Twisted Revenge

by Danielle James

  “You must be here to go over things with Cami,” Manny said gruffly.

  “Why else would I be here? You’ve all but exiled me, Manny.”

  “Yeah. Maybe I should officially exile you.” He pondered before walking out. I gritted my teeth to stop me from hurling an insult at him then I turned to look at my child.

  She looked just like Trevor.

  A thick wave of sandy brown hair flowed down her back and her green eyes made her look cat-like when the sun shone in. Her petite nose was all me. It was the only thing I’d given her physically. Her attitude was all mine too, unfortunately.

  “Okay, so I need a crash course in radio.” Camilla breathed as she settled into her seat. “I know all about social media but radio is over my head.” I instantly recognized that she was on an upswing.

  With bipolar disorder the manic mood swings are polarizing. When you’re on a downswing you go really low but when you hit an upswing it’s glorious. Camilla wasn’t on any meds for her condition so she was subject to each and every mood swing. She was talking to me without snapping, she was open and warm and this was the perfect fucking time to make a move.

  I painted on my best smile and sat next to her instead of across from her. She looked shocked but she was okay with it. No snarky quips or harsh words. “Cami, before we get into all that can I talk to you? Just mother to daughter?” I said softly.

  “Um, what the hell about, Dana? We haven’t been mother and daughter for quite some time.” She leaned away from me slightly but she hadn’t cursed me out yet so I was good. Her being hesitant was to be expected.

  “I just need to apologize to you for everything.” I took her hand in mine and held it gently. She didn’t pull away.

  “Why? What do you want?” She raised a perfectly arched brow at me. I smiled sheepishly and lowered my gaze to the back of her hand. It was smooth and perfect just like the rest of her skin.

  Not one blemish.

  “Forgiveness. This pending divorce really has me thinking some things through. I haven’t been a good mother to you, Cami.” Her hand was still in mine.

  “No, you haven’t,” she sighed. “I don’t understand why you’re trying to be nice to me now though. We have too many issues for this, Dana.”

  “I understand. I just wanted you to know that I’m sorry. Honestly.”

  “I still don’t trust you. But okay.” She took her hand from mine and turned her monitor towards me.

  I worked with her on understanding how radio worked but the entire time I couldn’t help wondering which one of her men set her high on an upswing. Whoever it was would ultimately have the other one beat. Unfortunately, I couldn’t just ask either of them since neither of them wanted to speak to me.

  I watched how Camilla smiled and laughed and even hummed during lunch. She seemed to be all over Xavier even with Manny in the room. Maybe he had her reeling from euphoria. It was unfortunate that I’d never get to know what his sex was like. I’m almost certain he’d be absolutely stunning in bed.

  “What are you doing here?” Trevor’s voice caught me off guard and pulled me away from my thoughts.

  “I do still have work to do, you know.” I eyed him and tried not to picture him on top of Christina. “So I heard you’re on Manny’s shit list.” I grinned at him.

  “Who hasn’t heard?” He scoffed. “I guess you heard about me and Chris too?”

  “Of course, Trevor. She came to me in shambles crying over everything.”

  “She came to you? Jesus, she must really feel fucked up and alone,” he said. I shrugged it off and looked up at him.

  “You know you should probably drop off the face of the earth for a while, right? There’s really no stopping Manny once he gets you in his sights.”

  “You would know. He’s all but destroyed your life.” His quip stung but I held my head high and found my smile again.

  “My life is going to be just fine. You need to worry about yours now.”

  “I’ll do that, Dana.” He snapped at me then turned on his heel and walked away.

  He’s lucky I didn’t haul off and smack the shit out of him for fucking my daughter and me at the same time. Even Manny had the decency to only screw one of us at a time. I felt the impending need for a drink after thinking about how many ways I’d been fucked literally and metaphorically.

  When I got home, I found Christina sitting on top of one of the many boxes in the pool house looking at old photos of her and Camilla when they were younger. “Hey baby, what are you doing here?”

