by Tosha Damaya
"It's been fun, but I'm leaving tomorrow. I've showed you the store, and I gave you her address. My job is done. I'm going to D.C. tomorrow. I should've already been there by now," she whined.
He wasn't letting her leave. Not yet. "Once I have my wife back, you can go. How do I know for sure that she works there? You could be lying."
"The old man confirmed it, and we followed her home. How much more proof do you need?"
"I want her alone. Once that happens, you can leave, and I'll buy your airline tickets and give you the money to travel," he promised.
Destiny liked the sound of that. She could stay in town a few more days. "Okay."
Trenton unraveled the towel that was wrapped around her waist. “We can’t do anything at this moment because she took off with her friends, so let's use this opportunity to get to know each other a little better."
Trenton pushed Destiny onto the bed and climbed on top of her. He was never letting her go, despite what she thought. He wanted her, and his wife and he was a man that always got what he wanted.
Chapter 17
A loud shrill came from Sammie's nursery causing Ethan to wake up immediately. He rolled over in bed and looked at the baby monitor and observed his son on his back crying with his arms and legs squirming in the air. Beside the monitor was a clock and Ethan saw that it displayed 2 a.m. He groaned and laid back down against the pillows. Beside him, his wife was still asleep, snoring lightly. He nudged her shoulder with his hand.
"Sierra get up. The baby is crying."
She slapped his hand away. "Leave me alone," she growled before rolling over.
"Sierra, I'm going to push you out the bed," he warned.
She looked at him over her shoulder. "I wish you would try me like that. I got up last night with Sammie. It's your turn, Daddy," she replied before hitting him with a pillow.
They started bickering back and forth. They loved their son, but getting up at all hours of the night was difficult. Baby Sammie liked to sleep during the day and stay up all night. They couldn't break his routine, no matter what they did.
After a couple of minutes of arguing, Sierra realized that it was quiet. She looked at the monitor and saw that Johari was in the room holding Sammie. Seeing that her son was taken care of, she laid back down against her pillows. "Jo has him."
"Jo is a guest in our house. She can't take care of the baby."
Sierra sat up in bed and stared her husband down. "Jo!" she yelled out.
A second later, their bedroom door opened, and Johari appeared with the baby. "Yeah?" she asked while rocking Sammie in her arms.
"Do you want us to get the baby or are you okay with him?" Sierra asked.
"I'm fine. I couldn't sleep, and I love this little guy, so I don't mind. You guys get some rest," she whispered shutting the door and leaving the room.
"See, I told you," she said before laying back down and closing her eyes. Familiar hands slid across her stomach, slowly traveling down to the juncture of her legs.
Sierra's eye opened again. "What are you doing?"
"We're awake, so I figured we could...." he finished his point by lifting her underwear with his finger.
Sierra was so tempted to let Ethan continue, but remembered that she wasn't cleared from the doctor yet.
"One week," she moaned while removing has hand.
"Baby," Ethan groaned against her neck. "Is one week really going to change anything? I miss this," he exaggerated while cupping the region in between her legs.
"Ethan," Sierra whimpered. God, she wanted him badly but would not give in. "One more week baby, and then you can have me anyway you want."
He was disappointed. Extremely disappointed, but wouldn't push his wife to do something she didn't want. "One week. I don't want any excuses when the time comes."
Sierra giggled and turned to kiss his cheek. "I won't give you any. Just be ready to put in some work."
↔
Across the hall in the nursery, Johari was holding Baby Sammie while she sat in the rocking chair. The motion of moving back in forth was soothing the little Coleman back to sleep. She loved babies, always has and always will.
"You look good with a baby in your arms."
She looked up and saw Jonathan standing in the doorway looking sexy with only some sweat pants hanging off his hips. It should be a sin for a man to look that good so early in the morning. The lighting in the room was dim, but she could still see all his muscles displayed on that gorgeous body of his. Damn, he was fine, and he was hers.
