Troublemaker (21 page)

A
lexandria walked slowly toward the foyer. She could feel Allene close behind her, which gave her both comfort and courage for what she was about to do. She knew she had to proceed with caution, but she also knew she needed to be direct, if not bold, in her approach because of whom she was about to deal with.

As she got closer, she made sure to take in every detail of Brandy's physical appearance and mannerisms, knowing she had to be prepared for anything in case things turned nasty. She carefully observed the dangerous woman's large, neatly coiffed afro, high forehead, clear eyes, and soft yet distinctive facial contours. She examined Brandy as the woman turned her head, shining light on her flawless ebony-colored skin. She stretched her long, well-toned legs, and then crossed them at her ankles, revealing narrow feet adorned with hot-pink-colored toenail polish.

Alexandria could see that Brandy's perfectly erect posture spoke of her obvious confidence, and the way she sat upright with her shoulders back, indicated that she'd been taught some modicum of comportment. Her tall, almost towering stature dominated the space where she sat, and it let Alexandria know that Brandy was ready for her.

“I know why you're here, and I know what you're up to,” Alexandria said as she looked at Brandy with the same kind of intense, no-nonsense stare that her father had just worn only minutes ago.

“First off, you don't know me from Adam.” Brandy looked Alexandria up and down, inspecting her head full of thick brown curls, strong shoulders, fitted halter top, and long floral-print skirt that was paired with jewel-toned sandals. “And second, you need to watch how you talk to people. Didn't your mama teach you any manners?”

Oh, this heffa wants a beat down!
Alexandria had to calm herself. “You're real lucky, Brandy. You got away with disrespecting my mother and calling her out of her name once, so don't push it. You need to stop while you're ahead.” Alexandria placed her right hand on her hip and leaned forward with the look of a pit bull on her face. “And don't ever let me hear you mention my mother for any reason, ever again.”

Brandy uncrossed her legs and shifted in place on the antique sitting bench where she was perched. She appeared unfazed, but Alexandria could read her mind and tell that for the first time in a long time, Brandy was a little nervous. “You think you fancy and shit, just 'cause you a lawyer. But like I said, you need a lesson in manners.”

Alexandria was slightly taken aback, and wondered how Brandy knew she was an attorney. She tried to access the information from the woman's thoughts, but for some reason she was unable to break through. But she didn't let it throw her off her game because she knew she couldn't let Brandy rattle her.

Alexandria knew that just like Mary-Marie, Brandy had issues. Only unlike her grandmother, whose primary transgression was an obsessive personality and a need to control, Brandy was a different animal altogether. This young woman had done many immoral, unethical, and illegal things, and unfortunately, she wasn't above murder. She was more dangerous than a loaded gun.

But even knowing this, Alexandria was bold and unafraid. She was normally a fairly mild-tempered person, but right now she understood that the situation called for something else entirely. She wondered if her fearlessness came from the fact that she knew her grandma Allene was standing close beside her, or if it was because she was in a new environment, which had given her an edge. She suddenly realized it was neither. She felt empowered because she knew she was doing the right thing. She'd listened to what Allene had told her and trusted her gut.

When Alexandria had first laid eyes on Brandy last night she'd felt a bad vibe permeate the air. But at the time she hadn't been sure if it was really Brandy she was sensing or if it was Christian, who she knew was clearly up to no good. But a few minutes ago when Alexandria had been sitting on the bar stool in the kitchen, feeling the same intense vibe she'd picked up last night, she'd closed her eyes and allowed her gift to guide her, and what she had seen was the reason she was standing in front of Brandy right now, prepared to fight the woman if she had to.

“I want you to forget that you even know this address,” Alexandria said through gritted teeth. “Don't ever come back here again, and don't ever think about messing with my family, especially my brother.”

Brandy stood and walked to within a few inches of Alexandria. They were the same towering height, so she looked Alexandria directly in the eyes as she spoke. “Is that a threat?”

Alexandria took two steps forward, putting her so close to Brandy that their bodies nearly touched. She narrowed her eyes right back at the brazen woman. “I didn't stutter, did I?”

When Alexandria said those words, Brandy looked as if she'd just seen a ghost. She moved back two paces, nearly stumbling over her own two feet as her eyes bucked wide.

