The Hustler's Daughter {DC Bookdiva Publications}

by Pinky Dior

  “Sleep tight,” Emilio smirked. He replaced the pillow to make it appear that Roy was sleeping. He threw his hoodie over his head again and exited the room. He walked down the corridors of the hospital and thought to himself ‘mission accomplished.’

  Just when he thought he was in the clear, he was frozen in his steps. Standing before him was Roy’s niece and his girlfriend…Mercedes.

  xxxxxxxxxx

  “What are you doing here?” Mercedes asked him.

  “Oh, I just stopped by to see my ummm…Aunt.” Emilio lied. “I have to go now Mercedes, I’ll see you later.” Emilio kissed her on the cheek and quickly rushed down the hallway. Mercedes knew something was wrong with him. The way he was sweating profusely and seemed to be in a rush-it just didn’t sit right with her.

  “Okay,” she whispered. She turned around and continued walking to her uncle’s room. When she walked into the room, she noticed her uncle’s face was facing her. He was blue and looking at her with bulging eyes.

  “Oh my God!” She screamed as she realized he wasn’t awake-nor was he asleep. He was dead. “Somebody help please! HELP!” Mercedes screamed out for the nurse’s assistant. Immediately nurses came rushing into the room and one of them tried to push Mercedes out of the room.

  “Nooo, Uncle Roy! Please don’t leave me.” Mercedes barged past the nurses and cried over her uncle’s dead body. “Why? Why?” Mercedes shrieked as she hovered over her uncle’s body. The nurses and doctor tried to pull her away, but they were unsuccessful. After several minutes of trying to get Mercedes out of the room, she fainted.

  When she came to, she noticed she was in a hospital bed. She quickly patted her body down to make sure she was okay.

  “Help!” Mercedes screamed as she saw an IV in her arm. The nurse came rushing in to Mercedes’ side and calmed her down.

  “What am I doing here?” Mercedes asked with a perplexed look on her face. A nurse came in to tend to her. She was a hefty dark skinned woman with fiery red dreadlocks and a mole on her lip. The mole was quite distracting, but Mercedes tried not to focus on it.

  “Mercedes, sweetie, you’re fine.” The nurse checked her vitals and looked at the chart.

  “You were just taking it hard, your blood pressure rose and you fainted.” Mercedes remembered going to see her uncle, and she could barely breathe.

  “Where’s my uncle? Is he okay?” Mercedes panicked. The woman looked at her sadly. She didn’t want to tell her the bad news, but it was written all over her face.

  “He died at twelve forty-five this afternoon. They tried to save him, but he removed all of the tubes that were helping him stay alive.” Mercedes broke down again and the nurse tried to keep her calm as she embraced her.

  “No, No, No!” Mercedes knew deep down inside that the picture wasn’t right and her uncle would never commit suicide.

  “I’m so sorry Mercedes.”

  “Why? Why?” Mercedes yelled out in anger. “You don’t understand, first they killed my boyfriend Chino, then my father and his people. Now it’s my uncle. Who’s going to be next, me?” Mercedes cries were mixed with laughter. “This shit is unbelievable!”

  “Oh sweetheart, don’t ever say that.” The nurse hushed her. “Everyone has to go someday, but I know for a fact it isn’t your time to go yet. You’re still a little baby.” The nurse touched her face and wiped away her tears. “You’re a beautiful young lady with a bright future in front of you.” The nurse smiled.

  “Thank you.” Mercedes forced a smile. “I just wish that I could have talked to my uncle. He was like a second father to me. I was here for him to get better. He wanted to tell me something, but he didn’t live to tell me.” Mercedes said. She tried to hold in her tears, but they eventually exploded.

  “Mercedes, your Uncle Roy and I talked the other day. He seemed like he was worried about something. He kept saying he wanted to talk to you. That’s when I called you so you could come down here. He told me he had something to give you…one second.” The nurse disappeared into the hall and came back with a box in her hand.

  “Your uncle to said cherish this box and make your father proud.”

