Diamond’s beautiful apartment was in shambles. Emmanuelle looked frightened, but she was trying to hold it together, making tea on the kettle. She had already called a police officer, who was inspecting the apartment by the time that Diamond returned.
“This is just awful,” Diamond said, bringing her hands to her cheeks.
“Here, drink this,” Emmanuelle said, bringing her a cup of what smelt like chamomile.
“Thank you,” Diamond said, taking the cup.
“Who do you think might have done this?” the police officer asked, writing down some notes on a pad of paper.
“I dunno. There’s one person who coulda done it, but it seems impossible,” Diamond said, seating herself on the couch and sipping her tea. It looked as though whoever broke into Diamond’s apartment was trying to find something. Had it been Malik—and there was no way that he could have found her—then there would be nothing he’d try to find. What would he be looking for? The only thing that he would have wanted was for Diamond to return to America.
“Whoever it was, they broke through the front door,” the police officer said.
“Where else would they come in from?” Emmanuelle asked in dismay.
“He could have climbed up onto the balcony. I’ve seen it before,” the police officer explained.
“Oh. I see,” Emmanuelle replied.
“Have you noticed anything missing?” the officer asked.
“I don’t know. I haven’t had a chance to check,” Diamond said.
“Why don’t you take a moment to find out, no?” the officer asked.
Diamond got up from the couch. Her hands were still shaking, but she willed herself to look around the apartment, reminding herself to be calm and steady. Papers were flung here and there, there was a shattered vase with flowers all over the floor, but so far she didn’t notice anything missing. She walked into the bedroom. The sheets had been torn off the bed, clothing was thrown from the closet, but still, it didn’t seem like anything had been stolen. Finally, she walked towards the dresser, and looked in the one place that had anything of value. It was her jewelry box, and it was where Diamond kept her favorite diamond stud earrings. Sure enough, they were gone.
“My earrings have been stolen, I think,” Diamond said, reemerging into the living room.
“Were they of much value?” the officer asked.
“They were the most expensive thing that I own, yeah,” Diamond said with a sigh.
“Well then. It seems like this is a simple case of breaking and entering for the sake of theft,” he said, taking more notes on his pad. “Can you show me where the earrings were taken from?”
“Of course.”
Diamond led the officer into her bedroom, and Emmanuelle followed close behind. She pointed towards the jewelry box, and the officer inspected it.
“It seems odd,” he said.
“What’s that?” Diamond asked.
“There is other jewelry here that was not taken.”
“Yah, the rest of that stuff ain’t worth nothing. It’s all fake.”
“So, how was the criminal to know that?” he asked.
“You smart,” Diamond said. She would never have thought of that.
“I’m Officer Dubois,” he finally said, by way of introduction.
“My name is Diamond,” she replied.
“That only drives home my point,” Dubois said.
“What do you mean?” Diamond asked.
Officer Dubois walked around the room, seeing if there was anything else that he needed to take note of.
“The man clearly knew that not only did your earrings coincide with your name, but they were also of the most sentimental and monetary value of anything that you owned. That means that whoever broke into this apartment knew you in some way. There was no chance that a petty thief would break in, turn the place upside down, and only happen to leave with a pair of diamond earrings that you treasure most.”
“That is very true,” Emmanuelle said, seating herself on the bed.
“So, Ms. Diamond . . .”
“Wilson. Diamond Wilson.”
“Ms. Wilson. Who do you think broke into your apartment?” Dubois asked.
“To be honest with you, I know who it probably was. It just seems impossible that he was able to find me here, that’s all,” Diamond explained.
“And what is his name?” Dubois asked, ready to write it down on his notepad.
“Malik. Malik Brown,” Diamond said with a sigh.
“And how might we recognize him?” Dubois asked, writing feverishly.
“You recognize him cause he the only black man in this town, that’s how you recognize him. If he here,” Diamond said humorously.
