by Tracy Brown
Despite her attempts to focus on the beautiful fall foliage and the scenery as she drove, her mind continuously wandered back to Troy. He had texted her when he got home, letting her know that she was still on his mind. She didn’t reply. Instead, she turned off her phone and put it on the charger while she finished packing the last of her things. She had to prepare mentally and emotionally for returning home to her family for the holidays. Not that she didn’t love them. She certainly did. But the memories that always surfaced were tough to deal with.
As she pulled into the driveway of her mother’s beautiful home in Germantown, Maryland, she breathed a deep sigh. This was the home where she had transformed into a self-assured and self-made woman. This was where she had come to know a life without her brother and a void so deep that it ached.
She used her key and let herself in. The moment the door swung open, she was greeted by Destiny.
“Hey, cuzzo. What’s up?” Destiny stood beaming at her, wearing an apron and holding a large spoon. She had taken the train down ahead of Crystal two days ago. She hugged her, getting a little flour on her from the cakes she had been baking. “You look good! What you been doing?” Every time Destiny saw Crystal she looked better and better. After college, she had gotten a nose job and lost a bunch of weight. She started wearing makeup, getting her hair done, and going to the gym. Before long, Destiny could barely recognize her cousin.
Crystal laughed. “Nothing. Just working hard. That’s all.”
Destiny wiped her sweat with a towel, and glanced toward the kitchen. “Girl, Mama got me going hard in the kitchen. You know how she gets down.”
Crystal laughed. She did know. Aunt Pat loved to cook. It was a trait she had inherited from Crystal’s grandmother. Creating delicious meals with no regard for caloric content was what the women of the family were known for. Unfortunately for Crystal and Malik, their mother, Georgi, hadn’t been as blessed in the culinary department. She had no desire to slave over a hot stove unless it was absolutely necessary. Typically, she cooked on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Every other night of the year while they were growing up, Crystal and Malik survived on fast food, their own culinary concoctions, or they ate at Aunt Pat’s house.
“What’s she making?” Crystal asked.
“Everything! Every time I go to the supermarket, she sends me back for more shit. She’s the reason I’m still fat.” Destiny giggled, only half-kidding.
Crystal was well aware of her cousin’s struggles with weight. Now that Destiny was turning thirty in a few days, she was trying to get a handle on her food issues before they resulted in diabetes or hypertension. Those were the things that ended their grandmother’s life so early.
Destiny looked her cousin over from head to toe. She narrowed her eyes at her, leaned in, and whispered, “When these heifers go to bed, you better tell me what’s been going on with you and Wonder Boy. I’ve been waiting for you to call me with the tea, bitch!”
Crystal giggled. “Okay. Later on.”
Crystal set her bags near the stairs and looked around. She remembered moving into this house with her mother after the robbery. Buying new furniture, painting, starting over. It had been a sad time for Crystal. Not just because Malik was gone. It was the realization that she would have to leave Howard University, now that her parents could no longer afford the tuition. She had been tempted to drop out of college altogether. She felt tired of trying. But, after a few weeks of feeling sorry for herself, she had enrolled at the University of Maryland. She had dreams to chase, after all. She became obsessed with the notion of finishing school, despite the expense of it. She had accomplished that earning scholarships, and taking out loans until she graduated. She earned her degree, moved to New York, and rented a studio apartment on the Lower East Side. She paid off her student debt using half of her salary at Sable, and maintained excellent credit. The first major purchase she made was paying off her mother’s house.
Destiny always felt like her cousin felt guilty for what happened to Malik. Everything she did seemed to be an attempt to repay a debt she somehow believed she owed to her family. Soon, her father was coming home, and she would be repeating the pattern. Crystal was the one making sure he got back on his feet, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. As far as she saw it, she owed a debt to him, too.