  “What? I don’t understand…” The nurse handed Mercedes the box. Mercedes looked at it and had no idea what to do.

  “Honey I don’t know, he just gave me the message. He said it holds the Carter future.” The nurse smiled. “Now get some rest.” She insisted as she disappeared from the room again.

  Mercedes waited until the nurse exited the room and she ran her French manicured nails over the white box that had the initials MC written in black cursive letters. She carefully opened the box and it revealed two sets of keys, a small key and a shiny long key.

  “Keys?” Mercedes had a bewildered look on her face as she held the key in her hand and examined it. Under the keys, she found a piece of paper with writing on it. She picked up the paper and it was a New Jersey address. She pressed the key up against her chest and thought of what the nurse said. “It holds The Carter future.” Those words ran through her mind. It made her wonder what the key was for and why her father gave it to her and not her uncle. She would soon find out everything.

  Mercedes returned the keys and paper to the box and closed it. Just as she did, there was a knock on the door. It was Emilio. She hid the box under the covers and smiled.

  “Hey Baby.” Emilio walked over and gave her a hug and a kiss on the lips. “How are you feeling?”

  “I’m alright, how did you know I was here?”

  “Well, I did see you earlier. But I kept calling your phone and one of the nurses must have gotten aggravated and answered the phone.” They both laughed.

  “They told me you fainted.” Emilio sighed. “I also heard about your uncle; I’m sorry to hear that. I wonder why he would commit suicide, I mean I don’t understand.” Emilio placed his hands on his temples and shook his head.

  “No, my Uncle Roy didn’t try to kill himself.” Mercedes nodded her head, “He would never do such a thing. He was getting better. He was going to live, I know he wouldn’t take his life. Someone murdered him.” Mercedes yelled.

  “Honey, you never know what people are thinking. Cedes, Babe, you have to wake up and smell the coffee.” Emilio caressed her face. “Your uncle was in critical condition and maybe he wouldn’t want to live like that and have the guilt of your father’s death on him.”

  “Excuse me?” Mercedes eyebrows arched as he tried to explain.

  “I know he must’ve felt guilty that he couldn’t save his brother when he was murdered. I mean it hurts to see someone you love get murdered and sometimes people blame themselves.” Emilio assured her.

  “I know what you’re saying, but Babe I know Uncle Roy didn’t…” Emilio cut her off placing his fingers over her lips.

  “Babe just relax, you’ve been through a lot you need a lot of closure. I’m here for you Mercedes; you don’t have anything to worry about.” Emilio hugged her and kissed her on her forehead.

  Tears streamed down her face and he wrapped his arms around her. Something in her heart didn’t feel right. There was something going on, and she soon would find out what it was.

  Safe House

  One Saturday morning, Mercedes decided to get up and drive to the New Jersey address that was in the white box. She threw her legs over the side of her bed and quickly looked over at Emilio. He was sound asleep. She snuck out of the bed, hoping he didn’t wake up. She showered, dressed, and tried to leave before he woke up. As she was about to leave out the front door, Emilio woke up yawning. He looked over and caught Mercedes exiting the room.

  “Where you going Babe?” Emilio asked.

  “Oh,” Mercedes stopped in her tracks and looked at Emilio. “I’m going to hang out with Candy and the girls today for brunch.” She lied.

  “Have fun Babe and call me later.” Mercedes waved to him and walked down the steps and hopped in her Mercedes-Benz coupe. She didn’t know that Emilio was standing on the balcony watching as she pu
lled off. It felt good driving the Benz, with her seat reclined. The fresh smell of leather hit her nose as she drove. She had just copped the new Nicki Minaj mixtape and it bumped from the speakers as she drove to New Jersey. On her way there, she noticed her gas was getting low. She pulled over at a local gas station near the Manhattan Bridge. She walked into the gas station and handed the clerk fifty dollars to fill the tank. She went back outside and pumped the gas.

