9. Halo
Halo
The following day
I had been waiting for the longest to get to the prison so I could speak with my mama about my father. For the longest, I didn’t know who that man was and he pops up on my doorstep. I couldn’t even have a conversation with him because I was furious to find out that Mama was the one who sent him there. She couldn’t reach out and send him when I needed him the most? Instead, I was stuck out here navigating life alone as a minor. It was fucked up. One would’ve thought that I’d be over all that by now, but I was still holding on to it.
It bothered me even more to know that she had cancer and spent all this time locked up. When she was about to get released, there was no telling how much time I was going to have with her before she was called home by God. It wasn’t fair.
“Halo?” Steven called out my name, bringing me back from my thoughts.
“Yeah?” I asked over my shoulder and lifted from the booth I’d been occupying when I was supposed to be clearing the table.
“Jessica called out. I’m going to need you to stay a bit longer and cover her shift.”
My brows dipped. I’d already worked my eight hours. I wasn’t working a second longer after I cleared this table. He lost his fucking mind. “I’m sorry, Steven, but I’m going to have to pass. I have somewhere to be in a couple hours and I’ve already worked my shift.”
“I’m sorry, but I think you must’ve mistaken me for asking.” Straightening my posture, I faced him. He stood there with his hands shoved into his pockets.
“I don’t care. I have somewhere to be. You can either fire me or leave me alone.” I was fed up with Steven. He thought just because he was the manager, he could force me to do shit I didn’t want to. There was no law stating that I had to take on someone else’s shift after working mine just because they called out of work. It’s not happening.
Steven stood there with his mouth touching the floor. “Thought so,” I said and marched away from the table.
Hitting the kitchen door with my hip, I entered and placed the dishes down into the sink. “I thought you would’ve been gone by now,” Will said as I removed my apron and balled it up.
“I’m about to leave now,” I replied and headed toward my locker to gather my things. No way I was about to allow Steven to make me miss a visit with my mama, especially not one as important as this one. I had been holding my peace whenever we spoke over the phone. She didn’t even know that my daddy made his grand appearance yet. I wanted to be face to face with her when I talked to her about it. That’s the only way I’d be able to tell if she was lying to me.
Removing my purse from the locker, I draped it over my shoulder and stepped back into the kitchen. “See you later,” I told Will and exited.
Steven was standing at the door, speaking with Nila, the host, as I headed for the door. Rolling my eyes, I pushed the door and stepped outside. Krissy had to work today, so I had to catch a Lyft to the prison. The trip was going to be expensive, but with the money I’d been able to save since I didn’t have to pay for Brave’s football stuff, I was able to afford a ride there and back. No way I was about to take that many buses just to get up there. Shit was going to take me forever.
“Halo?” a guy in a red sedan asked soon as I stepped out the door.
“Yes,” I responded and opened the back door and climbed into the seat. As many times as I’ve taken a ride, I’ve never been confident enough to climb my ass into the front seat. I didn’t trust people and wanted to be able to see everything to ensure my safety. I’d seen so many articles and videos of stuff happening to people, not just women in general during those ride shares, and they scared the daylights out of me. Maybe once I took my GED and found a decent job, I’d be able to go out and get me another car. ’Til then, I was doing what I had to do and taking the necessary precautions.
The ride to the prison was silent, excluding the Rod Wave station he had the music on. My driver pulled into the parking lot and stopped by the door. “Thank you,” I said and opened the back door.
“You’re welcome.” He beamed a smile at me and I shut the door.
A couple people trotted past me into the building. Lifting my phone to my face, I saw that it was three thirty. Sliding my phone into my purse, I entered the building and set my purse down on the counter and then stepped through the metal detector. The officer searched through my purse and handed it back to me.
Everyone lined up to be taken to the yard to see the inmates. I stood there toward the back of the line, nibbling on my thumbnail. My nerves were all over the place. The door buzzed and we stepped through it. By the time we made it to the yard, the inmates were already there. I found Ma sitting at a table close to the playground. Her eyes landed on me, and she offered me a smile.
