In Her Mind (Mountain High Valley Low ) (7 page)

Brian came storming into the house pissed off but refused to talk to me about what had upset him. When I asked him about the baby, he spat the word “fine” at me, never breaking his quick stride, never making eye contact. Part of me wanted to curse his ass out for snapping at me as if I was the cause of his nasty attitude. The other side of me knew to give him space and work on getting my answers later. He needed to calm down and I would approach the subject again. If I was going to trust that we were going to work out, then I needed to know what was going on.

With my feet up on the couch, I started to read my book, Silent Fear, by a new author on the scene, Renee Jones-Brown. Just as I was getting to a really good part, Brian came storming out of our bedroom, creating gusts of wind as he marched in haste.

“I can’t believe this shit!” he yelled as he paced hard across the floor. I watched in silence, my head following him to and fro like I was watching a tennis match. “This…girl is unbelievable.” I knew he was about to call her a bitch and had stopped himself. Thinking it was one thing, but actually saying it was out of character for Brian.

“Who are you talking about?” I asked, even though I knew he was referring to Shelly. I wanted a piece of her really badly. All I needed was one good reason.

The veins near Brian’s temple created several speed bumps across his forehead and they pressed against his smooth, dark skin. Brian tightened his fists and grunted, then threw his hands in the air.

“Brian,” I said calmly, and he looked my way. He was staring directly at me, but there was no presence in his eyes. The eerie emptiness caused chills to creep along my spine. “Have a seat and talk to me,” I continued softly.

Brian approached the couch but stopped just before turning to sit. His facial expression turned from anger to defeat and my heart stopped beating momentarily.

