The Safe House Page 21

  “I thought they got you,” he commented as he stood in the doorway of the front door.

  “I thought they got you too,” I replied in a nonchalant manner.

  “Hell nah! I wasn’t going to let them get me. I got that money and got out of there.”

  “Can I come in?” I asked him.

  “Yeah,” he replied, and then he stepped to the side so I could walk by him. “How did you get here?” he asked after I got out of the way so he could close the front door.

  “I caught a cab,” I told him immediately after I sat down on the sofa.

  “I caught a cab too,” he stated as he stood in the middle of the floor.

  “Where are the little girls?”

  “Oh, they’re gone. I left them on somebody’s front porch.”

  “What do you mean you ‘left them’ on someone’s porch? Are they dead or alive? What?”

  “They’re alive.”

  “You’re pulling my leg, right?”

  “Nah, I’m serious.” He tried to assure me, and I pretty much believed him. He wasn’t the type of guy that would lie about something like that. He was a heartless asshole, but when it was time to lay the truth out there, he’d do it. And he wouldn’t care if you liked it or not.

  “I see you hurried up and changed clothes,” I pointed out.

  “Why not? Who wants to walk around with bloody clothes?”

  “Interesting” was the only response I could come up with. This guy was insane. But I’d seen men who were crazier than he was, so I gave him a pass.

  Before Rich and I could engage further, there was another knock on the front door. He walked over and said, “Who is it?”

  “Choppa!” I heard the guy say.

  I watched Rich as he opened the front door. Choppa was a very short young guy with a headful of dreadlocks. The locks were unkempt and so was he, from where I was sitting. His body reeked of marijuana and his actions demonstrated exactly how high he was. “Yo, dawg, I got two hos out here trying to spend a hundred dollars. So show a nigga some love so I can make a few dollars off the sell.”

  “Here, take these five twenties and do what you want with ’em,” Rich told him, and dropped the packaged drugs into Choppa’s hand.

  “Come on, Rich man, these joints are small as hell. Give me one more,” Choppa begged.

  “Take it or leave it.” Rich stood firm.

  Choppa stood there for a minute as he looked closely at the drugs. After looking down at them for a moment or two, he said, “A’ight, fuck it!” And he handed Rich a one-hundred-dollar bill. Afterward, he stood there, opened every plastic wrapped Baggie of the drug, poured them in his hand, and then he took two away from that pile and stuffed them down into his pocket.

  “You’re only giving ’em three of those joints?” Rich laughed.

  “Yep, that’s it,” Choppa said, and then he walked away.

  Rich laughed at Choppa once again after he closed the front door and locked it. When he sat back down on the couch, his cell phone started ringing. He answered it. “Hello.”

  I could hear the caller just a tad bit to know that it was a woman. But when she started talking at full speed, I couldn’t keep up with what she was saying, until Rich said, “I’m glad he’s doing good. But did the police come up there and talk to him yet?” Right then and there, I knew he was talking to a woman that had information on Mike’s situation.

  “Well, if they come up there, just tell Mike to tell them that the guy wearing a dark-colored hoodie tried to rob him. And when they found out that Mike didn’t have any money on him, they got mad, shot him, and ran off.”

  The woman Rich was talking to said a few more words, and right before Rich ended the call, he told her to keep him posted, and if Mike needed anything, she should call him back.

  Right after he disconnected the call, I acted like I was watching television, but that was far from the truth. I was watching him from my peripheral vision. Judging from his mannerisms, I could tell he couldn’t care less about how Mike was doing. All he cared about was if the cops visited Mike or not. And if they had, what was their conversation about? Rich was a heartless piece of shit. So the quicker someone put him out of his misery, the better things would be for all parties involved.

  “It’s good to know that my boy Mike is okay,” he blurted out.

  “That’s good to hear. I was really worried about him.”

  “Well, worry no more,” Rich said cheerfully, and then he started chuckling loudly.

  “I see you’re in good spirits. What are you so happy for?”

