Authors: Michele Reed
Before anything else, Mercedes could hear the beeping of machines meant for monitoring her vitals. Her head ached, but she supposed after falling on concrete it could be feeling a lot worse. She assumed they had her on some strong medicines and although she had not even opened her eyes, her head was already spinning. She could recall being angry and yelling at Kerry and she remembered seeing her mother all dressed up in her finest attire. Mercedes cringed. Despite her headache, she forced herself to squint her eyes open.
Beside her was Tito; his head was down and he was gripping her right hand. Near the door she spotted Kerry and Ernie; the two of them were not speaking but instead were staring daggers at one another.
Too bad I missed that initial meeting
, she thought, imagining that while it would have been uncomfortable it probably had also been a bit humorous. After a moment she noted that no one realized that she was awake, so she decided to let them in on it, “Tito,” she said and all three men’s heads shot up.
“
Dios es bueno
,” Tito mumbled and kissed her hand. “How are you feeling?”
“What happened?” Mercedes grumbled. Kerry seemed to put aside his staring contest with Ernie and he rushed to her left side and took her other hand.
“You passed out and knocked your head on the cement,” Tito said.
“And for some reason bozo couldn’t catch you,” Ernie grumbled at Kerry who had been standing right next to Mercedes during her fall.
Kerry did not respond to Ernie’s comment, but Mercedes could see Kerry’s shoulders tense up in agitation. She could tell that Kerry wanted to bust Ernie’s lip and imagined that several comments like that had already been made while she had been unconscious. She could remember falling and hitting her head, but she could not imagine what had gotten her so dizzy. She glanced at Kerry and saw that his eye was swollen from though she could recall that she had punched him in the face during her tirade. She felt bad for causing the bruise, but she decided to wait another time to offer an apology. “Why did I pass out?” she asked, hoping the doctors had already figured it out. Mercedes felt Kerry squeeze her hand when she asked, so she looked at him for an answer.
When Kerry’s lips failed him, Tito spoke, “You’re pregnant.”
Mercedes gaze fell on Kerry. The man nodded his head, but he said nothing. She let the surprise sink in. It certainly explained why she had been feeling so sick the past couple of mornings. She felt rather passive as she looked at Kerry and asked, “Do you want to keep it?”
“I’ve always wanted kids,” he told her, but there was a certain nervousness about him. She was not sure if he was lying to her or if he was still surprised by the news as well.
“Yeah,” Mercedes questioned, “but did you ever want them with someone like me?”
Kerry kissed her hand. “Mercedes, I’ve only ever wanted them with someone like you.”
“Are you kidding me?” Ernie’s voice suddenly piped up. “
Es un hombre blanco débil.”
He waved his hand over towards Kerry angrily. Ernie’s arms were waving and flaring about. He looked like an absolute lune as he shouted over at Kerry in Spanish.
“Oh, shut up, Hernandez,” Tito grouched.
“No,” Ernie hissed. He leaned forward, putting his hands on the foot of the hospital bed. “You think this is a joke? This white guy in a damn suit is a joke. This fool doesn’t know what it’s like to have to hustle and survive.” Ernie looked straight at Kerry with a furious look planted on his face. “You raise Mercedes’ kid and he’s going to be a weak little fool like you.”
“Is that what you think?” Kerry did not stand from his seat next to Mercedes, but he glared up at Ernie with a hateful gaze. “You don’t even know me. I started my business from nothing. What are you suggesting, big guy? You want to raise my kid? You do that and the kid will probably wind up in prison like you did.”
“You been talking about me?” Ernie hissed at Mercedes. “Is that what I am to you, Mercedes? Some hood-rat?” Ernie’s face was turning red from his growing fury. “You got to make a choice, Mercedes. You can either stick with your own people or you can just run away like your mom did and turn your back on everyone.”
Tito stood and crossed over to Ernie. “You need to calm down. You are acting like a hood-rat.” Tito gently nudged Ernie back. “Don’t yell at her again, Ernie, I swear.”
“What are you going to do?” Ernie slapped Tito’s arms away. Before Ernie’s temper could escalate any further, the door to the room slowly swung open.
Mercedes’ mother stood in the doorway. Tito practically snarled at the woman when he saw her and he broke away from Ernie and headed towards her, attempting to block her from coming through the doorway. “You should leave,” he said with resentment ever present in his voice. “What do you think you’re even doing here, Jane?”
Mercedes rolled her eyes, recalling how only a few weeks before Tito had tried to get her to contact her mother in hopes of enticing her to pay for her to return to MIT. Evidently, talking about it was one thing but actually seeing her mother was another. Tito looked infuriated by the woman’s presence. Despite Tito’s aggression, Mercedes could at least recognize that the woman had bothered to come see her. “It’s all right, Uncle Tito,” she said, and Tito unwillingly stepped aside.
