by K. C. Mills
“What up Keem?” I met him in the center of the sidewalk and extended a closed fist to him which he met with his.
“Just checking up on things, what’s good with you?” I asked. Britt and Tay were actually at a good place and getting along, so I got updates on Jaysyn through the information Britt provided Tay with.
“You know me, just doing what I do,” Jay said with a grin. “What are you doing over this way, I thought you were officially a city boy now?”
“Nah, that’s just where I lay my head. Brick City for life.”
“I guess I’m forever repping ATL then, but I think I’ve got a little Brick City creeping through my blood too,” Jaysyn said. He was originally from Atlanta and moved to New Jersey a few months back.
“Yeah, that shit is kind of contagious,” I said and laughed. Aside from his southern accent, Jay was basically a Jersey boy now.
I kicked it with Jay for a little while longer, and he filled me in on how things were going with him and Britt. Apparently Britt was thinking about going to NYU. I knew that she was smart as hell but her reputation always overshadowed that, so all anyone ever talked about when it came to Britt was how she got around. I was just glad that she was finally getting it together.
Not long after, I left Jay and made my way to Jodie's spot to check him out and the second he pulled the door open, I laughed. He had one of Angel’s dolls and a few of her other toys in his hands.
“You on your Mr. Mom shit today?” I asked after he dapped me and stepped aside so that I could enter.
“Hell yeah. Her little ass is supposed to be sick but she’s been bouncing off the wall so I damn sure can't tell. I'm starting to think she pulled one on Mona. Angel just didn’t want to take her ass to school and Mona was trying to make sure I wasn’t fucking around today.”
I just laughed while looking around for Angel, and figured she was in her room playing when I didn’t see her. Mona was good for stuff like that because she knew that Jodie never had randoms around Angel. He might have treated Mona like shit, but he was a good ass father and didn’t fuck around when it came to Angel.
“So what’s up with you? You figure out why Tay’s place got raided?” Jodie asked as we sat down in his living room
“Nah, and that shit is fucking with me too, because I don’t have a damn clue where to start. I mean, we’ve got enemies but they don’t fuck with 5-0, so if they wanna get at me they’re damn sure not sending the cops. They might be waiting for me in the shadows with some steel, but they damn sure not hitting up 5-0.”
Jodie was quiet for a minute, and I could see his mind working before he finally spoke. “Yeah, that shit is suspect. We just need to be cautious right now until we figure it out.”
“I keep my hands clean and right now I’m focusing on the club. So I’m good with that.”
“Word, I need to get over there to check that shit out,” Jodie said just as we heard little feet barreling down the hallway.
“Uncle K,” Angel yelled, as she came running right to me and jumped into my lap.
“What’s up mami, you don’t look sick to me,” I said as I closed her into my arms.
“I am,” she giggled as I kissed the side of her face.
“No the hell, not the way you been bouncing off the walls around here,” Jodie said playfully mugging Angel.
“Daddy, I am sick. Mommy took my temperature and said that I had to come to your house today.”
Jodie shot me a look that said yeah right. He knew Mona was on some shit.
“Did you bring me something?” Angel asked looking up at me smiling.
“Why you always think I got something for you?” I narrowed my eyes at Angel who shrugged and smiled back.
“Because you always do,” she said.
I just shook my head and lifted her off my lap so that I could get the bag of sour worms I had for her out of my pocket.
Once she had them in her hand, she turned to face Jodie who shook his head at me.
“Can I have them now?” she asked.
“Yeah, go ahead,” Jodie said.
She got ready to leave but I grabbed her arm and pulled her back towards me. “Aye, what’s up with that? Can I get some love first?” I asked.
She wrapped her thin arms around my neck before I kissed her cheek, and then she took off running down the hall.
“Brush your teeth when you’re done Angel,” Jodie yelled after her.
“I will daddy,” she yelled.
“Yo, I’m sending your ass her dental bill.” Jodie stood and walked into the kitchen.
