Beginning of an Eclipse (SIN CITY HEAT SERIES PREQUEL) Read online

  Beginning of an Eclipse by SK

  All rights reserved. Except in the case of brief quotations within critical articles or reviews, the reproduction of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means is forbidden without permission of the publisher.

  Copyright © 2011

  All rights reserved.

  Dear Readers,

  I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all for the overwhelming support you’ve given me for my novels Buried Secrets and Twisted Obsessions, Books 1 & 2 in the Sin City Heat Series. The kind words and encouragement mean so much, and it’s good to know that you enjoyed reading the books as much as I enjoyed writing them.

  In Buried Secrets, I introduced several members of the “Vegas Crew” as I like to think of them. Dr. Marcus Bennett and Aleesha Matthews reconnected with one another after briefly meeting three years prior at a medical conference in Las Vegas. Darrell Monroe and Jerra St. James met at Aleesha’s bachelorette party and sparks immediately ignited between the couple. There was also Keisha McKnight, who later hooked up with Marcus and Darrell’s best friend, Dominick Spain in Twisted Obsessions.

  Beginning of an Eclipse is, more or less, a prequel to Buried Secrets. A lot of readers really seemed to connect with Darrell and Jerra’s story. I actually wrote Beginning of an Eclipse after Buried Secrets because I felt Darrell’s character was truly an electrifying one who went through a lot to become the man he was destined to be. Even though Marcus and Dominick experienced unthinkable circumstances of their own, at one point or another they had something that Darrell never had: the love and security of a family. There was no one around to show him how to become a man. Through trial and error, he found his way. This is his story.

  Please visit my blog at www.sweetkaramel.com/blog1 for information on future books or to read short stories I’ve written and posted.

  Sincerest thanks,

  SK~

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I am forever grateful to God for giving me the strength and fortitude to carry on through one of the most challenging periods in my life. I may have questioned where he was during my times of need – but then I looked back and saw the one set of footprints where he carried me through.

  Thank you to my parents for their love and support and for giving me the foundation to become the person I am today. They led by example and for that I’ll be forever grateful. Thank you to my husband, Francis, for all of your support and encouragement. Many a nights you allowed me to lock myself up in my room and write for hours at a time without complaining once. I love and appreciate you for that and so much more. To my son, Christopher, I can’t find the words to express how much you mean to me. For the longest time, it was just ‘Mommy & Chris’. I’m so very proud of the young man you’ve become and the man you’re destined to be. (1-4-3).

  Many, many thanks to author The Black who inspired me to constantly do better and grow in my writing, and who never turned my questions away once. Thanks to Tasha and Sarah for all of their help and patience. I appreciate ya! Thanks to Anita for giving me the initial push needed to get my rear into gear! Much love my NA readers who were the first to give me a clue that I kinda had a talent for this craft! This is only the beginning!

  Peace, Blessings, and Love

  SK~

  Chapter 1

  “I told you I ain’t playin’ ‘daddy’ to no li’l bastard!” Rodney’s glare turned into a slow burn that made its way across the room to Tina. “Fuck you think I am!”

  Still watching her, he settled down on the couch and propped his feet up on the worn, rickety coffee table in front of him. Holding the joint he’d just rolled between his thumb and index finger, he brought it up to his lips and swiftly inhaled in order to get the smoke down into his lungs as deep as possible. He held his breath for about five seconds then slowly exhaled before continuing the conversation.

  “Shit, I’on fuck with the five I got so what makes you think I wanna fuck wit yours?” he managed to croak out.

  Tina Monroe took her time and chose her words carefully. “I’m just sayin’ that I thought we weren’t leavin’ until next week. I ain’t even had a chance to tell Darrell yet.”

  “Just tell the li’l mu’fucka you goin’ away! You ain’t gotta explain nuthin’ to him. Look, I ain’t got time for this shit. Either you leavin’ with me tomorrow like we planned or you stayin’ here. It's that simple. What’s it gonna be?” Rodney took another long drag of his joint and waited, but they both knew Tina’s answer was already a foregone conclusion. Just as he knew she would, quickly nodded in agreement.

  Rodney let out a satisfied grunt before resting back against the cushions and running his eyes over her. She was fine as hell, no doubt, and he loved all the attention he got when he was with her. Rodney felt a sense of satisfaction run through him when he thought about how much his friends envied him.

  The tension left Tina’s body when she saw the way her man stared at her. Now, she was on familiar territory. Her looks had been mesmerizing men since the tender age of twelve. Her smooth, café au lait complexion resembled hot coffee lightened with several dollops of sweet cream, and her long black hair fell down her back in flowing waves of bouncy ringlets. Thick lashes swept down to hide the expression in her seductive, smoky eyes; she was the shit and she knew it.

  And soon the rest of the world would know it too. She was meant for more than this life she was leading – she deserved more. Years ago, while her friends had been out having fun and partying, she’d been stuck at home caring for a screaming baby and changing shitty diapers. She’d paid her dues, now it was her turn to have some fun and put herself first!

  For as long as she could remember, people had been telling her that she was beautiful enough to be a model. Rodney promised to help make that happen. Nothing and nobody was going to stop her from being the star she was destined to be – not even her own child.

