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  Just as I went to lie back down . . .

  BANG! BANG! BANG!

  I almost jumped out of my skin. This time, I knew I wasn’t dreaming. I also knew I wasn’t deaf.

  “Oh my God. What the hell was that?” I grabbed my chest. It took me a few minutes to realize the loud noise was actually coming from the front of my apartment. It was coming from the door. Someone was banging on my door like a maniac. Either that or banging like the damn police.

  “What the hell?” I grumbled in response to more loud knocks rattling my door. Still a little dazed for a few minutes, I finally gathered my thoughts enough to attempt to get out of the bed. Sleep still clouded my mind, but it wasn’t long before the incessant banging made those sleep clouds dissipate. I looked at my bedroom window and the sun was barely up so I knew it was very early. I picked up my cell phone and checked the time. My face immediately folded into a scowl.

  “Who the hell is banging on my door at six o’clock in the morning on a Saturday?” I grumbled some more. I threw my legs over the side of my bed, grabbed my favorite orange and black tiger-striped terrycloth robe, and shrugged into it. I also grabbed the baseball bat I kept at the side of my bed for protection. A girl couldn’t be too careful. Especially in the neighborhood I lived in. Especially when you got down on a heist with grimy dudes you might not be able to trust.

  The knocks resounded through my apartment again as I padded down the hallway leading to the door.

  “Wait a damn minute,” I complained, my own stale morning breath stinging my nose. Now I was really annoyed. I gripped my bat tighter as I approached the apartment door.

  “Who is it?” I yelled at the door, inching my ear closer. At first there was no answer. Then another round of knocks scared me and caused me to jump back, slightly off balance.

  “Who is it?” I screamed again. This time with an attitude.

  “It’s Sid. Open the door, Karlie!”

  My shoulders slumped with relief hearing that it was Sidney. But I was immediately alarmed.

  Sidney? He has keys so why the hell would he be banging like that at this time of morning.

  I set my bat down and went about unlocking the four padlocks on the door.

  “Why the hell you ain’t use your . . .” I started as I swung my door open with much attitude. I couldn’t even finish my sentence before Sidney came barreling into my apartment like a six-foot tornado. He literally pushed past me with so much force that he almost knocked me over.

  “Damn, Sidney. What the hell?” I whined.

  “Close the door,” he demanded with urgency. I stared at him incredulously for a few seconds. “Hurry up and close the fucking door, Karlie!”

  “Okay, okay,” I snapped back. “What the hell is wrong with you?” I asked as I closed the door behind him.

  “Lock it. All of the locks,” Sidney said cryptically. With his hand on his waistband, he rushed over to my windows, peeked through the blinds, and then started closing all of my blinds and pulling all of the curtains together. I watched him, confused.

  “Okay, Sidney, you’re starting to scare me now, damn it. What the hell is up?” I said, one hand on my hip. “You come here this early in the morning all frantic. Didn’t use your key to get in. Now you acting like somebody watching us or after you? Tell me what is going on. Did you get into a fight or beef with somebody? Where is the key I gave you to my apartment?”

  “Shh.” Sidney motioned for me to lower my voice. I snapped my lips shut, but the look on my face probably said it all. Sidney knew he had better start talking and fast, or he was going to hear my mouth going off.

  “I think I dropped it on the way here.”

  “Well, tell me what’s going on.”

  “Yo, Karlie. We need to move the money. We have to find another hiding place right away,” Sidney whispered, his words coming out almost breathlessly as he finished shutting us out from the outside world. He moved from my windows and immediately started pacing around my little glass coffee table in circles. He was biting his bottom lip fiercely. Something I knew him to do only when he was extremely angry or extremely nervous.

  “What? Move the money? What are you talking about, Sidney?” I asked skeptically. “You are truly bugging out right now, Sidney, and I just need to know . . .” I started with my hands up in front of me.

  “Troy is dead,” Sidney blurted. Just like that. Sidney dropped a bomb on me. No warning. No kind of clue about what was coming. Just . . . bam! At that point, whatever I had been saying when Sidney interrupted me with that news just completely went out of my head. My words clipped short like a needle being snatched from a record. My mind immediately became muddled . . . almost blank.

