Creepin' 2: A New Orleans Love Story

by Chenell Parker

  “My fault,” he apologized right before he headed back to the living room. Shay sent her text off and grabbed a bottle of water before going back upstairs to Jared’s bedroom.

  ***

  Tre sat in the car with Tae and Lamar and completely tuned them out. He had a lot on his mind, but Terri had been consuming his thoughts a lot lately. Her health was steadily declining, and she still wasn’t following her doctor’s orders. She’d cut back on smoking, but she hadn’t completely given the cigarettes up. Terri had lost a lot of weight in the past few months. Some days she would be too weak to get out of bed, and Tre would have to literally carry her to the bathroom. He had to rush her to the hospital a few days ago because she had a fever that he couldn’t break no matter how hard he tried. Mia and Brandis were so helpful and they would often spend the day with her when Tre couldn’t. They assisted him with bathing her and Mia made sure that she had a decent meal. It was sad that her other kids didn’t visit her, but Tre understood how they felt. After all, he felt the same way too not too long ago. If it weren’t for Mia, he probably wouldn’t have even given Terri a second thought. His uncles said that he was crazy for being there for her in her time of need when she was never there for him. They felt like she was using him to take care of her because nobody else wanted to. Tre didn’t see it that way, though. Terri never asked him to do anything for her. He took it upon himself to help her, and he didn’t have any regrets.

  “Man Tae, are you sure you can trust this bitch?” Lamar asked from the back seat of the beat up cutlass that they were riding in. They were parked on the corner from the house that Tae swore that Ro and Jared were living in.

  “Yeah I trust her. That’s my girl’s first cousin. She’s been kicking it with that nigga Jared for a few weeks, and she said that this is the house that he and Ro have been living in,” Tae answered.

  It was by pure luck that Tae was riding around with her girlfriend and her girlfriend’s cousin Shay when she spotted Jared walking into a corner store. She remembered Tre telling her that he was the nigga that was with Ro when he shot at him, and Tae wasn’t about to let him get away. Shay lived in Violet, Louisiana, and that was the only reason that Tae was in that country part of town in the first place. Shay and Tae’s girlfriend Kita were first cousins, and they were born and raised around the street life. Shay never asked any questions when Tae sent her into the store to flirt with Jared. She was a hoe, so fucking him on the first night was nothing new to her. Shay reported to Tae each time she hooked up with Jared and Tae made sure to fill Tre in on everything. Jared never wanted to invite her to his house, but Shay kept on begging until he finally agreed. That was all Tre needed to make his move. He put Lamar down on his plan, and they were just waiting to put in work.

  “And she’s sure it’s Ro?” Lamar asked bringing Tae back to reality.

  “Yeah, she said that Jared is always calling his name when they’re on the phone,” Tae affirmed.

  “That’s all good, but what’s up with this raggedy ass car?” Tre asked his cousin. “I hope we’re able to get away without breaking down.”

  “Nigga ain’t nothing wrong with my girl’s car,” Tae argued.

  “You wrong for even buying this piece of shit for that girl to ride around in,” Tre laughed.

  “When you’re lazy and don’t want to work this is what you end up driving in. A fifteen hundred dollar piece of shit that’s only good for the hair salon and the grocery store,” Tae explained.

  “Well, don’t turn this bitch off. It might not want to start up again if you do,” Lamar replied just Tae received a text on her phone.

  “It’s show time,” Tae yelled. “Shay said she’s upstairs in the room with ole boy and Ro is in the living room on the sofa sleeping. She already unlocked the back door for y’all.”

  “Let’s get it,” Lamar said as he and Tre hopped out and crept down the block to the house.

  Tae stayed in the car and waited for them to get back. It was after two in the morning, and most of the houses on the block were dark and quiet. The house that Ro and Jared were holed up in almost looked abandoned with the huge real estate sign posted up out front. Lamar signaled Tre with his hands telling him to follow him to the back of the house. He was just like a burglar dressed in all black with a small flashlight in his hand. Tre had done his share of dirt, but murder was nowhere on his resume. Lamar was in his element, and all of this was like second nature to him. He crept up the three back stairs and slowly turned the knob on the door. When Lamar entered the kitchen, he looked around before waving Tre in.

