Neil would have punked Devin into sticking his chest out and Bishop would have put him in the Intensive Care Unit . . . or worse, killed him. I liked Devin and he had finally come through for me. I didn’t want to see him six feet under. There were others who deserved that faith way more than he did.
I placed Devin’s car keys underneath the floor rug on the driver side and then I locked both doors. Bishop and I hopped in the back seat of the SUV. “Let’s head back to the hotel,” he instructed the driver.
On the way to the hotel, Bishop introduced me to the two cats he summoned here from D.C. The tallest one name was Torch and the shorter cat’s name was Monty. Both had stoic expressions and looked like they were down for business—serious business. Monty looked like he didn’t take any shit off anyone. He also looked like he could’ve been related to Bishop and Neeko. I started to ask him but I changed my mind.
Under circumstances like this, niggas didn’t give up information about where they were from and who they knew. They weren’t gonna tell me shit like who they fucked up, murdered or assassinated. Hell nah! Real niggas take care of their business and get the hell out of dodge without leaving any witnesses.
I realized Bishop and his two partners had gotten a hotel room at the Fairfield Inn on the corner of Military Highway and North Hampton Boulevard when we entered into the parking lot. Bishop told me he didn’t usually stay in three-star hotels. It was all about four- or five-star hotels for him. This was a step down for him and his boys. I remembered how nice this hotel used to be when it was first built a few years back. Now it was considered a normal spot like the extended stay hotels.
“Let go,” Bishop instructed me as soon as the truck came to a complete stop. I followed him to the room while Torch and Monty followed me. For some odd reason, I thought they had plans to get rid of my ass, but when Bishop and I went into his room and Torch and Monty went in the room next door, I let out a sigh of relief.
Once we were inside the room Bishop took a seat on the edge of the bed, while I sat in the chair at the small table. It was completely quiet but I knew he was about to say something. I could tell he was in deep thought, so I sat there and waited. And when he finally opened his mouth, I gave him my undivided attention.
“I’m impressed you made it out Katrina’s house alive and well,” Bishop said in a calm and soothing voice. I kinda smiled. I was somewhat speechless. This nigga really did impress me.
He really was a fucking black knight. He knew when to be a hardcore nigga, and when he needed to flip the script, he could be smooth as hell. His edges were polished as compared to Neeko’s, who was still rough around the edges.
Hell, I had to admit I was attracted to hardcore, thuggish, ruggish ass niggas. But I wanted a man who could turn that shit off at the drop of a dime, and still be cool and smooth as silk. That’s what I thought I had in Duke. But no, it was a fucking pretender.
Bishop was the real shit!
“We gotta figure out a way to smoke Duke out,” he began. “I know where his ass lives and all of hideouts, but I know his ass won’t be at any of those locations.”
“How you know all of this shit and when I don’t even know where that motherfucka lives? Hell, if I did, or even knew where he hangs his hat, I’d be the first to show you,” I said.
Bishop smiled. “Even if you knew where he hung his hat when he isn’t at home, he wouldn’t be there because the police are probably looking for him as we speak.”
“I don’t think so. From the way Katrina laid it out to me, the two cats that Bishop owe money to got a few cops on payroll. So the police ain’t gonna let nobody get close to that bastard until they get their money from him.”
“Lynise, I want you to think on a large scale. Stop thinking on the basement level and think on the penthouse level. Yeah, these brothers have some cops and probably even city officials on their payroll, but in every city half the cops are on the take and the other half are straight as fucking arrows . . . the same with politicians. Men of power will never have complete control, because there is always someone more powerful with more control.”
“I know the shit you are spitting out, Bishop, but this part of Virginia belongs to Duke and the two brothers,” I said. Hell, he acted like I was dumb as shit.
“No, trust me on this Lynise,” Bishop replied. “Those in the penthouse hope those in the basement believe men like Duke and the two brothers can do what they want. But it doesn’t work that way. No, we have to smoke Duke and Chris out. One by one.”