  “What?” I asked as if I hadn’t heard him the first time. I truly could not process what he had just said. “What did you say?” My voice came out like a hoarse whisper. Suddenly my mouth was cotton-ball dry. I could feel my left temple throbbing.

  “That nigga is dead, Karlie,” Sidney said. “Troy is fucking dead!” he continued more frantically now. Sidney used his hands to grab each side of his head.

  “Yo. I can’t even fucking think straight right now, Karlie. This nigga was murdered. Shot in his head in cold blood. I’m fucked up right now,” Sidney went on.

  I started pacing the floor right along with Sidney. My heart was pounding, while veins in my neck pulsed fiercely against my skin.

  Troy was shot and killed? I repeated in my head. Then I abruptly stopped moving. I had a thought. Sidney had first said we had to move the money. Then he’d said Troy was dead.

  “But what does Troy’s murder have to do with us . . . the money . . . moving it?” I asked. “How do you know he wasn’t murdered over some beef? Or some drug shit?”

  Sidney shook his head like I had just asked him the dumbest question in history. He obviously knew something that I didn’t know.

  “I’ll tell you what it has to do with us. When they found him, there was a note that said something like . . . ‘we know about the money, he won’t be the last if we don’t get all of it,’” Sidney relayed. My heart sank. I guess that had answered my question. It was obviously all about the money.

  My legs suddenly got so weak I couldn’t stand. I flopped down on my little threadbare couch . . . exasperated. I lowered my face into the palms of my hands and exhaled a windstorm of breath. Sidney kept pacing; the rustle of his jeans was the only sound I could hear. The silence that fell over the room was deafening. Our minds raced in a million different directions. This was supposed to be a foolproof heist. Easy in, easy out. There should have been no complications . . . unless someone on the inside of the crew was running their mouth. Troy had to have been bragging about the money for anyone else to know about it. Either that, or somebody else already knew and wanted what we had. If I was a smoker, I would’ve smoked an entire pack of cigarettes in that few minutes we sat there in silence.

  After a few minutes, I lifted my head. I turned my eyes toward Sidney and stared right into his eyes. I could not only see the fear dancing in his eyes, I could feel it gripping me around my neck now.

  “Somebody knows,” I said hoarsely. “Somebody knows what we did and they want in. This is not over.”

  “Yeah, it’s obvious. I bet it’s because those little niggas been running their mouths. I told all of them to keep their damn mouths shut,” Sidney replied. “I think this is some street dude trying to scare us. Whoever it is better hope I don’t find his ass before those homicide detectives find him. I bet the whole hood looking for the come-up off this shit now. I can just imagine what these little niggas think we got now. You know everybody trying to come up. Like I said . . . we have to move that money.”

  “No. You’re wrong. There is more to this, Sidney. Trying to scare us would be beating Troy up to send a message. Trying to scare us would be holding Troy hostage and demanding a ransom to get the money. Trying to scare us would be leaving a note to tell us where to drop the money and if we didn’t more of us would die. T
his is more than someone trying to scare us. This is someone trying to get that fucking money for a reason. Somebody who has more than just a hood come-up in mind,” I told Sidney seriously. I shuddered as chills came over my entire body like I had been splashed with ice water. I was so scared, my teeth started chattering. Sidney stopped moving for a few seconds and turned to me like he’d just had a revelation.

  “You’re right. There is more to this shit. But why kill the nigga and leave no way for us to give them the money? Even if it was somebody who wanted the money for a reason. Even if it was somebody who felt they had a right to the money . . . if we can’t get it to them, then what’s the point?” Sidney asked, rubbing his chin and squinting his eyes like he was contemplating his own questions. “No ransom demand. No request to meet to turn the money over. Makes no sense. You don’t just murder a nigga off of GP with no end game in mind. Unless . . .” Sidney paused. I was hanging on his every word. “Unless you feel like niggas violated you in some kind of way by having that money.”

