by C. Stecko
The officer ended by placin’ his hands on the ledge of the window and givin’ me a quick once ova. With a quick yank, my skirt eased down like I wanted it to, makin’ sure I didn’t give off any signs of bein’ a hooker. My looks didn’t need to get me associated with Betty’s. If my intuitions were correct, Betty was goin’ down.
“So who you going to see?” the officer asked whippin’ out a small spiraled notepad.
Stuck on stupid was the look now plastered across Mike’s face. “Uhh…”
The officer had his pen in an upright position ready to write.
“Ms. Lillian,” I announced liftin’ myself from my seat. “She’s the little old lady who lives in the house with all the figurines out front.” I pointed to my right as if I wanted to point to a specific house. It was obvious we couldn’t see down Betty’s block from where we were sittin’, but I had to pretend.
“Do you know the address?” the officer asked.
“Not sure.” I hunched my shoulders. “I just come by and help her with some housekeepin’ from time to time.”
“So what’s your name?” the officer continued to inquire.
I panicked. Would the officer ask me for identification if I gave a bogus name? Why would he ask me that shit anyway? Were they lookin’ for me? “Chantel Sharpley,” I finally announced. I figured I would give him a fake last name at least.
“Chantel, maybe you should come back to help your friend later.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” Mike ended, puttin’ the car in gear. He pulled off and shot down the block just as nervous as I was. My heart pounded even more when I heard his fist hit the dashboard. “What the fuck?” he shouted as we passed Betty’s street on our right. It was then that I knew, we were both thinkin’ the worst.
Instantly, four yards down the block, he whipped the black Towncar into an empty space, and hopped out. Without hesitation, I hopped out, too. Mike started ramblin’ like crazy. He said he needed to get in touch with his police friend at a nearby district. He would be able to tell him how all this went down. From what Mike told me, normally, he was on point and would tell Mike if the police had heard anythin’ suspicious about Betty’s.
We both surveyed the block makin’ sure the officer who’d just interrogated us wasn’t watchin’ us speed walk back up the street. The area had become super chaotic. Two men on foot wearin’ FBI jackets shot past us and made a left directly onto Betty’s block. And it seemed like more and more people from the hood headed from their homes to be nosy. I began a slight trot as soon as I made it to Betty’s street. Her house was finally in view. Swarms of officers surrounded the house just talkin’, and watchin’ their co-workers enter and exit the house. It all happened so quickly. It seemed like I blinked, then saw Betty being led down the stairs of the house in handcuffs.
Instantly, my soul felt a void. The only home I knew was being shut down. I stood mixed into the crowd that had formed a few yards from the in-house. My arms were crossed and a sense of loss invaded my eyes. My everything remained in the house…my clothes…my jewelry…my life possessions. Luckily, I wore my lucky pearls and had my purse with me. Everything else was gone. First Bo, now Betty, and all my worldly possessions. The crazy part was that I wanted to cheer when I saw Angel being led from the house with her hands behind her back. I didn’t know any of the otha girls too well, so their well-being meant nothin’ to me.
Finally, Betty’s eyes locked with mine. As usual, she was well dressed and all dolled up from head to toe. Although the stern frown that she normally wore had changed into a smirk, her face had turned a slight shade redder than normal. I guess she had to pretend to stand strong for the otha girls being led to the patty-wagon.
Before I knew it, Betty’s eyes were followin’ mine. She just kept starin’. I finally smiled at her after checkin’ to see if any cops or bystanders had been watchin’ me. I wanted her to know that I had her back and would see if Tony would spring a few thousand to get her out. But suddenly, a cold grimace surfaced upon Betty’s face. I wondered if she thought I had somethin’ to do with it? Oh, hell no! I wanted to reach out to her lettin’ her know I wasn’t a back-stabbin’ hoe. Maybe she thought that because I didn’t get caught up, that I’d snitched.
Suddenly, Mike yanked on my shoulder lettin’ me know we needed to roll. Without hesitation, I rammed my head into his chest wonderin’ why the chapters in my life always seemed to have nasty endin’s. It was crazy how the people in the crowd started watchin’ me. I guess they thought it was my family goin’ down. Kinda sorta- it was.
