Chapter 8 #2
Before Min became pregnant with King Junior, she and I were in a hole together for joyriding in King’s truck.
She was the driver, and I was the scared passenger, slick texting August to tell King his wife hadn’t unhanded the tread on his tires.
I thought I was free from the hole until King showed us a video of me shaking my ass, upside down, on the passenger seat.
I grabbed my cousin’s hand, jumped right into the hole, and motioned for August to cover it up.
Creeping before my favorite winter, thick bush that I named Hottie Money, I stopped rehashing about my hole time with the silliest fucka who had us back in the hot seat within a few days.
I didn’t need my speakers disturbing the dead more than they already had.
I respected the dead more than I would ever respect the living.
The living had too much going on for me to give them the energy that I gave the dead. Thus, I rushed to mute my radio.
Driving between two healthy trees with the ugliest gray shit hanging from them, I flipped on the high beams. Unbuckling my seatbelt, I looked around the familiar place that many people feared coming into at night.
I didn’t see anything scary about a cemetery.
It’s not like the dead could harm you. If anything, they were your guide while the living slinked around you, pushing their fucked-up energy onto you.
Shoving the gearshift into the park position, I opened the door.
The wind, with a hint of coolness, wavered the fine hairs on my neck and arms. Clearing my throat, I stepped out of my truck and smiled at the aged gray headstones.
It was a pleasure seeing the cracked stones that held my comings and goings.
Winking at the deceased person’s final resting places, I walked from my truck. Smoothly, I greeted, “Well, hello, deceased ones. I won’t be long. I came to grab a few things that I will return. Thank you for keeping them safe.”
Marching toward the tree that had bunches of tree limbs covering my shovel, I finished putting the puzzle pieces together for those who needed to see me.
I needed everything to sync splendidly so my return home would be flawless.
I needed my actions to inform anyone who thought about coming for me, to leave me the fuck alone.
Thus, I had to come in like a wrecking ball.
They will know that I’m not with the street shit anymore.
I’m a mom. I’m someone’s fine ass fiancée.
I’m a house body bitch, needing to pay taxes and shit.
I’ve been preparing myself to be a law-abiding citizen since seeing August’s fine ass.
The nothings need to get up off these cat lips that stay in his mouth.
Arriving at the pretty tree that I talked to twice a week, I moved the branches out of the way.
Semi-stress-free and level-headed, I cheerily greeted, “Hello, Georgia. I hope you had a good day and night. I won’t disturb your beauty rest. I need to grab a few things from this hole.
I trust you won’t let a cat scurry around my hiding spot, right? ”
The wind whistled, causing Georgia’s limbs and leaves to waver. Looking up at the pretty ole gal in the daytime, I grinned. “Ah, ya’ ass want to twerk. Well, I’ll make that happen when I bring my friends back. Or I might make you shake your tail feathers when I leave this place in a few.”
After tossing twenty or so branches to my right, I snatched the plank from above the deep hole that I had dug a week after knowing about the spot.
Looking into the hole, lit up by my bright lights, I smiled.
“Well, hello, there yous. It’s been a long time since I’ve had to use y’all’s stolen asses.
Have y’all missed me? If not, I’m going to make sure you fuckas missed me.
Time to come out of hibernation. We have a few blocks to spin and spin and spin until I’m fucking dizzy. ”
Carefully climbing into the hole that wasn’t anywhere near as deep as my man and his cousins could dig, I snatched the three black duffel bags from the blue tarp.
Feeling my shoulders sinking from what I felt needed to be done, I looked at the gold knapsack and nodded.
“Yep, you are coming too. I wouldn’t dare leave you out of this fun party. You are my special bitch.”
After scrambling to get out of the hole with a raggedy ass leg that acted up terribly when it was about to rain or during the cold, I covered the hole.
I focused on what I needed to say to Georgia.
She was a very influential and helpful earth creature when I posted in front of her, making sure my shit was where I put it.
I had always found it soothing to talk to flowers, grass, bushes, and trees.
Many people thought that was part of my act, but it wasn’t. I drew strength from being one with nature, and I didn’t give a damn who knew it. One of my goals, soon, was to create a beautiful flower bed and have a garden.
