Cameron 6 (5 page)

8

“I’m so sick and tired of this deadbeat mothafucka ignoring my calls.” Essence released a sigh before hanging up her phone, and tossing it in her lap. She could barely think straight as she steered the brand new BMW Jude had purchased her.

Once upon a time, he used to treat her like she was worth something. Surprise visits, expensive gifts, extravagant dates, and answering her phone calls. Now Essence couldn’t even get the time of day. Jude was avoiding her like she had Malaria or Ebola, or some shit. She was the mother of his child. It wasn’t fair for Jude to neglect her just to keep his bitch of a wife happy.

Essence knew better than to fall for a married man, but she still somehow allowed it to happen. It was damn near impossible to resist his charismatic charm. Back then he was so consistent with his efforts. He’d pop up at her job with roses just to put a smile on her face. Jude’s swag was incomparable. He had her at hello, and he knew it.

If Essence would’ve known then what she knew now, she would’ve never let herself get too close to Jude. Their relationship should’ve ended at the strip club. She should’ve never fraternized with him outside of it. She had no business developing feelings. Jude had quickly become her weakness. He was like poisonous berries, tempting but toxic.

I should’ve never let that nigga in,
Essence told herself repeatedly. She didn’t ask to be swept off her feet. She didn’t ask to be knocked up. She didn’t ask for any of this shit. From the start, she’d been leery of building a relationship with him, but Jude just wouldn’t take no for an answer. He kept coming back in spite of the vows he’d taken, and it wasn’t long before Essence fell head over heels. She was blinded by her devotion to him, so much so that she couldn’t see the bigger picture.

Jude had stolen a large chunk of her heart and fled with it. She would never love or trust another man the same thanks to him. He had no idea of the pain he was causing.

Now Essence was carrying his child, too stubborn to abort it and too traditional to raise it alone. Her baby deserved to have a father in its life just as much as Cam’s son. But instead of taking responsibility, Jude chose to run from it. He avoided Essence at all costs, and she was finally sick of it.

Grabbing her cellphone, Essence decided to try a different alternative. “That motherfucker might not answer for me, but I know who will.”

***

Cameron was doing seventy on the highway when her cellphone rang. For a second she thought it was Jude calling from a different phone since she’d blocked his number. A frown immediately creased her face after recognizing Essence’s number.

What the fuck does this bitch want? Her timing couldn’t be any worse,
Cameron thought.

Her gaze shifted to the rearview mirror. Thankfully, Justin was fast asleep in his car seat completely oblivious to the chaos she’d just escaped. The further away from Atlanta Cameron drove, the better she was beginning to feel. But as fate would have it, Atlanta wasn’t done with her just yet.

Cameron thought about letting the call go to voicemail, but decided not to. “Why are you calling me?” she answered in a snappy tone. “I’m sure you know every way there is to get in touch with my husband. What the hell could you possibly want calling me?”

Surprisingly, Essence remained calm. She had a mouthful she wanted to say, but at the end of the day, Cameron wasn’t her problem. Her quarrel was with Jude. “Your
husband
is the reason I’m calling you.”

“Girl, well, my
husband
ain’t my fucking problem no more. You wanted his ass, you got him.” With nothing left to say, Cameron heartlessly disconnected the call. Afterwards, she dialed customer service and had them change her number. She wanted nothing to do with Essence, Jude, or Georgia in general. The only thing there was heartache, misfortune, and bad memories.

***

Jude was in the kitchen nursing his 5
th
shot of Jack when he heard the distinct sound of his front door open. The house had been usually quiet ever since Cam’s dramatic departure, so the sound was unmistakable.

Jude wanted to believe Cameron finally calmed down and came back home. But he knew being hopeful and being naïve were two very different things. He didn’t hesitate to grab a pistol from the secret compartment in his kitchen drawer. Jude kept a burner stashed in every nook and cranny in his house. Nowadays he couldn’t trust anyone. Not even the motherfuckers on his payroll. There was forever someone waiting for him to slip up, but it would never happen.

Jude’s heart dropped to his stomach after listening to the door close slowly. He didn’t even realize he’d left it open after the cops dispersed. There’d been so much on his mind at the time to even notice.

