by Tina Marie
Hearing a banging on my apartment door, I woke all the fucking way up. I wasn’t expecting anyone and I sure as hell wasn’t ready to let the world know I was fucking Juice. My palms was sweaty and my heart was racing thinking about the possible people who could be on the other side of the door. If it was Ashlee, I was getting my ass beat, same for Chaos and, as I thought of the last person, I couldn’t even imagine the outcome. I didn’t want to do anything to fuck up me possibly being with Nicco. I felt like I was getting so much closer to him and this would ruin it all.
Grabbing my robe, I closed the bedroom door looking back one more time at a sleeping Juice. “Who is it?” I called out quietly.
“It’s Nicco, open the fucking door!”
Chapter Sixteen
Cayane
I missed Chaos being a part of my life, I really did, but his nonsense had interrupted me giving my son a better life. Plus, the fact that he couldn’t even bother one fucking time to tell me he even liked me. I knew he loved my pussy, but that just wasn’t enough. I should have never let him creep his pretty boy ass into my life. Seeing my phone ring, I turned it all the way off. Ever since I told Nicco and Ashlee I wasn’t able to afford the apartment, they had been blowing me up. I had even changed up my work schedule somewhat, so I could drive Kahlan to and from school. I just needed a break from everyone.
It was Friday and I had yet to get my ass up for work. Mornings with Kah were not the same; he missed Chaos and his God parents, so he was basically miserable. I’m sure that me walking around here like a zombie wasn’t helping him much. I decided today, I was going to pull myself together. No more feeling sorry for myself. I repeated it a few times as I jumped in the shower and got dressed. “Kahlan, let’s go, you are going to be late!” I shouted out to him, as he sat on his bed looking at his uniform. I wondered if he thought it was going to get up and jump on his damn body.
“Mommy, I don’t want to go today. I want to stay home with you or Chaos.”
I just shook my head and held back the tears. I cannot allow any man around my son again because he was clearly still yearning for a father figure, even though Nicco had been great to him. “He kept me safe when the man tried to grab me the other day. You should have seen him punch the guy. He looked like a real life ninja. Chaos is the best mommy.”
Feeling my chest tighten, I rushed in his room and grabbed him by his shoulders. “What man?” I said, my voice louder than I intended.
“Mommy, you’re hurting me,” he cried out, causing me to drop my hands fast. “He said he was my daddy and he held on to my arm tight. It was at the pizza place. Chaos saved me though, so it was ok.”
I knew it was Juice; I didn’t need any other details. I felt a chill enter my entire body, but I didn’t want Kah to be afraid. “Ok baby boy, you know not to talk to strangers and never go anywhere with them, no matter what they say.” He slowly nodded and gave me a hug.
“I wish Chaos was here.”
“Me too baby, me too.”
My plan to have a better day seemed deflated. I got Kah to school and went to work with a lot on my mind. I had no idea how Juice could even recognize our son; I had kept him as far away as I could over the years. We never even bumped into each other. Hearing a sound system outside, I looked up in time to see Darcy climb out of an all-white Range Rover. Seeing that shit made my stomach bubble and my head hurt. I wanted to pick up the pen we used for customers and stab her in the neck. I knew that was Chaos’ truck and just knowing he was with her had me sick.
I literally counted the minutes until it was time for me to clock out. The customers I helped were all a blur and I did my best to ignore my shady ass co-workers on a good day, which today was not. Finally, it was four PM and I could hit clock out. Sitting in my car, I started breaking down all over again. As I drove to Kah’s school, I cried the whole way. I thought about the way Nicco warned me about Chaos and how everything he said would happen did, including me avoiding him and Ash.
Seeing my son’s sad face as he slow walked to the car, I knew I needed a night to myself. Dialing a number I hadn’t used in a while, I sat back and listened to it ring.
“Yes Cayane,” my mother’s proper voice hit my eardrums like an earthquake.
“Hello Mother, how are you” I asked, trying to be polite.
“What do you want? Are you pregnant again? Or did something else happen to my grandson? I swear, you are such a loser. You really should have tried harder to be more like your brother.” It took everything in me not to hang up in her face or yell at her, all the shit my brother really had going on. Instead, I took a calming breath.
