Chapter 1
“Get yo ass up!”
Miki jumped out of bed, instantly awakened at the roar of his voice.
“Go to the mothafuckin’ kitchen. Now!”
Rattled, it took Miki a minute to realize she was in trouble. She dared not ask what the problem was. Redd always wanted her to know what the problem was before he showed her. Miki wasn’t a mind reader but she knew Redd like a book.
With Redd closely behind her, Miki stumbled her way to the untidy kitchen. Wiping her eyes she stood there nervously.
“Why the fuck this kitchen look like this?” Redd wanted to know.
“I fell asleep,” was the only answer Miki could offer.
“You fell asleep?” he scoffed. “I bet yo ass was on that phone though.”
Miki had been on the phone. She cooked dinner, fed the kids, and talked to her mother and her friend Kat. Time slipped away. She gave the kids baths and put them to bed. She fell asleep in Téa’s bed after Téa insisted on her reading them, Téa and Chanta, a book. Miki awakened and trudged to her bedroom and got in bed.
“Clean up this goddamn kitchen,” he barked. He added, “And fix me something to eat.”
Miki looked at the time displayed on the microwave. It was almost three in the morning. She couldn’t complain. She wouldn’t. Miki wouldn’t argue about his whereabouts either. She already knew the answer to that. It angered her though. He could be out all night long, laid up with another female, come home at whatever hour, and expected perfection from her. Miki was getting very tired of this life.
She fixed him a plate of what she cooked earlier. Then she busied herself in the kitchen.
After about fifteen minutes, Redd called her from the family room. “Miki!”
She immediately dropped what she was doing to tend to his need. “Yes?”
“What is this?” Redd asked holding up a small piece of paper.
Uneasiness settled over her. Miki knew what the piece of paper was. It was nothing really. Just some number a guy gave her earlier when she stopped at the gas station. She didn’t dispose of it because when she was talking to Kat, her friend tried to convince her she should call him. Not thinking, Miki left it on the coffee table.
“I’m not gonna ask you again,” Redd said with a threatening tone.
“It’s just some number,” Miki responded quietly.
“What the fuck did I--get over here!”
Miki was hesitant as fear built up in her. “Redd, I’m not gonna use it.”
“I said get over here,” he demanded again through clenched teeth.
“Redd, don’t hit me,” Miki pleaded taking small steps towards him.
“You a dumb ass hoe! When you gon’ mothafuckin learn?”
Miki froze with fear as he leaped from the sofa. She knew she couldn’t outrun him. He pounced on her delivering a blow to the left of her face. She cried out in pain.
“Let me catch you with another mothafuckin number! Where is your phone? Get me your damn phone! You think I’m playing Miki.”
Miki wanted to run. She looked at the French doors leading to the outside deck. She tried to calculate in her head how fast she would have to be and how swift she would need to be to unlock the door, turn the knob and open it.
“Go get your phone! Now!”
Miki already knew there was incriminating evidence in her phone that could get her choked. Now she had to figure out how she could get rid of those things before handing over her phone. She could delete as she made her way back to the family room.
That plan crumbled when Redd decided to follow her upstairs to their master suite. He saw her phone on the nightstand and grabbed it. Knowing her unlock code Redd started going through the phone.
Miki glanced over at the adjoining master bathroom. That was her only hope. She eased a step over while still keeping her eyes on him
“Where you going? Whose number is this? You talked for forty minutes, then another hour...”
Miki looked at the number he was referring to. “That’s Kat. She got a new number. Redd, I’m not talking to nobody.”
“Shut up,” he mumbled. “Why the fuck Kendrick number staying in your phone? Didn’t I tell you to stop talking to his bitch ass!”
“He just called to see how I’m doing,” Miki explained.
“I’ma have to pay that nigga a visit,” Redd said. “He don’t need to fucking worry ‘bout how my woman doing.”
Miki exhaled heavily. Please don’t go to the text messages, she thought. That was Redd’s next move. He frowned, then looked at the phone with doubt, then frowned again. In an instant he punched Miki again, this time it sent her stumbling back.
“So, you wanna leave me!”
Miki cowered, pleading and crying, “No, I don’t. I just want you to treat me better Redd.”
“Bitch, I oughta knock all your goddamn teeth out,” he spat venomously. “You telling that nigga you wanna leave me!”
He looked at the phone again. “And he asking you for pussy too? So, you fucking him Miki?”
“No!” Miki cried backing away from him. “I’m not. Please Redd. Don’t!”
Redd started removing his belt. “Take your clothes off,” he ordered.
Miki looked up into his eyes and they appeared red like he had turned into the devil himself. “Baby please! I don’t want him...I told him that.”
“Take your clothes off,” he repeated, this time through clenched teeth. His eyes appeared as if they were flames.
“Please...” Miki sobbed.
The belt struck her on the left. It whipped around to her back where it stung the most.
“If I gotta whoop your ass every mothafuckin day before you realize I ain’t playing with you, then that’s what the fuck I’ma do...Now, remove your shit.”
____________
The doorbell rang furiously waking Bebe from a deep sleep.
Who the fuck was that, he wondered.
His bedroom door was pushed open. Appearing at his bedside was a little girl with an unruly head full of hair and a big black Rottweiler/Doberman mix. Kennedi said in her soft voice, “Daddy, there somebody at the door.”
Bebe got up out of bed. He was still sleepy and whoever this was at his door was about to get cussed out. Upon passing his living room he saw there was a box of cereal on the coffee table, colored balls of cereal on the floor, milk puddles everywhere, and an open jar of peanut butter.
Shadow stared back at him licking his chops.
“Kennedi, what is this?” Bebe asked trying not to show his anger.
Kennedi didn’t hesitate when she replied, “Shadow did it.”
