Maddie and Red’s asses landed in their chairs without hesitation. The food on the table had grown cold and everyone’s attention was focused on Brooklyn.
“Back in the day, when I was where y’all are now, we didn’t talk about sisters behind their backs. Now, Dallas,” she said, turning in her chair to look at me, “you can’t hold what these girls said about you behind your back against them. They didn’t know you. You are a pretty girl who drew the attention of not only Luke, but every one of their husbands. Ain’t no fucking way I’d let my ol’ man follow you around shopping malls and shit. That’s where a lot of the hostility is coming from. They’re jealous ‘cause you had their man’s attention whether you wanted it or not.” Brooklyn pulled out a cigarette and lit it, not bothering to fan the smoke that circled around her, poisoning each one of us. Hell, maybe I needed one.
“Red, you are the center of this fucked up shit, yet you chose to not share anything with Dallas. Good girl. You don’t do shit your ol’ man don’t tell you to do. I know you told Dallas a long time ago that she didn’t need to take shit off of Maddie, that’s true, but Maddie is your sister. She is family. Dallas is family, but at the time, she wasn’t. Dallas, nobody has to like you or tolerate you. If they do, it’s of their own free will. There ain’t a bitch in this room that’s hurtin for money, so I know that ain’t why they are here. They are here because they love their President and this club and will do what he asks. Once they get to know you and you earn their trust, shit will get better.” Just the feel of Brooklyn’s arm on my shoulder and the softness in her eyes let me know that it would, indeed get better. This was just a stepping stone.
“I ain’t getting in y’all’s family business. That shit is something y’all gonna have to work out,” she said, gesturing between me and Maddie. “But, if you’re gonna be a part of this family, Maddie, and Luke wants Dallas here, then you will respect her. You ain’t got to like her, talk to her or even look at her, but you will respect her or I’ll black your eye. Don’t test my fucking patience either. Me and Dallas are going for a ride, if y’all got anything y’all want to get out of your system, you better do it before we get back. Go get dressed, bitch, I wanna show you my hog.”
I stood, along with the others, and hurried to Luke’s room. I grabbed my cell off of the bed and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind me and hoping no one would hear.
“Hey babe, miss me already?” Luke answered in a jolly voice that I wasn’t expecting.
“Luke, I’m trying to be real patient here. Is there anything else you aren’t telling me?” I asked, trying to stay calm.
“No, babe. I think we have covered it all.” Luke was smiling in the phone and I knew that he knew what had just happened.
“You had them fucking follow me? Why didn’t you tell me that?”
“I did tell you that.”
“Oh really, when?”
“I told you that when I couldn’t watch you I had people employed by me to do it,” Luke said, his mood not faltering in the least.
“Luke! You fucking… Ugh! I swear I could kill you right now. Do you know how fucking weird this is? Then Maddie stood up and informed me that they all hated me and had been talking shit and you paid them to like me. Now, Brooklyn wants to take me for a ride on her hog, and you said I couldn’t go anywhere, but I’m fucking going. I don’t even know what a hog is, but it doesn’t matter. If I have to sit in this house right now, someone is gonna get hurt and it sure as hell ain’t gonna be me. I don’t care what you-“
“You can go with Brooklyn, babe. Go have a few drinks and calm down. Everything will be fine,” Luke said, interrupting my rant. Drinks? With Brooklyn? He told me I couldn’t leave. “Babe?”
“I thought you said I couldn’t leave unless it was important,” I said, wanting to pull my hair out because he was so unpredictable and I was anticipating a fight and my adrenaline was pumping and he just said I could go. Fuck me. Fuck a drink. I needed some of that shit that you see on intervention.
“This sounds pretty important, babe. Brooklyn will take care of you. There is not a man around stupid enough to fuck with her. I have good news,” Luke said, so excited about his good news that he didn’t seem to give much of a shit about mine.
“What’s your good news?” I asked, sounding bored. Of course, he wasn’t affected.
“We have a lead on War. Leaving, just as soon as we fuel up. It’s not much but more than we have had since all this shit went down.”