"Stop assaulting me with your eyes. You're holding my nephew," he chuckled while walking into the room.
"I can't help myself. You should wear a shirt."
He leaned down and pecked her lips. He quickly searched the room and saw another chair sitting in the corner. He pulled it near Johari and Sammie, so he could be close.
"I rolled over in bed and you were gone. I've gotten spoiled and can't sleep without your little body tucked next to mine."
"I put a pillow beside you."
"It's not the same, baby."
Sammie started to wail again in Johari's arms. "I think little man is hungry. Do you mind holding him while I make a bottle?" she asked while in the process of putting the baby in his arms.
"Of course, I'll hold my nephew."
Johari left and got a bottle from the fridge that contained Sierra's breast milk and placed it in the bottle warmer. After a minute or so, she tested the temperature of the milk by placing a light drop on her wrist. Feeling satisfied that it wasn't too hot for Sammie, she went back to the nursery. Her heart warmed at the sight of seeing Jonathan sing to his nephew.
"You look good holding a baby," she said, stealing his words from a few minutes prior.
She walked into the room and gave Jonathan the bottle. Sammie immediately started sucking the nipple when Jonathan placed it near his mouth.
"Maybe one day soon I'll be holding our baby," he whispered.
She settled back into the rocking chair. "What if I can't have babies? I would hate for you to miss out on the opportunity to be a father," she whispered. Sammie was on his way back to sleep and she didn't want to wake him.
"Did a doctor say you can't?"
"No, I tried for over a year and got no results." Trenton would beat her because she couldn't get pregnant.
"Then, I think we should see a doctor, and if they say there's an issue, we could always adopt. Our baby doesn't have to be biologically related to us. Any child we raise will be ours."
Jonathan continued to feed Sammie until the bottle was empty. Like a pro, he then put the baby on his shoulder and tapped his back until he burped. As he put Sammie back into the crib, he noticed that Johari was staring at him funny.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Because I love you and because I'm amazed that God blessed me with a man as thoughtful and caring as you are. I come with baggage and you continue to stick by me."
"I do all of it because I love you and I want you to be happy," he said before pressing his lips against hers.
"Stop making out in my baby's room!" They heard Sierra yell from across the hall. Jonathan laughed and put his face right up against the camera and blew kissy faces towards Sierra.
"Stop watching us on the camera, you freak."
Johari giggled and pulled Jonathan out the room. "You're going to wake him up."
They walked to their room together and climbed back into bed. It was their first night staying with Sierra and Ethan. After leaving the hotel, they went to the townhouse and packed enough clothing for a couple of weeks. Johari hoped they didn't have to stay longer than that. She knew Ethan and Sierra were sincere when they offered their home to them but knew that every couple liked their privacy. She didn't want to intrude on their space.
She wanted Trenton to go away and get out of her life. She prayed that he didn't hurt any of the people she cared about.
"Stop thinking about him. He's not going to get close to you,
" Jonathan said while gathering her in his arms. He placed Johari's head on his chest and rubbed her back gently. "Don't worry, baby."
She felt safe in his arms, so she closed her eyes and succumbed to sleep.
↔
Sometime later, Johari woke up and got out of bed. Jonathan was nowhere around, so she went searching for him. She walked into the living room and observed him in the living room sitting down. Leaning over the back of the couch, she closed her eyes and pressed a kiss to his neck. She immediately felt a gooey wet substance against her lips. She opened her eyes and saw that blood was on his neck.
Johari ran to the other side of the couch and saw that his whole neck was sliced. She started shaking his shoulders and didn't get a response. Putting her head against his chest, she didn't hear a heartbeat or feel him breathing.
"Oh my God! No!"
She continued to scream and ran towards Sierra and Ethan's room. "Sierra! Ethan! He hurt Jonathan!" Johari ran into their room and stopped at the door.
"No. no. no!"
She observed Ethan and Sierra in the bed with bullet holes in their heads. Overwhelmed with grief, she went to Sammie's nursery. She was hoping and praying he was okay. Her worse fear was in front of her.
