by Ca$H
Lissha wiped away the tears with the sleeve of her blouse then she placed the dish in the oven and prepared her house for Treebie and Bayonna's arrival. Taking a seat on the couch she ran the new plans through her head that she and Big Zo had carefully plotted.
When the doorbell rang she jumped and a surge of heat moved from her feet to the tips of her fingers. Walking towards the door her heartbeat increased two-fold. Lissha took a deep breath, calming the tidal wave of emotions that threatened to crash upon her mental shore and wipe out years of friendship.
What is already done can't be reversed. Now comes the ultimate test of your mettle. The blinders have been removed and you can now see the many different shades of black. If you're the Queen feline that I've schooled you to be you will show the face that they need to see. Tears are for weak bitches. A boss chic sheds blood— the blood of others. Zo's lecture from a few weeks ago drummed in her head verbatim.
Lissha stiffened her back, smoothed out her clothes, straightened up her shoulders, and opened the door with a look of purpose on her face.
“Hey momma,” Bayonna said as she leaned in and gave Lissha a hug.
“Hey girl. How are you?” Lissha responded then looked over Bayonna’s shoulder at Treebie.
“You know me, taking it as it comes,” Bayonna said, moving towards the living room.
“What you want, a special invitation?” Lissha said to Treebie giving her a little smile.
“Bitch if you miss me just say it,” Treebie shot back as she stepped through the doorway dressed like the CEO of a black-owned Fortune Five Hundred company. She wore a smart, pinstriped pantsuit with low heels and sharp toes, and her hair had been cut in a short bob.
“Whatever,” Lissha said as they embraced.
Treebie walked over to the couch feeling slightly empty as her eyes rested on the chair that Donella would always sit in. She took a seat on the couch and reached in her bag and pulled out something to smoke.
Once the door was shut Lissha went to the kitchen to retrieve a bottle of Amsterdam and three glasses. Treebie and Bayonna sat in the living room feeling very uneasy. Haunted thoughts of Donella filled the room as each of them tried to find comfort.
Lissha sat the glasses down then turned on some music to break the melancholy silence. As she poured the drinks she looked over at Bayonna who appeared to be slightly depressed.
“What’s wrong Bay?”
Bayonna took a deep breath. “I miss Nella,” she said, gripping her hands and choking back her tears. Her bestie was gone and she was holding on to a secret that she didn't trust sharing with either one of them. Both of them look like they have fangs.
“I miss Donella too,” Lissha said, passing her a glass.
Treebie said nothing as she reached over and took her glass. Bringing their glasses together, she toasted, “To Nella.”
Bayonna thought she could hear the insincerity drip from Treebie's forked tongue. Inside, Bayonna was bristling. How she gonna toast to Nella and she's the one who killed her?
Lissha looked at Treebie to see if there was any genuineness in her eyes. What she saw was a glimpse into the pits of Hell. Treebie had changed. But just how much only time would reveal.
Lissha effected a poker face. “To Blood Money,” she said as she locked pupils with Treebie, silently conveying that she wasn't afraid off the devil because she wielded a pitchfork herself.
When the glasses clinked it was decided. They were moving forward with three because regardless of what the past had stolen, there was money to be made and greed drove them after it.
Each one of them had acquired a love for the kill that sent hot blood surging through their veins. Treachery had claimed one and no one wanted to be next. Though they smiled at each other, there wasn't one of them that wouldn't put something hot in the other's back to keep something hotter out of their own.
“Let’s get this shit poppin,” Lissha said, slamming her glass on the table.
Bayonna got up and went to the kitchen to start making plates as Treebie began rolling up. After they puffed and passed, Lissha and Bay dug into their food. After the wicked stunt Kiam had pulled— feeding her Gator chopped up in spaghetti— Treebie was now much more cautious about what she put in her mouth. She lifted a fork full to her nose and smelled it. The parmesan smelled kosher, but she still waited to see Lissha chew and swallow before she dared to.
