Page 34 of When You Dance
I broke down in tears as I thought about how I called Jamel my boyfriend. He was the only person that I felt really cared about me. My phone rang again, and I lowered my head, not wanting him to know what happened tonight. I knew he would be angry, and maybe he would be angry with me since I knew he wanted me to leave this place.
“You can answer it if you need to.”
I dug in my purse and answered it. “Hello?”
“Drene, you okay? I’m in my car heading to Houston. I was worried.”
I broke down in tears as he remained quiet. The officer next to me consoled me by gently rubbing my back. When I finally got it together, I asked, “Can you meet me at the club?”
“What happened, baby? I’m about twenty minutes away.”
“I was assaulted. You’re the only person I want near me right now, Mel. I’m scared to go home.”
“Don’t worry. I’m on my way. Did you call the police?”
“Jeff did.”
“Why wasn’t he with you?”
“Jeremiah was with me. He’s who assaulted me.”
“Fuck! I’m sorry. I’m angry as fuck right now. Physically, are you okay?”
“Yes. Hurry, Mel. Please.”
“I’m driving as fast as I safely can. I’ll see you in a few minutes. Do I need to let you go?”
“Yes. I’m talking to the police.”
“Okay. I’ll be there before you know it.”
I ended the call then wiped the tears from my face. “What’s his name?”
“Jamel Dent.”
“The only person allowed to come to this car is Jamel Dent. He should be here in…” she glanced at me as she continued, “a few minutes.”
I nodded. After whoever she’d spoken to confirmed what she’d said, she turned to me. “I’ll need you to identify him before we can take him in, unless he confesses to the crime. Youarepressing charges, correct?”
“Yes. Under no circumstance will I drop them. Although he seemed to know who I was after the fact and probably wouldn’t have assaulted me had he known beforehand, he still did what he did to who he thought was a stranger to him.”
“Understood. It might be a long process if he denies allegations. A lot of women just want to forget about it after a while. I hope that you will stay the course and make him pay for what he did to you. Despite what you do for a living, you do it on your terms… no one else’s. If you wanted him to have what he forcefully took, you would have given it to him. Don’t let anyone try to place the blame on you, and don’t you dare at any moment place the blame on yourself.”
I nodded as a couple of stray tears slid down my cheeks. She grabbed my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. We remained quiet, our hands joined until I saw Jamel’s car whip into the parking lot. “That’s him. That’s Jamel.”
“In the Genesis?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She got on her walkie talkie, alerting officers of Jamel’s arrival and to let him get to me. He wasted no time getting out of his car and running to where I was, although a couple of officers tried to stop him. When he got to my door, I unlocked it and got out, falling into his arms. “I got’chu, baby. Don’t cry. I got’chu.”
He held me close as I clung to him. Officer Ross walked over to us and introduced herself to Jamel then turned her attention to me. “Now that your boyfriend is here, you want to come identify the suspect?”
I glanced up at Jamel as he stared down at me. He gave me a tight-lipped smile. I took my gaze back to Officer Ross and nodded. Pulling away from Jamel, I followed her to the squad car to see they’d put Jeremiah in the back seat. His head was hanging low, and I could see the tears on his cheeks.What the fuck is he crying for?He was the muthafucka who committed the crime, but he had the audacity to feel hurt by it?
“He’s the one that put me out of the club last week. He’s who assaulted you?” Jamel asked.
“Yes. That’s him,” I said, answering Jamel’s question and confirming his guilt to Officer Ross.
