Tone twisted the key in the lock, and the door opened right up.
“Who the hell is that coming up in here?” asked Marv, snapping out of his food induced trance.
Tone was shocked to see people sitting in the living room upon his entrance, but his instinct took right over. He locked the door behind him and brandished his gun immediately.
“Don’t nobody fuckin’ move!” he hollered, while peeking out the window to make sure he was undetected by anyone lurking in the street.
Marv had gotten caught slipping, and was already kicking himself for it. He knew that this situation was not going to turn out good at all. Joy was so petrified that her whole body had tensed up. People in her inner circle had warned her about the dangers of dealing with a hustler like Marv but she didn’t listen. At the moment, Joy was wishing she had taken their advice.
Lotta was scared, but also confused. For some reason, she had a calm over her because she knew the intruder wasn’t going to hurt her. Although he was screaming and held a loaded .45 in his hand, Lotta found comfort in the masked man’s voice. She hadn’t put it together yet, but the reason Lotta was so comfortable around the man is because it was Tone.
Tone took a quick scan around the room and his eyes fixated on Lotta. The two of them shared a glance for a moment that was way beyond awkward. Unlike Tone, Lotta’s face was completely uncovered.
“You gotta be fuckin’ kiddin’ me,” he mumbled to himself.
Tone’s easy lick had just gotten a hell of a lot more complicated. Here he was, staring at the only woman he ever considered himself to be in love with. Instead of running over and French kissing her like he wanted to, Tone was aiming a burner at her! Despite the strange coincidence, Tone tried to regain his composure. Again, he began waving his hammer around and hollering like he was a madman.
“Lay down! All of ya’ll. Lay face down, right fuckin’ now!” he said.
Marv, Joy and Lotta had no choice but to do as they were instructed. They moved from their positions and all laid face down in unison. Since Neeta had already told Tone where Marv’s stash was, he headed straight for the kitchen. Just like Neeta had remembered, there was a half kilo of cocaine right in the cabinet. Tone snatched up the work and then focused his sights on the money that Neeta had said was in the crib. She had told Tone there was a red Nike duffle bag under the kitchen sink where Marv kept his cash.
“Get in, get out. That’s an OG’s classic,” was all Tone could think, as he tried to move through Marv’s kitchen as quickly as possible.
Tone swung open the cabinet door under the sink, but there was no red duffle bag in sight. He moved some household chemicals out the way, but nothing was there.
“This stupid ass bitch,” Tone mumbled, cursing Neeta for providing him with information that was only halfway correct.
One thing Tone knew was that greed was the downfall of many street niggas. By continuing to search the house for the money, he would definitely be being greedy. Plus, he was giving the people he had lying down on the floor ample opportunity to make a break for the front door. After all, a half kilo of pure ass cocaine was quite a come-up. The way Tone hustled, the drugs were just as good as money in the bank. With that in mind, Tone decided to call it day and make off with just the cocaine. However, things weren’t going to be that simple!
Marv wasn’t going to take this situation lying down; literally. He had risen to his feet and was attempting to make his way from in front of the couch and over to his loveseat. Unbeknownst to anyone but him, Marv kept a little .22 tucked behind the chair for unexpected situations like this.
“Nigga, who told you to get up?” asked Tone.
“Oh my God!” screamed Lotta.
Finally, Lotta had recognized the voice! She had been trying to put it together for the past few dramatic moments, but now she knew that the masked man was Tone! The look that subsequently appeared on Lotta’s face instantly let Tone know that she knew. He was trying to keep it cool, but Tone knew the cat was out of the bag also. He stared at Lotta for a split second; there was so much that he wanted to say, but couldn’t at the current time. Tone wasn’t relying on his instinct now; instead he was over thinking things. His hesitations were not good maneuvers, because as the famous quote goes “He who hesitates is lost,”
Tone’s brief lapse allowed Marv to make his move. Before Tone could blink, Marv was up behind the love seat with the .22 in his hand! Joy was still immensely frightened and hadn’t moved from her position on the floor.
