Dirtiest Revenge

by Cha'Bella Don

  fucked up big time, but she didn’t think Trent would go to the extreme of beating her ass. Nicole had an agenda and that was to make Trent hers. She was tired of playing the sideline. She felt she deserved to be Trent’s main girl, and that was what she had been trying to do. Trent looked at Nicole with fire in his eyes as she scurried on the floor, trying to get away from him.

  “So, you gonna keep playing these games?”

  Trent moved closer to Nicole and stood over her.

  “No, baby, no more. Baby, I promise,” Nicole said while looking at the floor.

  Trent picked Nicole up by her ponytail.

  “Stand up,” Trent ordered. “Daddy don’t like to put his hands on you; just stay in your fucking place! You doing stupid shit like this is not gonna make me leave my girl. If the position you signed up for is too much for you to bear, then leave it alone,” Trent said cold heartedly. After he finished speaking, he dropped Nicole to the ground and threw his ticket at her and said, “Make sure you pay it when it’s due.”

  As Trent left out the house, he was sure that he had gotten his point across. He knew he had one hell of a dilemma that he had to face, but, until that day came, he was going to keep doing him.

  *****

  Back at home, Kendra was so high. She didn’t know if it was the weed or the alcohol that had her feeling the way she was felt, but she loved it. She was dancing her ass off in the living room like she was auditioning to be in a video. When she was finally exhausted, she flopped down on the couch and grabbed her cell phone. She had twelve missed calls and eleven messages. Kendra checked her messages and erased all but one. She kept playing this one message over and over again. Kendra was still shocked. She listened to the message very closely, making sure she’d heard it correctly.

  “Hello, Ken. How are you? Fine, I hope. This is Wiz, and, if you’re wondering how I got your number, I’m a man who gets what he wants. I’m very persistent.”

  Kendra smiled and thought about how she’d met him. She wanted to call him back right away, but two things came to mind: first, she was still in a relationship with Trent, and, although they had their differences, she couldn’t come to terms with calling another man, and, secondly, she wasn’t that thirsty. Kendra laid out on the couch and turned on the TV with the volume down. She thought it would be a good time to finally let Trent know exactly how she was feeling. She was tired of being on an emotional rollercoaster because it wasn’t a fun ride.

  Chapter 4

  Nicole continued to lie in the spot where Trent had left her. She was so distraught and all cried out. She just knew that, by doing everything Trent had asked of her and more, she would be his number one girl. A knock at the door startled Nicole.

  “It’s open! Damn it,” Nicole yelled while holding her side.

  “Oh, my gosh, Nikki! What happened?” Treniyah asked as she walked through the door and spotted her friend lying on the floor. Treniyah had missed Trent by five minutes.

  “Some stupid bitches from the J’s jumped me,” Nicole said, referring to the Jungles, a small division of apartments in L.A. that you dared not get caught up in.

  Nicole couldn’t tell her best friend that she was sleeping with and selling drugs for her best friends brother, so she had to make up a lie. She didn’t want her friend to get the wrong idea about her.

  “Where them bitches at?” Treniyah asked, pumped and amped. “We can ride on them. Just say the word.” Treniyah paced back and forth. She was in fight mode, ready and down for whatever.

  “It’s okay. Just let it go, okay? I’m too weak to even move. All I want is to lay down. My body hurts.”

  Treniyah helped her friend back to her room, helped her out of her clothing, and laid her gently on her bed. Treniyah tidied up her friend’s room.Mostly, she picked up the clothes that were on the floor. She picked up Trent’s ticket, scanned it, and laid it on the nightstand. Then, Treniyah laid on the bed with her friend, held her tight, and cried softly with her.

  *****

  Trent still hadn’t heard from Kendra because she refused to answer his calls. It had been a total of three days, and he was more than positive that Kendra had calmed down. Besides, he was ready to sleep in his bed with his woman. When Trent opened the front door, he didn’t expect to see what he saw. The house was a mess. Dishes hadn’t been washed; food was on the kitchen floor and counter, and clothes were everywhere.

