Cigar Bar

by Dion Perkins

  He thought that she was dead but she wasn’t. Amber was playing dead; it was hurting like hell for her not to be screaming. For the moment, the heroin that she had shot up came in use as a good pain medication.

  The man aimed his gun and was about to shoot Sherry. Nut said, “Hold up, we takin’ this bitch with us!”

  The men grabbed their bounty, which included beautiful Sherry. She pulled her pants up and was rushed out the door, shirtless.

  A bleeding Amber crawled slowly to the kitchen. “Fuck!” she screamed, holding her guts in. They had taken the cell phones.

  She didn’t know if she would live. Where the fuck did they take Sherry? Amber crawled as close as she could to the front door, and, with one last burst of energy, she yelled, “Help!” and collapsed.

  Out in the hallway, a couple heard her and dialed 911.

  Slick and Nut brought Sherry back at the house. Tommy decided to stay with Peanut and have sex with the girl. She was a bad-ass bitch.

  Slick took his share of the drugs and cash, then threw it in a trash bag. “Y’all niggas go ahead; I got me something better at the crib.”

  “What?”

  “Did you see that bitch in there, man? That bitch is fine than a motherfucker, and she a dope fiend. Shit, all we gotta do is keep that bitch doped up. And I’m thinking after I finish with her pretty ass, she gonna go work the block! Fuck that!”

  “Cool. I’m out.”

  After Slick left, Tommy and Nut just looked at young Sherry on the bed. She was still high and didn’t really know what was going on. When the men touched her, she responded by rubbing on them.

  “Oh shit, nigga! This bitch is with it!”

  The two men stripped her clothes off and demanded that she play with herself. For hours, the men kept Sherry high on heroin and abused her body. The abuse had been going on for so long now that Sherry had no concept of time or reality. As long as she was getting high, she didn’t care. Sex was better when she was high.

  • • •

  In the week since Amber had been shot, she had been in a medically induced coma. She had been shot in the head and chest. The head trauma caused brain swelling that needed to be brought down or she could die.

  Veto was pissed off because it took a week to find out any information. The investigation uncovered the girls’ movements leading up to the shooting. Veto found out that the girls had rented a suite at a four-star hotel. Veto even got the people at the hotel to give him the copy of the surveillance tape. It showed the girls coming into the hotel and leaving early in the morning. They never returned. The tape also revealed a tall black guy entering the hotel room using the key that belonged to the girls. He went in and stayed for about ten minutes and then left.

  “What the fuck is going on?” Paulie asked, confused. “Where the hell is my sister?”

  Of course, Don Veto had people on the police force, and that was how they found Amber. However, the details of what happened had Don Veto and Paulie baffled.

  “You mean to tell me, someone killed everyone in that apartment and you didn’t find a young lady who looks like this?”

  “Listen, Paulie,” the officer said. “If she was there, I would tell you, but there was no trace of her. Maybe she got away or something, or maybe she was never there.”

  Veto nodded to one of his men. They handed the cop a stack of money right there in the hospital. The officer quickly shoved the cash into his jacket.

  “Okay now, this black guy here is named Big Tommy. He runs with these two fuckers named Slick and Peanut. They’re a pretty fucked-up bunch, if you ask me. They’re the ones you’re looking for. They’re known as stickup kids, but not your average. When these fuckers take shit down, they usually score hundreds of thousands of dollars. I mean, these guys are true ballers, and they don’t mind hurting people.”

  “So why aren’t they in jail right now?” Paulie asked angrily.

  “Because there was no evidence they were at the scene.”

  “You fucking pussy,” Sal said. He gave the cop a sideways glance. Sal hated cops, especially dirty ones, and he always let them know. “What? You got something to say to me?” He caressed the side of his jacket, where his gun was.

  The cop looked down at his jacket to make sure that his gun was seen. “Hey, knock it off!” Veto yelled at them.

  “One day,” the officer said. “One fuckin’ day!”

  Sal said, “Don’t make me laugh, you piece of shit rat cop!”

