Dezerai 4 pt 3 by Shak

[shak7]

Chapter 3
The Volatile Past part 2

As Karmen drove down interstate 5 south to LA she remembered that family meeting 7 years ago as if it were yesterday…….. They were sitting in her Grand Mothers dining room intrigued but having been prepped by Grandmother Dezerai they were not surprised. Her Mother Tanya and Mama Tanisha were there and Shalitha’s parents Kenny and Latoya. Even though her cheekbone was fractured just a week ago she was still able to talk and shared the whole story with them, every sordid detail. She even had the video if any family members wanted to see it. To her relief but not her surprise Kenny spoke up first after she finished.
“Come here baby girl” he stood up and walked over to Karmen. As soon as Karmen got up Kenny hugged her and wouldn’t let go……and Karmen melted in his arms, tears in her eyes and relief in her soul.
“I ain’t surprised…..you and my baby been at war all your lives. After she broke your jaw at the game in High School I told Latoya you would get her back….so I’m not surprised. Don’t get me wrong K you wuz wrong! But the way you two were going this was inevitable.”
He then kissed Karmen on the forehead and told her he loves her and nothing will ever change that. He also told her he’s glad she came clean……but not to feel ashamed…..every person in this room has done some ignorant shit in their life, especially him.
“What you did is kid stuff to the shit I use-ta do……don’t forget I spent 3 years in prison for armed robbery and attempted murder. I was a Crip and did some sick violent shit growing up. So don’t feel ashamed K, my sins are worse than anybody’s in this room.”
Latoya asked for the video and Karmen gave it to her. Dezerai had a laptop and some headphones so Latoya could see it. Two minutes later she unplugged everything and gave the video back to Karmen.
“I don’t need to see anymore…….girl come here!”
She stood up and pulled Karmen in her arms “Like Kenny said….that’s kid stuff compared to what we use-ta do. Don’t forget I worked at a strip club for 2 years before me and Kenny got together. That shit is tame to me; if I kept any of the old tapes I made you would look at me like a sick scandalous ho!” Latoya pulled back and looked Karmen in the eye. “You and Shalitha are the same….both of you hold grudges and lust for revenge, this was bound to happen, but we love both of you and nothing will ever change that.”
They continued to talk the rest of the evening and everyone offered love support and understanding, but in the end Karmen knew she and her Mother Tanya had to get into it, of all the people in that room Tanya tends to lose it when things get controversial. But to her surprise her Mother was very understanding…..
“You shoulda seen the shit I tried doin’ to your Daddy….if I coulda got away with it he would be dead! But we’ll talk about that later just the two of us. But I need to have a long talk with Kenny and Latoya first then I’ll talk with Shalitha, cuz I know she still mad and probably got more revenge shit up her sleeve. She and I have always been close…..she’ll talk to me! But I do have one question for you baby…..what are you gon do now, are you still gon get revenge for Chicago and losing your job?”
Karmen breathed slowly and looked her mother in the eye and answered honestly.
“Yes!”
Tanya listened with patience but alarm. Karmen continued.
“But I promise never to affect her career anymore…..but that’s it! If I see her I’ma kick her ass……and I know she would say the same thing about me. You tried to keep us from hating each other growing up, but it didn’t work…..me and Shalitha have always hated each other and to be honest I think we always will.”
Tanya looked at her with those knowing eyes Karmen use to hate growing up.
“Hate each other…..really?” Tanya asked looking her in the eye. “And that’s it…just HATE?”
“What are you talking abou…..” but Tanya didn’t let her finish.
“Don’t try and play me girl……I’m yo Mama and I know you……don’t forget I was a teenager when me and Tanisha use to play some of that same bitch vs bitch shit you Shalitha been playin’!”
“Momma if you’re referring to me and Shalitha being Lesbians like you and Mama Tanisha…… we’re not like that?”
“Neither are me and Tanisha….when have you seen us messin’ with other women or even looking at them…..trust me K we don’t even think about other women…..both of us love dick. Whenever we talk about sex if ain’t about us we talk about straight sex. Me and Tee love each other and our sex is good, because it’s about us…not other women!”
“Momma I don’t think you understand……”
“I understand perfectly girl…….you the one who don’t understand!”
“What is it I don’t understand Momma?” Karmen was getting irritated.
“You sent her a sex tape baby………why?”
“I wanted to show her I can fuck better than her!”
