Three Is A Crowd

by Chenell Parker

  “What happened Blake?” Eva asked.

  “That bitch stole my credit card. The operator couldn’t tell me exactly who was trying to use it but I know it was her. She tried to buy a pair of twelve hundred dollar shoes,” Blake fumed.

  “What!” Eva yelled in horror.

  “Apparently, she’s used it a few times but none of the purchases were big enough for them to alert me. I’m over playing games with her ass. I was trying to be nice but I want that bitch out of my house today,” Blake ranted as he dialed a number on his phone.

  “Who are you calling?” Eva wondered. Blake ignored her but she got her answer when he started talking.

  “Yes, I’d like to report a stolen car. It’s a silver Lexus SUV,” Blake said.

  Eva smiled, happy to see that Blake was finally taking action. Mariah had obviously lost what was left of her mind. Eva was happy that she had her granddaughters with her. If she had her way, Mariah would never see them again.

  “Ugh,” Mariah groaned when she opened one of her eyes.

  Her head was pounding and her mouth felt dry and pasty. It took her a few minutes to remember exactly where she was. The smell of mildew in the run down motel that Damien had rented was a constant reminder. The taste of his nasty ass in her mouth had her ready to vomit. She tried not to move because she didn’t want him to know that she was up. He always seemed to want some kind of sexual favor and she wasn’t in the mood.

  For the past week, things had been cool. Mariah had the three hundred dollars that she took from Blake, so she was able to pay Damien for the drugs that she wanted and keep food in her stomach. Once that was gone, she started using his credit card to buy whatever Damien wanted in exchange for the drugs. That came to an abrupt end the day before when he asked her to get him a pair of shoes from Saks. Mariah was no slouch when it came to high end fashion. Blake made sure that she was draped in nothing but the best. Even when she went into the store that day, she made sure that she looked like money. Everything was smooth sailing for a while until she saw the sales associates start to whisper and look at her funny. Mariah knew that something was wrong because they were taking too long to complete the purchase. She pretended like she was looking at some shoes and hauled ass out of the store. She was a nervous wreck when she got into her car that Damien was driving and sped away. She was too afraid to go home because she knew that Blake was on to her now. Damien offered to rent a room but Mariah knew that his offer came with a price. She was feigning for drugs and he was happy to supply them. Unfortunately, she had to pay with her face buried in his ass all night. Mariah had stooped to a new low and she hated herself. More than that, she hated her husband too.

  “Damn,” Damien hissed as he looked at something on his phone.

  Mariah heard a woman moaning but she knew that no one else was in the room. She discreetly looked over at him and frowned in disgust. Damien was on the dirty sofa naked, stroking himself as he watched something on his phone. Judging by the sound of it, Mariah knew that it had to be porn. She had the covers pulled up over her head as she continued to stare. Aside from trying to drive Talena crazy, she didn’t see anything about him that she liked. He wasn’t a bad looking person but something was off about him. Maybe he hid it from her when they were together but he was a different kind of nasty. Some of the things that he liked were disgusting and had her seriously questioning his manhood. No real man that she knew would be caught dead sitting in a woman’s face. Damien was a pervert but she was no better. She did whatever he told her to, just to get high.

  “You are gross and disgusting,” Mariah said when she finally got up.

  Her bladder was full and she was tired of the one man show that Damien was putting on. Seeing her did nothing to stop him or slow him down.

  “Fuck you bitch,” he snapped as he stroked himself faster.

  Mariah went to the bathroom and relived herself. Once she washed her hands, she stared into the dirty mirror as tears pooled in her eyes. She barely recognized the face that was staring back at her. Her mother’s words rang loudly in her ears but she was too far gone now. Not only had she lost herself, but she lost her daughters in the process. She barely popped pills anymore because she was now addicted to coke. Mariah hated what she had become and she desperately wanted to get back to the person that she used to be. She was too embarrassed to go to rehab but maybe that’s what she needed. Something had to give because she couldn’t go on doing what she was doing. Her father seemed to be the only one in her corner and she was thankful that he stayed when she tried to push him away.

  “Watch out,” Damien barked when he rushed into the bathroom.

  He had semen leaking from his hands and Mariah was disgusted. He had no shame as he hopped into the shower to clean up the mess that he had made. Mariah was done with him and she was about to go. She prayed that she was strong enough to never come back. She pulled her hair into a ponytail and slipped on her clothes and shoes. She grabbed her keys and was preparing to exit the room. Damien still had his porn playing on his phone and Mariah was curious. She still heard the shower water running, so she picked up the phone to see what he was looking at.

  “The fuck!” Mariah screeched when she saw herself in the poorly made video.