I just laughed as he left the room. “You know I got you.”
“You want a beer?” Jodie yelled from the kitchen.
“Nah I’m good, the last thing I need is to get stopped and fail a breathalyzer test, because you know they're taking my black ass straight to jail; do not pass go, do not collect two hundred dollars.”
Jodie came back in the room with a beer turned up against his lips, so it took him a minute before he responded.
“Shit, your ass already got 5-0 busting up in your shit, so you need to be a model citizen right now until we figure out what the hell is going on.” Jodie had an evil look on his face like he was processing every way to fuck up whoever was coming after me.
“Yo, we’ll figure that shit out, it just might take a minute.” Just as I finished my sentence my phone went off, so I stood to retrieve it from my pocket. I almost didn’t answer because it was an unsaved number, but I figured it might have had something to do with the club so I finally did.
“Yeah,” I said with a neutral tone since I didn’t have a clue who was on the line.
“Is this Mr. Williams, Mr. Hakeem Williams?” a female’s voice asked.
I glanced at Jodie and folded my free arm across my chest.
“Yeah, who’s asking?” I replied.
“My name is Katelynn, I’m a nurse at St. Peters University Hospital and we have you listed as an emergency contact for Kaliyah Williams. I’m calling—”
“Wait, did you say Kaliyah Williams?” I asked at the same time Jodie’s eyes met mine. He was now staring right at me waiting.
“Yes sir, we have her here and think it would be a good idea—”
“The fuck you mean you have her? Didn’t you say St. Peters University Hospital? Why the fuck is my sister in the hospital?” I got extremely agitated and I could feel panic setting in. My sister was my world and if anything happened to her I didn’t think I could handle it. We had already lost our parents so she was all I had.
“Sir, if you’ll please come down,” she said in a way that was firm but calm.
“You just told me my fucking sister is in the hospital. Don’t tell me to calm the fuck down!” I yelled. This bitch was about to make me track her ass down.
“Mr. Williams, I know that you’re upset and that’s understandable, but what I need from you right now is for you to get here as soon as possible. Can you do that or do we need to call someone else?” This bitch was testing my patience by trying to handle me, but I needed to stay calm long enough to find out what was going on.
I exhaled so that I wouldn't cuss her ass out. “I’m on my way, can you at least tell me what happened?”
“We’re not allowed to give that information over the phone, but someone will fill you in the second you get—”
I hung up on her ass. If she wasn’t going to tell me what I wanted to know then her ass was fucking useless.
“What’s going on Keem?” Jodie looked like I felt. Liyah was family to him so if she wasn't good, then he wasn’t good either.
“I don’t fucking know. She wouldn’t tell me shit except that she’s there. I’m out yo, I’ll hit you up when I figure out what’s going on.”
“Nah, fuck that, I’m going too,” Jodie said and turned to walk away.
“I’m good bruh. You have Angel right now. Let me figure out what the fuck is going on and I’ll let you know.”
Jodie watched me move to th
e door but stared at me, debating his next move. I knew it was fucking with him not to be there but he also had to consider Angel.
“Don’t think it, I’m good. I promise I’ll hit you up as soon as I know what’s going on. Take care of Angel.”
I hauled ass to my truck and was on the road quick as hell. It was going to take me about forty-five minutes to get to Brunswick, but I planned on making it in half the time. I needed to get to my sister and I swear on everything if she wasn’t okay, I didn’t know what the hell I was going to do.
-4-
Tasia
When I received the call from Jodie telling me that Keem needed me, my heart dropped. The first thing I imagined was that something terrible had happened to him. If Jodie had to be the one to call me, that meant that Hakeem couldn’t so when he finally let me know that something was going on with Kaliyah, I felt a second of temporary relief before I started to worry again.
