Dead and Stinkin'
Page 11
Before leaving, the visitor looked at the headstone that rested on top of the remains of his lifelong friends and read the inscription.
“They shared everything in life and it’s only right that they share their eternal resting place. Rest well Mike and Laura.”
The stranger looked to see if anyone was nearby. He took out a knife from his pocket and bent down. Carving an inscription at the bottom of the headstone that read, “Thanks for being my friends your boy O.S.”
Trees were rustling and the wind kicked up when the visitor stood up and started to walk away. The cemetery became suddenly cooler.
Old School stopped walking. He turned to look at the grave one last time. Perched on top of the headstone were two identical white doves. The birds looked at the visitor and cooed softly. Side by side they suddenly flew away into the horizon. Old School watched them and smiled. Just before they flew out of sight, Old School waved at them and said, “Later.”
HELL COMIN’ FROM HARLEM
Chapter 01
The entire wedding party was on time and the atmosphere was very festive. The only participants that were running late seemed to be the bride and groom. Malik, the groom was late because he was finishing up some last minute business that could not wait. Elaine, the future bride, did not have any excuse for her lateness.
“Malik, Elaine just got here and her bridesmaids are getting her ready. How you feel, player?” Big-O, one of the groomsmen asked, helping Malik with his jacket.
“I’m crazy nervous, man. It’s not every day a cat like me marries a chick as fine as Elaine,” the perspiring groom answered.
“Yeah, she’s fine as hell, can’t take that from her,” AG said.
There to participate and share his special day were AG, Big-O, Hill, and Nes all childhood friends of the groom.
“Malik, it’s almost time, you sure you want to go through with this?”
“What up with you, Hill? He’s nervous already. You buggin’ asking him that bullshit,” Nes said.
Everyone knew that Hill never really liked Elaine for Malik. Hill used every occasion to constantly remind the crew of his feelings.
“Listen, Hill and the rest of you. I know how you all really feel about Elaine, but a cat like me loves that girl, y’all feeling me? Elaine’s gonna be my bride, okay? Just get use to it, is all I’m saying. Now let’s do this,” Malik said.
“Okay, let’s roll out,” AG said, opening the door leading to the wedding chapel.
The wedding party all took their assigned places and the minister signaled the organ player to start the procession song.
All eyes were on the glowing beauty of Elaine. Time seemed stand still when she and her uncle came walking down the aisle. Elaine and her uncle took their positions. Then Malik started his journey down the aisle. The traditional order was switched at Elaine’s request.
His eyes made contact with Elaine, and suddenly Malik felt like he was falling in love with her all over again. Thoughts of how they first met had him drifting halfway down the aisle. Malik smile widened like he was the luckiest man on earth. He was caught up in rapture, remembering that fateful night. It was Hill’s birthday. Big-O, Malik, and AG were taking him out to celebrate.
“There it is, coming up on the right. Oh shit, it’s on tonight,” shouted Big-O in AG’s ear.
He was pointing at the Golden Lady gentlemen’s club. A popular strip club in the Bronx, and a special event was happening tonight. The crew parked the Benz and walked to the front entrance. They saw a group of half-naked dancers heading inside the club.
“Oh shit, look at them joints, it’s on,” shouted Big-O, grabbing his groin.
When the fellas entered the dark, smoky club, they were instantly rushed by a group of money-hungry strippers. Sensing that this was a crew of ballers, the strippers attacked them like hungry piranhas.
Malik, Hill, Big-O, AG and Nes all grew up together in Harlem and each man had his own drug organization in different parts of the city. Once a month they would hangout. Tonight all the friends were in the strip joint with the exception of Nes. His woman went into labor earlier that evening, and he was at the hospital expecting his first child.
“Can I have this dance handsome?”a tall, big-butt, bowlegged stripper asked Malik.
“No thanks. A cat like me is just here to celebrate my boy’s birthday. Take him in the back room and take care of him, here,” Malik said, peeling off dollars from a coil of bills.
