Chapter 5: The Things He Tried to Erase
Curtis closed the storage-room door behind him.
The sound made Tiana turn.
“Leave the door open.””
He ignored her.
“Give me Marcus's notebook.””
“No.””
“Tiana, don't turn this into something it isn't.””
She held up the donation receipt.
“You donated his clothes, his photographs, and his personal belongings without telling me.””
“They were taking up space.””
“You broke a photograph of him holding his newborn son.””
“It was an accident.””
“Then why did you hide it?””
Curtis rubbed his forehead.
“I knew you'd react like this.””
Tiana stared at him.
“You knew I'd be upset because you destroyed something that belonged to my child's father?””
“I didn't destroy anything important.””
She looked down at the notebook.
“His last birthday letter to Zion was in this box.””
Curtis shrugged.
“It's a notebook.””
Tiana stepped closer.
“Read the first page.””
He didn't move.
“Read it.””
“I don't need to.””
“Because you already know what it says?””
Curtis's jaw tightened.
Tiana opened the notebook.
“Marcus wrote that he hoped Zion would never feel he had to change himself to make somebody else comfortable.””
Curtis laughed bitterly.
“Of course he did. Even dead, the man gets to give instructions.””
Tiana's eyes widened.
“Are you hearing yourself?””
“I'm tired of living in his shadow!””
“You are not living in his shadow. You're standing in the middle of a family that existed before you arrived.””
Curtis pointed toward the box.
“Everything in there is from another life.””
“And Zion is part of that life.””
“He has a life now!””
“Yes. With a mother who loves him, a grandmother who protects him, and a stepfather who apparently can't stand the sight of his curls.””
Curtis looked away.
For a moment, the room was silent.
Then Tiana asked the question that had been bothering her since the message arrived.
“Why did you go to Marcus's old apartment three weeks ago?””
Curtis's head snapped toward her.
“Who told you that?””
“So it's true.””
He hesitated.
“I went there to pick something up.””
“What?””
“Nothing.””
“Curtis.””
“I said nothing!””
His voice echoed through the small room.
Tiana didn't flinch.
“Was it another box?””
He stared at her.
Then he reached toward the notebook again.
“Give it to me.””
Tiana moved backward.
“Don't touch me.””
Curtis lowered his hand.
“You don't understand what I've had to put up with.””
“Explain it.””
“Every day, Zion talks about Marcus. He wants to wear his clothes. He wants his hair. He wants his pictures everywhere.””
“He's eight.””
“And I'm supposed to just accept that?””
“Yes!””
Curtis shook his head.
“You don't understand. When we got married, I thought things would change.””
“What things?””
“I thought we'd become a real family.””
Tiana's expression hardened.
“We are a real family.””
“No. I thought he would eventually call me Dad. I thought he'd stop bringing up Marcus every five minutes.””
“Did you ever ask him what he wanted?””
Curtis said nothing.
Tiana continued.
“You wanted him to forget a man he lost before he could even understand death. You wanted him to erase his father so you could feel more important.””
Curtis laughed.
“That's ridiculous.””
“Then why are you so threatened by a little boy's hair?””
He looked toward the doorway.
“I'm not discussing this anymore.””
He opened the door and walked out.
Tiana waited until his footsteps disappeared before taking photographs of the notebook, the receipt, and every item in the box.
Then she called her mother.
“Mom, I need you to come downstairs.””
Cora appeared a moment later.
“What happened?””
“He admitted he went to Marcus's old apartment.””
Cora's face tightened.
“Why?””
“He wouldn't tell me.””
Tiana showed her the messages.
Cora read them carefully.
“Whoever is sending these knows a lot.””
“I think they know more than we do.””
Cora looked toward the stairs.
“What are you going to do?””
“Find out what happened three weeks ago.””
That evening, Curtis behaved as though nothing had happened.
He ordered pizza.
He asked Zion about school.
He even offered to help the boy with his homework.
Zion stayed close to Cora.
When Curtis approached him, the little boy quietly moved his chair.
Curtis noticed.
“What's wrong with you?””
Zion lowered his eyes.
“Nothing.””
“Then come sit here.””
Zion didn't move.
Cora placed a hand on his shoulder.
“He's comfortable where he is.””
Curtis gave her an irritated look.
“I'm talking to my son.””
Tiana immediately looked up.
“Your son?””
Curtis nodded.
“Yes. My son.””
Zion stared at his plate.
Curtis reached for the boy's shoulder.
“Come on, buddy.””
Zion flinched.
The movement was small.
But everyone saw it.
Curtis withdrew his hand.
“Fine. Everybody wants to act like I'm some monster.””
Tiana put down her fork.
“You need to stop pressuring him.””
“I can't even speak to him now?””
“You can speak to him. You cannot demand affection.””
Curtis pushed his chair back.
“I'm going upstairs.””
He left his dinner untouched.
A few minutes later, Tiana heard the shower running.
She took the opportunity to check the shared tablet.
Curtis had left his email logged in.
She didn't normally look through his personal messages.
But after finding the donation receipt, she no longer knew what was private and what was evidence.
She searched Marcus's name.
Nothing.
Then she searched the date of the donation.
Several deleted notifications appeared in the archive.
One was from a storage company.
Another was from a number she recognized.
It belonged to a man named Darius.
Darius had been Marcus's closest friend.
He had attended the funeral and helped Tiana move apartments after Marcus died.
She opened the message thread.
The first message was dated three weeks earlier.
*Darius:* Curtis, I know you picked up the package. Please tell me you didn't throw it away.
*Curtis:* Stay out of my marriage.
*Darius:* That package was for Zion.
*Curtis:* The boy doesn't need it.
*Darius:* You don't get to decide that.
Tiana's fingers began trembling.
She scrolled further.
*Darius:* Marcus recorded something for his son before he died. You promised to give it to him when he was older.
*Curtis:* I said I'd handle it.
*Darius:* You have no right to keep it.
The final message from Curtis was chilling.
*Curtis:* If Tiana finds out, she'll never forgive me.
Tiana stared at the screen.
A recording.
Marcus had left a recording for Zion.
She quickly took photographs of the messages.
Then she heard the shower stop.
She closed the email.
Curtis came downstairs wearing a gray T-shirt.
“What are you doing?””
“Looking for Zion's school schedule.””
He glanced at the tablet.
“Use your phone.””
“I will.””
Curtis walked into the kitchen.
Tiana waited until he turned his back.
Then she searched the tablet's downloads folder.
A single audio file appeared.
Its name was simple.
*FOR ZION.*
The file had been downloaded three weeks earlier.
Tiana tapped it.
A man's voice filled the room.
“Hey, little man. If you're hearing this, I hope you're old enough to understand how much I love you…”
Tiana froze.
She knew that voice.
It was Marcus.
Her knees nearly gave way.
Then the recording continued.
“I wanted to tell you something important about your family. Something I couldn't explain when you were little.””
Tiana covered her mouth.
The recording crackled.
Marcus took a breath.
“And there's something I need you to know about the man who may someday become part of your life…”
The audio suddenly stopped.
Tiana looked at the screen.
The file was only thirty-two seconds long.
Someone had cut it off.
She heard Curtis approaching.
She quickly put the tablet down.
He walked into the kitchen carrying a glass of water.
“Everything okay?””
Tiana looked directly at him.
“Where is the rest of Marcus's recording?””
Curtis stopped.
His fingers tightened around the glass.
“What recording?””
Tiana turned the tablet toward him.
His face went pale.
May you like
And then he whispered:
“You weren't supposed to hear that.””