The women laughed at that and Karmen looked at them offended.
“REALLY……….just think about that one for a minute……come on Ms. Big Shot Lawyer…..use your investigative mind and think about that one! You already shook her up by beating her one-on-one at Howard University and bragged about it in front of her coach and teammates! Then you broke her jaw and her ribs in the women's locker room! She was already beaten and embarrassed baby…..but you just had to do more! You say you wanted to show her you could out-fuck her?” Tanya laughed… “REALLY…. you already won and then you had to take your fight to the sexual level?????...... Really? You say you hate this lady and yet you let her see your naked body fucking………HER BASKETBALL COACH WHO SHE’S IN LOVE WITH!!! If I look at that tape what am I gon see….you bent over with your big ass in the air or you sucking his dick? I bet it’s your ass I see and I bet it’s pointed at the camera? And when you rode his dick was you looking at the camera? Who was that show for baby……….HIM OR HER???”
Karmen was stumbling…. “It was…..it was…..for….h-h-hii…..” she couldn’t finish…
“IT WAS FOR HER!!!” Tanya cut in “Come on baby, use your investigative mind…..look for the motives! You an attorney, and not just any attorney, but an activist, an advocate for social justice……you search for motives when men and corporations fuck over women!!! Don’t bullshit…..what was your real motives…….to make her jealous? HELL YEAH YOU WANTED TO MAKE HER JEALOUS…….but not just angry jealous, but to piss her off so much, she would come back at you for revenge! You wanted to rile her up so much she would come back at you and prove to you she can out-fuck you……and all of us in this room know there’s only one way to prove that! You threw down the gauntlet baby and now it’s her move!!!”
Karmen was speechless!
“You don’t believe me baby, I’ll bet any kinda money Shalitha didn’t throw away that tape……..SHE KEPT IT….and I bet you she looks at it, over and over again!”
Tanya looked for a reaction from Karmen and got exactly what she was looking for. Karmen had a slight shiver when Tanya spoke the words ‘SHE KEPT IT!’ The shiver was almost imperceptible and only a person looking for it would see it……but Tanya saw all of it!!! She knew her daughter and decided to throw the haymaker.
“Let me tell you something you don’t know about Shalitha. You know how your grandmother taped all your games in High School. Shalitha asked her if she could look at those tapes just before your playoff game when ya’ll was seniors in High School. Guess what baby? She copied all of them! Two days later she returned the tapes with a lying excuse saying she was studying you and getting ready for the playoff game. Playoff game my ass, Shalitha already knew your game and I know for a fact she has those videos to this day……..Latoya told me!”
Latoya nodded yes. Tanya continued.
“A month ago Latoya was talking to Shalitha’s friend from the Sea Island named Osoonjee, I think you already know her and asked if she still had your videos from high school and Osoonjee said yes.”
Tanya saw that slight shiver again…..
“Admit it baby…..you two are obsessed with each other…..ya’ll hate each other so much you turn each other on! Hell I wouldn’t be surprised if she wasn’t stroking her pussy when looking at your ass shaking porno session with her coach!”
This time Karmen bit her bottom lip. It was a slight bite, like the shiver almost imperceptible, but Tanya noticed it. Karmen looked away held her bite for a couple of seconds then turned back to face her mother. Before she spoke the tip of her tongue lightly almost imperceptively licked her bottom lip. Tanya had seen all she needed to see! Karmen stood up to leave.
“Look Mom you got it all wrong…..I-I’m not flashing my ass for Shalitha.”
“Oh so you don’t believe me?” Tanya asked her eyebrows raised, “I tell you what….why don’t you let your grandmother look at that video……if anybody can recognize real sexual motives it’s your Grandmother Dezerai!”
Dezerai looked at Karmen expecting an answer, she then held out her hand. Karmens eyes got big and she grabbed her purse and turned to leave, but she did not give Dezerai the tape.
“Oh and I’m gon call Shalitha after you leave and tell her about our conversation.” Tanya threw gas on the fire.
Karmen froze and quickly turned around her eyes wide and her mouth open.
“MOM……..please don’t!”
“I was just kidding baby……but I saw all I needed to see!”
“Bye everyone” Karmen was quickly out the door.
The women watched her leave and shook their heads…..
“That’s gon be some sick violent shit when those two really get together!" Dezerai sighed.
