Street Chronicles Girls in the Game (20 page)

“Twan, let me ask you a question,” interjected Bossy. “Do you trust him?”

“That's an easy question—hell, no! Lajetia told me something that will never allow me to trust Ant's bitch ass ever again.”

Twan went on to explain the details of the traffic stop involving Ant and the two dirty officers.

“Did you say officers Powell and Meeks?” Big Black sounded confused.

“Yeah, man, they've been robbin’ hustlers all around the city
for years. I can't believe they've been getting away with it for this long,” complained Twan.

“Neither can I, but the fact that Ant might be fuckin’ with dem two bitches makes me worry even more about my girls,” Big Black said between gulps of his third forty-ounce. Big Black's physique was intimidating, but his heart was filled with love for Bossy, Aisha, and Terry.

“I wouldn't put it past him to flip on me. He knows my operation from top to bottom.” Twan picked up his watered-down Belvedere and orange juice.

“Haven't I always told you there ain't no friends in this business? Seriously, you know I got love for you like a little brother, but you don't know my shit all like that. My girls don't even know everything there is to know, and that's for both their protection and mine,” preached Bossy.

“I've heard enough. This fool done stepped to Aisha, stole money, and is layin’ down with five-O. That's three strikes, and that lets me know it's time to send Ant on a permanent vacation.” Big Black ended the topic of conversation.

Twan rose to leave, but Bossy had one more question for him. If he answered it honestly, she knew she would be able to trust him.

“Twan, before you leave I want to ask you something.”

“Come with it.”

“Who's your new contact?”

“Clifton ‘C-Lok Boyd,” answered Twan.

He'd passed the test.

With Ant loose on the streets acting like a bitch in heat, lives were in danger, including Bossy's. She knew that with Big Black now involved, once the shit hit the fan, nothing would ever be the same again. Bossy just prayed that the right people were left standing.

She drove more than forty-five minutes to her destination. She hadn't been out this way in years and took a couple wrong turns, making the trip longer than it should have been.

Bossy slowed her car down as she searched for the house number that read 6789- She exited her car as fast as possible so the three young men manning the corner wouldn't mistake her for a customer.

The guarded front door opened wide as Bossy climbed the stairs. C-Lok's frame blocked Kayla from entering his house without first greeting him with a hug.

“Girl, you look good. It's been a long time,” said C-Lok.

“I have missed you, too,” replied Bossy.

They walked into C-Lok's office, where a couple of his runners waited. There was no need to introduce Bossy, because they had known about her for years. Bossy never knew that C-Lok looked out for her almost as much as Teddy Bear had. The two runners greeted her and exited the room.

“Tell me what brings you this far away from your comfort zone.” C-Lok stared into Bossy's eyes.

“I need to talk with you about Ant and Twan,” responded Bossy.

“I heard about the rift between those two,” C-Lok shared.

“Some things never change. It's never a good idea to mix business and personal. Twan did, and shit has gotten hot.”

“That's what I hear. But I take it you think I should know about something more.”

“Yeah, I believe ya boy Ant is in bed with dem two bitch-ass po-po, Meeks and Powell. Watch ya back closely, and keep Ant closer.” Bossy went on to explain about Ant fucking up three times, and the info about him chillin’ with the cops.

C-Lok listened intently to Bossy.

“Good lookin’ on comin’ to me like this.”

“You know what's up,” stated Bossy. She had never stopped loving C-Lok, but had long ago accepted that they were not to be.

“How is Devin? That nigga keepin’ his head up behind those concrete walls?”

“You know he's straight. If he can keep his nose clean, he can possibly see daylight the next time he comes up for parole. Lord knows between the two of us, we've paid that damn prosecutor enough. By the way, thanks again for helping me.”

C-Lok had promised Bossy to take care of her brother, Devin, the day he went up on burglary and murder charges, and had kept his promise. Right before C-Lok moved out of the projects, Devin and Bossy's mother, Linda Tucker, overdosed on a mixture of crack and heroin, leaving Bossy with no family. It was C-Lok who made certain she had a roof over her head that would forever be hers if she wanted it. He'd paid for the apartment building by giving the money to Teddy Bear, and requested that his friend never let Bossy know of his gift to her. He feared she'd feel obligated to work for him. C-Lok and Teddy Bear decided that was not an option.

C-Lok and Bossy visited for another hour, and then Bossy headed back to the Yo'. Big Black was waiting for Bossy in her apartment when she walked in.

“What took you so long? I know C-Lok's ass ain't trip on you.”

“Naw, it wasn't nothing like that. He was straight. We got
caught up on a few things. I was telling him about me wanting out.” Bossy hadn't told Big Black of her plan to go legit, and waited anxiously for his response.

“It's about time, girl. You just made my fuckin’ day. Do you know how much sleep I've lost over the years worried about you? Since that night we lost our boy Poppy, I've wanted you out the game. You just ain't the type of woman to take to somebody telling her what to do,” confessed Big Black.

“Well, the time has come, and after this shit is finished, I'm out before some of the things I've done in the dark come to light.” Bossy released a sigh of relief.

“Good morning, Ma. You need anything done besides the grass cut?”

“No, son, I'm fine. What I don't have the good Lord will provide,” Olivia Quarles solemnly answered her son, Ant.

“Aren't you feeling well today, Ma?”

“Mama hasn't been sleeping too well these last few days. I've been having an unsettling dream that something bad is going to happen to you.”

“Ma, ain't nothin’ gon’ happen to me. You just worry too much.”

“I had the same dream right before we lost ya brother. Baby, the Lord speaks to me in my dreams. He's never steered me wrong, and you need to promise me you'll be careful out there.”

“I have something in the works, and if everything goes as planned, I'll be able to take care of you the way I want to.”

