Shyt List 3
And A Child Shall Lead Them
By Reign
Copyright © 2010 by The Cartel Publications. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission
from the author, except by reviewer who may quote passages
to be printed in a newspaper or magazine.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE:
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses,
Organizations, places, events and incidents are the product of the
Author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any resemblance of
Actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2009913365
ISBN: 0-9823913-8-2
ISBN 13: 978-0-9823913-8-9
Cover Design: Davida Baldwin www.oddballdsgn.com
Editor: Advanced Editorial Services
Graphics: Davida Baldwin
www.thecartelpublications.com
First Edition
Printed in the United States of America
THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO THOSE WHO LIKE A LITTLE SOMETHING DIFFERENT
ENJOY
What up Fam!
I’m surprised you readin’ this letter first. The way some of ya’ll been geekin’ for this book, I just knew ya’ll was goin’ dive right into it, lol. Seriously, on behalf of The Cartel Publications, let me just take a few ticks to show our gratitude. I’ve said it before, and mean it each and every time. We appreciate you from our soul. All we do at The Cartel Publications is for you.
The wait is over. Yvonna is back and she got help, but did it work? Is she a normal member of society now or still just as crazy as cat shit? I’ma let ya’ll find out for yourself. But before I let you get to it, you know we gotta pay our dues as we do in all our novels to a literary vet or up and coming star. All I gotta say is two words:
“Jason Poole”
Jason C. Poole, one of the most vicious authors in this industry, is who the Cartel Publications pays homage to in this book. He is the author of such novels as, “Larceny”; “Convict’s Candy” and the Cartel’s own, “Victoria’s Secret”. Jason is not only a phenomenal author; he’s one of the realest niggas I’ve ever known. I haven’t met a dude this real since my pops (R.I.P. Brandywine Slim). Jason truly is the last of a dyin’ breed. This man continues to pen classics and don’t how to stop. We love you big homie! Never give up!
Aight, aight…I’m done. I release you into Yvonna’s world. Watch ya backs and stay low when you readin’ this one. You neva know when Gabriella might show up.
Be easy!!
Charisse Washington
VP, The Cartel Publications
www.thecartelpublications.com
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Prologue
Twenty Somethin’ Years Earlier
The thunderous boom of feet stomping from the ceiling sounded as if it were not stable enough to stand strong. It did little to ease the little girl as she entered through the backdoor of the church. Like a dog roaming around an underprivileged neighborhood, her nose caught whiff of the aroma of the fried chicken exiting the tiny house of worship. The members of the choir were oblivious to what was happening in the basement as they bellowed the verses from the book of gospel Hymns with passion.
Once inside, she hustled to the table, which held a spread of fried chicken, green beans, macaroni and cheese along with a wide selection of pies and cakes, made mostly by the members of the congregation. They were going to convene downstairs the moment service was over to enjoy the meal. Opening a purple Smurf book bag, she looked at the stairwell first to be sure no one was coming.
When she was sure they weren’t, and with little time on her side, she piled as much food inside of the bag as possible. It would be food for a few days. And she needed all she could get because her underdeveloped body was malnutritioned and she looked sickly. She could hear the choir’s tone softening, indicating service would be over soon. Realizing her bag was stuffed to capacity, she made her way to the door until she heard a powerful deep voice behind her.
“What are you doin’ down here, chile?!”
“Nothin’…uh…I was…just,” the little girl couldn’t get her lies in order.
The man covered in his black, gold and purple preacher’s robe walked hurriedly toward her. The child tugged at the door but was no match for a sixty year old man who before being a preacher, worked most of his life as an underpaid construction worker. His endurance was intact.
“You’re not goin’ nowhere ‘til you tell me what ya doin’ here.” He said hovering over her. He stooped down to scare the truth out of her.
The little girl dropped her head and felt her stomach pound inside her belly. The smells of the food had caused her to experience body pangs all over. She was salivating and wandered how much food she’d be able to swallow, if she took a chance and stuffed as much of it in her mouth as possible.
“I’m hungry.” Her soft voice said. “I didn’t want to steal. Honest.” A single tear escaped her eyes.
“So why would you? From a church of all places? Where are your parents?” The look on the child’s face turned to horror. “I bet they don’t know what you’re doin’. Do they?”
She shook her head over and over. “P…P…Please don’t tell on me. I’m hungry. That’s all. I won’t ever come again.”
The preacher’s heart softened as he saw the fear in the child’s eyes. He wondered what had her so vexed. Scaring her had done nothing but made him feel for her even more. He released the tension from his neck and allowed his shoulders to drop. Standing up straight he said, “Stay right there. Don’t you move an inch. You hear me?”
She nodded and he fixed her a large plate. “Come over here.” He instructed pointing at a table with two chairs. She did. “Have a seat.”
The child dropped her book bag and hustled to the table. Once sitting down, she stuffed her mouth with forkful after forkful. The preacher sat in amazement as he looked at the meal, which was vanishing before his eyes.
