Shut Up & Listen - Chapter 78: Chapter 78

[Maverik, 46]
[]
August 22
1:57AM
Maurice sat in a chair in the middle of the room with a cup of water in his hand. Lit by the late afternoon sun peeking through the large suburban windows of the Birmingham home. Family surrounded him, concerned; Damon, Sadé coupled with the baby, Holle, George and the twins who were equally enthralled in the drama. "What did he look like?" His father, Maverik, asked him. Sadé had just finished telling them about what sparked his episode. Holle gave him his prescribed meds while they circled him, waiting for answers.
"His face was messed up. But it was him! I swear! I won't ever forget his face, no matter how different it is!!"
"Messed up??" Sadé asked.
"Different how in how?" Maverik asked.
"Like it was put back together or something! I don't know. I don't know."
"No." Dame mumbled to himself, but was heard.
"I don't know." He kept mumbling.
"What?" Maverik asked, not following.
Dame kept calm. He touched Maverik's shoulder. "Nothing. Mav, can they stay here with Holle until we get back?"
"Who is we?" Maverik asked, oblivious.
Holle responded, "Yes they can stay with me. But where are y'all going?"
"Maurice, everything is cool aight my baby? You probably was just having a flashback or hallucinating? Did Cole give you something maybe?" Dame asked him, trying to convince him that what he thought he saw he didn't. "Maybe you been watching too many crime shows. You know you be watching them late at night."
"No, I saw him." He was adamant which was angering Dame because he didn't want it to be true himself.
"No you didn't! It wasn't real." He yelled, a failed attempt at keeping his cool.
"Yo, don't be yelling at my brother like that." Kwame tried intimidating Dame while defending Maurice against his mind control attempt.
Kalil was equally offended saying, "Yeah, he ain't crazy. He knows what he saw."
"I said where are you going?" Holle asked again.
Dame scratched his dome, "We'll be back in a couple hours maybe." Dame answered short-handedly as he walked towards the door. In the car, he texted Jah and waited for a response. The message was vague but he was hoping he wouldn't need to spell it out for his big cousin. "I gotta talk to Cheyenne but it's going to trigger her bad. Either her or Q." He thought of quickly realizing he probably wasn't going to hear from Jah in good time.
"Who's Q?" Maverik asked.
"Lightskinned Dude with the dreads?" He reminded him, not mentioning the phone which was why everyone else knew him. Dame was instructed by MacArthur not to tell Maverik too many details. The phone was one detail he decided to omit himself; to keep Cobe's name clean. Once it was 'retrieved' from evidence at the police station, the device was supposed to be considered nonexistent anyway.
He nodded, "Oh yeah."
"Him, her, and Cobe were the last to see him. I need to know if it was really him that they saw."
"You know what though?" Maverik started, "I know a guy who was shot in the face and survived." He shook his head, "It takes longer than a month to heal from something like that. Maverik continued to shake his head. "This shit really don't make sense. Something ain't right."
The ride was quiet and Maverik started putting together a few things. His mouth twisted up and his eyes squinted, looking at the road but in his head. He looked at Damon. "You uh." He started, getting his son's attention. "You said he had a panic attack when he saw him?"
Dame nodded.
"Why? He doesn't know Mohammed does he?"
Dame averted his eyes quickly.
Maverik squinted his eyes again, stroking his beard.
"How does he know who Mohammed is?"
Dame looked straight ahead, not responding.
"Listen, you know that I know you right? You used to do the same thing trying to cover up for your brother back in the day."
"You don't know me." Dame defended himself quickly.
"Oh, so you can hear me." He pursed his lips, "I told you I didn't want Reese around that gang shit, now look at his jumpy ass. He has anxiety and shit Damon. Damn. He can't be around stuff like that. You seeing that now, right?"
"He's fine."
"Didn't seem fine to me just now. Did he look fine to you?"
Dame didnt respond.
"Tell me what happened."
"I can't tell you."
"And why the hell not?"
"Because, there are people who cannot defend themselves no more. That wouldn't be fair." He told him, not wanting to throw Cobe under the bus, running his good standing with the George's.
"Fuck! Fair!" He yelled, getting close to Dame's face. "Your brother ain't ever going to be the same. I should at least know why." Dame kept his eyes on the road, attempting to yet again, stay cool. "Damon." He growled.
