Bullet looked back, watching Bubbles with silent concentration. When Bubbles approached the group of kids, he turned around and relit the blunt.
“Aw, yeah. I need another piece of candy. And a white girl. Whew! This is a come-up! Fuck Amber. I’ma name that ho Vanilla Flava,” Bullet said, speaking to himself. “She might be white on the outside, but after I school her, that ho gon’ be moving them skinny hips with rhythm and working that pussy like she came out of the womb fucking big, black dick.”
He released a cloud of smoke, smiling as if imagining himself lying on top of the white girl, teaching her the intricacies of fucking black men.
Gianna didn’t know how or when Bubbles had met the blonde named Amber, but based on Bullet’s utterances, it was clear that he was up to his old tricks. He was planning on kidnapping another girl.
One thing was for sure…they didn’t need another bitch in the house. Three girls were more than enough. And judging by the way Bullet was drooling over the blonde, he intended to give all his personal time and attention exclusively to her.
While Bullet and Bubbles were picking up the white girl from her job, Flashy drove Gianna and Skittles to the current auction house. The house was hidden away on a remote block that looked more like an alley of a Third World country than an American city street.
The row of dilapidated houses looked like they should have been condemned. The windows of some were boarded up, while others had stained sheets or tattered blankets serving as window treatments.
Gianna located a faded street sign that read: Mary Street.
Wearing stilettos, Flashy got out of his car and stepped carefully along the crumbling concrete.
He looked around. “I don’t see any cars, so I guess the bidders are parking a couple blocks over. They’ll probably arrive on foot. Can’t blame them for not wanting their cars to be spotted on Mary Street.”
Silently, Gianna and Skittles walked behind Flashy. Having fun with his role as the wardrobe mistress, Flashy dressed Gianna as a sexy princess with a sheer, flowing cape that covered a lacy bra, panties with side straps, and a frilly garter on her thigh. She also had a gold scepter and a jeweled crown to wear during the bidding process.
“You look beautiful, Lollipop,” Flashy complimented. He screwed up his lips when his eyes flickered down to her gauze-covered index finger. “I’ll be glad when that finger heals. It’s distracting from the look.”
Skittles was garbed in roaring twenties attire. A red flapper outfit was accessorized with a headband, boa, and a flashy cigarette holder. Poor Skittles was losing so much weight, she looked frail and ridiculous in the oversized costume.
Using a key, Flashy opened the door to one of the houses where ragged blankets were hung at the windows. “The man who rented me this spot refused to clean it, so me and a friend of mine was in here all day, scrubbing and cleaning, trying to make it somewhat presentable.”
Gianna turned up her nose. The strong scent of pine couldn’t disguise the odor that clung to the walls of the decaying house.
“I know one thing, I’m going to run this auction in an organized manner. Nobody gets to go past his fifteen minutes. We’re gonna be outta here in three hours. These tricks got ten minutes to get here. If they don’t show up on time, we’re rolling out. Nobody keeps Miss Flashy waiting,” he said, referring to himself as a Miss and in third person.
Minutes later, there was a series of sharp raps on the door.
Gianna recognized a few of the gleaming-eyed men who poured through the door. Scanning the crowd, she looked for the shiny-haired man who called her his bridal doll… the man who’d promised to rescue her.
With Bullet adding a white girl to the household, Gianna didn’t stand a chance of regaining her status. Bullet treated her with contempt and she’d be much better off if Bullet sold her. She searched the men’s faces, but her rescuer wasn’t among them.
CHAPTER 38
The auction ran efficiently like Flashy had promised. The absence of Bullet’s hostile personality was a plus.
When Flashy pulled up to the house on Second Street, Bullet’s Cadillac was parked in the makeshift driveway in front of the house.
Flashy handed Gianna a wad of rolled-up bills. “Give this to Bullet. Tell him I took my cut off the top.”
“Aren’t you coming in?” Gianna asked, her expression crinkled with worry. She didn’t want to be in the middle of Bullet and Flashy’s business transaction.
“I’m too tired to put up with that crazy bastard’s bullshit. Tell him I’ll holla tomorrow. By then I should be in a better mood to listen to him accuse me of trying to rob him blind.”
