by Briann Danae
Two cops climbed out the cruiser and Lano had a feeling they were about to be on some bullshit. For that reason alone, he pressed a button on the dash of the car that recorded their conversation. He told himself to relax and not make any sudden movements that would make them feel threatened. Them mothafuckas feel threatened if I sneeze the wrong way. Who am I kidding, he thought rolling his window down and licking his lips.
“Is there a reason I was pulled over?” He questioned.
The black haired, white male officer nodded. “You ran a stop sign back there. Everything alright?”
Frowning, Lano became puzzled at the accusation. He knew for a fact he hadn’t ran a damn stop sign. “You sure officer? I don’t recall there being one.”
The officer nodded as his partner’s flashlight danced around the inside of the car. “Positive. You got a license or weapon on you?”
Of course, he had a gun on him. As a black man living in today’s society, his word could no longer save his life. The system, which was supposed to protect and serve, did everything but, so who else was supposed to look out for him other than himself? Lano’s gun was untraceable with no serial number, so he wasn’t worried at all.
“I have my license and a weapon on me, yes,” he answered.
“Go ahead and step out the car for me. Where’s your license?” the officer questioned, as he pulled Lano’s door open.
“Aye, you don’t gotta help me out. I can open my own door,” Lano hissed.
He was going to be quiet about the move but said fuck it. He was a grown ass man who was very much capable of opening his own door and knew they were just on some bullshit for pulling him over. The officer placed his hand atop the handle of his gun and Lano shook his head in disgust.
“Ain’t no need to do all that. I’m not a threat to you,” he spewed stepping out slowly.
“I don’t know that,” the officer hissed, pushing him against the car.
One officer frisked him, removing his gun, while the other began to search the car. Lano’s nostrils flared with fury as seconds passed. Whatever they were searching for was beyond him. If it were drugs, they had made a stop for no reason. With his hands above the car and a smug look on his face, Lano tried to remain calm.
“You got any drugs on you?”
“Why? So, you can keep them?” He shot back. “I ain’t no mothafuckin’ drug dealer.”
He slammed his elbow into Lano’s back. “Shut the fuck up. I know you got something on you.”
Teeth clenched, Lano battled with knocking this pig on his back and doing the other one in, but he didn’t have time for that. He told himself if he just remained cool, he’d be out of this jam in five to ten minutes at the most. The idea of that was nice but crushed when the other officer who had been searching the car lifted from the backseat holding a gun, that did not belong to Lano, in his hand.
“Aww, what do we have here. Another weapon, huh? Couldn’t be too safe, right?” the officer frisking him taunted.
“Man, that shit ain’t mine,” Lano seethed, as anger hardened his facial features.
“Well, it belongs to someone and since you’re driving this vehicle… guess what?” the other officer said tauntingly, but Lano didn’t need to guess.
Either the gun had been planted by these crooked cops, or it belonged to his cousin. Again, he had fucked up and made a mistake moving on emotion. When he left out earlier, instead of taking his own car, he drove Tone’s car instead because his was getting some work done to his on the inside. Why Tone had a gun lying around so freely, Lano didn’t know. What he did know was that he needed answers, and quick.
Without a rebuttal, Lano allowed the officer to do his job for once as he read Lano his rights and cuffed him. Sliding into the back of the cruiser with his phone vibrating in his pocket, only one thing was on his mind; a setup. He knew there was no fucking way his cousin could have set him up. Lano wasn’t going for that shit. For now, he’d have to though because it was Friday evening, and he wasn’t going to be able to see a judge until Monday morning.
“Fuck,” he groaned, as his phone continued to vibrate.
The only person he knew would blow his line down like that was Anika, and Samia recently, but her number had been blocked before he could even pull out of her driveway. Anika was indeed calling, and when the vibrations stopped, Lano sighed heavily before he ground his teeth and clenched his jaw so tight, it hurt. He could hear the blood rushing through his head as murderous thoughts of being set up filled his mind. His temper was dangerous when shit wasn’t popping off, and turbulent when crossed.
