Silence of the Nine

by T. Styles

  “Mama, can I get in the bed with you?” Lydia asked as Paige flopped down at the foot of the bed, with her back turned toward them. She played with the edge of her nightgown but could hear the entire conversation.

  “I don’t want to be bothered right now,” Kelly yelled, blowing her nose into the napkin. “Take your sister and go outside somewhere. Every time I turn around, you’re in my face. Give me a moment’s peace. Please!”

  She could feel her eyes watering, which always happened when her mother hurt her feelings. “Well can you come outside with me?” Lydia asked with hopeful eyes. “Maybe we can water grandfather’s plants.”

  “Honey, your mother doesn’t feel well,” Avery announced. “And you know you shouldn’t be touching your grandfather’s things. Now go play in your room. Maybe I’ll read a bedtime story to you later,” he lied.

  Lydia knew that lie all too well. Avery had promised both girls on many occasions that he’d read them a bedtime story but he never came.

  “Okay,” Lydia said with a smile. “But can mama watch me play out of the window?”

  “I said your mother doesn’t feel good,” Avery yelled.

  “She never feels good,” Paige interrupted with disdain in her voice, as she tugged at the threads on the edge of her gown.

  “Mind your mouth,” Avery said as he rose up to observe his daughter sitting on the floor. All he could see was the top of her splotchy head. “Now go outside, both of you, and leave your mother be.”

  Irritated by her parents, Paige jumped up and stomped toward her room, leaving her sister alone. She didn’t want to see her parents anyway but Lydia begged her to go with her.

  “Can I sit over there then?” Lydia asked pointing to the beautiful daybed by the window. “On the bed? I promise not to talk.”

  Avery shook his head. If he could say anything about his child, it was that she was persistent.

  “Damn it, Lydia,” Kelly yelled. “Why can’t you just go play by yourself? I said I’m not in the mood. Now leave me be!”

  Lydia rocked back and forth as she stood on her mother’s side of the bed. Her toes curled under and she tried to think of something cute to say, like she did when she was younger, to make her mother smile. So she spun around in place and did a dance she practiced last week with her sister. Her arms flailed at her sides as she performed for her parents’ love.

  “Lydia, stop the stupidity,” Kelly screamed. “I’m not going to tell you again! Get out of here! I wish you were never born!”

  Lydia stopped in place and froze all movements. She gazed into her mother’s eyes, hoping she would reach for her and say she was sorry. It never happened.

  Defeated, she fulfilled her parents’ wishes, leaving them both alone.

  “Don’t worry about her, baby,” Avery said rubbing Kelly’s shoulder. “She’ll be okay.”

  “I don’t understand why she doesn’t see that I’m in emotional pain,” Kelly whined. “That I’m hurting. All she cares about is her own fat self. Father is right, we do have horrible children.”

  “She’s a child and if you ask me, we spoiled them rotten. Both of them. I should’ve showed them their baby sister before we buried her so that they could see what could’ve happened to them. If you ask me, they should be grateful.”

  Kelly looked into her brother-husband’s eyes. “I love you so much, Avery. Please don’t ever leave me.”

  “That’s impossible. You’re my world, baby.”

  They were about to make love when they heard loud screaming in the larger part of the house. Both of them hopped out of bed and ran toward the voice. It was their mother. And she was standing in the foyer holding her bloodied grandchild Lydia in her arms.

  Kelly’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped. She didn’t understand what she was looking at. “Who is that?” She trembled while pointing at the bloodied body.

  “It’s Lydia,” Victoria sobbed.

  Kelly looked at Avery and then back at her mother. “She’s not dead,” Kelly tried to tell herself. “She’s just fighting for attention.” She snatched her child from her mother and shook her roughly. “Wake up. Wake up, and stop being a brat.” Lydia’s body flapped like a ragdoll in her hands and her eyes never opened. “I’ll play with you if you stop playing.”

  In the corner, Paige stood with her fist stuffed in her mouth to mute her cries. She lost the only person who cared if she got up every morning. And she hated her parents deeply now.