  “I don’t wanna be in the house alone. At least the pool house is smaller, more intimate.” She hopped down and walked over to me. “How’d it go with your other daughter?”

  “She’s on an upswing.” I nearly clapped my hands together the timing was so good.

  “What’s that?” Chris frowned.

  “When you’re bipolar you have highs and lows, Cami is a on high right now so she’s open to nearly anything.” I moved into the kitchen to make myself a drink.

  “I don’t know how she’s happy right now with all this stuff going on. I’m a mess.”

  “Oh, Chris. You’ll be fine. You just need to get over this thing with your sister.”

  “Get over it? We’re having sex with each other’s fathers!” I winced hearing things put so plainly but she was right.

  “Okay but you have to find some kind of way to work past it. Things won’t work if you don’t.” I looked around trying to figure out something to get her mind off of everything and get her 100% on board with my plan. Then it hit me. My eyes grew big and I looked at her. “Hey, why don’t I get you a ticket to go see Laurel in Texas?”

  “Mom, no. I don’t want to see her and I’m sure the feeling is mutual.”

  “I can email your teacher for school, you can go for a few days. Make up with her,” I urged.

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Chris shook her head vehemently.

  “Oh please Christina, Laurel is the sweetest girl. She’ll forgive you.”

  “I do need to get away from all these family issues,” she remarked.

  I swallowed a gulp of liquor and it raced through me, instantly relaxing my body.

  “You do. Let me get you a ticket now. Even if you don’t go see Laurel, just get away for a little while.”

  At that, she nodded happily.

  Sending her to Texas would give me a chance to work my ways on Camilla and hopefully coax her into forgiving me at the very least. I needed to find an opening to wiggle into then I could get her on my side and start to unravel Manny once and for all.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Laurel

  I’d been waiting for Roxy for nearly and hour and I was ready to leave the spot until I saw her little white beetle pull up. I looked at my phone to check the time and rolled my eyes. “What the fuck took so long? I was getting ready to leave Roxy.” I took the panda backpack from her and tossed it over my shoulder.

  “I’m sorry Laurel. Shit. You know I’m bad with time.” Her Texas twang was much harsher than mine when she spoke. Roxy had dyed black hair, light hazel eyes, and a septum ring in her nose along with a bad habit of biting her nails to nubs. She was doing it while she stood in front of me. I frowned and slapped her arm.

  “Stop that,” I commanded.

  “Sorry,” she whined.

  “When does Lucas want his money?” I asked as I weighed the book bag in my hand.

  “Next week. He said he fixed the mix up with the X pills. They did look like Xanax. Shit was crazy. I was so hopped up on X, I tried to fuck my door for at least a half hour.” She broke out in a fit of giggles and I just shook my head. I tossed the bag in my backseat and hugged Roxy.

  “Be safe,” I told her with a point.

  “Will do.” She skipped back to her beetle and I pulled out of the garage, headed back to the apartments.

  The last thing I expected to see sitting in my visitor’s parking space was a car. I frowned at it and looked in t
he windows. The car was empty of all personal effects. I went to my room and there on my bed was Christina. She was flipping through pictures on my digital picture frame, a gift from my grandparents. I dropped the panda book bag and gasped. “Holy shit. Chris, what the hell are you doing here?”

  “Not exactly the welcome I was expecting.” She crinkled her nose and hopped off of the bed. Chris looked down at the panda bag and drew her brows together.

  “That’s not even your style,” she remarked.

  “I know. It’s not mine. It’s a friend’s.” I picked it up and hung it on the corner of my chair.

  “I know you’re probably not happy to see me,” she pouted.

  She was right. The way she just discarded me still hurt to think about.

  “Why are you here?” I asked, moving around her to get to my bed.

  “I need to talk to you. To apologize,” she said.

  “I’m listening.” I folded my arms against my chest and looked at her.

  “I’m so sorry for the way I ended things, Laurel. I just got so caught up in this guy and I didn’t see that he was using me.” She seemed hurt even saying that, which meant to me that she still had feelings for him.

