The days passed, and Nicole got better. She was now able to speak, and Mrs. Moore came to visit frequently. The news of Treniyah’s death and her unborn child had sent her into shock. Doctors had to rush in to help Nicole come to. She advised the doctors that she didn’t want any visitors. Now that she was healthier, Nicole spent most of her time plotting revenge against Trent for everything that he had put her through. She figured, when she got through with him, he would wish he was dead. A knock on the door snapped Nicole out of her thoughts.
“Come in,” she said.
The woman walked in wearing all white with black Prada shoes and big Prada shades that covered her face. She wore no make-up, but her beauty was astounding. The diamonds in her ears sparkled in the dark room and the ring on her finger could have blinded someone. The woman didn’t utter a word. She just passed an envelope to Nicole. As quickly as she had entered the room, she was gone, leaving the scent of Burberry Weekend behind. Nicole looked at the envelope and back at the door to see if anyone was coming. She opened it up, and a note fell out with two words on it: IT’S TIME.
Nicole looked at the note again before tossing it in the trash. Then, she turned over and went to sleep. The doctors checked her progress daily. It was nearing her time to leave the hospital. Mrs. Moore continued to visit, bringing all kinds of whatnots for Nicole. Mrs. Moore figured that she’d lost her only chance at being a grandmother.
“Thanks, Mrs. Moore. I truly appreciate you being here for me. And please save me an obituary,” Nicole said. Her eyes watered. She still couldn’t believe her best friend was dead.
“Oh, baby. You don’t even have to ask, and I will be here after the funeral to bring you a nice, hefty plate.”
That put a smile on Nicole’s face momentarily. That night, Nicole sat up and thought long and hard on the dirtiest revenge. Her mind was still wracked by the pain of the ass whooping she had received from Trent. Was there any harm in loving a man that belonged to someone else or loving him after she’d caught him with her mom? Fuck no! He don’t care, so now I don’t! She thought.
Treniyah’s funeral service was held at First AME Church in Los Angeles where the late Eazy E’s service was also held. There were thousands of people in attendance. Friends from elementary school, junior high, high school and college were in attendance. Several wore RIP shirts with Treniyah’s picture on the back. News reporters were lined up outside to catch a glimpse of the family, and police offers were there to diffuse any situation that got out of hand. Everyone was dressed in Treniyah’s favorite color- turquoise. The front pew was filled with the family, and behind them sat Kendra, Marcos, Nia, and Marquise. The service was nice. It was a closed casket funeral, but there with a big picture of Treniyah displayed on top. The choir sang “The Storm Is Over Now” by Kirk Franklin and the Family. After the song, a friend of the family read the obituary:
Treniyah Renée Moore was born on June 6, 1985 in Los Angeles CA. She was the youngest of two and had a very good relationship with her older brother Trenton Moore. Treniyah attended Baldwin Hills Elementary, Audubon Middle School, and Palisades High. She was furthering her education at West L.A. College. Treniyah accepted God at an early age. She was an active member in church and found a home at First AME. She sang in choirs and loved to help the youth.
Treniyah leaves to cherish her memory her parents, Trevor and Denise Moore, her Grandmother Eloise G’Mama Baker, and brother Trenton Moore, all from Los Angeles, six aunts and seven uncles and a host of cousins and other relatives and friends.
After reading the obituary, friends and family gathered to share their fondest memories of Treniyah. Kendra and Nia were asked to sing “His Eye Is on the Sparrow”. Trent sat there, shocked, because he never knew Kendra could blow like that. He knew she could sing because they had always played around, but he had never heard anything so angelic. The tears poured out of Trent’s eyes as he listened to the melody escaping Kendra’s and Nia’s lungs. The preacher preached and had everyone on their toes. There were a lot of “amens” and “halleujahs”. There was also the occasional shout throughout the congregation.
The pastor continued, “Treniyah didn’t deserve this, but we can’t look for an eye for an eye or a tooth for tooth. Ah, c’mon now! I know somebody can agree with me.”
Again, the church hollered out, “Amen.”
