Love Knows No Boundaries 3: Pandora's Box Read online

  “Don’t touch me! Move!” Minnie became irate, crying non-stop as she resisted her father pulling her away from her husband.

  “You don’t need to see this.” He wrapped his arms around her waistline, attempting to lift her up and away from the devastation.

  “Stoppppppp! Stoppppp!” She screamed at the top of lung. She swung wildly as if she was trying to escape the arms of a kidnapper.

  The medic team of two rushed over with a spine board and gurney as the lead technician squatted by Yuriah, barking out his directives. After a quick assessment, he said, “He has blood in his pleural cavity. I need a chest tube placement for decompression.”

  “What’s happening?” Minnie panicked her question to the gentleman kneeling over her husband as she tried to wiggle from her father’s bear hug.

  He didn’t answer as he concentrated on locating the section between the second and third intercostal space at the mid clavicular line to make his incision and then insertion.

  In that moment, life or death depended on how quickly the air and blood was aspirated.

  The female medic started two large bore IVs, then checked his pressure. “He’s unconsciousness. We need to intubate him now!”

  She grabbed an endotracheal tube, placing it in mouth and down his throat. She then attached an airway apparatus over his nose and mouth and begin ventilating his lungs mechanically by squeezing a reservoir of oxygen through his orifices.

  The paramedics were on red alert to save a life they were in imminent danger of losing.

  Moments later…

  After losing G’Corey in a sea of people gathered about for some sort of celebration in the park, Munch threw his hands up and dolefully turned back around. “Muthafucka!”

  He couldn’t aimlessly pursue him any longer although he wanted to. He had to get back and check on his cousin. He’d get up with G’Corey at another time, he had no other choice. He was now marked for death.

  Several minutes passed and midway through his run, he spotted an ambulance and a couple of NOPD cruisers. Instinctually, he hauled ass even harder to get over to them.

  The closer he drew to Yuriah the heavier his steps became. The weight of cinderblocks rested on his feet as his heart embraced the unknown. He slowed down to a crawl when he observed his family lying on the stretcher. He didn’t know what to think. He only hopped they made it in time.

  Off to the side of the paramedics hoisting Yuriah into the back of their medical wagon was a small crowd of uniforms.

  He then saw Minnie trying to fight her way out of her father’s hold, belligerently screaming and pointing at the ambulance. It was clear she wanted to go along with them but he refused.

  “Let me goooo!” Minnie jumped up and down as she had a conniption over her restraint.

  Scattered about were a couple of guests willing to speak with detectives.

  Then he looked over to his peoples who was still standing where Yuriah’s body once lay, trembling in anger. They made uncomfortable eye contact and Munch balled his mouth tightly. Kamal bit down on his bottom lip intensely and then shook his head no from side to side as he started to make his way over to Munch.

  Gun still in hand, Munch brought his hands to his head in disbelief. “Not my dawg, mannnn! Fuck!”

  Chapter 2

  Munch’s emotional outburst drew the attention of the neighboring police. They approached him with apprehension.

  “Drop your weapon!” One police officer aimed his gun at Munch, while his partner discharged his Glock from its holster and ordered the same of him. Seconds later, another armed cop inched up on the presumed suspect.

  Munch looked each of the three uniforms in the eyes as he brought his piece to his side. “Ain’t this a bitch?”

  “I said drop it. Now!” The policeman yelled vehemently.

  Kamal treaded lightly toward them and then shot his hands up when one officer turned his gun on him. “Mannnn, what the fuck is y’all doing?” He barked at them in a heavy voice.

  “Stand back. Do not come any closer,” he spoke.

  “That man ain’t do shit, ya heard me.” Kamal disregarded his command.

  “Take another step and I’ll blow your fuckin’ head off!”

  Kamal dropped his hands. He was never one to be passive especially with those that were being aggressive. Police or not, Kamal didn’t take his threat kindly and was a moment away from seeing who would blow whose head off first.

  “You good, son,” Munch told Kamal. He could read on his face that he was about to enter the zone where no fucks were given so he became compliant to the officers’ petition.

