The Syndicate (8 page)

Smiling, I reached out and plucked her chin. “I'd like to show you. Since I am now head of Claudette's circuit, I think that we should celebrate. What do you think?”

“
Oui,
let's!” both women said in unison

“Follow us then.” Helping them back in their limo, I had Lamont give the address and we rode out.

Leading them away from the drop-off point and guiding them through Atlanta was nothing. Driving them to Buckhead, we pulled up. I threw Lamont my jacket as he frowned.

“Man, I can't go in like this for real?” he fussed.

“You know you can't. All eyes are on us, and you know how they do us, man,” I explained.

Monty sucked his teeth and scrunched his face with a light chuckle and bob of his head. “Yeah, yeah, ya right. Give me that weak-ass jacket, man.”

Tossing it to him, he pulled off the sweatshirt jacket he wore, threw it behind him then slid into my jacket. Once settled, we got out, and introduced the twins to Atlanta nightlife with ease. Since the women were used to European clubs, I made sure to take them to a club that had a mixed environment and played a variety of music. The place was hot, and I had to thank Shanelle for suggesting this club. We could kill two birds with one stone this way.

Bodies swayed around us and surrounded us like a herd of animals as I led them to VIP. Both twins held my hands looking around in awe and bopping to the music. Once in our private area overlooking the club, Cory stood up to greet them with Shanelle by his side. She stood with her arm casually resting on his shoulder in a bad-ass slit dress that showed nothing but her thick thighs and bare hips. To the untrained eye, it appeared she had no panties on, but I knew she did.
Or she better have.
Anyway, the two of them locked eyes on me, and I gave them a nod as I introduced them.

“Gemini, meet the rest of my team if you will. We have gifts for you both,” I said reaching for a small box and handing it to them.

Considerately, Aurelia reached in and pulled out a mahogany-lined cigar with a glowing teal tip. She twisted it between her fingers then glanced my way. “An electric cigarette?” she asked raising an eyebrow.

I gave a nod with an amused smile while I reached out and pushed a button on the side for her. A light swirl of smoke with the scent of vanilla and strawberries wafted between us.

“Something like that. Take a puff and tell me what you think. Don't be cautious; trust me, you'll enjoy the experience,” I coaxed.

Flicking the tip of her pink tongue over her lips, she gave me a haughty smile. I watched her seductively inhale and hold it to allow the smoke to playful roll in her mouth. Studying me through her hooded gaze, she gave me a sexy-ass smile then snatched me by the back of my neck to kiss me. My eyebrow rose in amusement and I felt her skillfully blow the smoke out between us.

When she stepped back watching me, I gave a slick smirk while using the pad of my thumb to wipe her lipstick away with a sly chuckle. My lips were closed when she kissed me, but she didn't know that as I flashed my teeth grinning.

“So, tell me. How do you feel, Aurelia?” I asked in French.

Wide-eyed, Aurelia and Arielle both giggled, then Aurelia spoke up. “Oh, my! You're sneaky,
oui?
I feel . . . I feel . . .” Softly moaning, her head dropped back while she slowly closed her eyes.

Music vibrated up through everyone's bodies. The rhythmic beat pumped into us and created an urgency for everyone to dance. I quickly glanced at Shanelle who narrowed her eyes but kept a clean poker face. I knew that she was going to get in my ass later. But business was business. I didn't see that kiss coming and, again, I kept my lips closed. Never try your own product, that's number one in the game.

“Mmm.” Aurelia muttered some raunchy words in French then stepped to me. “Give me more. Right now. This feels like raw sex. A sweet, orgasmic rush. What is this?”

“Arielle,” I said offering her the other cigarette. “We call it Mist, and it is our prototype for the next move in our pipeline. If you continue to be good to us, Gemini, we might be pressed to arrange a unique deal with you.”

Taking a deep drag of the cigarette, Arielle's eyes glossed over. She moaned in ecstasy. Biting her lower lip in the sexiest of ways as she reached out for Lamont then moved against him fluidly dancing. As they connected with the music and he guided her to his groove, Arielle lustfully slid her hand down his body, cupped his junk then groped him.

“Yes, this is liquid sex,” she said, then glanced my way. “Let us think about this. For now, we dance and enjoy this amazing gift of yours.”

