Nympho

by Andrea Blackstone

  “If you tell me something good and cut a deal, you won’t have to worry about hearing from me again and again. I would be willing to part with this copy and also the copies of copies, if you put me on the city’s payroll somehow. If not, I can get this over to every media outlet so fast it will make your head spin. I’ve been to the sexual assault center at PG. Hospital and details of what occurred are already on record. If I decide to press charges, everything is in place. Freedom is priceless—more than several of your men could end up behind bars, just like the criminals they arrest. I’ll turn your force into rubble. What kind of scrutiny can you tolerate? I’m barely holding on, and it hurts,” I said, a tear escaping from the corner of my eye.

  The chief looked confused, as if he didn’t quite understand what I was talking about.

  “Hey, more power, more problems,” I mumbled, wiping my nose with a Kleenex I grabbed from my tote bag. “But there’s an answer—do something to make me happy. If you don’t want people to know your business, you’ll elect to do the right thing. This isn’t a game. I’m serious. I hope you take the time to show me you understand this is a very touchy situation. If you don’t, things won’t go back to the normal routine. I will play hardball if I must expose how I was violated. No bureaucratic red tape, Chief. I don’t have the patience for that or a waiting game.”

  He looked irritated, but then again, so did I.

  “Cat got you tongue, Chief?” I teased, changing my disposition. “I would hate to see you have to resign. Would you like to think it over before giving me your reply? Here’s my number. When you make up your mind and feel like talking, call me. How about we set a time frame. Let’s say—”

  Just when I was about to finish laying out my terms of negotiation and place my cell phone number in front of the chief, Rico appeared in a gray, two-piece button down suit and wing tip shoes. He came in like he was on a mission to plan my future. My eyes widened. I quickly snatched the hookups from the wall, pushed the DVD player into my tote bag and turned around.

  “Treat me like a lady, Chief. Treat me like a lady,” I whispered, looking him in the eye. “He doesn’t represent me. In fact, that man over there was mixed up in the whole thing. Remember, if you don’t respond, I will go to every major media outlet by the end of the day. You shouldn’t waste a moment indulging in doubting limbo. Think about your nest egg before you deny my simple request. And no lawyers. If you contact one of your lawyers, the deal is off the table. Think smart for the sake of everyone involved.” I winked.

  “Now, Ms. Thompson, I told you not to talk to anyone without counsel. I represent you. As you’ve noticed, the chief won’t talk to you. You shouldn’t be here talking to him—let me fight this fire—that’s what a qualified legal eagle veteran like me is for. I assure you I’ll take care of everything within the proper legal channels. I’m being paid to represent you, remember? You’re confusing the situation and the chief. We’re waiting on his counsel to arrive so our meeting can begin,” Rico said.

  His accent was absent. I’d never heard his words flow so smoothly and clearly. Rico had a legitimate meeting with the chief and I was stunned.

  “Don’t be fooled,” he continued. “After what she’s been through, her mental state is understandable. I can’t reveal her medical assessment to you, of course. Confidentiality, you know . . . it’s hard to know what she’s really thinking,” he said in a calm, soothing voice.

  I responded by banging my fist on the desk. “I hate you, Rico. You’re a mentally imbalanced psychotic scum wad! You can’t intimidate me. You can’t control me. What are you trying to pull with this bullshit here? You are nowhere near a legitimate servant of the law!” I shouted and ranted, pointing at him.

  The chief’s head swung in my direction as I exploded. I knew Rico was making me look as if I was the one with some sort of problem, but I couldn’t manage to subdue my anger. In fact, since Rico arrived, the chief’s neck had been swinging back and forth as if it had a spring in it.

  “Someone’s not listening,” he told me. “Ms. Thompson, please . . . let me do my job. I know you thought I was caught up in court, but I suppose you didn’t receive the message from my secretary.” He smiled. “I strongly urge you to go now. I can take things from here. I know what’s best for you and your welfare. There’s no need to lose control of yourself,” Rico said, sounding professional.

  I was so frustrated I backed away from the desk yelling, “Thirty thousand, Chief. Don’t be stupid.”

  Rico laughed. “I’ll do the negotiating. Go home. I’ll be in touch, Ms. Thompson. We’ll speak later.”