Stopping at her table, I took a seat directly in front of her. My facial expression told it all because she asked, “Are you okay?”
“When were you gon’ tell me that you knew where my daddy was?”
“He came and saw you?”
“Yeah, but that’s beside the point. You never mentioned that you knew how to find him. You had me thinking this entire time that you didn’t even know who he was.”
“Things with your father have always been complicated.”
“Complicated how?”
Ma scratched the corner of her chin and repositioned herself in her seat before continuing. “I was messing with a married man. I never told your father that I was pregnant with you because I thought he was going to try and force me to get rid of you.”
Squeezing my eyes shut, I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I sent the man away from my door, not wanting to hear anything he had to say because I thought he just didn’t want anything to do with me. Why reach out to him now? How come you didn’t when you first got locked up?”
“I didn’t want to disrupt his family. I reached out to him now because I figured that once I’m gone, you’re going to need someone here with you other than Krissy.”
Moisture filled the brims of my eyes. “Now why you have to go bringing that up?” Thinking about my mama dying was a hard pill to swallow. I had been trying my best to distract myself from that.
“It’s reality, Halo. I’m going to die soon. I just didn’t want you to be alone.”
Bolting to my feet, I rested my hands on top of my head and paced. “This shit isn’t fair.” Tears cascaded my cheeks. “You’re finally about to get out and now I have to worry about losing you to something else. Life just ain’t fair.”
“It’s life, baby. Nothing in life is fair.”
Halting, I took a deep breath and eased back into my seat. “What am I going to do without you?” Sure, I was without her now, but at the same time, I was still able to pick up the phone and call her.
Ma reached across the table and covered my hand with hers. “I got a feeling that you’re going to be just fine. You’re strong, Halo. Much stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
“What if I’m tired of being strong?” Tears dripped off my chin, splattering onto the table.
Ma’s watery eyes searched mine. “I wish I had an answer for that.”
Flipping my hand over, I intertwined our fingers. “I don’t want to think negative anymore. You’re going to beat this. Everything is going to be just fine. When are you supposed to start treatment?”
“I’m not sure yet. It’s a lot going on with the doctors in here. I’m sure it won’t be too long.”
“I hope not.”
“What else has been going on? Anything new?”
Joker…
I don’t know why he seeped into my brain, but he was there. Infesting it and not seeming to go away no matter how much I tried to pry him from it.
“Not really,” I lied, not wanting to bring up the fact that I was beginning to like Joker. The man was smooth. I could give him that.
For the next thirty minutes, we sat there, talking about all the stuff that has been going on at the prison and how my classes were about to start. Once the visit was over, we lifted to our feet and embraced. I pecked her gently on the cheek and peeled away from her. Ma was taken back inside the building, and I stepped to the door with the rest of the visitors with my phone shoved up to my face, ensuring that my ride would be arriving outside pretty soon.
Everyone exited the building. According to Lyft, my ride was five minutes out. I stood directly in front of the entrance so they wouldn’t miss me when they arrived.
“Halo?” the woman said when she let her window down on her Volkswagen SUV.
“Yup, that’s me,” was my response as I opened the back door and slipped into the seat. She waited ’til the door was shut and I was buckled into my seat belt before pulling away from the curb.
Going to my text messages, I stopped on Krissy’s name and sent her a message. I’m heading home now. You can bring Brave once I get there.
Since she wasn’t able to bring me to my visit, and she knew that I was going to be still gone by the time Brave got out of school, she volunteered to pick him up for me. My phone immediately vibrated with her response.
Okay. Just let me know whenever you make it there. We’re having an ice cream date now.
The phone vibrated again with an attachment. It was a picture of her and Brave sitting at a table with ice cream cones. The way that girl loved my son down was priceless.
Pressing down on the picture with my thumb, I waited ’til the reactions came up and hearted the picture. Hitting the power button, I laid the phone in my lap and rested my head against the headrest.
