“Stay,” Cecilia demanded.
Sheba whimpered but lay down to submit, knowing exactly what she had done wrong.
That’s when Cecilia poured the food that had toppled over into the water bowl back into the bag. Afterward, she filled it with cold water from the hose. “There. Now I can go play.” She grinned before rushing back over to the garage door.
Seeing her feet through a small crack between the wood and the pavement, Sheba let out a few barks, requesting to be released, no doubt. Cecilia turned back, giving it a second thought as she looked at all the dog food still on the ground because of Sheba’s rambunctiousness. I think I’ll let her sweat a little, Cecilia concluded before bolting from the backyard, ignoring Sheba’s insistent yelps, barks atop of howls for liberation.
Cecilia was gone in the wind, but Ronald had been there the entire time, watching from a hiding space along the other side of the house. That wasn’t the first time he had been disturbed by his twin’s actions, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.
He hopped the fence on the other side of the house to come into the backyard, headed straight for Sheba. Upon him opening the door, the faithful canine leaped onto the little boy, knocking him to the ground. Ronald giggled, knowing what was next. “Okay. Okay, girl. I gotcha. You’re out now,” he professed as Sheba licked the side of his cheek with love.
“That wasn’t long at all, was it, girl?” he rubbed her sides, furnishing her a few light pats to send her off. “Go on. Eat your food, girl.”
* * *
“I remember that too, dear brother.” Cecilia’s apparition appeared at the foot of his bed, ripping him from the daydream. “Back when I was alive, free to be seen and heard. Free to live my life. Free like you,” she pouted.
Before Ronald could respond, the doorbell rang, prompting him to spring up from his recliner. An unsuspecting visitor had come just in the nick of time. Ronald was all too eager to answer the door. The last thing he wanted to do was go down memory lane paved with guilt, which happened to be precisely where Cecilia was going.
His eyes lit up with delight upon opening the front door. There she was, holding up a wide-tooth comb and a jar of coconut oil.
“You ready for this?” Gertrude inquired with the most innocent, devilish smile he’d ever seen.
“You were serious.”
“You thought I was kidding? We have a trip to the mall tomorrow. I came to tame that mane.”
“Be my guest.” Ronald stepped to the side, allowing her entry.
Chapter 21
A Love Connection
Gertrude had even gone to freshen up after school, changing into something more comfortable before she showed up. Her soft gray cotton jogging pants clung to her thighs. The gray V-neck shirt she wore showed just enough of her cleavage to be enticing, yet not enough to be considered inappropriate. To him, she looked perfect. He caught a whiff of coconut as her bouncing coils passed under his nose on her way inside.
He closed the door, locking a few of the locks behind her. Gertrude snickered quietly, thinking to herself it was a bit much. Besides, with a man like Ronald around, the last thing she was worried about was her safety. There was no doubt in her mind that he would protect her if need be.
“So, where are we setting up?”
“Where do you think would be best? What’s the easiest position for you to braid in?”
“Can you lie on the sofa with your head on my lap? Would that be okay?”
“I can do that.”
Gertrude made her way to the sofa in the living room, then took a seat right at its center, plastic crunching beneath her bottom.
Ronald let out a soft chuckle. “I’m a lot longer than that, sweetheart.”
“Oh,” she looked up, drinking in his six-foot-four height with her eyes. “Yes, you are.”
“I don’t mean to sound like a pervert, but it would be better if you got on the bed and just sat up against the headboard. It’ll give us both more room. Plus, the television is in there. We could pick a movie to watch. I have a nice collection.”
Gertrude stood up from the sofa, squinting her eyes as if to say she was surmising his intentions. “The bedroom, huh?”
Ronald put his hands up in surrender to her. “I mean, it’s really up to you.”
I thought you’d never ask, she thought. “I’d love to accompany you to the bedroom. Do you like murder mysteries?”
