Cartier Cartel

by Nisa Santiago

  "What the fuck you wa-"

  The solid left hook was strong enough to knock out a bull. Monya almost dropped to her knees, but Cartier grabbed the bony bitch by her hair and pulled her back up. She continued to assault her face with a closed fist. Monya's screams could be heard for blocks. She was so dazed she couldn't properly defend herself. Blow after blow had weakened the sassy bitch, and Cartier never said one word. She tossed Monya around like a ragdoll, and then body slammed her onto her marble tiled floor. It felt like Monya's ribs broke in several places. Before she could fully scream from that blow, she was face-to-face with the bottom of Cartier's Nike's Air Trainers. Monya tasted and swallowed blood, and only prayed the abuse would be over soon. Inside her mind she was looking for where she could find a weapon. She wanted to stab Cartier for whipping her ass.

  Winded and sweating freely, Cartier began to wind down. She was tired and her arms were weak. She needed to catch her breath and leaned against a nearby wall. She watched as Monya squirmed around on the floor in pain like the dog she was. Her face was unrecognizable, and although Cartier wanted to continue beating her ass after she caught her breath, suddenly she was afraid she might actually commit murder. Monya looked in bad shape. Her hair was soaked in blood and she was whimpering from pain.

  "S-s-s-stop ... I had the a-a-a-abortion," Monya stammered in agony. "... I s-s-swear."

  Inexplicably, Cartier felt an overwhelming sense of remorse, mixed with a longing for the past. What had happened to their friendship? They were once close as sisters and now time had erased all the fond memories and replaced them with arguments, fights, revenge, anger, hatred, and dissention. She walked toward her archenemy, but not to deliver more blows. As she got closer, Monya slid away and cowered in the corner, unaware that Cartier actually wanted to help her this time.

  "What happened to us, Monya?" Cartier began. "You were my sister and look at us. Why?"

  Cartier didn't even realize she was crying. The tears were coming down at a rapid rate, almost blinding her. Suddenly, she slid down and collapsed on the floor and began balling her eyes out.

  "Look at us," Cartier said. "I'm here trying to kill you. You're doing everything in your power to hurt me. It wasn't supposed to be like this...." The tears continued to fall. She was a woman hurting and didn't understand why. Besides petty envy and jealousy, her beef was never with Monya. She went to prison for Monya, to save her from being destroyed, and the very person she was trying to save had been trying to destroy her ever since.

  "We were supposed to be in each other's weddings," Cartier continued. "Godparents to each other's children. Go on family vacations and be soccer moms ... that's what I always wanted. I loved you! I loved you more than my own freedom and you betrayed me. What did I ever do to make you hate me?"

  "I w-w-was always your sidekick," Monya shot back through the pain. "Y-y-you never treated me as your equal"

  "I always respected you," Cartier responded.

  "You always loved me. You never respected me!" Monya countered.

  "But what does that have to do with your actions?" Cartier argued. "Isn't it better to be loved than respected?"

  Monya tried in vain to sit up straight, but the pain was unbearable. Tears continued to roll down her smooth cheeks. "This isn't a mob movie. Why did I have to choose?"

  "I did respect you. I did seven years out of respect!"

  "I never asked you to. That was your choice. You'd made that decision. You never consulted me on how I felt about the situation."

  "And you never stopped me," Cartier snapped back.

  "Come on now, you knew it was already too late. You'd already pled to the case. What was I supposed to do? Stand up and say I did it and take twentyfive years? You would have forced my hand and that wasn't fair. They didn't h-h-have shit whatsoever."

  "You were killing yourself with your hunger strike. The cops played you and you were too weak to believe in us, to believe in our friendship."

  "Then you should have let me die ... I wasn't asking you to fix m-m m-me.

  "As your friend I thought that's what we did for each other. We held each other down."

  This was the first talk the two women had had in over eight years. In that time they'd grown apart and ultimately despised each other. The other alternative was that they could have expressed their true feelings and not held in the resentment that burdened their souls.

