by Pat Tucker
“KenyaTaye Dunbar, you have pled guilty to racketeering…”
My head felt light as she read off the list of charges against me. The rest of the words went soft because my ears had started to ring. Suddenly, I tasted saltwater as it rushed through in my mouth, and I felt weak. As I tried to focus on the fact that I wanted to throw up, I heard a sound that made me look down between my legs.
“Oh shit!” That was the lawyer. She looked down too.
“My freakin’ water broke.” I wanted to die—literally.
Bang! Bang! Bang! “Order in the court!” the judge yelled.
But the opposite happened. Pure chaos broke out. The next thing I knew, I was on the floor, spread eagle and a group of people surrounded me. How could this be my life? How had things led to this?
“We need a doctor in here!” my lawyer yelled.
I closed my eyes because I couldn’t believe it. When would the test be over for me? Hadn’t I been through enough?
The next thing I remembered was being coached to push. Right there on the courtroom floor.
I pushed, and pushed, and pushed. It felt like I had lost all strength, but still, I pushed some more. I was tired, not just physically, but emotionally, mentally and in every other way possible.
Nearly an hour later, I was carried out of court on a stretcher, with my new baby daughter. As we were wheeled past people, I saw some of the usual suspects in the hall.
Edwards and Jones stood off to the side and watched the commotion that surrounded us. But it wasn’t until I got outside that I came face-to-face with Bishop.
She rushed up to the crowd as they prepared us for the ambulance.
“Oh, wow! Dunbar, you had your baby?”
She tried to act like we were long lost coworkers who had been kept apart. Bitch, we weren’t friends.
It was hard for me to even fake the funk with her. I couldn’t stand any of those bitches, and even after being away from them for six months, time hadn’t eased the hatred I felt. I got that it was Sheppard who threw us all under the bus, but Edwards, Bishop, and even Jones had twisted that knife in my back way before then.
As they loaded me into the back of the ambulance, I pretended like I didn’t see or hear that bitch as she tried to act all goo-goo, gah-gah over my baby.
CHARISMA
When I saw my former coworkers at the courthouse, it felt like déjà vu all over again. I hadn’t been under any kind of false sense of hope over the last few months. I was all alone. Being away from them, the drama, and the jail made me push it all to the back of my mind.
There was no doubt that we’d all get jailtime. I hadn’t heard from DaQuan since the last time we talked that night he told me to confront Lena, and unlike some other people, no one escorted me to court.
I had no family, no friends, no character letters for the judge and I had already accepted my fate. I realized that there was no way to save myself after all the salacious details poured out. It didn’t matter that most was exaggerated; the media and the people who watched them couldn’t get enough of our story.
After all the commotion of KenyaTaye giving birth inside the damn courtroom, it took an hour or two for things to get back to normal.
Edwards was surrounded by a posse and Bishop rushed in to join the crowd.
It wasn’t like I was mad at them; I just had nothing more to add to our pathetic situation. I didn’t see how being in a huddle with them now would help.
Even though I hoped she wouldn’t, I looked up and saw Edwards headed in my direction. I didn’t want to talk to her or anyone else. I needed to prepare my mind for what was about to happen.
“Did you ever get a private attorney?” Edwards walked over and asked.
“I talked with one, but honestly, after he told me the evidence was completely stacked against me, I didn’t waste any more money.”
Edwards’s eyebrows went up.
Her expression went from hard to bewilderment, but it made her back off of me.
We were all in the same situation. By the time the media was done with all of the stories about the harem DaQuan and his fellow gang members ran behind bars, all of our names were done anyway.
And the reporters didn’t care when we didn’t want to talk. They’d find someone else who would, and the rest, they just made up.
Months passed before reporters stopped following me around. And it seemed like the minute I thought my life was about to return to normal, something else kicked the drama back up again.
Edwards sensed my sour mood, so she walked back to her part of the hallway and rejoined her crowd.
There was a small part of me that felt a little jealous about the fact that she at least had a support team, but that didn’t last long.
Unfortunately, it also made me think back to the other case I nearly caught. I was ready to kill my damn cousin with my bare hands.
“You are running around town talking on TV and radio to anybody who will listen? What the hell is wrong with you?”
She batted her lashes and licked her lips. But I could tell that Lena was trying her best to think of something she thought would be an acceptable answer.
“Charisma, I couldn’t help the fact that I got caught up in what you did, but if you’re mad at me because I did what I had to do to clear my name, I don’t know what to tell you!”
I had stormed into her living room to confront her for the way she’d been bumping her gums on the five, six, and ten-o-clock news, but she tried to defend her recent actions.
“Think about what you did, Charisma. You dragged our good family name through the mud. I don’t think my brother would’ve been stealing from his job if you hadn’t forced him to doing that!”
As she spoke, her eyes darted behind me. At first, I thought she was trying to keep an eye on the TV. What good family name?
“What? You don’t even get along with Lance.” I frowned.
“Charisma, you have always been the outcast of this family. We have done nothing but tried to embrace you since your mother couldn’t take care of you. I personally have tried my best as we were growing up to get you to learn to love yourself, but obviously it didn’t work. Now, not only have you ruined your own life, but you also messed up my brother’s life!”
