Renee Page 2

  Waves shook his head. “Dude needs to hurry up and resurface, because she’s about to pop a blood vessel.”

  Jared sank farther into the love seat. Nah. That motherfucker needs to stay wherever the fuck he’s at, he thought.

  For a few minutes, no one spoke, each man lost in his own thoughts. While Lyfe, Waves, and Slice thought about random things that held no importance, Jared thought of the one thing that had dominated his thoughts for the past few months: how he wanted Renee all to himself and Julian out of the picture.

  Chapter 3

  As Julian sat in first class, with a glass of Hennessy in his hand, his bloodshot eyes told the story of a man who hadn’t slept in days. If you looked closely, you could see the fury that dwelled deep within the shadows of this soul. Renee telling him that she aborted his child had crushed him. For days, he had cried within the privacy of his home. His pain had soon turned into anger and had grown with every day that passed.

  The image of Renee sitting behind her huge cherry-wood desk, breaking the news to him, was embedded in his mind. They had sat in her office, talking about the abortion as if it was business instead of something personal. The setting alone angered him and had led him to believe she couldn’t have cared less about what she’d done. Her voice had been cold and ever so calm. She had never broken eye contact or given the slightest hint that she was disturbed by her actions.

  Julian took a sip of his drink. He looked in the glass and knew he would soon need a refill. He knew his drinking had gotten out of hand since Renee told him the bad news, but he didn’t care. He needed the alcohol, depended on it. It was the only thing that he knew would numb his pain. Renee had pushed him to his breaking point. It had gotten to the point where all he did was drink. This past week, he had sat in his Miami Beach house, his place of refuge, and had talked to himself and consumed alcohol. He downed the rest of his drink now and frantically looked around for a flight attendant to take his drink order.

  “She’s getting your drink now,” said a female voice.

  Julian looked over and saw a beautiful woman looking at him. She had honey-brown straight hair that touched the center of her back, hazel eyes, and skin the color of caramel. She reminded him of Renee. The only difference was, Renee’s hair was shoulder length and black.

  The thought of Renee sent Julian into a trance. He could see her angelic face staring back at him. Her bright, almond-shaped hazel eyes and dimpled smile made him weak in the knees, but the longer he stared at her, the more he saw her for who she really was. She was a rocklike creature with no emotions. This was the woman he had stood by for years and had allowed to eat away at his soul.

  As if a hypnotist had snapped his or her fingers, Julian snapped back to reality. He looked at the stranger, the beautiful woman, who was speaking to him. She hadn’t noticed that Julian had temporarily zoned out.

  “I could tell by the way you looked at your glass when it was getting low that you wanted another, but you seemed to be in a daydream when the flight attendant walked by. So I took the liberty of ordering you the same of what you had. I hope that’s okay,” she said.

  Julian’s face softened. Being in the business he was in, he trusted no one and questioned everything. Her reason for ordering him a drink seemed legit, so he let it go.

  “Yeah, it’s cool,” he said, turning his head to look at her. Then faced forward and drifted back into his own little world.

  The woman continued to stare, as if she was examining him. Julian could feel her eyes burning a hole into the side of his face. His features hardened. He wasn’t in the mood for a conversation with some chick who was obviously trying to pick him up. He turned toward the woman, his frustration written on his face.

  “What?” he said.

  “Would it kill you to say thank you?”

  The woman’s stare was so hard, Julian felt like she was challenging him. Her boldness took him by surprise. One second she appeared to be a nice, sweet woman. And the next, she was a controlling, “don’t take any mess from anyone” type of woman.

  This broad must be out of her damn mind. I’m so stressed, I could choke her ass and easily get off by pleading temporary insanity.

  The two had a staring contest that neither intended to lose. Julian was on edge. The smallest thing could push him over and cause him to take all his frustrations out on an innocent person.

