Thugs And The Women Who Love Them (3 page)

A
ngel was born Angel Denise Smith, second oldest of four children. When she was born, her mother looked at her high yellow skin, hazel eyes, and silky dark brown hair and immediately knew she should be called Angel. As she grew, everyone always remarked that she was the spitting image of her mother. She was tall and slender at 5 feet 10 inches, and for some reason, until the 7th grade she still had all her baby teeth. The girls would call her stuck up, or Miss Prissy, when she was growing up. And they were right—Angel was beautiful and she knew it.

Her mother, Julia Smith, had been an insurance agent for the last eight years, but before that she worked in the hospital cafeteria as head cook. Angel's father was a foreman at one of the biggest auto paint shops in the city. Everyone called him Big Red because he was 6 feet 5 inches and high yellow, with dark red hair. Between Big Red and Julia both holding down steady employment, Angel and her siblings were raised with a little more comfort than most of the other kids growing up in the hood.

Angel loved and looked up to her eldest brother, Willie Right. He earned the nickname Willie Right because he always insisted he was right, even when he knew he was wrong.

When Angel was only nine years old and he was fourteen, she remembered how Willie Right was bragging to everyone. His daddy, Big Red, was going to get him a moped dirt bike for Christmas. He went so far as to carry the picture of the black and red motorbike in his back pocket to flash to anyone who was interested. He told nine-year-old Angel, and Mark, who was eight, that he was not going to give them a ride on it because they were too little. This was a big kid's bike.

He bragged about the dirt bike for months. He even brought home straight A's on his report card the semester before Christmas just to make sure. He wanted to hear no excuses when it was time for Big Red to deliver.

All of Willie's friends looked up to him. He had both of his parents living at home, his clothes were nicer than the rest of the crew's, and he was very smart. Plus, Willie Right always scored with the hottest girls. He would leave out no details when telling his partners about his scores. Willie Right was living large in their eyes, plus, they couldn't wait to ride around on the dirt bike with Willie, in front of all the honeys.

As Christmas neared, Big Red started to give more thought to the idea of his eldest son riding on a motor dirt bike. He discussed it with Julia. The more he thought about it, the more he disliked the idea. It was dangerous, and too many of the kids were getting jacked for their expensive things. He had enough problems keeping Willie off the drugs and out of trouble. He was not about to lose his son over a bike. So Big Red decided to buy all three of his kids Schwinn ten-speed bicycles. Of course, Angel and Mark were ecstatic, but Willie was pissed off. He had his heart set on that black and red dirt bike. Plus, he had his boys and the honeys to impress. Dangerous didn't matter to Willie Right.

When Willie's homeboys found out that Willie got a bicycle instead of the motorbike, they clowned him something awful. So Willie, furious and embarrassed as hell, made him a pipe bomb, went down to the auto paint shop where Big Red worked, and torched the joint. Willie was smart, but dumb enough to torch the joint in broad daylight. Even though the shop was closed, the few eyewitnesses in the area knew he was Big Red's son. And everybody knew Big Red. Just about everything in the shop was flammable, so it didn't take but a couple of minutes for a loud explosion and flames to reach the sky. The flames were so high the whole west side of town could see the smoke.

Willie had made it safely home where he was posted on his front porch. He grinned as he watched the black smoke circle the clouds. His boys, Donny, Plug, Mo, and Justice sat down on his stairs and watched the smoke, listening to Willie Right, who knew he was wrong, describe how he made the pipe bomb and burned the shop down to the ground. They had been sitting there for almost an hour.

“My dad loves that shop more than he loves me. Now who's he going to love more?” Willie declared.

Just as Willie got those words out of his mouth, nine police cars came flying down the street. All of his homeboys scattered like roaches running from a can of Raid. Willie ran into the house to get Big Red's shotgun.

When Julia saw what her fourteen-year-old son was doing, she ran toward him and tried her best to take the gun from him.

“I ain't going out like that!” He kept screaming.

Angel and Mark stood watching as Willie pushed their mom down and bolted for the door.

“Get upstairs! Now!” Julia screamed at Angel and Mark.

Angel and Mark didn't move. They gazed out the window in horror at all the police cars, then at their big brother, holding their daddy's big gun.

“Put down the gun and put your hands up in the air!” screamed the officer through the bullhorn.

“You put your gun down and put your hands up in the air!” yelled Willie.

“I repeat, and this is my last time…”

The sentence was interrupted when Willie cocked the shotgun and pointed it at the officer on the bullhorn.

“Put the gun down, Willie,” sobbed Julia.

“I repeat, put down your fucking gun and put your hands over your head!” yelled the police officer.

Willie Right refused to put the gun down, and the trigger-happy police went to firing at Willie right there on the front porch. His body moved, jerked and fell as if he were in a movie and the scene was playing in slow motion. They shot him so many times that Willie's tall, thin body was ripped and torn to pieces. Angel, Mark, and Julia watched the whole horrifying scene from the window. Now, Willie Right's body pieces lay shredded up on their front porch.

They didn't even know that Big Red was outside in handcuffs, sitting in the back of one of the police cars. He had punched one of the police officers, and was even prepared to take the rap for his son. Instead, he watched helplessly as his son's life was taken over a dirt bike that he refused to buy.

Big Red was so distraught about the loss of his son that he left his family, never to be seen or heard from again. He didn't even know that he left Julia pregnant. She was left alone to raise Angel, Mark, and the soon-to-be-born Carmen.

Julia refused to go on welfare. She tried to make ends meet on her salary from the hospital cafeteria, but things were tough. Raising three kids was getting more and more expensive. She eventually lost the house that she and Big Red struggled so hard to keep, and had to move her family into the Roger Gardens projects.