“We need to clean up the drugs and gangs, take back our community. The time is now. You better get right before it’s too late. Wake up! To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.”
At the closing of the ceremony, the pastor did the benediction and invited any and everyone who hadn’t heard of Christ to stand and give their lives over before it was too late.
After the service, everyone gathered at Rose Hill Forest Lawn to pay their last respects while Treniyah was put in her final resting place.
“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Everyone, bow your heads in prayer,” the pastor said.
Mrs. Moore screamed out, “No! Let me go with my baby. Please let me go.”
She tried to throw herself in the ground to be with her daughter. Trent, Marcos, and Marquise had to restrain her from jumping in. Family and friends formed a single line to give Treniyah’s immediate family a hug. Kendra hugged Trent for a long time, telling him how sorry she was. Trent lifted her left hand and her engagement ring.
“I see you don’t waste time. I know he better be good to you,” Trent said, holding her hand up to his mouth to plant kisses on it. He was surprised at the size of her ring. Trent made a mental note to check dude out.
“Are you happy?” he asked.
“Please, Trent. Let’s not do this. This is not the time or the place,” Kendra said loudly, but she quickly lowered her voice when she noticed people looking on. “Look. I will always love you, but I’m not in love with you anymore.”
Kendra gave Trent one last hug and walked away. She never noticed the black SUV parked a little ways away from the crowd. In the SUV sat Wiz and a couple of his partners. They were waiting for a clear view of Trent, so they could take him out. The rifle was pointed in the direction of Trent, ready for fire, but, when he saw Kendra, Wiz put a cease to the fire.
“My nigga, we got him right here, right now. I’m ready to pull the trigger,” one of the dudes said.
“Nah, my nig. Not right here,” Wiz said. They drove away.
Kendra decided not to join the family at the repast. She hugged Trent’s parents once more. Then, she told her sister and Marcos that she was leaving.
“I’ll call you later, sis. Promise.” Kendra blew a kiss before she headed to her car.
Trent and his parents said their last goodbyes as Treniyah’s casket was put in the ground. Mrs. Moore lost it again. She threw her body on the casket.
“Not my baby! No! Please take me with her.”
This time, the pallbearers had to pick her up off the casket. Trent couldn’t fathom watching any longer. He whispered something in Marquise’s ear. Then, they jumped in the car and hit the pavement. Unsure of where they were headed, Marquise finally asked, “Where to, my nig?”
“Take it to the house,” Trent responded.
Now, what they did not know was that someone was lurking, ready to spring everything into action. When they arrived back at the house, Marquise parked the car on the opposite side of the street to give enough room for the rest of the family. They exited the car and made their way across the street. As soon as Trent got ready to put the key in the door knob, shots rang out. Marquise was hit in the back. Trent spun around quickly with his pistol drawn.
“What the fuck?” Trent yelled out as he was met with the.9 mm that was clutched inside of Nicole’s hand.
“Surprise, nigga. You didn’t think I would survive.”
This was the last thing Trent heard before the bullet caught him in his head. Nicole watched as his body slumped to the ground.
“Payback is a bitch nigga,” Nicole said, spitting on Trent.
Then, she shot Marquise once more. Nicole put her gun back in her waist and calmly walked off the porch. She could hear sirens and see neighbors looking out their windows and doors, but she didn’t care anymore. She had been Trent’s punching bag one too many times, and she had reached her limit. Nicole noticed the family cars returning from the burial. She smiled and waved. Then, she walked to the car that was waiting on the corner for her. She hopped in without looking back.
Wiz and his crew were chilling in the crib, watching Menace II Society.
“Yo, bitch ass need to take that nigga out before I…”
Wiz rose to his feet with his gun cocked and ready for action.
“Before you what? Speak up, nigga. I can’t hear you.”
Wiz was still waiting for an answer while holding the gun at an angle.
“Man, my nigga, you gonna shoot me?” his partner asked.
Wiz cocked the gun, ready for whatever, but hearing Kendra’s voice made him stop.
