MUD Making Unwise Decisions

By Derrick Griffin

Janis has a horrible secret, she can never tell anybody especially her only child, Mary. She was cursed after falling in love with a guy coming out of prison. He passed her and their child a gift that never stops giving. Over the years she has managed to hide the secret from her unsuspecting daughter by smuggling medication in her morning juice that she forces her to drink every day. But Mary has fallen in love, and in her eyes Stewmeat is a great guy. Stewmeat on the other hand doesn't love nobody, he is incapable of love because love simply has never existed in his world...he has a plan and that plan includes Mary and three of his unsuspecting high school buddies. His plan is to take advantage of Mary but at the end of the event, it's Mary and her secret that takes advantage of these three boys. This virgin has a bombshell of a secret.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Derrick Griffin
• Release date: Jul 12, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370180257

Book preview

A man without a soul has no concern for giving death …

— Unknown Inmate

Flav coughed up large blobs of mucus and blood with every heave. His nose wiggled grotesquely, he knew it was broken, just like he knew his ribs were broken. His bleary eyesight was surely coming from a set of freshly blackened eyes, but he was alive.

No mattress, no blankets, no clothes, the only thing constant was the cold air being pumped into the cell.

Boogie! Boogie! What’s good, man? You aight?

Boogie’s words stumbled out, I’m alive man! You okay?

Nah’! … everything hurts, everything, I’m banged up pretty bad, Boogie.

Why did you cuss that guard? Boogie asked.

Can’t say ... I just did it.

Keys echoed in the background as footsteps tapped loudly on the concrete floors, Flav’s cell door swung open.

Are you Cordova? The prison guard flipped pages on his clipboard.

Flav wrestled his way up in a sitting position, Why?

Are you Cordova, inmate?

Yeah, why, what’s up?

The guard stepped to the side and tossed Flav a bundle of clothes saying, You’re on the chain, you discharge tomorrow, get dressed and I’ll be back. The guard turned and walked away, leaving the cell door wide open.

Flav’s pain ran unabated through his body, but he couldn’t hide his excitement. You hear that Boogie! Im going home man!" Flav’s laughs bounced off the concrete walls.

I’m glad for you, but Boogie couldn’t budge. The pain was too excruciating.

Are you okay? Flav eased his boxers on and his jumper.

I’m good ... had to turn over.

Flav, while holding his side, staggered to the front of Boogie’s cell, Man ... I’m finally going home! It’s been ten long years!

Good man, Boogie didn’t look well. He lay on that cold, bare steel bunk naked with one leg missing. Diabetes had ravaged his body.

I’m going to keep in touch with you! You have my word.

Okay! Don’t get out of here and give people that virus. Tell those girls you’re sick. Do that for me.

I can’t promise you that, I don’t know what tomorrow will bring.

You’re sick, You can’t do innocent people like that, it’s crazy.

No, what’s crazy is someone did it to me ... remember? Someone gave me AIDS! Don’t I deserve to have kids and a wife like everybody else? Don’t I deserve that?

Get away from my door! I feel sorry for your momma!.

What?

Yo’ momma! I feel sorry for Yo’ momma! Boogie growled.

The guard returning slammed heavy chains on the floor behind Flav. Come on and get cuffed. The bus is waiting on you.

I’ll send you some money, Boogie!

Yeah, right, Flav! Yeah right.

CHAPTER TWO

A new beginning for all those involved,

— Janis

Janis had enough, Lufkin, Texas had run its course. Falling for another small time, small minded guy wasn’t high on her To Do list. She was determined to prove ‘HIM’ wrong. How dare him to say that she was stupid and was never going to amount to anything. She packed her belongings and headed for Houston.

Her late father had one last rental property that she hadn’t allowed Curtis to finagle her out of. Deep down inside, she was a good soul, something of a dreamer. Always wanting simple things, be a wife, have a kid or two and what’s so hard about finding a decent guy? She didn’t need a prince. Right now a frog with a job would be excellent. The irony of it all, Janis was drop dead gorgeous. Long, silky black hair, nice full lips, shapely body and the most wonderful smile that God had put on any female, but she had drawbacks. Her self esteem had been battered by not just Curtis, but every man that she had ever been with. Although she tried to appear normal, she was lacking something inside and she knew it.

She pulled into the driveway, Here I go, sighing deeply. It’s not much, but it’s all I have. She stepped out of her car and took a long look at the house. The roof was all tin, it had a small porch, the front screen leaned angled to the side and the front door was completely gone. On either side of her house were the same identical shotgun houses, but one could tell the difference. Her house looked abandoned. The others didn’t. She had heard crazy stories about Fifth Ward, the dope fiends, bodies found, police afraid to step foot in the neighborhood, all that, and here she was, smack dab in the middle of it all. Janis thought to herself, Houston is the biggest city in Texas and I can lose myself in a place like this and that’s just what I intend to do.

