The Family Is Made (Part 1) (Thuggin In Miami)

by R. A. Robinson

  While everyone ordered their drinks, Kita leaned over and whispered in Skinny’s ear. “I feel new, baby.” Kita’s caramel complexion looked even more enticing under the neon lights.

  Patting Kita’s shoulder lovingly, Skinny smiled. “I know baby. Just stunt on these hoes.” She pointed to the girls now crowding around Lil’ B’s table. “That’s what this family do.”

  “Here’s your drinks,” the waitress said, placing a bottle down in front of each of them. Kita watched Lil’ B carefully and finally decided that there was only one way to figure all of this out: dive right in.

  “I’m gone chill with my nephew,” Kita said as she stood up. “I know them hoes off the chain.” Something about the club – the pheromones rising in the air, the dancing lights or music that vibrated through every bone – she couldn’t be sure which, had ignited something in her that she’d never known was there before now.

  Skinny smiled and stood as well. “Go head. I got to go to the bathroom.” Before leaving the V.I.P. section, Skinny shot a look back at Kita. She seemed to be doing much better after their little talk. Breaking in was hard, but Kita had what it took, of that, Skinny was certain. Seeing her, right now, only solidified that confidence.

  Walking down the hall that led to the bathrooms, Skinny heard a commotion coming from the women’s restroom. “Look here! You hoes let me get out this bathroom or its gone be on!” Funny, that voice sound a lot like Alicia’s…

  Skinny’s eyes rested on three girls crowded into the far corner of the restroom. They had their backs to her. Inside their little circle was another female, but Skinny couldn’t see the face around the heads of the small crowd.

  “Wuz up?” Skinny asked, standing directly behind the three girls. They turned away from the person they were crowding around, but still kept her hidden behind them. Looks ranging from anger to confusion and shock flooded each of their faces.

  If it hadn’t sounded like Alicia yelling a few moments ago, Skinny probably would have minded her own business, but she was certain that it had been Alicia. Her suspicions were quickly confirmed as Alicia poked her head around the girls to catch a glimpse of Skinny’s face. A loud laugh of relief escaped Alicia’s throat as she threw hear head back. “Sis, these’ hoes trying to jump me.”

  Calmly and without a word, Skinny reached into her purse and pulled out the two colt 45s . She aimed each one at one of the girls in the group. “Y’all hoes get naked,” she said as an evil grin pulled at the corners of her mouth.

  All three of the girls reacted in fear and shock. One pulled her hands up over her face, as if she could will Skinny and her guns to disappear. Another bounced her eyes wildly around the restroom, no doubt looking for help. The third jumped behind the second, looking as if she would cry. “Please don’t shoot us,” she whimpered, hanging onto the shoulders of the girl in front of her.

  Skinny’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “I ain’t trying to hear that shit!” She lifted the gun in her right hand in an upward motion and brought it back down, as if she were nudging the girls. “Now get like God sent you into the world.”

  Out of nowhere, Alicia brought her right fist across the side of the whimpering girl’s head. “You heard what she said, bitch!”

  Quickly, the girls started stripping down to nothing but bras, underwear and shoes. “Y’all done fucked with the wrong person tonight,” Skinny said, shaking her head. “Take it all off.” She waved the gun again.

  “And give me them heels,” Alicia said, shoving one of the girls right out of her shoes, smiling with gratification at the way her situation had turned around in her favor.

  With all three girls completely naked, Skinny stepped to the side, unblocking the exit to the bathroom. “Now get the fuck out,” she said, using the gun in her left hand to direct them out the door.

  Trying to cover their breasts with one hand and their crotches with the others, the girls ran out of the restroom. Skinny and Alicia followed them to the end of the hall and laughed as they watched the three women run out of the club completely naked.

  With their entertainment now over, Skinny turned to Alicia and said, “Come on, Sis,” as she led the way back to the V.I.P. room.

  Kita had watched the three naked, crying girls leave the club and then noticed that clothing in Skinny and Alicia’s hands as they walked into the V.I.P. room. “What was that all about?” Kita asked, putting two and two together as glanced towards the exit that the three women had run out of, just moments before.

