by India
Ding-dong! I turned back toward the door and looked through the peephole. It was Ace. I sighed before answering because I wasn’t prepared for another heated discussion.
“Hey, baby.” I kissed him and headed back into my room. He locked the door and followed suit.
“Come on. You ready for dinner?” He stood in the doorway.
“I really just want to chill tonight.” I sipped from the can of grape pop.
“What’s the matter?” He pulled the 9 mm from his pants and placed it on the dresser before lying beside me on the bed.
“Just some shit with Alicia, nothing serious.”
“I just seen them niggas from the projects leaving here. What was that all about?” He took my chips and began to eat them.
“Just business! My homegirl Keisha is flipping my merchandise for me. She just came through with her brothers and picked the stuff up.”
“How well do you know them niggas?”
“Ace, I’ve known Keisha since forever.” I sighed. Sometimes his overprotectiveness was overbearing.
“You act like you mad at me for giving a fuck!” He stood from the bed and went in the bathroom. “I’m just concerned for you and Alicia, that’s all. You can’t do business with everybody, but if you say she cool, then that’s that. Ain’t nothing left to talk about.”
As soon as he closed the door, his cell phone rang. It was a private call.
“Who in the hell is this?” I snapped.
“Tell that nigga he dead!” Click.
For a second, I just stared at the phone in awe. Did this nigga just receive a death threat?
“Who was that, baby?” Ace shook his hands dry and came back over to the bed.
“Ace, somebody just called and said you were a dead man.” I handed him the phone.
“That shit ain’t new, so don’t worry about it. These clowns always blowing up my phone with these prank calls.” He relaxed like nothing had happened.
“Baby, this is serious business. How long has this been going on?” I didn’t like this one bit, but Ace was unfazed.
“Speaking of business,” Ace said, looking at me and changing the subject, “when will you take me up on my offer to leave this city? After all, we are engaged.” He played with his mother’s ring on my finger. The plan was for us to wed on my eighteenth birthday. After that, Ace wanted to move out of state and live an honest life. I didn’t have cold feet, but I wasn’t ready to become Suzy Homemaker. Ace wanted kids, picket fences, and a dog. All I wanted at this point in time was to get money, point blank period.
“Baby, I think we should push the wedding back at least until I graduate.” I held my breath for his response. Graduation wasn’t too far away, so I hoped he wouldn’t be too disappointed. Before he could make a remark, his cell phone beeped. He didn’t say anything. Instead, he stood from the bed and grabbed his gun.
“I’ll holla at you later. Some shit just came up.”
“What came up?” The jealousy inside of me was apparent. “That better not be another bitch!”
“Janelle, chill with all of that.” He walked to the door. “One of my spots just got robbed. I’m going to handle it, and I’ll be back.”
“Let me go with you then.” I grabbed my purse.
“No.” He stopped me.
“Ace, I’m going with you, and that’s that!” I grabbed my gun from under the kitchen sink and another one from the kitchen drawer that was concealed inside of a Ziploc box.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“It’s called having your back. Now let’s ride.” I slid the smallest weapon inside of my purse and headed for the door.
Within a matter of twenty minutes, we were parked outside of Ace’s spot on Snowden. The entire block was quiet, and I knew shit wasn’t right. Inside the house, there were no lights on, and the streetlights had all been shot out. As if he could read my thoughts, Ace reached for the shotgun in the custom compartment under his back seat.
“Let me call this nigga Damien and find out what’s poppin’.” He loaded the shotgun while placing the call. The phone rang several times before someone picked up.
“What up, boy,” Damien spoke over the speakerphone.
“I’m on the block. Where the fuck y’all niggas at?” Ace looked at me and shook his head.
“Oh, you on the block right now?” Damien sounded like he was up to no good. I could hear the sneakiness in his voice, and so did Ace, because he ended the call without another word and put the car in gear. Before we had time to pull off, a car came blazing from a side street and opened fire on us.