  Mercedes hopped back into her car and pulled off. While on the highway, she noticed a black Cadillac behind her. Mercedes didn’t pay it any attention until she realized it stopped at the same gas station as her and followed her back onto the highway. It would switch lanes as she switched. It was obviously following her, but Mercedes wanted to be sure. She pressed her foot down on the gas and accelerated and so did the black Cadillac. Mercedes suddenly slammed on her brakes in the middle of the street causing the black Cadillac to swerve from behind her and it kept driving. She took the next exit and drove into New Jersey. She kept staring into the rear view and side mirrors, but she didn’t see anyone following her.

  As she arrived in New Jersey, Mercedes followed the directions of the navigation system and it guided her to her destination. Mercedes noticed that the neighborhood was nice and only had a few houses on the block. She pulled up to a small white condominium. She decided to pull around the back of the condo. She got outside and looked around. Mercedes quickly walked around the condo to the front door and walked up the steps. She took out both keys and used each one of them to try to open the door. The small key worked and the front door easily opened.

  She walked around the condo and saw furniture and doors. She saw a wooden door, but when she tried to open it-it was locked. She decided to try one of the keys and chose the long one. The door quickly turned to reveal an entrance to a basement. The basement was made out of steel and it was freezing. Mercedes looked around and her eyes lit up. There were several weapons hanging up on the walls, including AK’s and various handguns. She walked around the basement, not knowing what to expect. Her jaw dropped when she saw tons of kilos of cocaine. She knew her father dealt in drugs, but had never seen it up close. She spotted several duffle bags sitting on the ground in the corner of the basement. Mercedes walked over and knelt down to unzip the duffle bags. Inside of them, she saw stacks of money held together with rubber bands.

  She got up and stood scanning the room. She noticed a safe embedded in the wall. Mercedes walked over to the safe and wondered what was inside. She tried a couple of numbers, none of them worked. Then she tried her birthday, the combination of 10-17-90. She smiled as the safe clicked and slowly opened. Inside, she found more money and items which she dumped into her purse for safe keeping. One of them was a diary with a piece of paper attached. Mercedes found some empty duffle bags and placed a few guns, some more money, and 20 kilos into the bags. She zipped up the bags and left, carefully locking the door behind her. She carried a total of five duffle bags. Luckily, they just looked like clothes so she was hoping no one was suspicious. Although she was concerned, since she knew what the bags contained. She placed the bags into her trunk and made her way back to the city. On the way back, she noticed that she was being tailed by a New Jersey State Trooper. She didn’t think anything of it, until the lights flashed behind her.

  “Shit!” Mercedes banged on the steering wheel and hesitated to pull over. Once she did, the cop hopped out and stood in front of her window pounding on it with his hand. Mercedes nervously rolled down the window.

  “License and registration please.” The officer rudely demanded.

  Mercedes rolled her eyes as she reached over and grabbed the papers from the glove compartment and handed it to the officer. He snatched it from her and headed back to his vehicle. Mercedes sat there nervously peeking in her side mirrors to see when the cop was coming back to the car. She noticed him walking back to her car and she rolled down the windows.

  “Mercedes Carter,” he handed her back the paper work and said, “You’re Don Carter’s daughter right?” He asked, already knowing the answer.

  “Yes, I am.” Mercedes proudly responded.

  “This vehicle is to be seized and towed.”

  “Excuse me?” Mercedes was astonished.

  “Well, I know you know that your father was a big time drug dealer. Everything that he owned was paid for with dirty money. What he did was illegal and this car is in his name.” The officer smirked. “I’m going to call in for a tow.”

  “I live in New York and that’s over an hour from here. What am I going to do?” The officer looked at her with an ‘I don’t give a fuck’ look on his face.

  “Well, sit tight. You might as well call yourself a ride because you’re going to need one.” He shook his head and headed back to his cruiser. Mercedes tried not to cry and decided she had to think of something and quick. She was carrying weapons, drugs, and several duffle bags that held millions of dollars in it. That’s several federal charges that would have her locked up for many years. Mercedes wouldn’t be able to see the rest of her precious life.

