Personal Possessions (5 page)

He looked up at me, his
face was the deepest shade of red I think I had ever seen, he was
sweating and his breaths were rapid. He threw the hammer down and
walked to the cooler to grab a beer.

“You think she’s gonna
stay with you, Trev? I mean, come on brutha. You’re gonna be a five
hour drive away, she’s livin’ off campus- with Rachel, no less, and
aint had ass in months. Those horny bastards are gonna be throwin
their cock at her left and right, cuz ya gotta admit, she aint
fugly, Trev.”

I couldn’t take hearing
this shit anymore. The more I heard, the more I wanted to punch his
fuckin teeth out.

“
Shut the fuck up, Bear!
Don’t say another word about that shit. “

“Just stat-“

“You’re not statin’
anything but fuckin’ shit. Don’t say another word about
it.”

I was pissed off. Brother
or not, I was ready to throw down. I heard him mumble, “Truth
hurts, don’t it,” but I chose not to act on it. Something was up
with Bear. I didn’t know what, and I knew I didn’t want to find out
because all I could see it leading to was one of us on the ground
with one of our knees to the other’s throat.

I woke up in a sweat,
gasping for air. I couldn’t take anymore. I grabbed the chain that
was around my neck, twisting the ring around. The ring that I had
given her. Her ring settled nicely on my chest. This was probably
not helping, but I couldn’t find the strength to take it off, this
was how I was still connected to her, and this was what kept me
alive.

I had to make a decision.
This was the only way I was going to get rid of these fucking
memories, nightmares- whatever you wanted to call them. All I knew
was I had to do something, and I knew where I was going to
start.

Running inside, I grabbed
my cell phone. Looking at the screen, trying to find some reason
not to do what was in my head, but nothing came to mind. I pressed
the button, and waited for it to ring. It was now or never, this
was going to end in one of two ways. I could stay how I was,
lifeless and empty inside. Having shit to show for all the money I
had made, and keep up my daily routine of binge drinking and
nameless sex.

Or I could readjust my
sac, be a man, and fight for what I wanted. I’d be rid of these
visions and thoughts, and make them a reality with hopes and
dreams. Be reborn with everything that I had always wanted, and
needed more than life itself.
Her
in my life.

It wasn’t going to be
easy, she belonged to another man, a man who had planned all along
to take her away from me. I don’t know why, or even when he had the
time to plan it all, but he did. He accomplished what he had set
out to do. He thought he was smart, he thought he had won, but I
hadn’t shown my hand of cards yet. It was going to take some
planning. Hard up, serious fuckin’ planning, and while I might have
rejoined the game a bit late, I knew right where to
start.

I heard the voice on the
other end…

“
Yes, Operator. I need the
number for a Rachel Locke in Richland Georgia.”

“Come on, Greg. We can’t
say no to this.”

I sat at my desk as Greg
paced in front of me.

“This is a good
investment. Trust me on this one, will ya?”

I had gotten news that a
company I had been waiting for, for a very long time was on the
chopping block, even though the owner and CEO wasn’t wanting to
sell. Unfortunately for him, there was no way he could avoid it. He
was in way over his head, and there was no way in hell he could
save himself now.

“Trevor, you know me, man.
I’m up for whatever risk we have to take to make the deal, but I
don’t know about this one.”

Greg replied as he chewed
on the top of his finger, I’m surprised he hadn’t drawn blood. I
had never just sprung a deal on him. I always let him have full
disclosure- specs, financial info. I would never be ok with him
just throwing shit at me like I was doing to him right now, but we
couldn’t pass this opportunity up. I wouldn’t allow it.

I turned my chair to the
side, looking out into the skyline. We had upgraded our office
space. Mac-Gentry was now a million dollar company, located on the
twenty-third floor of the Lincoln complex in downtown
Boston.

It had been months since I
had traveled to California. I had gotten a hold of Rachel, and she
was thrilled that I had called. I still didn’t want anyone knowing
that I was calling, so I asked her not to say a word. I had
discreetly asked questions that gave me information, but not too in
depth to make her notice I was digging for information. We have
maintained contact since, but she had still not clued-in on my
plan.

I asked how she had been,
and she had told me that she had gotten married. I congratulated
them both, wishing them my best. I was truly happy for her, but it
was hard to tell since my voice didn’t hold emotions
anymore.

Being wary to give her any
information on me, I answered with a slight of hand. I would answer
truthfully, but not give her any details. Seeing as this was my
hand I was building, and as with anything else, I wanted to hold
the power here. I also didn’t want someone to see me coming and
going out of town, and her have to answer questions that she
wouldn’t have the answers to.

As she filled me in on my
mom, it hurt me to the bone to know that my momma was suffering
from not knowing anything about me. I could fix that later, but for
now I couldn’t let her know where I was, or what I was doing. I had
plans to organize, and I was not going to let anyone ruin this for
me.

The night that everything
went down, Bear ended up taking everything from me. My girl, my
scholarship, my future, my life. But here I am, working my way back
up to get back everything I ever wanted. I was slowly going to not
only get back my possessions, I was gonna take down whoever got in
my way.

“Have I ever pulled you in
the wrong direction, man?” I asked Greg.

He stopped pacing, and
looked at me, “Marietta…right…”

I looked at him. “Yeah,
Marietta,” I confirmed.

“You doin’ this for you,
or for her?” He asked under his breath, but I heard him.

“What the fuck do you
think?” I asked in a defensive tone, “I don’t do shit for anyone
anymore other than myself.”.