As Mike led me back down the street toward his car, my eyes spotted someone I neva expected to see. At first I didn’t know how to respond, but then I shot toward her. Instantly, Cinnamon and I cried like crazy. We melted into each otha’s arms like we’d lost a piece of somethin’ dear to us. Why, I didn’t know. Cinnamon started explainin’ how she’d called Betty a few days earlier to let her know she was on the way, but got in town late. Luckily she had neva made it into the house. I kept starin’ at her like a lost sista or somethin’. She still had her youthful look, and dressed in a tight body-suit that showed off her shape.
Before we got to the end of the street, once again I was hit with a familiar face. Bruno sat in a black Eldorado talkin’ on his cell. That fucka was followin’ me! I was beyond pissed.
“Mike, can I use your cell?”
Before he could give me his, Cinnamon was handin’ me hers. I smiled at the fact that she’d stepped her game up ova the last few weeks and upgraded from payphone to cell phone. Hell, I guess I needed to follow her lead. As I excused myself and moved down the street, Tony answered and did his usual rushin’ me off the phone. I tried to break bad about how it was fucked up for him to have his boy followin’ me. “Is this what it means to be your lady?” I asked almost in tears.
“Coincidence baby, coincidence.”
He seemed at ease while I was all erratic.
“Why you sound so outta control, Co-Co?”
“Betty’s place got raided!”
“That’s unfortunate,” he said without a care. “Remember, you work for me now. No worries, okay. Go somewhere and relax until we hook up tonight. I’ll spell out your new job. Can I call you back at this number?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, talk to you later.” Click.
Tony may have been able to brush me off, but I’d decided to approach Mr. Bruno myself to ask why in the hell was he followin’ me. But when I turned back around, the Eldorado was gone. I ran back down the street with my adrenaline still pumpin’. I grabbed Cinnamon’s arm and asked Mike to drop us both at a nearby hotel. Of course Mike said he wanted to take us to his spot, but I had no time for love, I needed a plan.
Chapter 14
I was on my third pack of animal cookies when Cinnamon’s phone rang. I jumped from the bed, and threw the snacks I’d gotten from the vending machine onto the out-dated multi-colored comforter. I was pissed and had to make sure I grabbed the phone before it stopped ringin’. Hours had gone by since Tony said he would call me back on Cinnamon’s phone. Ten o’clock had come and gone which was supposed to have been our time to get together. I was distraught, not knowin’ what my next move would be or where I would stay. Sure, the Howard Johnson hotel on Utica was shelter and kept me from bein’ on the streets, but it was far from comfortable, especially since Tony claimed I was his lady.
“Yeah,” I answered.
“I’m outside,” the voice on the otha end sounded.
“Tony, is that you?” I rushed ova to the window and peeked from the curtain.
“Yeah love, c’mon out. fuckin’ hurry, ayite.”
“Bet.”
I hung up, shook Cinnamon who’d been sleep for hours, and told her I’d be back. “Might be late, girl…but I will come back for you. My man’s outside.”
Cinnamon sorta nodded and fell back off to sleep as if she’d been livin’ a rough life lately. Before long, I’d made my way down the stairs and out to Tony
’s black Chrysler 300. It excited the hell outta me how he owned so many cars. As soon as I hopped in, my arms attacked his neck. The smell of fresh pine invaded my nose but I had no time to comment on smells. I spoke a mile a minute like it was my one and only chance to speak.
“Oh my God, Tony. You don’t understand. Betty’s got raided. I feel so out there, all alone…I mean just think, all my stuff is gone.” I patted my chest like my insides filled with pain, then continued. “I mean it was crazy. Cops were everywhere. They took everything…”
“Calm down sweetness. You can get more stuff,” he said with constant head nods. It seemed as if his accent was even more precise all of a sudden. “You gotta understand business. You got a skill, use it elsewhere.”
I wasn’t sure what that meant ’cause he was supposedly givin’ me a job, and I was his lady, supposedly. Maybe the wifey was onto us already. The whole idea of position number two sucked ass.
“Let me tackle one thing at a time. As far as Betty’s- it’s over.” He hit me with the one motion movement with his hand. “Now, your clothes, I’ll get you some more later in the week. You’ll be working for me, and you’ll love it.” He grinned showin’ his beautiful set of teeth.
