She said, “Blake, you get Jasmine. Go to my room and lock the door.”
Blake begged, “Mom no, please no. I don’t want to leave you.”
Her voice was matter of fact.
“Blake do not argue with me. Take Jasmine and go. Lock yourselves in my room and don’t come out until I come to get you. Do you understand?”
“Yes ma’am. Come on Jaz, we gotta go.”
They got to their feet and moved as fast as their beaten bodies could take them up the stairs to his parent’s room.
Frank Jessup raised both his hands and said, “Lisa, what are you doing?”
Incredulously she asked, “What am I doing? No, what are you doing to those babies?”
“I’m sorry. I was drinking. I saw them kiss and I just got so upset. I don’t want my son with her. Just please put the gun down.”
“You need to get out of this house. If you don’t leave right now on your own two feet, you’re going to leave in body bag.”
She backed up to let him pass. She held the gun on him until he gathered his keys and the door was shut behind him. She lowered her weapon and rushed to the door to lock it. She was breathing so hard she thought her chest would explode. She ran to the phone and shakily dialed 411 for a locksmith. She got the number. When she was satisfied that they were on their way, she grabbed the shotgun and hurried upstairs to see about the kids.
Chapter 2: Revelations
When she knocked on the door to get them to unlock it her adrenaline was starting to ebb as fear was starting to seep in. She had no idea what had gotten into her husband. To strike his own child in such a manner, but to strike someone else’s was insane.
She knew her husband was not a fan of black people, but she didn’t know he could take that out on a poor innocent little girl. Then her mind started to catch up with her actions. She wondered if this was an isolated incident or had he done this before and she was none the wiser.
Blake opened the door. His face was red as well as his eyes. She saw the bruises showing up on his legs, arms and face. Her heart broke. When she looked at Jasmine sitting on the floor by her bed, the poor child looked like she was in trance as she sat curled up shaking.
A terrified Blake asked, “Mommy are you okay?”
“Yes, baby I’m fine and your daddy’s gone. He won’t be coming back anytime soon okay.”
She went to Jasmine and picked her up.
“Jasmine baby, look at me. Are you okay?”
Jasmine just buried her face into her bosom and wept.
Lisa stood and held out her hand for Blake.
“Come on baby, let’s go in the bathroom. Let me see what’s been done to you guys.”
She saw that Jasmine’s jaw line had a welt that was bleeding. She sat Jasmine on the toilet and told Blake to sit on the edge of the tub. She took a deep breath to steady herself to be strong for the kids. She tended to Jasmine first pulling off her shirt to look at her back. All that could be heard was their quiet sobs.
She had to lift up the little undershirt she was wearing beneath. She wasn’t bleeding, but she had welts everywhere. She wanted to scream. How was she going to tell this child’s mother what happened to her?
She put some peroxide on her jaw and put a Band-Aid on it. She looked at Blake and pulled off his shirt. His back was much worse and to her horror she’d seen old bruises that were healing.
She grabbed his face and said, “Blake Jessup, you tell me the truth. Has your father ever hit you like this before when I wasn’t around?”
His blue eyes swam with fresh tears as he nodded his head. She looked over at Jasmine and she shook hers. That was it. That was the last straw. She put her head in her hands and cried. The pain and tears ravaged her and made her body shake. Blake hugged his mother and Jasmine reached for his hand. He pulled her in and hugged her too. He knew he had to take care of his girls.
When his mom stopped crying she said, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry baby. I didn’t know. I would never ever knowingly stand by and let anybody hurt you, no matter who it was. Do you understand?”
He nodded.
“Blake, don’t you ever keep anything like this from me again. If anyone, I don’t care who it is, you tell me. It is my job to protect you and even though I failed this time I promise you I will never fail again.”
He nodded.
She looked at Jasmine, “Awe baby, I am so sorry this happened to you.”
Jasmine asked, “Are you going to tell my mommy what happened?”
“Yes sweetie, of course I will.”
“But what if she won’t let me see Blake anymore? I really don’t want that, so maybe you don’t have to tell her.”
Lisa’s heart broke for their little friendship.
“Sweetie, I have to tell your mother because if something like this happened to Blake and your mom didn’t tell me I would be very angry. She is your mother and has a right to know. I promise you I will do everything in my power to make sure you and Blake can still be friends, okay.”
She nodded.
Lisa needed a minute to figure out what to do, but she had to get the kids settled. She was amazed at how they were handling this better than she was. To have the presence of mind to protect their friendship after something like this had been done astounded her.
She said, “I tell you guys what. Jasmine, why don’t you get cleaned up and get in your pajamas and then Blake you get cleaned up and put on yours. You guys use this bathroom and then you can get in my bed and watch TV all night. I’ll go order a pizza. Jasmine, we will tell your parents about this tomorrow when they get back and we’ll deal with whatever we have to deal with.”
She kissed both of them on the cheek, glad that their tears were beginning to dry up. She went downstairs to get Jasmine’s overnight bag and Blake some night clothes when she heard the doorbell. She dropped everything and went back to the hallway to get the shotgun where she left it. Through the peephole she saw it was the locksmith. She hid the shotgun behind the door and opened it.