“Bitch, I'm not Kiam,” said Lissha, observing Treebie's hesitancy. “I don't ground niggas up, I plant them in the ground.”
“I apologize LiLi. But that muthafucka has forever changed how I eat.”
“I understand that but you know you can trust me.”
Treebie knew no such thing. Not anymore. A lot had been said but not as much as what wasn't being spoken. Treebie considered herself a real bitch so she had to put it on the table what she knew was on their minds.
Removing a strand of hair out of her eye, she sat her glass down and looked at her sistahs. “Is either of you feeling some kind of way about what happened?” she asked outright. Then she went on without waiting for a response. “Because if you are, let's put that shit out in the open. I don't want to be running up in niggas' spots watching them with one eye and having to watch my own girls with the other. What I did had to be done. When one finger becomes rotten you have to cut it off to save the hand. If that's not understood and respected then I've been fucking with the wrong bitches.”
“Street justice is a heartless bitch sometimes but it's the code we must live and die by. We all loved Donella, she was our sistah, but she chose her own fate,” Lissha added.
Bayonna nodded in agreement because she didn't trust her mouth to move or her hand might've moved right along with it. One of those bitches was foul and she was going to find out which one it was then avenge her girl. Then she would make a real toast to Nella and blow some weed in the sky. “I'm down,” she said, sounding oh so sincere.
They toasted again then Lissha laid out the ground work for the next moves with Blood Money. She explained to them how Big Zo wanted them to deal with Kiam. “Nothing has changed in that regard. Kiam is like a son to Daddy and he trusts whatever decisions Kiam makes. Our orders are to do as he says and follow his lead.”
No one disagreed because Kiam had left the type of impression that visited a bitch in her sleep.
“What about JuJu? That nigga acted real disrespectful that day. And if it ever comes out that we're Blood Money, he's going to need more than an explanation about that hole I blew in his hand,” said Treebie.
“Let me rock that ass to sleep,” Bayonna volunteered.
“No,” Lissha rejected. “Respect JuJu's get down and his loyalty to Kiam. With the numbers they're doing, they're making enemies and attracting haters. Sooner or later that will lead to war. And don't forget Kiam is going after Wolfman, Dontae, Money Bags Carter, the entire upper echelon. JuJu is a young killah and he's very valuable to all of us as Kiam's right hand. When he's no longer needed, trust me, I'm going to make that young boy regret the day he put a gun in my face.”
Treebie accepted that.
“What about Gator's duties? What new nigga is Kiam going to have handle those? Another JuJu stepping in with his chest puffed out. I'm not feeling giving these young boys positions they haven't earned,” she said, extending the blunt to Lissha.
Lissha re-lit the blunt, pulled on it a couple of times then passed it to Bay. “Replacing Gator is no real stumbling block since Kiam had him on minimal duties anyway,” she explained to them both.
However, it tugged at Lissha’s heart that after all he did for her she wasn’t able to buy him more time.
Across from her Bayonna felt a pang of heartache in her chest as she reminisced on being in Gator's arms and getting to know him in ways he hadn't allowed the others to see. She wished Gator had listened to her.
“So is everybody still on deck?” Lissha's question brought Bayonna back to the present.
“You know I’m down,” Treebie conf
irmed.
“I’m with you LiLi.” Bayonna made it unanimous.
“Cool. It’s only three of us now, we damn sure can’t let any other bitches in the fold so we will have to tighten our shit up and make sure we are well prepared when we run down on niggas,” Lissha stated firmly.
“You know my bitch stay ready,” Treebie said as she pulled out her gun and placed it in her lap.
Chills shot up Bayonna's back as she recalled how malicious Treebie had been when she pulled out on Donella and ended her life like she was no more to her than a bitch in the streets.
“Y'all my bitches and I'll protect Blood Money with my life. Straight like dat!” Treebie reinforced.
“I hope so. Because we can’t show any mercy,” Lissha said, holding eye contact.
