by Jade Jones
O’ Zone looked fly as hell in a $500 Givenchy shirt, fitted leather pants, and spiked Louboutin sneakers. The jewelry around his neck and wrist sparkled like a light show.
Rumor gave Cameron a gentle shove towards Ozone when she saw her standing there with her mouth agape.
“I saw ya doin’ ya thang on stage, shawty. So I had to check you out.” O’ Zone smiled, revealing a twenty thousand dollar grill. “Why don’t you gon’ ‘head and dance for my patnah. Let me see what ‘cha workin’ with. If I like what I see I’ma fuck with you, ya dig?”
Cameron looked over at Zeus who seemed more preoccupied with his cellphone than the half-naked women walking around.
“Gon’ ‘head, girl,” Rumor said, nudging Cameron towards Zeus. “Don’t be scared. You do this shit, remember?” she teased.
Lil Wayne and The Weeknd’s “I’m Good” blared throughout the club. Cameron shyly climbed onto Zeus. He was so big, she felt like a small girl climbing into Santa’s lap. Zeus looked a little irritated by Cameron’s intrusion.
“What’s wrong?” she whispered in his ear. His thick beard tickled her skin. “You don’t like what you see?” Cameron had perfected the game most dancers spit to the customers. In fact, Pocahontas had taught her everything she knew as far as the hustle went.
Zeus finally paid attention when Cameron began gyrating in his lap. His Clive Christian cologne smelled like heaven. “You know you bad as fuck. You don’t need a mufucka to tell you that shit.” Zeus’ voice was deep and rich.
“Sometimes I need reassurance,” Cameron flirted.
Someone from behind made it rain on her as she continued to dance for Zeus. Rumor was preoccupied dancing for the group of fellas standing at VIP entrance. There was so much money surrounding her on the floor that she could pay her rent up for three months.
Zeus smirked. “Don’t tempt a nigga like me, shawty.”
10
“What happened to your face?” Cameron asked after Jude stumbled into the house around 4 a.m. There was a small cut on his lower lip and a purplish bruise on his right cheek.
When Cameron went to reach for Jude’s face he moved her hand away. “It’s nothin’. Me and Aso went out drinkin’ and ran into some niggas. They ain’t want no smoke for real.” The strong smell of alcohol seeped from his pores, and judging from his glassy eyes he was also high as a kite.
“We’ve been in Atlanta for two days and you’re already fighting.”
Jude brushed past Cameron and walked into their bedroom. “I already gotta mama,” he said, pulling his t-shirt over his head. “I don’t need another.”
Cameron folded her arms and shook her head. “I really hope you don’t let this move change you, Jude. Remember what comes first.”
Jude waved her off. “I’ma always be the same nigga you met two years ago,” he said. “Everything I do I do it for you and my son…you ain’t gotta never doubt I’d forget what comes first. I breathe and wake up every day for ya’ll, straight up.”
Cameron held her hands up in mock surrender. “Alright, Jude. Alright.” She climbed into the bed and pulled the sheets over her.
Jude joined her wearing nothing but his Acne jeans. “Look, I ain’t tryin’ to bump heads with you.” He kissed Cameron’s ear, causing her to shiver. “I wanna take you out tomorrow.”
Cameron turned over and faced him. “Really? Just me and you? Not me, you, and your cousin Aso?” Her tone was laced with sarcasm.
“Just me and you,” Jude confirmed. “And our son, of course.” He kissed her forehead, then the tip of her button nose, then her pouty lips. “These last few weeks been hectic and I know shit’s been lightweight rocky…but tomorrow I just wanna take the time to remind you why you said to yes a nigga.” Jude picked up her left hand and kissed the finger which should’ve sported an engagement ring. Soon he’d be able to afford the biggest rock he could find.
***
The following morning Rumor stood naked in front of her bathroom mirror. After staring at her own reflection for ten whole minutes, she finally opened the medicine cabinet. There were several bottles of prescription pills lined up on one of the shelves.
