Real Riders Never Die

by A'zayler

  “I can’t, my daddy ain’t having that shit.”

  “Tell him you’re at a friend’s house or something. Please. I really want you to stay.” Kia tried to think about a good lie to tell Buck before she called. Sure of herself, she called and surprisingly it worked. He was cool and said he’d see her tomorrow. She and Jacko were ecstatic. They chilled and had a good time the entire night. Jacko hit it one more time before they went to bed. Kia knew she was setting herself up for heartache dealing with Jacko, but she just couldn’t shake it. The next morning, she woke up in bed alone. She ran her hand around the space where Jacko was supposed to be and felt nothing. She grabbed her phone from the nightstand and noticed she had two missed calls from Taryn and a text.

  Taryn (bestie): Call me girl!

  Kia laughed and texted her back, letting her know she had some juicy news to tell her and she’d call in a minute. She moaned to herself as she replayed in her mind the sex she’d had with Jacko last night.

  “What am I going to do with this boy?” she mumbled to herself.

  “You gon’ get up and come sit on his face,” Jacko said, startling her. Kia jumped up in search of his voice and found him sitting in the lounge chair he had in the corner. He was smoking a blunt and smiling at her. Kia immediately got nervous. Jacko was so nasty, and he didn’t mind showing it.

  “What you doing over there? Why aren’t you in bed with me?”

  “I wanted to smoke and I didn’t want this loud to wake you up,” he laughed.

  “Boy please! I grew up around that shit. You could have stayed right here. Come back,” she pleaded with her arms stretched out to him. Jacko put his blunt out and walked to her. He leaned forward and tongued her down before standing back up.

  “Ima make you pay for that shit later. But right now we got to go. Moto need me to come by there.”

  “Okay, well I’ll just go home. You can call me later when you’re free.” Jacko looked at her like she had grown two heads. She didn’t know what she’d said wrong, so she asked.

  “Why you looking like that?”

  “Because I don’t know who told you that you’re about to go home. I run this shit Kia, not you. You’re going with me,” he smiled as he walked past and slapped her on the butt. Kia shook her head and tried to suppress the butterflies in her stomach. Jacko was so sexy, with his little pigeon-toed ass. After she grabbed her clothes, she got redressed and went into the bathroom to brush her teeth and do her hair. Once she was finished, she met Jacko in the living room where he was sitting on the couch with her phone.

  “Why you all in my shit Jacko?”

  “I want to see what little boys you got calling you.”

  “Okay well let me know when you find them.” Kia went into the kitchen to get something to drink. She didn’t care about Jacko looking in her phone, because for one he wasn’t her man, and two he wouldn’t find anything. She had long ago cut off all of her jump offs in hopes that he and her would get together. Jacko, on the other hand, had never been the jealous type. He wasn’t really going through her phone; he was playing Candy Crush. He just wanted to see what type of female she was. If she was sneaky or had something to hide, she would have flipped out about her phone like most people did. That was a good sign in his book, so he got up and went to her. When he was in arms distance, she reached out and pulled him to her by his jacket and kissed his lips.

  “Find anything?” she asked, still sucking on his bottom lip.

  “My future wife,” he said as he picked her up and placed her against the wall. They kissed as she ran her hand through his locs. He smelled so good Kia thought she would melt.

  “I’m feeling the fuck out of you,” he moaned into her ear as he placed her back on the floor. If they continued on the path they were on, he’d never make it to Demoto’s crib. Fixing their clothes, they headed for the door.

  *****

  ZZZZZ...ZZZZZ…ZZZZZ. Demoto’s red cell phone vibrated across the kitchen counter. He was busy taking a shower while Taryn made breakfast. They had gone to the shelter yesterday and picked up all of her things and brought them back to his house. She would be living with him and Adisa for now. Adisa and Janay didn’t mind, and Demoto seemed to love the idea. Taryn wasn’t too sure at first, because Demoto still hadn’t ended things with Alicia and she didn’t even care. She was too uncertain of what her and Demoto had going on, so she didn’t push the issue. As she pushed a loose curl from her face and wrapped it into the ball on the top of her head, she picked up the phone. It had rang at least three times since he’d been in the shower. The caller had called from a blocked number so, she placed it back down.

