by Ashley Snell
Free, Lou, and Sparkle walked into Free’s apartment with big smiles on their faces. They had just got back from Harold’s and they were $43,000 dollars richer. Free was lightweight disappointed, though he thought for sure that Harold would have had more than forty stacks, but he took it for what it was. He left Harold’s body slumped after he took them to the money. He believed that murder was a small price to pay to get him closer to his goal of paying off Claude.
“Yo, I’m about to go home. I’m tired as hell. I will be here first thing in the morning,” Lou said as he felt fatigue kicking in. “All right, my nigga,” Free said as he locked hands with his best friend and embraced him.
“’Bye, Big Lou,” Sparkle said as she put her hand over her mouth, yawning.
“One!” Lou said as he walked out of the door and put up two fingers. Free closed and locked the door behind him. He couldn’t wait to count the money. He walked over to the table and dumped it out. Sparkled followed him. He regretted letting Sparkle come in with him. Now he couldn’t lie about how much he had gotten from Harold. He owed a third of the take. Fuck, he thought as Sparkle began to count the money right along with him.
Free grabbed a stack of bills and putting the money in thou sand-dollar stacks.
“Put them in G stacks,” Free coached her, referring to thousand-dollar stacks.
“Nigga, I know how to do this,” Sparkle said as she sifted through the money, not breaking her concentration or count. She glanced over at Free once she was done with the current stack, and her pussy grew moist. She got up and Free was so busy counting the money, he didn’t even notice her stand be hind him. Sparkle quickly took off her clothes and lay out on the table over all the money, her pussy directly in Free’s face.
“What the—” Free said as he scooted back in his chair once he noticed her nakedness. Free felt his manhood rise in his jeans, but quickly dismissed the notion when he thought about her being Six’s friend. “Fuck you doing?” he asked harshly as he stood up. “Put your clothes back on!” he said as he walked over to the door and opened it. “It’s time for you to go,” he said. Sparkle was so embarrassed and couldn’t believe that Free had turned her down. That had never happened to her before.
“What the fuck is wrong with you? You a faggot or some thing?” Sparkle said as she heatedly got off the table and slid back in her jeans.
“I’m far from being a faggot, ma. I’m just cool on what you trying to do. This is all business, baby,” Free said while never even looking at Sparkle’s body. She stormed past him with a major attitude, switching her ass as hard as she could.
“Meet me here in the morning around ten. We got another hit on this nigga from Flint. Ten o’clock!” Free yelled as he watched Sparkle storm off and get into her car. noticing how her fat ass switched as he admired her shape. He quickly closed the door and shook his head, not believing that she put herself out there like that. In the looks department, Sparkle was a bad bitch, but she had nothing else going for her. “Hood rat,” he mumbled as he smiled and got back to the money.
He began to think about Six and decided that he would head over to Jones’s house to pay her a visit. He hadn’t spoken to her, which he found odd. Even while he had been in prison they spoke almost every day. For her to go so long without contacting him worried Free, and he wanted to find out what was going on. The last thing he needed was to lose touch with her while she was in Britain’s presence.
He grabbed his keys, secured the money underneath his bed, and headed out the door. He was going to check on his girl and make sure she was still down with the plan.
Chapter Thirteen
Six crept into her father’s house at six o’clock in the morning. She didn’t want to wake him and also did not want him asking questions about where she had been. She had been MIA for the past two weeks, investing a lot of time into Britain. She had been having so much fun with him that she had not even thought of checking in with her father or bothering to call Free. Getting to know Britain had been a pleasure. He was showing her the side of him that the streets rarely saw, and she enjoyed his company. He introduced her to a way of life that even Free had not afforded her.
Britain was on an entirely different level than the average hustler. His money was long, and his heart was open to Six, so he shared whatever he had with her, sparing no expense to keep her happy. He had removed the gangster visage and had become her friend again. He was her courtier, her confidant, and was trying to earn the spot as her lover.