“She knows you have the gift,” Allene said. “Her grandmamma used to say those words, and now you just repeated it. ”

Alexandria knew that Allene was right. Brandy had grown up hearing her grandmother quote that haunting phrase many times through the years, and much like what had happened to Slim, the experience it came from had been so impactful she'd talked about it until the day she'd died. Alexandria closed her eyes for a quick second to reach back in time and see exactly what it all meant. Her body was jolted with shock when she saw that Allene had threatened Mary-Marie's life using those words.

Mary-Marie had known that Madeline was a dangerous killer. Her cousin, who'd known Madeline, had told Mary-Marie all about the crazy woman's ways, and that she often told her unsuspecting victims, “I didn't stutter, did I?” to let them know she meant business before she set out to either trap or kill them. Those words had been something that Mary-Marie remembered because they sounded playful and chilling at the same time.

When Mary-Marie had come to the house that Sunday afternoon, planning to disrupt John's family dinner by telling Elizabeth that she and John had been having a long-running affair, Allene had known she couldn't let that happen.

John and Elizabeth had to end up together so that Victoria could be born and Alexandria could exist. Allene knew that if Mary-Marie had gotten anywhere near their dinner table that day her family's future would not be possible. So she had risen from the dinner table, gone to the front door where Mary-Marie was trying to get past Henrietta to gain access inside the house, and taken care of business.

Allene had instructed Henrietta to leave her alone with Mary-Marie. Once it was just the two of them, she'd looked into Mary-Marie's eyes and conjured up a vision that unfolded with the young woman as dead as any corpse out in Butler's Cemetery. The vision didn't show how Mary-Marie would meet her fate, but Allene communicated to her that she would surely die if she didn't stay away from John.

“You better leave this property right now,” Allene had told her. “And if you know what's good for you, you'll never come back.”

“Are you threatenin' my life?” Mary-Marie had asked in an attempt to be bold.

“I didn't stutter, did I?” Allene had said with a steely face.

Alexandria looked over to Allene, who nodded her head. “Baby girl, tough times call for rough measures.”

Brandy jumped when she heard the loud beep of a horn coming from outside. The cab that Ted called had arrived just in time. Alexandria let out a sigh of relief, but she knew she had to maintain her position. “Remember, don't ever come to this house again.”

“I told you, I don't like threats.”

“That's fine. You don't have to like it, but you will respect it.”

Alexandria turned her head when she heard Christian come down the stairs carrying Brandy's things in his hands.

Brandy rushed past Alexandria and met Christian at the foot of the steps. “Give me my things so I can get the hell up outta here,” she hissed.

“And don't come back,” Christian yelled.

“Your punk ass invited me, remember?” Brandy reached out and snatched her clothes and shoes out of his hand. “You said you wanted to show me a good time and spend your parents' money on me once you got this big ol' house. You're full of shit! Lyin' bitch ass punk! And so is the rest of this crazy family.”

Alexandria could see that Christian was so furious he was close to doing something that was going to land him with a charge for aggravated assault. She'd seen it play out in her vision, complete with handcuffs and him sitting in the county jail because her parents refused to post his bail.

Alexandria was going to stand by and let it happen, but in a split second she changed her mind. She didn't know why, but her brother being in jail didn't feel right. He needed to be free to learn his lesson in a different way. She quickly rushed over and caught Christian's hand before it could make contact with Brandy's face.

“There's never an excuse to hit a woman,” Alexandria said to her brother. “Let it go.”

Brandy stepped away, then turned and ran toward the front door just as the cab driver blew his horn again. “I'm coming, and I can't wait to get the hell outta here!” she said, not bothering to look back as she slammed the door behind her.

Alexandria and Christian stood in the foyer, silent, looking at each other. She didn't have to read his mind because his feelings were written on his face and in the slump of his shoulders. He actually felt remorseful about what he'd done.

“You hate me, don't you?”

Alexandria shook her head. “You frustrate and disappoint me. And honestly, I don't like who you've become. But I don't hate you.”

Christian looked down the hall that led back to the kitchen. “I know they all do, probably even Mom and Dad. I can't blame them.”

“You've done some really awful things that would warrant it, and this morning is a prime example. But even after the stunt you pulled, they don't hate you either.” Alexandria took a deep breath. “The fact that you wanted to swindle our mother was a low-down thing, and then bringing a strange and unstable woman into this house . . . that was such a messed-up move. What if that lunatic had been carrying a gun?” Alexandria said, knowing Brandy owned two pistols and a shotgun. “She could've hurt any of us, or even killed someone. But you didn't stop to think about that. You let the drugs take over and make your decisions for you. Our great-great-grandma Allene always said, ‘You can never go wrong doing right,' and the same holds true in the reverse. You did wrong.”