“They’re basically the only movies I have to choose from. Follow me,” Ronald replied, leading her to his bedroom.
Gertrude looked around as they crossed the threshold. She placed the coconut oil on the nightstand beside the bed, then proceeded to get comfortable atop the queen-size mattress. This is going better than I thought it would. She looked down, glancing at her bosom to make sure the girls looked inviting, even though she had no intention of them being exposed any more than they already were. Gertrude promised Tiffany and Brenda she’d make Ronald wait. Her confidence in the fact that she could had already begun to wane.
Ronald returned from the kitchen, having gone to pour them both tall glasses of lemonade.
“I see you’re ready,” he remarked, passing her glass to her before placing his atop a coaster on the nightstand opposite Gertrude.
“I am. Are you?”
“What movie are we watching?”
“How about a classic, like The Shining? Your hair will take a while.”
“So Wacko Jacko is what you want? I’ve got you covered,” Ronald affirmed as he headed for the television atop the dresser. Rows of VHS tapes lined the top drawer. He fingered through them, finding what she’d requested, then turned to look at her after inserting the video.
“Come on. I won’t bite.” Sensing his hesitation, Gertrude furnished her lap a few light, lie-hither taps.
Ronald crawled toward her, letting his head rest atop her plump thighs. Never mind the fact that Cecilia was sitting right there in the recliner where Ronald slumbered moments earlier, glaring at them with the most distasteful of stares. He didn’t need to look at Cecilia to know she hated Gertrude being there. Ronald could feel the fear and anxiety his sister radiated. She made sure of it. Still, he refused to allow it to ruin his alone time with Gertrude. If he was going to entertain the fact that they might actually date, Ronald had to learn to control his urges around her. He had to be able to resist his twin sister.
“How would you like it? Would French braids be okay?”
“Beggars can’t be choosy. As long as I don’t have to wash it every day.”
“Say no more. I’ve got you covered.”
Ronald relaxed into her lap, pointed the remote, then pressed play. Even with Cecilia there grimacing, he felt nice. It was a niceness that, until then, he’d never experienced. Can this be real? An emptiness in him had begun to fill.
* * *
Gertrude made it to the other side of Ronald’s head by the time she tensed up at the movie. No matter how many times she’d seen it, that particular scene creeped her out more and more each time she laid her eyes on it.
* * *
Little Danny rolled up the hallway on his tricycle when the evil twins appeared, stopping him dead in his tracks. “Hello, Danny. Come and play with us,” the twins requested in unison.
* * *
“Oh my God, I can’t watch this part.” Gertrude shut her eyes. “Those girls are so creepy.”
Immediately, Ronald thought of Cecilia. She was indeed an evil little girl. But if she was evil, did that mean he was evil too? All this time, could they have been wrong about the way they’d handled things? Was their justice an injustice? Justice served cold, I’d say. Ronald feared he didn’t deserve the goodness Gertrude had to offer his life. Furthermore, he would rather not put her in danger. Not that any danger had ever befallen his home. For the rest of the night, he fought back and forth with his reservations about dating Gertrude. What would he do? They’d planned to go to the mall tomorrow, and since she was there, he’d gotten to thinking abou
t dinner. It was looking like Gertrude would be his guest for the night or at least the evening.
Ronald rolled over to face her, his head still resting in her lap. Within seconds, she’d lost herself in his eyes. He recognized the look of absolute vulnerability, the way her brows lifted to meet at the center of her forehead as if considering the possibilities.
“Are you busy after this?”
“Not particularly.”
“What’s that mean?” Ronald huffed.
“I have things I could do, but I wouldn’t mind canceling them to hang out with you.”
Her revelation was exactly what he wanted to hear. “How about dinner? No interruptions this time.”
Gertrude flashed that glowing smile, having then forgotten about the evil twins threatening little Johnny’s demise. “I would love to. Are you craving anything in particular?”
