Page 5 of The Way Love Heals

The abuse started when I was seven and lasted until I was eleven. Renee Brown, the woman who brought me into the world, the woman who was supposed to love and protect me, allowed it to happen. Hell, she orchestrated it most times. There was a total of three men she allowed to sexually abuse me for her own personal gain. They would pay her and make sure I was the star of the team. She tried telling me it was to make me great, but that shit didn’t do anything but tear me down and have me second-guessing a lot of things in life.

Brielle expelled a sigh. “Do you need me to come over?”

“Nah, I’m good. I promise. I need to be at the facility early anyway, so I’m about to head out after I eat.”

“Well, I can come up there, too, if needed. I can bring your niece so she can get some work in. You know she made the All-Star team.”

“That’s my girl.” I beamed. “It’s in her blood. She gets it from her uncle.”

“Whatever. Don’t act like I wasn’t that girl in softball.”

“Birthing pure athletes is the only good thing Renee has ever done in her life.”

Brielle giggled. “If that isn’t the truth. Well, I’ll let you know if we come by. Don’t forget we gotta meet at Nannie’s at six for dinner.”

“You need to be reminding Naheem. You know his ass is forgetful and will swear we didn’t tell him about it.”

“And you know what, you’re right. Let me call him now. I love you, Nyle.”

“I love you too, Bri.”

We ended the call, and I finished my breakfast while checking a few emails and text messages. My first training session started in an hour, so I cleaned up and headed to my facility.

Baseball had my heart. It was the sport of failure, and as many times as I failed, I found success in each one. Each time was worth it. Not only did it help me grow as a player, but also as a person. The grit and grind taught me a lot, and I wanted to teach it to other boys who loved the sport, especially the ones who looked like me.

After playing in college on a full scholarship and getting my degree in sports management, I decided to open a baseball facility, but I couldn’t do it in my hometown. I had to get away. For six years, I tried staying back home. Our lives were established there, but it also held too much trauma for me.

The fresh start was needed, so I packed up everything and moved to Maven Falls. What I didn’t expect was for my siblings and grandmother to follow me. It was obvious I wasn’t the only person who needed the change.

The things we’d been through were traumatic, especially for me and Nannie.

I made sure I had all I needed and headed to my garage to my truck. My facility, Batters Up, was a fifteen-minute drive from my house. We were open Monday through Saturday from eight to eight. The love and success I’d seen through the venture was nothing short of amazing. Before we opened, Maven Falls didn’t have anything like that. Camden Cove was the closest city to us that housed baseball facilities, but it was an hour drive. I secured the perfect spot in the city, and we were constantly busy.

When I pulled up, I saw the openers were already there. The sound of the machines warming up greeted me. The facility was about fifteen thousand square feet with cages, pitching machines, turf mounds, and much more. There was an equipment store at the front where members checked in. They could either rent or buy whatever they needed. I’d envisioned the space many times before, and each time I walked in, I was in awe of how far we’d come.

“What’s good, Nyle?” Weston greeted me with his arms outstretched and a bright smile. We embraced in a brotherly hug and headed back to my office.

“Not much. How’s it going this morning?”

“Good. Everyone has gotten their tasks done. We’re just waiting to open.”

“That’s what I like to hear.”

Weston was the general manager of the facility. We played ball against one another in high school. When I announced the opening of Batters Up, he surprised me by reaching out to see if I needed any help. I did because I didn’t have anyone besides my family agreeing to step in. We met and came up with a game plan I knew would work. He’d been working for me ever since.

“I have a coach coming through to check everything out for his team,” Weston informed me, rubbing his hands together. “He wants to sign up for the premium team package if he likes everything.”

“Hell yeah. That’s what I’m talking about! We need two more teams to sign up for that package before I surprise everyone with a raise.”

“That’s exactly why I’m pushing to get them. I honestly think we’re headed in the right direction because he said if he likes it, he has a few buddies he’ll reach out to as well. You know word of mouth is everything.”

I pointed my finger at him and agreed. “It is. With us starting this travel ball team, I think it’ll help bring more business here as well.”

For years, Weston and I had talked about starting a travel ball team. Since the facility was our main focus, we wanted to wait until the time was right to start. When God gave me the green light, I moved. It took some time convincing the city to allow it because of the rec ball teams, but once they did, Weston and I started promoting. We had two dates set for tryouts, and the turnout was more than I imagined. Over fifty boys showed up, but we could only choose twelve. It was one of the hardest decisions.

Weston and I chopped it up for a little longer, making sure we had everything in order before I went out for my first training session. My day was filled with them, and by the end of it, I was tired and starving. Nannie’s good home cooking was calling my name.

The drive to her house was short. Surprisingly, Naheem had beaten me and Brielle there. His car was parked on the curb, so I eased into the driveway and got out. The front door opened, and Naheem started running toward me. I waited until he got closer and side stepped, almost causing him to run into my truck.