I woke up to the best feeling in the world. The feeling of her bare skin on mine, her breath on my chest, and hair scattered across the pillow and some in my face. I brushed her hair down and ran a finger over her shoulder and down her arm. I felt her skin shiver under my finger and smiled. I moved gently from underneath her arm and scooted down so I was face with her shoulder. I propped myself up on my elbow and ran a lonely finger down back. I moved the blanket down until it was about to uncover her bottom and started to move my finger back up. I traced invisible lines along her back and sides, watching her twitch and let out small gasps. I stopped with my finger and leaned over to straddle her back lightly. I started at the small of her back and slowly kissed my way up the center of her back. Kissing every inch of her spine.
"Jackie…" she moaned. I felt her hand come rest on the back of my head as I finally made my way to her neck. I nibbled her neck gently and moved my lips to her ear.
"Good morning." I whispered. I saw her cheeks turn up, she was smiling.
"Yes, it is. Now get off me you big ape. How did you get in last night?" she laughed. I rolled off her and reclaimed my spot next to her. She rolled over to her back and held the sheet over her body as she sat up.
"Paisley was just getting home and she used her key. And it's not like I haven't seen ya naked before, Em." I told her casually, lighting a cigarette. She laughed and punched my arm.
"So, I still don't like parading around naked." she told me, sitting back against the headboard. I took the cigarette from my lips and passed it to her. She smirked and took it from me.
"Why not? You got a smoking body and it is your place. It's not like Bobby will be walking around. And hell, he doesn't live alone and he walks around naked, you know that first hand." I laughed recalling the day she walked out to see Bobby walking around in his boxers.
"Please, don't remind me. I'm not sure what's worse, that or the sounds coming from Angel's room at night. Between the two it's bound to give a girl nightmares." she shuddered. I laughed and took the cigarette from her.
"All I'm saying is you don't need to be bashful around me of in your own house. No one is just gonna walk in and see you." I finished.
This is what I hated. I try to prove a point and someone has to shatter it. Bobby loved doing that. Even when he didn't realize he was doing it, he managed to do it. At that particular moment, trying to prove a point, we heard her front door open and shut. The next thing that flooded our ears was the horrible sound of Bobby first thing in the morning.
Emilie's eyes went wide and we both shot out of bed and scurried to grab our clothes. I quickly pulled my clothes on and she ran into the bathroom. Right as she turned the shower on Bobby and Angel burst into the room.
"What are you doing?" We asked at the same time. Bobby gave me a weary glance and looked at the bathroom door.
"We were looking for you. We thought you ran off, so we came to see if Diddle knew where you were at." Angel said walking around me like a animal about to attack. His eyes were narrowed and I knew what he was thinking, what both of them were thinking. They was thinking something happened, which it did, but we didn't want them to know that. Not yet at least.
"I was a little upset so I came over here last night." I told him casually. Angel crossed his arms and continued to circle me.
"What are you doing in Diddle's room?" Bobby asked walking over to the bathroom door.
"I came to see if she was up and found she was in the shower." I lied. Angel didn't stop moving as Bobby finished the interrogation.
"Where did you sleep?" he asked. Angel stopped for a moment until I held my hand at him.
"Couch." I told them. Angel started walking again and I sighed. He was way too protective.
"Then why are both of her pillows crumpled?" Bobby asked trying not to smirk when Angel stopped in my face and glared at me.
"I'm a wild sleeper." Emilie said finally emerging from the bathroom. She was toweling her hair and smiled at Angel. The one thing she knew would make him forget about the whole situation. And for safety reasons, she shot Bobby a stern glare for him to not say anything or drag it on.
"Hey Diddle." Angel greeted and gave me one last glare.
She walked over and hugged him. She gave me a shy smile as she sat down on the bed. I guess I'm kinda glad they showed up. I knew this morning would be full of shy glances and smiled as we waited for last night to really settle. Them showing up made us act normal and really realize that there is nothing to be shy about.
"How did you guys get in?" she asked curiously.
"We found your spare key at Ma's. Thought we'd drop by." Bobby told her. She glanced at me and then crossed her arms.
"Give it here." she demanded. Bobby looked at Angel and back at her.
"Why?" Bobby asked.
"Because this is my house. You can't just barge in here, like you just did." she told them. Bobby scoffed.
"And if it's an emergency?" he asked.
"You're the Michigan Mauler, kick the fucking door down." she told him. "The key, please." she demanded again.
"But we just thought that ya, you wouldn't mine. We're kinda like family…" Angel tried. She looked at him and let her hands fall to her side.
