The Real Housewives of Adverse City

by Shelia E. Bell

  She exchanged friendly conversation with his teacher and then proceeded to the area that housed the lower grades.

  After she picked up the boys, Meesha drove toward their home in the prestigious neighborhood of Benton

  Heights. Her oldest son’s cell phone rang just as she drove into her parking spot inside their four-car garage.

  “Mom, it’s dad on the phone. He wants to talk to you.”

  Carlton, Jr. passed the phone to her.

  “Hello.”

  “I’ve been trying to reach you for the last forty five minutes,” Carlton said, sounding nervous. “Is everything okay?”

  “Everything’s fine. I just picked up the boys, now I’m pulling up at home. My phone is still in Drive Mode. What’s so urgent that you had to call me on Carlton’s phone. Is everything alright?”

  The boys opened the car doors and started getting out.

  She paused from talking to Carlton. “You all go inside and start on your homework,” she told them.

  “So you’ve already left the school?” he asked. “It’s early.”

  “They get out at one o’clock on Wednesdays. Remember?”

  “Oh, yeah, that’s right.”

  “What’s up?” she asked.

  “I wanted you to run by the church. But, never mind, I’ll talk to you when I get home. I should be there in a few.”

  “Are you sure? I can drive back over there. Just give me a minute to tell Yulisa that I’m going back out.” Yulisa was the children’s nanny and she often prepared meals for the family.

  “No, no, no. Don’t come all the way back here.”

  “You sound worried. Tell me what’s wrong, Carlton?”

  He paused before speaking. “Like I said, we’ll talk when I get there. I’ll see you soon.”

  “Okay. I love—,” Meesha expressed only to hear the phone click in her ear. “Carlton? Hello?”

  Meesha held the phone as she made her way inside the house.

  On her way to take Carlton, Jr. his phone, she spoke her version of Luke 112 verse seven, a scripture she’d memorized and often recited whenever she felt herself becoming anxious or worried. “I will not be afraid of bad news; my heart is firm, because I trust in you Lord.”

  Meesha took Carlton Jr. his phone and took hers off of Drive Mode. She started scrolling through it, looking at all the calls she had received as well as the text messages.

  Answer your phone! A text message said.

  Urgent, another one said. Go online and watch the local news still another one said. There were several more, all from different people.

  Meesha grew nervous. Instead of going to the kitchen to see if Yulisa was in there, she went upstairs to her office, closed the door, and sat down at her desk. She turned on her computer and proceeded to go online. Her hand went over her heart when she saw the article and began reading it.

  Adverse City, FL Carlton H. Porter, Senior Pastor & Founder of Perfecting Your Faith Ministry has teen love child with millionaire socialite, Peyton Hudson, Wife of Adverse City National Bank President, Derek Hudson. Sources say….

  This was the reason he had called and wanted her to come by the church. He was trying to get to her before she found out the truth from the tabloids!

  Meesha suddenly felt ill, like she was about to faint. What was she going to do now? She was pregnant with her and Carlton’s fifth child. The timing couldn’t be worse. She hadn’t told anyone the news yet. She’d just found out herself a few days ago. She must have gotten pregnant that day Carlton and her made love in his study.

  This nightmare seemed to be just beginning and she didn’t know what to believe or who to believe. Meesha didn’t know when would be the right time to spill the beans. For now, her being pregnant had to remain her secret and hers alone. Things were already complicated enough and now that she was pregnant, it would complicate matters even more. “God, what am I supposed to do if this stuff I’m reading is all true. No wonder Carlton wants a divorce. He knew this was going to come out. Oh, Lord, noooo,” she screamed and cried while holding her hand over her mouth. “Carlton and Peyton? A son? Lord, this doesn’t make sense. It just doesn’t,” she sobbed and. “Please, God, not this.”