  “Because I’m thirty thousand dollars richer than I was about two hours ago.”

  “Oh yeah, I heard about that.”

  “What did you hear?”

  “I heard you and Monty going back and forth about the forty thousand y’all got from that house, and how you weren’t giving up more than the ten thousand that you gave him. And that he had to share that same ten grand with the other two guys he brought along with y’all.”

  “Yep, I said every word, and I meant it too. Because him and his homeboys came in on the tail end of that job. That job was supposed to be for me, Mike, and one other person. I didn’t ask for Monty to bring that dude Paul and Jason back to the spot. But since it happened that way, then it’s his job to hit ’em off with his share.”

  “Where’s my part?” I asked sarcastically. “Remember, I set the whole thing up.”

  “The deal was for you to help me and I would help you get your mama back.”

  “Yeah, it was. But did I get my mother back?”

  “Was it my fault that she wasn’t there?”

  “Come on, Rich, let’s keep it funky. Your intentions were never to help me get my mother back. All you wanted was the stash, that’s it. Not to mention, every guy that went into that house with us didn’t make it out.”

  “That’s on them. I did my part.”

  “Are you really gonna share that money with Mike?”

  “Yeah, I’m gonna look out for him.”

  “How much?”

  “None of your fucking business!”

  “Sorry! My bad!”

  “Yeah, it is,” he commented while gritting his teeth at me. And then he changed the subject. “So you say that you didn’t murder that nigga Terrell, huh?”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Well, I don’t believe you. I think you did. And I think you did it because he cheated on you and you couldn’t handle it.”

  “Sorry to disappoint you. But that did not happen. I don’t know who killed Terrell, and I don’t care. He was a fucking asshole, so in my book, he got what he deserved.”

  “You’re sticking to the script, huh?”

  “It’s the truth.”

  “Yeah, tell me anything,” he said, and then he stood up from the couch and started walking slowly toward me. I was getting a little nervous, because I had no idea what he was about to do to me.

  “Look, I don’t want no more beef with you,” I told him, and I held up both of my hands. “If you want me to leave right now, I will do it.”

  “Don’t worry, I’m not bringing no beef to you. And you ain’t gotta leave either,” he assured me as he continued to walk toward me.

  Even though Rich just said that he had no beef with me, my intuition told me something totally different. So I braced myself for the inevitable. “I hit you pretty hard earlier, huh?” he asked me as he laid his hand against the side of my face. The bruises around my right eye and the cheek area were still purple and blue, so he could see them very well.

  “Yes, you did,” I replied, and pulled my face away from his hand.

  “I wanna make it up to you,” he insisted.

  “No, I’m good,” I assured him.

  “Come on now, don’t act like that,” he said, and tried to lean toward me so he could give me a kiss on the lips. I yanked my head back.

  “I told you that I’m good,” I reminded him.

  “Stop playing hard to g
et.” He grabbed the bottom of my chin and tried to pull my face toward him.

  I yanked my head back again. “I told you I was good. So, can you please stop? I don’t look at you like that.” I was becoming aggravated.

  He stood straight up and gritted at me. “Bitch! Don’t be acting like you’re better than me. Do you know how many hos be throwing themselves at me? I can have the whole damn city of Norfolk, if I wanted,” he boasted.

  “Good. I’m glad,” I said, and slid a couple of inches away from where he was standing. Having him standing before me gave me an uneasy feeling. I hoped my actions indicated it.

  “Ho, you ain’t all that!” he snapped, and took two steps toward me.

  “I didn’t say I was,” I corrected him. In no way was I trying to cause another disturbance between him and me. I needed somewhere to stay for the night so I wouldn’t be in the street. But he was really making it hard for me to be here.

  “You ain’t gotta say it. You’re showing me right now.”

  “Look, Rich, I’m really not trying to fuss with you. I’m tired and I’m frustrated that I couldn’t get my mother tonight. So, will you just cut me some slack so I can regroup?” I asked.