Shielding the phone, I asked Kah if he wanted to speak to his grammy. She was a bitch but, for some odd reason, my son loved her and she loved him. I didn’t let him spend a ton of time with her since she was so cruel to me, but I was hoping today would be a day she begged for him to come over. For the first time in over a year, I was saying yes. “Yes,” he said with a grin on his face.
“Hi Grammy, I miss you. How was your day?” He went on and on about his day at school and his new favorite book to read. I sat in the parking lot, feeling a little better seeing him smile.
“Grammy asked can I come over this weekend and help at the church bake sale, please say yes!”
“Ok. Tell her I will drop you off at six.” He relayed the message and thankfully did not hand me back the phone. I drove up to the nearest McDonald’s and grabbed him a Happy Meal and a chocolate milkshake. By the time I made it home and let him eat and change his clothes, it was time to drop him off. I did not want to step foot into my mother’s house; that was how much I hated her. I had been trying my best to not allow my feelings for her to rub off on my son. I had learned over the years that carrying around a lot of hate inside cripples you.
My dad was in the yard trimming bushes when I pulled into the driveway, and I felt all the anxiety I was carrying inside fade away. “Give mommy a kiss,” I said as I turned around in my seat. Dutifully, he kissed me twice and gave me his little boy smile. My dad waved, as I pulled away; I was glad he didn’t try to talk to me. He allowed my mother to behave the way she did and I couldn’t forgive that.
Stopping at the liquor store around the corner from my house, I grabbed two bottles of Rose’. Ignoring all the corner niggas that tried to holla at me, I hopped in my whip and headed home.
Walking in my front door, I planned on drinking the night away. Feeling a hand cover my mouth suddenly, I was shoved inside of my apartment. My heart jumped in my throat as I was thrown on the couch. “BITCH, you think I’m playing about my fucking son?” I rolled over and looked into the eyes of a pissed off Juice. “Tell ya man daddy’s home now, so he can go back to wherever the fuck he came from. Why don’t you go cook me something like a good girl? Then, you can ride my dick until our son comes home.” He gave me a smile that made the blood in my body freeze.
“Are you suddenly deaf?” he shouted, flinging me to the floor.
I jumped up and ran to the kitchen panicking. I tried to remember every way I had ever heard to poison someone. I began throwing around pots and pans and thawing out some chicken. I hid inside the fridge with my phone and tried to call Chaos. I didn’t know why he was the first person I dialed, but he was. I was sent to voicemail after the line rang out. I dialed again and got the same result, no answer.
“Fuck the food, I need some of that wet pussy,” Juice growled in my ear as he grabbed me from behind. I started kicking and punching him as best I could, but he laughed at me. I felt like the more I fought him, the more I turned him on. My body hit the floor with a thud. He ripped my dress off my body in one motion.
“Juice, you need to get the fuck out. We are past being over and, as you can see, I have a man now.” I punched him one good time in the face and he immediately punched me back. While he was unbuckling his jeans with one hand and holding me down with the other, I sent a test to Chaos. I needed him to come and save me.
Before he could drop his j
eans, the first shot rang out. I felt the cool night air as my front door bust open, followed by more gunfire. For a minute, I thought Chaos had come to save me until I saw a bunch of niggas with guns run inside my place and Juice running out the back.
Chapter Seventeen
Chaos
Making my rounds, I tried to keep my mind blank. I didn’t really deal with feelings, but I had to admit shorty pretty much crushed my shit the other day when she blamed me for not getting the new place. I thought maybe she would call me after, but I hadn’t heard from her, it was to the point I didn’t even bother looking at my personal phone anymore. I was disappointed every time it was someone else.
Pulling up in front of Darcy’s crib, I blew my horn to let her ass know hurry up. I hated waiting and I was in the middle of business when her bugaboo ass asked for a fucking ride to work. I swear, I only let her suck me off, so I could hear what Cay was up to. She slow walked her ass to the truck and got inside.
“Hey baby.” She leaned over to kiss me, and I mushed her ass right in the face.