  Chapter 36

  “Some secrets are meant to be known but once known you can never forget them.” Pseudonymous Bosch

  Almost a week had passed since the media frenzy started. Reporters camped outside the gated community like vultures, waiting on the Porter family to appear from behind the gates. Calls from Perfecting Your Faith informed Carlton that reporters were popping up there as well. The news about Carlton and Peyton had gone viral. The house phone rang incessantly.

  Meesha paced across the massive span of dark hardwood floors. She had eaten very little and hadn’t had a restful night’s sleep in days. She didn’t return the endless phone calls and texts from church members, family and the housewives. For now, she needed some time to herself. It was bad enough that she and Carlton were going at it like wild cats and dogs. She had to shield her kids from the madness that was circling around their family too. It was downright hard and so far she hadn’t been able to keep them from hearing the stories that circulated. All she could do was her best not to make their father look like a bad person. They loved their dad, and no matter what he’d done, he loved his boys. He was a good father to them, but a lousy, cheating husband to her.

  Meesha’s text notifier chimed. It was Peyton again, pleading with her to give her a chance to explain what happened. Meesha had had enough. She blocked Peyton’s number. It was too late for explaining. The devil was busy, and Meesha didn’t think she had the strength, faith, or courage to fight him off right now.

  “Mrs. Porter, Mrs. Stenberg is here to see you. I told her you weren’t seeing anyone, but she insisted. She says she isn’t leaving until she talks to you,” Meesha’s housekeeper informed her.

  “I don’t care what she said; I don’t want to see anyone.”

  “You’re going to see me,” Eva said, bolting pass the housekeeper. “What’s going on with you?”

  “I’m sorry, Mrs. Porter,” the housekeeper said. “Please, you have to leave,” she said to Eva.

  “It’s okay, I’ll handle it,” Meesha told the middle-aged woman.

  The housekeeper nodded then turned to leave.

  “I don’t appreciate you just popping up over my house.”

  “If you think I was going to stay away with everything that’s happening, you’re crazy. I’m your friend, Meesha. I’m not going to let you go through this by yourself.” Eva’s voice sounded sympathetic.

  Suddenly Meesha broke down in tears. She held her head inside her hands and bawled.

  Eva rushed toward her and immediately embraced her distraught friend.

  “I’m so sorry, Meesha. I’ve been trying to get in touch with you since I heard about what went down.”

  “It’s horrible. I don’t know how I’ll ever get through this, Eva.”

  “I don’t want to hear you talk like that,” Eva rebutted. “How many times have you said that God will never leave us hanging? You have an invincible type of faith and no matter how tough things are right now, you’re going to make it through. Anyway, do you really think it’s true, you know…what they’re saying?” Eva asked.

  “I wish it wasn’t, but according to Carlton, it’s all true, except for the part about him and Peyton sleeping together. He says that never happened, and that the chick who went to the media with all this stuff lied about that part. But why would I believe him, since he’s been lying all these years about Peyton’s child, or adopted child, or whoever the boy belongs to. I knew he and Peyton were friends in college, but I didn’t know they used to mess around. I’m so confused. I don’t know what to believe anymore.”

  Eva placed her arms around Meesha, hoping to comfort her in some small way. “You heard from Avery?”

  “No. I haven’t talked to anyone; I don’t want to.”

  “So you’re saying you
believe Liam really is Carlton’s biological son?”

  “Yes. He basically admitted it. He says Peyton isn’t the reason he wants a divorce, but I don’t believe that either. And let’s not even go there when it comes to that drunk. She’s just as much a liar as he is, telling us that story about adopting that boy and his parents being dead. Imagine what it’s doing to Liam? And Derek, too.”

  “All of this is crazy. I’m shocked. I just can’t wrap my mind around it. And here I was feeling sorry for myself.”

  Meesha looked up at Eva. “Why? What’s going on with you?”

  “Never mind me. We’ll talk about that later. Right now, I want you to lie down and try to get some rest. You look like you haven’t slept in ages.”