I didn’t like where this
conversation was headed, because I wasn’t ready to admit any of
this ridiculous plot out loud yet. Once I did that, this whole
cluster-fuck would become reality.

Shaking his head in
defeat, “Shit. Trevor… man, I think you’re doing it for
her.”

I was kinda shocked with
his answer, but not really. I wasn’t doing shit for her, I was
doing it for me, goddammit. I had a feeling that this would end up
being a waste of my time, since she made her choice thirteen years
ago, in a driveway not even three steps away from me.

I would get there and find
out that there was nothing for me to do other than get on with my
life, the way she had done. Then attempt to find some other way to
close that chapter of my life. I at least had to try this, nothing
else was working, and I had tried everything I could think of, I
was fucking desperate.

“
You know you’re
eventually gonna have to say her name again, right?” Greg looked at
me hesitantly.

He was well aware that
this subject was a topic that very few would travel, and be left in
one piece. He would be the only one that I would allow down this
road. I didn’t say a word, just continued staring him
down.

That would be all the
conversation we would have on this subject.

I saw Greg’s eyes come
back in my direction.

“
So, how are you so sure
this,” He waved a hand towards the file that sat on the top of my
desk to see the name of the company, “This MG and M Industries, is
a doable project for us?”

I turned my chair back
around to face the wall of windows. Setting the tips of my fingers
together, and touching them to my lips contemplating how to go
about this, and get him to agree.

“
Do you know what MG and M
stands for in the company name?” I asked as I turned back around,
just in time to see him pull his brows together, and purse his
lips.

“Dude, I just had to look
at the name of the company from the file on your desk, fuck no, I
don’t know what it stands for.

“Well, see, I just happen
to know what it stands for. It stands for Marshall, Graham and-
McHale.”

I knew that in my life,
there were two fucked up occurrences that made me the man I had
become. First, being that bastard I had the unfortunate pleasure of
claiming as my father. The other being…put on the back burner for
now.

My father loved his work
and his money more than he loved his own son. A father that was
getting ready to be shown that payback is not only a bitch, it
could be a parasite too, attaching itself to you, sucking you dry
of everything essential to your very own existence. That was what I
was planning to do to him. Confiscating what he needed to make him
the man that he had become. It would now be all mine.

I have wanted to take my
father’s company from the moment I found out he took some of that
dirty money he had, and went into a “legitimate” business for
himself. Mind you, I truly didn’t believe it was all that
legitimate either. I knew it would only be a matter of time till he
would piss away not only what money he had, but what his partners
would’ve put into the business too. My father was a selfish enough
bastard to scam everyone.

I knew my part in this
takedown was going to be so fuckin’ simple, I didn’t even have to
do anything, but wait. I’d kept my ear to the ground, and waited
for word that he had fucked up another good opportunity. And that
was exactly what happened. As soon as I got the call, I made my
offer, and it was more than they were asking, so there was no way
they would turn it down. His partners, wanted their money back, and
to get out of business with their piece of shit
associate.

Greg’s face looked as if
it had seen a ghost. His color went white, his mouth dropped open,
and his eyes were as big as saucers.

“I know this company,
Greg. I know it well… because it’s my father’s company.”

“Oh shit!” Greg
replied.

Chapter 4

Driving through Atlanta
felt strange. I hadn’t been back here in thirteen years. I felt
good about returning this time, this was just the beginning of
taking back what was mine. I had a specific list that consisted of
very delicate property, which would be making its way back into my
possession.

“Personal possessions are
naturally the most significant assets to any single human
being.”

I had looked forward to
this day all my life. Purchasing my father’s company was an
aspiration I longed for and now, here it was. In an hour and a
half, he would have no choice but to view the pure disgust, drive
and determination that glared through my eyes at him from across
the table.

He thought he was smart,
but I followed his attainments. I knew that once I left, he got
tired of my mom and moved into a house in Marietta putting all
financial holdings into a company that at the time had been a
lucrative business. He would end up pissing away his earnings by
gambling, or throwing it away on cheap women and expensive
booze.

Driving in from Atlanta
airport, I passed the exit on the interstate that led to Richland,
I wasn’t about to step foot in that town, I didn’t need any of that
drama. I was here on a mission and I knew that, right now I was in
destroy-mode and needed to stay that way. I did not need any
distractions at this point in time, and considering the biggest
distraction in my life lived there, there was no way in hell I was
heading that way today.

The ringing of my cell
phone caught my attention, making me look at the caller ID.
Greg.

“Are you sure you don’t
want me to fly down there and sit in on the meet with ya?” Greg
asked.

I don’t think he was
really concerned about the meeting, I think he was more concerned
about the whereabouts afterwards.

“I’m good,” I confidently
replied.

I could hear the laughter
in his voice. “I can see you’re ready to fuck some shit up,” Greg
stated.

He always called me the
’Dominating Destroyer’ when it came to business. I was there to
take everything from people, and leave a cloud of dust behind
me.

“I’ve been ready.”
determination ringing through my voice, as I kept my eyes on the
road, my face stern, as it had been for fourteen years. I didn’t
smile anymore, I was numb after all the shit I’d been through. I
was a machine now, out to take what I wanted, and move on to the
next deal, the next paycheck, the next female.

“Look, when you get back,”
he hesitated a moment, “We need to talk.”

This intrigued me,
something must’ve been going on.

“Oh?” I said as I turned
off of the interstate.

“Nothing bad, just been
thinking about some things, and I think it’s time we sat down and
had a chat.”