Bad Blood (17 page)

Chapter 32

Seth

I
T WAS BECAUSE OF
R
ACHEL THAT
I
HAD BECOME A CHANGED MAN
, and everybody could see that. Some of the same people who had lost faith in me were now helping me make improvements in my life, some with apprehension, though. A couple of weeks ago, the only time in
years
that my stingy, smug brother Damon had loaned me money, he'd made me sign a promissory note! I'd been flabbergasted, but I'd signed it, anyway. When I didn't repay the loan when I'd said I would, he'd threatened to take me to
The People's Court
. I had had to scramble around to borrow the money from several of my friends. Then they had all hounded me until I'd paid them back.

My parents had reluctantly loaned me money a couple of times in the past few months, and then they'd stayed on my case until I'd paid them back. That well dried up real fast. Last week they turned me down when I asked for another loan, even though I offered to pay them back with interest.

“We've already spent thousands of dollars on your behalf, son. It's time for you to be more self-sufficient, and you'll never get to that point as long as somebody keeps coming to your rescue,” Mother told me.

I sulked, even though I knew they were right. They had fed and clothed me, and they had put spending money in my pocket long enough. And even though I had a job, they had allowed me to live at home rent free for years.

I was on my own now, and even with Rachel's financial assistance, I was still struggling. The main reason I was struggling so hard was that my son's mother was so greedy and extravagant. I continued to send her as much money as I could to keep her off my back. But I also had some pretty expensive tastes of my own. I liked fine wine, expensive clothes, and regular excursions to the casinos.

I wished that Rachel had
never
told me about the generous paychecks she brought home every other week, not to mention the numerous high-limit credit cards she had but rarely used. The minute she revealed that information to me, and knowing how sweet she was, I immediately heard the
ka-ching
of a cash register. Now I had somebody else I could borrow money from! I didn't want to get too greedy with her too soon. She was already doing more for me than anybody else. So I still got what I could from other sources.

Josh was one of the most intelligent and sensible men I knew. But my brother was quite soft and gullible when it came to me. He had always been my ace in the hole. However, I didn't like to fall back on him unless I really had to. He owned a town house a few miles from our parents' house, but I didn't like to go there often. For one thing, his wife, Faith, and I didn't really get along that well. A few years ago, I had briefly dated one of her cousins. When I broke up with her, she and Faith joined forces and trashed me for weeks to their whole family. That was the reason I went to Josh's posh office on University Avenue this particular Thursday afternoon.

“What do you need the money for this time?” he asked, adjusting his red tie and brushing off the sleeve of his expensive navy blue suit jacket. He must have owned more suits than Armani. I couldn't remember the last time I'd seen him wear the same suit more than once. He had already pulled out his checkbook.

“Uh, Caroline called me up and told me that Darnell needs some dental work done,” I lied. Well, that was only half a lie. I did need to help Caroline pay for Darnell's dental work, but I also had some gambling debts that I needed to pay off. As generous and sympathetic as Josh was in my case, he probably would have given me the money no matter what I told him it was for. But I didn't want to take that chance. And I didn't want him to know just how frivolous and irresponsible I still was.

“I have to say that I am proud of you, baby bro. You've really stepped up to the plate with your son. It's a damn shame Caroline won't let us see more of Darnell. I would like for my daughter to get to know him someday.”

“I'm working on that, Josh.”

“Well, you keep working on that and your goals.” Not only did Josh give me the grand I'd asked for, but he also threw in an extra five hundred, which I didn't have to pay back. “As long as you are trying to do something with your life now, I will help you,” he told me, looking me straight in the eye, like he was trying to see through me. His penetrating gaze didn't bother me, because I was used to it. “Now we need to do something about that half-assed job of yours at that damn cannery! I know you don't have much of an education, but I know you can do a lot better than that. You need a job with a better salary, medical benefits, profit sharing, and all the other benefits!”

I hated it when Josh talked to me like I was still a child. But it was a small price to pay to keep him happy enough so he'd continue to help me out. “I've been going on interviews. I expect a callback from Charles Schwab any day. I really am looking for a better job,” I said in the most humble tone of voice I could manage.

