The Hustler's Daughter {DC Bookdiva Publications} (29 page)

The Hidden Truth

Back
in New York, Mercedes felt good to lie in her own bed. Emilio left for a few
days to handle some out of town business. She was alone with her thoughts. She
was watching the news and eating ice cream, when she saw her aunt’s house in
Queens burning while firefighters tried to extinguish it.

Her
eyes began to fill with tears as she watched.

“Hi,
I’m Jessica Richards standing in front of a home that has been burning for two
days. Firefighters are here trying to put out the smoldering flames and the
police are here collecting evidence. Other residents have been saved, but one
resident described as a woman in her mid-thirties is in the hospital clinging
to life. Her name has not been released, but if anyone has any information
regarding this fire please call……….”

Mercedes
looked at the TV and hoped that it wasn’t anyone she knew in that house. She
hoped everyone made it out safely. 

Her
cell phone shook her out of her thoughts and Mercedes saw an unknown  number on
the caller ID. She wasn’t going to answer, but figured maybe it was her mother.

“Hello...Hi…yes
I’m her daughter…what kind of accident? Oh my God! Oh my God noooo…!”

Mercedes
dropped her bowl in horror as the person on the other end shared the news of
her mother being the victim in the house fire. She quickly threw on a hoodie
and sweatpants, snatched her keys, and ran out the front door on her way to the
hospital. 

She
arrived in no time. She parked the car and dashed inside to the receptionist’s
desk. 

“Excuse
me, can you help me please?”

   “How
may I help you?” The receptionist said with an attitude.

“Hi
my mother was rushed to the hospital on um, Tuesday. She was in a bad fire, can
you help me?” Mercedes panicked.

“First
and last name please?”

“Maria
Carter.”

“I’m
sorry she can’t have any visitors right now.” The lady informed her.

“What
the fuck do you mean? That’s my mother?” Mercedes retorted. “I need to see my
mother now.”

Just
then, security walked up to diffuse the situation, but it wasn’t necessary.
Mercedes was ready to punch the receptionist in the face. Her aunt Brenda
stepped up and stopped her in her tracks.

“Mercedes?”

“Hey,
is that you Auntie Brenda?” Mercedes eyes were swollen and red after hearing
the news. Seeing a family member helped to soften the blow. 

“Yes,
it’s me Baby.” Mercedes embraced her and they both cried. “How’s my mother, how
is she doing?”

“She’s
still as beautiful as ever. She’s a strong woman and the doctor said she’ll
make it.” Brenda smiled as Mercedes sighed. Several tear drops fell from her
eyes.

 “Yeah
she is indeed, what room is she in?”

“She’s
in room 118. I have to get the kids. They have me in an emergency shelter until
they can find me permanent housing.”

“Auntie
don’t worry about it. After Mama gets out the hospital, I’ll give you some
money and help you find a house.”

“Oh,
thank you Honey.” Brenda hugged her niece. “You’re just like your father….well
take care I gotta go.”

“Take
care auntie.” Mercedes hugged her one last time and watched her walk away. She
made her way to her mother’s room. As she approached, she braced herself for
what she was going to see. She didn’t know what to expect. When she mustered
the courage to walk inside, what she saw would surpass anything she ever
imagined.

The
right side of her mother’s face and arm were severely burned. She was covered
in bandages and blood seeped through the bandages used to keep her sterile.
Maria slept; she was on a cocktail of medication to keep her sedated and to
ease the pain.

“Oh
my God!” Mercedes said as she examined her mother. “Who would do this to you?”
She whispered and pulled a chair beside her mother and sat down. She gently
took Maria’s hand and held it close to her face. She kissed it. Tears fell onto
her wrist. Maria felt the warmth and opened her eyes. She turned to look at her
daughter and her emotions took over.

“Hey
Baby.” Maria whispered.

“Hi
Ma, are you okay?” Mercedes stood up over her mother.