She leaned against the front door opening and tried to lift what was left of the shabby screen door and place it aright. There, but the dilapidated door crashed as soon as she let go of it. Come on!

After stepping inside the house, her nose was filled with the smell of mildew. The walls were moldy green and small black creatures scurried out of sight. As she walked, the floors sagged and squeaked loudly. The first thing she did was open each and every window and door in the house. Darkness soon changed to brightness, although all the drabness of the house was evident. The house was solid inside other than the creaking floors. With a little cleaning, it would be livable. She figured as much and hurried outside for her cleaning supplies. She had large bottles of water, jugs of bleach and Pine-Sol. She pulled her rubber gloves on her hands and went to work. Her house wasn’t spotless when she finished, but it was clean. The mixture of the chemicals made her step outside for some fresh air. She took a seat on the porch and placed her Doral menthol pack close and scooped up her lighter. She watched the sun disappear and the night overtake the city like a blanket.

Downtown Houston seemed beautiful from where she sat. The towering skyscrapers lit up the sky. Traffic flowed constantly, the people gave a different aura, and Houston blacks came off arrogant and unafraid. Gold teeth, diamonds, nice cars, pressed designer clothes, they wasted thousands on cars, clothes and weed. Every person seemed to be smoking weed and driving endlessly. People shouted obscenities indiscriminately to one another. Janis was amazed at how everything happened so quickly here.

She grabbed her pack of smokes and realized she had smoked the remainder of the pack while observing what everybody was doing around her. After a guy drove by and glared at her, while smoking a large blunt, she stopped speaking to everybody that passed by her house. This wasn’t the country. People here didn’t try to speak to you just because.

Suddenly an old lady stepped out of the house next door. She wore a shabby dress and too many thermal shirts. She gripped the tie of a bag of trash as she dragged it across her yard and placed it close to her leaning mailbox. She opened the mailbox, glared inside for what seemed like forever. Seeing that it was empty, she lifted the flag anyway and left it open deliberately. Then turning, she saw Janis for the first time.

Janis tried not lifting her hand and waving, but her instincts made her. Hello, how are you doing?

The lady smiled and quickly closed her mouth. Her false teeth shook loose, after readjusting them quickly, her smile returned, I’m doing just fine baby and you?

I’m fine, just a little tired, but I’m fine. Janis said as she started walking slowly towards the old lady. The closer she got, the stronger the smell of urine became. The scent was overpowering, but she never flinched. Once in close proximity to the lady, she realized where the smell was coming from. Janis crinkled her nose and the old lady noticed.

Baby, please forgive my old age. I can’t stand that dog gone plastic bag those doctors gave me, so I just took it off and allowed nature to run its course.

Janis looked at her, really looked at her with genuine sympathy and with as much understanding as she could muster. That’s okay ... one day I hope to get your age, Janis grabbed her withered hands and beckoned her towards her house. The old lady held back, What’s wrong? I’m sorry, forgive my manners, please. My name is Janis and I just moved in next door, I’m from Lufkin.

You live in that house, baby?

Unfortunately, yes I do now.

Sorry ta’ hear that. Lot of bad things go on in that house over there. She stared right into Janis’ eyes, But we never know, with freshness comes change.

Can I help you with something? Janis asked.

Help me? I think that nurse lady has that part covered. Would you like to come inside? You have ta’ scuse’ tha’ mess. Roaches and all but you’re welcome.

Sure, Mrs.?

I’m sorry baby, just call me Mrs. MayAnn. You have to look over me at times, my mind don’t operate like it use to.

Janis smiled and hugged Mrs. MayAnn and they entered the house. She almost dropped her arms from around Mrs. MaryAnn once inside the sour, urine smelling house. Roaches ran over the walls, pictures, couch, dishes, everything. Her stomach turned circles but she composed her poker face with a nice warm smile.

Jus’ have a seat baby, I’ll get you some water, besides that’s all I have anyways, scuse’ me. Mrs. MayAnn shuffled into the kitchen and grabbed one of the empty pickle jars out of the cluttered sink and filled it with water, emptied it and filled it again. Here baby ... she eased down in the seat next to Janis.

Thank you. Janis eased the jar close to her mouth. She smelled vinegar and spotted small chunks of something floating in the water.

Back home she was taught to never be rude, even if it’s something you despised to the core. She learned that lesson as a small girl when one of her aunts was eating red clay dirt. She offered it to Janis and Janis remembered saying, I’m not eating no dirt! That’s nasty! She walked away with rips across her butt for that one. Not because she told a lie, but because she insulted her aunt while basically calling her aunt nasty.

Janis swallowed hard, she didn’t drink much but she endured enough to assure herself she didn’t want any more water.