"Angel, I'm not Sofi. Mi casa no es su casa." she told him. I was barely able to hid my laugh but Bobby let it slip. Angel could never get mad at her so he turned to Bobby.
"You need to stop with that Sofi stuff, you're rubbing off on her." Angel whined to Bobby. He threw his hands up in the air and finally handed Emilie her key. She shoved it into her back pocket and smiled.
"Now you wanna tell me why you barged in here?" she asked.
"We were looking for Jack." Bobby told her.
"Why?" she asked. Bobby smirked at her.
"Because we need him. You ready, ya fairy?" Bobby asked. I growled and stood up.
"Yeah, let me use the bathroom and I'll be down." I told them. I waited until they walked out and turned to Emilie.
"I guess I'm going." I told her softly. She smiled and walked over to me.
"I'll see you later?" she asked. I smirked and brushed a strand of hair from her face.
"If ya want." I told her. She nodded slowly and leaned up to kiss me. I parted her lips with my tongue and cupped her face in my hands. She melted into my chest and lightly scraped her nails down my chest. I pulled away and rested my head on hers. I felt her slip something into my hand and looked down at it.
"Your key?" I smirked. She shrugged and sat down on her bed.
"Incase you need to get in when I'm asleep or not here." she told me. I slid the key in my pocket and nodded. "But no telling Bobby or Angel." she told me. I smirked and kissed her lips once again.
"I'll see you later." I whispered. She smiled and laid back down in the bed as I walked out.
"All right, I'm here." Jerry said getting out of his car. Bobby and Angel had drug me out of Emilie's place to come talk to Jerry and the store owner.
"What?" he asked looking at us. I lowered my head as Angel spoke.
"Last night we found out it wasn't random. The witness was paid, and the whole gang story was some bullshit." Angel told him. Jerry stared at us.
"Are you serious, man? Come on now." Jerry sighed. We nodded and I looked over to see the old store owner. We walked over and he looked at us wearily.
"Yeah. Can I help you, gentlemen?" he asked.
"Yeah, if we could just have a moment of your time, sir. Evelyn Mercer was our mother." I told him politely.
"She was a good lady. I liked her very much. Let's come inside." he said fiddling with his keys.
We walked inside and Bobby asked to see the tape. We stood around as the old man hooked the television up and put the tape in. He have us one last look before starting the tape. We watched Ma walk into the store and start scolding a little kid. I wanted to crack a smile but I knew what was coming. I felt my heart sink even further when Emilie walked in just seconds later.
"Emilie was there?" Angel asked. Jerry nodded and we looked back at the tape. The boy was gone and Emilie was walking into the bathroom. Ma was looking at turkey's when two men barged into the store. My hands started to shake when they shot the clerk and walked back to Ma.
"This doesn't add up. He's already got the money." Bobby whispered as the men cornered Ma. I held my hands to my mouth to try to stop the shaking as I watched him aim and then shoot. The tears fell and I turned away from my brothers.
The only reason I turned around was Angel's gasp. I turned back to see Emilie on the screen. I dropped my hands and felt my heart break all over again. She called the police and crawled back over to Ma. She laid Ma's head in her lap and cried.
"My Diddle." Angel whispered. Jerry put a comforting arm around him and Bobby spoke up.
"Supposedly, a witness told police this was a gang shooting. You know anything about that?" Bobby asked hiding the cracks in his voice. I walked to the back and started pacing. Emilie saw all of that. I knew she had been there but she saw the damage. She lost another person before her very own eyes.
"The police talked for a long time with one man. One man more than the others." the old man told him.
"Would you remember what he looks like if you see him?: Bobby asked.
"He comes in for Gatorade after the games. Big guy. Always wears sweats, never a jacket. Even with snow or rain. He has a dog and a…" he said waving a hand around his head. "You know a…" he trailed off.
"A fro? Like an Afro?" Angel asked. "Like Ben Wallace, the basketball player?"
"Pistons. Yes, yes, Ben Wallace." the man said relieved.
"Okay." Angel nodded.
"Is he on the courts a lot?" Bobby asked.
"On the courts or at the gym." the man told us. We nodded and left the store.
"That wasn't no gang shooting, that was an execution. They set Mom up. They set her up." Bobby declared walking out the store. "Come on." he said and we ran across the street to the gym.
We walked in to see a game in progress. Bobby walked to the sideline and looked around.
"You guys ready?" he asked.
"What's the plan, Bobby?" Jerry asked.