“Don’t get yourself shot!” said Tone, staring at Marv and aiming his gun with one hand, but clutching the cocaine with the other.
In different circumstances, Tone would have shot Marv the second he saw him moving. However, something was affecting his instinct and reactions. That something was Lotta. Around Lotta, Tone wasn’t the hardcore stick-up bul that everyone knew him to be. He was gentle and compassionate, and definitely didn’t want to have Lotta caught up in the midst of a shootout. She was too precious and valuable for all that.
However, since Marv had a gun in his hand, Tone had to make a move. The only thing he could think to do was grab Lotta. He knew Marv wasn’t going to shoot in her direction, so Tone dropped the cocaine on the floor and snatched up Lotta.
“I’ll shoot her!” lied Tone, as he held his gun to the woman he loved.
Using Lotta as a pawn in the vicious game was one of the hardest things that Tone had ever had to do. He had done plenty of things in his life that he knew weren’t right, but this one took the cake.
“Yo, let my niece go, youngbul,” said Marv, with his .22 still firmly in his hand.
Still silent, Joy was yet to move from her position on the floor. The whole situation was unlike anything that she had ever experienced before.
“Yo, just put your gun down,” said Tone, this time in a calm, monotone voice to persuade Marv.
Quickly, Marv weighed out his options and came to his own conclusion. Dropping his gun did not make sense the way he saw things.
“Nah, I can’t do that til’ you let my niece go,” he replied.
Lotta was terrified with the cold steel of the gun up against her skin. A chilling feeling came over her body, as she felt the barrel brush up against her temple. It was 50 times worse than the knife that Neeta had pulled on her. Knowing that a bullet that could possibly kill her was that close to her head, Lotta panicked. Her heart was racing and her breathing was all messed up. Tears were welling up in her eyes. Finally, Lotta couldn’t contain herself.
“Tone, let me go! I can’t take this,” she blurted out.
“How you know his name, Lotta?” asked Marv, shocked at what had just transpired.
Marv was trying to process the scenario that was unfolding before his eyes. How could his niece possibly know the identity of the masked intruder, unless…
“Is this some kind of setup, Lotta?” asked Marv, still aiming his .22 at the masked intruder.
Setting up a hustler by letting someone into the house to rob them was one of the oldest tricks in the book.
“Nah Unc, it ain’t nothing like that,” said Lotta, as Tone refused to release her.
Rehashing more of the details, Marv began to quickly realize a few more things.
“So how he know right where the coke was? And how he have a key to get in here, Lotta?” asked Marv, remembering that he had provided Lotta with her own key.
“Tone, let me go so I can explain to my Uncle what’s going on,” desperately cried Lotta.
Tone was no fool though; he knew that the second that he released Lotta, Marv would have a clear shot at him and he was more than likely going to take it. Hustlers who had a half-kilo of pure cocaine in their possession were generally ruthless people.
“I can’t do that Lotta,” he whispered into her ear.
Marv was confused, angry, and nervous all at once. The barrage of emotions left him not knowing exactly what to do. This was by far the weirdest home invasion ever! To make matters worse,
Joy was just lying on the ground motionless. Marv wasn’t sure if she had passed out from the commotion or was just too terrified to move.
Tone knew that he had gone way too far with this scheme, but it was too late to turn back. He was all in now. Unfortunately, the only way for him to escape was to take Lotta as a hostage!
“Pick the cocaine up, Lotta,” said Tone.
“Huh?” asked Lotta.
“Pick the cocaine up. You’re comin’ with me,” explained Tone.
Marv shook his head as the situation got even more awkward.
“So that was your plan all along, Lotta? Send some nigga in here to rob your fucking Uncle. You couldn’t handle not havin’ your Dad give you everything in life anymore?” asked Marv.
“Unc, I swear it ain’t like that! He gotta gun to me! He’s crazy!” bellowed Lotta.