Someone was going to pay for this stunt; mishap or not. There was always a price to pay when Lano was fucked with. Those were the rules and had been set in stone. Rather blood or money, the price was now on his cousin’s head until stated otherwise.
Chapter 8
Anxiety and nervousness were all Anika had felt for the past seventy-two hours Lano had been locked up. It twirled about in her body, and she couldn’t shake the feeling until she laid eyes on him. The call from Lano’s lawyer requesting bail money stunned her. She didn’t know how much yet, but she was prepared to cash her man out for whatever price. Considering the fact that he had left right after they had their little spat had her in her feelings tough. Not fully aware of the details, she made sure to be up bright and early on this Monday morning when he went in front of a judge.
Lano was charged with a misdemeanor though the gun wasn’t his, and a bail that was set at ten-thousand dollars cash. He could pay that in his sleep and not blink and was damn sure going to do it today. As the hours passed, Lano’s one thought was of his cousin’s betrayal. He tried thinking rationally, but, how could he? It was too coincidental for him of all people to have gotten pulled over in his ride. Tone was his nigga. His blood. So, he was really blindsided by his treachery and hated the divide it was about to ‘cause in the family, but all bets were off.
After it took hours, six to be exact, for his bond to post, Lano finally emerged. No longer was he a free man. His name was now in the system and an invisible target on his back that the laws could only see. Anika wrung her hands as she waved him over. She was a ball of nerves, and the scowl on his face didn’t make her feel any better.
With open arms, Anika embraced her man. If she could, she’d take the worry and stress off his back and place atop hers as if she weren’t under enough stress. Lano placed his warms lips against her forehead and held her tightly. The hours without hearing her voice, seeing her face, feeling her energy had damn near drove him nuts. His peace… it had been snatched away that quickly, and he knew deep down it was not over yet. The drama shit never was.
“That was the longest three days of my life,” Anika sighed once they were in the car.
She came alone, besides his lawyer being present. The only person’s energy he wanted and needed to be around was hers. She was the only one he could trust right now. Stuck in deep thought, Lano snapped out of them when she grabbed his hand.
“So, what’re they saying?”
“A damn misdemeanor. Court date set for a month from now,” he grimaced, not even believing his own reply.
Anika sighed. “I know this looks suspicious, trust me, everyone thinks it does, but can you at least hear him out? Tone wouldn’t do that, bae.”
“Ain’t nothing to hear him out on, Nik. It’s either he set me up, or he didn’t. Ain’t no in between or sparing the nigga because we family. That blood shit doesn’t mean anything to a nigga who survives off disloyalty.”
There was no getting through to him. Lano was a livewire and having just spent his weekend locked up, he wasn’t trying to talk about a damn thing. Anika dropped the conversation she was trying to have and rode the rest of the way to his mama’s crib in silence. When they pulled into the gate, she shook her head seeing Tone’s car parked at the end of the driveway.
“This nigga,” Lano scoffed.
His agitation was at a level Anika had never seen before. Rush
ing behind him as he headed with determination in his stride to the front door, she prayed all of this was one big misunderstanding. She could live with that. What she didn’t want was for Lano to kill his own cousin. She knew in doing so, it’d haunt him forever. Before Lano could speak to his older cousin who was sitting on the couch, Tone spoke first.
“I already know what you thinking, cuz. That gun ain’t mine,” Tone said, standing firm on his word.
“Yeah,” Lano sucked his teeth. “Then who the mothafucka belong to? The one time I drive your car, I get pulled over with a gun in the whip? It’s like that?”
Anika heard the hurt in his voice, and it pained her. Tone heard it too, but there wasn’t any way to prove the gun wasn’t his besides his word. They could throw hands and argue about the shit if Lano decided to do so, but the fact remained the same that he had just caught a charge behind a gun. Didn’t matter who the bitch belonged to at this point.