“Duck, Janelle.” He dived on top of me and wrapped his arms around me in an attempt to shield me from the bullets that sprayed the vehicle. Every single window in the car was broken, and glass flew everywhere. It could’ve been just my imagination, but I felt the fire of the small metal weapons and could smell the gunpowder. Each time a shell casing hit the floor I cried because I was scared to death. Ace hadn’t made a sound, so I feared the worst. With my eyes closed, I blindly reached to open the car door, and we slid out onto the pavement.
“Baby, please tell me you’re okay.” I wiped the snot running from my nose onto the back of my hand.
“Shh!” He placed a finger up to his mouth, and I sighed in relief. Ace was bleeding profusely. I knew this wasn’t a good sign, but now was not the time to panic.
Our assailant’s car had slammed on the brakes and was driving in reverse toward our car. I glanced up and down the darkened street for an escape route, but there was none. The way out of this situation was to shoot our way out.
Once the car had come to a stop, I could hear footsteps as someone walked around the car, stepping on the pieces of shattered glass.
“Yo, that nigga ain’t in here.”
“Find his ass then. He has got to be out here somewhere,” another voice demanded. It sounded like Damien, Ace’s roommate, best friend, and partner.
Ace looked at me and began to count on his fingers. I could tell he was in obvious pain, but it was do or die. By the time he reached three, we both stood and began busting our guns at Damien and his crew. Shell casings flew everywhere, and one of them even burned my arm. I took out the fool standing in the street while Ace lit the van and its passengers up like a Christmas tree. Some managed to flee the vehicle, but in the dark, we couldn’t make a positive ID.
“Let’s go!” Ace limped over to his destroyed car, and we fled the scene.
“Baby, are you hit?” I panicked.
“No, I’m good,” he lied.
“Anthony, let’s go to the hospital,” I demanded.
“And tell them what?” he yelled.
We could hear sirens blaring in the distance, and my heart skipped seven beats. We didn’t have time to dump the guns because we needed to park the car ASAP. It had more bullet holes than I cared to count, and the cops would’ve pulled us over in a heartbeat.
Chapter Twenty-nine
Ace had taken the back roads all the way to my apartment. I breathed a sigh of relief once we were safely pulling the car into the garage. “Fuck!” He hit the steering wheel.
“Baby, calm down.”
“One of them pussy niggas is still out there though.” He hit the steering wheel again.
“That’s okay. We’ll find him.”
“We don’t even know who Damien had working with him on this, so how are we going to find the nigga who got away?” He clutched his stomach and laid his head back on the headrest.
“Baby, please come inside so I can check you out.”
“I’m cool, Janie. This ain’t shit.”
“Ace, your whole shirt is soaked in blood. Please come in the house.” The last time I saw this much blood, my father was dying in the hallway.
“Baby, I need to get my shit out the crib before the cops find Damien’s ID and go there.” Ace stepped from the car and attempted to walk straight but immediately doubled over in pain. Not only was his shirt covered in blood, but h
is jeans were too. Even so, he was determined not to let me see him sweat. “Let me see your car keys.”
“Baby, you’re bleeding profusely,” I pointed out.
“I said I’m good.” He stumbled a few steps and leaned up against the wall for support.
“Ace!” I was scared to death. This nigga couldn’t die on me today. Didn’t we have plans to get married?
I ran up the stairs and banged for Alicia to open up. After a second, she flung the door open with attitude. “What the fuck is you banging on the door for?” She had a bat in her hand.
“I think Ace got shot! Help me get him in the house,” I yelled, and she flew down the steps. Together we carried him up the stairs and into the living room. He was losing a lot of blood and feeling woozy.
I lifted his shirt and searched frantically for the entry wound, but the only thing I found was a piece of glass protruding through his flesh. Thank God! I grabbed my cell phone and called my neighbor Tameka. She was in her last year of medical school, and I knew she would be able to help us. As the phone rang, I remembered she was finishing up her residency at the local hospital, but I prayed this was her day off. If Ace didn’t receive some sort of medical attention soon, it could possibly be too late.