Again, her eyes darted behind me.
“You know what, Lena, you’re on to something else. I’d better get out of here before I hurt you.”
“Haven’t you caused enough pain and misery? You betrayed the oath you took to serve and protect.” She used her hands to emphasize her words. “And now you’re threatening me?”
Her comments made no sense, but I didn’t feel right about being in her space. Before I reached out and slapped the shit out of her, I turned and left. I needed to get away from her because being in her presence meant I was too close to committing another crime.
It wasn’t until later that night while I got ready for bed that I realized what my scandalous cousin was doing. The bitch had recorded everything. Apparently she thought she might be able to get her own reality TV show.
She sold or gave the video of our earlier confrontation to the local news stations and I was fit to be tied. After the newslady shared the raw, uncut video of me and Lena’s exchange, the story took another turn. That’s when details of the reality TV show came up. I clicked the TV off. I had heard enough.
When the bailiff walked out of the courtroom, I pushed thoughts of my cousin and the woman out of my mind.
“Okay, we’re ready for you guys to come in. I need you all to take your cell phones out.” He waited. “Okay, now turn that cell phone completely off! I don’t want to hear it vibrate. I want it off. If it vibrates and I hear it, I will confiscate it.”
After he discussed some additional courtroom rules, he allowed us to enter.
In the end, I was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison and three years of probation upon my release. Edwards and Bishop both got seven-and-a-half years; they’d been working at TDCJ longer than me.
Since we didn’t have private attorneys and none of us was rich, sentencing moved quickly.
It was hard to believe the kind of money they said DaQuan had made over the years. I kicked myself often because I didn’t set up the accounts when he told me to. But I tried to take it easy on myself because when the feds moved in, they snatched every dime connected to any of us.
In addition to the money, DaQuan had multiple luxury cars, bank accounts all over. He bought designer clothes, shoes, and purses for his women, and a house that Clarkson tried to say had been in her family for years. Everything was gone.
The one thing they didn’t seize was the bank account attached to my mother’s name. It wasn’t much money, but since she had my kids, I thought it was best that she kept it.
“Charisma Jones, you are hereby remanded to the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice immediately.” And with the bang of her gavel, two officers moved in, cuffed me, and took me into custody.
There was no one in court for me, so there was no need for me to look toward the gallery. I followed the deputy to the cage and joined the group of other inmates who had been sentenced to jail.
It was hard to believe this was my life. I was now an inmate. And I sure as hell couldn’t believe who my cellmate was. KenyaTaye joined me as soon as she got out of the hospital. And her baby came with her until she was done nursing. I couldn’t see my own kids, but had to put up with hers. The only satisfaction I got was in knowing she’d be there for five years after I’d gone home.
If you enjoyed “Guarding Secrets,” be sure to check out
FREE FRIDAYS
BY PAT TUCKER
AVAILABLE FROM STREBOR BOOKS
PROLOGUE
“What the hell?!” a stunned voice exclaimed.
Expensive champagne sprayed from Leela Franklin’s perfectly painted lips as her eyes widened in stunned disbelief. Her mouth fell open and she struggled to believe what she saw.
“Jeeee-sus!” someone shrieked.
The Waterford crystal flute slipped from Leela’s fingers and broke into pieces as it hit the marble floor. Two people jumped out of the way; droplets flew in every direction.
“OhMyGod!”
Leela’s heart pounded against her chest. She looked around anxiously. Where was her best friend, Samantha Thomas? Better yet, where was her husband, Riley?
Every eye in the room was glued to the screen; the mouths of many people hung to the floor.
“Umph, umph, umph. Ain’t that Samantha’s husband, Bill?” Linda, Leela’s mother, leaned closer and asked. “Chile, what kind of Mickey Fickey foolishness are these folks into?”
The dimmed lights that blanketed the room made it nearly impossible for Leela to make out where Samantha stood.
Had she planned this?
Why do it in front of an entire house full of friends, family, and co-workers?
Leela was embarrassed for her friend.
Minutes earlier, Samantha said she needed go get something from her bedroom and vanished. That was when the anniversary video started. Leela never thought much of Samantha’s abrupt disappearance at such a crucial time. She figured Samantha had gone to find her husband. Wouldn’t the happy couple want to be near each other while the video played?
But Bill had been across the room talking to Leela’s husband, Riley, and a few of their colleagues.
Bill and Samantha Thomas were Leela and Riley’s closest friends. Plans for their tenth anniversary party had been in the works for the past two months. Leela and Samantha had painstakingly gone over every detail. The video was supposed to set the tone for the evening and put everyone in a festive, celebratory mood. It was supposed to be a compilation of pictures that chronicled Bill and Samantha’s life together.
Instead, it looked more like a raunchy, homemade, sex tape. The couple on it seemed to hump each other vigorously, on furniture, on the floor, and several times, in various showers. Their different outfits indicated that all the screwing had occurred over a period of time.
It was obvious that the video was recorded in secret, because it looked grainy, and from an angle that implied the camera was too far away to get the clear, crisp images most could appreciate.
