“Dear God, I heard you forgive no matter how many times I come to you, no matter my transgressions or my debts…I need you to forgive me for what I’ve done in my life, don’t let me stray too far that I become immune to my actions. Forgive me of my debts, and just make things right. Amen.”
This was Daniel’s daily prayer. No matter how often he talked to God it seemed he could never outrun his sins. He knew that one day, they would catch up to him, and sadly it started with Monique.
Keep It Real Kenidi
Lillie received a text on her cell phone from her friend Kenidi Lewis in accounting. Because they were such good friends, personal texts were not uncommon. This particular text, however, was a heads up regarding abnormally huge payments Lillie’s marketing division made to some seldom used vendors. After thanking Kenidi, Lillie sat down to figure out how to clean up another mess that had Daniel Messenger written all over it.
Lillie’s professional acquaintances were all people from within the industry introduced to her by her parents for the sole purpose of advancing their company. She was never one to befriend easily and kept her true circle of friends tight. Introducing her husband to her business acquaintances came with the territory. It did seem a bit strange however when Daniel came home one evening and said he was invited to a high stakes’ poker game by Maximus Madden, the owner of Havana Broadleaf, the East Coast’s largest cigar distributor.
Mo Money ‘Mo Nique’
“Look, Monique, you got to let this revenge go. My wife didn’t have anything to do with how we ended, and you showing up at my home ain’t gonna change things between us.” Daniel knew he was facing a serious dilemma and he had to find a way to fix it. He let her inside (so as to not cause a scene for the neighbors), hoping he could briefly say something to persuade her walk away for good. But for Monique the soul ties were too strong, they had shared something special at one time. Walking away without anything wasn’t an option. In Monique’s eyes Daniel had cost her more than she’d ever bargained for. Monique blamed Daniel for the loss of their child. Him never knowing she was pregnant was a minor irrelevant detail in her mind. She felt that the stress of Daniel’s constant pining over Lillie was unbearable for her and her unborn baby. Monique called Daniel from the hospital after her miscarriage and told him. Though he had been kept in the dark, Daniel went to visit Monique in the hospital and regretted not being able to be there for her. He comforted her and together they mourned their loss. Unfortunately for Monique, losing their unborn child was not enough to keep them together. She was a mere placeholder until he and Lillie could work things out.
After marrying Lillie, Daniel started sending Monique payoffs for her silence. Lillie could not have children. Daniel knew that finding out he had impregnated another woman during their rocky dating period would be devastating for Lillie. This would also definitely give her grandparents ammunition on why she should leave him. Daniel was getting sloppy and finding it more and more difficult to syphon money from Lillie and the company. He told Monique the payments were about to stop. Monique had other plans. If the payments weren’t going to continue, she was going to blow the entire spot up and tell Lillie everything. And this is how we find Daniel and Monique in the midst of a heated argument in the foyer of the Messenger household.
The yelling continued and then there was a hard knock at the door, Daniel, not paying attention opened the door, and standing there were two men. One of the men immediately punched Daniel in the face. He tried to fight back but was quickly halted when one of the attackers pulled out his gun. Terrified, there stood Monique; an innocent bystander caught up in a situation that would eventually cost her—her life. Daniel was helpless and unable to protect the woman he once cared for. She didn’t deserve this…in her haste she tried to get away and ran upstairs to the first room she found. She slammed the door and attempted to call for help, but the intruder managed to get into the room. Monique pleaded for her life but her pleas would be in vain. The man shot and killed Monique. She lay there as collateral damage, dead on Lillie and Daniel’s bedroom floor.
“Get your coat, Daniel, we’re going to the bank.” Daniel had no time to grieve, no time to explain, he knew what he had done… his sins had caught up to him. He had no time to make sense of it all, it was a complete blur. This was his fault. A wife on the way home, a dead ex-lover in their bedroom, and uncertain if he would make it out of this alive…. Lillie’s plane lands at LaGuardia.