He put his hands up, taking them off of the wheel for a moment in defense of himself. "Even to this day I never met Mohammed. Ok? I don't know him. I'm not affiliated with nobody's nothing. I swear."
"Go on."
"He showed up to the house that day you came to find Reese. Like I said, I don't know him, right? So he walks up talking crazy shit. Nothing happened because we was all there together. Then he seen Reese and was like, "you lucky'. It wasn't nothing too crazy. He left after that." Dame told him, leaving out the most important part.
Maverik tried his best to keep his cool. He looked straight ahead, hands clasped together on his lap.
"Who was he there for? Lonnie?"
Dame shook his head.
"When you showed up, it kinda knocked what happened to the backburner. We never really got to bring it up again to make sure he was alright after that."
Maverik sighed. "I wish you would have said something to me." He looked at himself in the reflection of the side mirror.
Dame looked at him. "How could I when you ain't even give me a chance to? You came through the door on ten already." He said defensively, cutting the conversation there. He called Cecil to see where they were. He answered. But, when asked about Cheyenne's whereabouts, he cussed excessively; ultimately hanging up the phone.
He dismissed the negative energy from Cecil and called Cole. Dame learned that Cole had Cecil III and that he wasn't sure where Cheyenne was because he left her and him in the parking garage arguing.
"Why you looking for Cheyenne? Is it because Maurice saw Mo?"
Damon looked at Maverik, shook because Cole isn't supposed to know what's going on and he's never been quick to put things together. Damon immediately assumed he'd been told about Mohammed by Lonnie. Otherwise, he wouldn't even know that Mo is dead.
"Hello?" He wondered in the silence. "Cecil told me that he's probably having flashbacks from being at your house. He probably didn't see him and just thought he did. Kinda like how Cobe used to freeze up from ptsd."
"Cole, don't even worry about all that. I just wanted to check up on everybody. Make sure y'all made it home safe."
"Oh. Well. You sure?"
"Uncle Dame, we getting crabs and going to Uncle Jah house."
"Why you telling him our business?"
"You didn't say I couldn't."
"You didn't even ask."
"What y'all getting ready to do with Jah?"
"Nothing, I changed my mind anyway. Might go see Oz and check on him."
"That's a good idea. Might as well stay away from over by Jah' nem for now."
"How come?"
"I'll tell you later."
"No forreal. You really gonna tell me later?"
"Cole."
"Dame."
"I will tell you later."
"How come I don't already know?"
"Because of your little moment you had. So, i'll catch you up in a minute."
"In a minute? You coming to Oz house?"
"Dawg. I'm trynna do something right now."
Cole hung up and Dame looked at Maverik who was intensely watching him. "What?"
He shook his head.
"He always think somebody leaving his ass outta something. I mean he's right, but he nosey. And he can't hold water."
Maverik didn't respond. Instead, he moved his eyes from his son to whatever was being passed by on the other side of the window. Dame noticed his mood change but didn't ask about it. He was just getting to know his father— he didn't want to do or say anything that might make him change his mind about being in his life again.
"Um." Dame started, thinking of something else to talk about. "So, when you and my mom had Lonnie. How was it? Being a dad for the first time?"
Dame could see Maverik's cheeks rise as he was still facing the window. Dame smiled too. "I was scared as hell." He started. "That boy cried for days at a time. I'm not even exaggerating. It was like he ain't believe we was his momma and daddy, like he was in the wrong place." He laughed, "That's what Luna said. She thought he was scared. He wouldn't close his eyes for more than ten minutes at a time. We couldn't put him down. Her mom, your granny, kept complaining that we were gonna spoil him. She was right."
Dame chuckled, not amused at the story but hearing his mom's name mentioned so causally in conversation made him feel nostalgic.
"Most of the time it was just me and her and Lonnie in the house for days without going anywhere or having any visitors. Nobody wanted to come over to hear that screaming baby."
"It was all bad?"
"It was always bad with him. From the day he was born."
Dame raised his eyebrows, shocked at his blatantness.
"I mean, shit was no different from how it is now. Was just baby form." He laughed.
Dame frowned at his father's candidness.
"I love waking up to see Georgie." He told him. "Sadé is so good with her but she gets hella tired so I don't like leaving her alone with the baby."
"You ain't working?"
"Nah, not right now. I still got income from the store though so I ain't really worried about nothing but my girls."
