Tiffany, Alexus, April and Portia drove back to the city in trucks loaded to the max with bricks of cocaine. On each return trip from scoring coke, Tiffany would be nervous as hell. Both trucks had approximately 150 kilos in them, more than enough to get the fed’s attention if they were to be arrested for drug trafficking. That was something Tiffany wanted to avoid by any means necessary.
“Slow down, Lex.” Tiffany told Alexus as they drove down the highway. “Make sure you use ya turn signals if you changing lanes.”
“Tiffany, chill. I got this. Every time we come back from Noemi’s you get paranoid. I made this run like 100 times now.” Alexus responded.
Alexus had a point. The very first time she and Tiffany made that run, Tiffany was so nervous driving back; she pulled over on the highway and told Alexus to drive. Since then, Alexus was the appointed driver. She was always on point with the speed limit, turn signals and the State Troopers posted along the highway. She even made sure her seat belt was on at all times to avoid being pulled over for the smallest thing.
These were the precautionary steps they had to take in order to ensure that the cocaine would successfully make it back to the city, and everyone would stay out of jail. April, the driver of the other truck took the same precautions, and within an hour, both trucks and all four women were back in the city, safe and sound. Now, the only thing left to do was divide and package up the cocaine for the streets.
“It’s gonna take about a week to furnish the place, but I don’t wanna waste any time.” Gwen said to Diamond as they drove.
“Did you talk to Auntie yet?” Diamond asked.
“Yeah, I’m supposed to be meeting up with her sometime in the next few days. We got enough dope to last us until then, plus Tiffany went to see Noemi today so we should be straight.”
Gwen handled so much drugs that she had to share the responsibility throughout the crew. Tiffany and Alexus were in charge of the cocaine aspect, while Gwen and Diamond took care of the more profitable drug, heroin. Heroin was the reason MHB had to find a way to rinse the money in order to spend it the way they wanted.
In the middle of their conversation, Gwen’s phone began to ring. She reached in her bag to grab it, and then looked at the screen to see that the number was unavailable. Gwen sent it right to voicemail, not wanting to answer a blocked number.
That didn’t stop the caller from trying again, this time with an unfamiliar number popping up on the screen.
“Yo!” Gwen answered.
“Hi, dis Larry down at Larry’s Bar & Grill.”
“Oh, hey Larry.” Gwen said, surprised to get a call from him.
Larry’s was the local bar that just about everybody went to, even Gwen. She just never knew the phone number to the establishment.
“Yeah, I got Chad down here. He passed out in the middle of my floor. It was a wonder he could give me this number to call.” Larry said, looking over at Chad who was still lying on the floor.
“Alright, Larry. I’ll be there in like twenty minutes.” Gwen assured him before hanging up.
“Is everything cool?” Diamond asked, hearing Gwen exhale in frustration.
“Yeah, everything’s good. Take me to Larry’s.’’ she said, shaking her head while looking out the window.
Gwen explained the situation to Diamond on their way to Larry’s. Gwen was getting fed up with Chad doing dumb shit. It’s been over a year since Zion’s death, and he was still in his grieving stage like it happened yesterday. The way he was acting and keeping Zion’s death fresh was making it hard for Gwen to let go. Every time she turned around, Chad was into something, and every time she tried to help, he would snap.
When they finally pulled up to Larry’s, Chad had made it to his feet and was stumbling out of the bar. Diamond started to get out of the car, but Gwen stuck her hand out and stopped her. She had seen something that Diamond didn’t see, which was a gun sagging in Chad’s front pocket. She didn’t want Chad to start acting stupid and mess around and start shooting.
“Just wait here. Let me take care of this.” Gwen said, stepping out of the car.
Chad was wasted. He couldn’t even walk, but he did manage to find his gun. He rested his hand on the butt of it while he struggled to lean against the wall. Gwen advanced towards him with caution, not certain if she could end up being a target herself.
“Chad!” she yelled as she walked up on him.
