Son for Hire Ch. 25-32

"What?"

"Donny, if she wants you there...you go!" Kiki says fervently. "You don't pass up on an opportunity like that." She knocks my forehead. "Don't be a dummy. Sugar Momma offers you a place in paradise you take it."

"But..."

"Kid. She'll only want you for as long as you do as she says. She says to go, you go. As long as she's treating you nice you grab that chance with both hands and you milk that sugar as long as you can, then you get the fuck out if and when things go sour."

I grumble at her mercenary attitude. "It's not like that."

"Why the fuck would you want to stay here!?"

I take her hand and bring to my chest. "For you. For us."

Her features harden as she slips her out to then hold mine against my chest. "I'll be okay Donny." She says. "You gotta go kid. You have a way out brother...take it!"

"But..."

"I'll be okay." She says. "I'll be right here. Right here ready to welcome you back if things don't work out. But you go and you don't look back unless you need to. Okay?"

"I won't leave you." I whisper. "I won't you leave you behind. Especially now."

"It's okay kid. Like you said, I'm tough. I'll manage by myself. Heck, it'll be easier without your mouth to feed. And I'd FINALLY have the place to myself. Ha!" She almost convinces me...almost. I could see the hurt in her eyes that she was trying so hard to mask. "Maybe send me a few bucks once in awhile. Help a sister out until she's back on her feet."

"Kiki..."

"This calls for a celebration!"

***

A celebration is exactly what we have. Kiki gets ready and we head out to a movie. With popcorn and drinks we roar our way through the hilarious comedy, our upbeat mood and constant quipping making the show far funnier than it really was. A couple of Karen's grumbled at our frivolity the whole time and were rewarded with popcorns pinging off of their heads as Kiki waged war. We made two bitter enemies but it was just the release we needed today. Following that was a really nice meal at a hole in the wall Jamaican place that just opened up in the neighborhood. The food was delicious! At the restaurant we dance and sing along to the reggae tunes and even draw the owner's kids into our silliness. There is a smile on every face as we take our leave. From there we get tarot readings from this crazy old hippy Kiki knew. The gist of which was that I "had an exciting opportunity that will expand my horizons if only I am brave enough to seize it" and that Kiki "faced a crossroads in her life and that she ought to think hard on which path to take". I thought it all nonsense, the two readings sounding way too vague and a way too similar, but Kiki makes a big deal of it and talks about it for the next half hour as we just wander about.

"See! An exciting opportunity. The cards know." Kiki says.

I roll my eyes. "How many times has that crazy old bat said that exact same thing?" Kiki pinches my arm with that extra little twist that only a sibling could get away with. "Ouch!" I laugh.

"You'll see." She says knowingly. "The cards don't lie."

All in all the evening was just wonderful. We rejoice not only in my opportunity but in our freedom from the cruel Diane. Neither of us knew what tomorrow would bring but tonight, my wallet fat with Evelyn's generosity, we can just be brother and sister again. Things were going so well, until...

"Hey Donny." Kiki says with a growing fidget that I had come to recognize. "I gotta go meet some friends. Front your sis a fifty?"

"Friends?"

"Yeah. I told Jude and Charlene I'd swing by tonight." She says. "I'm hoping they might be able to help me line up some work. I just need a few bucks. Ya know, in case we hit the bar." She grips her left forearm with her right hand and rubs it subtly, impatient for my answer.

She was lying to me. She wasn't going to a bar. She was going to her dealer.

"Um, maybe we should just hold onto what we've got." I say. "I don't know when Evelyn..."

"Come on!" She presses me. "You got a Sugar Mamma now. She'll make sure you're okay. Just fifty bucks Donny. I'm good for it."

"Kiki...you know you don't ever have to pay me back." I say, more than a little offended that she wanted to treat this as a loan. "Kiki..."

"So you'll give it to me?" She cuts me off. "You're the fucking best kid. The absolute best."

How could I say no? She'd been carrying my mooching ass ever since Mom left. Now that I was flush I was going to deny her? No way.

"Yeah, sure." Reluctantly I pull a fifty and twenty from my wallet and hand it over. "Please don't buy drugs with it."

Her hand pauses, just for a second, and her face flinches...before she snatches the bills quick as a striking viper. "I won't. Geez, have some faith." She laughs tensely and pulls me into a hug. "I have had the best fucking time tonight Donny."

