One Week Later

"Happy Birthday, Marcus!" Ruby said as she took him from Beth. "Are you having a fun birthday?"

Marcus replied with a giggle as his godmother tickled him under the chin.

"I thought you said you invited Jimmy? I don't see him anywhere," Ruby said as her eyes darted around the room. "Stan was hoping to have someone to talk to."

The party had been going on for over half an hour and neither Jimmy nor Rio were in attendance. Beth really did wish Jimmy could be here, but she was more worried about why Rio wasn't. He'd gone out to take care of something early this morning and she hadn't seen him since.

Things were definitely weird between them and had been since their failed date night a week ago. What was supposed to have been a romantic evening turned into an evening of interrogation. She'd dropped the box and its contents off at the police station. Well, almost the same box. She'd made a few modifications first. She'd used a box that didn't have Rio's name written on it and had added Devante's name to the bottom of the note. She'd explained to the police that it had been left on her doorstep, but she didn't know why. They'd looked inside and were just as horrified as she had been to find pieces of a dead body inside. Detectives had spent the next five hours interrogating her. She feigned cluelessness the whole time and she thought they had bought it. If they hadn't, she figured she would have been brought in for questioning again.

She didn't know if turning the box into the cops was a good idea, but it was the only one she had been able to think of. She'd been backed into a corner with very few options. She couldn't let Devante get away with this. He couldn't leave this kind of stuff at her house. What if Annie had opened the door and found the box? No, she wasn't going to allow it.

Beth hadn't told Rio what she'd done. Was too scared to if she were honest. He'd been moody and had worked late all week. She could tell that "work" wasn't going so well. She hoped it was because Devante was in trouble. That the cops were on his tail

She wanted Rio out of this life so bad. If he got out now, there was still hope. He could go to college. They could forge a different life.

As another half hour passed, Beth grew even more worried. It wasn't like Rio to say he was going to be somewhere and then not show up. It was his son's birthday for goodness sake. He should be here.

As Beth was slicing the train shaped cake she'd made for Marcus's birthday, she heard a phone ringing in the distance.

A minute later Annie walked up. "Rio's on the phone for you."

Ruby took over the slicing of the cake and Beth headed towards the phone.

"Where have you been?" She asked without even bothering to say hello.

"I need you to bail me out. Get the cash out of the shoebox under our bed."

"It's your son's birthday. We're in the middle of his party."

"Like I don't know that? Look ma, I don't got all day to be on the phone. Come and get me. You can whine and moan about this later."

Beth slammed the phone down, feeling as if steam were coming out of both her ears. How could he do this? On today of all days? On their son's birthday?

She walked over to Ruby. "Hey, umm...I have to go pick up Rio. Would you mind watching Marcus for me? I've left some money on the counter for the pizza when it gets here. Just have everyone keep playing and eating. We can open presents later."

"Sure. Is everything OK?" Ruby asked, looking at her worriedly.

Beth shook her head not trusting herself to talk. Everything was most definitely not OK.

Rio slid into the passenger seat, seething with anger. It had been a mother of a day and he was about to lose it. It didn't help that Beth was giving him attitude. She hadn't said a word to him as he collected his belongings and they walked out of the jail.

No longer able to keep his emotions in check, he spat, "Are you stupid? Suffering from a concussion or somethin'? Cuz I can't think of any other reason for why you did what you did other than you weren't in your right mind, ma."

Beth backed out of the parking spot, unresponsive and seemingly emotionless, and headed towards the main road.

She knew what she did. She just didn't want to own up to it. Rio looked out the window trying to let the past 12 hours go. But he couldn't.

"What'd you think you would get out of this, Elizabeth?"

"I wanted Devante out of our lives," Beth finally admitted.

"And you think ratting him out to the cops would get you what you want? I can't believe you're still this naive. I thought you would've wisened up by now."

Beth shrugged. "What did they arrest you for?"

"Some bogus B.S. They were just trying to get me to snitch on Devante. Told me if I gave them info they'd drop the charges."

"Did you?"

"C'mon ma, you know me better than that. Of course I didn't. Me and Devante got picked up by the cops at the same time."

"It sounds like you really dropped the ball. You had an opportunity to get away from all this but you didn't take it. Can you explain something to me Rio? Why are you so freaking loyal to Devante? Why are you more loyal to him than your own family?"

This chick really didn't understand. Everything he did was for her and his son.

"In the future, you stay out of it, aiight?" He said, blatantly ignoring her question.

"No. Not alright," Beth shouted, taking her eyes off the road for a moment to glare at him. "I opened the box. I know what was inside of it. I'm not just going to sit back and let that stuff be sent to the house where my kid sister and my one year old son live. I'm not OK with this Rio. It's not OK and it shouldn't be OK with you either."

Rio clenched his fists. He wanted to punch something, the window, the glove compartment, anything. For someone so smart, she could be so incredibly dense sometimes. She could have gotten herself killed. "This ain't no joke, Elizabeth," he warned. "This sh— is life or death. I smoothed things over with Devante, but if you pull a stunt like this again I can't guarantee my, your, or Marcus's safety." And that's what truly scared him. He could handle if something happened to him, but if anything were to happen to her or Marcus...he'd lose it.

