Homegoing #3
I tried to keep my voice strong but it was hard with everything that was going through my head.
Feeling like I’d failed. The thought of being able to hold on to a part of Ori brought tears to the backs of my eyes but I blinked them away before they could fall.
He would be so disappointed in me seeing me this fucking emotional.
Tighten up, Semira. Remember who the hell you are.
I could almost hear his voice in my head encouraging me in that voice that was an octave so low it seemed to match the depths of the ocean. It was so appropriate that his family worked on the sea because that was the only thing that could capture his depth.
Why did you have to leave me?
I swallowed the emotion and put on my poker face ready to handle business in the name of my husband. I wasn’t going to embarrass his memory by not handling whatever this part of the family was about to throw at us and I knew it was some bullshit.
I was surprised at everyone in attendance for this family meeting.
From what I understood, only the active members were the ones who should’ve been able to attend.
My presence was already in question since I wasn’t technically family but the question about my being pregnant explained away what my purpose was for being here.
Faith was sitting at the table next to Pappy, Hakeem and his mother were on her side and I was on the other side of Pappy.
Across from us sat Faith’s brother James and her nephew Theo whose presence irritated my soul.
I remembered his behavior at the wedding and I didn’t want him near me at all.
“Well, that clears up that issue.” Pappy cleared his throat and I knew it was because he was getting emotional as well.
Instead of saying anything else he patted my hand before looking across the room.
“I know you all are attempting to take over my grandson’s seat at the table and that can’t happen no matter what you believe. ”
“What are you talking about?”
Mr. Miller who’d introduced himself at the wedding cleared his throat to get the attention of Theo and James.
“You all are attempting to step into this position when you are missing one very obvious fact.”
“What’s that? She just said that she wasn’t pregnant so I don’t understand what the hold-up is.” James was growing as he spoke like I had somehow pissed him off when my being pregnant had cleared up confusion for him.
“You seem to forget that the original person who was supposed to hold this seat is still alive, well and back in town.”
Their eyes went straight to our side of the table and Faith sat there looking stronger than I’d expected her to. She’d been hit just as hard by grief but stayed and checked on me. This meeting came out of nowhere, and I was surprised that she hadn’t given me a heads-up about what it was for.
“You mean her? Faith? Faith’s ass can’t do shit.
Her ass wasn’t strong enough to handle it when she was young but now she’s trying to step up to the plate?
Why? And y’all are so easy to let her back in the fold?
Tell me X, you don’t think it’s suspicious that she’s back and then her son winds up dead so soon after?
” James was damn near laughing at the idea of Faith taking over this seat and I was getting angrier at this dickhead who thought he was better than her.
He wore a maroon suit that had a cut befitting a pimp or a preacher, with oversized lapels.
His large afro was parted to one side and his son was almost a mirror image of him.
The implication of what he was saying made my stomach turn. I glanced at Faith and could see the way her brother’s words hurt her.
“You don’t know me at all if you think that I don’t love my son.” Her voice wavered even if her features didn’t.
“Oh, is that what you feel? You weren’t even around the lil nigga for the majority of his life.
You let this one sweep in and take over shit that our family worked for like it didn’t mean shit to you!
” James was leaned up out of his seat and I was ready to whip out my blade and put it into his neck for how disrespectful he was being.
To her credit Faith stayed extremely calm and Mr. Miller was taking all of this in silently.
He, like Pappy, was a living advertisement of where their offspring had gotten their height and build.
Mr. Miller was just as impressively built as his son and his style was the same impeccably styled custom suit that every man in the Consortium favored.
Except for Slickback Sr. and Jr. across from us.
“This family business means everything to me and what you need to do is lower your tone when you’re speaking to me.
You need to understand that the rules are very clear.
I was the next one in line and nothing was amended.
My marriage contract states that my heirs will sit in the seat and Pappy stepped up overseeing it when I left.
The only thing you could do is try to challenge me for the position. ”
“That would need the vote of the elders to agree to.” James had his jaw clenched as he listened to his sister. I could tell he was pissed that he wasn’t going to just walk into this position of power like he thought he would.
Mr. Miller was nodding his head in agreement clearing showing whose sign he was on. “Yes, it would.”
Theo didn’t bother to bridle his anger and he slammed his hand down on the conference table angrily.
Mr. Miller and Pappy both looked like they were ready to beat him the way his father obviously never did.
It wasn’t overt in their mannerisms but almost a silent agreement in the smallest shift of their eyes that told they were on edge.
“How can she just waltz back in here like everything is cool and retake what she didn’t earn?”
“Blame your father. I’m here to be impartial, James. You know what you need to do. The Consortium is about money and connections. You have time to show what you can bring to the table. Right now your enterprises are shut down and you aren’t bringing anything in.”
“What does Faith have? What has she even been doing for the last twenty years?”
“Her marriage brought the Nakoas on board. That’s still a contribution in our eyes since she is a Nakoa and part of their board. Her son’s marriage brought on the Averys who themselves are the owners of a multinational, billion-dollar corporation. So again, what is it that you have?”
“So you think that we’re supposed to compete with two multi-billion dollar companies? How is that fair?” James snarled up at everyone at our side of the table with eyes filled with betrayal.
“You’ve got time. Everything stays into place for six months after a…
change in leadership.” Mr. Miller’s voice cracked slightly and he cleared his throat, giving him time to gather himself.
He couldn’t look at me. I was the visual reminder of everything everyone had lost. “The bylaws can’t be changed so we have to go with what we’ve always done. ”
“It’s been four months already, that only leaves us two months to get everything squared away.”
