Betrayal and Revenge

We've all heard these words before..."To err is human, and to forgive is divine". And these words could hold as much truth as they do wisdom. But, they could also be easier said than done especially when the person on the receiving end of the natural side of the forgiveness is one of your best friends. Treasured and loved like a sister.

Revenge is sweet. Revenge is a dish best served cold. "Revenge is mine"...saith the Lord. But when you're on the receiving end of the betrayal...it's easier said than done.

What happens when friendship turns sour? What events can make a tried, tested and true friend become a turncoat? How do best friends cope with betrayal from one of their own?

We'll see just what has gone down between two of the best friends in The Real Grandmothers of Charlotte, and what the resulting repercussions of the foursome's friendship are along with the effects they will all have to learn to live with. 

It's time to keep it real.  

A Lowdown Dirty Shame

"I can remember when I used to put the word 'Ms' in front of your name when I addressed you, Claudette."

"And I remember when you played your first junior high school football game, Stanford Jr."

These one-liners were their ice breakers as Stanford Clayton Jr., held the room door open and stood back to allow her to enter. Claudette was all 'easy breezy cover girl' as she swept passed him, and no one would have guessed that her insides felt like they were all twisted up together and her stomach was producing acid at an alarming rate. Add to that, her mind would not sit still; thoughts were gathering here and being scattered there. Most people would call this a very serious attack of conscience brought on by an acute case of guilt. Most people were not her; seriously focused and determined to see her plan through no matter what.

It had been a stroke of pure genius to develop and hatch her plot with Stanford Jr., as her victim. She had viewed it from a mother's perspective; knowing how much hurt it would bring on Helena to discover that her one and only handsome, precious, and pampered son had been defiled by a woman old enough to be his mother...worse still...one of his own mother's best friends. She had been so pleased with herself that after she had carefully mapped out her plan, she'd treated herself to a full day at the spa and a full body wrap to shrink her size 10 body down to a size 8 especially for tonight.

Not that she needed any extra work done because she had always been a natural beauty. Even at age fifty-something, she was still trim and firm with no sagging or loose skin. Her body was bikini ready and her legs showed not one single varicose vein. Her hair was lightly streaked throughout with a little gray, but she chose not to color it and tonight she wore it  loosely falling across her face. The light streaks of gray actually enhanced her beauty and made her appear all the more sophisticated for it.

Yes, she was a beautiful woman but tonight she was no lady. She had mentally prepared herself for the role she'd play by listening to some throwback Denise LaSalle as she readied herself for her 'date'. Denise sang to her about being a 'lady in the streets and freaky in the bedroom', so tonight that would be her mantra.

She came in and took a seat on the couch, placing her designer tote bag on the floor next to her. She carefully crossed her legs causing her already short skirt to rise higher up to mid-thigh. Stanford offered to make her a drink from the well stocked bar and asked what was her preference.

" Vodka tonic with a slice of lime if you please". Man, she practically purred as she gave him her order. She reached down to slowly remove her high heels; one at a time drawing it out so he would be teased by the action. The couch where she sat was in his direct line of vision from where he stood mixing the drinks. Just as he brought the drinks for her and his also, she shifted and tucked her legs under...with a calculated hesitation that allowed him the slightest peek at what was under her dress, and what was not. 

He sat down beside her and looked intently into her eyes as he almost casually began to stroke her thigh. Neither of them spoke. They leisurely drank from their glasses while exchanging deep soulful looks and realizing that this was a lead-in to foreplay. Never taking her eyes from his, Claudette stuck her forefinger into the liquid fire in her glass and brought  it up to Stanford's lips. She slowly allowed traced the outline of his lips and then slipped her finger between them.

When both of their glasses were empty, he asked if she requested a refill. Declining his offer, she stood up and went to him saying, "I've had my thirst quenched. Now lets appease my appetite".

Stay tuned for next week's intensely hot post!  What are your comments?

Down the Up Staircase

Within the space of a few minutes; five at the very most...all of the plans, the hard work, the anticipation, the pride in her first major accomplishment vanished. Like the ashes from a slow burning cigarette her dreams went up in smoke. Or like wisps of a fine vapor may be a more accurate description. But any way you sliced it, her world and her state of mind had turned upside down sideways...like it had stopped turning on its circular axis, and stopped on a tilted angle.

Her phone had rang as she started up the staircase, and she answered it with the same upbeat and happy tone of voice that mimicked the way she was already feeling inside. When she got the news, she sat down on the step, and she didn't remember actually ending the call. She only knew that for so long a time she had sat there on the same step where she had sank after receiving the call. Her mind was a blank for a while, and she sat staring at nothing; her eyes focused but not seeing.

The phone call had been from Abigail Vanderberry her bride-to-be. Abigail had informed her in a matter of fact way that there would be no wedding taking place for her. She had called it off in a brief conversation just prior to making the call to Alexis with her now ex-groom Bryce Meyers. The fact that Abigail was so calm and controlled was in itself chilling. She had shown no sadness, no remorse and no ; well...emotion at all. She had simply made the statement that the wedding was off. She did however, answer one question that Alexis had managed to ask her before she became completely stunned, and that question was 'What happened?' to which Abigail had spoken in an almost disembodied voice "because he's dead, and I killed him".