  I didn’t have the energy to struggle with Rico and wade through his garbage. I couldn’t believe he used part of my real name. I managed not to do that before. Now I was naked and playing a mind game with a heavy hitter in authority.

  Everywhere I turned, Rico was on my heels like white on rice. Quite frankly, resisting his antics was becoming a daunting task, despite me wanting to regain control over my life and destiny. I knew the chief was considering settling on the dynamic duo’s terms—first mine, then Rico’s. I could only hope he would be contacting me, not Rico.

  When I saw what I assumed to be his counsel entering the room with a briefcase, I figured Rico made a more convincing plea than I had. It didn’t seem to matter that he was in no way, shape or form my legal representative. If the part of me that was Leslie had been anywhere in the chief’s room that day, I would’ve explained that I needed help taking the wind out of a crazy stalker’s sails. Instead, I made up an elaborate lie, out of sheer desperation. I knew I was in over my head and I didn’t know what else to do. Rico’s title gave him the power and the edge to play a dirty game much easier. My alter ego’s sense of security wasn’t shattered, although Rico was determined to see to it that Innocence and Leslie would fall apart. Even so, both parts of me remained ambitious and in search of a way to intimidate Rico, despite the fourteen-foot wave heading in my direction. The water was already up to my chin, and I knew I wouldn’t rest easy that night. As suspected. . . I didn’t.

  19

  Freaky Friday

  In light of the various complications over the last month, I found a few gray hairs in my head, the day before my wedding. I pulled them out at the root, and dismissed them, blaming the shortest ones on the wolf that was watching my every move—Rico. After wedding rehearsal, a number of my out of town guests joined the wedding party for dinner. It was a way to kick back before the wedding, although my original intent was to concentrate on just the essential people involved—Trey’s family, us, and the wedding party. I reconsidered since I had so many out of town guests whose presence could make up for my lack of family presence.

  Rehearsal went fine—Tanya was not talking to Rico. Rico was not talking to Tanya, and Rico barely spoke to me. All of this sat well with me. Everyone followed directions, and things were moving along smoothly until I found out that the best man possessed the qualities of a chameleon. He was giving my alter ego Innocence a run for her money—literally.

  Everyone was talking and waiting for dinner to begin. I felt a tug at my arm. The next thing I knew, the lights went out and loco Rico was pulling me toward a dark room where the circuit breaker was housed. He shut the door and pulled me tightly to his chest, sucking on my neck like my skin held sweet nectar inside of it, and then stuck his warm tongue in my ear.

  “Will you let me breathe? Damn! Back up off of me,” I spat, making a fist.

  “I’ll be speaking to you later. You know it’s my job to call and check on you every day,” he said firmly. “What happened to that fun personality, Leslie? You used to enjoy the devoted attention I gave you, so stop bitching. You’re not going to take your love away from me—we were making great progress in our relationship. I told you I own the pussy, and I’m not playing. I asked about forever and you turned me down even though I’m smart, hard working, friendly, and good looking. I offered you passion, I offered you purpose and commitment, but you chose to toss m
e aside like an undesirable sucker. You’ll be sorry you changed my plans for you and me, Leslie. We could’ve been making love tonight, but you want to give me a hard time and choose not to cooperate. The scuffle you know where was a warm up. I’m not letting up on you. I’m going to keep pounding your hard head into the wall. I have experience playing these types of games—you don’t,” he explained, holding my elbows.

  Once he was finished talking, he flung me from his grip, turned the lights back on, and returned to the dinner before anyone noticed we both were missing. They were all engrossed in eating a delicious meal and mingling at the dinner table.

  Before long, Rico held onto tradition and made a toast as every best man should. He rose to his feet and grabbed his champagne glass.

  “I’ll make this quick.” He cleared his throat. “To my best friend, mi hermano, my confidant, making this toast on your behalf is indeed an honor and privilege. Words cannot express how much love I have for you. Through thick and thin, you’ve been there for me and so many others. I appreciate who you are and respect our lifelong friendship. Here’s to many years of happiness and marriage. Here’s to dreams realized, a family, and enjoying everything that life has in store for you and your new wife to be. I will be lucky if I ever find a woman who loves me as much as Leslie loves you. And Leslie could never find a man who deserves her more. On this day, on this wonderful evening, I propose a toast to my best friend, Trey. Here’s to a lifetime of love with your lovely fi-ancée, Leslie. May you both live in a happy home that cannot be disturbed by anyone or anything. Remember to keep God first and always remember to forgive. Love is not perfect, but it is a priceless gift. Congratulations from me to both of you!”

