JD and I sat at the diner a little longer after Pacino left. I kept telling myself that it was because I wanted JD to finish his fries and milkshake. I stayed because I wanted to keep an eye on Nesha. She talked with customers. Laughed and smiled, but behind that smile, behind those tired-looking eyes, I knew the pain she felt. Her pain had become my pain. Her misery, I lived it every day.
No matter how hard I tried. No matter how much I begged and gave, nothing was enough to make Nesha trust me to give her a better life than what she saw in the father of her child. I guess her hesitation was warranted. Once upon a time she had a little trust in me when it came to being her brother’s friend. She trusted me to look out for him the same as he had done me, only my help came with consequences that they ended up paying for.
Finally, after being asked if we could leave by JD, I packed up his stuff and took him to Aventura Mall. They had more obstacle courses in the upscale mall for kids to play in than Sawgrass Mills. He played until he became whiny and hungry. We stopped in the food court and ate. This had become our norm since he was born.
JD was that silent blessing given from God for me to get everything I messed up with his mother and uncle right. He would never have to doubt if those close to him loved him. He’d never have to bounce around from home to home.
Never have to worry about some sick ass nigga taking his manhood.
“Uncle Mell, what’s that noise?” JD stopped walking next to me, holding his cherry icee, looking around the parking garage.
I heard the noise but figured it was some strayed cat. “Keep walking. I don’t know what that sound is.” Though I was with a child I kept my burner on me just in case. Too many instances happened when dudes left their heat in the car because they were with their kids.
The closer we got to the end of the garage where I parked my car the noise became louder. At this end, there was only my truck and a dusty green Ford Explorer. The truck was shaking. Probably some teenagers sneaking off to have sex.
“Here, let me hold your icee while I buckle yourself in.”
“Shut up, bitch!” A loud slap followed. “You wanted this. You wanted me.” Grunts and more moaning and muffled screams followed.
“You heard that?” JD looked at me with creased brows as he strained his neck to look around from his booster seat.
I heard it alright.
Even heard the woman pleading to be let go. The more she screamed and the longer I stood there looking off, I felt myself slipping into a dark zone. The same feeling that came over me when I was about to wreak havoc hit me hard in the chest making me grab the door frame and close my eyes. JD was with me. He immersed himself in so many of the things I did, my habits and words, I swore to never let him see me in my rural element.
“Jeremy, listen to me okay?” I called him by his name because I wanted to make sure he knew we weren’t about to play around. Things were about to get serious and I needed him to play his part.
“Yes, sir.” He nodded his head keeping eye contact.
“Stay in the car while I go help the lady over there, okay? I’m going to lock the door. Don’t unlock it for anyone but me. Do you remember how to unlock the door?”
“Yes, sir.” He pointed to the knobs on the door panel.
“Good job. I’ll be right back.” Before I walked off, I went into my glove compartment to get my sound suppressor so he wouldn’t hear my shots. Turning on the ac and the radio I locked him in the car. I already knew he was going to look out the windows and times like this I wish my tints were double-sided so he couldn’t see out of them.
Removing my gun from the back of my pants, I twisted the silencer on the nose and rounded the car on the driver’s side, the side where JD couldn’t see me. The truck was rocking with her screams and cries muffled but loud enough to bring goosebumps on my arms. Dude was so focused on raping the lady that he never saw me approaching. The windows were tinted but not enough to keep me from seeing the sick act.
Raising my hand, I aimed the gun and took several deep breaths. By the time I counted to six I shot one bullet through the glass, killing him instantly from a headshot. She started screaming even louder. Knocking the rest of the glass out the window, I slipped my hand in and unlocked the door.
“Ma’am, please stop screaming. I’m only trying to help you.” Seeing her bloody clothes torn I had to step back and look off for a moment. I hated to see women being abused and mistreated. Nothing rocked my soul more.
“Please don’t hurt me.” She backed up to the other side of the door. Left eye closed shut and swollen. Lip busted and leaking.
I’m sure I frightened her with my size alone. A tall, bulky black man with a gun in his hands probably didn’t make this situation better. I placed the gun on the backseat. “I’m not going to hurt you. I heard him ra…raping you and I couldn’t just walk away knowing what he was doing to you. Please let me get you to a hospital. You can hold my gun in your hand and shoot me if you think I’ll hurt you. My car is right there with my nephew in the back seat. He’s only four years old. Let me help you.” Holding out my hand I waited to see what she would do.
Her olive tan skin, long brown hair that was disheveled, and her expensive jewelry, if I had to guess she came from money and this was a mugging gone wrong. Her perfume smelled expensive. The clothes too. Then again this was Aventura Mall. Home of the designer labels.
Placing her bloody quivering hand on my palm, she pushed the man’s body out of the way and jumped into my arms. Body shaking. Tears and blood staining my shirt. She clung to me with a tight grip and all I managed to do was look at the man lying on the floor of the vehicle with his eyes wide open and mouth agape.
“Stupid ass cracka.”
I took a picture of the vehicle’s license plate and sent a text to Pacino. Last thing I needed was for some overpaid security guard to see the car before Pacino got here. Then there were the security cameras. Too many factors that I thought about before aiming my gun.
Knocking on the window of my car I waited for JD to unlock it. “Dat man hurt you, ma’am?” He never moved from his booster seat after unlocking the door but stretched his body to see her. It took much convincing to get her to release me so I could get in. Grabbing a blanket, I kept in the car for JD, I wrapped it around her body and turned the ac off.
“I’m going to take you to…”
“No!” She cried. “I can’t go to an American hospital. My father, he…my husband…I can’t go to an American hospital.” American hospital?
Narrowing my eyes, I looked at her closely and saw it. She was Indian and not Hispanic like I thought. “I’m not trying to have a war on my hands by taking you to the reservation like this.” I looked back at JD who hadn’t sat back fully in his seat.
“Take me anywhere but there.” She continued to cry.
We sat there for another ten minutes before Pacino drove up in a black van. I pointed to the Ford truck and that was it. He hopped in the driver’s seat and drove off while whoever he had in the van followed him. He called me a second later to let me know that he took care of the cameras.
“Ma’am, I’m going to take you to my doctor. He’s out in Davie off Griffin Road. A private location. Is that okay?” She nodded, moving closer to the door. Peeking over my shoulder I looked at JD who shrugged his shoulders and sat back down.