“Go to the doctor,” Rayshawn said. “You need a checkup anyway.”
“Maybe you’re preggers,” Bobbie smiled. She and Rickie wouldn’t mind having a niece or nephew around. It would be fun.
“I’m not pregnant,” Jaicyn countered. “I’m fine. Just overworked. We need to take a vacation.”
“I offered to take you on vacation for Christmas,” Rayshawn reminded her. “But you wanted to stay here. Now we have to wait until the summer.”
“Maybe y’all should go somewhere for the weekend,” Rickie suggested, hoping that Rayshawn and Jaicyn would leave for a few days.
She loved them to death but sometimes Jaicyn acted like her mother and sometimes she acted like her sister. Rickie never knew which one she was going to get when she woke up in the morning. She hated when Jaicyn tried to act like their mother. She didn’t want to hurt Jaicyn’s feelings by pointing out the obvious but they didn’t have a mother. Their mother was dead.
“I need more than a weekend,” Jaicyn vented.
Rayshawn and the girls ignored Jaicyn’s frustrated outburst and focused on their game. Rayshawn was winning but Rickie and Bobbie were determined that he wouldn’t. He’d already beat them at Madden and they’d quit before they let him beat them at Monopoly which was a stupid game anyway.
“I don’t want to play this anymore. Let’s play Rock Band,” Bobbie announced.
“Do not turn that game on,” Jaicyn warned. “I don’t feel like hearing it.”
“Then go watch TV in the bedroom,” Rayshawn replied. “We’re trying to chill and your cranky ass ain’t gonna ruin it.”
Jaicyn glared at Rayshawn but grabbed her magazine and stormed down the hall to her bedroom.
Rickie, Bobbie, and Rayshawn looked at each other and laughed. Bobbie turned on the PlayStation 3 while Rickie and Rayshawn put up the Monopoly game.
From her bedroom Jaicyn could hear the three of them playing the game and got even more irritated. Jaicyn shut her magazine and turned on the television, trying to drown out the fun her family was having. She knew what was wrong with her. She wasn’t sick. She had cabin fever. She wanted a new house in some place warm. She wanted to live the life she had before Rayshawn got locked up. The girls may have learned to be patient in the apartment but Jaicyn’s patience was wearing thin.
They couldn’t move though. Rayshawn was being more careful than before. He thought the FEDS might still be watching him. Until King gave him the okay to move on, they had to stay in the apartment.
Rayshawn slipped open the bedroom door a few hours later and walked in the room. Even with the lights out, he could still see the semi-permanent scowl etched on his fiancée’s face.
He moved the stack of bridal magazines to the floor. “Did you see anything you liked?”
“Yeah, I just have to find a shop here that carries them. Plus I want Autumn, Taylor, and Joy here with me when I go dress shopping.”
“Joy and Taylor? I haven’t heard those names in months.”
“I talk to Joy and Taylor practically every day,” Jaicyn argued. “I don’t talk about them to you because you don’t like them.”
“Are they still working in the Park?”
Jaicyn shook her head. “Nope. Sabrina came back with her girlfriend and Little Man put her back to work. You should know that. Don’t they keep you in the loop anymore?”
Rayshawn tried to ignore the stinging bit of sarcasm that infiltrated Jaicyn’s words, but he was sick of it. He was tired of babying her and letting her get away with having the worst attitude in the world, twenty-four hours a day.
“This shit isn’t easy for me either,” he replied. “Don’t think for a second that you’re the only one pissed off at King. What the hell do you want me to do?”
Jaicyn rolled her eyes and turned her back to Rayshawn. “If you had done what I said last year, we would have been gone. We could be living the good life in Puerto Rico instead of waiting for you to get locked up again.”
“If you wanted to live in Puerto Rico so fuckin’ bad, you should have left Washington Heights with your grandmother when you came back from Job Corps. You made the decision to stay and be a part of this with me. Deal with it. If you have a better plan than running off to Puerto Rico, I’m all ears. If not, shut up about it.”
“Shut up?” Jaicyn grumbled with her back still towards Rayshawn. “Is that how you talk to your fiancée?”