  His lies almost made me gag and vomit. Everyone smiled, raised their glasses toward us, and drank the bubbly down. I heard many remark how much Rico favored Trey, and how handsome he was. Whatever. Loco Rico had the appeal of a stinking, dead animal to me. As far as I was concerned, the dirt he dished made him butt ugly, but then again, only I knew that side of him. The crowd of about seventy people all clapped. Trey rose thanking his best man for the heart warming toast, and also gave thanks and credit to his parents.

  “Sometimes, it’s the simple things that count the most. To the two people who made all the difference in my life, thank you for teaching me to appreciate what really matters in life. Thank you for your sacrifice, dedication, and raising me in a Christian home,” he said. He turned to me, beaming with pride. “I can’t wait to marry you, Leslie. My love for you is stronger than ever and it will surely endure forever,” he added.

  I guess he saved the best for last. Hearing Trey’s sentimental comments made my eyes mist as tingles ran through my body. I felt encouraged by the little things—the reassurance of Trey’s love. Maybe he desired to put me above everyone else, after all. It seemed as though I had been worried over nothing. I could’ve sworn I saw scratches on his back the last time he was shirtless, but I figured my imagination was playing tricks on me due to my elevated stress level. My alter ego had made me paranoid, but indeed, I’d found my needle in the haystack. I had a good black man on my hands and that was that.

  Outside of a tingling neck, the event ended without consequence. No one had any complaints, even Trey’s family. His mother even behaved as if she had finally accepted we were getting hitched, despite her not being crazy about the idea. She kept her jaws locked tight, which was far better than her usual episodes of insults.

  Immediately following the rehearsal dinner, I went to pick up a few things from the store, including the thickest foundation that matched my skin tone. A hickey was forming on my neck thanks to Rico sucking the hell out of it like a vampire. Luckily, I was wearing a summer button down blouse that covered the area. By the time I finished picking up odds and ends, night had fully covered the sky. I enjoyed the solitude as I considered that I would soon be moving in with Trey. My next plan of action was to bag and trash my porn tape collection, most of which was still at my place. Don’t get me wrong though, I was off to collect a small stash from Trey’s, too.

  My addiction to watching sex on film was worsening my addiction to act it out. I saw potential sex in every man I crossed paths with, and lately even the female bank teller, and the grocery clerk with large breasts and full lips. As a nearly married woman, I fought for Leslie’s logic to return, suppressing thoughts of calling Deja, the first woman I made love to, as well as every other sexually adventurous journey I’d taken.

  I parked the car and walked up the sidewalk. When I reached the door I could hear hints of music floating in the air. I turned my key and heard She Used to Be My Girl playing in the CD player. In my mind I reasoned that Trey must be trying to get something sentimental out of his system before I took the big plunge.

  “Hey, baby. I’m home!” I screamed cheerfully as I reached for the light switch and began singing along with the O’Jays.

  “Next time, keep your shiesty itinerary in your head, you dumb bitch!” Rico said. “I’ve been going through your trash. I know everything about you. One day I went through your garbage and found a post it that said SEE CHIEF. I graduated at the top of my law school class, Leslie. It was easy to put two and two together.”

  Chills shot through my body as I jumped and dropped the bag of groceries. They fell all over the floor. I was paralyzed by fear when I realized Rico had broken into my house and made himself comfortable. He even had his shoes off, his shirt was open down to the third button, and the psycho was in the middle of inhaling the scent of a pair of my worn panties. He was also wearing one of Trey’s silk ties around his neck.

  “What the fuck are you doing, Rico? You just can’t come barging in here like this,” I said once I was finally able to speak.

