That evening Rhonda watched the movie he recommended and she prayed he would call so she could tell him. Her prayers were answered later that night. They talked on the phone for an hour about their friends and hobbies and then he asked if he could meet her again the next day. “Like a date?” she had asked him.
“Sure,” he said. “Exactly.” They made plans to meet after school. He’d come to the courts and they could go from there. Rhonda hadn’t been able to sleep that night, she was so excited. In the morning she did her nails and put on her favorite outfit and went to school. The minute the bell rang, she ran to the courts and sure enough, Ray was there. He smiled when he saw her and handed her a Snickers bar. So thoughtful, she mused, remembering that she had told him her favorite candy the night before.
He said he wanted to show her something, so they started walking away from the courts. He led her up Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard until they got to the river. She had never been to this part of the river. The boardwalk wasn’t completed and there was no one else around. How romantic, Rhonda thought, opening the Snickers bar. She offered him a bite and he said no thanks with a big smile on his face.
Before she understood what was happening her back was pressed up against the railing. The bar was hurting her back and if she looked to the side, she saw the river below. With one hand, Ray held her neck and with the other he tugged at her jeans. Her jeans that already had holes in all the right places tore easily as he pulled them down her legs. “Stop,” she tried to say, but she wasn’t sure if she said it out loud. Maybe she didn’t and that’s why he didn’t stop.
It hurt and she dropped the Snickers bar into the river below. She was afraid she’d fall back if she fought him, so she just stood there with her eyes closed, the railing bar banging further into her back with every thrust. It was just a couple minutes and then it was over and Ray stood back. She opened her eyes to see him smile at her and then he yelled “Cobras unite!”
Suddenly, a group of boys wearing all black except for green bandanas tied around their right arms, appeared. They were clapping and cheering and patting Ray on the back. She watched as one of the boys tied a green bandana around Ray’s arm and then sliced his palm open. The boy handed Ray the knife and he too sliced open his palm. The boys shook hands, mixing their blood, and then bottles of alcohol were passed around. No one looked at Rhonda. It was like she wasn’t there. But she didn’t move. She stood there, with her ripped jeans by her ankles, and watched the boys celebrate. It felt like hours when she finally had the courage to move. They boys were still celebrating and no one seemed to notice her pull up what was left of her pants and go.
She didn’t tell anyone about it, not even Keisha. When her friend asked what happened with Ray, she just told them he was a scrub and they all nodded knowingly. So many guys were.
It wasn’t until two months later that Rhonda took a pregnancy test. She had had her suspicions for a while, but couldn’t face it. What were the chances? It only lasted a couple minutes, maybe even just one minute. There was no way…
She took the test in Keisha’s bathroom and pretended to rejoice with her. Then, she went to Madeline, the only person she thought would know what to do.
Chapter 36
Rhonda didn’t need to go into all the details with Madeline. But she gave her a brief explanation of what happened that day so Madeline would understand how evil the Cobras were. The Cobras were horrible people, all of them, and anyone who associated with them was just as guilty.
“And Hunter works for them,” Rhonda concluded her story. “That’s why I left him.”
Madeline nodded without giving away any glimpse of how she felt. “I’m so sorry that all happened to you.”
Rhonda felt satisfied, telling Madeline the truth. Now, if she were close to the decent person she pretended to be, she would never be with Hunter. She would never be with someone who worked with rapists.
“So you see, the money ain’t for the divorce,” Rhonda said. “So you giving him money doesn’t free him from me.” She tried to bait Madeline, wondering how she would respond. That woman didn’t give anything away. “That’s why you’re here, right?”
“Well, that’s not my business,” Madeline responded. From this conversation, Madeline was sure Rhonda wasn’t behind the blackmail. Had she been, she would have tried to convince Madeline to pay rather than spend her time bashing her husband. “But I believe I got what I came for.” Madeline took another small sip of water from the cup in front of her and stood up. “It’s late, I should be going.”
Rhonda agreed. Indeed it was late, so late, that it was actually early morning. She wouldn’t get much sleep before she needed to get up and get the kids to school before heading to court for a hearing in her divorce proceedings. She was tired of the divorce and didn’t understand what took so long. She just needed alimony and child-support and was sure that Hunter could fund her lifestyle, even with just his salary from city council and his landscaping business.
She walked Madeline to the door, thinking about how strange it was to be face to face with the woman she had thought about so many times over the years. “Well, goodbye, now,” she said, and Madeline
