Queen Hustlaz

by Falicia Love

  “Travis, looks like you just missed your father.” She raised the seat up so Travis could get out.

  “Grandma, I’m glad Daddy’s gone. I want to stay here with you and Mommy.”

  “Aw, baby, I’m glad you do. Come on, let’s take these groceries in so your mother can cook this lasagna.”

  “Okay, I got to use the bathroom, Grandma.”

  “Well, go on then.” She laughed.

  Travis ran to the bathroom, while Farrah’s mother walked into the kitchen. “Farrah, I think we got everything we need,” Mrs. Walker said. She immediately froze and screamed. “Oh my God! No! No! Baby, get up! Please, God, not my baby! No!” she cried.

  At that moment, Travis ran in, and the sight that befell upon his tiny eyes stopped him in his tracks. “Grandma, what’s wrong with Mommy?”

  As he walked forward, she ran up and grabbed him. He fought against her to get to Farrah, but she successfully removed Travis, who was kicking and screaming, from the house.

  She called 911. “Yes, this is Shirley Walker, and I need an ambulance to come immediately!”

  “Ma’am, what’s the problem?” the operator asked.

  “My daughter has been stabbed! Please send help!” she yelled.

  “What’s the address, ma’am?” the operator asked.

  After Shirley gave the operator the information, she was instructed to stay on the phone until help arrived. They told her not to re-enter the house, because the assailant could still be inside.

  When the operator said that, Shirley replied, “The assailant isn’t inside. He was leaving when we pulled up.”

  The operator asked for the description of the car that Larry was driving, so she could put an APB out on it immediately.

  Finally, the ambulance and police arrived. Farrah was pronounced dead at 5:26 p.m.

  * * *

  Larry turned down Holley Avenue when he heard sirens behind him. He smiled as he thought about Farrah and how he now only had three people instead of four to deal with in order to feel completely free. He wasn’t comfortable knowing that there was someone around who could finger him to Thad and Toby. He felt extremely nervous when they informed him that Austin was the go-to guy until further notice. That let him know that they didn’t trust him.

  Larry looked into his rearview mirror and noticed the police were on his tail. He slowed down so they could go around him, but they continued behind him. He then sped up a little bit and turned into a grocery store parking lot to get out of the way, but to his surprise, they followed him.

  “What the fuck now?” he whispered to himself.

  As the four police cars surrounded his vehicle, Larry didn’t move. He kept his hands on the steering wheel, wondering what was going on.

  As the officers got out of their cars, they drew their guns. “Driver, get out of the car with your hands up! I repeat, get out of the car with your hands up!”

  Larry opened the door and stood up with his hands in the air.

  The officer then yelled, “Now, slowly get down on your knees and lie face down! Slowly!”

  Larry hesitated for a minute, and then spoke. “Officer, I’ve done nothing wrong!”

  “Get down on your knees! I’m not going to say it again!” the officer commanded.

  Larry did as he was told. Three officers rushed toward him and handcuffed him.

  “What is this about?” Larry asked.

  “Sir, your vehicle was seen leaving the scene of a crime that just happened several blocks from here.”

  “I had nothing to do with any crime, officer!” Larry cried.

  “Sergeant, we got blood on the mat here on the driver’s side, and a .38 Special in the glove compartment,” another officer yelled.

  The sergeant walked over to inspect the car, and then walked over to inspect Larry’s shoes. When he saw the blood, he ordered them to be taken off, and he called the Crime Scene Unit.

  Larry was read his rights and placed in the back of a police car. He watched as his car was loaded onto the back of a tow truck. He was then taken down to the precinct for booking. He didn’t know what to do, but he knew who he had to call. After he was fingerprinted, questioned, and dressed, he was given his one phone call. He dialed Debra’s number.

  “Hello,” she answered after accepting the call.

  “Hey, listen. They just arrested me for murder,” he whispered.

  “Who are they accusing you of killing, baby?” she asked.

  “They saying I killed Farrah! I didn’t do it, I swear,” he cried.

  “What’s your bond?” she asked.

  “I don’t have one. What am I going to do?” he asked.