"We're winging it, Jerry." Bobby told him looking around.
"We always winging it." Jerry whined.
"We're gonna get killed." I whined from behind them. Angel and Bobby turned to look at me.
"What you mean we. white boy?" Angel asked. I rolled my eyes and watched as Bobby got ready.
"You ready?" Bobby asked him. Angel nodded and they walked off in different directions. Jerry pointed at them and I sighed.
"Here we go."
"Excuse me." Bobby yelled walking into the middle of the court.
"I'll handle it. I don't know what the hell you think you're doing, but you better get the hell out of here, friend." the referee said walking up to Bobby.
"I'd love to, friend, but I can't." Bobby said snatching the ball from him. He started bouncing the ball and yelled. "Yeah! I got the rock now! I got this motherfucker now!" he yelled at the players. A few walked up to him and he taunted them more. "What? What? I got the rock!" he yelled.
"What, bitch?" one player yelled before Bobby smacked him in the face with the basketball. He threw him to the floor and some guys started to pool around him. Jerry walked onto the court as Bobby pulled out a gun. Jerry ran over there and stood next to him.
"No need to grab me. This will only take a second. Now shut up and listen!" Bobby yelled into the mad crowd. They booed him and shouted at him but hi was determined.
"My name is Bobby Mercer. And some of you probably knew my mother. And some of you probably know
she was shot about a week ago across the street. Sixty-two years old, murdered in cold blood!"
"Think about it, Bobby, think. Think!" Jerry told him looking around nervously. He was aggravated but he wasn't going to let them touch Bobby, even if it meant Camille going off on him.
"I'm looking for the witness." He continued and them looked at Jerry. "I got this."
"Ballplayer. Big guy. Supposedly never wears a coat. Dog lover. Ring any bells?" Bobby asked. Through all the kids yelling and standing I was one kid stand up and shake his head. He started towards the side doors and I followed him.
"You tell me where l can find the guy and you can finish your game. All we wanna do is talk to the guy. You can end this real quickly." I heard Bobby yell as I pushed through the doors. I saw the kid look back and take off down the hall.
"Hey! Hey, kid! No running in the halls!" I yelled running after him. He ran and tried to push through another set of doors but it didn't budge. He fell back and I caught him.
"Get off me, man!" he yelled.
"Why you running?" I asked holding him while Angel walked through the door. No wonder it didn't budge.
"Get off me, man. Man, i don't know nothing." he yelled again as I held him in front of an pissed of looking Angel.
"Why don't you shut up?" I told him.
"You got something to tell me, youngster?" Angel asked. The boy sighed and nodded his head slowly. Angel looked at me and I let him go. I walked back to the court and waved for Bobby and Jerry. Jerry pointed and Bobby said his good byes to the angry crowd.
"What do we got here?" Bobby asked walking over to us.
"Bobby, meet Keenon. Keenon, this is Bobby. Something tells me he was on his way to deliver a warning." Angel filled him in.
"What's his name, Keenon?" Bobby asked.
"Damian. He's my brother." Keenon told him.
"He's your brother? No shit. These are my brothers." Bobby told him. Keenon looked around at us and back at Bobby.
"No, dog. He's my real brother." Keenon said again.
"Yeah, these are my real brothers. This is Angel, I'm Bobby. This is Jack and Jeremiah." Bobby told him pointing to each of us. "So, what about you and Damian? You guys still close? Does he live at home with you?" he asked.
"Yeah. But I ain't telling you shit else." Keenon defended.
"I wouldn't sell out my brothers either." Angel agreed with him.
"Just calm down, okay?" Bobby said taking Keenon's backpack off and handing it to Angel. "Look, we just wanna talk to him. We wanna ask him a few questions. Is he gonna cooperate?" Booby asked. Keenon scoffed and Angel pulled out a paper from his bag.
"We got something." Jerry told him.
"Address?" Bobby asked. Jerry nodded and tapped the paper.
"He lives in the Gardens, right over there." Jerry told us.
"Enjoy the rest of the game, okay? Don't worry about it." Bobby told him patting his shoulder. I grabbed the paper from Jerry as Bobby walked off.
"These are nice grades. Better stay in school." I told him.
"What is that?" Jerry asked holding Keenon's chain. "Aluminum?"
"Shit doesn't even spin." I said looking at it. Me and Jerry shook our heads and walked off. We walked out to Bobby's car and parked in front of the building where Damien lived. Everyone one silent as we sat alone for the first time.
"I didn't know she was there." Angel spoke up first from the front seat. Jerry was sitting in the back with me and looked over.