Maverik gave him the same look he did at hearing him talk to Cole on the phone. He was beginning to sense what the look was about. Jealousy? He thought. Ain't no way.
'That's whats up." He mumbled.
Dame nodded, trying to ignore the stiff energy in the car. He could feel his father still watching him. He chuckled softly, catching Dame's attention. Shaking his head, he stroked his beard. A tear rolled down his cheek. Just one.
"Shit." He mumbled, still smiling to himself.
"Whatchu got going on over there?" Dame asked unsurely.
"You ever googled your name?" He asked his son.
Dame shook his head 'no'.
"Google it when you get a chance. Ya momma didn't wanna hear nothing else about a name for you. She was adamant that this was what you were going to be called." He shook his head, still smiling. "I get it now."
"You miss her?" Dame asked the reminiscent man sitting in the passenger seat. "My mom."
"I don't know a person who doesn't miss her. She was everything. She was perfect."
"Nobody's perfect."
"Luna was perfect. She caused me a lot of trouble man. But, it was all worth it. I'd do it again and again and again."
"So how come you cheated on her?"
"Man, ain't nobody cheat on her."
"But, Reese and Aajane the same age."
"I know."
"Then..."
"I was with Holle first." He admitted.
"My mom was a side piece to you?"
Maverik chuckled knowing that it wasn't that way but that was what it looked like. "Damon. When I moved down south, I stayed with my cousin and his family. She was his sister-in-law."
"So where does Holle fit in all of this?"
"Holle is the reason I had to leave the city in the first place. But she ain't ever gone tell that part of the story." He scoffed.
"What happened? Y'all was broke up?"
He shook his head, "Nah, we was already engaged. We were supposed to get married before she went away to college."
Dame's eyes grew at the revelation.
Summer of 1995, Maverik pov
We were high school sweethearts. I started dating Holle at 16 years old. Back then she was going by Hollywood, tryna be like her daddy, she was bad as hell. Nobody was touching her. On the other end, I was just as popular but I ain't really fuck with the crowd like she did. We were polar opposites; she always said that thats why we work.
"Actually, you made a good point earlier." He stopped telling the story before he even really started. "Since she ain't here to defend herself, I shouldn't be telling you."
Dame grimaced at his father and shook his head.
Cole rolled up the windows after grabbing the bags from the drive thru window. "Nah, you can't come with me no more if you gone be telling people where we at. Foiling our plans and shit." He fussed at his nephew.
"I didn't know."
Cole shook his head.
"Are you gonna take me back to my mom and dad?" Three asked, disappointed. Cole looked at him, not wanting him to feel bad.
"I won't take you back if you promise that when you come with me, you ask me before you tell somebody our plans."
"So sometimes I can tell Unc' Dame?"
"Yeah, sometimes. But only when you ask and I say yeah."
Cecil III smiled with a nod. "Okay. I promise."
"You pinky promise?" He asked, putting his pinky out. "If you break this promise i gotta break your pinky." He told him, the only fool proof way to assure a promise is kept with a kid.
"Pinky promise." He linked his pinky with his uncle's. They both nodded.
"Cool, I gotta drop off this door dash delivery before we hit Uncle Oz crib, aight?"
"You broke or something? Why you doing doordash?"
"See here you go. All in a nigga's business." He complained but he indeed was not a delivery driver. He was concerned that Lonnie hadn't left the house and he remembered how empty the fridge was when he left. They arrived at the Troy home and both Cole and Three got out of the car. "Carry the food nephew."
"But my hands is already full!" The boy complained, holding his cell phone and headphones in his hands. Cole rolled his eyes and grabbed all three bags, stuffing the bottles of pop in his arm pits while grimacing at his nephew.
"You so lazy bro." He shook his head, closing the door with his hip.
They walked up the path and the seven year old rang the doorbell. There was no answer at first. "Ring it two times then four times." Cole told him. Moments later, the door was opened.
"I thought my mom had gave me up. My bad." Lonnie told Cole as he let them in. He freed some of the luggage from Cole's arms. "Who's this?" He asked looking down at the kid he didn't recognize.
"This is Three. My nephew."
He nodded. "Ohhhh, yeah he look just like Cecil. I shoulda guessed."
"Hell yeah, his li'l twin. You hungry?"
"Unc Cole if this is a doordash delivery why you telling him my name?" He looked up at his uncle quizzically.
"Yo, you asking too many questions."