  I was quiet. I had to think about that. It was true. Which meant whomever killed Troy wasn’t satisfied with just him and didn’t want the money just yet . . . if they wanted it at all. This seemed more like revenge to me. Like they had a point to prove.

  “Who found him?” I asked Sidney in a barely audible tone. I could feel tears welling in the backs of my eyes. I didn’t know Troy as well as Sidney did, but that didn’t mean I would want to see him die. I knew he had just had a baby too. I had gone to the baby shower with Sidney. Just the thought of that little baby with no father, possibly because of me, made my skin crawl. It was my fault.

  “His moms found him. Right in the doorway of his crib. It was like he was trying to get home and somebody just ran up on him . . . and BLAM . . . right in his head. Stuck the note to his open wound like the cowards they are,” Sidney answered. I shook my head and closed my eyes.

  “She called me. She gave me the note. She picked it up before the cops got on the scene. She didn’t want them pigs to find that note. You know how that shit is. She’s a church lady and didn’t want it to get out that Troy might have been into some ill shit. She wants him to be buried like a saint. Don’t they all.”

  “Thank God for her pride,” I exhaled my words. “So we are the only ones who know about the note?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Don’t tell anyone,” I warned. “All that’s going to do is spook all of them. We need to keep this quiet until we can split up the money.”

  “C’mon. I’m not stupid, Karlie. Shit getting serious right now. I know if those other dudes hear about the note, they’re going to request their money off the rip,” Sidney said, annoyed.

  “Getting serious. It’s been serious. I thought this would be the perfect heist. Easy breezy. One, two, three. But, no. From the beginning of this shit we have been battling Murphy’s Law—what can go wrong, will go wrong. I got a feeling more things are going to go wrong too. I got a real sick gut feeling that this is just the beginning.”

  With that, Sidney flopped down next to me and wrapped one of his strong arms around me. I have to admit. It was the first time I didn’t feel protected by my man. In fact, with the whole heist idea being his in the first place, I felt like he had got me into some shit I was never going to be able to get out of alive.

  CHAPTER 7

  POINTING FINGERS

  Sidney removed the black, wrought-iron grate that covered a deep cavern in the cement floor of the warehouse. Craig, Walt, Mega, Ant, Miley, and me all watched, holding our breath. Everybody was probably saying the same silent prayer—Dear God, let the money still be here.

  “It’s still here,” Sidney announced with a relieved sigh as he reached down and tugged on the strap of the first bag. “Open it and count it,” he told me as he held the bag out toward me.

  I quickly took the bag from him. Miley snatched up the second bag. We both opened the bags and confirmed that the stacks of cash were still in place. I didn’t have to count the money in my bag. I had become a pro at eyeing money and estimating the amount.

  “Yo, I’m saying. Let’s just split this shit up and go our separate ways,” Craig spoke up. “There’s already one nigga dead. What we going to wait for us all to be dead before we get our cut?”

  “Word. Might as well enjoy our shit just in case Troy getting hit means that somebody out there is after this loot,” Walt said, followed by a chuckle. “I’m just saying. That nigga Troy ain’t have no enemies, so if he got murked, I’m thinking it gotta have something to do with this paper. That shit is common sense. He had to be running his trap about it.”

  “Nah. I think we all getting paranoid. Just give it a few more days. That detective is still creeping up on Karlie and Miley, lurking and looking for information. We don’t even know if what happened to Troy was about this money or not,” Sidney answered.

  “Yeah. Three more days should do the trick,” I followed up.

  “If y’all ain’t think Troy getting murked has anything to do with the money then why we here talking about moving the shit from this spot?” Mega asked, his words dripping with suspicion. He had a point. I had to think quickly on my feet.

  “We just want to make sure that the money is safe. We didn’t have to call all of you here. We could’ve just moved the money without saying shit and none of y’all would’ve known about it. If we were grimy, that’s what we would’ve done. Or better yet, we would’ve taken it all and bounced without giving y’all shit. So let’s just stick to the plan. We will split up the money in a few days. I can’t take the risk of the cops finding out about me and Miley. I’m sure y’all can understand that. If we get knocked . . . y’all all get knocked too,” I reminded them all.

