Michael cursed under his breath, “Did you come on to her? Damn it. Jessie is like a sister to Téa.”
“It’s not like you think. We were reading lines and she kissed me. Next thing I knew, one thing led to another. It came out of nowhere.”
“Jessie is not the kind of girl you can just sleep with and it doesn’t mean anything.”
“You don’t think I know that! I spent all night trying to sort this out in my mind. She’s special to me and like I’ve said, I would never do anything to hurt her.”
“This didn’t just come from nowhere. If you can’t be honest with me at least be honest with yourself. I’ve seen how you look at her when you think no one is looking.”
Brian didn’t deny it.
“Do you want to explore something more with her?”
“I spent all night thinking about that. You know my circle of people I trust is very small. It consists basically of three people, you, Jessie, and Téa. If I tried to pursue something more and it didn’t work, my circle would get even smaller. I would never want to hurt or lose Jessie.”
“How do you know you would hurt her or that it wouldn’t work out? How do you know she’s not the one for you?”
“I’m not willing to risk it. I’m not even sure how she feels about last night. We haven’t talked about it yet. She could feel like it was a mistake. Then, there’s Brigitte. What? Do I just kick her to the curb? I genuinely care for her. She understands me and we’re good together.”
“It sounds like you’ve made your decision.”
“I have…Jessie is one of my best friends and I never intend to lose that friendship. I’ll always do anything to protect it.”
“I can’t say that I’m not sorry. I’ve always thought Jessie would be good for you. When she’s around you’re more…relaxed. She seems to help keep you grounded. But, if that’s your decision, I’ll respect it. I just want you to be happy, and if Brigitte does that for you, then I support that, too.”
“Thanks. I just hope everything is ok.”
While Michael and Brian were downstairs Téa was going to force Jessie to face her demons. She knocked on the door. There was no answer. She knocked again. Again, there was no answer. Luckily, when she turned the door knob it was unlocked.
“Jessie, it’s me, Téa.”
Jessie was lying on the bed with her hands behind her head staring up at the ceiling. Téa sat down on the bed next to her.
Jessie closed her eyes and the tears just started to stream down her face. Her voice was shaky, “Téa, I was so wrapped up in…in…the craziness that is my life…that I forgot. What kind of person would forget about them?”
“A person who has experienced an unimaginable tragedy but is trying to move on with her life. You didn’t forget them. Don’t you think you’ve served your penance? It’s been nine years, Jessie.”
“I’ve tried to let it go. I carry it with me every day and I can’t.”
“Something was so powerful it allowed you the space to let the guilt go, if only for just a minute. And guess what? It’s okay.”
Jessie sat up in the bed and covered her face with her hands, “You don’t understand, I shouldn’t be here. I should have died, too!”
Téa reached out and hugged her tightly as they cried together.
Jessie started talking as if the tragedy had just happened. “We were sleeping when the men came into our house. By the time we knew they were inside they’d already made it into the girls’ bedroom. I’m guessing they thought it was our room. We begged and pleaded for them not to hurt the girls. They kept asking for the Amuru. We didn’t even know what the Amuru was, but we would have given them anything.
I watched them kill my babies. I watched them Téa. There was so much blood. Antonio and I tried to stop them but we couldn’t. They shot me first in the chest barely missing my heart. But I saw them put a bullet right through Antonio’s eyes. They left both of us for dead.”
Téa was crying too, “I didn’t know you saw everything.”
“I saw everything. At some point I must have passed out because it wasn’t until I woke up in the hospital several days later that Kyoshe explained what happened. They took my life…my soul…and it was all because of a mistaken identity. They had the wrong house.”
Téa was in shock. Kyoshe is real? She’d thought he was a myth. “I’m so sorry, Jessie, but I thought Kyoshe was an urban legend? He really does exist?”
“Yes she’s real. After I got stronger, I found out all I could about the Amuru. With the help and training of Kyoshe, I found the men who killed my family and the men who ordered it. They now have no need for the Amuru. It sits on my desk.”
“I don’t understand...you didn’t allow those men to kill you that night, but you’ve allowed them to murder your spirit. I think that is worse, and I can’t believe this is what Antonio would have wanted for you. He’d have wanted you to try to build a life, not live in some self-made purgatory simply because you didn’t die.”
“That’s not what I’m doing.”
“Isn’t it? Isn’t that why you keep everyone outside of MEGA-AX1 at a distance—even Michael and Brian?”
Jessie pulled back from her embrace and wiped away the tears with the back of her hands.
“What do you want me to do? I’m trying.”
“Try harder. You’ve got to figure out a way to let go of the pain, hurt, and guilt. I’ve known you for eight years and you only run yourself to the point of exhaustion when something is on your mind. Whatever it was allowed you a brief reprieve, but you’re fighting it. What was it?”
Jessie contemplated not telling Téa, but she was tired
