When It All Falls Down 2 - Strapped Up: A Chicago Hood Drama (A Hustler's Lady)

by Tamicka Higgins

  ***

  Jackson’s luck had not been much better with the bank he chose. Since they really hadn’t cased the small town banks, nor had they planned their escape routes, the way they did with the bank in Chicago, he too felt vulnerable. While he was in a different area of the town, he felt just as confused and lost as Tramar. In fact, from where Jackson was located, he was able to hear the sirens coming from the side of the town where Tramar had been. As he drove east, in the opposite direction of Chicago, to simply get as far away from the town as he could possibly get, he called his boy Tramar. His nerves were too on edge to not see at least what was going on. As he waited on Tramar to answer his phone, he feared for the worst. Jackson feared that something had gone wrong and maybe his buddy had been shot dead by the police or something. He was fortunate to get in and out of his bank without the police responding immediately.

  “Yeah,” Tramar said, answering the phone.

  “Damn, nigga,” Jackson said, holding the phone with one hand and his steering wheel with another. “What the fuck happened over there? I could hear all them sirens and shit, coming from your side of town and shit. Did you make it out okay? Did everything go coo and shit with you?”

  “Naw, nigga,” Tramar said. “That shit was fucked up as hell. I knew we shouldn’t have brought our black asses out here, where we don’t know our way around, and robbed no damn bank. Fuck, I almost got caught.”

  “What?” Jackson said. “What you mean you almost got caught? What the fuck happened?

  Tramar explained how a security guard had come out of nowhere just as he was about to leave the bank. Jackson hung on to every word, feeling lucky that he hadn’t come face to face with the same situation. Tramar continued to explain about how he shot the security guard because he wouldn’t put his gun down.

  “Fuck!” Jackson said. “Fuck. What the fuck you mean you shot him? You shoot him in the leg or something? Did you kill the dude or what?” Jackson could feel his own blood pressure rising.

  “Fuck if I know,” Tramar said. “I know I shot the dude in his chest, but he looked like he was still alive when I was walking out the door and shit. Fuck him. He shouldn’t have been there and shit. I did what I had to do. What did you want me to do? Let the dude kill me and shit?”

  “Naw, nigga, I ain't say that,” Jackson said. “So, where the fuck is you?”

  “I just crossed back into Illinois,” Tramar answered. “I had to duck off the stress for a second and park behind some factories. I had to get on Google and shit and see how the fuck to get outta there. I don’t know who or when they pulled the alarm, but my black ass almost got caught and shit. Hold up, where the fuck is you?”

  “Nigga, my shit went smooth as fuck,” Jackson said. “I did get lost coming out of there, though. Now I gotta turn around and find out where the fuck I am.” Just as those words had slid out of Jackson’s mouth, he saw a sign that said MICHIGAN CITY 27 MILES. “Nigga, I’m coming up on Michigan City.”

  “The fuck?” Tramar said. “Nigga, you headed in the wrong fuckin’ direction. You need to turn around.”

  “Nigga, I know,” Jackson told him. “Look, let me figure out where I am and shit so I can hurry up and get across the state lines and shit. I’ll see you back at the motel.”

  “Bet,” Tramar said. “And we gon’ have to get rid of these cars before they catch our asses. I’m bout to pick up Ayana and go get my son.”

  “Coo,” Jackson said. “And I was thinkin’ the same thing. I’ll hit you up when I get back to the motel.”

  Jackson hung up and turned north until he found a road that headed west, and back toward Chicago.

  ***

  When Ayana had gotten the call from Tramar that he would be picking her up before he went to pick up Quan in Chicago, she could hear the anguish in his voice. It was very obvious to her, even if he did not want to say so when she’d asked, that something had gone wrong. Doing as Tramar had said, Ayana got her clothes on and was ready to walk out the door when he pulled up. Waiting in anticipation, Ayana watched out of the motel room window. Twenty minutes later, she saw Tramar's Charger come swooshing into the parking lot. Quickly, she pulled the door open and ran out into the parking lot. Once she climbed into the front passenger seat, Tramar pulled off.