“I’m
doing fine; your mother is a fighter. I don’t ever give up.”

“That’s
good, I’m really glad that you’re okay. I can’t even imagine losing someone
else. You’re all I have left. I would be so devastated. I love you Ma.” 
Mercedes kissed her mother on the forehead.

“I’m
okay. I’m alive and I need a makeover.” Maria forced a smile as a tear trickled
from her eye. Mercedes wiped it away.

“Ma,
you are beautiful no matter what. Daddy would think you’re still the most
beautiful woman in the world.”

Maria
began crying at the thought of her husband seeing her in this state. Mercedes
consoled her mother. She could only imagine her pain and what she was feeling.

“Thank
you Mercedes, that means a lot to me.” 

“I’m
sorry Ma. I didn’t even know you were here. I was in the Bahamas with Emilio. I
knew something wasn’t right. I felt it within my gut. I was having fun, but I
needed to come home. I called you and never got an answer.” Mercedes explained.

“Mercedes,
I have something to tell you Sweetie.” Maria took a deep breath before speaking.

“What
Ma? What is it?”

“I
want you to listen carefully. You are in danger. All this happened because I
opened the door when I shouldn’t have. The doorbell rang and I answered. The
moment I did, I knew I should’ve stayed quiet.” Maria looked to the ceiling and
tried to prevent tears from falling. They escaped anyway and seeped into her
ears and neck. 

“I
sat there and he tortured me, asking me about a safe that I knew nothing about.
Then he told me it was my fault that my husband is dead, Chino, and Uncle Roy.
He said he didn’t care whether I lived or I died…Mercedes I almost died in
there…” Maria continued speaking without mentioning the name of her attacker.

“Who
did this to you Ma?”

“Emilio.”
Maria stared at her in the eyes awaiting a reaction.

Mercedes’
heart dropped when she heard his name.

“Wait!
Hold up!” Mercedes let out a little snicker. “Who did you say?”

“Emilio.”
Maria repeated.

“Are
you trying to tell me that Emilio was the one who did this to you? That set the
house on fire and wanted you to burn?” Mercedes got up and began nervously
pacing.

 “Why
would he do this?” Mercedes asked aloud.

“Mercedes,
it’s a long story. Just know that you need to stay far away from his crazy ass.
There’s more information that you need to know about him.” She told  her
daughter.

“Pass
me my purse.” Mercedes gave Maria her purse and watched her as she pulled out a
voice recorder. It was slightly scorched, but still able to function. Maria
gave it to her daughter and she carefully held it in her hand. She pressed the
play button and Mercedes’ eyes opened wide. She couldn’t believe what she
heard. It was true, the proof was right here. He couldn’t deny it, even if he
wanted to.

“That’s
why I love your daughter and she’s falling in love with me. And I’m not going
to have any one standing in my way…I killed Chino, your husband and I killed
Roy!”

“I
fucking knew it!” Mercedes barked through gritted teeth.

“I
didn’t want to tell you like this but…” Maria looked at her daughter with
remorse. She knew Mercedes was falling in love with Emilio, but to find out he
killed so many people close to her was too much to handle.

“It’s
alright Ma, I just can’t believe this motherfucker betrayed me! He’s going to
pay for what he did.” Mercedes took the recorder from her mother and kissed her
on the cheek.

“I’ve
got stuff to do Ma. I’m going to call you later to check on you. I love you.”

“Mercedes!”
Maria called out to stop her. Danger was all around them, but she didn’t want
it to hit Mercedes. It was too late; Mercedes hopped in her car and zoomed off.
Tears blinded her vision as she drove.

She
had to pull over to get herself together. She wondered how she could be so
ignorant to his deceit. Something about him always felt uncomfortable, but she
was blinded by his good looks and hypnotic charm. Mercedes thought how could
she be in love with someone that tried to hurt her and her family. Her father
always told her to follow her heart and her mind. She didn’t listen and now she
was dealing with the repercussions.

