Gate Wide Open
Authors: M. T. Pope
This book is dedicated to the reader, for supporting me
one more time. It is very
much
appreciated. Thank you for
the love.
This is book number two for me. I owe it all to God for blessing me with a wonderful gift that He chose to spring forth at the appointed time. Thank you, God, for finishing another book for me. You poured out the words once again onto empty pages and made it flow so easily. You know Lord; I agonized over if this whole writing thing was for me and if you were approving of it. You answered by filling up the pages once again. I thank You for the grace and mercy that allowed me to get this far in life. I amâ¦because You are, and I liveâ¦because You died. And I will die because You showed me how to live.
To my Mom, Lawanda Pope, a little woman with big strength. You make me smile every time I see you. You are the best mom in the world. I love you. My brothers and sisters: Shirley, William, Darnell, Darlene, Gaynell, Latricia, Nathon, and Yvette. I love you guys.
To my Pastor, Melvin T. Lee, and First Lady, Tanya Lee, for coming out and showing love at my first book signing and everything else I do in this life. I promise dad that the Christian fiction is coming. Lol. To all my Because He Lives church family members, I love you with only the love that God shines through me. We areâ¦because He lives!
To Tracey Bowden and Arnisha Hooper, my two best friends in the world, I can't even begin to say how much you mean to me. I don't say it enough, and I don't show it enough, but I can't pay for friends like you two. You put up with my mess and my mouth, and I am grateful for all the book signings you drove me to, all the books you sold for me, and all the bookmarkers you passed out. I appreciate it so much. There are just some things in life that you just know. I know that only God could have put us together, and you two were chosen just for me. I am honored to have you as my friends.
Carl Weber, once again, you had faith in what God has put in me to pour out of me. Thank you for this opportunity, and all that you do.
To all the Urban Knowledge Bookstore workers that pushed my book, it is appreciated. Will, Tracey, Renee, Daisy, Chris, Ruthanne, Tonya, Latonya, and any newcomers, thank you. May God bless you in all your endeavors.
To the Urban Books home office family: Carl, Karen, Natalie, George (Gee), Brenda, Shawn, A.D. (I still don't know what that stands for, but I will find out), you guys make this easier for me.
To Nichelle Washington (the first reader, again, lol), Darlene Washington, Renee Warner, Ruthanne Ryan, Latonya Towns, Aleesha Rock, Antonio Glover, Lakeyshia Dorsey, Latricia Baker, Martina Doss, Karen Williams, thank you for reading the first draft of this book.
To Kenneth Goffney, I am totally blown away by God and how He used you to bless me. You came out of nowhere and lent a helping hand when I needed it the most. I thank God for you and the time you've put into this project. Thank you, friend.
To all the book clubs that hosted me, thank you for the love and support as well. Especially my hometown book clubs: The B'more Readers with W.I.S.D.O.M. Kudos to Tasha and Pat. ShayRod Bookclub, my first book club meeting. Y'all are the bomb.
DC Book Diva (Tiah)âThank you for having me as my first away signing. You are the best.
Davida Baldwin, Oddballdesigns (www.oddballdsgns.com), Thank you for another slamming cover.
I want to give a special thanks to a couple of people who really supported me from a distance:
Martina Doss, for giving me my first official review and selling my books down there in Atlanta. Also, thank you for calling me and letting me know how my book moved you. You have to finish your book now. Lol.
Leona Romich, my Facebook friend, thank you for being honest and supportive and passing my book on to the appropriate people. You were such a great person from the first time we chatted. Thanks to Toka Waters as well.
My literary best friend, J'son M. Lee (Just Tryin' to be Loved). Man, you are the best. We clicked from day one, and we have so much in common. Thank you for answering the phone every time I call. I'm waiting on that second book, sir. Chop, chop. Lol.
To Ashley & JaQuavis, you guys are the best at what you do, and you always are humble when I see you or talk to you. Thank you for the encouragement and the support.
