Repeat Offenders Read online

  Seeing Omari with another female had me so flustered that I had to talk to someone. I called Dallas as soon as I got to what was now my office/supply room at Evelyn’s day care. I had finished the child development center mural and was now working; I had immediately been contracted to paint a Caribbean restaurant which was scheduled to open in three weeks, and I had a few other jobs lined up. Calls to the center were becoming so frequent that Evelyn had a phone line installed for me.

  “I think you’re forgetting the fact that I’m still married. I’m not in a position to like anyone,” I said, reaching onto one of the shelves and pulling one of my sketch books down.

  “You’re separated,” she replied. “And speaking of your marriage, what are you gonna do about it? I mean, are you gonna file for divorce?”

  I had been wondering that same question. Filing for divorce meant contacting Kellen, which was something I had been avoiding, and apparently so had he. It seemed so much easier to just pretend that my marriage had never taken place and Kellen didn’t exist.

  “I don’t know,” I sighed.

  There was a light knock at the door. I looked up to see Helen, the day care secretary, standing at the door holding up a newspaper.

  “Leah, did you see this? It’s awesome!” She gushed and handed the paper to me.

  I glanced down to see what she was talking about and was shocked to see a huge picture of the child development center mural. The article was about how neighborhoods had taken on beautification projects and environmental improvements.

  “What the hell?” I murmured.

  “I know, it’s amazing. When I talked to the paper, I was focusing on how the center was becoming ‘green’ and more environmentally friendly. I just thought he was gonna mention the school’s name but this…this is more than we could ever imagine!” She squealed, “This is not only going to bring in more kids, but funding as well. They were so moved by the mural, they put us on the front page.”

  I scanned through the article, praying that somehow, my eyes wouldn’t land on the inevitable. Sure enough, in the middle of the article, there it was, ‘Local artist, Leah Michaels, poured her heart and soul into what resulted in a kaleidoscope of colors, inviting one and all to enjoy the center and all it has to offer.’

  “What’s wrong?” Helen frowned, “You don’t like the picture?”

  “It’s not that,” I said. “It’s a great picture. Thanks for showing it to me.”

  “I knew you’d be proud,” she nodded and walked out of the office.

  I stared at the photo, and had circumstances been different, had my life been different, had I been different, maybe I would have been able to enjoy the fact that my work had been featured on the cover of a national newspaper. Instead, I knew that this was one moment I would regret.

  “Helloooooo!”

  I forgot that Dallas was on the phone and quickly said, “I’m here.”

  “What’s wrong?” She asked.

  I told her about the article that the school had been featured in, and that my name had been mentioned as the artist. “He’s gonna find me. He’s gonna find me and kill me.”

  “Calm down, Leah. He’s not gonna find you, because he’s not looking for you,” she said, attempting to reassure me. “First of all, people don’t even read the newspapers these days. Everything is digital. And let’s be real, Kellen can barely read.”

  “It’s a national newspaper. Someone is gonna tell him.”

  “No, they won’t. Listen, I have a meeting to go to. I need for you to relax and don’t do anything crazy, or drastic. Promise me you’ll call me later. I don’t know why your ass won’t get a cell phone, anyway,” Dallas hissed. “God forbid something happens to you, how are you gonna call for help?”

  She had a point, and I had thought about that. But, the fact was that I kind of enjoyed not having a cell phone. It relieved me from the responsibility of constantly being available in case someone important called, such as Dallas, my mother, Anna, or Evelyn; and I didn’t have the paranoia of the slight chance of Kellen miraculously tracking me down. I knew having a cell phone was inevitable, especially if my art jobs remained steady, but for now, it wasn’t a necessity. The lack of one made me feel a little safer.

  I looked down at the newspaper photo again and silently prayed that Dallas was right about Kellen and his borderline illiteracy. Folding the paper and putting it in the bottom of my desk drawer, I gathered the sketches that I had prepared to present to the owner of the restaurant who I was meeting. I tried to fight off the irritated feeling, and then it hit me: the feeling didn’t have anything to do with Kellen. I was still bothered by Omari and his new skank girlfriend.