Rumor popped a pill from each prescription bottle and slammed the medicine cabinet close. When she looked at her reflection again there were tears in her pretty dark brown eyes. She could feel her body heat rising as emotions overwhelmed her. Thoughts of suicide seemed to come on a regular, but for some reason she had yet to go through with it.
Tears slid down Rumor’s cheeks before landing in the bathroom sink. The pain in her heart cut so deep. It was almost unbearable. Sometimes she wondered how and where she got the courage to climb out of bed every day. Rumor could only get through the days if she were either drunk or high. She hated to be sober. When she was sober she thought too much. The drugs and liquor temporarily took her away from a world of pain. Her problems seemed to vanish, and she felt as if she were floating in the sky.
Rumor slowly made her way over towards the claw foot tub and turned on the faucet. A pint of Hennessey sat at the foot of the tub. As warm water filled it, Rumor washed the medication down with dark liquor.
Suddenly, her cellphone began ringing on the bathroom’s counter. At first Rumor decided to ignore it as she continued to chug the Hen. The caller was persistent seeing as how they called three more times.
No longer able to ignore it, Rumor stood to her feet. She swayed with each step she took as she made her way over towards her phone. The moment she saw the caller ID she rolled her eyes.
“What do you want?” she sneered.
“I’ve been calling you like crazy,” Roxie said. “We have to talk at some time or another, sis.”
Roxie was only twenty years old, and had chosen to grow up incredibly too fast. Following in her older sister’s footsteps she was a full time stripper up at Blue Flame. Roxie had tried the whole college thing after barely graduating high school but that style of living obviously wasn’t meant for her. She took a different route instead.
“We don’t have shit to talk about,” Rumor spat.
“Sis, I’m sorry!” Roxie blurted out. “I can’t even find the word to express to you how sorry I am. I messed up bad! I was selfish—”
“When are you not selfish?” Rumor cut her off. Roxie was the youngest child so she was spoiled beyond belief. Everything had to go her way, and she had to have everything—including Rumor’s man.
“Please, Rumor…this is already hard enough for me—”
“Hard enough for you?!” she repeated skeptically. “Bitch, you fucked my fiancé. You’re my sister!” Warm tears slipped from Rumor’s eyes and cascaded down her face. “I’ll never be the fucking same after the shit ya’ll did!”
“Rumor, I—“
“I miscarried three days ago!” Rumor yelled.
There was a long pause on Roxie’s end after hearing that shocking revelation. “I’m so sorry, Rumor. I—I didn’t even you were preg—”
CLICK!
Rumor quickly disconnected the call. The conversation had her blood boiling. No one had even known she was pregnant. She’d even kept that secret from Calix for fear of how he’d react. Nevertheless, Rumor was ecstatic about being a mother even though her doctors had warned her about “possible consequences”. Everything was going smoothly up until an oversized blood clot dropped into the toilet while she was urinating. It was exactly two days after she’d found out about Roxie and Calix. Naturally, she blamed them.
The sudden thought of Calix reminded Rumor that she had to feed him. She couldn’t have his trifling ass dying on her yet. Fuck that! His ass has to suffer, Rumor said to herself.
Tigger skipped alongside her as she quickly made her way into the kitchen. When she opened her refrigerator she noticed that she desperately needed to go grocery shopping. A carton of rotting strawberries sat on the top shelf. After grabbing them, Rumor made her way inside the garage.
Calix was awake and alert that time. Rumor watched as he squirmed a
round in the darkness.
“Good morning, baby,” she greeted before flicking on the light switch.
“Mmmm.” Calix’s muffled screams fell upon deaf ears.
Rumor sauntered towards him and leaned down over him. Aggressively, she snatched the duct tape off his mouth.
“Come on, Rumor. Quit fuckin’ around! I gotta take a shit!”
Rumor laughed and shook her head. “That sounds like a personal issue,” she said.
“Man, you can’t leave a nigga like this,” Calix cried. “I’ma die—”
“I’m not gonna let you die,” Rumor promised.
Calix looked like a little bitch as he sobbed hysterically. Mucus oozed from his nose and slid over his lips. He wanted to believe his fate’s outcome would be a good one, but fucking with Rumor he wasn’t so sure.
