Epilogue
ANTONIAS
May…
Four mornings after saying I do to the love of my life, I stood behind her in our bathroom, observing our reflections in the mirror.
We were both partially naked having just gotten out of the shower.
As Bianca moisturized her skin, her hands moved over her fully healed scar.
For the first time, she did so with a content smile on her face.
We divided our time between the farm, the city, and Bell Estates. She was back working, and I was back to saving the lives of anyone falling victim to the streets.
Kissing her shoulder, I asked, “You ready for forever with me??”
“I’m so ready,” she replied.
“You love me?”
“With everything inside me.”
“I love you, Mrs. Suarez.”
Her smile was infectious and mirrored mine. I kissed her lips, wondering how the hell I got so fucking lucky to have the woman of my dreams.
The doorbell rang, prompting Bianca to groan. “If that’s Adrian, I’m sending him packing,” she stated.
Her brother was being obnoxious as hell as of late. He was due to arrive home after successfully completing another semester of school. Lowkey, I knew he was heavy on my sister’s trail. His ass found any and every reason to come to the farm whenever he was in town.
I threw on a shirt, and Bianca threw on some shorts, then we both left the room to answer the door.
The smell of breakfast caused my stomach to growl.
My mama couldn’t help herself but to fuss over me and Bianca.
Every now and then, my mama would sneak in just to cook for us, then sneak back off like she’d never been inside the house.
After sending pieces of Eldon and Arisana on an extended vacation in the Atlantic Ocean, Gion and Margarite were back on the farm, at least for a little while. There was no telling when they’d pick up and leave again. While I had them here, I would love on them.
Going to the door, I opened it to see Kwamé standing on the other side with Jessie on her hip. Surprised to see her, I gave her a hug and kissed Jessie’s cheek. My niece was walking now, and looking so much like her mama it was scary.
A few weeks ago, Kwamé left the farm to go back home. Bianca and I were sad to see her leave us, but Kwamé had a whole life in Atlanta. It wasn’t lost on me that she never mentioned Jessie’s father. She asked me to respect her privacy, and I continued to do so as long as she and Jessie were good.
It gave me some peace that I sent Russ to Atlanta with Kwamé.
Of course, she gave me hell about it. However, I stood firm and ended up getting my way.
Plus, I had to be sure she wasn’t going through any shit with the nigga who fathered Jessie.
So far, there hadn’t been so much as a peep from his ass.
Although I was curious as hell, I still honored her wish to respect her privacy.
She and Bianca talked daily, and Kwamé was even keeping a close eye on Shyah.
“This is a nice surprise!” Bianca stated. She quickly hugged Kwamé before snagging Jessie, who giggled at Bianca’s excitement at seeing her. “Hey, sweetie!”
“Do you two have a minute?” Kwamé asked. She was amused because Bianca didn’t take notice of Kwamé’s bump behind the black lounge dress she wore. I noticed, and the way my heart stuttered in my chest caught me by surprise.
“Of course,” Bianca replied. “We were just about to have breakfast. Join us.”
Kwamé smiled. “Sure.”
We entered the kitchen where the food was already spread out on the kitchen island. Kwamé sat Jessie’s diaper bag in one of the high-back chairs and quickly washed her hands. As Bianca baby talked to Jessie, Kwamé started fixing herself a plate.
“So, I’ve decided to stay for a while,” Kwamé told us, and that was when I knew. This time, my heart wanted to burst.
Bianca squealed. “I’ve been sad without you here. You were the only reprieve I had from this man.”
Kwamé snickered while I shot my wife a strong ass side eye.
Placing her plate down, Kwamé backtracked to the diaper bag and dug for something. “By the way. I wanted to give you this.” She handed Bianca a small flat box with a burgundy bow on top of it. “It’s a wedding gift.”
“You already got us a gift,” Bianca said. “By the way, those earrings were so stunning that I’ve worn them twice already.”
“I’m glad you loved them. This is another gift,” Kwamé said as Bianca took the box. Just as smoothly, Kwamé took Jessie from Bianca.
Bianca opened the box while mumbling, “Girl, if you got me another pair of earrings…” Lifting the tiny square of tissue paper, Bianca’s eyes fell on the picture inside. Her eyes flew to mine, and I wanted to break down and cry at the look in her beautiful brown eyes.
“When Antonias came to me, there was no question that I would walk this path with you. This is the greatest gift that I could ever give you and my brother. It is my honor to carry the next phase of your lives. Well, in this case, phases.”
Bianca broke down crying, and I was right there to be her pillar when she nearly sank to the floor.
Kwamé’s tears were accompanied by a radiant smile that came from within. Bianca released herself from my hold and walked right into Kwamé’s arms. They embraced tightly, both crying and speaking life into each other.
As Kwamé wiped Bianca’s tears, she said, “You’re going to be so great at this.”
“How do I ever thank you enough?” Bianca questioned Kwamé.
“You thank me every day by loving my brother as he has always wanted you to. That’s all that I ask you to keep doing. Yeah?”
Bianca nodded. “You have my word.”
“Why is everyone crying?” Shyah entered the kitchen and asked.