  Cartier went and ran Monya a bath to clean her up. She was a bloody mess. Since she could barely walk, she had to lean on Cartier to help her get inside the warm tub. Cartier grabbed a cup from the kitchen and began to wash Monya's hair. As her strong fingers kneaded through Monya's soft hair, they shifted their conversation from bad times to good.

  "Remember when Shorty Dip came on,the block to fuck us up and our mothers were out there thumping with us? Trina beat fire out of Dip, didn't she?" Monya said, reminiscing on good times.

  "My moms was so gangsta. I wonder if I'll be that way with Christian?"

  "You could if you wanted to, but I don't think you'd want to," Monya replied.

  "You're right. I've changed so much over the years. Prison softened me up.

  "You ain't that soft," Monya chuckled. "You just whipped my ass."

  "Yeah, I did, didn't I?" Cartier laughed as well.

  After Cartier washed Monya's back and body, she wrapped a towel around her and led her to her bedroom. Both women crawled inside the plush comfortable bed and continued their talk.

  "Remember when we were in the third grade and we would beat up all the girls and make them give us their milk and cookies?" Cartier asked.

  "What do you mean we? You did all that by yourself," Monya corrected.

  "But your greedy ass was eating the cookies with me."

  "Hell yeah! Those chocolate chip cookies were the shit, weren't they?"

  Both women fell asleep in Monya's bed after talking until the sun came up. The next day Monya was still sore from her severe beat-down, so Cartier agreed to stay over and help her with Jason Junior. Meanwhile, Christian was over Trina's. As the two women rediscovered their friendship they both realized they'd been on an emotional rollercoaster for nearly a decade. From boosting, to selling drugs, to cohorts in a murder, to archenemies, and now back to friends. They'd both come full circle and it was like old times.

  After Cartier helped Monya bathe, she sat down and began to braid her hair into two plaits. The house was still and was inviting more conversation, and both women felt talking through their differences was therapeutic.

  "I don't know why I wanted to get with Jason so badly when I knew how he felt about you," Monya admitted. "Truly that was the lowest thing I could have done in my life . . " Monya paused, almost afraid to go further, "besides, you know... Donnie."

  Cartier shook her head. "Neither one of us are angels, but we shouldn't keep beating ourselves up about it. All we can do is make better decisions and try to be better people for our children"

  "I know, but I was relentless in pursuing-'

  "Look, it takes two. Jason could have easily resisted your advances. To me he had more of a duty to me than you"

  "We're such horrible people, Cartier. Could you ever forgive us? Will you forgive me? I'm sorry ... I'm truly sorry for hurting you. I truly must have bumped my fucking head."

  "It's all good, Monya. It's the past, and I think I can get past it."

  "You're more of a woman than I'll ever be," Monya concluded.

  As the night progressed, the women grew close again as they reminisced on their past. When Cartier reached over and planted a soft kiss on Monya's lips, she didn't resist. Instead, she parted her mouth and welcomed the soft tongue of her former best friend. As their kisses got more intense, Cartier inched closer to Monya and began to remove her towel. As the towel feel to the bed, Cartier's hands began to explore Monya's battered body. Her strong hands began to massage every inch of Monya's body from her outer thighs to her small breasts.

  Monya relaxed and welcomed the feeli
ngs as Cartier replaced her hand with her tongue. Soft, wet kisses traced Monya's outer legs to inner thighs until ultimately reaching her neatly manicured pussy. Hesitating only momentarily, Cartier parted Monya's nether lips and began to suck on her clitoris with steady, firm movement.

  Monya moaned her pleasure as she gently rocked her hips back and forth. Both women wondered what they were doing making love to each other, but the feeling was too intense to stop. Cartier stuck her finger in Monya's inflamed pussy and hot juices seeped out. Cartier continued to finger fuck Monya until she pulled Cartier up and they began grinding on each other.

  Monya then wanted to please Cartier and went down on her and began to taste her pussy. The two women were bent on pleasing one another as they experienced feelings that only a woman could invoke. Monya then took the lead and positioned herself on top of Cartier in the sixty-nine position. This took their pleasure to the next level and each woman experienced a mindbending orgasm. They both lay there still, unwilling to talk.

