Shocked, she stopped resisting. If Stackz wanted to have his way with her, then so be it. She wanted to live, and if it took giving up the cat, she’d not put up a fight. Coming to her senses about who he was, what she saw him do, and she was naked, she had no win. The thought in her mind skipped to, Is this fine-ass nigga gonna kill me after he get the pussy, or what?
Stackz felt Ava’s body go totally limp. Not wanting to scare her any further, he reassured the naked beauty once more in a cool, even-toned voice that he wasn’t going to do her any harm, and that she could relax. “Seriously, chill out, ma. This ain’t what you think it is. I ain’t trying to hurt you, I promise.”
Ava found her second wind and tried to buck a few more times, while biting at Stackz’s hand which was still wrapped around her mouth. “Let me go, let me go,” she managed to muffle the words from her covered mouth.
Stackz’s big strong hands pressed against her lips were only tickled by her bites. The more Ava squirmed, the more he secretly liked her determination to get loose. “Look, I swear I will let you go if you stop embarrassing yourself,” he announced, hoping she’d calm down. Feeling Ava’s hot, naked body up against him, Stackz fought with himself for his dick not to rock up. “Hey, Gee is my brother,” he whispered in her ear as she squirmed once more in his arms. “You know Gee; he grew up with you and Leela.”
The words Stackz spoke took Ava by surprise. She stopped moving as if she was trying to comprehend what he’d claimed. The fact a dude she and her sister have been cool with since childhood has a brother she has never met, who is the same guy that she thinks is fine as hell, but has her hostage and killed Devin a few hours ago, took a moment to penetrate her mind.
“Listen up. Your sister and Gee are downstairs talking to the police right now. That’s why I’m up here. Leela said it was cool.” Stackz hoped he had gotten through to her, and she would stop bugging out. “Okay, now, if I let you go, can you please act like you got good fucking sense? I ain’t trying to have the damn police run up here. That ain’t what I need, or what you want.”
Ava nodded her head the best she could, mumbling yes. Stackz did as he said he would and prayed for both of their sakes she’d keep up her end of the bargain. Just like that, Ava was free from his strong-arm hold. Finally free, she didn’t yell or scream. She didn’t run toward the bedroom or bolt in the kitchen to grab a knife. Instead, a baffled Ava turned around and just stared at Stackz speechless.
After a few brief seconds realizing she was naked, Ava became modest and began to blush. “Oh my God!”
Stackz stepped back, looking Ava up and down. “I see God blessed you from head to toe.” He shook his head slowly in utter amazement.
Ava took her time bending down with her mouth twisted and giving Stackz the side eye. She grabbed her towel off the floor and wrapped it around herself. Then she pranced across the hallway toward what had to be her bedroom. She stopped at the doorway only to say, “Let me put some clothes on, if that’s okay with you. And then you can explain how you and Gee are brothers, and we never met you before now.”
“Go ahead, girl. Put some clothes on that perfect body. A nigga will be right here waiting.” Stackz grinned, wishing she’d invite him in and bang his lights out.
Secretly, Ava was intrigued with Stackz. He had a swag that meant business; he stood upright, and dressed like he had his clothes custom-made. In between last night and now, Ava could tell whatever he was into, this guy was straight winning. Slipping on some sweatpants and a T-shirt, she then quickly stepped into her sneakers. Brushing her hair back, Ava felt ready to face Stackz and anything else that was to come her way today.
When she stepped out of the bedroom into the hallway she expected to see Stackz standing there, posted, waiting for her. However, she was fooled. He was not there. Praying that he’d not disappear as suddenly as he’d interrupted her morning, Ava walked to her living room. There, she found Stackz lurking near her front window. Assuming he was watching the cops pulling away from the house, Ava asked him what was going on outside just to verify. Stackz insisted to her that everything was good and that they should go downstairs so they could all four get some things straight. Although he felt a good chemistry between them, Stackz was still not opposed to sending Ava or her sister Leela on their way if they wanted to go against the grain about the forced-hand restaurant shooting.