  Holding a drink in her hand, the flight attendant stepped in front of him just then, blocking his view of the woman. “Here you go, sir. Here’s your Hennessy.”

  Julian took the glass out of the perky flight attendant’s hand and said, “Thank you.” He looked at the woman across from him and smiled.

  The woman knew what he was doing. He wasn’t saying thank you to the flight attendant to be polite; he was letting her know he’d say it to anyone except her. Moreover, he was making it clear that her straightforwardness and demand for respect did not and would not faze him.

  The flight attendant waltzed back into coach, and Julian got comfortable in his seat. After lying back, he closed his eyes and thought about how the moment he landed in Jamaica, he would put in motion his plan for Renee to let go of her past so they could be in a real relationship. He smiled. He couldn’t wait for the whole “friends with benefits” thing they had going to end. He wanted more, needed more. Life would be complete when their relationship flourished and grew to the highest level.

  Renee was so traumatized and hurt by her past, she had become emotionally detached, wanting none of the happiness and joys life had to offer. For years, starting at the age of twelve, she had been raped by her stepfather, while her mother had stood by and done nothing but verbally abuse her. Through it all, Julian had stood by her side and had patiently waited for the day she opened her closed heart to him and they became a couple.

  From the first day he laid eyes on Renee, he’d known she was the woman he was destined to grow old with. But the longer he’d waited for her depression to wear off, the more cold and withdrawn she’d become. Believing that one day everything would change, Julian had held on to hope. But when Renee had told him she aborted their child, a child he never knew she was pregnant with, he had lost it. All his patience had gone out the window. He had decided he would have her and the family he’d always wanted right then and there. There would be no more waiting. He knew exactly how to get Renee to let go of her past and look forward to their future. He would eliminate the cause of her pain by unleashing the world’s most skilled assassin to wipe her stepfather and her mother off the face of this earth.

  Julian looked out the small window, at the clouds, and grinned. Soon everything he had ever wanted would be his. When he looked away, he locked eyes with those of the woman who’d ordered his drink. She’d been staring at him the whole time. Julian’s jaw tightened.

  She doesn’t give up.

  Once again, the two stared at each other for what felt like forever. Julian’s blood began to boil, and he felt himself getting hot. When he noticed his hand squeezing his glass with enough force to shatter it, he tried to calm himself down.

  This is not the time. Stay focused.

  Julian was not one to be challenged, but normally, he was cool, calm, and collected when he handled issues. He would eliminate the enemy after stripping them of their pride and confidence. However, due to the fact that he was on an emotional roller coaster, he now envisioned harming this aggressive woman. He quickly dismissed the thought. Her immaturity was not worthy of attention. He gave her his famous Colgate smile, turned away, and went to sleep.

  * * *

  Julian’s eyelids opened and shut numerous times before staying open to observe his surroundings that reminded him of his location. He stretched his arms and legs out and fell right back into the same thoughts that had escorted him sleep.

  “It there anything you’d like, sir?” the stewardess inquired.

  Attempting to respond, Julian opened his mouth; however, instead of words leaking out, a yawn escaped. “Damn, I’m
sorry. I’ll have a rum and Coke, please.”

  She smiled, and before fetching his order, checked in with the other first class passengers. Julian stood and stretched some more until he felt and heard the bones in his back crack. Every move he made drew additional attention to his full bladder and the increasing discomfort.

  An extremely thin woman wearing floral patterns and heels that added to her already towering height left the bathroom just as Julian reached for the door handle.

  Relieving himself, Julian let out a sigh, feeling his bladder shrink down to size. The space and cleanliness offered by the restroom made Julian comfortable enough not to avoid touching anything, and if he had, not to retreat and dip himself in a vat of sanitizer. He slapped the toilet lid down, and after washing his hands, splashed some water on his face and watched as drops slid down face into the sink. Some droplets moved faster than others, forcing Julian to struggle while trying to keep up with each of the movements.