I didn’t know what to say. He was adamant about what he was saying, and that shit was eloquent as hell. And I believed he knew what in the fuck he was talking about. After all, he was a millionaire I don’t know how many times over and shit, beside the clothes on my back, I didn’t have shit.
“Lynise, killing Katrina in her house was the key. If she was killed some other place, no one would have cared. But this was a nice neighborhood, a gated community. That in itself is already raising red flags at city hall and police headquarters. And that’s what I wanted. I wanted Duke to go into hiding. Who know why?”
I quietly shook my head no, because I really didn’t know his strategy. But he did. I could tell. And I was impressed. This muthafucka was genuine draft. He was the real shit.
“Because men like Duke don’t know how to hide,” he explained in perfect diction and that was fucking me up. As much as I wanted a hardcore, sophisticated nigga, I felt outclass, and no one had ever made me feel that way.
“He has to be seen,” Bishop continued. “To be seen means his pure presence strikes fear in people. Those people on the basement level. That’s what gives him his power. Now we have taken that power. But Duke can’t survive without the power. He won’t be underground long. But we still need something to smoke him out.”
Fuck, I was motivated now. I wanted to help, to add something to the equation. And I could only think of one thing to help him accomplish his mission. Actually, I could think of one other person to help us get to Duke—that bitch, Diamond. She was the answer to our problem. Not only could we use her to lure Duke to us, we could also eliminate her ass in the process. Seeing that bitch squirm and beg for her life would be icing on the cake for me. What she did to me was unforgivable. And just like Katrina, she will also find out that she was on the wrong team.
“All we have to do is snatch that bitch Diamond up and her stupid ass will get Duke to come to us,” I suggested.
“Did anyone move in with her after you got arrested?” How in the hell did he know we were roommates? “No, after I was arrested and her boyfriend got killed, she has lived by herself ever since.”
“So she is in the same apartment you guys have had for a while?” What the fuck! “Ok, yes, she lives in the same apartment, in the same apartment building we have lived in for a while. But it would be easy to get to her because I got a little homeboy out her way that’ll get her out of her apartment if need be.”
“Nah, I don't want to lure her out of the apartment, I want to keep her inside and see if we can get Duke to come in there with her.”
I shook my head immediately. “No, that’s not going to work. Diamond lives in the hood. So when Duke’s comes by he never steps foot out of his car.”
“Do you know this for sure?”
“Yeah, I told you I got this young cat out there that sees everything. I talked to him last night and he told me that a few of his road dogs is waiting for the day that Duke steps foot out of his car so they can rob his ass and take his whip.”
He didn’t have a quick comeback. Once again he was in deep thought. Hell, so was I. How in the hell did this muthafucka know all of the information he knew. “Bishop, how you know we were roommates and where Duke lived and the other places he have?” I knew I took him out of his deep thoughts.
“Lynise, it’s my business to know what I’m getting into and know about the people that affect my world.” His words just hung in the air for a moment. “I know everything I need to know t
o make this work and then I can get my ass back home, away from this damn area.”
I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know where that would lead me after he reaped his revenge on Duke and Chris. Hell, I didn’t even know if he was going after the two brothers or not. But he is obviously a man with resources and shit, I felt foolish for doubting him when we initially met.
“By the way, we might just be able to accommodate your friends,” he replied. “I want to roll out of here as soon as it gets dark, so get yourself some rest and be ready by nightfall.”
Sleep captured my heart, soul and body as soon as my head hit the pillow.
Cheaper to Keep Her part 2 Unique
Dead Friends Tell No Tales-Chapter Twenty-Two
Who knows how they will die—for many, it’s still a guess a minute before their last breath.
The growling of my stomach woke me up and I knew Bishop was next door. I had only been sleeping a couple of hours. I knocked on the wall and within a minute he was there. I told him I was hungry. He asked what I wanted, and I told him Chinese. I watched him as he as he walked to the door. His body language and swagger were fucking me up inside. I supposed to be thinking about revenge on Diamond and Duke, and my mind was on Bishop’s fine ass. I swear he was sexy as hell.