Unfortunately for Bill, even with it being shot from a distance, the image of him and the woman who was not his wife was clear. This was despite the fact that some shots looked like they were blocked by furniture and even curtains.
Soon, gasps and whispers rose from the crowd gathered in the room. Noises and chatter grew louder as the shocking images continued to play out on the seventy-inch flat-screen. The size of the screen made their explicit acts appear larger than life.
“I need to find Sam!” exclaimed Leela.
She looked around, and cautiously stepped over the liquid and shattered glass at her feet, and went in search of Samantha. But a sudden rush of brightness stopped Leela cold. She looked up and saw Samantha perched on the second-floor landing, looking down at the crowd.
The expression on her face was not one of horror or devastation like Leela expected to see.
How could she appear so calm and collected while all of this was going on? People in the room were seconds away from flying into a frenzy, and Samantha was upstairs, seemingly coasting above it all.
“That’s just a glimpse of the steamy love affair that’s been going on between my husband and his tramp at the office,” Samantha said. Her voice was just as calm as her demeanor.
Samantha wore her fancy sequined dress, but was barefoot, and her hair looked like she’d been on the losing end of a tussle. Leela struggled to get a handle on the situation. When had things spiraled so out of control? Earlier, Samantha seemed fine, didn’t she?
“You nasty, cheating bastard!” Samantha finally screamed. She pointed a crooked finger in Bill’s direction.
All eyes found, and zeroed in on Bill.
Bill appeared nervous under the glare of the sudden attention. The color seemed to seep from his face and perspiration settled on his forehead. He was fidgety and he wore a guilty expression.
“Samantha! Stop this shit right the hell now!”
“You don’t tell me what the hell to do! I’m not Kelly! Go tell Kelly what to do! All of the lies and deception. You are one sick, cheating, low-life bastard!”
Riley looked back and forth between the two, as did almost everyone in the room.
Bill made a move toward the staircase, but Riley stepped in and blocked his path.
“Not a good move, Dawg. You’re too mad right now,” Riley said.
Bill’s nostrils flared; rage flashed in his eyes. He looked at his friend, then up at his wife, as he balled and unballed his fists. “Samantha, this is completely uncalled for!”
“Oh, I’m just getting started!” Samantha spat. “You wait ’til I’m done with your no-good ass!”
The video still played while they fussed at each other.
Leela’s body stiffened. Her eyes were touched with alarm as she glanced around the crowded room. She wasn’t sure what she should do.
All of a sudden, a loud clapping noise sounded, and Linda’s voice rang out. That seemed to pull people’s attention away from the video and the argument.
“Okay, folks, this party is over! Please, start making your way to the front door.” Linda walked toward the TV, and snatched a plug from the outlet. Her knack for taking control came in handy because Leela had been frozen into inaction by the series of events and how everything had played out.
The screen finally went black.
Leela looked at her mother and mouthed the words, “Thank you,” as she moved toward the stairs. She needed to talk some sense into Samantha.
People seemed reluctant to leave at first. But Linda walked around, removed glasses from hands, and reiterated that it was time to go.
“C’mon, please, see yourselves out,” she said, as she motioned toward the front door. “C’mon, right this way; let’s keep it moving.”
Soon,
Riley followed her lead, and urged the remaining guests to leave. Once the room was finally cleared, Bill seemed to get lost in the shuffle, because he was nowhere to be found.
• • •
The Monday afternoon following the anniversary party fiasco, things had gone from bad to worse quickly.
“Don’t do nothing stupid, Dawg,” Riley warned Bill over the phone. “She ain’t worth a second in jail. Believe that, Man!” He sighed. “I know you pissed, and you have every right to be, but try to calm down, Dawg.”
This was the kind of shit Riley himself would never put up with. He wore the pants in his house and not a day went by that he didn’t let it be known. His buddy Bill was cut from a completely different cloth. Riley felt that Bill allowed his wife to do as she pleased; she dressed any kind of way, and she was far too loud and too damn outspoken. It was no wonder they were in the mess they were in.
But as a good friend, Riley knew he couldn’t point those shortcomings out at that moment. His goal now was to try and keep his friend and co-worker out of jail.
“I could kill her, Man,” Bill said. His hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly, his knuckles changed colors. “I could lose it all. Everything, Man,” he said. Spittle gathered at the corners of Bill’s mouth as he pushed the words out angrily.
Riley could feel his pain, but still, he would never be caught up in anything like this. It wasn’t just that Bill was a Beta Male; of course that played a role, but Riley felt Bill was just too soft when it came to managing his household.
Riley knew women behaved like they wanted equality, but when it came down to it, all women wanted a man who could put them in their place. They’d never widely admit it because they didn’t want to be attacked by feminists, but Riley knew deep down, that was just about every woman’s true desire. Riley was the epitome of an Alpha Male.
And Leela was perfect for him because she didn’t make much of a fuss about anything. Even when she had her moments, she knew better than to act out the way Samantha had at that party. Oh no, that would never happen under Riley’s watch.
“Aey, Bill?” Riley called into the phone again.