Beating the Odds

by Sherrod Tunstall

  Taylor was in a state of shock. What? No man or woman has never, never, ever left me, no matter what the situation was. I get who and what I want with no questions asked. This new generation of young, rich, and famous men and women are something else. Dez better be glad I love his ass, because five years ago, I would have gotten off his body and went to next richest and sexiest thing out there.

  Taylor tried to stay strong on the outside, but on the inside, she was crushed about the ultimatum that Desmond had given her. Desmond knew he had Taylor right where he wanted her. He loved Taylor with all of his heart and soul, but after three years of their secret love affair, he was tired of sharing her. He wanted her all for himself. He was tired of his father and friends telling him that Taylor was a gold-digger or an old-school whore. They said that she was doing her best to stay in the media once Desmond made it to global mega superstardom.

  Of course, Desmond had some of the sexiest women in the world on his jock, and they were hoping to be the next Mrs. Desmond Diaz. No matter how much he was tempted, or how his father and friends tried to set him up, his heart belonged to his Pinky. Still, if she didn’t get that shit together with her husband, he was seriously going back to his playa days.

  “Pinky, daddy loves you, but you gotta choose who you want to be with. You have thirty days to do what you have to do. If I don’t hear from you by 11:45 p.m. that day, it’s over for good. Do I make myself clear?”

  On the inside, Taylor felt weak. She didn’t want to lose her one true love, but she didn’t want him to lose his life. She didn’t want to lose her life either, or her business. She cleared her throat, holding back her tears. “Crystal clear.”

  They smiled, and right at that moment, he felt an erection in his pants. Taylor started to rub the lining of his penis.

  “Pinky, you gon’ make that go down one more time.”

  Taylor was out of it at the moment. “One more time?” She looked at him like he was crazy.

  “Yeah, after you make daddy’s dick go down, you can’t have none of this until you get rid of Armand once and for all. Only then will my dick be all yours.”

  She would be no good without Desmond’s loving. All she could think about was getting rid of Armand a.s.a.p. Taylor kneeled down, pulling off Desmond’s sweats to see his long, thick cinnamon stick, looking delicious as always. She gave Desmond the best blowjob he’d ever had, while toying with his balls.

  “Ahhh!” Desmond groaned. “Damn!” While rubbing Taylor’s head and licking his lips, he was hoping she would leave Armand for good.

  Chapter 9

  Going Down

  At the apartment that afternoon, the fellas were trying to relax after a wild night of partying. Brad was on cloud nine after spending a little time with Diamond, his forbidden fruit. He wanted to pay her a visit, but he found out that she hadn’t come home that night.

  Brad sat at the table on the balcony, not eating his lunch of salada de fradinho com camara, a fresh shrimp and black-eyed pea salad. He also had two slices of lombo de porco assado, which was roasted pork tenderloin, sautéed greens, and a pão de queijo. He just couldn’t get his mind off of Diamond. She had him intrigued in many ways. He wondered why she hadn’t come home, and he was worried that Armand had done something to her. He hoped she was okay, and his mind couldn’t shake his thoughts as he gazed at the beautiful scenery.

  “Boo!” Brad jumped before turning around to see Swag, who had scared him shitless.

  He laughed. “Got yo’ ass.”

  “Damn, man,” Brad said, holding his chest.

  Swag joined him on the balcony. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you, but what were you thinking about?”

  “Not much. Just enjoying the view.”

  “Yeah, this place is something else, ain’t it? Nothin’ like home.”

  “Nope. Especially when it comes to a woman,” Brad said, catching himself. “I mean, the women here got it going on.”

  “B, I know you were referring to Diamond. You still thinking of her?” Swag reached over and took a slice of Brad’s pork tenderloin. “You gon’ get yourself into deep trouble with that girl. That’s Armand’s property. Leave that girl alone, okay?” Swag chewed the meat before pulling out a Black and Mild.

  “You really need to quit smoking.” Brad attempted to change the subject.