“They won’t get any from me.” Treebie's expression backed up her words.
Bayonna’s head ping ponged between the two women as they hurled slick statements back and forth on calm breath, like each word was a reminder and a warning.
When their lips stopped moving, Bayonna’s began. “So other than all the nonsense you had to tell Big Zo, how was he doing?” she asked, reaching in and grabbing another blunt from the ashtray and lighting it up.
“He was good,” Lissha reported. “His main concern is our safety and our ability to bounce back from this situation and keep it moving.” She reached out and accepted the fresh blunt from Bay.
Treebie was silent as she watched Lissha puff puff. Then she dropped the bomb. “Wa’leek was out here?” She calmly revealed, sitting back on the couch crossing her legs and placing the gun on her side.
The hair on Lissha’s neck stood straight up. “What do you mean he was out here?” Her eyes got low as the crease in her forehead deepened.
“Just what I said.”
“What did he want?” Lissha’s mind began to wonder.
“Just some pussy. Is that a problem?” Treebie showed her a sinister smile.
“I don’t know. Is it?” Lissha questioned her.
Treebie folded her hands in her lap and matched Lissha's penetrating gaze with one just as cautioning. She knew what her main concern was and she quickly addressed it. “Don’t worry, all the cats are still in the bag.”
Bayonna again looked back and forth but this time it was with confusion. “Who the fuck is Wa’leek?” she asked.
“Treebie's husband,” Lissha answered with a worried look on her face.
“Damn Tree, you married?” Bayonna asked with her head to the side.
“Something like that,” she replied, waiting to see if Lissha would cut in.
“What does that mean? Either you are or you’re not,” Bayonna said, rising to her feet. She looked at Lissha, then back at Treebie. “Let me go to the bathroom since obviously this is none of my business.” She walked out of the living room wondering what other fucking secrets they had.
As soon as Bay's footsteps could no longer be heard, Lissha hurriedly poured herself another drink and tossed it back. She looked at Treebie with fierce reprimand. “Keep that nigga calm,” Lissha warned.
Treebie smirked. She kind of enjoyed seeing Lissha uncomfortable for a change. “You know how Wah do. It’s only one part of him I can keep calm. The rest of him is going to be you and Kiam’s problem.” She sat up and poured herself a drink.
Lissha just shook her head. She could not wait for the girls to leave so she could call Big Zo and let him know that Wa'leek had removed the rock and crawled from up under it.
She replayed the recent events through her mind, searching for any sign that Wa'leek's hand prints were on any of it. With that nigga back in Treebie's ear, her loyalty was about to be severely tested.
Shit was bad enough, and with Wa’leek lurking around it was only going to get worse.
Chapter 6
On A Bitch's Trail
Wa'leek wasn't the only danger lurking in the shadows. Bayonna was prowling the streets too. She was looking for Daphne whom she felt held the answers that would seal either Lissha's or Treebie's fate. She didn't know the bitch but she figured that a couple of racks in the right thirsty person's hand would get her the information that she was in search of.
As soon as she left Lissha's house Bayonna made a beeline over to one of Wolfman's main drug houses on Superior Ave. There she poked out her titties and batted her eyes a few times and like presto, the dude that was over the spot made a call then put her on the phone with someone who could holla at her about the questions she had.
Bayonna took the phone, stated her business, and then was given an address to come to. She handed the man his phone back along with a G-note. “Thanks baby boy,” she said.
“Let a nigga get your number so we can hook up,” he tried but Bayonna's mind was on her mission. She flashed him a little smile and answered him by saying nothing.
She moved out the door with purpose, climbed in her car and headed to the location that she'd been told to come to. When she pulled up in front of the house she took a few deep breaths, grabbed her gun from her purse and tucked it in the back of her pants and prepared for the worse. She knew she was taking a chance going to the enemy’s house; she damn sure had heard all the rumors about how greasy Wolfman’s crew was, but she needed answers and she wasn’t leaving without them.