  “I haven’t.” Meesha burst out in tears. She took a seat in a chair and sobbed into her hands. “I hate him, Eva. And Peyton, how could she smile up in my face knowing she’s been screwing my husband behind my back.”

  “This is low even for Peyton. I can’t get over that two faced, lying wench. How could she do this to you? And for all these years? No wonder she drinks like she does; she knows she’s been sleeping with the enemy while smiling up in your face.” Eva’s accent grew thicker with each word she spoke. She’d temporarily forgotten about her own situation. “Don’t cry, Meesha.”

  “I don’t know what I’m going to do. I knew he wanted out of the marriage, but this is unbelievable. I feel like I’m having a nightmare.” She boo-hooed.

  “Where is Carlton now?” Eva asked.

  “We’ve been going at it nonstop. It’s been bad. Really bad.”

  “Where is he?” Eva asked her again.

  “He left. Who would have thought that he could lie so easily, Eva? And how could I be so stupid and blind?”

  Eva sat down next to Meesha, leaned slightly over, rested her elbows on her legs, and clasped her hands. “Dang, life is so unfair,” she said, as her own tears flowed.

  ●

  After her visit with Meesha, Eva went back to her hotel suite and did what she did almost every night since she checked in—and that was cry. Harper refused to talk to her ever since he threw her out of their home. When she told Avery what happened, Avery tried her best to comfort her but with everything that had been going on in Avery’s own life, it was hard for her to provide any source of undivided comfort to Eva.

  Eva sat on the sofa and blindly studied the room service menu, without any intention of ordering from it. She was lonely, lost, and felt all alone. She couldn’t believe that Harper had kept the fact that he had a vasectomy a secret. How could he do something like that? She didn’t know where his mind was at. Was he going to divorce her or would he cool off and then allow her to talk things out with him? She loved Harper and she believed he loved her. Surely, he would come to terms with the fact that this was partially his fault, and not just hers alone. He was the one who shut her out and put his career first. He was the one who left her aching for him sometimes weeks at a time. She was young and she needed to be loved and treated with affection, something that Harper rationed out like it was the middle of the Great Recession.

  The fact that she had betrayed Harper was something she had to deal with all by herself. No one knew about it, not Avery and not Meesha. She also hadn’t told them that Harper was sterile. They only knew that he had kicked her to the curb when she told him she was pregnant. Her heart was broken and she felt like her life was falling apart. She could understand what drove Avery to try to kill herself, because she was just as depressed. If it wasn’t for the baby she was carrying, maybe she would have committed suicide. Then again, even if she wasn’t pregnant, she couldn’t do something like that. She believed that God would never forgive her if she took her own life.

  Eva got up from the sofa and went into the hotel bedroom, laid back on the bed, turned on her side, and balled up in a fetal position. Her life was ruined. Her parents, especially her mother, were going to be so disappointed in her. Her mother had her concerns about Harper from the beginning, and now Eva could understand why. He had no right to keep something like this from her. She wondered what other things he may be hiding, and why he was so quick to throw her out. Something wasn’t adding up, but what could she do about it? She had messed up in a huge way, and deep down inside she knew she had no one to blame but herself.

  Harper had put her up in one of the best hotels on Fisher Island, gave her some money and unlimited use of one of the credit cards to live off, but other than that, he wouldn’t have anything to do with her. He wouldn’t answer her calls, changed the access key to their property, and banned her from the hospital. If Meesha thought she was living a nightmare, if only she knew what Eva was experiencing. Eva wanted to tell Meesha that she was going through something a thousand times worse. She thought back to what Harper said: “That kid can’t be mine. It’s impossible because I can’t have children. I had a vasectomy…’”

  Chapter 37

  “In life, we never lose friends; we only learn who the true ones are.”