  “Just some hating ass hoes,” Skinny answered nonchalantly. Alicia shot Skinny a questioning look, wondering who the new girl was. “Oh! This here’s your sister, Kita,” Skinny said, answering Alicia’s unspoken question before turning to Kita and saying, “This here’s your sister, Alicia.”

  “How she my sister?” Alicia asked.

  “It’s going to show in some time,” Skinny answered, smiling.

  Shrugging, Alicia extended her hand out to Kita. “Well, nice to meet you then,” she said, smiling.

  Tossing the clothes onto the ground next to their booth, Skinny and Alicia sat down and enjoyed the party. They had so much fun that four o’ clock in the morning came quickly.

  Stretching a little, Skinny looked over at Alicia. “Sis, how you getting home?”

  “I told my friends to leave ‘bout an hour ago, so I guess you taking me ‘cause they got my car,” Alicia answered with a yawn.

  “A’ight then. We bout to leave,” Skinny said before standing up and walking over to where Lil’ B sat, enjoying the company of two scantily clad strippers. Placing her hand on Lil’ B’s shoulder, Skinny leaned down and spoke into his ear. “Lil’ one, y’all go make sure everything straight outside before we leave.”

  Lil’ B nodded his head in agreement, “A’ight ma,” he answered, shooing the women away with his hands. With disappointed looks on their faces, the girls headed back out into the club. Standing up, he called over to Maybay and Ham. “Let’s go y’all!”

  The guys headed out to the parking lot and did a quick scan. Seeing no one, Lil’ B hopped into his Charger and turned it around so it was facing the street. Seeing no one worth worrying about, the men headed back inside to the fetch the women, but they had missed the car sitting across the street in the Walgreen’s parking lot.

  “They made me get naked and walk out the club baby,” sobbed the whining girl from the group of women who’d tried to jump Alicia.

  Her boyfriend looked over at her naked, shivering body and stroked her cheek softly with his thumb. “Don’t worry ‘bout it, baby. I’m gone handle this shit right here tonight, so stop crying.” He turned his gaze back towards the front door of the club. “They gone pay.” But he had missed Lil’ B’s trip to the Charger’s trunk.

  “You had fun, Wild Kat?” Skinny asked as she, Kita and Alicia walked through the club doors out into the parking lot.

  Kita wrinkled her nose at the nickname. She wasn’t so certain she liked it, but a smile quickly came to her lips as she answered Skinny’s question. “Hell yeah! I had a ball! But why I…”

  “Ma! Get down!” Lil’ B yelled, shoving Skinny, Alicia and Kita to the ground. He had been the first to see two men walking across Twenty-Seventh Ave, guns raised and ready.

  “What’s up now, pussy ass hoe!” the man yelled as he pulled the trigger, sending the first line of shots in The Family’s direction.

  Shots from Lil’ B’s AK47 rang above the women’s heads. Lil’ B stood and took both men down with one round.One of them died instantly, but the other wriggled on the ground, clenching his gushing side. He looked up to find Maybay looming over him, the barrel of a Mack 11 staring him in the face.

  “Still breathing, nigga?” Maybay asked.

  “Please….”

  Maybay aimed the gun directly in the man’s face, pulled the trigger and watched the brains of the begging man fly across the street. “Face off, mother fucker,” he said as he delivered on last kick to the now dead body.

 
As everyone ran towards the Chargers, Red came through the club doors into the lot yelling Skinny’s name. “Take this!” he said, tossing the security camera tape to her.

  “Come on y’all! Load up,” Skinny yelled, throwing the driver’s side door open to climb in. “Let’s hit it!” she yelled, just before slamming the door shut. She shoved the key into the ignition and the engine roared to life. Slamming the car into reverse, she backed out, leaving a cloud of burnt rubber behind.

  “Baby, I’m scared,” Kita cried as she watched Skinny toss the security tape under the driver’s seat with one hand while driving with the other. “I ain’t never been in a shootout before.”

  “Calm down, Kat,” Skinny said, placing her hand on Kita’s arm. She explained how the only witnesses were dead and that they had the security tape. “It shouldn’t have been like that, but this gone be your first secret,” she said, turning to meet Kita’s frightened gaze. “We gone see if you can hold water. If you do, you all in. If you don’t…,” Skinny pulled her arm away, turned her gaze out the driver’s side window and shrugged. Her tone dropped an octave as she finished her sentence.“Well, you know…” Then, without another word or even an expression for Kita to read, Skinny reached forward and turned the music up.

