT turned to walk away, the specialist said, "Oh, just an FYI, we offer transportation, too --as a courtesy. My number's on each of the pamphlets. Give me a call anytime." She said with a wide smile.

QT returned the smile. "Thank you ma'am."

Junior was now waiting in the lobby. "What did that lady want?"

"She was telling me about these free classes to help me type, learn the computer, you know, shit like that. While you in my business, did you apply for any jobs, nigga? You out here mighty quick."

"Man, I don't got time for those whack ass jobs paying $7 an hour. How am I suppose to live off that?"

"What? The same way you living off making zero dollars an hour. A job is a job right about now. You betta act like you know."

"Yeah, ok. I'll just have my bitches keep taking care of a nigga." Junior retorted with a slick grin on his face.

"That is so fucking unattractive, but anyway. Let's get something to eat."

QT and Junior go into the Coney Island located inside the plaza next to Michigan Works. It's a little on the hole-in-the-wall'ish side, but rumor has it that the food is good. They take a seat at the front of restaurant.

"Excuse me. Where's the bathroom?" QT asked the waitress standing next to their table.

The waitress points to the back. QT is doing the pee-pee dance and quickly scanning faces at each booth and table. There's a table tucked way in the back just before the restrooms. She scans the face of someone she knows. Just as she's about to wave to get his attention, the man sitting across from him leans in and kisses him. She ducks, pivots and heads in the opposite direction.

"Damn, you pee like a dude," Junior kidded at the speed in which she returned.

She grabbed his hand and led him out the door. "Let's go!"

By the look on her face, he knew something was amiss, but she didn't say anything until they were in the car.

"What's up? You see a rat or something?"

"Shole did. A low-down dirty rat. I just saw Jonathan kissing a dude," she revealed to Junior with a devilish grin.

Episode 124

2011-11-01T09:01:00.000-07:00

Felecia sat speechless shortly after arriving back in her office. She couldn’t believe the audacity that Christopher had to just be sitting with Trish. But she realized that she had to think logically. Marsha and Ricki were her number one concern. This issue had invaded her ability to be comfortable. Contrary to what many thought was happening, she knew the truth and understood the importance of her next few decisions.

All was quiet. She sat in thought. She knew this would mean that she would have to admit some things she had long denied. But she couldn’t help wondering exactly what Marshall was going to do. She closed her eyes and began to recall a few situations that involved Marshall. She then heard the sound of her name and glanced toward the door.

“Felecia?”

She looked up suddenly. Her heart began to race as she looked up. She reached into her purse to pull out her 9mm.

“You're not that quick,” he chuckled as he closed and locked the door behind himself.

“It’s locked, loaded and I am holding the trigger. It just happens to be in my purse."

He smiled and sat down in the chair across from her. He sat silent, glaring at her.

“What, I know you have something to say,” muttered Felecia.

“The timing of this doesn’t make sense.”

“Has it ever Marshall?” questioned Felecia.

“I think it did at one time.” Answered Marshall.

“Well you, my child, must have blocked a lot out since you have been gone because that is far from the truth.

“We all made choices.”

“Yes we did, Marshall. But your choices left a lot of people dead and seriously injured.”

“You are talking as if this is a life that you are so far removed from, Felecia. I know who you are.”

“I am beginning to doubt that because if you did, your lips wouldn’t be so careless in their tone with me. I made a choice a long time ago, Marshall. I had to take care of a little girl, remember? Who is still fighting her blackouts.”

“I meant no disrespect, Felecia. I just thought if anybody could, you could understand.”

“Then, ask me if I understand and quit attempting to compare my life choices to yours. My reasons for my choices are far greater than you will ever know.”

“Let’s start over, Felecia.”

“We don’t have time to kick it. Surely, people are expecting you to be here..Or at least in the city. Anyway, what do want or need from me, Marshall?”

“I need to know where the box is?” he asked.

“Of course you do. Is that it? Do you plan on seeing Marsha while you’re here?”

“I may need to, Felecia and I know you understand why.”

“There is a lot I don’t understand, Marshall. I get why you feel what you are doing is necessary. Just know if something happens to her under your watch that you need not worry about anybody else but me. Remember you said you knew who I am, right? Don’t forget it. You need to handle this shit quickly. “

A knock at the door, silenced them both.

“Yes,” Felecia inquired.

“Um it’s Mary."

Marshall motioned to opened the door.

“Not too smart are you?” Felecia laughed as she blocked him from answering the door. “She doesn’t need to see your face first when the door opens. She talked about punching you hypothetically a few times today. Don’t bless her with the opportunity.”

Felecia opened the door slowly, allowing Mary to enter her office. Upon entering, Mary noticed that she wasn’t alone.

“Ain’t this some shit. Ughh I wished you would've opened the door Marshall, cuz I would have punched you in your face.”

“It’s nice to see you too.”

“Ain’t nobody happy to see you Marshall. Death usually isn’t too far behind your crazy ass.”

Episode 123

2011-10-28T15:55:00.000-07:00

Jayden stood outside the door dissecting each word that was being uttered. The fire began to burn in the pit of her stomach. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her instincts were to do something major, something drastic that would undoubtedly get her arrested and disbarred. But the lawyer in her was too smart for that. "Never let opposing counsel see all your cards." As she continued to listen she got angrier and angrier, as the conversation came to a close, she bent the corner so no-one would see her. She plopped down in a chair that was nearby and began to slowly process what she had just heard. Then it hit her like a ton of bricks, Trish was here in this very hospital and was obviously injured. Jayden stood slowly put on her big girl smile and walked towards the ER. Her emotions were out of control. The same people that put Ricki in such horrible shape and are hunting for Marsha, found Trish instead. She knew the caliber of criminal mastermind she was dealing with, but had no clue what to expect when she saw Trish. Jayden stopped in the hallway 15 feet short of Trish's room to regain her composure before entering. She slid back the glass door and curtain to enter closing them in the reverse order. Trish lay there with bruises and bandages on her face. Jayden sank down in the chair at her bedside. She set the affair to the back of her mind as she stared at the woman she loved in dismay. "Trish, honey I'm here."

Trish opened her eyes as best she could... "J" is all she was able to get out before Jayden silenced her placing 3 fingers on Trish's full lips.

"Shhhh, baby don't talk, just rest."

"There were 3 of them Jayden, I'm sorry" Trish began to sob. Jayden gently wiped the falling tears.

"I know baby, I know! Don't you worry about them or anything else right now. Focus on healing we can talk about this later." She leaned in and began to place tiny kisses on the exposed parts of Trish's face. Trish grabbed Jayden's hand and attempted a smile.

"I really love you Jayden" whispered Trish just as the door to her room was slid open again. This time it was two police officers.

"Excuse me Miss, I'm Officer Todd this is my partner Officer James we need to speak with Ms. Vanpart in private." Jayden replied by extending her hand as well as her business card.

"I'm Jayden Alexander and I represent Ms. Vanpart, she really needs to rest gentlemen is there something I can do to help you? I understand you have a job to do, but her medication has her slipping in and out of consciousness. But I can assure you as soon as she is able I will have her down to your office going through your mug shots. At this time I can confirm for you that there were 3 assailants all male. That was all she was able to tell me before passing out again."

"Why would a victim need an attorney Miss Alexander" inquired Officer Todd.

Thinking quickly on her toes Jayden replied "she has no family here in the city I am her emergency contact for everything, not that its really any of your business. As I previously stated I will have my client get in contact with you as soon as she is able to keep her eyes open for more than sixty seconds at a time. Thank you for stopping by gentlemen"
*********************************************************************************

Mateo was in the know at Anderson Place, he knew everything about everybody with the exception of this new penthouse tenant. He went through files, spoke with everyone he thought would know and even some who didn't in a quest to learn who this new tenant was going to be. Boxes were being delivered as well as furniture and all he could gather as he supervised the move was that this person had exquisite taste.

The artwork that arrived with the owners belongings captivated Mateo. Most of it consisted of black and white images of a female body who was sometimes accompanied by a male. He was drawn to the images. It was if he knew the woman. The soft curves of her body kept him memorized until the buzzer rang a few times. It was the delivery men from Hillside Furniture.

************************************************************************

Winsdee picked up the phone and dialed fourteen digits if you include the *67 code she used to block her number. She let the phone ring once before hanging up, counting to six and redialing.