Everything with Britain felt so brand-new. He worshipped the ground beneath her feet, making her feel special without sweating her too much. He knew how to show just the right amount of affection. He let her know how much she meant to him without smothering her or appearing needy, and slowly, he had warmed his way into her cold heart. What started out as business was slowly becoming personal, even though she was aware that their relationship could never go too far. There was no future for them. They had to live in the present because their days were numbered, and after she executed Free’s plan, Britain would never look at her the same way ever again.
Her attraction to Britain was so different than anything she had ever felt for Free. With Free she was his girl. His ride or die… Bonnie to his Clyde. Their relationship was one that the hood recognized. She was his wifey. With Britain, however, she was his lady. He didn’t want a girl—he wanted a woman and was stepping to her with such sophistication that it blew Six’s mind. He had her open.
It was so dark inside the house that Six bumped into the coffee table, knocking all of the contents off of it and breaking through the silence in the still house.
All of a sudden, her father’s voice cut through the air. “I don’t know what you creeping for,” he stated. “I’m not the one who has been waiting on you to come home.”
Six’s eyes adjusted to the darkness, and she saw her father sitting in his chair.
“I wasn’t creeping, Daddy… I’m grown. I just didn’t want to wake you up,” she lied, feeling as if she were a teenager again.
“Hmm, hmm, I hear you…but like I said, I’m not the one who you need to be worried about,” he answered as he stood to his feet. He walked over to Six and kissed her on the cheek as he passed by. “I’m going to bed, but Free is waiting for you in your bedroom. He’s been here all night.”
Six’s heart rate increased at the thought of Free. She knew him well and already knew that he was furious because he had not heard from her. She turned her head and stared nervously at her closed bedroom door. She was more afraid to face him then she had been her father. Intimidation filled her, and she tried to think of an excuse to tell Free.
“Go on in there. You were grown just a second ago,” Jones teased. “You got to deal with it sooner or later. You’ve been running around here with Britain like you’re really his girl. You’ve got to keep your head in the game, baby girl. Remember who you belong to. It’s all about the money,” Jones reminded her as he disappeared into his own room.
Six took a deep breath and entered her room. She flicked on the light to find Free sitting in a chair, glaring at her. It looked like he had been up all night, and the worry on his face instantly transformed to wrath as soon as he saw that she was all right. His temple pulsated as he ground his teeth in anger.
“Where you been, Six?” His question was simple, but Six remained silent, because she really did not know what to tell him. He knew where she had been and what she had been doing. What does he want me to say? she thought as she moved closer to him.
“I’ve been with Britain,” she replied as she stood in front of him.
He stood and held the bridge of his nose, attempting to keep his composure. “You ain’t been back here for weeks. You haven’t returned any of my calls…. Why you ain’t been checking in with me?” he grilled.
Free was so upset that Six could see the fire in his eyes. She sighed because she knew that she was wrong, but she couldn’t play wifey to two men at the same time. A man knew when his
woman’s heart was torn. If Free wanted the job done right, he was going to have to give her space.
“I’ve been kind of busy, Free. I can’t be answering my phone for you every time you call. I’m supposed to be acting like his girl. I have to concentrate on him right now so that I can get him to trust me. It’s just an act,” she said unconvincingly.
Free looked her over, taking in her new appearance. Everything about her had changed. She was more refined, more graceful…less hood then he remembered. The girl standing before him was not the little ghetto girl he had fallen in love with. Even her hair color was different. He looked at the designer labels she wore, and as his eyes scanned her body, he saw the twinkle of diamonds around her neck. Six was rocking the ten-karat diamond necklace that Britain had given her. It was the perfect accessory to the new queen of the streets. She shined like royalty, and Free became enraged.