The pair took the same way down to her sister’s as Stackz had taken coming up. Neither said a word, but both could tell this was possibly the beginning for the two of them. That is, if Stackz was who he said he was, and he believed that she wasn’t anything like her sister and her foolish comrades. They found Leela and Gee in the living room mocking the police and shooting the shit about how dumb cops are these days to think anybody would help them do their job. Leela had just repeated something slick she’d said to the big-bellied officer before dismissing them from around the perimeter.
Gee looked up, seeing his brother and Ava coming through the kitchen and into the dining room. He smiled when he saw Ava was unharmed because he knew Stackz didn’t give a damn about shortening her or anyone’s existence on earth if they couldn’t be reasoned with. He was a man with zero tolerance for bullshit.
“All right, now, Ava, I see you’ve met my brother for the second time and in less than twenty-four hours,” Gee casually remarked.
The sisters attacked, bombarding them with question after question. “Why we never knew about you?” Ava suspiciously asked with folded arms.
“Yeah, Gee, you never talked about or mentioned no other brothers, other than that crazy ass, T. L. Now, out of the thin blue sky, another brother pops up,” Leela chimed in with her two cents.
Ava was blunt and direct, saying, “Look, if he’s your homeboy, that’s cool. We, like, been knowing you forever; we get it. You fell through with yo’ man to let us know he with your crew. Enough said, we ain’t cut with rat in our DNA.” Ava looked at Stackz and Gee with a serious expression on her face that said, “Don’t play with me; I’m not that bitch.” “So if that’s the reason for this visit, y’all good my way. I mean, it’s fucked up Devin’s dead. I feel for his family. But I never liked his grimy ass from jump. That’s Leela’s people, not mine.”
“Damn, Ava, just throw me under the fucking bus!”
“Naw, it’s not like that, sis. I’m just saying he was an asshole that liked to dominate and hit women. And a nigga like that is bound to get fucked up with dealing with a real alpha man. RIP, Devin, but damn . . .”
Gee, like Leela, took notice Ava and Stackz were looking at each other with a hint of lust. They didn’t know what was said upstairs when they first met, but whatever it was, the two were giving off strange vibes now. Leela read Ava like a book and knew that her sister was feeling Stackz. That man that’d killed Devin after pointing a gun at them as well. The same man that tried to take Mickey out of the game and almost blew Rank’s wig back.
When it had come to relationships, Ava had always gotten men that did for her without her asking and treated her with the upmost respect, but never a man with any real bosslike qualities Stackz seemed to have. Leela had always harbored jealousy toward Ava for that; not to mention her younger sister was prettier and a low-key hustler, getting her coins without having to sell her ass. She always paid her bills on time and didn’t wait on no man to do for her. Ava understood the power of her pussy and possessed a strong mind to back it up. A man could never sell her a dream. Unlike Leela, Ava wasn’t in the market to buy off into bullshit
* * *
As the four of them came to an understanding that Stackz was not looking for any trouble the night before and had no choice but to send Devin on his way, Leela’s phone rang. Looking down at the screen, she saw it was Devin’s sister yet again calling from his cell phone, surely to harass her about her dead brother. Leela was tired of going back and forth with her. She’d already informed her and his mother she was not there and had left early. Leela had already begged them to ask Mickey and
Rank if they didn’t believe her, but I guess that would be too much like right. Fed up, and, of course, wanting to show out in front of Gee, Leela answered and was ready for verbal combat.
“Damn, bitch, what the fuck you want? Why you keep calling me? I already done told your dumb ass!”
Devin’s sister had a better idea other than going back and forth on the phone; she wanted blood firsthand, or so she thought. “Dumb ass? You got me fucked up. Bring that ass outside, you dirty, set-up, nut-guzzling ho!” Devin’s sister yelled on the phone. “Everybody knows how you get down setting real niggas like my brother up to get got! You ain’t slick, bitch! Not at all!”
Leela was heated. She sprinted to the front window and looked outside. Sure enough, Devin’s entire 285-pound sister was pacing her gorilla ass back and forth in front of her 2007 two-door, rusted-frame Neon.