  Chapter 17

  Richard walked out of the shower and headed back towards his bunk, passing by Bam on his way. “Ay, fam.”

  Bam followed Richard back to their bunk. “You hear what everybody say happened at the Rolex night before last?” Bam asked.

  “Yeah,” Richard chuckled. “That some shit I would have done if a nigga would have made my girl get naked and walk out the club.” Richard tossed his wet towel over the edge of his bunk so it could dry and turned to face Bam’s shaking head.

  “Fam, I believe you would do that shit,” Bam grinned. “You ‘bout one crazy mother fucker.”

  Richard’s face turned contemplative as he stared back at Bam. He held his chin held in between his thumb and index finger. He was trying to think of a way that he could use Bam on his team. He’d proven himself time and again, and he could be a great asset to The Family. Raw niggas like that didn’t come around too often. That thought sparked another one. “Ay Fool,” Richard said finally breaking his silence. “I ain ‘t calling you Fool no more.” A smile played on Richard’s lips as he spoke. “I’m gone call you Raw from now on. How you like that?”

  Bam cocked his head to one side, as if he were listening to the name in his own head. “I like that,” he said, smiling. “I should have thought of that when I was a young nigga. That’s a hard ass name!” A crease formed on Bam’s brow. ”But why you changed it up all of a sudden?”

  “’Cause you keep it gutter,” Richard stated, matter-of-factly. “You don’t hold shit back. You give it to a nigga raw.”

  “That’s the only way to be! Niggas can’t sugar coat nothing in these streets.” He swatted the air with his hand. “If you do, the street’s gone come eat you like a black ant.”

  Richard nodded his head slowly, considering Bam’s analogy. He decided that he liked it. Then another thought popped into Richard’s head: a thought that would help him further test Bam’s trustworthiness with secrets. “Ay Raw, when Ms. Jackson come back to work?”

  “She should be here tonight. Why?”

  “Cause I want to ask her something.” Richard intentionally raised an eyebrow at Bam. “You know she went out with my girl them the other night, right?”

  “Damn,” Bam replied, shaking his head. “You aint’ tell me nothing ‘bout that.”

  “Yeah, I ain’t been thinking ‘bout that shit.” Now with the bait set, Richard moved on to other topics. “You know, I been calling my lawyer for the past two days?”

  “What he been talking ‘bout?”

  “He say he might have some good news for me when I go to court tomorrow,” Richard answered, although what that news could be was still a mystery to Richard.

  “Well, I hope he do, fam.” Bam smacked Richard’s upper back in brotherly love, a sympathetic expression on his face. “’Cause a good nigga like you shouldn’t be locked up ‘cause another nigga can’t do they time.”

  “Well, that’s the game,” Richard shrugged. “That mother fucker don’t love nobody.” His jaw set in steel as he thought about how he still had no idea who’d put him behind bars. But as quickly as the anger set in, it disappeared as he thought about how his time might almost be up. “If I jump though, just chill ‘cause I got you,” Richard told Bam. “Everything gone be a’ight. Trust me.”

  ***

  “Girl, I ain’t gone be in this mall all night,” Skinny said, tapping her foot in irritation as Kita stood in the doorway of yet another department store.

  “How you got all them clothes in your closet if you don’t like shopping?” Kita asked, pulling her attention away from the department store window.

  “Rich Kid know bitches that sell clothes.” Skinny flicked her wrist, dismissing the idea of spending so much money in a mall. “That’s how.”

  “Well,” Kita replied, furrowing her brow as she thought about how much she’d already spent on clothes. “You need to call them for me ‘cause that would save me money. I know they don’t charge no full price.”

  Kita reluctantly walked away from the department store entrance, resisting the urge to reap the rewards of the 25% off advertisement.

  A sigh of relief escaped Skinny’s lips as she caught up to Kita. “Trust me, I would. But when they kicked in our door--” she shoved one of the large glass doors to the mall and stepped out onto the entrance walkway, “--they took Rich Kid’s phone and that’s where all the numbers were at.”