  “Mmm hmm,” I grunted and moved the panda bag to my closet.

  “Oh goodness Laurel, what is it with the bag?” Chris grumbled tossing her hands in the air.

  “Sorry. I just have something to do right now Chris. I appreciate you coming all this way to apologize but…can we do this later?”

  “Later?” She moved to my closet and snatched the door open. I tried to hold her back but she was determined to get to my bag. Once she had it she unzipped she peered inside. I already knew what she’d find. Dozens of small bags with labels. Christina froze before digging her hands into the mountain of bags. Her head slowly turned in my direction and I could see the confusion painted on her face. “Um…Laurel, what the fuck?”

  “I sell pills on the side. Okay? Jesus.” I snatched the book bag and put the baggies that had fallen out back inside.

  “What? Who are you right now?” Chris laughed into the air. “Oh my god. This shit just keeps getting better.” She clapped her hands together and sat back down on my bed. My cheeks flushed and I sat beside her.

  “Look. I came to apologize and I also came to get an apology.” Chris’ voice turned stern and so did her eyes. I had no idea why she needed me to apologize. I wasn’t the one who did anything.

  “Apology for what?” I asked.

  “I know about your little threesome, Laurel.” Shame painted my face ten different shades of crimson.

  Camilla!

  I was going to kill her. That was supposed to go unmentioned but something told me that, knowing my best friend, she used the threesome as a projectile in a war of words. I looked at Chris and frowned. “What did you do?” I asked. She had to have done something to get such a private act thrown in her face.

  “What the hell do you mean what did I do?” She snapped. “I tell you I know about your threesome with my sister and her boyfriend and you’re asking me what I did?”

  “Yes. Because I know Camilla didn’t just mention it casually in conversation. We all agreed it was to never be talked about.”

  “Then shouldn’t you be mad at her? Not me,” she quipped

  “What did you do, Christina?” I repeated as my nostrils flared. I stared her down until she cracked.

  “Trevor,” she said defeated.

  “Trevor, what?” I drawled.

  “He’s the one I lost my virginity to.” Her words were soft like she was ashamed and she should have been. I leaned away from her and shook my head.

  “No. You couldn’t have. Trevor? Camilla’s father? Seriously?”

  “Well, she’s been screwing my father for the past year. Did you know that? Did your best friend let you in on that one?” She was seething mad. I twirled a lock of my hair around my finger and slid my lips to the side.

  “Um…yeah. She kinda did,” I said. Chris shot to her feet and paced the floor in front of me.

  “So let me get this straight, you sat in my face knowing that my sister was fucking my father and said nothing? But you wanna act mad at me? I should slap the shit out of you Laurel.” I balled my fists up in my lap and gritted my teeth together.

  “Stop acting innocent, Christina. Nobody’s hands are clean, okay?” I understood her frustrations but it wasn’t like she didn’t know her family and everything surrounding them was fucked up. She also knew sleeping with Trevor wasn’t a squeaky clean thing to do even before she found out she was being used.

  “You know what? I can’t wait until I graduate and move to Atlanta with my mother. Everyone associated with this family is twisted, including you Laurel.” Her words hit hard and landed in my chest. “I thought you were different, I thought you were like me but now I see you’re just like Camilla.”

  “Christina, stop talking like that. You’re mad, you’ll get over it.”

  “No, I won’t.” She stood up and walked around my room, stopping at my bulletin board. “Aw, Laurel you made the dean’s list? So you can be a good student and sell drugs on the side? Who knew?” I hated the way her words twisted around making her sound evil. She wasn’t the cute Chris that I’d grown to adore and even…love. “You know what Laurel, it would be a shame if the dean found out about your little side hustle.” Her eyes glanced over at the panda bag and I felt sick.

