Page 61 of Session 25

“Yes,” I looked up, confused. “How can I help you?” Rika popped her head up.

“I need to have a word with you privately.” The social worker looked from me to Rika. “Your wife-”

“Baby mama and she ain’t gotta know what we talking about.” I made it known there was nothing between us. Whatever needs to be said can be said.

“Okay then.” She walked off with me following behind her. “I don’t know how much she has told you, but this is the second incident that your son has been involved in while in her care.” I ran my hand down my face. “First she said he got scratched by her nail by mistake, and now she says he rolled off the bed.” She swallowed hard. “Normally we wouldn’t look into it, but both times she has reeked of alcohol and marijuana.”

“Yea, tonight she is definitely tipsy, but I didn’t know about a cut.” Livid, I tried to keep my cool, but I was burning up on the inside. Rika was about to make me act a fool and put my hands on her to show her that I’m not playing about my son.

“Yes, and we are not releasing the baby to her. Are you able to take him, or should we place him in temporary care?”

“Fuck that. Give me my son.”

“Okay. No need to get upset. We are on your side, and we will support you along the way. But as protocol, because there is now an open case on Ms. Johnson, you should have no contact with her unless we set it up.”

“That’s not a problem.” I didn’t know how I was going to do this shit alone, but he was not going to Rika or her mother. I figured I’d probably call Koi and see if she would budge for the baby’s sake, but even that was risky.

“You taking my son from me and that nigga lives with a crazy bitch!” Rika shouted as the police lifted her from the chair. “You need to believe me!” The foam on the side of her mouth had my stomach turning. I don’t know what the fuck I was thinking a year ago, fucking with her.

“Mr. White don’t engage. But I do have to ask, who is she referring to?”

“Ma’am, I live alone at the moment, and when I did live with my ex, who is her cousin, she was an angel. I fucked up by sleeping with Rika.” The gasp that escaped her lips was enough to have me looking away. “I know.”

“Well then I hope you’re a better parent than you are a boyfriend.”

“Wow. I hear you though, and I am.”

After being discharged from the hospital, I took MJ home with me. Drained and fed up, I put him in the crib I had set up in my condo, pulled out my phone and called up Bear.

“Nigga this bitch has fucked up for the last time.”

“What she do?”

“The bitch got an ACS case, and now I’m playing full-time daddy. But that ain’t it, Koi brought her ass home, and just when I was close to winning her back, she stopped me. Well, Rika brought up that Koi beat her ass, and now I’m sure they’re gonna be doing random drop by’s,” I said all in one breath.

“Damn nigga. This some fucked up shit, but you know when karma comes. She comes with a vengeance.”

I wasn’t trying to hear what he had to say. He was starting to sound too much like Taj. I sighed heavily and placed my foot up on the coffee table.

“I already know that, but how long I gotta deal with the bullshit? I already lost the best thing that happened to me. Nothing else need to happen.” I was wiped out.

“That ain’t how that work, but I mean if she did come back once, then maybe she just may come back at a later date. Just give her time.”

“Yea.” I ended the call before taking my ass to bed.

I woke up the next day with a plan in motion. The missed calls and texts from Belinda let me know she had probably spoken to Rika. Not in the mood to deal with her right now, I deleted the notifications before going to check on MJ. I almost jumped out of my skin when I saw Koi sitting with him in her arms, feeding him.

“For someone who sleeps hard, I don’t know how you’re going to raise him.” She propped him up to burp him. “And either you were lit or tired, but you didn’t even hear me come in.” She sucked her teeth. “You need to do better, Marcel.”

I couldn’t even respond because I was mesmerized by the way she cared for MJ. I expected her to treat him like shit, but she had a soft spot for him.

“I needed some stuff from here that I forgot, but when I came in, your baby was full of pee and crying,” she chastised. “Why the hell is he not with his mother?”

“Right now, I have custody of him.” I smiled. “You look good doing this.”

“Good, I’m glad. I plan on doing this in the future.” She shrugged, got up from the bed, handing him to me. “I got my shit. I need to go.”

“Why?”