Hypnotic **** Chapter Eighty-Three

My nerves were bad as hell, I sat on the dead woman's bed for a moment and cried for my sister and nephew. I wondered if a missing person's report had been filed. Maybe he was bluffing, I dialed her number. I was also calling Nikki's phone, and as my calls to Kerri's phone had they went unanswered. Their blood was on my hands. I knew I had a pill in my handbag, I swallowed it because I was about to have an anxiety attack.

Under no circumstances had I wanted Nikki to ride with Von and Troy to handle whatever it was they had set out to do, my calls went straight to her dumb ass voicemail. It was a recording where she pretended to answer before saying leave a message. I looked at the blunt in the ashtray and lit it, but as I smoked I immediately became more paranoid, the pill was becoming effective and it seemed like shit had started moving. Maybe I was also worried about Troy, just a little bit, I mean we had been together everyday and---fuck him though.

I smoked, I loved my sister so much and Nikki had been a good friend, I hadn't had many real ones, I created most of the ones I'd had.

I turned the volume up on the television and tried to relax while dialing Nikki's number again, still no answer.

I became so nervous, I had to get the fuck out of that room! I dared not to walk the home, so I sat in the Gladiator room and pictured Troy in a kilt. The decor was stunning, I had only heard about it but it had been modestly told. The bitch had had taste, erected, the gladiators stood dust covered but yet---astonishing. There were 3, only one held a sword. I approached them and ran my fingers along the bronze chest armor that had its signature B.C Roman appeal, I nostalgically remembered what I'd read as a child. Veronica knew what the best was, I admit. So did her son, but where was the missing sword, I'd only seen him with one. I sat at the Steinway on the stool, its dusty exterior indicated it too hadn't been polished since she'd died. The tension scale of their strings yet with held their unique sounds, they'd been innovated to produce a more elegant resonance, and the 1901 upright Grand's inflation was incalculable, it had been well preserved. The pillars supported the Victorian frame. I stood as the blunt ashes fell onto the ivory key covers.

The large wooden pendulum clock against the wall caught my eye as I slid against the wall across from it and sat, it was 8:35, Von was to meet Troy at 10 and still no Nikki. I pictured her children's faces and sobbed while I watched the pendulum swing, my tears fell to the floor between my legs. My eyes went back and forth from the pendulum to the stack of mail that had piled in front of the mailslot behind the large unused door. I had finally located the keypad and saw the home was armed. Fuck. I watched the pendulum.

I hated Troy's hammerhead ass, now, how would Nikki get inside. I was so tired suddenly, as I watched the pendulum swing. I yawned and tried to get up to retrieve the mail but had somehow become dysfunctionally---unstable, I couldn't move nor could I stop watching the clock I'd watched for 5 fucking minutes. I remember going to sleep with the blunt in my hand, and hearing many people speaking. I had been relaxed, it was rather gratifying . Peace had been forced upon me, hypnotically, but the dream had only increased my fear. I could--see.

He'd held me down and I'd drowned, but fought. The muddy water filled my mouth and I could hear but harldy, "Hold her down," the man said, "we don't need nobody to say what they seen. I'll go get the shovel." Kerri's voice was distant as I drowned, she was calling my name---"I told u there wasn't apples! Haaazel! Where are uuuu!"

"Hurry up," he said. "Don't take long."

I heard footsteps alongside the bank as they became remote. Then I didn't remember.

The boy soon came and said, "She's heavy!" Kerri cried, "I have to get Mama! Hazel, nooo! Wake up! She fell in!"

I had only peed, something had scared me, mama would have been mad, so I got in the water. The boats were on the far side of the embankment they could not see what was taking place. The hum of their motors reverberated across the water. I laid in the mud now, the boy pumped my chest. Mama had been upset when she came with one flip-flop on running, "U are always up to something! All the members are disturbed, for only one day Hazel can u just be normal! It's the Fourth for God's sake!"

Daddy's baptismal robe was wet from the waist down as he ran across the mud.

The fishy smell consumed my nose as I slept. I don't know how long I'd been out but I was awakened by the phone vibrating underneath my leg, it was Nikki. She'd been outside for a couple hours. I had several calls from Troy as well as 4 messages, "The house is unarmed, let ole girl in! What the fuck are u doing?'

Nikki was back, I felt a little better but what the fuck had just happened to me? I answered her call and told her I was on my way to the door. I drowsily crawled to my knees and noticed the big burn on the carpet and the half blunt on top. Oh shit! What else Lord? I stood up and drunk.

Where were we? I somewhat remembered and it wasn't a dream, was it? More like a--- suppressed memory.

I opened the door and let Nikki inside, she looked pissed. The air smelled so good. "Im sorry, I said---I don't know what happened." "He said lock the door!" She said trying to close the door nervously.

She looked around before entering, "Ion know why he sent me with that dumb ass nigga! Girl fuck yo dude! Black ass nigga!"

Hey! Bitch!

"Let's go in here," I said leaning on the door after she had closed it. I had to pee but wanted the mail from inside the gladiator room. I walked her to the bedroom as she asked for the truth about what was going on. I told her I would explain it but couldn't, I then went and retrieved the mail paying attention to the Charles Schwab envelopes. Bingo.

After leaving the bathroom and looking at Nikki I saw she was really scared, she was giving me a bag of weed. I had a plan, I knew the home was unarmed and hoped he hadn't armed it back. Apparently he could. Had I been hypnotized?

I hadn't even bothered fixing the piano stool, the carpet was burned so fuck it.

