Shannon glared at the reporter. “Is this some sort of joke?” she asked. “If he says there’s no tape, then there’s no tape!”
Kendrick rose to leave the table. He cut down the middle of the room toward the double doors. The same media that sat around, not caring who he was before wanted to hear what he had to say and clicked frame after frame of his every step. Their collective chant of “Mr. Black! Mr. Black!” sounded cult-like.
The elevator opened the instant he pushed the button. He got in and repeatedly pushed the button to close the door. A heavy tide of media followed. A rush of gratitude overcame Kendrick when the doors closed just as reporters thrashed upon themselves like waves.
When Kendrick got to his room, he ran his key card along the lock sensor, and waited for the tiny red light to turn green. He entered the suite. The air conditioner did its job in cooling the room. Kendrick walked into the middle of the living room. “Sabathany!” he yelled. He glanced toward the bedroom, then at the bar. I know this bitch hears me, he thought as he poured himself a shot of the best whiskey they had. Downing the shot, he marched into the bedroom to find Sabathany exactly as he left her. He snatched the sheets from the bed, yanking Sabathany along with them.
“What the hell is your problem?” she screamed, dazed and groggy. It was the first time they spoke since landing in Miami.
“Did you record us?” Kendrick asked.
“What?” She peered up from the floor. Her disheveled appearance was alarming considering her usual vanity.
Kendrick chucked the balled up sheets at her. “Don’t ‘what’ me like you’re trying to come up with something to say! You recorded us fucking, didn’t you?”
Sabathany put her head down. “What’s the big deal? Look at Kim and Paris. No sex tape ever hurt them.”
“The big deal is that I just had to answer questions about a sex tape I knew nothing about. I felt humiliated down there!”
“Nobody cares about sex tapes these days, Honey. It’s about what comes after the tape that counts. Think of all the opportunities.”
“I already know what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to kill my career before it’s even made it off the ground.”
“Baby, you know that’s not what I’m trying to do,” Sabathany said, trying to reassure him.
Kendrick shook his own head, offended by her duplicity. “Pack your shit. You’re going back to L.A.”
“Baby…”
“Shut up! I don’t want to hear it.” Kendrick stormed into bathroom and slammed the door.
SIXTEEN
“Can you believe it?” Kendrick mused, swirling Courvoisier in his snifter. Brenda held a glass of wine. Both were curled up on her sofa. A fire crackled in the fireplace.
“What else would you expect from a thirsty, fame-seeker?” Brenda said. She tossed her braids over her shoulder as though they were a nuisance.
“And what makes it so bad is she said Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton have one, and now they’re making millions. Like that makes it any better.”
“The thirst is real, I’m telling you!”
“What am I going to do with her? I can’t trust her as far as I can throw her.”
“I told you that you need to stay aware, didn’t I? Not everyone you keep around you wants you to do well. Or, if they do, it’s because they have some stake in it.” Brenda drank her wine.
“That’s why I hate this place. Brings out the worst in people!”
“If I were you, I’d get rid of her. You just said yourself you can’t trust her. Why would you wanna keep someone like that around?”
Kendrick thought about it. “I don’t know,” he said finally.
Brenda rubbed her hands together, shuddering at her perception of the nonsense. “How did it go in New York?”
“My head was so screwed up; I couldn’t concentrate on the interviews. Nobody was interested in the movie. All they wanted to talk about was the sex tape. I’ve never been so humiliated in my life. And on top of everything, I get a call from my mother, wanting to know if everything she’s been hearing is true. Took me three hours to convince her that I had nothing to do with any of it.”
“Listen, don’t worry about the tape. I’ve got people on it. The video is being yanked. And for those who got it twisted and think there’s money to be made off this, we’ve got a cease and desist for their asses. “
“I appreciate it.” Kendrick leaned back, again swirling his brandy.
Brenda clicked the TV off, then dimmed the lights. Having gotten his side of the story, much of her disappointment faded. Her overall energy was relaxed. She put her feet up onto the glass table.
