Affinity

Chapter 5: The Aftermath

" Mom, stop please." I was watching Rah console his mother as tears slipped down everyone's faces. Mrs. Turner had arrived on the scene minutes after the police and promptly fell into her now only living son's arms at the thought of Travis' death. It wasn't until her husband arrived that she had the bracing to stand upright, and now holding onto her youngest son once more, it was all she could do to not collapse again.

" Abla." Rah's father broke from his wife's side and drew me into a hug; I stained his jacket with two tears as I laid my head on his chest.

" Do you know who?" Grief and rage ridden words spoken through my hair as my boyfriend's father hugged me tightly.

" I don't, but he might. We kept it to ourselves though, Travis made it that way." I pulled away and related to him that even though I didn't know the identity of Travis' killers, that Raheem might, and furthermore that we hadn't divulged anything to the police.

I thought back momentarily to when the police had first arrived and taken our statements.

" What is your relationship to the deceased ma'am?" A tired looking man, middle-aged, white detective posed the question as we stood outside of Rah's apartment. I was being questioned on one side of the street as Rah was being questioned on the other.

" He's my boyfriend's brother." I couldn't speak on Travis in the past tense; I could still feel his forehead kiss as he gave me orders before slipping out the door.

" How long have you and Mr. Turner been together?"

"It's new, less than a month. I've known him and his family for years though." I caught the clean up I was doing but had no way to stop it. I looked across the street at Rah, his handsome dark frame looking every bit of distraught; I bit my lip in anticipation of being by his side.

" Do you know of any reason anyone would've wanted to hurt Travis?"

" No." My response was short but I held eye contact. I then answered following questions as a medic escorted me to the ambulance and pulled splinters from my skin, recounting the events that led to Travis' death as he did so.

" What'd he say?" Another hug as Rah's father pulled me to the present, I inhaled and chose Rah's still sobbing mom to serve as my signal that this was reality.

" He told me to keep Rah away from him, he told me to keep both of us away from him. He said it wasn't a choice." The words came out quick; I could still hear Travis' voice. Mr. Turner gripped my neck slightly and sighed, " Take him home with you, I got his mom."

" Call ya'll in the morning?" I stepped back and dug for my keys, it was late and going home seemed the best option.

" Sure thing. Thank you Abla, it will be ok." The second forehead kiss I'd received in as many hours from the Turner men followed the request to take his son to my home.

" I got you." I whispered the line to him over and over again as I rubbed his hand on the way to my apartment. Rah was lost in his thoughts but his grip on me never loosened or slackened; I knew his grounding was contingent on the feeling of my hand in his at the moment.

After a trip to the police station to collect our clothes as evidence and give even more recollections of the previous events we were finally allowed to go home. We were initially instructed by the police not to draw too much attention to ourselves and if any strange things occurred to notify them. Of course that wasn't enough for me. As far as I was concerned, being the true black woman that I was, we needed a full detail on us at all times. Whoever killed Travis could've heard me screaming, knew that Rah and me were present and decide our lives needed to end as well.