“You promise?” he asked in a weak voice.
Rumor grabbed a handful of strawberries and forced them in Calix’s mouth. The strawberries were so rotten that they were no longer firm. Instead they were soft, soggy, and squishy. They even had a weird smell to them.
“What the f—bitch!” Calix yelled.
Rumor threw the strawberries at him. They bounced off his face and head like ping pong balls. “Did you even wear a condom you trifling motherfucker?!”
“Man, chill!” Calix screamed, trying to duck the flying fruit.
“Did you fuck her raw?!” Rumor hollered.
“Yeah! Damn!” Calix answered in defeat.
Rumor struggled to stand to her feet. When she was finally upright she nearly lost her balance. She had to grab a nearby wall to keep from falling.
“Please, Rumor…” Calix begged. “Please let me out of here.”
Rumor covered her mouth with a shaky hand. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Bitch, lemme outta this shit!” Calix barked. He began thrashing about on the garage floor. “Lemme out! Bitch, I’ma kill you with my mothafuckin’ my bare hands! You hear me?! You fuckin’ dead!”
Rumor ran over to him and covered his mouth with the duct tape before any of her neighbors could hear him yelling.
11
That afternoon Jude took Cameron and Justin to the Georgia Aquarium before treating them to lunch in Atlantic Station. Afterward they all did a little shopping at Lennox Mall and Phipps Plaza. Jude brought him and his son matching J’s, and Cameron a golden Michael Kors logo watch. When she asked about the money, he lied and told her it was a signing bonus. Jude never gave Cameron a reason to distrust him so she took his word for it.
King gave Jude eight racks for the Mercedes Benz with intentions on selling it for half its retail price. With the convenient cash flowing in, Jude planned on spoiling the hell out of his girl and son. He was just that type of dude. And since the work was moderately easy, Jude didn’t plan on quitting or telling Cam the truth any time soon.
Cameron, however, was hiding a little secret as well. Last night at Persuasion, she’d given O’ Zone her number. Cam loved Jude very much, and she could never see herself stepping out of their relationship, but it wasn’t every day one of ATL’s hottest upcoming artists asked for her number. Cameron figured if she played her cards right she might be able to get something good out of it. Keep all “potentials” around, Pocahontas would say.
“You should fuck with a nigga,” O’ Zone told Cameron as he plugged his number in. “This may be a once in a lifetime opportunity.”
Cameron didn’t know how true his statement was, but at the moment she had no intentions of finding out. If he wanted her attention he’d have to catch her at the club. That way he’d have no choice but to spend money.
When Cam and Jude pulled up to their townhome, Aso’s Maserati was parked out front. Disappointment washed over Cameron because she felt like Jude was spending entirely too much time with Aso and not enough with her and Justin.
Aso climbed out of his car at the same time Jude and Cameron did. “I was just finna call yo’ ass,” he said.
“Wassup?” Jude asked him.
Aso nodded towards his car. “Ride with me to drop my brother off at the airport real quick. I gotta holla at you ‘bout some shit.” He didn’t want to say too much while Cameron was around. From the corner of his eye, he peeped her outfit. She wore a cheetah print pencil skirt, peach crop top, and gladiator sandals. The skirt hugged her hips and ass nicely.
“Yo’ brother in the car?” Jude asked, walking over towards Aso’s Maserati. “Shit, lemme say what’s up. Come meet my other cuz, Cam.”
Holding Justin’s hand, Cameron begrudgingly trudged over to the flashy car. She nearly fainted when she saw Tank’s face. An unsettling feeling resonated in the pit of her stomach after realizing Tank and Jude were cousins.
What a small ass world.
A sneaky grin crept across Tank’s lips.
***
“You trying to get out? I could use some fresh air,” Cameron said as soon as Rumor answered her phone.
“Is everything okay?” Rumor asked. There was concern in her tone.
“It’s…Girl, I don’t wanna talk about it over the phone. I’d rather vent in person.”