  Ayana noticed that Tramar was being rather quiet. She’d expected him to spill with the details about the robbery. “What’s wrong, Tramar?” she asked. “Don’t tell me that nothin’ ain’t wrong. What’s wrong?”

  Tramar shrugged his shoulders. “Some shit went down today that I ain’t plan on happening, Ayana,” he said. “That’s what’s wrong. Some shit went down that I ain’t plan on happening at all.” He shook his head.

  “What?” Ayana asked, hesitantly but knowing that she needed to know. “What happened, Tramar? Tell me.”

  “I fuckin’ shot the fuckin’ security guard, okay?” he said. “I fuckin’ shot the security guard. And no, I don’t know if I killed the dude or not, but I know I shot him. I shot him right in the chest and shit.”

  Ayana grabbed her forehead and leaned back into her seat. She then asked what happened. After several silent seconds, Tramar explained how it all happened.

  “Baby,” Tramar said, “I think we gon’ have to get rid of this car.”

  “Get rid of the car?” Ayana asked, surprised. “When? How? Why you say that?”

  “Cause, Ayana,” Tramar snapped. “The shit ain’t happen like downtown. Downtown, the car was parked in a garage where maybe they don’t know whose car it was and if this was the car that was the getaway car in the robbery. The small town banks and shit is different, you know. Yeah, I made sure to park my car with the license plates in the bushes and shit, but that don’t mean that they still ain’t see my shit when I was pullin’ off and shit. I don’t know if they did or not, but just to make me feel better, I think tonight or tomorrow or something, I need to get rid of my car and report the shit stolen or something. Say some shit like when I came out of my motel room or something, the shit was gone. I don’t know. I can’t really think straight right now. That shit was so fuckin’ scary and shit, for real. I thought I was gonna get caught, I swear I was.”

  Ayana couldn’t think of anything else to do but to reach over and rub Tramar’s shoulder. “And what about Jackson?” she asked. “You talk to him or what? What happened with the bank that he hit? Did he make it out okay? Did he have any problems and shit like you did with the security guard?”

  Tramar shook his head. “I mean, I talked to him like ten minutes ago, right when I was crossing the state line and shit,” he answered. “But naw, he ain’t have no problems. Just like me, though, the nigga got lost and shit in that little town. When I was talkin’ to him, he was headed toward Michigan City.”

  “Fuck, he goin’ the wrong way,” Ayana said. “What he doin’ goin’ that way?”

  Tramar looked over at Ayana. “You know us niggas don’t know our way around them little towns like that,” he said. “Yeah, they small and shit, but they confusing as fuck cause it ain’t like there are no tall buildings or highways and shit that we can use to tell where the fuck we goin’. Shit, if I ain’t have my phone with me to pull up a map and find a way out of my little hiding spot without having to ride back by the bank, or anywhere close to it, I could be lost out in some cornfield or some shit like that. He said he was about to turn around and that he would meet me back at the motel. I told him I was pickin’ you up to go get my son. I was fucked up in the head. I ain’t gon’ lie. That’s why I had to see you.”

  Ayana looked over at Tramar. She could hear the sincerity in his voice. While she may have been riding around with a person who had just robbed a bank, she still felt safe. After all that she’d been through, it was certainly nice to be with someone who expressed that he did indeed need her the same way she needed him. However, in the back of her mind, she still had to deal with the feelings of paranoia. They were getting to her as she thought about how Tramar had not only robbed another
bank but he had also shot the security guard at that bank. At this point, there was no telling if he’d killed the man or not. Ayana could only hope that he hadn’t.

  Chapter 7

  Ayana couldn’t help but feel a little anxious when Tramar pulled the car up outside of the apartment complex where the mother of his child lived. She had tried her best to be cordial with the chick over the years, but it didn’t seem to work. Precious lived in some apartments on Cottage Grove, about three to four miles south of downtown Chicago. Tramar didn’t like that his son lived over in this area, but he wasn’t really in a position to help him out of the situation. With all that had been going on recently, Tramar knew that he was bettering his life so that his son could have a better chance.

