Queen Hustlaz

by Falicia Love

  “Listen, Zack, get her the hell out of here until she calms the hell down,” Brittany said, motioning to Zack.

  “Zack ain’t got to get nobody. I will go into the front room, but you got to explain the logic in letting this bitch go,” Dana yelled before walking out of the kitchen.

  After Brittany finished up in the kitchen and got the information that they needed about the warehouse, she walked into the living room and got a set of keys out of Debra’s purse.

  Dana didn’t look at Brittany or speak a word to her. Brittany knew that Dana was pissed, but she really didn’t care at that point. After she gave the keys to Minx, the guys left and headed over to the warehouse. Brittany taped Debra’s mouth and walked into the front room. She sat down next to Dana.

  “Listen, I have chosen to keep Debra alive for a while. I don’t think it’s wise to kill her now. It’s too much going on, and it will draw unwanted attention and heat our way. You got to trust me, Dana.”

  Dana tried to understand the logic that Brittany was trying to point out, but she just wasn’t comfortable with Debra being left alive. She knew that the two women were friends way before she came into the picture. After experiencing major betrayal from Farrah and the rest of the girls, people she once viewed as her ride or die bitches, she wasn’t sure if she could trust anyone, especially someone she had only known for two years.

  Dana shook her head and looked at Brittany with tears in her eyes. “Brit, I hope you aren’t trying to cross me out, ’cause I don’t think I could bear losing another friend. I look at you as my big sis. You have taught me so much and been there for me in times no one else was, so I just hope you are genuinely thinking of our best interests here.”

  “Dana, I got you. You should know that you can trust me after everything we have endured lately. Don’t start doubting me now. That bitch is as good as dead, but we got to do this shit right. We can’t have dead bodies popping up on us back-to-back. Let shit cool down, then we can follow through with getting rid of her and anyone else we deem to be against us,” Brittany replied.

  Dana sighed. “I don’t want to doubt you, but I know you two have been friends for a good while, and I just don’t need any more bullshit-ass friends turning on me,” Dana explained.

  “Just trust me, Dana. I got you. And Debra killed our friendship when she turned on us for a fucking man,” Brittany replied.

  “I understand, and I trust you, sis. We good,” Dana said, smiling and hugging Brittany, but in Dana’s mind, it was now her against the world.

  Thirty minutes later, Brittany’s cell phone rang. “Yeah?” she said as she answered it.

  “Everything that she said was here is here. What next?” Zack replied.

  “We will leave it until we figure out a place to store it. But we can’t leave it there for too long, ’cause Debra isn’t the only person with the information on that location,” Brittany responded.

  “I may have a great spot, but let me check with my man,” Zack said.

  “When you going to get at him?” Brittany asked.

  “As soon as I get off the phone with you,” Zack replied.

  “All right then. Do what you do,” Brittany said before hanging up.

  “Are we good to go?” Dana asked.

  “Hell yeah, baby girl.” Brittany laughed.

  Chapter Twenty

  Stephanie and Robin spent a lot of time together over the course of two months. They had grown closer than ever, but Stephanie still didn’t feel comfortable telling Robin about all the things she had done in the past or planned on doing with Dana and Brittany. Whenever the group decided to meet to discuss the robbery, Stephanie would tell Robin that she either was going to or had been to Shirley’s house to check on the family, or just spend time with Travis.

  “Bae, when you go to work, I’m going to see Dana. She wants to have lunch today. She told me to tell you hello also,” Stephanie said as she stood in the mirror pinning her hair up.

  “That’s what’s up. Steph, you know for a white girl, you got a fat booty. I love watching it when you walk. It jiggles, and Lord, when I touch it, my clit stand straight up,” Robin said, laughing, walking up behind Stephanie and wrapping her arms around her waist.

  “Girl, you are a mess. But I’m glad my ass can bring you and your clit so much joy. Now stop that. You’re going to be late, damn it!” Stephanie squealed when Robin started kissing her on her neck.

  “I’ll be late for a li’l bit of that juicy ass,” she replied as she began rubbing on Stephanie’s breasts.