“Saved by grace, nigga. Now, get the fuck up outta here,” Wiz commanded, tucking his gun back in his holster. His friend gave Wiz a menacing stare as he brushed down the hall almost knocking Kendra to the floor.
“Damn! Excuse you,” Kendra said, using the wall for balance. “Hey, baby! What’s going on? Everything okay?”
Kendra kissed Wiz on the lips. Then, she kicked her shoes off and flopped down on the couch. Wiz didn’t say anything. He barely acknowledged her presence. Kendra looked around the room. She didn’t know what she had stepped into, but the living room was awkwardly silent. Kendra released the rubber band from around her ponytail and let her hair fall all over her shoulders.
Wiz finally broke the silence when he said, “Anybody else, you can either leave out or get carried out. The choice is yours.”
Everyone got up and headed for the door. They knew Wiz was serious, and no one uttered a word. They just made their exit.
“Wow, babe! Are you alright?” Kendra asked, unbuttoning her blouse and belt. Wiz still didn’t say anything. Kendra was getting annoyed by the minute. The one thing she hated was for someone to ignore her. She picked up her belongings and put them in the dirty clothes hamper. Wiz grabbed a handful of her hair and yanked her head back, causing Kendra to bite her tongue. She tried to grab a hold of Wiz’s arm, but he smashed her head into the wall.
“Bitch, you’re supposed to be marrying me. Instead, you keep running to that nigga’s aid. Bitch, are you still fucking him?” Enraged, Wiz tossed Kendra to the floor.
Kendra didn’t understand where all this was coming from. What she did know was that she had her.357 in the trunk of her car. Until she could make it to her car, she was going to fight back. In a split second, Wiz had gone from Dr. Jekyll to Mr. Hyde. Within minutes after the little episode, he attempted to console her like nothing had ever happened. Wiz was now being attentive to Kendra. He took a wash rag, wet it, and cleaned Kendra’s face.
“I’m sorry, baby. I love you. Every time I see you with Trent, I go crazy. I promise you. I will kill anybody that fucks you over,” Wiz said while rubbing Kendra’s hair.
In Kendra’s mind, she knew they would never get married. She sat quietly as tears poured out her eyes. Even Trent had never laid a hand on her.
“I love you, too, baby,” Kendra said, trying to keep the peace.
Wiz walked over to the closet where he kept a safe that obtained jewelry, money, and guns. Kendra pretended to be asleep, but she watched closely as Wiz punched in the combination. Wiz pulled out a silver dress and sling backs made with diamonds. He had bought them from Saks Fifth Avenue. He called Kendra, “Babe, you ‘sleep. I bought this dress. I want you to wear this when we get married in Cancun.”
Kendra eyes widened when she saw all the money in the safe, but she pretended to be excited with the things Wiz had bought for her.
“Aww, baby. This is so beautiful. Thank you so much.”
Kendra beamed like a little girl. All the while, she kept her eyes on the money. I wonder what Wiz really does for a living, she thought. Whatever it was, Kendra knew she would soon find out.
“Do you know the name of the hotel we’ll be staying at once we get there?” Kendra asked, playing along and trying to mask the anger and hurt that laid deep within.
“I thought you said the Ritz Carlton, so the Ritz Carlton it is. Why don’t you take this stack and do some shopping with your sister. Okay, babe?” Wiz kissed Kendra on the forehead.
Then, he left out the house. Kendra sat there, dazed. She couldn’t believe that she was a punching bag for a man who had said that he loved her. Then again, Kendra really didn’t know much about Wiz.
Kendra noticed the safe was open. She made sure that Wiz was gone before tiptoeing to the closet. She scanned everything inside. There were stacks and stacks of money. She guessed that there had to be over a million dollars in there. After seeing what it contained, she returned the door of the safe to the way that Wiz had left it.
Kendra grabbed the money that Wiz had given her and her keys and purse. She called her sister, but she didn’t answer.
“Fuck!” Kendra cursed.