“Bitch, what the fuck is this around your neck?” he asked as he stepped to Six, pinning her against the bedroom door while sticking a threatening finger in her face. Hitting her never crossed his mind. He had never raised a hand to her, but he felt like she was disrespecting him by flaunting the jewels in his face that Britain had given her.
“Nigga, get your finger out of my face!” Six yelled as she slapped his hand away. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” she asked, still pinned between Free and the door.
“This nigga icing you out now? You Britain’s bitch now?” he asked. “That’s twenty grand around your neck, Six. A man don’t spend that type of money on a bitch unless he fucking her.”
“Fuck you, Free! You’re the one who asked me to do this in the first place…of course, he buys me things. You wanted me to be wifey, remember? Well, I am! He treats me like wifey…he buys me shit, expensive shit! You put me in this situation, Free, so don’t act like you can’t handle it now. Isn’t this what you wanted? You started this entire fucked-up game,” she defended with anger.
“I told you not to fuck him!” Free screamed. “I didn’t know you were going to get blinded by the money, but I forgot…a ho is gon’ be a ho when it’s all said and done.”
Smack!
Out of nowhere, Six slapped Free with all of her might as tears formed in her eyes. Out of all the years she had been with him, he had never called her out of her name. It was the one thing that they always had for each other: respect. Him referring to her in such a derogatory way crushed her heart. She shook her head and squinted as she stared at him as if she didn’t even know who was standing in front of her.
“Fuck you, Free,” Six whispered as she pushed him off of her and walked over to her bed. She sat down and put her face in her hands as she let the tears roll down her face.
Free punched the wall and shook his head as he tried to tone down his temper. “I can’t believe you fucked this nigga, ma.” His stomach turned at just the thought of another man inside of her. He was sick thinking about it. She was supposed to be his, and the sting of betrayal threatened to break him down at any moment.
Free had tested his limits with Six on numerous occasions by being unfaithful, but he called himself just being a nigga. His heart never waned away from Six. Emotionally and mentally, he belonged to her. In his mind, women could not separate sex from love. To have his woman intimate with another man was the ultimate slap in the face.
“I didn’t fuck him,” Six replied sadly. “I would never do that to you. The only reason I’m even doing this is for us…because you convinced me to.”
She could see it in his eyes that he didn’t believe her and that was what hurt her the most.
“Fuck that—you’re done. You’re out. I’ll get the money another way,” Free insisted. The tone of his voice still reflected his fury, and he looked at her as if she were diseased.
“What way, Free? If you don’t come up with the dough, you’re dead and so am I. I’m not chancing my life like that. Hitting Britain is the only way to do this, and you know it. You need to put your ego aside and let me finish this.” Six was trying her hardest to convince Free to see things her way, but inside, she secretly wondered if her head was in the right place. She could not see herself giving Britain up right now. Life with him was so easy, so carefree. He was a good man, and she felt guilty that he had even gotten caught up in a beef with Free. He was a target and did not even know it.
By the time Britain realized he had gotten robbed, Free and Six planned to be in the wind. They would be like a distant memory to Detroit. A part of her wished that Britain would not have fallen for her—that way she would not be the one to have to betray him, but his affection for her was his weakness. When it was time for her to let him go, she would, but until then, she was going to enjoy the ride while it lasted.
“Sounds to me like you’re too attached to this mu’fucka,” Free stated harshly.
“It’s not about that, Free!” Six objected.
“Then what is all of this—” he pointed to her outfit, waving his finger up and down. “What is this about?”
“He likes me this way. I have to be who he likes,” Six said in a low voice.
“What about the Six I like?” he asked as he looked at her in disappointment.
“Right now, she doesn’t exist. I’m changing what I have to change to get the job done. I’m doing what you asked of me,” she replied.
Free shook his head. “You need to remind yourself whose team you’re on,” he spat and began to leave. Six tried to grab his hand to stop him, but he snatched away from her and slammed the door on his way out.
