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  She went into Vanessa’s room to see how she was feeling. Vanessa was fast asleep. As the hours passed and Melissa still hadn’t heard from Jeremiah, she became concerned that something had happened to him. Melissa didn’t think she should call his family and Vanessa was still a little feeble. So Melissa called Bobo and asked him if he’d stay with her mother while she went to Nashville.

  Bobo, grumbling, acquiesced to her request after asking, “Who in their right mind, would want to stay with Aunt Van?” Melissa was very upset so Bobo promised her he’d be at the house in an hour.

  When Melissa went to tell Vanessa about her change in plans, she sensed her mother wasn’t pleased. She tried to convey the urgency of the situation. Later, when she couldn’t find her wallet, that threw her further in a tizzy. She had a few emergency credit cards stashed in her drawer and would have to make do with them.

  Finally Bobo arrived and Melissa left for Nashville.

  * * *

  The plane ride seemed to take forever as she sat high above the clouds. She could hardly wait to see Jeremiah.

  Melissa anxiously hailed a taxicab with a trembling hand. Sheets of rain drenched the city.

  On arrival, she punched the up button for the elevator, which seemed to take an age to arrive. Melissa inserted the extra copy of Jeremiah’s spare key into the lock and pushed the door open.

  When she walked inside, silence greeted her. The drapes were open and the moonlight cast a glow in the room. Melissa hesitated for a moment, then headed toward the bedroom. Her face grimaced as a premonition took root in her soul. She ignored the feeling, took a deep breath, pushed open the door and flipped the light switch on.

  Her eyes grew widened then fluttered upwards, she felt she was going to faint. She held onto the wall to support her sagging knees.

  Jeremiah and Moniqa lay in the bed together. He held her sister close.

  Tears overflowed from her eyes, she blinked rapidly then closed them and prayed silently. Lord, let all of this be a bad dream. When I open my eyes, please don’t let me see Moniqa lying beside Jeremiah. When she opened them, the scene before her was the same.

  Jeremiah’s eyes flew open as he looked at Melissa standing at the doorway looking like the life force had been sucked out of her. Moniqa lay at his side smiling like the Cheshire cat, one of her arms flung possessively around Jeremiah’s waist.

  He jumped from the bed as if the apartment was on fire. “Moniqa what are you doing here?” he asked, confused, looking from one sister to the other. Uncertainty, then dismay caused his complexion to pale. He clutched his chest and walked toward Melissa.

  She screamed, “WHY!” as tears poured down her face. Then turned and sprinted out the room like a pack of Rotweillers were at her heels. Melissa bumped into the wall as she ran aimlessly toward the elevator. The red and white exit sign caught her eye and beckoned her to enter. She pushed the door open and almost slipped as she raced down the stairway.

  Jeremiah looked at Moniqa with disbelief then and loathing. He fled after Melissa, looking like a madman running down the street in only his pajama bottoms in the pouring rain. He yelled Melissa’s name. It seemed she’d dropped off the face of the earth. Eventually, he returned to the stoop of his apartment where he sat and wept. His tears mingled with the stinging raindrops.

  Jeremiah entered the apartment with a murderous glint in his eyes. He ran to the bedroom and grabbed Moniqa’s arm violently, saying, “Get the hell out of here, you bitch. How could you do something like this to your sister?”

  Moniqa attempted to grab his waist. He shoved her away from him. She fell on top of the bed.

  “You are pure evil. I want you out of my house right now.” He began pulling linen off the bed and threw it toward the garbage can. Then he flung her clothes at her.

  “You’ve forgotten I’m your wife,” Moniqa said as she calmly sat on the bed. Her legs were crossed and she tossed the clothing on the floor. “I’m not going anywhere. We took vows until death do us part. You’ll get over Melissa.”

  Jeremiah had to restrain himself from slapping her when she uttered Melissa’s name. He clenched and unclenched his hands in frustration. The vein on the left side of his face throbbed with rage. His hatred of Moniqa seemed to suck the air from the room. “I’ll see you in court. The marriage will be annulled. I’ll divorce your evil ass. Whatever it takes.”

  Moniqa stared into Jeremiah’s slitted eyes. Disgust poured off him like sweat.