“You need to look harder. My goodness. It was bad enough you dropped out of high school and had to get a GED, and then you fiddled around in a community college.”

“I had planned to take advantage of some military opportunities—”

Josh threw up his hands and gave me an incredulous look. “Boy, puh-leeze! You told me about that, but you never followed through on it.”

“I did talk to a recruiter, but the military didn't want me, because I have flat feet,” I whined.

“You'd better trot those flat feet to a few employment agencies and get your act together. There are decent jobs out there if you know where to look. Immigrants come here from all over the world and get jobs left and right. Americans have every advantage in the world.”

“I know that.” I didn't expect Charles Schwab to call me back for a job in their mail room, nor did I expect to hear from any of the other places I'd sent my résumé to. I didn't really care if they did or not. I had big plans, and each day I got a little closer to fulfilling my dreams. “Josh, as you know, my goal is to have my own advertising business. I think it'd make more sense for me to stay with the cannery until then. Besides, why should I waste my time learning a new job at another place when I'd have to leave as soon as I get my business off the ground?”

“If you change your mind and want me to put in a word for you with some of my contacts so you can get the hell up out of that cannery, just let me know. And, you can pay back the loan whenever you can. . . .”

 

Rachel was like a mother to me in so many ways. She pampered me to death, and I enjoyed every minute of it. She was spoiling me even more than I already was. After the long, lingering baths I took, she cleaned out the bathtub. After my baths, she liked to give me back rubs and foot massages. Last Saturday, while she cleaned up the mess in the living room that a couple of my buddies and I had made the night before, she allowed me to sleep in. Then she served me breakfast in bed.

“Baby, if you don't watch yourself, you're going to make me marry you,” I teased that morning, as I enjoyed the cheese grits, grilled ham, toast, and poached eggs she had just set in front of me on a platter.

She smiled. “Is that a proposal?” she asked with a shy look on her lovely face. Even without make-up, and with her long black hair in two braids, this girl looked like a film star to me.

I sat up straight and gave her a serious look. “It could be. But first I'd have to get myself in better shape so I can be a good provider. I want to be in a position where I can take care of a wife and the children I hope to have.”

“I want to be a good wife and mother. But taking care of a family is a lot of hard work. And one thing I want you to know right now is that I don't expect the man I marry to carry the load by himself.”

“I thought today's women wanted to live the easy life and let their husbands take care of them.”

“I do. But I want to be a partner to my man, not a liability. My husband and I will take care of each other. I want my man to know up front that I am not going to be totally dependent on him. I have a good job, and I'm going to move up even more. I love working, and I plan to do so until I'm old enough to retire.”

Like I said, Rachel was spoiling me. I didn't want to marry the kind of woman that my brothers and some of my friends had married. I was pleased to hear that she was so eager to pull her load. I was convinced that she was a superwoman in her own right. She could work full-time, maintain her looks and shape, keep me happy in the bedroom, and raise our children as well as Mother had raised my brothers and me. The idea of marrying her was getting sweeter and sweeter. . . .

“Baby, let's take things slowly,” I advised. From the smile on her face, I could tell that she was in agreement with me. What more could I ask for in a woman? This one was
perfect
for a man like me. . . .

Chapter 33

Seth

I
KNEW THAT THINGS WERE GOING TOO WELL FOR ME
. J
UST WHEN
I thought I had my life on track and the only direction I could go was up, my son's mother started giving me hell
again.
That brought me back down several notches. I loved my son, but I regretted the day I'd laid eyes on his mother. Caroline was now even more disgusting and mean-spirited than before. At least back in the day, she'd had a nice body and a cute face, but her hard living ways and four more babies had taken a toll on her. The last time I saw her, she looked ten years older than she really was, and her body was sagging in every direction. I was surprised that she was still able to attract men.

“Nigger, how come you don't return my calls?” Caroline shrieked as soon as I answered the phone. Her voice was so loud, I could have set the telephone down and still heard her from across the room. I was glad Rachel was at the market, picking up some steaks for our dinner.

