Scam

Part 1

I've never been understood nor did I have a desire to be understood. My life has been nothing short of endless disappointments with few, no scarce blessings in sight. My name is Hupert Miles, but please call me Hue and this is my story. I know what you're thinking, Hupert?? What kind of name is that, my mother must be a bitch to have slapped such a hideous name on a newborn. Well she was, until she was incarcerated when I was twelve. My mother was one of the most notorious prostitutes and drug mule in Jamaica. Her client list was nothing short of Drug Lords, Politicians, high ranked Police Officers and of course the gender or marital status of these persons were not hindering factors. My father, or should I say "sperm-donor" is unknown, yes the lovely perks of being the son of a whore. Contrary to popular belief the Jamaican adoption system isn't utter shit. I was adopted by a middle-aged Politician woman; Sheila Shields, whose desire for the 'prosperity' of her people caused her to live a life of solitude until I came along.

"Hue?"

Sheila's voice echoed from downstairs and her heels clunked against the granite floor tiles as she made her way upstairs to my room, stopping in the middle of my doorway.

"Hupert, why haven't you eaten your dinner that Ms. Maizie left on the kitchen counter? Hue you're going off to college this summer how do you expect me to be okay with that if you refuse to take care of yourself. You're lucky you got a track scholarship or I wouldn't be sending you all the way to Howard University."

"Sheila it's not that serious its just food and you're acting like UWI is a bad University; they're ranked above Howard you know."

I responded without looking up from my Mac book screen.

"Hupert we are not doing this today, all you do is sit on that damn computer each day and write codes, you're wasting your life away. Is this because your mother is due for her parole are you trying to escape reality, honey?"

"Damn it, Sheila, this isn't one of your Labour Party speeches, why are you feeding me that crap about reality. The only persons trying to escape reality would be your political party by promising a tax cut they know they can't deliver," I said with my annoyance now visible.

"Well if your damn scammer friends would ease up it would just be possible", she snarled as her neon green braces flashed before she disappeared further down the hall to her bedroom.

Her bob-cut, red-streaked hair bouncing with each stride. Sheila is a short 5'5 woman with a curvy built. She is toned due to her obsession with the gym and trying to maintain her youthful body but the wrinkles on her fair skin around her round hazel eyes say otherwise about her age. Sheila hates my friend Dondre who was nabbed in connection with a major corporate embezzlement scheme but when your mother is the Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Mattis, you can walk away with only 6 months of house arrest and 1200 hours of community service. Dondre is a lost soul who is always choosing to take the hard road in an attempt to prove that he can make it in life without his parents' wealth or fame. Every inch of Dondre's arms and back is covered with colorful tattoos each symbolic of some event in his life including a tattoo of his late nine-year-old sister who died of an asthma attack last year. My early high school years were hell especially since I was seen as the ghetto outcast of the ever so elite Long Mountain Academy. It was Dondre who in his condescending bullying ways I found favour with and we then became friends ...wait, no brothers after I covered for several of his misdeeds as head prefect in our penultimate year at the academy. He recently returned the favour these past six months. There are always three sides to a story but I can only share mine.