  Munch slowly placed his gun onto the ground and proceeded with standard protocol for a black man from the hood: Get on your fucking knees. Hands behind your goddamn head. Get treated like a muthafucking dog.

  They quickly walked toward him. One cop kicked the gun off to the side before picking it up while the other pushed his foot into Munch’s back forcing him to lay in the dirt. He then dropped his knee into his back while forcing his arms into the arresting position.

  “Aaaahhhh! Son of a bitch!” Munch groaned.

  “Say, dawg. He already surrendered, bruh. Why you gotta do him that?” One guy off to the side questioned the officer rough housing him, but no response was given.

  Munch was brought to his feet and pushed in the direction he was to walk. “Mannn, y’all some pussies for real. You ain’t gotta be handlin’ a thuggah like that, man. Fuck wrong with y’all?” He grimaced at the tightness of the cuffs around his wrist. “You bitches automatically think a mu’fucka guilty, with no questions asked. Hate you hoes.”

  “You have the right to remain silent. I suggest you do so muthafucka! Anything you say…” The most antagonistic officer of the three manhandled him by the grab of his arm, walking him to a vehicle as he read him his Miranda rights.

  Munch glared off to the side of him, studying his face and then his name tag.

  The officer looked down at his shirt and then back to him. “Santemore, bitch! Remember it.”

  Munch shook his head up and down rapidly, smirked and then spit at Santemore’s feet. “I will.”

  Santemore wore a chip on his shoulder. The way he despised young black men would have one think he too wasn’t from the same ghettos he terrorized from behind his badge. Whether Munch had a record or not, he was a criminal in his mind and he treated him and all men who looked like him as such.

  He threw Munch in the back of the unit, slamming the door behind him. “Get this piece of shit processed. And you,” he pointed at Kamal, who had his fist clutched, when he turned around, “stay out of trouble or this could be you.”

  “Fuck you!” Kamal spat.

  Once Munch was detained, the other cops moved about.

  “Oh, Mal. They headin’ out. Let’s go!” A friend of the family pointed to the ambulance disappearing through the park.

  “Fuck!” Kamal’s head was smoking. He was between two very fucked situations.

  Kamal gunned for his car, passing the unit holding Munch hostage. They caught eye contact for a brief second before Kamal ran a little faster. He already knew the play.

  With that, he reached into his pants pocket and retrieved his phone as he took a seat behind the wheel of his Monte Carlo. Pressing the number two on the screen and then the send button, he speed dialed his lady. She picked up on the first ring.

  “Hey, baby daddy. How was the wedding?” Shenae answered.

  Without returning the pleasantries, he spoke sternly. “Muthafuckas arrested Munch. I need you to go downtown and see to it that he comes out looking the same way he walked in.”

  “What?” she asked shockingly, bolting upward from her lay position on the sofa. The side of her that cared for Munch like a brother freaked out, but then the attorney in her controlled her nerves. “Never mind that. Will you be meeting me there?”

  He blew out hard. “I’m headin’ to the hospital. Mannn, Yuriah been shot.”

  She grabbe
d at her chest. “Oh, my God! Baby? Is he…”

  “Barely.”

  Okay—okay, she mumbled under her breath. “I’ll take care of Munch, ASAP. And you? Which hospital are you going to?”

  “I’on know. I guess Mercy. Mannn, fuck!” A flash of G’Corey entered his mind and in a rush of anger, Kamal hit the steering wheel repeatedly. “Fuckkk!”

  Tears welled in her eyes at the sound of her love’s pain. Her heart broke into tiny pieces. He was the strongest man she knew and to hear him vulnerable made her feel weak. She wiped each eye one at a time with the base of her palm, then toughened up. “Consider it done. I’ma see you afterwards, okay, baby?”

  Taking a few deep breaths, he responded. “A’ight.”

  Kamal tossed his phone into the passenger seat and floored his way to Mercy Hospital, since it was the closest ER facility.

