Christmas in the Hood (29 page)

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“Yo, take this for you and lil’ Preme. This should hold you for a minute. I’ll get at you to see if you need more in a couple of months,” Supreme said, giving Gina sixty thousand dollars of the three hundred thousand he had taken out of the bedroom closet floor safe after he had looked in on his four-year-old son, who was sound asleep. He was tempted to sex Gina like he normally did whenever he went down to south Jersey, especially now, with her standing before him in just a wife beater, coochie-cutter jean shorts, and a pair of bunny slippers, but he knew that it was not a good time. For one, he and Tameeka had to make their move to Atlanta before Victorious realized what had really happened, and second, because he knew that if he did try to sex Gina right quick, Tameeka would smell her scent all over his body and flip out, causing him to really have to hurt her. As Tameeka crossed his mind, the thought of her possibly becoming impatient and coming to Gina’s door caused Supreme to conclude his visit. It was not a matter of fear of what Tameeka would do to Gina, because he believed that, if it ever came down to it, Gina would be able to handle Tameeka. It was more about his not wanting to bring any unnecessary drama to his son’s mother’s house.

“Supreme, why you giving me all this money like this, and why you so in a hurry to go?” Gina asked.

“Yo, stop askin’ so many questions. Just take the money like I said, and I’ll get at you later when I can, a’ight?”

“Okay,” Gina said, sighing. “But what’s up? You ain’t got time to gimme some?” she asked, as if she were a little girl asking for her favorite candy.

As much as he wanted to, he knew that he had to decline Gina’s offer and get out of the house before he both compromised and jeopardized his plans, especially since he had made an error by leaving Tameeka in the car with the keys and the other money. He cursed himself for being so reckless, knowing that this was not the first time that day.

As Gina tried to approach him in an enticing manner, he held her back by the shoulders.

“Yo, I gotta go, but I promise I’ll come back through. I got you,” he said as convincingly as he could.

Gina knew that he was lying, but still she accepted his answer. In a way, she felt somewhat ashamed about how she was acting. Her craving for a man’s physical attention overpowered her integrity as a woman.

Supreme could see the hurt in her eyes from the rejection, and guilt overcame him. Had things been different, he knew that he would have stayed, but the fact of the matter was that he had to go. He kissed her on the forehead. “You know I love you, right?” he said, trying to restore her pride.

“Yeah,” she said softly.

“What?”

“I said yeah,” she repeated with more feeling.

“Oh, a’ight.”

She smiled, and Supreme returned her smile with one of his own.

“Yo, tell my son I love him, too.”

“Okay.”

“You better tell him,” Supreme enforced.

“I said I will.”

“A’ight, I’m out. Be good, and don’t be having no nigga around my son either, you hear me?”

“Yeah.”

“A’ight then. I love you.”

“I love you, too,” she said, truly meaning it. She was kinda upset that her son wouldn’t be able to spend Christmas with his father, but that was the life of fucking with a hustler. She had to charge it to the game.

Chapter Five

“
O
h, I gotta go,” Tameeka whispered, hanging up her cell phone, hoping Supreme hadn’t seen her. Supreme was already halfway to the car with the knapsack over his shoulder by the time Tameeka spotted him.

“Who was you just talking to?” Supreme asked, getting in the car.

“What?” Tameeka responded, stalling for an explanation.

“You heard me. Don’t play fucking stupid. Who was you talking to?” Supreme repeated.

“What the fuck is you talking about, Supreme? And don’t be calling me stupid,” Tameeka said, still thinking of an answer.

“Yo, whatever. So you tryin’ to tell me that I ain’t just see you on the phone talking to somebody?”

“No! What your nosy ass did see was me checking my voice mail, if you really want to know,” she said, finally coming up with what she hoped would be a suitable answer.

“Yo, pop the trunk.”

Tameeka reached down and hit the trunk button, relieved.

It really didn’t matter at this point who Tameeka was talking to, Supreme thought, and wondered why he had even brought the phone call up. What mattered was the six hundred Gs they now had in the trunk of his car and getting on 95 South headed to ATL, where he was sure he could get rid of Tameeka once and for all.