  “Somebody calling?” Demoto asked, coming around the corner in a pair of sweatpants and no shirt. His dreads were pulled back into two fishtail braids that Taryn had done last night before bed. Her nipples immediately poked through the thin tank top she had on. Demoto turned her on every time she looked at him. The white leggings she wore with no panties were sure to be wet by now.

  “Yeah they’ve called like three times. I would have answered, but I didn’t know if you would want me to.”

  “Nah it’s cool,” he said as he picked up the phone and made a call. Taryn eavesdropped on his conversation as best as she could without being too obvious. Once he hung up, he had a few stress lines across his forehead.

  “You okay?”

  “Yeah. I just have some work to do later on.”

  “Where you work at?” She placed his food in front of him waiting for an answer. He thought about not telling her, but he knew she could be trusted. He thought about the easiest way to say it and there wasn’t one, besides the truth.

  “I’m an assassin.”

  “Like a hit man?”

  “Something like that but better. I work for a very important man and I handle very important assassinations. I don’t do petty street bullshit; I handle inside jobs. Government officials, military missions, board of directors type shit.” Taryn stood stunned for a couple of seconds before bursting out into a huge smile. Her reaction caught Demoto off guard.

  “What you smiling at?”

  “I know I thought you were sexy before with your tall African ass, but now that I know you’re fine and a killer, I can hardly keep my panties on,” she said as she fanned herself. Demoto burst out laughing. Taryn was so silly at times. He genuinely enjoyed being around her. Spending time with her wasn’t a chore like it was with Alicia. Taryn was mad cool. She was low key and didn’t pressure him. It was like chilling with Jeremiah and Jacko.

  “Man T you a fool man.”

  “Boy I’m serious! How you expect me to act normal around you now? I know I probably shouldn’t find this attractive, but I can’t help it. That shit is hot Moto! Damn!” Taryn walked past him and headed for the restroom to take her shower. Demoto took a bite of his food and almost choked. It was disgusting! Damn this shit nasty. He thought maybe Taryn could cook, but it was obvious she couldn’t. She had made eggs and grits and it was terrible! He looked over his shoulder before jumping up and putting it down the garbage disposal. He retrieved a banana nut muffin from the cabinet and gobbled it down before she came back. He didn’t want to hurt her feelings, so he would just pretend that he ate it.

  KNOCK KNOCK...BEEP BEEP.

  His cell phone went off at the same time someone knocked on his front door. He snatched his red phone off the counter and headed for the door. He was so busy reading his text he didn’t notice Kia was with Jacko.

  Blocked: 7659 Blackmon Road. Tonight. 60 grand

  Blocked: He should be alone. Finish clean!

  “Damn bruh you cooked a nigga breakfast?” Jacko joked as he walked into the kitchen. Demoto finally looked up and noticed Kia sitting on the couch. She wore a nervous smirk, she knew they were busted.

  “Boy hell nah. I didn’t cook that shit, Taryn did,” Demoto said before he knew it. He hadn’t meant to let them know Taryn was there, but knowing her and Kia, she probably had already told her.

&nbs
p; “Who cooked?” Kia asked. Oops I guess she didn’t know.

  “He said I did bitch, you heard him,” Taryn said as she walked in and smiled at her friend. She had on some fitted jeans and a black shirt that crossed around her neck. She must had just washed her hair, because it was all down and still looked wet. The four friends stood and looked around the room at each other. Taryn spoke first.

  “So I guess this the juicy news you had to tell me?” she said, pointing her finger between Kia and Jacko. Kia nodded her head slowly up and down as she hid her face with the pillow. Taryn and Demoto turned their attention to Jacko, waiting on his response. He looked at Kia and smiled slightly before busting out into a full grin at Demoto and Taryn.

  “Fall back Pretty Lee, Kia my girl. She know that.” What he was saying must have been true, because Kia was smiling like a little girl.

  “Well alright then!” Taryn smiled.