  Veto interrupted. “Hey, I’m not gonna fuckin’ say it again!” He put his hand on his own weapon to drive his point home.

  The two men put an end to their macho bravado and settled down so as not to piss the boss off anymore.

  The crooked cop continued. “Whatever you’re gonna do, you better do it quick. The whole department is on it. They’re trying to get more evidence to obtain an arrest warrant, but they don’t have the video that you have. They don’t have an ID yet. I’m telling you this: I can only give you about twenty-four hours before I have to tell the brass. Now, I don’t know exactly where they are, but here are their last three known addresses.”

  Veto grabbed the officer by the chin. “You let me know the minute you hear anything! Hey, capisce?”

  The officer nodded in agreement, gave one final look to Sal, and laughed.

  Sal gave him a hard look, took the toothpick from his mouth, and then flicked it in the cop’s direction. “What!?” Sal asked, his hands in the air.

  “You’re a fucking joke!” the cop said and then exited.

  Paulie wanted to shake the girl and ask her where his Sherry was, but it was pointless. At this point, she might not live.

  An old woman and her son walked into the room. The man looked at them and asked, “Can I help you gentlemen with something?” It was apparent that Paulie and Veto weren’t your average men off the street. The man realized this and he stepped behind his mother, who was about 80 years old.

  Paulie leaped off the bed and confronted the sniveling man. He got in his face as if he was staring at an animal in a cage. “How dare you hide behind your mother! Be a fuckin’ man and protect her!” Paulie took the old lady’s hand, kissed it, and said, “Ma’am, we’re sorry for your loss.”

  Perhaps his condolences may have been premature, but everybody suspected that she was going to die. Such a promising career for such a beautiful woman ended due to the damages of drugs.

  “Drugs, damn!” Paulie said out loud. He began to think of the many people that he had sold to. Nobody is exempt when it comes to drugs. They take down movie stars, politicians, athletes, the average person, like my little Sherry.

  Paulie realized that he was almost glad that his spots had been raided by the police and that his money spots had been robbed. He thought about the many people that he may have affected by selling drugs. His thoughts of guilt and shame began to weigh heavily on him. “I’m sorry,” he said as he exited the room.

  All he could think of was his pretty little sister and how this motherfucker Tony had created the present situation. Paulie balled his fist as he walked down the hall. He felt powerless. He needed to find this motherfucker, and he needed to do it now.

  “Hey, where do you think you’re heading off to?” Veto inquired.

  “I have to find this fuck, your nephew, Tony fuckin’ Santoro! Hanging out here in this fuckin’ hospital is not helping my situation any. For some reason, I think my sister is with that fucker.”

  For a second, Veto paused and laughed. He could recall him saying something similar to his father, The Don. And now, here he was about to say the same thing to Paulie. “Listen, I sympathize with you, Paulie. You and me, we were more like family than that fucked-up piece of shit nephew of mine. You know what I mean? But I ask you…” The man talked with his hands so animatedly that sometimes he would nearly punch people. “What the fuck are you
gonna do, Paulie, run in and out of every fuckin’ house and beat up everybody who answers the fuckin’ door until they tell you what you wanna hear?”

  “If necessary,” Paulie responded, scowling.

  “No, you’re not! So, I’m telling you this: Just relax and we will handle it, I promise. First, though, we need to find these fuckin’ niggers and find out what they know about Sherry.”

  “Got it, Don Veto,” Pulie replied reluctantly.

  Veto got right in the man’s face and held him as if he were his own son. “Hey, look at me. We’re gonna find her, ya hear me? Go take it down.”

  The man snapped his fingers. Two of his men walked over and escorted a fragile Paulie out and into a separate car. “Listen, Sal, I want you to go over there yourself and find this girl.”

  CHAPTER 8

  • • •

  Before Slick went back to the house, he had stopped downtown at a 24-hour shop. He bought all the flowers that the cashier had on display. When he arrived home to his amazing India, he was happy to see the outline of her shape in the darkness.

