Passion of the Streets

by A'zayler

  Jamil shook his head. “Nah, this nigga think he knows me, so I’m waiting on him to tell me how.” He cocked his gun.

  “I’m surprised you don’t remember me.” Isaac stepped forward a little more. “If I was the reason behind a man losing his only child, I would remember his face forever.”

  That statement hit Jamil like a ton of bricks.

  Lauren.

  Jamil looked at the man, and he was right. It was Lauren’s daddy. But what the fuck was he doing with Oni, and how in the hell was he in Washington with his people?

  “You know how long I’ve been waiting for this?” Isaac smiled at Jamil as he too raised his gun.

  “Y’all stop. Please stop,” Gia pleaded. “People are going to see you. Milli, I don’t want you to go to jail. Please don’t do this.” Her cry fell on deaf ears.

  Both men stood with guns pointed at each other. Jamil didn’t know if Isaac was going to use his, but he most definitely would let his hammer fly if necessary.

  “It’s crazy how you can work for a nigga for years and never see his face.” Isaac chuckled. “Then out of nowhere you finally come face-to-face and you’re both pointing guns.”

  Jamil found no humor in what Isaac was saying. Nothing about it made any sense to him. “I didn’t get Lauren killed. I told her not to go to that fight and she went anyway. That shit ain’t on me,” he said.

  “Yes the fuck it is!” Isaac’s shout startled Gia and Oni.

  Jamil, on the other hand, didn’t budge. He wasn’t afraid of this nigga. If he really wanted to kill him, he’d be dead already.

  PEW!

  Isaac’s body dropped to the ground with a thud. Oni and Gia both screamed as Jamil jumped back in shock.

  “The fuck?” he said as he searched the darkness.

  He didn’t see or hear anyone for a moment due to Gia’s and Oni’s cries, but then Shock appeared from the darkness. He was accompanied by a sexy dark-skinned lady, and Alira.

  The fuck? Jamil wondered as the three of them approached him.

  “Bruh, what the fuck is going on?” Jamil asked as soon as they got close to him.

  “He had it coming. He’s too weak,” the dark-skinned lady said. “I’ve allowed him to play hard long enough. I’m tired of it.” She walked over to Isaac’s dead body and spat on it before grabbing Oni’s arm.

  Oni jumped back and fell against the wall. “No! Don’t touch me,” she shrieked.

  Everyone watched as the lady kneeled next to Oni. “You remember what I told you in the mall that day, sweetie?” She paused. “It applies to any man. Even the ones you think you love.” She gave Oni a sympathetic smile. “I’ve been married to Isaac for almost fifteen years, and he’s been cheating every one of them. I know you probably think you were special, baby girl, but you weren’t.

  “Ever since our daughter was killed he’s been chasing you young girls. I don’t know why, but he has. Since he took such good care of me, I turned the other cheek and did my own thing, but I’m tired now. He played me for the last time when he chased you all the way up here.”

  Oni listened to the woman speak while tears rushed down her face. She was shaking and could hardly keep her head held up. The pain she felt in that moment was nothing like she’d ever felt before, and the continuous sobs escaping her lips relayed that. In an effort to console her, Gia rushed to her side and held on to her.

  Her arms were wrapped tightly around Oni’s shoulders as she tried to help her control her agony. Oni’s weeping was so violent that it was shaking Gia as well.

  “He probably had no idea that I’ve known about his cheating all these years, but I have. I just didn’t care. I gave that bastard my name and everything that came with it, and he was still ungrateful.” The lady stood and looked down at Isaac’s lifeless body before looking back at Oni. “You’re young, you’ll love again, sweetie. Just make sure next time it’s the right man.”

  Jamil watched her walk over to where Shock and Alira stood before she turned toward him. “Milli Rock, my sincerest apologies, sweetheart. I’ve been telling him to let it go, but he refused. I tried everything in my power to keep you away from him, even sending you to Miami, but he continued to be an ass. Forgive me for his foolishness. I hope that you and I can still work together in the future.”