“Hello?” My neighbor sounded as if she was in a good sleep. I almost felt bad for waking her.
“Hey, Tameka, it’s Jane. My boyfriend fell on a piece of glass and is bleeding all over the place. He doesn’t want to go to the hospital. Could you please come over here and help him?” I waited while she got her bearings.
“Let me grab my bag and I’ll be on the way.”
“Okay, thank you, girl. I really appreciate you.” I ended the call.
“Janelle, I ain’t got time to be getting worked on and shit. I have to get over to my apartment.” Ace tried to get up, but Alicia and I pushed him back down.
“Baby, I got it. You stay here with Ali and let Tameka help you. I’ll be back.” I kissed his lips.
“That shit ain’t safe. Wait for me,” he yelled.
“Baby, the cops could be at your spot soon. I need to get in and get out, and I can’t do that if you’re with me.” I grabbed my purse and headed toward the door before he could object.
“Be careful.”
Chapter Thirty
Pulling up to Ace’s house, I decided to park three doors down instead of in the driveway. While walking down the block, I surveyed the scene and clutched my pistol with a death grip. Everything appeared normal, but as I entered Ace’s and Damien’s house, I felt paranoid for some reason. I brushed the ill vibes off and began to move through the joint like a thief in the night.
Going from room to room, I removed anything I thought Ace might’ve wanted like pictures, jewelry, weapons, and money. Of course, I hadn’t bothered with shoes and clothes because that shit was easily replaceable. Next, I went into Damien’s room and looked for his valuable shit. It wasn’t like he’d be using it anytime soon, so it was fair game. As I rummaged through his closest, I found a safe hidden behind a massive hole in the wall. The hole was semi-covered by a bunch of clutter on the floor. I could see that it had been left open, so without hesitation, I reached my hand inside and removed the contents, which consisted of a few green bills, a scale, and about a pound of crack cocaine.
As I tossed the items into the garbage bag, I heard the front door of the apartment open. “Oh, shit!” I cussed. Where was I supposed to go? The only ways out were the window in the kitchen and the front door. Thinking fast, I jumped into Damien’s closet.
“You sure that nigga ain’t here?” someone asked.
“I told you, Damien gave the word and it’s done! That nigga Ace is probably in a body bag right now,” the other man replied. I could hear them in the living room moving around, and my stomach hit my guts.
“That’s fucked up. What he kill that nigga for anyway?”
“Nigga, I don’t know. Something about wanting to be solo and cut out the middleman,” the second man replied, and I listened close. “See, Ace got the connect through that nigga Chucky, and Damien wanted it for himself, but the only way Charles was gonna fuck with D is if something happened to Ace,” the second man explained, and I shook my head. Niggas wasn’t loyal at all. Everybody was out for self. No wonder Ace was extra paranoid.
“Well, let’s hurry up, Kirk, and do what we have to do and get out of this bitch.”
“Nigga, what you scared for? It ain’t like Ace coming home no time soon.”
I smirked ’cause these fools had no idea.
“I know, man, but I don’t like being in a dead nigga’s house.”
“Fuck that. I’m cool. This is the easiest money I’ve ever made! The nigga D paid us two hundred dollars just to come over here and order a porno on the cable box and call his baby mama.”
“Well, order the movie, call the bitch, and let’s go,” the paranoid man demanded.
“Naw, bro. We had specific instructions to call her from the house phone and let the call run for two hours.”
“Why we can’t just dial the bitch and hang up?”
“Because if the police look at Damien as a suspect, he can say he chilled at home, ordered a flick, and talked to his baby mama. That alibi is airtight, ya feel me?”
“Fine then! You make the call, and I’m making myself something to eat.”
“Make me a sandwich too.”
“Nigga, fuck you. Make your own damn sandwich.”
