Single Ladies (28 page)

Ralphy was like a wolf walking through a herd of sheep. He looked around attentively as he made his way through the crowd of people on the dance floor. Lick wasn't anywhere in sight at first, but then several waitresses parted the crowd as they walked by with sparkle-lit champagne bottles, heading for the VIP section. Ralphy followed the last waitress, but veered off once he got close enough to see Lick, his boys, and a bunch of women holding down the biggest VIP section in the building.

Ralphy went straight to the bathroom, and when he got there he went into one of the stalls. He pulled down his pants to reveal a small, compact .45 automatic that he unstrapped from under his nuts. He cocked it back slightly to make sure he had a bullet in the chamber before tucking it into the front of his hoodie. He had ten shots, plus one in the head, and he needed to be sure that each and every one of them counted for something. Ralphy had to, because after he initiated the gun battle, somebody out of Lick's crew was sure to be blazing back.

“Show these niggas what you're made of,” Ralphy mumbled to himself before exiting the stall.

“Dis shit jumpin' tonight. Who you goin' home wit' tonight?” Lick asked the female who was sitting on his lap. “You roll wit' me tonight, I'ma change ya life,” he said, looking down at all her thickness.

She leaned in close to his ear and spoke. “If I go home with you tonight, I'ma fuck da shit out of you,” she said, and licked his earlobe.

Lick's dick got hard instantly, and if it weren't for the second wave of champagne coming through the crowd, he would have called it a night and taken her straight home. “Yeah, I'ma hold you to that,” he told her.

Waitress after waitress, all in a single-file line, walked up and dropped bottles of champagne off at the table. Lick was so focused on the female he had sitting on his lap he didn't notice that the last of the waitresses was actually Ralphy, holding a bottle in one hand and the gun in the other. When he got close enough, Ralphy dropped the sparkling bottle, clutched both hands around the gun and aimed at Lick.

Hearing the bottle crash to the ground, Lick looked up and saw nothing but a gun aimed at his face. He tried to hide behind the female, but Ralphy's aim was superb.

Everybody in VIP dropped to the ground. The first of the three bullets hit Lick in his chest, the second one struck the female he had on his lap in the ass, and the third knocked a chip of wood off the top of the booth they were sitting in. People scattered like roaches, screaming and running out of the VIP area for dear life. Lick sat in the booth holding his chest, trying to put some type of pressure on the wound. It hurt like hell, and he found it hard to breathe. Ralphy kicked the table that stood between him and Lick to the side. Blood from his chest started to fill his lungs, causing Lick to cough up blood. Ralphy walked up on him and pointed the gun at his head.

“Look at me,” Ralphy said through clenched teeth. Lick didn't want to. He didn't want the last person he saw to be the person who killed him. Ralphy had to physically lift his chin up to look Lick in his eyes. Ralphy backed up and fired the fatal shot to Lick's head, sending brain matter all over the booth.

When Ralphy turned around to leave, the bouncer who had warned him not to start no shit was standing there with a 12-gauge pump aimed right at him. Ralphy went to drop his gun, but his movement startled the bouncer, forcing him to let off one shot from the shotgun. The impact from the blast lifted Ralphy off his feet, sending him crashing into the table he had previously kicked. The bouncer walked over, unsure of what he had just done. Ralphy lay there struggling to take his last breaths.

Within a few minutes, while waiting for the medics to arrive, Ralphy died with his eyes open, and only two people were on his mind before his final breath, and that was Lisa and Naomi.

Stressed out to the max, Kim and Tammy took the day off from work to go to the mall and do a little shopping. There was something about spending money that made life a little easier to live, and that was the common bond that they shared.

“So did y'all even plan the wedding date yet?” Tammy asked, picking up a sundress off the rack and holding it up.

“No. He told me that whenever I was ready, just let him know. Girl, I'm not gon' lie. I don't think it's going to be a wedding,” Kim said, looking down at her ring.

“Dat boy just mad right now. He loves you, and I think that all he needs is a little bit of time—”

“He didn't come home last night,” Kim said, cutting her off. “He didn't call, leave a text, or anything, and when I tried to call him, he didn't answer.”

“Yeah, that's crazy, but it's typical. Men do dumb shit like that when their little feelings get hurt,” Tammy said, shaking her head at the dress's color blend. “I'm telling you, girl, he's going to walk through that door today and he's going to be fine.”