It was the day after the Fourth of July. Rachel and I had been together almost two years. We had just returned a few hours ago from a romantic holiday in Reno.

“I didn't know you'd called,” I snarled. I unbuttoned my shirt, kicked off my shoes, and got comfortable on the couch. But I couldn't sit still. I kept crossing and uncrossing my legs and wiping sweat off my face and glancing toward the door, praying that Rachel wouldn't get back before I got Caroline off the phone. “And I don't appreciate you calling me names, God damn it!”

I didn't like to sound mean, but whenever I talked to Caroline these days, she provoked me to do so. Despite the fact that she was such a thorn in my side, she was still my child's mother, and that meant a lot to me, so I decided to soften my demeanor. “I'm sorry I missed your calls, but I went out of town, and I forgot to take my cell phone with me,” I explained, speaking in such a gentle tone of voice now, you would have thought I was talking to a child.

“Uh-huh! I heard about your happy ass and how you been gallivanting all over the place with your new whore—”

“Don't call her that! You don't even know the woman,” I interrupted.

“I don't need to know her to know that if she's involved with a dick-headed motherfucker like you, she has to be a straight-up whore. Fucking was all you ever cared about when I was with you, and I know you ain't changed.”

“I have news for you. Rachel is not a whore. As a matter of fact, she's worth about five of you. How is my son?”

“
My
son is just fine, as if you care.”

“Caroline, you know I care about Darnell.”

“Yeah, right.”

I shuddered when I imagined some of the nasty things Caroline had probably told Darnell about me and some of the reasons she'd given him for why I didn't see him that often. I kept attempting to see him more, anyway. I called her place on a regular basis, and she would almost always tell me he was “out with his friends.” Or she'd say, “He's busy. Call back later.” One week I called ten different times and didn't get to talk to him. Finally, when I called on a Saturday morning and he answered the telephone, he cried, as he was so happy and surprised to hear from me. I didn't even bother to tell him how hard I had been trying. One thing I was not going to do was trash his mother. I was sure that he knew what kind of woman she really was by the company she kept and the things she did and said. Every man she got involved with was into some shady activity, and I had heard that from members of her own family who still lived in the Bay Area. One thing was for sure, as soon as I got myself into a comfortable position, I was going to do all I could to get custody of my son.

“What's wrong? Is Darnell in trouble at school again?”

“Is that all you think about? Do you ever
not
think that the boy is acting a fool in school?”

I hated talking to this woman. No matter what the subject was, we would always say something to piss one another off. “You call only when there is a problem with him or when you want more money. Is he all right?”

“He ain't dead, so I guess he's doing all right. I am, too, in case you care.” Caroline snorted and coughed to clear her throat. “I called because I need to send him to you for a couple of weeks.”

“You what? All this time, my trying to get you to let me see him more has been like pulling teeth. Now you want to let me have him for a whole two weeks?”

“I'm going on a cruise, and I don't have nobody else to leave him with. My other kids will be staying with their daddies,” she hissed. “Letting Darnell stay with you is the least you can do since you too busy to come down here to see him, like you should.”

“Caroline, the last time I came down there, you didn't answer your fucking door or your phone. The time before that, when I got there after driving for six hours straight in the rain, you told me Darnell had gone camping with his friends—when you knew I was coming to see him.”

“What . . . ever!” she huffed. I could picture the neck rolling and finger snapping that went along with that comment.

“I'd love to have Darnell with me for two weeks. As a matter of fact, I'd love to have him with me permanently. That way you can do whatever else you want to do and not have to worry about him.”

“Ha! Let you have him? That'll be the day. My mama didn't raise no fool. I know you want to get out of giving me my money every month, but you can forget about that. I will get paid until that boy turns eighteen.”

“I know that, Caroline. I've never been late making the support payments, and I've never said no when you asked me for extra money.”

“Speaking of extra money, can you wire me an extra grand this month? I'll even pay it back to you . . . if you want me to.”