  “Oh, hell nah!” Trent said as he looked at the weed box and saw that it was empty. “I know like hell no nigga was in here smoking my shit!” Trent let his anger get the best of him. He knocked over the dining room table, startling Kendra out of a deep sleep.

  “What the fuck?” Kendra said as she jumped up out the bed and ran downstairs to meet Trent’s stare. “Oh! It’s only you,” Kendra said, rolling her eyes as she got up and walked to the bathroom. Trent walked in behind her, and she yelled, “Damn! Can a bitch pee in private?”

  She tried to slam the door, but Trent caught the door with his foot.

  “Ken, look. We need to talk. Come out when you’re done,” Trent said.

  “I’m not really interested in what you have to say, Trent,” Kendra said while flushing the toilet and rolling her eyes.

  “Ken, I don’t feel like the headache now. I came home so we can work things out,” Trent said, growing angrier by the second.

  Kendra could see the seriousness in his eyes, so she eased up just a bit. “Okay, Trent. Go ahead and talk,” Kendra said calmly.

  They both took a seat on the couch. “First off, look at this house, Ken. We’ve had way more arguments that were bigger than this. C’mon, ma. Step it up. Get yourself together. This is not even you. Tell me what’s going on, baby. Your man is listening.”

  Trent caressed Kendra’s face. Tears escaped from her eyes. Trent caught them with his lips. It had been three long days since they had been wrapped up in each other’s arms. Trent embraced Kendra with a warm hug.

  “You ready to tell me what’s been going on?” Trent asked.

  Kendra took a long breath and gathered her thoughts before she spoke.

  “Trent, you know I love you more than words. So much has been going on. I really don’t know where to begin. It didn’t just start with the phone issue. Our relationship has been up and down for the past two months now. I’ve tried to take your hustling and being on the block into consideration, but here I am. I work, go to school, and still come home to please my man,” Kendra said, trying to fight back the tears.

  “C’mon, mama. I love you. You are my world and nothing can change the way I feel. I won’t let my work come between us. I promise you, babe,” Trent reassured Kendra.

  Trent looked at Kendra. There was so much hurt in her eyes. He thought he was being the man by not giving a fuck about anyone else’s feelings. He thought he had the best of both worlds and couldn’t no one stop him, but only now did he realize that he was hurting the one woman who had stuck by his side.

  “Are you cheating on me, Trent?”

  Kendra’s question caught him by surprise. Trent made sure that he chose his words carefully. “Ken, you are all the woman I want, and all the woman I need in my life. Now, why would you say something like that, baby? I’m out here grinding seven days a week. Do you honestly think I’m out there chasing tails? You gotta give me some type of credit.”

  Satisfied for the time being, Kendra decided to let it go. Three days away from her man was long enough. As she got up from the couch, Kendra asked, “Are you hungry?”

  Trent laughed, “Look at this place, ma. It’s a mess. Ain’t no way I’m dining in here. I’ll tell you what. I’ll clean up the living room while you clean the kitchen. Then, we can order some Chinese food.”

  Satisfied, Kendra agreed to the cleaning arrangements. She turned on the radio and let KDAY take them back in the day. After what seemed liked hours of cleaning, both were wore out. Trent ordered the food, and Kendra fixed herself up. They had a pleasant dinner, listened to old school rap, and go
t their boogie on. Afterwards, they played a game of spades. Kendra felt at peace once again and was ready to move things forward. Trent and Kendra lay in each other’s arms until they fell asleep.

  While Trent was snoring, Kendra quietly snuck out of bed. Although she loved her man, she was no fool. Carefully, Kendra searched the pockets of Trent’s pants, making sure she didn’t wake him. All she found was his driver’s license and a rubber band full of twenties. Kendra placed the contents back in his pants. She, also, searched the nightstand for his phone. Damn! Where’s this nigga’s phone?, Kendra wondered. Then, she remembered that Trent had left his phone on the charger in the kitchen, so she crept out the room and down the stairs. She found Trent’s phone sitting on the counter. Kendra grabbed the phone and snuck into the garage. As she figured out Trent’s pass code, she mumbled, “Nigga is so predictable.”

