I couldn’t help but shift nervously in my seat as I felt six pairs of eyes lock onto me like I was an alien or something. Against my daddy’s judgment, I walked in and sat down beside Tatiana, she looked kinda annoyed with me, as she repaid my shy wave by pulling her gold and black headphones back over her head in a huff. She was wearing tight blue jeans and a white supreme hoodie. Trinity on the other hand was wearing more proper clothes, a dark skirt of deep brown or black. She was wearing a matching long sleeve ribbed sweater, her dark red gemstone hung around her next as well as dark golden earrings. Her braids were hanging loosely around her head except for about six of them that were tied around her head like a crown.
Katherine was sitting beside Trinity, this carriage style SUV had us all facing each other. The woman that I had originally came all this way to try and kill with my own hands. (Like a fool) Was not in a dress today. Instead, she was wearing black pants that hugged her in all the best places. A matching blazer that had only one button closed, exposing a clean white shirt that hung down giving anyone a good view of her cleavage. “I-I wouldn’t say that, Ms. Blackthorn.” I answered not looking at the woman as one wrong step, one bead of sweat, any sort of body language might expose me in her eyes. “I am still thinking about it.”
“Well from what this one has said and how she can’t stop beaming like she had just seen the Lord.” Whether she was talking about Jesus Christ or their false lord, Lord Blackthorn the 15th. I could not tell. “It is already a done deal, ready to enroll in that private academy with you and her dear cousin. Already making plans for when I start to retrain you, and maybe this time we will be able to finish it.”
The idea alone of being trained by her again sent waves of anxiety rushing through my body. “Well, I still need to think about it,” I suddenly remembered the wire that was hidden underneath my shirt and sweater. Maybe this was a time to try and get information from Katherine. “It’s not everyday that you are asked to join and maybe lead a big operation such as yours and Mr. Wallace’s.”
She waved her hand at me dismissively. “Oh it is more his operation, I am just helping delegate and as I am sure this one.” Trinity tensed as Katherine placed a hand on her shoulder. Her very sharp nails drummed on her shoulder. “Told you, without a care in the world, I am not trying to run this pride or empire as he calls it.” Katherine lifted her hand leaving a few small puncture marks in that cute ribbed sweater. I don’t think she was happy that Trinity had told me so much.
“What brings you out here today, Ms. Blackthorn. I thought you didn’t like traveling with us kids?”
“Teenages.” Tatiana mumbled under her breath.
“You are all children, yes,” I was pretty sure Katherine said that to upset Tatiana. “However I am not here for a long time I am afraid, matter of fact my stop is on the way to where you are heading. So I was gonna catch a ride as you children say.” Katherine looked towards Tatiana who had mouth shut but I could hear grinding her teeth. “Something wrong Tatiana, you have such an attitude all day.”
“I am fine,” Tatiana whispered.
“I am fine, what?” Katherine prompted.
“Ms. Blackthorn, my new master.” My eyes went wide for a moment but I quickly hid it as Katherine looked back at me. She was gonna join Trinity and become one of this woman’s students, a fate worse than death in my opinion.
“Good girl, that wasn’t so hard now was it.” Katherine sighed and folded her hands. “I am gonna be annoyingly busy if all things go as planned, I might be having to train three young ladies in the way of this world. How to fight properly, and how to fight to not keep people down, but to make sure they never stand again. How to conduct themselves in a proper way, how to be strong in industry ruled by even stronger men. How to use our best assist to get what we want and lower their guard. So busy, so so busy.” We drove in relative silence with only some loud muffled music from Tatiana’s headphones, who had her eyes gazing out of the window, her hands tightening into fists every now and than. We eventually pulled into a beautiful looking restaurant, a royal red and gold color. Our door was open as Katherine stepped out of the SUV, and Trinity seemed to be going with her.
“I will be back in ten minutes, just need to do something really quick.” Trinity waved at me before carefully climbing out and it was like her entire demeanor changed in a moment. Gone was her excited smile, and happy proster. She stood straight and proud, her smile was replaced with a confident smirk, she walked perfectly without a sign of weakness, but with all the strength in the world.
A lesson that I never really could get down when I was being taught by Katherine as a child.
