by Erica Hilton
“I know it must be hard, Chanel, but if you ever need me, I’m here for you,” said Mecca.
“Thanks, Mecca. You always have been.”
Chanel didn’t leave Mecca’s place until late that night. As she was walking to her SUV, her cell phone rang, and it was Pyro calling her. At first, she didn’t want to answer, feeling it wasn’t right for Pyro to be calling her instead of Mecca, but she couldn’t resist.
“What’s up?” she answered.
“Where are you?” he asked her.
“I’m leaving your girlfriend’s place,” she said.
“You were at Mecca’s?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because she needed to talk. And you need to call her, Pyro,” she said.
“I will.”
“No—like right now.”
“I said I will,” he repeated sternly. “What did she need to talk to you about?”
“She’s worried about your relationship.”
“There’s nothing to worry about. I love her.”
“Like you love me too?”
“I love you both, but the way you make me feel, Chanel, it’s different. It’s special.”
She shook her head. “Pyro, we both should be worried. We have made love and now are in love and we also love others, your best friend and mine. It’s tongue twisting and mind bending. We’re lying, Pyro. We’re liars, and I’m starting to scare myself because it’s getting easier for me to deceive them. I lied in Mecca’s face and she had no clue. But the worst part is, I felt no guilt.”
“Chanel don’t ruin it, don’t ruin us. Together we’ll figure it out.”
“What does that mean?”
“Come home, Chanel. I wanna be with you tonight,” he said.
Chanel sighed again. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. It was supposed to be a onetime thing—a one-night stand. Now, they had developed strong feelings for each other and shit had become complicated. She didn’t want things between everyone to become complicated. Mateo was the love of her life, and Mecca was her best friend. It was that simple. Unfortunately, it wasn’t.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
You need to fix this, Mona. These New Jersey cops are so far up my ass, I’m starting to shit brass. I don’t know why they’re fuckin’ wit’ me, but I need this shit to go away. They got their killer, so why are they still investigating the fuckin’ murder? Who are these muthafuckas anyway? And now they wanna bring up this rape shit wit’ my sister, saying I had something to do with that? Fuck! Can you make these cops disappear?” Charlie rambled as she paced around Mona’s living room.
“Just calm down, Charlie,” Mona replied from her position on the couch.
“How can I calm down when these fools are fuckin’ wit’ me? I swear, these muthafuckin’ pigs—they need to get got!”
“I said calm down! Have a seat and calm the fuck down.”
Charlie had gone to Mona about her visit from the cops and she was a bit hysterical about them. In fact, she was a bit too hysterical for Mona’s taste.
“What did we tell you, Charlie? To keep your cool and keep your mouth shut, right?”
Charlie took a seat in a chair and said, “I didn’t tell them anything.”
“And you’re sure?”
“You ain’t gotta worry about me, Mona. I’m fuckin’ solid. I’m no fuckin’ snitch. I know a good thing when I see it, and this shit wit’ y’all is the best thing that ever happened to me. I’m makin’ money and all I wanna do is make money,” Charlie replied.
“Good.”
“So what now?” Charlie asked.
“What now? You just chill, keep a low profile, and let us handle it.”
“How?”
Mona shot a hard stare at Charlie. “You don’t need to worry about the how. Just know that things will be taken care of.”
Charlie wanted to believe her.
Mona already knew about the New Jersey case, but the New York rape case was news to her.
Mona went to her impromptu bar and poured Charlie a shot of tequila and told her to relax and have a drink. Charlie downed the tequila and wanted another shot.
“There’s nothing to fret over, Charlie. It’s fuckin’ New Jersey,” Mona said. “I’ll have some people look into the case and see what new developments there are.”
“I would appreciate that.”
Mona smiled. “Listen, we look out for our own. We won’t let you fall.”
Charlie smiled.
Mona started to roll up a blunt. She wanted Charlie to relax. However, Mona felt that Charlie was now becoming more of a liability than an asset. She needed to have a meeting with other members of the organization. They needed to make a decision.
***
Mona pulled up to the New Jersey warehouse at dusk and climbed out of her BMW. She had called a special meeting with the other eight members of the organization. She entered the warehouse and saw she was the last one to arrive. The other officers were there and waiting. Everyone took a seat at the round table to discuss Charlie’s future with them.
“She’s becoming a liability to us, and with everything that’s going on, can we afford the risk?” Mona asked them.
“What’s the alternative, Mona?” Captain Halstead asked her.
“The only alternative there is to this kind of situation,” Mona replied.
“So, you want us to have Charlie killed because of speculations against her right now?” Lieutenant Davis chimed.
“Can we afford to keep her around?” said Mona.
“She’s bringing in a lot of money,” Lieutenant Graham mentioned.
“More money than all the others combined, Mona. She’s profitable, smart, and she’s been loyal so far,” Sergeant Whyte added.
“But the investigation against her is heating up. She’s becoming nervous, maybe too nervous for my taste, and with nervousness always comes recklessness,” said Mona.