Kendrick sat, warmed by brandy and the fire. He stared at Brenda Vaughn, taking all of her in. She sure does pull it together for a big girl, he thought, marveling at how shapely her legs were.
Kendrick’s eyes moved to the lusciousness of her lips. He watched them make contact with the wine glass. He envied the wine glass.
Kendrick could easily fall into the seduction of her fetching eyes. He spied her ample bosom, thrust forward in her low-cut blouse. He fantasized about burrowing his face between them, savoring their fullness. Kendrick scooted closer to her and delicately rubbed against her knee.
Brenda smiled, but wanted to laugh outright. “Boy, what do you think you’re doing?”
“Can’t I sit close to you?” Kendrick asked, activating his powerful gaze.
“Kenny, come on. Stop all of that. You think because you get a few women to go crazy over that eye thing you do that I’ll fall for it, too?” She spoke to him as though dousing the flames of a horned-up teenager.
“No, Brenda, seriously. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. You’re the only one in this town who cares about me. I get that you work for me, but you’ve always been straight with me. I feel like everyone else out here in L.A is working angles—doing something because they want something.”
Brenda found Kendrick’s Midwestern innocent act cute. “That’s because they do. All the time I hear people say they’re tired of fake people, but they themselves are fake. That’s just the way it is out here, baby. Ain’t gonna change no time soon.”
Kendrick’s eyes revealed sadness and yearning. “Damn shame you’re the only person I know who keeps it real with me. I know I say it all the time, but you’ve done so much for me. I owe you so much.” Kendrick’s glance dropped again to her breasts.
Brenda put her glass down to adjust her blouse, aware of the attention her breasts were receiving. “And you think I want some of that as payback?” She pointed to the visible erection between his parted legs.
Embarrassed, Kendrick closed his legs. “I don’t know what came over me. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay, I get it. You’ve just realized the person you’ve been sharing a bed with is untrustworthy. And it hurts. So you feel like reaching out.”
Kendrick nodded.
“But it’s a good thing you know what you’re dealing with. Now you know what you have to do now, right?”
“But you’re wrong about one thing. I didn’t just realize she’s ratchet. There’s been red flags.” Kendrick lowered his voice, looking around even though they were the only two in the room. “I think she was trying to get pregnant.”
Brenda rolled her eyes at that old trick. “I’m not surprised.”
Kendrick chugged the remaining brandy. It went down harsher than he thought it would. Standing up, he took his keys from his pocket.
Brenda rose from the sofa. “Did I upset you?”
“No, just gave me something to think about. Sorry about earlier.”
“Don’t be sorry.” A slight flirt danced in her tone. Brenda moved in close to him, her chest touching his. She smelled beautifully. She placed her arms around his neck and imparted a kiss upon him.
Kendrick’s knees buckled. Her lips were succulent. He instantly wanted to taste them again. “What was that for?”
“Luck.”
“For what?”
“I don’t get involved in mess, Kenny. Clean up the mess and there’s more where that came from.”
“Oh, it’s like that?”
“It’s like that.”
Kendrick was quiet for two beats. He accepted her words as a challenge, one he gladly planned to rise to. He stepped in for another kiss, but Brenda placed a hand to his chest to stop him. The warmth in her eyes was replaced by an eerie seriousness.
“No. I said, clean up the mess first.” Brenda opened the front door, and stepped aside to allow him a clear path to leave.
Wanting to show that he could either take it or leave it, he left without saying another word. By the time he got to his car, he gave a final wave, but Brenda had already closed the door.
During the ride home, Kendrick thought of how he planned to break it off with Sabathany. As soon as he pulled up to the house, his stomach fluttered as though attacked by a million butterflies. There was no easy way to say the thing that would ultimately be best for both of them when he finally said it.
Kendrick called out to her but there was no answer. He went into the master bedroom and observed that things had been moved around. She must’ve come by to grab a few items when she knew I was out, he thought.
