Exhausted and ready to prop her feet up, and binge watch Netflix. That’s the kind of day Mori was having when she arrived home. But relaxing wasn’t an option. There was a to-do list waiting on her. First things first, she needed to walk her poodle, Coco. After that, finish the presentation for a client she was with meeting in the morning. As well as the laundry she had been putting off for the last couple of days. And, on top of all of that, she was preparing a special dinner for her hubby. Yep, it was going to be a long night.
“Good girl, Coco,” she said as Coco finished using the bathroom and they headed back in the house. Instead of putting it off one more day, she headed into the laundry room to tackle the laundry.
Two piles of laundry stared at her and she stared back at it. She grabbed the laundry detergent and was about to start the first load when she heard Coco barking. “Coco calm down. I’m getting your treat as soon as I start this load of laundry.” Normally that would stop her from barking her head off, but this time it didn’t.
“Coco,” Mori said sternly as she walked in the living room. The moment she walked in her eyes stretched wide as saucers. The bottle of laundry detergent dropped from her hands. “Kyris, baby are you alright?” Her husband, Kyris, was standing in the middle of the living room with a gun pointed towards Coco.
Kyris didn’t blink or move when she called out to him.
Mori and Kyris had been married seven years. They started dating after she moved back to Commons from New York. And, Kyris returned home from Afghanistan. He was a military man. She loved that about him. He was loyal, compassionate and loving. But the military changed him. After returning home he was diagnosed with PTSD. This was the first episode she was aware of in a year.
“Baby is everything alright,” Mori asked. Unsure what triggered his episode, she knew not to make any sudden moves to startle him. “Baby talk to me. Baby, please talk to me,” she pleaded. Her heart was racing as Kyris stood there in the middle of their living room, spaced out with the gun in his hand.
Kyris didn’t seem to be snapping out of it. Mori decided to back up a little to give him some space. “Kyris, talk to me.” At that moment, he seemed to snap out his trance. Relieved, she let down her guard for a split second. In that second Kyris pointed the gun in her direction. Frozen, she couldn’t say a word. She wanted to scream, but nothing came out. Just when she mustered up the strength to scream, he pulled the trigger. “No,” she screamed.
“Mori. Baby, wake up.”
Mori sat up in a cold sweat, trembling. She looked around the room to make sure that she was in fact dreaming. Crenshaw wasted no time climbing in bed with her. Wrapping his arms around her full-figured body, he pulled her into him. “You had that dream again?”
“Yeah, it was the first one in a year.” Her body was still trembling in his arms.
“You good baby, I promise you that. I’m here now. I’ll never allow anything to happen to you.”
Mori felt a sigh of relief come over her as Crenshaw held her tight in his arms. The dream happened exactly the same way it happened that night. Kyris snapped that night. He just didn’t leave her for dead in the middle of the living floor but also killing their unborn child. That was the reason she was preparing a special dinner for him that night, to surprise him with the good news. Now, four years later she had moved on with her life and was engaged to Crenshaw.
As Crenshaw held her in his arms, she let out a long sigh. She released all that negative energy she had from the dream and allowed herself to relax in her fiancé’s arms.
****
Chirp. Chirp. Chirp. The sound of chirping awakened Mori from her peaceful sleep. Crenshaw’s warm embrace had put her to sleep. Sleep, that she so desperately needed after the nightmare she had. The phone chirped three more times before Mori reached over to grab it. She squinted her eyes to see, Restaurant, on the screen . She cringed. It was Saturday, and she had planned on staying in bed with Crenshaw until they decided to get up. Reluctantly, she said, “Hello.”
“Mori, I know you not still in the bed,” her mom , Lori spat.
“Yes mam, I am.”
“It’s after 11 in the morning. I need you to come over and run to Wal-Mart for me. The supplier is running late today.” Her mom didn’t take a breath as she spit out her demands.
“Mama can’t someone else go. I’m tired. Plus Crenshaw is off today, and I planned to spend my day with him.”
“Gal bring him too. That’ll save me from calling your dad down here to change these light bulbs for me.
“Mama, I…”
“There is no I. This is a family business, and we’re family. See you in an hour. Don’t be late.”
Mori let out a sigh because she knew her mom was not going to back down. Being the only child had it drawbacks. Her dad didn’t call on her as much because he had three more children he could bother. She looked over at Crenshaw who was sleeping peacefully, she decided not to wake him. She sent her dad a text to meet her at the restaurant.
