Deception's Playground (12 page)

“Hi, Spade,” Selena
said.

Lisa stirred again,
wiping sleep from her eyes.

“What’s up? What time
is it?” I was still tired. I felt Lisa grab my meat, and then she bent down and
kissed the head.

“It’s nine-thirty in the
morning, Spade. I’m on my first break at work, figured I’d call.”

Lisa took me in her
mouth and started playing with my balls. I jerked a little.

“What’s going on?” I
asked Selena, trying to stay focused.

“I’m pregnant,” she
said. I got Lisa off my shit and sat up. “That night at the club we were caught
in the moment. You came in me.”

Lisa looked at me
sideways as I hurriedly put my boxers and pants on.

“Spade?” said Selena.

“Yeah, I’m here. Where
you at?”

“I told you I’m at
work.” She sounded frustrated. “Are you busy?”

“Nah, nah,” I lied.
“It’s just early. Can I call you in a minute?”

“Yes, Spade.”

After I hung up, Lisa
asked, “Everything alright?”

“Yeah,” I told her. “I
gotta bust this move in a minute. I’ma hit the shower.”

“Okay, babe.” She laid
back down.

I didn’t know what to
think. I knew the pregnancy was a possibility. I did hit her raw. Slipping.

You gon’ get enough of
playin’ all them women,
my mother always told me. I wasn’t ready
for no kids. And the baby probably wasn’t mine anyway. I’d find out soon.
Either way, I’d put something in her hand and get it taken care of. I knew her
fine ass wasn’t ready for kids either.

I showered and got
myself together. I called Selena when I was pulling away from Lisa’s house,
told her we’d meet on her lunch break. I didn’t know what to think or what to
make out of what Selena was claiming. But I was going to find out.

Me and Selena met at Taco Bell on Front Street.
She worked at a telecommunication company nearby.

“So you’re sayin’
you’re pregnant?” I asked. We were sitting near a window. There were a few
other people in here as well.

“Yes, Spade. And you
may not believe me when I tell you this. But you are the only man I’ve been
with.” She looked like she was ready to cry.

“The only man?” I
didn’t believe her.

“The
only
man,”
she stated again. She grabbed my hand. “To be more specific, you’re the second
man I’ve ever been with in my entire life. The first was ten years ago. I’ve
been with women. That morning me, you, and Maria …” She paused and licked her
lips. “I, I enjoyed it. When I seen you at the club I wanted more.”

I was turned on because
she said I was the second nigga to touch that pussy.
Some good pussy
, I
might add. I was turned off, for one, because I wasn’t ready for kids. For two,
this bitch could be lying.

“We barely know each
other, baby. I gotta lot goin’ on. I know you ain’t tryin’ to keep this baby,”
I said.

She looked offended and
pulled her hands away. “I don’t believe in abortions, Spade.” She was serious.

“What does your family
think?” I asked, with thoughts of Maria’s dad on my brain.

“They want me to keep
it. They want to meet you.”

I was uncomfortable
then. “They wanna meet me?”

“Yes. My parents are
nice people. My mother is a Latina, my father is Black and Latino. Race is not
an issue, Spade,” she said, reading my mind.

“Damn, you gettin’
ahead of yo’self, ain’t you?”

“Look, I know you
didn’t ask for this. Neither did I. And neither did this child.” She rubbed her
stomach like the baby was already developed. “But I know we can handle this
situation like adults.”

My phone went off. It
was Sonya. I ignored it.

“A’ight, I’ll let you
know when I get back wit’ you,” I said, standing up. She gave me a look that
said we weren’t finished talking. But I was.

“You’re leavin’?” she
whispered, and stared out the window. Her eyes had puddles in them.

“I gotta bust this
move. I’ll call you later.”

It was too much for me
to handle.

***

I was back at Casey’s house, in the
living room watching the news. Ace was on his way over.

On screen, the reporter
straightened her paperwork. “A Black male who looked to be about thirty to
thirty-five and a white female who looked to be about twenty-five to thirty
were found dead this morning. Both were shot in the head. A witness said she
saw them slumped inside of a newer model Chevy Suburban while walking her dog—”

Ace walked in and I hit
the mute button. He headed to the kitchen. Sonya kept calling my damn phone. I
finally answered.

“Spade! Somebody killed
Duece!” She was panic-stricken.

“What!” I played the
part.

“Yeah. They found him
this mornin’.”

I could hear her
crying. Ace came in and sat on the couch.

“Fuck nah!” I paused.
“Don’t trip, baby. Where you at?”

“At work. Can you come
by the house later?”

“Yeah, baby. Damn, I
can’t believe this shit. Not Duece. Fuck!”

I might have went a
little overboard. I hung up. Ace was smiling.

“What you smiling for,
lil’ nigga?” I asked with a grin of my own.

“Yo silly ass, nigga.”

“She sounded hurt,” I
said.

“It is what it is.”

Ace started explaining
the previous nights’ events to me. He told me he had Duece meet him at a park
in the 40’s. He said he changed his voice when Duece had called, told Duece he
wanted four bricks. Ace, donning a dreadlock wig and a red KC ballcap over it,
was sitting at the park waiting on Duece to pull up.

He said when Duece
arrived, he had Jamie in the passenger seat. He knew better. The bitch should
have been driving, with Duece in the backseat. He was slipping hard. You should
never let a move get in the backseat. And when Ace got in the back, he pulled
his heat out, took his wig off and put his metal to Duece’s head. He asked
Duece why he crossed game but killed him before he could answer. Then he shot
Jamie. After executing both of them, he took the bricks and left.

“Well, that eliminates
one problem,” I said.

“We gotta get Nicole
and Sonya,” Ace said seriously.