Thank you again, you’re so nice, Mrs. MayAnn ... while looking around, she saw a picture of Flav sitting on the coffee table right in front of them. The guy seemed so young and innocent. Who is that guy?

Them chillen’ ain’t got no better sense. Playing that loud mess like it’s nobody’s business like that. She had seemed to have dozed off until the loud music came and went.

Janis calmly brushed a roach off her arm and smiled at the lady. Is he your brother or something?

Oh no, Lord knows that my child is the only reason that I’m still alive. That’s my only child, he’s all I have nowadays, She picked up the picture and her eyes glossed over.

If you don’t mind me being too nosey, where is he?

Child, I don’t mind ... he’s in prison ... been down there way too long, can’t much count the years, it’s been so long. She quickly caught her loose dentures by closing her mouth.

He’s all the family you have? A rat scurried around a corner and vanished into a small hole.

He’s all I need, Mrs. MayAnn started rocking slowly, the smell of fresh urine filled Janis’ nostrils. Ain’t much I can do about that Janis. Nature has to take its course, Mrs. MayAnn said as she caught a glimpse of Janis’ tightening eyes.

That’s okay, I understand. Janis wanted badly to do something about this situation, but she didn’t have the time, money, or the energy left to do much. Can I come by sometimes and maybe help clean up things?

I reckon so … be a fool to tell you no. As she turned to face her, Janis noticed for the first time that Mrs. MayAnn had one sleepy eye. A roach climbed up the side of Mrs. MayAnn’s neck and Janis wanted badly to slap it away.

Don’t pay ‘em no mind baby. You get use to ‘em over time. Mrs. MayAnn was not concerned about the urine flowing down her legs or the roaches crawling on her.

I’m sorry to hear about your son.

No sense being sorrowful for me. I learned to stop being sorry long time ago ... we just keep on moving. God has us, all of us. My boy needs a good woman after being gone so long. She turned away from Janis and seemed to doze off.

Janis hadn’t ever been with a guy who had served time before. She had reservations about that, bad reservations. Being with another obvious loser was a no-no. Doing bad was something that she could do alone. Her heart went out to Mrs. MayAnn and her son, but Flav was totally off the chart.

Well, I better be going, Mrs. MayAnn, Janis said as she stood up.

Mrs. MayAnn nodded her head slowly. Janis smiled, patted her shoulder and stepped out of the house. The clean night air was refreshing.

Closing her eye, for a brief moment she paused and relished it. Then a whiff of urine invaded her nose again, her stomach lurched and sour smelling vomit gushed from her mouth before she could do anything about it.

CHAPTER THREE

Life is a sticky mess, it seems to get worse with every passing moment ...

— Flav

Flav sat back in the thick seat. This was the best he had had in years. He looked out the window at the livestock grazing in pastures. It wouldn’t be long before this ride was over and he would be back in H-Town. Although his body was beaten and bruised, he was OK. Flav was finally free and that’s all that mattered. Nevertheless, he was still pissed at the system.

He was mad at his lover for telling him that he loved him over and over for years, but gave him the virus. He pumped the idea that Flav was a pimp and pimps have to have boys. He pumped that crazy idea in Flav’s head over-and-over as he pumped more strands of the deadly virus into Flav’s body. Flav became a sort of incubator for different strands of the disease. At one point, meds didn’t do anything for him. His lover had too many lovers behind the wall and his lovers became Flav’s lovers as well. Finally, his lover’s clock had stopped. The one person who fed him, nurtured him, when the entire world turned their back on him, had succumbed to the AIDS virus. Flav was forced to find a replacement; he opened himself up for the very thing that he never wanted, rape. He stepped inside the cell, locked the door, made an advance only to be fooled. The guy’s voice suddenly changed. Turned out the guy wasn’t interested in doing the catching, but the pitching ... after nailing a home run he sent Flav packing to the infirmary to get a fresh stitch job. Flav walked away perplexed - should he stay in the game? Should he find God? He just acted on instincts and lust until his day came to go home. That old saying, a pancake ain’t done until it’s flipped was the perfect sentiment for his situation.

His anger still burned towards the prison guards who beat him, handled him and treated him like crap. He dreamed of one day finding a lady with shapely hips and an innocent face. He would flip her, turn her into his prostitute and bring her back to that prison town and hunt down every rotten guard. She would seduce them and after each deed was done, stand appropriately at the motel room door and laugh a belly aching laugh and say, Remember Cordova, aka Flav? He gave me a gift to give to you! Welcome to the world of AIDS!

His mind drifted away from revenge to the old lady that nursed and cherished his very existence. She hadn’t written him in years, her last letter was a jumbled mess. She needed him, he needed her, but not even his mother would stop him from doing what had to be done.

"Our next stop,