Even though her parents weren’t together, they discovered over the years being friends was much more beneficial to them.
Her parents were teenagers when she was born. “Too young to be making babies,” her dad, Morris, told her one time. The two of them stayed together the first 7 years of Mori’s life until her mom couldn’t take any more of his cheating. A brother and two sisters were the results of his cheating. The break-up took a toll on her mom. Then years later she found happiness again after she switched teams.
Before leaving the house, she kissed Crenshaw on the cheek. She didn’t want to leave him, but she knew her mom wouldn’t stop calling until she showed up. On her way out the door, she texted her dad to make sure he was on his way to the restaurant. A few seconds later he text back, Pulling up now.
The entire drive over to the restaurant she kept thinking about her dream. She used to have the dream two or three nights a week. With counseling and prayer, the dreams had stopped. Kyris took so much from her that night. Peace. Joy. Security. Trust. Love. So much that she never thought she would ever feel those things again.
Then, Crenshaw came into her life when she least expected it. They had been together for two years when he proposed four months ago during Christmas. As he was down on one knee with the ring held up to her in front of their family and friends, she screamed, “Yes.”
The only good thing about the situation with Kyris was he didn’t go to trial. Instead he accepted a plea bargain for 25 years. It had been eight years since he tried to kill her, and it still felt like that day at times. He had sent one letter in the last eight years, that she left unopened until a few days ago.
The sound of the phone ringing over her Bluetooth snapped her out of her thoughts. It was her mom. “Hi, I’m in the parking lot now.”
“Oh, I was trying to catch you to tell you never mind. The truck arrived about 20 minutes ago.”
No need to turn around, she was there now. She decided to go in to get a slice of her mom’s famous blackberry pie. Nothing like a slice of blackberry pie on a spring day to wipe away all the negative thoughts in her mind.
****
“Center of Attention Image Consulting, I’m Donavon and how may I make you the center of attention today.”
Mori could hear her younger brother all the way down the hall in her office. His voice was boisterous, “Yes. Ok. I got that. We look forward to seeing you next Wednesday at 4.”
Morris Donavon Bailey was her younger brother and executive assistant for her business. The two of them were thick as thieves, considering the fact their father kept a love triangle between their mothers for years.
“Another client,” she asked as he plopped down in the chair in front of her desk.
“Yes, but the next time someone calls in to make an appointment I’m going to point them to the website. Calling to make an appointment is so 2016.“
Mori shook her. “Some people still like talking to an actual person.”
“Where they do that at?” He started laughing.
“Boy, lets go. We’re going to be late for lunch with Torren and Trent.” Mori was meeting with her first cousins slash best friends. The three of them helped to keep her grounded especially after the shooting.
After being released from the hospital, Mori couldn’t bear to go back to the apartment. So, the three of them packed all her things and moved her out. Then, they found her a new place. A town house for all of them to live together. Four bedrooms and four baths. They made sure she was taken care of. And, once Crenshaw came along, after some time, they proudly released the rings of her care to him.
When they arrived at the restaurant, Torren and Trent were already in their special corner booth.
“Hey, you two,” Mori said as she slid into the booth. From that position they had a full view of the entire restaurant.
“T and T,” Donavon said as he slid in behind his big sister.
Greetings were exchanged for a few moments before the waitress brought them their usual, a pitcher of peach lemonade with mint leaves. The purpose of the lunch date was to confirm some details for Mori and Crenshaw’s wedding. It was three months away and they still had a ton of work to do. 7-11 was going to the day they said, “I do.” She had Beyoncé to think for the date.
Torren was going over the list of what they still needed to complete, and Mori seemed to be staring into LaLa Land. “Mori, did you hear a word I said,” he asked.
She looked around in a daze. “Excuse me. I need to go to the bathroom.” Donavon slid out so she could run to the little girl’s room.
“What’s going on with her,” Trent asked.
“I’m not sure,” Donavon shrugged his shoulders.
“It’s probably that peach dress that Crenshaw’s mom sent her a picture of. That thing is hideous,” Torren laughed.
The moment she entered the bathroom, Mori rushed into the last stall. She was pacing back and forth as if she was in the middle of her living room. Her mind was racing. The thought of getting married again terrified her. What if Crenshaw snapped like Kyris?