  Avery took Lydia from Kelly and tried to do CPR. Kelly looked down at him, still stuck and confused.

  “What happened?” Kelly asked her mother as her body convulsed.

  “She ran out into the highway and was hit by a car,” Victoria sobbed, wiping her tears away with her diamond-studded hand.

  After the CPR appeared to be in vein, Avery placed a finger on the vein on her neck. He didn’t detect movement. “Oh, my God, honey. She’s dead.”

  ****

  When Lydia was killed, Kelly milked the attention from her parents. Although Kerrick didn’t care for Kelly’s children, he didn’t want them dead either, especially if it took place in front of their home. So he tolerated giving her a hug or two and she and Avery were allowed to eat dinner at the dining room table with him, just as long as they remained silent.

  Still, there was a problem with Lydia’s death. To avoid attention and keep their family’s secrecy, Kerrick buried his grandchild in the acres of land, which covered his property. Although his children didn’t understand that sex amongst siblings was against the law, he knew the truth. He also knew that Lydia’s death could’ve caused problems if detectives started snooping around and asking questions.

  To make sure he covered his tracks, Kerrick tracked down the drunk driver who ran away from the scene. When he did, he had his pregnant wife killed and told him that if he ever came forward, he would murder him too. He let him stay alive so that he would remember every day that it was because he killed Kerrick’s grandchild that he would not see his own seed grow.

  And then there was his other granddaughter Paige who ran away from home. He did all he could do to find her but she had vanished. This sent Kelly further over the edge.

  To keep Kelly from losing her mind, Kerrick gave her access to more money and allowed her to use his favorite car, his silver Porsche. But after awhile, he grew tired of her weak spirit and put her back in the doghouse. He wouldn’t talk to her as much, told her to stay away when he ate his dinner. It was as if she didn’t exist. It was at this time that she announced that she was pregnant again.

  Although Kelly boasted over and over that the baby growing in her belly would make Kerrick proud, he never believed her. The only thing he wanted was for his daughter to get a life and leave him alone.

  On January 1, 1998, the day Kelly felt contractions, Victoria contacted the doctor. As usual, Kerrick, Victoria, Dr. Annette Banning and Avery were present.

  Kelly’s vanilla colored legs were placed in cold, metal stirrups and spread open. Her entire body trembled with pain due to not having meds. Victoria took her daughter’s right hand to calm her down while Avery grabbed the left. She had an extreme urge to shit and the doctor knew it was time.

  The Dr. placed a latex glove on, widened Kelly’s legs and entered her vagina until she felt the opening of her cervix. “You’re dilated,” she said with a smile. “It’s time. Are you ready?”

  Kelly nodded. “I think so.”

  “Okay, when you feel the next contraction, push.”

  Kelly looked over at her father, who stood across the room. “I’m going to have a baby you’ll love as much as Alice, father. If not more. I promise you.”

  Kerrick remained in the corner with his arms crossed over his chest. He wasn’t interested in this spectacle in the least. The only reason he was present was to make sure nobody said the wrong thing in front of the outsider in his home. Because, although she was the doctor, she had no idea that the woman on the bed and the man to her right were siblings.


  “Push,” the doctor encouraged.

  “You can do it, honey,” Avery said softly. “I love you so much.”

  Kelly pushed harder until finally a baby slid out. Dr. Banning grabbed the sheet, covered the child and cleared its airways. When it cried, she smiled. As with the others she walked it over to Kerrick and he looked down at it. This was the moment of truth. The only moment that mattered to Kelly.

  Kelly and Avery observed Kerrick’s expression. They were hopeful that this child would be what he deemed beautiful. Which meant high yellow skin, and beautiful, thin features. But when he looked over at her and frowned, her heart broke yet again. “Get this child out of my face,” he scoffed.

  Sadly, the Dr. walked the baby over to Kelly as she did before and placed it in her arms. Since her work was done, she said her goodbyes, gathered her things and left the property. She was always stressed when coming to the Prophet home. Things always seemed tense.