  A flicker of fear raced through her bones. She ignored the feeling and decided to call her husband’s bluff. She cocked her head to the left and put her ring finger on her left cheek. “You seem to forget we made love last night. Hell, I could pregnant as we speak. Not so fast. I am not going anywhere.”

  Jeremiah’s body emitted pure hatred. He longed to hurt Moniqa. Instead, he ran into the bathroom and dried himself off. Then he got dressed and ran out the apartment. The door slammed loudly behind him. The sound of his tires squealed from the parking lot.

  Moniqa rose from the bed and plugged the phone back into the jack. She quickly dialed a number. “Mommy, it’s done.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Melissa’s teeth chattered uncontrollably as she trotted blindly down the darkened street in the rainstorm. Wind blustered, turning the multi-colored umbrellas of rushing people looking for cover, inside out. Bolts of lightning flashed in the sky. Headlights from oncoming cars seemed to illuminate a path as her legs pumped up and down and her breathing became labored.

  Melissa stopped running when she came upon a coffee shop. A few bedraggled people sat at the counter. Others were seated at tables, as they waited for the deluge of rain to subside. Melissa pushed the door open, shivering uncontrollably. Her clothing and shoes were soaked. She held one hand over her mouth and the other across her midsection as she asked the concerned waitress for directions to the restroom.

  “Hon, are you all right?” the older woman asked, alarmed at the sight of the young woman with rivulets of water dripping from her hair and lifeless eyes that caused her to look like death warmed over. The waitress gestured urgently toward the rear of the building.

  Melissa hurried to the washroom and made it to the stall just in time. She fell to the floor as her body heaved and the contents of her stomach spewed into the toilet bowl. With her head resting on her arms, she sobbed until her throat felt raspy. Her face was blotched and eyes swollen.

  What was Moniqa doing in Jeremiah’s apartment, played like a track on a re-wound tape. The words repeated over and over in her mind.

  Jeremiah sprinted down the street, clad in jeans with his teeshirt turned inside out. Before he took off in his car his shoes squished as his feet struck puddles of water. He stopped at the coffee shop, rubbed a spot on the window and peered in. She wasn’t there. He’d never felt so bereft in his life. How the hell did this happen? Jeremiah went up and down the streets searching for Melissa without any luck. Finally, he gave up, and returned home to get his car. Jeremiah decided to drive to Atlanta maybe Melissa had gone to Connie’s place.

  Melissa emerged from the bathroom, physically and emotionally drained. There was a pay phone to the left of the restroom. She dialed Bobo’s cell phone number. When he answered, she hysterically explained what happened. He was devastated, and said he’d be on the next flight to Atlanta.

  Melissa told him she’d meet him at the airport. Bobo suggested she call Connie. Melissa lost her composure and shouted, “No.” That would be the first place Jeremiah would look for her. Bobo pleaded with her to go to Atlanta and promised to meet her there.

  When Bobo clicked his phone off, his eyes narrowed. He strode angrily to Vanessa’s room and burst in without knocking. Miraculously, Vanessa looked much better. Bobo was not surprised by her rapid recovery.

  He walked to her bed and stood towering above Vanessa. “Aunt Van, Melissa just called me with a wild tale, something about Moniqa being at Jeremiah’s apartment. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that would
you?” he asked her in cold measured tones

  She looked up at him. “Hmmm … let me see,” she said in a puzzled tone. She sat upright in the bed and pulled her robe about her body. “Well I guess you have the honor of being the first to know that Jeremiah and Moniqa are married. They exchanged vows earlier this morning.” Vanessa looked directly at him startled by the bloodlust that shone in his eyes.

  “What do you mean Jeremiah and Moniqa are married?”

  “Bernard, my dear boy, I’m not speaking a foreign language. Just what I said, read my lips, Jeremiah and Moniqa were married this morning.”

  Bobo suppressed an urge to drag her from the bed and slap the living daylights out of her. He was livid with anger as his trembling hand clutched the bedpost. Bobo couldn’t stand the sight of Vanessa’s smug, condescending expression.

  “Why would Moniqa marry Jeremiah? I must have missed something, like he’s her twin sister’s fiancé? What’s going on Aunt Van? Jeremiah wouldn’t touch Moniqa with a ten-foot pole. She’s obviously tricked him into marrying her, and if that’s the case, Jeremiah will sue her ass for divorce in a heartbeat.”