  Monya was trying to come up with words and then decided that actions would better represent any words. She jumped out of bed and went into her top drawer and pulled out her secret stash of sex toys. She had a massive, dark chocolate colored dildo that would enhance their lovemaking. Cartier smiled a devilish grin and Monya sauntered back toward the bed.

  "I thought you'd like this," Monya smiled.

  The two women brought each other to multiple orgasms until they were physically depleted. Within moments they both drifted off into a light sleep. Cartier awoke first a few hours later and tried to quietly leave, but Monya felt her rumbling in the bed.

  "Don't go," Monya asked softly.

  "I gotta go and get Christian."

  "Who has her?"

  "My mother."

  "Then you can definitely stay," Monya shot back. "You know Trina won't trip."

  "What about Jason? I know his ass will start calling soon. I've been missing for days:"

  Monya tossed her eyes up in the air at the mere mention of Jason's name. She didn't know if she should tell Cartier that he just left, before she arrived the other day. Although they didn't fuck, Jason did his favorite thing: ate her pussy like a champ and gave her some cash. She pushed that thought out of her head. That situation would have ruined what they both just shared, which Monya wasn't sure how to define.

  "Can I ask you a question?" Monya asked.

  "Maybe," Cartier replied, hesitantly. "It depends.. "

  "I mean it ain't that serious. I just wanted to know if you still loved Jason. I mean after everything he's put you through."

  "Everything yall put me through?"

  "I'm not innocent in this, I know. But all I kept asking myself through all of our drama was why would you stay with him? You're too good for that motherfucker."

  "And what about you?" Cartier came back. "You don't think that you're too good for him? Or is this your way of getting me to back off of Jason so you can have him exclusively?"

  Again, Monya weighed her words and thought before she spoke. The hood in her wanted to snap and curse Cartier out, even after she just got her ass kicked. But after what they just shared she wanted to speak frankly and honestly.

  "Even if you backed off I wouldn't have Jason exclusively," Monya replied. "He has way too many bitches to ever be faithful. Secondly, out of all his bitches-and I'm including myself, he loves you the most. I've done everything in my power to get him to leave you and he won't budge. But even though he won't leave you, that doesn't mean you can't leave him. I mean, look at me, I done fucked our whole borough, and you and I are competing over the same dude. Got babies by him and the whole nine. But what's fucked up is that you're a good girl and I ain't shit, now you tell me what's really good?"

  "Monya, I feel you, but he's the father of my daughter."

  "And?"

  "And I don't want to break up our household even though I keep telling myself I would ... that I should," Cartier explained. "I don't want Christian raised in a broken home as I did."

  Monya shook her head. She really didn't get what Cartier was saying, but she decided not to push.

  "Well, I'm not gonna fuck with him no more," Monya exclaimed.

  "Stop lying, bitch," Cartier said, jokingly.

  "I'm serious. He don't know how to fuck anyway and as you know his dick is so little and always want somebody to suck it."

  Laughing, Cartier replied, "You too?"

  "Hell yeah!" Monya began. "And after y'all fuck, do he be asking you, 'Was I enough for you?' I be wanting to say so badly, `Hell motherfucking no!'"

  At this point, both women burst out laughing. They were both tickled clowning Jason and his little dick.

  "But all jokes aside, Jason is a good man," Cartier said. "I mean, he has a good heart, he's just a dog."

  Monya couldn't understand how Cartier was coming to his defense, especially when she'd put up with all of his infidelities.

  "I guess my definition of a good man is way different than yours. A good man in my book doesn't have numerous affairs and he certainly wouldn't sleep with my best friend and impregnate her. You have to see him for who he is."

  Cartier thought about Jason, her marriage, Monya, and their children, and was confused. She wanted to block out Monya, but she couldn't. Monya began telling Cartier things she didn't want to hear, and no matter how she tried to put on a tough exterior, she was deeply hurt by Monya's words.