She continued to explain in detail what they were up against, especially if New Jersey decided to move forward with prosecuting Charlie.
“Are you sure it’s not paranoia on your end?” asked Sergeant Whyte.
“I’m just concerned,” she replied.
“As we should be,” replied Lieutenant Graham.
“Then we need to come to a vote,” Mona said.
Before Ahbou’s death, there were ten members. If their vote was tied 5-to-5, then it would be the call of the founding member who had vouched for that person. Now there were only nine of them, so there would be no ties.
The process started, and the count was eight against one. Mona was the only person who wanted Charlie dead. The others decided to give her a stay of execution.
Ironically, Mona, the only female and supposed friend of Charlie, voted to murder her—yet, the remaining eight men didn’t see it her way. Mona knew that if Charlie wasn’t so uniquely beautiful and profitable for them, then she would have been a dead bitch.
“Fine. She lives.” Mona removed herself from the table, bit her tongue, and made her exit from the warehouse.
She didn’t like their decision and felt it was going to come back to bite them.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
April
The sun was brighter than it had been in months. Winter was finally over. The spring breeze was gentle and the days were longer. It was goodbye to the snow and ice, the slush and the cold. The trees and flowers were blossoming, and things were changing with Chanel and Pyro. Today was a new day for Chanel, an exciting day. Mateo was being released from the facility.
Finally! Chanel was over-the-moon excited.
Pyro sat in the living room waiting for Chanel. He wanted to have a talk with her before she left to pick Mateo up. Something was bothering him, and he couldn’t shake it.
Mateo woul
d be released from the facility in a few hours, and his expenses totaled in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. But Pyro felt it was worth it. Mateo was healthy and alive, and the last thing Pyro wanted was drama with his partner.
Pyro assumed Chanel was going to tell Mateo the truth about them. It was a daunting thought. He felt that they should tell Mateo together. He wanted Mateo to understand that it wasn’t planned—that things just happened with Chanel. He wasn’t a predator. He wasn’t trying to stab his friend in the back and fuck his girl. No. He wanted to explain to Mateo that he loved Chanel too. Deeply. He was tired of sneaking around, but he wanted Mateo to be fully healthy when the truth about them came out.
Chanel came out of her bedroom looking stunning in a blue spring dress and heels. Her hair was long and flowing, and she looked radiant this morning. She was all smiles and in a very good mood. She looked at Pyro and said to him, “Ohmygod, I’m so nervous right now.”
“Why?”
“I mean, it’s been months—nearly a year since it happened, and finally, he’s coming back to me a healthy and whole man. I can’t wait to walk with him out of that facility,” she said.
“I’m excited too.”
Pyro’s eyes lingered on Chanel’s sexiness and her curvy figure. She was alluring, and the only thing he could think about was being with her again. It almost felt as if Mateo’s coming home was a problem for him.
“Do you want me to come with you?” he asked her.
“No. I’m fine, Pyro. I can pick Mateo up alone. And I want to have some quality time with him so we can talk,” she said.
“Chanel, before you leave. Can we talk?”
“Yeah. Of course,” she replied.
“Look, I wanted to be there with you when you tell Mateo about us.”
Chanel looked surprised by his words. “About us? Are you serious? No. I don’t plan on telling him about us, Pyro.”
“I thought you wanted to.”
“And why would I do that?”
“I just thought that with him coming back to you that you may not want to keep any secrets from him.”
“Like you’ve come clean to Mecca?”
Pyro smirked. “I just figured you’d want transparency, that’s all.”
“Pyro, I don’t ever plan on ever telling Mateo about us. Never. I love him too much to hurt him like that. And I want to be with him. So no, there will be no confession. What we had together will stay between us. I plan on taking our secret to my grave and I hope you feel the same way.” Chanel was annoyed that Pyro was trying to control how she handled her business with her man.
The revelation floored him.
Pyro was in love with Chanel and he thought that she was in love with him too. In fact, he felt that if it came to it, he would leave Mecca for her and she would follow suit and leave Mateo for him.
“So, are we good, Pyro? You’re not going to feel some kind of way with me and Mateo?” she asked him.
“Yeah, I’m good. I just wanted to clear some things up,” he replied, masking the hurt and disappointment he was feeling.
“Good. Because I don’t want any trouble with us or Mateo. I love you, but I love Mateo so much more. If you understand what I’m saying.”
“I do, Chanel. I’m with Mecca and you’re with Mateo. Let’s keep things simple like that.”
She smiled. “Thanks.”
Before she left, she gave him a kiss on his cheek.
Pyro was heartbroken. He had to pull himself together.
***
Mateo had made a full recovery, and he had Chanel and Pyro to thank for that, the two people he loved the most. Pyro had paid for everything and taken good care of his fiancée. From what Pyro had told him, he had murdered Fingers in cold blood for him too.
Mateo was escorted out of the rehabilitation facility in a wheelchair, but outside, he was able to walk to the Range Rover without any difficulty. Chanel was proud of him. She hugged him lovingly and they kissed for what seemed like forever. Her arms stayed around him like it would kill her to let him go. Today, they would finally be moving into the condo he had bought for them.