Crystal followed Destiny into the kitchen where she saw her mother sitting at the table. Georgi wore a black V-neck sweater and jeans. Her hair was longer now, hanging just past her shoulders. It had taken years to grow back after the robbery left her with bald spots and breakage. The damage done to her confidence had been much worse, though. Gone was the Georgi who had taken the eighties by storm on the arm of Quincy. Now, she was more inclined to spend a weekend at home with her alarm system activated and her gun at her bedside. She went out from time to time. But these days she spent most of her time in seclusion, emerging every now and then to slay at an event one of her friends or family invited her to.
Georgi smiled at the sight of her daughter. She saw less and less of her these days, busy as she was with her duties at the magazine.
“Hey, sweetie.” Georgi’s smile only made her look lovelier.
Crys greeted her mother with a long hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Hey, Mommy. You look nice.”
Georgi thanked her and returned the compliment.
Aunt Pat stood by the stove, preparing her famous peach cobbler. She beamed when she saw her niece. Crystal looked incredible. She wore jeans that hugged her toned curves so tightly they seemed painted on. Her little cream-colored turtleneck and leather motorcycle jacket clung to her frame like they were custom-made. Crystal smiled at her aunt brightly.
Pat looked down and checked out Crystal’s footwear. She always wore the most beautiful shoes, and today she didn’t disappoint. She rocked a pair of black suede stiletto boots that made her appear six feet tall.
“Damn, you look good, girl!” Pat smiled proudly and hugged her tightly. She had been sipping some cognac while she cooked, and Crystal caught a whiff as Pat stood back in her apron and head scarf. “I love this new hair! Turn around, let me get a good look at you.”
Crystal did as she was told, and Aunt Pat gushed about her new look before turning to shut off the butter she had melting on the stove.
“It smells so good in here!” Crystal looked around for something she could nibble on.
Aunt Pat shook her head, and shut those hopes down immediately.
“You know I don’t play that. Go take your jacket off, wash your hands, and come in here correct before you start nibbling. Always running in here smelling like outside looking for something to eat. Been doing that since you was a kid!” Pat chastised her, smiling at the memory of her niece as a sweet wide-eyed little girl. These days, she was a tough-as-nails executive up in New York City. It was too much as far as Pat was concerned and she was worried about her niece. They all were, in fact.
Crystal laughed and apologized. Even though this was her mother’s kitchen and not her aunt’s, she knew better than to talk back. Aunt Pat was one of the few people in the world she could accept a scolding from. Aunt Pat’s house had been like a second home to her. In some ways, she had mothered Crystal more than Georgi had. Not that she didn’t love her mother. Georgi had raised Crystal and her brother well. But it had been Aunt Pat who nurtured and nourished Crystal’s soul, often serving as her motivator and pep talker. She had driven the message home clearly that Destiny and Crystal never needed to compete with anyone else.
Aunt Pat was confident, laid-back, and down to earth. The complete opposite of Crystal’s mother, Georgi. As little girls, Pat and Georgi hadn’t really been close. Georgi was the beauty of the pair. Or at least the superficial definition of beauty that men seemed to gravitate toward. Crystal’s mom had the winning combination of a big ass, long hair, and a tiny waist. Her face was also lovely. But with a closer look, and a little conversation, most people quickly surmised that she was shallow, self-absorbed, and utterly neurotic a
bout her looks. Already beautiful, she still spent a small fortune getting her hair and nails done every week. At least, that had been the case in her heyday.
Aunt Pat, on the other hand, couldn’t care less about what anyone thought. Of the sisters, Pat had been closer to their mother, Bonnie. While Georgi was out painting the town on the arm of Crystal’s father, Pat was at home, gleaning wisdom from their mother. Learning that the silent one is usually the most powerful one. It took Georgi a little longer to figure that out.
Crystal returned to the living room now and retrieved her bag. She kicked off her shoes and carried them to her room. She stepped inside and looked around. Everything was so neat and in its place. Exactly the way she liked it. As a child, she had always been orderly, even painstaking in her placement of things. It was a trait she had carried into adulthood. Always having her ducks in a row. She set her bag and shoes down and went to the bathroom and freshened up before going back downstairs.