  Breyonna sat alone in her jail cell waiting on her trial for attempted murder, which ironically had nothing to do with Carlton, Peyton, or her son. She and the man in the Malibu got into a huge fight over drugs and the small sum of money she had left from what Carlton gave her. She stabbed him several times, and almost killed him. He lay in the Critical Care Unit at Adverse General Hospital in grave condition. The knife had penetrated some of his vital organs, and it was still uncertain if he would survive.

  ●

  Carlton sat in his office at Perfecting Your Faith reading the latest news, and checking to see what else the media was saying about him. The swarm of media that had been surrounding his neighborhood and his church had dwindled down to one or two during the course of a day. Maybe he could get his life back to some semblance of order. Now that Breyonna was in jail, he felt like he could at least breathe a little easier. She had no money for the $250,000 bond that had been set for her, so she would be locked up for a long while. That would give him time to concentrate on moving ahead with the divorce from Meesha and make a life with a woman who needed him and adored him. Meesha was too perfect in his eyes. She acted like she could do no wrong. She reminded him of the women on the old movie, “The Stepford Wives.” He cared for her a lot, and she was still beautiful and sexy, but he didn’t want to remain married to her. He couldn’t explain it, he just knew that their relationship as they’d known it all these years, was no more. His heart belonged to Avery, someone who needed him for a change. He felt like he could make things better for her by treating her with the love she deserved.

  “Pastor Porter, turn on the news. They’re talking about that woman who came here and caused all that commotion a few weeks ago. Hurry up, they’re holding a news conference about her now,” his administrative assistant rushed in his office and told him.

  Jeanine turned on the television in Carlton’s office. He turned around in his chair and began listening to the Chief of Police as he talked about the death of Breyonna Walker.

  “At about 7:10 a.m., cell check revealed inmate Breyonna Walker was alive and well. At about 8:46, officers reported they found her unresponsive in her jail cell with a stab wound to the heart. CPR was performed on Walker and she was rushed to Adverse General Hospital where she was pronounced dead…No one has been charged at this time.”

  Jeanine, with arms folded, stood near Carlton’s office door watching the news conference along with him. Her eyes were glued to the small flat screen and her ears were tuned in so she wouldn’t miss a beat.

  Carlton took in each word being said. Breyonna? Dead?

  “If you’ll excuse me, Jeanine.”

  “Oh, yes sir. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to stay in here. I just got caught up watching this.” Jeanine exited Carlton’s office, closing the door behind her.

  Carlton reached on the side of his desk for his phone and quickly called Peyton.

  “I’m watching it now,” she said as soon as she answered the phone. />
  “Can you believe someone killed Breyonna in prison, of all places? I mean, she hasn’t been in Adverse City long enough for her to make enemies, especially while being locked up.”

  “You may find it hard to believe, but I sure don’t. No telling how many enemies Breyonna made since being in this city. Apparently, someone on the inside of the jail hated her just as much as we did.”

  “I didn’t hate her. I hated what she was dong to us, or should I say what she did to us.”

  “Exactly, which is why I’ll say what you’re probably thinking but since you’re God’s man, you feel you can’t say it.”

  “Which is?” replied Carlton.

  “Which is, I’m glad she’s dead. She ruined my life and my son’s life. I say, ding dong the wicked old witch is dead.”

  “Peyton, that’s not a nice thing to say about Breyonna. She lost her life. She may have caused her share of trouble, but she had issues. She went through a lot.”

  “Yeah, yeah, we all have issues,” Peyton said. “There was no excuse for what she did to us.”

  “I know that, but we’re supposed to forgive if we want to be forgiven.”

  “Whatever, Carlton. You’re paid to tell that to your congregation. Me, I’m no preacher, thank God. I’m just an ordinary person so I’ll tell you what God loves to hear – and that’s the truth.”

  “You’re wrong, and you know it,” Carlton said.

  “Look, it’s not Sunday, and you’re not my preacher today. You’re Liam’s father and you of all people should be just as happy as I am that we don’t have to worry about her and her big mouth any longer. Maybe now you can move on with your life. I know I am. I’ve got to get my family back.”