  There was a brief silence, and then Debra exhaled sharply. “I don’t know what you’re going to do, but please don’t dial this number again.”

  “That fucking bitch!” Larry yelled after she hung up on him. He knew he was done for.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Friday morning, as the news about Farrah’s death and Larry’s arrest filled the street, Thad was dealing with even more stressful issues. He had just received a call from Ramon Silva and Sergio Torres and was informed that his time was nearly up. They were flying up from Venezuela in two months’ time, and if they didn’t get their money or product, they were going to handle the matter their way. Thad couldn’t believe the turn of his luck. He had to figure out some way to get his hands on some extra cash fast, a lot of it, but not so much as to be left totally broke. He had money put aside, and his company was bringing in a large profit; however, it wasn’t enough to pay back Sergio and Ramon what he owed them on the shipment they had sent. He also had a few guns and cocaine he could move and make several thousands of dollars on, but he needed more.

  He assumed that Orlando wasn’t involved with the hit against them, so he was going to continue to use him and his men to move his shit. He really needed Orlando, because Sergio was his connect, and if anything, he could talk to them and possibly get them some extended time.

  Ramon and Sergio came from separate parts of South America. Ramon’s family originated from Uruguay, and Sergio’s from Colombia. Their families met and found a common interest, which brought forth the Bomont Cartel. Formed in 1940, they moved on to build a billion-dollar dynasty. They exported large amounts of cocaine, and huge shipments of guns and marijuana. They supplied the top hitters, located in California, Mexico, Georgia, Michigan, Miami, and Las Vegas. Thad was hoping to add New York to the roster, but he doubted that it would happen now. He just prayed that he and his team lived through the next few months.

  “Man, what a fucking month. Nothing seems to be going right. We are several men down, and now this bullshit with Larry. Man, what next?” Thad shouted.

  “I know, and for the first time, I don’t have any answers. I’m just as confused as you are,” Toby admitted.

  “Well, I’m down to do whatever. I think we should go on a spree and get as much as we can get,” Austin replied.

  “Explain yourself, Austin,” Toby replied.

  “Well, first off, we got enough people to pull a few licks. Who do we all know that got cash long enough to get us to a promising start?” Austin asked, looking at Thad and Toby.

  “Who?” Toby asked, looking confused.

  “Orlando,” Thad answered loudly, proud as a peacock.

  “Yeah, but aren’t they heavily connected to Sergio?” Toby asked.

  “Yeah, but we can hit them, and no one will know it was us. They will assume that it was the guys who hit us. We can do this,” Thad replied, feeling a little bit better.

  “Well, let’s call up our boys and see what’s up,” Toby said.

  “I’m on it now,” Austin replied as he began dialing numbers.

  “I knew I liked that muthafucka for some reason,” Thad said, pointing to Austin.

  “Hell yeah! He official. I been told you that,” Toby said as he grabbed his cell phone to make a few calls. Thad followed suit and called a few of his contacts.

  * *
*

  Jeryca was both devastated and terrified over the news of Farrah’s death. She couldn’t believe that her friend was gone. After hearing about it on television, Jeryca called Farrah’s mother. Her sister, Karen, informed her that Shirley wasn’t able to talk at that time.

  “How is Travis doing?” Jeryca asked.

  “Who is this?” Karen asked.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. I’m Jeryca.”

  “Li’l Jeryca from the east side?” Karen asked.

  “Yes, ma’am. Me and Farrah been friends for what seemed like forever,” Jeryca said.

  “Yes, I know. Well, how are the other girls?” Karen asked.

  “They’re fine,” Jeryca stated.

  “Maybe you can come over and see if Travis will respond to you. He isn’t eating, barely slept a wink last night, and won’t talk to anyone,” Karen explained.

  “Yes, I’d love to come over and visit with Travis, as well as the rest of the family,” Jeryca said.

  “Okay, well, we will see you when you get here,” Karen replied.

  Jeryca called Dana to see if she would go with her over to Shirley’s house. She needed to be close to her friends. She knew that Stephanie and Dana had issues with her and rightfully so, but she needed to be around them so they could all grieve together.

