From His Partner to His Prey Read online

  From His Partner to His Prey

  From His Partner to His Prey

  Shay Cole

  Creative Chameleon

  This book is based on a true story. Some names, locations, and details have been changed for safety purposes.

  Copyright © 2021 Shaquanda Cole

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced

  or used in any manner without the prior written permission of the copyright owner,

  except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  To request permissions, contact the publisher at [email protected].

  Paperback: 978-1-7378961-0-4

  Audiobook: 978-1-7378961-2-8

  Ebook: 978-1-7378961-1-1

  First paperback edition October 2021.

  Edited by Christie Hall, Kara Watson, Naya Perry-Eddings

  Cover art by Tametra Little

  Foreword by Naya Perry-Eddings

  Layout by Shaquanda Cole

  Creative Chameleon, LLC

  Goodlettsville, TN 37072

  www.acreativechameleon.com

  Contents

  Preface

  Foreword

  Acknowledgements

  One Keisha & Tyler

  Two Then Came Marriage

  Three Meeting His Needs

  Four Back To School

  Five Never the Same

  Six Pay for It

  Seven Let the Games Begin

  Eight Transfer

  Nine The Struggle Gets Real

  Ten Try it Again

  Eleven New Beginning

  Twelve The Hunt Continues

  Preface

  Many years ago I learned that I did not live my life for myself alone. I knew that I had a duty to speak for those who could not speak for themselves. I knew that I had to break the silence and have the difficult conversations. I knew that telling my story would help someone else survive theirs. Many people looked at me and saw a strong woman who could handle anything. What many people didn’t know is how hard it was to keep smiling when I was breaking down inside. My journey revealed to me that everyone is not worthy of my time, love, energy, or presence. It was a hard pill to swallow because people started to disappear. Some of the same people who I though would never leave me where gone with the wind. Nevertheless, I knew I wanted to share my story. When I first started writing the book it was roughly 3 years after the divorce and I was still very close to the pain. It took time for me to heal and really learn to love myself again before I could compete this book. My goal is to start the discussion and keep the lines of communication open. I do not want others to suffer in silence hoping someone recognizes the signs of abuse and sends help.

  Foreword

  When I was asked by Shay to do her foreword I was nervous! Yet excited. I met Shay in elementary school. We didn’t hit it off right then, but I could tell she was destined for greatness. She was loud! We went to all the same schools but in high school we became BEST of friends!! Graduated, lost touch, reconnected and now we are here!

  While reading this book I had so many emotions going through my soul. I became engulfed with the story and put myself in the main character’s shoes. As if it was me. Yes some parts angered me! There were so many loops and obstacles, within that there was no way to figure out what was going to happen next without turning the page.

  I have so many connections to the book that, it angers me how things were being handled. But when you look at the big picture it gave the push that was needed to come out on top. I too was in the military; the same branch as Tyler (the husband). So I know a little bit about rules and regulations, or so I thought. In the book, this is where power presents it’s ugly little lies. All while the main character Keisha exhibits diligence! She refused to let her kids see her struggle even though the struggle was real. She kept smiling through the pains and misunderstandings of her life. Not all was bad, but when it was, IT WAS! As a domestic violence survivor myself, this book gives hope and a little guidance to those who have to tackle their situation ALONE.

  Strap in because this book is about strength, growth, power, and the will to not give up but more so keep going and don’t settle for less! You are entering a rollercoaster of life’s up and downs, military coverups, lies, betrayal, family, the struggle to keep it together and find your VOICE!

  Naya Perry-Eddings

  Acknowledgements

  First I thank Yah for bringing me to a place of peace and allowing me to share my story with the world. I am grateful to have the support of my children, family, and friends. I greatly appreciate my friend, my homie, my business partner Tametra Little for seeing my vision and creating a dynamic cover for this project. I would like to send a major thank you to Naya Eddings for supporting me and proving the foreword for the book, I truly appreciate you. Thank you to Christie Hall and Kara Watson for helping me with editing and finalizing the book. I cannot forget to thank Mr. Jordan for his love and support as I finished up, your encouragement carried me a long way. I want to thank my entire team who has been rocking with me and keeping me focused on doing what I was sent to do. I would like to thank those who listened to my tears and pushed me to move forward. This book addresses some serious issues with abuse, domestic violence, and overall survival. I am grateful that I have survived and I can be of assistance to others who are on their journey as well.