  By the time I made it home later that evening, I was livid. I could hardly focus during the meeting. The owner loved my designs and even asked if I could start the following day. I agreed, not even taking into consideration that I didn’t have half the materials I needed until after I left. All I kept thinking about was Omari, who was probably all cuddled up in some cozy restaurant, whispering in her ear, telling her how much he wanted her. Her hand was probably pressed on his hard chest, slowly moving up and down as she felt his muscular body. By the time I walked into my apartment, I had decided that they had already started planning their holiday wedding and naming their kids. I tried to block out the images of the two of them laughing as they walked up the driveway earlier that morning. The love between them was so obvious, it was sickening to me. He hadn’t even had the decency to mention he was dating someone. Well, technically, he didn’t have to, because I was nothing to him…nothing…after all, we were just neighbors. My eyes fell on the clock hanging on my kitchen wall. It was six-thirty, the time we would normally go running, and Omari hadn’t even made it home. Feeling pathetic, I undressed and climbed into bed without even eating, wishing I wasn’t afraid of the dark. I didn’t even realize I had fallen asleep until I heard a knock at the door. I sat up and was about to answer it, then I heard Omari’s voice calling my name.

  “Leah, it’s your good ole neighbor, come open the door!”

  I didn’t move. My heart was beating so loud that I wondered if he could hear it through the door.

  He knocked again, harder this time, “Hey, Leah!”

  “Stop being loud, ‘Mari! She might not even be home,” a female voice laughed.

  I was shocked.

  “Her car is there, she’s home,” he said and knocked again, “Leah, I got somebody for you to meet.”

  “I can meet her another time. Come on, I wanna go to bed,” the female said.

  I remained sitting in the middle of my bed, unable to move. The tears started falling and I silently cried as I waited for him to finally leave. The next morning, I woke up bright and early. I headed to work before Omari would be out for his morning run. I heard him and the female laughing and talking all the way into the late night. I turned the volume on the tv in my bedroom up loud, fearing that I would be forced to listen to the sounds of their lovemaking. As I backed out of my driveway, I noticed the female’s car still in the driveway.

  Omari

  “That’s crazy,” I said to Shaunie as we walked out of my apartment. When I went for my morning run, Leah’s car wasn’t home. I was hoping she would have made it back by the time I finished my run, but she wasn’t. I had been so surprised when Shaunie showed up on my doorstep. My sister looked amazing, and I couldn’t believe how much she had matured. She was right, me and Mama did good. After I got off work, we went to put flowers on Mama’s grave and then grabbed a bite to eat. I wanted to let Leah know what was going on, and that I wasn’t gonna be able to go running, but she didn’t have a phone.

  “Maybe she had a breakfast date,” Shaunie teased.

  “She didn’t have a damn breakfast date!” I snapped, “Something’s not right.”

  “Wow, calm down, big brother,” she said. “I was just joking. You’re really feeling this girl, huh? Now, I really wanna meet her.”

  “I told you, w
e’re not like that. She’s been through a lot, and she’s not even trying to be in a relationship.”

  “How do you know? Did you ask her?”

  “No,” I shook my head, “I ain’t trying to scare her by pressing up on her. I’m just her friend.”

  “Then how do you know that she just wants to be friends?”

  “Because, I know. I know the vibe I get from her, and it says ‘friend,’” I sighed. “So, what’s on your agenda for the day?”

  Shaunie was still dressed in her pajamas as she walked me to my truck, “You mean after I wake up from the nap I’m about to go back and take? I got some friends I wanna go and see, not like the ones you and Leah are, but real friends. And I wanna go by and see Coach and Evelyn.”

  “Yeah, Coach is really excited to see you. I’m sure Evelyn is too. I told him when I got to work, and he wanted to know why I didn’t bring you to work with me,” I laughed.

