by Nicety
“Who is it?”
“Nigga you know who it is.”
“Shine?” His voice shrilled as he unlocked the door. “What the fuck are you doing here? Do you know what time it is?”
“Aries, who is it?” Eva came down the cascading staircase, crossing her arms. “Oh it’s you.”
“What did that bitch just say?” Bonnie was like a rabbit pit bull with that shit, quick to bite a bitch’s head off.
“Calm down, baby. You’ll have your moment.” I assured her, gently pushing her so she would fall back from her defensive mode.
“Aye she ain’t got to calm down. Y’all can take that mess on somewhere else dude. You can’t stay here. You know that.” Aries placed his hand on my shoulder trying to desperately shove us out the door.
“What? Naw, naw bro. We in this motherfucka for good, now. We’re about to get it in up in here.” I made know, shoving our way back through the door looking around at all of the missing furniture. “SO, where you going bruh?”
“What do you mean?”
“Ha ha. Now he wants to play dumb. I said, where you going? The furniture is gone. You barely even got a curtain in this beautiful motherfucka. Where you going?” I smiled casually laughing in the process.
“We…we had to sell the house. We’ve fallen on hard times and—“ Aries squirmed.
“Fallen on hard times? Shit, you could’ve fooled the fuck out of me.” I gradually paced the floor, snatching my piece from behind my back. “Word on the street is that you living large my nigga.”
“Somebody done lied to you, fool. You know I’m broke and shit, working all those hours at the job site.”
“Yet you miraculously came up with this crib and all that expensive furniture you had in here. Let me guess, you sold it back to the motherfuckas who sold it to you. Right? Them niggas in Okinawa wanted their shit back.” I angrily cocked the gun and pointed it straight at him.
“Oh my God. Aries.” Eva danced as she moved all the way down the stairs.
“You scared now, huh bitch? But before you had all that shit to say. Now I know it was only because of this bitch ass nigga and what he did. You knew, didn’t you?” I asked, taking a few steps forward.
“No. No. Now leave her out of this. She didn’t have anything to do with anything.” Aries put his hand out in an effort to shield her from harm. “Go on back upstairs honey and finish packing. I’ll handle this.”
“Oh no. That bitch isn’t going anywhere.” Bonnie chimed in, revealing her .45 from behind her back.
“Yeah. The more the merrier, right? Besides I’ve already talked to Kelsey and he told me to tell you that the check you gave him has been cashed.” I waved my gun in his direction. “So my question to you is how much did you pay my daughter’s grandparents to erase her from their lives?”
“Hmm. You’d be amazed at what the price is of silence these days. Motherfuckas are quick to shut up when you drop that dough in their faces.” He boasted.
“My money, bitch. When you drop my money in their faces.”
“Shine, that fact is neither here nor there at this point. That shit is water under the bridge bruh.”
“Where I damn near was if your boys hadn’t fucked up. And, where you’re about to be in about two motherfucking minutes.” I promised.
Aries bowed his head and shook it a bit in shame. The knowledge that I knew exactly what he had done was written all over his face. There was no need to hide or lie about his dirty laundry. It had already been aired out for him. Too bad he was too much a cowardly bitch to do the shit himself. As I looked at him, I realized how much of a bitch he truly was. All of our lives he was always trying to compete to be better than me instead of trying to be content and happy with his own damned life. His insecurities skyrocketed even more when he got with that slut bucket behind him so it wouldn’t surprise me if she was in on the shit from jump.
“So, why’d you do it Aries? You were my brother, my friend. I would’ve given you anything.” I interrogated.
“But you didn’t.” Aries snapped, dropping his shoulders and shaking his head. “All that fucking money you stole and you never once handed me anything big and you knew I was struggling. I had to literally beg you for $10,000 so that I could buy a car to get to work.”
“That was because I was saving up so that I never had to do that shit again. I was securing a future for my daughter. My daughter that you murdered.” The veins popped out of my neck. “So for your greed, my daughter lost her life.”