Mr. Miller was staring at Theo looking every inch a menace like Yacouba. “Is that supposed to mean something to me? I can read a calendar.”
Theo ignored the obvious slight he’d given to someone very important in the same organization he wanted to join and continued to plea his case. “Nah, we should get a full six months. Truncating it won’t give us a fair shot.”
“Why are we supposed to make exemptions about you?” Pappy was eerily calm probably having catalogued the disrespect to bring up at a later date.
“Shut up this doesn’t involve you.”
“It does involve him.” Mr. Miller’s voice was now colder than before and he seemed to lose his patience.
James looked as confused as I felt. “What are you talking about? You’re not even blood.”
“But it does, right Hakeem?” Faith smiled looking at the side of the table that had been quiet all this time.
“You’re right.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” James was looking around at everyone and he could feel the same way I could that they were about to drop a bomb on us all.
Hakeem sat up from where he had been quietly sitting at one end of the conference table.
He pulled out papers and slid them across the table to his cousins.
“Pappy has every right to be here because his father’s family were the Lincolns.
We had his genealogy and his DNA run to ensure the information you hold in your hand is accurate. And it is.”
James and Theo were scanning the paperwork as quickly as possible without saying a word but they didn’t have to. Their faces grew tighter with each line and now I wanted to know what they were reading.
“This is bullshit!” Theo tossed the papers on the table coming dangerously close to them hitting Pappy. Pappy’s chest heaved every ounce of his energy going into keeping himself seated.
“What does all of this mean?” James couldn’t make sense of whatever was on the paper but judging by Hakeem’s words it was something about DNA testing.
“It means that this Hawaiian muthafucka is trying to claim that he’s from one of the freed people from Evergreen.”
James' face tightened as he looked across the table at Pappy and I was seconds away from becoming Pappy and Faith’s personal ???? (warrior) to protect them from the obvious threat seated across the table.
“Which means there’s nothing you can do to unseat your sister or Mr. Nakoa unless they decide they no longer want the positions. Unless you all come up with a better partnership that you bring to the table.” Mr. Miller’s words crushed everything they were trying to achieve.
“Unless we form a partnership with the Avery girl.”
How did I get brought into this? “Pardon me?”
“You had no issue being an arrangement for Ori, why can’t you be the same for my son?” James’ face was lit up as if my agreement was assured.
“First off, I’m still married,” I held up my hand flashing a ring I would never take off.
“And secondly, I love my husband. As it stands you and your father don’t have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of.
Alone, I’m worth more money than you’ve probably ever seen and that’s without the money and properties I inherited from my husband or my position within my father’s company.
I already have a husband and if I were in need of one I wouldn’t get one who brought absolutely nothing to the table. ”
I allowed my voice to be filled with the scorn I felt at them thinking I was just some pass-around for the highest bidder.
And what was even more insulting is that they didn’t have a dime to bid with.
They saw me the same way as the women they’d been stopped from exploiting.
I refused to be the cash cow for any man. Especially these pieces of shit.
“Fuck you too, bitch. Nobody said that the idea wasn’t happening so be careful of the enemies that you make today. They could be your masters tomorrow.” Theo’s words sealed his fate. I was going to kill him and relish doing it.
“If you raised a hand to me I would cut them off, grind them into patties and feed them to you before I disemboweled you.”
I stared Theo directly in his eyes as I spoke channeling the same words that Alec jokingly told me Ori used to say so many months ago.
“You heard my daughter. And we don’t barter women like chattel.”
“She just sold herself last year—”
Pappy stood then and all eyes went to him.
“I’ve listened to you go on enough. Asha Nakoa is my ohana.
No one will disparage her in my presence.
You all can get out; we are done here. The clock is ticking and you only have eight weeks before your time is up.
Use it to find friends and alliances instead of making more enemies. ”
Pappy said what he needed to and didn’t bother to elaborate. The steel in his voice and the ice in his gaze however, showed everyone he wasn’t playing. He might not have had the underworld ties that the rest of the Consortium did but he wasn’t a slacker.
The diseased branch of the Franklin family tree stood up in unison before walking angrily out the door.
There was nothing left to be said, with Mr. Miller and Pappy getting up to speak to one another and Matty and Faith hugging.
I gathered my things with my mind racing before a voice forced me to stop.
“I see that look in your eye.” Hakeem was focused on me and I didn’t bother to hide the look on my face.
“What do you mean?” I tried to infuse as much innocence as I could into my voice.
“Don’t do anything rash. My cousin will haunt me forever if I let you do something crazy like go after Theo and James.”
“Hakeem, I know you don’t know me but I never do anything rash. I’m extremely methodical in everything I do so don’t worry about me. I’m good at taking care of myself.” I gave him a smile before picking up my handbag and heading toward Faith.
Pappy bent down and gave me a hug before standing back and studying me with a smile. “I am happy to see the life back in your eyes.”
I squeezed his hand before hugging Faith. “It helps when you have a reason to live.”
“Asha—”
I didn’t want to hear them trying to talk me out of anything and I wanted to spend time with the people who reminded me of Ori.
“Not right now. Maybe never. For right now, let’s get something to eat at one of Matty’s restaurants. I’m hungry for the first time in months. I can share clothes with my sister again, which means I’ve got plenty of calories to spare. Do you all have time?”
I knew they wouldn’t deny me my request, as they had both been worried about me when I’d refused to see anyone. Pappy stood taller as he moved toward the exit.
I had a new purpose besides the one with my family and I was going to make Ori proud and see it through.