Karmen spent the rest of the night in pure deniability…..she used every rational argument she could think of to reason her mother’s arguments away. But she couldn’t sleep and she couldn’t get Shalitha off her mind. The next day her grandmother Dezerai gave her a call and invited her to lunch at Joes Crab Shack in the Marina. They sat near the beach overlooking the ocean enjoying their seafood lunch when Dezerai gently but boldly weighed in on the meeting the night before.
“I talked to Latoya about the video last night. The way she described it I would have to agree with her that the tape was tame compared to the stuff we use to do especially when I was in college. What I’m saying is you don’t have to feel embarrassed. All of us have been wild in our life so we understand, but having said that it’s time you face the truth.” “So Mom has spoken to you?”
“No honey me and your Mother haven’t spoken at all about the tape.”
“That’s good” Karmen sighed!
“I’m here because I sensed something from you when you were talking last night and I want to be sure so I need to ask you a few things.”
“Alright” Karmen was getting nervous again.
“Why did you make that sex tape with Shalitha’s coach? If you wanted to make her jealous, why sexually…..to my knowledge you 2 never had sex before?”
Karmen looked at her grandmother……Dezerai like Delesha was a dignified sage like woman. They were both in their 70s by now and no longer had bald heads. Over the last 5 years they decided to let their hair grow again and both sported short tastefully cut Afros. Their hair was sage gray and their skin still tight and strong. But the patience and wisdom in their eyes is what made them so respected, when they spoke you felt you had to listen.
“Last night when Mom asked me the same question, she implied that I did it more for Shalitha than against Shalitha. I said no and tried to reason it away…..but if I am honest Grandma, I think she may be right……my hatred for Shalitha may in some way have erotic overtones…….violent, but erotic nonetheless!”
Dezerai looked at her with that knowing smile seniors often have.
“No honey, its more than overtones…….it obvious to the whole family…..we’ve known this since you 2 met at 12.”
“No way grandma….I can’t believe that!”
“Why do you think we separated you when you teenagers, your hatred and rivalry was too strong. That kind of intensity can only end up one of two ways…..you hurting each other or you having sex with each other, most times it’s a lot of both.”
Karmen listened carefully to her Grandmother as she felt her apprehension and defensiveness being stripped from her.
“Now I need you to know that the family is very proud of you….your legal work as an advocate and women's rights have made us all proud. We all agree that what you did to Shalitha was wrong, that was a mistake in judgment but her response to you begs another question. Why didn’t she hurt you worse after knocking you down and breaking your cheekbone? We both know she is as sadistic and unforgiving as you and when she wants revenge she will up the ante and take things to a whole new level.”
Karmen couldn’t answer that and Dezerai continued.
“I think your video pissed her off, but it also turned her on. I think she likes the rivalry with you, but now she like you is yearning for a sexual component to enter in to it……what are your thoughts about that?”
Dezerai noticed Karmens face flush and her body shiver. Her breathing increased slightly and she knew Karmen also wanted this.
“Maybe” Karmens voice was low and a little hoarse.
Dezerai touched her hand “You want her don’t you baby?”
Karmen looked at her grandmother with uncertainty, her breathing shallow, and her pulse erratic.
“Maybe” she answered again.
Dezerai took her hand in her own. Her hands even at 72 were powerful and firm. She still appeared more powerful than any of the younger women in the family.
“You have to be honest with yourself honey……that’s what Washington and Davenport Women do……we are honest to a fault! We don’t like bullshit……..neither receiving it or giving it!”
“What if it’s true Grandma……where do I go from here?” Karmen was genuinely concerned about what’s next.
“You have to be patient honey……don’t throw this up in Shalitha’s face just yet……she’ll be dealing with all of this just like you are!”
“What do you mean she’ll be dealing with this?”
“Delesha, Tanya and Tanisha are flying out to Charleston tomorrow morning.”
“When did this get decided, why didn’t Mom tell me last night?”
“Because it wasn’t decided until after you left…..we discussed it and agreed to let me and Latoya and Kenny stay here and talk with you; while Dee, Tanisha and your Mama fly to Charleston and talk with Shalitha.”
“Why didn’t you discuss this with me before going….I should have had a say in this?”
