by Saundra
“Mane, y’all check this shit out.” We followed him into another room where we found peons Derrick and Ray. At first, I was shocked but I quickly dismissed that. Both Derrick’s and Ray’s eyeballs roamed over the three of us. They both were tied to iron chairs with duct tape over their mouths.
“Fuck is this?” Clip asked.
“Both these niggas claim they got robbed for their product. Again.” Quincy stressed that part.
“Fuck that! Who da fuck y’all think believe this shit. Derrick, ya shit was short two months ago. Is you a dummy nigga? Nah. Fuck this!” Clip rushed across the room. Derrick’s bloodshot red eyes bulged. Clip punched him in his face. The look on his face read death. Blood splattered across the room.
“How much?” I asked. Not that the money mattered, I was just curious.
“Seventy-five G’s apiece,” Quincy said.
“How in the fuck did this shit happen?” I eyed both Derrick and Ray. I knew they couldn’t answer with their mouths duct-taped. But the question had to be asked.
“These motherfuckers lying. I ain’t hearing shit.”
Clip glared at me. “Precious, it’s simple. This shit ain’t good for our image, but I think you know that.”
“These niggas is dead.” Quincy cosigned Clip’s statement. There was nothing else to be done. But all decisions were mine to make, so they looked to me.
“Take off the duct tape. I want to talk to him.” I pointed at Derrick.
Quincy tightened his lips and clenched the nine millimeter in his right hand tighter.
“Fucking talk,” Quincy barked. “Unless these ill motherfuckers got seventy-five G’s and some respect and shit to discuss.”
Clip smirked. “Shidd for real, these niggas words just loud.”
“Take the fucking duct tape off now!” I barked.
Quincy walked over and snatched the duct tape off with force. I could hear the tape peel from Derrick’s skin. Once the tape was off Derrick took in a deep breath.
I looked at Derrick and I thought of DaVon, his words, his encouragement, his way of dealing with all issues. See, when you looked at DaVon, you didn’t see a killer. But that was never to get it twisted. He had blood on his hands because business was business. He made sure that I understood that. “I think you know there is only one way to solve this . . . that’s money or the dope.” I sighed, then ran my hand across my face. Not from frustration, but from amazement at their stupidity. I would never understand the thoughts of a thieving dealer. “Where the dope at?” I threw out.
Instead of answering me right away, Derrick threw his head back off his shoulder and shook his dreads out. Holding his head back, he sniffled and wiggled his nose. “Aye, you DaVon’s girl . . . I remember you.”
I hadn’t expected him to mention DaVon’s name. That stalled me for a brief second. Thinking of DaVon always took me to an emotional place. Now was not the time for that, and personally, I didn’t appreciate Derrick having DaVon’s name in his mouth. “Where is the fucking dope?” I said with steel in my voice. If he dared to say DaVon’s name again I probably would shoot him myself.
“I don’t fuckin’ know. I keep tellin’ this nigga we was set up.” He nodded at Quincy.
Quincy seemed to slide across the room. His gun made a cracking sound as it connected with Derrick’s jaw. Ray closed his eyes with defeat. It was clear he was worried about his turn. “Stop repeating those weak-ass lies . . . be a man and own up to ya shit,” Quincy spat.
“Listen, fuck all this. Precious, let me light these niggas so I can go out and find where they hid ya shit.” Clip eyed me with an imploring stare.
I turned my attention to Ray and nodded at him. “Take the duct tape off his mouth.” Everything would move at my speed no matter what. “This probably will come as a shock to you, but I’m a high school graduate . . . meaning I have basic sense. So I won’t repeat the question I just asked your boy here. You just answer it.”
Ray twisted his mouth up, then spit up a wad onto the floor. It was so disgusting and unexpected that I blinked. His eyes were glued to me. “Mane, who the fuck is this bitch questioning me?” he barked.
All I heard next was a bang and Ray’s scream. I saw the blood dripping down Ray’s leg and realized that Clip had shot him in the knee. “Respect her,” Clip said in a calm tone. Ray tried to squirm and fight to keep from screaming again, biting his bottom lip so hard blood seeped through.