  Julian looked into the mirror, where he saw the obnoxious young woman he’d encountered earlier. She was staring back at him, and the door behind her was closed.

  He turned around and placed his vision on not a reflection, but on the actual person and spit out, “What the fuck are you doing in here?”

  Julian did not receive a verbal response but a physical and aggressive answer. The young Renee lookalike approached him, wrapped her arms around him, and pulled him into her; then she covered his lips with hers. Julian grabbed the top of her arms and squeezed. Without giving full force, he tried pushing her away, which was nothing but a waste because she fought against him by sinking herself deeper into him to the point her breasts were planted into his chest.

  “You now can tell yourself you fought me. Are you done yet?” she let out in between kisses.

  Julian pulled his face from her and allowed himself to look her over, starting from her eyes, leading down to her legs. When he back-tracked and their eyes met, she smiled and nodded, cheering him on to make the leap. In his eyes, her youth caused him to see the Renee he’d fallen for years prior—the girl he’d lost when she was violated and her heart turned to ice. He missed that girl, along with the hopes he’d had for their future.

  I want her back, his conscience told him.

  Julian gripped her by her waist and sat her on the sink. His hands tugged at her clothing and removed it all piece by piece. Julian went to unbuckle his jeans.

  “That’s what the fuck I’m talking about,” she encouraged just as his jeans fell.

  Chapter 4

  Page sat at the checkout desk, watching patrons skim the bookshelves, trying to decide on which books they would take out. Her eyes followed random people as she tried to pinpoint which genre each one preferred. She cleverly figured out that three out of five people were into urban fiction, mysteries, and romance. The library had been open for only an hour, so only a handful of people skimmed the stacks in search of books.

  As she watched people roam around aimlessly, she saw a female who appeared to be in her early twenties and was dressed in skinny jeans and a tank top. She stood at least six feet tall and had legs a mile long and glistening chocolate skin. Anyone would believe she had walked down countless runways and was in fashion magazines worldwide. The woman walked into the black experience aisle, and Page watched her search for a book. She began to guess which author she’d choose.

  Let me guess, she’s a Zane kind of girl. On second thought, I’ma go with Nikki Turner.

  After watching her for two whole minutes, she realized something about the young woman looked familiar. Just then a middle-aged woman with three books approached Page and handed over her library card. Page proceeded to check out the material, but she never took her eyes off the young woman. As soon as Page placed the middle-aged woman’s book receipts inside the novels, the young woman turned around and looked Page right in the eye. That was when it hit her. A slight grin came across Page’s face as she watched the young woman prance up and down the aisles. She couldn’t care less about choosing a book. She just wanted to catch Page’s attention, and now she had.

  Well, well, well, if it isn’t the ghost of Christmas past, Page thought.

  She watched the young woman walk out of the black experience aisle and head farther back, toward the general fiction section. With every step she took, she stared at Page, until she disappeared into the aisles reserved for authors whose last name started with the letter P.

  Page didn’t sweat it. Instead, she concentrated on taking care of the people checking out items. Five minutes later, however, the young woman was in front of Page, with a wide smile across her face.

  “Ain’t this a bitch? Who knew that I would bump into Page in a library? Isn’t it a small world?” she said.

  Page recognized game, and it didn’t matter what size, shape, or form it came in. Page was sure Janae had done her research by going back to their old neighborhood in Brooklyn and finding out where she worked.

  “So, Page, tell me, how’s your sister? Where is she resting her head at nowadays?”

  Page grinned. She leaned on her elbows and looked Janae in the eye. “I don’t know. I’m not my sister’s keeper.”

  Janae leaned in closer to Page. “That’s funny,” she whispered. “Because I am my sister’s keeper.”

  Page sat back and folded her arms. That shouldn’t be hard, considering she’s dead.

  “Let’s cut to the chase and cut the bullshit,” Janae said. “I came back to Brooklyn to find your sister, but to my surprise, I heard old girl up and left after I moved. What’s up with that? Guilty conscience?”