“You know what, I ain’t even trying to argue with you. Just hit the highway,” Supreme commanded, forgetting about the cell phone. “Matter of fact, let me drive. I know a quick way to hit the turnpike from here.”

Chapter Six

S
upreme had been driving for the past five hours and now noticed that the fuel gauge was a little over a quarter tank. He really didn’t want to stop, but he knew that there was no way he could make it to North Carolina on a quarter tank of gas, let alone all the way down to Atlanta. He saw the Richmond exit
sign for restrooms, restaurants, and gas stations, and pulled off the highway.

“Meeka, wake up,” Supreme yelled, shaking Tameeka.

“I’m up,” she replied, still half asleep. When Tameeka wiped her eyes, she looked over at Supreme, who was checking his cell phone. “Where we at?”

“Virginia.”

“Damn, you been doing some drivin’.” How coincidental, Meeka thought, recognizing the familiar area. They were actually in her hometown of Richmond. She hadn’t visited the state in quite some time, seven years to be exact, since she had moved up to Jersey after graduating Virginia Union College to be closer to her ex. Supreme had no idea that this was where she was originally from, and she was tempted to tell him but thought better of it. Right then, time was of the essence, and she didn’t want to say or do anything that may deter her from the set agenda that had been planned.

“Who was that on the phone?” she asked.

“Nobody.”

“Oh, you trying to be funny?”

Supreme laughed for the first time since everything had been going on. It had just dawned on him that he sounded like Tameeka did when he had asked her who she was talking to on the phone back in Asbury.

“Nah, yo, that was the nigga Victorious.”

“What he say?” she asked, now fully awake hearing Victorious’s name mentioned.

“He ain’t say shit.”

“What you mean he ain’t say shit?”

“Just what it sounds like.”

“So the two of you just sat on the phone and said nothing?” Meeka asked, finding that hard to believe.

“Nah, I ain’t accept the call.”

“Why not?” Meeka asked, surprised.

“For what? We outta Jersey now.”

Supreme had a point, Meeka thought. “You think he know something’s up?”

“Probably. He been hitting my phone up every hour since we left Asbury.”

“Maybe that’s been him calling my phone, too. I kept feeling my shit vibrate in my sleep.”

“Most likely, but fuck it. What’s done is done. We halfway there now,” Supreme said.

“Yeah you right, boo,” Meeka said, both happy and relieved to hear Supreme sounding better.

“Yo, if you gotta use the bathroom or want something to eat, get it now ’cause I ain’t stopping until we get to ATL.”

“No, I’m okay.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“A’ight, I’ma go take a leak right quick and then we out.”

Chapter Seven

Y
o, sun, I tried both of them numbers you gave me again, and I ain’t get no answer on neither one of them pieces,” Has told Victorious, referring to Supreme’s and Tameeka’s cell phones. A total of six hours had gone by.

“A’ight, yo. That’s good-looking, though.” Victorious thanked Has for his efforts. “You think you’ll be able to try back later for me?” he asked, sounding stressed.

“Yeah. No doubt, that’s nothing. I’ll keep trying until they lock me down or until I hear something about my bail, which should be soon. Most likely I should be up outta this raggedy muthafucka and up in some pussy before the sun come up, feel me?” Has smiled at Victorious.

“I feel you, sun. I’m trying to do the same thing, kid.”

“Yo, hopefully shit go right for you, and we can link up out there. Like I said, I know some niggas from Elizabeth, and you know some heads from out my way, so it ain’t nothing to ask somebody how to find each other, or we bound to bump heads somewhere.”

“Yeah, no doubt.”

“A’ight, yo, I’ma shoot upstairs for a minute. I’ll probably be back down in about a half, and I’ll try back for you again.”

“That’s peace, beloved. I appreciate that.”

“Yeah but, yo, I’ma bring you some honey buns and shit back just in case, but hopefully you won’t be here long enough to eat ’em all.”

“Word,” replied Victorious. He hoped the same thing as he
lay back in his cell bunk. He was grateful for meeting someone like Has, but knew with all that was going through his mind at the moment, he was in no mood to eat any honey buns or anything else for that matter—maybe later, but not now. Hopefully, there wouldn’t be any later, but as strange thoughts continued to play in his head he knew that there was a strong possibility….

Chapter Eight

“
S
upreme, pull over,” Tameeka requested, waking out of her sleep.