Trenton holding the baby in his arms.
"How adorable is he?" Trenton cooed. It seemed as if Sammie could sense how evil he was because the baby cried hysterically. The sound pierced Johari's heart.
"Please leave him alone," she pleaded.
"Why should I?"
"He's just a baby, Trent. Leave him alone."
"I can't do that."
Before Johari could stop him, he shot the baby.
Johari woke up out of her sleep with tears cascading down her face. Her chest was rising rapidly with short breaths. Her heart was heavy with grief. Jonathan wasn't in the bed beside her. She left the room in search of him.
"Jonathan!"
"Jonathan!"
She started to panic when there wasn't an answer.
She ran into the master bedroom in search of Sierra and Ethan. "Sierra! Ethan!"
When there wasn't an answer, she crumbled on the ground in the hallway.
Sierra came out of the laundry room and observed her laying in a ball on the floor. She dropped the laundry basket and came to her side. "Jo, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"
Johari opened her eyes and wrapped her arms around Sierra. "I thought something happened to you. I had a dream that Trenton came...He hurt everyone."
"Hush," Sierra soothed. "No one came here. We're all fine. Jonathan went to get some more of your belongings, and Ethan is at Demetrius's house with Avery."
"Zeke and Syd?"
"Zeke is at work and Syd's at the store covering your shift. Teddy is in the crib with Sammie. Everything is fine."
Sierra helped Johari get on her feet. "Let's get you a drink."
Johari nodded her head. "Coffee sounds good."
"Fuck coffee. You need some alcohol."
↔
While Johari sipped some on whiskey to knock the edge off, Sierra called Jonathan. He came rushing back to the house as quick as possible.
"Baby, I'm sorry for leaving," he apologized. He wrapped his arms around Johari in comfort.
"I'm fine. It was just a stupid dream," she slurred. She smiled a little and took another sip of her alcohol. "This is helping," she said holding up the glass.
"I told you it would," Sierra laughed.
Jonathan took the drink out of her hands. "It's only 10 a.m. baby," he whispered softly.
He grabbed Johari by the hands and helped her stand. "Did you have to get her drunk?" he reprimanded his sister.
"She's not crying anymore."
Jonathan ignored his sister's comment and took Johari into the bedroom. "I think we should get away. Zeke said we can use his apartment in New Orleans as a place to stay. Maybe being out of Texas will help," he suggested.
"Okay....Okays."
He laughed a little. "Okay baby, let me pack a bag and we'll go." His job already knew that he was taking time off to deal with some family matters and Sydney encouraged him and Johari to get out of town.
He went into the closet and came back to find her asleep with her mouth wide open. He chuckled.
"I guess we'll leave after your nap," he said while pressing a kiss to her forehead.
Chapter 18
On Wednesday morning, Sean and Yolanda were sitting in front of Sergeant Clarkson at the Metropolitan Police Department located in Washington D.C. They listened as he discussed the missing person's report on Destiny. MPD didn't have a lead on the case. Flyers were distributed all over the city and local community shelters were aware that the teen girl was reported missing. What hurt the case the most was that she was a troubled child that ran away. It would be a different scenery if she was abducted or kidnapped. Sergeant Clarkson informed Sean and Yolanda that they would still look for Destiny, but she wasn't their number one priority.
They left the police station disappointed. "I understand where he's coming from, but Destiny is still a child, and that should matter," Sean stated towards Yolanda as they walked onto the street. "They don't care about her."
"Sean, they do care," Yolanda replied as they stopped at the crosswalk, heading towards the parking garage where her car was located. "You have to understand that hundreds of teens go missing every day, plus the daily crime that occurs. They can't completely focus on Destiny."
"Yoyo, are you defending them?"
She beamed inside at the fact that he referred to her as Yoyo. Since their talk a couple of nights ago, they started mending their relationship and were growing closer. She wished it was because of a better situation instead of their missing child. "Of course not. I'm just being realistic."