Kim hoped so. Since Lamar agreed to move to Philadelphia with her, Kim called her boss early that morning to let him know that she was accepting the offer. She thought that the move would give them a chance to start fresh, and if Lamar got her pregnant again anytime soon, she would be sure to keep it.

“So what about you and Darious? How are things going with y'all two?” Kim asked as she headed for the register with a couple of items in her hand.

Tammy couldn't even get into the details of their life. She was confused herself about wanting to tell Darious that the DEA was watching them. There was even a time during the course of their nightly pillow talk when Tammy almost slipped up and told him. Agent Grant's voice continuously repeating,
“twenty years in federal prison,”
always seemed to keep her in check.

“Everything's good. He bought Anthony an Xbox—” Tammy was interrupted by her phone buzzing in her bag. She reached in, grabbed it, and saw that the screen read number unavailable. At first she wasn't going to answer it but she decided to take the call just in case it was Agent Grant.

“You have a prepaid call. You will not be charged for this call. This call is from—”

The operator didn't have to go any further before Tammy pushed 5 to accept Chris's call. This was the first time he'd called since her visit.

“Damn, stranger!” Tammy answered, paying for her stuff then excusing herself away from Kim.

“Wassup wit' you?” Chris replied, leaning back against the wall. “How are you doing?”

Tammy was smiling from ear to ear. He sounded so good, all she wanted to do was stay quiet and let him talk. Being honest with herself, she missed Chris a lot, and thought about him daily, wondering if he would ever call her again. The current situation Darious had her in made her appreciate Chris even more. There was no way he would have ever involved her in his illegal activities.

“I'm good. The kids are good, and I'm still working my ass off. I got some pictures right here in my bag, and as soon as I see a mailbox, I'm going to send them out to you,” Tammy said, taking a seat in the food court.

“Yeah, thanks. I haven't seen my kids in a while and, believe it or not, I do love them.”

“I know you do, and I'm sorry for not bringing them up there. You know me and ya sister got into a fight a few days ago, so I haven't had a chance to see if ya mom wanted to ride out there with me. You know I don't like to drive by myself.” Tammy smiled.

“Yeah, I heard about that, and I told my sister just because we not together no more, you still the mother of my children, and don't make me fuck somebody up for fucking with you. By the way, I miss you,” Chris said, putting his head down.

Chris had always been so protective over her. Tammy's eyes started to water and the ball in her throat prevented her from being able to swallow. She missed him too, and wished that he were home to enjoy watching their children grow. She hated him being locked up in prison.

“I know you don't have long on this call, and I give you my word that I will bring the kids up there to see you this weekend, even if I gotta come by myself,” Tammy spoke.

“That would be so nice,” Chris responded.

“I want you to know that no matter what I do out here, and no matter what you hear from anybody else, Chris, I do and will always love you no matter what. And whenever you get home, I'll be right here to help you in any kinda way I can,” Tammy said, wiping the single tear that fell down her cheek.

Chris stayed quiet on the phone. He didn't think that Tammy would ever love him again, nor did he expect for her to be there for him when he came home. As far as he knew, it was over between them; but listening to her, he couldn't help but feel that there was some hope for them to get back together.

They sat and talked for the rest of the time about the kids, school, and work. Kim sat across from her at the table, smiling while Tammy glowed. She hadn't seen her friend smiling and laughing that hard in a long time. Even though she was with Darious physically, and may have even loved him, a part of her heart would always belong to Chris.

* * *

Falisha yelled up to her mom to see if she wanted something from the store while she was going. Hunger had set in, and for some odd reason she wanted a large breakfast this morning, including eggs, sausage, bacon, pancakes, home fries, toast with jelly, and some orange juice. After the morning sickness phase of her pregnancy had passed, the cravings hit her full blast.

“Oh, shit! Boy, you scared the hell out of me,” Falisha said when she stepped out on the porch and Lamar was standing off to the side. “What do you want and why da fuck is you out here on my porch?” Falisha snapped.

Lamar had been sitting out there just about all morning, hoping to catch Falisha either coming in or going out. He had more than enough time to think last night, and he really felt bad about how he handled the news of the baby. “Can we talk?” Lamar asked, lowering his head in humility. “I really need to talk to you.”

