West End Girls (23 page)

Unique squirmed in her seat. It was impossible to get comfortable, but nobody was really trying to get too comfortable at that moment, not with Cammie fighting for her life in the operation room. She was busted up pretty bad, but thank goodness for her weight, many of her vital organs had been protected. The doctors were able to avoid having to give her blood. Derrick hadn't left Unique's side throughout this entire ordeal. He was one in a million, she realized now, unlike Curtis, who was the cause of all this, and nowhere to be found.

“How could I have felt that I loved him?” she asked Sinclair, who had not long ago arrived with Malcolm by her side. Malcolm was a good friend. His mother worked at this hospital and had called as soon as they brought Cammie in.

“You didn't know. But more than that, Nique, how did we miss the signs? There had to be signs.”

“I should have seen too. I should have seen the signs,” Unique said, her mouth hanging open at the end of each sentence. She was breaking.

Sinclair could see that and hugged her. “No one could have known.”

“So where is Curtis now?”

“Muthafuck besta be hidin',” Marquis said, growling. He hadn't said or moved much from where he was since arriving with Sinclair and Malcolm.

When Sinclair called to confirm Malcolm's mother's voice mail, Unique told them to stop off in the
W.E.
to get Marquis. Marquis was in the apartment chilling, but as soon as Sinclair gave him the news, he ran into the girls' room. Sinclair assumed he was changing clothes, but when he came out with the same clothes on, she had to figure he had gone in and punched the wall, or maybe it was just out of confusion at the shock. She had no time to wonder that deep about his action. She just wanted to get him to the hospital.

Malcolm then called Finest, who came and gathered everyone up in his big SUV. He dropped them off and went to find parking and had been gone for about twenty minutes. Sinclair was impressed at how much he cared. But it was too late for him to win her over now. She and Malcolm had unfinished business, once this was all behind them.

“Cammie is gonna be all right,” Sinclair said aloud. Her prayerful heart was speaking now, because this nightmare needed God, to get through it.

Everyone joined in with well-wishes. “Yeah, she is.”

Unique looked around at everyone and sighed. Marquis said nothing. He just sat silently, as if contemplating something deeply. She noticed Derrick staring at him. It must have been Marquis' angry face that caught his attention. He moved closer to him.

“Marquis, can I talk to you?” Derrick asked cautiously.

“Fuck nah. You can't talk to me! Can't nobody talk to me. When I wanted to talk about the shit wadn't nobody listening. Now, I don't wanna talk!” he screamed the last part at Unique in an angry tone, his face twisted in pain and hurt.

Unique began to wail again. It was a crazy scene.

Just then the doors opened, and Tanqueray ran in. She was dressed impeccably. Her hair was full and hanging around her shoulders, and her clothes were expensive and perfectly fitted.

“Why you always in an evening gown?” Sinclair asked before she caught herself.

Tanqueray ignored her and ran over to Unique, who was crying hysterically. “Unique!” she yelled. “Where is the baby? Where is she?”

“I'm right here, Aunt Tang.”

Apple slid out of her seat and ran over to Tanqueray, who scooped her in a tight hug.

“I know you the baby, but I was asking about Cammie.”

“Cammie hurt because Curtis was up on her,” Apple said, causing Unique to howl again and shake her head.

Unique looked suddenly as if she was about to jump up and dance like a church lady on Palm Sunday, stomping and calling out to the Lord to take all the pain away. Sinclair held her tighter.

Finest walked in then. “Shug!”

Tanqueray turned around. Her arms dropped, and Apple slid her body down to the floor. Apple thought it was fun apparently and started giggling and wanted to do it again. But Tanqueray, like a zombie almost, moved toward Finest.

“What the hell you doing here?”

“I'm here with my folks!” he yelled, pointing at Malcolm and Sinclair.

Tanqueray's head jerked around catching Sinclair's eyes, which were wider than ever now.

“Who? Malcolm? You better mean Malcolm . . . because that's my sister and I know you don't know my baby sister?”

“Houston, looks like we got ourselves a situation,” Malcolm mumbled.

“And what the hell is it to you if I do? What if she was my girl. You asked if I had one and—”

“Sinclair?” Tanqueray yelled.

Sinclair again just stood there as if guilty, even though she really didn't have anything beyond her thoughts to be guilty for. Her mouth dropped open.

“You fucked Finest? Malcolm asked. “So this wasn't your first time!”

“No! I mean, YES, Malcolm,” Sinclair shouted.

Tanqueray missed it, getting all up in Finest's face. “You fuckin' punk-ass bastard. While you were beggin' for me, you were fuckin' my baby sister?”

“What it's to you, bitch?” Finest said, calling Tanqueray out of her name again. He was swaggering and getting all wild with her. It was clear he was gonna swing on her any minute.

