Hell's Diva (16 page)

Coming Fall of 2011

Hell’s Diva II: Mecca’s Return

Joseph of the Bible was known for the ability to interpret dreams. It was the ability that caught the curiosity of the Pharaoh of Egypt whose own interpreters were useless. Joseph interpreted the Pharaoh’s dreams and became a powerful man in ancient Egypt. As Mecca attentively gazed into the eyes of Lou, she wondered who she could wake up and ask to interpret her dreams and tell her exactly who Lou was.

“You do not know what vengeance is because it is not yours to give,” Lou said, holding a stethoscope to Mecca’s chest, dressed in a white overcoat. Mecca lay still on a stark white linen hospital bed with a preoccupied expression on her face.

“You act as if I’m dumb or something. Keep in mind, Lou, that I’m a grown woman, and not the child you visit in my dreams,” Mecca replied gruffly.

Ever since Lou snapped Mecca out of her coma, appearing in her dreams, she realized that she had become intrigued by his speeches of her doing the right thing with her life and letting go of the feeling of getting payback on all of those who betrayed her. Especially, her aunt Ruby. Initially, she found him annoying and somewhat cruel by putting her through all the grueling tasks of viewing her friends and loved ones being betrayed and herself a victim of the double-cross.

Mecca no longer had anyone in her life she could trust or talk to about any issues that she had. She used to talk to Ruby or Ruby’s lesbian lover, Monique, who Mecca confided in more than anyone else. She would rely on Monique to give her motherly advice about men, sex, and feminine issues. Now Monique was dead, and Mecca came to find out that Ruby was a low-down, dirty snake. With Lou, he not only told her that the life she lived was one big lie filled with betrayal, lust, and greed, but he showed her how and why.

What could be more interesting than seeing your life played out in full view from your childhood to your adult life, and glimpsing at things you didn’t see at first? Like your so-called friends’ and families’ secret lives of treachery…

“Grown?” Lou questioned, removing the stethoscope from Mecca’s chest and laughed. “Is that what you all call fully matured adults now?”

“What makes you think I want revenge?” Mecca asked, rolling her eyes at his sarcasm.

“If only humans could make machines that could listen to what’s in the heart instead of just its beats, would someone be able to answer that,” Lou answered, looking at the stethoscope in his hands. “But, unfortunately they can’t and I can. Your heart tells me revenge is what you seek,” he continued as he set the stethoscope down on the bedside table and rubbed his hands together.

Mecca looked away from Lou and wondered to herself if it was her fault that she felt angry about being snaked by people she risked her life and freedom for. How did he expect her to feel knowing now what they did behind her back? What world did Lou live in?

“You turn your head and eyes away so that I can’t read your thoughts. Very smart, young lady,” Lou quipped, snapping Mecca from her thoughts. She gave him a dumbfounded look as if she didn’t know what he was talking about.

“Revenge doesn’t always have to be killing everyone who betrayed you. Karma is nature’s way of revenge and sometimes you have to let nature take its course,” Lou preached.

“That ‘what goes around comes around’ crap? Please spare me,” Mecca said in a tone of disbelief. Lou shook his head, and then Mecca displayed a mischievous grin on her face. “Is this one of those moments where you’re gonna show me better than telling me?”

“Don’t tell me you’re beginning to enjoy this,” Lou commented more than asked as he shook his head. Mecca smiled. She remembered him telling her that her smile was irresistible. Lou shrugged his shoulders, and then placed his hand on her forehead as if he were checking for her temperature.

“So be it…”

Anna J, bestselling author of My Woman, His Wife and Snow White, has been a heavy hitter for six years in the book business. With gritty street tales such as Get Money Chicks and erotic short stories like “A Crime of Passion” (appearing in the spring 2010 anthology The Bedroom Chronicles) Anna is a versatile storyteller who has become a household name. A Philadelphian, born and raised, she proudly writes about her city. Anna, fondly referred to by her friends as Ms. J, is excited about the release of her sixth novel Hell’s Diva, and is hard at work on her next book.