I sat with my mouth wide open just hangin’ onto his every word. Tony had a gift and probably didn’t realize it. He had a way of being intimidatin’ and demandin’ all at the same time with a huge smile plastered across his face. Just as I was about to speak, the back door to the car opened and the heavy-set guy, Gino from earlier hopped in.
Immediately, my face developed a frightenin’ expression as I thought back to a scene in the movie, Goodfellas where people always got whacked in a car from the guy in the back seat. Why the fuck did he have to sit behind me? “What’s up Tony?” I asked with a lil’ fear in my ears.
“Sweetness, I asked Gino to check this spot out. You know… make sure no FBI was following you or nothing. We gotta be careful. Know what I’m saying?”
“Oh,” I responded like I really believed that shit.
And just like that, Tony pulled out of the parkin’ lot with no discussion about where we were headed or nothin’. I got all choked up ’cause the fact the Gino was behind me sittin’ in complete silence had me on ice. Even if Tony had turned the radio on it would’ve made me feel a bit better.
“So, where we headed?” I finally asked.
“To your new house.”
My eyes lit up, and my rapid heart-beat slowed down a bit. I turned toward the back with a more peaceful look on my face. But Gino still had his killer face on so I stopped my joyful celebration. “You got me a house for real, Tony?”
He shot me a notion of pity. “What I did was live up to my promise. That’s what I do. I told you I had a job for you and that you were my lady. Correct?”
“Umm umph.”
“Well, sit back and let me show you what I got for you. It’s not too far.”
My first thought was not too far. Hell, the hotel was less than ten minutes from where Betty’s used to be, so the thought on not goin’ far wasn’t sittin’ too well with me. I needed to be across town, living it up in Saddle River, New Jersey like where Tony said his main house was located.
A million thoughts seemed to scramble through my head on our short ride. What would my arrangement with Tony really be like? Would he put me on the back burner for his wife? And for how long? He said the marriage situation would be ova soon. And how long would it be before I got Carlton? Then it hit me. When we passed Betty’s block a flood of memories surfaced. Then my emotions changed again. Tony all of a sudden slowed the car a bit and took a right on 88th Street. I knew he wasn’t gonna have me livin’ just four blocks from Betty’s.
The car slowed in the darkness as Tony squinted to search for the house. The street was quiet, seemed like a bunch of old people resided from the looks of the decorations on the front stoops. It did however, look like a place where I could raise my son.
“Right there,” Gino spoke for the first time.
Tony pulled ova to the side as Gino got out and walked up the steps examinin’ the two story brownstone. It didn’t look as well-kept as Betty’s from the outside, even though the neighborhoods resembled one another. I did however, like the rich-lookin’ red brick covering the entire front of the house. I especially liked the big bay window in the front with the crown moldin’ all around the frame. It gave the house a little flavor and matched the two columns to the right of the porch.
“Oh, thank you Tony!” I reached ova and tried to slob his short ass down. “Is this all mine?”
“Sorta.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I’ve had it for quite some time, Chantel.” He leaned over me watchin’ Gino check the outside of the house. “It’s vacant, but you’ll be living here.” He paused, “And working, too.”
My eyebrows showed my confusion. “What kinda work will I do from our home?”
“Run the business for me.” He used the same matter-of-fact tone he always did. “The pay will be reallllll good.”
The way Tony dragged his words reminded me too much of Bo. It needed to stop. “Look Tony, I’m beggin’ you…please stop draggin’ your words, my old boyfriend used to do that and it’s annoyin’.”
He smiled like I was a joke. “Is that so?”
“Tony look, I just wanna be your woman. What’s up with this job thing?”
“We’ll discuss the details later. But for now, just know that you’ll run the business from downstairs and have your own private space upstairs. The job is commission based.”
“How long before I can move in?”
“Ahhhh… about a week, give or take a few days.”
“A week!” I shouted. “What am I supposed to do for a week, Tony?”
“C’mon…do I look like I’m gonna let you suffer for a week,” he asked dippin’ into his pocket. “Here’s a little something to show you that I’m serious about making big money with you.”