“When she’s constantly PMSing…yes,” Rayshawn replied and turned the station to ESPN. “I don’t know what else to say to you, Jay-Jay. I just need you to trust me. Trust that I know what I’m doing. And when I said summer, I meant it.”
“How much this time?” she asked, referring to the last delivery one of Cesar’s drivers had unloaded into their storage unit earlier that day.
“Five.”
Jaicyn sat up quickly like a bolt of electricity had shocked her and turned on the bedside lamp.
“Five!” she yelled. “How is keeping five million dollars worth of dope in a damn storage unit keeping a low profile? How is that helping us? We can’t get rid of all of that dope on our own.”
“Relax,” Rayshawn said coolly. “Most of it is going to a new contact in Charlotte. The rest is going to Miami. We’re done in Atlanta.”
“Whatever you say, Rayshawn. But you and King are getting greedy. Three last month, five this month. Greed begets stupidity.”
“You’ve never complained about money before,” Rayshawn answered. “Don’t start now.”
“Maybe if you focused on more of what you want to do and less on what King needs from you, then you wouldn’t be taking these risks and I wouldn’t have a reason to complain.”
“Summer!” Rayshawn yelled. “Just wait, damn it! I can’t focus on anything else but this until then. Why can’t you understand that?”
“Stop hollerin’ at me! You do what you have to do and I’ll do what I have to do until summer!”
Jaicyn hopped out of the bed, snatched the comforter and walked out of the room. Rayshawn didn’t go after her. There was no point. If she didn’t understand why he was doing what King wanted, there was no way he could make her.
King was testing him. He was testing Rayshawn’s loyalty. He wanted to be sure that Rayshawn wasn’t a snitch. Words weren’t good enough. Rayshawn had to prove his loyalty again. By asking for permission to walk away, he’d done something he’d never done before; shown fear.
King did not accept or respect fear. After all the years with Rayshawn, teaching him the ropes, King was disappointed and he had to prove, once again, that he could handle himself. His life depended on it.
Chapter 16
After deliberately missing two doctor’s appointments in two weeks, Jaicyn decided to man up and actually go. The girls in the shop insisted on it. Her eyes were shallow and her energy was down. Toya thought she was anemic.
Over the last two weeks she’d tried everything to put some pep in her step. She drank energy drinks and popped vitamins, still nothing helped. Now she had to seek medical attention. She insisted that Rayshawn come with her because not only didn’t she want to hear any bad news alone.
After the nurse took her vitals and she gave a urine and blood sample, Jaicyn and Rayshawn were alone in the examination room, waiting for the doctor to come in. Rayshawn was in a pissy mood and Jaicyn was irritated. He hadn’t spoken at all on the ride to the doctor’s office.
“Rayshawn, what’s wrong with you?” Jaicyn snapped. “Why do you look so pissed?”
“I’m not talking about it here,” Rayshawn muttered.
“You might as well talk about it here,” Jaicyn replied. “There’s no privacy in that little ass apartment.”
Rayshawn took a deep agitated breath. She’d been nagging him all morning about what was on his mind. If she asked one more time, he was going to snap.
“Rayshawn!”
“Jay-Jay, will you please be quiet. I’ll tell you later.”
“Tell me what later?” Jaic
yn demanded.
“Fuck it,” Rayshawn said aloud. If she wanted to know right then and there then she should know. He sure as hell wasn’t going to listen to her nag him for another couple of hours.
“King’s locked up,” Rayshawn said calmly. “DEA raided King Cars last night. The crew wants us to come to Washington Heights.”
“Hell fucking no!” Jaicyn yelled. “You said we were getting out of this shit!”
“I know what I said,” Rayshawn stated in a normal voice. Usually when he kept his voice calm and even Jaicyn stopped yelling and used her indoor voice.
“Then tell the crew to kiss your ass,” Jaicyn answered. “I’m sure that Blaque and Slim can run that makeshift crew by themselves. They only want you so they can continue to eat.”
“Don’t act like you didn’t know they’d want us home,” Rayshawn replied.
