Between Friends by D. L. Sparks Page B

and sucked in air. She stretched out next to my sister and me. And we all lay there until the sun rose pretending to be asleep, and praying he didn’t return.
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    It’s amazing how your mother’s influence molds you. When you are in the womb, your mother’s actions and movements influence your movements and sleep patterns. When you’re born, you are trained that daytime is for waking and nighttime is for sleeping. That, too, is by your mother. As you grow, your parents teach you a lot about manners, rules, and how to act in public. But it’s the unconscious things they teach you that seem to take hold of you like a pissed-off pit bull that refuses to let go.
    I believe that you are taught to be the person you eventually grow up to be by watching your parents. Girls learn how to be a woman by watching their mothers; they also learn what to look for in a husband or a boyfriend by what they are exposed to by their father. Boys learn what to look for in a wife or a girlfriend from their mothers, but more importantly they learn from their fathers how to be a man and a father. So, inevitably, if something is wrong with the equation, then a person is involuntarily set up for a life that is way harder than it has to be.
    My father taught me an important lesson.
    Not just how to be a man, but how to be a better man than him.
    The bruises. The black eyes. The trips to my aunt’s that always lasted longer than they were supposed to. Everyone wanted to blame the drinking and the drugs, but I refused to give him a cop-out.
    He made a choice, and it was the wrong one.
    I made up in my mind I was never gonna treat a woman that way. The way I was prepared to protect my mother that night—as a man—I would always be prepared to protect . I guess that’s what drove me to the force, and for whatever reason held me on the force.
    I was compelled to protect those who couldn’t protect themselves.
    After my shower I dried off and stretched across the rented bed and tried to will myself to sleep, but my mind wouldn’t stop. I checked the clock, and the restaurant downstairs, Savu, was already closed. I got up and got the files off the coffee table and sat down on the couch. I spread the evidence and files out in front of me like puzzle pieces.
    I picked up the picture from the latest crime scene. The only thing more disturbing than the scenes themselves was how clean they were. No prints, no trace, nothing. The girl’s twisted body lay peacefully. Outside of her throat being slashed, it appeared she was sleeping. I stared at her face, peaceful and beautiful. Guilt washed over me for a moment.
    I couldn’t protect her.
    I placed the picture back inside the folder and dialed my sister.
    I could tell I’d woken her up, but I didn’t care. “Get up. I can’t sleep.”
    She yawned. “Ooh! I hate you.” I heard her moving around. “What’s up with you?”
    â€œSitting here, going through these case files.”
    â€œMan, that shit’ll give you nightmares,” she said.
    She had no idea how true that was. “So how’s work?” I asked, trying to change the subject.
    â€œIt’s work. Dealing with the public ain’t easy.”
    I chuckled. “Who you telling?”
    â€œWe miss having you around. Especially Mama.”
    â€œI know, Trin. But I needed a change.”
    â€œSo what made you come to that conclusion? You’re all the way over there with no family, and you can’t hold down a relationship longer than six months.”
    I kept telling myself that she meant well, which was the only thing that was saving her from getting cussed out.
    â€œJust let it go, Trinity.”
    â€œI will, when you answer me this. Was it Pops or Idalis?”
    Hearing both of those insinuations was a blow that I wasn’t ready for. “It was time for me to move on. That’s all.”
    â€œCome on, Trip, this is me. I was