As they disappeared inside of this restaurant. I heard my daddy finally speak to me. “Are you okay?” Even in his thoughts he couldn’t hide his worry.
I gripped my gemstone and thought back. “Yeah I am fine, I think that she is not gonna be around anymore for the rest of the night. Where are they going?”
“This is a restaurant that Hezekiah Wallace owns, The Pride of Savanna, the only place to truly experience African Dishes in the entire city. Quite a heavy price to get in but I hear the food is absolutely amazing.”
“Maybe we can-” Before I could make a suggestion to dine at it before it was closed alongside all of his other business. I was knocked back as someone slammed a fist against my jaw! My head banged against the window as I spun around holding my cheek. “What was that for!” I demanded, but then pressed back against the door as Tatiana came at me with a fury I never imagined. I reached up, and caught both of her fists as she tried to strike me once more, her headphone fell off her head and slammed against the floor dragging her phone out of her pocket as well. She tried to free her hands, probably to hit me again. Maybe this was the plan! Maybe while they go inside, Tatiana would knock me out so they could capture me!
“Get off of me!” I said pushing her back up and pinning her against her side of the car. I used a bit of my strength to keep her still as I looked at her firmly. “What is your problem!?”
“I told you to stop my cousin!” She screamed at me. “Yet somehow that turned into her helping her do bad things, and now you want to join!” I grunted as she tucked her legs into her chest before kicking them out against my chest kicking me in the stomach. I slammed back into the door and once again caught her fists once more. It was now that I could see tears in her dark red eyes, she was shaking. I could feel it from her fists. “You promised that you would help her, that you would take me this island of yours, yet now you are gonna join her and I am gonna be stuck here!”
“That isn’t what.” She pulled me forward and slammed her forehead against sending a powerful dull pain rushing through my head. “Stop it!” I screamed as I pushed her back once more. I shifted my weight so I could push her onto her back so she lay on the soft seats of this SUV. “And let me talk!”
“Shut the fuck up!” Tatiana growled like the animal spirit she loved. “You are a liar, that is all you are, your no better than that bitch of a woman!” My grip softened and in that moment she twisted her hips and sent me falling down to the floor. I heard a loud crunch as I sat down on her headphones. Before I could stop her, Tatiana pushed open the door and grabbed her phone that was sitting beside me. “Go ahead and do what you want, but you are l-liar so have the entire world, with my sister. I guess money can really buy anyone, no matter how nice they might be!” The door slammed shut so hard that I thought it might shatter the window. I opened my own door and spilled out of the car, my clothes a bit dirty and I had a swollen cheek.
“Tatiana wait!” I called out.
The girl pulled her hoodie over head and waved down a taxi cab.
“I’m not like Katherine!” I screamed over to her. “I’m not a liar, Tatiana please…” I leaned up against the SUV as the air suddenly felt so much colder. Her cab sped off leaving me alone, with a few people looking at me like I was crazy. I could feel tears starting to flow down my face as I grabbed my gemstone. “I-I wanna stop this today, can we please… Please just stop. I want to go home.”
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Trinity was very much disappointed when I told her something had come up, and I had to go home. I promised her that we could go and see whatever she wanted to show me tomorrow or the next day. They dropped me off at my fake hotel room, she did wonder where Tatiana had gone but I just told her that her cousin had left. “You should probably go and find her.” I whispered and once she was gone. I climbed into the car with my daddy with Officer Cooper who took us back to our real hotel.
As soon as I reentered the room. I walked past Joshua who looked kinda confused by this and locked myself in the bathroom. I closed my eyes to try and stop my tears from overwhelming me. “You are no better than that bitch of a woman!” I pulled at my braids for a moment wanting to tear them out. I wanted to jump into a scolding hot shot and scrub this stupid deep tan off so I could go back to my milky skin color. I tore out my contacts that held back my beautiful violet eyes. I was tired of lying! I was tired of this mission! I pulled my legs close to my chest and just sat there in a ball of misery and sadness. I was not ready for everything that had happened so far. I came here to kill Katherine but that was stupid. I am still here to try and save Trinity from her fate. Yet I felt powerless.