  * * *

  “What? I can’t believe that bitch! I brought her ass in and she betrays me for a fucking nigga! I will snap that bitch’s neck. Real shit!” Brittany stormed as she paced back and forth in her office after Dana gave her the news. She couldn’t believe Debra was partially responsible for them losing the product and money they got from Thad.

  “Brit, we got to use our head on this, though. We can’t go off all half-cocked. Debra knows where our shit at, and we need her to tell us where it’s located. So I say for now, let’s play it cool like we don’t know shit, and then pounce on that ass and make her tell all, like we did Keith,” Dana said menacingly.

  “What happened to my sweet little darling?” Brittany said, laughing.

  “She no longer exists. I’ve been pushed and pushed and pushed by my so-called friends and their niggas. I’m on a mission for the money, and I’m taking my respect. I’m an ambitious woman now,” Dana said as she held her head back, smiling.

  “Aw, sookie sookie now! Look at ya! I’m scared of yo’ ass.” Brittany laughed.

  Just then, Dana’s phone rang. “Hello?” It was Jeryca. “Hey, Jeryca. How are you doing?”

  “Girl, I’m not taking this too well,” Jeryca sniffed.

  “Me either,” Dana lied.

  “Why did that have to happen to Farrah, Dana? Why did Larry do that shit?” Jeryca moaned.

  Dana sighed. “I don’t know. Listen, I’m going to call Stephanie and see if she wants to go with us. I will pick you up after I get off work. If we didn’t have a full schedule, I’d get off now, but we are behind and have several cases that we have to jump on immediately,” Dana explained.

  “Okay, call me when you’re on your way,” Jeryca said softly before hanging up.

  “All right, girl,” Dana said before hanging up.

  Brittany looked at Dana and shook her head. “Girl, you know you could’ve took some time off to go to Ms. Walker’s house.”

  “Yeah, I know, but Brittany, I got something to tell you. I haven’t told you everything yet.” Dana sighed.

  “Oh Lord! Do I need to sit down for this?” Brittany asked.

  Dana sat down across from Brittany with her head down, took in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. When she looked up, she smiled. “I know I can trust you not to say anything, so here goes. When Farrah told me about the situation with her, Larry, and Debra, I snapped. She grabbed a knife; we fought, and she slipped and fell. When I looked over at her, the knife was embedded in her chest,” Dana explained.

  “What! You know you could’ve stayed and it would’ve been self-defense or accidental—” Brittany began.

  “Well, the problem with that is, I would’ve had to explain how she fell repeatedly on the knife in different areas of her body!” Dana laughed.

  “Damn, Dana! What the hell? I can’t believe I’m sitting here listening to you tell me that you killed your best friend,” Brittany exclaimed.

  “I don’t know, Brit. I just lost it. Once I saw her laying there with the knife in her chest, I grabbed it and went on her.” Dana groaned as she slid down a bit in the chair.

  “So where is the knife, Dana?” Brittany asked.

  “I tossed it,” Dana replied.

  “I hope you tossed it where it couldn’t be found,” Brittany said.

  “Yes, I hid it very well,” Dana answered.

  “Well, with Larry and Farrah out of the way, we can focus on Debra,” Brittany said.

  “Focus on Debra for what?” Debra asked as she walked into the room, smiling.

  The two women looked at Debra, shocked that she had almost caught them talking about her.

  Brittany stood up. “You just walk into my office without knocking? Really?”

  “I saw you two in here and didn’t think it would be a problem. But what were you two talking about?” Dana asked again.

  “We were just saying that we need to focus on helping you with the caseload you have. We are all behind on our work and need to play catch up,” Dana said before Brittany could speak.

  Brittany sat down behind her desk and glared at Debra, who was smiling from ear to ear, wearing what appeared to be a new outfit. This burned Brittany up inside, but she couldn’t say anything if they hoped to get their money back.

  “Shit, I’ve never seen you with that outfit on. Looks nice on you,” Brittany stated without any real emotion.

  “Oh, thanks, girl. My boo bought it for me,” she said as she twirled around.