  Page grinned. “Guilty conscience? Now, why the hell would she have that?”

  “Well, I don’t know . . . If I killed someone, I’d consider that reason enough. Especially if I got away with it. Wouldn’t you?” Janae searched Page’s eyes for answers.

  “I can see not much has changed. You’re still hung up on your sister’s death. But I have to tell you, Janae, it isn’t nice of you to go around accusing people of murdering Leslie.”

  The comment shocked Janae. She was surprised that Page was even insisting that her own sister wasn’t guilty of Leslie’s murder, and that she, Janae, should have been over it by now.

  “Enough of this shit!” Janae hit the counter with her fist.

  An elderly lady was ready to approach Page and check out her books, but after Janae’s outburst, she walked right over to the next available clerk.

  “My mother committed suicide last month because she could no longer deal with the fact that her eldest daughter had been murdered. Your sick bitch of a sister had my sister Leslie raped, murdered, and left in the dumpster like a piece of garbage. I want that bitch’s head!” Janae noticed that her voice had risen. She looked around, then turned back to Page and regained her composure.

  She went on. “She took my sister’s life in our old neighborhood, so that’s exactly where I’m going to take hers. But that little slut’s making it hard for me to do. It seems like she vanished into thin air or something. No one knows were old girl’s at. It’s like she never existed. So, I’m telling you now, if that bitch don’t show her face around here and soon, bodies are going to start dropping. And when I say bodies, I mean yours and your family’s.” Janae was fuming. She had tried not to draw attention to herself, but she’d failed miserably. Everyone was watching.

  Page laughed. In no way was she intimidated by or afraid of Janae’s threats. You see, Janae had become fearless after the death of her sister. Page, however, had been born that way. She was the most coldhearted, deranged person anyone could meet, so threats like this meant nothing to her. Nothing scared her.

  Page laughed so hard, her coworkers and patrons all turned her way. She waved everyone off and apologized for the interruption. Then she noticed library security heading toward Janae. Her loudness and her banging on the counter had made people uncomfortable.

  “She’s leaving. Don’t worry,” Page called out to the guards.

&nbs
p; They stopped dead in their tracks and waited for Janae to be on her way.

  “She better show up soon, because I’m back for good,” Janae spit. She pushed a book so far across the counter, it fell into Page’s lap.

  After Janae left, Page looked down and read the title of the book in her lap. It was Jodi Picoult’s novel My Sister’s Keeper.

  * * *

  Hours after Page’s encounter with Janae, she sat in the employees’ lounge at the library, drinking Coca-Cola heavily spiked with vodka. She was furious. Although she found Janae’s threat to kill her if her sister didn’t resurface hilarious, a little voice in her head constantly nagged her. It told her there was no reason why she should let Janae live after she had threatened her life. Sometimes Page heard voices in her head. They were constant, and they pushed her to do the unthinkable. From time to time, she thought about going and talking to a therapist, but the more she thought about it, the more she saw nothing wrong with the thoughts running through her mind. Therefore, she saw no reason to fix what she honestly believed wasn’t broken.

  Page truly did not care that Janae wanted to put her sister six feet under. Page hated her sister, so for someone to make such a threat did nothing for her. What bothered her was that she was threatened.

  Page sat in the booth at the back of the lounge, sipping her drink, and thought of ways to get rid of Janae. Did she really believe she could come back, sling around threats, and get away with it? Page mused. While Page considered multiple ways to lay Janae down to rest, it hit her. The person that she was planning to kill was not the same fourteen-year-old stick figure from across the street. For all she knew, Janae could be a ruthless contract killer with myriad connections and more bodies under her belt than the morgue, and Page might be totally oblivious to the fact. Page might be crazy, but she was far from stupid. If she was going to get herself into something, she wasn’t going to walk into it deaf, blind, and dumb.