by Elliott, K.
“Hell yeah, as long as the price stays sweet,” Twin said.
“The price will only get better, my friend.”
“That’s what we want to hear,” Tommy said.
Chapter 13
“What the fuck do you mean … sheetrock?” JoJo said angrily.
Tommy took a step back and pointed at the package on the table. “That’s coke on top but inside it is sheetrock.”
“I thought you tasted it, Tommy,” JoJo said.
“I did, and Twin did too.”
Twin silently paced the floor.
“Call that muthafuckin Juan right now. I ain’t going out like that. I refuse to take an L,” JoJo said.
“I know. I refuse to take a loss, too. Remember, I had a hundred thousand dollars invested,” Tommy said. He pulled his cell phone out and dialed Juan’s number. Nobody picked up. He tried three more times but got no answer.
“Nigga, you’ve caused me to loose thirty thousand dollars,” JoJo said.
Tommy stared at JoJo, tempted to pull the small handgun that rested on his waistband. At that moment, he wanted to shoot JoJo in the face. He’d done so much for the man. He was the reason JoJo had money in the first place. Tommy had had the connection, and he’d always helped JoJo by providing him with coke. Now, he’d lost a hundred grand and JoJo had lost a measly thirty thousand dollars, yet Tommy was taking the blame.
“JoJo, you was in there looking at the coke, too, nigga. You can’t blame Tommy. We are all in this together.”
“Fuck that! He was the muthafucka who decided to deal with Juan in the first place.”
“But nobody put a gun to your head and told you to deal with Juan.”
“Nobody has put a gun to his head yet,” Tommy said.
JoJo looked at Tommy. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
Tommy pulled the small .380 from his waistband and put it up to JoJo’s temple. “Nigga, I will kill your punk ass.”
Twin froze. He’d seen Tommy mad only a couple of times in his whole life, and he knew things could get ugly whenever he was mad. Fatboy was nobody’s punk.
“So what are you going to do, blow my brains out Tommy?” JoJo said.
Tommy grabbed him by the throat, cutting off his wind. “I will kill you, nigga.”
“So … you wanna … kill … your boy ‘cause you … made a … mistake.”
“How? By helping you make money?” Tommy said.
“By picking up this bad shit.” JoJo’s pulse quickened and he looked faint.
“Let the nigga go, Tommy. He’s going to pass out.”
“Nigga, I made you into the man that you are today, and this is the thanks I get. Okay, you lost thirty thousand dollars, but it’s because of me you got a nice place to stay, a couple of vehicles, and probably a small stash.”
“You’re right … you’re right, Tommy. Please … let me go.”
Tommy shoved him to the floor as hard as he could. He dialed Juan’s number again. No answer. “I can’t believe this shit!”
“I can’t believe it, either, man. This shit is ridiculous,” Twin said.
JoJo stood. He avoided eye contact with Tommy.
“So what do you think we should do?” Twin asked.
“Let’s call Manny’s brother and see what he knows about this shit.”
Tommy called Hector.
Hector answered on the first ring. “Tommy, I’m glad you called. I lost my cell phone and I didn’t have your number. Are you still in Miami?”
“No, I left yesterday.”
“Sorry, man, for all the confusion.”
“Yeah. I met a guy named Juan. He said he was Manny’s cousin.”
“Stay away from that guy. He’s no good.”
“It’s too late. We’ve already dealt with him. He sold us sheetrock.”
“Oh no. I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Yeah, me too. We lost a hundred and sixty big ones in the deal.”
“Come see me, Tommy. We’ll make it up.”
“I damn sure need it.”
“Hey, listen, man. My brother told me to take care of you, and that’s what I’m going to do. We will talk further when you get down here.”
Tommy terminated the call.
“So what is Hector saying?” JoJo asked.
“He said that Juan is no good, and he is going to make it up to us.”
“Cool. I feel a little better now.”