Stone had given Jude time to deliberate on his ultimatum. Had his time run out already? Jude’s grip on the chrome tool tightened as he slowly crept out of the kitchen. He could hear the sound of movement from where he was.

Jude made sure to creep quietly through the house, so that the intruder wouldn’t see him coming. He was so drunk and paranoid off cocaine that he almost shot Essence in the back of her head.

She jumped in fear when she turned around and saw the gun pointed at her dome. He’d been so close to squeezing the trigger; she didn’t know how lucky she was. Essence’s hand instinctively went to her swollen belly as she backed away. He had already proven what he was capable of, so she didn’t dare underestimate Jude.

Gradually, he lowered the weapon. His nerves had been so on edge lately. He felt like everyone was out to get him. After breathing a sigh of relief, Jude broke out laughing hysterically. He had finally snapped.

The crazy thing was, Jude would’ve been happier to see Stone. Essence always did have a bad habit of popping up uninvited and unwanted.

“I’m glad this all is so fucking funny to you,” she hissed. “I’ve been calling your ass and trying to chase you down since the first ultrasound. What gives Jude?”

“My moms always told me never chase love, affection or attention. If it ain’t given freely, it ain’t worth having.”

Essence grimaced. “It’s a little too late for that considering the circumstances.” She touched her rotund belly for added effect.

Jude snorted in disgust. Tucking his gun in the waistline of his jeans, he rudely walked past her. “Wouldn’t be no circumstances had you handled what the fuck you was supposed to.”

“You mean if I had your baby scraped out?” she asked sarcastically. “Is that what you mean when you say
handled
?”

Jude sucked his teeth in annoyance. “Man, you know exactly what the fuck I mean,” he said with his back to Essence. Jude slowly made his way up the grand spiral staircase. The scenario with Cam wasn’t even a whole two hours ago, and already he was facing another.

Essence was in hot pursuit as she continued her rant. “I don’t fucking get you, Jude! What the hell does your wife have that I don’t?”

“My last name,” he said dryly.

“Fuck that! That shit ain’t a good enough answer!” she argued. “I need to know why I’m not good enough to have this baby! I was good enough for you to stick your dick in!”

Jude’s face flushed in anger. He wasn’t in the mood for Essence’s theatrics. It took everything in him not to turn around and push her big ass down the stairs. She was really testing him.

“Answer me!” Essence demanded. She grabbed Jude’s forearm from behind but he viciously snatched away.

“Fuck off me!”

Tears poured down her cheeks as she desperately pursued him. She wouldn’t leave until she finally made her point. “You are a coward, Jude! A mothafucking coward!” she screamed. “A Godless asshole! What type of man doesn’t take care of his kid?! Better yet, what type of man let’s a bitch convince him to not take care of his kid? I swear you’ve always let that hoe think and react for you! Does she fuck you with a strap-on too?”

Essence was about to follow him inside his bedroom when Jude suddenly slammed the door in her face. She laughed at how childish he was acting.

“You sad, pessimistic, little man. You are so fucking sorry it’s ridiculous! But it’s cool, Jude. I’ll let the courts speak for me ‘cuz I’m putting your ass on child support!” she threatened. “I thought we could go about the situation like adults, but its clear you wanna act like a little ass boy.”

Inside, Jude tried his best to drown out Essence’s useless shit talking. He did a couple more lines, but it only amplified his anger.

Essence slowly backpedaled from the door and headed towards the stairs. “No wonder that bitch gave up on your stupid ass. Shit, no wonder she fucked around on you, period! You ain’t a fucking man at all! Just a lil’ ass boy trying to fill the shoes of a real nigga!”

That comment instantly hit Jude beneath the waist. He was tired of motherfuckers comparing him to King. Not only that, but he hated to be reminded about his wife’s infidelities. Now Essence had gone too far.

“Bitch, what the fuck you just say?!” Jude hollered.

Before Essence could respond, Jude burst through the bedroom door and ran towards her full speed.

Essence was afraid that he’d hurt her, so she backed up in fear — and slipped down the spiral staircase uncontrollably. Her skull smacked several steps as she plummeted before landing on her midsection.

From the top of the staircase, Jude watched her struggle to move. A wicked grin was pasted on his handsome face.

