Bitch Reloaded

by Deja King

  "The two of you know each other?" Nico asked with bewilderment on his face.

  "Yeah, I know Precious very well. I was gonna surprise you, baby, and deliver this bitch to you, but my girl, Talesha told me you never showed for the drop and pick up. I guess she was misinformed."

  "Talesha," I repeated out loud. "Oh shit, LeeLee is short for Talesha! Ain't this some bullshit! I knew you were a scandalous trick the first time I met you, but I let my guard down, and now this." I switched my attention back to Nico. "I can't believe you got this hoe on your team. And Nina, aren't you supposed to be getting married today?"

  "What the fuck is going on?" Nico seethed through clenched teeth.

  "Precious, put that fuckin' gun down now and kick it towards me," Nina demanded, ignoring Nico.

  I did as she said, and as I patted the back of my pants ready to grab my other gun, I realized it wasn't there. I quickly remembered that I left it on the backseat of the Range after I knocked out Vita. I was fucked up in the game right now, and didn't know how I would get out this shit. I still had my knife, but I didn't believe Nina would let me get close enough to slit her throat.

  "Nina, answer my fuckin' question. How do you and Precious know each other, and what's this about you getting married?"

  "Oh, so you don't know about her fiancee, Jamal?" I decided to run my mouth for as long as possible to buy some time until I figured a way out of this bullshit. "Yeah, I was supposed to be a bridesmaid and everything for this trick. So when did you decide you weren't showing up for the wedding, Nina? Before or after you planned on killing me?" Nico and I both stared at Nina waiting for a response.

  "If you really want to know how this shit popped off, I'll break it down for you starting from the beginning," Nina began, taking me down memory lane after picking up my gun. "I was the one Nico called when he tried and failed to put you six feet under and had to go on the run. I'm sure he never got around to telling you this, but we used to fuck around until he got caught up in yo' silly ass. So when he needed me, I was there so I could prove to him I was a better bitch than you from day one, and he made the mistake choosing you over me. The night you came over to Jamal's house for dinner, I immediately recognized your face from a picture that Nico still carries around of you. I wanted to kill your ass right there on the spot, but instead I decided that I would befriend you and finish the job that Nico couldn't.

  "But Nina, I told you I had put that shit wit' Precious behind me and was moving on."

  "Oh, please! And let this bitch get away with ruining your life? She's the reason that we broke up in the first place. She's why you went to jail and you're on the run. You might've decided to let her get away with it, but not me. I had it all worked out. You was supposed to bring your slick-ass over here and I was gonna be waiting to empty my gun on you. Of course you had to throw salt in the game and fuck up my plan, but hell, here you are now, so it all worked out."

  "Nah, Nina, you ain't takin' her out. Get that shit out yo' head."

  "After everything Precious has done you're still choosing her over me? You're still in love with this poisonous bitch? I'm the one that's been holding it down for you while she's running around like she's queen bee. How can you defend her? I got a good man waiting at the altar for me, because I want to be with you."

  "Yo, don't put that shit on me. I didn't even know you was engaged. You the one that said you wanted to break out of New York wit' me. I told you to stay here and not put your life on hold to be on the run wit' me."

  "You left Jamal standing at the altar so you could run away with Nico? And it was you I saw that night I was coming out of that restaurant with Mike. That's why this area looks so familiar. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me because I was tipsy, but you were sneaking in going to see your other man. It was never about Jamal. Couldn't you have broken things off wit' him instead of wasting everybody's time and his money on a damn wedding that you knew would neva happen?"

  "Precious, shut the fuck up. This ain't none of your business. You're the cause of all this bullshit anyway. Nico and I would be married with children right now if he had never met you."

  "Hold up, Nina. Now you're jumping into some other shit. I appreciate all you've done for me, but you can't blame Precious because she had my heart and you didn't. But even if I hadn't met Precious, I still didn't want to wife you. You were always cool people, and that's why when I was jammed up I reached out to you. Sorry shorty, but my feelings never ran deeper than that."

