A low hum escaped Dru as she walked to the front door. She hadn’t had an anxious spell or heart palpitations for the last couple of days, and she wasn’t sure if that was because she was at peace, around Caden, away from her mother, or all three. Theonly thing that would have made her feel better was being with her sister, but she’d settle for going to visit her before she went back to Caden’s home later.
The natural smile that adorned Dru’s face fell when she tried to unlock the front door and realized her key didn’t work. Refusing to believe Tina had gotten the locks changed, Dru tried again unsuccessfully. Releasing a humorless laugh, Dru walked over to the garage, opened the keypad, and put in the code. Thankfully, Tina hadn’t remembered to change that. She made her way through the garage and into the kitchen. Loud music played from upstairs, letting Dru know her mother was in her room.
Since there was literally no telling what she was going to walk into, Dru opted for staying downstairs instead of going to Tina’s room.
“Tina!” she yelled, sitting on the recliner between the couch and TV. About a minute passed before she yelled her name again.
“What!” Tina shouted.
“Come downstairs!”
Grumbling, Tina made her way down the stairs with a frown on her face. “How the hell did you get in my house?”
“This isourhouse, and through the garage.”
“Shit. I forgot to change that code when I got the locks changed.”
Dru stared at her mother. At that point, she should have been used to Tina’s shenanigans, but there were times she said or did something that still caught Dru by surprise.
“So you intentionally changed the locks to keep me out? For what reason?”
“I haven’t seen you in two days, and you went and told my mama my business. She’s basically holding my child hostage. I can’t go anywhere near that house, or she’s going to call thepolice on me. And the old bitch had the nerve to say she’d beat me with her bat if I tried to come inside.”
As much as Dru didn’t want to laugh, a sniggle escaped before she could cover her mouth. “Granny did say you weren’t too old for her to beat you.”
Tina laughed, and for a brief moment, she looked . . . normal. “She can try, and trust me, she definitely will.”
“Look, this really isn’t a funny situation. You deserve to be punished for what you did to Dreya and me. More so Dreya because I’m grown, and I’ve dealt with the shit the best way I know how. I’ma leave that between you and God though. I just came to get some of my things, and I wanted to let you know I was in the house since you changed the locks.”
“Yeah, because technically, you’re trespassing. I could’ve shot your ass.”
Dru’s eyes rolled as she stood. “Girl, bye. My name is on this lease too. I don’t know why you act like you forgot that. Just being honest, if anybody should’ve left this house, it was you.” Tina gasped and clutched her chest, as if Dru’s words had physically struck her. “I pay the rent, and the light and water bills are in my name. I’m going to have them switched to your name since I won’t be staying here anymore. By the way, your phone line is coming off my account at the end of the month too.”
“After everything I’ve done for you, this is how you treat me?” Tina asked as Dru went upstairs to her room.
“After everything you’ve donetome, this is how I treat you,” Dru corrected.
“You little bitch,” Tina muttered, rushing up the stairs. “You’ve made my life hell since the moment you were born.”
Tina wrapped her hand around Dru’s locs and yanked her down the stairs. She straddled her, but before she could hit her, Dru hit her in the side of her head with her elbow and pushedher off. Switching their positions, Dru straddled her mother. Her fist lifted, and as much as she wanted to hit her, she couldn’t. As horrible of a mother as Tina had been to her, there was still a piece of Dru’s heart that loved her and wished they could have had a normal relationship. Her fist shook, willing her to connect it with Tina’s face, but she couldn’t. With a growl, Dru stood as tears fell from her eyes.
All it would take was one punch, whether it was self-defense or not, and Tina would press charges and have Dru arrested—again.
“Haven’t I suffered enough because of you?” Dru yelled, kicking Tina in the stomach before she could get up. “You neglected and abused me my whole fucking childhood and used me the entire time I’ve been old enough to work and pay your bills! As if that wasn’t enough, you tried to sell me to a man you didn’t even know! All I came here to do is get some of my shit, and now you want to fight me? You really ain’t shit, Tina. Like, at all. I’ma spare you now, but if you touch me before I leave this house, I swear to God I will beat your ass and feel no way about it.”
Dru charged up the stairs. She was so hurt and angry she didn’t even care about turning her back to her mother. If Tina touched her again, Dru wouldn’t show her any mercy.
As quickly as she could, Dru filled two carry-on suitcases and two duffel bags. Though she’d be leaving quite a bit behind, the things she grabbed were the main things she needed. Clothes could be replaced or picked up while Tina wasn’t at home. One thing was clear to Dru, and that was the fact that she couldn’t wait until she never had to deal with her mother again.
Once she was done packing, she made her way downstairs with her bags. When she opened the door, Ian made his way to it to grab her things.
“Dru!” Tina yelled, keeping her from leaving.
“What?” she replied through gritted teeth.
“You got until this weekend to get the rest of your shit out of my house before I throw it away.”
“Don’t worry. It won’t even take me that long. I’ll be getting my sister’s things and taking them to Granny’s house too.”