“Georgia, I tell you everything like you, my homegirl. It’s only right to tell you this …
I’m heading back home and set some shit straight.
I need to get the upper hand on the fuck shit my family and Dropo have going on.
The only way I know to put him in his place is to kidnap his grandparents and parents.
I won’t do it on some revenge shit. They won’t even see me coming.
I won’t be nasty to them because they were never that way with me.
I’ll love them like they do and did me, but their family member will never step on my neck again.
When I have them safe, secured, and rubbing their feet together, I’m going to shoot up my parents’ house, making my siblings move faster than shit from my asshole after I’ve gotten ahold of a shitty concoction King made.
I’m going to right the one wrong that I could’ve spoken about but couldn’t.
I’m going to make all suffer who tried or are trying to make me suffer because I don’t and never wanted the life they tossed at me.
It’s time for me, Mona Beezus Averhart, to crush souls for the last time before I become Mona Beezus Abbott.
My man will do the crushing of souls. Well, I’ve talked enough and covered my tracks.
You’ll hear me before you see me. Love you, girl. ”
After hugging Georgia with every ounce of love and care that I had for nature, I scurried to my whip with the weapons that I refused to break down.
Once I slid a duffel bag into the back hatch, backseat, and passenger seat, I skirted from the cemetery with only one place in mind—1452 Biscayne Lyne, Columbus, Georgia.
Slapping my seatbelt over my body, I blew a kiss to my favorite tree.
I dropped the gearshift into reverse. Gently mashing the pedal, I looked in the rearview, waved at the cracked headstones, and said, “I’m gone.
See y’all later. As always, if you were nice to your family, watch over them.
If you weren’t, stay the fuck away from them. ”
Arriving on the paved road, I looked in Georgia’s direction, dropped the gearshift in drive, and grinned. “I’m going to be okay, girl. See you when I get back.”
With nothing left to say, a lot of weight was off my shoulders.
I had enough stolen guns and grenades to have the police questioning me for years.
Skirting into the night with minimal traffic, I felt antsy.
I had to catch myself multiple times from going far over the speed limit.
I didn’t want to stick to the speed limit.
It would take me four hours and nine minutes to reach the city.
Like most drivers, I decided to disrespect the speed limit every now and again.
I estimated my arrival at three hours and fifty minutes, or around that time.
Arriving at the highway’s fork that would lead me to Georgia, I made my speakers sing loud and fucking proud. Getting cozy for the drive, Young Jeezy’s “J.E.E.Z.Y.” blessed my ears, making me rock hard while tapping my fingers against the wheel.
Once on that forked-off highway, I lifted my truck more and slammed my foot on the pedal.
Big motor pussy bitch made me smile when her front end elevated.
I whizzed into the fast lane, not giving a damn about disrespecting the speed limit.
I’d come to learn that state troopers weren’t heavy on the road late at night through the early morning hours. So, I sped.
An hour and ten minutes into my drive, August Senior called.
My heart raced as I wanted to answer. It wasn’t best to hear his voice; he would coach me back home.
Another hour passed, and he, Kingsley, Aleana, Kingdon, Ryan, and King called repeatedly.
Still, I didn’t answer. There wasn’t a way in hell I would turn around. I was too far from my destination.
“He’s going to wear my ass out when I get back.” I sighed heavily, shaking my head.
During the third head shake, I realized I had been obeying the speed limit enough. So, I pressed the hazard button and gave my motor, transmission, and suspension what it hadn’t had in months—the fucking business.
The phone calls stopped, replaced with text messages. When August Junior and Phineas names popped across my radio’s screen, I was itching to answer their calls. I didn’t need them to worry, not that it was okay for the adults to worry. Yet, those two teenagers had my heart in a chokehold.
Sitting upright in the seat, fully in the state of Georgia, August Junior’s number appeared six times on my phone. One ring apiece.
His father isn’t around. Our code.
On the seventh ring, I hurriedly answered, “Yes, Son.”
“Momma, where are you? He’s scared. He thinks you ran off. Did you?” he whispered as his father was losing his mind.
He called me Momma, I thought, with a galloping heart.
My eyes became teary. I had to suck that shit up because I was driving too fast for teary eyes.