Page 13 of Honey Sugar
“I don’t want no trouble,” he stammered on the way to his car.
I watched him pull off before I went back inside the sweet shop. “Titan, what was that?” Ivy tossed her hand in the air and looked at me with eyebrows high on her forehead.
“You tell me. What happened with that motherfucker?”
“Nothing.” She turned withdrawn at the drop of a dime. Whatever happened bothered her though because she started tugging on her ear.
“Did you take care of Mr. Jeffries?” Aunt Liv walked in the back and the conversation between me and Ivy fell silent.
“Yes, Mama.”
I handed Aunt Liv the money and she looked at me, confused. “He wasn’t supposed to pay. That was a gift.”
“Well, I guess he wanted to pay anyway,” I said, forcing a tight-lipped smile. The tension was thick as summer air between all three of us.
“Ivy, you should have stopped him and you know it. Mr. Jeffries shouldn’t have paid after the trouble you caused last night.” Aunt Liv walked away muttering to herself but she damn sure took the money and pocketed it.
After that scene, Ivy was pretty quiet until it was time to close up for the night. Aunt Liv rushed out of Honey Sugar and left Ivy and me to clean up and count the cash. I didn’t say much the entire time because I had my own thoughts heavy on my mind. I hadn’t even taken a minute to text Mama and let her know I was safe.
When I checked my phone, I saw several texts from Mario that I ignored. Seeing his name brought back fresh memories of shooting someone in the fucking head and for the moment I wanted to forget. I wanted to forget that no matter how many times I washed my hands someone’s blood would always be on them.
…
Ivy and I got to her house and we were greeted by lemon Pine-Sol. The scent was already starting to needle under my skin. Not because I didn’t like the smell per se but I hated the reason behind the smell. Lemon Pine-Sol meant Aunt Liv was cleaning out of fear for her own damn safety.
“Ivy, is that you?” Uncle Beau’s gruff voice stretched out to meet us both at the front door.
“Yes, Daddy. I have Titan with me,” she called out. I looked at her and shook my head before I went to greet my uncle. I didn’t have to like him but I wasn’t going to set foot in the man’s house and not acknowledge him. I wasn’t raised like that.
“What’s up, Uncle Beau?” I nodded at him and held out my hand for a handshake. He looked down like I had a foreign appendage then looked in my eyes.
“You think you somebody now?” Those were the first words out of his mouth after not seeing me for nearly seven years.
“I’ve always been somebody,” I chuckled. It was dry and humorless though. Uncle Beau was about my height so he looked me right in the eyes with all the disdain he could muster. “Don’t get in my fucking way, Titan. I don’t know why you’re here but you’ll be gone in a heartbeat if you don’t act like you have sense.”
“Yes sir,” I saluted him with two fingers to my forehead before going upstairs. I knew he sensed the sarcasm dripping off me but he couldn’t say anything about it. I went into the humid guest room and removed the gun from my waistband with the intent of concealing it in one of my duffle bags. That was before I heard a small gasp from behind me.
I looked over my shoulder at Ivy and grumbled before moving to pull her inside and shut the bedroom door. “You know how to announce yourself?” I quizzed.
“Titan, you have a gun?” She gestured to it like if she touched it the world would blow up.
“Nah, it’s a daisy.” I wrapped the 9mm in a black and white bandana then hid it in the bottom of my bag.
“Don’t be smart. Why do you have that?” She slapped my hand away from the duffle bag and all of a sudden I remembered the quietly bossy Ivy from my childhood.
“Why do you think I have it?”
“Because you’re crazy. What if Mama or Daddy finds that, Titan? Is that why you had to come stay with us? What the heck did you get yourself into in New Orleans?”
“Did you say…heck?” I laughed a little and sat on the bed. The springs squeaked and complained beneath me.
“Don’t deflect.”
“I can’t have a conversation in this hot ass room, Ivy. Your room still have the air conditioning in the window?”
“Yes,” she said, folding her arms. “I guess you’re going to sleep in there like you used to when we were little.” One side of her mouth lifted in a half-smirk.
“You know I can’t sleep in this fucking swamp box y’all try to pass off as a bedroom.”
