I’m going to visit David every weekend this summer,” Iliana explained.
“What?!” I yelled in shock.
“Iliana!” Janet screamed from the driver’s seat. After several attempts to take the phone away, Janet finally gave up once the truck swerved on the highway.
“I guess they have been discussing it for weeks leading up to the meeting from what he told me,” she continued.
I could not believe what I was hearing. “Iliana, my dear, please put your mother back on the phone. I will see you soon. Miss you, honey,” I said, trying my best to mask my irritation.
With a smirk on her face, Iliana turned to her mother tapping her on the hand with her cell phone. “Phone’s for you,” she said sarcastically.
“You little bitch! You’re lucky I’m driving on this highway; otherwise, I’d pull over to kick your muthafucking ass! You just wait until we get home. We’re going to see who the smart one is before this night is over. I am so sick of you,” Janet whispered and then snatched her cell phone from her daughter’s hand. “Babe, it’s not what you think,” Janet pleaded after placing the phone back to her ear.
Before another word could come out, I lost all composure. “What the fuck is going on, Janet? What is this talk about these discussions you’ve been having with David about picking up Iliana for the past few weeks? I was under the impression that he just got out?” I asked.
“Kahlil, David has been out for about a month now,” Janet responded. There was a long silence on the phone as Janet pulled up to the gate of house. “Hello? Are you still there?” she asked.
I stood up from my hotel bed and walked over to the window. Pulling the curtains back with the remote, I just stood there staring into the city. “How many lies must I take from you before I get the whole damn story about this guy?! I’ve only been gone a day, and now more shit is surfacing!” I yelled.
“So basically, you called just to yell at me? How nice of a call from my boyfriend,” Janet replied, beginning to cry.
“I called because I miss my girlfriend and my daughter. I didn’t think I’d be calling to find out my girlfriend has arranged things with her ex about the child I’ve been taking care of all this time.”
“Kahlil, he’s her father. What the hell do you want me to do? Deny him his legal right just because I’m dating you? How fair is that? What if it was you? You would want to see your daughter, right?” pleaded Janet.
“How fair have you been to me about all of this? We are in a relationship, and the respect level should be much higher when it comes to communication and being honest. If the shoe was on the other foot, I wouldn’t be in that situation because I don’t need to sell drugs! What if we were married? Is this what I should expect from you?” I asked.
“Of course not, Kahlil!” screamed Janet.
“Since we are in a moment of discovery, I need to address another disturbing finding about your sneaky, lying ass. I was going to wait until I got back, but what’s the point? I got a call from my financial advisor questioning me about my recent spending habits and if everything was okay. Having no clue what he was talking about, I requested the records of the transactions and came to find out you have been on quite the spending spree as of late. From clothes, shoes, and jewelry to purses, spa treatments, and spontaneous cash withdrawals, you’ve been losing your damn mind! Or is this all a big misunderstanding and there’s a logical reason for these spends?” I asked.
As Janet and Iliana got out of the truck and walked into the house, she just held the phone. “Okay, yes, I admit I got a little carried away buying a few things, Kahlil, but I was going to tell you,” she said.
“After the past three days, I question if I even know who the fuck you are right now!” I yelled.
“Who do you think you’re talking to?!” Janet screamed.
“Who do I think I’m talking to? I’m talking to you!” I screamed into the phone. Janet slowly sat down on the edge of the bed in the master bedroom remaining quiet. “You have racked up a hundred grand worth of spending within three months! I thought we were way past me having to check up on finances. I thought our trust was solid enough that if you pulled something like this, you’d be straight with me to talk about it. I don’t mind you treating yourself, but damn!”
Janet sat there crying softly, trying to get herself together enough to respond. She slowly put the phone to her mouth. “Kahlil, I’m so sorry. I really was going to tell you, but I just didn’t know how to,” she said.
“You are a lying bitch! You know that?” I yelled before hanging up the phone.
Iliana could hear her mother crying behind the closed bedroom doors. She opened the doors and stood over her mother who was hunched over on the bed with her hands over her face.
“Are you okay?” Iliana asked.
With her face covered in tears, Janet looked up at her daughter and then stood to her feet. Her right hand flew across her body, slapping her daughter’s face and knocking her to the floor.
“Get up and go to your fucking room! This is all your fault! All you had to do was keep your damn mouth shut, but no, you had to be the smart, ungrateful, little bitch! We have nothing else to say tonight. Don’t worry about asking if I’m okay! Get out!” Janet screamed.
Chapter 11
The next few days went by so slowly. How the hell did the rug get pulled from under my feet in only a few days? To make matters worse, my trip got extended for the full week, and I had zero contact with Janet or Iliana after the call. The entire time away, I couldn’t help but think that Janet was with David. How would this affect my relationship with Iliana? What was going through my daughter’s mind? I wasn’t there to protect her like I said I would. I pictured her angry and crying, being forced to try to establish something with someone she cared not to.
All these questions and emotions raced uncontrollably through my mind as I got off the private jet and into the limo to head home. Businesswise, my trip to New York was a success; but personally, I felt as if I had lost. Janet was my first love, and the thought of losing her and Iliana was unbearable to imagine. I called the house to let Janet know I had landed safely, but there was no answer. I dialed her cell phone, but it went straight to voicemail. I decided to leave a message:
Hey, it’s me. I just wanted to let you know that I’m back and en route to the house. I’ll see you whenever you get home. I love you.
As I pulled up to the house, I hit the garage door opener. To my surprise, all the cars were in their respective locations. It was only ten minutes ago that I’d left Janet the voicemail. Maybe she never heard her phone ring or checked the message if she was just getting to the house. Getting out of the limo, I braced myself for immediate conflict based on our last conversation. Once in the house, there was no one in sight, no sounds of conversation, television, or feet walking. There was absolutely nothing going on inside.
“Iliana…Janet…are you guys upstairs?” I called out but got no response. I walked upstairs to Iliana’s room first. From the hall, I could see that the lights were out and the door was wide open, which was odd because she always kept it closed. However, something even more alarming caught my attention; her room was neat. It was almost too neat! Iliana kept a clean room, but this was overkill. As I continued to look around from the doorway, I noticed the closet door was open, which also hardly ever happened. I walked into the room toward the closet, and the closer I got, the more I realized that Iliana’s closet was completely empty except for hangers! My heart rate elevated off the charts. I ran out of her room and down the hall, pushing the master bedroom doors open. I walked into Janet’s closet and stood there staring in disbelief. I immediately took my cell phone out hitting her speed dial number, and this time there was an answer.
“Hello,” Janet answered.
“Janet, what the fuck is going on?!”