Through The Eyes of A Hoodrat (3 page)

Ladaya was my best
girlfriend, and
only
friend. We grew up in the same hood and used to run the
streets together. When my cousin Tato came home after doing several
years in jail, he quickly scooped her up, and eventually
impregnated her with their first child.

Ladaya was a cute, petite, chocolate
chick that was always in someone’s busy. Being as though she was
now pregnant and couldn’t run the streets, she seemed extremely
restless. Every time I turned around she was calling my phone with
gossip. If it wasn’t who was fucking who, it was the grief Tato was
giving her with his scandalous ways.

I honestly don’t know how she dealt
with Tato’s cheating, controlling ass. He liked to control
everything and had somewhat of a chokehold on my movement too. I
can say that he really cared for Ladaya though and had been
genuinely excited about the baby. He even put her in a cute little
apartment in a quaint little section of the city.

I left Tato and headed out
to pick up my kids from my mama. She had been calling me non-stop
since I was supposed to be there by ten to get them. She was going
to have a whole lot to say.

***

“Sierra Mercedes, where the fuck have
you been? I told you Sheila’s church was having a revival this
afternoon. Now I’m gon be late,” my mama huffed. I don’t why the
hell she was driving way to Jersey for a revival with my mean ass
Aunt Shelia. My mama loved her sister, but I sure as hell couldn’t
stand her. It’s odd that me and her son Tato got along so well. I
was glad when she moved her ass out of Philly to Jersey.

“Well hey to you too mom, and you
don’t need to be cursing talking about going to a revival,” I
joked. My mother’s face immediately changed to a scowl. I guess she
didn’t like the joke.

“Alright alright, I’m sorry mama. I’ll
make sure I’m on time from now on. And I appreciate you keeping
them for me.”

“Um hmm,” she said, before walking
off, with a frown.

I told the kids to get ready and
walked into the living room to see if I could find Todd before my
mama walked back in.

“Hey Todd,” I said, once I
saw him sitting in the recliner texting on his phone.
Probably one of his young side pieces.
Todd was a trick and kept some young ass in the
tuck.

“Are you still gonna help me get RJ
the new bed?” I asked. He had promised to go half on a new bed for
RJ with me, but me being me, I jacked the price up so I wouldn’t
have to spend anything.

RJ had pissed up the bed that was
currently in his room and the smell was becoming overbearing. I
couldn’t have a nigga up in the house with piss marinating in the
air.

“Didn’t I say I would? I’ll bring it
by there later today. And don’t say nothing to your mama. You know
how she is about me giving you money.”

“I know already. That’s why I waited
till she walked off. But ok, I’ll be home, just swing
by.”

My mama always talked about how I
needed to get a job and that the checks I was getting wouldn’t last
forever. I wasn’t trying to hear that shit so I let it go in one
ear and out the other. Besides, I didn’t need a job when I could
get money from men, hers included.

As soon as I pulled away from my
mama’s house to leave I called Rahdee, RJ’s dad. Rahdee was a
simple ass nigga I had met through Ladaya. He used to hang out at
her house with her cousin Quay.

Rahdee and I weren’t on the greatest
of terms. We had sort of a love hate relationship. We had only been
fucking around for a few months before I got pregnant with RJ. It’s
funny how love worked. I usually only went after niggas with money
but Rahdee didn’t have too much of that. Nevertheless my heart
still beat a little faster when I was with him. I couldn’t help it
and for some reason I still couldn’t completely shake him, no
matter how cold my heart was.

At first I thought he and Ladaya were
messing around but she ended up messing around with another nigga
Quay rolled with and eventually wound up with my cousin Tato.
Ultimately I didn’t care one way or another. Once I had my sights
set on something I was going to get it.

As usual Rahdee didn’t answer the
phone. He preferred to communicate via text but I didn’t care; I
needed to speak with him. After calling his phone several times
repeatedly, I decided to leave a voicemail.

“You already know who it
is. You need to call and check on ya muthafucking son. He needs a
new bed and I’m hoping you can help me with it, since you don’t do
shit else. Call me.”

I didn’t cut any corners when it came
to dealing with Rahdee. He acted like dealing with me was so hard
and he would go as far to avoid me, even sending his mother to pick
up RJ.

We used to not be like this but after
several explosive arguments he said he didn’t want to fuck with me
any longer or be around me period. I couldn’t help the fact that I
didn’t take no shit. A few times I had to show him I wasn’t the
bitch to be played with. He quickly learned that fact after he got
a brick through his window, a few flat tires and cops called on him
resulting in minor charges for disorderly conduct and resisting
arrest.

I didn’t even care anymore if he came
around or not. I had a few niggas I could call, plus I knew if I
really wanted Rahdee I could have him.

I put the kids to bed early around
seven, since I was about to have company. I didn’t want the kids
fucking with me about anything. Tyree was going to swing through
and I needed a new hair weave and a new outfit. I had to work that
nigga extra good so the tab would be at his expense. I didn’t mind
sucking a little dick to get what I wanted. I preferred to pay for
as little as possible. Plus I had to look good for my next victim:
Dock.

FIVE

I walked into the corner
store on 5
^th
and Van Buren in Wilmington feeling extremely out of place.
This is where Tato said I would have to meet Dock. According to
him, even though I was cute I wouldn’t be able to garner Dock’s
undivided attention in a regular club. So I had to step out my
comfort zone and walk up into the bodega-like store that had
several drug addicts trespassing outside.

After pretending my truck was broken
down and constant begging, my mama finally agreed to let me borrow
her new model red Corvette. I told her RJ had an appointment with a
speech specialist in Harrisburg so I could keep the car a few days.
I had to pull up in something that would catch Dock’s attention,
and I knew that the Corvette would do it. We had been following him
all day and he always seemed overly occupied and busy on the phone.
Surprisingly he seemed to limit his associates and traveled alone
most of the day.