Arielle then stepped away from Lamont to grab her twin's hand only to grab him again. They continued their seductive movements then melded into the bodies of dancing people around us with Lamont in between the pair. Entertained, I calmly stood back with my arms crossed over my chest, legs in an akimbo stance, while bobbing my head to the thumping tempo.

“Tell Jojo that his intuitive mind is crazy with it,” I said speaking while keeping my gaze on the women before us. “Thank him for creating such a banging product, and let him know that this still doesn't prove a thing.” Mind calculating and planning, I paused in my wording then sighed. “Tell him to focus on his studies and continue crafting Mist for us. That's as deep in this that I want him to go.”

At my side, Cory chuckled. “He said you'd let him in after testing this.”

“Whatever. He's not smart,” I said swallowing my grin.

Since the first meeting with the Syndicate, after his kidnapping, Jojo had locked himself in the lab Mama had made for him. Whenever any of us tried to get him to leave, he'd ignore us and keep the door locked. After maybe a couple of days later, he came out with Mist, explaining that he was reading the product notes Mama had left him in a diary. In it were specifics on ideas she had over the years on what type of drugs might keep the pipeline profiting. Being the type of thinker he was, Jojo did his research and figured by crafting a drug that mimicked an electric cigarette it would be easy to distribute and easier to cause a dependency on when smoked.

Having tested it on one of his friends who was into club drugs, he watched the effects and handed us the box, telling us that he was still tweaking it, but would be safe to use for now. Having now seen it in action, I was blown away that he was able to craft something like that so fast and effectively. My baby brother was sick with it and had me reevaluating my plans.

“They look happy.”

Looking at my side, I gave Shanelle an observing nod. She sidled herself up against me, pressing her soft curves against my side, then rested her hand against my arm. “Yes, they do. I think we've secured their loyalty; what you think?”

“I think you need to wash your mouth out,” she said with a slight tone to her voice. “Did you inhale?

“No, I didn't inhale, and give me a glass of ice water and I'll do just that.” Looking down at her, I took in her beauty. I allowed my hand to land against the small of her back, hovering over her round ass. “Cory, I need you and Lamont to keep them entertained. After you get them hooked on everything, hit me up. Shanelle and I will be meeting up with Snap to pick up Lucky around five.”

“I don't have a problem with that one,” Cory said stepping out of VIP to walk toward the twins.

Everything was in motion. The next steps in my plans were just beginning.

All is fair in the name of the game. Besides, I'd been through the fire of Javon cheating on me. Just as he'd experienced me cheating on him. After suffering a miscarriage because I got into a fistfight in the middle of the street with one of the hood bitches he was cheating on me with, I no longer felt the need to go that route again. She'd shown up at Mama's house wanting to fight and I was itching to give her the beat down she deserved.

I was too damn young and immature to care about the baby inside of me. Let me rephrase that: I cared about my child. But the need to beat that ho into the ground was greater. I'd embarrassed Mama that day in front of the whole neighborhood. In the end I got what I wanted. I stomped that broad into the ground. I won that battle but lost the war. I thought she would go running to her car to go home after getting that ass beat, but no. She went for the box cutter she had hidden on her. I still had the keloid across my back from the affront. Once I'd fallen to the ground, she gave a running punt kick to my stomach to seal the deal.

That took both Javon and me down a few notches. I think it actually matured us a bit. We hadn't cheated on one another since. Which was why I bristled when he kissed one of those twins.

Seeing him kiss another woman took me back to an old head space. I got the urge to drag that pretty bitch through the club while beating her face. But I was beyond that now. I calmed my nerves and exhaled. This was business and I had to leave all that petty shit behind. Javon just secured a major deal. Getting a supplier like Gemini to keep in business with him after Mama died was huge. It would look favorably on us with other dealers as well.

Furthermore, I was annoyed because I was still horny. We still hadn't finished what we started when Melissa and Jojo got taken. As a woman there were only certain men who knew how to sex you into oblivion and Javon did that for me. No matter how many men I'd had sex with after him, nobody was able to do to me what Javon could. Sometimes I hated that because he knew what he was capable of, which was probably why he knew he could calm me down with sex as well. When women hollered that the dick was too bomb, Javon was the prototype.

As the music blasted through the club, I stood around and took in the scenery. Since Javon had walked in, people gave him wide berth. Javon always walked like he commanded attention, but since this newfound power he walked with even greater determination. It was crazy how fast word spread in the underworld about him. And when the owner of the club walked over to personally thank Javon for gracing his club, I knew we were in the big leagues.