  Before Swag could say anything, they heard voices coming from the living room. They went inside, seeing that it was Armand and Sandino coming in to greet the men. Armand shot Brad a cold look, but Brad knew what that was all about. All he cared about was if Diamond was okay.

  “Fellas, listen up. I’m feeling a lot of bad vibes in this part of town. Cops are everywhere, so I need you all to pack your belongings and come down to the limo. You have ten minutes to get downstairs.”

  “What?” Brad shouted.

  “Right,” Tyler said. “What’s really going on?”

  “Are we still getting paid?” Travis asked.

  Armand and Sandino didn’t answer. All they did was exit the apartment.

  All of them had confused looks on their faces, and they didn’t know what to expect. Swag took control of the situation.

  “Come on, y’all, let’s just go. Let’s move! We gotta go! Get your shit packed now,” Swag said.

  No one liked Swag’s tone, but they all went to their rooms to pack their belongings. There was a limousine waiting for them in front of the apartment building. The fellas got in, and the driver sped off. Brad turned to look out the back window. He spotted a car pull up in the place of the limo, and two hefty men with muscles got out. Right in the middle of them was Diamond, still in the same dress, but it was now wrinkled and torn. She had no shoes on her feet, and her hair was all over the place. Her head hung low, and her eyes were focused on the ground. Brad shook his head. He was grateful that she was still alive, but pissed at the same time. He balled up his fist, wondering what in the hell Armand had done to her.

  * * *

  As they entered Diamond’s apartment, one of the men pushed Diamond on the sofa. She was frightened, just as she had been for the entire night. The men quickly exited, but seconds later, Armand came, making Diamond even more fearful. He sat beside her, but she slowly eased back. Armand yanked her toward him, and this time she didn’t move.

  “There’s nothing to be afraid of my Diamond, especially if you learn to play by my rules. Sorry I had to punish you by locking you up in the cage. After ten years of being together, I thought you would learn to love me.”

  Diamond rolled her eyes and looked at him with an evil gaze. Her look prompted Armand to smack the shit out of her. Diamond screamed, holding her face.

  Armand pointed his finger in her face. “Listen, you stupid little bitch. You better start respecting me. You think that fat, light-skinned nigger can give you what I’ve given you? Huh? He will never, ever know the value of you, so don’t ever think or speak his name again. ’Cause next time, you’ll be in a casket. Do you hear me?”

  Diamond softly cried and didn’t respond.

  Armand yanked her hair, pulling her head back. “I said, do you hear me?”

  Diamond thought she was looking at the devil himself. She nodded. “Yes . . . yes I hear you.” She cried even harder.

  Armand let her hair go, shoving her head forward. “Now, go get yourself washed up and get ready for me.”

  She looked at him for one moment and then went to the bathroom to turn on the shower. She lay down in the tub, letting the water fall on her. She cried uncontrollably, hoping the water would clean what she thought was her ruined body.

  I hate him. Why did this happen to me, God? This was not the life I dreamed of as a child.

  There were several hard knocks on the door. Diamond knew exactly who it was. She twisted her face, showing disgust. She hated everything that Armand had done and taken from her: her family, her innocence, her self-respect, and her freedom.

  “Yes?” she said.

  “Hurry up! It doesn’t take all
day to get cleaned up. You got two minutes.”

  Diamond embraced herself as her body trembled. “Okay.” Continuing to cry and while holding her face in her hands, she said a little prayer. “Lord, I need help. Please send someone to save me from this hellhole. Please, I can’t live like this anymore.”

  She swallowed the lump in her throat, held her head up, and felt more determined than ever to get out of Armand’s grasp.

  Chapter 10

  I’m Here, but I’m Not Here

  For the past two days, Taylor was going stir crazy without seeing, hearing, or feeling Desmond’s touch. If she weren’t a fashion icon, a businesswoman, and didn’t care about her reputation, she would be at home in her bathrobe, crying, eating chocolates, and listening to sad love songs. She knew that she had to get Operation Get Rid of Armand Castro done fast. She thought long and hard about what Desmond had said: “Tell your husband about us or I’m out. One month or it’s over.” Taylor couldn’t afford to lose the only man she had ever loved because of her powerful husband.