"Did she tell you?" he asked. Bobby looked at us in the rearview.
"Yeah, she had a bad dream the other night. Said she saw it all over again. That's when we found out." I told him softly. I saw Angel shake his head.
"I should have been there." he whispered. Bobby grabbed his shoulder and squeezed.
"We all should have been here. For both of them." Bobby told him, knowing that blaming wasn't right here.
"They must not have seen her go in." Angel mumbled.
"She did come in moments after Ma. Probably were setting up when Emilie got out and went inside." Jerry told him. I nodded and leaned against the window as silence and guilt filled the car.
"I just don't get it. Why would somebody hire a goddamn killer to shoot Mom?" Jerry finally asked.
"Here's an idea: We'll wait for the shit head to get back and we'll ask him." Bobby told him looking out the window.
"Well, y'all do what y'all gotta do. I got gymnastics. Come on, let me out." Jerry said hitting the back of Bobby's seat. That broke the tension. Angel and Bobby both started laughing.
"You got your leotard on, Jerry?" Bobby teased.
"Go to hell. Y'all know what I'm talking about. I got a schedule to keep. Girls got gymnastics, I gotta take them. Come on, let me out, man." Jerry defended himself.
"You wanna take Cracker Jack with you? He's very flexible." Bobby asked opening his door and leaning his seat up.
"Bobby, you're the one who took ballet." I told him as Jerry got out. "Jerry, will you stop by Em's on your way?" I asked. Angel shot me a death glare from the front and Jerry poked his head back in.
"Yeah, sure. Ya'll be careful." He told us and started to walk off.
"All right, Jerry." Bobby said to Jerry.
"All right, man." Jerry yelled walking to his car.
"I don't mind,If it rains or freezes.Long as I got,my plastic Jesus. Riding on the dashboard." I started to sing making
"I don't know how you did it for so many years. Must have driven you crazy, Angel. You're on a ship for what, six months at a time with nothing but dudes?" Bobby asked shaking his head.
"It wasn't a ship. And the Marines went coed. They got girls now." Angel informed him.
"Yeah, I bet you them girls look like dudes too, though." Bobby mumbled.
"Not after six months they don't." Angle told him. They both started laughing again.
"Comes in colorsPink and pleasant.Glows in the dark." I continued to sing until something caught my eye. "Oh, that's him. It's him!" I yelled to them pointing at Keenon's brother from the window. We jumped out the car and ran to catch up with him inside.
"Yo, Damian! You Damian?" Bobby yelled and pulled out a gun. Damien's eyes widened and he jumped in the elevator.
"Why are you pulling out guns and shit, dog?" Angel yelled.
"Yo!" Bobby yelled kicking the doors as they closed.
"Jack, stay here. Tell me where it stops." he told me. They took off upstairs and I watched the numbers.
"Four. Five. Six. Come on, come on. Shit! Six. It stopped." I mumbled and ran to the door.
"Six! He stopped at six!" I yelled up the stairs. I started walking upstairs when both were coming back down. We walked outside and I saw him laying on the ground.
"Man, you must be freezing." I called out to him.
"You won't be needing this no more, playboy." Angel said scooping up his gun that fell with him.
"You know why we're here, Damian?" Bobby asked as we walked up. I winced when I saw his leg.
"Come on, man, call me an ambulance." he begged.
"An ambulance? What, for my dog bites? I'm gonna be okay." Bobby said looking at his arms. "You give me a name, I'll call 911. I wanna know who shot up that liquor store now." he asked.
"Man, I didn't shoot no one." Damien mumbled.
"Say what? Speak up. Can't hear you, playboy. It's hard to hear you out here with all this wind. If we leave, ain't nobody else gonna hear you out here either." Angel told him smirking.
"They say it's gonna be a cold night. You ain't gonna make it far with that leg." I added in.
"Look, man, these two fools said they'd pay me a few dubs if I said I saw some gangsters shoot up the place, all right?" he finally spat out. "But I didn't hurt no one!" he added.
"Alright well, turn into a fucking Fudgesicle." Angel told him and started to turn around.
"Hey, come on, man! I can't say nothing!" Damien screamed.
"Fair enough. You're gonna die right here." Bobby told him. Angle and him started walking away, I stalled but went anyways.
"Yo, man, come on! Yo, man!" Damien called out.
"I'm calling his bluff." Bobby told us.
"Hey, come on! Call an ambulance!" Damien yelled from behind us.
"Think he gonna break?" Angel asked.
