No Mercy (22 page)

“Esmeralda can’t empower the dolls herself,” I say aloud. I can feel Bryan look at me and shake his head. He knows better than to mess with me and Mama when we get down like this.

At Esmeralda’s verbal command her man pet comes outside and breaks our link without knowing what occurred. I can only imagine what would’ve happened to Mr. Gatlin if Esmeralda kept her claws in him much longer. He’s not my favorite neighbor but I still don’t wish any ill will on him.

“Thank you,” I say to the ancestor shrines. Now I see why Mama had me come back here when she did. Something good always happens after we make a sacrifice.

“I don’t even want to know what that was all about,” Bryan says, helping me lock up.

“It was about revenge,” I say, quickly glancing at Misty who smiles in return. She has no idea what she’s getting into but she and her evil ile are about to find out.

“Do you remember the time we were walking down the street and Misty gave you a compliment?” Bryan asks, walking me toward the back gate. Lexi comes out of the bushes and tags along. I know she misses her master terribly; anyone can tell that she’s miserable without Mama.

“
I think I do. Why do you ask?”

“
Because I think she wants to be just like you,” Bryan says, making me question the entire episode I just had with my frenemy. “If that’s the case then you have the upper hand in whatever it is y’all got going on.”

“
I don’t understand what you mean.”

“
Of course you do,” Bryan says, spitting sunflower seed shells onto the sidewalk, officially undermining his fresh appearance. “The one thing Misty wants more than anything that I can think of is to be just like you.”

“Where’d you get that idea from?”

“It’s obvious, Jayd. From the first time y’all met the girl’s been trying to rock how you roll. Trust your elder when he speaks,” Bryan says, pinching my cheek like I’m five years old. “To beat Misty at her own game all you have to do is fight like only you can against your own self. Your own worst enemy is you.”

“
Careful there, uncle,” I say socking him in the arm. “You’re starting to sound like your mother.”

“
It’s about time. Do whatever you have to get my Mama back home and soon, you hear?”

“You know I will.” We hug tightly and then head our separate ways. I still get to see Mama on a regular basis but it must be devastating to everyone else who loves her to not know exactly what’s up with our matriarch. As I pass by Esmeralda’s house on my way to the bus stop I notice her animals staring me down. There time’s about to come to an end, too. The sooner I crush that house the better.

It’ll take me two buses to get to the coffee house for the study session, which will probably last a few hours. I wouldn’t miss it for the world because Cameron’s trifling ass is supposed to be there tonight and I’m ready to rip her apart for the games she’s playing with Jeremy and me. Doesn’t that trick know people get killed for that shit where I’m from?

“Christ feed the multitude with only one loaf of bread/Poor people there is something for you,” Damian Marley sings through my cell. It’s a call from Jeremy. I remember when he had his own ringtone. Now he’s bundled in with the masses. Hopefully that’ll change after tonight.

“Hey Lady J. Just wanted to warn you that the meeting’s been moved to Cameron’s house,” Jeremy says. He knows that I’m rarely online unless it’s absolutely necessary. “Same time, though.”

“Thanks for letting me know,” I say, settling in at the bus stop. Hopefully her clueless mother’s not there.

“And Jayd,” Jeremy says, pausing a moment too long.

“Yes, Jeremy?” I wave down the approaching bus.

“I’m sorry about how I reacted on Wednesday,” Jeremy says, remorsefully.

“Me, too. But we can talk about it in an hour or so.”

“The session starts in thirty minutes, Jayd. Is your car  out of commission again?” he asks.

“Yes, but no worries. I’ll be there with bells on.”

I hang up my cell and secure it in my purse, ready for the long ride to Palos Verdes. Getting there is only half the battle: Walking up the steep hill her mega house is perched on will be my workout for the week. The last time we studied at Cameron’s house I felt like the staff and her parents were watching my every move. This time will be no different, I’m sure.