Twin looked at Tommy. “So, basically, that guy Juan beat us out of our money, right?”
“That’s what it seems like,” Tommy said.
Silence. For a minute, Tommy thought about the hundred thousand dollars he’d lost. He thought about what he could have done with the money. He could have bought a house with the money, property that he would have had for years to come. Instead, he’d gambled the money away. “We’re going to make it through this,” he finally said.
“That’s easy for you to say,” JoJo said. “You still got plenty of money in your stash. I’m low, man.”
Tommy extended his hand to JoJo. “What’s mine is yours.”
JoJo shook his hand, thinking of Nia. “And what’s mine is yours.”
***** Jennifer showed up at Mark’s office at 8:00 a.m. She looked very tired and exhausted. She had a black eye as if she’d been in a fight.
Mark smiled when he saw her.
She frowned and asked for some coffee.
“Decaff or caffeine, sweetie?”
“Give me the strong stuff … two sugars, no cream.”
He left the office, made it to the lounge area, and made two cups of coffee.
When he returned, Jennifer had her head between her legs, crying.
“What’s wrong?”
“Twin beat me last night.”
“I was going to ask about your eye, but I didn’t want to seem too nosey. So what did he hit your for?” He handed her the coffee.
“I don’t know. He told me he’d lost thirty thousand dollars in some drug deal in Miami, and he just was kind of acting funny for the rest of the evening.”
“And he hit you for that?”
Jennifer looked away. She stirred her coffee, only glancing at Mark every once in a while.
Mark walked over and put his hand on her face. She looked up at him. She looked like a little girl, helpless and innocent. He no longer saw that rough exterior that came from her street experience. “Jennifer, why didn’t you call the police?”
“I couldn’t call the cops on him. He would kick me out, and I wouldn’t have anywhere to go.”
“You make your own money; you can get your own place.”
She turned away. “You just don’t understand.”
“You love him, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
Mark walked to the other side of the office. He opened the blinds and looked outside, contemplating.
Jennifer stood and said, “I have to be going.” She headed toward the door.
“Wait,” Mark said.
She turned and faced him.
He looked at the bruises on her neck and face. He couldn’t believe what had happened to Jennifer.
“So what are you going to do when Twin goes to jail? You know he’s going. It’s just a matter of time before we build a case strong enough to indict him.”
Jennifer started crying. Her mascara ran, and she no longer looked like the glamorous beauty queen that kept all the men mesmerized.
Mark grabbed her face again. “Don’t cry. Please don’t cry. I hate to see you going through this.”
She pulled away from him then wiped her face with her shirt.
“Jennifer, look at me. You can’t go on like this. You have to get away from this guy.”
“Are you going to help me out, Agent Pratt?”
“Yes, if I have to.”
“Why do you want to help me?”
“I don’t know. Why did you come to see me in the first place?”
“I guess I have feelings for you.”
She put her hand around his waist and held him close.
The door opened and Ken Clarkson walked in.
*****
“Nia, I don’t want to see you again. This shit ain’t right,” JoJo said. “Since when did you start having a conscience, nigga?” Nia said. Then she walked into her bedroom with the cordless phone and lay across the bed wearing a T-shirt and a red thong.
“I just don’t want to be caught up in the bullshit. I mean, I’m starting to get attached to you, and I don’t want to betray my friend.”
Nia laughed. “Betray your friend? We’ve been fucking for damn near a year, and you sure ain’t had no problem before.”
“I just don’t feel like seeing you right now.”
Nia rolled over in the bed. Now she was on her back. She put her hands between her legs. “Big Puss wants you, baby.”
JoJo chuckled. “Girl, you’re a nympho.”
“Nigga, and you’re a nympho.”
“You’re right. What kind of underwear do you have on?”
“I ain’t got on no underwear. I’m naked, lying in my bed, stroking my pussy, and wanting you inside me.” Nia laughed to herself.
“No underwear, huh?”
