Chapter 26

                    Sariah's pov

  Earlan was definitely in fear of Younglord, it was almost laughable. The two of them eyed each other at the dinner table was intense and comical. It's not like we didn't realize Younglord had a lot of his father's ways, but my glance into the future saw that Earlan will have his work cut out for him by his son. I smile shrewdly, how ironic I thought to have one son that takes after you so much and he will be the great competitor you are afraid to challenge.

  This will surely be fun I thought watching how both of them eat the same way, Younglord really looks just like Earlan, especially with his long locks falling onto his back. Never in my wildest dreams had I expected him to look and act so much like him. He may not get the chance to be rebellious because of me, but he was going to be a determined force to reckon with.

  The amount of food I sent with Carissa that evening could feed the entire Harbour View, Balla was taking her home and one of my small trucks was carrying food to be shared between her, my sister and Ms. Doreen. By the time they had driven through the gate, I was already missing her and her children. It was such fun to have them with us and it ended way too soon.

  I combed all my daughter's hair for school, while the boys clean their shoes. Rajae gave Raheem a faded haircut leaving a high amount on the top of his head. If he was sent home the next day from school he was on his own. Earlan was still in my office when I finished doing all I had to do that night.

  He had the sales book from one of his clothes stores open on the desk before him and he was deep in thought. Without saying anything to him, I went and checked that all the windows and doors were closed. A little while after I heard him talking to Pelpa on the phone. Then he came to the back door and I opened it letting him inside, he went into my office and was there with Earlan for a while. Switching off the tv I decide to call it a night and go to bed. I had just put my feet on the first stairs when I heard Earlan say.

  "Da idiot yah really wan' mi fuck dem up."

  There was nothing for quite some time until I heard Pelpa say, "pause it an' go back likkle." They were watching one of the stores' tapes I presumed. Someone was going to get fired I said in my mind and continued up the stairs. If there was one thing I knew about Earlan it was that he didn't joke where his businesses are concerned. I would never want to be on the wrong side of any business transaction with him. I have to give him praise where it was due and that was he ran the businesses exceptionally well. He was shrewd, smart, enigmatic and skillful, he hardly missed anything unless he overlooked it.

  After taking a shower I reply to a couple of messages regarding Cubina state and one from the emperor's secretary. With nothing pressing, I decided to watch tv until Earlan came up to bed.

  I woke the next morning feeling for him on the bed but there was no him. I got up and walked to his bedroom seeing his bed still as it was from the day before. After using the bathroom I used the access tablet and found him downstairs in the kitchen fully dressed.

  I woke the children then went down to the kitchen, "morning," I whispered looking at him.

  "Morning, I slept on the couch I'm restless and on edge so no badda start." He said sternly.

  I went to the stove and found breakfast was already prepared, so I began getting the lunch bags packed. "I take it you're leaving with Pelpa?" I asked him.

  "Yes and I'm driving your jeep." He stated.

  I released the breath I was holding glad when Rajae came to the back door to distract me. "Morning, nuh tangit dey here? One pipe buss up ina di weed grung." He said opening the cupboard drawer that held those things.

  He found a tube of tangit and went away again. I turn to see Earlan masking a scowl on his face.

  It was way after he had left that I realized what Rajae had said and why he had been scowling. The ready to reap weed trees swayed in the light breeze that blew and a couple of Rajae's friends stood around nervously some distance into the acres of weed trees. I sighed heavily and rolled my eyes at them, before I reach back down to the house they would no doubt call or message Rajae.

  I walked to where the farmer was weeding and digging around some yam hills, greeted him warmly and looked about for a while. On my drive down back to the house, I spot Rajae ducking behind a group of trees. I hissed, his stupid friends have called him. I felt like going back up there and rooting up everything.

Earlan's pov

  After making the employee who stole six of my most expensive pullover joggers suits sign a contract document, I then had her get them from her home by threatening her. She would work two months without pay then be let off. She huffed and puffed angrily so I made a phone call, then tore up the contract and shub har outta mi store.

  "Memba sey yuh use to fuck mi sista and see how yuh a gwane ova di suite dem wey yuh get back!" She cursed loudly outside.

  "Mine mi mek yuh sista know yuh use to fuck mi to, move yuh rass from yahso you an' yuh sista wan' throat training," I told her angrily.

  Torcha looked at me with his face screwed up, him ugly nuh pussycloth like him think sey mi care bout his feelings. He will never live long enough fi get nobody else fi work ina none a mi business place dem. Riri and har thieving cousin wan' flush dung di toilet.

  "Gi mi a draw offa yuh spliff dey," Torcha said stretching for the spliff in my hand

  "Gi yuh bumboclaate! Mi know wey you a do wid yuh mouth! Yuh think mi fuck man just through yuh get wey wid so much fuckery." I cursed angrily uncaring of those looking at us.