My author friends that supported me. Karen Williams, Anna J., Dwayne S. Joseph, Ashley Antoinette, Jaquavis Coleman, Wahida Clark, Michel Moore, Kiki Swinson, Anya Ellis, Tina Brooks McKinney, Tra Verdajo, Kashamba Williams, Danette Majette, Tiffany Wright, Deborah Cardona (Sexy), La Jill Hunt, Kwan, Zoe Woods, Nanette Buchanan, Treasure E. Blue, Marlene, Dwayne Vernon, Mike Warren, Azarel, J'son M. Lee, and so many others.
To the people that encouraged me along the way. Kenneth Goffney, your words are so inspiring. I am glad to call you a friend. Marcel Emerson, boy, you are the coolest. Keep pumping out them hot books. To Dullivan Chavis for pushing my book like you wrote itâ¦LOL!
A special shout-out to Deborah Richardson for helping a brotha out (wink, wink). You were a lifesaver. Thank you.
My Wal-Mart family: Shernae, Tamara, Renee, Wanda, Gary, Ms. Val, Danuiella, Keisha, Wayne, Sharon. Thank you guys for your love and support. I miss you guys, but not the work. Lol.
My Baltimore customers that I can count on: Ms, Cheetah, Ms. Janet, Ms. Connie, Charlene, Ebonee, Tanesha, Keyonne, Shavonni (Vonnie). If I left you out, put your name here: ________, because you are important to me too.
I can be reached at www.myspace.com/mtpope,
www.facebook.com/mtpope
www.twitter.com/mtpope
or email me at [email protected].
Thank you for the love.
First, I want to thank you for picking up book number two. If you haven't read part one, please put this one down and go find part one first. Now!
Secondly, I hope that I have grown as a writer and that my messages will come across loud and clear to you. This book was a little harder for me, because I really didn't plan on doing a sequel, but you guys asked for it. So here it is.
I have to say that I love the characters and that they did whatever they wanted to do in this book. I mean it. I had no control over them. They are just off the hook, every single one of them. LOL. And, yes, just like the first book, I pushed the envelope to get my point across. So take your time and pay attention to everything. The gate is wide open in this one, so once again buckle up, enjoy the ride and turn the page.
Enjoy,
M.T. Pope
Â
Be Encouraged.
James
Payback
“Shut the fuck up!” I yelled out as I had my head in between my legs. Just leave me alone! I can't do this anymore!”
I rocked back and forth in the corner of the room, the only light illuminating from a small window just above my head. I banged my head against the wall several times, trying to get the voices to go away. I just wanted to knock myself unconscious so I could rest in peace.
“Ah!” I yelled again, this time clutching the sides of my head.
“Shut the fuck up!” I heard someone yell.
Or maybe it was one of the voices in my head. At this point, I was truly unaware.
Click! Click!
I heard what sounded like the door being unlocked and opened. Then a strange man in a white uniform walked in and headed toward me. I tried to focus my eyes, trying my best to get reacquainted with them again.
It seemed like I was in this room for years. My hair was matted to my head, my facial hair had grown to an unbelievable length, and my mouth tasted like I hadn't brushed my teeth in weeks.
As he walked toward me, I tried to get up in a defensive stance, but my legs wouldn't budge.
He put his hands underneath my underarms and helped me to my feet. “How are you feeling?”
“Uh,” I moaned as my weak legs fought to straighten up.
He put one of my arms around his shoulders and his arm around my back and helped me take a few steps. “There you go,” he said as I started to get the hang of using my legs again.
We walked down a long hall that seemed to lead to nowhere. After several minutes of walking, we finally made it to a dimly lit room. There was one table in the middle of a room with two chairs that sat across from each other.
“Here you go,” he said as he sat me in one of the chairs. He then chained both my hands behind me, and my legs were shackled to the chair with handcuffs.