  When Tramar pulled into a parking spot, he let out a deep sigh. “I hope this bitch don’t try to start no shit when I go in here,” he said, shaking his head. “I love my son to death, but I swear to God there be times that I wish I woulda had him with some other chick. This bitch really is crazy.”

  “Just make it quick,” Ayana said. “Say that you gotta be somewhere or something and that you can’t really hang around and talk. Be real short with her and just let her know the real deal, that you ain’t got time for her shit. Make it all about Quan and not her.”

  Tramar looked over at Ayana. Now this was a woman that he would want to have a baby by. Not only was she pretty – far prettier than Precious ever had been in his eyes – she also had a good head on her shoulders that really made him love her more. He slapped her thighs as he leaned over and kissed her quickly. He then climbed out of the car and walked up and into the five-story, brown brick building.

  Tramar rode the elevator up to the third floor and got off. Hesitantly, he walked up to Precious’ apartment door – apartment 303 – and knocked. Within several seconds, the door swung open to Precious looking at Tramar.

  “Oh,” Precious said. “I ain’t actually think that you would show up on time. Wow, you really are a changed man, ain’t you? First, you paid up your child support in one lump sum. Then you show up, trying to being the father of the year and stuff. Ain’t this something?”

  Tramar stepped into the living room, noticing the way it was still cluttered as it had always been. “Hello to you too, Precious,” he said. “How are you doing?”

  “I’m fine, Tramar,” she responded. “Thanks for asking. Quan is in his room. I told him to be getting ready, but you know how he fool around and stuff.” She pointed toward the bedroom hallway. “You welcome to go back there and see for yourself.”

  “Okay,” Tramar said. He purposely avoided eye contact with Precious, as he didn’t want to lead her on. While the five foot two, shapely redbone could have an attitude, she certainly did little to hide the fact that she would jump back into the bed with Tramar in a heartbeat. He could tell, from the numerous times he’d come over to her apartment, that she would jump on his dick if he even brought up the word bed in a sentence.

  Tramar cautiously made his way back to Quan’s room where he tapped on the door before pushing it open. Inside, he found Quan on the other side of the room. He stepped inside and got his attention. Quickly, the little boy, who had just gone and gotten his hair cut a couple of days ago, with a moon on the front right side of his head, ran up and hugged his father.

  “Daddy!” Quan said. “I’m coming to spend the weekend with you?”

  Tramar smiled, reaching down and hugging the boy back. “Yeah,” he said. “You coming to spend the weekend with me. You bout ready to go or what? We gotta get going cause Daddy got some things to do.”

  Quan turned around and pointed at his book bag. “I’m just looking for a couple more things and then I’ll be ready,” he said. “Just give me a couple more minutes, okay?”

  Tramar wanted to groan at the idea of spending any more time in this apartment than what was really necessary. However, he wasn’t going to argue with the little boy, especially since it had been a while since he’d seen him. Instead, he asked that Quan make it quick and told him that he’d be waiting out by the door for him.

  When Tramar walked back into the living room, he couldn’t help but notice how hard Precious switched when she walked past him. It was very obvious that she was trying to get his attention, and she had succeeded, mildly. Like any man, Tramar noticed the way Precious’ ass jiggled when she walked. Even though he knew she was doing it on purpose, and that the attitude up top was more trouble than it was worth, he still couldn’t stop himself from looking. Standing over by the front door, Tramar remained quiet. All he wanted to do was keep to himself and make this visit as short as possible.

  “So,” Precious said. “What kinda stuff you got planned for your father-son weekend?”

  “I don’t really know yet,” Tramar said. And he really didn’t know. After all, while he did seem calm right then and there, he was still very alert. Less than an hour ago, he’d robbed a bank and shot a man. The afterthoughts of those two things continued to swirl around in his head. He knew he needed to save face, so as to not tip Precious off that anything out of the ordinary was going on. If there was one thing that Tramar remembered about Precious, it was the fact that she ran her mouth worse than that talk show host Wendy Williams. If he were to tell her anything juicy at 1 o’clock in the afternoon, half of the south side would know by 2:30 or 3 o’clock. “I’m thinking maybe we can all spend some time together, me, him, and my father, you know?”