He gave two one hundred bills to the wide-eyed chick. The dancer grabbed Hill by his waist and led him to a back private room.
“Yo Malik, what’s up, man? A place full of ass in your face, and you acting like you scared?” Big-O laughed at his boy.
“Nah man, a cat like me is just…”
“Can I have this dance?”
Big-O and Malik turned to see who had interrupted their conversation. What they saw made them smile. Standing in front of them was a gorgeous woman with a body that was built like an Amazon warrior. When she spoke she had an erotic whisper, and dimples you could drink champagne out of.
“Hey handsome, can I…?”
Malik was caught off guard and looked dumbfounded at Big-O. Who was quick to respond, “Don’t look at me, she’s talking to you.”
“My name is Chocolate,” the dancer said, taking Malik by the hand. “What’s yours?’ she asked whispering in his ears and sending chills throughout his entire frame.
“Malik,” he said, answering too quickly.
“Hmm… The strong type,” she smiled.
Princess led him to the back room and the rest of the crew joined Big-O at a table.
“Damn, that bitch with Malik is fine! I know he’s gonna trick all that paper on her fat ass, watch,” A.G. said.
“Yo birthday boy, how was she?” Big-O asked Hill, ordering another round.
“What! She was bananas! I got a round-the-world special. She’s a crazy freak.”
“Don’t tell me she gave you a batty-wash,” laughed Big-O, taking a sip of his rum and coke.
“Shit, I got a wash, rinse and floss. Plus she got a set of twins of mine swimming in her stomach.”
The three men shared the laugh. They were momentarily distracted by a lesbian freak show on the stage.
“Where the hell is Malik?” asked AG, nervously glancing at his watch.
“I don’t know. He must be blowing that chick’s back out after all this time.”
“Oh, here he comes now.”
Malik came walking through the front door, Chocolate clinging to his arm.
“Y’all cats still here. Me and Chocolate went to get a bite to eat. Now we’re heading to the tellie and talk about it.”
“Enjoy baby boy. I know I would,” said Big-O with envy.
That night the crew went their separate ways after they left the club. The fun they had on their erotic excursion was all they were thinking about.
“Damn Malik, you’ve been seeing that stripper every single day this month. Her pussy sure ‘nuff got you trippin’, money,” said AG, laughing at his friend.
The crew was busy playing basketball at the Polo Grounds Park, in Harlem. AG attempted another shot and it clanged off the front of the rim. Malik reached for the rebound.
“Chill with that yang, AG. I’m feeling Elaine. She’s mad cool,” said Malik.
“Elaine! Oh shit, what happened to Chocolate?” Getting serious A.G. continued. “Yo, Malik, don’t forget where you met her at man. She’s a ho’, a stripper who fucks with ballers for their dough, that’s her hustle. Don’t let her hustle you. She may leave your ass dead and stinkin, home boy.”
Nes, Big-O, and Hill looked at Malik. There was no denying that he was wearing the expression of a pussy-whipped man. The friends continued playing ball, and after they had ran two more games, they left the court. Returning to their separate drug blocks, they went back to take care of their illicit businesses.
All the warnings given to Malik by his crew didn’t do anything t
o stop him from dating Elaine AKA Chocolate. He spent thousands of dollars on her and she got it in with passion for some of his paper. In a hot minute, Malik was head over heels in love. He made Elaine his number one and anointed her with a five caret diamond engagement ring.
That was two months ago. Now here he was walking down the aisle, getting ready to marry the woman of his dreams.
“I do…” Malik heard the words tumbling out of his mouth.
“I now pronounce you, man and wife,” the preacher quickly added.
Malik and Elaine had officially tied the knot. They walked arm in arm out the church. He was wearing a white tuxedo complete with a proud smile. The bride and her bridesmaids wore white Vera Wang gowns. Even the veils could not hide the acid grin adorning all their faces. It was apparent that he was the only one feeling like he was in heaven.