No matter what Lotta said, Marv was already convinced the whole thing was a setup. He was extremely disappointed in his niece. Family is supposed to look out for each other, not cut each other’s throats.
Lotta had no choice but to pick up the cocaine, as Tone kept the gun pressed up on her. Once she had secured it, he backed his way out of the door with his gun still drawn and still holding on tightly to Lotta, using her as a shield. Marv wanted to let off a shot from his .22, but he couldn’t risk hitting his niece. In his eyes, Lotta had done wrong, but he refused to endanger her. Marv had way too much respect for Roc to do that. For the moment, Marv had to accept the fact; he had been caught slipping and had gotten robbed.
Tone made his way out to the rented Cadillac and forced Lotta into the truck with him. Marv ran to the door to give chase, but Tone started the truck up and took off with the quickness. Marv still had his .22 in his hand and was definitely considering taking a shot at the burgundy truck, but he didn’t want to risk a stray bullet going through the back window and ending up lodged in Lotta. Even though Marv believed Lotta had set him up, she was still his niece so he wasn’t going to jeopardize her wellbeing. Tone, on the other hand, was on Marv’s hitlist! As he watched the truck get smaller and smaller, and further away until it turned off of the block and eventually faded from his vision, Marv was already picturing sweet revenge. Enraged, Marv finally stepped inside of his crib and slammed the door shut.
“Fuck! I can’t believe I took her lil’ ass in and she set me up!” he screamed, banging his hand on his living room table with pure, unfiltered anger.
The cocaine Marv had just lost was worth serious cash, since there was a major drought in the city due to Roc’s indictment. Marv was about to eat real nicely off of the half kilo, but Tone had ruined that plan. With Roc gone, Marv didn’t even know where to cop more drugs from, so he was all the way fucked up in the game.
“It ain’t all bad,” finally said Joy, as she stood up, clutching her phone.
“What?” asked Marv, wondering how she couldn’t see that this whole ordeal had been a complete tragedy.
Joy handed Marv her cell phone and smiled.
“I got a video of the whole thing. I’m gonna see if worldstarhiphop will pay me for this! ” she revealed.
Joy had been lying on the floor quietly, but secretly using her phone’s video camera and recording the whole, awkward robbery! She knew better than to use the phone to call the police, but she’d be damned if she didn’t get the most exciting moment of her life caught on video. For once, Joy’s obsession with her phone had actually come in handy!
*****
Tone was whipping the Cadillac as fast he could, just trying to get as far away from Marv’s block as possible. The cocaine was tucked under the seat and Tone was consistently checking his rearview mirror for police. Luckily, there were none in sight. Tone had taken off his mask, and for the first time in over three years, Lotta was actually seeing his face in person. However, the reception for her one time boyfriend was all but warm.
“Are you out of your mind, Tone? Really? Did you just rob my uncle? Now he thinks I set him up!” hollered Lotta, as Tone turned up Walnut Street and slowed up a bit to blend in with traffic.
“I didn’t even know that was your uncle’s crib. Somebody had put me onto a lick,” countered Tone.
Lotta was disgusted and really wasn’t interested in Tone’s half assed explanation.
“My Daddy is locked up, my uncle probably hates me, and you got me ridin’ with a gun and drugs in the car. My life is a mess!” she screamed.
“So other than that, how you been?” joked Tone.
Lotta cracked a very brief smile; Tone always knew how to make her laugh. However, it currently was no time for jokes. Lotta’s life had just gone from bad to worse and she didn’t know where it was headed next. Marv was definitely not going to be so hospitable after this incident. Lotta had no idea where she was going to stay; in fact she didn’t even know where Tone was taking her!
“Where are we going?”
“I grabbed a motel to lay low in. It’s already reserved for a couple nights,” answered Tone.
Tone knew better than to go back around Melinda’s crib. His Probation Officer was probably staking the spot out since he hadn’t checked in with her in a while. Tone sure didn’t feel like dealing with that shit, so he was trying to steer clear of that drama.
