Codeine and Fully Automatics

by Ghost

  Toya jumped and pulled Shantê with her. “Boy what the fuck is you doing. Put that damn thang away before you hurt somebody!” Toya yelled.

  Shantê yanked her hand from her mom's grasp and ran into my apartment, leaving her mother to fend for herself. She hugged my waist. “Daddy. Daddy. I missed you. I don’t want to live wit my mama no more. Its boring, and she don’t buy me nothin.” She hugged me tighter and looked up at me with watery eyes.

  I lowered my gun and rubbed her back. “Its okay baby. We’ll figure it out, don’t worry okay?”

  She nodded. “Okay. But can I stay here wit you tonight?”

  Toya brushed past me and stepped into the house. “I just got evicted. We ain’t got nowhere to go, so I don’t know what to tell you.” She walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Toya took out an Apple juice and popped the top. Drinking it, staring at me.

  I closed the door and locked it. After sliding the gun into the small of my back, I knelt in front of Shantê. “Baby, go in the back to daddy’s room and get your I-pad. Play on it for a little while so me and mommy can talk. Make sure you close the door. Okay?”

  She nodded, and then motioned with her finger for me to bend down. As soon as I did, she kissed my cheek. “I love you daddy. Please don’t let mommy take me back to that house no more.”

  “Shantê get your ass into the back room! You’re only eight years old. You do as you’re told!” Toya snapped stepping toward her.

  “Okay!” Shantê, jumped in fear and rushed toward the back room. She got inside and slammed the door. I could hear my baby crying through it. That pissed me off.

  “Look Toya I don’t know what you been doing to my baby, but you ain’t finna be acting like you finna beat her or something. Clearly you got a lot going on at your place or she wouldn’t be acting like that. Now how the fuck did you get evicted?”

  She shrugged her shoulders, stepped into the living room and plopped on the couch with her head down. “I missed a few rent payments. Shit been kind of tight, and I just ain’t had the money. That’s the truth.”

  Toya was dark skinned with micro braids in her hair that fell just below her shoulders. She was about five feet three inches tall, a hundred and thirty pounds. Facially gorgeous. I’d met her in Orange Mound eleven years prior and it had been lust at first sight. We’d tried the relationship thing, but it didn’t work. I was a street nigga at heart, and I loved pussy way too much to be tied down to one female. I just couldn’t see it.

  Irritated, I sat on the couch across from her. “What’s up with that fool Bryon? I thought y’all was going strong?” Bryon had been her boyfriend for the last two years. He was one of those good dudes. That nigga had a nine to five working as a mechanic and all that good stuff.

  “Me and Byron ain’t talking no more. He back to messing wit one of his exes and I ain’t about to play second fiddle to no bitch. I gotta be number one. But anyway, I need you to cop us a new apartment like a-sap and until then we gon stay right here with you. Deal wit it.” She rolled her eyes.

  “What make you think I got that kind of paper shawty?”

  Toya laughed. “Phoenix stop playing wit me. Nigga I know you holding. All you do is trap. You and that fool Mikey. Y’all name ringing through the Mound like crazy. Aw you got it.” She took another long swallow of the apple juice.

  I mugged her and shook my head. “We about to be twenty-five soon Toya. When you gon get yo shit together?” I stood up and headed down the hallway. Placed my hand on the door to my bedroom.

  Toya followed. “First of all, you making it seem like you’re feeling some type of way because I brought me and our daughter here. We ain’t got nowhere else to go. Secondly, I shouldn’t have to raise her on my own no way. You out here doing all this fuckin hustling and we still living in the got damn projects. So, if anybody needs to grow up its you.” She spat. Her chest heaved up and down as if she was close to being out of breath. That was one of the reasons me and Toya couldn’t be together. Her mouth and attitude was bogus. She knew how to hit all my buttons without really trying. While I cared about her because of my daughter, I had to take her in short doses. My temper was too horrible.

  I turned around to face her. “Toya, there you go wit that slick ass mouth. Every time somebody say something to you, you got a habit of popping off at the tongue. If you gotta stay in my shit for a few weeks that ain’t gon happen, or else I’m gon smack you in that mafucka. On every thang.”