The ride to my apartment was a pleasant one. Once she pulled into the parking lot, I saw Jah and a few of the other guys standing outside per usual. The crackhead that slept by the front door was down on his knees in front of them with his hands up to his lips as if he was praying. I knew better than that. He was probably begging them for some dope that he couldn’t afford. I really wished they would stop feeding into his habit. Maybe he’d get up and find somewhere else to lay.
“Thanks,” I told the driver and got out the truck. Draping my purse over my shoulder, I scurried across the parking lot. Jah’s eyes locked with mine. He emerged away from the wall and opened the door for me. “Hey, thanks,” I said and stepped inside. My right foot touched the first stair when I was gripped by my forearm. My head jerked in Jah’s direction.
“Who was that nigga that came by here the other day looking for you?”
“It was nobody.”
“How many times you gon’ tell me that lie. Who is he?”
“Ugh.” I yanked away from him and frowned. “You’re really acting like we’re in a relationship or something and I’on like that. It’s none of your business.”
“Yeah, a’ight. Just be careful.”
“Don’t I always?” I shot back and jogged up the stairs. The door slammed behind me. Jah was in his feelings because another man was showing interest in me. One that he knew he couldn’t compete with. No other men tried stepping to me out here in Ridgeview and it was all Jah’s fault. He had them thinking that he had a chance with me and I was off limits.
“Hey, Mrs. Maple,” I said to the elderly woman on my hallway. Her broom kicked up dust and dirt from the stained, dark green carpet in the hallway as she swept in front of her door.
“Hey, sugar. How are you?”
“I’m good,” I replied as I passed her.
“Tell Brave’s handsome self that I made his favorite chocolate cake. He needs to come over and get a slice ’fore those grandkids of mine eat it all up.”
“Will do,” I tossed over my shoulder with a slight grin.
My keys jingled in my hand as I made it to my door. Sticking the key in the hole, the lock clicked, and I pushed the door in. My Febreze plugins instantly hit my nostrils and I took a huge whiff. Shutting the door behind me, I kicked my shoes off and removed my phone from my purse. I saw the battery was on red, so I headed to my bedroom to plug it up. As I dawdled down the hallway, I went back to Krissy’s messages to let her know I made it home. I’m home. I’m about to get started on dinner.
Not even waiting for her response, I slipped my charger into my phone, laid it on the nightstand, and turned to go into the bathroom to take a shower before Brave made it home.
Pow! Pow! Pow!
Immediately, I dropped straight to the floor. A bullet didn’t have a name on it, and I wasn’t trying to get hit with a stray. Soon as my body hit the floor, more gunfire erupted outside, sounding as if we were in the fucking Civil War or something. My heart skipped beats in my chest, because I knew Krissy was about to bring my son home and they were doing the most outside.
“Fuck, I have to get us out of here as soon as possible,” I said, mumbling.
I crawled over to the nightstand and blindly tapped my fingertips against it in search of my phone. Finally, I grasped it and pulled it down to me. Going to Krissy’s name, I pressed dial and placed the phone to my ear.
“Yeah?” she answered after the second ring.
“Don’t come to the house right now. They are shooting and I don’t want y’all to get caught in the crossfire.”
“Do you just want me to keep him for the night? I can drop him off at school in the morning.”
“That sounds…”
Boom! Boom! Boom!
“There’s someone at my door,” I whispered.
“Who?”
Sitting up, my back pressed against the side of my bed. “I don’t know,” I answered.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
“Are you gonna answer it?” Krissy whispered. The banging was so loud, I just knew she heard it through the phone.
“You do know they can’t hear you right?”
“Sorry. Got caught up in the moment.”
Getting on my hands and knees, I crawled out of my bedroom and down the hallway to the front door. “I don’t think I should open the door.”
“Shit, I wouldn’t if they were just shooting how you say they were.”
I pressed my ear to the door and jumped back when the banging continued. “Halo?”
My face scrunched. “Jah?”
“What did you just say?” Krissy asked as I pulled myself to my feet and turned the doorknob. Jah stood there with blood seeping through his white shirt on his abdomen.
“Halo?” he called out my name just as he collapsed into my arms.