“Man, you’d be amazed at what money could buy. With the right amount of cash you can get rid of anybody. But your daughter, she wasn’t the intended target.” Aries grinned slightly.
“Fuck your intended target. You were my boy, my motherfucking ace, and you did me dirty. You took my blood from me.” My temperature rose to a level not on the Richter scale.
“That was a mistake. Okay, she was a mistake. I didn’t know it was your week to keep her and they were not supposed to touch her. That was all them.” Aries waved his hand frantically. “That shit wasn’t my fault man.”
“The fuck it wasn’t your fault. You kicked this shit off. All of the cards you dealt lead to this shit right here.” I bit the shit out of my lip so badly; I thought I had drawn blood. My eyebrows curled over so tightly they began to give me a migraine.
“Man, fuck them niggas okay. That shit is on them. Not me.” Aries choked.
“Yeah well, they’re all dead now. The only one who isn’t dead is you.”
“Listen Shine. We can work something out. We can…we can—“
“There ain’t shit we can work out motherfucka!” I could feel the scratchiness in the back of my throat itch as my voice echoed throughout the empty house. “You leaking onto the floor is all that I want now. You’re fucking done.”
“That’s right motherfucka. We don’t give a shit about you or that ugly ass bitch over there. Now where are those fucking kids?” Bonnie questioned as she walked over to Eva.
“You leave my kids out of this.” Eva cried.
“Bitch,” Bonnie banged her upside the head with her piece. “Now get the fuck up and take me to those damned kids.”
“Babe, bring them down here,” I called out as she nodded back in agreement.
“Shine, killing my kids ain’t gon’ change nothing man. It’s not gon’ bring Sunshine back, man.” Aries tried to reason as he held his hands up to his shoulders.
“Don’t you speak her name. Don’t you ever speak her fucking name again. You ain’t earned that shit. Meanwhile, that message ain’t from me. It’s from Bronx, you stupid motherfucka.”
“Shit.” He woofed. “Shit.”
Eighteen
4:35am
What Goes Around
Shine
Bonnie returned, pushing Eva and the kids down the stairs in front of her. I could tell that her trigger finger was itching to drop some slugs into their asses. The look in her eye was one of a woman who didn’t give two shits about their lives. The only ones she cared about were hers and mine, if that. She walked them over to the patio doors and lined them all up in a row. Aries’ two young girls looked scared out of their minds but Eva’s son looked as if he had a vendetta to score. His scrawny ass would have to build a little muscle to fuck with me though. His looks couldn’t kill even if they tried.
“Now which one of your kids do you want to see go first?” Bonnie asked stepping back and aiming her piece right for the little girls’ heads.
“Don’t you fucking touch my kids you dirty bitch,” Aries admonished, piercing his eyes up to hers as he fell to his knees.
“Ah, ah, ah. You’d better watch your fucking mouth. My girl don’t run her mouth like yours does. She takes action. You should be afraid of what she’s gonna do next.” I warned, shaking my head.
“Com’ on man. What the fuck do you want from me, Shine damn?” Aries breathed bowing his head to the floor.
“I want you to sit there like the rat bitch you are.”
I lowered my hand bringing the gun down to my side. “Baby, show ‘em what we do to disloyal bitch made punks.”
“With pleasure.” Bonnie pointed her piece straight to Eva’s temple prompting her to panic and shuffle from side to side frantically. “Go to sleep, hoe.”
“No!” Eva screamed in trepidation before the hollow point slid inside of her skull dropping her body to the floor lifelessly.
Blood curdling screams filled the room as Eva’s plasma oozed out onto the marble floor, heading in the children’s direction. I pointed my gun their way. They cuddled each other, squeezing their eyes together praying for their deaths to be just as swift and painless as their mother’s. Her head hit the floor so hard that it cracked pushing her eyeballs out of their sockets. Her body had contorted into an odd letter shape, freaking the kids out even more as they trembled in fear. My attention shifted on the dawn spreading across the early morning sky. I had no idea what time it was but morning was creeping up fast. We had been there too long and needed to jet out of there before anyone became alerted to the echoic gunfire.