"Me too."

"We'll do this again soon."

"Sure."

"I love you kid." She kisses my cheek. "Don't wait up. I'll probably be late. You know how the three of us get going."

"Yeah...sure." I say and hug her extra tight. "I love you. Please take care of yourself Kiki."

"You know it." She pats my chest. "See you in the morning." With that she hurries off back down the street from where we'd just come.

I stand alone on the sidewalk and watch her go. How many times had I watched my mother walk down this same street, curly hair bouncing to her stride? The similarities were chilling. With fresh eyes I look around me at the rundown buildings, the bars in the windows, the cracked concrete, the single scrawny tree barely clinging to life along the side the road, the graffiti, the trash carried by the wind through a nearby alley, the sound of sirens and the screeching of a domestic dispute wafting down to the street from an open window above me. All of this I contrast with the blissful quiet along with the bright colors of the blue pools, verdant lawns and trees, and perfectly painted homes of Evelyn's area. I look back down the street and Kiki was already gone. Swallowed up by the churning old ghetto.

***

I am home for maybe an hour, just sitting in the dark and thinking, when my phone rings. I look at the number, the last one I had programmed in that very day, and I smile despite the fears weighing down my heart.

"Mom." I answer.

"Hey baby." Comes Evelyn's smooth voice. "You don't mind me calling right now?"

"Never." I say. "God I missed you."

"I missed you too." She says. "How was the rest of your day? Did the cab get you home okay?"

"I got home. The day turned out great. Wonderful in fact." I say. "Yours?"

"Not as good without my little man." She sighs. "But it was okay considering."

"That's good." I say.

"What's up?" She asks, hearing something was wrong just by the tone of my voice.

"I talked to Kiki and I've done some thinking and...there's something I need to tell you."

"What is it?"

"I will move in with you Evelyn, if you can manage it. It want it more than anything. I'd be the luckiest boy in the world!"

"But?"

"But...Kiki and I...." I take a deep shuddering breath to summon my courage. "...we're a package deal."

"Excuse me?"

"I will not leave my sister behind."

***

Chapter 28

There is a long period of silence on the other end of the line as Evelyn processes what I had just said. There is a heavy weight in my gut as I ready myself for the worst. I did not enjoy giving ultimatums, especially with someone who had already given me so much, and I fully realized that this would likely make this opportunity impossible but sometimes a guy simply had to stand up for the right thing. I simply could not abandon my sister. Not in the current circumstances. I loved her too much and I owed her too much. And on a purely selfish level it would have ruined any life I might have had out there anyway. How could I enjoy a better life if I was constantly worrying about Kiki?

"Hello?" I say when I just could not bear the silence any longer.

"I'm here." Evelyn says flatly. "I'm thinking."

"I...I understand if this means that we can't...well, I understand."

"I want you here." I could hear both the desire and disappointment in her voice.

"I want to be there!" I say back to her, my heart hurting. "But...I can't..."

"No." She stops me. "I get it Donald. I get it and I respect it." She lets out a sigh and then says softly. "My boy is a good boy, and an honorable man. You make me proud."

"You're not angry?"

"Of course not sweetie. If anything I love you even more."

"Awww...Mom." I say bashfully.

She laughs.

"So what are we going to do?" I ask.

"Well, I'm not going to give up before we even try. Am I?" She says. "Also, I feel awfully responsible for what happened today."

"Don't feel bad." I say. "You didn't know Diane would do that. I should have said something first."

"Still." She says. I could hear hear the gears turning as she thought about the situation. "How much does Kiki know? About us?"

"She doesn't know your secret and she doesn't know about the, um, Mommy stuff." I reply. "But she knows the basics."

"And?"

"And...I dunno. She's cool with it." I say. "She's happy for me. She wants me to go. She called you my Sugar Mamma."

"Mmm." There's a pause. "She's a working girl, is she?"

"Uh...well, yeah." I admit. "For now."

"She couldn't do that here."

"I know." I say. "She won't. She doesn't bring tricks home with her."

"Okay, that's good." She says. "Is she there? Could I talk to her?"

"You want to talk to Kiki?" I say, taken off guard by the very idea.

"Yes baby. I think the women need to talk."

"Um, she's out right now."

"Okay." She says. "Well let me think about things tonight. She and I can talk tomorrow."

"So what should I..."