  “Stay here and keep your eyes open. I’m going to get the other nigga and bring him downstairs,” Lamar whispered to Tre.

  He nodded his head and watched as Lamar disappeared up the steps. Not even a minute later he came back down with a gun pointed at Jared and Shay. Both of them hand their hands raised high as Lamar guided them into the living room. Ro was sprawled out on the sofa sleeping like he didn’t have a care in the world.

  “You want to do the honors?” Lamar asked Tre.

  “No doubt,” he smirked as he walked over to Ro and hit him in the mouth with the butt of his gun.

  “What the fuck!” Ro shouted as his eyes flew open, and his hand went up to his busted lips.

  “Wake your bitch as up,” Tre yelled while pointing the gun to his head.

  Ro’s eyes grew big as saucers when he saw Lamar standing there holding a gun on Jared and Shay. The thing that struck him as odd was the fact that Shay was now fully dressed with her purse draped around her. When he saw her in the kitchen not too long ago, she had on a t-shirt like she was ready for bed. He looked over at Jared to make eye contact with him, but he got pissed off as soon as he did.

  “Nigga is you crying?” Ro yelled in shock. He knew that his life would be over in a matter of minutes, but he would never let another man see him cry.

  “And this is the nigga that you chose to do dirt with?” Lamar asked while shaking his head.

  “Man, just let her go. She didn’t have nothing to do with it. She got a son that she needs to live for,” Jared said pleading for Shay’s life.

  “Nah, I don’t have any kids. And why the hell do I still have my hands up?” She replied as she lowered her hands to her side.

  “I told your stupid ass not to trust that hoe,” Ro barked angrily.

  “My feelings would probably be hurt if what you said wasn’t true. Looks like my work here is done, so I’m out,” Shay laughed as she threw up the peace sign and left through the back door. She waved to Tae, who was parked on the corner before she got into her own car and sped away.

  “That dirty bitch,” Jared yelled angrily.

  “Yeah whatever, but we’ve wasted enough time with all this talking,” Lamar replied.

  He lifted his gun and let off three rounds into Jared head dropping his lifeless body almost instantly. Tre followed suit and emptied his entire clip and sent Ro’s dead body flying backward on the sofa. Lamar snatched the gun from his hand and tucked them both in the waist of his jeans before they both ran out through the same way they came in. They did a slow jog back to the car, and Tae pulled off as soon as they did. Although he’d just taken a life, Tre felt like the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. Ro used to be one of his best friends, but he didn’t feel an ounce of remorse for killing him. It was only a matter of time before he came back and tried to finish Tre off anyway. Tre just played the game right along with him. The only difference was when Tre played, he played to win.

  C hapter 15

  Paige sat up in her bed in shock as she watched Ro and Jared’s pictures flashing across the screen. She’d heard about two bodies being found in a house a few days ago, but they were just now being identified. She hated to say it, but it was only a matter of time before Ro got dealt with. He was into all kinds of shit, and it finally caught up with him. She never used to watch the news before, but since she’d been stuck inside for the past couple of weeks watching TV was
all that she did. She stayed in the hospital for three days after the beat down that Dalvin had put on her. Aside from a broken nose, she had a broken jaw, bruised ribs and a black eye to go along with it. Michelle had to get four stitches in her lip as a result of the one hit she took. To say that Shad was furious was a complete understatement. He was angrier now than he was when his daughters got jumped on. At least Tre had other females to do it unlike Dalvin, who delivered the beat down himself. He handled Paige as if she was a man and Shad wanted to handle him.

  “You need anything Paige,” Shania asked when she saw the pained expression on her face.

  “I need my pain pills,” she mumbled barely above a whisper.