“Suppose he gets mad?”
“Let him! I’m not worried about that coked-up fool.” Flashy grimaced. “The only thing I’m concerned with right now, chile, is taking my ass home and soaking my feet.”
Flashy fluttered his lashes to punctuate the statement.
Gianna wasn’t referring to Bullet getting angry with Flashy. The expression, “kill the messenger,” was echoing in her ears.
“Whew, Lawdy,” Flashy added in a lilting voice, having no idea or a bit of concern that Gianna was afraid that Bullet would beat her for having the audacity to handle his money.
“Standing in these high-ass heels for all those hours was pure murder. My poor corns and bunions are screaming bloody murder to get out of these shoes. I gotta go!”
“Okay,” Gianna said dryly, reaching for Skittles’ hand. “Come on, Skittles. We have to go in the house now.” She guided Skittles out of Flashy’s car and steered her toward the front door.
Since the time when Flashy went upside Skittles’ head, the girl was acting like a couple screws had been knocked out of place. Skittles no longer cried for or even mentioned her daughter. She mumbled to herself all the time.
Weirdest of all, she didn’t flinch when Bullet slapped the shit out of her. She didn’t yell or utter a sound whenever he used his thick leather belt on her ass.
It was like Brielle, the girl Gianna had met in Rite Aid, was no longer present. What was left behind was a vacant shell known as Skittles.
Dreading having to hear sounds of passion as Bullet trained the white girl, Gianna hesitantly pecked on the metal security door. It took almost ten minutes before Bullet began unlocking the multiple locks on the inside door.
A pile of coke was centered on the coffee table. His nostrils were outlined with the white powder.
“Where’s Flashy at?” He sniffed in the excess powder that was visible outside his nose.
Gianna gave Bullet the wad of cash.
“Flashy told me to give you this money. He took his cut off the top. He’ll holla at you tomorrow.” Gianna spoke in a casual tone, hoping to keep Bullet at an even keel. A scared-sounding voice was apt to set him off.
He started counted the money. He sniffed the air. “Is that Skittles stinking up the place?”
“Did you mess on yourself, Skittles?” Gianna asked gently.
“Whatchu asking her for? That buggin’ bitch don’t know up from down. Take her in the bathroom so she can wash her stank ass.”
On the way to the bathroom, Gianna stopped in the smelly bedroom she now shared with Skittles.
She clicked on the bedroom light and gasped. “Girl, you scared me,” she said to Bubbles, who was sitting on the side of Gianna’s pee-stained bed, bent over with her face buried in her hands.
Gianna couldn’t resist taking a jab at the dejected-looking girl. “How come you’re back in this room? Did Bullet kick you out of his bed? What happened? Did that white girl take your place?” Gianna snickered.
Bubbles yanked her hands from her face, revealing a black eye. “Do you see a fucking white girl?”
“What did you do to get on Bullet’s bad side?”
“Fuck you, bitch. At least he didn’t cut off my finger.”
Gianna flinched. She didn’t have a comeback. Bubbles had hit a nerve. Fighting back tears, she took off her crown and leaned he
r scepter against the dresser. Using her now favored left hand, she quietly poked around in Skittles’ drawers, looking for a clean pair of underwear and pajamas.
While Gianna explored the dresser drawer, Skittles moseyed over to her own bed and flopped down.
“Damn, she stinks,” Bubbles complained. “Didn’t I hear Bullet tell you to wash her funky ass?”
Without replying, Gianna held out her good hand, beckoning Skittles to come with her.
After sitting Skittles in a tub filled with warm sudsy water, Gianna gathered up her soiled panties. With her nose turned up, she double-bagged the panties inside a plastic grocery bag.
“These are going in the trash,” she informed Skittles, who muttered in gibberish.
Though Skittles didn’t earn as much as Gianna or Bubbles, she did okay for a girl who didn’t communicate and only spoke in her own made-up language.
“None of this is your fault. You always mess your pants after those nasty men do it to you in your butt. Bullet messed you up when he opened you up with the handle of his knife,” Gianna whispered, shaking her head at the memory.