I was on my way to Lisa’s house, for one
reason only: to see what Sonya said while she was at work. I was pushing down
70 West when I noticed the same gray ‘Lac two cars behind me. Two Mexicans in
it.

I moved to the far
right lane. So did they. I got off on the Van Brunt exit; they did also. Instead
of turning left to go to Lisa’s, I turned right and headed to my ‘hood. They
were still behind me. My Desert Eagle was on my lap.

I got on my phone and
called my young niggas, told them to drive to 19
^th
and Lister and sit
at the top of Lister behind East Elementary. The hitmen were riding me kind of
close. I proceeded down Van Brunt, passing up Van Brunt Liquors. When I got to
24
^th
Street I took a left—and the Cadillac followed. I made a quick
right on Denver. When I approached 23
^rd
and Denver, I had to stop at
a stop sign. Too much traffic going up and down 23
^rd
Street.

I thought they were
going to hop out on me. I was ready, my “Desi” in hand, trigger finger itching.
But they didn’t hop out. Traffic cleared and I proceeded; they did too. I took
Denver to 19
^th
and made a left.

They were still behind
me.

When I got to Lister, I
took a slow right. Had to make sure the lil’ homeboys were at the top of the
block. They were. I went up the street slow, honked my horn twice to let the
homeboys know it was me in the Chrysler 300M. They knew the trouble was behind
me. When I got to the top of the block, I turned left. The Mexicans couldn’t.

The lil’ homies ran up
on their car firing. My rearview look like an action film.

***

“She was trippin’,”
Lisa said.

I had been here at her
house for about twenty minutes. “Straight up?” I was listening close.

“She said she made a
mistake. She kept sayin’ she shouldn’t have done it.”

“Done what?” I asked.

“I don’t know, Spade.
She just kept sayin’ it to herself.”

“Was she cryin’ at
work?”

“All day,” Lisa said.
“I let her take the day off for today. Did you know him?”

“Somewhat.”

She looked at me
sideways. “Well, I hope you didn’t have anything to do wit’ it.”

“I was wit’ you, baby.
All night,” I joked, grabbing her thigh.

She smiled, then
playfully hit my shoulder with her fist.

***

I was on the way to Sonya’s house. I
took 71 Highway. I noticed a detective car behind me. Then I saw the cherries.
I pulled over to the right shoulder.

Kremensky stepped out.

I let my window down,
license and insurance in hand. He made it to my window.

“Spade, what’s goin’
on?” he asked with a devilish grin on his face.

I wasn’t in the mood
for bullshit. “Was I speedin’?”

“Who knows,” he said. His
sarcasm annoyed me. “Step out of the car.” He opened my door.

“This some bullshit,” I
said, stepping out. I headed towards the back of my car.

“I know you had
something to do with Tamika’s murder.” He was close to my face. His breath
smelled like cigarettes and coffee.

“Charge me.” I smiled.

“Oh, I will. You Black
son of a bitch.”

I smiled harder.
“Yeah?”

“Your friend Duece was
found dead this morning.”

“I heard.”

“Know anything about
that?” He backed up and put his hands on his hip, pushing his suit jacket back,
exposing his cannon.

“Man, if you ain’t
arrestin’ me, I’m gone.” I tried to walk past him.

He bumped me with his
shoulder. “See you around,” he said.

I got back in my car. Kremensky
jumped in his, burned rubber and streaked down the road. I wanted to kill that
muthafucka. I cooled down while I drove to Sonya’s house. Had to control my
emotions. I finally pulled up to Sonya’s house. I noticed her car and Nicole’s.

I used my key to enter.
Sonya and Nicole were sitting in the living room drinking. And smoking. Sonya
looked like she lost her mother. She tried to get her emotions in check when
she noticed my presence. Nicole looked scared.

“What’s up?” I said, as
I sat down between them.

“Hey,” they said in
unison.

“Don’t trip yall.” I
rubbed their backs. “We gon’ find out who did this shit.”

“I hope so, Spade,”
Sonya said painfully.

“Me and Ace on top of
it, baby,” I told her. Casey called my phone but I ignored it.

“Who was that chick he
was wit’?” Nicole inquired.

I gave an Oscar
performance. “I don’t know.”

“It’s too much goin’
on, Spade,” Sonya said.

“I’m hip.” I got up and
went to the kitchen. I opened the freezer and got my Remy. Sonya ran upstairs,
and Nicole came in the kitchen.

“Spade, I didn’t tell
Sonya about our conversation,” she said right above a whisper.

“Yeah?”

“I came clean, Spade.
Leave me out of this, please.”

The bitch was trying to
save her own ass. Self-preservation is a muthafucka. Then she bit her bottom
lip and smiled.

“Can you meet me at the
room tonight?”

I couldn’t believe she
was thinking about dick. “I’ll call you,” I said.

“Please call me.”

“I will, baby. Let me
go upstairs and check on Sonya.”

I walked off. These little
hoes were terrified. To my understanding, Sonya didn’t know I knew her and
Duece tried to play me. Nicole was more dangerous to me than Sonya was. Because
after she exposed her hand, Duece was killed. So I had decided to keep it on
the up-and-up with her and Sonya until I figured something out.

When I got upstairs to
the main bedroom, I heard the shower water running. I opened the bathroom door
and startled a naked Sonya. She was just about to open the polished-edge shower
door.

“Hey,” she said, looking
sad as ever.

“You okay?” I
approached her and hugged her.

“I guess. First someone
breaks into my house. Now this.”

“I know, baby. I’ma
figure it out.” I grabbed her ass and kissed her hard. She gave me her tongue,
and I sat her on the bathroom sink and fucked her with hateful fire in my
veins.