I was tired of the whole scene. I looked from Derrick to Ray. “It’s simple, Ray.” I addressed him by name. “Give me my dope or the money and you go home tonight.”
Ray shook his head from side to side, unable to control himself. “Augh!” he screamed out. His lips turned white from his pain. “I can’t give you what I ain’t got . . . why you don’t ask that motherfucker.” He tossed his head in Quincy’s direction.
Quincy gave a slight chuckle. “Fuck you, nigga. You caught.”
Ray stared at the blood running down his leg. “Mane, on everything I love. Fuck you and this bitch, shit.”
Once again Clip rushed toward him. “No, stop, Clip.” I intervened before Clip sealed his fate. “Give me your piece.” I referred to his gun. I decided not to use mine. Clip didn’t hesitate and placed it in the palm of my hand. I walked toward Ray. “Remember this, my name is Precious . . . not bitch.” I pulled the trigger and shot him in the left foot.
“Agggh.” Ray threw his head back, screaming. “Fuck you and that pussy-ass DaVon. I’m glad that nigga dead!” He spat at me.
Quickly I turned and glanced at Quincy, then Clip. I took one more look at Derrick, then Ray. Slowly, I passed the gun back to Clip and looked him in the eyes. “Finish this.” This business was done.
Chapter 36
I had a headache, that much was for certain, and I couldn’t take much more of the throbbing pain. Tired of lying down, trying to fight against the pain, I pushed my covers back and took small steps to the bathroom. The pain was so intense that it hurt to plant my feet on the floor. Fishing out my Aleve, I tossed two into my mouth and swallowed some water. Looking at myself in the mirror, I searched for any evidence that my head would explode at any moment. Fortunately for me, there was no such sign. Back in bed, I prayed for sleep to claim me, with the hope that when I woke up the headache would be gone. At some point, my wish was granted, but suddenly I woke up from a bad dream. The dream consisted of Derrick and Ray breaking into the house looking for me. They were dead; there was no chance that they would be breaking in on me or anyone else, ever.
It had been a few weeks since Clip and Quincy had killed them. And the last place I expected them to be showing up was in my dreams. I didn’t regret their murder because I knew that it was necessary for business. But I wasn’t sure how I felt about it so I didn’t think about it much. I mean, why should I? There were rules and consequences, period. Pushing the covers back again, I sat up. That’s when I realized for the first time since I had opened my eyes that my pounding headache was gone. The ringing doorbell grabbed my attention. Maria was off and I was not expecting any company. Throwing on my robe, I made my way down the stairs to the front door.
“Where have you been? I ain’t seen or heard from you in days. And you haven’t returned my calls.” Promise stormed in the house.
I shut the door behind her. The burst of sun I received just from opening the door gave me a blast of energy. “I been meaning to. Just been so busy.” I yawned.
“Too busy to call your own sister. Hopefully, it was G-fourteen classified.”
“Not really.” I laughed. “Come on, let’s have an espresso or some.” I headed toward the kitchen. I could not tell her about the killing of Derrick and Ray.
“Well, I know the street part of your life keeps you going.” I was surprised yet glad to hear her say that. “I would never want to go into the hustling business, mainly because I know there are boundaries. But that damn Keisha clearly don’t know about boundaries; she so damn worried about what is going on in your operat
ion. Ever since you introduced us, I get a strange vibe from her.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know what’s up with her. But I don’t trust her.” That part of the statement caught me off guard.
“What you mean? Keisha’s cool people.” I continued making our espressos. “I admit that she clearly wants to be involved.”
“That’s all you think?” Promise squinted her eyes.
“Yeah.” I smiled.
“Fuck that. The bitch is sneaky. Watch how she move. I’m close to smacking’ her ass in the face.”
I couldn’t help laughing when I realized what this was all about. Promise was still mad about Keisha’s statements when we went over to help her move. I had never asked her how that went, but now was certainly not the time. Promise and Keisha both had strong personalities; they would always butt heads. “Both you two just got egos,” I concluded. “But don’t worry about Keisha, she chill.”