Her mother was antsy acting as she entered the room, knowing good and well that no one cared for her to be there. Mercedes was sure there was some added nerves with Kerry being present as well. Her husband was about to strike a deal with him, after all. “Hello, Vroom.” Her mother’s voice shook.
Mercedes frowned. Her father had called her
Vroom
when she was a little girl. It was an old pet name. As a child she had sat on top of her father’s bike and would mimic the noise of the engine, earning herself the silly nickname. It had always made her smile when her father used the word, but coming from her mother’s lips, the word sounded like tar. “I don’t think you should get to call me that,” Mercedes said, angry that her mother had dared to act so familiar with her.
The woman stood near the foot of her bed, not daring to come any closer. “Are you all right?” she asked.
“If you mean am I better from a sudden affair with the concrete, then yes. If you’re asking about my emotional scars…well, those could use some work.” Mercedes glared at her. She was already wishing she had let Tito throw her out of the room.
“Mercedes, I never wanted to hurt you…”
Mercedes threw up her hands. “Never meant to hurt me? That’s great, Mom. That makes me feel better.” She crossed her arms. “Whatever your intentions had been, they don’t mean anything to me. You have been selfish, and nothing you say now is going to change that. Thanks for the suit and the dress, by the way.”
Her mother shifted her weight from one foot to the other, clearly feeling everyone’s eyes on her while Mercedes railed into her. “I tried to help you, you know?” she looked over to Kerry for a moment and then back at Mercedes. “When Mr. O’Brian showed Miss Lawrence and I the security footage of you yelling at him at the site and told us to see if we could find out who you were, I thought I could maybe repay some of my negligence towards you. I pulled your school records to show Mr. O’Brian and pushed him to hire you…although he was already considering it after I showed him your transcripts. He didn’t know I was your mother then. I just thought maybe it would be nice if I could help you get a decent job. I just wanted to help you, Mercedes, with the garage going under and all-”
Mercedes sat up, “How did you know the garage was going under?”
The woman’s face turned red, she looked down at her feet while she spoke, “The bank called me. Adam…um… my husband… he did not want it to affect our credit with the merger and all. He had me sign over the property to the bank. A percentage of the garage was still in my name. I hadn’t even realized…”
“You sold your part of the garage to the bank? You sold us out?” Mercedes hissed. “That garage was everything to us. You and your husband could have bought out our half from the bank - it would have been chump change to you. You could have given us back our garage or let us make payments…or something! It would have been the most decent thing you would have ever done for us…for me.”
“My husband just wanted to get rid of it.”
Mercedes fists were clenched as she screamed at her mother, “You know what? It would be nice if for once, just once, you could put your own daughter first. You think buying me a dress makes up for everything? Well, it doesn’t. You never even bothered to let me know you were back in New York! You could have called me. You could have come and seen me. It’s not like you didn’t know where I was at. You think you can just fix everything with a checkbook?”
Ernie suddenly decided he needed to pipe up and put in his two cents. “That’s how people like
them
act, Mercedes. Money before everything else, even blood,” he said, his stare going from her mother and then to Kerry. “If you stay with that suit and you’re going to wind up just like her.”
Mercedes did not give Kerry a chance to retort. Her voice escalated and she pointed a finger at Ernie. “You need to go. Get out of my life, Ernie. You’re nothing but trash. You always have been. You are a damn hood-rat. What I decide to do with my life is not for you to judge. I’ll make whatever choice I feel like. I guess I got that from my mother.” Mercedes eyes darted to her mother for a moment. She offered her a cold state before turning her attention back to Ernie. “I want to you leave right now. I never want to see you again. Fuck off, Ernie.”
Ernie started to dispute, but Tito came and hovered over him. Tito glared at Ernie, daring him to say anything more. “Whatever,” Ernie grumbled. “Forget all you.” He stormed out of the room, down the hall, and out of her life.
Mercedes’ mother looked at Mercedes, a smile seemed to be creeping up on her face. “I am very proud of you. You’ve turned out to be a very strong woman.”
“Oh shut up,” Mercedes griped, her voice had yet to lower but continued to escalate. She was certain anyone out in the hall or in nearby rooms could hear her. “You are the biggest sellout. You are worse than Ernie! You are a piece of trash! I can’t stand you-” Mercedes suddenly became light headed. She closed her eyes and slowly fell back into the bed.
“Mercedes?” Kerry stood up, “Mercedes?”
Her blood levels spiked, her heard rate was dangerously high. The machines were going mad. Within seconds two nurses came running into the room to check her vitals. They made a quick decision, hardly speaking to the concerned onlookers at all and began to wheel the unconscious Mercedes out of the room. “Is she okay? Is she okay?” Kerry’s voice cracked. Tito stopped him from following the nurses. Mercedes looked awful.