Worst of all now Tatiana, whether she said it out of anger or in truth, she saw me as a liar, and I was a liar. If I wanted help to take down Katherine, then maybe instead of lying. I should just tell the truth. So I dug my phone out of my pocket and began to write a text message to Tatiana and I could only hope that she didn’t block my number. “Tatiana… it’s me Cindy or rather that is not my real name. I am sorry that I have not been honest with you, but believe me when I say that I am not trying to be distrustful. I have to do things to make your cousin like me more and more. I did what I did to get her trust, and I trust you cause you don’t want this life. So this is why I am telling you this and I am begging that you come and see me tomorrow. My name is Verona Whisperwind, and I am here to get Katherine Blackthorn. I can explain so much more about why I came here and why I hate the woman who gave birth to me, so please… help me.”
As soon as I hit send, something in me felt weird… it was like I had made a mistake, like I had just fallen for a trap or something. I chalked it off to just being a feeling of guilt.
It took 15 minutes before she responded to me. “Meet me tomorrow at this address.” That was all she said and one google search led me to a neighborhood in Queens, New York. “Please let this have been the right thing to do.”
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I only had to knock twice on the door of this very cozy looking brown and white house in Queens before Tatiana answered the door. She was wearing light pink pajama pants, and a tank top with one of the straps hanging off her shoulder. She had her braids off and was wearing a red handkerchief over her head. “H-Hi,” I said with a small wave towards her. My cheek still stung from where she had sucker punched me before.
Tatiana didn’t say anything at first just staring me down with her arms crossed. “Come in I guess,” she mumbled as she stepped aside so I could enter.
“Thank you,” I walked inside and was greeted with a small entryway that led into a larger hallway. I took off my shoes and coat hanging neatly on a hook beside three more expensive looking coats. “Is this where you live with your parents?”
“I live here alone, for the most part.” I followed Tatiana into a living room that also connected to a kitchen in the far back. There were two cups of coffee waiting on a coffee table, the large television was on and hanging over a fireplace that could really use some wood to go with it. The television was paused on the spotify app, her studying playlist as it was listed on the side. The coffee table had a few books laying on it, and two laptops, one of them being plugged in to charge. Another stack of books underneath this coffee table. She sat down on the floor and I chose to sit across from her. There was a large L shaped couch that went from one wall to halfway across another.
“You live here alone?” I asked as I reached up to take out my contacts feeling a bit more free than I had before.
“Yeah,” she confirmed, taking a sip from her coffee. “My uncle gave me this little home for myself as long as I don’t break three rules he has.” She began to list them off, holding up one finger for each. “No having boys over, no parties, and keep it clean. So I stay here when I don’t want to be with my dad or be near their activities.”
“That is nice,”
She let out an annoyed tone from her mouth, a mix of huff and groan. She looked over at me again, mostly looking into my bright violet eyes. “You do have Katherine’s eyes, but if you are really her daughter then why are you revealing yourself to me?”
“Because like I told you in my text, I trust you.”
“Didn’t I tell you that you can’t just trust people?”
I nodded my head, “you did but I felt like I needed to do this, cause you were hurt by my actions and I am sorry for that.”
Tatiana let out a deep sigh from her mouth. “What do you want or what are you hoping to gain from this?”
“I want to be honest for once since I have been here, and I want to help you in more ways than one. I want to help your cousin too before it is too late, and the best way to do that is to take down your uncle Hezekiah Wallace, and then we take down Katherine. That is why I have been here for so long, and why I helped your cousin when you didn’t want to. It’s why I have been playing along and wanted to see what she was gonna show me that night with you. I am not joining her crew or anything, that was never an option for me.”
“So what are you?” She asked. “Some kind of secret agent or something?”
“Well as my daddy’s animal spirit would say. I am a stowaway… I was never supposed to be here in the first place.” She made a motion for me to keep going and I did. I told this girl everything that I had been doing since coming here. I was careful to mind what I say, and careful to keep a few things closenet. All the while she didn’t say anything, just let me talk and it felt good to tell the truth for the first time with someone else. “That is everything,” I concluded as I took a sip of my own coffee and made a bit of a disgusted face. “No cream or sugar?”
“I like mine black,” Tatiana stood up and motioned for me to follow her. She led me into a very clean kitchen with marble white floors, a silver fridge and freezer, large gray cabinets and a walkin panty. She opened her fridge and pulled out a container of milk and gave me a bag of sugar. “Don’t take to much, I am making cookies tonight for school tomorrow.”