I grabbed my bag and slid on the same Tory Burch sandals I'd worn all summer.

There were 58 Schwab envelopes, I didn't trust opening them in the home. I felt like Troy was watching me, and he was. As Nikki exhaustedly stood saying she was hungry but needed a blunt, I snatched my charger from the wall and grabbed my handbag. Also Troy's Lakers hat still sat on the opposite night stand where the Marriage License rested. As we walked to the door with Nikki trailing and talking shit my phone vibrated in my bra. I'd hid the mail in the waist of the sweats. It was Troy, I nervously answered. "Don't think about leaving if u don't want the police to come, Im arming the house back."

"Where are u!" It was 12:34---way after 10. Was my husband dead? He hadn't texted, where was he! Where were my children? I'd seen him with them, something would not let me believe he would harm them! TJ2 was his! He was named after him! He'd even wanted to name Deuce after him! Wait---what?! He'd insisted we call his son TJ2---why?

I knew Nikki would be pissed, so was I. I hung up in his face and turned around, I was so hungry and the huge kitchen was creepy. Veronica never cooked, the pots were new. I mentioned cooking to Nikki, "Hell yea, I know its some Hamburger Helper in that bitch! Ion give a fuck how much money he got."

She went to the pantry, "Stroganoff or Lasagna bitch?" I hated her ass too. I couldn't understand how life could go so wrong, even for Nikki she was happy when I met her, given her circumstances. I'd known her aunt had her children so I told her I would give her money to send, but I needed her to stay with me. I would die without her. She reminded me she had school aged children and promised to stay as long as she could. She threw up her arms for a hug, she was a huggin ass bitch! I'd noticed her new tattoo on her arm, I'd thought it was of one of her babies until she said it was Gabe's baby picture. I shook my damn head.

I texted Trenton " I don't know what u are trying to prove, but I don't owe u anything. U have pretended to be a rescuer when u were really a spawn from hell! If my sister and nephew don't come out this unharmed u won't live, I mean that. I fight my own battles, when I want someone dead I kill them myself, I don't send no one else to to my dirty work, only a coward would."

I slid the phone down on the island with force, it had hardly stopped before making it to the other side. It soon vibrated on its edge.

"Have u ever asked Kerri why Josh was killed? Also, Im aware of your killing techniques, I've followed u and I know your mediocre methods, u are sloppy and if I wanted u dead u would have died from lethal injection, untraceable---Im sure u know what that is, ask Veronica. Im referring to a legal one though. Your sister? She remembers a little more than u, she even remembers LaDonna, she had in fact turned to the church to get clean once or twice. I have no intent to kill u Hazel, or your sister. How much breast milk can she supply, if she don't eat? Since u have messaged me, I will throw her and the pup a snack. If she dies, u killed her. Come home, they can live. Not much more time, the last time I saw her she hadn't looked too hot, I mean, she had but she hadn't. I thought about it---"

The nerve of him! How could he hold me responsible for my sister and nephews deaths! Nikki was singing out of key while seasoning ground beef and it was getting on my only nerve! I needed to get away so bad, and knew I could figure out the code to the alarm! FUCK TROY, I HAD TO LEAVE BUT APPRECIATED HIM! I LOVED HIM AND WOULD BE BACK, I PROMISED! I just had to leave! I loved my sister! I could not let her die, I LOVED HEEER! Trenton was so evil, I would have never suspected! The apples, he'd fed my babies the apples! I'd known his mother was buried on that land underneath that tree! He only ate those apples, I believe I began to seize because Nikki screamed, I'd hit the linoleum floor and banged my head but the impact immediately woke me up.

"The baby! Hazel! U tripping!" Nikki was saying while helping me up. Only my head had hurted and I was still pissed. Everything consumed me at once, I was in rage, Troy texted as I picked up my phone almost blind from the lick.

"WHY THE FUCK U DON'T LISTEN! I TOLD U I WAS GONE HANDLE THAT NIGGA!"

I had to find Kerri and Ayden! I texted back and told him! My nose was bleeding, I held back my head and walked to the bathroom. I was in deep shit and that bastard had taken my only sister! I was so enraged I punched the bathroom mirror, glass shattered everywhere! I couldn't look at myself! I wanted my babies, I couldn't be a woman without them, but a monster! No one could rightfully force that separation upon me!

"U better not leave! I'm about to make this bitch ass nigga tell me where your people are, just chill!"

That was coming from a nigga who thought his mama had a heart attack!

He couldn't save them! He didn't even know where they were and Trenton was 5 hours away, wasn't he! I needed to call someone but knew he was friends with all of the police! Brown! He had sent Twan for me, I messaged him---I needed to know more, he had tried to tell me! Mya, I knew I couldn't trust her or Yvonne, but hadn't he been in her kitchen?

I took off the now blood stained T-shirt and walked into the shower, I held my bloody hand under the showerhead, the knot on my forehead was on top of my scar. First Daddy, and now Kerri, I loved them both but what had he done? Josh had gotten his hands dirty in some kind of way and nobody would tell me shit! Fuck Troy, I texted that necrophiliac husband of mine and told him how much I needed him, he didn't respond. I worried, it wasn't like him, he always responded and took advantage of talking shit.

Troy soon texted as I watched the steamed phone screen, "Stop texting."

HOW THE FUCK! What was going on? Nikki was knocking at the door calling my damn name. I yelled and told her I was coming.

"Somebody is beating at the door and ringing the doorbell," she said.

WHAT? My knees were shaking, I asked, "Do they know someone is here?"

She said, "Yea, I said 'just a minute.'"