Laventille (Love Until) - Part 2
Feeling his rough hand around my arm pulling me up towards
himself, I knew then that fear was victor and my legs had betrayed me. Thank
God there was no one else around to see my shame.
“Yuh alright pretty girl?”
“Yeah…….thanks”
“Yuh grow up real nice yuh know Darkie”
“Yeah….thanks”
“Yuh now coming from classes?”
“Yeah”
“What yuh studying?”
“Law…”
“What……yuh want to be one a dem big shot lawyers……that good,
so if ah get in any trouble ah know who to call.”
“Yeah.....alright…….goodnight”
“Ah go tell Ricardo ah see yuh”
“Yeah”
“Be careful when you going up de track eh Darkie” he warned,
retreating back into the shadows as I made my escape. With a comfortable
distance between us my courage returned and I chuckled to myself, “Like he didn’t
conceive that when mothers told their children to be wary of the tracks, they
were warning them against HIM, the sinister ‘bad boy with a gun’ ”.
I was half way up the track when booming sounds sent me into
a state of confusion. What the hell was that? I could never tell the difference
between firecrackers and gun shots. Which one echoed and which one didn’t? The blood
crawling sound of shoes crushing gravel told me it was the latter. There it was
again. A rapid series of thunderous sounds. This time closer than before. Too
close. My body trembled with each deafening heartbeat. I was fighting a battle
between crippling fear and the need to flee. Oh God! Run Gyul Run! Bullet doh
recognise face. My feet and chest were aching from the pounding they were
receiving. I was struggling to catch my
breath. But this was one war I was determined to win. By the time I got to
safety at the top of the track, my ears were ringing, and I was sure whoever was
on the other side of Mr. Crichlow’s wall could hear my rapid short breaths as I
clung to the post for dear life.
Alright Ma, yuh win; I not passing in them tracks again.
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