She threw the phone on the passenger’s seat. She was eager to get to her sister’s house. She ran a few lights. She almost ran into a group of girls at an intersection. Luckily, no police were around for her to get stopped, just the young girls cursing at her.
“Dumb bitch, watch where the fuck you’re going,” one of the girls yelled out.
Any other given day, Kendra would’ve given it to them without a doubt.
When Kendra made it to her sister’s house, she received a call from Nia, so Kendra just ignored the call and knocked on the door. When Nia opened the door and saw Kendra’s face, she screamed, “What the fuck is wrong with your face?”
Kendra had already checked her face in the rearview mirror on the way over, so she knew her face was fucked up. She answered, “I realized that I don’t know nothing about this nigga Wiz. Something’s not right about him. He flipped out on me earlier because I went to Treniyah’s funeral. He was accusing me of shit, saying I was still fucking Trent. Funny shit is that I never told the nigga Trent’s name.”
Marcos overheard the conversation and stepped into the room. He said, “You said Wiz. What he look like? Where you meet him?”
He grilled Kendra with question after question. After comparing notes, Marcos realized that Kendra was sleeping with the enemy. Kendra learned about Wiz’s motives after she explained how they had met. After she learned all of this, she told Marcos that she was scheduled to marry Wiz at the end of the month.
“Damn, baby girl. You don’t know, do you? Wiz kidnapped Treniyah and murdered her. And Trent shot that nigga downtown.”
Kendra recalled that day and how she had believed Wiz when he told her that he was robbed. Kendra couldn’t believe she was being used as a pawn. Even though Trent was her ex, she wanted to get back at Wiz for using her. After Kendra told Marcos about the safe and all of its contents, the three of them devised a plan that would bring Wiz down. They planned on a robbery, but Kendra said that that would be too easy.
“This one is more personal for me. I’mma have that nigga still think we getting married and shit. Then, I’mma split his wig,” Kendra said with a smirk. She also informed them that she remembered the code from the safe, so opening it would not be a problem. “The day before we leave for Cancun I’mma drop the key to our condo. I will also give you the key card for the gate and the building number.”
Marcos shook his head in agreement.
“Fuck that! Bitch, if that nigga get outta pocket, you know to rock that nigga to sleep. Don’t be a fool about it. Fuck it. I’ll body his ass,” Nia said.
She was always ready for the cause. Nia thought that she could whoop on any man and bring a challenge. She never got any pleasure from fighting girls because that was too easy a task.
“Nah, I’ll be alright. Besides, if I stay the night out, that nigga will swear up and down that I’m fucking Trent, and I don’t need to give that nigga a reason,” Kendra explained. She reassured her sister that she was cool and would handle things her way. “Just make sure you’re ready to go in a couple of days. Everything should be on the up and up.”
Kendra gave her sister a kiss.
“Yeah, I just gotta make sure that other shit is taken care of. Would hate to have anything trailing back to us.”
Kendra nodded. Then, she got in her car and drove home. On the ride back, she thought about all she had to digest. She stopped at a flower shop and bought roses. Then, she headed to the Inglewood Park Cemetery where her mother was buried. Kendra walked past several burial plots, reading the names and making sure she watched her step. She didn’t want to disrespect the dead.
When she found her mother’s tombstone, Kendra unfolded a blanket and laid it down on the ground. Then, she took the roses one by one. She said a prayer. After she placed the roses on the grave, she took out the photo of her parents she kept in her purse. Kendra stayed at the cemetery for an hour just talking, laughing, and crying. Kendra sang one of her mother’s favorite songs, which was “His Eye Is on the Sparrow”. Kendra dusted her clothes off, folded her blanket. She blew her mother a kiss. Then, she headed back home. She didn’t know what type of mood Wiz would be in, so she braced herself in case Mr. Hyde was around.
To her surprise, Wiz wasn’t home. Kendra went into the room to where the safe was located. Seeing that the safe was now closed, she thought, He must have come back home after I left. Without hesitation, Kendra punched in the code. Once the door opened, she grabbed three stacks. She put the money in her sanitary bag. She knew that that would be the last place that Wiz would check.