Yolanda unlocked the door to her car. "I called and texted her again, but she still isn't answering," she informed Sean.
Sean was growing rapidly impatient. He got in the passenger seat beside Yolanda. "I'm really considering hiring a PI to find her. I know a guy back in Austin. Maybe he can track her down."
"I think it's worth a shot," she replied starting the car to leave. "Are you going back to your hotel?" She took the day off from teaching to go to the police station.
"No, we can go back to your place. Maybe Destiny will call."
Yolanda smiled. "That sounds good to me."
↔
"I'm sorry sir, but she's not here!" Sydney heard one of her employees yell. It instantly put her on high alert. She dropped the cactus and went to the counter.
"What's going on?"
Jazmin answered her question. "This gentleman wants Jo. Can you please tell him that she's not here?"
Sydney eyed the man suspiciously. "She's not working today, but I can help you."
"I want Johari Livingston. She promised to give me a discount."
The way he said Jo's name had Sydney worried. Jo didn't go by Livingston any longer. Most local customers and all their employees knew that she was using her maiden name Okonkwo.
"I can give you a discount. What did she promise you?"
Sydney ended up giving the elderly man the flowers for free. There was something off about him, though. She watched him carefully until he left the store. Keeping an eye on him, she watched him go outside and talk to a young girl.
A young girl she recognized. It was Destiny.
Before she comprehended what to do next, Destiny got into a cab and was headed down the road.
↔
Sydney called Zeke right away. He left his office and came to the store. "Are you sure it was her?"
Sydney walked the confines of her office, pacing. "I'm positive. What is Destiny doing in Austin?"
"That's a good question and why the old man?" Zeke pondered.
Sydney shrugged her shoulders. "I tried to talk to him, and he wouldn't answer my questions. Jazmin confirmed that he was here last week. Destiny hates Jo, so why would she want to see her?"
"And why use the old m
an to do it?" Zeke added. "Something's not right."
"Do you think that Destiny is connected to Trenton?" Sydney asked her husband.
"Crazier things have happened."
Zeke called Sean, and the call went to voicemail. He left a message telling Sean to call him back ASAP. He knew that Destiny was on runaway status, and he wanted to inform Sean that she was in Austin.
"Should we call Jo?" Zeke asked, still holding his phone.
"No. I don't want to ruin her trip with Jonathan. We'll tell her when she returns."
Sydney really hoped that Destiny wasn't mixed up with Trenton. She spoke to Johari about her past, and she knew that the man was extremely dangerous.
"I hope she just wanted to see Jo," Sydney whispered.
Zeke reached out and pulled his wife into his arms. "Stop worrying about something you have no control over." He pressed a kiss to her forehead to ease her mind. "It's going to be fine."
"I hope so."
Chapter 19
Jonathan and Johari arrived in New Orleans on Tuesday morning. After getting drunk and passing out on Monday, Jonathan let her sleep the rest of the afternoon and part of the evening. When she woke, he packed a couple of bags and they hit the road for their little vacation from reality.
The plan was for them to stay in New Orleans until Friday morning. Nina's funeral was on Saturday morning and they were attended to support Demetrius. They didn't know Nina well, but they all wanted to pay their respect and sit in as Demetrius's family. They just had to get Demetrius to show up to the funeral.
He drove the entire eight hours to Zeke's apartment with Johari snuggled against his side. She still slept while he parked at a 24-hour store and went inside and got groceries. It was clear that she was exhausted, and he was going to make sure she got all the rest she needed.
Their roles reversed after they got to New Orleans. Johari could see that Jonathan was now the tired one and was a walking zombie as they walked into the apartment. Despite being tired, he still wanted to go out and explore the city. Johari vetoed that idea right away grabbed blankets from the hall closet. So, most of Tuesday was spent lounging on the couch. Johari held the sleeping giant in her arms as he snored lightly against her chest.