The men bickered for the better part of their stay, and I was annoyed, to say the least. Not only was I trapped in this dirty-ass room, but my stomach was growling, and I had to pee. To make matters worse, when the men started to walk around the house, I had to conceal myself inside of the hole in Damien’s closet and hide under a shitload of smelly clothes and dirty underwear.
Just when I was about to doze off, my cell phone vibrated. “Yeah,” I whispered.
“Baby, where are you?” Ace sounded like he was drowsy, but I was glad to hear his voice. Up until his call, I’d silently feared the worst. There was no telling if that broken glass had pierced an artery.
“I’m in Damien’s closet. Some dudes came over to set up his alibi, and I didn’t have time to get out, so I’m hiding.”
“What? I’m on my way,” he barked.
“No, Ace. They’re about to leave anyway. I’ll be home in a few. Stay put.” I didn’t need him out here in the streets when he wasn’t 100 percent in the best health.
“All right, but if you ain’t home in thirty minutes, I’m coming over there.” He ended the call, and I placed the cell phone back into my pocket. I knew Ace was as serious as a heart attack and would surely be on his way if I wasn’t home in exactly thirty minutes. Lucky for me, the men left about three minutes after my call. I grabbed the garbage bag and made a break for it.
Chapter Thirty-one
A few days had gone by since the shooting incident, and Ace was lying low. He’d found out through street gossip that Damien’s brother was the person who escaped from the car the other night. It bothered him that he didn’t know where Damien’s brother was, and he intended to find him before he found Ace.
My baby was extra paranoid, and rightfully so, but it was driving me crazy. He wanted to know where I was every hour of the day, so he had me on house arrest. Thankfully, business was booming, which gave me a reason to step out every now and then. Keisha had stayed true to her word, and within a couple of days, the first order was gone. She’d put the word out to all of her clients, and within that same week, the orders began coming in faster than we could receive the deliveries.
Alicia and I had only acquired a total of nine stolen cards and had already milked them bitches for all they had. After using them up, we tossed them in the sewer and went to retrieve more. Truth be told, the credit card business was booming far more than car theft. The amount of money Bobby paid me for three cars I made in less than an hour by selling stolen merchandise. Quiet as it’s kept, the only reason I was still jacking
cars was that I hoped to find a credit card left behind in someone’s purse or wallet. I knew Bobby would shit two bricks if he ever found out that we had broken the rules, but I was on a mission to get paid by any means necessary.
“Where you going?” Alicia looked up from her iPad. Ace had made a run to visit with Uncle Chucky, so I used the time to get out of the house.
“Donna has a package coming in today. I’m going to pick it up, and I’ll be back.” I slipped my Sperry boat shoes on and grabbed my keys.
“Do you need me to go?”
“No, it’s cool. I got it. You can chill.” I tossed her the deuces and headed outside. Just as I stepped off the porch, I noticed a black Jeep Patriot pull up, and I knew it was Ace. He was riding around in a rental car.
“Hey, you lookin’ good, ma.” Ace rolled down the lightly tinted window and smiled.
“Boy, stop.” I giggled for no reason at all. He just had that effect on me.
“Fa real, girl! You gettin’ all thick and shit. Tell me your boy ain’t putting it down.” He popped the collar on his Ralph Lauren shirt and emerged from the whip.
“You calling me fat?” I snapped. Honestly, I had gained about five pounds from all the good eating I’d been doing, but it was nothing a few laps around the block couldn’t fix.
“Not at all.” He raised both hands in surrender.
“Anyway, what you doing back over this way? Don’t you have a meeting with Chucky?”
“I do have a meeting, but on the way there I decided to pick you up something special. I could’ve kept them with me until I came back, but I decided they might mess up my reputation in the streets if someone sees me riding with them.” He opened the back door and produced two dozen beautiful red roses.
“Wow!” I exclaimed. “What are these for?”
“Just because I love you.” He leaned in for a kiss. “You really had a nigga’s back the other night. If you wasn’t there, things might’ve ended up different.”
“Thank you, baby!” I took the flowers and admired them. “I told you that I got you, forever and always.”