After
gathering her thoughts and coming up with a plan of action, Mercedes ventured
home. She would have loved to stay with her mother longer, but she couldn’t
bear seeing her in that way. She went home and cried herself to sleep. Tomorrow
would be a brand new day.

Sweet Revenge

Emilio
returned to New York from D.C. the next day. Mercedes decided that she would
get up, run some errands and get her hair done. Not only was it a mess, but she
needed to feel good. A fresh hairdo always helped.

She
drove silently to her mother’s salon. Luckily when she arrived, there were only
a few heads in there and she was able to be seen without a long wait. 

   “Hey,
how are you Laura?” Mercedes smiled as she greeted one of the hairstylists.
Laura was doing a clients hair and turned around to greet Mercedes.

   “Hey
girl, I’m fine and yourself?”

“I’m
doing alright.”

 “Hey,
at least you’re making it. Some motherfuckers out here are just barely getting
by.” The hair salon all started laughing. “What are you getting done today
Mama?”

   “The
usual-just a wash, blow dry and press.” Mercedes smiled as she sat down and
grabbed one of the magazines from the table.

   “Alright
after her, I can spice you up.” Laura smiled as she continued doing her
client’s hair. Mercedes browsed through the magazine. Twenty minutes later, it
was her turn in the chair. 

   “Can
you handle opening in the morning and supervising everyone else while I tend to
my mom?” She asked Laura as she leaned back to be lathered.

   “No
problem, I did hear about your mother.” Laura sympathetically said. “How is she
doing?” Laura asked while adding conditioner to Mercedes’ scalp.

   “She’s
doing alright. I mean she’s still in the hospital, but she’s going to make it.”

“Yeah
that’s good to hear, whoever did that shit is fucked up and I hope they rot in
prison.” Laura said as she massaged her scalp and rinsed it out with water.

   “That
person is going to rot in hell.” Mercedes said. She was beginning to cry.

   “It’ll
be alright Mercedes, just hang in there Mama.” Laura rubbed Mercedes’ shoulder
and smiled at her. Mercedes returned the smile and believed that soon, all
would be well. She was going to make sure of it herself.

   She
had her hair washed, conditioned and sat in the chair to have her hair rollers
set.  As she sat under the dryer, she perused a magazine. She was oblivious to
her surroundings and didn’t notice someone staring at her as she read. Finally,
she looked up and saw a woman looking at her as if she knew her.

   “Mercedes?
Is that  you?”

   “Yes
that’s me.” Mercedes looked at her with a mystified look on her face.

   “How
are you? You don’t remember me?”

Mercedes
struggled to place the face, but came up blank.

   “It’s
Milan; I use to work for your father.” The woman identified herself.  Mercedes
laughed; she had so much on her mind these days that she was skeptical of
everyone.

   “Oh,
now I remember who you are. You look so much different with your hair shorter.”

   “Yeah,
I needed a new look…maybe a new identity.” Milan chuckled. “I don’t live around
here anymore, I moved to Brooklyn. I needed to leave Manhattan because the
streets were getting ugly out here.”

   “Yeah,
I feel you.” Mercedes nodded.

   “What’s
new?” Milan asked placing her purse on her lap and sitting back.

   “Same
shit, different day. Everyone seems to be dying.” Mercedes nonchalantly said.

“Shit
is crazy it seems. How is your mom doing? I know it’s been hard on y’all with
your father and uncle passing.” Milan asked.  

“Yeah,
it is what it is. Some motherfucker tried to kill my mother too. They set my aunt’s
house on fire and left her to burn to death.” Mercedes eyes got watery just
thinking about it.

   “Oh
my God Mercedes, I’m sorry to hear about that.” Milan shook her head in
disgust. “I’m thinking about moving out of New York, there ain’t shit out here for
me. I was messing around with Emilio for two years. Around the time your father
died he started acting funny. One day he just up and left me and he told me
that he had met another young woman who he fell in love with and wanted to
marry.” Mercedes figured that Milan was talking about her and shifted her eyes
as she listened.