“Come on out here. You talked all that rah-rah on the phone, you slimeball-ass bitch. You set my brother up, and you know it. You gotta come out sooner or later. I’m posted out in this bitch.” Devin’s sister had no chill or off button. She was going at the top of her lungs, not caring who heard or saw her. “Mickey and Rank scary asses acting like they don’t know shit, but I told the police to come over here. Your good dick-slurping ass was probably the one who pulled the trigger!” All she knew was her brother was dead, and the last time she’d seen him alive, he had Leela’s conniving ass hanging on his arm.
“Oh hell to the naw. She want it, she can get it.” Leela darted past Gee, going into her nasty bedroom. Grabbing a pair of leggings and a T-shirt out of a huge pile of dirty clothes thrown off into the corner, she quickly put them on. Putting on her high-top sneakers, Leela was hyped. She didn’t tolerate no bitch coming to her front door talking that beast-mode shit—dead brother or not. Running back into the living room it was definitely on!
As Leela was passing back by Gee on her way out the front door, he snatched her up by the arm. “Yo, girl, hold up. She just in her feelings about her brother, that’s all. The bitch just venting!”
“Well, let that rotten-mouth-in-her-feelings trick call Dr. Phil’s baldheaded ass or go vent somewhere else. This motherfucker over here is a straight no-vent zone!”
Stackz had just about enough of hearing Leela talking trash, that good shit about how she was that real deal. Even though he hoped no one called the police before he left, he wanted to see if her turn-up was official. “Naw, bro, your girl wanna be all that; let the shit ride!” After coaxing his brother to let her go, Stackz grinned, waiting for a potential battle royal to jump off.
“Yeah, Gee, let me go. I don’t give two hot shits if your brother sent her brother on his way last night. She still ain’t gon’ come over here going for bad, like I pulled the trigger. Fuck her and fuck him too! She wanna act like she about that life—well, so the fuck do I.” Leela pushed the gate open, boldly marching out onto the front porch. As if on cue, Leela began snapping on the biggest female she’d ever had to face. Even though she was unsure of the outcome, that still wasn’t gonna stop her from going hard, especially in front of an audience. Win, lose, or draw, Leela felt confident because she had two of Detroit’s most gutter niggas in her living room, along with her sister cheering her on.
Threats were thrown back and forth amongst the lightweight and heavyweight thots. Suddenly, it was as if each of them heard a bell ring. Leela sprang off the porch, and big girl moved into action as fast as her tree trunk legs would allow. They squared up like pro MMA fighters. Big girl swung first, missing Leela’s head because she ducked. Leela caught ole girl with two quick punches to the side of her head, but fat girl was unfazed. She closed her eyes, swung wildly, rocking Leela halfway to sleep. Leela couldn’t recover from the blows to her face and head. She fell down, and Devin’s sister had her right where she wanted her—underneath, with all her weight pressed on top of her. All Leela could do was shield the attack.
Ava had seen enough. Sister or not, she secretly didn’t mind seeing Leela get her ass beat; she just didn’t deserve this ass whooping. So, of course, Ava did what any real sister would do . . . assist Leela. Unlike Leela, she wasn’t about to play no games at all with Big Bertha. Ava politely walked off the porch. Reaching over, she swooped up one of her sister’s kid’s tricycle by the handlebars. Walking fast with deliberate intent, Ava saw red as she cocked back the tricycle with one hand, aiming it at the female’s head. Bringing it crashing down, Ava hit on target. Instantly, blood squirted out of the top of big girl’s head. With her skull cracked and leaking, it slowed down her assault on Leela, but didn’t stop it altogether. Ava then picked up a piece of wood that was thrown on the side of the vacant house next to theirs. Gripping up, she swung the thick board like an ax, hitting the side of her neck. This time, big girl was fucked up. Allowing Leela to breathe, she fell over on the ground, wounded, exhausted, and wanting no more trouble. Blood was in her eyes and covered her face as she got up, stumbling to her car. Before she pulled off, she promised both Leela and Ava that she’d see their asses again.
Ava scraped Leela up off the ground, helping her in the house. They went straight into the bathroom where the light was good. She inspected her sister for any serious wounds. Despite all the blows she took, Leela managed to only have a few scrapes and bruises and a swollen eye. Her pride was more hurt than anything else. Talking shit while she got herself together, Gee was dogging her out about having got her ass handed to her, and that Ava was the real MVP of the family, having to save her big sister’s ass.