  She smacked her lips. “Nigga please. You smack me and I’ma make you use that gun in the small of yo back, homeboy. I don’t know what the fuck you think this is, but it ain’t sweet.” She frowned. Her upper row of teeth were capped with open faced golds.

  “Look shawty, I ain’t got no problem whooping yo ass. Just cause I ain’t did it yet don’t mean that I won’t. I don’t be letting hoes talk that bullshit to me. Straight up.”

  “I ain’t no ho. You can stop that shit right now. I got yo muthafuckin daughter. That alone should make you refrain from calling me out of my name. Now respect me in honor of her at the very least.” She mugged me.

  I wanted to get at her but decided to let her have the argument, besides she was right to a certain extent. When I looked at her it was a must that I saw Shantê as well. “Well shawty you ain’t staying here. I’ma about to get you right. Go sit yo ass down in the living room and I’ll be in there in a minute. How much bread you think you need?”

  She softened. “I don’t know, a couple bands maybe. Whatever you can stand really.” Toya attempted to give me her most winning smile. I wanted to muff her ass.

  “Aiight, I’ma see what I got in here, and get at you in a minute. Gon chill on the couch.” She walked off, and I stepped into my bedroom, and locked the door.

  Shantê lay on her stomach playing Fortnite on her I-pad. When she heard the door close, she paused it and looked back at me. “Daddy you not about to make me go with her, again are you?”

  I shook my head. “Nall baby you’re good. I just gotta grab your mother a few pennies so she can get you guys another place to live. You ain’t going nowhere tonight though. I promise.”

  “O-kay.” She looked sad. “But do I gotta go somewhere tomorrow wit her? Daddy, I don’t like Bryon. He’s so mean, and his whooping hurt too bad. He give me marks.”

  I was on my knees in the closet with a Jordan shoe box in front of me. Inside of it was ten thousand dollars. It was all I had to my name. At the mention of a grown ass man whooping my daughter I stopped, almost stuck in time. “What did you just say Shantê?”

  “I said he whoop me too hard. It hurts. Plus, I got these things on my back that I saw in my mommy’s tall mirror. They burn.” She sat up and lowered her head.

  I dropped the money back into the shoe box and stood up. “Baby hold your arms above your head. I’m about to take your shirt off so I can see your back.”

  “Okay.” She got out of the bed, lifted her arms, and allowed for me to pull her shirt over her head. As soon as I saw the purple welts across her back, my vision went hazy. I started to shake. “Do you see them daddy?”

  Across Shantê’s back were reddish purple welts. About twenty of them. “Who did this to you baby? Did mommy do this?”

  She shook her head. “No, mommy just smack me, then Bryon whooped me for a long long time with my clothes off. He’s so mean daddy. I was crying for you, and he beat me harder. He said he my daddy and to shut up. She hugged my waist. “He hurt me so bad daddy.” Now she was in full on tears and sobbing loudly.

  I was so mad that all I could see was murder. “Baby, I promise you that Bryon will never put his hands on you ever again. In fact, you will never see him ever. I promise this to you. Do you hear me?” I knelt in front of Shante. Brushed her hair out of her face, then wiped away her tears with my thumbs.

  She nodded. “Daddy, why are you shaking?”

  That only made it worst. “I’m okay baby. I need you to get in the bed and play your game. Later, I’m going to
take you over cousin Kamaya’s house. Alright?”

  She smiled. “I love her.” She jumped into the bed and grabbed her IPad.

  I counted out three gees and rolled it into a knot. A few minutes later I left the bedroom and stepped in front of Toya who was sitting on my white leather couch texting away on her phone. “Huh bitch.” I took the bundle of money and threw it into her face as hard as I could. The money seemed to explode. It landed all over the living room.

  She jerked her head back, covered her face with her hands, and dropped her phone. “What the fuck is wrong with you Phoenix?”

  I grabbed a handful of her hair and threw her ass to the floor. “Punk ass bitch, you got some nigga putting his hands on my daughter!” She was about to say something, but I slapped her across the face, knocking her back to the floor.

  She struggled to get up, came to her knees and held her mouth. “That’s why I left his ass. Damn. You ain’t got no right to be putting your hands on me Phoenix. You split my lip.”