She shoved her cousin playfully in the arm when she came back in the kitchen.
“Happy birthday!” She hugged her and handed her the large bag in her hand. “I hope they fit, but if not there’s a gift receipt inside.”
Destiny squealed, and wasted no time opening her gift. While she did so, Crystal pulled up a seat at the long oak wood table and set two smaller bags on top of it.
“Who are those for?” Georgi asked.
“You and Aunt Pat,” Crystal said. “I saw them on sale, and thought you both would like them.”
Pat frowned. “Why are you giving us gifts now when Christmas is right around the corner?” She set some fried chicken on the table. “It’s Destiny’s birthday, not ours.”
Crystal marveled at the fact that Aunt Pat was frying a full feast although Thanksgiving was the next day. This was the type of eating Crystal tried hard to avoid, knowing what it did to her petite frame. She told herself that the holidays were an exception. She dug in. Comfort food was just what the doctor ordered.
She poured herself a glass from the bottle of wine on the table and shrugged.
“Like I said, they were on sale and I thought you would like it. It’s no big deal.” Truth was, she was feeling guilty as hell for the things she had done with Troy the night before.
Georgi opened a pair of diamond stud earrings. Aunt Pat’s were pearl. Destiny got a pair of Jimmy Choo boots. Everyone gushed over their gifts and thanked her.
Pat set a platter of mashed potatoes on the table and paused to say grace.
“God, thank you for Destiny, and for bringing us all together to celebrate her thirtieth birthday. Thank you for bringing our prodigal daughter home safely down the highways and byways, and help us to talk some sense into her while she’s here. Bless this food that we are about to enjoy. Amen.”
In unison, the women said, “Amen.”
Crystal eyed her aunt, her face twisted into a grimace. “The prodigal daughter? Really?” She piled her plate moderately, doing her best not to overdo it. She wanted to save some of her naughty calories for her aunt’s cornbread stuffing and desserts tomorrow. She glanced at her mother, hoping Georgi might come to her defense. Instead, Georgi kept her eyes downcast, and sipped her wine.
“Just messing with you, baby. You know I’m just glad you’re home.” Pat winked at her. She set a box down in front of her daughter, and sat back, waiting to see her open it. Destiny set her fork down, and grabbed the blue box, pulling the ribbon off. She unwrapped it to reveal a long narrow black box. Inside she found a topaz bracelet and matching earrings. She gasped.
“It’s my birthstone!” she gushed.
Pat laughed, thrilled that she clearly loved her gift.
Georgi pulled out her niece’s gift. It was a beautiful coat. Destiny thanked them all for their presents, and gushed about all the delicious food she had helped herself to. The four of them passed the spread around, enjoying Pat’s good cooking.
“So, how was the drive?” Georgi asked. She sucked on a piece of perfectly seasoned chicken.
“There was a little traffic,” Crystal said. “But it forced me to sit still for the first time in weeks. I’ve been on the go lately.” That was putting it mildly.
“How’s everything going at work?” Destiny asked.
Crystal looked at her mother and her aunt, waiting for them to pounce. Neither of them made eye contact with her, though, focusing instead on their meal.
“Fine,” Crystal answered flatly. “There’s a lot going on right now. But I have it all under control.”
Georgi’s eyes darted toward her then. “Do you?”
Crystal nodded, though she didn’t meet her gaze. “Yes, I do.” She sipped her wine.
Georgi was far from done. “What about your father? Have you thought about what I said? How crazy it is for him to parole to the very place he got locked up?”
Crystal sighed. “Do we have to do this now?”
Georgi slammed her hand on the table. “You’re so damn stubborn!”
Silence reverberated through the kitchen. Aunt Pat and Destiny froze. Crystal stared at her mother.
“Why are you blaming me?” Her voice was small, almost childlike. “Daddy has a mind of his own. He had the choice of coming here or going to Brooklyn. He made the choice. I’m just doing my part.”
