Cherise Davis, I swear you have to be the coolest editor in the history of publishing. I couldn’t have asked for anybody more delightful to work with. Thank you for everything.

Thank you to my publicist, Dawn, of Dream Relations. Your timing was perfect. It was God who brought us together, and with a force like that on our side we can’t lose.

Algie, thank you for being there once again to help me with some ol’ elaborate stuff. Thank you also Ed of Fatboy Media.

Keva, wherever you are in this big and crazy world, thank you for sharing your knowledge and experiences. Be safe out there-you hear me?

Thank you too, Krystal, Cassie, Markus, Global Recording Group, and Deja Vu.

Thank you to all the readers and supporters, booksellers, and book clubs. Thank you to everyone at Simon & Schuster.

And to anyone I could have possibly forgotten, thank you, thank you, thank you.

Ya girl,

Preface

“You know what, bitch? You fucked with the wrong one! I’m gonna kill you right in front of ya little boyfriend, and then I’m gonna kill him! You played the wrong card this time! You fucked with the wrong one!”

POP! POP!

It still haunts me after five months. I have constant nightmares about it. Sometimes I wish I had died. My life is so messed up now. It’s not even worth living. I can’t go anywhere. I can’t do anything. I just sit here and stare out the window until it gets dark enough to see my reflection in the glass. But then I’m too scared to see my reflection. The doctors took the last bandages off two weeks ago and I haven’t looked at my face yet. My psychiatrist, Ms. Carol, was there when they did it. She said I didn’t look too bad, but the tears in her eyes told me otherwise.