Last he saw her, she was getting into a cab destined for the Miami airport to fly back to Los Angeles. Before that, she had sequestered herself to a dark hotel room at the Fontainebleau. Sabathany refused to get out of bed because the memory of being molested overwhelmed her. He didn’t want to believe that the same woman who had displayed such vulnerability, had also leaked a sex tape meant for her gain.
The time Kendrick spent alone in the house, he wanted to expel all the nervous energy buzzing inside him. He resented his peace of mind being contingent on the whimsy of the wrong woman. He was going to force her to own up to the truth of what she did, even if he had to trudge through her lies to get to it.
The morning of the premier, Sabathany finally sent a text announcing that she was on her way.
Kendrick held little faith that, “I’m on my way” was written with any intended urgency, but was relieved to finally have some communication from her. That didn’t stop him from lurking about the foyer, awaiting her arrival, like a dog anticipating its owner’s return. When he heard keys jingle, he threw open the door with the confidence of an “I gotcha.” The two stared into each other’s eyes before Kendrick finally said, “Where the hell have you been?”
“I was staying with Tammy,” Sabathany replied. “Tammy Boone, meet Kendrick Black.”
Tammy behaved like the usual star struck fan. “Oh my goodness, hi!”
“Hey,” Kendrick said. He was not expecting company. Turning his attention back to Sabathany, he said, “Can I talk to you alone?”
“Tammy was good enough to let me crash at her place. She’s a survivor, too.”
“Survivor of what?”
“Survivor of sexual abuse.”
Tammy confirmed with a sad nod.
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“I sort of figured after Miami that I needed to talk to someone,” Sabathany said.
“But you know we have some talking of our own to do…alone.”
“And we will. But right now we have company.” Sabathany extended her hand to her friend. Tammy took it.
“Ask your company to wait for you in the other room.”
Sabathany ushered Tammy further into the house. “Don’t be rude. As soon as she leaves I’m all yours.”
Tammy smiled awkwardly as she was led into the house. Kendrick remained at the door, watching the two women disappear around the corner. She thinks she’s slick, Kendrick thought. But, Sabathany’s bringing a friend over would not save her from what Kendrick had to tell her. In fact, it changed nothing at all.
Kendrick felt the light tapping of small fingers against his back, waking him from his nap. The tapping was followed by a gravelly, childish voice. “Hey, Mister,” the voice said.
Kendrick rolled over to find Kayla Jones grinning malevolently from the foot of the sofa. She wore a pink dress, with pink and white butterflies clipped to her pigtail.
Frightened, Kendrick bolted upright, finding himself surrounded by an otherworldly stillness. “Why are you looking at me like that? Why are you bothering me?”
“Because you’re a liar,” the child’s voice croaked. “And I hate liars.”
“What did I lie about?”
“You said you’re sorry.”
“I am.”
Excited to be haunting him, Kayla’s grin broadened. “I can’t tell.”
“I swear I am.”
Kayla stopped grinning. Her face became serious, and there was a sudden maturity in her voice. “Then turn yourself in.”
Kendrick felt his stomach roll. “I can’t. I’ve got too many people counting on me. But I promise you, I’ll find a way to make this right!”
“You forget, I see everything. Just remember, in the end, there’s only one way this is gonna end.”
“What does that mean?”
“You know exactly what it means. Do the right thing, Mister; otherwise, I’ll just keep coming back until you go crazy.”
“Please.” Kendrick pleaded, “Leave me alone!”
“Leave you alone? Mister, I’m just getting started!” Kayla gurgled a shallow sound from her dirt-filled throat. Her arms broke from their sockets like stumps of wood, and disintegrated into dust. Kayla’s body ruptured open as it did in the forest. Kendrick wanted to run from the loud munching sound of the maggots as they enjoyed the girl’s innards; however, his body refused to move, paralyzed by fear…
Kendrick jumped up, gasping for breath. His drenched shirt clung to his chest. Sweat rolled down his temples and forehead. The television flickered in front of him, bringing him back to the real world. Kendrick heard voices, and followed those voices to the master bedroom. Pausing in the doorway, he discovered both Sabathany and Tammy laughing with expensive clothes all around them. The sordid details of their sexual abuse seemed the furthest thing on either of their minds.