Episode 122

2011-10-24T16:34:00.001-07:00

Tammy's childhood started off normal. She was an only child to her parents, and was truly a daddy's girl. Her mom and dad were the perfect couple. Her mother's high yellow skin and bleached blonde hair often kept the men looking. But she only had eyes for Tammy's dad. He was tall and very athletic. His hazel eyes and curly hair had women constantly fawning over him. They were a happy family until, one day, he didn't come home. Tammy sat in his favorite chair for hours waiting for him to come home. As minutes turned into months and then into years, Tammy's mother turned to the bottle.

She'd sit on the couch, day in and day out, drinking and blasting songs from when times were good. She eventually lost her job, her house and, then Tammy. By the time Tammy had moved in with her aunt, she was already getting attention from boys...and some men, even though she was only 14 years old. Two days after her 15th birthday she had her first abortion. She was wearing green and black checkered overalls, a black shirt and black patent leather Heavy D. shoes. She'd come on her period regularly every month. So when she missed a couple, she knew immediately she was pregnant. Afraid to tell her aunt, she just simply asked her, "What does it mean when you're late for your period?" When her aunt asked if she was having sex, she said no.

Tammy will never forget those dreadful days. She was five months pregnant. And because she was so far along, the procedure took two days: One day to insert something into her cervix to soften the baby's skull, to make it easier to suck it out, and another day for the actual process. She was devastated. Two years later, she got pregnant with Skyy. She hardly had time to care for her because she ripped and ran the streets. So, again, her Aunt Brenda came to the rescue. Not having to worry about her kid gave her ample opportunity to spend as much time doing just what she wanted to do, then she met Ced.

He was a few years older with lots of money --which she loved. He showered her with gifts and cars. But that came with a price. She would soon find out that he was abusive and controlling. She tried to leave him many times, but because he isolated her from her friends and family, she had nowhere to turn. On one of his "good" days, she was allowed to leave the house. She told Ced she was going over a friend's house when actually, she and her friend went to a party. This is where she met Terrence. They hit it off instantaneously. This is when the Shauna facade began. She didn't expect to carry on a relationship with Terrance, but the more and more they secretly communicated and met up, the more she was falling for him. So, it came quite naturally to tell him she was pregnant with his baby, while at the same time, telling Ced the same thing. She had begun implementing an escape route from Ced when he got arrested and went to prison. This was nothing short of perfect timing. She ditched Tammy and started living her life as Shauna.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kelly loves her family, especially her 4-year-old son, which is why she's choosing to stay in a marriage of convenience. She left her teaching position to stay at home with her baby. Her husband agreed and even suggested that she do so. He was making enough money as the principal (at the same school as his wife) to take care of both of them. They were so excited when they learned Kelly was having a boy. Her husband comes from a family full of girls, and so does she. When her baby was a few months old, she'd quickly wished he was a girl. She figured a girl would probably be more understanding and accepting of her father being gay than a little boy would. They were lying in bed when he dropped the bombshell. He told her he was in love with someone else and that that someone else is Miguel. Four years later, she is still keeping his secret. Neither of their families know what's going on. He is such a wonderful father. So, she just grins and bears it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dayna walked over and shut the door behind Shauna and Blake. "Wow. What a mess." As soon as she turned around Duke was in front of her. "Wassup, bay?"

"You."

He used the tip of his nose to faintly tickle the weak spots on her neck.

"Mmmm, you smell so tasty." He said as he inhaled her sweet scent and licked her flesh.

"Oooh, aren't we frisky," she said as she wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders.

He took her bottom lip into his mouth, sucking off all of her Whipped Vanilla Lip Gloss. Before long they were tongue wrestling. When they finally came up for air he said, "Damn your lips taste good. Can't wait to taste the other ones."

He pushed her back up against the door. He lifted up her shirt and kissed between her breast, then down to her stomach. He unzipped the short jean skirt she was wearing, and helped it fall to the floor. He buried his face in her juicy goodness. She closed her eyes and caressed the top of his head as he licked, sucked and slurped her pleasure. He parted her legs wider and inserted his nimble middle finger. Her moans intensified and her knees buckled. But, he wouldn't let her tap out just yet.

He pushed her back up and kept at it. His fingers darted in and out of her sweetness at the same speed of his flickering tongue. This effective combination sent her sliding up and down the door and her juices sliding down his fingers and the corners of his mouth. She was about ready to release. He knew this because just before she did, she always let out a big squirt. He's the only one capable of doing this. She screamed as she reached her climactic ecstasy. He removed his finger, kissed her inner thigh, and squeezed her ass as she slid down to the floor. She positioned herself on her back, ready to take in all his manhood. She shrieked with joy at the pain and pleasure when he entered. His tootsie pole was the perfect mold for her sugar walls.

Alternating between deep, fast and slow strokes, Duke was ready to bust in no time.

"Damn, you got the bomb ass pussy," he whined in between grunts and moans. Their bodies were so in sync that they need not tell the other when they were about to cum because they always did...at the same time, every time. The sounds of their satisfaction shrilled through the house. They laid there for a moment, catching their breaths.

"I love you."

"I love you too, Wifey."

Episode 121

2011-10-24T11:45:00.000-07:00

Ashley lay with her head on Dontay’s chest struggling with the overwhelming events of the day. She was tired, and just completely mentally exhausted.

Dontay ran his hands repeatedly across her hair, attempting to ease the pain he knew she was in. Holding Ashley felt good, it felt really, really good. He wanted to be her everything, but knew that it wasn’t possible. Not now anyway. He fought with himself, a tug-of-war in his own mind. He believed that the man that she saw, the man that was holding her, was the real him. But it wasn’t who anyone else but his daughter knew him to be. He liked women, many women. He liked to come and go as he pleased, no one tying him down. He was a player and he was okay with that. Ashley on the other hand, was his kryptonite. But he couldn’t help but wonder to think if his choice to be with her would ruin her.
He loved Ashley. He loved her for many years, but he needed to know if he loved her enough to let her go. He didn’t want to be “that guy”, but it was starting to look that way. She finally gave him some and now he doesn’t want to be with her. Damn, that isn’t what he wanted it to look like because that is so not what it was. Timing couldn't have been worse. I mean shit, he’s sitting in the hospital consoling a woman. Anybody who knew him would think he was on drugs.

His thinking of not being with Ashley or just discontinuing their physical relationship was not a knock on her. He just wanted to protect her. He wanted to keep her safe, from the Dontay she didn’t know. He didn’t want to lose Ashley as a friend either. He laughed as he realized all the thoughts that were crossing his mind. He felt like a chick, not wanting to lose a friend . He had never looked at the situation like this, but it was true. If things went south with him and Ashley, he could lose her forever, and what would he do then? She kept him balanced when everyone else left him hanging. She believed in him when most others doubted him. She challenged him when others took him at his word. Maybe she was the one for him. But was it possible, that he was not the one for her? How could God, create a beauty with an adoring heart and have him, Dontay as her one and only? He snickered again, as Ashley readjusted herself, wrapping her arm around his waist.

This was exactly what he meant, she was holding him and he was okay with that. Ding Ding Ding, this is not something that Dontay does. Chicks don’t hold him, but then again Ashley was no “chick.” She was by most definitions, his best friend. But could he chill, settle down and give her what she deserved? He didn’t believe that he could. He just knew at some point he would screw it up. That’s what he was good at.

Dontay’s phone vibrated for the umpteenth time, as he tried to shake his mood. He hadn’t checked it in hours but knew that if he didn’t, it would just continue to vibrate. He pulled it out of his pants pocket slowly as not to disturb Ashley. He began to read his text:*******

Jenefer: I see what’s up Dontay. You could of at least called, but obviously you’re to busy for that.

Tyisha: A nig, where you at. I thought you was supposed to be breaking me off. I need you D, I need your D. lol

Claire: Dontay, I haven’t heard from you I miss you, call me or just come by, you have a key.

Jamacia: Hey baye, what’s good besides you. Bring your black ass over here.

Kereisha: Really D, you fuck me 2days ago and now yo ass just invisible. And why yo phone goin straight to voice mail. You need to call me.

China: Dontay, call me sir. Who the hell you wit that you can’t answer your phone.

Dontay put his phone away, that wasn’t his last message, he just realized they all were the same. Ashley sat up, “Do you need to go,” she asked. “I can understand, I am surprised you stayed this long.” She began to stretch.

“Naw, I’m straight,” he answered with his mouth all the while thinking maybe this is the perfect time to go.

Ashley cleared her throat as she sat up,”D, can I be straight with you?”

“Always, Ash.”

“What happened earlier, was beautiful between, us. But I know you Dontay, and I don’t want you to feel obligated.”

“Obligated? Ashley come on,” Dontay interjected.

“Dontay,” she insisted as she placed her hand on his chest. “I love you and you are my best friend. But we need to take this slow before we mess up a really good thing. Plus I don’t know if you deserve all my goodness," she chuckled.