He pulled his head up, which seemed to weigh a ton, and tried to adjust his eyes to see who was calling his name. Gwen had to get within a couple feet of him for Chad to recognize who it was. He took his hand off his gun and reached out for Gwen like a child to his mother
“My… My son,” he struggled to get out through his slurred speech. “I want my… my boy.
Gwen got under his arm to hold him up and walk him over to the car. He was heavy as hell. He leaned on Gwen so hard, one of her heels snapped, almost causing both of them to fall. Seeing that Gwen had grabbed the gun from out of his pocket, Diamond got out of the car to help.
The whole way to the car, Chad cried, thinking about his son, calling out Zion’s name in the process. Gwen hated this exact thing. Hearing Zion’s name called out like that brought tears to her eyes as well. How could she not think about Zion at times like this? Her mind traveled back to earlier that year when she had done the hardest thing any parent could ever do and that was to pick out the casket and clothes for their child.
“We have here the deluxe edition, this is considered the Cadillac of caskets. It includes everything one can have—”
“I’ll take it,” Gwen answered, cutting the funeral director off from his sales pitch.
She had been crying so much throughout the day, starting with picking out a three-piece navy blue polo suit for Zion to be buried in, that she had no more tears left to shed. She had put off the arrangements for as long as possible, but Zion’s funeral was set for the next day. It was to be a closed ceremony, strictly with her and Chad. Because everyone had suffered and grieved so much during his hospital stay, she and Chad had agreed that it would be better to spare themselves and their family and friends more heartache with a long ceremony. Gwen had asked the funeral home to take care of all the arrangements, which was why she was unsure why the director was still trying to sell her something. She had only come by today to drop the suit off.
Before she was about to leave, the mortician came out and stopped her at the door. “The suit fits him perfectly, would you like to see?” She asked, while holding her hand out into the direction of the small room.
Gwen’s first instinct was to decline, but she knew she was going to have to prepare herself for tomorrow, so she figured it best to get it over with.
When Gwen stepped in the room and saw Zion laying on the metal tabletop, she wished she had followed her first instinct. Even the beautiful way the suit hung on Zion’s body, couldn’t mask the death and paleness of his frame. It looked like he had white makeup all over his face and hands. Gwen’s thoughts that maybe she had cried out all of her tears where incorrect, because they were now flowing freely down her face. Her legs became weak, as her head began to spin.
The next sight that she had was the bright lights on the ceiling. It was shining directly in her face, because she was now lying on the floor. She was unsure how she had got there, but the mortician and funeral director were trying to help her up. At that moment, Gwen knew she had done the right thing to have a closed ceremony, because it was no way her and Chad would make it through a funeral.
“Everything’s gonna be all right, Chad.” Gwen tried to comfort him as she laid Chad down in the back seat.
The moment his body hit the leather seats, Chad went out like a light. He was out of it.
“I broke my damn heel!” Gwen said as she slammed the back door. “I paid 1,200.00 for these shoes,” she said, looking down at her feet. Out of anger, she slammed her other heel on the ground, breaking it off and turning her shoes into
flats.
Diamond knew that Gwen was pissed off, so she didn’t even try to say anything. She just watched as Gwen stormed around to the passenger side and got in the car. Diamond did the same, and pulled off while bystanders looked on.
Chapter 5
“Dis shit better not hurt, Niya.” Melissa said, taking a seat in the chair.
Big Trina stood by the cell door to make sure the police didn’t walk in and catch them. Margret, the jailhouse tattoo artist prepared her homemade gun and checked her ink level. Today was Melissa’s big day. She was officially becoming MHB, only the third to do so in the entire jail over the past year and a half.
“So, where do you want it?” Margret asked, with the tattoo gun in her hand.
This was Melissa’s first tattoo, so she really didn’t know what the best and worst spots were. The letters had to be at least three and a half to four inches long in bold. Melissa’s choice, surprisingly.