  “Maybe we can all go to dinner, and you can invite Leah to join us,” Shaunie suggested.

  I grabbed my sister into a bear hug, lifting her off the ground, “Baby girl, you’re brilliant. I probably got time to run by the day care and let Evelyn know.”

  “Put me down, stupid!” She playfully hit me on the head, and I put her back on the ground. I rushed to make sure I put our evening plans into motion before I got to work. I was pleasantly surprised to see Leah’s car in the school parking lot when I pulled in. I smiled and hurried to the door, excited at the thought of seeing her. The building was secured, and you had to be buzzed in. I hit the intercom, and a voice demanded that I state my name and the nature of my business. Hoping it would get me a little more pull with gaining entrance, I proudly showed my Gordon’s Paper Company id badge.

  “Omari Parker for Evelyn Gordon,” I said, thinking I would surprise Leah.

  “One second,” the woman said. A few moments later, she buzzed me in, “Through the double doors, make a left and her office is the second door on the right.”

  Walking down the corridor I glanced inside an open door, clearly not following direction. Leah. She was putting a handful of paint brushes into a bag. I tapped on the door.

  “Hey there, ” I smiled. “Fancy meeting you here.”

  I expected her to have some snappy come back, or at least return my smile, but instead, she just blinked and said, “What are you doing here?”

  “I…uh….I came by…” I was so thrown off by her lack of emotion that I couldn’t think straight. There was something off, “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing,” she continued packing items into the large canvas bag.

  “I came by last night. You didn’t hear me knocking?”

  “Nope, went to bed early so I could get an early start,” she answered, then tossed the bag over her shoulder. “Well, thanks for stopping by on your way to wherever you’re going. I’m headed downtown.”

  “Leah, wait a second,” I stopped her. “What’s wrong? Why are you acting weird? Is something going on? You wanna talk about it?”

  “I’m fine. I have someone to meet, and I need to lock my door,” she looked down at her watch.

  “Oh,” I said and walked out into the hallway.

  “Enjoy your day,” she said, after locking the door and not even looking at me. I watched her as she walked out of the door and shook my head.

  “Omari,” Evelyn said and gave me a hug, “What do I owe this surprise visit? Is Shaunie with you?”

  “No, she’s back at my place asleep. I came to check on Leah, really. Is everything alright with her?”

  “As far as I know, she’s fine. Why? Did something happen?” A panicked look came across Evelyn’s face.

  I didn’t want her to worry without having a reason, so I said, “No, she left super early this morning, and I was just making sure she was okay.”

  “You’re such a nice young man. I have to give it to my husband, he was right when he said having you live near Leah was a wise decision. Who knows, maybe one day we‘ll have to knock some walls down and turn those two apartments into a four-bedroom house,” she laughed and winked at me.

  I hugged Evelyn and told her, “On that note, I’m gone to work.”

  When I made it the parking lot, Leah was just getting into her car. I started to call after her, but instead, I just watched.

  Women, I thought, the most confusing creature known to man.

  My attention was drawn to a car parked on the side of the street. Inside was a man who was staring at Leah just as hard as I was. She didn’t even look in the man’s direction as she slowly pulled out of the parking lot and down the street, and after she had driven a slight distance, the man pulled behind her. I quickly jumped in my truck and became just as intent on following him as he was on following Leah.

  Leah

  Men, I thought, the most insensitive, dumbest invention God created.

  I couldn’t believe Omari had the nerve to act all concerned, as if he really cared. I wanted to ask him where his skank was, but instead, I kept it cool and acted as if his sudden appearance in my office was no big deal. It was a little difficult, because he was looking damn good in his work uniform. I still didn’t figure out why he was even there.

  He probably came by to see Evelyn and tell her all about his new boo.

  I arrived at the restaurant and pulled myself together, grateful that I had a huge new project to help me get through my latest series of crises. Now I only wished that I had an assistant to help me carry my supplies inside. The thought of needing an assistant made me laugh.