Miss Harris’ hands shook, “What’s wrong with her?”
“You,” Tito hissed.
Soon the three of them were led out of the room and sent to a waiting area. A doctor informed them that Mercedes’ condition was highly unstable and that her fever had spiked again. They would simply have to wait and see what the next few hours would bring. Kerry, Tito, and Miss Harris sat quietly in the waiting area, never speaking a word to one another.
***
Mercedes eyes shot open and she immediately sat up. She was then encouraged by Tito to lie back down. He swore she needed to rest. In the room with her was Tito, Kerry, and her mother. They all had somber looks on their faces. Mercedes grumbled, “I’m getting tired of passing out,” she said. Suddenly Mercedes felt her stomach churn anxiously, “The baby?” she asked.
She could tell by the sudden quiet in the room as well as the sad grouping of faces that they did not have any good news for her. Kerry, who was seated beside her, said in a draining tone, “The baby’s gone, Mercedes.” He looked heartbroken and she felt it as well.
Her eyes began to swell up with tears. She touched her stomach. She had only known that she was pregnant for a short time, but she still felt as though something very precious had just been taken from her. She began to cry, silently wishing her mother was not there. Tito seemed to read her mind. He stood and crossed over to her mother. “We should give those two a minute,” he said and led her out of the room so that she and Kerry could be alone for a few minutes. “We’ll let the doctor know she’s awake,” Tito said as they left.
The moment the door closed, Kerry invited himself to sit up on the bed beside her, his legs dangling off the side. She felt his arms wrap tightly around her and she melted into his embrace. “I can’t stop crying,” she mumbled. This was not like her. She was normally in control of her emotions. His chin was rested on top of her head; she pushed her head into his chest. Kerry started to rock her ever so slightly. “I know it’s crazy,” Mercedes said, “It would have been crazy for us to try to raise a baby. We hardly know each other at all…but when Tito told me I was pregnant, I was upset. I wanted it. I wanted my baby.”
“Me too,” he said and leaned back so that she could see his face. He had tears in his eyes, but he was doing much a better job as holding himself together than she was. Kerry kissed her forehead and then sat back a bit as he stroked her arms. “I don’t want to lose you too. God, you must hate me?”
“Kerry-”
“How could you not?” he asked. “The second I learned Miss Harris was your mother I should have told you. She asked me not to, but I should not have listened to her. It was not fair to you. After everything you had told me about her, how she had left you, I thought you would hate me for working with her husband.”
Mercedes reached out and touched his lips so he would stop rambling, “You should have told me,” she said. “And no, I’m not particularly thrilled about you working with him, but I get it. It’s a job. It’s money.”
“It’s not as important as you,” Kerry said. “I won’t work with him.”
“Kerry, that’s ridiculous.” Mercedes argued. “You’re talking about a million dollar decision here.”
Kerry laughed, “More like a billion. But I don’t care. It’s not worth it. I love you, Mercedes.”
“You’re an idiot,” she said, “I won’t let you do that for me, you goof. Kerry, I’m not going to leave you. I’m mad at you, I am. I’m hurt, but I will get over it. Why? Because I love you too. I want to be with you. I want to get to know you better. I love you, you idiot.”
Kerry had begun crying but his silly smile had returned. “You’re amazing.” He leaned in and wrapped his arms around her again, his head rested on her shoulder.
“You are going to have to stop being such a little bitch, though,” she said and he laughed loudly. She laughed too and pulled away so she could look at his watery face. She wiped his tears away. “I’m serious, though. When you come to see me in Bushwick you’re bound to get your ass handed to you acting like that. You can be such a little girl at times.”
Kerry was laughing hard now. He was grinning from ear to ear. “You are really mean to me sometimes, you know?”
“Oh, I’ve hurt your feelings now?” she asked, her voice quite taunting. Before he could respond she grabbed him by his tie and pulled his face closer to hers. She kissed his lips. Mercedes felt relaxed as Kerry held her and felt at peace.
Her mother never came back in the room Mercedes suspected that Tito had sent her off. She was glad. Mercedes spent the next week in the hospital recovering. Kerry came to see her every day as did Tito. Yury made a few appearances as well. To her surprise, several of the thuggish crewmembers from her worksite stopped by as well. Those who did not visit sent flowers with Al. While in the hospital, Mercedes learned that the Harris-O’Brian merger did not go through. She pretended to be disappointed for Kerry, but he called her out on it. Mercedes did not hear from her mother again, but she learned from Kerry that the Harris’s had left town to return to their home where their corporate headquarters were. Mercedes was glad she would not run into the woman again at Kerry’s office.