She burst out with laughter. “You freak, you know I got on underwear. I got on those red thongs you like.”
“You got your heels on, too?”
“No, but I can put them on.”
“Naw. I can’t do it right now,” JoJo said.
Nia sighed heavily. “So you’re really going to cut me off, huh?”
“No. I’m not in the mood for it.”
“Does it have anything to do with the money you lost?”
“How’d you find out about that shit?”
“Tommy’s been moping around here crying and shit.”
“Yeah, he lost a lot of money, a lot more than I did,” JoJo said.
“Yeah he told me that you and him almost got into it.”
“What did he say?”
“He said he put a gun to your head because you thought he was the reason y’all had lost the money.”
“Oh, so he’s bragging, huh?”
“Naw, he wasn’t bragging. He was actually crying about it. He said that he’d never had an altercation with you. Said you was like his brother, and that he didn’t like what went down between you two.”
“See what I mean, Nia? Shit like that makes me not want to be screwing behind my friend’s back.”
“I know, but I got my needs, JoJo.”
“I got my needs, too.”
“Let’s meet at the Holiday Inn downtown,”Nia said.
“How fast can you get there?” JoJo said.
She laughed. “Now that’s what the fuck I’m talking about.”
***** Twin met with J-Black at Burger King. They sat in the back of the restaurant, in a booth. Nobody ordered food. J-Black had called and ordered Twin to either give him somebody to rob or become the next victim. J-Black had said he was desperate and needed money to pay probation fines.
“So what you got for me?” “J, man, I don’t have anybody. If I knew of somebody I would definitely tell you.”
J-Black’s eyes tightened. “Listen, Twin, I don’t need to hear that bullshit, man. I need somebody to rob.”
“I don’t know of anybody. I’m telling you, man. If I knew of somebody I would tell you.”
“What about that fat-ass nigga that I robbed the last time? How is he doing?”
“He’s not doing too good, J. He lost a hundred grand.”
J-Black stood and raised his shirt, revealing a chrome 9mm handgun. “Hey, nigga, I need somebody to rob, so we’re going to your house so I can take all your shit.”
Twin saw the seriousness in J-Black’s eyes. The man had a reputation for being a killer in the street. He could think of only one other person worth robbing.
J-Black looked around. Nobody was looking. He pulled the gun from his waistband and aimed it at Twin. “Get the fuck up and let’s get the hell out of here.”
Twin stood and walked toward the door.
J-Black tucked the gun in his waistband and walked behind him.
Once they were in the parking lot, J-Black said, “You got somebody for me, or am I gonna have to take all your shit, nigga?”
“I got somebody for you, but I don’t want you to hurt her. You know what I mean?”
“If she gives up the product, it won’t be no problem.” “It ain’t product. It’s money.”
“How much money?”
“Now that I don’t know. But do me a favor … don’t take it all.” “Now, would I do a thing like that?” J-Black said mischievously. “Come on, J. Please don’t take all of the money.”
“Let’s get in your car and you show me where the honey lives.”
Twin drove J-Black to Melody’s house. She lived in a small subdivision in the eastern part of town. Brawley Farms was the name of the community. Melody lived in a big two-story corner house, the front most property in the community. Twin pointed at the house.
“She ain’t got no alarm, huh?” J-Black said.
“How do you know?” Twin asked.
“I don’t see a sticker. I’m assuming. If she had an alarm, I’d have to do a home invasion and tie her ass up.”
“That’s good. I don’t want you to hurt her.”
“Muthafucka I ain’t going in there while she’s there, nigga. Don’t worry about it.”
“Good,” Twin said. He hit the accelerator, quickly driving to the end of the street. They left the neighborhood.
“So where do you think the money is? Does the woman have a safe?”
“No. I never heard about a safe. I would bet the money is probably in one of the bedrooms.”
“Good. This is going to be a piece of cake.” J-Black smiled.