Essence moaned in agony; she felt paralyzed from the fall. Her entire body was in unbearable pain.

Jude chuckled and shook his head as he descended the stairs. Instead of helping the mother of his child, he walked right past her.

“Jude?” Essence croaked out. “Jude… please…” At that moment, a warm and thick liquid drenched the center of her pants. When she looked down, she realized it was blood. “Jude… Help me. I—I think something’s wrong,” she cried.

Jude laughed to himself as he poured another shot. He wasn’t going to lift a fucking finger. In his opinion, Essence had gotten exactly what she deserved.

“Jude, please… call 911. I need an ambulance. Something is wrong!”

Essence couldn’t believe Jude found the situation amusing. There she was, afraid for her life and child’s well being, and Jude was laughing like a damn hyena.

Using what little strength she had left, Essence picked herself up off the floor and limped towards the door. She knew she was miscarrying without even having to be told. This day would forever remain imprinted in her mind. It would go down in history as the worst day of her life.

Essence would never forgive Jude. If she had a gun in her possession, she would’ve gladly shot his ass until the chamber was empty. He was a dirty motherfucker.

Essence’s legs wobbled as she struggled to walk. She’d never felt a more excruciating pain in all her life. She felt like she might’ve even dislocated something. Once Essence finally reached the door, she turned around in tears. “You ain’t shit!” she screamed. “I may be fucked up! But I ain’t nowhere near as fucked up as you, Jude!”

9

A Week Later

Roxie couldn’t believe she was still having difficulties reaching Cameron. There was never a time she was unable to get in touch with her. The two Face-Timed each other every day faithfully before they went to sleep. They were just that close. Now every time Roxie called her cell, it said the number had been disconnected.

Cameron didn’t have any social media pages, so Roxie had no other way of getting in touch with her. It wasn’t like Cameron to up and disappear. To make matters worse, Jude wasn’t answering any of her calls either. Roxie knew something was up, but she didn’t know to what degree.

She felt closed out and she hated it. After all, she and Cam were supposed self-proclaimed sisters. Anything she went through, she confided in Roxie, and vice versa. Why the hell was she on silent mode now?

“What is up with her?”

Rumor’s disappearance still haunted Roxie. Cameron going MIA gave her déjà vu all over again. The situations were just too similar. Roxie only hoped the outcome wasn’t as well.

After paying a trusted babysitter to look after Rain, Roxie decided to do some investigating of her own. Her first stop was Cameron and Jude’s Buckhead residence. Roxie had memorized their seven-digit entrance code by heart, so it wasn’t hard to gain access. Even if she didn’t remember it, all she’d have to do was punch 0 for the gates to open. Roxie warned Cam about fixing that glitch, but apparently she never got around to it.

As soon as Roxie parked her Audi A8, she hopped out and headed to the front door. Jude’s cars were all present and accounted for, so she knew he was home if nothing else.

What she didn’t know was that he was upstairs in his bedroom, nursing a pint of Patron Silver with a spaced out look on his face. He hadn’t left the crib since Cam took off — not even to handle business. Hell, he hadn’t even washed his ass. The break up really fucked him up, especially since he knew it was truly over.

Jag’s words replayed over and over in his mind.
“I feel sorry for you, Jude. ‘Cuz one day all this shit eventually ain’t gon’ be enough for Cameron.”

Jude couldn’t function. It was so easy to mistreat Cam when he thought she’d always be around to take his shit. But now that she was gone, he could barely maintain.

Roxie waited outside for five minutes before finally chalking the visit up as a loss. Climbing back inside her foreign, she headed to the Warehouse — a space used to temporarily store stolen vehicles.

Roxie needed someone to fill her in on what was going on, and she prayed someone there could. The ride was short. After parking, she invited herself in like she was one of the guys. Jude didn’t even like Cameron being there, but Roxie didn’t give a damn. She could definitely become annoyingly persistent when it came to finding answers.

The Warehouse reeked of metal and heavy machinery. With a purple and silver theme, it was every mechanic’s utopia. Benzes, Lexuses, and Porsches were on full display with changed VIN numbers. Roxie felt sorry for the suckers who’d become victims. She hoped like hell they had great insurance coverage.

Two beautiful, topless dancers performed on a small, circular stage for the fellas working on stolen cars. One of the women smiled flirtatiously at Roxie when she caught her staring.