“On TJ that gun ain’t mine, and I’d never in life set anybody up. Come on, cuz. You know better to even think that shit. The fuck I need to set you up for?”
Lano stepped into his personal space. “I’ont know nigga. You tell me?”
The two breathed hard, neither backing down. Tone put it on his son who passed away at three months old from SID’s. Lano knew he meant it, but still… it was eating him alive to know he had been caught slipping. Tone’s entire disposition let Lano know he was telling the truth. He needed someone to blame for the mishap, and Tone was the easiest to place it on. But, he didn’t play a hand in anything involving his arrest, and Lano felt it now that he was in his presence, staring him dead in the eyes.
“A’ight. You niggas ain’t about to be messing up my house. Better take that shit outside,” DeNelo commanded, walking into the room. Approaching Anika, his favorite girl as he called her, he kissed her cheek and gave her a hug.
“You two better not be in here about to fight,” Lina said taking a seat next to her husband. “Lano, come sit down.”
Sucking his teeth, Lano shook his head. “Nah. I can’t right now. I gotta figure something out, Ma.”
“You’re not going to figure anything out with a foggy mind and attitude. Come sit down. Now.”
Lina’s voice was stern and had Lano moving his feet immediately. Anika followed suit and sat across from them on the love seat. She wanted answers too but didn’t know where to start.
“Listen, I know you’re upset, but you can’t go around accusing the people who have your back. Especially with something as serious as that, DeLano. Until we figure out how to get these charges dropped, you need to lay low. For all we know, those cops could have planted the gun just to bring you in. Stop moving off impulse, you know that’s never the right move,” Lina schooled.
DeNelo had been in the streets long enough for her to know how things worked. Especially the justice system. There was no justice. Not in many cases, and if there was, it was limited with restrictions and had that invisible target on the person’s back. Especially a black man.
The thought of the cops planting it had crossed his mind way before he was booked and even after he was processed. He tried giving Tone the benefit of the doubt, but his mind was in shambles. His life, since the temporary move, was so out of whack, Lano swore it would have been better off had he just stayed all those years ago.
“When do you meet with your lawyer?” DeNelo asked.
“First thing in the morning,” Lano grumbled, cutting his eyes toward Tone again.
He’d apologize because he was a man and could admit blaming him was wrong, but not right now. Right now, he needed to roll up and smoke. His nerves were bad as fuck, and if he didn’t get somewhere and out of his head, someone else was going to lose their life tonight. Another family would be burying a loved one, and Lano didn’t want that to happen. He couldn’t afford to make such a move, not with him just being released. The cops were about to have eyes on him at all times now.
That thought alone pissed him off even more because he still had one soul unaccounted for; Giran’s. Knowing he had to sit tight until his court date, Lano shook his head and stood to his feet. There was nothing else that needed to be discussed, and if there was, it wasn’t getting talked about today. He simply wasn’t in the mood.
“I’ma get up out of here,” Tone offered, standing to his feet.
“Let me holla at you before you leave,” Lano said nodding his head toward the kitchen.
Leaving Anika alone with his parents, she took that opportunity to see what they thought. She knew once Lano made his mind up about someone or a situation, there was no turning back unless he had clear-cut facts.
“You think the cop planted it?” Anika questioned lowly.
Lina nodded her head as DeNelo shrugged. “There’s a strong possibility, but the real question is why? I’m not worried though. His lawyer, who is one of the best, will figure it out,” DeNelo replied with confidence.
“Hopefully Lano lets him do his job. One charge is enough,” Anika added.
Inside the kitchen, Lano and Tone slapped hands putting their egos to the side. Tone understood where he was coming from, but it was from a place of anger. Too much had gone on in so little time, it seemed as though Lano’s life was spiraling out of control. He’d never been one to place blame on another man for his shortcomings, and after today, it’d be his last time doing so.