“Anthonie Quarles, you know I'm a simple woman with common sense. I know how you make your money It's the devil's dirty money and I'll have no part of it.”

Ant wondered how he could have been so dumb as to think his mother didn't know how he made his living.

“It's just temporary until I save enough to do what I need to do, and I'm almost there.”

“I raised you and your brother to know right from wrong, to understand what hard work is all about. I've lost one child, and Lord knows I can't live through the pain of losing another. But you're a grown man and you decide which route you take in life. All I can do is pray for you, son, just pray”

Ant left his mother's house feeling lower than a snake's belly, but he had to do what he had to do. He'd chosen to jump into bed with Meeks and Powell, and he was in too deep to turn back now.

The meeting was set for three in the morning at Volney Rogers Park. It was a dark area that no one frequented after the sun went down. Ant arrived ten minutes early, giving him too much time to wrestle with himself about stabbing his only friend in the back.
Twan was gonna keep me in his shadow, picking up his crumbs. I'm bigger than that. Teddy Bear slept on me, and so did Twan, thanks to Bossy.

Thinking of Bossy made Ant refocus on his plan.
Getting Bossy out the way will leave Aisha and Terry to fend for themselves. Aisha won't be a Billy Badass no more. I'll show that bitch to pull a gun on me and not use it. Bossy won't be in Twan's ear from behind bars, and then he'll go back to being himself.

A car turned into the parking lot, making Ant nervous. He wasn't sure he could trust Meeks and Powell. This could be a setup, for all he knew. Ant doubted the two crooked cops even trusted each other.

“I hope you have something for us. You've had plenty of time to get it,” Meeks said sternly.

“Slow down, man. Twan's due to make a run to his connection in Florida early next week. You can catch him with a few keys of cocaine on him.”

“Prices must be pretty good to travel that far.” Hearing about a connection in Florida gave Powell ideas of making trips to the state himself.

“Yeah, they are, and Twan makes the runs like clockwork,” explained Ant.

“That'll give us Twan; now what about Bossy and C-Lok?” questioned Meeks.

“Twan takes his stuff to Bossy for packaging and warehousing the same day he gets back in town. We still owe C-Lok money, so Twan is gonna have to see him to give him something to hold on to before C-Lok comes to see us.” Ant went on to explain Twan's routine and the complexity of gaining entrance into Bossy's apartment building. Powell and Meeks were already familiar with the difficulty in obtaining access into Bossy's home. But they had a plan to get past the two alarmed steel doors.

“If y'all time things right, Bossy and Twan will have several kilos with them. The rest is up to y'all.” Ant allowed himself to believe his assignment was complete.

“Look, Ant, we're going to go with the information you've supplied, but we want you to keep one thing in mind,” said Officer Meeks.

“What's that? I've given y'all what you asked for,” Ant nervously responded.

“Not quite yet. You've given us a means to get what we want, but if this doesn't pan out the way you said it will, let's just say there will be a price to pay. And you'll be the one doing the paying,” warned Meeks.

B
ig Black had just walked upstairs to visit with Aisha and Terry when Bossy's doorbell rang. Bossy pressed the intercom button.

“Who is it?”

“The police. We have a warrant to search the premises.”

She buzzed them through the main door and opened her apartment door for Powell and Meeks to walk through. Bossy greeted them with the warmest welcome she could muster.

“Come in, gentlemen. I've been expecting you for some time now.”

Figuring that his plan to bring down Bossy had worked out, Ant needed to relax. For the first couple of days after meeting with Powell and Meeks, he had been a nervous wreck. He'd only guessed about the information he gave them, and wasn't sure if Twan was even making the runs to Florida anymore.

The longer Ant mulled over the situation he'd put himself in, his mother's dream, and the money he still owed C-Lok, the more stressed he got. Hiding out at his mom's house for two days enabled him to do some chores for her. Ant even painted his mother's bedroom and living room. He hung wallpaper in the kitchen and rearranged furniture in every room of the three-bedroom house. He couldn't remember ever working so hard, and knew he never wanted to work that hard again.

Atlantic City was Ant's next hideout. For three days he gambled, ate, drank, and slept. Ant had ten thousand with him when he left for Atlantic City, and returned to the Yo’ with thirty thousand
more, thanks to the blackjack tables. To help him relax, Ant didn't carry his cell phone with him. By the time he checked his messages the mailbox was full. He knew instantly that the majority of the messages were from Shadaisy He dialed her number first.

Shadaisy answered on the first ring. “Yeah.”

“What up, girl? How you holdin’ it down over there?” Ant had let the drug house on Warren Avenue slip his mind.

“I'm doin’ what I do. Where you been that you can't call a bitch back?”

“Just takin’ care of some shit. Anybody been lookin’ for me?” Ant wanted to be sure that Powell, Meeks, and C-Lok hadn't been tracking him down.

“Naw, ain't nobody come by here lookin’ for you. I'm the only person tryin’ to get with you, as far as I know. Supplies are low; we gon’ have to do something soon.”

“I'll be there in a few. You be ready for me; I'm overdue.” A huge smile covered Ant's face when he ended the call. He was anticipating seeing Shadaisy laid out on the couch, half-naked, ready to do whatever she had to do to please him.

When Shadaisy hung up from their conversation, she wanted to throw up. She couldn't stand for Ant to touch her, kiss her, or be inside of her. Shadaisy was simply doing what she had to do in order to keep a roof over her head and live rent- and utility-free. To her, she was getting over, and all she had to do was give up some ass and give some head every few months. Even pimps had to ho sometimes, right?

Since seeing for herself how Twan took care of his girl, Shadaisy knew it was time for her to find a bailer higher up on the food chain. Ant was in no position to buy her a hooptie, let alone a 2006 Lexus. The house Ant had her living in actually belonged to Twan.