“For what?” he asked, looking at her as if she were crazy.

“I gotta pee.”

“What? Come on, yo. Didn’t I ask you back in Virginia if you had to use the bathroom?” he said, agitated.

“Yeah, but I ain’t have to go then. I gotta go now.”

“Can’t you hold that shit?”

“Why? Where we at? We almost in Atlanta?”

“Nah we in North Carolina.”

“Boyee, is you crazy? I can’t hold this shit for six hours.”

“You gonna have to do something ’cause I ain’t trying to pull over,” Supreme told her.

“A’ight I’ma just piss in this muthafucking seat, that’s all. You can smell the shit for the next six fucking hours if you want,” she threatened.

The thought of Tameeka urinating on the seats of his brandnew
eighty-thousand-dollar ride was enough for Supreme to reconsider. He knew that she was actually cocky enough to do it, so he had no other choice but to submit.

“Yo, chill! Don’t piss in my muthafuckin’ car, I’ma pull over.”

“Yeah, I figured you would,” Tameeka remarked.

After driving another five minutes, Supreme came across a rest area and pulled in.

“Damn, it’s dark as hell in this piece,” Supreme noticed as he parked. As soon as he stopped the car, Tameeka jumped out and ran toward the restroom, following the blue-and-white sign that read restroom and had a female figure on it.

“Hurry up!” Supreme mocked Tameeka from when they were in Asbury Park.

Through the darkness he could see her middle finger go up. He laughed to himself. Looking around, he noticed that his was the only car at the rest stop. He began flipping through his CD selection until he came across one of his Dirty South favorites, Ludacris. How appropriate, he thought, being he was ATL-bound. He then reached in his glove compartment and pulled out another Phillie with the intent of rolling up another twenty-dollar bag of Sour Diesel.

After listening to a few songs Supreme realized that Tameeka had been gone nearly fifteen minutes, which was way too long. He blew his horn, hoping that she’d hear it and come out. Supreme had been so busy smoking the blunt and thinking about ways to get rid of Meeka that he hadn’t even realized that nearly another ten minutes had gone by.

When another five minutes had gone by he became worried a little.

“Shit!” he cursed as he got out of the Beamer. “Stupid-ass bitch.”

Before going off into the dark, Supreme reached for his stash box to get his two chrome .45s. After three unsuccessful attempts to get the hidden compartment opened, he chalked it up as a minor glitch and proceeded to the ladies’ room. As he walked, he could feel the effect of the potent weed he’d smoked. It had fully kicked in, and he was feeling as if he was floating to the restroom rather than walking. The December air was sharp even down South. Mad behind the fact that he had to go look for Tameeka in the cold, Supreme wondered why he just didn’t pull off and leave her ass. After all, he did have all the money in the car.
Wasn’t that what this was all about?
he asked himself. With that thought, he almost turned back to head toward his whip and bounce on Meeka, but he had already reached the bathroom.

“Meeka! Meeka!” Supreme yelled. He received no answer.

Though it was dark up front where he was parked, it was even darker where he stood. The only light that was in the area was the one coming from under the bottom of the women’s bathroom door.

“Meeka!” he yelled again, knocking on the door.

He reached for the door handle and slowly pushed it open, peeking his head in first. Unable to really see anything, he stepped in to take a closer look. Had he looked to the right instead of the left first, maybe he would have had a chance to react, but that was not the case.

Tameeka could not believe that she was actually going through with this. She had coached and prepared herself for this at least a thousand times, she figured, but to think or say it is one thing, to
act on it is another. She had definitely amped herself up, talking the talk, but now that it was crunch time, she wasn’t sure she could walk the walk. Each time she heard Supreme call out her name, it was as though the bass of his voice echoed through her entire body as she nervously stood behind the restroom door. On the third time he called her name she knew that he was right outside the door, merely inches away from where she stood on the opposite side. Only the metal door separated the two, and Meeka had hoped that it was soundproof or else Supreme was sure to hear her heart beating. She heard the handle jiggle and held her breath as the door opened. Then she saw the back of Supreme’s head. With her finger on the trigger, Tameeka hesitated on the squeeze, but just as Supreme turned to face her she knew that it was now or never.