“Oh, hi. You’re awake. Tammy was just helping me figure out what I’m wearing for the premier tonight,” Sabathany said. She wore a pink jumpsuit with pink and white swirl-print heels.
Tammy sat on the bed, holding an iridescent white cocktail dress. She smiled and waved hello, but Kendrick ignored her.
“Why didn’t you wake me up?” Kendrick asked.
“I don’t know. I figured you must be tired. So I left you where you were.”
With all the traveling, yes, he had been tired. But he knew it was nothing more than a convenient excuse allowing Sabathany to avoid talking to him.
“Listen, we need to talk.”
Sabathany passed Tammy a look. “We’re almost done,” she said.
Kendrick remained in the doorway, almost as if he were waiting for disobedient teenagers to do what he asked them to do. He eyed the massive amount of pink in Sabathany’s off-the-shoulder jumpsuit. And the side ponytail topping off the look was too similar to the dead child’s. Kendrick wanted to know if Sabathany was taunting him, even though he knew that was not possible.
“You’re wearing that?” Kendrick asked.
“What’s wrong with it?” Sabathany replied, giving her image in the full length mirror another check.
“Don’t you think that color is a tad childish?”
“Not for what I paid for it, I don’t.”
“I think it’s cute,” Tammy said.
Kendrick gave Tammy the side-eye. “Sabathany, you wanna tell your friend that you’ll talk to her later?” Kendrick didn’t look at Tammy full on, but motioned for her to take a hike.
Sabathany pursed her lips, her eyebrow arched. “I said we’ll be done in a minute.”
“You know, I really should get going,” Tammy said.
“You don’t have to go anywhere.”
“I know, but I bet Craig is wondering when I’m gonna bring my ass home. I say you’ll lo
ok beautiful in whatever you decide to wear, girl. Have a good time at the premier!” Tammy hugged Sabathany quickly and rushed past Kendrick, leaving with a less than pleasant impression.
“You know that wasn’t called for,” Sabathany said.
“How else was I going to get you alone? You know I’ve been wanting to speak to you. But I like how you tried using your friend to avoid me.”
“Oh, you liked that, huh?”
Kendrick finally entered the room, but came to a halt in the middle of it. He expected her to say something meaningful, and behave as though she actually cared.
“Shouldn’t you start getting ready?” she asked.
“You don’t think there’s anything wrong with taping an intimate moment without the other person’s consent? And then you went ahead and leaked the damn thing.”
“Will you relax? This ain’t old Hollywood. The world’s not gonna turn against you just because you like to have sex with your girlfriend. Hell, R. Kelly can piss on underage girls and he still has a career.”
“Allegedly, and that’s not the point. You made a very private moment public. And for what? To get on some reality show?”
“You’ve got your success. I’m just trying to get mine,” Sabathany said, having made her peace with it. “Hell, sometimes you have to make opportunity happen for yourself. Folks will be talking about us. They’re gonna be talking about me!”
She checked to make sure the highlight under her eyes was just right, then slid the shoulder of her jumpsuit down a little further to reveal more of her bare skin. Her eyes became locked with Kendrick’s reflection through the mirror.
“I’d really appreciate it if you’d find something else to wear,” Kendrick said.
“Are you asking me or telling me?”
“I’m telling you.”
Sabathany continued to stare. “Would it help if I wore it in black?”
“Let me see it first.”
Sabathany left the vanity and disappeared inside the walk-in. After changing into the black version of the jumpsuit, she reemerged, dropping a pair of black heels to the floor and slipping her feet into them. “Better?”
The Best Possible Angle Page 10