The Circle: Rain's Story (5 page)

Through the hallway, Rain and Dayvid watched as Veronica approached Brooklyn and his crew became silent and the
y ogled heartily at her presence. Brooklyn seen her before, maybe once or twice in the club, and caught his eye even then. He knew her type, definitely not a hoodbooger because her style and clothes game was tight, and he saw her with a few heavyweight dealers. It was just in his nature to conquer the broads and was compelled to holler at that.

Just as she pass
ed, he caught a glimpse of her perfectly-sculptured ass, and hollered,               “Yo, ma. What’s good with you?”

Veronica was no fo
ol to the game, and feigned innocent as if she didn’t hear him and kept it moving. She knew better than to make it too easy for him. He had to put in some work. All his dudes were watching, his pride and ego were at stake and he had to bag that.

“You lo
oking kinda good in those jeans. Them shits are working, what time do they get off?” His whole crew laughed and chuckled at their boss’s wit and word play that made him legendary.

Veronica turned her head and tossed him a light smile at his game. That was enough for Brooklyn to jump off the stoop to make his intro and approach her.

“Hold up for a second ma. I just want to holla at you for a second and see if you as official as that lil body of yours.”

With sass, Veronica slowed
her strut, turned around on her heel as if he was disturbing her peace. She put one hand on her hip, Fendi bag hanging loosely over her shoulder, pulled her lollipop out her mouth and asked, “What you say?”

All
gentleman like now, as he towered over her, purposely wiping his hand over his mustache to highlight the diamonds on his wrist and fingers, he replied, “I been seeing you around town a few times and I always thought you were bangin’. I let you get away each time ‘cause you were always with someone and I didn’t want to violate. Now that I see you by yourself, I won’t allow myself to let that happen again.”

He flashed his million dollar smile. She had to
admit his game was tight and made a mental note that if everything went right, she might kick it with him at some point later. But for now she would stick to the script.

“So, what’s up.” She said simply, wanting him to do all the talking.

*              *              *

All
the Porters stood guarded, not batting an eye, as they watched both locations— assessing each situation; Brooklyn and his crew, and Lil Dot and his, praying that Lil Dot gets wind of her and his nemesis presence.

*
              *              *

The conversation between V
eronica and Brooklyn grew relaxed, as he strategically walked her over to his Benz to gain him some extra points, and even more so, to play on her greed.

“This your ride?” Veronica asked dryly. Brooklyn, a seasoned player answered with a shrug.

“What you think?” Veronica looked over the expensive vehicle and nodded her head in approval.

“So, where you stay at
with your sexy self?”

“I live on the East.” s
he lied

“Oh, you from
the Eastside?”

“Yeah.” s
he answered, displaying her boredom.

“So, what you doing over this way? You coming to see your man or something?”

Veronica shifted her weight to her other side, took out her lollipop she was sucking and answered while looking up the block. “Nah, I’m just coming by to see my friend.”

“In this block?”

“Something like that.” she replied vaguely.

“You got to be coming to see one of these broke niggas. Now, why you want to do that?” Brooklyn challenged purposely.

She pulled back her head and rolled her eyes and corrected him.

“I don’t fuck with no broke niggas. Broke is not in my vocabulary.”

He threw up his hand and chuckled. “Slow down ma, I got eyes and it’s obvious that you don’t get down like that. I just respect you enough to let you know that a girl like you deserve a thoroughbred type nigga.” That seemed to calm her, so he continued. “So, tell me who you came all this way to see?”

She stared at him hard and long, knowing she had him right where she wanted him.

“I came to see Lil Dot.”

Brooklyn
reared his head back surprised. Feeding into him, she played the game.

“Why you laughing?”

Brooklyn frowned. “I’m just saying ma, what a lil nigga like him doing with a woman like you or could do for you for that matter?” he said with surprise.

Veronica twist
ed her lips, but remained silent— allowing him to keep talking.

“That lil
’ dude ain’t even a boss, he the help. Selling for the next nigga.”

Veronica eyes lowered to a slant and asked. “
Oh so what you tryna’ say? You a boss or something?”

Brooklyn stood
an inch or two taller. “I’m from New York baby, Brooklyn. You think I come all this way just to front?”

*
              *              *

Up th
e block Lil Dot right hand man, Caesar, who directed a dope fiend to one of his hoppers as he sat on an abandoned stoop, casted his eyes down the block at their enemies. He adjusted his eyes then stood to his feet. He then walked over to a group of boys, who were in a circle shooting dice, and hollered at his boss, Lil Dot.

“Yo, D. Let me holler at you for a second.
”

Lil Dot, grimaced because he was in the thick of the game, and losing badly, shouted to the rest of the gamblers, “Hold
your dice, yo.”

He walked over to
Caesar in a huff, sweating profusely, and growled. “What nigga?”

“Yo, not for nothi
ng, but ain’t that that bitch Veronica that you said you was fucking with talking to that nigga Brooklyn?”

Lil Dot followed his eyes and stared down the block.
Lil Dot face turned numb. Only seconds later it turned scornful, but he held his rage and contempt inside. He watched Veronica laughing energetically with the one person he hated most.

Ego deflated, and t
o save face, he waved it off and said, “Fuck that tramp. I ain’t tripping over no bitch. She ain’t nothing but a hoe anyway.” Despite him staring down the block like a hawk at them.

“Yo, Dot
!” Yelled one of the boys in the circle. “It’s your roll yo.”

Still staring and still vexed, he said
, “I’m out yo.”