  “Who are you?” Gia’s voice gained all of their attention.

  The beautiful lady smiled at Gia, still holding Oni, before blowing her a kiss. “Daisy Monty. Daughter of the infamous Big Monty. I run a drug cartel that your man works in. A very well-connected and a pretty-ass bitch who’s getting paid.” She winked before looking over at Shock. “Thanks for everything.”

  Everyone sat in stunned silence watching Daisy walk away. She had this alluring aura about her that commanded attention, yet she was still as graceful as a butterfly. Jamil tried to turn his eyes away from her to focus on what had just happened, but was caught off guard again by the team of men that converged around them to gather Isaac’s body. They moved quickly and efficiently, cleaning the blood before hopping into a white van and leaving.

  “Bruh, what the fuck just happen?” Jamil looked over at Shock.

  He smiled at him and shrugged. “Exactly what needed to happen.”

  “Nigga, I see that, but tell me something. I’m confused as hell.”

  “Daisy is Big Monty’s daughter. She’s been letting this nigga run everything for her because he was her man, but I guess she just got tired and decided to off his ass. He’s been on your trail like hell these past few years, but you were too good for that nigga and he was too much of a hoe to catch you slipping. Which is why he tried to get at me and Iverson to help him. I started to blow that nigga’s head off right then, but I had to play smart. That nigga Iverson, well . . . you saw what he was on.”

  “Damn.” Jamil sighed, trying to make sense of it all. “So you’ve been working with her all this time?”

  Shock nodded. “Right after Iverson got knocked, that nigga propositioned me too, and I went to her to see what was up. When I saw she was G, I stuck with it. You my li’l brother. I had to make sure you was straight.”

  Jamil stuck his gun in his waist and walked over to Shock. He dapped him up before giving him a brief hug.

  “Appreciate that, my nigga, but you could have given me a heads-up or something.”

  “I couldn’t. You’re too smart. You would have killed that nigga before I could get Daisy on our team. I wanted him dead, but I had to make sure the streets didn’t dry up because of it.”

  “I know that’s right.” Alira giggled.

  “Damn, so you knew too?”

  She nodded. “Why you think I was always trying to keep you in Miami when you would say something about Georgia? I was trying to look out for your country ass, but you was making it hard. That’s why I hit you up earlier. Daisy told me this nigga was here, and I knew you were too. We all got on the first flight out and been following his ass ever since.”

  Jamil took a deep breath because he really couldn’t believe what was happening around him. It was all so crazy, but oddly enough, it made sense.

  “Baby.” Gia’s voice brought Jamil back to reality.

  He spun around and went right to her. He kneeled down next to her and pulled her from the ground. “What’s wrong?”

  “I just need to go lie down. This is too much.”

  Jamil understood completely, so he didn’t fight it. “Y’all, I appreciate all this, but I got to jet.”

  “Bet. I’ll see you around, Milli Rock,” Alira said before walking away.

  “I’ma stay with Oni tonight, so we’ll link up in the morning,” Shock told Jamil before going over to a weeping Oni.

  She was still in the same place and looked to be really distraught. She looked so bad that Jamil actually felt sorry for her. Her face was swollen and stained with tears as he watched Shock lift her from the ground. Jamil and Gia followed them until they were in her room before walking off. Had anyone told him that today would pan ou
t the way it did, he wouldn’t have believed them. However, he did believe that everything happened for a reason. Even with so much unfolding and falling out, he was positive that there had to be a reason why. Hopefully, one day he would find out what it was.

  Epilogue

  “Milli Rock is my heart. The love of my life and the man of my dreams. It’s crazy how when you’re a little girl you dream of your Prince Charming or your knight in shining armor. I had no idea that mine would turn out to be a tall dreadheaded thug who would give me more passion and street than I could ask for, but I’m glad he did. I wouldn’t trade him or our love for anything in the world.”