  "You have a problem wid mi?" He shouted coming up to me.

  I hissed angrily, "yuh a no mi bloodclaate wife drauze how mi fi have a problem wid yuh, likkle ungrateful wutlis shithouse. Tek yuh pussy-bumbo-rasscloth outta mi place man."

  "A dat yuh call mi up yah fah bredda? A caan have yuh have mi up ova woman." He yelled and Balla stepped between the two of us.

  "Tsk, a who yuh waste buoy?! Which bomboclaate woman mi coulda eva have yuh up ova dogshit?" I drawled nastily.

"Yuh call mi fi come up yah and now yuh tek out big tracing match wid mi, go suck yuhself yah man mi no care wey yuh vex wid mi fa right now, ca-" he was saying.

"A you fi go suck yuhself john crow-"

"Go suck out Ms. Charmaine man bumboclaate mek mi cum outta-" he was saying and walking to the door.

"Go suck out back your big stinking ole Mumma dutty batty bwoy," I told him with Balla preventing me from going after him.

  "Go drain out Riri dutty dog if yuh na dweet a'ready, pussy yah go suffa, Badmind germs yuh soon dead. Yah one walking dead buoy. Pussyole crosses." I cursed until his car was gone from my view.

  I was so angry if anyone cut me they wouldn't see any blood, "tsk memba mi tell uno, uno ago live fi see dah pussy dey a suffa." I said disregarding the slight ache in my throat from the shouting I just did.

  Suspending the supervisor with immediate effect, I had Pelpa send home the two remaining staff members and locked up the store. As I sat in the small back office looking at the returned pullover suites, my mind went back to when I had hired the new supervisor. I had reserved the spot a few months after my mom told me she had lied about Sariah. At that time it would be the right position for her in her pregnancy. Look how life turns out she was now too high for this position. With stores of her own and more businesses than I own-

  "Yuh ready?" Pelpa asked from the office doorway.

  "Yea," I replied getting up and taking up the crotch stick.

  We drove in peaceful silence to drop off Balla at the new location he have his store at. I felt a sense of loss deep within me at losing Torcha as my friend, I wasn't sure if I hated him or Riri more.

  "Whaa! A it dis?" I exclaimed and asked looking at the grocery store Pelpa parked in front of.

  "Yeah, man. Yuh wan' come in come tek a look?" He replied and asked.

  "Might as well, suppose mi see sumn wey mi wan' buy," I told him.

  "Most likely a half-price fi we ino," Pelpa said.

"Half price yuh face, yuh think when mi a order mi goods mi a get half price." Balla snapped at him.

  I laughed trying to get out of the jeep without hurting up my foot. "Mi love di murals and di paint color scheme," I told Balla as I stood admiring the storefront.

  "Fi real man and mi a see good business so far." He said lowly.

  We went in and walked about as he showed me around, "Balla, mi like di setup no joke." I told him and he nodded.

  I'll definitely be shopping here I told myself, he had a wide setting like price mart and I began taking up a few things I wanted to purchase. He clapped his hands signaling an employee close by, their uniforms were the color that the store was painted in. It made the whole setting professional and I liked it a lot.

  "Mumma can come shopping yah so," I murmured.

  He took the basket from the woman and told her thanks, I put the things I had picked up inside it and he carried it as we walked along the aisles. I was tired and had two trolleys of things by the time we went to the cashier. His fiancé came and smile sweetly at us, I hugged her and she proceeded to cash me instead of the cashier who she instructed to pack up the goods.

  I got a message and looked to see that it was Rajae, I opened the text and read.

  Mommy just go view the weed grung and gone back down, di youth dem sey she nuh say nutn. Mi no know wey she up to.

Alright,

  I respond and pocket back mi phone, mek she say nutn to mi bout it, fucking miserable and nuh mek nutn rass pass har, I murmured in my head. She better have lunch ready by time mi reach home.

  I'm on my way home please prepare some lunch for me and Pelpa. I texted her.

  Ok. She replied a few seconds after.

  I call Rajae over for the items I place one side for him, I don't know if I'll be able to break back out of the habit of buying more groceries to share with him. We had been doing so when Sariah was away and he spend his money buying groceries for both houses too. We live close-knitted and it worked out great.

  Sariah served lunch and we all sat around the dining room table eating. Then we played video games in the living room until Balla came home with my children and his. We went up to the treehouse but came down back when a van drive-in. It was my fish delivery but I had not told them to deliver them here, they were supposed to call me and deliver them down at my house where I was planning to host a small get-together.

What the fuck were they doing up here?

  To be continued....