 “I
cried and begged for him not to leave me. I did everything in my power to get
him back, but one day he pulled out a gun and threatened to kill me if I didn’t
leave him alone. Finally he kicked me out of his house.” Milan sighed as a few
teardrops fell from her eye.

   “Oh
my God Milan, everything will be alright. Some niggas just ain’t shit!”
Mercedes replied.

   “You
got that right.” Milan said as she wiped away her tears.

   “I
feel like going to the house he and his little bitch share in Long Island and
blowing that shit up.” Mercedes looked at Milan and wanted to tell her that
little bitch was her, but she just kept her mouth closed and smiled.

   “I
thought Emilio was a very sweet guy, but I guess not. I saw him briefly the
other day and he told me I needed to retrieve something of my father’s, but I
lost his address.” Milan quickly gave her the whereabouts of Emilio.

   “Whoever
that little bitch is, she’s real lucky because that nigga is definitely
packing.” Milan smirked. “I ain’t gon lie, that nigga got a thick and fat
dick.”

   “I
know.” Mercedes mumbled.

   “Excuse
me?” Milan looked at her.

   “I
said oh really?” Mercedes lied.

   “Yeah,
but that nigga ain’t no good. He’s gonna get what’s coming to him one day and I
hope it’s soon. I hope someone knocks his top off one day.” Milan said in
anger. Mercedes thought that Milan must have loved Emilio a lot for her to
still be angry. 

   “Well
it was nice speaking to you girl. Take care and give your mom my condolences.”

“Alright
I will; thank you Milan.” Milan kissed Mercedes on the cheek and left the
salon. Mercedes’ hair dryer stopped and she sat in Laura’s chair so she could
have her rollers removed. Since she was at her mother’s salon, she got her hair
done for free. She always gave Laura a generous tip.

With
the information of Emilio’s whereabouts, Mercedes got into her car and jetted
to the location. She wanted to see where he lived and what he was about. She
arrived and parked her car several cars down from the house. She wanted to
watch from a distance.

She
sat for a while and didn’t see anyone, so she walked up to the house and
ventured into the garage. She saw a car parked with a white cloth cover. She
removed the cover. She was in shock when she realized it was the same black
Cadillac with a rusted door that had been following her for years. This was the
same car that she saw before Chino was killed. This was the car that she saw at
the funeral and the same car that followed her on the highway.

Anger
took over her entire being and she began to hate Emilio more than ever. Her
thoughts were racing, but she knew no one else could be driving his car.

Mercedes
walked up the back stairs and approached a back door. It was already ajar.
Inside, she found another door with a lock. Since she didn’t have a key, she
opened her purse to gain access on her own. She was happy that she carried her
gun with her. She shot lock and placed the gun back into her purse. She looked
around to see if anyone noticed the noise. She appeared safe for now.

Once
inside, she noticed plain furniture and nothing resembling the life of a
baller. From her periphery she noticed a door open and walked towards it. She
gently pushed it open and entered a room that resembled a shrine. The walls
were plastered with pictures of her and her family. Her mouth dropped, it
seemed like she was being followed all of her life. Photos of Don, Maria, Chino
and Mercedes were everywhere.

The
truth had been finally revealed and the puzzle pieces matched Emilio’s betrayal
perfectly. Now Mercedes knew that he had everything to do with the death of her
father and boyfriend, not to mention the attempted murder of her mother.  She
ripped off the pictures in fury while screaming and crying. She was so
disappointed in herself for believing that he loved her. He only used her.

She
left his house and walked to her car with her shoes pounding the pavement. She
had never been so angry in her life. She took a deep breath and called Emilio.

“Hey
Babe, what’s up?”

“Nothing,
just thinking about you.” Mercedes flirted with him.

