“I appreciate this more than you know. Thank you,” I said, and I meant it.
Mrs. Mary could’ve written me off when things went sideways with Booda. Instead, she’d shown up when I had nothing, and I didn’t know how I would repay her, but one day, I would.
Mrs. Mary waved a hand dismissively, but I caught the slight smile at the corner of her mouth. “You’re family, baby. That’s what family does.”
I reached over and hugged Mrs. Mary before grabbing the keys from the property manager’s outstretched hand. We left the management office and walked out into the afternoon heat.
The parking lot shimmered with cars baking under the sun. Mrs. Mary’s old Cadillac sat in a spot near the entrance, cream-colored and pristine despite its age. She kept that car like it was made of gold.
“You’re gonna be alright. Just keep God first, and everything will come back to you in due time,” Mrs. Mary said as we approached her vehicle.
I nodded, absorbing her words with gratitude and a quiet skepticism I kept to myself. God first. I’d heard that my whole life, and it hadn’t stopped me from making the choices thatlanded me in a car six months ago with nothing but two changes of clothes and a .9mm I’d kept wrapped in an old gym bag.
But I wasn’t going to argue with Mrs. Mary. Not when she’d just handed me a fresh start.
“I will,” I said, squeezing her hand as we stopped beside the Cadillac. “I promise.”
She unlocked the car and settled into the driver’s seat with a soft groan, the kind that came from a body that had worked hard for sixty-three years.
“You need anything, you call me. Don’t matter if it’s three in the morning or three in the afternoon.”
I nodded. My mouth opened, then closed. I looked off toward the parking lot for a second before I looked back at her. I was hesitating because I knew she wouldn’t like my next question, but I couldn’t help myself.
“You heard anything else about him?”
Mrs. Mary’s hand paused on the steering wheel. Not long. Just long enough for me to notice.
“About who?” she asked, even though she knew exactly who I meant.
“Bood—” I quickly caught myself because she didn’t play that. “I’m sorry. I meant Davion. Have you heard anything from him?”
She let out a breath through her nose and shook her head. “I told you what it is,” she said. “He got a lot of time, baby. More than you think. And he don’t need you worrying him while he tryna do his bid. It ain’t good for his mental health.”
“Worry him? If anything, he the one worrying me. It ain’t fair how he doing me, Mrs. Mary,” I shot back, the words slipping out before I could stop them.
“How he doing you?” she repeated with disbelief. “That boy is being selfless by not dragging you through that with him. Time ain’t just hard for the people on the inside. It’s hard for people onthe outside, too. You should be thanking God Davion loves you enough to keep you from having to go through that.”
“But I love him,” I whined.
“And he loves you too, but right now you being real selfish. You only thinking about yourself. Have you considered what he’s going through, having to be away from you and his family? Or how strong he has to be to even let you go?” She asked, and I instantly felt like shit.
“I’m not selfish, and you know it. I just asked the question because I miss him.”
“And I answered it,” she said quickly. “Leave that boy where he at. Best thing you can do for him, and yourself is move on with your life.”
I studied her face, wondering why she looked so upset, but she smoothed everything over so fast that I thought I might have been seeing things.
“You got a place now,” she added. “Focus on getting back on your feet, so you won’t ever be in this position again. I won’t always be around, you know.”
“Okay, Mrs. Mary. Thank you again,” I replied, even though something about her reaction to my question never sat right with me.
“You welcome, chile. I love you like you one of my own and want to see you thrive, so make sure you take care of yourself.”
“I love you, too, and I will.”
Mrs. Mary pulled her door shut and cranked her engine. A second later, she eased out of her parking space and drove off without looking back. I stood there for a moment, watching her disappear.
The days leading up to this moment had been long. I remembered getting out of the hospital with not a dollar to my name, no memory, and no one I could call.