Christian rubbed his hand across the soft black curls atop his head. “I'm not a bad person, Alexandria.”

“I know, but you're acting like one. You need help, Christian.”

He nodded his head with a solemn look on his face. “I guess I do.”

Christian stuck his hands in his front pockets, a move their father was known for. “Everyone thinks I'm a bad person, but I'm not.”

“We're only going on what you show us. Until you own up to being an addict and admit to your shortcomings, you're going to continue to spiral down, and eventually your risky and dangerous behavior is going to cost you your life.”

“You're right.” Christian looked down the hall toward the kitchen. “I guess I need to go and apologize.”

“Yes, and you need to go upstairs and start packing your bags.”

Christian looked dumbfounded. “Why?”

“Because Dad said he wanted Brandy and you out of this house.”

“He was just saying that in the heat of the moment. He wouldn't really put me out,” Christian said as he started walking toward the kitchen.

Alexandria didn't say a word; she simply walked behind her brother, with Allene right beside her. She kept quiet because she knew their father had meant every single word that had come from his mouth, and in just five minutes, Christian would know that, too.

“You ready for what's gonna come next?” Allene asked.

Alexandria sighed.
Yes, as ready as I'll ever be.
She knew that Christian's expulsion from the house wasn't going to be easy, so she braced herself for the volatile exchange that was about to take place back in the kitchen.

V
ictoria felt as though things were going from one extreme to another, and the highs and lows of the last two days were starting to make her think that this trip to Nedine wasn't such a great idea after all.

Victoria was still livid when she thought about the half-naked stranger who'd called her a bitch right to her face. And now, as she looked at her husband and son, she knew another tense and potentially disastrous moment was about to unfold. “Honey, are you okay?” she asked Ted, knowing he wasn't.

“I will be in just one minute.”

His tone was tight and short, and as Victoria watched her husband's eyes narrow in on their son, who'd just reentered the room, all she could do was pray that Ted wouldn't pick this time to go off.

Victoria had always admired the fact that Ted was so cool and composed in nearly all situations. The only time she'd ever seen him appear frazzled was during the birth of their children. He'd been so excited both times that he'd barely gotten them to the hospital in one piece. She knew that Christian had inherited his steady composure from Ted, but as his drug and alcohol use increased, he'd become increasingly dramatic, to the point of unexpected outbursts.

As Victoria's eyes shifted between her son and her husband, she knew right away that Ted was serious about putting Christian out of the house, and even though she felt the odds were against Christian acting as though he had some sense, she kept a sliver of hope, praying she was wrong. But when Ted's body language became even more steely and Christian's held a relaxed, almost casual pose, she knew she was about to witness a display that was going to make her headache grow even worse.

Christian looked around the room and cleared his throat before he began to speak. “I want to apologize for my poor judgment and insensitivity. I created an uncomfortable situation for everyone, and I sincerely regret that.” He turned to Victoria. “Mom, I'm deeply sorry. I didn't mean for any of this to happen, and I can't apologize enough for the insult you suffered. I hope you can forgive me.”

Victoria wanted to ask him if he was sorry about his plans to swindle her out of the very house in which they were standing. But she decided to let it go because she could see that Ted was about to rip into their son.

Christian stepped up to the kitchen island to prepare a plate, and that's when the fireworks began.

“What are you doing?” Ted asked.

Christian gave him a quizzical look as he shrugged his shoulders. “Getting something to eat.”

Now the entire room could sense that something serious was about to erupt, and everyone, including Victoria, held a collective breath.

“You need to be upstairs packing. I already told you, you have to leave this house,” Ted said.

“You can't be serious.”

Ted folded his arms across his chest and locked eyes with his son. Victoria looked over and saw that Alexandria was standing with her head held down toward her feet, eyes trained on the floor.
Father in heaven,
Victoria said to herself. Now she knew for sure that things were going to get ugly. She knew that if Alexandria couldn't even bring herself to look at what was unfolding, this situation surely wasn't going to end well. Victoria said another quick prayer and again hoped for the best.

