Chickie pulled into the driveway. Ciacco opened his side of the door and started emptying the bed of the truck. Soon Chickie followed and helped Ciacco.
I sat in the car with my head facing the window. I grab my wrist.
Why did I do that? Now I'm pinked out (pynked). I know what caused it, maybe this whole time I just... Want something to cover up my own shortcomings. Aleigha was trying to guide me.
I'm just grateful.
Worst maybe I just want to be human. Which doesn't make much sense.
I could be a king; I could have it all.
Mokiri wanted to be a vampire... she got what she wanted but still, I tug on the leash.
Get that out of my head. I should move from it instead of clinging to dead dogs. Maybe—not maybe, I do treat her like a dog.
But bullshit I'm finna sit here alone.
I open my car door and exit. I go to the door of the house. All I hear is Spanish.
"¡Te pedí que la vigilaras!" Chickie is clapping her hands furiously with wet eyes. I walk in and Ciacco is holding a doll in his arms looking stunned. "What's happening?"
"The baby's nose is bleeding." he tells in a whisper. Jose is sitting on the couch towards the wall next to the bookshelf with the child. He's wiping her nose with rag as several other rags sit by him on the armchair.
"¿Crees que hice una mierda como esta?" he hollers. The wallpaper starts to tear as he shouts. "¡Es toda esa jodida medicina que está tomando y se la sigues dando!"
"She keeps denying giving her medicine..." translates Ciacco. "I'm not!" Chickie screams. "I'm being attacked!" her hands fly to her as tears stream her face. "You're being attacked!" Jose blurts out.
"Llegas a casa gritándome y esa mierda. ¡Tu trasero tiene suerte de que todavía deje quedarme aquí!" Jose asserts in spanish. Ciacco's eyes get wide.
"What's happening?" I look at him. "I think she's getting kicked out."
"¡Hazlo!" Chickie picks up the vase close to the couch close to the door. She hurls it forward; Jose raises his hand to catch it with magic. "¿Ves lo que estás haciendo?" his hand pulses sending the object hurling back at her, she dodges it.
"Jesus..."
"¡Sacame! ¡Hazlo!" she cries. I have anxiety. "Por favor calmate..." utters little Ciacco. Bless his heart. "Give me my fucking daughter!"
"Why!" Jose guards the baby. "So, you can kill her?"
Chickie hops up and down, "¡Te comeré mientras duermes!"
Ciacco looks at me with wild eyes. "She's threatening to eat him!"
She puts her hand out, Jose puts his granddaughter down. He gets up. "LOCK!" Chickie shouts. "CHAIN!" Jose counters, silver chains wrap around Chickie's legs causing her to falter. Simona cries and her nose starts to bleed.
Jose comes and picks her up by the chains. He heads for the door. "¡Si quieres salir, puedes largarte a la mierda!"
"July... he's throwing her out!" Ciacco panics, he drops the puppet that starts to wiggle.
I hope to God he isn't asking me to do anything.
Jose throws Chickie's screaming person out the door. I look at Simona's bleeding face and dart my head to the door.
That's her mother...
Jose goes to the crying child and lifts her in his arms. He looks at me, "Go get the q-tips from the bathroom and some rubbing alcohol."
.
.
.
Jose gently swabs Simona's nose with the rubbing alcohol as she sits in a highchair. He told me some minutes ago to make tomato soup and I'm not sure what that's supposed to do for a nosebleed induced by drugs.
I look at him from the recess of my eye. "Who--"
"Fucking Ian!" he yells. And I'm in his fucking body. "Can I ask about your relationship with Ian?" Jose puts down the q-tip in an annoyed manner, he huffs. Simona starts picking her nose. "No..." he pulls her hand away from her nose.
"Ian is a son of a bitch." he says. "The fucking nigga used to be a werewolf. He got into some cocoaine. So, I got a druggie dog in my house, he has a brother in prison for what he did and lied saying it was him. This is his daughter, also my fucking granddaughter, Simona Luzzie Dante."
"Luzzie?" questions Ciacco next to me. "It come from the Spanish term for 'sunlight' she thought she was honoring me, stupid bitch."
"That's yo' daughter man--"
"And!"
"You just kicked out her fucking mother!" I exclaim gesturing to the baby. "That's still her goddamn mama!"
"I agree..." Ciacco takes over stirring the soup.
"You wanna do it?"
I swear to God this shit is fucked. He told me; she wasn't mine! So, what the fuck, I'm a goddamn baby daddy—no, I'm a step daddy.
I have to leave.
"I didn't say all that," I growl. I rub my temples, "Ok, let Chickie back in the house." I state calmly. "Fuck no, and fuck her!"
"She's your daughter—is everybody fucking crazy!"
"Yes..." Ciacco mutters thinking no one can hear him.
Simona starts picking her nose again and it starts to bleed. Jose gives her his full attention. He takes her hands and starts swatting them. "¡Para de hacer eso! Vas a hacer que el abuelo te corte las manos."
She frowns with strength in her face.
"She's a baby, man--"
"You shut the fuck up!" demands Jose. The back dose swings open, Chickie just stands there and gazes at her father. "I broke the gate..."
He flops his head down on the high chair desk and Simona picks her nose and jabs his head. Chickie comes and picks up her baby. She walks as if she didn't just get kicked out of the house for a few minutes.