“What you’re doing is handing him a gun and pointing—”
“Now you’re just being ridiculous!” Crystal stood up and prepared to leave. This was the last thing she needed right now.
Aunt Pat intervened. “Georgi, you gotta calm the fuck down in here!” She frowned at her sister. “You have things you need to say to your daughter. Fine! But why you gotta ambush her before she can even finish her food?” She gestured toward Destiny. “It’s her birthday. Can’t we just eat, and let the child rest after doing all that driving today?”
Georgi shrugged and turned her attention back to her food. Fuck it. She was done talking for now.
Pat looked at Crystal. “Sit down, baby. Come on.” Pat lived in a gated community not far from the one her sister lived in. She and Destiny had decided to spend the night at Georgi’s to help her get things ready for their holiday meal the next day. Now, seeing the tension between Georgi and her only surviving child, Pat was glad she was there to referee.
Crystal returned to her seat and avoided looking in her mother’s direction. She could tell how the next couple of days would go. Ever since her father had defied his wife’s wishes, things in the family had been tense. Georgi was scared to death of what might happen. Echoes of the robbery in Staten Island all those years ago came flooding back each time she thought about it.
She looked at her daughter now. “I’m just scared. You have to understand that.”
Crystal continued chewing her food, but nodded slowly.
“We all lost so much already. Your father has been in jail for twenty-five years. They would love to send him back there to do twenty-five more. All it’ll take is one little mistake. One wrong move.” Georgi’s eyes bore into her daughter.
Crystal finally looked up and locked eyes with her. “He won’t make any mistakes. I’ll be right there to make sure that he doesn’t.”
Georgi stared at her and sighed. Her baby sounded so sure. “And what about you? Who’s watching after you?”
“Do I need to remind you that I’ve been doing pretty well all by myself these past few years? I don’t need anybody to have my back. God’s got my back.”
“Amen.” Destiny winked at her cousin and attempted to sway the conversation elsewhere.
“Aunt Georgi, are you really upset because you won’t be able to see Uncle Quincy when he comes home all toned and fit after working out all these years?” Destiny pretended not to notice the look her mother shot her way. She knew the question was provocative. But it was her birthday celebration and she knew that tonight she could get away with asking the question that had been burning in her mind for weeks.
Georgi sucked her teeth and tossed an ice cube at Destiny. “
Shut up!” She laughed. “I don’t want to be with Quincy.”
Destiny and Aunt Pat both twisted their faces in disbelief.
“Tell the truth. You still love him, Aunt Georgi?”
Georgi cleared her throat. “I guess … part of me is always gonna love him. He was my husband and we had a family. But some of the decisions he made … some of the people he chose to be around…” Georgi’s voice trailed off, and she shook her head. “That cost us a lot.” She had often imagined what life might have been like if Quincy had never gotten caught up the way that he did. If he hadn’t been the one to ride shotgun on that robbery in the Diamond District, their story might have turned out quite differently. They might have settled into a life of simplicity and normalcy, raising their kids together without all the scars they all bore now.
Crystal stared down at her plate, her appetite suddenly waning.
Georgi chuckled about it, as she strolled down memory lane a little. She looked at Crystal and Destiny. “Your grandmother hated him.”
Pat chuckled, too. “She sure did. She wanted both of us to marry doctors, lawyers. Like we didn’t grow up in the hood.” Pat didn’t mean to make it sound impossible, but the odds were slim. “Georgi and I liked bad boys, but Mama did all she could to change our minds.”
“Eventually, even Mama had to admit that Quincy really loved me. He made that very clear over the years. He took care of business and kept us all afloat by any means.” Georgi sipped her wine again. “I loved him, too. I really did. If he hadn’t gone away, we’d probably still be together.”
Silence enfolded them again. Finally, Georgi’s laughter broke the ice.
“Pat, remember that time Mama set you up with the guy from the choir?” Georgi could barely contain herself.