  One

  Keisha & Tyler

  Keisha was born in the early 80’s to Gerald and Patricia Eady. Before they were married, Gerald had fathered six kids and Patricia had three of her own before Keisha came along. Soon after her birth, things changed from bad to worst. Within the first year of her life, Keisha’s parents divorced, and she was split between two residences on the west side of Detroit. By the time Keisha was 14 years old, she had already lived a very traumatic life. She was molested by her older cousin when she was six. From age nine until eleven, she was sexually abused by her piano teacher, who was a close friend of the family. When Keisha turned 12, she started drinking to numb the pain. No matter how hard she tried, nothing took away the pain that was deeply rooted inside of her. Just when she felt like things were at their worst, she woke up to news that her best friend had been murdered just days after her 13th birthday. Keisha was no stranger to pain, disappointment, or death. By the time she reached high school, she had made up in her mind to get away from her neighborhood, her family, and her pain. She was smart and maintained a 3.5 grade point average or higher from elementary through high school. Her good grades often afforded her opportunities to participate in advanced programs and extracurricular activities. She enjoyed being involved in sports but was very shy in social settings.

  Tyler was born in the same month as Keisha, but he was two years older. He was the second eldest son born to his parents. He was very close to his mother but had an estranged relationship with his father. Tyler was always the one who did things first among his siblings. He was the first child to see his father abuse his mother. He was also the first and only child who ever defended her. No matter what, he was on her side and always came to her rescue. His father was not around a lot because he was splitting his time between two families. Tyler liked that his father was gone a lot because that meant he didn’t have to deal with him abusing his mother. Tyler was 14 when he started standing up to his father. After that, he never really maintained positive relationships with men. When Tyler turned 16, he was faced with the most difficult decision of his life. On the night of his birthday party, his parents got into a huge argument. Tyler’s dad was upset because his wife did not get the cake he liked. His dad was so upset that he smashed the remainder of the cake in his wife’s face, knocking her onto the floor. Tyler heard
the commotion in the kitchen and walked in. Just as he opened the door, he saw his father back slap his mother and spit on her. Tyler was so angry he charged towards his father and pinned his father against the sink.

  “Oh, you think you big and bad enough to step to me?!” his dad shouted.

  Before Tyler could respond, he was wiping blood from his lip. His father punched him straight in the mouth.

  “Mind ya’ business boy, this ain’t what you want!”. Tyler attempted to swing on his father, but his mother stopped him.

  “Don’t do it Ty! I’m ok baby. See? I’m alright”, his mother said as she continued to wipe cake, blood, and spit from her face.

  “I can’t stay here and watch him kill you Momma! I can’t! Imma kill him!”, Tyler screamed to his mother.

  In that moment, he had to decide whether to stay and do nothing or leave and completely disengage from his family. Tyler left that night. Although they lived miles apart, Keisha and Tyler were experiencing similar amounts of immense pain, destruction, and turmoil. They both had to learn a lot about life on their own with little to no guidance. They both longed for affection, attention, and acceptance. Keisha looked for those things from everyone she met. Although she was brutally honest times, she was extremely vulnerable. She couldn’t always decipher the real from the fake. She took people at their word. Tyler, on the other hand, was very guarded after he moved out. He was homeless in his hometown for nearly six months before being accepted into an employment training program a few cities away. He stayed to himself and didn’t engage with many of the other students in the program.

  Both Tyler and Keisha felt that they were going through the hardest part of their lives. Keisha was in love with her high school boyfriend from her junior year of high school through her second year of college before she ended their relationship. Before their breakup, she thought she would be with him forever, especially after he popped up at her job and proposed to her. She learned quickly that his proposal was merely a ploy to keep her from leaving him. Once she realized that, she ended it. Keisha moved on and dated someone else.

  One day, her ex-fiancé showed up at her campus apartment. He started banging on her window and demanded to be let into the apartment without regard for anyone or anything. Keisha’s new friend was immediately startled and went to the opposite side of the apartment to avoid an altercation with Keisha’s ex. Her ex walked into the building behind another resident and repeatedly banged on the door. Keisha listened from her room with her door locked, all alone and afraid. Unbeknownst to Keisha, while she was in her room, her roommate opened the door. Keisha’s ex attempted to grill her roommates to find out where Keisha was and why no one would let him in. One of Keisha’s roommates was able to finally calm him down and get him to leave before Keisha came out of her room. It was a terrifying experience that she wanted to forget as soon as it happened.

  Meanwhile, Tyler was discovering various ways to provide for himself. He sold weed to his classmates, cut hair, cooked food, and wrote papers for money. He was determined to live a life better than the one he came from. While he was well off financially, he lacked the love he craved. Tyler was afraid to love because he felt like love would always betray him. For that reason, Tyler didn’t trust many people. By the time they reached the ages of 18 and 20, respectively, Keisha and Tyler had lived a life full of tough decisions. They lived life separately, clueless of the other’s issues. Soon enough though, their paths would cross.

