“Calm down, Baby Sis. I’m sure he’s going to call.”
“When? It’s been three days!” I exclaimed. “I’m scared, Junie. I can’t lose him.” Just as I finished my sentence, the phone rang. I didn’t even let the phone get a full ring before I snatched it up.
“Hello!”
The recording began, and I held my chest to calm my heart.
“This is the Department of Corrections on a recorded line with a call from . . . Zion. Do you accept the charges?”
“I do!” The call connected, and my heart slowed. “Baby,” I choked out.
“Dinny, you good?”
“No, I’m scared, Zion. What is happening?”
I could hear him sigh into the phone. “Everything’s gon’ be alright, baby. Don’t worry. . . I need you to hold shit down for me. There’s some money in my closet, under the floorboard. I need you to listen to me carefully, a’ight?”
“Okay.”
“One alligator, one night, one time, that’s it.” He spoke in code, which meant he wanted me to give Meeko the green bag he kept in the back of his closet tonight at nine. He always told me that if he ever got locked up, that was the code I needed to know and follow.
“Okay, but what are they saying? Are you coming home?”
“It ain’t looking too good for me, Dinny. I may have to sit down for a while. I-I don’t expect you to wait?—”
My heart plummeted. “No! Don’t say that to me, Zion. You-you didn’t do anything but protect me!”
“Jordin, baby, listen. They are trying to hit me with fifteen years max for assault with a deadly weapon and attempted murder. I talked to my lawyer, and he said he can probably get the deadly weapon shit thrown out, but I don’t think I’m getting out of this one, but I’m gon’ try. I love you, a’ight? You’ve always been the best thing to ever come into my life. You always had myback and never switched up on me, and I will always love and honor you for that. If shit don’t work out, don’t wait for me. But when I get home, just know I’m coming for you. You gon’ still be my wife and give me my babies. You hear me?”
I sniffled into the receiver as I cried audibly. My heart was breaking, and my airways were clogging.
I couldn’t breathe.
“Dinny. Breathe for me, baby. Please. I need you to be strong.”
I could hear the sorrow in his voice, and I broke down even more.
“I-I-I can’t. What am I supposed to do without you, Zi?”
“Live, baby. I’m gon’ get right back. That money in the floorboard is yours. Keep it and take care of whatever it is you need to. The apartment is in your name, so you good. Just . . . promise me you’ll be available when a nigga get back.”
I nodded as if he could see me. “I promise.”
“You have one minute of talk time available,” the recording said.
“I love you, baby, and I’m sorry.”
The line disconnected, and I fell to the floor in agony. Junie and Jessie got down on the floor with me and held me as I cried because a life without Zion was no life at all.
I could feel my heart broken and knew this was one situation I would never come back from.