.png)
Hello all! Quick little announcement before I start this chapter.
After careful consideration over the last few months, I have decided to leave out some things going forward.
What this means: There are some chapters where after they are published, I remember that I completely forgot something that happened before then, then I try to compile it into a mini-chapter full of pieces of stories. It just really doesn’t make any sense to do that. Secondly, I have chosen several significant happenings that I am choosing not to write in my blog, but I will include it in my book. If I have everything in the book online for free, then why would anyone buy my book? Gotta save something for the book! I will continue the story about the car and what happened afterward but do know there are some things I have chosen to leave out.
After I finish the blog, I will immediately work on the book. I have a lot to learn about publishing, I have a lot to edit, and some things to rewrite completely to condense it so it’s not completely awful.
Thank you all for following along! I can’t say this enough, but your support means the world to me. For you to take the time out of your day to read what I write is just incredible. I’m forever thankful.
ALSO, no chapter next week as we will be celebrating the 4th of July, as well as a celebration of life for my Pawpaw who passed a month ago today. It was his favorite holiday and we will be spending all day & night celebrating in his memory.
My apologies for no graphic for this chapter, the program I use was under maintenance and I couldn't access anything.
🔴 TRIGGER WARNING - DRUG USE 🔴
“I’m going down to Russell’s place, the dope man is there. I’ll be right back.”
Troy grabbed the keys and headed out into the night. Danni and I were attempting to organize the kitchen. Half of it was completely inaccessible. Tools, broken computers, and trash was piled into half of the kitchen. The fridge, counter, stove, and cabinets were impossible to get to. We had just had a bump though and thought we could tackle the impossible job.
She played 90’s music from her phone while we both danced around the kitchen, smiling and laughing, not really getting any work done. Almost an hour had passed and we were able to clean up the kitchen table, but between dancing and getting caught up in the random things we would find, we didn’t get very far. As we were dancing along to MC Hammer, Troy ran through the door looking panicked.
“Emily! You have got to leave. Now!”
“What? No… No! Why what happened?”
“Ty was there. It was Ty and Brick. He was holding an AK and he told me he knew where you were and what you did. He said he’s coming after you.”
My heart stopped. I imagined Ty busting through the front doors and immediately shooting me in the head. I would be remembered as a junkie who got caught up in the wrong crowd. My fear quickly turned to anger though. Who was he to come after me? After he stole MY car? I wasn’t going anywhere.
“No. I’m not leaving. I’m not scared of him. I will NOT run away from him. I don’t give a fuck what he has.”
“Emily, he’s down the road. He is going to fucking kill you.”
“No, he won’t! He’s too much of a pussy to show up. He’s just trying to scare me. All talk. He won’t do shit.”
“Em, you know I won’t let him do anything to you, but I want you to understand what’s going on. He’s a 2-minute drive away from us. Knowing him, he would walk here so we can’t see him on camera. He will hide in the dark and get you when you leave.”
“Then I’m not leaving. I’ll sleep on the couch if I have to… If I actually need to sleep. Whatever, I’m not leaving. You can tell him I’ll be right here waiting for him. No, actually, I’ll text him. Fuck Ty.”
“If you decide you need to leave, I understand.”
He walked into his bedroom with Danni and closed the door behind him. I was full of rage. How dare he say he’d come after me after what he did. I got my phone out and started texting him.
“You know where I am. I’m not hiding from you. Come on if you're coming.”
A minute later I got a response.
“Your “friends” told me what you did. I will find you. You can’t hide.”
What? Did Troy tell him what I did? That I turned him in? I mean, they already knew when I got there. Why would he have been so panicked if he hadn’t told him? I was angry and confused, but no matter what, I decided to stand my ground.
I spent the rest of the night organizing the kitchen, trying to finish what we started. Every few minutes I’d stop and listen for any signs of someone outside. I checked the windows and made sure the doors were locked. I wasn’t scared, but I was paranoid. I wanted to expect him. I knew he was coming. Tonight? Tomorrow? I didn't know, but I had to be ready.
Throughout the night, I became more paranoid. I hid behind chairs or cabinets. I avoided the windows. I tried to be as quiet as possible. I listened as hard as I could for any sign of him. The more I focused on the quiet, the more I could hear things. Things that weren’t there.
I had already been up for a few days and I knew that came along with hallucinations; mostly sounds. It always sounded like people talking. Like a TV was on in another room, but I couldn’t make out what they were saying. I heard people talking, I heard things move, but I tried to convince myself it wasn’t real. I knew it wasn’t real.
It was hard to ignore when I knew Ty was coming for me. It was hard to differentiate the sounds from what was real and what wasn’t.
I continued to clean until the sun came up. As the birds started to sing and light filtered through the kitchen window, I felt relief that maybe Ty wasn't coming. I started to relax a bit. I walked over to the empty couch and laid down. My body felt weak, but my mind was racing. I closed my eyes and tried to force myself to sleep, even for just a few minutes.
I ended up sleeping for about an hour before I woke up to Troy holding a plate of pancakes in my face.
"You need to eat. I made some pancakes."
"God... No, I don't want to eat."
"I know you don't, but you need to. I won't give you any dope unless you eat."