  He was quiet as he walked in, taking the flowers and placing them around her body. With a red rose in hand, he traced her face. For an odd reason, he was acting as if he was in love. Nah, fuck that, he said to himself.

  “Oh shit!” he said taking the remote for his stereo and turning it on. On the radio, “Forever My Lady” by Jodeci was playing. He smiled as he looked down at the beautiful girl. Slick gently kissed her neck and sang along with the song.

  “You and I will never fall apart... Now our baby is born, healthy and strong…” As the man sang the song, Slick woke up his angel with tiny kisses. She breathed in deeply, enjoying the pretty fragrance. She opened her eyes and saw all the flowers. She smiled and gave him a tight hug. India heard the music and his singing. They looked into each other’s eyes and began to kiss passionately.

  She rose and laid him on his back, unbuttoned his pants, and pulled them off. They got stuck on his Timberland boots. He knew it was gonna be a task to get them off, and he wanted to be inside her sugar walls. “Fuck!” he screamed.

  She said nothing. Pushing him back down, she removed his manhood and took him in her mouth. He grew so large that she began to back up. He held her head in place as he expanded, gagging her. Drips of saliva slid down the sides of his massive penis. Although she was not happy that Slick was doing this, it did turn her on to see if she could take it all into her mouth. She choked again and she had had enough.

  “Okay, nigga, chill! I ain’t no fuckin porn star,” she said. “Damn! This is a motherfuckin’ beast you got here, nigga!” Then she rose, straddled him, and slid him into her wetness. “Oh, ah, mmm!” India moaned as she tried to maneuver herself onto the massive meat. “Oh shit!” she said. For India, this was the first time in all the sexual experiences that she had that felt this new.

  What she was feeling was pain; this was a good sexual pain, however. Never before had someone stretched her walls so wide that she found herself trying to be like a pro. She rode him through the pain, enjoying each painful thrust. A tear began to fall from her face and she loved it. Eventually, she had him all the way in. She sat perched on top of his pulsating throne, tears streaming down her face.

  Slick smiled. He knew he had her. Not many women wanted to have sex with him because his penis was too big, but here he was with the prettiest woman he had ever met. He could tell that she loved his extra-large, super-thick member.

  India stayed on top and bent over to give him the sloppiest, wettest, most passion-filled kiss ever. She whispered in his ear, “I love you.” Slowly, she began to move up and down, side to side. She wanted to just ride him like a bull, but it proved too much. Her walls were still adjusting after almost a full five minutes of sitting there.

  As she rode the massive meat, the pain she initially felt soon turned into a whole new sensation. She told herself that she was the luckiest girl having met Slick in the club that night. As she rode, she thought, I’m not leaving this motherfucker for nothing! He’s mine. Suddenly, she felt another new sensation. Her walls began to quiver and shake like a tiny volcanic eruption deep within her.

  “Oh my God!” she screamed. Before she knew it, a flood of thick liquid came flowing from her body onto the man’s chest. She tried to stop it. India had never done that before and embarrassment took over. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry! That’s never happened to me before, ever! I swear!”

  Slick was pleased. “No, ma, let it flow! It’s cool! You’re a squitter.” He smiled, then turned her over and slowly inserted himself into her from behind.

  The music played on. “You can have anything I got,” sang Jaheim. Slick knew that he was in love. They made love until the sun came up, smiling like fat kids in a room filled with cake.

  “I can’t believe we had sex all night,” India said, a smile on her face. “What fuckin’ time is it? Dayum! My mother’s gonna be pissed the fuck off that I didn’t call or come home! I gotta go!”

  “Wait, wait… Damn,” he said, reaching for the girl’s arm. “Just call your mom to let her know you’re okay. Girl, you need to relax! Shit, you’re a grown-up, aren’t you?”

  “Yes,” she replied.

  “Well then, chill,” he said. “Tell your mom you’re cool, and I’ll go grab us some breakfast from the little restaurant on the corner. What do you want?” She smiled. He was what she wanted in her life: a man who would take charge. “You know what? Don’t worry about it,” he replied. “I’m gonna get cheese grits, eggs over, sausage, and toast. How does that sound?”