She looked concerned. Since being on the farm, she’d gained weight, and a light I loved to see shown in her eyes.
She was thriving, having built a bond with my parents and the Bells.
She and Maja were slowly getting to know each other.
Their pasts were traumatic, but they seemed to already enjoy having each other around.
“We’re having twins,” I told her.
Gleefully, she clapped her hands and hugged Bianca tightly. “I’m so excited!”
A few days later…
Fresh off saving a life, I stood at the nurse’s station reviewing the chart of my latest trauma patient when Detective Gunner walked through the double doors. He glanced at me, then motioned to Adir’s office.
“I got you,” Micah stated and took the trauma patient’s chart from me.
Curiously, I entered Adir’s office and closed the door behind me. Adir was seated at his desk and looked like he’d just been in the middle of a quick nap.
“Hey, listen. I was closing up some loose ends on Torro’s case and got this from forensics.” Detective Gunner handed me an unlocked cell phone. On the screen was a message thread between Torro and a number…
“The fuck?” I mumbled. Surely, my eyes were playing tricks on me.
“Why the hell is Katrelle’s number in Torro’s phone?” Gunner questioned. “Better yet, read the messages. I stopped after the third question he asked her.”
Adir stood from his desk, rounded it, then peered over my shoulder to read the messages as I scrolled through them.
Each message was worse than the one before.
Having had enough, I pushed the phone into Adir’s chest and left his office.
There was only one thing on my mind, and it wasn’t anything that had to do with saving a life.
Two hours later, I was on the boardwalk, which paralleled the white sands and glistening blue waters.
The coastal haven that was Navarre Shores would always be home for me, but the farm was where my roots were.
In the distance, sail boats rode the gentle waves, and the sun was at its highest point in the sky.
Glancing up at the sky, I counted the clouds forming over the city, hoping there would be some rain soon.
Hearing a click of heels behind me, I turned to see Katrelle strutting towards me wearing a smile that any nigga would find stunning. She was dressed like she wanted me to lay her down in front of all these people, too. Truly, Katrelle was a stunner.
“I came as soon as I could.” She reached for a hug that I denied her. The smile on her face slowly faded.
There was no need for small talk. “Before we start, I just want to say thank you.”
Nervously, she grinned. “Thank you for what?”
“For pushing me into the arms of my forever. If it wasn’t for you, Bianca would’ve slipped through my fingers.”
Katrelle’s face slightly contorted into shock.
“By the way, I folded like a fuckin’ flat sheet straight off the steamer. That’s how much Bianca has always owned me.”
Contempt entered her eyes, but I paid it no mind.
“It takes a low down, dirty muhfucka to pull the shit you pulled. And to think, you almost got away with it.”
Katrelle glanced around, hoping the people walking the boardwalk would be her saving grace.
“They can’t save you,” I told her. When she attempted to walk off, I gently grabbed her hand. “Walk with me.” She tried tugging her hand away, but I gripped her shit until I nearly broke her fingers. She whimpered in pain but fell in step beside me.
“I must say, the set up was dope as fuck. You’re a journalist, so I shouldn’t have expected anything less.
You saw Torro working at his uncle’s restaurant a couple of times and figured he was just the nigga who could snag Bianca’s attention.
You almost succeeded.” Thinking back to how Bianca smiled in Torro’s face, I almost lost the plot.
“From the moment he agreed to play interference, you began studying him. You knew he had an open case, befriended him, then finessed him into workin’ his uncle’s bar the night of the party.
You dropped that nigga’s location knowin’ those niggas were after him. ”
“No, I didn’t.”
Chuckling, I replied, “Yes, you did. I have it all in Torro’s phone.
He didn’t trust yo’ ass. He had you saved in his phone as Suspect Number One.
” She fidgeted on her feet as I stared her down.
“What was it, huh? When did it go from Torro simply moving Bianca out of the way, to you shootin’ up my people’s shit? ”
Haughtily, she replied, “The entire night, you couldn’t keep your eyes off her. It was disgusting being by your side and watching you fawn over another woman. All I wanted was that bitch out of the way. You would’ve never remained faithful to me with her ass in the picture.”
“So, you killed three niggas to get to one woman?”
She blinked stupidly. “What are you going to do about it? There are tons of people out here. Besides, your hands aren’t so clean, Uriah Lovelace aka Antonias Suarez. Leave me alone, or you along with, Gion, Margarite, Detective Gunner, and Dr. Bell & Associates, comes crumbling down.”
Staring at this bitch, I really wanted to choke the life out of her. Threatening me was one thing. Threatening my family and the people I loved like family was another thing. Katrelle smiled like she wasn’t standing in the presence of a quiet as kept lunatic.
“When you did ya lil’ investigation on me, what did you find?” I quizzed.
“Enough to bury you and everyone I just mentioned. Why do you think I ultimately walked away that night? I even let go the fact that your little bitch put her hands on me. I’ve been tucking all my information away for a time such as this.
” Her smile grew a little bigger. “So, what type of deal are we about to make, Uriah… Oh, I mean Antonias.”
I had to give it to her. She was bold as fuck.
I smiled right with her as we continued walking down the boardwalk. It was a beautiful day in Niceville Shores.
THE END