This lifestyle was draining him. Depleting him of his morals, threatening to turn him into some shit he was not. Or some shit he already was. A menace, but on paper. He didn’t mind being labeled a threat to the niggas who feared him. He was certainly that and followed through with every order to end a nigga’s life.
To the system though? Nah. It was just another way to trap him. Label the black man a threat to a punk ass cop, when Lano couldn’t give a fuck less about one. They had a job to do, and so did he. The two should have never even crossed paths, but again, another mistake had been made, and this time there was no retracting it.
Stepping inside their bedroom after making plans to meet up with Tone later, Lano stripped from his clothes. He needed a good shit, hot shower, sloppy head, and a home-cooked meal. Anika sat in the living room for all of thirty minutes before she made her way to their room. She missed Lano terribly the days he was away and couldn’t imagine going any longer without him in her presence. The mere thought of it on her way to the courthouse this morning made her sick.
Standing at the sink with a towel wrapped around his waist, toothbrush in his mouth and eyes trained on Anika, she walked up behind him. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she rested her chin against his warm back and exhaled. Who knew coming out here would be this exhausting?
Knowing her man, Anika didn’t speak as her hands danced across his abs before pulling his towel from his waist. He was tense all over, and she just wanted to relax him. Ease his mind if even for the five or so minutes she was betting he’d nut in. Turning around to face her as she stroked his dick, Lano stood with his eyes cast down as Anika dropped to her knees before him. In one breath, she had his dick in her mouth loving how hot he felt against her tongue.
Lano’s eyes fluttered the harder she sucked. Slowly, Anika bobbed her head over his length, as low, manly, grunts escaped him. The sound fueled Anika’s quest in pulling that nut right up out of him. Him calling her name out made her pussy wet, nipples harden and mouth wetter than it already was.
“Fuck, Anika,” Lano groaned, fisting her natural hair in his hand.
Calling out her full name, Anika knew he was close. She could feel him throbbing as she deep throated him like the professional fellatio master she was for her man. Pleasing him right now was all she cared about, but Lano had other plans in mind. The head was always stupendous, but he needed to be inside her. Pounding her pussy out the frame was much better than fucking her mouth roughly. She still got headaches from time to time due to her concussion, but some back shots would leave her headache free and floating.
“Get up. Get up,
” he ushered, helping her to her feet.
Kissing her was his favorite; both sets of lips. Tonguing her down as he guided them into the bedroom, Lano made sure the door was locked before he walked over to her. Sitting up on her elbows, Anika drank Lano’s body in. Desire filled his orbs as her legs spread and index and middle finger slid across her swollen clit. He didn’t have to ask was it wet; she always was for him.
Anika was always ready for Lano. Her body was never her own in and out of his presence. He commanded its attention from afar, and now up close, her arousal was telling him she was in need just as much as he was. Lowering his frame on top hers, Lano kissed her neck and wasted not a second more before sliding inside her. He exhaled loudly feeling at home. At peace. Lano delivered a few slow strokes, being sure to touch every inch of her pussy from wall to wall before he thrust into her with need.
“Aaaah, yes,” Anika moaned loudly, squeezing on his arms.
Lano’s dick hardened at the feel of her walls spasming already. He’d only been gone three days, yet her greedy pussy was sucking him in like she’d gone without for months. It was his. All of Anika, down to her bright orange toenails. Only DeLano Trevino could turn her body out from the inside and stake claim to it.
Taking his frustrations out, Lano stroked her harder. Deeper. Calculated. He needed her to feel every single inch of him. He needed his boo to know that he was so fucking sorry for the bullshit he had dragged her into. She felt his resolve. All nine inches of it swimming about in her sea. Submerged in her walls, pulling out, and plunging back in as if he’d left something there and was in search of it. Anika’s stomach caved as an orgasm ripped through her body quicker than she ever thought one could.