Here goes
nothing
, I thought, as I walked in, praying
that Dock would notice me so I could give him a reason to pursue
me.

“Excuse me can anyone tell me how to
get from here to the stadium?” I asked, trying to sound as sweet as
possible while standing next to a giant glass freezer full of
cheap, juice.

Dock glanced up and I knew I had him.
I had spent a pretty penny getting the wavy Brazilian hair
installed in my hair. The blue Gucci pantsuit I wore came straight
from the store, courtesy of my booster friend Jackie. She even
threw in a signature purse for a reasonable price. The ensemble
looked good against my caramel skin. I wanted to look like money
since that’s what I was hoping to attract.

“Let me call you back,” he eagerly
told the person on the other end of the phone. He kept his eyes
focused on me the whole time.

“I can’t tell you how to get there but
I can definitely show you the way,” Dock said with a flirty grin. I
noticed the bottom of his teeth were gold.

“Show me huh…Does anyone else know how
to get to the stadium from here?” I asked, rolling my eyes and
pretending to be uninterested.

“Na, I got you ma. I’ll give you the
directions. What’s ya name?” Dock asked, moving close up in my
personal space.

“Sierra,” I responded
nonchalantly.

“Well Sierra,...I’m Dock,” he stated
with pride. He went on to give me the directions and then attempted
to spit some game, which was exactly what I was hoping
for.

“Where you from anyway? I’ve never
seen you around here. And I ain’t gon lie, you’re cute as shit and
I would like to holla at you sometime,” he confessed.

Dock was actually cute
himself. I had expected him to be a mess like most of the niggas we
robbed. It was actually refreshing that I would be attracted to my
“vic.”
I may actually enjoy him a
little
, I thought. He was medium height and
slim with a beautiful smile, despite the gold teeth. He was dressed
in blue jeans, with a gray hoodie, and the latest gray and blue
Lebron sneakers. He was Wesley Snipes black, and I ain’t gon front,
he had a whole lot of swag.

“I’m from Northeast DC,” I
lied.

“Well what you doing out
here?”

“I’m hanging out with my family for a
little while. “

“Well can I take you out sometime?” he
asked.

“Well you are kinda cute,” I laughed,
biting my lip a little before pushing my hair out of my
face.

“Give me ya number then…please,” he
asked.

“How about you give me yours. I’ll
call you later tonight. Maybe we can hang out sometime this week,”
I suggested.

“How about you call me later, and we
hang out tonight?” he asked, before taking my phone and calling
himself.

“Now you pushing it,” I laughed. I
knew exactly how to play the game with niggas like Dock. He was
eager for fresh meat, and I was just what he was looking for. I
hope he could handle what I was about to give him.

***

Later that evening I walked into a
small Italian eatery located in downtown Wilmington. I wanted to
meet somewhere quiet so we could talk and make a
connection.

We ended up conversing for hours about
everything from our families, to our dreams. I found out that Dock
had played football in high school and had hopes of playing in
college, until a devastating shoulder injury set him back. Feeling
defeated and cheated he turned to the streets for
comfort.

Once he discovered he was good at
selling drugs, he focused all of his energy on getting rich in the
drug game. He had determined that it was more profitable to stay in
the streets rather than stay in school. I was amazed at how honest
he was about his lifestyle.

I actually enjoyed Dock’s company as
well as his conversation. By the end of the night I actually felt a
little guilty that I was eventually going to jack him. However, as
quickly as that feeling of guilt came, it left. Dock was a big dog;
one that I wanted to lie down with. But instead of waking up with
fleas, I was going to wake up with cash.

SIX

“So what’s the game plan?” Tato asked
me for the hundredth time.

“Tatoooo, chill. I know already. Don’t
drink too much, stay on point, and stay focused on the
money.”

Tato always drilled this in my head
before every outing. He didn’t want me getting caught up in my
feelings over a nigga, and he wanted to make sure niggas didn’t
become suspicious of me either. For that reason, we always kept
shit short. Once a nigga caught a little feelings and I had enough
pull to find out where the money was, we made our move.

“Good girl. Now show em how we spread
that love from Philly cuzzo.”

“Yesssirrrr,” I responded like a
nigga.

***

Things went from zero to 190 with Dock
and I in no time. Within a month he had flown me to Miami, taken me
on multiple shopping trips, and even took me to meet his mama. What
surprised me is she lived in the suburbs right outside of
Philadelphia. Dock had been born and bred right in
Philadelphia.

I begged Tato to call off the caper
since I was having doubts about it. It wasn’t only because I sorta
liked Dock, it was because I just had a feeling in my gut. Even
though he was a drug-dealer, Dock wasn’t a bad guy and he was truly
one of the ones who didn’t deserve what he was about to
get.

With Dock and I spending so much time
together, I no longer had an immediate need for Tyree. I ended up
cutting him off temporarily, with plans to rekindle our
relationship after Dock and I were finished. Honestly, robbing Dock
wouldn’t be as lucrative as staying with him. When I was with him,
I wanted for nothing.

‘So when am I going to meet your kids
Sierra?” Dock asked me, relieving me from my thoughts of guilt.
Guilt was something I rarely felt, but it had shown its ugly face
when it came to this situation with Dock.

“My kids? Well, I don’t usually just
have them around anybody,” I lied.

“Oh, so I’m anybody now?” he
asked.

“I’m not saying that. I’m just saying
that it has to be something very serious for someone to meet my
children. Kids get attached and I just don’t want anyone popping in
and out.”

“I understand that very clearly…And,
I’m very serious about you baby. That’s why I was thinking you pack
you and your kids up and move to Delaware with me,” he stated, with
a serious look on his face.”