“I want it running down my side.” Melissa said, lifting her t-shirt up over her head.
Big Trina and Margret both looked at Niya, knowing that the side was one of the tenderest places to get a tattoo. They all remembered how much pain Niya went through when she got a picture of a tiger growling on her right side. It took over eight hours to do it and Niya cried almost half of the time.
“You might wanna rethink that.” Niya said, leaning back on her bunk. “Those side tattoos hurt like hell, girl.”
Melissa thought about it for a minute, and then she made a decision that surprised everyone. “The pain from this tattoo is only gonna hurt for a little while, but the love I’ma receive from being MHB will last forever.” she said, looking over at Niya.
The whole room was quiet. Comments like that were the reason Niya felt Melissa was ready to be a part of the family. What Melissa said was accurate to the tee. The love that she would get from MHB was unlimited, unconditional and everlasting.
“Damn girl, I fucks wit you.” Niya said, getting off her bunk give Melissa a hug. “I swear the girls are gonna love you.” She said as she took a seat on the little grey table in front of Melissa.
For the next few hours, Melissa sat quietly as Margaret branded her body. It hurt like hell, but she took it like a trooper, not shedding a single tear, nor did she ask for a break. Niya looked on the whole time, and when it was finished, Melissa was officially MHB.
Chad woke up with a splitting headache. Khoula, his son was jumping up and down on the bed watching the cartoon network, making Chad’s headache even worse. He sat up in the bed and looked around the room. He hadn’t been in Gwen’s bedroom in so long he had forgotten how it looked.
“Do you want something to eat?” Gwen asked, walking into the room with Kayla by her side.
“Nah, I’m good,” Chad answered getting up from the bed and heading to the bathroom.
Gwen could see that he had an attitude, but at this point, she couldn’t care less about what he was going through. She had something she wanted to get off her chest, but at the same time, she knew she had to be mindful of the twins.
“What’s ya problem, Chad?” Gwen asked pushing open the bathroom door.
Chad whipped out his dick and started to urinate without even answering her. Gwen wanted to just walk up behind him and kick him right in his ass.
“You gonna answer me, Chad?” she asked in a low tone, as she looked out at the kids playing on the bed.
“Who da fuck is you? I don’t have to answer to you… and where da fuck is my gun?” he shot back with his face twisted.
“You lost ya gun yesterday when ya simple ass got too damn drunk to walk. I had to come down to Larry’s to pick you up.”
“I didn’t ask you to come get me. I was cool.” He said as he brushed by Gwen to leave the bathroom.
“Chad, I’m tryin’ to help you, but you’re not letting…”
“Well, stop tryin’ to fucking help me. You’ve made things bad as it is.” he replied, walking over and grabbing his shirt off the floor.
That was the lowest blow Chad had shot at her thus far. She knew exactly what he meant by his comment. He was referring to Gwen being the reason Zion was kidnapped and killed. His comment hit Gwen like a ton of bricks. She was at a stage in her life where she was just starting to get over the guilt of being the sole reason for their son’s death.
“Daddy! Daddy!” Kayla yelled, jumping up and down on the bed with her arms in the air.
“Hey Princess,” he said in a not too enthusiastic voice.
Gwen was still in a trance, thinking about what Chad had just said. She didn’t even notice him checking the drawers and finding his gun.
“Yo, where my car keys?” Chad asked. “Yoooo!” he yelled, snapping his fingers in front of Gwen’s face.
When she came out of her trance, she was hot. Words couldn’t even describe the anger she felt, only physical contact. She slapped the shit out of Chad’s face then followed it up swiftly with a flurry of punches. Chad took a couple of the punches to his face before he got himself together, and gripped Gwen up.
“Fuck you, nigga. I hate you. I hate you! “Gwen yelled. “I didn’t mean it. I didn’t mean it,” she cried as she continued to try to get loose from his grip so that she could keep swinging on him.