“How many times I have to tell you dead that baby shit and a nigga don’t kiss? You want to kiss something, my dick is ready and waiting.” I loosened my Armani belt and pulled my monster out before pulling out into traffic. She crossed her arms and pouted but, a few minutes later, she had her lips on my dick slurping. She tried to say something, but I just pushed her down further on my man and enjoyed what that mouth do.
I grunted as I bust down her throat; she loved the way my nut tasted. I could see the joy in her eyes as she swallowed. Double parking in front of her job, I felt like I timed that shit perfectly. “I see that bitch Cayane is working today. I wish someone would just fire her dumb ass alr-” I had my hand around her throat before another word could escape.
“Oh yea, she’s a bitch? You want her to be what? Speak up BITCH, I can’t fucking hear you.” She couldn’t even breathe. Her trying to speak had her face purple as fuck. I didn’t feel bad at all. Leaning over, I opened the door and damn near shoved her outside. “Don’t fucking speak on Cay again.”
I peeled off, not waiting for a response. I was late to meet with some cat who owed us money. Pulling up at the park, I realized I was the only one here. I hit his line with a where the fuck are you text as I sat back and waited. Finally, he walked his Kid and Play looking ass up to my truck. Rolling down the window, I noticed he had his doofy ass leaned against the door like a bitch.
“Hey man, what’s good?”
I swear all these niggas that my cousin fucked wit up here was some pussies. “Maurice, I’m not ya man. Raise ya bitch ass up off my shit and run the money you owe.” He stood up straight but wasn’t handing me any money yet, so I knew a fucking sob story was in the works.
“Man look, my girl lost her job and I had to get my shorties some clothes and diapers. You know what it’s like. This all I got for now,” he said, handing me some crumpled up hundreds. I counted five hundred of the twenty five hundred he owed. I swear, for someone who was supposed to be slanging weed, it felt like he was selling homemade pot holders or some shit.
“Let’s make this clear; I don’t give a fuck about your girl or kids. I don’t know how it is because I don’t have either and, if I did, they would be straight because I’m a fucking hustler. You have forty-eight hours to have all the money you owe or you will end up dead.” I threw the crumpled up hundreds in his face and pulled off. I was fucking done for the day.
***
The next morning, I woke up hungry as hell. After handling my hygiene, I threw on a grey True Religion sweat suit and grey Timbs. I drove straight to Nicco’s house to get some food. I knew Ashlee had cooked some good shit. She was a beast in the kitchen. If Nicco ever fucked things up with her, he was a fool.
“Morning, where Nicco big head ass at?” I asked as I walked in to see Nikki and Ashlee eating some French toast and eggs. I sat down, just waiting to be served.
“You know you could just get ya own food,” Ashlee grumbled but got up to feed a nigga. “Nicco is at Tam’s apartment fixing the hot water. He should be back soon. Here,” she said, almost tossing the plate at me. I smirked as I dug in. She turned the morning news on, and I vaguely paid attention as they listed the many shootings that had occurred in the past twenty-four hours.
When the announcer mentioned the street that Cay and Kah lived on, I snatched the remote and turned it up. “Last night around eight PM, there was a shooting on this block that has left residents traumatized.” He stopped talking and the camera adjusted its scene, showing the house Cay lived in surrounded by crime scene tape.
I felt like someone had sucked the life out of me. I heard Ashlee drop a dish and it smashed on the kitchen floor, as he continued to speak. “There are dozens of fatalities, including three children under the ages of seven.”
I didn’t hear shit else that was being said. “Nikki, is Kahlan upstairs?” I asked, praying he was here, safe. He was always here.
As soon as the tears started streaming down her cheeks, I knew he wasn’t here. Grabbing my phone as I headed out the door, I saw all the missed calls from Cayane and one text. It simply said, help.
To Be Continued…
Coming Up On 10/9
October Contest
Read each book and answer the question or send the code to [email protected] for a chance to enter the contest. YOU MUST READ THE BOOKS IN ORDER AND PLEASE READ THE FLYER!!
BOOKS BEFORE THIS ONE:
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER
Question:
What is the name of the Culinary School Ashlee attends?
Submit answer by October 7th at 11:59pm