“Okay, I’m going to take you back to Burger King and you can handle your business from there, can’t you?”
“I need a car … a getaway car.”
Twin stared at J-Black. Twin definitely couldn’t let him use his car to rob Melody. That was too risky.
“So, nigga, you going to let me hold the car or what?”
“Can’t do that, J-Black.”
“Why?” J-Black asked angrily.
He had to think of an excuse, something that J-Black would understand.
“Why can’t you let me hold the car?”
“If my car is at the scene of the crime, somebody would suspect me.”
“So? They wouldn’t suspect me,” J-Black said.
“But it’s okay for them to suspect me?” Twin said.
“Come on, man. Let me hold the car. Nobody is going to see the car.”
“Listen, J. If somebody sees the car, and they suspect me, then I won’t be able to put you up on more robberies.”
J-Black was silent for a moment. Finally he said, “Good point.”
Chapter 14
The next morning, J-Black watched Melody from across the street. It was 7:00 a.m. when she put her five-year old son in the back seat of the back Honda station wagon and fastened his seatbelt. The car warmed up for about five minutes, and then she pulled off. When she was long gone, he went to the back door. It had four small glass panes. This is going to be easier than I thought. He rushed to his car and returned with a Phat Farm jacket wrapped around his right fist. He smashed out all four panes then tossed the jacket aside.
He opened the door and began to ransack the place. He searched the kitchen, the trashcans, the bathrooms, the hall closets … but found no money.
Twin better not have lied to me , he thought. Finally, in the bedroom, he looked in the dresser drawers. Nothing. No sign of money. But he did find her underwear drawer. Thongs, bikinis, and G-strings. One of the G-strings had beads on it. Damn. This is some sexy shit. J-Black found a picture of her on the dresser. She was tall and light complexioned with long, wavy hair. Damn, this one sexyass bitch. He lay on her bed fo
r a minute and imagined her with the beaded G-string on, strutting topless. He pulled out his penis for a minute and stroked it, and then he sniffed her underwear. He was on the verge of having an orgasm when he remembered what he’d come for.
He got up and headed for the walk-in closet. Melody had about fifty pairs of shoes. He started tossing all the shoes and boxes out onto the closet floor. Money spilled from two Jimmy Choo shoeboxes. J-Black’s eyes lit up, thousands of dollars right there at his fingertip. He started to count the money but then decided that there was too much for him to count. He stuffed the bills back in the boxes, carried it all under one arm, and headed for the back door. He stopped and looked back at the G-string on the bed. He decided to get that, too.
***** Later that night, at his run-down apartment, J-Black counted the money. He’d come up with thirty-eight thousand dollars. He smiled to himself. It had been a very good day, but not good enough. While his adrenaline was still going, he decided that Fatboy would be the perfect target again. He locked the place up and headed out to Lake Norman.
He arrived at Fatboy’s house 45 minutes later and rang the bell. A beautiful young lady answered the door. “Yes, can I help you?” “Yeah, I was driving and I noticed that your car lights was on.” He
held a gym bag in one hand. There was nothing inside it but duct tape. The woman looked puzzled. “My lights shouldn’t be on. They should go off automatically.”
“It’s your interior light, sweetie.” J-Black smiled. “I sometimes leave mine on unintentionally.”
She stepped outside and closed the door. “Thanks a lot, sir.” She walked toward the car before realizing the man must have made a mistake. “My lights aren’t on,” she told him.
He produced the 9mm. “No screaming. If you do, I promise I will shoot through your little sexy ass.” He walked toward her and grabbed her arm. “Now take me back in the house and show me where the stash is.”
She was too afraid to say a word. She led him back to the front door and opened it.
They were met by Tommy.
J-Black aimed his gun at Fatboy and smiled. “We meet again, muthafucka.”
Tommy held his hands up. “Hey, man, I ain’t got no fuckin dope.”
“Where the fuck is the money, nigga?”
“I ain’t got no money.”