  Huge tears rolled down Kelly’s face even though she had not seen the child. It didn’t matter what she thought anyway. If Kerrick wasn’t going to be happy with the baby, neither would she.

  Still, Kelly took a deep breath and removed the cover to see the child’s face. She was pleasantly surprised. A quick smile appeared before disappearing at once. After all, this baby was different. It was a girl. Her nose was thin, her cheeks were rosy and she was…well…beautiful. But, and this was the most important thing, her skin was as brown as the bark on a tree.

  Kerrick walked over to his daughter and looked down at her. “And you disappoint me again.”

  “Kerrick, please don’t do this,” Victoria said. “It isn’t her fault that her children are not to your liking.”

  He threw his wife an evil stare that forced her out of the room. Although she wanted to be there for her children, she had no power when it came to her husband. He had become a monster. And yet he remained her master.

  Kerrick focused his attention back to his daughter. He raised his hand like he had before and placed a strand of her hair behind her ear. Afterwards, he removed his hand and placed it over the infant’s face. He was not about to take care of another one of his daughter’s fuck ups.

  “Father, please don’t do this,” Avery whispered. “It’s my baby.”

  Kerrick slapped him with the back of his hand, slicing his bottom lip open. He fell to the floor, where he remained.

  Ignoring his son and daughter, he continued to push down on the baby’s face until Kelly said, “Daddy, please…I lost Lydia; and Paige has vanished. I don’t want to lose another child. I promise you, you will never know she’s in the house if you let me keep her.”

  Kerrick continued to press the baby’s face with his hand to snuff out its life.

  “I’ll even stay out of your way,” she continued. “And I won’t bother you again or try to have another child.”

  With that promise, he slowly raised his hand. He would give anything if he didn’t have to be bothered with her or her unworthy pregnancies. But when he looked down at the child, its eyes were closed. She looked dead. Thinking that the deal he made with his daughter wouldn’t matter anyway, he was preparing to walk out of the room, leaving them with the responsibility of burying her out back with the rest.

  And then the baby gasped and her limbs jerked wildly as she cried out. Kelly sobbed and laughed at the same time. “She’s alive. Oh, my god, she’s alive.”

  Kerrick was impressed with the child’s strength. But it was not attractive enough to be a Prophet. “This child will not have a family name,” he told her. “You will simply call her Nine. Because she is the ninth grandchild.”

  “Okay, father.” Kelly nodded, wiping her tears away. “Okay.”

  “And you will remember the promise you gave to me. I don’t want to ever be bothered with you again. And I’m going to schedule you an appointment for Dr. Banning to cut your tubes. Clear?”

  Kelly nodded as she realized all of the hopes she had of making him proud by having the perfect child were gone. “Clear.”

  Kerrick exited the birthing room.

  Avery stood up and wiped the blood off of his bottom lip with the cuff of his white button down shirt. He walked over to his wife and looked down at the dark and beautiful child in her arms. “What made you give up fighting for his love? It’s what you want more than anything.”

  She wiped the tears from her face. “I don’t know, Avery.” She looked down at Nine. “I don’t know. But something in my heart tells me she’s worth it. I can feel it.”

  CHAPTER 11

  16 YEARS LATER

  2014

  “As quiet as a lamb.”

  -William Shakespeare

  Kerrick sat at a large cherry wood dining room table with Johnny Gates, who ran Baltimore City, sitting on the other side. The vaulted ceiling was interrupted with beautiful windows that caused light to bounce off the table, making the expensive China and silverware sparkle.

  Victoria, who cooked because the family’s maid had been gone for three days, prepared a delicious Latin American meal and now the men were full. It was time to discuss business.

  “So, Gates, now that you have been properly courted,” Kerrick chuckled, “can you tell me if you are willing to use my product in Baltimore?”

  “You want to discuss this now? At a time like this?”

  “What better time? Your belly is full, right?”