When Tony handed me the stack, my eyes grew to the size of an eight ball. I rubbed my hands around the bundle as if I’d neva felt that much money at one time. “How much is it?”
“Thirty- five hundred,” he rattled off.
“What?” I shouted.
“Yes, get yourself some nice, sexy clothes. When I come by I want my dick to harden as soon as I set eyes on you.” He reached ova and rubbed my thighs vigorously. “We’ll talk about you getting your son and bringing him back here.”
“Damn, Tony. I can’t believe this!” I reached ova and wrapped my arms around his neck again. “Can we get rid of Gino and go somewhere…just the two of us?” My eyes begged for a positive answer.
“Not tonight sweetness. Gino and I got business to take care of. Right, Gino,” Tony shouted as soon as Gino opened the back door to the Chrysler.
Gino had no idea what the hell he was talkin’ about but responded like the robot that I thought he was. “Right, boss.”
I glanced toward the back only to meet Gino’s scary-ass lookin’ eye. In a dash, I’d managed to turn back toward the front.
“How soon can you get Co-Co situated?” Tony asked.
“Gimme a few days. It won’t take too much work,” Gino commented as Tony cruised down the block.
“How much is it gonna cost me? Less than ten k?”
“Forget about it,” Gino joked for the first time in my presence. “You looking at about fifty grand. I got some sexy, stolen furniture all lined up, but you still gotta paint and do cosmetic work. The question is, did you get the girls?”
I turned in my seat after hearin’ the word ‘girls’. I looked at Gino, then back at Tony. Of course, Tony’s disposition didn’t change. It neva did. Calm, cool, collective-that’s how he rolled. “What girls?” I asked with suspicion.
I leaned forward so Tony could see my entire face.
“The girls who’ll be workin’ for you,” Tony announced without hesitation. He neva looked me in the eye, yet continued like it was business as usual. “Your competition got ba
gged. So you’re the woman now. You’re a Madam. Madam Co-Co,” he laughed.
Chapter 15
Twenty-Five Days Later
“Damn, that’s good.”
I took my tongue and licked the rim of the glass tryna absorb the taste. Without a doubt, I was the new shit in town. Brooklyn wasn’t ready for a transformed bitch like me, I boasted to myself. I took my time as I did every mornin’ singin’ my own praises in front of the huge framed mirror in my office slash bedroom. I’d gone against what Tony had suggested and decided to make the entire right side of the first floor my bedroom, which was attached to my office. It was spacious, had a unique lookin’ fireplace, and could be closed off with the beautiful set of French doors for privacy when someone needed to enter the office area. Without a doubt, it was the best lookin’ room in the house. Not to mention, the fabulous bay window that brought style to the office area. And gave me a front row seat to all the action on the block.
As I placed my wine glass back down on my dressin’ table, I smiled at my new best friend-Chardonnay. With a sexy pucker, I kissed at the mirror remindin’ myself that I did indeed look good and needed to be perfect when I stepped from my private quarters. No, the new house wasn’t as spacious as Betty’s, but it had its advantages. For starters, the entire first level was all about me; my bedroom, along with the office and the kitchen. So I didn’t have to smell any stale pussy, or funky sweat invadin’ my nostrils. Secondly, because I didn’t have any help like a Serita, or black suits, I needed the spot to be quaint, and controllable.
I’d finished oilin’ myself down in the sweet scented Victoria Secret lotion, complements of Tony, and moved onto the finale-my accessories. I slid my black, lace gloves up to my elbows which matched perfectly with my lace shirt that was really just a thin piece of lingerie. The fitted piece, which was intended to be a shirt, exposed my nipples through the lace just as planned. You see a Madam must represent.
Tony had hooked me up with dozens of new outfits fit for a Madam, mostly high-dollar stuff. So it came as no surprise to me how all of a sudden I wanted the best of everythin’. The word best made me lean closer into the mirror to check my new lace front wig. It was honey-colored mixed with a reddish tone, and swooped back off my forehead cascadin’ down my back. Clearly-it was the best money could buy. For a moment, I got choked up. My reflection reminded me of Betty. Not that we resembled one another physically but that I’d taken on her daily make-up regiment. Instead of pickin’ up the brush to touch up my blush one last time, I reached for my glass and opted for another sip of Chardonnay.
