Bumped - Completed Novel

Bumped - Chapter Fourteen

Bodies were stacked in the club like breadsticks in a basket. Pregnant or not, it was a tight squeeze. I sat at a table in the corner, hidden in the shadows and nursed an iced tea. Macy would come back periodically, each time covered in more perspiration as she shook her groove thang on the dance floor.

"You should come on out! This DJ has it going on girl!" Her eyes were slightly glazed over and the looseness of her limbs and words told me I wasn't going to let her drive me home. I think for the first time ever, I was going to be a designated driver. When had life slipped away from me? I watched as women flitted in and out of social circles. Felt the bump bumping of the bass and slightly swayed my body to the music. I stayed rooted to the chair, too self-conscious about my tacky ensemble to want to see or be seen.

No one ever mentioned how many trips to the bathroom you had to make when you were pregnant. It got to the point where if I didn't get up, I was going to pee on myself. On my way to the bathroom, I saw Cameron and a pack of his cronies filing out of a side door.

"Cameron!" My voice cut through the music and stopped him in his tracks.

He turned around and looked at me. Gave a slight nod to his crew to keep walking.

"Wassup, Elle?" he asked, his bedroom eyes giving me the once over.

I felt a jolt of indignation and a blast of energy as I walked up to him.

"What's up? You run around telling people that I stole your masters and you want to know what's up? What do you think?"

He grabbed my arm and pulled me outside. I snatched my arm out of his grasp. "What the hell is wrong with you? Don't you ever-"

"Let's talk in the car."

He took long strides that left me breathless as I tried to keep up. His security discretely followed us as we walked half a block to a little side street where his hulking black Hummer punked the other cars and dominated the street.

"You don't valet?"

"Nah. Don't need fools watching the door waiting to see if I'm coming or going."

We got in the truck and he started it up. Etta James' "At Last" filled the air.

"How could you tell people that I'm a thief?"

"Shit went down and I had to do what I had to do. Know what I'm saying?"

"No, I don't know because you're not saying anything specific."

Cameron jiggled his leg up and down and kept checking the rearview and side mirrors like he was keeping a constant vigil. He was starting to make me nervous.

"You need some money or sumthin'? You lookin' like times have been hard."

"Thanks to you."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a thick wad of money. I glanced at my side view mirror and saw a dark car with the lights off, creeping up on us very slowly. As the car inched past us, the driver's window rolled down and I saw a flash of silver and a gun. I grabbed Cameron's arm and yelled, "Oh My God!"

There was a rapid popping sound and an explosion of glass. Money and chunks of the window rained down on us as we tried to crawl into the back seat. It seemed to last forever as a thousand prayers leapt off my tongue.

I don't know how many times the gun was fired before the screech of tires sounded and we were plunged into a sudden silence that hung tenuously in the air. My heart was thumping jackrabbit crazy and in my mind, maybe out loud as well, I kept saying we'realivewe'reok,we'realivewe'reok. Over and over. But in that moment before, I made all kinds of bargains and promises with God. No matter how bad life was, I didn't want to go out like this. Spare us, I begged. All three of us. In the moment after, time stopped and we were in a vacuum where all of the noise and air was sucked out. Then it burst and a melee of sounds assaulted my ears. Police sirens. Screams. Etta. Moans. My side hurt as a hard pain traveled up and around to my back. Cameron was draped across me like a shield. His breath was hot and raggedy as it burst in my ear. I struggled to sit up and move him off me. He whispered a moan. Blood was everywhere.