“Normally we would agree, but not in this case……you two almost ruined each other’s careers, that makes it a family matter. If it was just sex or a personal relationship we would have stayed out of it. But both of you are building new careers that affects all of us, we needed to step up and join in. And its obvious Shalitha will listen to her Aunt Delesha, Tanisha and your Mama better than her own Mom and Dad, besides your Mama has always been very close to Shalitha. And we know how close you are with Kenny and Latoya, they will be calling you later today.” They continued talking through the afternoon and by the time they left Karmen admitted that perhaps her obsession with Shalitha was more than just bitter competitive rivalry. Perhaps there was a serious sexual component to it. She obviously had a lot to think about!
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Shalitha knew immediately what this was about the moment her Auntie Delesha called her and said she was coming to Charleston with Tanisha and Tanya tomorrow afternoon to talk with her. No one tells Auntie Delesha no, she is the Matriarch of the Davenport family, her strength and character is respected by everyone who knew her. At 72 she is probably in better shape than anyone else, except her wife Ms. Dezerai. She was actually excited to be seeing Auntie Delesha again. She found her to be the most powerful woman she ever met and it is her strength and indomitable will that inspired Shalitha to become an attorney. She was also excited about seeing Cousin Tanisha and Ms. Tanya. Tanisha was her work out partner growing up; they would run 5 miles every Saturday morning at the Forum. They would exercise together doing yoga and Pilates. While her father taught her Kung Fu, Tanisha taught her yoga and Pilates and was a serious cardio queen. She missed her when she went away to college and longed for those Saturday workouts. But of all the women coming Ms. Tanya was her favorite. Imagine that her hated rivals freaking….MOM…..is her favorite person in the world. Tanya was more like a home-girl than an Aunt. She could talk to her about anything, any problem she was having, any struggle, any person she didn’t like….Tanya could feel right where was coming from. Everybody in the family would listen and offer comfort and advice, but Tanya was straight blunt and in your face, just like Shalitha. They were both no nonsense, no beating around the bush, no bullshit, just bitchy diva fire and fuck you and Shalitha loved every bit of that shit! They would talk about people, gossip about crazy shit and feel no shame…..as far as Shalitha was concerned Tanya was as real as it gets. Shalitha picked them up at CHS Charleston International Airport and took them on the boat ride to St. Helena Island. The family loved the scenery having never been to South Carolina before. They went to lunch and had a blast catching up on old times and loved being together. They purchased a large blanket, a couple of candles, a bottle of wine and some glasses and headed to the Beach at St. Helena Island to sit by the ocean and talk. It was a warm humid night, but the cool ocean breeze made it peaceful and wonderful. They were out of the city and in the country where it was quiet and relaxing, the sun was beginning to set in the horizon and the scene was breathtaking. As soon as the candles were lit and wine was poured Tanya in her impatient way just dived right in!
“Alright girl……it’s time to come clean…..give up the goods…..what the hell is going on between you and Karmen? And no sugar coating, we done seen the video, we already talked with Karmen and we know about what happened in Chicago and DC……so come-on lay it on us!”
Tanya was popping her fingers as a sign to bring the real talk with no chasers and no bullshit!!!
Shalitha had to laugh….
“God I missed this…..I’m so glad you’re here!”
She then looked at all of them took a sip of wine and said….
“Alright…you want it straight….here it is…..”
With that Shalitha like Karmen 2 nights before laid out the whole uncut uncensored version of the sordid story from the time Karmen showed up at Howard University under the assumed name of Lady J, to the fake ankle injury, to the games themselves and to the assault in the locker room, to Karmen fucking her Basketball Coach, to her fit pitching ass kicking jail throwing, drama war with her coach, his wife and the police. She then laid out the whole plan of revenge against Karmen with her friends Soonji and Sheila. She talked about what happened at the Law Firm in Chicago and her assault on Karmen in the lobby of the Law Firm. When she was done Auntie Delesha came right in.
“Why did you keep all this from us honey? You told us you got hurt in the locker room after the game which is true, but why didn’t you tell us who did it?”
Shalitha looked at her Aunt Delesha, who was absolutely gorgeous even at 72. Her short white Afro and Mud Cloth Dashiki and short matching Mud Cloth skirt, along with her signature hoop earrings made her look like a regal Queen Mother. Her muscular frame was still the most impressive in the family and her workouts were the stuff of legends.
“Honestly Auntie………..I don’t know!”
“That’s bullshit and you know it?” Tanya cut right in…. “I don’t believe a word of that shit and neither do you!”
“What do you mean?” Shalitha asked clearly not offended by Tanya’s almost disrespectful tone and bluntness.