  Nina looked crushed. If I had my piece right now it would've been the perfect opportunity to take advantage of her vulnerability. But I had nothing to surprise attack her with.

  "Fuck that! Precious is a dead bitch!" Nina said coldly.

  Nico walked forward. "If you shoot Precious, you have to kill me first," he stated, standing in front of me as a shield.

  I couldn't believe how this episode was playing out. It touched my heart how Nico was putting his life on line for me, but I didn't think he realized just how far gone Nina was. She would fuck around and kill both of us on some "fuck the world" type shit. That hero shit had no place with Nina. She had a hard-on for me, and her mind was already made up that today I was going to die.

  My mind was spinning, determined to find a way out of this mess when I heard the three shots ring out in the air. I closed my eyes waiting for the sheer force of the bullets to rip through my soul. I figured the first two shots would take Nico down, and the third would be for me.

  After five more seconds I still didn't feel the excruciating pain of the bullet penetrating my skin, so I opened my eyes to see what the holdup was. To my dismay and relief, Nina was dead, lying in a puddle of her own blood, and Maya had pulled the trigger.

  "She's dead," were the words that rang out of Nico's mouth when he couldn't find a pulse on Nina. There were no words to describe my shock at seeing Maya holding the gun that killed Nina. But I couldn't let that put me at a standstill.

  "Yo, we got to get the fuck outta here. I know somebody heard those gunshots and called the police." The first thing I did was pick up the gun Nina took from me. There was no need to wipe anything down `cause I was a pro at this by now.

  I then grabbed the gun Maya was holding and realized it was the other nine I had left in the car. She stood there still staring down at a dead Nina, not believing she was now a murderer.

  Nico had disappeared to the bedroom, and I assumed he was trying to gather as much of his belongings as possible. When he came out, he was holding a few suitcases.

  "You couldn't have packed that fast," I said to him.

  "I was already packed. I just had to get my luggage from the bedroom closet."

  I quickly remembered Nina mentioning that the reason she'd left Jamal at the altar was so she could run away with Nico.

  "Oh yeah, that's right. Well, come on, you can ride with us."

  "I can't, Precious," Nico said solemnly.

  "What do you mean, you can't?"

  "There's too much heat on me right now. You need to go. I'll be in touch."

  "You promise?"

  "Yes, I promise."

  "But where will you go? Do you need money?"

  "Precious, I'll be fine. You know how I get down. You just take care of yourself and be careful. Supreme's killer is still out there."

  "I'm sorry, Nico. I'm sorry for everything."

  He put his finger over my lips and kissed me on my forehead before swiftly moving out of the front door. I did a quick glance around the apartment before following his lead. On my way out I made one last stop at Nina's dead body. I lifted her finger and slid off the engagement ring Jamal gave her. Now that bitch was free to burn in hell.

  I clutched Maya's hand and we jetted out. Right when I was driving off, two police cars pulled up in front of the building. I was relieved we made it out of there.

  My mind then drifted to Nico. He didn't deserve living a life on the run. Yeah, it was fucked up that he tried to kill me, but if you followed the code of
the streets, then I really left him no choice. That was the past. I was free and he deserved to be too. Now I had another reason besides revenge to find Supreme's killer, and it was to clear Nico's name. I could always switch up my story about who shot me.

  Dwelling on guns and murder, I changed gears and shifted to Maya. "Maya, thank you for saving my life."

  "You're welcome," she said meekly.

  I couldn't believe the young girl sitting next to me, speaking in the low voice was the same person that committed murder less than fifteen minutes ago. "Do you want to talk about what happened?" I didn't want to push her, but I thought it was important to give her the opportunity to speak on what went down, especially since she wouldn't be able to confide in anybody else.

  "I didn't plan on killing, Nina but I had no choice," Maya stated matter of factly.

  "How did you know I needed you?"

  "I was sitting here waiting for you to come out, and about thirty minutes after you went in I peeped the chick who was supposed to be getting married today run into the same building."