“Why are you laughing, Ashley” Dontay couldn't believe he was questioning her. But he was caught of guard.

“Because you look so flipping serious, right now Dontay.”

“Are you giving me the its not me, it's you speech.” Dontay was in awe of how this was all going down.

“Noooo. Dontay, quit playing I am serious. I didn’t want you to think I wanted a relationship. Just because we had, you know.”

“Ashley?”

“Go home, Dontay. Handle your business and know that your friend, Ashley, will always be here. But I have a lot on my plate right now. And I don’t have time to be running up after a man or dealing with his crazy groupies slash side hoes.”

“So you think I am that Dude Ash?”

“Dontay, Stop it. I'm just being facetious. Come on you know I am right. Deal with it. Think about it and call me later, I love you,” said Ashley as she stood and leaned over to kiss him on his forehead.

Episode 120

2011-10-21T11:04:00.000-07:00

Mello sat playing in the "complimentary" cheesecake the waitress brought her while deciding what she should say to her Nana. She knew she had to call her. As she pushed the plate away she could hear a commotion behind her, as she turned around, she saw the faces of the women she loved.

"Aunt Windee!!! Nana!!!" she exclaimed running with open arms totally disregarding the fact that she was in big trouble. She arrived at the group hug that appeared to last longer than her bus ride.

"Are you ok Mello? What are you doing here? Where is your mother?" asked Mama Winnie

"I'm ok Nana, I missed you so I thought I'd use that open ticket you sent me" she replied trying to force a smile. "As for Winsdee, I don't know where she is Nana, which is actually why I'm here. I haven't seen her in 2 weeks, she hasn't called or anything."

"2 weeks? 2 weeks? I knew eventually her fucked up lifestyle would catch up to her? Why didn't you call Mello? Have you been here that long?" Windee was furious to learn that her sister had abandoned her only niece.

Mama Winnie turned to Windee "Uh did you forget I was standing here?"

"I'm sorry Mama"

"Mello honey let's get you home and so we can have this conversation without all of downtown Detroit in our business"
***********************************************
Chris sat with Trish in silence although his brain was speaking to him loud and clear. What was he doing there with Trish when he was there to find his wife? She was in danger!!! Yet he was sitting with his Mistress!! But he was also overwhelmed with guilt, he knew the only reason Trish was there was because of him, the same men that were after his wife found his girlfriend and it landed her here. He kissed her on the forehead and whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry, you're here because of me", he ran his hand across the top of her head and then he heard the constant tapping of a foot. When he turned around he saw the woman he'd initially been for.

"Christian Carmello Clay can I speak to you in my office for a moment" Felicia said with a strong sense of urgency.

"Grammy" Chris blurted startled. "Yes, yes ma'am"

He stepped out into the hall and Grammy was at least 20 paces ahead of him. Felicia walked to her office with a sense of urgency, she never even waited for him to respond. Once he arrived the tongue lashing began.

"Have you seen my granddaughter?"

"No ma'am I came here first to see you, I was looking for you when I noticed an old friend was in the ER."

"Old friend huh? Christian do you think I am stupid or just gullible? I know damn well who Trish Vanpart is and I am offended that you are trying to play me out."

Although this was a serious matter, Chris couldn't help but chuckle at "play me out". "I am sorry Grammy I'm in no way trying to insult your intelligence."

"Oh so you are just covering your own sorry ass?"

"No ma'am, I was just..."

"You were just naive enough to think I was unaware of what was really going on? Christian, let me tell you what I know so that we are on the same page. I know that Marsha found the letter that Ms. Vanpart sent you. I know all about how you cheated on Marsha with this hussy Trish. I know that Trish is the reason you served my only granddaughter divorce papers. I also now know that being with Trish is more important to you then protecting my grand daughter, therefore you are no longer my concern as Marsha is not yours."

"Felicia", Chris said with some form of authority. "That is absolutely not correct although it may appear to be that way. Yes Trish wrote me a letter, Yes she and I have history, Yes we slept together but it was NOT until Marsha left..."

Chris was cut off by a slap to the face. "Get your ass out of here Chris, get out of my office and out of my hospital!"

What neither of them knew was the Jayden was standing outside the door and heard the entire conversation.

***************************************************

JR pulled up to Garden Court and Trinity was overcome with emotions. She felt a since of warmth as if she were at home, accompanied by anxiety.

"What are we doing here?" she asked.

Dice said nothing, he merely hopped out of the car and went inside.

"D needed to grab a few things before we got to the hospital, he's about to sell the condo and wanted to grab some personal items before the movers took it all." replied JR

"What? He's selling the loft?" All of a sudden she was overcome with sadness. "Is that what your voicemail was about?"

"Uh yeah, I know how much you loved it here so I thought it was only right that you knew he was getting rid of it. Get a lil closure, I understand you've moved on in life." Although he was lying through his teeth, he prayed she would believe him. He didn't like lying to her, this was something he was NOT accustomed to doing. "Trin, can I ask you something? There's nobody here but me & you."

"Thank you for telling me J, and of course I'll marry you JR" she chuckled, "you can ask me anything."

"I would have to kill that Knutt upstairs," they were both laughing but then he got serious "For real you know I won't tell D. Are you happy? Does that DJ make you happy? Why don't you use his last name?"

His words pierced her soul like a knife. Of all the things she thought he was going to say. "Wow, I wasn't really expecting that, I try my damnedest to make myself happy J, you know I can't depend on anybody to make that happen for me."

"Dice made you happy Trinity" he had now turned totally around in the front seat and was facing her. "Even seeing you together now, you're different in his presence. Almost like time stood still for the two of you. You know I will always be loyal to you and I will always do what is best for YOU whether you and D are together or not, please remember that."

"Thanks for that J Baby, I appreciate it. But I am not the only one who has moved on, so has he."

"I know you aren't talking about Tasha... Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck Tasha that bitch is snooty, she's got her ass all up on her shoulders, thinking she's better than everybody and we should all submit to her. Mother-fuck her, but I know if you even showed the slightest interest, she'd never hear from him again. Believe that!!"

"I wish it were that simple J, but it's not. As you've stated, I AM some body's wife."

"Not really" said JR aloud although it was meant to be a thought.

"What the fuck does that mean?" she said angrily.

"Huh? Did I say that shit out loud? All I meant was yes you are married to the DJ legally, but you don't use his last name and in every other since of the word, your husband just got out of this car and went upstairs."

*****************************************************

"I can not believe he hasn't called me back? Does he not know who I am? I am Tasha Smith honey and it don't get no better than this!" her thoughts were interrupted by a email on her Ipad2. The email was from Marcus her agent.

She read the email and developed an instant Diva-tude. And began to type her response.

Marcus,
Casting are you serious? I don't do castings anymore. I am a rare talent and if you don't understand that consider yourself fired!

Respectfully,
Tash

"Where the hell is Dice?" she exclaimed. She began to stomp her feet as if she were a child having a temper tantrum. "Find him" she yelled to her assistant.

Episode 119

2011-10-19T08:02:00.000-07:00

Skyy stood there, holding the phone...listening to the dial tone, before she eventually hung up.

"What did she say?" Aunt Maxine questioned.

Skyy walked back over to the table and sat down. "She said she will call me back."

By the look on her face, Aunt Maxine could tell Skyy wasn't satisfied. "It's ok, sweetie." She assured her as she rubbed her shoulders. "Did you call your Aunt Brenda yet?"

"No ma'am."

"Well, do that so she won't be worried crazy about you."

"Hey Sis." Brenda said when she answered the phone.

"No, ma. It's me." Skyy said as she chuckled.

"Oh, silly girl. How's it going? Are you alright?"

"Yes ma'am. Just finished eating."

"That Maxine sure can cook, can't she?"

"Un huh. I'm ready to take a nap," Skyy said as she rubbed her full belly.

"Look at you, just like a Black person."

They both laughed.

Cautiously, Aunt Brenda asked, "Have you talked to..."

Skyy finished her sentence, "Tammy? No, but I called."

"And what happened?"

"She said she would call me back."

"Figures," Aunt Brenda said with a hint of sarcasm. "Go 'head and get you some rest. Don't be running 'round tryna find her neither. She knows you're there. Let her come to you."

"Ok, ma'am. Aunt Maxine wanna talk to you right quick."

Skyy handed the phone to Aunt Maxine. "You can watch TV in there." She pointed to the room where Skyy had put her things when she first got there. "I got all the channels, even that BET, so I can see that Terrence on 106 and Park.