  Shenae immediately rushed over to the window in their front room, peering through the blinds to see if her best friend’s truck was outside. Good. She’s home. Shenae reached into the playpen, grabbed Double, Kamal’s junior, and then called out for her daughter. “De’Asia, baby, put on some shoes. You’re going by Auntie Tondie.”

  “Yayyyy!” De’Asia sang as she put on a pair of tennis shoes. Grabbing a tiara and two of her dolls from off of her bed, she left out of her room minutes later. She ran to the opposite end of the hall and stood at the doorsill of her mother’s bedroom. “Ready, mommy.”

  “That’s my big girl. Now go stand by the front door and wait on me, okay?”

  “Okay,” she shrilled, doing as she was told.

  Shenae multi-tasked between quickly dressing herself and her son all the while making a call. After the second ring, her bubbly assistant answered.

  “Tanika Council speaking.”

  “Where are you?” Shenae spoke directly.

  “Wherever you need me to be,” she responded upon hearing the urgency in her boss’ voice.

  “Go down to Central Lockup. Client’s name? Kareem McMillan.”

  Tanika had been working at Crimley & Associates as her right hand for over a year, so she didn’t need any additional details. “I’m on it.”

  Shenae ended the call, stuffing her phone into her pants pocket.

  “Come on, big boy.” She picked her son up off of her bed as she reached for both his diaper bag and her purse.

  Entering the hallway, she paused long enough to enter the alarm code on the keypad. With a minute to exit, she opened the front door and left out with her daughter in tow.

  She locked up then hurried next door, jogging up the steps that led to her friend’s porch. As Shenae was about to knock on the door, Tondie opened it, jumping back.

  “Oh, shit! You startled me,” Tondie replied, instantly short of breath.

  Shenae could plainly see she was heading off somewhere and passing her kids off to her would be an imposition, but she needed her help.

  “Sorry, sis. Look, I don’t want to talk around my children but something really urgent has happened. I need you to watch them.” Shenae hurried her words as she pushed Double further up on her hip.

  Tondie shook her head yes while she opened her door wider, escorting De’Asia inside as she reached for the baby. “Handle your business. They’ll be straight.”

  Shenae kissed her on the cheek, then backed away from her with her hands pressed together in prayer manner. “Thank you, bestie. Thank you. Thank you.” She turned around and ran off to her car parked in her driveway.

  “Call me!” Tondie called out behind her, stretching her thumb and pinky finger against her ear.

  “I will,” Shenae yelled back without looking, disarming the alarm to her car. Once inside, she quickly started the engine and pulled off.

  She needed to make it to the precinct either before the police arrived with Munch or at the same time as them because it was no secret that The Boys in Blue were dirty.

  Chapter 3

  Elias bounced his knee as he reminded himself to be on his best behavior. He didn’t want to embarrass Blu with his known sarcasm or blunt responses. After all, he was sitting amongst The Huxtables.

  He looked around the table and everyone was smiling with the exception of her dad, but he was the typical tight in the ass father, so he didn’t expect much sunshine from him anyway.

  Mr. Cormier was an ornery man who wore a straight face at all times. Whether he was happy, angry, or sad, his expression never changed.

  He stared at Elias with a judgmental eye for a time before he let the questions rip. “Mr. Dupree, where do you work?”

  Elias glanced at Blu, giving her the is this thuggah serious look before he directed his attention to her father. He answered bluntly. “I don’t, sir.”

  “You don’t work? Humph. This generation is lazy. So, you looking to leach off my baby girl?”

  “Daddy!” Blu bucked her eyes in an effort to silently tell him to stop. She turned to Elias, placing a consoling hand on top of his. “He doesn’t mean it.” She projected an uncomfortable grin. She had asked her father ahead of time not to turn family dinner into Judge Brown’s courtroom, but it was clear court was in session.

  “Like the hell I don’t mean it, little girl.” He looked at her firmly.

  Don’t do it, E. Hold your tongue. You knew her ole punk ass daddy was gonna be extra, Elias cleared his throat and looked him in the eyes. He felt insulted, but he brushed the dirt of his shoulders and responded with the pride of a man. “Not at all, sir. I have my own money.”

