Page 1 of Soul Food

Prologue

Hot, angry tears slid down my cheeks as I was pulled out of the recording studio, held between two burly security guards in the elevator, and dragged the rest of the way out of KY Entertainment in front of everyone that knew the truth. They all looked the other way as if what was happening to me was an everyday occurrence. I was shocked. Stunned.Hurt. Three months. Three long, sleep deprived, yet painfully happy months, I wrote and recorded my voice, andmywords.

And just like that, I lost them within seconds as an altered to hell voice burst through the speakers with my song.Myfucking words.

The betrayal ripped a hole in my chest.

My dreamblindedme. I trusted the words of a snake and his daughter who I thought was my best friend.

The moment they let go of my arms, I spun around but they were already blocking my way, preventing me from going back inside. “Let me go,” I jerked away from them, not caring to wipe the tears from my eyes. “I need to see Mr. James and Liz!”

“I’m sorry, Ms. Thomas, we’ve been given strict orders not to let you inside the building,” one of them said.

“This is bullshit,” I hissed, locking my gaze on both of them. “You know I’ve been fucked.” They looked away from me because they knew, theyknewjust as everyone in the building did, most likely long before I did. The truth of those thoughts hit me, and it hurt worse.

I’d been meek, happy prey that had walked into a den of predators so innocently and thankful that Mr. James wanted me to come in and audition.

“That’s my song she’s singing,” I screamed at the building. “That song wasn’t meant to be sung like that—altered voice and upbeat!” I sounded defensive because I was. Not only was the song stolen, it meant something. Its words carried a tragedy, and they butchered it!

Liz and I grew up together. We went to grade, middle, and high school together. I helped her ace every test, and she helped me get with the boy of my dreams freshman year. We took chorus together all through high school. We just graduated and got completely wasted to celebrate just two short months ago.

Liz didn’t have a terrible voice per se, but she couldn’t carry a high pitch to save her life. In chorus, she had counted on me to sing the high pitches for us both while she barely sung above a whisper so that she didn’t break her pitch. Which was why she needed all that modification on my song.

“We can’t let you in, Ruth.” The assholes even knew my name after three months of walking in and out of these doors.

Sniffling, I brought my hands to my eyes and tipped my head up to look at the impressive building before me. In black bold lettering, KY Entertainment Studios mocked me on its white concrete walls.

I turned and walked away, but three steps was as far as I got. I was unable to let it go. This was my dream. One I thought I shared with Liz, and she took it all for herself and her crook of a father let her.

I let my anger control me for a second too long as I walked over to the flower bed, picked up a rock and chucked it at one of the glass windows, shattering it completely.

My anger went up in smoke about the same time the bald policeman handcuffed me and placed me in the back of his squad car.

______

“I’m being charged?” I asked the man in front of me who was writing the report. I looked at him incredulously as I leaned back in my chair. “What about theft? They stole my songs.” I glared at the two next to me.

Mr. James chuckled, tilting his head at me while arching his brows to the man as if to say, “What do I need from her? I’m Brian James. She’s nobody.” He was in his forties, but he was virile and brimming with power and wealth. “I don’t think I’d need to take an eighteen-year-old’s songs.”

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. A smirk rested on Mr. James face while Liz—my former best friend—sat there with her lips trembling. She even found a tear to go along with it. Jesus, she wasn’t meant to be a singer, but she had acting down to a tee. “I thought we were friends, Ruth.” She fluttered her eyelashes at me, and for a moment, I thought I saw a brief wink. “I thought you’d be happy for my first song release.” Liz’s voice shook as she whined, “Why are you lying? This really hurts.”

I scoffed, gripping my chair’s arms to keep from attacking her as she sat next to me.

In eighteen years, I’d seen plenty of unfair things, but I never thought Liz would betray me. I couldn’t get past the fact that she was my best friend. She was all I had. Ma’s family wanted nothing to do with me because of Liz. My older cousins—those who knew me the best—judged me for hanging out with Liz. She was too rich, too privileged, toowhite. Ma shared their opinion.

As if my pill-popping mother was in any position to judge. Liz was like the patch of green in a barren field. The girl never criticized me, and I didn’t hold her upbringing against her. She was my peppermint-patty-sharing best friend.

Until now.

Liz was the light to my dark. The sun to my moon. The yin to my yang—look, I could go on forever. I loved this chick sitting next to me, lying through her teeth, and I thought she loved me too. In high school, we made a pact to pursue a record deal with her father and become famous. It was all we ever wanted. She wanted the attention, and I wanted my words to be heard.

“Do you have proof of your claim, Ms. Thomas?” the policeman asked me.

“Yeah, all of my songs. I keep in my journal…” I looked to Liz who was semi-smirking at me. She knew where my journal was—in the recording room. As soon as Liz’s betrayal hit my ears, I forgot my notebook and tried going to Mr. James office. “It’s at KY Entertainment though.”

“I’ve never seen her with a journal,” Liz lied.

I slumped in my seat. “Liz, why are you doing this?” I wished my voice didn’t break, but it did. “Our pact. Our dream. I thought that was what we were after?”

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