TEARS OF RAGE

Chapter 12

When a man gets absorbed in an orb of apprehension, the feeling of having every glance that may be cast his way, seems to indicate that the person watching has an awareness of his predicament.

This feeling overtakes a person's thinking, making paranoia enshroud his emotions like a crystal prison.

Swaylo knew that he had to move with extreme caution.

When the bus route began to approach Alston Drive, he got off and hurried unnoticed into a series of passageways.

He took extra precautions, to avoid any familiar faces.

He did not want to be in a position where his presence would arouse undue suspicion.

He knew that his friends would take offense if they saw him deliberately avoiding them.

By the time he made it to his grandmother's apartment, his heart was pounding.

The gleam of sunshine made it hard to feel inconspicuous.

It felt as if every glance from random pedestrians was centered in his direction.

His mind was congested with a hodgepodge of thoughts that were fused with fear, excitement, and apprehension.

The bookbag of cash was a game-changer.

He dumped his stash across his mattress and marveled at the amount of wealth that he had accumulated from the heist.

There was more cash laid before him than he had ever seen...

It wasn't what Kenny had taken, but Swaylo could not find any reason to complain.

There was more money on his bed than he had ever had in his possession at one time.

Even before he began to count up the cash, he could estimate more than ten grand at his fingertips.

There were so many things that he wanted to do...

He wanted to purchase a car, an apartment, and buy something special for Charmaine and Dorian.

After a thorough count of the money, the total came up to thirty-seven thousand, four hundred eighty dollars.

With the urge to celebrate increasing his heart rate, Swaylo began to map out the rest of his day...

Dorian would want a nice party with his friends.

Charmaine would appreciate a date with him and Dorian, he reasoned with a smile.

With that thought in mind, he began calculating everything that he wanted to purchase.

The odd money off of the thirty was stuffed in his pockets.

It was time to go shopping.

After stuffing the thirty thousand inside of his mattress box springs, along with the pistol used in the bank heist, Swaylo began laying out his outfit.

Dressed in a crisp Falcons jersey, denim jeans and Timbs Swaylo left his grandmother's apartment, feeling like every step was taken upon marshmallows...

It was surreal.

The world had a much broader view when a man had the money to buy whatever his heart desired.

When he walked out of the apartment, he saw his friends huddled about a lot of Wanda Wilcher's buildings, but he avoided them.

At some point, the cops could come around asking questions about his whereabouts, and he didn't want to risk someone speaking out of turn and get him in a bind.

No one could speak about something that they did not know of.

It would be best to keep everything quiet for the time being, he reasoned as he hurried off in the opposite direction.

Swaylo headed back toward Memorial Drive and caught the bus to the Marta train station.

In less than an hour, he had taken a trip to Hypnotic Wheels and pulled a silver-gray 5.0 off of the lot.

Tony was only too happy to accept his cash without question.

When Charmaine left her twelve o'clock class, Swaylo was outside waiting.

He had a red rose clenched between his teeth, as he sat on the hood of the car; grinning.

Charmaine had to blink to be sure her eyes weren't deceiving her.

Even without seeing any visible cash on him, she could recognize and identify with the elevation of his swag.

His aura was shining brighter.

"Boy, who's car is this?"

"This is my new ride. Hop in, I've got a surprise for you."

Swaylo passed her the rose with a kiss, and held the door open, as she sat in the passenger's seat.

Charmaine could not stop smiling, as people walked past watching his debonair performance.

This was something new in their relationship.

Swaylo was a steak and potatoes type of person...

The caviar performance that he was exhibiting, was a welcomed change.

It showed that he had a genuine appreciation for the bond that they shared.

"I don't know what the hell you've done with my man, but you better not let it get him locked up again, or I'm going to tear you a new asshole... Are we clear?"

Swaylo gave a soft chuckle and kissed her cheek.

"That's why I love you girl, you always have my back."

"I just know that you're supposed to be at work right now and you're not. And a few hours ago you couldn't afford this car... I'm not crazy. Besides, I know you well enough to know when you've been playing in the streets."

Swaylo drove to Lennox mall and allowed her to spend twelve hundred dollars shopping for clothes, shoes, and a wide assortment of female items.

Purses. Perfumes. Sexy lingerie and other things.

He carried bags and played the part of an accommodating boyfriend, as they spent almost two hours shopping.

He bought Dorian a couple of outfits, along with a Herman the Monster Halloween costume.

By the time he went to pick up Dorian from school, the odd money that he had on him was spent.

He drove back to his grandmother's apartment, to get the rest of the money, and the pistol.

He stuffed everything inside of one of Charmaine's purses and told her to hold it.

"Where the hell did you get all of this money, Swaylo?"

"I can't speak on it right now... But I want us to have our own place. I want to use this money to help us get our shit together. But you can't say shit to no one about this okay?"

Charmaine gave a stern look of uncertainty.

"Are you in trouble? Do I have to worry about the cops coming to lock you up?"

"Not if we keep this quiet. And no matter what happens, you already know that I'll never speak your name."

When Charmaine pondered over everything that could have happened between the time in which she had last seen him, a dreadful feeling began to wash over her.

No one knew better than her how far Swaylo was willing to go, to accomplish his dreams of being like his dad.

She just did not want to risk him losing his life, or his freedom in the process.