“Do you like Chinese food? We could eat right here in bed and watch thrillers all night.”
“I’m cool with that,” Gertrude replied with a nonchalant shrug. Oh my God, I thought he’d never ask, she secretly gushed.
“I know the perfect place. It’s about ten minutes from here, but it’s worth the drive. You may have been there before. Yui Chan on State Fair Avenue. It’s next door to Hood Book Headquarters in the city.” Even though Hamtramck was its own small city, everyone knew whenever someone around there mentioned “the city,” they were referring to Detroit.
“I’ve never been, but I’m not against trying it out. I love Chinese food. Do you think we could visit the bookstore next door while we’re waiting for the food to be prepared? I’m kind of a book junkie.”
“What’s your favorite genre?”
“Crime, thriller, mysteries . . . That sort of thing.”
Can this girl get any more perfect? The more Gertrude revealed about herself, the more Ronald fell for her. “That’s my favorite genre too,” he admitted.
“Stop lying. You ain’t gotta lie to kick it.”
“What?” Ronald didn’t really understand the message Gertrude meant to convey. He simply wasn’t that hip.
“You don’t have to embellish about your liking thriller books just to bond with me. I like you just for you.”
“Then like the fact that thriller novels are my favorite.”
Gertrude became convinced of the truth as she peered into his brown and gray eyes. “I believe you,” she spoke softly.
“Good.”
“You ready to get these last five braids finished?”
Ronald turned back on his side, “Yes, ma’am.”
Chapter 22
A Bond Forms as Another Breaks
Bang! The dresser drawer slammed as Tiffany went to toss another pile of clothes into the open suitcase atop the bed.
“Girl, you’re either out of your mind or high to come in here acting like this.”
Tiffany remained silent as she gathered her belongings.
“You don’t even know this man, and you’re going to move in with him? It makes no sense. Just to prove you can make it without my help?”
At that point, getting no response from her cousin had started to anger Brenda. She’d begun to feel disrespected. “Oh, I see why you’re moving in with him. You’re jealous. You’re jealous that Gertrude is about to have a boyfriend while you’re still single. God forbid someone couple up before you, right?”
Her revelation struck a nerve. “See, that’s why I’m leaving. You always have something to say about everything. I swear you act like you’re perfect. Nothing I ever do is good enough or measures up to what you do. And if I get anywhere near a title you claim to hold, you get defensive. I’m tired of living with someone who is in constant competition with me. What’s funny is you never treat Gertrude like that.”
Brenda scoffed. “Girl, ain’t nobody gotta compete with you or nobody else, for that matter. I have my own. My own house and my own car.” She waved her hand flippantly.
Tiffany let out a long sigh. “You know what, Brenda? You’re right. You have your own, and now, I’m about to go and get my own. No hard feelings. We’re still the same. We just no longer live together.”
“How are you going to move somewhere? You’re barely getting hours at work. You can’t live off what you make.”
“Let me worry about that. I’m out of your hair now. No more cousin holding you back,” Tiffany vented.
“I never once said you’re holding me back,” Brenda rebutted.
“Nah, you just pretend that’s what it is in front of other people.”
By then, Tiffany had gone back to pacing the floor as she gathered her things.
Brenda tried getting her cousin to calm down. “Why are you so anxious? Can’t you sit down so that we can discuss this?” Brenda felt terrible for making her cousin feel inept. She could empathize with some of what Tiffany was saying. It was never Brenda’s intention to push her away. The concerned cousin simply wanted her to do better, not realizing people grow at their own pace. All at once, the realization hit her. Sometimes, people can regress if pushed too hard.
She remembered her father’s words. People grow in their own time.
* * *
After thirty minutes more of working on Ronald’s braids, he and Gertrude were staring up at the menu board on the wall of the rinky-dink Chinese food restaurant. “I’m getting a number eight,” Ronald called out his choice to the small Asian man behind the bulletproof glass.