I still wondered how this whole thing would play out. And what was my destiny after we killed Duke. Would Bishop just leave and leave me here? I knew he had a bitch where he lived. I didn’t know her, so I didn’t give a damn about her. Something inside of me told me he deserved to be with a woman like me. But I knew I had tightened my shit up and become a little more sophisticated. In my heart I knew his ass was kicking with thugs and city officials—pimps and business suits. I just knew he rolled like that.
I really did have a thing for bad boys. I didn’t know why. They just exuded power when I saw them handling their business in the streets. But Bishop was on another level. He was right about the penthouse and basement. He hobnobbed with both levels. Yeah, he was indeed a bad boy, but he had plenty of money to go with his power, and that shit was an added bonus and one helluva turn-on. I just knew his ass was invincible. And I was fucking love it. And what was even crazier was that I would still fuck him. Fuck his woman, I had to look out for me. Shit, I figured with everything going on and all the loyalty I had shown him, he would love to wife me up when all ended well. If not, fuck it, I would still give him a taste of this pussy.
When he made it back, I ate and was happy he ate with me. He let me go back to sleep and woke me up around eight that night and told me to get ready. If taking a shower and walking back in the room, I was surprised to see all of the clothes he had bought me. He just didn’t know how I wanted to drop to my knees and stick his dick in my mouth. And then I hoped he would tongue fuck me like there was no tomorrow, before he slammed that dick in my wet pussy. And damn, I was some kind of wet.
But that shit would have to wait. It didn’t take me long to get dressed and ready. Now was the time for business. Pleasure had to wait for later.
When we got back into the SUV, initially, no one said a word. I didn’t know if this was nervous energy or what. Maybe it was me. As we rolled out of the hotel, I was prepared to give Torch Diamond’s address when Bishop told Monty the address and he put it in the GPS. Shit, this muthafucka knew the address and everything.
I thought about Bishop’s guys names. Torch and Monty. As compared to Duke’s right hand man, Chris. Torch and Monty sounded like trouble. Both were quiet and very business-like. I also noticed when Bishop was in their presence, he was different—more authoritative, which added to his allure. It was like they knew who was in command. It was then I realized it wasn’t nervous energy—the SUV was filled to the rooftop with confidence. Confidence that only dangerous men could display in dangerous situations.
When we got to the neighborhood, I instructed Torch to drive pass the block first so we could see who was out and about. But most importantly, I wanted to see if there was a threat out there. Sure, Diamond had a couple of haters out there who’d love to see her fall. But she also had a few niggas who’d at least call the cops for her if they saw that she was in danger. I knew for a fact that if that Rodney cat was out there, that he’d assist in catching that bitch off guard.
As we cruised through the ’hood to check out the scenery, I didn’t see anyone who’d pose a threat to us. And when I looked over at Diamond’s apartment I could also see there were two sets of lights on in her apartment, which led me to believe that she was there. Now I couldn’t say for sure if she had any guest in there with her, but at least I felt confident enough to let Bishop know that we were on to something.
“I’m not sure how long she’s going to be in there, but I do know that she is there,” I told him.
“Is there anywhere around here that we can park without bringing attention to ourselves?” Torch asked.
“Yeah, go around the block,” I said. “We can park on the back street. We won’t be able to see her entire apartment. But we’ll be able to see her if she tries to leave out of her front door.”
“A’ight,” Torch said.
“No,” Bishop said. Torch stopped the truck in the middle of the street. I was worried we would bring undue attention our way. “Fuck that, Torch. We are going in the front door. Lock and loaded. If that bitch ass nigga, Duke, or his boy, Chris, shoot this way and ask questions, I want him to know that Lynise and three badass niggas rolled up on his bitch’s apartment and smacked her around.”