  “Bitch.” I grabbed her throat before she could retreat. Still enraged, I picked her up and held her against the wall. Her little feet kicked wildly while I choked her tighter and tighter. Then I dropped her to the floor like a rag doll.

  Toya began to cough, crawling across the floor. She hawked and spit on the carpet. “I hate you Phoenix. I hate your fucking guts. You know I would never let nobody touch our daughter.”

  “Stand up bitch. Look me in my eye and tell me that shit. Tell me how long you been letting dude’s bitch ass put his hands on my shawty? You better tell me before I go back in that room and ask my baby this same question, and bitch if she tell me anything that’s the wrong thing, I’m finna slay you right here and right now. I pulled the gun out of the small of my back and cocked it, dead set on murdering my baby mother.

  Toya held her throat and came to her feet, staggered, and breathed ruggedly. “He only beat her like four times. That’s it. He be working so hard at that damn auto shop and sometimes Shantê can be so whiney. When he tell her to shut up, she always telling him that he ain’t her father. That gets annoying.”

  I lost it and wound up slamming Toya against the wall so hard that she wound up putting a big ass dent inside of it. The plaster spilled onto the carpet. White smoke billowed into the air, choking us both. I coughed. “He ain’t her muthafuckin daddy. And he ain’t got no rights putting his filthy hands in my baby. She eight.” I tightened my grip. “Where he at right now?”

  Toya slapped at my hand, until I let her go. She sucked in a gasp of air. Coughing. Spitting on the carpet once again. “I’m sorry Phoenix. Don’t choke me no more. Please.” More coughing. “That nigga at work. He don’t get off until eight o’clock tonight.” She held her throat and swallowed.

  I mugged her for a long time. “You finna roll out wit me to his crib and I’ma show you what happens to grown ass men that beat little girls. Especially when it’s my little girl. Pick up that money and let’s go.”

  I watched my baby mama crawl around on the floor, collecting one-hundred-dollar bill after the next. “Just let it go Phoenix. You don’t need to go over there and do nothin to him. I already left his ass alone. He’ll never hurt her again. Trust me.” She gathered the last bill and stood up with tears sailing down her cheeks. Even though me and her weren’t together I hated to see my baby mother cry. I know it didn’t seem like it when I was choking her ass out over my daughter, but it was the truth.

  “Toya, that shit ain’t up to you no more. Its up to me. He put his hands on the wrong lil girl, now he gotta lay for that shit. That’s how that’s gone go. Now come on. I’ma drop Shantê off at Kamaya’s crib and me and you about to go and handle this bidness.” I grabbed her arm and pushed her toward the front door, just as there were four knocks that sounded upon it.

  I quickly moved Toya out the way. “Who is it?” I hollered with a mug on my face.

  “Its Kamya cuz. I need to holler at you about something important.”

  I smiled before opening the door to reveal all five feet four inches of my redbone cousin. She was my father’s brother’s daughter. Her mother was Italian. Kamya's long, jet black, curly hair, fell past her waist. Her eyes were light brown. She was slim up top, and down low she as built like a southern sista. Out of all my family Kamya was my favorite relative. We were closer than two fat chicks in a small elevator. I looked down to Toya. “Shid this even better. Kamya I need you to watch my daughter while me and Toya go handle this bidness. When I get back then me and you can holler. Aiight?”

  She nodded. “You gon like the news I got too. Gimme my hug.” She stepped into the house and wrapped her lil arms around my neck, kissing my cheek. Cuz smelled like Prada. Everything Kamya rocked was Prada. It had been that way since we were thirteen years old.

  I broke our embrace and grabbed Toya’s hand leading her out of the house. “Let’s go shawty. Now.”

  Chapter 3

  We were parked a half of block away from Bryon’s crib. We had been there for two hours with Meek Mill’s Championship’s playing out of the speakers of my Dodge Durango. Toya sat in the passenger’s seat shaking like an earthquake. She glanced down the block over and over, then she’d stop and shake her head. “Man, I don’t wanna do this Phoenix. If you fuck wit this dude its gon cause a world of trouble for us. He might not be in the streets, but he got six brothers that roll hard in Black Haven. They bout that life. I don’t want nothin to happen to my baby daddy. You’re all that me and Shantê have.”