Skyy really started laughing. "Aww, Auntie. You a cougar."

"Whateva. Fine is fine, no matter the age."

Aunt Maxine left Skyy in the room and cracked the door behind her before walking into her room. "Hey sis. What's going on?"

"Nothing but the rent. Is Skyy behaving herself?"

"Girl, yes. She's no trouble at all. She got good sense, unlike her momma."

Laughing, Aunt Brenda agrees. "I have to be honest, I'm kinda glad she knows the truth. I feel a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders."

"I can only imagine. But, hey, listen, I was thinking maybe she can stay with me. I hadn't realized how much I missed having someone around here until she came. Tyler comes to visit often, but I wouldn't mind having Skyy here full-time. What do you think?"

"Well, it doesn't sound like a bad idea. Plus, I think it'd be good for her to be around the rest of her family. Since Jessie passed away, it's just been the two of us. Have you mentioned it to her yet?"

"Not yet. I wanted to clear it with you first. While the schools are closed for break, I can come down there and get all the necessary paperwork to get her enrolled in school as soon as possible. I'll see how she feels about it and give you a call back."

As soon as Aunt Maxine hung up the phone, she heard "Yesss! I would love to move here!" She didn't know how long Skyy had been standing there, but she knew she was there long enough to hear the news.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Devlin is doing one of his favorite things, playing Just Dance 3 on Wii. With each routine, he likes to get into character. So to mimic the dancer on the screen, he went in his grandmother's closet and pulled out a pair of black pumps. Under the shoes was a wooden box labeled "LETTERS TO DEVLIN." Devlin put the shoes down and picked up the box. He sat on the floor and examined the contents inside. They were filled with newspaper clippings and letters addressed to him. One of the headings on one of the clippings read "TEEN MOM CONVICTED OF MURDER." Devlin let out a loud gasp when he recognized the person in the picture to be his mother.

"Boy, do you hear me calling you? Dinner's ready!" Devlin's grandmother said as she busted in on him with papers sprawled all over the floor. "What are you doing?"

He stood and walked to her, with paper in hand and said, "Did my mom kill somebody?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My stomach started hurting after I ate the spaghetti my grammy made. When I told her, she said I probably had gas and needed to boo boo. I tried to use the bathroom but nothing came out. So my grammy gave me some Pepto Bismol and told me to lay down and maybe the pain would go away. But it didn't. It started hurting really bad and I started crying. My grammy tried to rub it, but that made it hurt more. I cried and cried, begging for her to make the pain go away. "Key Key, baby, what do you want grammy to do?" She cried. Then, the room got dark...and the pain stopped.

Episode 118

2011-10-17T09:06:00.000-07:00

“Hey, Neahvon,” smiled Casey as she walked with open arms to hug her cousin. She looked at his face like a mother looking at her child. He was so grown now, tall and muscular. He even had a goatee. “You got hair your face, boy.”

“Chile please,” laughed Neahvon as he extended out his hand to give Terrance dap.

“You all probably need to hug, since you all are family now,” said Casey as she grabbed Terrance’s hand.

Neahvon clears his throat and begins to walk past Casey, Terrance and Jenefer. He turns to face them. “So you are telling me, the my cousin had a wedding that I was not invited to.”

“It wasn’t like that Von,” acknowledged Terrance as he stood in front of Casey. “A lot of things happened and in the course of it, I needed her to understand that I could not continue to live my life with out her. She was made for me, point blank period.”

“They just got married a little while ago, my tears have barely dried from the ceremony. We should all go have something to eat together, once we find out everything is clear here,” interjected Jenefer as she smiled at Neahvon. “It could be a big family pow wow.”

“Excuse her, “ said Casey as she felt Jenefer's head to imply that she may be ill. “We are already at the hospital. Von, question? Where is Marsha.?”

“She’s in the room with Jason," he said as he grimaced slightly. "That went down a little crazy, though. I guess the cop that was in the room was really trippin about letting her in the room,” answered Neahvon.

“Has she seen her mother, yet,” questioned Casey.

“Naw, she wasn’t ready for visitors,” said Neahvon.

“What’s up with your event? I am surprised you are still here. Don’t you need to get back to the airport.”

“Casey, come on. Was I supposed to just keep her on the plane after we found this all out. I had to bring her back. They have that ish over there under control.”

“I am surprised lil cuz, I'm not used to you putting others before yourself.”

“If he needs to practice, I am here,” mumbled Jenefer.

They all turned and looked at Jenefer.

“My bad, I try to help and folks wanna look at me all crazy,” said Jenefer.

“I’m sorry Erica. I will kill every person who has put you here.”

Ricki turned her faced from the window toward the door. Recognizing the voice she heard to be Marshall’s.

“Stop with all this, it needs to stop,” cried Ricki!

“I'm going to stop it,” huffed Marshall.

“I want a different life for her, not this Marshall," asserted Ricki.

“We both wanted a different life for her, hell we all want a different life for her. Why do you think Mary and Felicia made the choices they did. No one wanted this. Felecia didn’t even want this life for you.”

“Don’t bring my mother into this,” Ricki hissed.

“But she is a major part of this and your life choices. I am not blaming her, Erica. I am just saying that she groomed you for this, just like she was.”

“Mashall,…this is not for Marsha. She has a different life. She wasn’t groomed for this. She's been sheltered from this.”

“She's been far from sheltered, she has been protected.”

“They want to get my baby Marshall. They will hurt her if they get her.”

“They want to hurt our daughter Erica. But they won’t, I am here,” Marshall walked to the edged of her hospital bed. “Marsha is here at the hospital Erica. I will have to speak with her.”

“She is not well Marshall. She has be blacking out again.”

“I know, and you know why as well too.”

Episode 117

2011-10-14T11:16:00.000-07:00

Jayden turned to Chris and asked, "are you Marsha's husband?"

He looked at her and blurted out, "Yes I am, have you seen her?" Then he could hear Grammy Knox in his head telling him how no one was to be trusted. "Uh I'm sorry who are you again?"

"Jayden Alexander, I'm the new corporate counsel for Anderson Place, Inc. She and I met briefly in the elevator." A big grin crept across her face as she thought of Marsha.

"Oh, okay well Miss Alexander it was nice meeting you and again I am so sorry about the coffee spill, I was a little distracted." Chris was in disbelief, of all people to bump into he bumps in to Marsha's lawyer. "Damn she didn't waste anytime" he thought.

"I too am here on business so I've got to run, I'm sure we'll see each other soon, I just hope the next time it doesn't involve your drink or my Donna Karen suit."

Jayden headed down to the cafeteria to grab a bite to eat and decide if she was actually going to go see Ricki or not.

Chris continued his journey to Felicia's office only to discover she was not in. So he took it upon himself to head towards the Emergency Room. Since he was coming from the admin hall he had the chance to glance at the ER board. That's when he saw it... T. Vanpart Bay 17. "Oh My God" he said aloud but to no one in particular. He walked full speed ahead to Bay 17, when he pulled back the curtain he saw her.

Chris was full of emotion as she lay there with several machines hooked to her and bandages across her nose and scratches on her face. He sat in the chair next to her in silence, watching her breathe and praying for her forgiveness.

*******************************************************

Jr circled the arrivals at the airport 3 times while awaiting their arrival. He battled with himself unsure if he should tell Trinity about what transpired with Antwan. He wanted to be honest with her but he was not prepared to deal with her reaction. He was still reasoning with himself when he saw the pair exit the doors in what appeared to be slow motion. He put his hand on the floor of his blacked out souped up 1985 Chevy Regal to pop the trunk before realizing they didn't have any luggage.

"Hey" he said to the duo.

"Hey" they replied in unison.

Trinity went in to hug him and whispered "I'm sitting in the back". With a bolder voice she said "thank you for coming to get us, I appreciate it. I know you've got better things to do than drive us around. I see that Metro Car driver looking at you" nodding in the direction of a young lady who had been staring at him.

"Trust me baby" Jr replied while popping his collar and licking his blackberry lips. "I always make time for that."

"When Jr? You always with this one here" pointing at Dice. I'm sure that has not changed in my absence. You know I'm really glad he has you. Someone who'll have his back ride or die with no expectations." She kissed him on the cheek and said "I really missed you."

"So does that mean you're coming back?"

Before she could respond Dice chimed in "yeah so are you coming back?"

She looked over her shoulder slightly as if to respond but decided against it, took two steps towards the car. Jr opened the door and lifted the seat up so she could get in the back per her previous request. Trinity got in the car but before he could get the seat back for Dice to get in front, Dice placed his hand on the seat and motioned for Trinity to scoot over. She looked at him as to say you've got to be kidding me, but soon obliged.