I was speechless. What the fuck was he thinking? We should be keeping a low profile. And I didn’t want to smack Diamond around, I wanted that bitch dead.
Torch parked the Escalade and I was thinking that this was bad. This fire ass whip would be jacked as soon as we were out of sight. Then something happened as we got out of the truck. One, we were all sporting black jackets, a white shirt and black slacks. Two, Bishop signaled me to lead the way. Three, and this was the thing that really fucked me up. As we walked, everyone who saw us had an immediate respect. We were four bad muthafuckas and everyone, including my cat, Rodney, saw us and knew not to fuck with us or our ride.
I had never felt this fucking powerful before. Bishop had put me in front for a reason. To stand big and walk tall. And I did. My chest was out, my confidence was high, my stride was long. This is the bitch I always wanted to be. And I had three real fucking men behind me who had my back.
It was then that I knew that no, I wasn’t dying that night. Matter-of-fact, none of us were dying that night. We owned the fucking night. This was our night, our temporary territory. We were about to set this muthafucka on fire . . . and I was the ring leader. Hell yeah!
We made our way across the parking lot and up the stairs and no one said anything to us. I saw the respect, but I also saw the fear. And I loved that shit.
As we walked towards the door, I realized why Bishop and his boys had jackets on. They were strapped to the hilt with Glocks, Sig Sauers and I was sure I saw both Torch and Monty hiding Uzis under their jackets. And amazingly, we didn’t break stride as all three guys pulled our guns in both hands.
As we approached the door, Bishop signaled to Torch to do his thing, which was kick the door in. When he did, Diamond was surprised as shit as she jumped up from the sofa. And even before she could scream, Monty pointed his Glock and told her to shut the fuck up. I was surprised as hell. That bitch’s mouth was wide open and not a word came out.
I looked over at Bishop and he said, “For now, it’s your show. Do what you have to do, but don’t kill her. We need answers.”
I didn’t say anything as I walked to Diamond and when I was within two feet of that bitch, I threw a right hand that connected squarely on her nose. And suddenly I was Laila Ali in that bitch. I was throwing combinations—lefts and rights, rights and lefts. I was hitting her ass on top of her head, in her face, on her body. I had the power on my side. But more, I had the strength of revenge, the memories of a one-sided friendship, the thoughts of ja
il, the reminiscence of a family who didn’t give a fuck about me . . . and lastly, the thoughts of a man, Duke Carrington, who had brought me to the lowest point in my life—with the help of my former best friend.
I was in kill mode and Diamond’s nasty and grimy ass would have died then and there if Torch hadn’t lifted me by my armpits and pulled me off that bitch.
It was then that I noticed the door was off its hinges. But Monty didn’t stand in the doorway, he provided look out duties by looking out the curtains. These muthafuckas were serious. They knew what they doing. They were prepared for any and everything. And now I was one of them. Whether it be for a night, two nights or the rest of my life, I was one of them.
When I turned back around to look at Diamond, Bishop had his hand around her throat, lifting her up. He threw her ass hard in a recliner near the television, opposite the wall where the couch set. It was a new recliner since I lived here.
I got a look at her face and strangely as it was, I felt good. Her face was completely swollen from the beating I had given her monkey ass. Both of her eyes were completely shut. Her face was beet red. I think my first punch broke her nose as I noticed all of the blood from her nose as well as her busted lips.
And the good thing, I didn’t feel any remorse.
That bitch tried to get me killed. And like Katrina, she picked the wrong fucking team.
Bishop was barraging her ass with a series of questions.
Did you set up Neeko to get killed?
Who killed him?
What part did you play in it?
Where was Duke hiding out?
Were Duke and Chris hiding out together?
I couldn’t hear Diamond’s answers. She was barely whispering. I had fucked her up just that much. It was then that I noticed my knuckles were red with blood on both my hands and probably sore, but I didn’t feel the pain. I was high on adrenaline.
Cheaper to Keep Her part 2 (The Saga Continues) Page 14