He was looking good and he was feeling good. His barber came to the rehabilitation center earlier and gave Mateo a fresh haircut with the Patriots logo. His favorite team. The team logo also showcased where the bullet went in. His hair wouldn’t be able to grow back in that spot.
Along with his haircut, Mateo had new clothes and shoes. Pyro had called him and said, “Yo, I can’t have my bro leaving that place looking like a bum. Nigga, you gonna be fresh out the door.”
Mateo was grateful.
Chanel continued to shower him with kisses from the time he left the center, to the SUV, and even while she was driving. She would come to a stop at a red light and she couldn’t help herself. She would lean toward him and kiss him at random moments. Her eyes were bright and smiling.
“I missed you,” she said.
“I missed you too.”
She held his hand and continued to drive to the address Mateo had given her. It was hard for her to focus on the road because all she wanted to do was stare at him. He looked so cute with his fresh haircut and new clothes. He was talkative and joyful. Her man had even gained some of his weight back since the shooting.
“I promise you, baby, I’m gonna get back on my feet again.”
“I know you are.”
“I owe you and Pyro a lot—too much—and it’s time to get back out here and repay what I owe.”
“Baby, you don’t owe me anything.”
“Yeah, I do. If it wasn’t for y’all, I wouldn’t be here today,” he said.
“We did it because we love you.”
“I know.”
They soon arrived at a fancy glass high-rise in the Bronx.
Chanel’s eyes scanned the area. “What’s this?”
“This is ours. I bought this condo for us to live in after we were married. I hope you like it.”
“You had this for us all along? You’re so sneaky and I love it!” she squealed.
Mateo grinned. Her enthusiasm was infectious.
The condo was in an area away from everything—from a harsh past to a new beginning and a bright future. They were starting over, and Chanel didn’t want to look back. Excited, she and Mateo approached the front door hand-in-hand with the condo keys.
They walked into a fully furnished, three-bedroom condominium apartment with two and a half baths and a small laundry room. The décor with the leather furniture, the artwork, the television mounted on the wall, the parquet flooring with the sprawling area rug, it all blew Chanel away. Her man was everything.
“Wow. It’s amazing,” she complimented.
“Thanks. I hired an interior decorator to help blend my masculine taste and your femininity.”
“They did a great job, babe,” she said.
He grinned.
“Why so many rooms? I mean, it’s just us.”
Mateo walked up and hugged Chanel from behind. “For now one is an office that I can use for business and you could use once you enroll in college. The other is a guestroom, and eventually we can convert it to a nursery. This apartment is an investment, so the more rooms, the more marketable it will be should we put it up for sale.”
“That’s my money man.” Chanel beamed. “Always thinking smart.”
“Definitely. And speaking of money, I’ve been down for too long and I need to get back out here and start making this money. I need to pay Pyro back and take care of you.”
“I’m good, baby. As long as I have you next to me, I don’t need anything else,” she said.
“Nah. You held me down while I was fucked up and in physical therapy. You kept me motivated. I want nothing but the best for you.”
“And I want the best for you. That’s why I want you to ta
ke it easy, Mateo. Don’t go out there and kill yourself trying to play catch-up.”
“I’m not. But I need to start making things happen again.”
“I know.”
“It’s time to start making things right, and I need to start that with you, baby.”
“What you mean?”
“I mean this.” He got down on one knee in front of her. “I want you to marry me.”
She grinned. “What?”
“I want you to marry me, Chanel. And I know I don’t have a replacement ring to present to you right now, but best believe I’m gonna get you one twice the size of the first one.”
She stood there looking down at him, her eyes matching the smile on her face.
“But here,” he said. He tied a piece of red string around her ring finger. “Let’s this do for now—until I can brighten that finger up with a big-ass stone.”
She continued to grin. “Baby, you don’t have to do all that.”
“I want to. You’re my woman and I love you.”
Those words and the way he said them with meaning and confidence made Chanel melt inside. But it also made her feel extremely guilty. Life was so strange with its unpredictability. Mateo was first in line for Chanel’s virtue, but he would end up being lucky number three.
Chapter Forty
Charlie kept her promise to herself. She wanted to see the damage she had created firsthand. It was a warm spring day with a bright sun shining down on the city when she entered the courthouse. She took a seat front and center inside the courtroom while Elandy Slogenberg, AKA Landy, stood stoically in front of the judge to plead guilty to drug distribution. Standing next to her was her attorney, Michael Bernstein, a middle-aged white male with bushy hair and a shabby suit. He looked like he had seen better days and was working on little sleep.
Charlie sneered. If that’s the fool representing Landy, then she is doomed. She loved it.
Even though it was Landy’s first offense and she was an honor student, the prosecutor wanted to make an example out of her. Prior to his death, Ahbou had worked with the ADA and convinced Landy’s inexperienced attorney that she was a real menace to society operating a major drug ring throughout the projects.