  “If you ain’t trying to give me some pussy, then you might as well get out.”

  “Are you serious right now?”

  “Fucking right I am. No pussy, no overnight stay. So, what is it going to be?” From the looks of things, he wasn’t going to move until he had gotten an answer.

  “Rich, please tell me that you’re joking.” I searched his face for a twinkle in his eye.

  “Fuck nah! I ain’t joking. Now I’m gonna say this one more time, if you ain’t trying to give me some pussy, then you gotta go. And I’m talking about leaving right now.”

  “Damn, Rich, that’s fucked up, especially since I’m the reason why you got that thirty grand,” I pointed out.

  “Come on, let’s go,” he said, grabbing me by my arm and pulling me up from the sofa. Immediately after he helped me up on my feet, he looked down at the breast area of the jacket and wondered what was bulging out. But before I could answer him, he reached over and patted my left breast. “Wait a minute, is that the dough I gave to Monty?”

  I pushed his hands away from my jacket. “It’s my diary,” I lied.

  “Yo, you can’t even lie right. I can see that dough sticking out of your jacket clear as day. Now hand it over to me,” he demanded. But I wasn’t going for it. I wasn’t about to allow this guy to take away this money that I helped him get. And besides, he gave the money to Monty, and now that Monty was gone, it now belonged to me.

  “If you don’t give me that money right now, I’m gonna put a slug in your head,” he threatened me.

  “Look, I don’t have time for this,” I said to him, and then I reached down into my inside jacket pocket and slowly pulled out the ten grand I took from Monty after he got shot. Before I could get it out of my jacket pocket free and clear, Rich snatched it from my hands.

  “You thought you was going to keep this dough for yourself, huh?” He cracked another smile.

  “Yeah, I did,” I told him, and watched him as he shoved the money down into his front pocket; then he turned his back toward me and started walking toward the kitchen. Before he took one step, I took the gun from my other pants pocket and aimed it at him. “I’m gonna ask you really nicely to give me that money back,” I warned him.

  He turned around slowly, and when he noticed that I had a gun in my hand, he chuckled. “I see you took Monty’s pistol too,” he said.

  “Yes, I did. Now I am gonna only tell you one more time to give me that money back.”

  “What’s gonna happen if I don’t?” He tested me.

  “I’m gonna lay you out on the fucking floor and then I’m gonna make you clean up your own blood.” I needed to let this bastard know that I wasn’t playing any games with him.

  “I don’t believe you got the heart to pull the trigger,” he challenged me.

  “Act like you aren’t gonna give me that ten grand back and see what happens.” I made it very clear.

  “Do you even know how to use that gun?” he asked me, and took a tiny step toward me.

  “Rich, I told you that if you move, I’m gonna lay your ass out. Now call my bluff,” I threatened him.

  Refusing to believe what I said, Rich took a bold step toward me and smiled. “See, I knew you didn’t have the guts to pull that trigger. So hand me the gun and I’ll forget about all of this,” he said.

  Without saying a word, I pulled the trigger of Monty’s. 38 handgun. Pop! After the bullet went through his left leg, he fell down on the floor. “Awoooo, you stupid bitch! You shot me in my fucking leg,” he growled in a fetal-like position. He began to rock his body back and forth.

  “I told you not to move. Now if you don’t give me that money, I’m gonna shoot you again,” I warned him once more.

  “Here, take it!” he yelled, and snatched the money from his pants pocket. After he threw the stack of one-hundred-dollar bills at me, he continued to rock his body back and forth. “You need to take me to the emergency room before I lose a lot of blood.” He was still in the fetal position.

  “I’m not taking your grimy ass anywhere. You’re gonna stay right here and take that pain like a real man.”

  While Rich whined like a fucking toddler, I got on Mike’s cell phone and called Ahmad. He answered after the first ring. “I’m gonna kill you very slow when I get my hands on you,” he hissed through the phone. I could hear the hate riding the wave signals as they vibrated through the phone.