“Come now, Diamond. We need more help than that. If I walk around arresting every dark-skinned man that I see, then I will not be able to live with myself,” Dubois said.
“Well, I appreciate you saying that officer,” Diamond said warmly. “He is a bit taller than me. Maybe six feet tall. The last time I saw him he had short hair and a goatee. Likes to dress like a baller . . .”
“A baller?” Dubois asked.
“You know. Like he plays basketball or something. Like he real tough.”
“I see.”
“He also has a scar on his chin. From a fight that he once got into,” Diamond added.
“Alright. I think that I have all of this down in my notes. I’m going to return to the precinct and get all this information on paper,” Dubois said.
“From the looks of it, you already got it on paper,” Diamond said with a smile.
“Oh, this silly thing,” Dubois said, holding up his notepad. “Just scribbles. I need to get it down on paper that is more official,” he explained.
“Well, alright then.”
“Will the two of you be alright if I return later this evening?” Dubois asked.
“I think we should be fine,” Emmanuelle said.
“Yah, we’ll be okay,” Diamond added.
“Very well, then. I will see you later.”
With that, Officer Dubois exited the room and Emmanuelle and Diamond were left with a huge mess to clean up.
“I’m so sorry about this,” Diamond said.
“Please, don’t you worry yourself. I’m more interested in your safety,” Emmanuelle replied.
They got to work straightening the apartment up. Emmanuelle made more chamomile tea, and the job was done in no time. Yet still, even after things were straightened out, Diamond couldn’t deny the terror that she was feeling. Was it really true that Malik had found her? And if it wasn’t Malik, who else might it have been? The only other person that knew her in any way was Baptiste. But surely, he couldn’t be responsible for what happened that afternoon. She had upset him that morning, but that wouldn’t warrant anything like breaking and entering, right?
“Where did you get these flowers?” Emmanuelle asked, noticing the vase of exotic flowers that sat by the door. Diamond had carried them home, and upon stepping through the door and seeing her ruined apartment, she simply placed them on the floor where she stood.
“I bought them for Baptiste, at Le Petite Fleur,” Diamond explained, having totally forgotten about them.
“That is such an odd shop,” Emmanuelle said, shaking her head. “But rather remarkable flowers.”
“I met Clement for the first time today. He’s as odd as his shop,” Diamond said, happy to discuss anything that had nothing to do with her apartment being ransacked.
“Yes, rather an odd bird. Has always been that way.”
“Well, I brought him some chocolate to cheer him up,” Diamond said. The incident with the chocolate seemed like ages ago. So much had happened in that small interval of time.
“Why did you buy Baptiste flowers, might I ask?” Emmanuelle said.
“I think that I said something to offend him this morning.”
“Oh?”
“Yah, I made some comment about him having women come in and out of that place on a frequent basis. It was a dumb thing to say, and he seemed to be really hurt by it,” Diamond explained. She walked over towards the window directed at the sea, and saw Baptiste’s estate off in the distance.
“He can be rather sensitive, you know. Has been since he was a child,” Emmanuelle explained. “I think that he covers it with that tough, businesslike exterior. It is a kind of armor.”
“That makes a lot of sense, actually,” Diamond replied.
“I’m sure that he’ll greatly appreciate the flowers,” Emmanuelle said, pouring herself another cup of tea.
“Well, I don’t know if he’s expecting me tonight or not,” Diamond said. “I kinda just thought I’d walk them over there. Or maybe, have the driver come and pick them up.”
“Yes,” Emmanuelle replied, looking at Diamond with a knit brow. There was concern on her face, and Diamond didn’t know where it came from. “If you’ll excuse me,” Emmanuelle said, making her way towards the door.
“Everything okay?” Diamond asked.
“Yes, I fear that I’m just tired from all this commotion. I’m going to go lie down for a bit,” she said.
“Okay. I’ll let you know when Dubois returns.”
“Please do,” Emmanuelle said, and promptly left.