“What’s your name, girl?”
She held onto the fork tightly but placed no more food inside her chops. Chewing slowly she gazed into the strangers eyes. And at that moment, the preacher felt what was being said without words. She was trying to determine if she could trust him.
Looking at the food before her she slowly said, “Gabriella. My name is Gabriella.”
Let The Games Begin
The fall wind whipped around Ming’s beautiful black Panamera Porsche, the Friday afternoon that Yvonna was released. “What’s on mind, Yvonna?” She had just taken her to buy used silver Acura RSX, which was being delivered to Penny’s house the next day. “You don’t like the car? Ming told you she would buy you another one, but you won’t let Ming.” Silence. “Well…do you know what you’re going to do?” she probed looking over at her plain ponytail and drab blue sweat suit.
Yvonna’s wasn’t listening to Ming’s dumb ass. She was thinking of the advice the doctor gave her upon her release.
‘Yvonna, you’re going to reach a point where you’ll feel you can control your illness. But you should know that there’s no controlling schizophrenia. People have tried but failed. But,’ she said placing her hand on her shoulder, ‘if you feel down, like you don’t want to do anything, break the pills in half and take them that way. But always…always…take your medicine. If you don’t your mind will convince you of the most absurd things a
nd you’ll find yourself in the craziest of situations.’
“You should let Ming take you to buy some clothes,” Ming said not pleased with how basic her friend looked.
“I’ll buy my own when I get a job.”
“You? A job?” she laughed, her short shiny bob bouncing along with her extreme head movements.
“Yes,” Yvonna frowned, although she hadn’t worked since her ex-fiancé, Terrell, had rescued her from the office assistant position she held at his doctor’s office. “I have to take care of me and Delilah myself.”
“You can work for Ming,” she said pointing to herself. “No worries.”
“Ming, I ain’t about to be up in no funky ass nail salon with you. So forget about it.” She said rubbing the sweat from her palms onto her pants.
“Don’t assume you know all there is to know about Ming. I have more than one job. And funky?” She frowned, “Please!” she said waving her hand in the air. “Nothing funky but that man bitch Penny you moving with.”
“Mind your business.” Yvonna said rolling her eyes. “Penny cares about me.”
“Well Ming don’t trust the bitch. You should stay with Ming instead. Ming not been good to you?”
“You heard the doctor,” Yvonna said irritated. “I’m being released into Penny’s custody for six months. So please stop,” she said glancing over at her. “I’m not up for your shit.”
Yvonna turned her attention to the Nextel phone the doctor had given her before she left. She assumed Ming brought it for her like she did everything else.”
“Do you have the number to this yet?” she asked raising the phone.
“Fuck that phone!” Ming spat.
Yvonna slumped into the butter soft seat and looked around. Being in the car depressed her a little. Although she always came up on a little cash, she was never able to floss like she wanted to.
“If Ming was black, you’d stay with Ming. But since Ming is not a nigger you won’t.”
“You sound extremely fuckin’ stupid!” Yvonna said rubbing her throbbing temples. “Back in the day I’d yoke your ass up behind that shit you said,” she said looking out the window, “but right now, I don’t even have the energy.”
When she looked over at Ming, she saw tears streaming down her face.
“What’s wrong with you, Ming? You’ve been out of it for the past couple of weeks.”
“Ming is alone.” She said under her breath. “And Ming’s scared.”
“Ming, you got twenty aunts and thirty uncles in China alone! So what are you talking about you have no one?”
“Fuck them! They only care about what Ming can do for them. Nothing else!” She was filled with rage and it made Yvonna uncomfortable. “I lost the one person who loved me.”
Yvonna didn’t know how to react. It was better for her to run from emotion then it was for her to run into it. “Ming, maybe we should chill a little bit.”
“Why you say that? Just cause Ming upset you end friendship?”
“I’m not ending our friendship. I just need time to get myself together. My daughter needs me and I need her and right now that’s all that matters.”
Ming started driving recklessly down the road. She sped in and out of traffic like a Nascar driver and didn’t care that her cute 3-year old baby boy named Boy, was in the backseat fast asleep.
Ming whipped her Porsche into the parking spot outside of Penny’s house and said, “You here. Get out Ming’s car!”
Yvonna looked over at her and said, “I’ll call you later.”
“Out now!” she screamed waking her beautiful three-year-old son, Boy from his slumber. He palmed his soft brown face until he let out a large cry.
“Okay, Ming.” Not wanting to argue, Yvonna grabbed her green army bag and walked up the steps leading to Penny’s home. Ming sped off without waiting for her to get inside.
“What the fuck is wrong with her stupid ass?” she said out loud.
Knocking twice, Penny quickly opened the door holding Delilah in her arms. Delilah was not your average child. Her beauty was impressive and her eyes held a lot of mystery. She looked cute in the pink dress Ming bought for her last birthday. “Yvonna, come on in, chile.” Penny said opening the door.