  “Looks good. But listen, Debra: me and Dana was talking, and I’m trying to help her with this Farrah issue. You know she was killed yesterday,” Brittany explained.

  “Oh, yeah. Sorry, girl,” Debra said, looking at Dana and smiling.

  “Thank you,” Dana replied.

  “I will talk to you in a few. I got to go make a few calls,” Debra said as she walked out of the office.

  “I can’t wait to bash her head in. She—” Brittany started before Dana stopped her.

  “Let’s discuss it this evening when I come back from visiting Farrah’s family. We don’t want Debra to know that we know she had a hand in our money getting stolen,” Dana said.

  Brittany agreed, and they went on about their regular work day. Brittany tried to stay away from Debra as much as she could. When she did go around her, she was cordial and respectful. It pained Brittany to be so nice when she wanted to bash her head in. They had loaded over $500K in merchandise alone on their lick, only for that bitch to steal it from them. Boy, she was ready to snap.

  At around twelve o’clock, Brittany told Debra and Dana that she wasn’t feeling well and would work from home.

  “Okay, sweetie, get you some rest. Hope you feel better soon,” Debra replied.

  Brittany looked at her for a long minute then stated, “I’m sure what’s ailing me will pass. Thank you, love.”

  “You know I got you,” Debra replied.

  Dana watched as Brittany bit back her words and smiled.

  “See you tomorrow, Dana. Take care, and if you need to talk to me, call me, okay?”

  “All right, I will,” Dana replied.

  Brittany left, and Dana and Debra carried on working for the remainder of the day. At 4:30 p.m., Dana left for the day and headed straight to Jeryca’s house. She didn’t want to go in due to the incident between her and Jeryca’s mother and sister, so she blew her horn. After about three minutes, Jeryca slowly walked out of the house. Her eyes were puffy, and her nose was red.

  As she got into the car, she reached over and hugged Dana. “Hey, sis.”

  “Hey, baby girl. Are you okay?” Dana asked.

  “I’m as good as I can be, I guess,” Jeryca answered.

/>   “I got to pick up Stephanie, and we will ride on over to Shirley’s house,” Dana stated.

  “Okay, sounds good,” Jeryca replied.

  As they rode in silence, Dana couldn’t help but feel sorry for Jeryca. She looked torn, lost, and afraid. Dana knew that Jeryca and Farrah were close, but Stephanie was closer to Farrah than either of them was.

  As she pulled up to Stephanie’s house, they saw Stephanie standing on her porch with a female they had never seen. What really shocked them was that this woman was holding Stephanie. It wasn’t the type of embrace that a regular friend would give. As they watched the two walk toward the car, Stephanie grabbed the girl’s hand, which confirmed Dana’s initial thought. This was Stephanie’s lover!

  Stephanie had told her that she had met someone new and that she liked her. Although this was a shocker for Dana, she couldn’t help but smile. Stephanie had a real cutie, and she looked happy again.

  “Hey, listen, this is my friend Robin, and I was hoping it would be okay if she rode with us over to Shirley’s house,” Stephanie said as she approached the car.

  “Hey, Robin,” both girls replied.

  “You know she is more than welcome to ride. Come on, let’s go,” Dana said.

  As they got into the car, Stephanie told Dana and Jeryca how she and Robin met, and how they had been spending a lot of time with one another.

  Dana smiled. “Well, I don’t care who you are with. I’m just glad you’re happy, but you know we got to chat!”

  “Oh Lord!” Stephanie laughed. “Yes, I know.”

  When they pulled up to Shirley’s house, there were a lot of cars in the driveway and around the home. They had to park around the corner from Shirley’s house, which caused Dana to have a déjà vu moment. She laughed at the irony of the situation.

  “What’s funny?” Jeryca asked, frowning.

  “Nothing, just thinking that we are walking into this house, and for the first time, Farrah isn’t going to be there. Man, this is going to be hard,” Dana said as she dropped her head. Jeryca rushed over to hug her, and Dana felt a twinge of regret for lying, but to her, it was a necessary evil. She wanted to laugh again at that thought, but she held it in.