“What do you need an ‘extra grand' for? And how is it you're able to afford a two-week cruise?”

“Don't worry about what I need the extra money for. Will you send it to me or not? And for your information, my man is footing the bill for my cruise.”

“I don't have an extra thousand to spare right now,” I admitted.

“When can you get it?”

“I can't say. I just borrowed more money from Josh, and I have to pay him back before I ask for more.”

“What about that woman?”

“What woman?”

“What's her name? Uh, I heard it was Raquel . . . or Rochelle . . . or Rasputin, or some shitty name that starts with an
R.
”

“Her name is Rachel,” I said flatly.

“Whatever. I heard she's making some pretty sweet money working at that white-ass private school.”

I couldn't believe this woman's nerve! But then again, Caroline always had worked both sides of the street. She had shown me that the day she and her mother showed up at my parents' house and claimed that I had
raped
her.

“You know something, Caroline. For you to be several hundred miles away, you sure know a lot about what's going on up here in Berkeley.”

“I still have friends and family up there. They tell me what's going on.”

“Hmmm. Well, you don't need to have anybody keeping an eye on me or Rachel. What we do is none of your business. And I can't believe you would even think that I'd borrow money from her to give to you! My mama didn't raise no fool, either!”

“Don't worry about it, then. I'll get it from somebody else.”

“What do you need the money for, Caroline? Maybe if you tell me that, I'll figure out some way to get it to you.”

“I got jumped by a bunch of Mexicans a couple of nights ago. They took everything I had,” she sobbed, sniffling to add more emphasis to her words. “If you don't believe me, I can send you the newspaper clipping.”

“I believe you. Did they hurt you?”

“I got a few scrapes and bruises. Other than that, I'm fine.” Caroline blew her nose and continued. She began to speak in a voice that was so low and weak, I could barely hear her. “It was the money that I was going to use to pay my rent and to get the rest of Darnell's school clothes out of layaway at Kmart. . . .”

My son was the most important thing in the world to me. And even though I was certain Caroline lied more than any woman I knew, she might have been telling the truth this time. But I still didn't want her to think she was dealing with a fool. “If your new honey can afford to take you on a cruise, why can't he help you out with your financial situation?”

“I tell you what. Don't worry about the money. And don't worry about watching Darnell while I'm on vacation. I can leave him with my sister Lorna.”

“No!”

“No, what?”

“Your sister lives in one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in L.A., with a
drug dealer.
I don't want my son in that environment!”

“Since when did you care? You ain't trying to put us in a better neighborhood.”

“Look, Caroline. I'll get the money for you, and you can still let Darnell spend the two weeks with me. I'll drive down to pick him up, or I'll pay his airfare to come up here.”

“You got money for a plane ticket, huh?”

“I'll get the money to help pay your rent, and I'll get the money to pay for Darnell's plane ticket.”

“I need it by tomorrow.”

“Your rent is due on the fifteenth, and this is not even the middle of the month.”

“Didn't I tell you I was going on a cruise? I need to pay my rent before I go away. And I have to get them clothes for Darnell out of layaway before I leave, or I'll lose that money, too.”

“I don't know if I can get it by tomorrow. My parents don't like to loan money too often, and I already told you I'm still in the hole with my brother. I owe most of my friends, too, so I can't go to any of them. And my credit cards are all maxed out!”

“Then you'd better find some other way to get that money to me by tomorrow. Do you hear me?”

“I hear you,” I muttered. “What about Darnell? Do you want me to drive down to pick him up?”

“My sister Maggie is down here. She'll bring him back up there with her tomorrow. But I tell you what you can do. The money you was going to get to pay for his flight, you can include that with the money you wire to me tomorrow. Do you hear me?”

“I hear you.”

“I'd like my money no later than noon.”

“I'll send it.” I let out a sour breath and rubbed the side of my throbbing head. “Anything else?”

“Just one more thing. If that woman mistreats my child, I'm going to come up there and whup her—”

I didn't let Caroline finish her threat. I hung up and turned the telephone off.