As Bayonna stepped out the car she took inventory of the block. There were a few dudes standing against a Maxima and a few females trying to occupy their time. When she got close to the porch all eyes were on her. She walked fast and with confidence like she belonged there. Once on the porch she rang the bell and listened for anything strange.
“What you need little mama?” A big black dude stepped from the side of the house with a gun tight in his hand.
“I got business with Wolfman.” She stood firm locking eyes with the man sending him the signal that he ain’t run up on no dumb bitch.
“He expecting you?”
“Nah, I make it a habit to roam around in the middle of the night knocking on random doors looking for niggas,” she spat, positioning herself where she would have easy access to pull out and get out the way.
“Damn shorty you got more heart than most niggas.”
“I’m a’ight, just need to handle my business and swerve.”
Dude rested the gun on his thigh then reached for his phone. “Yeah, she here,” he informed the person on the other end then the door came open and a black husky man mean mugged her.
“You Bayonna?” he asked in a gruff and unfriendly tone.
Bayonna looked at his bandaged hand and chuckled inside. “You must be Nitti,” she said with a straight face.
Nitti opened the door and allowed her enough space to come in. “He's in the next room,” he informed her as he looked up and down the block. He gave the dudes on the car the nod and they dismissed the females and got on point. Nitti wasn’t taking any chances. Kiam was not a nigga to fuck with and sending a pretty face could be the quiet before the storm.
Bayonna moved cautiously towards the living room taking note of everything in sight in case she had to visit this nigga again.
“You real brave coming here alone knowing there's beef simmering between our crews,” Wolfman announced as she entered the room.
“No, not brave but I'm not scared either,” she corrected.
“You ain’t afraid of Wolfman?” He gave her a sinister smile from his reclined position on the couch.
“Look, we could go back and forth all night about my motivation. But on the real, I need answers.” She put her hands on her hips getting them closer to her heat.
“Man, fuck this bitch, she coming up in here like we won't put her on her back,” Nitti spat as he entered the living room with major attitude.
Bayonna turned in his direction. “You better watch who you call bitch before I finish what Kiam started,” she replied boldly.
“What the fuck you say?” Nitti moved towards her.
“I think you heard every word.” She eased her hand closer to he
r spine.
“Chill the fuck out!” Wolfman yelled at Nitti. “This is a guest in our house.”
Nitti stood inches away from Bayonna breathing heavy and staring in her eyes like he wanted to choke her out.
“I don’t give my orders twice,” Wolfman stated calmly as he waited to see if Nitti was crazy enough to defy him.
Nitti gritted his teeth as he began to back up. “I’ll see you again,” he warned as he headed to the chair behind the couch.
Wolfman checked him with a cold stare then softened his expression when he turned back to Bayonna. “So, pretty lady, what can I do for you?” he asked politely.
“I need that dick sucking bitch that accommodates you.”
“I got so many bitches sucking my dick you will have to be a little more specific.”
She didn't know her name but she described her from head to toe. Wolfman didn't have to search his mind for a name, he knew exactly who she was looking for.
“Daphne,” he said, lighting a cigarette and taking a deep pull.
Bayonna watched the thick smoke leave his lips and settle in the air as she reorganized her thoughts. “I need to speak to the bitch,” she said flat out.
“It seems a lot of people need to see her these days.” He smirked.
“I can’t concern myself with a lot of people. I need to see her. Can you please point me in the right direction?”
Wolfman took another deep pull then blew it in the air. “You know what? I started to tell you. But you smell like that nigga that is gunning for me. So I can’t give you shit but enough time to turn around and get in your car before these niggas try to find out how wet they can get their dicks.” He gave her an evil grin.
“Fair enough. But remember I came to you in peace.” She turned to leave.
Nitti jumped up and met her at the door with a victory smile plastered on his face. “Get yo ass outta here.” He taunted as she walked onto the porch. The same dude who announced her presence was standing at the bottom of the stairs.