  Kita stopped as they reached the curb of the mall walkway and looked around the large parking lot before turning to Skinny. “Where we parked at?”

  Skinny pointed over towards the fourth row marked with a big sign displaying the letter “D.” “Over there, I think.”

  Skinny’s stomach growled as Kita started loading her bags into the back of the Charger. “Girl, put that shit in there. You ain’t got to put it in there like you gone hurt them clothes,” she laughed.

  “What? You want me to throw them in?” Kita asked, voice dripping with sarcasm as she shot Skinny a look over her shoulder.

  “You good,” Skinny smiled and shrugged. “I’m just fucking with ya’.”

  With Kita’s bags now fully secured, Skinny tossed Kita the keys. Climbing into the passenger seat, Skinny looked over at Kita. “Let’s go get something to eat. I’m hungry as fuck.”

  Keys already in the ignition, Kita pulled the gear into drive. “Where you want to eat?” she asked before pressing on the gas pedal.

  “Go to Burger King.”

  Kita laughed. “Why you ain’t get that in the mall? They had a Burger King there.”

  “I ain’t trying to be in the mall all night,” Skinny shook her head. “Besides, if I would have ate there, you know you would have thought of another store to go in.”

  “We gone go eat inside?” Kita asked as she pulled the car into the Burger King parking lot. “I don’t like to drive and eat.”

  “It don’t matter,” Skinny said, flicking her wrist.

  Kita pulled into a parking space. After placing the car in park, Skinny reached in between Kita’s legs. Kita gasped with nervousness and shock. “I know you ain’t taking that in there.”Her forehead wrinkled with concern.

  Skinny tucked one of the 45s in her purse, and bobbled her head back and forth as she spoke. “Hell I ain’t! Watch me.” With that, she shoved the passenger side door open and headed for the restaurant’s entrance.

  “Why you always take that with you?”

  “Just a habit,” Skinny shrugged, pulling open one of the restaurant doors. “I can’t leave home without it.”

  After ordering their food, Kita followed Skinny over to a window booth and sat down. “Kat, you got a boyfriend?” Skinny asked, chewing on a bite of her hamburger.

  Kita stopped dipping
her french fry and looked across the table at Skinny. “I had one.” She placed her elbows on the table, her french fry suspended in mid-air. “Why? What took you so long to ask and does it matter?”

  Skinny shrugged, “’Cause I wanted to know.”

  “Well, now you know,” Kita replied, popping the soggy french fry into her mouth.

  Neither of them talked while they finished their food. Kita wondered why Skinny was all of a sudden interested in whether or not she was seeing anyone. Skinny was devising a plan in her head. Now finished with their food, they tossed their trash into one of the trashcans along the way and headed for the door.

  Kita and Skinny hadn’t really paid any attention to the guys coming into the restaurant as they were going out until one of them grabbed Skinny by the elbow. “Ay lil’ mamma,” he said, trying to pull Skinny closer. “Check this out.” A grin that was probably meant to be seductive, but ended up being more repulsive than anything, crossed his lips.

  Skinny’s ears turned hot, but she kept her composure. “Kat, I know this nigga ain’t just grab me.” Her tone remained cool, but it carried a deadly undertone. Only Kita noticed or cared.

  “Look, we got a man,” Kita said, her eyes bouncing from Skinny to the man who held Skinny’s arm. A chill ran down Kita’s spine as she thought of what might happen if he didn’t let go soon. “Please just leave us alone.”

  “She say that like they got the same nigga,” one of the other guys from the group said as he smacked the shoulder of the guy holding Skinny’s arm. “How can one nigga share both y’all?” he asked, turning his attention to Kita.

  “He can’t share shit.” Skinny yanked her arm away forcefully, and shoved the guy who had just been holding her arm. Using her shoulders to shove the men out of her way, Skinny pushed her way towards the door, pulling Kita along by the wrist as she went. “Now excuse us.”

  “Man, fuck them hoes,” said the man who had grabbed Skinny’s arm. He dismissed the girls with his arm and was the first to turn his back and walk towards the counter. The other two men followed. “Pussy ass hoes wanna act like that.”