Chapter 18
Mona
I was no longer hollering and tearing up a room I loved being in with August Senior and our kids.
My head had stopped spinning from the constant arguing with August about X and my blurt.
I was done with the name-calling, belittling, and every other promise that he broke.
I was sick of rehashing the staleness of his breath due to the heavy liquor and weed.
I was tired of seeing him continuously shove me against whatever hard object.
I was over my husband being a loose, drunken cannon like I’d never seen before. I was over being mentally, verbally, and physically abused by the second person in my life. A man who showed no signs of being an abuser. I knew those signs well.
I was over the curious people in my face, lips moving, but they weren’t too quick to move when I was beyond silent, scared to cough and sneeze on the way back home. The same motherfuckas who left me when I needed them the most because I was vulnerable. A vow I promised I would never be again.
Rising from the floor, with very clear visibility, King’s mouth moved.
I didn’t care what he had to say or ask.
I had turned off my hearing. Growing up in my parents’ household, I learned quickly how to do that.
The closer I walked to the door, seeing my finish line with my kids, I saw Min’s mouth move.
But I didn’t give a fuck what she had to say.
She wasn’t on my kiss ass list; she was on the same list as everybody else—not my cup of tea, ever.
I turned on my hearing just enough to know my child’s location. “Where’s Azaria?”
“Mona,” August cried out, making my stomach curl.
Hurriedly, I shut my hearing off and walked into my princess’s room to gather her things and to leave my rings on her pretty dresser. I didn’t want those rings because I fucked and sucked good with my fourth grade reading ass. They deserved to be on another peasant’s pretty fingers.
I felt warm, small hands on my neck.
Azaria.
I turned on my hearing and looked to my right. She was in Tiberius’ arm, barely hanging on. She was sleepy.
Warmly, I smiled. “We’ll knock out soon as we leave here.”
“Mona, talk to me, please. My husband and The Quad Ts are weak. What happened for them to be that weak? When you leave here, please come to my husband’s and my house. Non-negotiable,” Min stressed, making me snarl.
I cut my hearing off and gathered my daughter’s things very quickly. Once I had her stuffed six bookbags, stacked horribly on my back, I walked to her dresser and removed the rings. King’s head dropped as he flopped onto his knees. The Quad Ts heads dropped as Min’s mouth moved rapidly.
As I placed the rings on my daughter’s dresser, I couldn’t look twice at them or reflect on the many great days that we had, especially our wedding day.
The images of seeing them as I flailed my arms to get him off me, because I was taken in too much water in the tub, caused me to see enough of those rings.
You could’ve had us killed bitch, because of yo’ fuckin’ mouth!
That bitch ain’t shit to play wit’! After this, you gon’ learn to look the other way when she speak!
I love my son way mo’ than I’ll ever love you.
You shut the fuck up when it come to this street shit where we live!
Matter of fact, get yo’ ass a job … so you can fuckin’ understand life much better so you won’t be in the street shit, pretendin’ you is that bitch, I thought, exhaling sharply, reaching for my daughter.
As she rushed to come to me, I shut off my hearing just enough. Studying Tiberius’ teary eyes, I said, “Thank you. Don’t look for us. I don’t want us to be found. Make sure he signs the divorce papers.”
“Monaaaaaaa, baby, I’m sorry! I don’t remember much! Please come tell me what the fuck I did to you!” August cried out in pain as I shut off my hearing.
Cascade of tears stormed Tiberius’s face as he nodded, sending my child and me out of her room—never to look at it again. As she rested her head on my shoulder, my hearing wasn’t on when I looked at a feeble Thiago, Tobias, and Thames.
My voice was muffled as I said, “I love you, three. Don’t come looking for me. I’ll be okay. She’ll be okay. Goodbye.”
I walked off, never wanting to know who was looking at me, who wiped their faces, or who was itching to stop me from moving.
I had a rinky-dink hotel. My daughter and I needed to fall off, so I could write down a list of important things that had to be done within six weeks, then six months, then a year.
Entering the front room, I stared at the unknown person slowly rising from the ground; his eyes begged me to talk to him. With pride, I fully turned on my hearing.
August’s gasps were deep as he tried to utter his words.
Momma Orthella called my name sadly.
King begged me for two minutes of my time.
Min cried my name.
The Quad Ts exhaled sharply.
So many sounds from so many people who didn’t know their beloved family member broke me the moment his large palm wrapped around my neck, slammed my back against the tub, turned on the cold water, and forced my face into the fully blasting stream.
It was only right for them to see just how much August hurt me to my DNA code, right on the poodle-haired carpet we possibly made the twins.
My face was calm as I slid my hand to my back, where the Glock with a bullet in the chamber chilled.
I had to stay on point, so I had a gun tucked in our daughter’s room in case a fuck nigga tried to catch me slipping with her.
Sluggishly, I licked my lips, produced my gun, and shot the foreign man who I married in his right kneecap, stomach, shoulder, and the tops of his ears. Since he wanted to bark all the damn time, it was wise to make the bitch look like a dog by the ears.
“Monaaaaaaa, nooooo! Momma Orthella hollered, crying.
Good thing your ass is blind, Momma Orthella, I thought, prancing to the door with the beautiful memory of her son having fear decorating his once charming eyes.
“August!” King screamed fearfully as I walked out of the front door.
Kissing my daughter’s cheek, I enjoyed August’s name, bouncing around walls his ass would stare at alone, if he didn’t succumb to his stomach wound.