“Eva. You son of a bitch, Shine.” Aries sobbed loudly. “This shit ain’t gonna bring your damn daughter back man.”
“You were better off without that trick. That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you all along. She was just using your gullible ass. But don’t worry. You can visit her whenever you want,” I lectured, as I nodded over to Bonnie. “In hell.”
“Any last words?” She asked him before popping two off, one to his chest and another quickly to his dome.
His eyes hadn’t even had a chance to close before he hit the floor. A great weight seemed to be lifted up off of my shoulders a bit. Some of it was still there since there was still one motherfucka that was out there living his life Scott Free. But in due time, I would get that nigga. I wouldn’t be able to sleep until everyone who participated in the death of my daughter had paid a terrible price for her blood, one way or the other. It kind of made me want to go back and get that jackass I had given another chance at life.
“You taking them, baby, or shall I?” Bonnie stepped over Aries’ body, moving close pressing her body close to mine.
“Naw, we ain’t doing it.”
“What? Oh my God. Here we go again with this. You cannot have a soft spot for every kid you come in counter with. These kids are not your daughter. They don’t have anything to do with her.”
“It’s not about that, Bonnie. I’m just not a fucking baby killer. I don’t get down like that.” My hand jarred her way grabbing her by the arm. “I’ll kill a nigga or bitch every day of the week, but I’m not about to kill no kids girl.”
“You’re weak. You’re fucking pathetic. What kind of man are you? You’re not a man. You’re a fucking chicken.” Bonnie teased.
“Shut the fuck up, alright. You don’t know anything. You don’t know shit.” I raised my hand to her face, lowering it as I grit my teeth.
“Look at you. You can’t even bring yourself to fucking hit me. We need that money to get the fuck out of here and you’re fucking that up.” Bonnie swung her gun around loosely. “Now it’s either me or them, Shine.”
I looked into their large begging eyes. They were secretly begging for their lives and I couldn’t very well be the one to send them home too soon. If Bronx wanted to bring the heat to my doorstep then we would dance once he got there. But I didn’t need his easy money. I knew how to get it on my own. Bonnie was a loose cannon that needed to be tamed. But I had zero patience for her bullshit if she wouldn’t listen to reason.
“Bonnie, do you have feelings for me?”
“What does that have to do with anything, Shine? I need to get the fuck out of the country. I need that money. We need that money.”
Sirens rang out in the distance, becoming closer and closer by the minute. Instantly I knew it was a bad idea to leave that captain and his rat face family breathing. It was biting me in the ass the more I thought about it. I just couldn’t bare the thought of plugging those little kids like that. I turned to the Aries’ kids standing up at me with puppy dog eyes. I’d sooner turn the gun on myself and blow my own brains out before I destroyed what was left of their innocent lives.
“Bonnie, we gotta go. The fucking cops are almost here. We’ve gotta go.” I urged pulling her towards the door.
“No, we haven’t finished the job yet.” She raised her gun up towards their heads, staring heavily.
“I said no goddamn it.” Before I could think, my hand slapped Bonnie across the face, sending her slamming to the floor. “You’re not going to fucking hurt them.”
As I finished my words, a large pounding at he front door echoed through the house. The feds were beckoning for everyone to come out with their hands in the air. My breathing slowed realizing we were fucked royally. In that same instance, all noise around me began to be drowned out. It faded out without warning. I could see Bonnie’s lips moving, as the banging became a splitting headache in my mind. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as I turned back to her. All that flowed through my head was that I had done all I could to get the justice Sunshine so well deserved.
“They have to die, Shine,” She scowled, as my hearing finally came back.
“Just go, Bonnie.” I shoved her away from me.
“Huh?”
“Just fucking go. Get the hell out of here. I’ll take care of all of this.” I turned my back on her as the pounding increased, recognizing they were breaking down the door.
“I’m not leaving without you, Shine. We’re in this shit together, remember? What are you doing?” She flustered.