When Alexis heard these words, she came within a hair of passing out completely. Instead, she simply sat there in a semi-catatonic state. Minutes passed and finally, Alexis came back to her senses. Her breathing was shallow, and there was an intense pain behind her eyes that was not only hurting like hell, but was causing her vision to blur.   At last, she tried to stand by bracing her hands on either side of her. She did stand up, but when she started to move she discovered that her limbs were numb from sitting for so long. Holding onto the banister for support, she steadied herself, and took several deep breaths to restore her normal breathing rhythm.

But she couldn't decide whether to go the rest of the way upstairs, or to go back down the staircase.
She stood there hesitating and her cell phone rang again. She looked down at the phone still in her hand as if she held a foreign object in her hand. While she stood hesitating, the ringing stopped before she could even look at the caller ID display. It immediately rang again, but this time she did press the talk button and in doing so, it was like spurning herself into motion. She went back down the staircase as she spoke into her phone. It was one of her best friends on the other end...Claudette Richardson.

Claudette was calling to check on her and to make sure her anxiousness hadn't taken over her and to get all of the last-minute details about the Vanderberry-Meyers shindig. Immediately, Claudette could tell something was terribly off key here. She had to call Alexis' name at least three times before she was sure Alexis was actually there. She held on and listened in silence as she received the update she was calling to receive although it was definitely NOT the content she had expected.

After Alexis had relayed all of the information that Abigail had shared with her, she suddenly remembered something, and spoke it out loud...Oh my God! What should I do? I've just been the recipient of a murder confession; should I call the police? Claude...what should I do?

Stay tuned.

First He Lies, Then He Cheats...

Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive! And if you tell one lie, you’ve got to tell another…and another…till even you don’t know the truth. Well all of this is so true, and whether or not Mr. Cheater gave a second or even a first thought to any of it when he came face to face with Alexis. Literally, it was not face to face because they were several feet away from each other when he came out of one of the private rooms all hugged up with another woman. But something had charged the atmosphere causing him to look around and when he did he looked smack dab in the face of his “one true love”.

Ever hear the expression “time stood still”? I think it’s supposed to describe something totally different than what was going on here though. It’s supposed to refer to to when two people who meet and immediately discover a mutual attraction for each other; in a good way of course. This situation was anything but beautiful but it sure was memorable!  Alexis looked at Frank, Frank was looking at Alexis, (Raquel who is Alexis’ friend) was looking back and forth between Frank and Alexis while the unidentified playmate with Frank just stood there wondering where to look.

Nobody moved for a full minute. Thankfully, Raquel had the sense to make the first move. She gently but firmly took hold of Alexis’ elbow with the intention of steering her into the next room; where they had originally been heading. She quietly urged her to come along and not cause a scene that would only make a bad situation worse. 

At first, Alexis resisted the movement, but when she did allow her friend to lead her away, she moved on, but was continuing to look over her shoulder at the retreating backs of her boyfriend and the stranger he was still hugged up with and now he seemed to be whispering something in her ear.

Here’s a little back-story to catch you up. Frank had called Alexis earlier on this Saturday night and begged off on a date because of car trouble. He had said that he would get the car fixed by a friend who could only do it right then and afterwards he’d call her. She was none the wiser, so she had settled down for the evening when her friend Raquel called and persuaded her to accompany her on a night out to have drinks and maybe get into a card game. This is how they ended up at Abe’s’ Place.

It goes without saying that the evening that had begun as a fun time had definitely lost its’ flavor for Alexis. She couldn’t concentrate; she was upset and still couldn’t believe what she had seen. Worst of all, she had a pain in her chest  brought on by realizing that Frank was just like the many men who had hurt her, lied to her and cheated on her in her past. There was no use in her staying here now. There was no way she would be able to concentrate on the card game. And she didn’t want to make conversation with anyone else right now, so she asked Raquel to drive her home.

She was very quiet on the ride back to her house. Raquel was respectful of this, so she didn’t ply her with the usual platitudes that one dishes out at times like this. She merely touched her hand while they were driving along, and when they got back to the house and before Alexis had gotten out of the car, she simply told her friend “Call me when you want to talk. Anytime, you need me; just call”. Alexis had nodded her head and let herself into her house where only hours before she had left in such an upbeat mood.

So, she made herself and cup of herbal tea, and changed into her pajamas. Curled up on the couch in her family room, she didn’t turn on a lamp. The lamp she always left on in the dining room shed enough light into this room. Besides, she needed the dimness to frame a backdrop for her little pity party she was about to throw. 

Putting her head back against the cushions and making herself comfortable, she blew out a big sigh, and just let her thoughts free fall while she sipped the delicious pungent brew of her tea. For a moment she had considered spiking it with a healthy dose of brandy, but nixed that idea for several reasons. After her pity party, she was going to have to put some things into serious perspective and she wanted to be sober for that. She let out a wry chuckle because the mellow buzz she had gotten from her drinks at Abe’s had quickly faded away the moment she caught sight of Frank and his little honey.

Yes, it was time for a close introspection and possibly a plan of action. She knew that there had been times in her life when she thought she knew how to make the right choices, but she just knew all of that was behind her. There was only a slight issue here; should that plan of action be revenge or the decision to simply move on?