Prior to the shooting, she was unaware that Kyris had stopped taking his prescribed medications. Instead, he was self-medicating in an attempt to block out the nightmares he was having from Afghanistan. The day he shot her, he was on a mixture of coke, pills and Tequila. He thought she had been cheating on him because she hadn’t answered his calls that day. What he didn’t know was she was at the doctor and didn’t have any signal. And, she was getting the first ultrasound of their baby.
Mori stopped pacing when she heard someone come in the bathroom. She grabbed some tissue to wipe her face. Then, she pulled herself together and headed back to the table.
“You ok, honey,” Trent asked as she sat back down.
She didn’t say a word. Instead she reached in her purse and pulled out a letter. The letter that had triggered her nightmare earlier in the week.
“What’s this,” Donavon asked. He looked at it a moment, then passed it to Torren.
“What the hell,” he said loudly before putting his hand over his mouth as if he was trying to contain the words in his mouth.
“Let me see this,” Trent said as he removed the letter from Torren’s hand. “Why is he writing you?”
It was a letter from Kyris. He wasn’t supposed to have any contact with Mori, so he sent it to his sister. And, she gave it to Mori.
Trent was reading the letter to himself, while Donavon and Torren waited for the synopsis.
Mori took a sip of her lemonade then said, “I’m calling off the wedding.” The words seemed to slip out her mouth without a thought.
“The hell you say,” Trent spat. “Because of this.” He was waving the letter around in the air just as Lori walked up.
“How’s my favorite four doing?”
“Do I tell her the foolery that just came out of your mouth, or are you going to tell her,” Torren asked.
“Tell me what?”
Mori mumbled, “The wedding is off.”
“What she say?” Lori looked at Donavon, Torren and Trent with disbelief on her face.
“You heard her Auntie,” Trent said as he handed the letter to Lori. Mori tried to stop him, but it wasn’t any use. Her mom had the letter and was about to read it.
“He’s sick,” Mori said. “PTSD is a mental disease. We don’t know what he went through over there.”
“Girl, we all know Afghanistan wasn’t a vacation. It was war. Thousands of men and women went over there. They didn’t come home and try to kill their wives and husbands,” Lori spat.
“War is not easy. And the soldiers came back with problems we will never understand.”
“My daddy. Your granddaddy,” she pointed to Mori, Torren and Trent, “went to Vietnam. He came back messed up. Do you hear me? But he didn’t try to kill your grandma or anyone.”
“I hear you, but…”
“No but. What did I tell you about but?”
They all said in unison, “But takes away everything you said before it.”
“Right.” Lori pulled a chair up to the table. “I know Kyris was suffering, but he put a bullet in your chest and three in Coco. Left you for dead. Walked down the street to a bar and ordered wings. As if he hadn’t just left you for dead.”
“That does show he is crazy Auntie,” Torren spat.
“Boy, hush.” She looked over at Mori, “What does he want from you?”
“To write a letter to the parole board.”
“Really,” Donavon belted out. “He’s served eight years of a 25-year sentence. You got to be joking.”
Mori didn’t tell them, but she had already written the letter. She had emailed it to the parole board that morning. Once he was out, she knew that he wasn’t going to let them live in peace. So, she was going to call the wedding off to protect Crenshaw. Then she was just going to live life out with a new puppy and a goldfish.
“Mori look at me. I thought that Kyris took the best thing that had ever happened to me away when he shot you. I watched you go through rehab and counseling. I watched you reclaim your life. Your peace. Your joy. I thought I would never see you love anyone again. Then Crenshaw came along. Your smile changed. It was the smile you had before all the craziness. Don’t let him take any more of your joy.”
“Please,” Torren begged.
Mori heard them, but her mind was made up. She sent Crenshaw a text, I CAN’T MARRY YOU.
“Mori think about this,” Lori pleaded with her.
“I did and the wedding is off. Let me out.” She grabbed her purse and stormed out the door.
“I’m going to need a ride,” Donavon stated as he took a sip of his drink.
****
Crenshaw was at the barbershop when he received the text from Mori. He had to do a double take when it popped up on his screen. “I’ll be back a little later,” he told his barber and rushed out the door. He had no idea what was going on. Three attempts to call Mori were unsuccessful. Receiving the voicemail each time he tried to call, he finally responded to her text. IT’S NOT OFF!! CALL ME ASAP.