  “Well, while I’d love to oblige you, my baby, I got to go. But I promise we will pick up where we are leaving off tonight,” Stephanie moaned.

  Robin sighed but agreed that they could wait. She loved Stephanie and was extremely attracted to her. She had never been with a white woman and never imagined in her wildest dreams that she could feel the way she did about Stephanie.

  “All right, babe. What time do you think you will be back here?” Robin asked.

  “I honestly can’t say, but it won’t be late, I promise,” Stephanie answered. The two kissed for a few minutes then Robin left.

  Stephanie was dropped off at Dana’s apartment to meet with everyone and discuss more details of their next lick. They had found out a week earlier that they were holding Debra hostage until everything was completed. They didn’t want her to squeal on them to Chris and Thad.

  When she walked into Dana’s apartment, Jeryca was already there with Orlando. Stephanie hadn’t dealt with Jeryca much since the day she saw her fucking Chris. Jeryca noticed the difference in Stephanie, and she wasn’t going to leave Dana’s house without getting to the bottom of it.

  Stephanie spoke to everyone and sat next to Brittany on the couch. They had already moved all the dope, guns, and drugs to one of Orlando’s warehouses located on the south side of Brooklyn.

  “All right, we will execute this robbery in about two weeks. Friday will be the perfect time. We have studied the layout of the building, and we know Thad and Toby’s movements, thanks to Minx and Deondre scoping them out. So if everyone is ready for this, say aye. If you aren’t, or if you have any misunderstandings about what will occur, please speak up now,” Zack demanded.

  Everyone signaled they understood and were ready to move forward.

  Jeryca stood up and asked Stephanie if she could speak with her outside, and Stephanie agreed. Dana watched the two walk outside, and she prayed that they didn’t get loud or start fighting.

  Brittany gave Dana a sideways glance and smiled. She was also aware of why there had been animosity between the two women. She walked to the window and peeped out.

  Dana started laughing. “Get the hell away from the window, nosy.”

  “Shit, I want to see what’s going to happen.” Brittany laughed.

  Orlando cleared his throat so that the two women would at least respect the fact that others were in the room listening to them. He didn’t want them to speak on what was going on outside, because to him it wasn’t any of their business. Brittany and Dana snickered as they walked toward the den with all the guys in tow.

  Stephanie stood on the porch, waiting on Jeryca to speak. After a few moments of awkward silence, Stephanie spoke. “Well, what do you want to talk about?”

  “I want to know why you have been so cold to me lately. I haven’t done anything to you, period. The whole time we were dealing with Farrah’s death, you never once reached out to Shirley, or me, for that matter. You were barely talking to me at the funeral, and I want to know what’s going on,” Jeryca cried.

  Stephanie looked down at her feet then back at Jeryca’s face. How dare she stand before her, trying to look all innocent? She was a ho, and Stephanie was going to give her an earful of what she thought about her. “Jeryca, I know that you would like to stand here like you haven’t done anything, but bitch, you got to know that I know you fucked Chris while we were together. You were my girl, and you go and fuck my man. How dare you feel the need to que
stion me about anything? You are trifling, and you don’t deserve to have a friend like me. I would never have fucked Thad knowing that you were with him.”

  “What are you talking about? I never fucked Chris,” Jeryca denied quickly.

  “Bitch, yes you did! I saw you with my own two eyes. I flattened his tires while y’all sat parked at the abandoned apartments. You are a liar if you say it wasn’t you. Matter of fact, say you didn’t fuck him, and I will punch you in your fucking mouth,” Stephanie said as she stepped forward.

  Jeryca was speechless. She didn’t realize that Stephanie had seen them. No wonder she was treating her like a stranger. But how could she still be angry with her about a loser like Chris, especially after everything they had been through lately? Hell, if she hadn’t slept with Chris, Stephanie would probably still be with him, instead of the new love she had.

  “Stephanie, I know I hurt you, but if it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t be with Robin now. In a way, I did you a favor,” Jeryca said, smiling.