  “Well, I guess until that happens, I have to assist myself,” I said aloud as I got out of my car and opened the trunk of the car.

  “So, this is what you’re doing now, huh?”

  The voice seemed to come out of nowhere, sending chills down my spine and causing the hairs on my neck to stand up at the same time. I shook my head, praying that I was hearing things, but I slowly turned around and saw my nightmare standing in front of me.

  “What…Kel…” I said. It took a minute for me to get my words together. “What are you doing here?”

  “I could ask you the same thing,” he said. “I told myself that it couldn’t be true. You know my father was the one that showed me the picture in the paper? Do you know how that made me feel? My father, of all people. Here I was, worried about you…”

  “No, you didn’t,” I said. “You’ve been lying this entire time, to my family, friends, everyone. You didn’t give a damn about where I was or what I was doing. I’m at a facility across the country getting help.”

  “You were at a facility getting help. Sienna had the entire thing taken care of. She made sure it all remained confidential so that neither you nor the family’s privacy would be jeopardized. You would think that you’d be a little more grateful. It was you who decided to up and leave there three weeks ago without saying anything to anyone.”

  I stared, listening at this incredulous story. Then, it dawned on me that he really did think I was at some loony bin tucked away somewhere, where no one would find out, all courtesy of his sister.

  “You really have no clue, do you?” I asked, shaking my head at him, “This entire time, you had no fucking clue.”

  “You had no fucking clue, but you’re about to have one now. Get your shit and let’s go home,” he grabbed my arm and I snatched away from him.

  “No, I’m not going anywhere with you, Kellen. You need to leave now!”

  “I’m leaving, but you’re coming with me,” he reached out for me again, this time pulling my hair.

  I dropped the canvas bag that I was holding, and all of my brushes fell out. I looked at the spilled contents on the pavement while he yanked me, “Okay, Kellen. I’ll go. Just please let me go.”

  “Do you know how fucking embarrassed I was? All I ever did was love you, Leah. That’s all. It was never enough was it? Is that why you did this to me?” He growled, putting his face close to mine.

  I knew that he wouldn’t let me go as lon
g as he felt I was challenging him. “It was more than enough, Kellen. I’m sorry, baby. I would never want to embarrass you. I just needed time to get myself together, because…because… I lost… the baby.”

  At the sound of the word baby, Kellen seemed to calm down slightly. His grip loosened, and I tried to think of how I was going to escape. The parking lot was empty, and there was no one in the restaurant. The owner had given me a key to let myself in so I could work when I wanted to. I wished more than anything I had listened to Dallas and gotten a cell phone.

  “We can go, Kellen. I just need to pick up my stuff,” I whispered. Those brushes symbolized what had become my life of peace, and seeing them scattered on the ground seemed to crush my soul.

  “Leave that shit there!” He snapped.

  “I can’t,” I said through my tears. I bent down, scrambling to pick up my belongings, when Kellen’s huge foot came crushing on my hand. I screamed in agony, overcome by a feeling of helplessness that I thought I would never have to experience again. I closed my eyes in pain and started to pray for God to somehow, someway, help me.

  “Get the fuck off her!”

  I thought I was dreaming. I looked up and saw a fist flying to Kellen’s face and him stagger backward, losing his balance and falling to the concrete beside me. I screamed and got out of the way as a man jumped on top of Kellen, punching him over and over again. Blood began spewing from his nose and although he kept trying to fight back, he was no match for his assailant. I didn’t know what to do. My first instinct was to run away. I got on my feet—prepared to run like the wind—instantly I recognized what the stranger was wearing. The green shirt and khaki pants was as familiar to me as the brushes on the ground.

  “Omari!” I screamed, “Oh, my God. STOP!”

  He continued to punch Kellen as if he were possessed. I jumped on his back and tried to grab his arms.

  “I’MMA KILL HIM!” He panted, raising his fist to strike again. I knew that he meant what he was saying. I could see it in his face and hear it in his voice.