“Whatever.” Promise reached for her espresso.
“Get ready though, because the grand opening to her club is coming up. And you know you gone be invited. And even if you not invited, which you will be, you gone be my plus one.”
“When is it?” She sipped her espresso.
“Not sure about the date, but a few weeks.”
“Humph,” was Promise’s only comment.
I just smiled and started in on my espresso; the last thing I needed was my sister and my good friend beefing. That was sure to throw me right in the middle, and what was a girl to do? They say blood is thicker than water, but I never really had that problem because Dad had been my only blood. Having a sister was new. I eyed Promise with my cup of espresso directly in front of my face, the steam cleaning my sinuses. And I knew without any doubt I was my sister’s keeper.
Chapter 37
Everything was still going good and things were falling into place. No one had made mishaps like Derrick and Ray. And even though we still didn’t know what had happened to the dope they claimed they had been robbed of, things were moving along. Seventy-five grand really wasn’t shit; we moved big weight on the streets. I was running an operation that was worth millions. It was simply the principle of the thing.
“Hi,” I said to the guys on the cleaning crew who were emptying the building I had chosen for Promise’s salon. I decided to stop by to see how the cleaning was going.
“Everything is going as planned,” Wyatt reassured me. He was the guy who owned the cleaning company. “We should be done by the end of this week as planned.”
“Thank you. I want the remodel team to be able to get started.”
“That’s not a problem. I’ll give you a call in a couple days.”
“Sure thing.” I headed out to meet up with Keisha for lunch.
“I can’t believe Mrs. Prompt is running late.” Keisha started in on me before I could sit down at the table. We were at a Mexican restaurant and I was starving.
“Please don’t start before I eat. I need the strength to go back and forth with you.” I smiled.
“Well, I didn’t order your food. But we got drinks though,” Keisha said with excitement. The waitress approached the table and placed a margarita in front of me and one in front Keisha. “Yass, henna. Now my day can get started.”
“Mine too. I was up early, and the only thing I had was juice and that was hours ago.”
“That’s the life of a hustler, my friend.”
I didn’t respond.
The waitress was back to take our orders.
“Bitch, you ain’t gone believe this. Matter fact, sip your margarita before I spill this tea.”
“Oh hell, what now?” I sat on the edge of my seat and sipped my margarita.
“Buffy’s ass is pregnant.”
Now that was a shock. I couldn’t imagine her being pregnant, let alone having a baby. “By who?” My mouth was wide from shock.
“Bitch, who the fuck would know?” Keisha said. “I told that crazy bitch to go ahead and call Maury.” We both burst out laughing at the same time. “I got to go to the bathroom. I feel ill.” Keisha excused herself.
I ate chips and salsa and tried to soak up the information about Buffy. I had to see it to believe it.
“I guess Mother Nature is running life.” Keisha approached the table. “My cycle done came on. We should just take this food to go. Quincy ass ain’t there, so we will still be able to have girl time.”
“I’m cool wit’ that. We’ll have her box this this stuff up,” I said, nodding to the approaching waitress.
* * *
As I pulled in behind Keisha, I noticed one of Quincy’s whips out front. Him and Keisha both normally kept two cars at the house. They each kept one in the garage and one in front of the garage. Keisha only had the two vehicles, but Quincy had two more and he kept them in a garage somewhere else. But he must have been home if he had a car outside. Keisha must have read my mind when I climbed out of my car.
“Quincy must have come back,” she said. “Hopefully, he just picking something up.” Keisha unlocked the door and I stepped in behind her. She stuck her head into the living room area. “His ass must be upstairs.”
“I’ll take the food in the kitchen and set it out. I’m ready to eat before it gets cold.” Keisha nodded her head and headed for the stairs. In the kitchen, I pulled the plates out of the bag, then reached in the fridge and grabbed a Coca-Cola. Keisha drank them like crazy, same as me, so I knew she would have some. I turned on the water in the kitchen sink to wash my hands. It sounded as if yelling was coming from upstairs. I turned the water off, but all I heard was quiet. Concluding I must have been hearing things, I turned the water back on.
