Chocolate Goodies (13 page)

“Why don’t you relocate your center somewhere else? Put it in the hood—that’s where they belong. Let them fight it out, rob or whatever they do there anyway.”

“I realize you’re upset, Coco, but you have no right to tell me where I should build a center. If you’re so unhappy, then
you
relocate. But unless you move to an uninhabited island, you will run the risk of this happening again.”

Ransom rose to his feet. “I am sorry this happened to you. I’m doubly sorry that it was one of my students, but I’m not moving D-Unit. I’m taking Benjamin and Jerome with me now because I won’t risk you destroying them with your venom.”

Coco put a hand to her face. “I…Ransom…”

“I can’t talk to you anymore. One minute you are supersupportive and then when something goes wrong you show what you’re really about. You are just like some of the other people who run around judging these kids by what they see on the outside. Me, I look at the inside. Even God tells us that He doesn’t look at our externals—but at our heart. When I look at these boys, I see their heart, Coco. Marcus slipped through the cracks and I’m going to find out what can be done.” Ransom sighed in resignation. “I’ll give Michael a call to see how he’s doing.”

“Ransom, wait,” Coco said.

“I have to get these boys home.”

He gestured for Jerome and Benjamin to come with him. “I’m taking you home.”

“You okay, Mr. Winters?” Jerome asked.

He nodded. “I’m fine.”

He was so disappointed in Marcus. The boy seemed to have a lot of potential, but he wasn’t strong enough to stay away from the gang, as he’d promised. Ransom
had pegged him as more of a follower, which was why he'd spent so much time talking to the boy.

He swallowed his hurt.
I thought I’d reached him. I was wrong, and now I’ve lost the woman I love most in this world.

Coco was ashamed of the way she’d attacked Ransom the night Michael was shot. That was two weeks ago. She was too embarrassed to call him, and she knew he wouldn’t call her.

Valencia walked into the shop and handed her an envelope. “One of the staff members from D-Unit asked me to deliver this to you.”

Coco frowned. “What is it?”

“I don’t know. He was on his way over here when he saw me getting out of the car. He just asked me to bring it to you.”

She took it with her to her office.

Inside were a letter and a ten dollar bill.

Coco wiped away her tears.

I’ve got to go see him. I’m still angry with Marcus, but I don’t hate him. I need to tell him that.

Ransom was right, she decided. She should look deep within and not just at the outside. She closed her eyes and said a prayer for Marcus.

“K
nock knock.”

Ransom looked up from his computer. “Kaitlin, come in.”

He was glad to see his sister, but had hoped that it would be Coco standing at his door.

“How are you doing?” she asked him.

He got out of his chair and helped her into one. Ransom sat back down. “How are you and the little one?”

“We’re doing great,” she said. “Absolutely wonderful. I’m hoping he or she will decide to come before Christmas. Laine and Regis already have a Christmas baby. Jonathan was born on Christmas. Always complains that he’s not getting his fair share of birthday and Christmas presents.”

“I know that I haven’t known you long, but I feel that you didn’t just stop by to say hello.”

“You’re right. I didn’t,” she responded. “Matt told me what happened. Are you and Coco okay?”

“Anything but,” he said. “Things got real ugly between us the night Michael was shot. We haven’t talked since then.”

“So what are you waiting on, Ransom?”

“Kaitlin, I love Coco, but I don’t think we have a future together.”

“You don’t if you don’t talk to her and get this straightened out, that’s for sure.”

“That’s just it. We can’t resolve this, Kaitlin.”

“You haven’t tried,” she countered. “Love is worth fighting for, Ransom. I can see the pain you’re in. I know that you love Coco and that she loves you just as much. How can you walk away?”

“Kaitlin, that’s not what I want. I love her and I thought we were trying to build a life together. But apparently I missed something.”

“Then live up to your name,” she stated. “Go after your woman. We Ransoms do not give up without a fight.”

She started to rise to her feet. “I need to get going. My job here is done.”

Ransom stood and walked over to his sister, helping her out of the chair. “Thanks for the pep talk.”

“I’m glad I could dispense a little sisterly advice.”

“Thank you for allowing me in your life, Kaitlin.”

She hugged him. “We’re family. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Now don’t forget what I’ve said, Ransom. You never give up on true love.”

Kaitlin ordered a half-pound bag of raspberry chocolates, then said, “I just came from over at D-Unit,
where I was seeing Ransom. Coco, I have to tell you—he looks about as sad as you do.”

“I suppose he told you that we had a fight,” she sighed. “Actually, I did all the fighting. I don’t think I let him get in two words the entire time.”