Number eight was the sweet and sour chicken dinner. It came with shrimp fried rice, three fried jumbo shrimp, and an egg roll.
“Yum, that looks good,” Gertrude remarked, having noticed it depicted there on the wall in front of them. “I’ll have the same thing, please.”
“Twenty-three, thirty-two. It be ready in fifteen minute,” the man recited in the strongest Chinese accent they’d ever heard.
Ronald had ordered that meal more than a few times, so he knew how much it would cost without having to understand the cashier. He pulled out his wallet, handing over twenty-five dollars. “Keep the change, sir.”
“Now, can we go look at some books?” Gertrude beamed with excitement.
Ronald was happy to grant her request. “Now, we can go get some books.”
As they stepped across the threshold of Hood Book Headquarters, a woman sat behind the waist-high glass showcase stacked with full-lengths, novels, novelettes, even novellas. Hood Books was official. The store had an open floor plan, and everywhere they turned were books lining every wall.
“Welcome to Hood Book Headquarters. Is this your first time here?” a petite blonde with finger waves inquired as she closed her current read.
“It’s my first time,” Gertrude spoke up first.
“And you live here in Detroit?” the owner Michelle asked, shocked that they’d never visited previously. Frankly, she took it as kind of an insult. Her bookstore was legendary. And really, how much of a book buff could you be if you’ve never even been to the most popular local bookstore in town?
“Well, I live in Hamtramck with my aunt, but I’m originally from Chicago.”
“Chi-town . . . Okay, cool.” Michelle nodded.
“My friend here actually told me about your store. He’s the one who’s been here before.” She looked up at Ronald to affirm her statement.
“I’ve been here more than a few times.”
Michelle delved deep into her memory bank, attempting to recall if she had seen him before. “Yeah, I think I do remember seeing you before. You never talk much at all.”
“I’m just here to buy books.”
“Say no more. Look around. Holler at me if you have any questions. If you’re into urban fiction, check out my collection, Ms. Michel Moore.”
“Thank you. I’ll certainly check it out. I’m always up for trying a new author. You guys have brilliant minds.” Ronald stood staring in awe at the plethora of books along the wall behind her. After standing there in silence for long enough, Gertrude ran her hand across his back, gently
reminding him of her presence. “Are you ready?”
Ronald looked down at Gertrude as if the pause were normal. “After you.”
Gertrude gladly took the lead. She had no desire to find defects in her new love interest’s character. It was one of many red flags she would ignore.
* * *
They arrived back at the Chinese food restaurant just in time, each with a bag of new books written by authors recommended by Michelle herself. The moment they stepped through the door, the cashier placed the large, brown paper bag containing their order into the square Plexiglas compartment. “Thank you. Come again,” he waved them goodbye before retiring to the back to finish preparing other orders.
* * *
On the way home, hot food warmed Gertrude’s lap. The tantalizing aroma of sweet and sour sauce made their stomachs growl in unison.
“Was that me?” Gertrude squirmed in the passenger seat, a little embarrassed that her stomach had ratted her out.
“I think it was both of us.”
She let out a faint giggle. “Well, I’m glad it’s not just me.”
“I’m glad you decided to have dinner with me. Thank you for braiding my hair, by the way. It looks really nice. A lot better than when I braid it myself.”
“It was my pleasure to do both.” She smiled, basking in the joy his compliment furnished her ego.
The day had gone perfectly. Gertrude couldn’t wait to see how the rest of the night would fair. Fingers crossed . . .
Chapter 23
The Catch
Barnes got back home that evening late. Even so, he remained committed to forging ahead with his plan. The world needed soldiers. What better place to find them than in our fallen, he thought, unlocking his front door.
Richard hopped up from the sofa as the detective come through the door. “You’re home. I figured you’d be back before now. I made myself comfortable,” he admitted, alluding to the movie playing on the DVD player, along with the plethora of snacks spread out across the coffee table.
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