  "I didn't know you had seen Nina before."

  "Remember, I was with you when you went to get fitted for the bridesmaid dress. She was wearing that busted-ass wedding dress."

  "That's right," I said, recalling their encounter.

  "The first question that popped in my head when I saw her was why she wasn't at her wedding. Then I thought maybe she was coming to get you, `cause you were one of her bridesmaids, but that shit didn't sit right wit' me. I might be young, but I'm no dummy. Mike always told me to follow my instincts and ask questions later."

  "Good of Mike. So that's what made you come upstairs with a gun?" At that moment, I saw the reflection of myself in Maya. I was angry at myself for allowing her to get all caught up in bullshit that had nothing to do with her. But she had been a blessing in disguise, because the little bad-ass bitch had saved my life, and for that I will be eternally grateful.

  "No, although I had a funny feeling, my mind wasn't thinking you were in no danger."

  "What happened that made you realize I was?"

  "Besides you taking forever to come back, I also heard noises coming from the trunk of the car."

  Oh shit! I forgot all about Vita's ass being stashed in the trunk, I thought to myself.

  "At first I thought I was hearing things, but the noise persisted. I checked it out and was too through when I saw a girl tied and gagged stuffed in the back."

  "Damn! You didn't let her out, did you?"

  "Hell no! Obviously if you had her like that it was for a very good reason. I told the bitch she better shut the fuck up before I dumped her ass in the Hudson River." We both burst out laughing. "But on the real, seeing that girl made my brain start thinking all sorts of crazy shit. As I was climbing back to the front, I peeped your gun sitting on the back seat. I figured you needed your weapon, and without it you would be in trouble.

  "You got that shit right."

  "Mike had taught me how to handle a gun, but never did I think I would be using what I learned today. All I wanted to do was make sure you was okay and give you your gun. But when I got to the door I could hear voices, and nobody sounded happy. When I heard the guy say something about Nina would have to kill him in order to get to you, I knew it was time to step up."

  "I can't believe you held it down for me like that," I said, staring at Maya for a minute while we were stopped at a red light.

  "Precious, I admired you before I even met you. At first it was because you had been married to this megastar rapper, and you looked so pretty in pictures I had seen you in. You seemed to be `that bitch'. Then when I met you and started spending time with you, I checked how thorough you are. You so smart and `bout real talk. That day you lectured me about throwing my life away chasing after hustling nigga's was such a wakeup call, and I appreciated it. There was no way I was going to let some crazy chick take my newfound mentor away from me."

  "So, I'm your mentor now? I've been called many things, but never that."

  "Yeah, you are. When I grow up I want to be just like you," Maya said proudly.

  I reflected on all the things I ever wanted to be in life, and mentor was nowhere on the list, but the choice was no longer mine. Maya lost whatever innocence she had left when she killed Nina. Yeah, she was protecting me, but some people don't have it in them to have another human being's blood on their hands. But those that could travel to such dark places had the potential to be a cold-blooded killer if left on that path. I was one of those people, and by the look in Maya's eyes, so was she. I didn't know if I should shed a tear for the hard life she would undoubtedly face, or raise my fist for her being a soldier who would never have to take anyone's orders... except for mine.

  "Maya, I'm flattered that you look up to me, but to walk in my shoes is not an easy path to follow. We can't change what happened today, but it doesn't mean you have to continue to live your life that way. How I roll, I'm constantly getting down for my crown. That mentality isn't for the soft at heart. You feel me?"

  "No doubt, and I don't want it no other way. I want to learn from you, Precious. Give me the bitter and the sweet so I can be that bitch that nobody can fuck over."

  "Well, the first thing you have to be clear on is not to speak on anything that happened today. I mean nothing, not even to your brother. This remains between us. You don't reply to any questions unless I already green lighted the answer. There's certain shit that you take to your grave with you, and killing Nina is one of them."

  "I got you. That's our secret... and Nico's of course."

  "Yeah, but don't worry about Nico. He wrote the street handbook, and talking about dirt you do in the streets is off limits."