  “How? You selling dope? You some kind of hustler?” He shifted in his seat and sat at attention as he faced Blu while he pointed his condemning finger at Elias. “You brought some drug dealing kingpin lord into my home?”

  “Daddy! He’s none of that and he gets his money honestly, so please stop.”

  “Honey, this young man is a guest in our home. How ‘bout you treat him with a little kindness, dear.” Lauren gracefully smiled, but he could read the duplicity in his wife’s request. The upward curl of her lips said please, but her eyes said you better!

  He looked over at Elias, then he digressed. “Umm hmmm.” He’d have a man to man conversation with him when the protection of his two Mother Hens weren’t around because he was far from done.

  Lauren walked over to her husband, placing a tender kiss on his forehead. He came off abrasive, but the family knew all in all he meant well. “Thank you,” she whispered. Changing the temperature in the room, she spoke more vibrantly standing at his side. “Well, I hope everyone brought their appetites because Mama has cooked enough to feed the block. We have seafood gumbo, stuffed bell peppers, potato salad, homemade mac n cheese, two types of vegetables. You name it, I made it,” she chuckled as she retreated over to her seat at the other end of the table, grabbing her chair.

  Langston looked at the time on his wristwatch. It was 5:57PM. Dinner always started promptly at six in his home and his daughter who had been M.I.A. since she arrived knew that. “Blue Diamond, go call your sister from up there. Don’t make no goddamn sense how she comes over here just to alienate herself,” he grumbled.

  “Yes, Daddy.” Just as Blu was excusing herself from the table, she heard the click of her sister’s heels descending the hardwood stairs. She sat back down. “Here she comes now.”

  Although uncomfortable from the cheap shots fired at his character, Elias made small talk by complimenting the chef. “All of this smells good.”

  Elias took another deep inhale, but what he registered this time wasn’t the hot, steamy buttered rolls sitting before him.

  He tilted his head slightly in curious wonder as he purposely did a triple sniff to identify the foreign yet familiar scent invading his nostrils.

  It had been nine months, but the soft lingering scent of J’adore jolted his recall.

  Awww, hell no. If I turn around and it be that bitch, he thought.

  “Eli,” Blu tapped his shoulder. “I’d like for you to meet my sister.”

  Before Elias could t
urn around fully, he venomously spoke her name right as Blu introduced her.

  “La’Tasha,” they said.

  Blu turned to face her beau. “You know my sister?”

  Elias zoned out for a second and went inside of his head. He had to think carefully before he answered. “Yea, but I don’t know her, know her.”

  “Oh, really?” She rolled her neck in a sista gurl kind of way. “He’s being modest, lil’ sis, but he knows me, knows me both inside and out. Tell her, Elias.” La’Tasha casually walked around the table observing the spread in front of her before taking a seat directly across from him as if she didn’t just drop a hint of their sexual past. “Ummm, everything looks great, Mom.”

  Elias narrowed his eyes and glared at La’Tasha as if he could hypnotize her into holding her breath and killing over.

  Blu leaned into him. “What is she talking about?”

  “She ain’t talkin’ ‘bout nothing.” He barely moved his lips as he answered, looking straightway.

  “Her snide comments says otherwise.” She tried to whisper, but La’Tasha heard it clearly.

  “You can ask me, La’Toria. I’m sure to be more forthcoming than lover boy over there.” She twirled her finger in his direction all the while projecting a smile that hinted sneaky suspicion.

  “La’Tasha!” Her mother’s face was twisted with astonishment as she looked over at her middle child.

  La’Tasha smacked her lips. “What? She wanted to introduce him to me and all I was saying was none needed to be made.”

  Blu rolled her eyes upward and shook her head. She bit her tongue because she didn’t want to have their infamous sibling rivalry fiasco unfold as it tended to do regularly, but she definitely had questions for the both of them.

  “Don’t sass your mother,” her father made clear.

  La’Tasha threw her hands up. “Didn’t know I was, but okay.”

  It was quiet around the table for what felt like an eternity to Eli. He had to check his face on a few occasions because he found himself mirroring the look of a growling pit each time his eyes caught hers.