Nano took the bag they had been dipping out of earlier. “You should get your record cleared and be a P.O. It definitely has its benefits. I don’t know…” Jones was cut off by the ringing of Nano’s cellphone. Nano pulled it from his pocket and checked the caller ID.
“Hold up a sec,” he told Jones.
“Hello… chilling with Jones…” Nano looked over at his P.O... ”About twenty minutes… alright.” Nano disconnected the line.
“That was Tip?”
“Yeah.”
“You got it going on Nano. Not too many get out the joint and have a family.”
“I’m not complaining. I have a good woman.”
“She definitely is. I can’t find me one like Tip.”
“You don’t need one; you got all the bad bitches.”
*****
It had been three hours when Step and Time finally left the park. Step was tipsy off the wine drinking the majority of it with two doughnuts. She was just passing the Piccadilly Hotel when Time broke the silence in the car.
“I’m glad you didn’t turn in back there.”
“You wanted me to?” she asked looking seriously into his face.
“Come on Step.”
“What kind of answer is that?”
“I don’t want to jeopardize a good thing. Especially, when you slizzard on a bottle of wine.”
Step laughed, “Thanks for respecting me.” They rode on until Step turned into the doughnut shop. “Well…I wish you and the crew luck.”
“It’s the group.”
Step giggled. “Yeah, the group.” Time slipped out of the Lexus and leaned back in the window.
“How do these diamonds look?” Step asked for like the fourth time. Ever since he told her about them, she had wanted to know how they looked.
“They’re beautiful.”
“I can’t believe this. All the while, I’m thinking y’all just hanging out. Now I know y’all on some Robin Hood shit. Damn and Nique ain’t tell me.”
“Nique ain’t told me you a lot of things. Anyway, I really enjoyed the date.”
“Date! People kiss on a date. We didn’t.”
“I know. You’re drunk. Maybe we’ll celebrate after this one is over.” Time held out his fist to her. “I’d like that,” she said and pounded him up. “You need me to follow you home?” he asked her. “No! You might want to come in and take advantage of me.” Time laughed and headed to the Caprice.
Time’s drive to the house had been a slow one by choice. It had given him a moment to reevaluate his life. He turned the Caprice into the driveway and killed the ignition. The television was on illuminating the front room of the house. He slid out of the car just as a blue Mustang was passing by with its music blasting. Time didn’t even look up to see who it was. He was more into collecting his thoughts about Monique if she should question his whereabouts. He walked up the wooden stairway thinking of an escape route. When he turned the doorknob and walked inside, it was what he expected. Monique was on the couch waiting. He sighed and closed the door. When he made his next inspection, he could see that he was mistaken. Monique was waiting on him, but she must have fallen asleep doing so. He walked to the television and turned it down. He then walked into the bedroom and closed the door behind himself. Time dropped down on the bed and kicked off his 96 Jordan’s. He then laid across the bed and closed his eyes. “It feels good to be alone,” he thought.
Chapter 21
The diamonds…
It was the day their lives would change forever. Once Kizzy left to take Dice to school, Nano and Tip began to get ready. Nano was in the kitchen in the cabinet where Tip kept her special glasses. She called them her special glasses so Dice wouldn’t touch them. Nano reached to the top of the shelf and pulled down the brown box Tip had showed him when he was first released. He opened the lid to see the new set of Smith and Wesson .357’s. It was something Tip had bought for them since Nano had gotten rid of the first .357 in the botched robbery when he went to prison. Suddenly, Tip walked into the kitchen. She still had on nothing but the t-shirt she wore to bed.
“I see you’re trying to get reacquainted. You nervous?”
“Nano nervous? Nah, it’s just been a while.”
She took a seat at the table where he was. “You got my back right?”
He looked up. “You know I do. I’ve always got your back.”
“Well you shouldn’t be nervous, because I’ve got yours.” Nano smiled. Many people wouldn’t believe that the beautiful woman sitting across the table him was so gangsta. “You hungry? Cause we should eat. We don’t know what kind of food these people might have and we damn sure can’t order out.” Tip was looking at the ceiling.
“I hope they’re not boring like that family in Knoxville. Remember them?” Nano laughed.
“Hell yeah…. I damn near fell asleep on the couch.” Tip laughed. “We’ll get Skillz to stop somewhere. Make sure we get some cards.”
“Cards! Anything else you can think of?”
“That’s it. The UPS uniforms are ready and Kizzy’s got Dice. That’s it, except…”
“Except what?” Nano looked concerned. Tip stood and walked to where Nano was seated. She had a smile on her face only he could read. He reached under her t-shirt knowing that she didn’t have any panties on. He grabbed fat ass and squeezed. “Do you know what you’re getting into?”