"Is this soup done?"
"Turn it off."
.
.
.
The day goes on and Jose stayed in the kitchen the whole time while Chickie tended to her baby and I watched her as well as hear her give her the medicine and ask why!
Simona started crying and her nose bled, so I had to get towels told Ciacco to watch the family while I went out and got towels. Then Simona started pulling her hair out and scratching. I went out again and got mittens.
She started clapping and crying. Chickie rocked her but all she did was cry more. So, to end the noise she gave her half a sleeping pill and she cried because she didn't know why she did it.
Now I'm mad and Chickie and I start arguing. She hits me in the face and pelts me with slaps and punches. Ciacco screams with the power of anxiety because of the level of activity in the house.
Chickie then cussed me out in English and locked herself upstairs.
I
Am
Exhausted.
I sat on the couch with Ciacco thinking back running around with no second thoughts. "You know your mind is loud?"
"Yeah." he says without looking at me.
I suck in snot not from tears but the amount of fuck shit I'm going through. I know this. Ian gave Simona the meds, why? Because he's fucking evil.
The plot Ian Harding aka Rahill's cousin, brother, or whatever; had this grand idea to turn a vampire family human for a laugh and he has been plotting against Jose.
Jose heard the truth but keep ruining his relationships and can't seem to stop himself. So, Chickie and her dad are fucking horrible people and Simona is in the wrong house.
"Do you know what's wrong with them?" Ciacco whispers. I shake my head. If I knew, I'd be free.
"Hey, nigga..." voices Jose from the kitchen. "If you find out. It's whatever... like you can have the house and everything."
Goddamn!
"I don't want anything from you!"
"Can I still live here? I'm a puppy..." queries Ciacco.
Jose exhales, "Sure!"
"Gracias..." he says.
"Tell me something else about Ian and his brother?"
Jose breathes, I'm annoyed. What if I kick his ass for pollution? Ciacco looks up and the corners of his mouth are down. "Do you hear that?"
"Whoever is chirping, shut up..." pleads Chickie. "What chirping?" I glance at him. Ciacco gets up and stands in front of the stairs. "Señor, ¿tiene un ático?"
"You don't have to say it in spanish—I don't use it."
As soon as he stops talking, I hear it. "What is that?"
"You hear it too?"
"Hey--"
"Chickie shut the hell up!" I jolt up from the couch. "Nigga fuck you, if you don't like living here. You can get the fuck out!"
"You are such a dumb ass bitch. Do you get paid for this?"
I hear Chickie bolt down the hall to the stairs. "I hate you--"
"Thank God." I flick invisible sweat from my forehead. "If you said the opposite." I start panicking. "I was gon' have to run..."
"Eres un maricón. Te ves lúgubre, polvorienta y sucia. Te gusta que acabas de bajar del barco. Apuesto a que tienes una mamá bebé y no haces una mierda!"
I just blink, "You must be tired as hell with that linguistic exercise... say it in English. Less words."
"Ok, listen to that—you sorry motherfucker!"
"Thank God," I put my hands on my hips. Ciacco goes upstairs. "I'm happy I ain't shit. Lord knows you would work a nigga to death."
She perches her body on the rail. "Sitting on his dick..." she sticks her tongue out.
"Girl, don't nobody want that chupacabra coohie..."
"Fuck you!"
"Can't my dick is picky--"
The argument breaks at the sound of a scream. Ciacco hauls his ass downstairs and heads for the kitchen. "what the fuck..."
"Chickie turns to the head of the stairs. She starts backing away with a horrified look and chirping reaches my ears. "What the hell is that noise--" Jose freezes coming out of the kitchen.
It's a human-sized voodoo doll with a crooked leg that's sown onto his torn region.
Why does a quarter of its body have flesh while everything is snitched including its mouth?
Scratch that, the more I look at it, its eyes are sown but one side has an eye partly closed and the left side is a bugged out human green eye.
"Papi!" Chickie bolts to her father. He pushes her, she collapses on the floor. "Daddy!"
"What!" he looks at his hands. The puppet sticks out its limb and the snitches start moving as if it's talking. My body tenses.
Chickie lifts off her heels and slaps her father, he slaps her back and a knife appears in her hand. "Chickie!" she thrust the knife in his midsection. Jose bites his daughter and the puppet goes upstairs, dragging its crooked leg.
"What the fuck! What the fuck!" Jose falls to the floor while I follow the ragdoll. "Daddy, I'm sorry!"
When I reach the foot of the stairs, the puppet has Simona with its no having fingers around her mouth. She's turning her head trying to shake it off.
"BOW!" I shout but the word is still in front of me. The puppet dashes forward and puts its hand through my body. I feel my spirit choking, Simona starts crying.
My soul is on fire.
Ian's body falls to the ground and I'm on the floor. What the—they can't do that! The puppet kidnaps—KIDNAPS THE DOLL IS TAKING A CHILD. I hear Chickie's voice at the bottom of the steps. "Not my fucking daughter--" she stops. I get off the floor and scurry downstairs to see Chickie with her arms out like she's being hung on a cross.
"Chickie!" My eyes are fixed on the doll. The door opens on its own, treading through the exit.