  “Well, that sounds nice,” Precious said. “Tell your father I said hello and I miss seeing him.” Precious paused for a moment. “Whew, I need to get this place cleaned up before I get going.”

  Tramar watched as Precious began to straighten up the apartment. At first, he wanted to make a comment. He was shocked that she was actually doing something domestic. However, he knew that if he did, that would be opening the door for Precious to turn it into something bigger than what it really was. He then began to notice how Precious was clearly placing her legs far apart as she would bend over and pick things up. Her big, round ass definitely commanded his attention. It was something that could not be missed – it was the very thing that had attracted him to her in the first place, back when they were younger.

  “So, how is whatever her name is?” Precious asked, after looking back and noticing that Tramar was looking at her as she walked around. “Are you and her still together or what?”

  “Of course,” Tramar responded, looking away. “You know we are, Precious. I don’t even know why you askin’.”

  “I was just try’na be nice, Tramar,” Precious said, smiling. “Damn, can’t I just ask about what is going on in your life?”

  “I know, Precious,” Tramar said, snickering. “I know. So, who are you seeing nowadays?” He was starting to feel a little bold. “What nigga have you sucked into your web?”

  “Ha-ha,” Precious said, her voice flat. “I see you try’na be funny while you over there staring at this ass.”

  Tramar shook his head. “I was just asking a question, Precious,” he said. “That’s all. I was just showing a little interest in your life.” He then looked toward the bedroom hallway. “Quan, is you about ready to go or what?”

  Quan yelled out into the hallway that he was almost ready. Precious continued on with the conversation. “Well,” she said. “I may have met somebody. We takin’ it slow, though. I ain’t try’na rush into nothin’ this time around. You know what happens when you do stuff like that, don’t you?”

  “Yeah,” Tramar said, shaking his head. “I certainly do. You wind up stuck with people that you can’t live far enough away from.”

  Precious smiled and snapped her neck to the side. “Exactly,” she said. “But naw, I’m talking to this nigga who is a bail bondsman downtown. We met at the club and stuff. I don’t know what he really after or what, so we just gon’ see what happens. I ain’t really lookin’ for nothin’ serious. I’m just tired of being lonely, you know.”

  “Yeah,” Tramar said. He’d begun to
tap his foot, wondering when Quan would come running out so they could get back down to the car. “Well, me and Ayana are doing good. We actually talking about moving in together.”

  “Well,” Precious said, putting her hand on her hip. “That’s nice. You know, Quan really likes her.” She rolled her eyes. “I guess it is good that somebody like her. Naw, I’m just playin’. You know I love your girl, Ayana.” She paused. “She’s like that half-sister you didn’t know you had that your daddy had by some other woman, and you two finally meet and have nothing in common. Well, that’s kinda how I see her.”

  “Ooh, wee,” Tramar said. “You really are a piece of work, ain’t you?”

  “And what the fuck is that supposed to mean, Tramar?” Precious asked. “Huh?” Her voice had gotten noticeably louder.

  “You know what it means,” Tramar said. “Why every time I come over here, you always try’na start some shit with me?”

  “I ain’t start nothin’,” Precious said. “Nigga, you the one over here lookin’ at this ass like you ain’t gettin’ none at home.”

  “Whatever, Precious,” Tramar said, turning away. “Whatever. You know all you want is some dick from me. You just don’t wanna admit it.”

  “And if I did?” Precious asked, in a very sassy manner. “You ain’t wanna give it to me after I gave birth, so why would you think that I would even want some of it now. You too busy being stuck up whatever her name is face that you can’t see that we could been a family and shit. But, nooooo. Nigga had to bounce soon as I gained weight and dropped the baby. Now, since I done lost weight, all of the sudden your eyes done started to see me a lot more. I saw the way you was lookin’ at my ass. I don’t even know why you try to deny it.”