  “Did me a favor? Bitch, you destroyed our friendship. I don’t give a fuck about Chris. I just couldn’t believe that you would do that shit to me. You were like my sister, and now you are standing in front of me, talking ’bout you doing me a favor. Bitch, fuck you.”

  At that moment, Stephanie slapped Jeryca and pushed her to the ground. She dove on top of her and began beating Jeryca furiously.

  Dana and Brittany ran out, along with Orlando and Zack. They lifted a still-swinging Stephanie off Jeryca, who was curled up on the ground, covering her head.

  “Stephanie, what the fuck!” Dana yelled. “With everything going on, we don’t need the cops being called over here. Damn, you got to be smarter than that. Damn, y’all need to go before the cops are called.”

  “Why are you yelling at me? You know what this bitch did. Then she sitting out here, talking ’bout she did me a favor. Fucking ho-ass trick. Yeah, I said it. You slept with all those niggas, sucked dick for money for Thad’s ass, and then slept with my man for what? A nut? Bitch, you ain’t shit,” Stephanie screamed.

  Jeryca immediately looked at Orlando, who was looking at her as if he saw a ghost. She assumed that he was disgusted from what he’d just heard, and she walked quickly up the road, trying to avoid any more embarrassment. She had gotten her ass beat by a white girl, and then the bitch exposed her for being a whore.

  My day couldn’t get any worse, she thought.

  A few seconds later, Orlando drove up on her and told her to get in the car. Jeryca hesitated for a second, until Orlando spoke.

  “Please get in. I want to talk to you. I don’t care about none of what was said back there. We all have a past that we aren’t proud of. As long as you protected yourself when you were out there, you good.”

  Jeryca smiled and walked slowly to his car. Once she was inside, she put her seatbelt on, and he looked at her.

  “I have something I need to get off my chest also.”

  “What’s that?” Jeryca asked.

  “Not here. We need to go to my house and talk,” Orlando said as he drove up the road toward the highway.

  Jeryca was silent most of the way to Orlando’s house. She didn’t know what he had to say, but it couldn’t be good. He looked too serious. They made small talk here and there until they reached their destination.

  Orlando got out and walked around to open Jeryca’s door. Once she was out, he grabbed her hand gently and guided her into his house. Once they were inside, he asked her if she wanted a drink.

  “Yes, I just want some tea, if you don’t mind,” she said quietly.

  “Tea it is. I think I want something a bit stronger.” He laughed.

  He disappeared into the kitchen, and Jeryca leaned back on the couch. Usually, she would be at ease because she loved being at Orlando’s house, but after the events that had just occurred, she was a bit uncomfortable.

  When he returned, he handed her a bottle of Brisk tea and a glass of ice, while he popped opened a bottle of Ciroc.

  After he took a sip, he sat down next to Jeryca and cleared his throat. “First, I want to say that I didn’t realize this until a few minutes ago. I hope you won’t hold what I’m about to say against me, but remember when we first went out and I asked you if we had met before?”

  “Yes, I remember that,” Jeryca replied.

  “Well, now I remember where it was. One night about four months ago, I was at Thad’s . . . business location, and he introduced me to his top girl.” Orlando sipped his drink before going on. “It was you,” he whispered.

  Jeryca sat still, waiting for the punch line, but when none followed, she frowned up and shook her head. “Why wouldn’t you tell me this before? How is it you are just now realizing this?” she asked angrily.

  “The night I was with you, I had been drinking heavily. I don’t remember a lot about that night, but I kept trying to picture where I knew you from. When ol’ girl blurted out that you tricked for Thad, that’s when it dawned on me. I hope you know that I really like you, and I want to see if this can go further, but if you don’t want to after finding this out, I will respect your wishes. But just know that I think we can become so much more,” he explained.

  Jeryca sat quietly for a minute. She didn’t know what to say, but she liked Orlando a lot. She didn’t want to lose him behind past mistakes and if he was willing to overlook her wrongs, then she could overlook his revelation.

  “Jeryca, please don’t sit there quiet like that. Say something. Tell me what you want to do,” he pleaded.

  Jeryca looked at him and smiled. “I’m here for the long haul.”