Kaitlin sat down at the counter. “All couples have disagreements.”

Coco glanced up at her. “This was a big one, Kaitlin. I’m not sure we’re going to be able to get past it.”

“You will,” Kaitlin said. “And I’ll tell you why. Coco, you and Ransom love each other. I’ve seen the way the two of you look at one another. He’s your soul mate, and trust me, everything will work out.”

Coco didn’t respond.

“He really loves you.”

“I know,” she said after a moment. “Kaitlin, I love him, too. But after what happened to my brother…I can’t deal with those boys. Ransom has a lot of faith in them, while I don’t trust them. How can we find a compromise in a situation like this?”

“Not all of them are bad, Coco.”

“I hear what you’re saying, Kaitlin. The boy involved in the robbery actually wrote me a letter apologizing, and he sent me ten dollars. But I need some time to recover from the shock of what happened.”

Kaitlin nodded in understanding.

“How are things going with all of you?” Coco asked, changing the subject. “Has everyone adjusted to having Ransom as a brother?”

“I think so. We know that he’s one of us. I just wish we could have grown up with him.”

“How’s the baby?”

Kaitlin smiled. “So far, the pregnancy is progressing naturally and the baby’s healthy.”

“I guess you guys decided to wait and be surprised?”

“Knowing would’ve made decorating easier. I know that Matt really wants a boy, so I figured it would be better to just wait and find out, in the event we’re having another girl.” Kaitlin eyed her. “What’s wrong, Coco?”

“I miss him so much,” she said. “I always felt like Ransom and I really fit, you know?”

“It’s not over for you and him.”

“I said some horrible things, Kaitlin. How can I ever expect him to forgive me? I really hurt him.”

“We all hurt the ones we love at one time or another. Coco, it won’t get any better if you two don’t talk to each other. You have to communicate.”

“I’m not sure I know what to say.”

“Just wing it,” Kaitlin suggested with a smile. “I have to go, but I want to hear something good soon.”

When she left, Coco stared at the phone. “I can’t do this,” she whispered.

Coco sat in the visitors room at the L.A. County Jail. She’d never wanted to see the inside of a place like this. Never thought that she would.

This was only the visitors room. She couldn’t imagine going into the bowels of the jailhouse.

Marcus, wearing blue scrubs like doctors wore, was escorted in by a guard.

He looks scared,
she thought to herself. Really scared, and it broke her heart to see him that way.

“Miss Stanley, I didn’t think you’d come.”

“I almost didn’t,” she responded. “But not for the reasons you think. Marcus, I don’t hate you, but I do feel betrayed by you. I never in a million years thought that you would do something like this. I really didn’t….”

He nodded. “I’m real sorry. I was at home talking about how fine you were and how nice you’d been to me. Miss Stanley, I had no idea that they were gonna rob you until that night.”

“What about the other people in the neighborhood? Did you consider their feelings?”

“I didn’t have nothing to do with them. That was all my brother and his friends.”

Coco eyed him. “So you’re telling me that you only participated in the one at my shop, then?”

“I already told Mr. Winters and the police all this. When I found out what was about to go down, I didn’t want nobody to get hurt. I pleaded with my brother to take me along. I thought if I came, you’d be safe. I had nothing to do with the other robberies.”

“I want to believe you.”

“Miss Stanley, I’m not stupid. I knew you may recognize my custom-made shoes with my first name written all over them. If I wasn’t trying to be caught, do you think I’d wear them to a robbery? I was hoping that Mr. Winters would be there with you.”

“But you ran away before the cops came.”

He shook his head. “I flagged them down and told them what happened. I turned myself in. You can ask them.”

“That’s why you called out to me in the shop,”

Coco said. “You were hoping I would catch on to your voice.”

“I don’t know what it would’ve accomplished. All I know is that I don’t want to be anywhere near my brother. He’s crazy. He beats on my mother and she’s scared of him. I’m scared of him.”

“Is he here?”

Marcus nodded. “He’s threatening to kill me.”

Coco could see how really scared he was—this was no act. “Have you told Ransom?”

“He’s hired a lawyer for me and they are trying to work out some kind of deal. I testify against my brother and his friends and they are going to try and find someplace safe for me. Mr. Winters is looking into a boarding school somewhere.”

“He has a lot of faith in you, Marcus.”

“What about you?”

“The betrayal stings, but one day it will disappear. You accepted your part in this, even though you say that you were trying to protect us. From the sounds of it, you tried to find a way to put an end to the robberies. You took a stand and I can appreciate that, Marcus. I don’t hate you and I do forgive you.”