  Johnny Gates was a fifty-seven-year-old man who had been in the drug business longer than he cared to admit. Although he was rich, he was smart and kept his purchases and finances low.

  His father, Billy Gates, was the biggest dealer Houston had ever seen. But he had a penchant for pussy and even indulged himself with his best friend’s wife, which caused him to be hung by his neck for all his men to see.

  So Johnny, who was twenty at the time, took the money his father stashed at the house, along with his knowledge of the business, to Baltimore City. There he met Abraham, and supplied him heroin using his father’s connect.

  Business was good. That was until Abraham’s neck was slit at his ten-year-old son’s football game. At first no one knew he was dead. His lifeless stare was taken as a lack of enthusiasm since his kid’s team was losing. But when the game was over and his son walked into the bleachers and touched him, Abraham’s body fell on him. Then everyone had become aware, Kerrick had killed him.

  The reason for the hit was known to most. Kerrick had gained the trust of a Miami drug cartel and they supplied him with pure cocaine. Abraham refused to use his product and paid with his life. Although Kerrick still didn’t supply Baltimore—because Johnny Gates, a made man, was next in charge—Kerrick’s reputation for ruthlessness was legendary. Which was why Gates never trusted him.

  Kerrick was going to kill Gates too but men he trusted warned him against it. They said that if he made a move without authorization, his entire family would be annihilated. Kerrick was going to take his chances anyway until Gates made a classy move first.

  Gates invited Kerrick to a luxurious cigar bar outside of Baltimore. And over expensive smokes and whisky, he respectfully declined his offer to use his product. His tactfulness was the only reason Kerrick let him live. Everybody else who bucked against his system was buried along with their close family members and friends.

  After awhile, Gates grew interesting to Kerrick. He was a man who got everything he wanted but he couldn’t get Gates to relent. Gates was a challenge. The more he said no, the more Kerrick trusted him, which was why he invited him to his home. Gates had proven that he wasn’t a man of circumstance, but a man of integrity, something that he couldn’t say for himself.

  In one way they were alike. They had big families. Gates had three daughters—a set of twins and a seventeen-year-old. And Kerrick had his six children.

  “Where are your manners?” Gates asked playfully as he rubbed his salt-and-pepper beard again. “You haven’t even offered me a glass of your best. Yet you speak to me about business?”

&nbs
p; Kerrick grinned. “You’re right. I’ll grab the bottle. It’s on the kitchen counter.”

  “No,” Gates pushed back in the chair. “Please allow me.”

  “It’s fine with me. It’s behind you to the right,” Kerrick responded.

  Gates stood up and made his way toward the dark kitchen. With each step he took, he was trying to find a creative way of saying no. But his thoughts disappeared into the ether when he saw an open refrigerator with a naked woman standing in front of it.

  Her back was in his direction and he was mesmerized as he watched her stuff food in her mouth by the handful. She was so preoccupied that she didn’t know Gates was present. But he saw her and couldn’t help but admire her sexy physique.

  The light from the open fridge seemed to make her chocolate skin effervescent. Her slender back led to her plump ass, which extended as if it had a mind of its own. Her legs were thick but far from fat and only added to her appeal. She was alluring.

  When she turned her head slightly to the side, he caught the silhouette of her profile. Her lips were plump and pink and her nose was slender and perfect. At that point, Gates had several questions. Who was the scavenger? And why was she naked?

  He was still enamored until he saw the faint discoloration of scars on her back. They resembled small tree branches, extending outward. Was she being beaten?

  “I know my house is big but you didn’t get lost, did you,” Kerrick asked cheerfully until he walked up on Gates and saw who held his attention.

  When Kerrick saw Nine’s nude body, he stopped in mid-stride and his eyes bulged. At first he was speechless as he watched his associate observe his secret. This type of thing could get into the streets and cause problems. He considered killing Gates right there but in the past, Gates had proven to be a man of honor. So he would think of another way to clean up the issue.

  Kerrick rushed into the kitchen, grabbed a hand towel off the stove and placed it over Nine’s plump rear.