Diamond sat there while the brothers looked through folders and shuffled papers. She ran her tongue across her perfect lips, envisioning a threesome with the two brothers. They weren’t as young as the men she normally dated, but they were definitely inviting.
“OK, Ms. Reed—”
“Call me Diamond,” she said, cutting Kyle off.
“OK, Diamond,” he said, tugging at his tie. “I know we’ve asked you and Dante a million questions thus far. However, is there anything that the two of you have not told us?” He looked from one to the other.
Kendall stopped shuffling papers and looked up at them as well.
Dante looked over at his mother, noticed the lust in her eyes, and simply shook his head. After the brothers were recommended by a friend of the family, Dante jumped at the offer. He was facing a lot more time than his mother because of the shootout in their house with the police. They were trying to pin attempted murder charges against him, and he knew he needed a good attorney.
He wanted Kyle and Kendall to concentrate more on his case, but Diamond wasn’t letting that happen. Not only was she controlling, she was extremely selfish. She wanted what she wanted, and she made sure she got it. So, without question, Dante knew Diamond was going to have their attorneys put most of their energy into getting her the least amount of time in jail.
As Dante sat there staring at his mother, his recent premonitions were starting to become reality. With the lustful stares from his mother, Dante knew she would get one of the men, if not both. She just had that effect on men.
But Dante held an ace. His mother hadn’t been totally honest with the brothers, which might play to his advantage later.
“Of course not, baby,” Diamond finally answered. “I’ve told you all you need to know to get me outta this hellhole.”
To get her out? Dante wondered. I guess that doesn’t include me.
“What about any other witnesses that would testify on your behalf? Is there anyone at all we could contact to help with the case?” Kyle asked.
“No. I gave you everybody who I know that would help me out.”
Both brothers went back to shuffling papers.
Diamond would’ve loved to have Trey on the stand, but he was dead set against being a part of the case. Involved in too many illegal activities, he didn’t care for the authorities to get used to his name or his face.
***
Dante just wanted to get back to his cell. Although he hated being locked up, he had become cellmates with an elderly man named Preacher, who had been talking to him, enlightening him on his situation. Preacher was trying to help him keep a level head, and Dante had found comfort listening to the old man speak.
Dante had been doing a lot of thinking lately about how this whole situation would play out, and bitter feelings started to invade his mind more and more. But he loved his mother unconditionally. Or did he? She had been the only person who’d been there for him and cared for him all his life, never mind the beatings. Sure, she was controlling, but he knew she loved him.
What about the father Dante never met? Was there such a man? Whenever he asked about him, Diamond would flip her wig.
Dante once asked her, “So, Ma, do you even know who my father is?”
Diamond turned her head slowly, like it was being controlled by a remote. “What the hell did I tell you before? Don’t ask me about that piece-of-shit of a man that I don’t even consider a father! Don’t worry about who or where he is! I’m here, and that’s all you need to know!”
***
“Dante!” Diamond yelled now, snapping him out of his memories. “You don’t hear Kyle talking to you? What is wrong with you? You better get your mind right, boy.” She rolled her eyes at him.
“My bad.”
“Do you have anything you want to say, or anyone you know that may be a good witness in assisting us in this case
?” Kyle asked again.
Looking down at the table, his handcuffed hands resting in his lap, Dante so desperately wanted to tell all, but he shook his head. He couldn’t betray his mother. Diamond was never close to her mother’s or father’s side of the family. Once Betty left, it seemed as if Betty’s family never existed. Chester didn’t have a good relationship with his side of the family, and his parents had died before he met Betty. Chester was all that Diamond knew and he was her world.
So it seemed as if history was repeating itself. Now Diamond was all that Dante knew and he knew his mother was his life.
While the attorneys and Diamond continued to talk about the case, Dante looked down at his handcuffs, and the reflecting light caused him to squint because of the brightness. He drifted off, thinking about how he was going to get out of this situation without losing the only family he had.
TWENTY-THREE