That was weird, Diamond thought to herself. Her demeanor changed on a dime. Was it something that I said? About the flowers?
Diamond brushed it off and got back to work, cleaning up her place. She was picking up the pieces; literally and figuratively. She felt as though she were in a dream. Was it really happening? Had he found her? There was only one place to turn, and that was her phone.
“Tanesha?” Diamond said into it.
“Hey,” Tanesha replied. There was something odd in her tone.
“I gotta talk,” Diamond said, stepping out onto her balcony. The fresh air would do her some good.
“What’s going on?” Tanesha asked. There was something incredibly somber in her tone, which was very un-Tanesha-like.
“My apartment has been broken into,” Diamond said. This statement was met with silence on the other end of the line. “You still there?”
“I here.”
“I don’t know, but I think that it was Malik. The thing is, I have no idea how he could have found me.” There was silence again, and Diamond felt her stomach flip. “Are you not hearing what I’m saying?”
“I hear you. I just . . .” Tanesha said, her voice trailing off. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Well, girl, say something! I need you right now,” Diamond said.
“I told him . . .” Tanesha finally replied, sounding as though she were in tears. “I told him . . .”
“Told him what? You told Malik? Girl, what you sayin’?”
“I told Malik . . . where you were.” Tanesha was fully in tears then, and Diamond clutched her phone tightly. She couldn’t quite comprehend what she was hearing.
“You told Malik where I was at?” Diamond finally asked.
“Yah, I did,” Tanesha replied, her words hard to decipher through her grief.
“Why you do that?” Diamond asked in disbelief.
“Just, let me explain. I gotta pull myself together here . . .” Tanesha said, trying to get control of herself.
“Well, yah. You pull yourself together right quick because I need an explanation,” Diamond said, her voice increasingly filled with anger and disbelief.
“He threatened me, Diamond,” Tanesha finally said.
“When? When he threaten you?”
“Couple days ago. He came to my place and he started threatening me.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Diamond asked.
“He said that if I told you, he be coming back to kick the shit out of me,” Tanesha said, the tears strangling her voice again.
“Okay now. Calm down,” Diamond replied, hoping that she might calm down as well. She sat herself down on one of the chairs on the porch. “How much you tell him?”
“I told him where you at, and I told him I wouldn’t say a word.”
“Tanesha, this is some fucked up shit,” Diamond finally said.
“Girl, don’t you think I know that? He said he was going to kill me . . .”
Diamond took a deep breath and looked up towards the sky. Her heart was racing and she felt like she might be sick. There was no way that she could be angry at Tanesha. She knew all too well how scary Malik could be when he was after something. She was amazed that she even had the courage to leave him in the first place. But the thought of escaping to France was the only thing that made it seem possible. Of course Tanesha gave him the information that he wanted. Malik was far too terrifying to refuse.
“I’m not mad at you Tanesha, I just . . . I need to have some space for a while,” Diamond finally said.
“Girl, don’t hang up on me, please. I’m scared,” Tanesha said.
“I gotta hang up. I gotta fix this now,” Diamond said, sadness emanating from her voice.
“Please, please!” Tanesha pleaded.
Diamond hung up the phone. There was nothing that Tanesha could do to help her. In fact, her dearest friend had ruined everything. But the blame only lay with Malik; Diamond had to remind herself of that. She was furious, heartbroken, and afraid, but with time, she’d managed to strip Tanesha of any blame.
“Oooh, child. This no good,” Bernice said.
“Mama, thank God you’re here,” Diamond said, her mother appearing in a chair across the way. “I know this ain’t no good.”
“I always had my doubts about Tanesha,” Bernice said, shaking her head and taking a sip from a mug in her hands.
“Come on now. She my best friend.”
“This shit ain’t strong enough,” Bernice said, holding up her tea. “I could down me a whole damn field of chamomile and ain’t do nothing for the nerves I got right now.” Bernice pulled a flask from her pocket and poured the contents into the tea.