Ava sat down on the sofa crossing her legs. With folded arms, she was still heated from the drama that’d just taken place. She hated beefing with females, and now, because Leela wanted to go for bad, Ava too now had beef looming in the street. Stackz sat close to her as she tried calming down. He wanted to sit around and kick it with her, and if they were maybe upstairs in a cleaner environment, he would’ve. However, he was pressed for time, knowing he had business on the floor. Stackz asked Ava if she had a phone, and she smartly replied, “Don’t everybody?” He laughed, and she laughed as they exchanged numbers. The pair agreed to hook up sooner than later, and with that exchange, he hollered for Gee to bring his ass; the streets were calling.
CHAPTER NINE
T. L. was out and about in the streets of Detroit from east to west, picking up money. Everywhere he went, people were talking about the shooting at Legends Coney Island on the West Side that left one dead and two others shot. After T. L. kept hearing people talk about the shooting, he wanted to know what the police were saying, but didn’t have time to go look at the news because he had bread to get out of the mud. So he did what any street nigga on the move would do: pulled up “Crime In The D” on the gram for the latest updates on crime in the city.
The police chief always made his presence known on the page making comments to the media about what actions were being taken and preventive measures against crime. Sure enough, at the top of the page, T. L. got the info he wanted; which was, there were no suspects. No video of the incident because of equipment malfunction and the victims, along with restaurant employees, have no concrete description of shooter or getaway vehicle.
After calling Tangy, telling her he wanted to give her some of his dick for a job well done, T. L. called his man, Stackz. “Yeah, dawg, the streets is definitely talking about what jumped off. That shit even on the gram, but from what I saw, that nigga Devin was a setup dude; straight slimeball, ya’ feel me? If it wouldn’t been by your hand, then it was coming soon anyhow.”
“I ain’t never gonna cry over having to send a lame on they way for stepping to me wrong, but fuck. A nigga like me was trying to live right; stay out here for a few. See how y’all live in the free world!”
T. L. quickly informed Stackz he had his back, and all he has to do is give him the green light on anybody, and they were as good as dead. “Look, fam, you don’t even have to worry about all that. I got you on this, I promise. Them other two fags ain’t about shit to a player like me. I’l
l be in and out. Make the shit simple.” He begged Stackz to let him go to Receiving Hospital to finish Rank and Mickey off. He swore to Stackz adamantly that he wouldn’t disappoint him or let him down. “I know you been gone for a long time, family, and you know it’s all love and nothing but respect, but I’m grown now. I’ll put in that work for you, no doubt. I ain’t just about that life; I am the life.”
Stackz saluted his gangster. He told T. L. he was proud of him and glad to have him on the team; that he was the son he never had but wished he did. “Man, I’m telling you I love your loyalty. You always got ya manz best interest at heart, and that shit is rare as fuck. But if you make a high-profile gangster move like that, shit would only bring more heat and slow up how we getting this paper, which is unacceptable.” Stackz then gave T. L. more directions to follow as to who to go take big packages to and where. They ended the phone conversation by saying, “One,” showing a sign of unity amongst them.
Stackz got off the phone with T. L. “Yo, that young boy is a straight savage. We raised a damn animal out there. But one thing for sure, two things for certain . . . He a team player like a motherfucker. He ready to go burn down the police station, if need be, and stand outside with the matches when they run out.”
“Dawg, T. L. wild, that’s for sure,” Gee agreed while lighting up a blunt.
“Well, one good thing; he told me the streets is talking. We knew that much was gonna happen. But they ain’t got no clue who did what. Them ho-ass niggas must be keeping they mouth shut and not telling the police shit.”
“Yeah, true that. And T. L. got Tangy under control. Ain’t no loose ends. You good!”
Giving Gee the serious side eye from the passenger seat of the truck, Stackz rubbed his hands together as if he was scheming. “Maybe, maybe not. I mean, on some serious shit, how much you really know about Ava and Leela? I’m saying, can they be trusted, or is all that ‘we down, we down’ bullshit just a front? ’Cause like I said, I don’t mind killing a bitch; even one as fine as Ava.”
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