Trinity pulled out her cellular phone, turned it on and began to check her voicemails. There was a message from Casey letting her know that Jason would make it and they understood if she could not make it back. Followed by messages from Jr which struck her as odd because as urgent as his message sounds he didn't mention anything. Then she got to Antwan's message.<“Trinity, I need you to understand that I am sorry for what happened. You know I would never put my hands on you to hurt you. I know we have some things to discuss. There are a few things that I need to tell you. I just need to check on Mom & Dad, something isn’t right. She called me, something happened at their house so they were going to the hotel. She’s not answering, you’re not answering. I am about to go crazy!! I should be back later today if all is well…Trin, I love you! Please know that.”

As Trinity was listening to her voicemail, Dice also powered up his phone and was hit with a slew of text messages from Tasha. He giggled a little while reading, which of course got Trinity's attention. She glanced over just enough to see the last message: "Dice, are you ok? Did I do something wrong? Gimmie a call." It was then she remembered she failed to ask him about his rumored relationship with Tasha Smith.

Episode 116

2011-10-12T08:35:00.000-07:00

"Yes, it's your daddy." said QT's father as he appeared through the thick smoke. QT swiftly put the blunt out in the ashtray on the table and started fanning crazily, so did Junior and Dawn.

"Boy, get your tail outta here and go find a job, or something." QT's mother scolded Junior.

"Yes ma'am," he said as he grabbed his jacked and headed out the door. Dawn followed suit.

"This place is a complete mess." QT's mother looked around in complete and utter disgust. "Lord knows I didn't raise you this way. What is going on with you, child?"

QT sat there with her head hung toward the ground.

"Girl, do you hear your mother talking to you?"

Her father's voice startled her and shook her out of her drug and alcohol-induced trance.

QT shrugged her shoulders.

"Where are my grand babies?" just as she said this, three little ones came screaming from the back room.

"Grandma. Grand Pa!!"

The little girls gave their grandparents a great big hug and kissed them on the cheek. QT's mother examined her grand babies and was displeased by their appearances.

"When is the last time you fed these girls, Quadesha? Huh? What about changed their clothes?"

QT jumbled her words and slurred her speech before muttering, "They good, Ma, chill!"

"Honey, take the kids to the back and get them cleaned up while I have a word with our daughter." said QT's father.

"Why haven't you answered our calls Quadesha?"

QT sat in the chair, bouncing her foot up and down. "Daddy, I'm not in the mood for this right now, please..."

"Well, you need to get in the mood, and right now. Look at this place. It's a pig sty. You've got to get yourself together, baby."

QT stared into space, trying hard not to look her father in the eye. She clinched her teeth and fought back blinks...but she couldn't keep the tears from falling.

"Your mother and I will pay for you to speak to someone. Because you do need to talk to someone, Quadesha. Those kids need you. We need you."

He placed his hand on hers.

"Do you hear me?"

QT nodded.

"We're gonna take the girls for a while, just until you get yourself cleaned up, ok?"

"Ok," she said no louder than a whisper.

Her mother came from the back room with the girls and their suitcases. "Give your mommy a hug. You'll see her in a little while."

Two hugged her from each side and the other from the front. "Bye mommy. I love you!" Each of them said as they planted kisses on her wet face. QT just sat there, bouncing her foot, staring into space, while the tears continued to slowly roll down.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Toya was excited to be done with her first freelance assignment. She had interviewed five married couples to get their take on infidelity and whether or not it's a relationship breaker. Much to her surprise, 1/3 of the couples said it isn't grounds for divorce and that they would stay with their husbands/wives. This gave her insight on how she handled her relationship, and ultimate divorce, with Blake. Maybe I overreacted, she said to herself. Besides, he was a good provider, never hit her or called her out her name...that much.

When she called Casey to tell her she was done with her assignment earlier than anticipated, Casey answered frantically. All Toya could make from their abrupt conversation was that a co-worker had been shot and she was at Detroit Receiving Hospital.

She ran through the glass automatic sliding doors to the Information Center. She scanned the waiting room area before landing eyes on an all too familiar face. "Blake, what are you doing here? Are you alright?"

His eyes bugged out of his head. He cleared his throat more times than was necessary. "Oh...hey, Toya. Yeah, I'm fine. What are you doing here?" He temporarily deflected the focus off him.

"I'm here for moral support for a friend," she retorted. "Now, why are you here?"

"Sir, your wife's feet are damaged pretty badly. Please follow me." The Admittance Specialist from Triage rolled Shauna over to Blake in a wheelchair, dead smack in the middle of him and Toya.

"She's not my wi--"

Interrupting and pointing at Shauna, Toya asked, "So, this is why you are here?"

Shauna looked at Toya then at Blake. "Blake, who the hell is this?"

Toya raised her voice a little louder. "I'll tell you exactly who I am. I'm the one this negro was coming home to after he was done sexing you, feeding you lies, telling you what you wanted to hear. I guess you didn't notice me when I was shooting at that ass. Too busy ducking huh?"

"Toya, really? Are you gonna do this here?"

"Yeah. Why not? We all here ain't we? Ain't no time like the present."

The Admittance Specialist didn't know what to do. He tried to interject, but was unsuccessful.

"Oh, this is Toya? I thought y'all got divorced, Blake?" Shauna questioned as she looked up at him.

"We did, because of you, Trick. You can't tell me you didn't know he was married."

"That's it. Toya, we'll talk about this some other time." Blake signaled for the specialist to lead the way. As they did, Shauna looked at Toya and said, "I didn't know!"

Episode 115

2011-10-10T07:07:00.000-07:00

Marsha dashed into Jason’s bathroom to regain her composure. With tears streaming down her face, Marsha knew that she would have to get herself in better shape before she stood in front of Jason.

“Marsha” he called out.

“One sec,” she blurted out, attempting to cover up the fact that she was a complete mess. She used her fingertips to wipe away the tears from her carmel-brown skin. She couldn’t quite get the crying to stop. Why was she so emotional she thought, "I am a married woman. Well a soon to be divorced woman, but still married. A married woman who was just on a business trip with a man who was obliviously liking her. What am I doing with my self?" She took her hands placing them at the crown of her head pulling her hair back into to ponytail, using the black hair band that was on her wrist to tie it up.

“Marsha,” he questioned.

“Yes”, Marsha sighed as she walked out of the bathroom.

“Did you have to freshen up your make-up? Were you getting cute for me?”

“Ummm yes, that is exactly what I was doing,” Marsha answered sarcastically.

“Well it didn’t work,” he laughed bracingly attempt not to hurt himself to badly.

“Really”

“In your words, ummmm yes. Maybe I shouldn't of rushed you. You could be the last woman I ever see. What if I don’t make it?”

“Jason?”

“Well what if,” he teased at Marsha.

“Well what if I shoot you, Jason," Marsha asserted.

“I am just playing Marsha, I am happy to see you and I was worried for a while that you wouldn't come see me.”

“What are you talking about Jason? Why wouldn’t I come see you," questioned Marsha

“The letter”

“The letter,” she questioned. “ohhhhhh”

He reached his hand out for hers. She obliged by placing her hand in his.

“I needed to know you were okay, Jason. You are one of my best friends.”

“You still don’t get it, woman”

“Get what, Jason?”

“I don’t want to be your friend, I want to be your man. I am in love with you Marsha. I almost died. I am laying here in the hospital. And you still don’t get. All I do is think of how I can love you better.

“Jason, stop.”

“No you stop Marsha. Stop playing, because you are fighting something you don’t have to.”

**************************************************************************************

"Staci, did you see Jenefer?"

“Yes, mother I did. Your little angel is as well as ever,” said Staci annoyingly.

“Don’t mock me Staci Ann. Your mouth will limit your access too many things”

“I am so surprised because your mouth has got you so far, mother,” snickered Staci as she slid her index finger slowly in and out of her mouth..

“Hum, but unlike you, I know when to shut up,” and within seconds, Staci’s mother’s right hand backhanded Staci across her face. “You will learn your place, soon."

“I’m bleeding” cried Staci.

“Grace,” her mother called. “Can you clean her up?"