“What is it, Brian?” I asked. He wore his vulnerability plainly on his face.
Brian dropped his shoulders with a sigh then sat with his elbows on his knees, holding his head. I gently placed my hand on his back and rubbed small circles, hoping he understood that, despite our trials, I was still there for him. After a few more sighs, he finally began to explain.
“I just got a call on my cell phone from the precinct.”
“For what?” I yelled. My brows knitted and my heart rate went from zero to sixty in less than two seconds. I hoped Brian hadn’t kicked Shelly’s yellow behind earlier. Brian was not abusive but Shelly’s antics had the ability to make the most composed person act like a pure fool.
“Shelly went down to the precinct and told the cops that I assaulted her. A detective by the name of Raul Johnson called and asked me to come down to the station so he could speak with me and hear my side of the story.”
“Brian, you didn’t—did you?”
“Lexie!” Brian called my name as if he was scolding me. “How could you even ask something like that? I didn’t assault her. She assaulted me!”
“What?! Why?” This was getting crazy.
“After I got Brice’s fever under control, I got ready to leave. Shelly wanted to talk about how we could work things out. I told her that I would always be there for the baby but there was no chance of us being anything more than just BJ’s parents. She didn’t like what I said. We exchanged more words until she just flipped out and started punching me. I grabbed her by the wrists to keep her from punching me, but she kept trying to pull her arms from my grip. After that, I left. I guess she had some kind of mark on her because the detective said that she was bruised.” I sat there looking at Brian in disbelief. “I didn’t hurt that girl. If anything, I was trying to make sure she didn’t hurt me.”
“I can’t believe this. So are you going down to the precinct now?’’
“I have to. If I don’t, they will come and arrest me.”
“So how do you know they won’t arrest you when you get there anyway?”
“I don’t, but that’s a chance I have to take,” Brian said as he began to lift himself from the couch before heading to the bedroom.
I felt so bad for him and tried to think of what I could do to help. My mind kept coming up with a very vivid image of me trying to choke the life out of Shelly, but I knew that wouldn’t help the situation, particularly now. I could just see the headlines— Love Triangle: Mad Fiancée Beats the Life Out of the Ex!
“Well, I’m going with you!” I announced, then got my purse and met him at the door before he could protest.
On the way to the precinct, I called Brooke to tell her the news. I could tell by the sound of her voice that I had awakened her and scared her half to death. I knew I sounded desperate as I struggled to hold back my tears.
“Lex, calm down! Tell me exactly what happened.” Brooke’s voice was filled with concern.
After a few deep breaths, I managed to calm myself some and explained everything to Brooke. Finally, we added Ava into the conversation, who called my Mom to discuss what was going on. Mom reminded me that my absentee godfather, Frederick Gerald, was an attorney. She called him and he offered to meet me down at the precinct. When I got down to the stale-smelling station with the old dingy tin desks, Freddie was already waiting for me. I had never been happier to see him in my life. My godfather was a tall, caramel-colored man who looked a lot like Jessie Jackson. As a child I saw him all the time because he and his wife were good friends of my parents. However, they moved to a fancier neighborhood, and his wife acted as though she was too good to hang with my parents anymore.
Freddie greeted me with a warm embrace and a peck on my cheek then greeted Brian with a firm handshake.
“Look how you have grown. It’s been so long since I’ve seen you. Delia told me to tell you hello. She’d love to see you.”
“That would be nice,” was the only polite response I could think of. The last thing I was concerned about was how much he thought I’d grown since the last time he’d seen me, and I could care less about his snooty wife’s far-off greeting.
“What’s going to happen to him, Freddie?”
“Well, I’ve already spoken to the detective.” Then he gestured at Brian. “It appears that his son’s mother claimed that he assaulted her because she told him she didn’t want to be bothered with him.
“Lies! All lies! I can’t believe she’s doing this,” I blurted. Several people in the precinct stopped what they were doing and looked over at us. Freddie placed his hands on my shoulder to calm me down.
“Honey, things like this happen all the time,” Freddie said. The cops are used to these types of domestic disputes. There are reports filed against exes and cheating boyfriends every single day. As soon as some woman finds out that the man they want is seeing someone else, they come running to the police, crying wolf in an attempt to get back at them because they were rejected.
“So are they going to put him in jail?” I asked, focusing on Freddie’s lips as I awaited his answer.
“To be quite frank, yes. He will be processed and put through the system, and he’ll have to see a judge. They will determine if he gets to go home or if bail is set. If he has no other offenses then he will most likely be released on his own recognizance. I know most of these judges and since he has no priors, I doubt they will keep him. As for right now, all we can do is wait until he goes before the judge.”
“Freddie, thank you so much for helping us out with this.”
“No problem at all, honey. Anything for you, dear! Now let me see who I can talk to so we can get this to move a little faster. Come on, Brian. Let’s go handle this.”
My eyes met Brian’s. I grabbed his face and kissed him hard before dropping my head. Brian lifted my chin and stared into my eyes once again. The emptiness was gone and had been replaced with reassurance. Brian kissed the tears that began to run down my cheeks and I held on to him for dear life.
“I’ll be right here!” I assured him and swatted at my tears.
Solemnly, Brian and Freddie went to meet with Detective Johnson. I searched for a nearby chair and prayed that my weak knees would carry me to it. Not too long after they went inside, Freddie returned to let me know that Brian had been officially arrested and was in the process of being put through the system.
“Go home and get some sleep. I’ll call you in the morning and let you know what to expect,” Freddie said.
“But I…when will he get to come home?” I stammered.
“Hopefully, he’ll be home sometime tomorrow afternoon as long as the judge sees fit to let him go. Brian’s got a clean record so I don’t see that being a problem,” Freddie tried to reassure me.
The only thing that would have been reassuring to me would have been to see Brian walk back out those doors. But that wasn’t happening. I left the station and rode home in overwhelming silence, no music or anything. We had three and a half weeks left before our wedding day and I wondered what more could happen. Suddenly an even more fearful thought entered my mind—I wondered if Brian would be able to leave town after our wedding.