Liyah was everything to Keem and if something happened to her then he was definitely not in a good place, especially if Liyah was hurt at the hands of someone else. Not only would I have to worry about Liyah, but I would have to worry about what Keem was going to do to the person who caused it. So I said a silent prayer as I made the drive to Brunswick. I needed for her to be okay and I needed to get there to try and control the situation if someone else was the reason for her being in the hospital in the first place.
As soon as I arrived, I made my way to the elevator in the hospital, and felt like I was holding my breath while I waited for the doors to open to Kaliyah’s floor. When they finally did, I could feel my heart damn near jumping out of my chest, having no idea what I was about to walk into. I made my way to the nurse’s station, adjusted my purse strap on my shoulder and then patiently waited for the nurse in front of me to finish her call.
She smiled in a programed manner just before she addressed me. “Can I help you?” She asked in a way that was evident that she actually had no interest in really helping me.
“What room is Kaliyah Williams in?”
“And you are?” she asked with an emotionless stare.
“Her sister,” I lied but who cares. She would never know and technically, she was or would be one day.
She gave me a yeah right look before she lifted her chart and then rambled off something under her breath. “Room 328.” She pointed down the hall and then turned her back to me, so I didn’t bother saying thank you.
I made my way down the hall, eyeing the room numbers and stopped outside of 328. Lord, please let her be okay because I didn’t think I could handle anymore drama in my life. Keem and I had been through enough as it was.
“I pushed the door opened and my hand immediately flew over my mouth. Tears slowly escaped and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. Keem was holding Liyah’s hand, with his head resting on a folded arm that was propped up on the side of her bed. His massive body was still and appeared weak and vulnerable, as he sat in a burgundy vinyl chair that had been moved so that he could be close to his sister.
Liyah’s face was swollen and badly bruised, while one arm was in a cast lying at her side. I knew from the second I saw her that this was not going to end well for someone.
I couldn’t tell if Keem was asleep or if he just had his eyes closed since his head was down, so I walked over to him and placed my hand on his shoulder. His body reacted defensively as it stiffened and his head lifted to see who had invaded his personal space. The second his bloodshot eyes focused on me, he stood. His arms were around my body and he held onto me so tightly that I felt suffocated by his embrace. We stood there with no words, as the melody of the machines hooked to Liyah took over the room.
When Keem finally let me go, again his eyes met mine and I felt every emotion that was brewing inside of him. I knew him that well and I knew the look on his face. It was the same look that watched over me for months after that night at the club when I was attacked.
“What happened?”
Hakeem looked down at his sister but immediately turned away. “They don’t know. Campus police found her in back of her dorms, called the ambulance and she ended up here. She wasn’t conscious and still isn’t so they don’t know.”
“What about Mel what did she say?”
“She didn’t know shit either. She was here but I made her leave. She kept crying and talking about it was her fault for letting Liyah walk back to the dorms alone. I couldn’t handle that shit so I told her to leave.”
The look I gave him let him know I was questioning the way he handled Mel.
“The fuck you looking at me like that for? She didn’t know shit and her sitting here crying and acting crazy was only making matters worse. I couldn’t deal with that shit Tay.”
I exhaled and grabbed his hand. “I know, it’s her best friend though. I’m sure it’s just—”
“Tay, don’t even say that shit. It doesn’t even compare. That’s my fucking sister lying in that bed. Look at her Tay… look at her fucking face. Somebody beat her within inches of her life so I’ll deal with this however I want to. That’s my sister, my fucking blood so fuck a best friend!”
Hakeem looked at me with the most hateful stare and it went deep. I knew that he was hurting and felt helpless, so I just let it go. I wrapped my arms around his waist and let my head rest on his chest again. He held onto me the way he wished he could embrace his sister but couldn’t. I could feel it all over and when he let me go, he found his way back to the chair that he had been sitting in beside Liyah’s bed, covering her hand with his. He watched her face as his thumb stroked his skin, and it was breaking me to see him so vulnerable. I wasn’t used to it so everything just felt unbalanced. I got comfortable in the chair next to him and with my hand resting on his thigh, we sat there in silence consumed by our thoughts.