“What's going on? Why the fuck is my arms and legs cuffed?” I asked, puzzled by my now being held hostage.
He just ignored me. “Somebody's here to see you,” he said with a smile.
I smiled as well because I needed to see a familiar face. As the unknown man made his exit, I sat there wondering who had come to pay me a visit. Just then I heard the doorknob turning and the hinges creaking as my visitor made his entrance. It seemed like an eternity as he made his way around the table.
My heart racing, I braced myself. I knew whoever came to see me must have loved me, because this was the only visit I'd had in my ten years trapped in this hellhole. I felt very special at this moment. I was overjoyed.
When my visitor finally came around, my mouth hit the floor when I saw the large jagged knife and the look of hate and revenge. Tears flooded my eyes, as I knew this wasn't a friendly visit.
My visitor scowled as he inched closer to me. “You thought you could just ruin my family and walk the fuck away?”
I yelled, but the words never escaped my throat. I thrashed in my chair, trying to break free, but I couldn't budge.
He began to call me all manner of obscenities, his face inches from mine. “I'm here to get my family back!” he yelled, the hot air that he breathed invading my nostrils. “The only way I can do that is to get rid of you.”
I thrashed about even harder this time, knocking over the chair I was sitting in over and landing on my side.
“Please, God! Please! I'm sorry for what I've done to you!” I begged, my head on the ground, and tears and snot running down my face.
“You shoulda prayed before you ruined my family.
Bitch!
” He picked me up by my collar and sat me upright. Then he made his way behind me. “Jesus is waiting to see you,” he whispered in my ear. He placed the knife to my neck, getting ready to take my life.
I pleaded one more time. “Please don't hurt me. I'm sorry. Please, just listen to me. Iâ”
Before I could get out my last plea, I felt a sharp pain around my neck as the knife cut my flesh, scraping my Adam's apple. I tried to grab my neck with my hands to hold the blood and life in, but my hands were tied behind me. Blood poured out of my throat like a running faucet. I gargled in my own blood, as more cries of distress tried to escape my throat.
The man turned and walked out of the room, and I felt myself slipping away into eternity.
Â
“Ah!” I quickly sat up in my bed, drenched in sweat, breathing uncontrollably. I had been having this dream every night for the last couple of weeks and just couldn't shake it. “This shit is ridiculous.”
I walked to the faucet in my cell and washed my face. I looked over at my cellmate and noticed his ass was out like a light. I'd polished him off with my signature blowjob that had him sleeping like a baby.
I prepared uneasily to make my way to the shower, to wash away the anguish of my nightmare. As usual, one of my loyal conquests, who I named Officer Buck, because his ass loved to buck and ride my dick like a soldier trying to ride a bull, came and opened my cell to let me use the shower before anyone else. On many occasions, we would sneak off together so I could fuck his ass in an office or a janitor's closet.
After my shower, I made my way to the phone to make a call to ensure my ride back to Baltimore would be ready to pick me up at the appointed time.
Back at my cell, I decided to read a book by Carl Weber called
So You Call Yourself a Man
. One of my accomplices on the outside had sent me this book and assured me it would be a good read. I finished the book in about six hours and was bored once again.
I lay back on my bed and reminisced on how I got where I was.
Well, let me start by re-introducing myself. My name is James Parks, and I have been spending the last ten years behind bars for embezzlement. Yeah, ten years ago, I was running around town on a revenge tip. I was caught up in some mess that ended with me spending time behind bars.
I am being released in a couple of days, and I plan on going after what is rightfully mine, my children, and I don't plan on getting caught up this time. Well, I don't really want them per se. I just want compensation for not being told about them.
About a year into my sentence, a friend of mine had sent me some info that I needed. I found out that Mona, one of the only bitches I'd actually fucked, was the mother of three kids that were mine.
When I get out, I am going after my kids and the family I'm supposed to have. I also have to pay a few other people from my past a visit, to impose some revenge.