“Please, come to my office so we can discuss a few things,” the older black man said. “Ms. Claudette and I had a system set in place and I would like to know if I'm still in your good graces.”

The man looked like he could be a school principal instead of a club owner. Silver and black hair graced his head in a faded fro. His veneers seemed to be a bit too big for his mouth, but he was dressed
GQ
fresh. Short and stumpy. Even though he looked clean cut, I could tell he was a slime ball.

Javon nodded as he glanced at his watch. “I have a few minutes to spare, but only a few minutes.”

“I'm Bruce Saunders. Everyone calls me Mr. Saunders,” the old man said.

“Okay, Bruce. Lead the way to your office.”

I could tell that Javon calling the man by his first name riled him. It was clear he thought he was important, a big shot. “Ah, okay then.” Bruce reached behind him to usher the half-naked girls he had with him to the front. They were of all ethnicities in various thongs, no bras, and the tallest heels I'd ever seen. “I brought you some refreshments,” Bruce said.

Javon frowned as if he was offended. “Your first mistake is ignoring the fact that you see a lady already here with me. Your second mistake is assuming that pussy moves me. I'm not some fool-ass nigga who gets excited at the sight of pussy. I've had pussy. All kinds of pussy. Don't ever disrespect my manhood again by assuming, because I'm young, I don't know how to control my dick.”

I bit back a smile as Bruce and the women seemed taken aback by Javon's blunt assertiveness. Yes, there had been a time when Javon probably would have bagged and tagged a few of the girls, but I was happy to see that those times were behind him still.

“This is my fiancée, Shanelle,” Javon said, taking my hand and pulling me next to him. “When you see her, respect her like she is me. Don't ever offer me pussy in her presence or when she isn't around. Understand, Bruce?”

Bruce's eyes widened as he took me in. Standing at five foot seven, I had to look down at the man.

“Ye . . . yeah. Yeah, man. Sure, my bad. My bad,” Bruce replied nervously then chuckled. He started shoving the girls away as he made his way to his office. “Go on. Go somewhere and do something,” he ordered them.

We headed up the stairs to the third floor then down a long hallway until we made it to Bruce's office. My nose crinkled immediately. For this to be an upscale club, Bruce's housekeeping skills in his office were lacking. Food containers were all over the floor. Liquor bottles were all over his desk. I thought I actually saw women's thongs lying about, which may have told why it smelled like musty pussy in his office. I cringed.

“You're fired,” I said to Bruce.

“Wha . . . Wait. What?” he stuttered.

“You're fired. Any man who keeps an office looking like this isn't worthy of having an office let alone a club. Not to mention you've been stealing from Mama for years. She bailed you out when your club was going under. You defaulted on your loans to her and, to top it off, I say again you were stealing from her,” I said as I slipped my hand in my purse. “We came up here to talk to try to see if you would tell us the truth, but I no longer give a shit. My sister Melissa will be taking over the club,” I said as a matter of fact.

Bruce looked at Javon who stood at the door like a guard. I could tell that he wasn't impressed with the place himself. Javon shrugged. “She's talking to you. Not me,” was all he said.

“This club brings in close to fifteen thousand dollars a night on Mondays and Tuesdays, the slow days. On Wednesdays and Thursdays it brings in close to twenty-five grand a night. On the weekends, including Sundays, this club should be grossing at least seventy-five grand a night and that's without all the celebrities who roll through. Yet, you only turned in seventy grand a week to Mama.”

“What? I never stole from that old woman! Never!” Bruce declared. “I . . . I may have kept a few dollars for the maintenance of the place. You can't just come in here and snatch my club from underneath me like this.” Bruce was talking with his hands. His slight New York accent annoyed me. His eyes darted around the room like he was looking for a place to run and hide.

“You're lying,” I said. “I hate to be lied to. Furthermore, the club is no longer yours. You defaulted on your loans two years ago, I say yet again.”

“Mama knew you were stealing from her, Bruce. She'd been documenting it for a while, but because she and your wife were best friends, she let you slide,” Javon added. “Lucky you, she died before she could kill you.”

Bruce's eyes widened.

“Javon left the decision in my hands whether to fire you or kill you. I chose to fire you.”