He rode by the restaurant and her office, but she wasn’t at either location. He sent The Three Musketeers, as he called them, a text. What’s up with Mori! They all replied, She needs to tell you. That angered him even more because he figured at least one of them would spill the beans. He drove around town for another 10 minutes before heading to their house.
Crenshaw was relieved when he saw her car in the driveway. It was no way he was going to let the best thing that had ever happened to him get away.
The funny part about it all was, he met Mori through Kyris. Crenshaw and Kyris were co-workers and he met Mori at another co-workers Superbowl party, they all were attending. After the shooting, he would check on her from time to time. Nothing like a relationship type of thing. Simply, you doing ok? You need anything?
Then one day they crossed paths. He asked her out for dinner. To his surprise she said yes. From that moment on they were inseparable. Now with three months until the wedding, she was calling it off. She had to tell him something.
He sat in the truck a few minutes before getting out. Once he got his words together, he headed inside. Mori was in the kitchen peeling potatoes. Whenever she was upset, she cooked. “Hey baby,” he said as he walked in.
“Hey.” She didn’t look up at him.
He eased down on the barstool in front of her. “Talk to me baby.”
“I told you the wedding is off.” She didn’t waste any time getting to the point.
“Why? What’s going on? What made you change your mind?”
Mori kept peeling the potatoes. Never looking up at him.
“Baby listen, what’s going on?”
“Kyris is getting out.”
“What are you talking about?”
“He’s going to get out early. If we’re together, we’ll never have any peace.” For the first time she looked up, “I can’t marry you.” Tears welled in her eyes. Crenshaw walked over to her and put his arms around her. “You don’t have to worry about me. I promise you that.”
“If we get married, I’ll worry about you every day.”
“Listen to me,” he turned her around to face him, “ I got you baby. You’re good. I’m good. We’re good.”
She laid her head on chest.
“Mori, I got you.” Then he looked in her eyes, “Will you be my wife?"
“I will.”
****
A week after Mori’s breakdown, things were back on track. The Three Musketeers were back on track with their wedding planning.
“Mori, we’re going to be late. Hurry up,” Donovan shouted from the living room. She was scheduled for a fitting at the bridal shop. And, of course, she was running late.
“Hold your horses, I’m coming,” she shouted back. Ten minutes later, Mori emerged from her bedroom, “Ready.”
“About time. Torren and Trent are already there. Your mom and Tanya are meeting us there, right?”
“Yep,” she said as she opened the front door. “Well, I thought she was. Mama, what are you doing here?” Her mom had this look on her face that she hadn’t seen since her grandfather passed away. “Mommy, what’s wrong?”
“Kyris,” she stopped, then looked back at the car, then back at Mori. “He was killed.”
“What?” It felt as if someone had knocked the wind out of her. “I need to sit down.”
“What happened,” Donavon asked.
“He was found stabbed to death in his room when he didn’t report for count.”
“Oh my God,” Mori sighed. “When?”
“A few hours ago. We’re headed over to Tina’s now.”
Lori’s partner Tanya was Kyris’ aunt. That’s actually how Mori and Kyris hooked up. Tanya thought they would be good together. And, at first, they were. Then when Kyris shot Mori, Tanya and Tina, Kyris’ mom, stopped speaking. Tanya sided with Mori, which drove a wedge between the two sisters.
“How’s his mom?”
“Not good. They had to sedate her.”
“I’ll send some food over.”
“Alright. Are you ok?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“I have to go. I’m taking Tanya over there. I’ll call you later.”
“Go, go,” Mori told her.
Mori didn’t have a vindictive bone in her body. Part of her healing process was forgiving Kyris, which she had done. Kyris was her first love. The man she believed she was going to spend her life with. She didn’t wish anything bad on him. That’s why she wrote the letter for his release.
****
Three days before the wedding and it still felt as if there was a ton of stuff to do. Her mind was all over the place as her and Crenshaw pulled up to the wedding venue.
“I can’t believe you’re on time for once,” Donavon chuckled as she got out of the car.
“Oh hush,” she replied. “I still can’t believe your were able to get The Common’s Theater for the venue.”
“When the client wants to be the center of attention, they’ll agree to a lot of things,” he laughed.
The moment they walked in, Trent and Torren immediately started going over the layout and the itinerary for the next three days. Crenshaw was quiet. He wasn’t into the details of the wedding planning.
