Little bubbles appear instantly like she’s been waiting for my text. Now I really feel like a fucked-up friend.
Blakely: I’m sorry, Blakely doesn’t exist anymore. She was left behind when her best friend became this total bad ass.
Me: I’m sorry. I’ll explain everything, okay? I owe you that. Do you have an extra set of jammies that Ella can part with for the night and maybe an outfit for tomorrow? I’ll wash them and give them back but I need something to tie us over until we get some clothes tomorrow.
Blakely: Uhm…I know it’s been a bit since we talked but there’s no way you have a child I don’t know about.
Me: Again, I’ll explain when I see you but I have a little human with me temporarily.
Blakely: Ella and I will be there in ten.
I knew she would pull through even though she’s probably royally pissed at me. She’s been my best friend since we were kids. She was there when mama died, through the ups and downs, and never left my side. She’s also gotten me in some shit that my father had to bail us out. But life wouldn’t be the same without her. All the emotions of everything that’s gone on starts to build up in my chest from holding it all in. I can’t let others see me as vulnerable because in their eyes, it's a weakness. With her, she lets me get it all out without judgment and then reminds me of the bad bitch that I am. I really need that right now.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CELESTE
"In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity." - Sun Tzu, The Art of War
Shortly after the last text I got from Blakely, we arrived home introducing Gabby to Adelina and showing her the room she’ll be staying in while she’s here. I made sure to have her in the room next to mine so I can get to her right away. At first she was hesitant to stay by herself but as soon as Adelina brought in a night light and showed her the TV full of cartoons she can have on while she sleeps, she was instantly excited to have her own shows. She ran over to her bed and placed her stuffy on her pillow and pulled the blankets back to make sure she was nice and warm. She really is the cutest thing ever.
As we’re heading down the stairs, the door swings open and Blakely walks in with a bag overflowing like she’s moving in and Ella is at her side with her little bag and some Barbies. Ella waves at Gabby and instantly runs over to her to show her the barbies she brought over. Meanwhile, Blakely’s eyes narrow at me, warning me that I’m on her shitlist.
“Careful, Ms. Blakely. You’re going to leave a dent in the wall with that entrance,” Adelina scolds, rushing over to help grab her bags.
She knows better than to light my ass on fire with Adelina around. If there’s one person we fear most, it’s her. When we were younger, we weren’t scared of my father’s wrath, no, Adelina would whip our ass where we would walk funny for days.
“Looks like you’re moving in. What is all this?” I approach her, giving her a tight hug. “Thank you.”
She stills in my arms and pulls me back at arm’s length with a confused look on her face. I don’t know how to react to this sudden pause. She’s not the kind of girl that gets stumped or even catches a breath for that matter.
“Did Celeste Hansley just say thank you? Are you sick or something?” She places her hand over my forehead as if checking my temperature.
I smack her hand away playfully, rolling my eyes. She’s so damn dramatic but I also can’t blame her for thinking I’ve gone mad. Not that I’m not already; with the string of events, it might prove that I’ve lost my everlasting mind.
“Watch it, you’ll never hear it again with that attitude. But seriously, why did you bring so much stuff? I just needed jammies and an outfit.”
“I brought those, but I also couldn’t pick which one and these clothes are too small for Ella, so I figured this little sweet thing can use them. Ella also picked out a comfort blanket and stuffy that she wanted her to have and toys they can play with. Oh, by the way, we’re spending the night.” She flips her hair and ushers the girls to the family room.
The girls get settled on the rug, instantly becoming best friends. Ella teaches Gabby how to play Barbies and their laughs fill my home. As they have theirlittle play time, Adelina waves us off as she settles on the couch with a book. We didn’t even need to be asked if she knew Blakely and I needed some space. We head into the kitchen and I disappear into the wine cellar grabbing our favorite wine and re-emerge with glasses already waiting on the countertop. Popping the cork, I pour us both a generous glass.
“Spill, bitch. What the hell has been going on. You fucking ghosted me and that’s not cool.” Blakely demands as I join her at the table, handing her a glass of wine.
Maybe the wine glasses weren’t the best idea. Knowing her, she would hurl it at my head and then proceed drinking from the bottle.
“Where do you want me to start? From the beginning or how I have custody of that little sunshine?” I sigh.
I bring the glass to my lips, taking a sip of the sweet, delicious wine. We’re definitely going to need more than one bottle.
“From the beginning. You went to Rome and came back as a whole ass boss. What the fuck happened?” Sipping her wine, she stares at me waiting for my explanation.
Has it really been so long since we talked? I’m a shit friend and I feel bad but so much has happened that I haven’t had a chance to really breathe.
“As you know, I went to Rome to handle some business. As I was walking the streets to meet the boys at the restaurant where we were going to celebrate, someone came up from behind me with a cloth. I blacked out and woke up in some basement tied up to a chair. I lost track of how long they had me, maybe a day or two. I was able to get loose when they left me with a lazy-as-fuck guard taking a nap in a chair in front of me. I tried to get answers but he wouldn't come forward. Once I finished him off, I got my revenge on the one who beat me because he couldn’t control his anger issues.” Pausing for asplit second, I take a quick sip of wine. Still not as good as the one in Italy, but it’ll do.
“I still have no idea who was behind it or who they belonged to. Antonio found me after I made my escape and took me to get checked out and healed before we made our way home.” I told her the bare minimum of what happened to me; I didn’t want her to know the full extent, not because I don’t trust her but because of the way she’s looking at me tells me she already feels like shit for being mad at me.
Even though I’m trained and ready for things like this to happen, there’s always a chance that things could have gone so much worse and they could have gone after a loved one due to my disobedience. I get nightmares that invade my dreams from time to time. Not that I’m scared of any useless man, but because I was caught off guard and my senses were wiped away from me.