She was ordered to take a week off work after finally leaving the hospital, much to her dismay. Sitting at home doing nothing was not a way Mercedes preferred to pass the time. She tried sneaking off to the garage to work on the car Kerry had given her, but she was caught by Tito and sent home. Thankfully, Kerry spent a number of nights at her apartment during her recovery week to keep her company. When she was at last able to return to work, she was more than thrilled to discover that Al had managed to keep the group somewhat on task in her absence. Mercedes dove right back into work; her days were filled with enjoyable work and occasional lunch dates with the company’s CEO. Her evenings consisted of drives home with the ever-talkative Yury and working on the new car. Kerry had even purchased her father’s bike from the bank to save it as well, so she took him on a ride outside of the city once. She laughed as he gripped onto her nervously, admitting he had never ridden on a bike before. She felt that her life was headed in a splendid direction.
***
“Are you ready?” Tito asked her anxiously. The man continuously sifted his stance to combat his growing nerves.
“Are
you
ready?” Mercedes questioned. The two of them stood outside of the double doors that led into the sanctuary. Eight months had gone by; for some it seemed a little quick, but Mercedes and Kerry were ready to take the plunge. She was dressed in a large, white gown. Miss Lawrence had actually played a considerable role in helping to pick out the lacy dress, and Mercedes had been very pleased in the woman’s wedding planning skills. Mercedes chuckled at the thought - who would have known that she and someone like Miss Lawrence would have become friends?
Tito suddenly had tears streaming down his face. Mercedes had never seen him in a tuxedo before; he looked rather dashing. “I just wish your father could have been here to see this,” he said and kissed her cheek.
“He is,” she said as her uncle took her by the arm.
“I know.” Tito took a breath.
She did the same, surprised that she had butterflies in her stomach when the doors opened to reveal her to the people seated in the pews. Everyone was still in the process of standing as the doors opened. They began their ascent up the aisle; she was not used to so many people staring. She saw Kerry’s mother in the front row. Kerry got his goofy smile from the woman. Mercedes had met her shortly after coming home from the hospital. The woman was everything Mercedes’ mother wasn’t, so she adored the woman for that.
Tito kissed her cheek and handed her off to Kerry. Kerry was smiling and there were tears in his eyes, “Don’t you start that again,” she whispered to him, making him chuckle under his breath.
“Too many Bushwick boys here to be acting like that, huh?” he whispered back. She laughed and squeezed his hand tight.
Immediately following the ceremony was an outdoor reception near the church. While Mercedes had insisted on a quaint little wedding, Miss Lawrence’s planning and Kerry’s checkbook had taken over the reception. Balloons, flowers, elegant table settings, and a large dance floor had been set out. Kerry twirled her around and then pulled her close as they enjoyed their first dance together as husband and wife. “Any regrets?” Kerry whispered to her.
“None,” she whispered back. “I have a special wedding present for you.”
“And what’s that?” he asked. Mercedes took him by the hand and subtly forced him to touch her stomach. She winked at him and his eyes grew wide in excitement. “Are you serious?”
She nodded and he embraced her tightly just as the song was ending. They soon sat at their seats at the head table, eagerly awaiting the nice dinner that had been prepared for the reception. As the two of them were seated close together, Yury approached them. “Miss O’Brian-” his voice sang.
She laughed, “Yes, Yury?”
“For you. A nice lady ask me give to you.” Yury handed her an envelope, told her she looked like a very beautiful bride, and then left her to open it.
Curiously, Mercedes opened the envelope. A set of familiar looking keys fell out. They were the keys to the garage, the garage that the bank had finally taken many months before. Inside the envelope which read:
To Mercedes O’Brian,
I know you probably do not want to hear from me, but I did want to get you a wedding gift. I bought the garage from the bank and had it put in your name. It’s yours. I do love you, Vroom. I hope you know that. It pains me to admit that I probably would not change anything that I have done - I like my life the way it is. You are a better person than I am, and I am proud of you for that. I hope one day that you can forgive me.
-Mom
Mercedes gripped the keys tight in her hand. She felt herself start to cry, but she held back. Kerry eyed her carefully. “Who is the letter from?” he asked.
She balled up the letter and tossed it aside. “No one important.” He seemed to understand, but he did not question it. She held out the keys to the garage. “Could you hold onto these for me? They’re important.”
Kerry nodded and placed the keys in his jacket. “I love you.”
“I love you,” she said. Kerry reached out and held her hand. She felt that she had everything she would ever need. She leaned in and kissed him, scooting her chair closer to his. Mercedes gazed out at the reception area. She felt loved at the surprising number of guests who had come to celebrate her special day. Her look fell on a large, framed picture set up near the guest book on a large easel. Her heart swelled to see the photograph of her father staring back at her with an approving look on his face.