  Vanessa’s face flushed beet-red, she pointed her finger at Bernard’s face. “Enough. What’s done is done. I think you need to leave my room right now.”

  Bobo stared at her open-mouthed. His gaze hardened as he caught sight of the food tray on the side of Vanessa’s bed. Before he could stop himself, Bobo picked it up and tossed it toward her. Brown tea dribbled down the front of her nightgown.

  Vanessa hopped from the bed and pointed to the door. “You’d better leave before I call the police and have you arrested for assault and battery.” The depth of her nephew’s rage made her feel uneasy.

  “I’m going to find the daughter you’ve treated like a piece of shit her entire life. Melissa hasn’t done anything that justifies your treating her this way. When all of this is said and done, maybe you and Moniqa will be the ones behind bars. Aunt Van, you sicken me. Both you and your rotten spawn.”

  He turned on his heel, ran down the staircase and out the house like a bat out of hell. Bobo jumped into his white Cadillac Escalade and burned rubber to Midway Airport. He took his cell phone out of his pocket and made a reservation to Atlanta. Luck was on his side, a flight was scheduled for departure in an hour. After his plans were completed Bobo called Connie and explained what had happened. Connie informed him she was on her way to the airport.

  * * *

  Melissa sat huddled in a seat at Atlanta airport. Her mind wavered between disbelief, and longing for her life to go back the way it was. She’d lost her soul mate, the love of her life. Melissa wasn’t sure she had strength to go on.

  The waterlogged jeans felt heavy and constricted her outstretched legs. Her damp hair frizzed about her head like a crown.

  Connie strode purposefully into the noisy crowded airport to Delta’s passenger area, scanning the crowd for Melissa. Finally spying her friend looking like a shell of herself, Connie walked over to her.

  Melissa felt a gentle pat on her shoulder. She tentatively looked up, almost expecting to see Jeremiah standing before her.

  Melissa shook her head from side to side. Her throat clogged, she was unable to speak. Connie sat beside her friend, and held her in her arms, as Melissa sobbed nosily. Passengers stared at them pityingly, and turned away, sensing someone had died.

  Bobo disembarked the plane. When he came through past the gates, he looked through the crowd until he found Melissa and Connie. Melissa saw him, and ran into his arms.

  “Bobo, I don’t know what happened,” Melissa said looking baffled as they sat down. “Jeremiah and I were getting married next month and I was supposed to spend the weekend with him, so we could look at houses. Then I found Moniqa in his bed. I saw her with my very own eyes.” Her body shook and she wrapped her arms around her upper body.

  “I know, Mel. Let me talk to Connie alone for a minute.”

  He grabbed Connie by the arm. She looked at him questioningly. They walked a few feet away from Melissa and spoke in low tones. Connie’s mouth dropped and a shocked expression appeared on her face. She glanced at Melissa.

  They decided to break the news of Jeremiah’s marriage to Melissa themselves. A grim trio walked to the parking lot. Connie said she’d meet them at her place. Bobo and Melissa entered his car and were quiet during the drive to Connie’s. Bobo wasn’t quite sure what to say to Melissa. How do you tell someone that his or her fiancée has married another woman? The person who drove the dagger to her heart was none other than her twin sister.

  Bobo’s demeanor was angry, his mouth set in a thin line and worry lines creased his forehead. He glanced from time to time at Melissa who sat with her hands folded in her lap. She stared out the window at nothing. Her lips were raw and chapped from unconsciously chewing them.

  Bobo eyes searched up and down the street for Jeremiah as he turned down Connie’s street. There was no sign on his car. What the hell am I going to say to her? This whole situation is fucked up. Maybe I should wait for Jeremiah to explain what happened?

  What Bobo didn’t know was that his friend was on the expressway, headed to Atlanta to do just that. Jeremiah was nearly blinded by downpour of rain, and the tears that filled his eyes. His heart bled as he contemplated the horrible mistake he’d just made.

  Forty-five minutes later, Bobo parked the car in front of Connie’s building then opened the car door for Melissa. She looked at him fearfully, as if sensing more bad news awaited her.