By the time I arrive the study session is in full swing. I step into the large foyer where the housekeeper ushers me inside. There’s plenty of food and drinks in the dining room, including coffee, green tea and a sandwich bar—all the makings for a long night in. when I enter the massive living area I notice Jeremy and Reid playing mental tennis with Othello’s summary.

“Of course
I believe in interracial dating, if that’s what you want to call it,” Jeremy casually says. “It’s a fact that we’re all essentially African, therefore it’s more accurate to say intercultural dating, if you will.” I love the way Jeremy’s mind works.

“No I won’t, Jeremy,” Reid says, boiling with generations of hate between his family and Jeremy’s. Their brothers are all mortal enemies, ergo making them the worst of friends. “That’s a preposterous theory and it’s completely irrelevant when it comes to Shakespeare.”

“Yeah, babe,” Cameron says, pouring Jeremy more coffee. “I doubt that’ll be on the test.”

             
I attempt to discretely settle in on one of the oversized floor pillows but no such luck. Marcia spots me and signals for me to come sit next to her on one of the three couches in the room.

             
“Jayd, you made it,” Jeremy says.

             
Cameron looks anything but pleased. “Jayd, so glad you got the update,” she says, eyeing her soon to be ex fake boo. “Please help yourself to dinner.”

             
“I did. And thank you, I will.” I claim the spot next to Marcia who’s way too excited for her first study session in the rich folks’ side of town.

“OMG
!” Marcia whispers excitedly into my right ear. “Jeremy looks just like Jerry Jerrod from Sex and the City. I so wish I was Samantha right now.”

“Sit down, Marcia,” I whisper back while making eye contact with the object of her desire.
“He’s mine.”

“But
I thought you broke up.” I see she’s caught up on some of the gossip circulating around Drama High.

“Not by choice,” I say, retrieving my study materials from my backpack. “So again, sit down
.” 

Marcia sees that I’m serious but can’t let it go.
“Samantha was stupid for walking away from all of that. Forget loving yourself. I’d love me some Jerrod forever if I had the chance.”

“On to other themes in the work,” Laura says, diverting the attention to herself and away from her man who’s so obviously losing this battle with Jeremy. “Infidelity and trust issues in relationships.”

I scan the study sheet and realize that we’re only on the second out of ten topics. I say we stop debating and start researching. A sistah’s definitely going to need a healthy snack to keep alert for this madness.

“Do you want anything?” I ask Marcia who shakes her head and points at her full plate. 

I make my way into the dining area accessible through both the foyer and another hallway and claim a plate of my own. As I pick through the feast Jeremy and a couple of other classmates make their way to the table.

“Jayd, we need to talk,” Jeremy says, gently pulling my arm and leading me into the hallway. “This Keenan dude, is it serious?”
              “Not that it’s any of your business, but no. We’re just friends,” I say, stuffing a grape into my mouth.

“Friends, huh. I remember when were friends and I stayed over your mom’s house,” Jeremy says, referring to the late night date he interrupted weeks ago. “I miss us, Jayd.”

“Tell it to Cameron, Jeremy,” I say, stepping away from him.

“She’s blackmailing me, Jayd. You know this. Why can’t we just be together in secret until this all blows over?”

I whip my head around and stare him down like Maman did Jean Paul in the spirit book when came at her crazy like this fool is doing to me. “There are two things wrong with that statement, Jeremy. Number one is that you act like the victim when in all actuality you got yourself into this mess and, as usual, you want me to help you shovel the crap but I’m not having it this time around. I already busted her out in the principal’s office on Friday, so the jig is up, Jeremy. And number two is that you take me for the type of girl who’ll condone being a side chick when you should know better than to step to me with that bull.”

Jeremy takes a step closer and kisses me hard, taking my balance and looming sense of revenge with it. He pulls away
and forces me to look up into his deep, blue eyes in an attempt to calm me down.

“Come on,” he says, grabbing my hand and forcing me inside one of the bedrooms.