Tanqueray yelled, “You was fucking me and my sister at the same time!”

“He wasn't fucking me!” Sinclair yelled. She looked at Malcolm, whose face was twisted in anger and hurt. He started for the door, but Sinclair grabbed his arm with all her might. “Malcolm, no!”

“Look, y'all need to take this mess outside,” Derrick said, stepping into the mess. “Can't you see Unique is—”

“And who the hell are you?” Finest asked, giving Derrick plenty of his angry heat, bumping his chest like the crazy fool he was turning into.

“He's Mama's boyfriend,” Gina answered, watching the drama as if watching TV.

“You're the pervert that was messing with her daughter? Why the hell are you here? You need to die.” Finest reached inside his jacket, as if to draw a weapon.

“You crazy ass, this isn't Curtis.” Tanqueray jerked her neck and pushed Finest hard. “You don't know nobody!”

“I'm Derrick,” Derrick said, standing tall to Finest, unflinching. “I'm Unique's friend. I was with her when Cammie was hit by the car.”

“Cammie,” Tanqueray gasped, taking her attention off the two men and turning it on Unique.

Malcolm pulled from Sinclair and headed out the door of the ER. Sinclair started after him, but Finest grabbed her arm.

“Let her go,” Derrick told him.

“No,” Finest answered.

Unique had stood and was pacing now. Tanqueray joined her. “Talk to me, Unique,” she said.

“I can't talk about it.” Unique glanced over at Marquis, who again turned his face away from hers.

“How long you been messing with my sister?” Sinclair asked Finest.

Finest looked over her head, ignoring her.

She jerked her arm free. “I asked you—”

“Why the fuck do you care? You need to go after Malcolm. Tell him the truth.” Finest glanced over at Tanqueray comforting her sister. “Tell him I lied.” Finest attempted to move past Derrick to where Tanqueray and Unique were standing and gathering Unique's things. They looked like they might be getting ready to get in the elevator, and he wanted to stop Tanqueray to get some understanding over the situation they was in right now.

Derrick too had gone over to help gather Gina and Apple.

Sinclair grabbed Finest's arm. “You're a dog, Finest. You hurt Malcolm for no reason. He's not your punk, he's a man. He's my man.” Sinclair turned to head out the door but turned back quickly. “And don't be calling my sister no bitch. I almost shot a man who called my sister a bitch!”

“You ain't gon' do nothing. Get outta my face.” Finest was sounding very smug now. “Shug!”

Sinclair grabbed him. “Her name is Tanqueray. You don't know nobody!”

“Bitch, look, I don't have time for your little-girl shit.”

Malcolm, who had just walked back in, asked Finest, “What you call her?” His eyes were red, but he looked altogether the man he was.

“Man, sit the hell down. You ain't got the balls to front on me like this. You didn't even know your girl was up to tryin' to get up on a nigga.”

Sinclair's heart sank for a moment as Malcolm appeared to turn away from him. Again he believed the lie. But her heart skipped a beat when he turned back and hit Finest hard, knocking him out cold.

“Whoa, shit!” Derrick exclaimed, noticing the new commotion.

“What the hell you do that for?” Tanqueray screamed, rushing back over to the mess.

“Because he's a real man!” Sinclair yelped.

“Real man? He's a fuckin' idiot!” Tanqueray pushed Sinclair hard and dropped to Finest's side.

The security guards rushed in to check out the uproar. They were so involved with reviving Finest, calming Tanqueray, listening to Sinclair, and cuffing Malcolm, they didn't notice the door open and a tall, slender, fair-skinned black man walked in. A young boy named Marquis pulled out the .45 that belonged to a pimp named Omar Samson.

The fair-skinned man had called out to Unique and Derrick right as they entered the elevator. They missed that too, but they definitely heard the boy yell out, “Dieeeee, muthafuckaaaaa!”

Marquis fired again and again, killing the tall, slender man later identified as Curtis Brown instantly before security guards shot him twice. He dropped dead next to his victim.

Sinclair's heart fell from her chest, and Tanqueray dropped to her knees in despair. No one present could wrap their mind around what had just happened, or accept what they'd just seen, but this kind of tragedy normally happened in their hood, the West End. It had just never happened to them . . . not until tonight.

Urban Books, LLC
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West End Girls Copyright © 2009 Lena Scott

 

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior consent of the Publisher, except brief quotes used in reviews.

ISBN: 978-1-6016-2584-7

 

 

 

This is a work of fiction. Any references or similarities to actual events, real people, living or dead, or to real locales are intended to give the novel a sense of reality. Any similarity in other names, characters, places, and incidents is entirely coincidental.

 

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