  When they entered the apartment, Connie went to the kitchen to brew tea. She put cups and saucers on the table. Melissa sat wearily on the couch as Bobo walked into the kitchen.

  ”Melissa, why don’t you get out of those clothes?” Connie suggested as she looked in the cabinet for sugar. “I think you left a couple of outfits here. You need to change so you don’t get a cold or something.”

  Melissa nodded and disappeared into her old bedroom, closing the door behind her.

  “Bobo, what are we going to do?” Connie whispered as she stared at the haggard-looking man standing before her. She walked over and hugged him. “It’s going to kill her to learn the truth. You know it is.”

  “I agree,” Bobo replied, rubbing his eyes. “I know Moniqa tricked Jeremiah. He’ll realize the truth and I know he’ll do the right thing. It’s Moniqa I’m worried about, she won’t let him go without a fight.”

  The door to the bedroom opened and Melissa walked into the kitchen in a white bathrobe and sat at the table.

  “I don’t know what to do,” she babbled helplessly. “I know Moniqa cooked up some bizarre scheme but Jeremiah should have known better. I blame him.”

  Bobo slid his chair next to Melissa. He took her hand in his. “God, Mel. I hate to be the bearer of more bad news, I don’t know how to tell you this.” He nervously rubbed the top of his head, sighed, and looked into her eyes. “Moniqa and Jeremiah are married.”

  Time stood still. Loud eerie, whistling sounds hissed from the boiling teakettle. It was reminiscent of a funeral dirge. Connie stooped on the other side of Melissa.

  Melissa’s expression changed to grief as her brain processed what Bobo had said. Then a look of incredulity spread across her face. She shook her head violently from side to side. “NO!” she shouted as she rose from her chair and fled to the bathroom. In her haste to leave, she knocked over a teacup, which shattered as it hit the floor.

  “I guess I didn’t handle that too well?” Bobo remarked dolefully as he bent down and picked up the pieces of crockery.

  “Don’t beat yourself up. There’s nothing you could have said to make the outcome any different.” Connie ran her fingers through her untidy hair. She took a dustpan and brush out of the pantry. “We’ll have to give her time.”

  Bobo went on to tell Connie about Vanessa’s announcement and how he’d lost his temper and flipped the tray at her. He told her that Vanessa had threatened to have him arrested. “I know it’s not right what I did
, but I could stop myself. What I wanted to do was wipe the floor with her face.”

  Connie stifled a laugh, but the situation was too heartbreaking. “Maybe I should go check on Melissa?”

  “Yeah. I think that would be a good idea,” Bobo remarked stirring sugar into his tea.

  Connie rose from her seat and knocked on the bathroom door. When they both emerged looking miserable, Bobo sat sprawled across the couch.

  “I’m pretty sure Jeremiah will have the marriage annulled. We all know that Moniqa tricked him. It’s just a setback, Melissa. He’ll straighten everything out,” Bobo said earnestly to Melissa.

  “You and I both know Moniqa. She’s deceptive. It won’t be that easy. If you had seen the look on her face when I walked into J’s bedroom, she looked positively triumphant, like she knew she’d won,” Melissa said sadly.

  “Don’t underestimate Jeremiah,” Connie urged her.

  The telephone rang loudly. All three heads swiveled toward it. “Don’t answer it,” Melissa begged. “I know it’s Jeremiah and I’m not ready to talk to him just yet.”

  “I’ll get it,” Bobo stated.” I’m sure he just want to make sure you’re all right.”

  Melissa and Connie watched him talk on the telephone. When he hung up, he said, “That was J. He’s on his way over.”

  “I don’t want to see him.” “Melissa became agitated and began trembling. She ran to the bedroom.

  “What a mess,” Bobo said to Connie. “Hopefully, by the time he gets here, Melissa will have calmed down.”

  Thirty minutes later the doorbell sounded. He looked out of the peephole. Bobo opened the door. “I want to talk to him before he talks to Mel.”

  He walked outside, where he and Jeremiah talked. Hands flailed rapidly, their voices rose and fell emotionally. Finally, they walked inside.

  Jeremiah eyes swept the rooms searching for Melissa. Connie informed him Melissa was in the bedroom.