The cries from the twins didn’t seem to make a difference at all, because Gwen and Chad kept fighting. Chad grabbed Gwen by her throat and slammed her against the bathroom door. He had his hands wrapped so tightly around her neck, it cut off her air supply. Gwen was struggling to get him off her.
“You killed my son!” he yelled, squeezing her neck as tightly as he could for a few seconds then letting her go.
Gwen slid down the bathroom door holding her neck, wheezing and trying to get the air back flowing through her lungs. Chad stood over her, looking down with built up hatred in his eyes.
“It should have been you instead of him,” he said before turning around and leaving the room.
“Where you goin’, D?” Dollaz asked, sitting up in bed.
“Babe, every time I leave the room you don’t have to ask me where I’m goin’.” Diamond said, walking back over and taking a seat on the edge of the bed.
The injuries Dollaz had sustained from the shooting a while back had him feeling very insecure about where he stood with Diamond. He was temporarily paralyzed from the waist down. He had been undergoing intense therapy, trying to learn how to walk again. No matter how much she tried to convince him that she wasn’t going anywhere, he just couldn’t seem to get the idea out of his mind that Diamond was going to eventually leave him due to his difficulty performing sexually. He hardly ever became erect, and when he did, either it wouldn’t last long or he could barely feel the warmth of the woman he loved so much.
“Aye, D, can I be honest wit you about something?” Dollaz asked.
“Babe, you can talk to me about anything.” Diamond responded. She could see the stress written all over his face.
“Ever since I got hit up, it’s put a strain on our relationship. Sometimes I can see the frustration in ya face when my dick don’t get hard at times. Then when I gotta take this bag off my stomach, you be looking disgusted, like you just wanna tell me you can’t do it anymore.” Dollaz explained.
Diamond felt bad, hearing the way Dollaz felt. She had to admit that at times, it was hard for her to maintain a relationship under these conditions, but at the end of the day, Dollaz was still her man.
“Baby, I’m sorry you feel the way you feel. I swear, I never meant to make you feel like I was tired. To be honest wit you babe, it do get rough sometimes, and I do get a little frustrated, but Dollaz I need you to understand that I love you. I am in love with you just as much as I was before you got shot. I’m never going to leave you, boy. I don’t care how rough it get. I’m riding wit you until the wheels fall off.” Diamond said, climbing further onto the bed and laying under Dollaz’s arm.
Real love was hard to come by these days, so to
have a female like Diamond who’s willing to love her man unconditionally and stand by his side when he’s at his worst, made Dollaz appreciate what he has. Diamond was one of the rare women who were loyal to their man. They didn’t make ʼem like her anymore and Dollaz was proud to say that she belonged to him.
“I love you, D,” he said, kissing her forehead.
“I love you too, boo.”
Gwen stood in the bathroom looking at her neck in the mirror. The twins had fallen asleep and she was waiting on Niya’s mom to pick them up so she could hit the streets. She still couldn’t believe Chad had choked her out. This was the first time he’d ever put his hands on her to this magnitude, and the only reason he wasn’t shot or stabbed behind it, was because Gwen understood his pain to a certain extent. She finally felt the full weight of the guilt concerning the events that led up to Zion’s death. It got to the point where Gwen felt like she needed a drink. The only difference between Gwen and Chad in that area was, Chad would drink his problems away while Gwen would busy herself with making money. So, as soon as Niya’s mom picked the kids up, that’s exactly what she was going to do.
Chapter 6
Diamond cruised through the parking lot of the Woodland shopping center until she pulled into an empty parking space in front of K’s Hair & Beauty Supply store. The small strip mall had only a few stores in it, a total of six, and that didn’t include the small abortion clinic and a veterinarian that didn’t connect to the other stores, but was a part of the mall.
Diamond reached in her bag and pulled out some papers, scanning through them to make sure she had the right ones. She also reached in and grabbed her gun to see if she had a bullet in the chamber. Instead of putting it back in her bag, she stuffed it into her back waist once she got out of the car.
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