  Just hearing her put so much power and fear into Bryon was pissing me off. I didn’t like the fact that she appeared to be more afraid of what the back lash would be from what I was getting ready to do to him, instead of what he’d already done to my daughter. That was annoying to say the least. “Listen to me Toya. I don’t give a fuck about dude, or his punk ass brothers out of Black Haven. He put his hands on my daughter. She got welts and all kind of shit all over her back from this grown ass nigga. I ain’t finna let that shit ride. She’s just a baby.”

  “She’s eight Phoenix. Damn. And her mouth is too smart to be eight. Now she didn’t deserve what he did to her, but maybe you need to talk to her about how she talk to adults and we wouldn’t be in this mess. She don’t listen to nobody but you. That’s her problem.” Toya said all of this with her body pressed against the passenger’s door. She must have known that every word that she uttered pissed me off more and more. By the time she finished my heart was pounding, I wanted to snatch her black ass up.

  I slid my leather gloves onto my hands and took the pistol from under my seat and put it on to my waist. “Nall that’s you and his problem. Now bring yo ass on.” I opened the door to my truck, got out and slammed it back, just as she did the same on the other side.

  Toya lowered her head and took a deep breath. “You be doing too much Phoenix. Look at all these people out here. You don’t think they gone remember us?” She said this with the sun shining from her forehead. It felt like it was close to a hundred degrees. There was a slight breeze, but it did very little to shelter one from the mounting humidity.

  Looking around there were plenty people out on their porches already. Some were setting up barbecue grills. Others were watering their grass. A few were washing their cars. There were a group of six little girls that were jumping double Dutch just off the sidewalk. They were singing some nursery rhyme in time with their jumping. To my left was a group of young niggas. They were about eight deeps, all smoking on one thin ass blunt. I sized them up quickly and brushed their threat off. I had seventeen shots in my Glock. If need be, I would have used a bullet for each one of them, and still been left with nine. Out if the whole block they were the only threats I really saw, and if they were sharing a blunt between the eight if them, that meant they were broke in my eyes, and more then likely shared one pistol. Memphis was transparent like that.

  I’d never saw Toya walk as slow as she did, getting to Bryon’s house. We made it up his driveway. There was a rusty old pickup tru
ck in it with an engine in the back. We got to the side of the house, and Toya stood there looking at me like I was stupid. Sweat slid down the side of her face.

  “Shawty what you waiting on? I know you got a key to this bitch. Let’s go.” I urged looking over my shoulder. The neighborhood appeared to be going on about its business. More people were coming outside from what I could tell. That worried me some because I had plans on popping Bryon. I was gonna make sure that he never put his hands on my daughter again.

  Toya pulled the keys out of her pocket and stepped up to the door. “Let me appeal to you one more time Phoenix. Please don’t do this. He ain’t mean to do what he did. I promise he won’t ever do it again.” Her bottom lip quivered.

  I stepped up to the door and leaned into her face. “Toya, you testing my patience right now. Open that muthafuckin door and let me handle my bidness before I fuck you up first. Open the damn door, or I’ma kick that bitch in.” I growled, getting more heated by the minute.

  She sighed, and placed the key inside of the lock, then opened it. As soon as I saw it leave the door jamb, I pushed it all the way in and pulled out the Glock. I grabbed her and yanked her inside of the house as well. It smelled like bacon. I could hear something frying close by and I surmised that it was probably just that.

  Grabbing Toya by the shirt, I made my way toward the kitchen with my gun leading the way. His house was mostly empty, as if he’d just moved in. Tori Lanez was bellowing from the speakers somewhere in the distance. I made my way closer and closer to the kitchen. When I was about twenty feet away, I could hear what sounded like a male voice singing along to the song. I let go of Toya and held my finger to my lips, motioning for her to get behind me. She followed my orders and covered her mouth. Five steps away. Then four. Three. The heavy scent of bacon filled my nostrils. Toya stopped short and crouched down in the hallway. Tears were in her eyes again. She must have known what I was about to be on.