Episode 114

2011-10-07T06:29:00.001-07:00

Mello sat in the jacuzzi tub debating on who she should call first. She knew her family would be in a frenzy once they realized she was here all alone. Her Nana was very protective of her. Mama Winnie was well aware that Winsdee was not the most responsible person in the world, but she had faith that Mello would keep her abreast of things if they got too bad. And bad is exactly where things had gotten, which is how she ended up sitting alone in her Aunt Windee's apartment. She opted to walk to Niki's in Greektown. That was a special place for her, usually shared with Aunt Windee. After enjoying her Saganaki and Spinach Pie with Rice, she was both stuffed and elated. When the waitress brought the bill, Mello told her not to leave, she could take the cash now. Mello rustled thru her purse only to discover that she had left the cash in the pocket of her travel clothes. The waitress looked at her as if she were going to bolt for the door. Mello then retrieved her "emergency card" and handed it to the waitress.

***************************************************

Windell got his mother to the couch and asked James, one of the officers, to sit with his mother while he grabbed her some water and make a quick phone call. Both officers obliged.

"J-honey, where is my grandbaby? Where is she? Something terrible has happened, there is no way she would be missing and not call her Nana," Mama Winnie cried. She was comfortable with James as he and Winsdee had been engaged many many years ago. He often stopped by while on patrol just to check on her. She was always appreciative of him and the life he could've provided for her ungrateful daughter.

"I don't know Mama Winnie, but you know I will find them both if they are in the city of Detroit. I will be sure to bring them home safe to you. You hear me Mama? Stop that crying, I will, We will find your babies." Officer James said as he looked up at his partner.

Windell was dialing Windee's number when she and Peanut pulled into the driveway. He immediately hung up and attempted to run outside to them before they could get inside, but it was too late. The panic had already set in when they turned the corner and saw the police lights in front of Windee's mother's home. Peanut had barely gottten the truck into park before she jumped out and ran across the plush green lawn.

"Where's my Mama?" She screamed as she tried to push past Windell.

"Windee, listen calm down, it's not Mama; Winsdee & Mellodee are missing."

"What...missing? Move Windell where is my Mama?" this time she pushed Windell out of the way. But before she made it inside Peanut grabbed her arm.

"Win, wait" said Peanut. "Listen babe, I know you're upset but you know Mama Winnie looks to you to be her strength; if you go in there like this she is gonna break down. If you present a strong front, then she will draw from your strength." He wrapped his arms around her and wiped the tears from her face.

"Thank you Percy" she said as she gazed into his eyes. "You are so right" she took two steps back from him, shook her hands and told herself to get it together. She inhaled deeply and grabbed Peanut's hand as they headed towards the house.

"Windee!!!!!!!!!!! Percyyyyyyyyyyy" screamed Mama Winnie. She was elated to see her daughter but even moreso to see her hand and hand with the man she always envisioned her with. "Oh my this is so bittersweet, I am so happy to see you both" she said throwing her arms around the pair of them "They are missing Windee, your sister has done something that has probably gotten them both killed."

"Mama, don't say that" Windee said. Simultaneously, her phone blared an alarm that startled her. She retrieved her cellphone from what she referred to as Twin City Banking (her bra).

It was a text message:
"Thank you for your recent purchase of $16.34 at Niki's Pizza"

"Mello", she cried. "She's here Mama, she's here & such a smart girl she's using the credit card I gave her." She proceeded to dial several numbers while walking into the kitchen. She spoke to someone on the phone for about 60 seconds before hanging up. "Mama, I'm going to get her; come on Nutt let's go."

"No Windee, we are going to get her" said Mama Winnie as she headed to the door.

"Correction, we" pointing at himself and his partner "are going to get her" said Officer Todd.

"Todd come on, she's a 14 year old kid. I promise we will let you talk to her but she needs to see familiar faces and know that she's safe before the cops show up" Windee said while batting her eyes.

"I agree with her" said Officer James. "It's not like we won't know where to find her Todd. Something is obviously going on for that young girl to travel all this way. Is your sister with her?"

"No, the waitress said she's alone."

************************************

Antwan layed in a pool of his own vomit and blood. He was desperate to survive but praying that he would just die. He was bound, gagged and douced in gasoline. He slipped in and out of consciousness, more out than in. He could hear mini conversations going on around him, unsure if it was a dream or reality.

"Burn it to the ground" Shelly said to JR "I want nothing left but ash!" she then turned to Antwan and snapped open an ammonia capsule under his nose.

"Wake up, honey." She said while cutting the gag from his mouth.

The smell of the gasoline in combination with the ammonia forced him to vomit once more. "Shelly, please."

"You weren't concerned with pleasing Shelly before now were you? You played me Antwan but I told you from jump I always get the last laugh, only thing is, I'm not laughing Twan... I truely loved you with all my heart and soul. I thought you loved me too. I thought I was going to be Mrs. Swanson, but you played me. I don't want to quote Adele but we could've had it all, and you tossed it away for a bitch that doesn't even care that you are gone."

"Can we please just talk like we used to just for a minute? Can you please untie me? At least my hands?"

"I don't really see the harm in that. Ape, can you cut Mr. Swanson loose and give us a few minutes alone?"

JR obliged and headed upstairs. Before long he was snooping around and looking at the photos of he & Trinity that were placed all around his parents home.

"You know it wasn't like that Raychell, I only did what I did to protect you. I loved you, hell I still do." He was praying that he could appeal to her softer side, the side of her that quivered each time they made love. "I did the only thing I could do to keep you out of danger." He began to choke and cough repeatedly.

She removed the cashmere scarf from around her neck and began to use it to wipe his face clean. "Twan, baby these are Daddy's orders; you disobeyed Daddy and ended up here, so you know I can't just let you go and let you go back to your barbie wife."

He could tell she was getting angry again so he had to quickly intervene. "She was just a cover baby, I needed them to think I had moved on from you so that you & your Dad would be out of harm's way. I swear I was coming back for you, I told you a long time ago that I will always come for you."

A single tear ran down Antwan's face as Ape re-entered the basement. Shelly immediately stopped him. "Ape I want to thank you for all of your help, but this shit is personal I've got to handle this myself."

When JR got about 1/2 mile away he heard an explosion, as he checked his rear-view he saw a bright light and huge black clouds of smoke. "Shelly never had been the subtle type", he said to himself as he shook his head.

Episode 113

2011-10-03T12:13:00.001-07:00

All she heard was a piercing scream as she opened the door.

"Calm down. Calm down." Duke said to Shauna. "It's just my wife."

Duke quickly made his way over to the door, before his wife could panic. "Baby...baby, this is Shauna. Terrance's child's mother. She seems to be in some trouble."

Dayna eyes Shauna suspiciously. "Ya think? Where the hell are her clothes?"

"We haven't gotten that far yet. When I went to open the patio door, she came rushing towards me."

Shauna stood there, shaking, even though she had a towel wrapped around her. Dayna looked her up and down, taking inspection of her soiled and tattered socks. Just as she was about to speak, Shauna's phone rang and beeped simultaneously. She pulled the sticky phone from her bra.

Stammering, she answered, "He...Hello?" She paused for a second, then said, "Heeyyy!" trying to invoke some excitement in her voice. She continued, "This is really a bad time. I promise to call you back later, ok?" She didn't wait for a response as she pressed the END button.

"Now, would you mind telling us what's going on?" Dayna pried.

"I don't mean any disrespect, but it's a long story. I just need to catch my breath and get the dogs off my tail and I'll be on my way again."

"Dogs? What kinda mess you got..."

Ever so lovingly, Duke interrupted, "Baby, would you mind grabbing Shauna something to wear out that bag of clothes you're going to donate?"

"I don't want any danger coming to my house, Duke."

"Believe me, I don't either. But Terrance is my boy, and I'm sure he would help me if I was in a similar situation."

He hugged Dayna and softly pecked her on the cheek. She changed her tune after this...and after she saw a trail of blood coming from the patio door that led up to where Shauna was standing. The bottoms of her feet were bleeding.

"You're hurt. Come with me." Dayna said as she took Shauna upstairs.

She sat a fresh towel, a wash cloth and some clean clothes on the corner of the sink. Shauna sat on the closed toilet seat, in a daze.

"Here you go," Dayna gently patted the stack and looked on with concern.

"Thank you so much. You just don't know how much I appreciate this."

Shauna started sobbing silently. Dayna walked over to her and said, "It's going to be ok. Get cleaned up and we'll take you to the hospital, ok?"

Shauna nodded. She shut the door, placed her phone next to the garments and practically tore off her panties and bra before placing them into the plastic grocery bag Dayna had left. She painstakingly removed her socks and winced each time as the sensation shot through her body. She tip-toed into the shower and automatically felt a sense of relief. She played over and over in her head what she would say to Ced to make him forgive her. She was tired of running. Tired of lying. Tired of involving her family in her web of lies. As she watched the dirt wash from her skin and down the drain, she knew it was time for her to come clean.