"You see that sparerib hanging out of his leg? It's just a matter of time." Bobby told him.
"You sure?" Angel asked.
"You wanna put money on it?" Bobby said and stopped walking.
"Are you sure?" He asked again.
"Someone help me!" Damien screamed and I turned around.
"Turn around, dick lips!" Angel yelled at me.
"What the fuck you looking at?" Bobby said at the same time.
"I'll tell you where you can find him!" Damien yelled out for us.
"Come on!" Bobby said and we walked back to him.
"Just call me an ambulance." Damien pleaded.
"Give me a name." Bobby demanded.
"Where can we find him?" Angel asked.
"They go to the Casino every night. That's where I meet them to get my money. One has a long goatee. You can find them there or around there." Damien spilled. We nodded and piled into Bobby's car after calling 911 for him.
I laid back down in bed after Jack had left. I smiled up at the ceiling and closed my eyes when the scent from the pillow he slept on rushed over me. I sighed and pulled the blanket over my face. Subconsciously thinking someone would see my blush and act like a little school girl. Last night had been the best night I had in a long time. It was probably the best sex I had too.
"My god, shut up, Emilie." I laughed out loud.
"Ummm your talking to yourself and you have a pillow over your head, should I call the looney bin?" Paisley's voice filled the air. I laughed and shot up from under the blanket. I'm not sure if it was the smile, the blush or whatever it was, but she recognized it and jumped on me squealing.
"You're kidding?" she squealed, snuggling under my blanket and laying her head next to mine on my pillow.
"I'm not. And any other time I would say it's none of your business but oh my god, Pais." I grinned. She squealed again and hugged me.
"I heard Jack was good, but day-um!" She smiled. I narrowed my eyes and she bit her lip. "Sorry. But it's not like he was a virgin. He told you how he was."
"I know and I wasn't a virgin either but…yummmm." I laughed and covered my face and then quickly uncovered it. "Now I see why Lydia didn't want to let go!" I laughed. Paisley let out a loud laugh and buried her face in my pillow.
We laid there and I told her about last night. About how he touched me, kissed me and everything other little detail I could say without getting to personal. After about an hour and a half of girl talk, which so relieved me, we got up to make lunch.
"So are you dating?" she asked, picking pieces of her grilled cheese off.
"I don't know. He hasn't asked. We haven't really talked about anything or done anything until last night. I mean sure a little flirting now and then but we've been pre-occupied." I told her.
"Talk to him." she said pointing at me. I smirked and finished off my soda.
"I will." I promised as her phone started to ring. She talked for a minute and gave me a sad smile.
"I gotta go. Works calls." she said getting up and grabbing her coat. I hugged her by and closed the door as she left. Before I could get back to my kitchen someone knocked on the door. I wondered who it could be, I wasn't expecting anyone, Jack had a key and Paisley would have used her spare to get it.
"Hey Jerry." I greeted as I opened the door. He gave me a sad smile and I quickly ushered him in.
"I can't stay long, I gotta get the girls. But Jack wanted me to stop by." he said softly. I wrinkled my nose in confusion and grabbed him a soda from the fridge.
"What's going on?" I asked. He sighed and popped the cap on his drink.
"They went out after we left last night." he started and I nodded. "They talked to a few people."
"Did they find out anything?" I asked casually. He chuckled a little and nodded.
"A lot." he said and paused. He grabbed my hand and looked at my softly. "Ma's death wasn't an accident."
My chest tightened.
"What do you mean?" I asked. He sighed and started to explain how the witness said he saw two guys running in and shooting Evelyn while playing basketball. Only thing was the lights turned off at 10 and Evelyn was killed at 11. Then he said they found the witness's brother.
"What did he have to say?" I asked.
"I left before they confronted him. I'm sure Jack will tell you later." he told me. I nodded and wiped away the tears.
"I knew something was wrong about that night, Jerry." I whispered. "They had already taken the money, nothing seemed or felt right."
"I know, Em." he whispered. "We saw the tape." I shot my head up and held back a sob.
"You did?" I croaked out, he nodded and walked over to kneel next to me.
"I'm so sorry, Diddle. I knew you had been there but I never thought how bad it had to have been until today." he cried softly pulling me into a hug.
I let him hold me while I broke down, again. I knew something wasn't right and each day the feeling in the pit of my stomach grew bigger and bigger. I knew this wasn't going to end pretty and I had a bad feeling I'd loose someone else. As much as I wanted them to catch the guys that did this, I couldn't risk loosing anyone else.
I needed them, all four of them.