  “That’s what I’m talking ’bout.”

  The two embraced one another and spent the rest of the evening together.

  * * *

  Dana had grilled Stephanie for over an hour about how she handled Jeryca. Stephanie was angered by the fact that Dana seemed to be sticking up for Jeryca, knowing she was in the wrong.

  “Dana, if that bitch had slept with your man, you’d be livid too. Then she standing out there, talking ’bout she did me a favor. I fucking snapped. What else could I have done?”

  “Dana, you know that she was right for reacting how she did. Jeryca was asking for it,” Brittany said.

  “Exactly! She deserved every fucking punch she got,” Stephanie replied.

  “Hell, for a white girl, you got some hands on you.” Deondre laughed.

  “I learned from the best. My besties had them hands, especially Farrah. I remember when we were younger, Farrah was the main one in the bunch who stayed fucking a bitch or nigga up.” Stephanie laughed.

  At the mention of Farrah’s name, the whole atmosphere seemed to change briefly.

  Dana was the first person to speak up. “Well, you still should’ve held your composure. That was unacceptable in my book.”

  Stephanie looked at Dana long and hard. She couldn’t believe that Dana was still coming down on her about that fight. It had happened, and it couldn’t be changed. Even if she could change it, she wouldn’t.

  She decided to ask Minx if he would take her to CVS where Robin worked. She wasn’t going to sit around listening to Saint Dana run the fight into the ground. Dana got on Stephanie’s nerves, trying to be righteous, especially now when she had been the shadiest of them all lately.

  Minx agreed to take Stephanie to CVS, and when she was walking out the door, she said her goodbyes to everyone except Dana. She was livid with her for coming down on her so hard.

  When they pulled out of the driveway, Brittany looked at Dana and said, “You know you were wrong for that.”

  Dana looked at her and shrugged her shoulders. “Fuck her and Jeryca. I’m done with both of them after this lick. Shit, I don’t forget shit. How the fuck I’m wrong?”

  Brittany started laughing and softly pushed Dana, who was also laughing. “Gotta love ya hateful ass.”

  * * *

  Stephanie walked into CVS and waited for Robin to clock out. Robin knew immediatel
y that something was wrong. As soon as she clocked out and they were at her car, she asked Stephanie, “Bae, what happened to you?”

  “Shit, got into a little scuffle with Jeryca, but I’m good,” she answered.

  “Are you sure?” Robin inquired.

  “I’m positive, baby,” Stephanie replied.

  “Come and let me suck on those lips, mama,” Robin said playfully.

  “You ain’t got to ask me twice,” Stephanie said as she walked toward Robin.

  After they locked lips, Robin leaned back against the car. “What do you want for dinner?”

  Stephanie looked in her eyes. “You on a platter is good enough for me.”

  “Umm, sounds like a plan to me,” Robin replied as she unlocked the doors to her car. They got in and pulled off with Stephanie feeling totally complete and hell-bent on getting Jeryca again, and getting even with Dana somehow.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Wednesday morning, Detective Rone was sitting behind his desk when Detective Harris popped his head in. “Aye, did you catch that game last night?”

  “Heck yeah, and I was heated. The Patriots shouldn’t have won that game, man,” Rone complained.

  “Whatever. I should’ve bet your ass. They were going to win no matter what. They’re just that good.” Harris laughed.

  “Man, whatever. Those bastards are known for cheating, and they are starting the season off doing what they do best, I guess,” Rone said as he leaned back in his chair.

  “Whatever. You’re just hating on my team. Everybody knows they’re the best!” Detective Harris stated.

  Just then, Rone’s phone began to ring. “Detective Rone speaking,” he replied.

  “Detective Rone, I have some information I think you would be interested in having,” the caller said.

  “Oh yeah? Well, first tell me who this is?” he asked, signaling at Detective Harris to remain where he was.

  “I will tell you who I am at a later date, but right now, I think you need to put your focus on trying to find Debra Fuller before she winds up dead like Farrah and Brenda. The first person I’d contact is Dana Crisp. I know you know her,” the caller replied.