“He’s a damn dog,” Bebe said. “And what’s the purpose of the peanut butter?” The doorbell rang again this time with pounding. He could hear the familiar female’s voice coming from the other side of the door.
“C’mon! Open up the damn door!”
Bebe went to the door and swung it open. Through gritted teeth he said, “Stop ringing my goddamn doorbell!”
“It took you long enough,” Stefani sneered stepping aside so BJ could walk in. “Take him to school. I’ma be late for work.” She bent down to kiss the top of BJ’s head. “Bye baby. Mama’ll see you later.”
Kennedi called from behind Bebe, “Bye Stefani!”
Stefani crooned, “Bye babygirl.” She looked at Bebe with a smirk, “Bye sweetie.”
Bebe rolled his eyes and shut the door on her.
“Aw,” BJ giggled at the mess Kennedi and her partner Shadow made. “Daddy, you see what they did?”
Kennedi said, “Nuh-uh. My not do it. Shadow did.”
“BJ, help your sister get that up. I oughta whoop your ass Kennedi,” Bebe said as he made his way back to his bedroom.
The good thing about working for himself was he could be as late as he needed to be. Between Stefani and some other family member he was guaranteed to run behind just about every morning.
Stefani was working his nerves though. Every time he turned around she needed something. She wouldn’t let him have BJ yet Bebe was doing most of the parenting. He didn’t want his son out of spite or to be malicious. Bebe knew he was in a better position to care for BJ than Stefani. She was unstable and still young minded. No matter how much money Bebe gave her, Stefani always came up short. Furthermore, she had men in her life but they only wanted one thing out of her. Bebe didn’t blame them because that’s how she carried herself. Hell, he fell for it too. Now they shared a six-year-old son.
Kennedi lived with him and he had full custody of her. Her mother, Sharonda, lost primary care of her when the state took Kennedi and her siblings away because of child neglect, abuse, and abandonment. One of Sharonda’s other baby daddies contacted Bebe to come to Sharonda’s house one day. Terrell said he went to Sharonda’s place to check on his two kids by her because they had called him wanting him to pick them up.
When Terrell got there, he discovered four of her kids including Kennedi, all under the age of eight by themselves, dirty, hungry, and scared. There was no food left for them to eat. The oldest left in the house had cut herself badly trying to open a can of soup for them. The house was a mess and filthy. The oldest of Sharonda’s children who was twelve had left.
Bebe wanted to kick Sharonda’s ass so bad. She was too old to still be living like that. She was thirty-three and was always putting a man first. Sharonda went out of town with her man leaving the twelve-year-old in charge. She had been gone a week.
Bebe scoffed at himself. His two baby mamas. Of all women to have his kids he picked two of the worst ones. Well Sharonda picked him. She said her tubes were tied. Stefani...he was completely irresponsible. For a moment he thought he could change her and actually have a real relationship with her. It didn’t work.
After getting himself ready for work, he got Kennedi prepared for school. He fussed at her, “Kennedi, you know they feed you breakfast at school. You ain’t gonna eat theirs if you eating Berry Crunch here.”
“Daddy! Shadow did that. Shadow was hungry.”
Bebe looked at Shadow. The dog looked back at him like: C’mon man, you know I ain’t done shit. Bebe chuckled, “So that’s what you sticking with babygirl?”
“Shadow did it,” Kennedi insisted.
Before leaving Bebe made sure to set Shadow out his food and water. Since Bebe made Shadow a house dog he installed a dog door for Shadow to access when he needed to step outside. Bebe didn’t work regular eight-hour shifts so he could be away too long for Shadow.
They dropped BJ off first at his school. Then Bebe had to travel to Kennedi’s school. Dropping BJ off first made him get there later than usual so he didn’t see the same parents he usually walked the halls with.
Up ahead the sight of a very shapely woman’s backside caught his attention. Damn, he thought. She was wearing a pair of black leggings with a red shirt that did nothing to cover up her voluptuous ass. Her long Senegalese twists cascaded down her back. Her ass was doing its own thing in those leggings like it wanted to be seen. Bebe watched each fat cheek bounce with every step she took.
“That’s Téa,” Kennedi said pointing to the little girl that walked alongside the big booty woman.
“Is she in your class?” Bebe asked.
“Yeah. We friends,” Kennedi said.
When Bebe made it to Kennedi’s class the woman was signing Téa in. Bebe couldn’t take his eyes off how amazing this woman’s body was. She finished signing the sign in sheet and accidentally bumped into Bebe.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” she said apologetically turning to face him.
It was the third week of the new school year. Why was he just now seeing her? She was peanut butter brown with sexy cognac-colored eyes. The front of her hair had been gathered and twisted up off her face neatly in a very sophisticated regal style. Her full lips formed an apologetic smile. Bebe noticed that her bottom lip had a cut in it like her mouth had hit up against her teeth.
“You’re okay,” he said. He added with a slight hint of flirtation, “I was standing too close anyway.”
She blushed looking away.
Bebe found Téa’s name. He looked at the signature beside it. Mikina Monroe. As he signed Kennedi in Ms. Nicole, Kennedi’s teacher came up wearing a smile, “Good morning, Mr. Bebe.”
“What’s up?” Bebe threw at her.
Ms. Nicole gave him an incredulous look. “Really?”
Bebe stepped aside for the next parent. “What?”
“Are you always so blasé?” Ms. Nicole asked. She looked at Kennedi, “Sign in for me.”
The big booty gem was leaving. Bebe gave Kennedi a hug and kiss, “Bye babygirl. Have a nice day, okay?”
Ms. Nicole, her assistant Ms. Yvonne, and two other mothers were looking at him with starry eyes and wearing smiles. Let me get the hell up outta here, Bebe thought.