6. Corinthians #2
Robert seemed to like it when I did, and I never wanted to make him happy.
“You will learn sooner or later that I am in control at all times. There is no escaping me.” Robert put a towel over my face, and seconds later, something cold was being poured on me.
I fought against the restraints holding me down to try to catch my breath.
The water stopped, and I took a few deep breaths, only for it to start again.
“Lower her head.” The table moved, and I felt like I was slipping, but didn’t fall because of the straps around my shoulders.
Robert moved the towel and then poured more water on my face. I felt like I was drowning!
“Stop, Robert!” I heard Uri yell. “Stop!”
“Shut up!” Robert yelled back. He stopped pouring water on my face, and I tried again to catch my breath.
But it was so hard. “You have no place telling me anything about my pet!” Robert put the towel back and more water came, but this time I tried holding my breath.
Madea taught us to swim a long time ago, and I could hold my breath the longest. “Pet.” Robert hit me in the chest to make me stop holding my breath.
“You are a smart one, but not smarter than me.” I coughed and tried to spit the water out of my mouth, but he kept pouring water on my face.
“You will learn, one way or another.” He finally stopped pouring water on me, took the towel off my face, and stepped back.
I was upside down but could see Uri and Kenbral.
Kenbral’s water was lower, and he could stand on his tiptoes to keep from going under, but not Uri.
He was still swimming, watching me. “I will be back.”
Robert turned off the light and walked out of the room.
“Corinthians?” Uri whispered my name. “Corinthians?” In the dark, I finally let my tears fall. I was trying so hard to hold them in. No one could see me. “I know you’re scared, but you have to be strong.”
“I-I-I-I-I’m trying,” I said as I cried.
“I’m sorry, Corinthians,” Uri finally said after we sat in silence. “I’m so sorry.”
I don’t know what he was sorry for but hearing him say it made me cry harder.
***
“When you get in this house, you shut the fuck up,” Daddy said, looking at me through the rearview mirror. “If your grandparents ask you about the bruise, what do you say?”
“You put me in boxing classes,” I answered. “I got hit in practice.”
“Right,” he nodded, then turned off the car. “Don’t tell them shit else, and if they ask when your next match is, tell them to ask me because you don’t know.”
“Okay,” I said, then unbuckled my seat belt.
My whole body hurt, and I was moving slowly, but at least I was still moving.
I spent all night strapped to the table, upside down in the dark.
When the lights were turned on this morning, I saw Kenbral’s tank had been drained, and he was curled up in a ball at the bottom.
Uri still had water in his mouth; he was swimming to stay afloat.
He looked tired, almost like he was going to pass out at any second, but he didn’t stop moving.
One of Robert’s men got me from the table, and he brought me home.
Nothing was said during the car ride or when I got back to my house.
My parents opened the garage door, he pulled in, and Daddy got me out of the car.
He told me to get ready to go and pushed me into my bedroom.
Bug sat on the bed, already dressed, head down, and her favorite toy in her hands.
The front door opened, and the first person I saw was Madea.
She smiled at me and opened her arms. I gathered all my strength and jumped from the car and ran right into her arms. She smelled like vanilla with a hint of something else I could never remember the name of, but every time I smelled it, I thought of her.
“How are you, my baby?” she asked as she lifted me from the ground. I wrapped my legs around her body and held on tight. She rubbed up and down my back and kissed the side of my face. “I missed you.”
“Hi Madea,” I said, holding on to her as tight as I could. “I missed you, too.”
“Then don’t stay away that long again,” she playfully said, then kissed the side of my face again.
“Every time I called, you were outside playing or on some new adventure with your friends.” She pulled back, and her smile dropped.
Her eyes held so much concern and worry that I had to look away.
I didn’t like lying to Madea; she told us it was never a reason to because she would love us no matter what, and I believed her, but my Daddy said we had to.
And Robert said if anyone ever found out what was going on, he would kill them.
“What happened to your face, Corinthians?” She didn’t wait for me to answer before turning to my parents. “What happened to her face?”
“I told you she was in boxing now, Mama,” Daddy answered with a chuckle.
“She got into the ring with someone bigger and got that as proof that she ain’t as big as she thinks she is.
” He patted the side of my face, then turned back to Madea and kissed her on the cheek.
“She’s alright, nothing major. She’s learning her lesson, though. ”
“Boxing? Learning her lesson? Ruben, what the hell are you talking about? This girl knows how to fight just like the rest of the kids. Why the hell did you get her into boxing?” Madea looked at my face again and shook her head.
“Because of what happened at the park, Mama,” Daddy answered.
“She got her ass kicked because she’s reckless and hardheaded.
This is just tightening up her skills.” He patted the top of my head.
“Now put her down so she can go on. She ain’t a baby and doesn’t need to be in grown folks' conversation.”
Madea mugged Daddy, then turned back to face me. “You comin’ with me in the kitchen. I don’t know what your daddy is talking about, and obviously, we need to have some girl time.” She looked around me at Bug. “You in boxing classes too?”
“Nah, Mama, she's in etiquette classes,” Daddy said. “She likes bugs, dirt, and other shit too much. She needs to learn how to be a lady.” Daddy put his hand on Bug’s head and smiled proudly.
“So, you got one in boxing and another in etiquette?” Madea asked.
“Yeah,” Daddy chuckled. He threw his hand up in surrender. “Don’t worry, Psalms is going to boxing classes soon, and Corinthians will be in etiquette classes. I’m going to balance it out.”
Madea put me down and opened the front door. “Go on in the house, girls,” she said without looking at us. “I need to talk to your daddy.”
I took Bug’s hand and pulled her into the house and to the backroom. I needed to know what Daddy was talking about. I got to the girls’ room, closed the door, and took her to the closet.
“What classes does Daddy have you taking?” I asked her once we were hidden. The closet was our secret hiding place. Whenever we were scared, wanted to talk, or hide from everything, we went to the back of the closet. Only Bug and I knew about our hiding spot.
“He takes me to a big house when you go with Mr. Robert,” she answered. Her eyes were glued to her ladybug. It was also the first time I noticed that her nails were painted.
“Who painted your nails, Bug?” I picked up her hand and looked at her nails.
“Mr. Jonathan,” she mumbled. “He paints my nails every time I go to the big house.”
“Why?”
“He said a lady should have painted nails,” she answered, then licked her lips. “He said that I’m a lady and that he is going to take care of me.”
“Does he make you fight or hit you?” I asked her. I hadn’t noticed any new bruises, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t hitting her.
“He-“ she stopped talking and started to rock.
I moved around her and grabbed her shoulders to make her stop rocking. “Bug, look at me,” I told her. She slowly lifted her head, and I saw her tears. “What does he do to you?”
“He spanks me,” she whispered as she cried. “He spanks me and tells me I’m a good girl. If I’m a good girl, why does he spank me, Cori?” Her eyes searched mine for answers I didn’t have.