  "Speaking of Nico, that dude is a cutie. He seemed like he in love wit' you."

  "He used to be my man before I got with Supreme."

  "Oh snap, is that the nigga that shot you?"

  "Yep, but that's another Bronx Tale. I'll give you the spill on that another time. First, I need to come up with my story for Jamal."

  "And don't forget about homegirl in the back. What are you going to do with her?"

  Once again I almost forgot about Vita's ass. There was no doubt she had to be dealt with. "You feel like taking a ride?"

  "Ma, I'm down for whatever. I got you. I hope I proved that today."

  "No doubt."

  I headed out of the city and got on the turnpike going south. By the time we reached the Jersey shore, the sun had gone down and the sky was lit from a full moon and stars. I parked my car near the edge of the cliff overlooking the shore in a deserted area. I had Maya stay in the front seat as I grabbed the gun she used to kill Nina, and went to open the trunk. I knew she was a soldier in training, but I didn't want her to witness me ending Vita's life. It's one thing to kill somebody from behind, but it was something totally different to face death head-on and stare in the eyes of your victim before ending her life. Maya wasn't at that place yet, and part of me hoped she never would be. But if I remained her mentor, then it was only a matter of time before she was able to drop bodies like a bad habit.

  When I lifted the blanket from Vita's head, she squinted her eyes trying to adjust to the light coming from the sky. She had been in the dark for most of the day, and she started feeling relief thinking she would finally be free. Then her eyes zeroed in on my gun. The tears began gushing down, and my heart did go out to her. If there was a way I could spare her life I would have, but there wasn't. She was a weak link to everything that went down today. No matter how many times she promised never to speak a word of what she knew, I couldn't take the chance of putting my life in her hands.

  I grabbed one of the pillows that I kept in the trunk from behind Vita. I took off the pillowcase and put it over her face. I lifted her head and put the pillow under her, and grabbed the other one, using it as a silencer. Vita continued to jerk her body furiously, determined not to die. But after two shots to the head, all motion instantly stopped. I then asked Maya t
o help me as we lifted her body out of the trunk and tossed her off the cliff. The shit had to be done. There was just no way around it.

  As I drove home, I made one more stop right after we got over the George Washington Bridge, and tossed the gun that was used for Nina and Vita's murders into the Hudson River. I then listened to the dozens of messages Jamal left me. I still wasn't ready to speak to him. He obviously hadn't yet heard of Nina's death, because his last message sounded more like a jilted lover than one in mourning. After a good night's sleep I planned on speaking to him in the morning, and hoped I could get him through what would no doubt be a difficult time.

  Early the next morning, I was awakened by loud voices. I was fighting to stay in my deep sleep, but the noise was persistent. I had no choice but to get out of bed and see what the commotion was about. When I came out my bedroom it was clear there were male voices having a confrontation. I recognized Nathan's voice, and shortly after, realized the second was Jamal's.

  "Nathan, what's going on?" I yelled from the top of the stairs.

  "Move out my way. I need to speak to Precious." Within seconds, Jamal appeared as if he rushed past Nathan.

  "Jamal, what's wrong?"

  "Precious, I tried to tell this man you were sleep and to come back later, but he wouldn't budge. Do you want me to throw him out?" Nathan said, foaming at the mouth.

  "Nathan, it's okay. You know Jamal is a good friend of mine.

  "Yeah, but he need to respect people's privacy. It's seven in the morning. What type of nonsense is that?"

  "Why don't you worry about your job and not the time?" Jamal countered.

  "My man, This is part of my job. Precious wasn't expecting you. You should've kept it moving until a decent hour. Now you in here disrupting someone else's household."

  "Enough. Nathan, thank you, but you can go. I need to speak with Jamal." Both men frowned at one another as Nathan walked away.

  Jamal caught me off guard showing up so early, but I had to focus so he wouldn't get suspicious. Then I noticed him looking up towards the wraparound banister, and I turned to follow the direction of his eyes.