  Paige was so tired of feeling like and invalid. She couldn’t really eat anything, so she was losing a lot of weight. Her body was sore and her face still burned like it did the very first time that Dalvin hit her. Her son kept asking her what happened to her, but she couldn’t tell him the truth. She couldn’t tell him that his pathetic ass father was the reason that she looked like a black-eyed monster. The same man who denied being his father in the first place. Paige wasn’t one hundred percent sure that Dalvin was the father, but she’d slept with him way more than she slept with his brother and cousin. All three of them looked so much alike, so it could have been either one. Her son looked exactly like them, so he and Dalvin were related some kind of way. He could have been his father, his uncle or his cousin. It was sad, but true.

  “You want some more ice cream?” Shania asked pulling her from her thoughts.

  “No, but you can you fix me some soup?” Paige mumbled right as Shad entered the room.

  “How you feeling sis?” Shad asked her.

  He was heated when she nodded her head and winced in pain from the simple gesture. To know how that nigga Dalvin did his baby sister had nothing, but murder on his mind. He had been asking around about him, but of course nobody claimed to know anything. Paige knew where his mother lived, but she never knew where Dalvin rested his head. Shad went to his mother’s house, but one of his brothers answered the door and claimed to not know where Dalvin was. Shad was tempted to put a bullet in his head, but he wasn’t the one who put his sister in the hospital. Although he was there when the act took place, he never participated in anything. Everybody said that he didn’t mess with Moonie anymore, but Shad wanted to pay her a visit just to be sure.

  ***

  “I almost forgot how good you cook. It’s been so damn long since I had a meal from you,” Jabari said with a mouth full of smothered potatoes.

  “Boy I can still burn when I want to. I have to have my man a hot meal cooked when he gets home from work,” Moonie replied.

  Moonie was shocked, but pleasantly surprised when Jabari showed up to her front door. He got off from work early and decided to come spend some time with her. Mia and the other kids were at school, so it was just the two of them. She had just finished cooking and she fixed him a big plate of smothered potatoes and baked chicken.

  “That’s what’s up. So, Mitch moved back in?” Jabari asked.

  “No, he’s still at the apartment with his bitch, but he sleeps here every night. He claims he’s trying to make sure I’m serious about doing right. I haven’t been to the club since I got out of the hospital. I signed up for GED classes, and I’ve been making sure that him and the kids are straight. Mia doesn’t have to do anything anymore because I handle my business. I don’t know what else he wants me to do,” Moonie whined.

  “You hurt that man when y’all were together before. He’s just trying to make sure that doesn’t happen again. You of all people should understand that. You can’t keep doing people wrong and expect them to just forget about it,” Jabari said.

  “I understand that Jabari, but I need y’all to at least give me credit for trying. The clubs and the street life is all I’ve ever known since I was a teenager. I slowed down long enough to have you and then I was back at it. You were the first grandchild, so your grandma went crazy when you were born. She basically took you from me and gave me the green light to keep doing what I was doing. Once I got with Lamar and had Mia I tried to do right again, but he wasn’t right either. He ran the streets more than I did and that didn’t help. By the time the other four kids came I was too far gone in the streets to turn back. When Mia stepped up and started making sure they were straight it was all good with me,” Moonie said honestly.

  “But through all of that Mitch held you down and made sure you were good. He made sure all of us were good. I understand what you’re saying Moonie, but you can’t keep making excuses for your behavior. You basically took Mia’s childhood away from her because she had to help raise your kids. And that girl loves you to death no matter how many changes you took her through,” Jabari replied”

  “I know that and I love her to death too. I love all of my kids, but Mia holds a special place in my heart. I put so much responsibility on her at such a young age, but she didn’t let it break her. She’s every bit of me right on down to her looks and shape, but she’s stronger than I ever was when I was her age. I fucked up a lot and y’all have every reason in the world to doubt me. The only thing I can do is show everybody how serious I am. Actions speaks way louder than words do.”

  “You gon’ be alright. You got a whole gang of people in your corner.”

  “Does that include you?” Moonie asked looking at him.

  “No doubt, it’s all love with me too,” Jabari smiled making her smile in return.