"Ugh, hell... Fine."
This wasn't the first time I was abruptly woken up with pancakes, as odd as that sounds. That was one of his favorite foods and even though none of us really ever wanted to eat, he knew we had to at least once every few days.
I sat up and tried to get down some of the food he made. Halfway through, I heard a knock on the front door. Troy and Danni looked at me. I grabbed my baseball bat and ran to the bathroom, right around the corner of the front door. I gripped it tightly, knowing it was Ty.
"Summer! We haven't seen you in months!" said Danni. I saw her face light up as she ran to the door.
Summer? Who was Summer? I lowered my bat but didn't let go. I slowly walked out of the bathroom and into the living room. I looked over and saw a very petite girl with long brown hair standing in the doorway. She was smiling and happy...until she saw me.
We looked at each other briefly, and as we did, her smile quickly disappeared. I took it as a sign that she didn't like other women around. Seemed like a lot of girls were that way in the dope game. I sat back down to finish my pancakes but kept my bat close to my side.
She walked in and sat down in the chair across from me, constantly looking over in my direction. She was catching up with Troy and Danni. It sounded like she just got out of rehab, but decided it wasn't worth it to stay clean and came back to her old stomping grounds.
"Em, this is Summer," said Danni as she sat down next to me.
I smiled and nodded.
"Em, like Emily?" she asked.
"Yep."
"Oh, interesting... I know someone else named Emily too. What a coincidence," she said in a condescending manner.
"Yeah, and I know a whole fucking season named Summer. The worst time of the year."
"You know, I'm not really a summer person myself either."
I ignored her and took my plate to the kitchen. I didn't have a good feeling about her. I couldn't pinpoint it just yet, but I just didn't trust her.
The day went on and she stuck around with no signs of her leaving any time soon. She took up with Danni, leaving me stuck with Troy. I didn't mind it, he was more fun to be around anyways.
Night came again and Troy decided it was finally time to give us all a bump. Danni left the room after hers, but Summer stayed behind with me and Troy.
"Can I stay in here?" she asked.
"I really don't care what you do."
She sat down next to me while Troy grabbed my arm and got ready for my shot. After he was done, I sat there in a trance. Summer started talking, but I couldn't understand anything she was saying. I heard her and Troy go back and forth, then the light went off and he was gone.
As I started coming back down from the rush, I noticed her sitting cross-legged on the bed facing me, staring me down.
"So, Emily. Do you know Ty?"
"F..fuck Ty."
"Oh, you don't like him? I heard you two were really good friends."
I shook my head. Ty was the last person I wanted to think about right now.
"Hmm, well, personally I think he's kind of cute. Do you like him? What do you think of him?"
"Why the fuck do you w...want to know?"
"Oh, just curious. I've known him for a real long time. A lot longer than you have. We're really good friends. But you know what? I haven't seen him in a few weeks. Have you?"
"Pfft, no. The mother fucker stole my fucking car and went MIA! Fuck that piece of shit. I wish he would show up."
"Wait... he stole your car?"
"Yes! Now it's in the fuckin' impound and I'll never get it back."
"Hm... what did you drive?"
"Silver Buick Rendevous."
"Oh.. oh... Emily, I saw him with your car."
"What?!"
I turned around to face her. She no longer looked mean spirited, but sad and hurt. I didn't know if she was sincere or just putting on a show, but I wanted to listen to what she had to say.
"Yeah, so he was with a few guys and he came up to my house to unload a bunch of stuff. He told me he stole your car, well said he stole "a" car, and he had already hit up a few houses. He was on his way to another one but I never saw him come back. I didn't know it was yours."
"Yeah, it was. Now I've lost my only car. I have no transportation, and I lost everything I had inside. I can't afford to get it out, so I'm just stuck. He called me running through the woods to tell me to call the cops. Say that my car was stolen, But I chickened out. I couldn't make the call. Now it's a huge fucking mess."
"Really? I'm sorry, I didn't know."
"Yeah... I did so much for him. I dropped everything to go help him numerous times. I spent days and nights on end helping him, no matter what it was. He promised me he was bringing my car back. I did so much for him and he fucked me over. I have 2 kids and no car... What am I going to do? You don't fuckin' know. Sorry."
"No... I didn't know. So... I just can't hide this. Ty sent me here to find you. To report back to him so he could take you out. You know..."
"Oh, so you are his little secret agent so he can come kill me? He knows where I am but he's too scared to actually do anything. I'm just waiting on him to get the balls to meet me here. I don't care anymore. Let him come. Send him pictures, videos, whatever. If he wants me dead, he knows where I am."
"Did you actually turn him in though?"
"No! They knew who it was before I ever said anything. They had his file and picture pulled and sitting on their desk. I don't know what he left behind in there, but they knew it was him."
"Have you told him that?"
"No, never had the chance. At this point, I don't care. He can think what he wants. You can record this shit and send it to him too, I don't care anymore."
"No, no... He sent me here to get dirt against you, but I don't think I want to be a part of this one. I'm sorry for what happened to your car. I'll make sure he doesn't come after you. As long as I'm here, I'll make sure you'll be safe. Girls gotta stick together, you know?"
To be continued...