"Shhhh." She says softly. "We'll figure things out. It'll be okay Donald. Mom and Kiki will figure this out, okay? Everything's going to be just fine."

I let out a breath. It meant a lot to me to hear those words. "Okay."

"I think you've been strong enough for one day." She says. "Tell me. What are you doing right now?"

"Uh...just sitting here thinking about things."

"Okay. Listen to me now." She says as gentle authority fills her voice. "I want you to go to bed. Keep the phone with you and go to bed."

"Um...okay." Getting up I start to walk to my room. "Why...?"

"Shhhhh." She waits a few more seconds. "Are you there?"

"Yeah." I say. "I'm in my room, I am sitting on my bed now."

"Good boy." She says with warmth. "Now get under the blankets and really snuggle in there. Nice and cozy."

Still dressed I slip under my covers and pull the blankets up around me so that I am a curled up cocoon. I lay on my side with the phone pressed against my top ear. "I'm under the blankets."

"That's my big brave man." She says. "Now close your eyes. Close those big beautiful eyes baby. Are they closed?"

"Yes Mom." I whisper.

"Good boyyy." She croons. "Mommy is right there beside you. Sitting at the edge of your bed watching over her precious boy. Can you feel me there?"

"Yes."

"Mommy is watching you baby. I am right there beside you."

"Mmmmm." I hum happily as I let my imagination take over. I could sense her there, seated at my side and gazing down on me. I could almost feel a soft hand stroking my hair.

"Now clear your mind." Her voice lilts, smooth and sultry. "Let go of all those worries and just listen to the sound of my voice."

"Okay."

"There's a good boy." She says. "It's time for sleep now."

"Okayyy."

"Beautifullll." She whispers before breaking into quiet, peaceful, melodious song. "Hush little baby don't say a word, Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird."

Was this really happening right now?

"And if that mockingbird won't sing, Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring."

Yep, this was really happening. With a smile on my face I let out a long breath and feel every ounce of the stress and tension of the day leave my body. I lay huddled safe and warm beneath my blankets as my lover sings me a lullaby. Body and spirit seem to float free as the melody lifts me from the physical world and into a blissful state of mind. The words to the song ends but the tune continues as she hums it dulcetly for a few more blessed minutes. This eventually ends as well and is followed by the sound of a tender kiss. A few moments of silence follow before she speaks again.

"I am at your doorway now." Her whisper as soft as a summer breeze. "I am looking at you from the door. Making sure you are safe and sound in bed."

"Hmmmm."

"The door is closing now. Don't worry though, Mommy will leave it open a crack. I'll be just outside if you need me."

"Mmmm."

"Good night my sweet prince." She whispers. "I love youuuu."

"Love youuuu."

A lingering pause follows before she hangs up the call. I let my phone slip down from my cheek to land on the bed beside me. I keep the blankets tight and my eyes shut, knowing that the moment I open them the fantasy would be gone. It is in the state of calm that I swiftly drift off to dreamland.

***

Riiiiing!

I am awoken by the harsh chime of my phone. I blink my eyes open. It was dark, my bedside clock telling me it as just past 3 in the morning. What the fuck? Riiiiing! It rings again and I fumble around and soon find it among my blankets. I answer and bring it to my ear.

"Mmm, hello?" I croak half asleep.

"Hello." Comes an unfamiliar stoic female voice over a chaotic background hustle and bustle. "Am I speaking with Donald Garcia?"

"Uh...yeah?" I blink a few more times and sit up as I attempt to force my brain into gear. "Who...?"

"Do you have a sister named Karina?"

Karina? Nobody called Kiki by her birth name except our mother. Confusion and terror growing exponentially by the second I struggle to answer. "Uh...what is this?"

"My name is Kimberly. I am a nurse in the emergency room at the General Hospital. You are listed here as the next of kin. Do you have a sister named Karina?"

***

Chapter 29

I am down at the hospital as fast a cab could get me there. Frazzled and frantic I latch on to the first nurse I see to ask about Kiki. He gives me a stern look and directs me to the desk. It wasn't even 4 am yet but the place is packed and bustling with doctors, nurses, security, and a motley crew of society's underbelly. I have to squint against the bright pale light which made everybody in this shabby and faded old emergency room look cadaverous, sick and healthy alike. The vulgar aromas of puss, piss and puke linger just beneath the thick veneer of harsh antiseptic. The crowded waiting area is a cacophany of grumbles, swears, and suffering groans as all waited for their turn under a doctor's care. It is all in the background though as I am lost in a world of fear and grief, beside myself with worry as I wait in line.