“Crenshaw, I sent texts to your groomsmen with the itinerary as well,” Trent stated.
“Alright. Is it ok for me to slide out,” he asked.
“Yes, sir,” Torren stated. “Just make sure we see you Friday night at six.”
“No doubt.”
“See you tonight,” Mori said as he kissed her on the cheek. Then she focused her attention back on her wedding planners. They were going over the layout for the reception when her phone started vibrating in her purse. It was a number she didn’t recognize, she ignored it the first time they called. Then a minute later the same number called again. This time she answered, “Hello.”
“Hello, may I speak to Mori.”
“This is Mori.”
“Mori this is Tina.”
Mori stopped dead in her tracks. She hadn’t talked to her ex-mother-in-law since before the shooting. Not once did Tina reach out to Mori, nor did Mori reach out to her. When they passed each other in the grocery store, bank, movies or anywhere, it was as if they never had a connection.
“Hi, Tina, how are you?” The Three Musketeers eyes darted in her direction.
“Put her on speaker,” Torren mouthed, but Mori waved him off.
“I was wondering if we could meet at my sister’s restaurant at 2?”
Mori checked the time. It gave her only an hour to prepare for meeting Tina. “Alright. I’ll see you then.”
“What does she want,” Donavon asked the moment she ended the call.
“I’m not sure. She wants me to meet her at 2 at the restaurant.”
“For what?” Trent asked. “She hasn’t spoken to you in eight years and now all of a sudden she wants to talk to you. Right before you wedding. Sounds fishy to me.”
“We’re going with you,” Torren stated.
“No, I’m going to do this on my own. Mama and Tanya will be there if the meeting goes south. Donavon toss me your keys. After the meeting I’ll text you all to come to the restaurant.”
Donavon tossed Mori the keys. He turned to Trent and Torren, “I’m going to need a ride.”
****
Mori arrived at the restaurant ten minutes early. On her way over, she called her mom to reserve the booth for her. “Are you sure you want to talk to her,” Lori asked. "Are you ready for this?"
“I don’t think I’ll ever be ready,” Mori replied.
The moment she sat down at the booth; she asked the waitress to bring a pitcher of lemonade. When she saw Tina, all she could see was Kyris. Her leg was shaking so hard it was vibrating the table.
“Mori, it’s good to see you,” Tina said as she sat down.
“Hi, Tina, it’s good to see you as well.”
“I got your number from Tanya. I hope you don’t mind.”
“No, that’s fine.”
“I know you’re busy with the final preparations for your wedding. So, I’m not going to hold you up.”
The waitress sat the pitcher of lemonade on the table.
“I wanted to reach out to you after it all happened, but every time I thought about what Kyris did. I just couldn’t. I couldn’t believe the baby I held in my arms had did something like that.”
Mori’s entire body became tense, listening to Tina explain her side of the story.
“Kyris loved you, but whatever happened to him overseas was too much for him to handle.”
“Tina, I…”
“Mori, you don’t have to say anything because I know this is awkward. I wanted to give you this.” She reached in her purse and pulled out an envelope. “I know nothing can change what Kyris put you through, but I hope you know that he never stopped loving you.”
Tina slid the envelope across the table before easing out of the booth. It seemed the moment Tina walked out the restaurant, her mom, Tanya, and The Three Musketeers rushed over to the table.
“What did she give you,” Lori asked.
“I’m not sure.” Mori stared at the envelope in her hand. The Three Musketeers slid into the booth. “She said that she hopes it lets me know that Kyris never stopped loving me.”
“You want me to open it,” Lori asked.
Mori handed the envelope to her mother. She had no idea what it could have been. Lori removed the contents of the envelope. She gasped loudly then placed her hand over her mouth.
“What is it,” Tanya asked. Lori handed her the contents of the envelope. “Oh my God.”
“Let me see,” Trent said as he jumped up. He took a quick glance. “Do what?”
Mori looked at them as if they were all had three heads a piece. “What is it?” Lori handed her the contents. She stared at it for what seemed like forever. There was no way she was looking at an insurance check with her name on it for $300,000.
****
“You ready to do this baby girl,” Morris asked as they waited for the theater doors to open.
“Yes sir.” She smiled as the door opened. Then she thought about the words Kyris used to say when she asked him how he was doing, Everything is perfectly fine. And, for the first time in years, she truly believed that.