Bullet was mean. He was a monster at times, but Gianna was starting to understand his ways. She missed being his favorite bitch. The one he kicked it with. She missed being his confidant. She wouldn’t stand a chance of getting back in his good graces if that white girl started making the most money.
What was the girl doing so quietly in Bullet’s bedroom? Why wasn’t he in there giving her some training? Maybe he didn’t like her. Curious, Gianna decided to sneak a peek at the new girl.
“I’ll be right back, Skittles. Wash your butt real good, okay?”
Skittles laughed to herself and playfully splashed the sudsy water, as if she were a child.
Bullet’s bedroom door was wide open. Bitch must be fast asleep. Exhausted from training. Bullet didn’t usually let a bitch rest when he first caught her. It would be odd for her to be laying back… chilling.
Most likely, Bullet needed to snort some lines in order to deal with the no-rhythm white chick.
Surprisingly, his bedroom was empty. There was no trail of clothes leading to the bed. No rumpled sheets. No blonde-haired girl sprawled out and exhausted from Bullet’s intensive training.
Where is she? Gianna wondered, though she was delighted that the white girl was nowhere in sight.
She heard the low rumble of Bullet’s voice. He was talking to Bubbles. Gianna rushed back to the bathroom to tend to Skittles before she got in trouble.
As she slipped back inside the bathroom, she could see Bullet standing in the doorway of the girls’ bedroom. He was holding his leather belt.
Ooo, Bubbles gon’ get it! She crept out into the hallway, unable to resist watching Bubbles get a whipping.
Bullet flicked the belt. “Take your clothes off. I’ma put some welts on that blubber cuz I messed your face up bad enough.”
“Why you gon’ beat me again?”
“You know why. You think one black eye is enough for tryin’ to play me?” He chortled. “Nah, ho. You gon’ get the full treatment for fuckin’ with my pimpin’.”
“But it ain’t my fault, Daddy. I ain’t know Amber was getting off at nine; that bitch told me to meet her at ten,” Bubbles explained pleadingly.
“Take your shit off. That’s the second time I done told you. Make me say it again and I’m pulling out my shank.”
“Okay, Daddy.”
Gianna felt excited as she heard the rustling sound of Bubbles coming out of her clothes.
“What should I beat?” Bullet asked in an ordinary tone of voice.
“I don’t know what you mean, Daddy,” Bubbles’ words came out in a terrified tremble.
“I wanna beat those plump titties, but you need them for work. Guess I might as well light some fire to that fat ass,” he mused, like whipping her buttocks was a monotonous task.
Stifling giggles, Gianna covered her mouth. Bubbles thought she was Bullet’s new bottom bitch. Now she knew how it felt to be on his shit list.
“You a ruthless ho,” Bullet said. “Did you think I was gon’ let that shit ride? You deprived me of adding a skinny white girl to my stable. Do you know how much skinny white girls bring in?”
“We can go back tomorrow. Catch her ass at nine o’clock,” Bubbles appealed.
Thwack! The sudden crack of leather against flesh startled Gianna, making her jump.
Bubbles let out a scream that could raise the dead.
“Shut your big mouth before somebody calls the cop on me.”
“I can’t help it; that hurts,” Bubbles said, crying.
Curious, Gianna eased up to the bedroom door. Bullet had Bubbles lying on her tummy, her butt shaking like jelly as she shuddered in fear.
“I ain’t even get started good and you screaming like you crazy.”
“Please, Daddy. Don’t hit me with that belt no more. I’ll get you that white girl tomorrow night. I promise.”
Thwack, thwack, thwack! He struck Bubbles three times across her ass. Her screams were so high-pitched, it was a wonder that windows and mirrors didn’t start shattering all over the house.
“Do you think I’d give you another chance to mess up my plans again? I don’t need yo’ stupid ass to catch me a ho! As long as I got my looks and keep my game tight, I’ma keep pulling in young hoes.”
Bullet noticed Gianna standing in the doorway. “She’s making too much noise. Get over here and help me. Stuff her mouth the same way Flashy stuffed yours.”
Responding to Bullet’s order, Gianna hurried over to the smelly twin bed and shook an old lumpy pillow out of the case.