“Free!” she called after him as she ran out of the room to follow behind him, but by the time she hit the front porch, he was already pulling away from the house. His tires squealed as he pulled off down the street.
“Let him cool down,” Jones said from behind her. “He loves you, so he doesn’t know no other way to feel but jealous.”
“He has nothing to be jealous of, Daddy. I’m in and out of there as soon as I get the cash. I’m not feeling Britain. I have always loved Free. He should know that,” Six stated adamantly as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail while lines of worry creased her forehead.
“You sure about that?” Jones questioned as he took a seat on the couch. “The way you’ve been carrying on, I would have thought differently. Britain is a nice kid. I love him like a son, but you chose Free. I always told you to be sure before you pledged your allegiance to a nigga, because once a man give you his heart, you’re his. It takes a lot for a man to let go of what he thinks he’s entitled to.”
“I’m not asking Free to let go,” Six replied. She flopped down next to her father and rested her head on his shoulder.
“But you’re allowing Britain to hold on too. You’re being pulled in two different directions, baby girl.”
“It’s all an act, Daddy. Free just has to give me space. Britain is smart. If he even suspects that I still deal with Free, this entire thing will be over. Then what? We need this money. Free has to remember the plan and stick to it. After it’s all said and done, Britain is the one who ends up with the broken heart. Free has nothing to worry about.”
Jones patted the top of his daughter’s head. “If you ever feel like you can’t handle it, you call me. I know you’re in between a rock and a hard place right now, but your daddy will rock both of them li’l niggas to sleep if either of them step too far out of line. You be careful. Britain is more like his father than you realize. If he finds out about what you’re doing, things can get real ugly.”
“He won’t find out, Daddy; at least, not until I’m long gone. He wouldn’t hurt me anyway…you don’t know him like I do. I am the one who is going to hurt him; that’s what so fucked-up about it,” Six replied with a heavy heart.
Chapter Fourteen
Six stood in the mirror and applied mascara onto her lashes as she dolled herself up. She canceled her date with Britain so that she could surprise Free with a sexy little show. I have been neglecting Free, and I just want him to remember where ho
me is, she thought as she stepped back and looked at herself in the full-length mirror. She hadn’t been spending time with Free lately, and it seemed as if she was forgetting what the main objective was…and that was to rob Britain blind.
Six looked at her oiled up legs and smiled as she admired her six-inch stilettos she wore along with a red see-through lingerie piece. She smiled as she made sure her long curls were in place, which was Free’s favorite hairstyle of hers. Then she picked up the trench coat that she had on the bed and grabbed her night bag as she headed out of her father’s house.
“I will see you later, Daddy. Don’t wait up for me,” Six yelled as she headed out the door and made her way over to the apartment to surprise Free with a much-needed sexual escapade.
Free was in the motel’s bathroom, washing blood off his hands and face. He had just left Flint and managed to hit a former friend, Jimmy, for two bricks of cocaine and just over twenty thousand cash. Sparkle had once again set up a former customer of his, and the end result was a hustler being dead and Free being richer. That particular time, Lou wasn’t with them. He was in Saginaw scoping out another potential victim for them to set up next. Sparkle was in the room waiting for Free as he cleaned himself up before heading back home to Detroit.
Free walked out with his shirt off and a drying towel, wiping his hands. His body was tattooed up and his six-pack was on point, resembling a washboard. His jail sentence allowed him to work on his body, and it had paid off tremendously. He had a body of a model but the swagger of a street hustler; a perfect combination in Sparkle’s eyes.
“You about ready?” he asked as Sparkle counted the money on the bed.
“Yeah, I’m ready. There’s about twenty-one thousand dollars in here,” she said as she loaded the money back into the duffel bag, smiling.
“I tell you what. You keep the money. I will take the coke,” Free said, hoping that Sparkle would fall for it. He knew that the bricks were worth twenty-five thousand apiece on the street, and he would be getting the good end of the stick if he took the drugs rather than the money.