  The camera wasn’t very steady but she saw herself clearly when it was. She wanted to vomit and cry when she saw just how low she had stooped. Tears blurred her vision as she switched to another video. She was horrified when she saw herself in action again. She switched to another one and it was even worse. She wasn’t the star of that one but Damien was. He was behind another man with his face buried in his ass, the same as Mariah had done to him. Another video showed a man going down on him and he returned the favor soon after. Mariah was disgusted but that explained a lot. Damien was gay and he seemed to enjoy the company of multiple men. This time when Mariah felt like she wanted to throw up, she actually did. She hadn’t eaten since the night before but something was coming out of her. She wanted to delete the videos of herself but she didn’t have much time. The water shut off in the bathroom, so she had to get going. Unfortunately for Damien, she was taking his phone with her.

  “The fuck you going?” he asked as he walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist.

  “You’re gay or bisexual or whatever the fuck you are,” Mariah spat angrily.

  “What you say to me bitch?” he asked as he looked at her with fire in his eyes.

  Damien noticed that his phone wasn’t where he left it. He spotted it in Mariah’s hand and he knew that she had seen something that she wasn’t supposed to see. Mariah ran for the door with him hot on her heels but she wasn’t fast enough. Damien grabbed her ponytail but she still managed to get the door open.

  “Get off of me!” Mariah screamed as she tried to push him away.

  Damien was having a hard time holding her and trying to keep his towel secured. He didn’t give a damn about who saw him naked. He needed to get that phone back from Mariah. They had a few people outside looking as the two of them struggled for the phone. Mariah ended up falling and that gave her the upper hand.

  “Ahhh! You bitch!” Damien screeched when she kicked him between his legs.

  He doubled over in pain and fell to the ground right as she stood up. Mariah ran to her car and almost hit a homeless man as she backed out of her parking spot. She had a cup of ice from the day before that had now turned into liquid. She submerged the phone in the cup until the screen went black. Once she was satisfied that it was damaged, she threw the cup and the phone out of the window in a wooded area that she was passing. She didn’t know if Damien had showed anybody his phone but she made sure that he never had a chance to do it again. Mariah released the breath that she was holding as she headed over to her father’s house. She was serious about getting herself together and Marvin was the only person who really gave a fuck about her. She was two streets over from her father’s house when the siren of a police car pulled her away from her thoughts. Mariah swi
tched lanes to let them pass but they switched lanes with her.

  “What the hell?” Mariah mumbled as she got back in the lane she was in before.

  Once again, the police car switched lanes and got behind her. Unless he saw her throw the cup out of the car, Mariah had done nothing wrong. She pulled over in a residential neighborhood and got her license, registration and insurance out for him to view.

  “Step out of the car ma’am,” the officer instructed sternly.

  “For what? I didn’t even do anything wrong,” Mariah replied.

  “This car has been reported stolen and I need you to step out of it,” the officer demanded.

  “Stolen! This is my car!” Mariah yelled right as another police car pulled up. A female office got out of that one and walked over to her car.

  “Step out of the car ma’am,” the female officer stated.

  “This is my damn car!” Mariah yelled.

  “Do you have proof of that?” she countered.

  “Yes, it’s right here on the paperwork. I’m Mariah Harding and my husband is Blake Harding,” Mariah noted.

  “Blake Harding is the one who reported this car stolen. Please, step out of the car ma’am. We want to make this as easy as possible,” the male officer said.

  Mariah’s heart plummeted in her chest. There was no need for her to ask the officer to repeat himself because she heard him clearly the first time. Blake reported the car stolen and in the eyes of the law, she was the thief. The car’s registration and insurance were in his name so she didn’t have a leg to stand on. Mariah was just saying that she wanted to get her life right but she wished that she could get high. That was the only thing that would numb the pain that she was feeling.

  “Do you have any weapons in the car?” the female officer asked while she frisked her.

  “No,” Mariah mumbled as tears fell from her eyes.

  She had never gone to jail before in her life. No one could have paid her to believe that the man who she exchanged vows with would have been the one to send her. Blake hated her and his actions were constantly showing it. Mariah now hated him just as much and he was going to feel her wrath.

  “R elax bruh. You should be used to the shit by now. Y’all do this at least once a month,” Memphis said as he talked to JJ on the phone.

  “Man fuck all that! I’m done with this shit. I’m not going back and that’s on God,” JJ swore.

  “And again, you say the same shit every month,” Memphis reminded him.

  “I bet you won’t hear me say it again. I’m getting my own shit and nobody can put me out of it,” JJ replied.

  Memphis listened to his brother rant but he was already over it. JJ called him or Vance every month to vent about the same thing. He would cheat, get caught and his girl would put him out for a night or two. After two years of the same bullshit, they should have been tired of it by now.

  “You know you’re welcome to stay here as long as you want to bro. We got more than enough room,” Memphis offered.

  “Nah man, I’m good. I sleep naked and you might get jealous and shit. I don’t want my sister-in-law to leave you if she get a glimpse of it,” JJ joked.

  “Now you got me fucked up. This is the only dick Jersi gon’ see for the rest of her life,” Memphis laughed.