Delilah played with the long pink scarf Penny wore around her neck, clueless to Yvonna’s presence. “How’d you get here?” Penny questioned looking Yvonna over.
Yvonna caught Penny’s investigative stares on the sweat suit she wore. And as far as she was concerned Penny had a nerve when it looked like she was sporting the outfit Cicely Tyson wore in the mini-series, ‘Roots’.
“Ming. She just dropped me off.” She said pointing at the door.
“I woulda came and got ya, chile. Yous just had to let me know.”
“Not a big deal, I’m home now,” she said trying to get use to the way ‘home’ sounded rolling off her tongue.
Yvonna walked fully inside and noticed that Penny had purchased brand new furniture throughout the home and she was surprised. All of the old effects were gone and Penny’s home finally spoke to modern times. There were flat screen TV’s on the wall in the kitchen and living room and two large stylish glove-soft rich brown leather sofas with gold accented arms sat in the middle of the floor.
“Wow! This can’t be the same place! You finally came into the future, Penny!” Yvonna said placing her bag down.
“What you tryin’ to say? That Penny is old?” She snapped.
Yvonna looked at her surprised at her outburst. “I was giving you a compliment. Are you okay?”
“Oh…yeah…just tired of people judgin’ me,” she said placing Delilah down who clung at her leg as if Yvonna’s presence frightened her. “Yous hungry?”
“Sure,” Yvonna said not feeling her response. She stooped down and said, “Come here, baby. Mama’s home. I missed you so much.”
“Leave her be,” Penny interrupted. “She’ll come when she’s ready.”
“But she’s my daughter,” she said standing up straight, “and I want to build our bond.”
“She knows who yous are. Remember…I use to bring her to see you all the time.”
“Come here, Delilah.” Yvonna challenged.
Delilah didn’t move. Instead she clung onto Penny so tightly; it caused discomfort to the bad leg she gained as a result of working so many hours.
Yvonna stood up and tried to push the pain out of her heart her daughter caused. “Well if she don’t want to come, she doesn’t have to.” Yvonna said grabbing her bag from the floor. “I’m tired anyway and I need to get some sleep.”
Yvonna moved to the basement door and was about to turn the knob until Penny said, “Don’t worry, ‘bout nothin’, chile.” Yvonna felt Penny was happy to be getting rid of her judging by the smile she wore on her face. “I’ll take care of her.”
“I bet you will.”
Yvonna was about to enter the basement until Penny stopped her again. “How do you feel? I mean…how do you really feel?”
“What do you mean? Do you wanna know if I’m still seein’ people?” Penny nodded. “No. I’m not.”
“Good. I’ll bring ya food down a little…” her sentence was interrupted when the phone rang. “I wonder if this is the young man who called you earlier.”
“A man? Called me?” Yvonna was shocked. She hadn’t had a man call her anything in years.
Penny picked up the phone. “Who’s callin’?” She paused “What’s your name young man?” Penny paused again. “Swoopes,” she said outstretching her arm with the handset. “He says his name is Swoopes.”
Push
“You not gonna stand me up this time are you?” Carmen asked in a voice so seductive, it got Bricks’ dick hard. She reminded him of a black Marilyn Monroe.
A smile came to his face when he realized his Jump-Off, the chick he fucked every now and again, would be coming in town from Georgia soon to stay with him for two weeks. Picturing the way Carmen’s ass looked like a complete circle when she b
ent over got him thick with anticipation.
“I ain’t stand you up last time,” he said as he sat at the light, his eyes fixated on the police car behind him.
“You sure ‘bout that? ‘Cause I remember me comin’ up there only to find out you was out of town.”
“Duty called. I had to handle bizness”
“And I called too. Bricks, I don’t mind travelin’ ‘cross states to see you, just as long as there’s somethin’ at the end of the rainbow when I get there.”
“You wild as shit.”
“I’m for real. I ain’t seen you since the last time you came to the ‘A’ and I miss you. I ask Kelsi ‘bout you all the time but he don’t be trying to tell me nothin’. Why are you so elusive?”
“Elusive huh?” he laughed at her use of words. “Ya’ll college chicks be killin’ me. It ain’t like I ain’t feelin’ you, I just ain’t wit’ the girlfriend boyfriend thing. I like my space. Feel me?”
She sighed and said, “One day you’ll be mine. Because us southern girls can cook, fuck and keep house. So once you get a hold of a southern bell, you should really do your best to keep her.”
He laughed and said, “Well, we’ll see ‘bout all that when you get here. I gotta take care of a situation behind me. I’ma get up wit’ you later.” He said ending the call.
As he focused on the police car, he knew the moment the light turned green, the cop would be on his trail. He couldn’t get caught. He had eight bricks of that White Girl in his trunk and his Godson was in the front strapped in a car seat. He was breaking the law on many levels.
Shyt List 3 (The Cartel Publications Presents) Page 1