After Javon and I talked in the kitchen, I decided to take his lead and study the things myself that Mama had left behind. Real estate was my thing so I decided to look into all of the properties and businesses we owned. If we were going to be this force that she had envisioned, we had to come in strong. Not just for the sake of us, but because the rest of the Syndicate would see that Javon meant business. Although I was pretty sure after seeing him murder Cormac with a fork they knew he wasn't anything to play with.

“Mama loved your wife as a sister so as a way to respect their friendship, I won't riddle your body with bullets, but once the night is over, you will be escorted from the premises,” I said.

“And don't do anything stupid like empty the safes or take anything that doesn't belong to you. If you do, I'll find you and I will kill you,” Javon added.

I chuckled inwardly. It was crazy how effortlessly Javon stepped into his role. While he may have had some convictions about it, he couldn't deny that being a leader in the underworld came naturally for him. It was as if he had been born to do it.

Putting Melissa over the club had been my idea and I was glad Javon agreed. With the bulk of the money we had to turn legit, running the club would help Melissa to do it as well as keep a steady supply of club drugs moving throughout. Melissa was anxious to leave her piece of shit job anyway. She only stayed so Mama would see her put her accounting degree to use.

Javon and I had exited the club and I was in the middle of trying to convince him to give me a quickie when his cell rang. “Oh for the love of God,” I squealed. “What's a girl gotta do to get some dick around here?”

Javon chuckled but answered his cell anyway as we hopped into his truck. We had to go meet Lucky at five in the morning. According to Mama's notes he was a part of the Luciano bloodline. Supposedly he was the bastard son of a mobster in Lucky Luciano's bloodline. Javon said a few words in Tagalog, which let me know he was speaking to Cory; then he hung up the phone. I noticed the cars that followed us anywhere we went as well as the men in black, as I called them.

“Who are those people?” I asked Javon. Since he was already looking through the rearview mirror, I was sure he knew as well.

“Mama called them Forty Thieves,” he answered. “According to her notes, in the event of her death, she said, they would show up.”

“For what?” I asked.

“Protection. I'm the new head nigga in charge of a national crime syndicate. In her notes she said it would be foolish of me to trust any member off the bat.”

I nodded as I knew what he was saying to be true. As we pulled into traffic, I had things on my mind that I wanted to speak to him about, but I didn't want to seem out of place. I decided to keep my thoughts to myself for the time being.

“Inez got the internship at Emory,” Javon said after we got on the expressway.

I frowned. “Emory? Thought she was setting her sights on Atlanta Medical or Grady since they're level one trauma centers. When did she change her mind? Mama's notes says Inez told her she was trying for Grady.”

Javon creased his eyes a bit then shifted in his seat before glancing at me. “I don't know. Maybe she couldn't get the one at Grady?”

“Hmm,” was all I said.

My sisters and I hadn't spent a lot of time together since Mama had died and that was my fault. I'd been so busy trying to keep Javon at ease that I'd neglected my sisterly duties. Yes, we'd spoken in passing when Javon was giving out orders or when Melissa and I discussed her running the club, but that was business. I needed to sit and speak with them on personal matters. I made a note of it as Javon got off the exit going toward Mama's neighborhood.

“I'm going to drop you off and then come back. I need to meet with Snap about a few things before we meet Lucky in a few,” Javon said as he parked the car in Mama's front yard, looking at his watch.

I noticed Inez's car in the front yard. Melissa's was still in the shop. I didn't see Jojo's car, which made me wonder where the fuck he was this time of night. I turned to look at Javon. “Is this what we're going to become now?” I asked him.

“Not sure what you mean, baby,” he said.

I smiled a bit. “You're going to turn into one of those drug lords who's never around for family unless it's business. Always dropping me off and then running off to handle the next task? Kissing other women?”

Javon threw his head back and chuckled. “I'm probably going to become all those things,” he said as he looked at me, a smirk on his lips. “But I'll never become a man who doesn't know where home is. My dick and my heart belong to one woman,” he said as he hooked his pointer finger then lifted my chin so my eyes could meet his. “I'm yours and yours alone. The Syndicate and all this other shit is my mistress, but my future wife will always come first. That's what makes me different from the rest of them.”

When he leaned over to kiss me, I smiled against his lips. I trusted him and I believed in him. I just hoped that with all the power that had been laid in his lap he would be able to keep his word.