She let in the locksmith and told him to change all the locks in the house. He said it would take about an hour. She just hoped he would be done before Frank decided to try and come back to the house. She prayed he would stay away long enough for her to at least get Jasmine out of harm’s way. She was so afraid of what her parents were going to do but she couldn’t deal with that now.
She ordered the pizza then took the kid’s clothes upstairs along with a few VHS tapes for them to watch. She remembered what Frank had said, that he saw them kiss. All she needed on top of this was the two of them experimenting with each other.
When she walked into the room she said, “Hey guys, I need to ask you two a question. I want you guys to tell me the absolute truth okay.”
They nodded.
“Your dad said he saw you two kissing. Is that true?”
Jasmine looked scared.
Blake said, “No mom. I was playing in Jasmine’s hair and then I kissed her on her nose. Then dad came in and started yelling.”
She didn’t know how to interpret that, “Okay baby, I need you to explain that.”
He let out an exasperated sigh and Jasmine giggled.
“Mom, okay look, some stupid girls were picking at Jasmine about her hair and her nose. I told her that I thought her hair was really cool and her nose was perfect. So to make her feel better I kissed her nose, no biggie. Geez.”
He took the “Lady and the Tramp” out of her hand and asked, “Hey Jaz, wanna watch this one first?”
Lisa stood there staring at her son. That had to be the sweetest thing she had ever known him to do. She realized that maybe they really did care about each other more than any of them realized. She really hoped they wouldn’t be forced to end their friendship. She adored Jasmine. She was the daughter she never had. She was such a sweet girl and she knew Blake loved her.
“Hey guys, I need to go down and stay with the locksmith. The pizza should be here any minute now.”
&nb
sp; After his mom left Jasmine asked him, “Blake, how come you never told me your daddy hit you?”
He couldn’t look her in the eyes.
“So my dad spanked me a couple times. You get spankings too, I saw.”
Yes, that was true. It made her think about the time her mom popped both of them on their bottoms when they were five because they broke her blinds. Then there was the time his mom popped both of them on the hand when they were six because they broke her favorite cookie jar.
“Yeah, I get spankings but not like that. My mommy doesn’t yell and curse and she never hit me that many times. Plus with a belt she usually hits me on my bottom, not in my face.”
Blake turned away from her, but not before she saw the tears run down his face. She turned his face back to her and wiped his tears away.
“I’m sorry that happened to you, but you shoulda told me. I’m supposed to be your best friend.”
He sniffed, “I knew that you wouldn’t wanna come and play over here. He isn’t like that all the time, just when he drinks and when mom’s not here.”
She couldn’t stand to see him crying. A tear rolled down her cheek.
“Jasmine, I’m sorry I never told anyone, maybe if I did you wouldn’t have gotten hurt too. I’m so sorry my daddy hit you.”
Jasmine still felt the stings from the beating, but there was something else of greater concern to her.
“What are we gonna do if my mom says I can’t play with you anymore. I don’t wanna stop being your friend ‘cause your dad is mean.”
Blake didn’t want that either. Jasmine had just found out his worst secret and she still wanted to be his friend. She didn’t turn on him like he thought she might. He didn’t want to lose her either because she was his very best friend in the whole wide world.
Blake said, “If they say we can’t be friends, then we can run away.”
“Run away? But where are we gonna go?”
“I don’t know, but you don’t want them to keep us apart do you?”
Jasmine said, “Of course not, but if we’re gonna run away we have to be smart about it”
“What do you mean Jaz?”
“Well, we gotta find money and we gotta find a place to go that they can’t find us.”
He nodded, “We need to make a plan tonight though because tomorrow they might separate us for good.”
She hugged him. He kissed her nose and they laughed.
Lisa sat on the sofa and all that could be heard were the sounds the locksmith was making as he turned her house against her husband. She finally had a moment to herself to cry. What was she going to do? She loved her husband and she meant every vow she made to him. Yes, she had to protect her child, but her husband needed help too.
She knew his drinking was getting heavier, but she didn’t know he had turned violent. Their marriage had been solid up until the last couple of years. Now that they had hit a bump she didn’t want to give up on him without giving him a chance to get better. What she didn’t know was if she could ever trust him around her son again?
She had no idea what to do. The locksmith called out that there was a pizza guy at the door. She wiped her tears and went to get the pizza. She paid and tipped the guy. The locksmith told her he was finished. After she got the keys and paid him she went through and double checked all the doors. She headed upstairs with the pizza.
When she walked in the room the TV was playing “Lady and the Tramp” and Jasmine and Blake were in her bed facing each other, holding hands, asleep. Too tired to go back downstairs, she placed the pizza on the dresser and climbed in the bed wrapping her arm around both of them and wished for sleep to come.
Chapter 3: The Getaway
Lisa hadn’t found sleep the night before, but that was irrelevant because the sun was up letting her know it was okay to stop trying. She had worried all night. She worried about the lasting effect this would have on the kids. She worried about her husband and if he was still alive. Did he wrap himself around a tree?