  She just entered in the last four numbers of his social security number. She went to the recent calls and scrolled down the list. She laughed to herself when she saw how many times Trent had called her phone. Then, she saw that the text messages were empty.

  Kendra closed the phone and started to go back inside the house when she felt the phone vibrate. Kendra’s first thought was to not look at the phone, but curiosity got the best of her. She flipped the phone back open and couldn’t believe what her eyes read. The text message read: TRENT BABY, I AM SORRY. I KEEP ACTING LIKE A FOOL. WELL, BABY, I’D RATHER BE A FOOL FOR LOVING YOU. IT DRIVES ME CRAZY TO KNOW THAT YOU GO HOME TO HER EVERY NIGHT TO PLAY HOUSE. I’M SO IN LOVE WITH YOU, TRENT. I’LL DO ANYTHING TO KEEP YOU. LOVE, NICOLE.

  Anger flooded her body as Kendra realized that her suspicions had been right. She closed the phone as her heart raced a hundred miles per minute. She stormed out the garage, ran up the stairs, and screamed, “You fucking bastard, how could you do this to me?” Kendra was practically hyperventilating as she threw Trent’s phone at his head.

  “What the fuck, Ken? What’s yo fuckin’ problem?” Trent jumped out the bed, grabbed Kendra by the shoulders, and said, “Ken, I’m not gonna do this shit with you, ma, so you need to calm the fuck down.”

  “Get the fuck off me!” Kendra yelled, trying to fight Trent off of her. They ended up falling on the bed.

  While covering Kendra’s mouth, Trent asked, “Are you gonna calm down?”

  Kendra nodded her head, so Trent eased off of her.

  “So, what’s up, ma? Why you trippin’ with that bullshit?” Trent asked calmly.

  Kendra sat silent for five minutes before speaking. Then, she cleared her throat and slowly said, “How long, Trent?”

  Trent was about to speak, but Kendra cut him off.

  “How long have you been cheating? And don’t lie, nigga, cuz I read your text message.”

  Trent looked around. He was stunned that Kendra had even looked in his phone.

  “You looked through my phone?” was the only thing that came out of Trent’s mouth.

  “You can’t even answer my damn question,” Kendra huffed. “I’ve invested six years in this relationship and, for what?” Kendra let a single tear escape from her eye. “I promised myself I wouldn’t cry. You’re not worth my tears any longer.”

  Trent could’ve kicked himself in the ass for not being more careful. This was the second time this had happened this week.

  “I didn’t sign up for all the bullshit, Trent. I think we need some time apart from each other to really think things through,” Kendra said.

  She looked deep into Trent’s eyes to see if there was any remorse in them. Then, Kendra got off the bed and packed some clothes. Once she finished, she looked back at Trent one last time before walking out the door and said, “Goodbye, Trent. I really hope you understand my decision for leaving. I hope you get it together.”

  Trent laid back on the bed. Kendra had packed her bags so many times before and said she was leaving that, this time, he wanted to call her bluff. All she had ever done was drive around for a few hours or go over to her sister’s house and sit there until she thought he had learned a lesson. Trent laughed to himself. She’ll be back, he thought.

  “A’ight, ma. If that’s what you want, then do you, shawty?” Trent told Kendra.

  That was all the confirmation that she needed. Kendra left the house without looking back. Kendra kept an extra key to her mom’s and sister’s houses. She chose to go to her mother’s because she wasn’t prepared for the questions her sister would be asking.

  *****

  It was four A.M. when she pulled into her mother’s driveway. She saw that the kitchen light was on. When Kendra and her sister were younger, her mom had always complained about leaving the lights on. Kendra and Nia used to tease her and ask if she was a vampire. “Oh, Lord,” Kendra said aloud. She knew, if her mom was up, she would have some explaining to do. All Kendra wanted to do was lie down and not to be disturbed.

  After entering the house, Kendra called out for her mother, but there was no response, so she walked into her mother’s bedroom, but she found that her bed was empty. Kendra looked in the family room. She heard the television going, but her mom wasn’t there. Again, Kendra called out for her mother as she always did when she was a little girl.

  “Mommy, where are you?”