“Is this Cameron’s room?” I ask, looking around the large, pink and white room. “Did she ever grow up?”

“Not really,” he says, taking a deep breath. “But I don’t want to talk about her. I want to talk about you and us, Jayd. It’s been too long.”

“I agree.” I can’t put my finger on it but something’s off about this room. If I didn’t know better I’d say that we were being watched.

“Okay, cool,” Jeremy says, pulling me into his body by my waist. “Then you can tell that Keenan dude to bounce and I’ll take you home tonight.”

“Uhmm not so fast, sir,” I say, backing away. “What about Cameron? Are you finally going to stand up to her for us?”

“Jayd, it’s complicated,” Jeremy says, reaching for me again but he can’t touch me until he mans up. “You telling the principal is one thing. Cameron telling my parole officer is an entirely other set of circumstances that I don’t want to deal with.”

“I never took you for being spineless, Jeremy,” I say, disappointed. I attempt to leave but he pulls me back and we fall onto the lushly made bed.

“Ouch!” Jeremy exclaims. “What the hell was that?”

He throws the mulitple pillows off of the bed and reveals her hidden bag of tricks.

“I knew it!” This trick’s been doing voodoo spells on Jeremy, and apparently on me and my grandmother, too. There’s only one broad in town I know with these kinds of services for sale: Esmeralda. Esmeralda’s reach knows no bounds, which is exactly why I can’t do anything else until I stop this wench and her apprentice. Misty’s become the school connect for Esmeralda’s evil deeds. I understand needing a side hustle but this is ridiculous, even for my former friend.

“What the hell is all of this stuff?” Jeremy says, picking up an olive toned doll with curly, dark locs sewn into its head.

“Give me that,” I say, taking it from him. “I’ve got to talk to Cameron.”

“Wait a minute, Jayd,” Jeremy says, blocking my advance. “We weren’t even supposed to be in here. Just put the stuff back and we can pretend like we never saw this stuff, whatever it is.”

             
“What it is is the stuff standing between me, you and whole lot of other stuff you know nothing about.” I stare at the two dolls resembling me and Mama and wish that I knew what to do with them—I’ll have to leave that up to my elders. “It’s one thing to go after me, Jeremy. I can take Cameron all day, any day if I so choose. But it’s another thing entirely to go after my grandmother.”

             
“I feel you, baby but seriously. You’re scaring me.”

             
“You don’t need to be afraid of me, Jeremy,” I say, gathering the voodoo dolls, pin cushion and prepared tinctures to take back to Compton. It’ll have to wait until morning because I know Dr. Whitmore has already put Mama back into a deep sleep for the night. We can’t risk her being awake for too long. “You’re not my enemy. Cameron is. Misty is. Esmeralda and Mrs. Bennett are. They’re the ones who need to fear me, Jeremy. Never you.”

             
I would love to stay here with him but I can’t afford to get off my game for a second. “I have to go.” I head for the door with all of the diabolic tools in hand.

             
“What are you going to do?”
              “Give them all a taste of their own medicines.”

             
“Ever heard of a little thing called mercy?” Jeremy says, making light of my situation. If he only knew how real the danger is he wouldn’t joke about such things.

             
“Yes, my Yeye invented it,” I say, recalling an earlier odu about one of Oshune’s older paths. “But this situation doesn’t call for mercy. An eye for an eye is what my enemies believe in, and I’m about to make all of their wildest dreams come true.”

“Well, what do we have here?” Cameron says, standing in my way. She looks down at the booty in my arms and snatches up my doll.

“Give it back, Cameron,” I say, putting my hand out. “I don’t want to hurt you.” I dare the broad to try and stop me. With or without that doll Cameron’s ass is mine.

“Bitch please,” she says, sounding more like Mickey than the prissy white girl she is. “You can’t do anything to me. I’ve got you in the palm of my hand.” Cameron lifts a pin out of the doll’s shoulder and presses it into its left eye. “May your sight be unseen,” Cameron says, looking at me.