I sat down and I heard what I was sure was people yelling. Stepping out into the hallway, it sounded harsh. Worried, I raced up the stairs to see what was going on.
“Whore,” Keisha yelled. I stepped into the doorway and Keisha was attempting to jump across the bed. I nearly shouted from shock when I saw who she was trying to get to: Buffy standing by the window wrapped in nothing but a bedsheet. “Let me the fuck go, Quincy!” Keisha screamed.
“Calm the fuck down,” Quincy said as Keisha kicked, scratched, bit, and squirmed trying to break his grasp. “Stop, mane, you know that girl pregnant.”
Keisha’s body seem to go limp for a brief second. “Niggas and you think I give a fuck.” Keisha elbowed Quincy in the cheek and turned around and started punching him all over. Again Quincy got hold of Keisha. Trying to break free, Keisha started breathing hard. She glared at Buffy. “You fucking dirty, nasty, gutter bitch! How could you betray me like this? All that I done for you. But I shouldn’t be surprised because I been knew you was a ho.”
“Fuck you, Keisha. I’m just giving yo’ man what you couldn’t. A baby.”
“Quincy!” Keisha shouted his name. A tear rolled down her cheek.
“Wait, naw, baby, she lying. That ain’t my baby.”
I had been so stunned at the whole situation in front of me, I was stuck in the spot I was in. Finally, my body came back to life. My only thought was to get Keisha out of there. I felt so bad for her. I tried to get to her, but she lunged for Buffy again. I tried to help Quincy hold her.
“Quincy, bring her out of here. Take her downstairs.”
Still kicking and struggling to free herself from Quincy’s grasp, Keisha was not giving up. It was a struggle, but before long he had her downstairs. I had to plead with her to convince her to leave. Because if she stayed, someone was going to get hurt or she was going to jail. The one thing I knew for certain was that neither I nor Quincy wanted LAPD’s finest to get involved.
Chapter 38
A long, hard week passed and Keisha was still at my house. To my surprise, she had calmed down about the situation, or least she seemed calm. The first two days she lay in bed all day and talked about killing them both. On the third day she showered, brushed her teeth, and cried. By the fourth day she declared she was a boss bitch, got up, got dressed, and went to her businesses. And as
of today, she was still a boss bitch, but I knew deep down inside she still had to be hurt. I mean, I still couldn’t believe it. Quincy and Buffy. Damn, that was fucked up.
“What’s up?” Keisha entered the kitchen. I had just made a homemade pepperoni pizza, which I had been craving.
“Hey. You hungry?” I started slicing the piping-hot pizza.
“Hell yeah. That looks good.”
“Well, here you go.” I placed two slices on a paper plate and passed it to her.
“You made this from scratch?”
“Yep.” I placed two slices on a plate for myself.
“Damn, Paula Deen in the house,” Keisha joked.
“Some like that.” I laughed. “For real, me and my dad use to make this all the time.”
Keisha blew on a slice and bit into it. I had put so much cheese on the pizza, it stretched the distance from her mouth to the slice. “Oh, this shit bum. Cheesy and full of sauce just like I like mine.”
I fake popped my collar. “Aye.” Then bit one of my own slices.
“So I wanted to tell you thanks for allowing me to crash here and cry on your shoulder these past few days. I know a bitch ain’t easy to put up wit’.” She grinned.
“Aww, you good.”
“Thanks for lying.” She laughed. “But for real though, thank you. I’m going back home tomorrow.”
“So soon?” I raised my right brow. “You sure you ready for that?”
“I’m ready.” She bit her pizza again.
I hated to bring up the situation, but I had to ask. “What about Quincy and Buffy? You talked to them?”
“Talk to Buffy?” She twisted her face in a circular motion. “Fuck that bitch. But I did finally talk to Quincy. He been callin’ since the first night I got here. He apologized . . . I guess as much as a guy can. I mean really, what he can say? That sorry shit don’t carry no weight wit’ me. But as for Buffy, I’m gone fuck that bitch up in due time. And that’s a promise. Quincy claims he’s done with her.”