“Oh I know.”
*****
It was 6:30 when Monique stirred hearing the voice come from the bedroom. She got up from the couch, and hurriedly went to the check it out.
“Alright,” Time said and hung up the phone just as she entered.
“What happened to you last night?” she asked still wearing the lingerie she had put on for him.
“I had to wait on Twin.”
“I thought I was more important than Twin.”
“Not today Nique. It’s not a good time.”
Monique caught an attitude throwing her hand on her hip. “It’s not a good time. What is it? I don’t turn you on any more or something? That’s it isn’t?”
“No, that ain’t it.”
“Well….” she changed hips.
“We’ll talk about it later. We’ve got a real busy day ahead of us.”
“Oh a real busy day. You busy now?”
Time ignored her. He reached under the mattress where he kept a small .25 automatic. The .9 always stayed in the vehicle. He carefully checked it over and tucked it in his waist.
“Do you hear me talking to you?” she asked shouting.
“Yeah, I heard you.”
“So say something.” Monique was trying to get under his skin. Time continued to wonder how she could act as if she was a victim in all of this.
“What do you want me to say?”
Monique got in his face with her lips turned up. “I know what y’all are about to do. Y’all going to take the old lady’s diamonds.” Time was shocked, but he remained quiet. He determined Skillz had told her everything.
“Huh?” she asked taunting him.
“So what’s new Nique? I’ve been trying to keep my cool with you, but you’re like the most selfish bitch I know.”
Monique was taken aback and face showed it. “Time, I’m not about to be a bitch this morning. Not when I was the one that stayed up waiting for you.” Monique’s words traveled to a place where Time had no control. His temper blew out the roof.
“You didn’t stay up for me, you stayed up for yourself. You think I don’t know about you and Skillz?”
“Skillz and me,” she looked at him as if she was surprised by his accusation.
“Yeah, my main man bitch! Yet you grilling me cause I don’t want to fuck. I been trying to fuck and you weren’t interested. Feeling guilty now?”
Monique was speechless with her eyes wide open. Time continued, “And you know what’s fucked up Nique, I damn near cried when you walked out that door the other night. So much for going to shop at Wal-Mart.”
; Time walked to the nightstand, grabbed the wad of cash that was on it, and left the bedroom. Monique was still in a trance when she heard the Chevy crank up. She slowly eased down onto the bed distraught and began to cry.
It was 7:00 when Craig picked up the commercial van from the rental place. They were under the impression that he was heading to Texas to pick up an antique table for some family that had recently moved to Tennessee. He left them with a fake name and contact number just in case he was late. He then left. His next destination was his detail shop. It was where Ace would be waiting with the remaining $975,000. They had used $25,000 for future purposes. Handing over the diamonds would be easy. Receiving their cut, might not be. For some reason, he knew there was going to be trouble despite how smoothly things were supposed to go. So he decided to call Tony.
Skillz was the driver of the blue Ford Explorer he’d rented from the rental car place. He thought it would go perfect with the USPS cover of workers and their outfits. He drove down to Tulane Street listening to Sirius radio. The only thing Skillz wanted was the diamonds. The cash seemed to be unimportant to him. “Why bother,” he thought. Last night after he got off the phone with Monique he had revised his plans. Why did he need Time when he could just take the diamonds himself? Why rob the Sanco truck when he could rob the group.
He sensed that Monique still cared for Time; at least that was how she’d sounded on the phone. It was possible that she would reconsider leaving with him, so what the fuck. After he killed Nano and Tip he would be long gone, and Time would go to jail for killing them.
Chapter 22
“You ready,” Skillz asked picking Time up from his trap spot on Riverdale. “I’m ready,” he said now equipped with a .25 and nine. Skillz passed him a bag. “Your pizza hat and shirt are in here, you need to change.” Time removed his shirt, minutes later he was dressed for his part. Skillz looked over to check him out. “You look like a real pizza deliveryman.” Time still had a thick beard. He liked it even if Step had not. They rode in silence the majority of the drive. Finally, Skillz broke the silence. “You still with me?”
“Excuse me?”
“You still with me? The diamonds!”
“Oh yeah! I’m still with that.”
“I thought you were about to renege on me.”
“Nah, I was just thinking.”
“How is Monique doing?
The question came suddenly to Time. He looked over ready to snap. He then realized this was something Skillz did every time they hooked up. He now knew why. Time took a deep breath. “She’s still tripping.”
“Y’all need to go ahead and tie the knot.”
Time had to control himself. He thought Skillz was clowning him. He looked at him then turned to the window. It seemed best to watch the individual trees pass by while he changed his plans.