*
              *              *

“Aiight, I’m gonna call you tonight.
See if we can get into a lil sumptin,sumptin.” Brooklyn said with a cunning leer.

“I’m walking back this way after I kick it with him for a minute.
” Licking her lips, she asked him, “You going to be here right?”

Brooklyn looked up and
saw the glaring eyes of Lil Dot staring daggers at them from up the block. He smiled and didn’t hesitate to take advantage of the young boy’s weakness and said, “Hell yeah, I’m gonna be here. Let me just get a hug so I don’t forget you.” He joked, but was serious. He lurched down and gave her a tight hug with compliments. “Damn baby, you smell like a bacon and egg sandwich. I’m ready to eat that.”

Veronica blushed
and smiled approvingly.
His mack game was on point and undeniable,
she thought.

Watching it all unfold, Rain and Dayvid nodded
assurance to each other— both taking their guns off of safety. Dayvid radioed to his sisters, and told them. “Be ready.”

*
              *              *

It was a perfect storm ready to explode as V
eronica, strutted up to Lil Dot without a care in the world. Standing ridged, she attempted to greet him with a hug, but he denied her by raising his arm preventing her of such greeting.

Acting oblivious, Veronica questioned
him with surprise. “What’s wrong with you?” Already pissed, Lil Dot scowled, “Fuck you mean
what’s wrong
? You know what you did.”

“What t
he fuck is you talking about?” she asked.

“Fuck is you playing me by talkin to the punk ass
, gump ass nigga on my block?”

Veronica’s face turned sour with surprise,
and then sucked her teeth. “Who…You talking about that dude I was just talking to?”

Lil Dot
with fleeting control of his anger snapped. “You know who the fuck I’m talking about. Don’t try to play me for a sucker, yo. That’s a violation.” 

She
didn’t trip and played it off easy, and dismissed it as if it was nothing by waving her hand and saying. “Dot, please. He was just trying to holla at me just like every other nigga be doing. Only reason I stopped was because I was asking did he know you.”

Lil Dot didn’t miss a beat.
“You ain’t had to ask nobody where I’m at. You know this is where I bang at all day every day. I told you that.”

She twisted her mouth and said with attitude then flipped on him.
             

“I walked pass here like twenty minutes ago and I didn’t see nothing but a bunch of loud niggas shooting dice. I wasn’t
about to stop and ask them.” she lied quickly. “Where were you?”

She could tell he fell for it and gave her the benefit of the doubt. Veronica decided to take advantage and set it off.

“When he started talking sideways about you, that’s when I stepped off.”

Lil Dot head
snapped to attention, his eyes lowered into a slant, then asked with furious, dripping venom. “Fuck that nigger say about me?”

Veronica hesitated
and stumbled over her words, infuriating him even further. “It ain’t even that serious. I’m with you now.”

“
Fuck that shit! You shouldn’t be worrying about what that nigga think and be worried about me. This is my block, my fuckin hood. This nigga is in my city. Now spit that shit out.” His growl alerted his underlings behind him that it was a problem stirring.

“
Okay…okay.” She relented and stammered. “I mean, he was just talking some slick shit but didn’t say nothing much. He just said that you were a lil cornball ass nigga, and that you ain’t a boss for real, and some shit like that. He said you were like the help or whatever. I don’t know. I wasn’t really paying him no mind.”

Lil Dot, looking down the block at Brooklyn all the while, as he mockingly defied him by staring right back at him, stretching his arms out as if he was daring him to do something. Steam
was coming out of Lil Dot ears, his leg trembled violently with anger, as his eyes turned blood shot red. It was an unwritten code of the streets that stated
‘no real nigga should ever fight over no girl, no hoe or bitch’.
You would be playing yourself, but once he heard her say the rest, all logic went out the door.

Veronica decided to put the dagger in his heart, and say the one thing she knew would push him over the edge and become hell bent on revenge… attack his manhood
. “And he also said that you were probably too ‘
small’
  to handle a woman like me. That’s when I told you I walked because that was so disrespectful.”

That was it, Lil Dot
snapped, and yelled to his crew. “Yo, tool up!” 

As if he was a General in the Army, nearly a dozen young
boys, scrambled everywhere— inside the buildings, in the bushes, in the under carriage of parked cars, all retrieving weapons.

Watching them like a wolf, Brooklyn didn’t skip a beat as he saw it unfold and quickly shouted to his equally strong crew to strap up. It was war.

*              *              *

Draw strings tighten
ed up on their hoodies to protect their face, Rain’s heart rate quickened. Things were about to go down, just as she’d planned. Standing at the front door, they could hear the men and boys sling insults back and forth. Like a siren warning of disaster, folks in West Baltimore got out of dodge. Most took heed and fled in the opposite direction of the chaos. But then there were those nosey souls, who no matter the threat of danger, slowed to witness.

Up and down
, Rain’s chest rose then fell as she drew in quick breaths. Eyes locked with her brother’s, she didn’t have to ask. His dark pupils showed he was ready. His chest moving up and down, much faster than Rain’s, screamed he was amped.

Walkie-talkies in hand, Dayvid gave his little sister the order. “Do it Fallon.”

Upstairs
in the living room, Fallon lifted the huge, ugly black weapon out the window, closed her eyes and squeezed the trigger. Chaos broke out at the sound of the pops. As soon as Rain and Dayvid heard the first shot, they ran at top speed towards Brooklyn’s building, while Fallon fired shots in the opposite direction.

“They inside the building,” Fallon screamed to her sister, who sat on the bed with a prepaid cell. “Call now. Call now.”