“I’m doing what the fuck I should’ve done in the beginning of this shit. Giving you a way out of this. You should’ve never come with me to begin with. This was all one big damn mistake.” I huffed, turning back to face her. “Go!”
“I hate you. You know that? I fucking hate you.” Bonnie growled, burning a hole through my eyes as the double front doors came crashing in.
“Don’t fucking move.” The feds ranted as they crept their way in and Bonnie disappeared out of sight. “Drop the gun.”
I did as I was told dropping the gun in between the kids and me. I stared at their pint-sized relieved faces. Nothing would ever bring their parents back but truth was they were better off without them. They could take my money and live happily ever after somewhere, while I rotted away in prison. They would be able to grow up and live their lives as they pleased while my daughter rotted in a shallow grave waiting to be properly buried. But if they came looking for revenge in some form or fashion, for their parent’s deaths I would be waiting for them.
The feds surrounded me. They grabbed my hands and kicked the gun far from me, steadily pointing theirs directly at my head. They were waiting for me to make the wrong damn move, giving them a reason to launch multiple clips inside of me. As they hand cuffed me, I squirmed erratically simply to give the assholes a little run for their money. I wasn’t about to go down without raising a little hell in between, as I spat on the expensive tiled floor. They cursed in disgust at me as they raised me to my feet calling me every distasteful name under the sun. I could only wonder if Bonnie had gotten away in time. Hopefully, she would be able to turn her life around and leave the streets alone. It was no place for girl so full of unspoken potential.
I turned around to smile in the children’s faces to give them something to remember me by as well, when a bullet entered my neck. A loud ringing pulsated my ears as I struggled to breathe while staring down at my assailant. It was the ten year old girl. I should have known. Evil resonated through her eyes as I bled out. One of the feds cuffed my neck as I fell to the floor, trying to stop the massive gush of blood from spewing from my wound. The air became thin as I stared at her, not with hate but with appreciation. She had the balls to pick the unsecured gun from the floor and take action rather than wait years for her revenge. In actuality, I was proud of her. If I could speak I would thank her. Silently, I did as my eyes closed shut. I was
thankful to her for freeing me and sending me home, to my daughter and my only true love.
Nineteen
5:41am
They Meet
Bonnie
I was lucky as fuck to have dipped out of the back door before those blue and white scabs made it around to secure the back exit. They were slacking hard, forgetting the protocol when dealing with two of America’s Most Wanted. Just as they were on their way to the backyard, I jetted out to the alley and hid behind the neighbor’s garage. Once the coast was clear, I ducked down behind each of the large black garbage cans down the long strip of alley before I reached the end of it. It was hard for me to believe that I would come out of this shit alive. The cops were on my ass and Shine’s ass had abandoned me. Realistically, it was foolish of me to believe that we were going to be together forever and fuck like rabbits under an island sun. We had a world wind romance, he and I. It was wild, fun, and heavy while it lasted. But he was caught up now, and I was all alone yet again. It was over.
The truck he had borrowed from Bronx was probably surrounded with cops, so there was no going back to get it. My feet were throbbing in my Timbs and it was brick ass outside, feeling no less than twenty degrees. The sun was coming up but not fast enough, as I was freezing my ass off. I stuffed my piece in my jeans, tucking it away for safe keeping wondering how in the hell I was going to get out of the area. My feet stomped and mushed the snow down as I crossed the street landing myself on 95th street. Out was out in the open with virtually no cars on the street and no pedestrians.
Where would I go? What would I do? I hadn’t spoken to my mother and I would be damned if I would go groveling back to her for help. The very thought of it made me queasy enough to blow chunks all over the curb, until a red Porsche pulled up to the stoplight. As the sun dripped light across the morning sky, the light also shined down on the remarkably clean car. I stared down at the license plate like it was going to change the minute I looked away. It never did. The rage that festered inside of me, made its comeback in full force. The stoplight timer was ticking down, assuring me that lights would soon be changing in a matter of seconds. It was a long shot, but I had to take a chance. I had to know if it was she.