  The time finally arrived for Keisha to start her last year of college. She was so excited that she was closer to her goals that she decided to attend more campus events as a personal reward. In the past, Keisha avoided most campus events because she was trying to stay focused and study. When she was close to the end of her junior year, she was almost kicked out of college and nearly lost everything. She lived on campus and her student loans did not cover her housing during the summer. She owed over $5,000 and had no clue of how she was going to pay it.  Her parents had told her not to stay for the summer. Keisha tried everything she could think of to get the money, but nothing came through… until she talked to her advisor. After she explained her situation, she was allowed to register for class after working out a payment plan to cover the balance while she finished school. To help pay off the balance, Keisha got a job working in the Student Union Welcome Center as a greeter. The welcome center was near the food court, and it was where most of the campus activities took place. Keisha was excited to be in the center of all the action after a rough start to her senior year.

  Tyler completed the requirements for his job training program and was able to attend a nearby college. Although Tyler focused on women more than class, he graduated with a degree in communications. He attended college with a few of the guys he met while in the job training program. One of the guys, Josh, was also heavily involved in street hustling. Josh and Tyler were almost kicked out of the job training program when another student reported them to the authorities. Tyler told Josh that the guy was always looking suspect and warned Josh to stay away from him. Josh was not interested in taking Tyler’s advice and served the guy anyway. Two days later, Josh and Tyler’s room was searched. The only thing that saved Josh and Tyler from being discovered and expelled was Tyler’s suspicious thoughts. He didn’t trust the guy and he knew Josh like the back of his hand. Tyler removed everything incriminating from the room when Josh left to serve old boy…he knew dude was up to something. After their room was raided, Tyler decided to issue a few stitches to the snitch. All this happened at the end of their time in the program. Josh and Tyler graduated a week later and agreed to leave this situation behind.

  Tyler and Keisha both faced a great deal of opposition to get to where they were. Although they were oblivious to one another, their paths were closer than they realized. One day, during homecoming week, Keisha and her sorority sisters set up an information table in the student union alongside the other campus organizations and clubs. This event occurred every year to attract other students to join current members. Keisha had never able to work the table before because of her class and work schedule. This year was the first year Keisha was able to work the information table with her sorority sisters instead of working at the welcome center alone. Towards the end of the day, Keisha noticed a guy walking past her sorority table. She noticed him walking past a few times but didn’t think anything of it. Keisha’s sorority sister, Tiffany, pointed out that he was walking past yet again. The next time he walked past, he walked closer to the table and stopped. Most of the girls thought he was interested in Tiffany since they were making eye contact the entire time he was walking past, scoping everyone out.

  “Excuse me, may I speak to you privately for a moment?” Tyler asked Tiffany.

  Her scowl turned into a smile, and she agreed to speak with him. They were gone for about fifteen minutes. Everyone thought they were really getting to know one another since they had been gone so long. One of Keisha’s sorors asked her what time it was, and Keisha looked in her purse to retrieve her phone to report the time. When she lifted her head, Tiffany was walking up to the table with a big stupid smile and an even bigger bouquet of flowers.

  “OK Soror, I see you!” Jamiya shouted to Tiffany.

  Other sorors started joining in and shouting. One of them snapped her fingers to the side repeatedly and screamed out “YAAAAASSSSSSSSSSS!”

  “Alright Soror…don’t hurt ‘em!” another shouted with approval.

  “Well damn Tiff! You doing ‘em like that?!?” exclaimed another line sister.

  Tiffany just kept smiling without saying a word until she finally reached the table. She sat the bouquet down and took the card off. She held it in her hand briefly and then she gave the card to Keisha. Keisha looked surprised as she took the card from Tiffany. When she read it, she saw her name on the outside of the envelope.

  “Open it!” Tiffany urged Keisha.

  Keisha was so confused. She thought that Tiffany went off with old boy to get to know
him for herself and instead, Tiffany returned with a big smile and flowers for Keisha.

  “Girl, what is this?” Keisha asked Tiffany

  “Open it and see.” Tiffany responded.

  Keisha had no clue what all this was about, but she listened to Tiffany and opened the envelope. What was written on the card was even more beautiful than the flowers that came with it. It read:

  Keisha,

  These flowers are a symbol of how I see you. Trust and believe, the words that follow are true. Your natural beauty is what attracted me. A beauty that the heart feels and the eyes can see. A beauty that speaks on its own. A beauty that will never die. Share your beauty in my world and give my heart a try.

  -Tyler

  After Keisha read the card, she looked up at her sorors, who were staring intently at her. They all wore the same look on their faces.

  “He’s sitting over there.” Tiffany finally broke the silence.

  Keisha didn’t say a word…she just followed the direction of Tiffany’s finger as she pointed out his table. The closer Keisha got to the table, the heavier her feet felt. Her heart rate increased, and her mind was going wild. When she reached the table, he stood up.

  “Thank you for coming to sit with me Keisha. Would you like something to drink?” he asked as he pushed her chair into the table.

  “I’ll take some water please. Thank you. Oh, thank you for the card and flowers also. I really appreciate them.” Keisha responded.

  “My pleasure, Beautiful” Tyler turned and responded to Keisha before getting her water.