“But we don’t have to go,” Jaicyn said. “We can't. It’s too risky. If the FEDS are still watching you, then running back to Washington Heights is only going to make it worse. It’s too obvious, Rayshawn.”
“Don’t you think I know that?”
“Besides,” Jaicyn ignored the fact that Rayshawn had just spoken. “The crew isn’t the same. They don’t care about us anymore. We hardly hear from them at all, except Johnny and Blaque every now and then.”
“Yeah, but I’m the only one who knows who the connect is.”
“This is our opportunity to let all of this shit go, baby,” Jaicyn pleaded but she could see the resistance in Rayshawn’s eyes. He still cared about his friends back home even if they didn’t give a shit about him.
“We were all cool before. I can’t just let them down like that.”
Jaicyn stared at the plain tile floor. “Why not? They let you down. They didn’t care that you got locked up because I was down here making sure that King still got money to make sure they still worked.”
“Cesar’s going back to Columbia,” Rayshawn said out of the blue. Jaicyn looked up quickly. That only meant one thing. They were done.
“What are you saying?”
Before he could respond Dr. Moreno entered the exam room. She was younger than Jaicyn’s last doctor. The best thing was she was Puerto Rican. Jaicyn was thrilled.
“So, Jaicyn, how long have you been feeling bad?” Dr. Moreno asked while she looked at Jaicyn’s chart.
Jaicyn was about to lie and say a couple of days but Rayshawn was there and he knew the truth. If she lied he’d just tell the doctor the truth.
“About a month,” Jaicyn answered. “I think I might be anemic.”
Rayshawn rolled his eyes at his fiancée’s diagnosis. She wasn’t a doctor. She didn’t know what the hell was wrong with her.
“Well,” Dr. Moreno commented, “you’re definitely anemic. And you are about eleven weeks pregnant.
“What?” Rayshawn sputtered before Jaicyn could even utter a word. “She’s pregnant?”
“Shut. Up,” Jaicyn said slowly. “You’re kidding right?”
Jaicyn was in shock. She hadn’t even realized that she missed her period. Three months pregnant? No!
“No, I’m not kidding,” Dr. Moreno smiled.
“This is crazy,” Jaicyn said, unable to believe that a baby was the culprit behind her sickness.
“I can’t believe you didn’t know,” Rayshawn said to Jaicyn. “How do you miss three periods and not suspect something?”
“If I wasn’t so stressed, maybe I would have noticed,” Jaicyn defended herself. “Besides, you know my cycle better than me. How come you didn’t notice?”
“Because I live in a house full of girls! When one of you is on your period I just figure that you all are. You all act the same.”
“Oh my God,” Jaicyn said. “I can’t believe this. Are you sure?” she asked the doctor.
“I’m sure,” Dr. Moreno answered. “Your blood and urine tests both tested positive. I suggest you see your OB/GYN soon.”
Jaicyn rubbed her hand over her belly. She didn’t feel any different but knowing that Rayshawn’s child was growing inside her changed everything.
“Can you give us a minute?” Jaicyn asked the doctor.
“Certainly,” Dr. Moreno smiled at the young couple. They were taking the news rather well.
“Can you believe this?” Jaicyn asked Rayshawn. “Can you believe that we’re having a baby?”
“I can’t believe it took this long to knock you up,” Rayshawn answered. “Lord knows we’ve been careless with the birth control.”
“Things happen when the time is right,” Jaicyn stated. “Rayshawn,” she giggled, “we’re having a baby!”
“I hope it’s a boy. We need some more testosterone up in that house.”
“At least the timing’s right,” Jaicyn said. “You better tell Blaque and them that we are not coming back to Washington Heights.”
****
Even though Rayshawn didn’t want to go back to Washington Heights and run King’s drug operation, he had to do something. He was the only one who could contact Cesar before he left for Columbia and there was only one person in Washington Heights that could do what Rayshawn did and do it well. Johnny had worked with Jaicyn for months. He could organize the crew. It wouldn’t be on the same scale as before but at least the south side wouldn’t get taken over by the Ricans or the Haitians.