  She sat in her office, looking flawless in a gray Armani dress suit with silver Jimmy Choo leather pumps and a David Yurman pearl, diamond and 18K gold pendant necklace, which Desmond had bought her. Her makeup was flawless, and her hair was pressed straight and styled in a bun. Her eyes were locked on her computer screen as she looked at photos of Desmond.

  She didn’t want to be in her office. Hell, she didn’t want to be in her place of business period. She was around people she hated and hardly had any control of who stayed or left. At that moment, she regretted marrying Armand instead of manipulating or controlling him. He sure flipped the script on her, and she didn’t even know it.

  “Taylor!”

  Taylor jumped as she saw Ramon looking at her like she was crazy. “Yeah, Ramon. What?”

  “I need the reports on the Versace account.”

  She looked back at her computer screen. “I’ll get them to you later.”

  Ramon paced back and forth. “No, Taylor, I need them now for next month’s issue.”

  Taylor shot Ramon a wicked glare mixed with an “Oh no he didn’t” look.

  “And people in hell want ice water, but it doesn’t mean they get it,” she shot back. She rolled her eyes at him. “You’ll get it tomorrow, okay?”

  Ramon twisted his lips and sucked his teeth.

  The intercom sounded, and Taylor pushed the button. “Yes, Maria.”

  “Taylor, Milena is here to see you.”

  “Send her in.” Taylor looked back at Ramon. “Bye!”

  Ramon rolled his eyes and walked out of Taylor’s office, bumping into Milena, who was coming in.

  “Excuse you!” shouted Milena. “There are some ignorant bastards in this dump.”

  “Tell me about it,” Taylor commented dryly. “Hey, doll,” she said, getting up from her chair.

  The ladies hugged, air kissed, and went over to the sofa. Things stayed quiet until Milena cleared her throat. “So, uh, what’s been new with you?”

  Taylor stared at her best friend for a few seconds before tears cascaded down her face. Milena consoled her.

  “Hey, doll, what’s wrong?” asked Milena, concerned for her best friend.

  Taylor calmed herself down and wiped her face. “Well, two days ago your brother gave me a choice to either be with him or Armand.”

  “Forgive me for saying this, but that’s not a hard choice.”

  “I know, and I want to be with Desmond. He’s my heart and soul. Everything I am. I love that man more than I love myself and my collection of designer shoes.” Taylor laughed a little. “But it’s not easy leaving Armand. You know how powerful he is. Hell, if he finds out I’m with Desmond, he’ll have him killed. If anything ever happened to Desmond, I don’t know what I would do.”

  “Shh, hun, it’s okay. You know my brother and father know people that will take Armand off the scene like that,” Milena said, snapping her fingers. “Chica, I never seen you this emotional. You must really love my brother to be feeling this way.”

  Taylor nodded.

  “Don’t worry. After your plans are in order, you and my brother will be together.”

  “And speaking of the plans, what was up with the dinner with Armand, his guest, and that li’l whore of Armand’s?”

  “Well, they were discussing building a casino here in Rio, but Bruno was talking some shit about making it an illegal gambling spot, plus a whore house. You know your husband went along with it.”

  Taylor sighed. “Men. Always thinking with their dicks.”

  This could be some useful info for Pinto, she thought with a smile.

  “Did the girls get any more information from our American guests?”

  “Nothing that we can use for Pinto, but Sasha said she did see the big one with that girl . . . What’s her name?” Milena thought for a moment. “Diamond! They talked for a few moments until Armand came.”

  “Oh, that li’l harlot. What did she have to talk about?”

  “Taylor, hun, I wouldn’t be so hard on the poor girl.”

  Taylor cut her eyes and threw her hand back. “Why shouldn’t I be? She’s been fucking my husband.”

  “Because, I talked to the girl and she seemed pretty nice. Just scared. She had these sad eyes that look like she wanted to be freed. I think we should help her, instead of trying to kill her. You should talk to her woman to woman.”