Her phone beeped three quick beeps in succession before the words POWERING OFF. GOODBYE crossed the screen and went black.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Blake returned from the weight room, he had several missed calls and text messages. "You have three messages. New message marked urgent," said the robotic woman on the other end.

Blake, I need a huge favor. Please call me back.

He nodded his head and smiled. "I knew she couldn't stay away too long," he said aloud. "Message deleted. New message, marked urgent":

Blake, please answer your phone. I know I said I didn't want to talk to you again, but this is an emergency. I need you to pick me up, please?

He deletes the second message. "New message, marked urgent":

The girl on the message is now sobbing.

Look, Blake, I don't have anyone else to call. Would you please...

"End of message."

His expression turned from that of cockiness to concern. He tried to call her back, but it went straight to voicemail. After several attempts, he decided to check his texts. The text messages pretty much said the same thing as the voice ones. But one stood out from the rest:

It's a long story, but I really messed up. I'm so scared. I'll explain later, if he doesn't find me first. He's going to kill me.

Then, the next message read:

Please come get me at: 328 E. Alexander...

He grabbed his keys and ran out the door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After her shower, Shauna joined Duke and Dayna in the living room.

"Thanks again. I folded the towels and put them on the back of the toilet."

Dayna smiled then asked, "Are you ready?"

Shauna's body quivered when the doorbell rang. She, Duke and Dayna looked at each other then at the door.

"Are you expecting someone?" Dayna asked Duke.

He shook his head. "I'll get it. Y'all sit tight." He retrieved his 9mm Smith and Wesson from a clandestine compartment in the kitchen before proceeding. "Who is it?" He demanded as he squinted out the peep hole..."Oh!" He said as he opened the door. "What's up man? What'chu doin' here?"

"Yo. What's good? You my new barber," Blake said, pointing at Duke.

"Yeah. Yeah, I remember. How may I help you?"

Blake looked down at his phone to confirm he was at the right address. "I got an urgent text from a friend asking me to pick her up here."

"Who is your friend?" Duke inquired. Shauna caught the voice of the guy on the other side of the door.

"It's ok, Duke. I called him."

Duke stepped back and opened the door wider, allowing Blake to come in.

"We were just about to take her to the hospital. Her feet are sliced up pretty bad," Dayna said.

Blake looked down at Shauna's feet, that were now wrapped in bandages. "What happened?"

Dayna interjected, "It's a long story."

Blake walked over to the chair where Shauna was seated and scooped her up. "Come on. I'll take you."

Episode 112

2011-10-03T05:33:00.000-07:00

Ricki’s thoughts took her back to a place that her body had barely escaped from. She laid alone in recovery, not knowing why she was there. Her breathing became erratic as she began to have memories of the last time she was here.

“Erica,” she heard the nurse call. “Erica, you're okay.”

There was silence……….

Erica eyes opened slowly as her head hung down to her chest. The light that shined on her was bright and blinding.

“Why won’t you just talk Erica? You're okay.”

As Ricki’s eye’s slowly opened, she realized exactly what was going on. She was far from okay.

She sat in a chair bound around her waist, feet and arms. She realized that she had been there for a while. She had pains streaming across her forehead, her abdomen and her back.

“Erica, if you talk, we will let you go. Why are you torturing yourself, sweetie?”

The voice that Ricki was hearing was a familiar one. It was Jacquelyn’s, or as most called her Jac. Jac was a beast like no other, instead of being born with a nurturing spirit and one that would bring forth life. She tortured and brought death. She had been the only girl born in a family of 7 boys who were breed into a life of crime. She fought for her father’s attention by excelling past her brother’s in all things criminal and inhumane. At first her father was against her participation in the family business but her gifting was undeniable.

“Bring him out. She taking too long." Jac demanded.

Ricki’s hung her head praying to God that the, “him” they had, was not the “him” that she thought. As she heard more movement in the room she lifted her head . She watched as they sat him down in a chair about twenty feet away from her. “I can’t be him,” she thought. “Lord please don’t let it be him.” It looked him, but his face, it was so badly beaten. He began to mumble.

“Erica, I love you.”

She refused to cry. But she knew it was him, his ring, his tattoo. “How” she thought. She wondered how they got him. Marshall was not one to be sloppy. He was better then that. He had always told her that if they were in this situation to say nothing. This is what she did. More questions were posed to Erica, but she said nothing.

“Pop pop pop…” sounded the gun as the bullets hit him, in the head and the chest. She was shocked by the speed of the bullets, but Erica was in a mental frenzy…They just killed Marshall. They might as well of killed her too. But she knew that she had to stay focused for Marsha. Though she wasn’t sure she would make it out herself to even get to her.

“So he can’t talk now Erica, will you? We know he gave it to you. You need to talk it is vitally important to your motherhood,” said Jac as she signaled for the doorman to open it.

No one knew that Marsha was Marshall’s daughter but they did know he had been in her life. Marshall knew that Marsha’s life would be at stake if anyone every knew who she was. Ricki prayed again hoping for different results…. “please, God”, she prayed to herself.

But then in walk a girl, screaming , “mommmmmm” with a bag over her head. Wearing a Ranold’s Private School uniform, Marsha’s school.

Erica could be silent no more.

“Why is she here Jac, she has nothing to with this,” said Erica with fury.

“But she has everything to do with this, your talking now.”

“I don’t know what you want. I really don’t know,” barked Erica.

Jac signaled again, “pop, pop pop” the cries for mom went silent.

Erica whaled with pain, “You bitch.”

The girls body fell limp.

“I told you I didn’t know. I wasn’t lying to your Godless ass,” blurted Ricki.

“I’ll repent to your God later. He’ll forgive me,” laughed Jac.

“Killing him wasn’t enough, you killed our daughter too. She was all I had left of him.”

“His daughter, Sha is his daughter,” asked Jac. “Damn it, it makes so much since now. Christopher, tell them to quit looking for Marshall, and to go after the girl, she’s his daughter.”

Erica was confused, they had just killed both of the people, Jac was sending people after.

“Don’t look confused, sweetie. That wasn’t your family we killed.”

“Erica, open you eye, now," the voice insisted.

Erica wiped tears from her eye as she open them and looked at her mother.

“Momma”

“Baby, I heard you. This is not then. It’s been 16 years since that happened.”

“It was so real momma, it was so real.”

“Baby you just need to rest, and heal”

“Heal, why am I here.”

“They are looking for Marsha, again”

Episode 111

2011-09-30T06:35:00.000-07:00

Trinity was grateful that they hadn't missed the only flight going back to Detroit today. While they boarded the plane & turned off their cell phones, Trinity's anxiety was sending a buffet of emotions through her body. What the hell was going on in her life? Why had Casey assigned her this interview? What the hell had gotten into Antwan? What the hell was she doing with Dice? How did things go this far? Dice sat down next to her. The look on his face was very somber. He was finally slowing down & processing the information that had been given to him both by Trinity & Jr. He reflected on how that split second she saw him, grossly effected their lives. He relished in how it felt to be with her again, regardless of the reason, it just felt so right. He turned to face her and watched as she lifted her hand and used her right ring finger to massage her bottom lip. This was something she always did while thinking. A smile crept across his face, even through tragedy together they were an unstoppable force. His thoughts of joy came to a screeching halt when another familiar ritual came in to play. She began to use her thumb to twist the ring on her ring finger, of course the problem is that ring was NOT the one he gave her.In the time they'd spent apart he had his fair share of revenge sex but he never allowed a woman into his home. There were pictures of her all over the place. He couldn't have cared less about the women seeing them, it was more-so out of respect for her. His heart wouldn't let him. Which is why he couldn't understand how she got married when they both know she loves him!?! Trinity could feel him staring at her. She placed her right hand upon his left hand and looked into his eyes."Are you OK?" She asked a deaf man could hear the concern on her voice."I will be", he replied."Do you need anything?""I should be asking you these same questions. But to answer your question yes, I need you to understand that you can't go back to him!"********************************

Mama Winnie sat down at the antique vanity set given to her by her husband during their courtship, she stared at the old pics before picking one up of her children. "My babies aren't babies anymore" she said out loud to herself. She placed the photo back on the vanity and began to brush her beautifully soft salt and pepper hair. She was fumbling around for her lipstick when she caught a glimpse of Windell in her mirror.

"Hey Mama!" he said. "You are already beautiful, no need to put any of that junk on your face."

She grinned at him and said "Awe baby, you always know just what to say to make your mama feel good. I've got a date, I need to get ready."

"A date?" he replied. "Oh I see your favorite child must be in town, that's the only time I see you putting on that mess."