  She looked back in her rearview mirror and saw the officer getting out of his car to approach hers. As soon as he got close enough to the car, she floored it. The officer quickly ran back to his car and tried to give chase. He quickly caught up to her and was tailgating her with his flashing lights on. He demanded her to pull over on his loud speaker. He didn’t know Mercedes was nasty behind the wheel. She maneuvered the car like a race car driver, switching and dipping in and out of lanes. She drove so fast and with such skill, that the officer swerved and almost hit a few cars that were on the road. Ten minutes into the high speed chase, Mercedes noticed two cruisers inching up to her and one tried to sideswipe her. She hit the brakes causing it to hit another car.

  Seeing that she had no one following her, she hit the gas once more and was able to be on her way without anyone catching her.

  Mercedes sighed in relief as she drove home. She was still a little paranoid, but she was back in the city. She took the back roads to her home in Long Island and parked the car in her garage. She quickly grabbed the bags and headed up the stairs through the back.

  She struggled as she carried the bags up the stairs. She opened up her closet and placed the bags with the weapons and drugs inside of a hidden compartment leading to another room. She didn’t need any one finding her stash, not even Emilio. Mercedes plopped on the bed and took in a deep breath. She thanked God that she didn’t get caught today. She knew she would have been locked up right now.

  She opened up her bag and poured the items she took out her father’s safe onto her bed. There was a letter attached to his diary that he had kept, she opened up the letter and it read,

  To my Baby Girl, Mercedes Carter,

  I was waiting for the day for you to open and read this letter. There’s only two ways out, either I’m locked up or dead. I know what I’ve done in the past will always catch up to me no matter what. Not just me, everyone in life.

  Being a drug dealer comes with a lot of consequences, but my father was a Carter. I had no choice but to take after him. This is in my blood. It always will be, now and forever. The Carter family is well-known. Everyone knows where we come from and what we are about. My father Ricardo Carter believed in me and felt I had the heart to run the Carter business. He knew in his heart that I would take it and make something out of it.

  When he was murdered by the Colombians, I was devastated. My heart was shattered and I didn’t know what to do. All he wanted me to do was to take over and he said that would make him proud. When I turned thirteen-years-old, I inherited everything from my father and put it to work. A few years later, niggas in the street respected me and looked up to me because of all I’d accomplished in a short amount of time. It’s all about money, power and respect; Mercedes remember that.

  Without power, you have no respect and without money you’re broke. The reason I gave you this key to my safe house is because you’re the one who hold
s the Carter future. Maria, your mother, is a very beautiful person, but I know I wouldn’t be able to give her this key. She isn’t strong enough for this. She’s a strong woman to have dealt with my bullshit after all these years, but she’s not as strong as you. She already told me if it came down to taking over, she wouldn’t do it. Your Uncle Roy is my right hand man. I love him with all my heart but, he isn’t a leader. When you were born, there was something different in your eyes that I saw. I saw the eye of the tiger and I shaped you well. You have the heart of a strong person. You literally hold the key to the Carter future in your hands. I want you to take over and make me proud. I want you to have everything you ever wanted and want for nothing. I don’t want your kids to starve; if you ever decide to have kids and a family. I want them to grow up how you grew up, living a lavish life. When you were born Mercedes, it changed my life in many ways. I was blessed with a beautiful daughter and I thank your mother for that. There are a lot of secrets in my life that I think you should know about. As you get older, you’ll find out many answers that you are seeking. I just hope you make your father proud, I’ll see you in heaven someday. I love you Mercedes Carter and remember The Carter family never dies.

  Love Always,

  Don Carter

  Emilio opened the door, and Mercedes quickly hid the letter and wiped away her tears.

  “What’s up Babe?” Emilio smiled as he walked in and took off his jacket.

  “Nothing, just sitting here chilling you know.” Mercedes flashed a smile.

  “How was your day with the ladies?” Emilio asked.

  “It was alright, we had fun. We just talked and caught up on a few things.”