“Aren’t you gonna say anything about what I just told you?” I asked, putting in a bit of milk and sugar.
“Not really,” Tatiana answered. “Except, I am sorry for what I did last night.” She leaned up against a counter. Her eyes filled with a bit of guilt as she looked down at the floor. “I overreacted and should have guessed that you weren’t gonna do something like that. It’s just, I am used to people who want to be my friend or help me, then end up just leaving once my sister offers them money or something. I thought you were doing the same.”
“Why do you call Trinity your sister sometimes?”
“Because my uncle, her daddy, wants us to be as close as sisters, so sometimes I call her that.” There was something about the way she said that that was a bit too quick, but I just shrugged it off. She was probably overwhelmed by everything I had just told her. I was taken away from that thought as she asked me once more. “Why did you tell me all of this? I know that you said that it is because you want to be truthful but what else is there. What aren’t you telling me?”
“I want you to help me. I guess take down your uncle, and Katherine. If we can do that then we can get you and Trinity out of New York. Cause I don’t want Trinity to die.” That caught Tatiana’s attention as her eyes widened.
“Is someone gonna kill her?” She asked in a serious voice.
“No but if she keeps doing the things she might be doing, than she might be given the death penalty.” I explained how there was a rumor that Trinity was responsible for numerous deaths across the city, most that happen at these meetings. How, that if she was found guilty of this she would spend years in a younger prison before being put on death row. “I don’t want that happen, especially cause this has all happened because I know Katherine is influencing her to be more violent. I know cause she tried to do it with me, I just had people to protect me to keep me safe. Your cousin doesn’t have that, she truly wants to be a queen pin, she wants this city under her palm.”
“She wants more than you could ever imagine or even guess,” Tatiana said grimly. “And what do you expect me to do, how can I help you? You want me to go to the police and tell them everything I know, show them things that only I know? Do you have any idea what my family does to snitches, especially their blood that snitches?!”
“I could help.”
She interrupted me. “I can’t just walk into a police station and then walk out like nothing happened. My daddy has eyes and ears everywhere, if he found out his daughter snitched on him, he would do more than just whoop my ass!”
“I am not asking you to do that.” I explained. “I already have an idea in place. You don’t have to come talk at a police station, you could come to my hotel room, and if anyone asked you could just say that. You are going to help sway me a bit more, and then we could have you talk to my dad. He is helping us arrest Hezekiah Wallace.”
Tatiana was noticeably shaking, a few waves of coffee splashed against the side of her cup and began to drip down onto the floor. “It’s not that easy… I don’t know.” She whispered. “How can you be sure that I won’t be in trouble for these crimes either. How can you be so sure that when this is over, me and her will be taken to that safe island of yours. Cause if this works then you know I won’t be allowed to ever come back here right. I could never come back to New York, I would be seen as the snitch that got the marsh pride taken down, and those that escape judgment would kill me.”
“If everything goes as planned, I know my dad can pull a few strings. Trinity might have to spend some time in Tarun’s Prison but that place is more about reflection than punishment. She would be released and free to live her life in peace, and you could learn what you want to learn. We have the best school in the world, we have more books in more languages than you could ever imagine. It would be amazing to have you there, and if you lost one family, you could always join mine. My little sister would love another big sister to annoy and play with me. My momma is really strong and if someone did come looking for you for revenge, she would protect you, just like she protected me from Katherine.”
Tatiana set her cup down on the counter and placed her hands on the island in the center of this kitchen. She took a deep breath as she. “Get out…” she said in a shaky voice. “Just get out of my small house, and leave me alone.”
“Tatiana please-” She held up her hand making me stop.
“Just please,” she begged. “Please get out, okay? I will come to you if I agree with this, but I have a lot of things to think about. Just send me your address or something.”
“O-okay… can I maybe stay here for a moment while I call an uber?”
That got a bit of laughter from Tatiana. “Just get out and wait on the porch or something. You really are a foolish girl, Verona.”
And I really was, because I really should have followed my gut when I noticed a certain white object sitting underneath a pile of books underneath the low rising coffee table in the living room. Because it was not a plate and it certainly was not a frisbee.
I think it was a mask.
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