Tears rolled down his cheeks. “I never wanted to disappoint you or Mr. Winters.”

“You should never want to disappoint yourself,” Coco told him. “Marcus, I’m going to be okay after a while. Are you? Can you forgive yourself?” He shrugged.

“Marcus, look at me.”

He met her gaze.

“I’m proud of you for trying to set things right. That
takes a lot of courage. When I look at you, I don’t see the boy that you are now, but I see the man that you can become.”

Their time was up.

“Thank you for coming, Miss Stanley.”

“Marcus, you don’t owe me anything, so I put the ten dollars on your account so that you’re able to purchase whatever you might need in here. I also brought you a Bible, some magazines and snacks. What you can do for me is look deep within and find the man that Ransom and I see. Become this man and that is payment enough.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Take care of yourself.”

“Please keep me in your prayers.”

“I will,” Coco promised.

On the way home, she called Ransom, but reached his voice mail. She left him a message.

“Ransom, it’s me again,” she said, a couple of hours later. “I’m calling to apologize for overreacting. I didn’t exactly want to do it via voice mail, but you’ve left me no choice. I’m very sorry for the way I carried on. I know that not all of your students are criminals. Deep down, I really know that, but when my brother was shot—it scared me.”

She paused for a moment before continuing. “I hope that you’ll call me back so that we can talk. Ransom, I really miss you and I know that we can work this out. I’m truly sorry.”

Coco hung up.

“Have you talked to Ransom?” Michael asked when he phoned her that evening.

“He’s not returning my calls,” she replied.

“You know what? I think he’s out of town.”

“How do you know that?” Coco asked. “He never said anything to me.”

“You weren’t exactly talking to him, sis. Ransom called to check on me a couple of days ago, and he mentioned that he had to go out of town on business.”

“He’s still getting his messages, I’m sure.”

“Coco, give him some time. Ransom will phone you when he’s ready to talk to you. You both probably needed a cooling period.”

She wasn’t so sure.

She had really messed up this time. Coco had learned something about herself through all this—that she was quick to judge. She had never pictured herself in this light and she was ashamed.

This was not the type of person she wanted to be.

It was time to make some changes in her own life before she tried to work on somebody else’s.

Ransom picked up the phone to call Coco, and then suddenly changed his mind. He was not going to give up on his students. She had no idea what Marcus had done to try and put his brother behind bars, at the risk of his own freedom.

A couple of his former students ended up in trouble again. One was recently caught trying to break into a home. There were those who slipped through the cracks from time to time, but it was a risk he was willing to take.

However, he wasn’t willing to risk the lives of those he cared about. Over the past few days, he’d spent a
lot of time trying to figure out a better way to screen students before allowing them entry into the program.

He believed he had come up with a plan, but wanted to run it by Ray and Matt first.

Ransom missed Coco. He missed her laughter—everything about her. Nothing felt right since that night.

He was surprised when he saw that she’d called. Even more when she actually left a message on his voice mail—an apology.

Ransom understood totally why she was so upset, but he wasn’t just going to pull the plug on the program—there were too many success stories. They far outweighed the one incident.

The program worked.

Hopefully, Coco would one day see that for herself. He couldn’t give up on those boys. They deserved a chance in this world and Ransom intended to give it to them.

He eyed the phone. “I miss you, Coco.”

Then call her,
his heart whispered.

He picked up the telephone and dialed. “Hello…”

His heart skipped a beat at the sound of her voice. “It’s me,” Ransom said. “I’m sorry for just getting back to you, but I was out of town on business.”

“My brother mentioned that you were away,” Coco said. “Did you enjoy your trip?”

“It was okay,” he answered. “To tell the truth, I missed you.”

“Ransom, I missed you, too. At first I thought you
were just ignoring me. I didn’t know that you were on a business trip.”

“It wasn’t all business. I took a couple of days to try and figure out what my next steps should be,” he admitted. “I’m really sorry about what happened to Michael. It was unfortunate. But I’m glad that the persons responsible are behind bars. It’s the third strike for Marcus’s brother, so he’ll be doing the max.”

“That’s good to hear. Ransom, I was wrong when I said it was your fault. I never should’ve said something so mean to you.”

“Coco, I don’t really want to have this conversation over the phone. I’m dead tired, so I’m going to bed early, but if you’re not busy tomorrow after church, can we get together and talk then? Are you going to your parents’ for dinner?”

“No, I’ll wait here for you,” she responded. “Ransom, I’m glad you called.”

He smiled. “True love never gives up.”