  Rodney’s voice brought her out of her inner musings. “Why you way over there? Bring yo’ li’l sexy ass over here and help me relax. You done stressed me the fuck out with all this bullshit.”

  Tina eagerly walked over and dropped to her knees, instantly forgetting that she was supposed to be telling her only child that in a couple of hours, he would be leaving the only home he’d ever known to start a new life at a Catholic orphanage right outside the city. The only thing important right now was keeping Rodney happy.

  But there was no need to have that conversation with Darrell. He’d been in his room listening through the paper thin walls and heard everything. Although, he didn’t understand all of the details, he got the gist of what was going on. At seven years old, he was an extremely intelligent little boy. Dragging his teddy bear behind him, he slowly walked over and sat down on his bed, letting his mind digest what was about to happen.

  When Tina finally came to his room to pack his things, Darrell silently watched as she scooped up the second hand clothes from the broken down dresser and threw them into a beaten and scratched up suitcase. Normally, she was never in a hurry to do much, but now, her movements were quick and deft as if she wanted to hurry up and finish…as if she wanted to hurry and get rid of him.

  Tina Monroe tried to ignore her son’s unwavering stare as she grabbed the only other pair of shoes he owned out of the tiny, cramped closet. The tattered and torn pair of sneakers were half a size too small for him, but they would have to do. Looking around to make sure she had everything that was of consequence, she closed Darrell’s suitcase before steeling herself to turn around and face her son.

  For the briefest of moments, her heart softened. He was such a beau
tiful little boy. Complete strangers came up to them all the time, gushing over him and telling Tina how adorable he was. Those were some of Tina’s proudest moments. She ran a hand over his mop of black, bouncy curls. Except for his piercing gray eyes which he'd gotten from her, he was the spitting image of his Creole father whose Cane River heritage was a French, and African American. He’d never laid eyes on Darrell and made it clear he never wanted to. As a thirty-something year old married man, he’d known from the beginning she was only fifteen, but it hadn’t mattered. His only worry had been making sure his wife didn’t find out. In fact, the last thing he’d told her before he disappeared out of her life was to get rid of the baby…and she would have done, too, but she couldn’t afford the procedure.

  “I want you to be a good boy for mama, alright li’l D? You listen to what those nuns tell you. Don’t give ‘em no trouble. Act like you got some home trainin’, you hear me?”

  Darrell nodded, but didn’t say anything. An hour later, he stood in the doorway of the huge orphanage and watched his mother leave without even a backwards glance and get into the car with Rodney. It was as if she’d already forgotten him.

  Not one tear ran down his face as they drove off, but inside, he was screaming out for her to come back. Tina hadn’t been the best mother, but she was all he had. The nun, who’d introduced herself as Sister Theresa, firmly closed the door and led him to the boy‘s dorm.

  “Darrell, this is your home now. The sooner you accept that, the easier it will be. I will go over all the rules with you one by one. You will have chores that you will be expected to complete. A child is never too young to learn responsibility. Disobedience will not be tolerated and will be dealt with severely….”

  As Darrell listened to the nun go over the list of rules and regulations, he knew…deep down inside…that his mother was never coming back for him.

  Chapter 2

  Darrell had been at the orphanage a little over two years, and during that time, he’d slowly changed. He learned to defend himself early on against the older boys, but in doing so he was labeled as something of a troublemaker by the nuns.

  The fact that he was always in the midst of some type of confusion wasn't the only reason they frowned down upon him. They found his continuous questions of their teachings to be more disrespectful than inquisitive; the fact that they usually didn’t have an answer for his musings didn’t help.

  One day, he was in class when Sister Tabitha brought a young boy to the room and introduced him as Marcus Bennett. The little boy kept his eyes downcast and barely mumbled a greeting. He was seated by Darrell, who was sent strict warnings to behave himself.

  As usual, Darrell ignored their admonishment and questioned Marcus until he finally began to open up. Darrell learned that Marcus’ parents had been killed in an automobile accident a couple of years ago. He and his younger sister had been living with their elderly aunt, but once his aunt passed away, his sister was quickly adopted by a couple who was only able to take one of them. Darrell told Marcus about Tina, and how she just dropped him off one day and never came back. He pointed out that even though Marcus wasn't with his sister, at least he had someone who loved him. Darrell didn’t have anybody.

  “Why don’t we be each other’s family?” Darrell suggested. “We’ll be brothers. Blood brothers and we’ll always have each other’s back. ‘K?’”

  Intense and thoughtful, Marcus frowned. Then as if coming to a decision, he smiled and nodded his agreement. They each pricked their thumbs until a pin sized drop of blood oozed out then tightly pressed their thumbs together to let the promise of brotherhood merge together and seal their pact.

  The two only became closer as the years passed. Marcus’s calm personality was a perfect foil for Darrell’s impetuous nature. By the time they were in their teens, both had grown up to be tall, good looking boys with muscular bodies to match thanks to their love of exercise. Darrell’s caramel coloring and shock of black curls made heads turn wherever he went, and Marcus’ chocolate frame easily caused second and third glances from the opposite sex.