God, please. Please let Kiki be okay. Please!

At last I get my turn. They take some information and I am guided to my sister. Beds line both sides of the long room I am taken to with nothing but flimsy curtains separating the stalls. As I approach the one with Kiki I am intercepted by a nurse who peppers me with probing questions about Kiki. What drugs does she take? How often? Does she have a family doctor? Has she seemed depressed or suicidal recently? I answer each of these and more in turn as best I can though my eyes rarely leave the curtain. I needed so badly to see Kiki. To see with my own eyes that she was alive. The busy nurse though has no time for my feelings and forges through the checklist of questions with rapid efficiency and then after the questions the nurse rattles off some basic information which I try my best to make mental note of. I could tell that to her Kiki was just another destitute junkie taking up a valuable bed.

Looking over her chart the nurse says. "When she wakes up you can probably take her home. Just let the attending nurse know when she wakes."

"Oh. A doctor won't need to...check on anything?"

Not even hearing my question the nurse hangs the clipboard back up. "Your sister is a lucky woman." And with that she hurries on past me to attend to her task.

I stand a moment to prepare myself then hurry in through the part in the screen.

In a blue hospital gown my sister lay asleep. A wave of relief floods through me as I watch her chest slowly rise and fall. She was partially propped up and the thin sheet and blanket they had over her only came up to her stomach. I close the curtain behind me and slowly walk up beside her. Her flesh was sunken and ashen. Her slender body looking so tiny and fragile under the sterile white lights. And yet there was also a look of peace. Her rich curly brown hair radiates out from her head like a halo. Those people out there couldn't see her like I could. She wasn't just another junkie. She was special.

I push the bedside tray aside to give me room, on it lay a few glossy pamphlets on addiction and suicide. Careful not to jostle the IV needle or tube I pull the blankets up to her shoulders and tuck her in to keep her warm. I touch her cheek with the back of my fingers and at last allow myself to accept that she was alive and out of immediate danger. I stroke her cheek and gently swipe a curly lock from her forehead. Beyond the cloth walls are the beeps and hisses of medical equipment, the wails and moans of people suffering, and the general din of a busy hospital emergency ward. But in here it was just her and I.

"I'm here." I whisper. "You and me big sister. Just like always."

And there I stay. Watching over her and just being a loving presence. I knew this wasn't my fault and yet there is a niggling sense of responsibility as well. I had given her the money after all knowing damn well what she was going to do with it. That wouldn't happen again so easily. With each minute that passed looking down on her resting for I could sense a passing of a torch happening. Kiki had been strong enough for long enough. Now it was my turn.

Even a week ago I wouldn't have been able to think that, I likely would have been a panicked blubbering mess, but something had changed. That change was Evelyn. From the outside our kinky sex life would be frowned upon but I knew in my heart it went so much deeper than that. Without her holding me today, nursing me, singing me to sleep, I knew I wouldn't have the emotional resilience to be dealing with this right now. Somehow, without realizing it at the time, Mom's gentle care had allowed for the man to be brought out of me now that the chips were down.

I stay close to Kiki. Stood right at her side. I hold her hand and talk to her as if she could hear me, reminiscing about old times and even cracking a few inside jokes between us. Only once does a nurse bother to come check on her and ends with another reminder that I could probably take her home soon after she woke up. They wanted to wash their hands of us as soon as possible.

It is almost 7 when my sister finally stirs. She groans and moves her head from side to side before struggling to open her eyes. She stares at the ceiling for a few seconds as her wits are slow to gather. Confusedly she looks left to the IV and around at her surroundings before turning right to look at me.

"Donny?" She croaks in a raspy voice. "What...?" She blinks as her face contorts with feeble concentration as she tries to remember how she got here.

"Hey Sis." I say softly. I bring the glass of water that had been left on the tray for her and offer it to her. She takes it gratefully and sips a couple of times before handing it back again.

She watches me set the glass down, emotional distress twisting her pretty features, then looks away from me holding back tears. Humbled and humiliated at her weakness Kiki couldn't bear to look at me.

"They've given you drugs to counteract the junk inside you." I inform her as I hold her hand tightly. "You need to talk to a nurse or a doctor but I can take you home soon."