“Open up your damn mouth,” Gianna snarled.
Lips sealed as if glued shut, Bubbles twisted and turned, her tortured moans emanating from her nose.
“I ain’t playin’ with Bubblicious,” Bullet said firmly. “She got two seconds before I go get my shank.”
Instantly, Bubbles, who was lying on her side, stretched out her neck and opened her mouth wide, as if begging to be fed the balled-up cloth in Gianna’s left hand.
Gianna jammed in as much of the pillowcase as she could fit in Bubbles’ mouth. Then she grabbed a handful of the girl’s hair and pulled it hard. “Why you fuck up my Daddy’s money?”
Bullet took his shirt off and went to work. By the time he finished, bits of Bubbles’ buttocks were welted and bloody.
“Get up and go clean your ass!” Bullet ordered. “While you in the bathroom, get Skittles out of the tub.”
“Go ’head in my room, Lollipop. No! Hold up.” He studied her princess costume. “I don’t like that outfit. Go put on your bride shit and wait for me in my bed.”
CHAPTER 39
Gianna waited for Bullet, wondering if he’d tear up her bridal costume in a fit of rage. She thought about the tone of voice he’d used when he’d told her to change. There was an unmistakable softness. Maybe he’d finally forgiven her.
“This ‘here comes the bride’ bullshit had them tricks losing they minds at the auction. One mufucka asked me if he could buy you. He said he wouldn’t take your virginity.” Bullet laughed in remembrance. “Dumb mufucka wanted to pay me a whole lot of paper to eat your box out when he got good and damn ready.”
Gianna gave a nervous smile. She couldn’t read Bullet’s mood. Didn’t know if he was still mad at her.
“I hated that man,” she said, lying. “I don’t ever want to leave you, Bullet.”
“You don’t?”
“Never.”
He sat on the bed, touched her face. “We gon’ put the past behind us. You came through for me in there with Bubbles. Showed me that even though your people got money and raised you like the Fresh Princess of Bel-Air, you know how to get gangsta when you need to. I believe you’ll kill a bitch for me if I asked you to.”
“I would,” she said softly. Tears welled in her eyes. It was the truth; she’d do anything she had to do to stay on Bullet’s good side.
“Why yo
u crying?”
She wiped a tear. “Because I love you so much it hurts. I hate sleeping in there with Skittles. I want to be back in here with you.”
“You miss the way I used to let you fall asleep, buried under the covers with my dick swolled up in your mouth?”
She nodded.
He unsnapped his jeans. “Let’s get it poppin’.”
Gianna sat up, eager to help him out of his jeans.
“Lay back down. I ain’t ready. I wanna beat my meat for a minute.”
Gianna complied. She lay still as a statue, staring into space. Waiting for Bullet to tell her what he wanted her to do.
Surprisingly, he sat down at the bottom of the bed. “Remember that old pimp in Atlantic City?”
“Uh-huh.” She had no idea what was coming. Bullet’s disposition could go from sunshine to thunderstorm in split-seconds.
“He told me that the number one rule to pimpin’ was to never put your mouth on a ho’s stank cum hole. Eating a ho’s box out will make her think she running shit.”
Gianna was silent. Her mind raced to come up with a comment. “A ho’s pussy is too nasty for you to put your mouth on, Daddy. That old pimp gave you good advice.” She hoped she’d spoken words that Bullet wanted to hear.
“I know y’all nasty! You ain’t gotta school me,” Bullet said scornfully.
“You’re right. I’m sorry.” She hoped he wouldn’t beat her for telling him something he already knew.
“Them tricks at the auction spend big bank just to lick and suck your stank hole. They got me curious, y’ah mean?”
Though puzzled, she nodded her head, pretending to understand.
“Did you wash your box out yet?”
“Not yet; I was taking care of Skittles. I’ll go do it now,” she said, eager to please him. “Do you want me to take a shower or should I give myself a whore’s bath?” Grateful for an opportunity to please Bullet, Gianna was talking fast and excitedly.
“Hold up. Lemme check you.” Unbelievably, he did something he’d never done before. He put his face between Gianna’s legs and inhaled deeply.
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