  “I’ll think about it.” Taylor stood up. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to meet Duke for lunch and plans.”

  “Okay, but fix that makeup first.”

  “Shut up!”

  They laughed

  * * *

  At the Sheraton Rio Hotel and Resort, Taylor came in ready for business. She sat across from Duke, who was smoking a cigar and reading a Stephen King novel. Duke looked up from the book and put the cigar in an ashtray.

  “On time today, I see,” he said.

  Taylor didn’t have time for any of his offhand comments. She was there to handle business quickly and get back to Desmond. “Look, let’s get business started, okay? I have another engagement to go to later.”

  Duke smiled. “Of course. What do you have for me?”

  “Armand had that business dinner with mobster Bruno Bello here in Rio. I think they’re doing an illegal gambling and prostitution ring here by using a casino.”

  “Interesting. I’ll have my men keep an eye out for this Bruno Bello.”

  “Excellent.”

  “So, do you have any other information for me?”

  Taylor had a dumbfounded look on her face. “At the moment, there are no other updates.”

  “Well,” Duke said, taking a puff of his cigar. “I know that your husband has moved the boys out of that apartment and put them in one of his homes in the slums.”

  “Interesting,” Taylor said, smiling.

  “We have an undercover cop posing as a limo driver. He took the Americans there.”

  “Then why doesn’t he just call the cops and bust them right there?” she asked.

  “It’s not that simple, because he has bodyguards all over that place. Hell, he has a six-year-old boy that will shoot you dead in the face in a second, so I don’t want to take any chances and have the governor even more on my back.”

  Taylor twisted her lips. “Okay.” She glanced at the clock and saw that it was quarter to one. “I have to get back to work to deal with that idiotic staff of mine. I’ll call you to schedule our next meeting.”

  “You do that.” Duke nodded and stared at her like he wanted to eat her alive.

  Taylor made her way toward the door only to be grabbed by Duke on the way out. She looked at him like he had just lost his mind.

  “What about our date?”

  Taylor didn’t appreciate him grabbing her, so she snatched away from him. She then pretended to be dumbfounded once again. “What are you talking about?”

  “You know damn well what I’m talking about. When I get through with your hus
band, you’re going to be lonely, and you’ll need someone to keep you satisfied. So how about dinner, a movie, and sex?”

  Taylor thought Duke was damn disgusting. The only man for her was Desmond, but she didn’t have to tell Duke anything. All she did was laugh. “I’ll let you know. Until then, be patient. We have some serious work to do, and I don’t want anything to mess that up. Agreed?”

  Duke agreed. He watched Taylor strut away as if she were on a runway. He intended to be patient, but after his job was done, Taylor was going to be his.

  Chapter 11

  Taking Care of Business

  Hot, sweaty, and sticky, the fellas had spent the last four days in a small favela in the slums of Rio. The north or south side of St. Louis had nothing on the slums of Rio. Streets were dirty, kids were begging for pennies, drugs were everywhere, and people were looking through trash cans for food.

  They were in one big room with a sofa bed, a table with two chairs, and an open bathroom. It was nasty as hell, with roaches and rats running around. Feces was on the floor, and the smell of shit breezing through the air made everyone want to throw up. The guys tried to stay awake just so they didn’t have to sleep in a place like this. It had no air conditioning, running water, or electricity. They were sweating bullets, and all of them had their shirts off.

  With Brad and Stan being big dudes, they wanted to go outside to get some air, but Swag told them both to stay inside. The place they were in was heavily guarded by Armand’s henchmen, and with one wrong move, those men would blow your heads off without giving a damn.

  For Brad to beat the heat and keep his mind off the crazy situation he’d gotten into, he tried to divert his attention to Diamond. He kept wondering if she was okay, dead or alive by now, and if Armand was emotionally, physically, and sexually abusing her.

  Brad picked up his shirt to wipe his chest and stomach. He wished he were back in St. Louis, and he even wondered if Armand was still going to give him and the others the fifty Gs.