  She smiled. “That sounds real good.”

  He got up from the bed and walked into the bathroom, threw some water on his face, and swallowed a little bit of Listerine. He dressed and put his coat on.

  “Hey, what do you wanna drink? I’m having some coffee.”

  “Just get me orange juice, please, baby,” India responded.

  “Cool,” he said to her. “I’ll be right back.” He thought about it and went in for a little kiss.

  That made the girl smile. It seemed that they were both planning a future together; they just didn’t let the other know yet. I mean, come on. I just met his fine ass at the club. He must think I’m a slut that does this all the time.

  She said, “Mmm, what can I do for him to let him know how I feel?” Then it came to her. She got to her feet and began to clean his bedroom, smiling as she did. She picked up a bag that was in the corner, thinking that it was Slick’s dirty laundry. When she opened it, she saw the drugs and money. The blood-covered bag and money spoke volumes. India froze. “Oh shit!” she said. “I shouldn’t have seen this.” She contemplated throwing her clothes on and running out the door. My new man got money! She straightened up what she could and decided to be honest with him when he returned.

  Slick walked across the street. Coming back from the restaurant, he carried two large bags full of food. He had the walk of a man who was happy to be going home. He had taken women home from the club before, but never anyone as pretty as India.

  And she’s into me. “Damn!” he said out loud. An old woman sweeping her front porch looked at him as if he were crazy. “Good morning, ma’am!” he said to her as he casually walked by.

  She scowled at him, then went back to sweeping. She looked up and saw four white guys crossing the street, headed toward the young man. From the look of them, she could tell that they were serious. Without a word, she hustled back inside her house and locked the door.

  Slick was so happy that he paid no attention to the four men who walked his way. As he passed a car, however, he happened to look into the back window and saw the reflection of the men walking up behind him. They were crossing the street.

  At first, he thought they were the police. “Shit!!” he said, his nerves a little shaken. He was a bit scared too. Then he thought that if those guys were cops, they would ha
ve swooped down on him with all that they had. “Shit! He turned real quick to get a look, and that’s when he saw the assault rifles.

  They must be the mob. Damn! They were the men who had given the boy they murdered the drugs, and here they were, coming for him. Without hesitation, he turned and threw the food at the men. He took off toward his house. “Fuck!” he said.

  “Motherfucker!” Sal said as the bag of hot food hit them. Slick had ordered grits and eggs over easy. They were now dripping off of the men. “Get his fuckin’ ass!” Sal screamed. He pulled out his shotgun and let two fly. Boom! Boom! The last shot grazed Slick’s back. Two or three shotgun pellets went through his shoulder, and one landed in his back.

  The pain shot through him quickly as he dove over his fence and ran into the house. Once inside the house, he crawled and lay behind the door.

  Upstairs waiting for her man to come back was beautiful India. She was watching TV. India knew what a shotgun sounded like. She heard a shot and immediately dove to the floor. She thought about Slick, but then she heard the front door open and slam close.

  Staying on the floor, she crawled over to the stairs and yelled out, “Baby, they’re out there shooting. Get down!” She saw him lying on the floor behind the door, and then she saw the blood. “Oh shit!

  “Get the fuck down!” he yelled out to her. She did as she was ordered.

  “Baby, you’re bleeding!” she said.

  “Shhhh,” he put his finger to his mouth so he could listen for the men. Then he began to crawl. Taped under his table was a Glock. He reached for it, but as soon as he did, his front door flew open, glass shattering and cutting up India’s face.

  The man who kicked in the door was met with a firestorm of bullets. Pop! Pop, pop, pop! He fell to the floor as a second man rushed in, firing his weapon. The AR bullets tore through his legs. He released his last few shots. Pop, pop! Pop! The second man went down as well.

  Sal came in with another man, guns drawn. He looked down at his men on the floor. He raised his hands and said a quick prayer.