Rumor understood. “Alright, give me about a half an hour to get dressed. I’ma come down to your house.”
“Cool,” Cameron agreed. “I’m about to call my babysitter.”
***
“Fuck you over there smilin’ for, nigga?” Aso asked, noticing the Kool-Aid grin on Tank’s face.
“Oh, nothin’,” Tank answered casually. “Nothin’ at all.” On the low, he was laughing at the fact that he’d fucked both Aso and Jude’s girl.
Tank was just as surprised to see Cameron as she was to see him. Aso had told him that their cousin Jude was moving down to Georgia with his girl and kid. However, he would’ve never guessed Cameron was his girl.
Small fucking world, Tank thought to himself.
Jude sat in the back seat completely oblivious to the fact that both his cousins were digging his girl.
***
“Hey, Rumor this is Elyse. Justin’s baby sitter.”
Elyse and Rumor shook hands. In Elyse’s left arm she carried Justin—who was far too big to be getting carried around. Nonetheless, Jude and Cameron had the toddler spoiled.
An uncomfortable feeling took over Rumor as she looked at Justin. It made her think about the pregnancy…the loss…the pain.
“How are you doing?” Elyse asked.
“I’m fine,” Rumor said, not taking her eyes off Justin.
Cameron was too busy grabbing her rolling suitcase and belongings for work that she didn’t notice her new friend eyeing her son suspiciously.
“Alright. I’m all ready,” Cameron said before kissing Justin on his tiny forehead.
Elyse and Justin stood at the window as they watched Cameron and Rumor disappear inside of Rumor’s candy red 2013 Lexus ISC. It was Calix’s most prized possession.
Elyse and Justin waved Cameron good bye until she disappeared.
***
After dropping Tank off at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Aso headed to King’s warehouse.
“I thought you said you had some shit to holla at me about,” Jude said.
“We gotta meetin’,” Aso simply said. “I ain’t wanna say too much while ya shawty was around, ya dig?”
King’s meeting room looked like a Wall Street conference meeting with a long oak table positioned in the middle. Thieves, mechanics, brokers, and even a few police officers sat behind the huge table.
King sat at the head of the table like the father of a household. Aso and Jude quietly took their seats as the meeting unfolded. Once everyone who worked for him was accounted for and present, King stood up from his seat and gradually rounded the table.
You could hear a pin drop. There was so much tension in the room as everyone waited for King to speak.
“…Before we begin—“ King snatched out the Glock in his waistband and pointed it in Jude’s direction!
POP!
>
12
Jude and Aso jerked back after the unexpected gunshot, but the bullet wasn’t intended for either of them. It struck Aso’s partner, Vado directly in the shoulder near his collar bone. Chairs scraped against the linoleum floor. It was obvious that the gunshot had caught everyone off guard.
“AH, SHIT!” Vado cried out in pain. His face turned beet red as blood gushed from his wound.
Jude’s heart hammered in his chest rapidly. He didn’t even see the shit coming, nor did he know why it wasn’t happening. I ain’t bargain for all this shit, Jude said to himself.
King stormed over to Vado and viciously jammed his thumb inside his bullet hole. “Don’t shit go down in this mufucka that I don’t know about!” he spat.
“AAAAHHHH!” Vado screamed in agony.
Enraged for whatever reason, King backed off and pointed to two husky guys sitting on the opposite end of the table. “Strip this, nigga!”
Jude watched in disbelief as the two men tore Vado’s clothing off while he continued to bleed profusely. After they stripped his t-shirt off a wire taped to his slender chest was revealed.
Vado was an informant working with the Feds to bring King’s entire operation down. During his sporadic foreign phone conversations he was speaking to the law, filling them on any and all information he’d obtained.
The night Vado had recorded Jude’s fight on his cellphone was for legal purposes only. Up until now, he’d put on a good front with Aso and everyone else by convincing them that he was one of them.
King had quite a few police officers working for him on the low, and it didn’t take much for one to turn over Vado. Never trust sheep was the motto, and it was because of treacherous ass motherfuckers like Vado that made King stand firmly by it.