“She means you were protecting Karmen from us for some reason…….why?”
Aunt Delesha looked her straight in the eye and in her usual directness demanding an honest answer. Shalitha looked at Delesha and Tanya and answered directly.
“I told you……I honestly don’t know why!”
Cousin Tanisha then stepped right in.
“You don’t know why? Let me help you with this…….since you’re clearly not trying to look deep enough. Karmen conspires to not only embarrass you in front of your team that you’re the star on, and your coach who she could see you’re in love with, she also decides to fuck him behind your back, yet bring it back in plain sight, by making a video tape, holds on to it at just the right moment then send it to you, because she knew you would go ape shit crazy with revenge after seeing it and react just the way you did, kicking ass and taking names all over the damn place……hell even fighting the DC police! She also knew that incident would humiliate you in front of your school and your community.”
“AND THE MORE HUMILIATED YOU ARE THE MORE PISSED OFF YOU GON GET AND COME BACK AT HER WITH ASS KICKING VENGEANCE!!!” Tanya cut in and finished Tanisha point.
Tanisha looked at her with her eyebrows raised waiting for an answer. Shalitha didn’t answer. So Aunt Delesha calmly but no less bluntly cut back in….
“We’re still waiting for you to tell us? I know I would tell the whole family if someone did that to me…..then I would tell them vengeance is mine!”
Delesha looked at Tanisha and asked her…. “What about you Tanisha would you have told the family?”
“I would have told them everything! Tanya?” they both asked her at the same time.
“I would have screamed that shit to the world…..BUT!!!” Tanya quickly interjected before the other ladies could speak. “I do understand not telling anyone. Remember how I never told ya’ll about Jermaine when we were in Atlanta. But in my defense I was still in love with my husband and was trying to keep my family together. I also didn’t want my kids hurt. And I have to admit I was embarrassed because ya’ll tried to warn me and I ignored all of you!” She then looked at Shalitha. “So come clean girl, that ‘I honestly don’t know’ shit ain’t working on none-a-us!!!”
Tanya mockingly changed her voice to imitate Shalitha when she said “I honestly don’t know!”
Shalitha looked at them and still didn’t answer.
“Girl do I have-ta help you out again?” Tanisha chimed in.
Shalitha looked at Tanisha but with a small amount of uncertainty.
“Apparently” Delesha cut in.
“Vengeance is sweet….and for some people especially you and Karmen it’s a dish best served privately! You wanted this rivalry to stay just between the two of you….didn’t you?”
Shalitha looked at Tanisha not speaking but her eyes betrayed her.
“Come on Shali…..I’ve known you all your life, you don’t forgive and you don’t forget, that’s why you ain’t speaking to your Father right now! But with Karmen there’s something delicious and sweet about your private rivalry isn’t it???”
Shalitha looked away, still not answering.
“I know how we can cut thru all this shit!” Tanya interrupted….. “Wuz you looking at her ass in that video?”
Shalitha turned her head and looked at Tanya, then quickly looked away.
“Come-on girl….don’t play all coy and shit….you raw just like me! I remember when me and Tanisha first started fighting it was delicious as hell. It was no time before we wuz fucking and fighting! We wuz the same size and we competed against each other all throughout High School and college. We use to race all the time, play ball against each other, it was a turn on.”
“Look at us baby……we aren’t attacking you, we just want you to open your eyes.” Delesha cut in.
Shalitha looked up “I don’t feel attacked Auntie……I’m just a little scared!”
“Of what honey?” Delesha continued….. “That Karmen is the only true rival you ever had?”
Tanisha stepped in…. “Same height, same build, same power, same athletic prowess!”
“And like you she is drop dead gorgeous, both a ya’ll 6’3” ain’t many women can match you other than each other” it was Tanya’s turn.
Delesha again asked “so honey…..we’re gonna ask you again…..why didn’t you tell us?”
“I don’t know…..but maybe your right……maybe I didn’t want her humiliated in front of the family.”
“WHY NOT…..she humiliated you in front of your team, your coach and your community? You humiliated her at that Law Firm in Chicago?” Tanya asked again.
“I didn’t humiliate her in Chicago and she didn’t humiliate me in DC” Shalitha shocked them with that statement.
“What do you mean?” Tanisha asked perplexed.
Tanya answered for her, “Because neither one-a-ya’ll gives a damn what people say about you anyway…..right?”