“A motel! What? I hope you don’t think I’m gonna lay up in the bed with you after this shit you just pulled, Tone. I’m so pissed at you right now!” continued Lotta.
“Look, I know you mad I took you, but if I left you in that house, your uncle might have tried to hurt you since he thought you was in on the setup. If I ain’t have that gun aimed at him, who knows what he would have done,” reasoned Tone.
Lotta was trying to calm down and think about her options. Even though she was beyond angry, Lotta did have to admit there was some truth to what Tone was saying. Also, as badly as she wanted to curse Tone out and just get out of the car, Lotta also realized that she didn’t have anywhere else to go. In all the commotion, she had left her purse with her ATM card and license in it in the house. It would be quite a process for her to get access to the funds she still had in that bank account without any identification, and she damn sure wasn’t going back to her uncle’s crib.
“I can’t even believe this is goin’ on right now,” said Lotta.
Lotta was upset, but for the moment the only option she had was to ride with Tone and post up with him at the motel that he had reserved. It was certainly not the reunion Lotta envisioned for herself and Tone, but it was one that she would remember forever. Ironically enough, through all the bullshit, Lotta still had her half of the ripped dollar in her back pocket and so did Tone. Their reunion wasn’t starting on the right foot, but the fact that they both had their ripped dollars symbolized that there was still hope. Fate surely had a strange way of working.
Chapter 8
A pot of water on a hot stove doesn’t begin boiling right away; it takes some time. Marv was very much like that pot. The more days he had to think about the robbery situation, the more angered and perturbed he became. Over and over again, he watched the video on Joy’s phone. Each time, Marv would notice more and more details leading him to believe Lotta had conspired to set him up.
Even though Lotta was just as clueless about Tone’s plan as everyone else in the house, Marv couldn’t help but become suspicious as he thought about how Tone went directly to where the cocaine stash was. To make the case against Lotta even stronger, Marv remembered how Lotta had accidentally grabbed the cocaine from the cabinet while preparing breakfast. Really pushing the issue over the top was the fact that Tone had entered the crib through the front door with a key. Marv had of course given Lotta her own key to come and go as she pleased. He figured that she had given Tone a copy, but in actuality that was all Neeta’s doing. However, Marv was so upset, he couldn’t see that.
After stomping through his house like an angry African elephant, Marv finally made his way to the front door.
“Where you going babe?” asked Joy, looking up just long enou
gh from her phone to spark a conversation.
“FDC Philadelphia. I gotta pay somebody a visit,” answered Marv.
Marv was convinced that he needed to speak with his stepbrother Roc. He had to let him know exactly what was going on and find out how to handle the situation. No one knew Lotta better than Roc, so Marv figured that talking to him could shed some much needed light on the situation. If Roc knew the details of the incident, perhaps he could help.
As a criminal himself, Marv wasn’t too crazy about willingly stepping foot into a federal detention center, but he had to do what he had to do. He made his way up to 700 Arch Street and was granted a visit with Roc. Talking to Roc face to face would enable Marv to convey the exact emotion he felt about the whole robbery situation and also give him a chance to get an update on Roc’s case as well as his mental state.
After supplying his license and signing the paperwork specifying that he wasn’t carrying any contraband, Marv was finally admitted to see Roc. Immediately, Marv hipped Roc to the complicated story of the robbery. The tale didn’t go over to well because, naturally, Roc automatically took Lotta’s side. There was no way he was going to believe his innocent daughter, who was never about the street life, would do what Marv was accusing her of.
“Look bro, there got to some misunderstanding. Lotta wouldn’t do no shit like that, I raised her better than that. That’s not even in her character,” explained Roc.
Marv understood Roc’s defense of his daughter, but he kept trying to explain to him what had happened. The fact that Roc wasn’t trying to hear it was doing nothing but making both of them upset.
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