She hadn’t even thought about the fact that she was sending a drunken man to operate a vehicle. She hadn’t thought about the innocent on the road. She had only thought about protecting her son and Jasmine.
She wondered if he would ever be in her life again. She wondered if her son even wanted to see him again. She wondered how many times he’d abused their son right under her nose. She wondered what it said about her maternal instincts that she hadn’t known.
She worried that Vanessa would rip her eyes out as soon as she saw the marks on her baby’s body. She had a mind not to even defend herself because if the tables were turned she would likely try and do much worse. Mostly, she worried about what the children worried about. She sincerely hoped they could figure out a way for them to still be friends. She looked at their sweet sleeping faces. They were still holding hands.
She took this opportunity to get up, get showered and get dressed. She had what would likely be the most difficult day of her life to look forward to. Jasmine’s parents should be home by noon. She felt a little better after she’d showered. She put on a pink sweat suit and sneakers. She pulled her hair back in a ponytail and decided against makeup. It was just one of those days.
She was startled when she heard the phone ring. She rushed quickly to the side of the bed before the phone woke the children.
She picked up the phone, “Hello.”
There was silence.
“Hello.”
“It’s Frank.”
Her heart sank.
“Frank, where are you, are you okay?”
He chuckled, “It depends on what you mean by okay. My wife pulled a gun on me and kicked me out of our house.”
Her temper was quick and cool. Her sympathy was nonexistent. She walked out of her bedroom so she wouldn’t wake the children.
“You listen here you bastard, you are lucky I didn’t pull that trigger after what I walked in on. What the hell were you thinking? Are you so unhappy that you have to take your racial frustrations out on a nine-year-old who has never done anything to you except be a friend to your son? To the son you claimed to love but have been beating behind my back scarring his body and his mind. If you come back here I promise you I will pull that trigger.”
She hit the off button and leaned against the wall to calm her nerves. What was happening to her world? How could it be crumbling all around her? What was wrong with her husband?
“Mom? Mom?”
She took a deep breath and went back in the room.
“Hi baby. How do you feel?”
He rubbed his eyes, “I’m okay. Why were you yelling mom?”
She closed her eyes and let out a frustrated sigh.
“I was talking to your father sweetheart. We are just having a really hard time communicating right now.”
In a panic he asked, “Is he coming back?”
“He won’t be back until he’s better. If he doesn’t get better then he won’t be back okay.”
“Okay.”
The phone rang again, Lisa snapped, “What!”
“Uh hello, Lisa. Is that you? This is Vanessa.”
Lisa cringed, “Vanessa I’m so sorry. Please excuse my rudeness. Are you guys heading back in town?”
“Actually we’re home. I was going to come and get Jasmine.”
Lisa wanted to panic. This didn’t give her anytime to think.
She said, “Actually she is still sleep. I will get her up and bring her over because there is something I need to talk to you about.”
“Oh okay, well that’s fine. See you in a few minutes.”
“Okay, bye.”
Lisa hung up.
Blake was starting to shake Jasmine awake.
“You guys go brush your teeth and wash your face. Just throw on some shoes so we can get this over with.”
“But mom we’re wearing our pajamas.”
“Baby please, just do what I asked.”
He didn’t respond, just pulled a sleepy Jasmine out of
the bed and headed to his room. Lisa took a deep breath and said a silent prayer for some help.
∞∞∞
Lisa rang the doorbell at Jasmine’s house. She held the hand of a sleepy Blake who held the hand of an even sleepier Jasmine. Vanessa’s pretty brown face had a puzzled look when she answered the door because the kids were not dressed but since Lisa looked a little worn she decided to table her comment. They spoke their pleasantries and Vanessa bent down to kiss Jasmine’s cheek. She was alarmed by the bandage.
She asked, “Baby what happened to your face?”
Lisa jumped in before Jasmine could reply, “Why don’t you guys go in the kitchen and eat a bowl of cereal while I talk to Vanessa.”
They gratefully obliged and practically sprinted to the kitchen. Vanessa looked after them and then locked eyes with Lisa.
“What’s going on Lisa? How did Jasmine get hurt?”
“Uh, can we sit down?”
“Uh no, you can tell me what happened to my baby’s face!”
Lisa wanted to run. Instead she took a deep breath and said, “Last night when I got home from the store I walked in on my husband beating Jasmine and Blake with a belt.”
Vanessa let out an exasperated, “What!”
“I know, I know. I put him out the house and I tended to the babies. I didn’t know. Blake told me last night that his father had hit him before but I never knew about it. He’d never hit Jasmine before last night though.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“No, of course not. Vanessa, I’m so sorry. I know you left your child in my care and I failed to protect her.”
“What could they have possibly done to make him beat them?”
“He said he saw them kiss, but it doesn’t matter. What he did was inexcusable.”
“That little boy of yours was kissing my baby?”
“Okay now wait a minute. They weren’t kissing like that. He kissed her on her nose. Frank took it out of context.”
Color Me Blind (A Divine Love Story Book 1) Page 2