Roxie quickly looked away in embarrassment. “Has anyone seen or talked to Jude lately?” she asked to no one in particular.

Everyone shook their heads at her question. “He ain’t been here all week,” one said. “Nobody’s seen the nigga.”

Roxie huffed and puffed as she continued through the Warehouse, determined to get answers. Jude practically lived there, and it was odd that no one had seen him. Something was definitely up. There was no denying that.

Roxie stopped at a closed door in the hallway. The window was fogged out so she couldn’t see inside, but she did hear voices on the opposite end. Without warning, she barged inside uninvited.

Jude’s enforcer, Mike reached for his piece, but relaxed when he saw it was Roxie. Motherfuckers knew better than to interrupt a vital meeting. Well… most motherfuckers knew better. Then again, Roxie had always been the unruly type.

Everyone’s heads whipped in her direction. All of Jude’s workers were seated at a long oak table. It was the same one King had beaten Vado on after finding out he was undercover. Seated at the head of it, like a father to his family, was Magyc. Right next to him was his older brother Michael.

“Where is Jude? Why hasn’t anyone heard from him? What is going on with Cameron? I can’t get in touch with either of them. Can someone please fill me in?”

“What the fuck is she doing here?” a member asked with a nasty attitude. First, Jude’s desertion and now this; the business was surely going to hell. There seemingly was no order present.

“Aye, chill, I got her,” Magyc said, standing to his feet.

Roxie watched as he swaggered over towards her. He was incredibly handsome that day in a Helmut Lang tee, designer jeans, and Martin Maison Margiela sneakers. His dreads were neatly tied to the back, and his gold jewelry shiny. Magyc’s swag was on a thousand.

After steering her back out into the hallway, he discreetly closed the door behind himself.

“What’chu doin’? You know you shouldn’t be here.”

“I have every damn right to be here as you do!” Roxie snapped. “I was friends with them when you were still jimmying locks on cars.”

Magyc frowned but remained calm after her fiery insult. “Feel better, ma?” he asked.

Out of nowhere, Roxie broke down crying. “We talk everyday. I just don’t know why they cut me off. I don’t know if I did something wrong.”

Magyc gently pulled her close and held her. “
Ssh.
You ain’t did nothin’. Listen to me. What they goin’ through ain’t got shit to do with you. You hear me?”

Roxie sniffled and nodded her head. When she realized how ridiculous she must’ve looked and sounded, she quickly straightened up.

“I’m sorry,” she laughed nervously. “I know I’m being extra as hell now. Cameron’s my best friend. She’s like family. I just didn’t know what else to do — or who else to go to.”

“Nah, you good,” he told her. “Look, just relax. Everything gon’ be good. They just need time and a lil’ space, a'ight. Have you eaten anything yet? You look a lil’ weary, no offense,” he quickly added.

“No…”

“Well, this what I want you to do. Pick a place — any place you might have a taste for. I’ma meet you there in ‘bout an hour. I need to finish handlin’ business with these niggas first. You got ‘em waitin’ on me,” he laughed.

Roxie smiled and gave him a knowing look. “Is this some slick way of taking me out on a date?”

Magyc chuckled, revealing the cutest set of dimples. “Maybe… is it workin’?”

“Maybe,” she giggled.

Magyc took her small hand in his. “All I need is thirty minutes. Let me do that for you. No funny business either. I know how you get down,” he added before holding his hands up in mock surrender.

Roxie had her reservations when it came to dealing with men of his caliber. However, she knew that she only lived once.
Oh, what the hell?
She wasn’t doing any harm by having lunch with him. Pushing her fears to the back of her mind, Roxie decided to take him up on his offer.

“Okay.”

Magyc was elated after she accepted, but he tried his best to play it cool. After plugging his number in her phone, he sent her cute ass on her way, and finished tending to business. With Jude temporarily out of commission, he now had to oversee the entire operation by making sure things still ran smoothly. A lot of the fellas weren’t feeling that since they’d been in the game longer, but it was what it was. His boss had given him a role, and he planned on playing it to perfection.

Being the head nigga in charge also meant that Jude’s problems would soon become his own. Magyc just didn’t know it yet.