As they pulled up to the house, he said, "Let's just enjoy the rest of Marcus's birthday party."

"This conversation isn't over," she said.

He was certain that it wasn't. Especially once she'd found out what he did to ensure their safety.

Hours later Beth angrily washed the dishes as she watched Rio push Marcus on the new play set they had gotten him for his birthday. She couldn't get over the fact that he hadn't taken the opportunity she'd handed him on a silver platter. It stung knowing that she wasn't first in his list of priorities. He had a choice and he chose Devante over her.

Hearing the doorbell ring, she shut off the water and dried her hands. She opened the door to find Jimmy with an eye swollen shut and bruises all over his face.

She gasped, covering her mouth. "What happened, Jimmy?"

"Sorry I couldn't make it to the party. I wanted to at least give you his gift."

"Forget about the gift. What happened? Who did this to you?" She asked gently touching his bruised cheek.

"I don't know. I was walking back from the basketball court early this afternoon when some guys jumped me."

"Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh," Beth said, feeling panicky and starting to tear up. How could something like this happen? Everyone loved Jimmy. Who would want to do this to him? "I can't believe someone would do this to you. I am so, so sorry, Jimmy."

"It's OK. I'll be fine." Scratching his head, he said, "I could have taken that first guy, but when the other three guys got out of the car I knew I was screwed. It was just weird. I thought they were going to rob me, but they didn't try to take my wallet, my shoes, my watch, nothing."

Jimmy was right. It was weird, Beth thought. "Do you want some cake? Or some leftover pizza?" She said.

He shook his head as he handed Beth the present. "Nah, I think I want to go home and rest. It's been quite a day. Tell Marcus I said Happy Birthday."

Beth swiped a tear from her cheek as she folded a black shirt. She couldn't shake the image of Jimmy's bruised and battered face from her mind. He'd done nothing to deserve it. He was just an innocent bystander.

"Little man is sound asleep. I guess eating tons of sugar and playing all day wore him out," Rio said as he entered their bedroom.

Beth nodded wordlessly.

Rio's gaze caught sight of what she was doing. "What's happening here? Why you packing all my clothes, ma?"

She folded another shirt and stuck it in the open suitcase. "Because you're leaving."

He laughed hollowly. "What?"

"I know what you did."

"What'd I do?" He asked leaning against the wall.

Well, she didn't know all the why's and the how's, but she knew enough. Enough that she couldn't live with the person Rio had become. "You got Jimmy beat up."

Rio massaged his jaw. "Yeah, I was hoping you wouldn't find out about that."

Beth threw a pair of pants into the suitcase. "Why?" She shouted. "Why would you do that? Jimmy's never done anything to you."

"You put me in a bad spot, Elizabeth. I did what I had to do."

"Why'd it have to be Jimmy?"

"It was either him or you! Devante dropped that box off at our house. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out you were the one who went to the cops. You screwed up, Elizabeth, so I did what I did to protect you. Can't you see that? I lied to him and said I never got the box. I put it all on Jimmy saying he was a suspicious mother and always snooping around here looking for clues. Luckily, Devante bought it. I ain't gonna apologize for keeping you safe, Elizabeth."

Beth plopped herself on the bed, feeling dead inside. It was her fault that Jimmy had been attacked. Guilt overwhelmed her. If she had just ignored her curiosity and not opened the box... But then she shook that thought out of her mind. If Rio's "job" didn't involve creepy people dropping boxes with body parts off at their home, then this wouldn't have happened.

"Ma, look, I'm sorry I had to blame your friend, but I didn't have no other choice."

"You always have a choice, Rio, and I have a choice too. I want you to leave."

Rio nodded. "I'll spend the night at my mom's and we'll talk tomorrow. Maybe you'll see my side of things once you get some rest."

She shook her head. "No. I want you gone for good. Take all of your stuff and don't come back. Not to see me. Not to see Marcus."

"OK, ma. You're just being crazy now. You can't keep me from my kid."

Beth's eyes bored into his as she stood up. "I can and I will. He deserves a better father. Someone who doesn't go after innocent people."

Rio slowly walked over to her, stopping just an inch away from her face. "You don't want to go to war with me over this, sweetheart. You don't want to be with me? Fine. You and I don't got to be together, but I will continue to see my child."

"Not if I tell the cops what I know," Beth spat.

"You think I don't got dirt on you? You ain't squeaky clean."

Beth heard Marcus's cry down the hall. She was shaking like a leaf. She was so angry yet simultaneously terrified that Rio would find a way to take her son away from her.

"I'm gonna go check on him. I want you to get out," she snapped.

She brushed past him and walked out the door and down the hall to Marcus's bedroom.

Picking up her son, she kissed him on the cheek. "It's OK," she whispered. "It's gonna be OK. I will always put you first. You will always be my number one."

Marcus wailed harder than he ever had before. As if he knew just how much his mother's heart was breaking. As if he knew the horrible things his father had done. As if he knew his parents were broken up for good.