“This reception is off the chain. They got some bad ass bitches up in da place. Elaine got some dime-piece friends. I’m talkin’ ‘bout-they-biz chicks, even if they all hookers,” slurred a drunken Nes.
The friends stood around drinking and scanning the entire ballroom, admiring beautiful asses. Then they spotted an unexpected and unwanted guest.
“What’s Rishon doing here? Who invited him?” they chorused.
“I don’t know, but he’s here, and watch how hard these chicks sweatin’ him.”
AG, Nes, and Hill just witnessed Rishon, a rival drug dealer, walking through the room. All of a sudden Malik appeared.
“Why y’all over here when all these fine single women are just dying to get with fly ass ballers, like all of you? What’s up?”
“Rishon just walk up in here,” said AG to Malik.
“I know Elaine invited that cat. That’s her baby’s daddy and they’re still good friends. I ain’t trippin’.”
The crew continued to keep their eyes on Rishon. Elaine came out of the back room with two of her bridesmaids. She spotted Rishon and immediately she beamed. Rishon walked over to her and kissed her on the cheek while whispering into her ear.
“Friends…? They look like more than just friends to me. Ah but what do I know?” observed Hill.
“What do cats like you know about anything but gettin paper? Leave it alone, I trust my wife, Hill,” said Malik with a fake grin.
Malik looked on in disgust as Rishon and Elaine danced several songs. They seemed to fit each other easily in a way he wished he could, but he couldn’t. Malik wanted badly to believe in her, but the way Rishon held her made him wonder.
After the fiasco at the reception, the couple left quickly. They immediately boarded a flight to Hawaii for their honeymoon, and stayed at the all exclusive hotel Renew in Honolulu.
“Baby, what’s wrong?” asked Elaine, crawling into bed next to Malik.
“What’s wrong? You played me at the reception dancing with Rishon so damn long! My niggas were snapping on me all night,” a lovesick Malik pouted.
“Sweetheart, he’s my son’s dad. And besides, your niggas are just jealous that you got me all to yourself, and they got nobody all to themselves.”
“Yeah, but them cats…”
Cutting Malik off in mid-sentence, Elaine went to work. She kissed him hard on the mouth to stop his next words. Sliding her hand down to his groin, she gently massaged his testicles while sucking his nipple. Malik’s head fell back and his moaning let Elaine know the argument was over.
She was a pro at fucking. Elaine used both hands to caress Malik’s nipples. Her head came down to met his erect penis. His entire shaft was down her throat. Moving her head up and down, she simultaneously licked his balls. Malik was totally overwhelmed. No woman had ever freaked him the way Elaine did. Caught in the ecstasy, he was totally in love.
Malik didn’t know what was on Elaine’s mind. All he felt was her tongue action on his erection. In the midst of Malik’s mind-blowing oral sex experience, Elaine looked up into his face. She then pictured the face of the man she truly loved.
Chapter 02
It had been two months since the couple returned from their Hawaiian honeymoon. Malik and Elaine were still acting like any newlywed couple. Staying in bed talking about their future, discussing how many kids they would have, and making love the rest of time.
A week prior to getting hitched, Malik purchased a five-bedroom house in Westchester County and a canary yellow BMW for his bride-to-be. Malik spoiled his new bride rotten, showering her with expensive gifts in the short time that he had known her. Any other woman in the world would have felt blessed to have such a caring, and generous man. Elaine’s heart was however, somewhere else. The marriage didn’t stand a chance.
“Baby, come back to bed. I got something I need to share with you,” a horny Malik called out from the bedroom on the top floor of the mini-mansion. “Are you downstairs?” Malik got out of bed, and walked to his private bathroom to brush his teeth. When he came back out, he went to the stairs and said, “Oh, Elaine, I guess you want to play games. Well I’m down. I’m a beat that ass when I find you.”