  I’d managed to keep my GPA at a perfect level the entire time I’d been at this university. Everyone was proud of me, including myself. Selling pills wasn’t the best choice but it gave me access to the only things that calm my tensed up mind plus it gave me a shit load of extra money. If anyone found out about me selling, it would get me kicked out of school no doubt and it would also expose Lucas’ entire operation and possibly land me in jail! I felt my chest getting heavy with the thought of me being in a cell.

  “Christina, what the hell are you saying?” I took slow steady breaths to calm myself.

  “I’m saying you don’t live with someone like Camilla your entire life and not know how to be a bitch. Watch yourself, Laurel. You never know when a concerned student might let your pill fetish slip.”

  “You won’t do it.” I shot to my feet and stood in front of her, mustering up all my courage. Inside though, I was trembling like a leaf in the wind.

  “I won’t?” She smiled and fingered the dean’s list letter. “We’ll see about that.” She winked. “I’m tired of everyone playing dirty and keeping me out of the loop. It’s high time I started acting like the rest of my family, don’t you think? You broke my heart Laurel,” she said quietly.

  “I broke your heart? You mean before or after you lost your virginity to Trevor and decided you were going to leave me so you could be with him?” My chest pumped the harder my heart beat.

  “And so it’s okay for you to get back at me by having a threesome with Camilla and Xavier?” Her voice rose and I glared at her.

  “If I’m not mistaken, by the time that happened you had already told me you needed space. Whatever I did after that wasn’t while we were together.” I wiped my damp palms on the front of my jeans.

  “It doesn’t matter. You fucked up majorly.”

  “Whatever Chris.” I scoffed and sat back down on my bed. “You need to leave. We don’t have anything else to talk about.” She didn’t say another word, she just grabbed her purse and left, slamming my door.

  As soon as I was sure she was gone, tears streamed down my cheeks. Hot, hurt, and angry tears that stung. I did the only thing I could think to do: call Camilla.

  She answered on the fourth ring sounding half asleep. “Did I wake you up?” I sniffled into the phone. It was after one in the morning by the time I finally got the nerve to call her.

  “No, what’s up, Laurel? You sound like you’ve been crying.”

  “I have,” I confessed before I broke down again.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Chris left here
a few hours ago and…” My voice gave way to more tears.

  I heard movement on the other end and Camilla’s voice came through clearer.

  “What? Chris was in Texas?” She asked.

  “Yeah, she came to apologize and get an apology but when I wouldn’t give her one she flipped out and started talking about telling my school I sell pills.”

  “Wait…you sell pills?” Camilla said.

  “Yeah…and it can’t get out. I’ll get kicked out of school and go to jail. I don’t know what to do.” I ran shaky fingers through my tangled hair and sniffled.

  “Laurel. Stop crying,” She said sternly. “Stop fucking crying right now.” Her voice had a familiar bite to it that made me straighten up my posture. “Come home. Now,” She demanded.

  “Camilla, I have assignments to turn in and…”

  “Laurel, I said now.” Her voice was quiet and still but I could tell she meant what she said. I swallowed a lump forming in my throat.

  “How?”

  “Use some of your pill money, duh. Bring your ass home, now. Oh, and bring your pills too,” She chirped.

  I didn’t know what the hell she had planned but something settled within me making me feel calm. As much as Christina could try…there’s no way you can out crazy Camilla and I was glad for once to have her on my side.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Emmanuel

  In two days the Keep the Peace rally would be held inside of New Grace Ministries and I would be at the head of it, speaking directly to everyone, pulling them all together for the sake of a greater good. I smiled as I buttoned my shirt in the mirror.

  So far everything was going exactly as planned. The shit with Trevor was a little hiccup but hiccups are easy to deal with. I had to promise Camilla that I wouldn’t hurt her father, even though he deserved it for plotting against me and trying to use my daughter to do it. It wasn’t even him fucking Christina that pushed me over the edge; it was knowing that he did it just to get back at me. Had he come to me like a man, face-to-face, we could have talked it out, maybe even fought it out if we had to but revenge is something I never take lightly.