  "I'm telling you, yes, he does love you, because he wouldn't leave you, but I don't think he ever respected you. He lay in my bed plenty of nights and just complained about you, and I loved every minute of it. You know I was a hater," Monya laughed. "I wanted to hear all the seedy details about how you were lazy and couldn't cook, and that you were boring in and out of bed. He said he felt like he had two kids, you and Christian, because he had to fully take care of both of y'all. He said if he didn't tell you what to wear each morning, you'd go naked. I told him what he was saying didn't sound like you at all, but he told me that you'd changed. That jail had broken you and that living with you was like living with a twelve-year-old kid."

  Tears began to stream down Cartier's cheeks as Monya divulged all the seedy pillow talk between her and Jason. Cartier felt so low and confused. She thought she understood the pulse of her relationship, but as Monya rehashed Jason's thoughts, she realized she did lose herself in Jason's shadow. Being incarcerated had broken her spirit, and she just didn't want to fight anymore. She allowed Jason to be the breadwinner and head of the household. He was the king of the castle, and for years she was content with that. She thought she was content being cooped up in the house being a housewife. She thought he would appreciate her sacrifices. Instead, he mocked her to his mistresses and made a fool out of her.

  Suddenly, Monya stopped rambling with her stories. She realized her words would hurt, but only superficially. Now she understood she was being selfish. She didn't want Cartier going back to Jason, so she opened up and gave her a snapshot of what Jason thought about her.

  "I didn't mean to make you cry," Monya began. "He's not even worth your tears."

  Cartier shook her head rapidly, but said nothing.

  "You know, a lot of this is my fault. If I didn't stab Donnie and then let you take the weight, you would have never gone to prison and changed."

  "That's not truly a fair statement," Cartier finally spoke. "I chose to plead out for a reason, and you couldn't have stopped me. I did it out of guilt. I made a lot of hardheaded decisions back then that wasn't fair to anyone. I had no right to put you in the middle of my crazy scheme. And I had also underestimated what you'd do under duress. Most of how my life unfolded was my fault and if you were the one doing the time, I would have died inside. If you and Jason think that I changed because I did time, there's no telling how I would have turned out if you did the time."

  Cartier called Trina and asked if Christian could spend another night.

  "Sure, you know that's no problem," Trina replied. "Why? You and Jason g
oing out tonight?"

  "Ma, Jason and I broke up," Cartier said matter-of-factly. "This time for good."

  "What? What happened now? Does this have anything to do with Monya?"

  "No, it doesn't. I'm just tired of his disrespectful ways and all his cheating."

  "Well, that's what men do, Cartier," Trina responded. "How many times do I have to tell you that the grass ain't always greener on the other side? Jason is a good man who loves you. The cheating will stop one day. He can't cheat forever."

  "And I'm just supposed to sit around waiting with bated breath until he decides to stop?" Cartier snapped. "I can't let him have my happiness in the palm of his hands while he's deciding if he should do the right thing. I swear if I stay one more day I'm going to end up going back to prison. That's how angry he's making me, and I can't control my feelings or anger."

  Trina got a little frightened when Cartier mentioned prison. She was approaching fifty and didn't have the energy to run back and forth to prison on visits, and lugging kids and packages. Trina wasn't sure if her advice for Cartier to stay put was the right advice.

  "Well, ain't no man worth your freedom. You hear me?" Trina asked. "Husband or no husband, if he acting a fool, then kick his ass to the curb. He'll realize he messed up a good thing."

  Cartier was glad her mother was on her side. She hung up, cut off her cell, and crawled back into bed with Monya. She knew the next morning she would have to deal with Jason. He had called over a hundred times, and left over eighty messages. His messages ranged from concern to panic to anger, but she didn't care.

  In the morning she had lots of work to do.

  onya followed Cartier back to her house to retrieve her things. They waited until Jason left the house before they ran in like crackheads on speed, grabbing only the necessities. They tossed most of her clothes and all of Christian's clothes in large garbage bags and piled all of it into Monya's BMW. They used Cartier's car to pack Pampers, Christian's high chair, and a few toys.

  Cartier took one look around and exhaled. She needed to be strong. She left a post-it note on the refrigerator that simply read: Fuck You. Next, she changed her cell phone number.