  “You saying all of that, but how we know somebody you know ain’t murking niggas so you get away with all the money in the end anyway,” Walt said accusingly. He stepped closer to me with his eyes squinted into dashes and his nostrils flaring like a bull’s. I guess he still hadn’t gotten over me cursing him out after the robbery. I stood my ground. I didn’t even flinch under his glare.

  “Oh please, nigga. How we know your grimy ass ain’t the one doing the shit. Last I checked, you was the grimiest nigga in this bunch. You probably shot the nigga,” I snapped, rolling my neck and my eyes. Walt started toward me with his fists balled.

  “Chill, man. Just chill.” Sidney stepped in Walt’s path just before he could hit me. I was scared as shit, but I had to play it off.

  “Yeah, grimy nigga. I must be right—that’s why you so mad,” I mocked as I hid behind Sidney. I was playing tough. If Walt or any of the other dudes saw one bit of fear out of me or Miley, I’m sure they would take advantage of us.

  “Nah. Any bitch that robs her own workplace is the grimiest in this bunch,” Ant interjected. “All y’all niggas sound stupid. Arguing about when to split up money and who shot who. All of this is childish. Give me my paper and let me skate away from all this bullshit.”

  “Fuck you! Don’t speak to my sister like that, you bitch-ass nigga,” Miley stepped to Ant. “You wasn’t saying she was grimy when she was putting you down on that lick, you thirsty, bum ass.”

  “Fuck out of here, bitch!” Ant spat, shoving Miley out of his face so hard she almost fell.

  “Oh hell no!” I yelled, charging toward Ant. “Don’t put your hands on my sister! I will kill your ass!” Just before I got to him, Sidney grabbed me around the waist and pulled me back.

  “Let me go! I’m sick of all of these dudes! Let me go!” I gritted out, kicking my legs wildly trying to get at Ant.

  “I will fuck y’all bitches up,” Ant barked, his fists curled at his side. “Let her go. Let me show her what a real man does to chicks who run their mouths like these two.”

  “Both of these chicks probably setting niggas up,” Walt said, moving his hand like he was going for something in his waistband. The entire room erupted with accusations and insults. Everybody was pointing fingers at each other. Miley and
I were ready to fight. It wasn’t hard to see that we were all coming apart mentally.

  “Shut the fuck up!” Sidney finally screamed so loud he startled everyone into silence. All of our faces were in different stages of shock and surprise. “All this finger-pointing bullshit stops right now! I’m sick of all of it!” Sidney announced, moving his eyes from person to person as he walked past each of us like the principal in the movie Lean on Me. “None of us are responsible for what happened to Troy. All we know is right now shit is too hot with the cops to split this money up. In a few days, when this cop stops snooping around the stores and stops lurking around my girl, we will all get what’s owed to us. Until then, everybody shut the fuck up. Stop running your mouths in the street and lay fucking low. Period. I don’t want to hear another word about this.”

  “Yeah. A’ight. Y’all niggas got three days tops. If I don’t get my money, it’s going to be a problem,” Craig threatened.

  “Whatever,” I mumbled under my breath. I was sick of all of them and their threats. I turned my attention back to the bags of money.

  “Now . . . here’s my idea for where to move the money to,” I said, pulling out three sheets of paper from my bag. That had everyone’s attention again. And that’s when I laid everything out.

  CHAPTER 8

  BODY COUNT

  Two days had passed since we’d moved the money. We had another day or so before it would be time for us to split up the money, which would mean, hopefully, this whole ordeal would be over. I looked through the front glass window of the EZ Cash and saw Sidney’s truck parked outside. I smiled.

  Sidney had been keeping me close since Troy’s murder. He had been like a fixture at my house, even spending the night, which, he usually didn’t do. He was taking me to work and picking me up too. I couldn’t front. I was enjoying his attention. It was definitely something I was hoping to get used to once the dust settled.

  I turned away from the front desk and started my process of shutting things down for the evening. I was emptying the drawers when I heard the front door chimes ring signaling that someone was coming in.