Johnny agreed to meet Rayshawn in Cincinnati but he had no idea why or why Rayshawn didn’t want anyone to know that he was near home.
“What’s with all the secrecy?” Johnny asked while they drove to the Valdez estate. “You act like there’s a hit out on you or something.”
“I just don’t want a lot of people in my business.”
“We’re a crew, Rayshawn. Nobody wants you dead, man. All we really want is for you and Jaicyn to come home. With King getting knocked, shit is bad.”
Rayshawn nodded but didn’t agree. There was nothing that Johnny could say to get him to come home. Johnny was in charge now. The crew would have to accept it and deal with it.
“I can’t come back,” Rayshawn told his friend. “That’s why we’re doing this today.”
“So, you’re giving everything up for Jaicyn, huh?” Johnny shook his head. “That’s weak. She ain’t the first hood chick to get pregnant by a hustler. The game doesn’t stop because of a kid. We all have kids, man. King is gonna be pissed.”
“I don’t care,” Rayshawn practically yelled. “My family is all that I care about. King turned his back on me a long time ago. I’m out and you’re up. That’s all they need to worry about.”
Jaicyn had been right all along. He just didn’t want to accept it. He’d spent a long time living under King’s shadow. They were like father and son until Rayshawn got arrested. King was prepared to let Rayshawn take the fall for him and that wasn’t something a father should do. It hurt that King wasn’t really there for him when he needed him but he understood the game, even if Jaicyn didn’t. But if that was part of the game and Rayshawn was sure that he wanted to get out of it, then maybe he would have to be done with King. It wasn’t a decision that sat well with him but it was something that he would definitely consider.
Rayshawn pulled the rental car to a stop in front of Cesar’s house and cut the engine. He turned to his best friend of ten years and gave it to him straight.
“I don’t care who doesn’t understand why I’m doing this. All I really give a shit about is that you come out on top. If this is what you want to do with your life, I ain’t judgin’. I’m in a position to make sure that you don’t end up like the rest of them. But I only got in this for the money. I have enough money. I’m getting married. I’m having a kid. It’s time to do something else.”
“I feel you, man,” Johnny said. “I knew back then, when everyone said King was preppin’ you to run the crew, that you didn’t want to. You got heart, but these streets ain’t for you. They ain’t ever been.”
“Means to an end,” Rayshawn replied and Johnny laughed.
&nbs
p; “That’s what you always used to say. I respect that, man. You and Jaicyn did what you needed to do. I’m cool with that.”
Of course he was. Johnny was from the south side of Washington Heights. He was loyal to the streets that he grew up on. He watched Rayshawn rise through the ranks, patiently waiting for his chance
Now, it was his time to shine. He put in years in the game and Rayshawn couldn’t think of a better, more loyal person to keep the south side on its feet. Cesar would start Johnny off small, like he did King in the beginning. Rayshawn would always be there to help his friend and make sure he stayed free.
As long as Johnny followed his advice, he’d be straight. Johnny saw the money that Rayshawn made in the short time that he’d been in Atlanta. If Rayshawn could make money and stay out of jail, he’d rather follow his lead than King’s who made millions and was facing life in prison.
Chapter 17
From the moment that Jaicyn found out that she was carrying Rayshawn’s child, everything changed in her household. She and Rayshawn were officially out of the business and were concentrating on their new life.or what was becoming their new life.
Still unsure if they were being watched, Jaicyn put her dream of building a brand new house on hold and settled for a condo in Sandy Springs and overseeing the wedding and baby preparations.
Rayshawn had given up on building a recording studio and partnered with a guy he met in a club that wanted to start a record label. Jaicyn thought it was ironic that his new business partner just happened to be named Andre. Rayshawn thought nothing of it and was actively scouting new talent for this label, Power Records, along with his brother. Dayshawn was thinking about venturing into entertainment law, and what better place to start than with his brother’s first fully legit business?
Jaicyn wasn’t involved in the day to day operations of Power Records which was why she was window shopping in downtown Atlanta while the twins met with a local rapper. It was eighty-five degrees and Jaicyn just wanted to them to hurry up so she could get back in her air conditioned car.
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