Malik thought that Elaine was downstairs cooking him breakfast. Then he remembered that she couldn’t even boil eggs. He searched the entire house and became concerned. He remembered not searching her closet. Malik ran there, but found it empty. Where the hell could she be? He thought, walking slowly. “Enough is enough, Elaine. Stop playing now,” Malik called out.
Malik closely examined the closet, and noticed that a lot of the clothes he bought for Elaine were missing along with a set of Louis Vuitton luggage. Ideas started streaming through his mind, and Malik started to panic. Where could his new bride have run off to without telling him? His concern slowly teemed to anger.
“I can’t understand it, AG. I haven’t heard anything in days,” said Malik with deep concern in his voice.
He and his boys were sitting in the small mansion that Malik had bought for Elaine. They were sipping Yak and discussing his wife recent disappearance.
“I’ve been really worried that she’s been kidnapped,” said a shaken Malik.
The rest of the crew stared at Malik and saw him fighting back his tears.
“Are you sure she was kidnapped? Maybe she just went away on some urgent business,” Nes said, watching his boy fall apart.
“No man, I know she was kidnapped. My man in the Bronx who was at the wedding swore he saw Elaine walking in the courtyard up in Stevenson Commons,” insisted Malik.
“I know the Commons. I used to hit this little shorty up there. That place is bugged out. It’s in the Soundview area and all gated in like a damn fortress,” said Nes, shaking his head.
“Hold up. Ain’t that where Rishon comes from?” asked Big-O, looking around the room.
“Word…! That’s that cat’s hood, and he got it on smash too, but why would Elaine be there?” inquired Hill.
“Rishon is her baby daddy and that cat still loves her. That cat snatched up my wife and is holding her in the Commons. I know it,” said Malik, looking around to see if his words had the effect he wanted.
“How can you be so sure it was kidnapping and not mutual, playa?” asked Big-O, hitting a nerve with Malik.
“Listen I know what I know. The back window was smashed in the kitchen. That cat must have snatched her up while she was down here trying to fix me sump’n to eat,” said Malik pointing to the kitchen area.
The rest of the crew looked at each other suspiciously. They were not totally buying Malik’s story, but they did not disbelieve it either.
“So what you gonna do now?” inquired Nes.
“I’m gonna… No, we’re gonna go uptown and get my wife outta there, and bring her back home. That’s what we’re getting ready to do.”
“Hold up, Malik. What we got to do with your marital drama? And besides we don’t really know if she was really kidnapped,” argued a reluctant Big-O.
“He’s right, Malik. If we just go up there on some gangster shit, them Bronx niggas are gonna defend their turf. I ain’t down for no war if there’s no
paper involved,” added AG.
“Oh, it’s like that. Wait a minute all of you cats.” Malik said, going upstairs to his wall safe.
He pulled out a crumpled, old piece of paper and, brought it back downstairs.
“Do any of you cats remember this?”
They all looked at the old document. Finally Big-O said, “Oh shit I remember that. Damn kid, you kept that all these years?”
They all looked on the paper and read the few scribbled lines that were written on it.
“I know where this is going, Malik. We made that promise as kids, man. We were barely out of pampers. Shit, it’s written in crayon for Christ sakes,” said AG with a grin.
“Yeah well, I see you brothers or I should say acquaintances weren’t serious about this pact when we wrote and signed it. But I was dead serious,” said Malik in a disappointed tone of voice.
“Let me see this again,” said Nes, taking the paper and reading it out aloud. “‘The uptown boys solemnly swear to have each other’s back and to protect and defend each other even if it means risking our lives. If one of us ever needs the others we will be there by their side one-hundred percent, no questions asked.’ Damn ya’ll, we did say, write, and sign off on ’em words. I can’t speak for nobody else but Nes and I don’t go back on my word.”
“That’s my boy! Come on Nes, real niggas do real things. Me and you can handle this by ourselves. So let’s ride,” said Malik, hugging Nes.