  Their tender moment was short lived when someone started banging on Moonie’s front door. Dalvin had been ringing her phone off the hook and she was hoping that it wasn’t him. Since Jabari was there she felt a little better about handling whoever it was. When she looked through the peephole and saw Shad standing there she wasted no time opening the door to see what he wanted. As soon as the door opened Shad walked right in without so much as a hello to Moonie.

  “Um, excuse you. Is there something that I can help you with?” Moonie yelled at him.

  “I’m looking for Dalvin,” Shad replied with an angry glare.

  “But why you just walking in my mama house like you live here and shit?” Jabari said as he entered the living room.

  Jabari used to play basketball with Shad at the gym, so they were very familiar with each other. Shad was way older than him, but he still didn’t put fear in Jabari’s heart.

  “What’s up Jabari?” Shad asked. “My bad, but I’m trying to get at that nigga Dalvin.”

  “Dalvin don’t live here and Moonie don’t mess with him like that no more,” Jabari replied.

  “That nigga fucked my sister and my girl up like a lil bitch,” Shad fumed.

  “What do you mean he fucked them up?” Moonie asked even though she already knew.

  Mia and Brandis told her what happened the same night that it went down. She really didn’t care one way or the other and she damn sure didn’t feel sorry for Paige.

  “That nigga broke my sister nose and her jaw. My girl had to get stitches in her mouth, but he beat my lil sister down like she was a fucking man,” Shad replied angrily.

  “Damn,” Jabari said lowly. “That nigga ain’t been over here in a minute.”

  “I apologize for coming up in your house like that Moonie. I know that Dalvin probably did my sister dirty behind what she did to you. Paige was wrong as hell for putting her hands on you while you were pregnant, but that nigga didn’t have to do her like that,” Shad said.

  “Honestly, I can’t sit here and pretend like I feel sorry for your sister. If it wasn’t for Mitch talking some sense into my head I was coming for her ass too. She goes too far and I knew it was only a matter of time before somebody put her in her place,” Moonie replied.

  “I understand all that, but that’s still my little sister. Right or wrong I have to have her back no matter what,” Shad responded as he walked to the door.

  “You be easy Shad,” Jabari said right before he closed the door behind him. He felt ex
actly how Moonie felt about the situation. Paige was always going too far and he didn’t feel sorry for her ass either. She got dealt the hand that she had dealt to so many others. She was finally reaping what she sowed.

  C hapter 16

  Between school and running back and forth to the hospital with Terri, Mia was physically and mentally drained. She really liked Terri, so she didn’t mind helping, but she was worn out. Brandis helped her from time to time, but she would spend time when Duke when he was off too. Tre was trying his best to be there for his mother, but Mia could see that he was tired. Even still, he never complained and he was always there whenever she needed him to be. Sadly, Terri’s health was slowly declining and Mia was afraid that she wouldn’t have very long to live. Tre was still optimistic, but Von said that he was in denial. Any little progress that she made he took it as a sign of her getting better. It had gotten so bad that she had to wear adult diapers because she could no longer make it to the bathroom in time. She cried like a baby every time Mia or Tre had to clean her up and that broke his heart even more. She kept saying that she was a burden and she wish the Lord would just call her home. Tre always told her that he didn’t mind helping her, but she wasn’t convinced. Tre’s brother and sister had finally come to visit her after he begged them for over a month. When they left Terri felt even worse than before they got there. They turned up their noses when she asked for a hug as if touching her would infect them too. They stood near the door the entire time until Tre told them that they could leave if they wanted to. He didn’t have to tell them twice either. They almost tore that hospital door down trying to run out of there. They never even told Terri goodbye before they left. She cried for an hour straight and Tre swore that he would never do that again. He was done forcing them to be bothered with her when they clearly didn’t want to. Tre begged her not to do it, but Terri changed her insurance policy and gave him the money that she was supposed to give them. Terri felt like Tre had it worse than them and he forgave her. She felt like it should have been easy for them to do the same.