“Yes, I'm serious,” Ted responded. “This was your last time disrespecting our family. Your mother and I have put up with a lot from you since you were a child, from sneaking out of the house through your window at night while you were still in middle school, to smoking pot in your room, to making honor roll and then ruining it by fighting on school grounds, running up the limit on the credit card we got you when you went to college, and always scheming and lying to get what you want . . . and that's just the tip of the stunts you've pulled over and over, and like fools, we've all forgiven you and tried to get you help, blaming your behavior on the drugs. But now I see that this is just who you are, and this morning you took it way too far.

“You brought someone under this roof without a care about anyone other than yourself. You put all of us in possible danger because you don't know a thing about that woman, who she knows, or what she's capable of. And what has me outraged,” Ted huffed as the vein in his temple began to pop up, “is that your mother was called out of her name. That's something I will never tolerate in my presence, as long as I'm living.”

Christian raised his voice. “I said I was sorry!”

Ted raised his voice right back. “Watch how you talk to me!”

Victoria shook her head from side to side and leaned on one foot, nervous and afraid of what would happen next. She wanted so badly to step in, but she knew that doing so might make things even worse.

Ted lowered his voice. “I don't care where you go, but you've got to get out of here.”

“You mean you really want me to leave?”

“I'm not going to repeat myself. Get your things and get out of this house.”

“This is Mom's house. You can't put me out.”

Victoria could hear the slight tremor in Christian's voice. Ted was the only person whom she knew her son feared, but apparently not as much as she'd thought. He'd just made a bold and disrespectful statement, and she knew it was going to be met with fury from Ted.

She sucked in an extra breath of air as Ted stepped up to Christian, so close their noses were almost touching. Both men were the same six feet two inches in height, and like Ted, Christian was lean and well built, but with the added advantage of being significantly younger. However, despite Ted's age, Victoria knew it wasn't a factor for her husband when it came to protecting those he loved.

“Watch your step, son.” Ted's voice was smooth, calm, and hard at the same time, and it put fear in Victoria because she knew what her husband was capable of. She knew that as calm, cool, and reserved as Ted could be, he could also tear up the entire room if he was pushed. And she prayed again that their son wasn't foolish enough to test fate.

“C'mon, man. Don't do this, let it go,” Tyler said as he stepped up beside Christian. “You were wrong and your father has spoken. You need to bounce on up outta here.”

Uncle Maxx shook his head as he looked at his great nephew. “You been nasty and disrespectful. You better be glad you got understandin' parents, and if I was you, I'd do 'xactly what your daddy asked 'cause he means business, and ain't nobody here gonna get they ass kicked tryin' to defend you.”

“Just go,” Alexandria said as she raised her head. She looked deeply into Christian's eyes. “Trust me when I say you need to pack your things and leave, right now.”

Victoria felt as if she were standing front and center in the middle of a crazy reality television show. This was supposed to be a happy family breakfast buffet, not a standoff between father and son that had the potential of turning physical.

She knew that Tyler, Uncle Maxx, and Alexandria were all right. Christian was about to be put out of the house. The entire family wanted him gone, and sadly, so did she.

Christian looked at her with a small plea on his face, and it made her heart feel conflicted. On one hand, she knew it was best for him to leave, especially after the cryptic stare she had seen Alexandria throw his way. But on the other hand, Christian was her baby, and despite his ways, she didn't want to see him thrown out of the house.

“Mom, do you want to put me out, too?” Christian asked.

Victoria bit her bottom lip and nodded as she looked at her son. “You brought this on yourself. Your father is the head of this family and I stand by his wishes, as should you. You need to pack your things.”

“Fine!” Christian said in a loud, angry voice. “I knew I shouldn't have come here to this miserable little town in the first place. Everybody always wants to judge me. But that's all right. I got this.”

Victoria, as well as everyone else in the room, stood still and quiet as Christian practically stomped his way out of the kitchen and up the stairs in a rage. She thought about all that had transpired in less than an hour, and the more she pondered, the more she went back to what she'd originally felt. Maybe this trip was a good thing after all.

Christian had shown his ass and had gotten kicked out of the house. This was the first time his family had rejected him and not stood behind him when his behavior clearly dictated they should exercise some tough love. Victoria thought about the fact that this was part of her family's past behavior that needed to be buried so that new ways of dealing with their family problems could start anew.

As Victoria walked back to the other side of the buffet that she'd set up on the kitchen island, she continued to think about what she'd just witnessed.
I pray this day goes uphill from here,
she said to herself. But as she spooned scrambled eggs unto her plate, the pit of her stomach told her that she needed to hold on tight for more bumps in the road.