Brown Sugar

Chapter Fourteen.

The next day...

Beyoncé felt her shoulder shaken gently, and her eyes opened slowly to behold her father sitting beside her on the edge of her bed. Her hand flew to her forehead to shield her eyes from the rising sun, whose rays poured through her window and were aimed directly at her line of vision.

"Daddy?" She asked groggily, sitting up.

"Hey, it's time to wake up, baby," Mathew encouraged; his usually smooth voice was raspy and cold.

"What time did you and Ben get back? I never heard y'all come in."

Mathew wiped his red eyes as he forced a smile. "Oh, about two hours ago."

Beyoncé looked at her alarm clock. "It's seven o'clock!"

"Benjamin and I had to stay with the Neely's; they needed us."

Beyoncé's shoulders slumped as the surreal chain of events from the night before all returned to her in a reel. "Did Raymond make it? Are all of his sisters okay?"

"Well, his family wasn't hurt, but Raymond, he sure ain't okay," Mathew spoke truthfully.

"Is it bad?" Beyoncé's eyes watered.

"Well, baby, the boy's got some bad head injuries from that bat which they beat him with, and the doctors ain't sure if there's any brain injury," Mathew explained.

"Brain injury, oh Lord." She shook her head.

"Most of his legs got second-degree burns, and the doctor said he probably won't be able to open his eyes for another four days, and he's got several broken ribs, too. But that boy's tough; I'll tell you, Bey, it's only a miracle that he ain't dead. He wasn't able to talk or nothin' last night. But Benjamin, some other good folk, and I stayed to be with the Neelys. They're all grieving," he sighed.

"I bet," She said solemnly, telling herself that by the end of the week, she'd have to stop in to see them. "And Ol' Bess, how's she?" Beyoncé asked with a glimmer of hope; perhaps the older woman was in a better condition. Mathew confirmed that she was and that she was sent to a relative's house overnight."At least that's some good news. But...things aint fair Daddy. All of this is just evil."

"I know Beyoncé, I know. Baby, those thugs, they'll get their own." He assured her.

"But when Daddy?" She asked, looking up at her father. "It just seems people can treat us any way they want and get away with it! Get away with being downright criminals! Well, I'm sick of it! I'm sick and tired of bein' tossed around and mistreated just because of who I am!"

Mathew rubbed Beyoncé's back as he empathized with his daughter. "If we just looked at all the bad folks in the world and started takin' a list of every time we're wronged...life just wouldn't be worth livin', you hear?" he stated. She nodded, although she had heard her father say this same bull shit over and over again since she was little. "Now, I know you're upset and have every right to be. What you just said; it's true. But we live in a fallen world, and while we don't like it, we sure are forced to accept it."

"Is that it, Daddy? Am I just supposed to accept this for the rest of my life? 'Cause if so, that's when life isn't worth living."

"No, no, Beyoncé. You've gotta have hope, baby... Some things take more time to change."

"Yes, sir," she whispered.

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As Beyoncé stepped off the sidewalk to meet Alice, she did her best to avert her gaze from the charred remnants of Raymond and Ol' Bess' homes across the street.