  —Gee

  “My best friend, my girlfriend, my baby mama, my wife, my soul, and anything else she could be, that’s my Gee. My li’l chocolate baby has changed me in so many ways that I hardly recognize myself anymore, but in my case, that’s a good thing. Gorgeous and beautiful in every way possible. Whoever said that thugs needed love too must have been talking about me and Gee. It’s still surreal to me that I actually lived a life without her, because now that seems like the most impossible thing in the world to me. I love her, she loves me, that’s all I need.”

  —Milli

  “Nine pounds, six ounces,” the nurse called out across the hospital room. “All ten toes and all ten fingers, Mom. He’s a whopper.”

  Gia smiled as she watched them clean her son. He was indeed a whopper. His cheeks were so fat she could see them from where she lay. It had been a long, tiring journey, but she’d made it. Baby Jamil Rock Jr. was here and she could finally rest.

  “Oh thank God.” Gia’s head fell back against her pillow.

  “You did amazing, baby girl.” Her mother wiped the sweat from her forehead before kissing it.

  “I’m so glad it’s over.”

  Her mom chuckled. “Oh no, baby. It ain’t over yet. It’s actually just beginning.”

  Gia wanted to roll her eyes because the way she felt at that moment, she couldn’t fathom having to do anything else. After sixteen hours of labor, her body was tired and she couldn’t wait to just go to sleep.

  “He’s a beautiful baby.” Jamil finally left the baby and came to Gia’s side. “He looks just like me.”

  “What color is his hair?” Gia asked.

  Jamil smiled big. “Orange.”

  Both of them shared a laugh as everything continued to move around them. It took at least another hour before the doctors had gotten Gia and Baby Milli ready for visitors. Once the room was clean and everything was back in place, they allowed the rest of her family in.

  The first people to enter were Oni, Shock, Zanetta, and Gia’s aunt and uncle. Everyone came in either kissing her or grabbing Baby Milli. It was a sea of emotions as they crowded around her bed, congratulating her and cooing at the baby.

  “Hey, auntie baby.” Oni kissed all over his round cheeks. “I love you.”

  “You love him enough to give me one?” Shock asked her.

  Oni blushed as she shied away from him. “I told you I’m still thinking about it.”

  Shock kissed her and grabbed the baby from her hands. “Well, give me my nephew until you decide.”

  Everyone in the room laughed at them as they bickered back and forth, Gia being the main one. She was so happy for her cousin. After all she’d been through, she hadn’t folded. It had been seven months since Isaac’s death, and Shock had been there every step of the way for her. Helping her get back to herself.

  It had taken a while, but with his help, Oni had made a much quicker recovery. From the moment they’d met, Gia had known Shock would be the one for Oni. Oni just didn’t know. Now that he’d helped her realize it, they were inseparable. If you saw Oni, you saw Shock, and vice versa. Gia was truly happy for the both of them.

  Her family stayed for another few hours before everyone left her and Jamil alone. He was lying on the pullout sofa with the baby on his chest when Gia walked back into the room. She had just taken a little sponge bath and was preparing for bed.

  “You feeling okay, Gee?”

  “I’m fine, baby. You good?”

  Jamil smiled at her. “Happier than I’ve ever been.”

  “Happier than when we got married?”

  He looked at her then down at their son, then back at her before nodding. He laughed and so did she.

  “Let me find out he’s already stealing all your love from me.”

  “There’s no one on earth that could do that. He’s just sharing it with you.”

  Gia blew Jamil a kiss before climbing into her bed. Once she got comfortable, she turned so that she was facing him. His eyes were closed again and he looked to be on the way to sleep, which was fine with her. Gia was more than positive he was just as tired as her.

  From the day they left Washington, they’d been doing everything they could to get their lives in order for when the baby came, and it was finally done. They’d gotten married and bought a house, Gia had begun training at UGA, and Jamil was finally learning how to read.

  After investing some of his money in stocks that were constantly growing, they put the rest in the bank and were sitting pretty nicely. The two of them had worked hard for their happiness and would fight anyone who thought they were going to take it away.

  Once Jamil finally made good on his promise and stopped moving drugs, the couple had extra time to do a lot more things, the main one being teaching Jamil how to read. Gia had begun teaching him, but once he became too embarrassed to allow her to help him anymore, she hired him a teacher.