“Mama, where you get that flask?”
“Diamond, I’m just about in the worst position any mother can be in. I make that flask magically appear like this,” Bernice said, snapping her fingers.
“Shoot, I could use some of that right now, too,” Diamond replied.
“No, no, no. You need to have your head screwed together straight. More than ever,” Bernice explained.
“I suppose you right.”
“That man is one terrifying motherfucker,” Bernice said.
“Mama, I never heard you say that word once while you was alive,” Diamond said in shock.
“Well, it is time to say it now. Motherfucker, motherfucker, motherfucker,” Bernice went on.
“Okay, I get the point.”
“Motherfucker,” Bernice said one more time for good measure.
“What should I do?” Diamond asked.
“Get your ass out of this town, that’s what you gotta do,” Bernice said.
“I can’t leave now. I’m just starting to make a life here.”
“Child, you stay here much longer and you not gonna have no life left, if you know what I mean,” Bernice said.
“I do know what you mean. Unfortunately.”
“So, I says, pack up yo bags, get on the damn train, and find some other cute French town to spend your days. And don’t you dare tell no one where you gone. Especially Tanesha!”
“Unfortunately, mama, you have a point.”
“Of course I got a point. I dead and I see everything with perfect clarity,” Bernice said, taking another hearty sip.
“Well that all gonna change if you be drunk and dead, so put down that tea,” Diamond said.
“Ain’t nobody touching this tea,” Bernice said, holding it close to her chest.
Diamond started to laugh, and she was grateful for it. It was a nice break of the tension.
“I never seen you clutch something so close as you’re doing with that boozy chamomile,” Diamond said with a big smile.
“Oooh, that gonna be my stripper name. Boozy Chamomile,” Bernice said, throwing her head back with flair.
“Stop it mama. I shouldn’t be laughing right now,” Diamond said, clutching her midsection.
“Nah, you should be answering the door. That’s what you should be doing,” Bernice said.
“What do you mean?” Diamond asked.
Just then, the doorbell rang. When Diamond looked back to where Bernice had sat, she was gone. More than ever, Diamond hated that Bernice disappeared in that moment. She needed her more than ever.
“Coming!” Diamond called out, exiting the porch. Just then her stomach flipped all over again. She had no idea who it was. What if it was Malik ringing her doorbell? Hopefully it was Dubois, or maybe Emmanuelle. It struck Diamond that more than ever, she was going to have to be on guard at all times.
She walked slowly towards the door, the ringing becoming more insistent.
“Who is it?” she called towards the door, but the only response was more ringing. Her heart began to race so fast that she thought it was going to pop out of her chest.
“I said, who is it?” she called out again, with no response.
Maybe Bernice was right. Maybe Diamond needed to pack up her bags and get out of that apartment instantly. Hell, maybe she even needed to leave her stuff and just make a run for it, going out on the porch, climbing her way down, and running to the train station. All these thoughts swirled through her head as she slowly opened the door to her apartment.
“Baptiste,” she said in shock.
“Let me in,” Baptiste said, his voice was strangled with worry.
“What are you doing here?” Diamond said, opening the door for him.
He walked in on a mission, looking from side to side and inspecting the rooms, as though trying to find someone or something.
“What are you doing?” Diamond asked.
“Why didn’t you call me, Diamond?” Baptiste finally said, worry and anger on his face.
“What do you mean?” Diamond asked.
“I had to receive a phone call just now from Emmanuelle, explaining what had happened. Why didn’t you call me yourself?” Baptiste asked.
“I don’t know. I just didn’t think about it.”
“You didn’t think about it?” Baptiste said back.
It was a standoff. They looked to one another in silence. Finally, Baptiste walked towards her and took her in his arms, grasping her tightly.
“Don’t do that to me again. Please,” he said.
“Okay,” Diamond replied, sinking into his arms.