"So if he a stranger, why he know my dad name?"
"Obviously he ain't a stranger."
"Yeah, obviously. And obviously you're a liar because we're not delivering food. So where's the kitchen so I can eat?" He said as if he was tired of his uncle.
"I really cannot believe this shit." Cole looked at the kid, baffled. "You be talking to your mom like this?"
Cecil III laughed at his uncle, "No! You want me to get beat?"
Cole pursed his lips in denial, "Cheyenne little ass ain't whooping nobody."
"You don't even know man. She whoop hard too." Three shook his head and started to walk further into the house. "Anyways, I'm starving!" He yelled.
The two older men stared at him in disbelief. He'd seemed like a quiet kid to Cole before now. Lonnie followed the kid making sure he was set up in the dining room with his food and entertainment then went and found Cole who was in the kitchen.
"Something is going down right now." Cole told him as soon as be saw his face in the threshold. He looked him in the eyes, holding onto the counter behind him, "It seems like it revolves around you. And you been acting different. People keep asking me about you. It's just weird and I don't like knowing something is happening and not knowing what it is. You need to tell me now."
"I killed him." He admitted forthright. Cole was almost frozen in shock. He immediately assumed he was talking about Cobe and couldn't believe it. Not wanting to stand the silence any longer, Lonnie walked forward, coming close to Cole who moved out of his way. Lonnie was offended by this and stepped back as well. Cole still had't said a word.
"Cole. I didn't mean to do it. It happened really fast and he kept taunting me. I hate that shit." He tried explaining himself. He attemped to walk forward again but as soon as he lifted his foot Cole did the same so he stood still. "Mo been taunting me my whole fucking life, Cole. We had a long history. He got with Cobe just to fuck with my head but then Cobe started having feeling for that nigga and wouldn't listen to me when I warned him about dude."
"So you killed him just because he wouldn't listen to you?" Cole whisper yelled.
"What?" Lonnie scrunched his face, "NO." Then he realized what Cole meant, "I didn't kill Cobe!" He stressed, a little too loud because they heard a 'huh?!' from the dining room.
By now, Cole's chest was beating a hundred times per second.
"Cole, listen to me." Lonnie said calmly, "Mohammed was a evil nigga. If I didn't do it, there's a million other dudes who hated him just as much or more."
"So you just be offing every nigga you hate?"
Lonnie was now leaning up against the counter where Cole was standing before. The short answer was 'yes', but Lonnie could tell that wasn't what Cole wanted to hear. So he told him only about the incident with Mo as if it was the first and only time he'd done it. "It was an accident. I didn't want to pull the trigger but he pushed me. It was like all the anger inside of me weighed my finger down. I cried like a baby afterwards."
Cole watched his demeanor change from defense to regret. His stiff body slowly loosened up as he listened.
"I can't even sleep. I close my eyes and he's right there. I can't get him outta my head. Sometimes I be wishing that maybe he survived and he's somewhere chillin."
"What if he is? Wouldn't that be dangerous?" Cole asked, finally beginning to understand what all was going on. Why it was important for Dame to get everybody out of the house and away from the city when Maurice claimed to have seen Mohammed.
"Might be. But whatever comes I deserve it."
"Then why you been hiding?"
"I haven't been hiding. I'm just trying to get away from my family. They always trying to control me and shit. Like, I'm a grown ass man now. I got me a crib. They can't keep controlling my every move."
Cole nodded, understanding completely. He walked over to Lonnie and looked up into his face. Lonnie was still because he didn't know what to expect. "Was that the only time?" He asked, looking in his eyes.
Lonnie was quiet.
"Was that the only time you killed somebody?"
He shrugged.
Cole shrugged too, but angrily. "The fuck that mean?"
"I don't know!" He spoke.
"What am I supposed to do with that?"
"Same as me. Just live with the shit." Lonnie looked away, trying to discretely wipe his eye before they began watering.
"Lonnie. What the hell? I brought my nephew in this house and now you telling me that—
"Nah, you gone have to go." Lonnie dismissed him before he even finished his thought. "Take him and your fucking food." He pouted. Cole grimaced at the tall man walking away, leaving the kitchen.
"That's cool bro." He said as calmly as he could. He left the kitchen too and told Three to go wash his hands while he packed up his food. He kept the plate he'd gotten for Lonnie and took his nephew over to Oz's house.