  “Nah, wait a fucking minute. What the hell you doing over here taking showers and cooking breakfast and shit, Taryn?” Jacko asked, and she answered with no hesitation.

  “Demoto and I are friends. He looks out for me sometimes. Everybody in here know how fucked up my home life is, so it’s no secret that I stay over here from time to time.”

  “Oh so we friends T?”

  “Uhhh yeah…and have been for a while now.” She was oblivious to how bad she’d just messed up. Demoto had begun to think of them as more than friends, but she was apparently still on her bullshit.

  “Say no more.” With that said, he walked into his room to get the things he needed to do his job later.

  Kia and Jacko both looked at Taryn. Demoto was pissed, and they all knew it. The only thing that Jacko had up on the girls was that he knew how angry Demoto could get. Taryn had no idea what she had just done. He shook his head in sympathy for her and joined Demoto in his room. Taryn and Kia sat in the living room for a while, waiting on the guys and exchanging their secrets.

  Chapter 12

  The clouds of smoke danced in circles around his head. The weed that he was smoking was some of the best he’d ever had. He’d only taken three, maybe four pulls and he was already high. It wasn’t very often that he indulged in his own product, but today had been one of those days. He had been stressing for the past couple of weeks trying to figure out how he was going to get out of the game. He had thought of every legit escape imaginable, but nothing seemed perfect enough. He’d given his job some of the best years of his life. It was time to call it quits. A couple of years back he would have done whatever it took, no matter the cost but that was no longer the case. He had two daughters now that he couldn’t imagine living life without. Everything he’d done recently was for them. He just hoped when the time came, they would remain safe and free of the deadly street life. The streets was no place for his babies, but if he didn’t play his cards right that’s where they would be.

  “Buck! We got a new contract. I already put #2 on his head, but I just wanted to let you know,” his young worker Dee said as he burst into his office.

  “Give me the rundown.”

  “It’s the mayor’s daughter. She addicted to drugs and she’s ruining the campaign for her father. Someone on his opponent’s team found out about her, and is threatening to bring it to the public. He’s offered to pay 80 grand to get rid of her.” Buck shook his head in disgust. He would never put a hit out on Kia or Taryn, especially for a job. If anything, he’d quit the campaign all together and help them gain the help that they needed. That took him back to his earlier thoughts. He had to put things in motion. He wanted his daughters to always be protected, and he knew just the way to do it.

  *****

  His thoughts were clouded with long hair, thick thighs, and smooth dark skin. The way she stood full of confidence and authority. All of his thoughts were being consumed of her, and the fact that she wasn’t even around made him angry. Here he was ready to break things off with Alicia and commit to her fully, and she was playing games. He had even gone as far as to call Alicia over earlier so he could tell her, but he changed his mind. When Taryn told Jacko and Kia he and her were just friends, he was pissed. He knew she was trying to protect her feelings or some girly shit like that, but she didn’t have to string him along in the process.

  Tonight was the Double O mansion party; everybody that was somebody was going to be there. He’d found out from Jacko earlier that Cayman’s right hand man, Buck, was Kia’s dad. More than likely, her and Taryn would be there. Demoto was hoping she decided to show up. He hadn’t wanted to do her dirty, but he was tired of her changing her mind about them almost every day. He didn’t need the extra stress. His job was stressful enough. As he sat in his truck, he watched the lights go off in the mayor’s dining room, causing the entire house to be pitch black. He pulled his mask down over his face and grabbed his gun. He made sure the silencer was on it before exiting the vehicle. He’d been watching the house for almost two hours, and it was time to get this over with. Cayman had chosen tonight to do everything because everyone in his company would have an alibi. The city knew that whenever there was a Double O function, everyone was in attendance. Demoto made his way inside the house and up the stairs discreetly. Following the floor plan that was given by her father, he found the room effortlessly. He pushed the bedroom door open, and his target was kneeling on the side of the bed saying her prayers. She’d never see it coming. He put two pullets into her head and left as quietly as he’d come in.