“Exactly” Shalitha answered calmly.
“And you knew Karmen felt the same way when she attacked you, didn’t you?” Delesha spoke up.
“Of course…..her beating me on the court, her fucking my coach and her sending me that video had nothing to do with embarrassment.” Shalitha was calm and direct.
“She wanted to fire you up and piss you off, not humiliate you” Tanisha chimed in.
“Partly” answered Shalitha.
“It change the nature of your rivalry” Tanisha added as it became clearer.
“And ratchet it up several notches” Delesha’s voice was quiet calm and illuminating!
“I think so” Shalitha answered her.
“Did she succeed?” Tanisha asked.
Shalitha again did not answer, so Tanya answered for her.
“HELL YEAH SHE SUCCEEDED…..THAT SHIT IS OBVIOUS!” she blurted out. “But I need an answer to my question….. WUZ YOU LOOKIN’ AT HER ASS IN THAT VIDEO?”
Shalitha tried keeping a straight face as she tried to outstare Tanya…..big mistake! She flinched and turned her head as a smile creased her lips, but she tried to quickly remove it. But it was too late everyone saw it!
They all said…… “DAAAAMMNNN!!!” at the same time.
“It must be this fucking wine” Shalitha shook her head as a giggle slipped out.
“WINE MY ASS!” Tanya was laughing at her, “you need to stop lyin’ and admit the truth girl!” She got a high five from both Tanisha and Delesha!
The rest of the night was raucous as they laughed and drank and teased each other, hanging out till dawn! They had a big breakfast and went to the hotel to sleep in! The only disappointment to the day was their inability to get Shalitha to take down on her father, but she did say she would think about what they talked about…..that was all the ladies could ask for. They saw Soonji and met the Gullah family. Delesha in particular loved the history lesson of the slaves in South Carolina and the Haitians. They were given guided tours of the Sea Islands. They ate Cajun sea food and listened to island reggae and Geechie poetry, along with dancing that night. They were sad when the next morning came and they took the boat back to Charleston and got
on a plane heading back to LA.
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Karmen had a similar experience with her Grandmother Dezerai and Kenny and Latoya. They spent the day driving up California Highway 101 to Santa Barbara. The trip was relaxing and soothing as they ate seafood, sight seed, hung out at the beach and lovingly interrogated Karmen all day long. Karmen loved every minute of it and like Shalitha answered their questions and finally admitted to them some deeper shit other than pure malevolent hatred was going on between her and Shalitha. And like Shalitha she had to admit she missed these days with the family and vowed to herself after she opens up her law firm with Stacy they would expand to LA so she could spend more time with the family. But the trip ended with pain for Karmen, the conversation eventually went from her to the relationship between Kenny and Shalitha. Kenny broke down in tears as he admitted he missed his baby and for Karmen this was especially difficult. Kenny was more than just a mentor, a teacher and a role model; he was more of a father to her. She held advanced level black belts in Kupigama Ngumi like Shalitha and he also taught her Shao-Lin style Kung Fu because it fitted her complex nature. Kenny also incorporated a wonderful mix of Tai Chi, Wing Chun within the Shao Lin Crane and Serpent forms and she loved it. She could move freely within her Tai Chi disciplines, but remain centered in her Wing Chun disciplines. Two completely different arts working as one! To anyone familiar with Wing Chun, usually short people master it because of the tight angles, hand speed and close hand to hand blocks and strikes. But Karmen though long armed had exceptional hand speed was able to use Tai Chi movement to evade short Wing Chun strikers at close quarters and effectively strike from distance using cobra style. But her real passion was Crane and Serpent. Kenny always said the Katas of a tall woman who mastered both Crane and Serpent was the most beautiful dance he had ever seen. And no one did it better than Karmen Washington, except maybe Shalitha Davenport and it was there where their rivalry went to a whole different level! Her skill was high because of Kenny’s masterful teaching style and attention to detail…he was her Sensei in every sense of the word. In addition when she came to live in LA at age 12, she always felt safe knowing Kenny was there, he more than anyone was the family Patriarch and Protector and she loved him as a father. Shalitha was jealous of his attention to Karmen, not because he was taking attention from her, it was in fact the opposite. Kenny’s attention to Shalitha was in actually over the top which is why she was so spoiled. Her jealousy was not based on her father’s attention, it was based Karmens attention! Shalitha wanted Karmen to be her ass kicking little bitch, someone she could fuck-up for GPs sake! For those not knowing GP we mean ‘General Principle. But