  As they got older, Darrell became more and more restless. He’d been at St. Joseph’s Orphanage for seven years and was tired of the rigid and strict atmosphere. He was always trying to buck the system and continued to stay in trouble.

  “Man, Marcus, I’m tellin’ you, I don’t know how much more of this place I can take. You can‘t even breathe out loud without gettin’ an infraction.”

  The two of them were in the library studying, or at least Marcus was. As usual, Darrell was venting about his hatred of St. Joseph’s. Marcus glanced up from his books. “Probably because half the time, you doin’ more than just ‘breathing out loud’. I told you not to sneak out the other night, to just wait a couple of days, but did you listen to me?”

  The grimace on Darrell’s face turned to a slow smile. “Yeah, but it was worth it. Jackie gave it up all night. You should’ve come with me. She asked where you were.”

  Marcus sat back in his chair. “D, I don’t know why you try to play that girl like that. You know she’s crazy over you.”

  Darrell’s gray eyes turned cool and indifferent. “That’s not my problem, is it? She knows the deal. I don’t owe her nuthin’. If she don’t like the way I am, she can step and make room for the next one.”

  “I’m just saying you should-”

  “Marcus, drop it. You gon’ learn that all females are the same. They only care about themselves and what’s in it for them.” His eyes got a faraway look, and Marcus knew he was thinking about his mother so he decided to change the subject.

  “Well, anyway, if I had gone with you, who would’ve been here to cover for your ass?” he grinned.

  Just like he anticipated, Darrell’s eyes lightened and the normal cocky grin crossed his face. “You worry too much, Marcus. It would’ve worked itself out. It always does.”

  Marcus didn’t bother to remind Darrell that ’working itself out’ usually resulted in one or both of them getting punished. “Whatever. Come on. We need to get back to studying.”

  “Hell, bruh, you know this stuff backwards and forwards. What are you studying for, Einstein?”

  “So I can know it ‘backwards and forwards’,” Marcus replied without missing a beat.

  They looked at each other then burst out laughing. All of a sudden, they heard footsteps coming towards them and quickly pretended to be engrossed in their books. Marcus’ stomach dropped when he saw Sister Caroline headed their way. That could only mean one thing. His eyes met Darrell’s.

  Damn!

  She walked up to their table and grabbed Darrell’s arm. “The Monsignor would like to see you immediately.” Her voice was stern and her expression was one of satisfaction.

  Darrell glared up at her. It seemed as if Sister Caroline had made it her mission in life to try and catch Darrell breaking the rules ever since he’d made her the laughing stock in front of his history class. The majority of the time he got away with his mischief, which only made her more determined. The way she was gloating now, it seemed as she was confident she’d finally gotten the upper hand.

  “Let’s go.”

  Darrell resisted and refused to budge. “Why?”

  Sister Caroline’s face turned beet read at his insolence. “Don’t question me, young man. Just do as I say.”

  Marcus tried to intercede. “Sister Caroline-”

  “Was I talking to you, Mr. Bennett?”

  “No, Sister Caroline, but…”

  “Then I suggest you return to your studies and stay out of things that don’t concern you.” She turned back to Darrell. “Mr. Monroe...now!”

  Darrell and Marcus’ eyes met again in silent communication as Darrell stood up and walked out the library. Marcus couldn’t concentrate after that, and when Darrell didn’t show up for dinner or back to the dorms the next night, he knew something was wrong.

  After the third day, he was able to find out that arrangements had been made to transfer Da
rrell to another facility, one that was more of a boys’ home for troubled youths. However, the day he was to be transferred, the nuns couldn’t find him anywhere. When Marcus didn’t show up for early morning mass, they discovered he had disappeared as well. At that point, as far as St. Joseph’s was concerned, they were no longer the orphanage’s responsibility.

  The two of them hopped a bus that would take them out into a cold world they knew nothing about. Darrell apprehensively looked at his Marcus. “You sure you wanna do this? It’s not too late for you to go back.”

  Marcus looked at Darrell. Behind the arrogant bravado, he knew Darrell was just as scared as he was. “Nah. No turnin’ back. I’m my brotha’s keeper, right?”

  Three years later…

  Darrell studied the woman standing in front of him as he gulped his beer down. She was a petite little thing, no more than 5’2” and had curves that should’ve come with a warning. Her soft brown hair framed her face in a trendy bob, highlighting her creamy milk chocolate skin and sexy hazel eyes. Yeah, Jade was definitely dangerous – but Darrell thrived on danger.

  The two of them had been tiptoeing around each other for weeks. True, she had a man, and normally that wasn’t a deterrent, but this time, he was a little hesitant. He’d had more than a few run in’s with Rakeem, and didn’t feel like looking for unnecessary trouble. This chick had a lot of drama surrounding her, but she also talked much shit. Made him curious to discover if she could back it up.

  “So what do you say? We gonna do this, or what?” Jade’s nonchalant attitude was only a front. They both knew she'd been after Darrell for a minute now and was eager to see what all the fuss was about when it came to him and his sexual skills.