“That wasn’t a good move at all, Shelly,” the caller scolded.
Shut up! Shut up! I kept thinking it but really wanted to say it instead. Again, this person was giving me the goods and I had to remember to keep some kind of balance when communicating with her, even though the last thing I needed from her was a reprimand.
“Well, he made me mad,” was all I could say to justify my actions.
“You have got to be kidding me. You are not going to get anywhere by getting him arrested. In fact, he probably doesn’t want anything to do with you now, regardless of whether or not you have BJ. You’ve messed up big time and I strongly suggest you find a way to make this up to him. Not to mention you are targeting the wrong person,” she said, almost as an afterthought.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked. The woman had really piqued my curiosity.
“You are doing things to him to make him upset. That’s not going to get him to come back to you. It’s only going to push him further away. Your energies should be focused on her. Lexie’s got him smitten. I’ve never seen him so, quote-unquote, in love,” she said with heavy emphasis on the words in and love. “She’s your problem, not him. As long as she’s around, you don’t stand a chance.”
I felt like a light clicked on in my head. She was right. I was going about this the wrong way. I needed to get that damn Lexie out of the picture, and fast. I couldn’t seem to penetrate him because of his so-called devotion to her. It was like he was always trying to protect her, and for what? What did she have that I didn’t? She didn’t look any better than me. I’m sure she couldn’t be as good in bed as I am. I know I’ve got what it takes to keep a man satisfied. Brandon is proof of that. BJ’s not even his and he has cared for him as if he were his biological father since the day he was born. The man will do anything I ask, no matter how crazy. I know because I’ve put him to the test a number of times and he’s never failed to bend over backwards to accommodate my desires. If only Brian would try to please me the way Brandon does. I needed a game plan because Lexie had to be removed from the picture fast. I’ve always gotten what I wanted, and Brian would be no different.
“Hello! I’m still here!” she yelled into the phone, piercing my thoughts. “Now what are you thinking about doing? The wedding is a mere three weeks away. Whatever you decide, you need to act fast. Once they walk down that aisle, your job becomes that much harder.”
“I know that. I just have to work a few things out. But rest assured I’ll get what I want. I always do.”
“Great! Now when do I get my money? Don’t act like you forgot our arrangement. This information does not come free. And from the looks of it, you’re going to need me even more.”
Bitch!
“It will be in your account by tomorrow afternoon,” I assured her with a smile in my voice.
My phone started beeping for the umpteenth time. I’d been ignoring all the incoming calls while speaking to my informant. I looked at the display and Brandon’s name flashed across the screen. Days had passed since I last spoke to him and promised to come home and talk. He wasn’t my priority at the time, Brian was. “Missed call” flashed across the screen and I tossed the phone onto the couch. Still hot from my previous conversation, my cell phone began to ring again, dancing across the seat of the couch as it rang and vibrated simultaneously. Once again the display read “Brandon.” With force, I flipped the phone open and huffed.
“Yes!” I said, stretching the word to demonstrate my aggravation.
“Open the door, Shelly,” Brandon said in a dry tone.
Open the door? I had to repeat it in my head. I never told Brandon where I was staying. How did he know? I stood for a few seconds contemplating whether or not to actually let him in.
“Come on, Shelly. I know you are in there. I can hear you,” Brandon said.
I flipped the phone closed, cutting him off, and strolled to the door. Holding on to the knob, I counted backwards from ten before pulling the door open. Mr. Half-White, Half-Black Brandon was standing there glaring at me, looking pitiful and pissed. I challenged his glare with my hands on my hips in a real sassy-girl fashion.
“We seriously need to talk,” Brandon said as he pushed past me and entered my apartment. He looked around incredulously and turned to me, confusion registered across his pale face. “You kept this place the entire time. I thought you told me you sold it.” I sucked my teeth and he came close to me. “You knew you were going to leave me, didn’t you?” Realization now registered on his face.
“You had to know that it wouldn’t last,” I said, brushing his inquiry off with a wave of my hand.
“Where’s Brice?” he asked.
“Sleeping,” I said as I sauntered back to the couch and turned on the TV with the remote. After flipping the channels for effect, I dropped the remote to the side and pretended to watch whatever was on the tube. Brandon sat next to me.
“You knew all along,” he said with that same look of recognition.
“Brandon!” I sighed. “How could you not know? It’s not like we were dating that long before we got married. We were off and on for how long? There was never a real commitment. It was pretty much what some would call an arrangement.” Brandon cringed at hearing the word arrangement. “And I’ve grown tired of the farce we were living.”
“Farce? Shelly, I care about you and Brice. How could you call this a farce?”
“You care about me. See how you said that. You didn’t say you loved me. There is a difference,” I tried to point out. “I want what I want, and it’s not for someone to care about me. I want to be with someone I love and desire, not have something where all we do is care about each other, then stick around because it looks good to people.”
“Shelly, I do love you. I wouldn’t be here hunting you down if I didn’t.”
“No, what you love is what being married to me has done for you. Being associated this closely with my father has many rewards. I’m sure that, at this point in your career, you’ve proved yourself enough to continue to prosper on your own. You don’t need me anymore,” I said.
“That may have been what this was in the beginning, but Shelly, I loved having you in my corner. I love you. Really, I do. For me it was always more than a union that made sense and I want you to come back home with me.”
“I can’t,” I said.
“Why?” Brandon said and exhaled loudly. “What’s the problem? Whatever it is, we can work it out.” Brandon pleaded with his words and his eyes.
“Because I’ve gotten back together with Brice’s real father.”