  Rico let my pink panties fall, jumped up and backhanded me so hard I fell to the floor. From the floor, I looked around and noticed he’d ripped my place apart—savings bonds, papers, bills, envelopes, and cards from Trey had been cut in half, and my favorite baby blue cashmere sweater lined the floor. Sentimental stuffed animals had been decapitated, all of my sex toys were broken in pieces, and my favorite picture of Trey was missing from a display shelf. Trey’s slacks, belts, and spare razors also littered the floor. Other personal belongings were strewn everywhere, including my caller ID box, which had been ripped from the socket in my bedroom. There was no question the fool had completely lost his mind.

  “Which bedroom is it going to be?” he asked as I looked up at him. I noticed he’d soaked himself in cologne, a scent I’d bought for Trey. “Pick one like you love me, you backstabbing, freak nasty whore,” he added, crookedly curling up his lip on the right side.

  He looked so ugly and diabolical that I couldn’t believe I’d ever tasted his kisses. A man that looked seven feet tall and three hundred pounds appeared. He looked like one of the rapper’s bodyguards, he was so massive. The man picked me up as Rico quickly pressed heavy-duty duct tape on my mouth. They both stripped me down to my thong and lay me on the bed face down. To my surprise, my stalker had his kidnapping tools stashed and waiting.

  “Don’t worry. We don’t want none of your stinking, rotten pussy!” Rico snarled.

  They secured my wrists to my wrought iron bed with some sort of strong twine. Rico handcuffed my feet together, pulled off his belt then began pelting my body with crashing blows. The tape muffled the howls that erupted from within me as I felt my butt cheeks redden. After about fifty heavy handed lashes, Rico used one of his fingers to plow up my asshole, violating me as much as he could. Next he summoned the large man to help him unfasten my wrists, turn me over, and bind me to the bed face up. When the brawny brother ripped the duct tape from my mouth, I screamed, “That shit hurt! I think my asshole is bleeding. I hate you Rico. I hope you rot in—”

  “Hell?” Rico said, cutting me off. He began laughing as he rose up on his toes, and then let his heels press on top of the floor. “Shut this bitch up! Apparently, she doesn’t think she’s said and done enough,” he told
the large man.

  Rico threw the man a purple ball gag that was equipped with an adjustable leather strap that he fastened snugly around the back of my head. Once that was done, the large man gave Rico some sort of coded handshake and he disappeared. I heard him drive off as my eyes watered from Rico’s sinister flogging. Apparently, my stalker was going to finish me off alone. As Rico spoke he raised my legs toward my head and smacked me on the ass. With each blow, he sounded more deranged.

  “So you want to send videos to the bar, huh? Bitch, are you crazy? Do you know the trouble you’ve caused? I got seven calls today about that little video you mailed to the D.A. I went back and got the one out of the mailbox after you left the post office. A small tip to a postal employee goes a long way. Rico thought you had that one copy, but no . . . you had to mail another one. Now those cops are on my ass talking about their pensions and livelihoods being at stake. One guy has fifteen years on the force and could lose everything if the chief breaks the code of the brotherhood and turns this over to internal affairs. Those policemen were on duty when the train thing went down and this is potentially a big scandal. You remember the call I took at the Chinese restaurant and me mentioning my friend was a D.A. here? If I’m implicated, I’ll be disbarred. I can lose everything. The chief refused my offer to negotiate a deal for you to shut up, and you made it all worse by back talking me when I showed up in his office. I worked hard to build a good reputation, and you’re threatening to ruin my professional standing. You’re going to pay for this. You’re not getting married. No, no, fuck all this shit. I’m not going down over some puta, and neither are my friends! This is not a game. This is my life!”

  Rico quickened the pace of his lashes, and I suddenly wondered how in the hell the S&M guy liked me whipping him.

  “Did you mistake me for some stuffy, conservative lawyer who only wears a suit and tie? Wrong—that’s not Rico—not even a little bit! Prepare for your world to get shaken up a little, Ms. Leslie. After dinner, I caught Tanya in the parking lot and told her that you used her. After providing proof of your abortion—what the proof is I won’t reveal—she looked at things a little differently. She did me the favor of delivering your whore flick for a special viewing at a party hosted by a friend of Trey’s. Imagine Trey’s surprise when he sees his wife-to-be running through a train like a pro. Of course no one will know I spearheaded this little event. When everyone sees it, you’re going to find yourself in a hell of a jam.”