I was awakened a few hours later to the sound of voices. They sounded faint so I opened my eyes and stretched and looked around the room. I didn’t see Hakeem, but the door to Liyah’s room was cracked and I could see light coming from the hallway so I stood, stretched again and made my way to the door.
Once I stepped into the hallway, I saw Hakeem standing outside talking to a doctor, who glanced at me but continued his conversation with Hakeem. I moved closer to Hakeem taking his hand in mine, which made him robotically pull me into his side but kept his focus on the doctor who was standing in front of him.
“So how long are you going to keep her like this?” Hakeem asked after the doctor finished talking.
“It’s hard to say. We will run some tests in the morning and see how she’s doing but for now, this is the best way to let her body heal. We're keeping her sedated so that her body can recharge.”
I glanced up at Hakeem who continued to look at the doctor before my eyes fell on him also.
“So what can you actually tell me because it doesn’t seem like you know anything at this point?” Hakeem sounded irritated, but I could also tell that he was trying to stay calm. I knew that this was extremely hard for him because I could feel the tension radiating from his body. He was worried about his sister and apparently, wasn’t getting the answers that he was looking for.
“Honestly Mr. Williams, all I can tell you is that she’s alive and I’m hopeful. Beyond that, all we can do is wait. She took a pretty severe beating and when it comes to things like that, all we can do is wait and see. It’s not even a day-by-day thing, it’s more like hour by hour even minute by minute. The body heals in ways that we still don’t understand so all we can do is wait. I understand that you want answers and the last thing you want to hear is wait, but truthfully that’s all I can offer you right now. I’m sorry.”
Hakeem’s grip on my hand tightened and I knew that he was trying to calm himself so I spoke for him.
“Thank you,” I said offering a half smile.
“If you need anything, just have the nurses page me. Other than that I’ll check back in with you guys in a few hours to see how she’s doing.
Hakeem stood there starin
g at the doctor for a few seconds like he wanted to say something and eventually he spoke.
“Yeah,” was all that came out before he let go of my hand, turned and walked away. Again, I offered the doctor a forced smiled which he returned with a sympathetic one, before I followed Hakeem back into Liyah’s room.
When I was in the room again, Hakeem had his back to me as he stood in front of the window staring out into the city, and when he felt my presence behind him he spoke.
“I can’t handle this shit Tay. I’m supposed to protect her, make sure shit like this doesn’t happen, but look at her. She’s in a fucking hospital bed in a medically induced coma because some muthafucker put his hands on her. What am I supposed to do with that? All I keep thinking is how good it’s going to feel when I take his life. I can’t even focus my energy on her getting better because I’m obsessing over what I’m going to do when I find out who put her here.”
Hakeem didn’t bother to look at me, he just stared out the window, so I walked up behind him and let my arms surround his waist. At first he didn’t move but eventually his hands covered mine as I let the side of my face rest on his back. His breathing slowed down and I could feel his heartbeat as we stood there silently.
“She’s going to be fine. God wouldn’t do that to you,” I said thinking about the fact that he had already lost his parents. I had to believe that there was no way that he would lose his sister too.
***
I sat and watched as Hakeem slept for the first time in what seemed like forever. He was so tired that his body finally shut down on him after fighting it for hours. Even as he slept with his elbow propped up on the arm of the chair, so that his head rested on a closed fist, I could see the stress and tension in his face. The room was dark except for the glow from the city lights shining through the window, and the flashing lights coming from the monitors of the machines that played an eerie tune that filled the room.
I watched Liyah as she laid there still, lifeless, and prayed that she was on her way back to us. Hakeem needed her to be okay. The fact that he was helpless in this situation was breaking him. He was so used to protecting and fixing things for the people he loved. For his hands to be tied while having to watch his sister in the state that she was in, was like dying a slow death, and it was taking a toll on both of us; me, because I wanted to fix this for him, and him, because he wanted to fix this for Liyah.