  “I’m not the one that killed your father. Three of the men responsible for killing your family were already killed by you and your men. But I have the ringleader here with me. So I am willing to trade him for my mother right now,” I told him.

  “No deal. I want you too,” he replied.

  “Where is my mother now?” I wanted to know. It had been a while since I heard her voice over the phone. I needed to know that she was still alive, or there was going to be no way I was going to make the trade.

  “Don’t worry, she’s still alive.”

  “How long will it take for you to get her and meet me in downtown Norfolk?”

  “I can meet you within the hour.”

  “Do that. And call me when you get close by. Don’t try no funny shit!”

  Instead of responding to my comment, he disconnected our call. I shoved Mike’s cell phone back down in my pocket after our call ended. And when I turned around and looked at Rich, he gave me this weird facial expression. “When did you get a phone?” he wondered aloud.

  “I picked it up from the floor after you and Monty’s dumb ass picked Mike up from the floor and carried him outta the house.”

  “So you had that phone all this time?”

  “I sure did.” I smirked at him.

  “Wait a minute, so you know that Arab dude’s phone number?” Rich seemed confused.

  “Yep, I sure do. And I set you and those dumb-ass niggas up too. Ahmad knew how many of you were in that house. He knew exactly where everyone was at too. The only bad thing was that he didn’t keep up his end of the bargain. He didn’t bring my mama with him, like he promised. So I’m giving him another chance to make it right. And as a bonus, I’m offering you up, since it was all your idea to rob and have his family killed.”

  “You sneaky bitch! Do you know that he’s going to kill you too?” Rich snapped. He punched the side of the couch and hurt his fist.

  “I know he is. But at this point in my life, my life is meaningless to me. See, unlike you, I love my mother. So, if I have to exchange my life for hers, then so be it.” I tried to explain this to him, but it went right over his head.

  “You got to be the stupidest bitch I know! None of that shit you just said made any sense to me,” Rich continued, still applying pressure to his bloody leg.

  He and I kept going back and forth about how ignorant I was for selling him and myself ou
t to the guys that were coming our way. From the position I was sitting in, our argument wasn’t going anywhere. So I ended the conversation by telling him to just let things fall where they might, because our lives would be put in someone else’s hands. And there was nothing he could do about it.

  29

  MAKING THE TRADE

  It took Ahmad approximately forty-five minutes to call me back. My heart started beating rapidly after I answered the call and he told me that he was ten minutes away. I gave him the address to the house and warned him about the guys that were posted on the corner of the block. “If any of them ask you where you’re going, just tell ’em that Rich knows that you’re coming and they’ll let you pass,” I told him.

  “Is there anything else I need to know?”

  “Let me speak to my mother, because you didn’t keep your end of the bargain back at your family’s house,” I insisted.

  He paused for a second and then I heard a woman’s voice in the background. “Is that my daughter on the phone?” I heard her say. It was faint, but I knew it was her.

  I heard some crackling sounds and then I heard, “Misty baby, is this you?” I could hear the fear and pain in my mother’s voice. I swear, I wanted to lose it and flood our talk with cries and tears. But I held it together. She was already upset from what she had endured while she was with those bastards, so I felt it was best to stay calm. Still, I wanted to make sure she knew that I was doing everything within my power to get her back safe.

  “Yes, Mama, it’s me. Are you okay?” I asked her.

  “They cut off some of my fingers.” She started sobbing.

  “I know, Mama, I know. Don’t worry. I’m gonna get you to the nearest hospital as soon as I get you back,” I lied to her. She had no idea that I was trading my life for hers.

  “Baby, I can’t wait to see you.”

  “And I can’t wait to see you too. But for right now, I’m gonna need you to do what they tell you, until we see each other, okay?”

  “Okay,” she replied.

  “Give that guy the phone,” I instructed her.

  When Ahmad got the phone back in his hand, he said, “I will see you in a few minutes, so don’t fuck me over. It’s you and that guy for your mama. Got it?”