“About what, Lamar? You said what you said and that's it.”

“I know, I know, and I'm sorry. I really didn't mean for it to come out that way, and I should have let you punch me,” he said.

Falisha unbuttoned her shorts and adjusted them so they wouldn't feel so tight. Lamar couldn't help but to notice that she was picking up a few pounds around her waist. Her thighs were also looking a little thicker. Lamar thought it was cute.

“Look, I'm hungry, so unless you plan on taking me to get some breakfast, I'll talk to you later,” Falisha said, turning around to lock the front door.

Lamar smiled. “Yeah, I'm kinda hungry myself. I've been out all night,” he said, leading the way down the steps. The closest spot was Grandma's Diner, which happened to be Falisha's favorite breakfast spot. It was only about five minutes away by car, so there really wasn't much conversation during the ride. Falisha used that time to check her missed call log and her text messages, most of which were from Lamar.

“Damn I can't believe Grandma's is still da shit,” Lamar said when they walked into the diner and saw that it was a full house.

Falisha didn't need a menu. As soon as she got into the booth, she called the waitress over and began ordering. It was everything she had a taste for when she left the house. Lamar kept it simple and got some egg whites, toast, and some orange juice.

“So can I ask you something without you getting an attitude?” Lamar asked, not wanting this conversation to turn into an argument. “Are you really keeping it?”

“You think I'm buying all this food for nothing? Of course I'm keeping my baby, and if you don't want to be a part of our lives, then that's fine, Lamar. The only reason I told you is because I wanted to give you chance to step up and be a man. You and I both know that I can take care of her by myself.”

“Her?” Lamar asked, excited about the gender.

Falisha chuckled. “I'm hoping it's a girl. I don't know what I'd do if I had another you running around here.”

Lamar got up and sat in the booth next to Falisha. He reached over and placed his hand over her stomach. Falisha put her hand over his. His touch was gentle, and the little tummy ache she had earlier went away the moment he touched her.

“Damn, that's really my baby in there?” Lamar asked with a huge smile on his face.

“Yeah, you're gonna be a daddy,” she answered, also smiling at the thought of motherhood.

Hearing those words made Lamar happy. So happy he leaned over and kissed Falisha on the cheek. She turned and could see the joy in his eyes. They sat there staring at each other for a moment, and then inevitable happened. Lamar leaned back in, but this time he kissed Falisha's soft, full lips. In her mind, she wanted to resist, but her lips were calling the shots right now, and they were begging him not to stop.

A guilty shock raced through his body, causing him to pull back. “Damn, I'm out of pocket,” he said, scratching the top of his head.

Falisha was about to respond, but stopped when the waitress brought the food to the table. His guilt was a reminder to Falisha that he still belonged to someone else. It was so embarrassing and humiliating that Falisha lost her appetite. It was ugly, but it was a reality check both of them needed at the time.

* * *

Tammy and Kim pulled up to the block to see several cop cars sitting in front of Lisa's house. At first, Tammy thought that they were there for her, and she was about to back up and take her chances running. Lisa's loud screams made Tammy and Kim abandon the car and race down the street toward her.

“Nooooo! Nooooo! Oh, God, nooooo!” Lisa cried out, falling to the ground in tears.

“What happened! What happened!” Kim and Tammy yelled, pushing their way through the crowd of police officers and homicide detectives.

“He's gone. Oh, my God, Ralphy's gone!” Lisa yelled, kicking and punching the air.

“What? What do you mean gone? What happened, Lisa?” Tammy questioned her.

Kim kneeled down next to her and wrapped Lisa in her arms where she cried like a baby. Tammy couldn't hold back the tears as she kneeled down and began rubbing Lisa's arm. They all sat there for a while until finally they had to help Lisa up. Her legs were totally gone and the girls had to drag her limp body toward the house.

“They killed my babe, my husband. My Ralphy is gone,” Lisa kept repeating.

“We would like to ask you a few questions about your husband, ma'am,” the detective said, as Kim and Tammy led Lisa up her steps.

“Can't you see that now is not a good time?” Kim responded. “Damn, have some fucking decency.”

The women disappeared into the house and slammed the door behind them. None of them, especially Lisa, had anything to say anyway. Right now, Lisa really needed to be around some people who loved her and not be questioned about her husband's death.