  The teacher had been coming to the house to help him for the past few months, and he was improving tremendously. He told Gia all the time how proud of her he was, but the truth be told, she was proud of him. He had stepped up to the plate in a major way, unafraid of becoming a man and leaving his childish behavior behind and evolving into the husband and father that she and Baby Milli needed. It was an amazing sight to see, and Gia felt honored to be the one chosen to see it.

  “Take your ass to sleep, Gee, and stop staring at me.”

  Gia giggled. “I can’t. You’re better than any dream I could ever have.”

  He shook his head with his eyes still closed. “Nah, that’s you, Gee. I told you the first night we ever made love that you were going to be everything to me. I could see it then.” He looked over at her. “But I can feel it now. This forever, Gee.”

  “I can feel it too, Milli . . . I will forever.”

  DON’T MISS

  Collusion

  by De’nesha Diamond

  Framed for a high-profile murder, Abrianna Parker finds herself hurtling down a conspiracy rabbit hole in a desperate attempt to clear her name. Her only way out is to go after the most powerful man in the country. But the powers that be play dirty....

  Enjoy the following excerpt from Collusion. . . .

  The Bunker

  In an unknown place in an unknown location along the bowels of Washington DC, Douglas “Ghost” Jenkins, lifelong political hacktivist, pulled open the metal door of his underground bunker to see his old friend.

  “Well, if it ain’t Bonnie and Clyde,” Ghost said, blocking the entrance to his hideout. “Or should I say Clyde and Clyde?” He cocked his head at Abrianna and took in her outfit. “Nice disguise.”

  “Thanks.”

  Ghost’s gaze darted to Julian and Draya. “Damn if every time I see you, man, your ass don’t multiply. What kind of place do you think I’m running here?”

  “Really? You’re going to do this now? I have an injured woman. She’s been shot.”

  Ghost straightened and glanced at Abrianna. “What? Again?”

  “Not me this time.”

  Draya raised her good arm. “It’s me.”

  Interest lit Ghost’s eyes. “Well, hello.”

  Draya frowned.

  “You’re hitting on an injured woman?” Kadir asked.

  “Is it my fault that women are always getting shot around you?” Ghost stepped back, allowing the sm
all group to enter.

  Hunkered down behind a row of terminals sat a skeletal crew of millennial hackers. Ghost introduced them as “the fellas” to Draya.

  “Uh, nice to meet you,” she said and then looked to Abrianna like, Who is this clown?

  “C’mon.” Abrianna led Draya toward the bunker’s cot room. “I’ll fix you right up.”

  Ghost smiled as he watched them walk away.

  Arms crossed, Julian stepped forward to block Ghost’s view.

  “Oh. My bad.” Ghost looked to Kadir. “Just how many people are you planning to tell about this place?”

  “Chill. They’re cool,” Kadir said. “So what happened to you the other night? I thought you’d still be waiting to post bail.”

  “C’mon, playa. Am I the sort of person to give the cops my real ID?”

  “They were putting you in the back of a squad car.”

  “Just some rookie busting my chops. You know how they do. Of course, I hope you got rid of the van. I had to report it stolen.”

  “Yeah. We traded that one in for another one and then filled that one with bullet holes too.”

  Ghost chuckled. “That straight and narrow path you swore that you were on isn’t looking too damn straight, if you ask me.”

  “You don’t know the half of it.” Kadir looked around and leaned in close. “What do you know about . . . telekinesis?”

  “What?”

  “You know . . .” Kadir shrugged, inched closer. “The ability to move shit with your mind. Have you ever known anyone who could—”

  “Kadir!”

  At Abrianna’s shout, Kadir and Ghost took off toward the back.

  In the cot room, Draya and Abrianna stood in front of a nine-inch TV.

  When the guys couldn’t see what was the emergency was, Kadir asked, “Is everything okay?”

  Abrianna shook her head and pointed at the news broadcast on the screen.