if she was close to her Daddy and mastered the arts she was no longer relegated to the role of a bitchy little reject. In Karmens eyes she knew Shalitha viewed her as nothing more than a lying scheming hypocritical little slut who could not be trusted. She always had a scheme up her sleazy little sleeve and the families just couldn’t see it. But the truth was Karmen always did have a scheme up her sleeve and Shalitha knew it and hated her for it. No one knew the many times her lies and sneaky schemes were designed to get Shalitha in trouble. Shalitha in her anger threatened to rearrange Karmens slutty little face. Ironically Karmen felt the exact same way about Shalitha. She also wanted to beat the shit out of Shalitha for no other reason than she was alive! In fact that was reason enough for both of them and they proudly admitted it…..in front of the whole family! So watching Kenny break down over Shalitha was hard for Karmen, it was the first time she ever saw him cry and it fueled her resolve to whip Shalitha’s ass more than ever and not just for GP, but also for Kenny! As far as she was concerned Shalitha’s bitch ass never knew what it meant to have a bad father like Karmen had. Shalitha was a Daddy’s girl and Kenny gave her bratty ass more love than she deserved. Karmen was angry for Kenny and felt like Shalitha did not deserve a father like him. She believed that Kenny’s love for his ungrateful daughter was for naught, because she was too stupid to love him back. That’s why Karmen made a promise to ram her foot up her stupid ass every chance she got and break her smug bitch ass face! When they got back from their trip to Santa Barbara, Karmen asked Latoya to take her to the Airport the next day, they agreed to go to lunch early so they could have the long talks she was so accustomed to having with the mother of her enemy. Latoya was an enigma wrapped in a riddle. She was a mystery to everyone who knew her, except Kenny and Karmen. On the one hand Latoya was a 6’2” stone cold rough neck! She was straight hood rat from Compton and didn’t give a shit what anyone thought about it! She was probably more thug than Kenny! Sexually she was insatiable, a hard core nymphomaniac, the average man could not satisfy her. But Kenny is a 6’4” stud! A Martial Arts Master and a man who mastered the intricacies of chi! So needless to say their sex was off the fucking chart! She was wild and inventive and kept her man happy and intrigued! She also loved fast cars and hard liquor but true to her enigmatic nature she only wanted tequila or vodka, but never drank more than once a month, one to two shots at best and never got drunk. Her language was raw and uncut, yet she was a brilliant business woman and she learned early on to keep an iron grip on the family finances and her gangster like nature. She was a dedicated wife to Kenny, a wonderful mother to Shalitha and her younger Brother Kenny Jr. She kept her home immaculate and was an excellent cook. At 18 she became a stripper and danced for 3 years. She met Kenny at 20 and by 21 they married and she shortly afterward stopped stripping. But she didn’t leave the industry right away…..she eventually managed the club she stripped in for another 5 years and made lots of money for herself and the company. And here is where she is really an enigma, in spite of her love of fast cars and strong liquor, she was the best manager of money Karmen had ever seen. She saved every penny of her and Kenny’s money and Kenny trusted her with the finances completely. She invested wisely in CDs and commercial real estate, getting her real estate license and going back to school becoming a CPA. Commercial real estate was her specialty and she incorporated Kenny’s businesses and the corporation owned the property for each Dojo. She set up 6 Dojos in Los Angeles alone, and one Dojo in Atlanta and they were discussing property in the north east. Karmen always said if Latoya had gotten into the music industry she would have been a Mogul. She set up Living Trusts for all the properties owned by both families and Latoya managed them all. Had Karmen not gone into Law she would have followed in Latoya’s footsteps. Her flight was set to leave at 2:30pm so they had a couple of hours to sit down and discuss her proposed business venture with Stacy. She trusted her advice implicitly when it comes to setting up business. Karmen also knew if she didn’t let Latoya help set up the business plan there would be hell to pay. Eventually the conversation turned to Kenny and Shalitha….Latoya admitted she was at her wits end, everything she tried failed; finally she decided to stay out of it. Shalitha and Kenny had a unique bond, she was always closer to her Father than any other human being. But as a little girl Kenny doted on her and for all her strength and brilliance there was a bratty quality to Shalitha. But Latoya had to trust that love would eventually break the barriers between them and bring them back together……it was a decision she would later regret!

To be continued