“Grab that pizza,” Skillz said. Time looked at him and exhaled slowly. He then reached in the back seat and dropped the box into Skillz’s lap. Skillz opened the box with one hand and removed a large slice from it. “You want some?” he asked. Time looked at the toppings and decided he didn’t. He didn’t like pepperoni and cheese. “Nah, I’m good.”
“This shit is too good to pass up.”
Time had no intentions of replying. Skillz made a right turn. They were now on Alexander Street. “You remember what’s up?” he asked Time.
Time exhaled agitated, “Yeah, I got it. Her name is Karen Rogers. Her husband is John. Dominick’s pizza is giving away one thousand pizzas. This will go to students and scholarship funds.”
“Boy you sound serious,” Skillz said. However, he wasn’t looking at Time. He was surveying the houses for a certain one. Finally, he turned into a driveway of a house with a well-maintained yard. Skillz looked down at the sheet of paper he had. After he compared the addresses, he smiled. “This is your house baby.” The house had a red brick facing with the sides covered in vinyl siding.
Time pulled on his hat, grabbed the pizza box, and exited the Explorer. He carried the box in the most professional way he knew. Once he got up the brick steps, he rang the doorbell, cleared his throat, and took a step back. Seconds later, the door was opened by a very attractive lady. Time hesitated, and then he recited the fake story about giving away pizzas for education.
“Wow! I get a pizza and it goes to education, that’s a great deal. Can I donate to the cause too?”
“You can if you choose to ma’am.”
“Well… step inside for a moment, let me get my purse.”
Time stepped into the well-furnished home. When Mrs. Rogers took the pizza from him, she noticed the 9mm in his hands. “I’m only here to talk,” Time stated. He then opened the door and gave Skillz a thumbs up.
While Skillz was backing out of the Roger’s residence, he was making a phone call at the same time. “Time is in,” he said. “Are you two ready?”
“We just pulled our hats on,” Nano said.
“How about Tip?”
“She’s looking like Latifah in “Set it Off.”
Skillz laughed even though he and Nano didn’t normally share that many laughs together.
“You think you can stop by the store and grab some bikes?”
“Blue or red?”
“It doesn’t matter to me. Hey, and grab one of those “Auto Trader” magazines. I’m going to find me an old school after all this.”
Skillz started laughing harder.
Chapter 23
“I’m telling you, dude is digging you. You sit tight and play your position.”
“You trying to pimp me Tony?” Chell asked.
“You’re my sister. What the hell would your mother say about that?”
“I don’t care about no damn diamonds. Craig is nice. You said y’all were cool.”
“Yeah, that’s my nigga. But, I’m not about to let no millions get away when I got a chance to touch them.”
“Just like I said, you’re pimping me.”
Tony sighed, “Chell, I’m your brother. Don’t look at it in a negative way. Look at it as we both can be happy.”
“You should be happy for me. I liked him before I knew about the diamonds.”
“Have a seat Chell.” They were in Tony’s office at the club. Chell took a seat on the lounge opposite Tony’s desk. “You’re right Chell. From the outside it might appear that I’m selfish. Craig told me that his wild ass brother made a deal with some Jewish motherfucker. I’m in it for Craig’s best interest.”
“Can’t they deal with who they want to deal with?”
“Hell no,” he said he voice suddenly getting louder. “Mr. High Risk already locked it in with that man. Ace took a million dollars cash as a down payment.”
“What?”
“Yeah, he took it as a down payment, with the rest on delivery of the diamonds. I plan to stop that.”
“Tony I don’t think that’s a good idea. You shouldn’t involve yourself. You might get hurt. A million dollars is a lot of money.”
Tony looked at the floor. He then stood and walked to a shelf built into the wall. He always kept a variety of drinks in his office. “You want something?” he asked.
“No thank you.”
Tony poured himself a double shot of Crown Royal. He took a sip and walked to where Chell was. “I’m going to take care of you little sis. I’m going to send you away with enough money that you won’t ever have to come back here.”
“I don’t want to leave! And what about Craig?”
“What about him?”
“Damn Tony! I though he was your friend?”
“He is a friend, but sometimes your friends can get in your way.” Tony took another sip of his drink.
“I can’t believe you,” Chell said getting upset. “You have a club that does well. We have our inheritances still in the bank. Now you want more. It’s greed and I don’t want any part of it!” Chell stood to leave.
“Where are you going,” Tony asked in such a calm manner that it made Chell nervous.
“Out!”
“I don’t think it would be wise for you to talk to Craig.”
Chell’s mouth dropped open. “Is that a threat? I can’t believe you.”
“Like I said, sometimes friends get in the way. You’re my family and I wouldn’t want my family involved. Either way, I’m going to get those diamonds.” Tony finished off his drink and Chell turned to leave. “Remember what I said,” he called out behind her.
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