  Kendra finally made her way to the kitchen and that was where she discovered her mother, sprawled on the floor. Kendra frantically ran to her mother’s side.

  “Mommy! Mommy! Wake up!” Kendra yelled.

  She immediately started doing CPR. Still, her mother didn’t budge. Kendra grabbed the cordless phone and dialed 911.

  “Nine-one-one, what’s your emergency?”

  “My name is Kendra LaSalle. I’m at 10112 7th Avenue. My mother is not breathing. I need an ambulance right now.”

  Kendra was talking so fast that she stumbled over her words. The operator had to ask her to slow down and start over. Kendra became irate and yelled, “Bitch, my mother is not breathing! I need a fucking ambulance now!”

  Kendra slammed the phone on the ground and returned her attention to her mother. “Come on, Mommy. Wake up please. I love you,” she cried, rocking her mother in her arms.

  The paramedics and fire department arrived in less than five minutes. Kendra stood by and watched one paramedic hook her mom up to a breathing machine while another one asked Kendra some questions.

  “Does your mother have a history of medical problems?”

  Kendra, still in a state of shock, nodded her head slowly and said, “Yes. She has type two diabetes.” Kendra watched as they strapped her mother to a gurney.

  “Ma’am, we are going to take your mother to UCLA Medical Center. You can ride in the back if you don’t have anyone to take you,” the paramedic informed as they exited the house.

  “I’ll drive myself up there,” Kendra insisted.

  Kendra called her sister as soon as they left. Marcos answered the phone. He could hear Kendra’s sniffles.

  “What’s wrong, baby girl?” he asked.

  Kendra gave him a rundown of what had just happened.

  “Okay, baby girl, we will meet you up there.” Marcos disconnected the call.

  *****

  Fifteen minutes later, all three of them were standing in the ER, waiting for the doctors to come out and talk to them. Kendra and Nia were hugging each other. Trent walked in right when the doctor and the priest arrived. Kendra sucked her teeth at Trent.

  “Are you the family of Bernice LaSalle?” the doctor asked.

  The girls nodded their heads.

  “Can you please tell us what’s going on?” Nia asked, still holding on to Kendra and rocking back and forth.

  “It looks like your mother hasn’t been taking her medication. When she collapsed, she slipped into a diabetic coma,” the doctor announced. “Shortly after she slipped into a coma, she suffered a stroke, and I’m sorry to inform you that your mother didn’t make it.”

  Kendra cried hysterically and screamed, “No! Not my momma! Why?”

&nb
sp; The priest immediately started praying over them. Nia had a bewildered look upon her face. She couldn’t believe that her mother was gone. She sought to be the stronger one for her sister. The only thing Kendra remembered was being admitted to the hospital for having an asthma attack. When she came to, Trent was right by her side.

  “I thought I told you that I’m good on you for now. Why the fuck am I lying in this hospital bed?” Kendra hissed.

  Trent’s eyes were still red. He answered, ”Because, ma, you had a bad asthma attack. Let me go get the doctor and tell him you’re awake.”

  Trent went to the nurses’ station to let them know that she had woken up and to ask if they could page Kendra’s doctor. Then, Trent stepped back into the room.

  “The doctor will be here in a minute, ma. You need anything?” he asked.

  “I need for you to leave me the hell alone. Thank you,” Kendra answered rudely.

  Just then, the doctor entered the room.

  “All right, Miss LaSalle. We are releasing you. Just make sure you stop at the nurses’ station on your way out to pick up your prescription. Here are your discharge papers. Okay. You’re set.” The doctor handed the papers to Kendra. She smiled and thanked him and then, she went to the restroom, washed up, ran her fingers through her hair and rinsed her mouth. Kendra grabbed her things and stopped at the nurses’ station. Then, she made a beeline out the door. Kendra drove back to the house she grew up in, reminiscing about the good times she had spent with her mother. Their life hadn’t been grand, but she still appreciated every moment she had spent with her mom— the good times and the bad times. Nina and Marcos were already at the house when Kendra pulled up, followed by Trent. The house had an eerie presence that made Kendra feel uneasy, and, immediately, her stomach felt queasy. She ran to the restroom and vomited. Trent rushed to her aide.