"Favorite? I Don't have a favorite son, I love you all the same. Some may cause more pain than others but NO SIR I do NOT have a favorite." She was absolutely lying and he was absolutely correct. "But if you are asking if Windee is here, yes she is and we're going to lunch. Would you like to join us?"

"Naw mama I'll catch up with you guys later." he said and kissed her on the cheek before heading to the ringing telephone.

"Hello"

"Hello, may I please speak to Mrs. Winefred Satay. This is coach James from Phillips Academy"

Windell walked out the room and down the hall with the cordless telephone. "Uh she's not available at the moment, this is her son Windell can I help you?" Windell could hear his mother racing to the door as the doorbell rang so he closed the bathroom door so she would not hear who he was talking to or what about. No need to get her all upset cause Mello is acting up in practice, he thought.

Mama Winnie flung the door open in anticipation of seeing Windee but to her surprise it was 2 officers from the DPD both of which were boys who grew up in the neighborhood. "Uh can I help you officers?"

Mama Winnie and Windell were both getting the same news. Mello hadn't been to school or practice in a few days and the truancy officer went to her home, but no one was there. The door was open and it looked as if the home was ransacked and both Mello and her mom had gone missing. The Chicago Police had been showing pics of the family as well as put out missing persons reports on the news. One man at the bus terminal thought he recognized Mello and told them if that was the girl then she was headed to Detroit. Windell got to his mother just in time for her to collapse in his arms.

*********************************************

Tasha Smith sat back the chase lounge in front of the master bedroom window of her historic Rosedale Park home reading It Can Happen To You a series of short stories compiled by a local author. She was actually reading S&M: Sexts & Messaging when she decided to send a text to her newest Boo Thang Woo Thang.

"I was gonna call a chiropractor but then I remembered I knew somebody who could blow my back out...u cumin to c me?"

She applied some lip glass and opened her robe to expose her naked body before whipping out her iPhone and snapping a photo to send with the second text.

"So are you giving it up or do I have to come get it?"

She waited all of 60 seconds before sending another.

"Damn, it's like that? I know you aren't trying to act like you don't want this."

About 3 minutes passed this time.

"Dice, are you ok? Did I do something wrong? Gimmie a call."

Although they had only been out a few times she really liked him. There was something about him that made her quiver in and out of his presence. He wasn't the type of guy she usually dated however he made her want to change her type.

She maintained a busy work schedule which more often than not kept her on the road. Even with the film industry spending more time & money in Detroit she had no desire to actually be in Detroit herself. But he gave her a reason to want to come home. They were by no means a couple but if she had anything to do with it that would certainly change.

*************************************************************

After calling Grammy Knox again and confirming Marsha's location Chris headed to the hospital. Once again his head was full with thoughts of his wife. There was so many things he wanted to get off his chest. So many things that he failed to tell her in the preceding months that got them to where they are today. He had been distant but not to any fault of hers, he had been fighting his own demons. Having nightmares but being too much of "man" to talk to his wife about them. There were things about him that she didn't know, things from his past that even he had forgotten but in recent months had come back to life for him.

Upon arriving at the hospital he immediately went down the administrative hall in an attempt to find Felicia's office. He was rather frantic but managed to stop at a vending machine to grab a cup of coffee in an attempt to ease his nerves.

He sipped on the coffee mumbling to himself, distracted by his thoughts he bumped right into a lady wearing a champagne colored suit.

"Uh ma'am I am so sorry, it's been a rough couple of days." Chris muttered hoping she would not ask him to pay for her dry cleaning.

"Are you serious?" she replied

"I'm so sorry here's my card, my name is Chris Clay and I'd be more than happy to pay for your dry cleaning." he extended his hand and a phony smile.

"Excuse me? What did you say your name was?"

"Chri..." he was cut off when the door opened that the mystery lady had just exited.

"Excuse me, Miss Alexander I'm glad you're still here you forgot your receipt." said the hospital administrator.

"Thank you very much" she replied, "and call me Jayden, I've got a feeling we'll be seeing alot of each other."

Episode 110

2011-09-28T11:20:00.000-07:00

"What do you mean she still looks the same? Ced, you're not making any sense. Please tell me what's going on." Lisa demanded.

Ced put the picture closer to Lisa's face. "Look!"

"Look at what?" Lisa was losing her patience. She placed her hands on her hips, waiting for an answer.

"This is my baby. This is Nyla."

Lisa snatched the picture from his hand. "What? You are tripping. This is Key Key, Terrance's daughter. What is wrong with you, Ced?"

"Baby girl, I'm not tripping. Remember how Nyla's mother would send me pictures when I was locked up?"

"Yeah."

"Then out the blue, she stopped?"

"Yeah, I remember. Mom and Dad were so hurt."

"Word on the street is she was messing around with me and some dude at the same time and had him thinking that this baby is his. It took me a minute to find her, because she changed her name and shit, but she can't run forever."

Lisa looked at the picture again. This time she could see the family resemblance. Shaking her head, she said, "No. No. How do you know for sure? Why would she go through all that trouble changing her name? Why not just tell you she's seeing somebody else? This doesn't make sense, Ced."

"You got to trust me on this one. This is my baby. All I wanna do is find that nigga Terrance, tell him thanks for being there for Nyla, now fall the hell back."

"So, that's your plan?"

Ced nodded his head then said, "Yeah. What's wrong with that?"

"I can tell you right now, Terrance is not having it. He loves that little girl. You can't keep going around strong armin folks into doing what you want, Ced. You need another approach."

"I'm listening."

"Ok, first, have you talked to Tammy?"

"You mean Shauna?"

"Whatever her name is now."

"Kinda."

"Kinda? What does that mean...Ok, never mind. What did you say to her?"

"I told that bitch to call him so he can bring my daughter back."

Lisa starts massaging her temples. "You wanna go about this the right way, for Key Key's sake. What happened after you told her that?"

"I hit her a few times, then she escaped."

"Escaped?" Lisa growled. "That's it. Y'all, get out!!" She pointed at Ced and his boy, then at the door. "We have to go find her."

"Wait a minute." Ced grabbed a sticky note off Lisa's desk, scribbled something on it, and stuck it and the picture on Terrance's mirror.
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Skyy spent a few more hours with her cousin before she dropped her off at her Aunt Maxine's.

"Hey," her aunt said with her arms outstretched. "Come in. Come in."

Skyy took off her shoes at the plastic runner by the door. The ivory white carpet was plush like polar bear fur. Her aunt led her to the guest room, where she sat her back pack on the bed.

"I don't get much company since Tyler left for school." She said with a wide grin. "Are you hungry? I just made some salmon croquets, rice and honey biscuits."

"Yes ma'am. I'll go wash my hands."

Skyy contemplated whether or not she should say something to her aunt. She knew she had to know what was going on. The person she really wanted to talk to didn't answer the phone. She called Tammy several times, from different numbers, and still...nothing.

"What'chu doing? Taking a bath?" Her aunt called out, jokingly.

This knocked Skyy out of her trance. "Coming."

She took a seat at the wood table with the L-shaped bench to match.

"This is cool...just like in the restaurants," Skyy said as she adored the furniture.

"Why, thank you. So, what brings you here? Your mother didn't even tell me you were coming. I'ma get her," her aunt said with a giggle.

"By mother, are you talking about Tammy or my "Aunt" Brenda?"

Aunt Maxine froze. She sat her fork down and took a swig of her homemade Peach Iced Tea.

"Well, I'll be. How long have you known?"

"Not that long, just a few days."

Aunt Maxine slid in closer to Skyy. "How are you feeling?"

Skyy shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I feel weird."

"Weird how, baby?"

She fought back tears. "I just wanna know why. Why don't she love me?"

She placed her arms around Skyy, and rocked her from side to side. "Is that what you think? That's not it at all. You see, sometimes people have babies before they're ready. Tammy was young and definitely not ready to care for you. So, if anything, she loves you very much because she gave you to your Auntie Brenda, who couldn't bear kids of her own."

Skyy absorbed what her Aunt Maxine was sharing with her. She somewhat comprehended what she said and felt much better. "Have you talked to her...to Tammy?"

"Child, it's been a while. You know she don't sit still for too long."

"May I use your phone? I'm going to try her again?"

"Sure, the phone's right over there," Aunt Maxine pointed.

Skyy was determined to get answers and hear Tammy's side of the story. She meticulously pressed the buttons on the phone. This time she was prepared to leave a message, but was shocked when she answered...on the first ring.

"Hello? Hello?"

Skyy opened her mouth but didn't make a sound. After about the fourth hello, she said, "Hi. Tammy. This is your daughter, Skyy."