  *****

  The windows in the mansion were shaking from the loud music. People were everywhere dancing and drinking. The rooms were already filled to capacity with different things going on behind each door. Taryn and her friend Nema had just gotten there and were looking for the room they were supposed to meet Kia in. Taryn and Nema had been specifically requested for this party. At first she had declined the offer, but changed her mind when she’d came from Kia’s house earlier and Alicia was in Demoto’s room. She tried to act like she didn’t care, but when he got up and closed the door to his room that was it. She packed her an overnight bag and drove to Kia’s house. After talking about it to Kia, her mind went back to why she needed her own spot. The only other way she could reach her goals quickly would be to go back to dancing. She’d called Nema to see was the offer still open about the party, and when she said yes Taryn agreed. She hadn’t known until they got inside that it was a Double O party. Taryn wasn’t completely familiar with the organization as a whole, but she knew these were the same guys Demoto was with the night he caught her at the strip club. She was hoping he wasn’t coming, because he had to work tonight but she wasn’t sure.

  “Girl which room your friend said she was in?” Nema asked as they walked down the crowded hallway.

  “She said the last one on the right.”

  “Okay well I think this is it right here.” Nema turned the knob and went in. Kia was sitting on the bed kissing Jacko. When the door opened, they both jumped.

  “I caught y’all ass!” Taryn laughed.

  “What’s up Pretty Lee? Kia didn’t tell me you were coming,” Jacko smiled as he made his way over to hug her.

  “That’s because I wasn’t sure yet. Y’all better be glad I wasn’t Buck busting up in here.”

  “I know right! That nigga would have killed us both; it’s a good thing he doesn’t do parties,” Kia laughed. Jacko leaned in and kissed her again before excusing himself. Taryn threw her bag on the bed and sat down.

  “Nema this is my best friend Kia, Kia this is Nema, we work together.” Kia and Nema exchanged smiles and hellos before Nema took a seat on the bed next to them.

  “Taryn, what if Demoto is here tonight? He’s going to kick your ass. Didn’t he already tell you one time about this stripping shit?”

  “Girl I didn’t know this was no damn Double O party. I should slap your ass for not telling me.”

  “Hell I didn’t know either until I got here with Jacko. You know Buck sure didn’t tell me. He probably don’t even know
I’m here. He hates for us to be around this Double O stuff. But what I can tell you is that Jacko said the stripper part is only for the Bosses. Even if Demoto is here, he shouldn’t be in there.”

  “Man I ain’t worried about Demoto. He got Alicia. What I do ain’t none of his business.”

  “Who is Demoto?”

  “That’s her boyfriend. He and she are trying to act like everybody stupid. Like they ain’t got shit going on but we all know. They may as well stop hiding it. He already got onto her for stripping one time, and here she is again. So Nema if you see a fine ass nigga with dreads and green eyes, you better run. He’s about seven feet tall with brown skin and blonde hair. You’ll know him because his looks are rare as hell! Get as far away from Taryn as you can, because he gon’ beat her ass,” Kia was laughing so hard tears were coming from her eyes. Nema and Taryn joined in because it really was funny.

  “Man whatever Kia! We got time before we’re supposed to start dancing, so I’m finna go out here and find me another man. Both of my boos kicked me to the curb. First Jeremiah, now Demoto–I must not be as fine as I thought.” Kia and Nema burst out laughing again. The three girls stayed in the room for another thirty minutes getting their hair and stuff together before joining the party. Jacko had given Kia the key to that room. It was just for her; no one else from the party was allowed in there.

  “It’s so packed in here!” Kia said as they passed through the bottom half of the house. She was talking to both girls, but Nema was the only one to respond. When she looked over to see why Taryn hadn’t said anything, she noticed her attention was on something. Kia followed her gaze and landed on Jeremiah in the corner with Ace. Jeremiah was leaned against the wall while Ace danced on him. He was so busy kissing the side of her neck he didn’t even feel their gazes on him. The sight before them pissed Kia off, so she knew it had to have gotten to Taryn. Just like she figured when she looked over, Taryn’s eyes were glossy.

  “Don’t you dare Taryn-Lee. You better not let one tear fall and I’m not playing!” Taryn blinked a couple of times before looking at Kia.