“Wow. Fourteen, huh?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Okay. I’ll get this one but let me keep looking around to see if I want anything else.”
“Okay. Take your time.”
She walked away and left me to shop in peace. When I came across Everybody Ain’t Your Friend by Tanisha Stewart, I knew I had to have that one. I learned that before entering the industry. That was an important lesson for where I was headed. Of course, having my friend sleep with my boyfriend was painful, it helped me to learn to keep people at a distance until I was sure they had my best interests at heart, like Kimaji. It was her that saw what was going on and told me about it. She didn’t catch them in the act, but she surely saw the flirtatious behavior between the two of them.
After grabbing a few more books by Danielle Allen, Jahquel J, and Alexandra Warren, I made my way to the register. Kimaji and I could read these together, if she hadn’t already read them.
“Wow! You got quite a few books, miss non-reader.”
I chuckled. “Their covers caught my attention. Although I can tell a few of these are romance, I think I’ll be okay with that,” I said as I glanced back at Maj and Graham.
“Oh yes. These authors are top tier. All of them were here at some point in April and this month.”
“For a signing?”
“Yes, ma’am and discussion. You should check out our calendar and see if you can attend one.”
“I’ll do that.”
I pulled my card from my wallet to pay for my purchases as my phone rang. It was my dad. I’d forgotten to call him a couple of days ago. After paying for my purchases, I walked out to call him back since I’d missed the call.
“Hey, baby girl. You in town?”
“Hey, Daddy. Sorry I forgot to call you back. I’m in town, but I’m headed back out in a couple of hours.”
“Okay. I wanted to let you know that Bilal is in the hospital.”
I frowned. Bilal was my older brother. He stayed in the streets, so I hoped it wasn’t anything that could possibly claim his life. “What happened?”
“He got shot, baby. When the Pattersons dismantled all they shit, he should have hung with Jungle and got legit. I guess he thought he could make a career out of the drug trade.”
“Daddy, how is he?”
“He’s in ICU. He was shot in the abdomen. He lost quite a bit of blood. It’s been touch and go for a couple of days.”
“Dammit, B. I hate that. I really want to be there, but this trip is going to change my career. Shit!” I said a little too loudly.
“Baby, do what you have to do for you. Bilal got himself here. He knows you would be here if you could be.”
I swallowed hard, trying to subdue my emotions. That was to no avail when I heard the tremble in my dad’s voice.
“I tried so hard to do right by him. Before your mother passed away, she told me to make sure I did my best to get his ass out of those streets. I promised her.”
“Daddy, you did your best. You couldn’t make him change. He had to want that for himself. Bilal is thirty-two years old. That’s not on you.”
I wiped my tears, thankful I wasn’t wearing makeup. I was ugly crying. When I felt a presence next to me, I flinched. It was Kimaji with tissue. She handed it to me and caressed my back. “Daddy, what hospital are y’all at?”
“Methodist in the medical center on Fannin. He’s in the Walter Tower. They’re full, so he ended up on this side.”
“Okay. Let me call you back,” I said when I saw Graham standing next to Kimaji.
After ending the call, I said, “I’ll be right back.”
I headed to the bathroom to clean my face and pull my emotions together. Bilal was always in that shit. As a little girl, I remembered him being in those streets. My dad had gone as faras trying to go to the Patterson’s house to talk to them about B. Security wouldn’t let him through and threatened to shoot his ass if he didn’t leave. He’d done everything he knew to do.