  “Thanks for the offer bruh but I’m good. I might hit the club and then go to the car wash. The sofa in my office is comfortable enough,” JJ replied.

  “Alright man, just hit me up if you change your mind,” Memphis said before he hung up.

  JJ was tired as hell but going to the club was a must. He passed by one of his favorite spots and had a few drinks. Since nothing was poppin’, he left and went to get him something to eat. Once he was nice and full, he headed straight to his home away from home. As soon as he unlocked the doors, he turned off the alarm and put it right back on. JJ was tipsy but he wasn’t that drunk to forget to do that. He sent Memphis a text letting him know that he was good. After that, he grabbed his blanket and pillow before crashing on the sofa.

  A little over an hour into his slumber, JJ woke up to the sound of the alarm beeping. It was after three in the morning and he knew that nobody was supposed to be in there. He grabbed his loaded gun from his desk drawer and got prepared to light somebody up. He breathed a sigh of relief when the system was shut off. That had to be either Memphis or Vance. They were the only two aside from him who had the codes. That still didn’t make sense to him though. His brothers had never come to the car wash that time of morning and they had no reason to. They were both married men. He couldn’t see them leaving their wives at home for that. When JJ heard whispering, he ducked down behind his desk and waited. He couldn’t make out who the voices belonged to but he vaguely heard what they were saying. That was definitely not his brothers. Using his head, he dialed the police from his desk phone so that they could have his location. He knew for a fact that they would come even if he didn’t say anything when they answered the phone. JJ had never been in that kind of predicament before. He was trying to think of everything humanly possible to get himself out of there alive.

  “But, his car is out front,” one of the assailants whispered.

  “That nigga is probably in his office sleeping. I’m sure he’s drunk as fuck right now. I hate to do it but I have to shoot him. You focus on opening the safe and I’ll take care of him,” someone else whispered.

  “You never said anything about shooting somebody,” one voice panicked.

  “We can’t have no witnesses,” the other voice replied sternly.

  Niggas was straight talking about killing him but JJ wasn’t dying alone. He was going to take at least one of them out with him. JJ was nervous but his survival instincts kicked in. He saw a shadow approach the door and he got ready to fire. He had his gun trained at the door, ready for it to open. JJ was thankful that he was a light sleeper. He would have been killed in his sleep if he wasn’t.

  Even better was the fact that he didn’t drink as much as he usually did. As tipsy as he was before, he was completely sober and alert now. When the door slowly opened, JJ waited to see how many of them were going to enter. He didn’t need to start shooting too soon and run the risk of someone getting away. As soon as he saw two figures appear, one of them fired three shots into the sofa where his blanket and pillow was. They probably thought he was sleeping and he was thankful that he wasn’t. Without thinking too much, JJ unloaded his gun and watched as both of his would be attackers dropped down to the floor. His hands were shaking uncontrollably but he refused to let his gun fall. He heard one of them groaning in agony but he didn’t give a damn about their pain. With his gun still trained in their direction, JJ turned on the lights and looked down at the damage that he’d done. Whoever it was were dressed in all black with ski masks covering their faces. One of them was writhing in pain while the other was stiff as a board. As crazy as it was, JJ was praying that he didn’t kill anybody, even though they’d tried to kill him.

  “Fuck!” JJ hissed as the reality of the situation finally hit him.

  He wasn’t a killer and he never even pretended to be. He was praying that he wouldn’t be sent to jail because he really hadn’t done anything wrong. The police were trained for that kind of stuff and JJ was hoping that they saw the crime scene for what it really was. He needed to call Memphis but he was also curious. He needed to know who was trying to rob them. He had more questions than answers but finding out the identity of the assailants were at the top of his priority list. Curiosity got the best of JJ as he walked over and pulled the mask off of one of them.

  “What the fuck!” he gasped when he saw who it was.

  Memphis bit his bottom lip as he held on to Jersi’s hips. She was on top of him grinding slowly and making his eyes roll up to the ceiling. Jersi kept her eyes on him the entire time and Memphis stared right back at her. His wife was the most beautiful woman in world to him and he was happy that they made things official. He loved her and as he looked into her eyes,
he could tell that she loved him too.

  “Who keeps calling you like that? It’s almost four in the morning,” Jersi frowned while losing her rhythm. His phone had rang four or five times but Memphis didn’t seem to care.

  “Fuck that phone,” Memphis replied as he thrust his body upwards to meet hers.

  Jersi found her rhythm again and increased her pace. She threw her head back and Memphis knew that she was almost there. He put his hand around her neck and squeezed lightly. When he started bouncing her faster, Jersi gasped and matched his intensity.

  “Shit baby. Just like that,” Jersi moaned as she rode Memphis like a stallion.

  She came hard and Memphis wasn’t too far behind her. Jersi collapsed on top of him and laid her head on his chest. They were both panting and trying to catch their breath.

  “Get your second wind. I’m ready for round two,” Memphis said as he slapped her ass.