Page 52 of The Prodigy 2: Rise of a Queen

19

Jakari

Daytwointhesafe house started with my Auntie’s famous breakfast. Grits, eggs, bacon, biscuits with sausage gravy, pancakes, blueberry muffins, and fresh-squeezed orange juice. As in, she literally squeezed that shit herself. I wasn’t a big OJ fan, but I always drank Van’s juice. It just tasted better than what the store sells.

Malika put away five pancakes and two biscuits, and then she got itis and excused herself to take a nap. Van thought that hilarious. She laughed herself silly before quieting down, her face going serious.

“Okay. It’s just you and me, now.”

I raised my eyebrows.

“How are you, baby? Tell the truth.”

Just like that, all my walls came down. That was the thing about Auntie Van. You could be feeling like shit, or pissed off on some fuck everybody, but all she had to do was look in your eyes and ask you what was wrong and you folded like a cheap tent. Her eyes were like magnets, drawing out your deepest, darkest feelings. My daddy used to say she was a witch, but he said that with love. Him and Van were close.

“How am I?” I repeated. “How much time you got?”

She chuckled. “For you? The rest of my life.”

“Long story short…heavy is the head that wears the crown.”

“I bet it is.” She picked up the glass pitcher and refilled my cup with OJ. “Have you ever thought about putting Midling in your rearview mirror?”

“Every day. Every night.”

“What was it about Atlanta that you liked so much?”

“Honestly? That it wasn’t Midling. It coulda been Houston. Or Miami. Or LA. I just liked that it felt…fresh, I guess. Didn’t nobody know me there. I could just…be.” I shook my head. “But that kinda makes me a hypocrite, right? Cuz it was Midling money that was keeping food on my table out there.”

Van shrugged. “Maybe a little. But you’re human. We all have those moments.”

“Maybe I’m lyin’ to myself.”

“About?”

“About not wanting to be here. Cuz I think about leaving, but then I also think about making Midling mine. It’s like a hunger deep down in the pit of my stomach. It’s weird.”

She smiled. “It’s not weird at all. Lester had that same hunger. I think that was the tragedy of his life, in a sense. He was excellent at what he did. He hadit, you know?"

I nodded.

"He could have owned Midling. But in the end, it was the personal stuff that took him out the game.” She studied my face. “But you never had that problem. You were always business first, and that’s why you are where you are.”

“But what if…what if that’s a bad thing? Like…what if I'm too focused on business, and that keeps me from being happy? Or making other people happy?”

“Other people like…your wife?”

“I mean…technically.”

“You’ve been in relationships before, Kari. I remember that one girl…Jamie?”

“Yeah. But that was high school. It don’t count.”

She studied my face. “So you’ve never been in love.” It was a statement, not a question.

“Not that I know of. I mean, I would know, right?”

“Probably. Are you not in love with Malika?”

---