“Oh
really? You miss Daddy?” Emilio said as he grinned from ear to ear.

“I
do miss you Daddy. Do you miss Mami?” Mercedes purred.

“Oh
hell yeah, I miss my Mami. When I come home I’m going to spank you; you’ve been
a very bad girl.

“No
you’ve been a very, very, bad boy!” How about I meet you at your house and have
a very special surprise waiting for you.” Mercedes suggested while putting
together her sinister plot. 

“How
do you know where I live?” Emilio asked.  He was thrown for a loop. Mercedes
almost got caught up in her lie.

“No
Baby I don’t, but I was going to ask you.” She lied. “I just want to do
something really special for you Babe. I want our time together to be memorable
as always.”

Emilio
gave her the address and had no clue what she was planning for him. He also had
no idea that she was already sitting in her car on his street, awaiting his
arrival.

   “There’s
an extra key under the mat when you first walk in. My house is really messy,
but I’ll be there soon. Don’t snoop around!” He advised her.

   “Alright
Babe, see ya. It will be a night you won’t forget.” Mercedes ended the call and
grabbed her purse. She got out of her car and walked back up to the house. She
replaced the cover on the black car to keep it hidden. She wanted things to be
just as they were when he left. 

xxxxxxxxxx

   Mercedes
made herself comfortable inside of Emilio’s home. She unwrapped her hair, which
was still pinned up from her day of beauty at the hair salon. She wore pink
lingerie and kept her high heels on to complete the seductive ensemble. She had
a satin robe and tied it under her breasts. It strategically covered the gun
she hid in her waist. Emilio was on his way and she soon heard him pull in the
driveway. He parked directly behind the car that was covered up in the
driveway.

Mercedes
prepared a special meal for Emilio. It consisted of Spanish yellow rice, fried
chicken, black beans and some mashed potatoes. She removed a vial from her
purse and poured a clear liquid into the gravy, potatoes, and all over the
chicken. She stirred it well and made sure that it blended together. Mercedes
then placed two candles on the table and lit them. Wine glasses finished the
décor and she filled them with Moet. Emilio’s drink bubbled as she slipped an
extacy pill in it.

As
soon as she did that, the lock to the front door clicked and Emilio opened the
door.

She
sat at the table with her hands beneath her chin awaiting his arrival. Emilio
walked in and placed a briefcase on the floor. He walked over to the table and
kissed Mercedes on the lips.

   “Baby,
you look and smell great.” Emilio complimented her.

   “Aww
Thank you, Babe.” Mercedes smiled.

   “Mhmmm
this food looks delicious Ma, let me find out.” Emilio took off his jacket and
placed it behind his seat. He sat down and was preparing to eat.

   “I
can cook, don’t play!” Mercedes snickered and picked up her fork to begin
eating dinner.

   “I’m
just fucking with you Ma.” Mercedes watched as he dug into his food. She smiled
as she watched him demolish his entire plate. He finished it off by drinking
every drop of his Moet.  Mercedes had eaten half of her food, when she saw
Emilio clutching his chest. Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead and he
looked around the room gasping for air. He felt like the room was closing in on
him. 

   “What’s
wrong Babe? Are you alright?” Mercedes asked while taking another bite of her
mashed potatoes.

   “Yeah,
I’m fine. My throat just feels a little itchy and I feel hot.” Emilio cleared
his throat as he shook his head trying to shake off the feeling.

   “Are
you ready for Mami?” Mercedes smiled and sensually kissed him on the neck.

   “Hell
yeah, I’m ready for Mami. Let’s get it on.” Emilio yelled. He started acting
silly and dancing in a goofy manner. Mercedes looked at him with a peculiar
look on her face. She grabbed his hand and led him down the hall. He smacked
her ass along the way. The drugs and poison were already working on him.

   “You
better stop being a naughty boy because naughty boys get punished.” Mercedes
warned him as they entered the room. She pushed him on the bed and started
dancing seductively.