After years of struggling, one of Big Red's friends finally helped her get a job as a clerk at an insurance company. Julia decided to go to school at night to get her license and become a full-fledged insurance agent. They were struggling, but Julia was determined her kids would have a chance to move out of the projects. She pursued her career, and she made sure the kids went to school, did their homework and made the honor roll. Julia was determined that they would make something of themselves in spite of the tragedy they had faced.

T
hat was ten years ago. Julia and her three kids moved out of the projects into a 15-story apartment building on the west side of town. Times were not as hard because of Angel's man, Snake. And Julia's dream of her children succeeding was becoming a reality. Angel was working toward her law degree and Mark was working on his Associates degree in broadcasting. Carmen, following her siblings' example, was an honor roll student. Julia let herself believe they had really accomplished something. As much as possible, she just ignored the fact that her daughter was dating a pimp.

When Angel first introduced her to Snake, Julia had practically fainted. She knew him as Lil' Keenan when he was just a kid, and she also knew that he came from a long line of pimps. His daddy was a pimp before he got stabbed to death. Snake also had four pimp uncles.

She had slapped Angel over and over, screaming at her, wanting to know how a college girl could turn into a ho. Why couldn't she stay away from that pimp? Angel moved out of the house, in with Kyra, and didn't speak to her mom for several months. Julia kept calling Kyra's mom to secretly check up on her daughter. Angel was still going to college, working, and of course, laying up with Snake, the pimp. When she couldn't stand it anymore, Julia finally broke down and asked her daughter to come back home. Of course, Angel was glad to move back in. She missed her mom, brother, and her sister.

Julia was pleasantly surprised when Angel showed up back home. She had really underestimated her daughter's strength. Angel was a confident and strong-willed person, who wasn't about to be turned out by Snake, and he knew that. She could think for herself. That's what Snake liked about her. She was someone who could balance him out. Someone to settle down with. After all the whores he'd dealt with, Snake respected a woman who wouldn't let him beat her down physically or mentally.

 

As Snake put his foot on the brake of his Mercedes 500, he reminisced back to the day when he'd first laid eyes on those long, smooth, yellow legs. Those were the first things that caught Snake's eyes. He considered himself a connoisseur of legs. His eyes roamed from those long, curvaceous beauties to that perfectly round ass to those perky, young tits. He was floored. She wore a white, sleeveless, leather-front top with deep cleavage and a tight, cream-colored, pleated skirt. Snake grabbed his dick and put it along his thigh because it had gotten hard.

Angel could feel the heat of a dog's roaming eyes all over her body. She knew that she was a dog magnet. She had had her share of dogs, so at this point in time she was being extra careful and not giving in too soon. As Angel turned slyly around to see where the dog was, her books slipped to the floor.

Damn!
she thought.
That's what I get for even thinking about giving a dog a bone.

As she bent down to pick up her books, she noticed the black, snakeskin Versace shoes quickly coming her way. She smelled the Armani cologne. Snake didn't say a word; he just bent down, picked up the remaining books and handed them to her.
This bitch is fuckin' fine!
he almost said out loud.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Oh, miss, that will be four dollars and eighty-seven cents,” the cashier announced.

“Just a minute,” Angel snapped.

Snake pulled out his wallet to pay for her meal. Angel's eyes were glued to the iced-up Rolex on Snake's wrist as he reached over and handed the cashier a 10-dollar bill. Before she even took her eyes off the Rolex, Snake had already turned and walked away. He was a pimp. He knew how to set his traps. The cashier yelled after him to get his change, but he just kept walking, slow, smooth, and with confidence.

As Angel eyed him from the back, she had to admit that she liked what she saw. He looked to be about 6 foot 3. He had dark, wavy hair and sideburns that were neatly cut. His stride was full of confidence and power. And watching it was all the more fun because he had the kind of butt that a woman loved to squeeze.

The tailor-made Armani suit, silk shirt, snakeskin shoes, iced-up Rolex and Armani cologne announced that
ole boy got it goin' on,
but Angel knew from hard-knock experience that you can't judge a thug by his cover. She had to check things out thoroughly. She grabbed her container of teriyaki steak and rice and quickly headed for the exit. When she got outside, she looked right and didn't see him. She turned left and still he was nowhere in sight. She sighed and put her hand on her hip. Snake was sitting in his Benz watching her every move. He knew that she would come looking for him.

“Works every time,” he said.

Snake beeped that smooth Mercedes horn and rolled down the passenger window. Angel checked out the “500” with the chrome rims.
This nigga thinks he's smooth,
she thought. She went over and peeked into the car. His Armani cologne smacked her in the face. She dropped a 10-dollar bill on the passenger seat.

“I can pay for my own meals. But thanks anyway.” She quickly glanced at the manicured hand resting on the steering wheel.

Snake looked at her beautiful, pouted lips and said, “No problem. I assume you're one of them independent women.”

“You damned right.” She turned to walk away.

“So it's like that?”

Angel acted like she didn't hear him and kept on walking. Now it was her turn to set a trap. As she headed to her Honda Civic, she knew he wouldn't be far behind. She fumbled for her keys, opened the door, set her books on the backseat and the container of teriyaki steak and rice on the front seat. Once she turned the key in the ignition, the shiny black 500 pulled up in front of her, just as she'd expected. Snake got out of his car and walked toward her.

“What are you, stalking me now?”

“No. Just give me your phone number and I'm out.”

Angel looked him up and down.
Damn! This nigga is fine,
she thought as she tried to suppress a smile.

“I don't give my number away to strangers.”

“I'm not a stranger. I picked up your books from the floor, I tried to pay for your meal and I made sure you got to your car safely. Strangers don't do that.”

Angel looked into his eyes. They were dark and cold, but everything else about him said he was all that. Angel liked the whole package.

“Give me your number.” She tried to flip the script.

“I don't give my number to strangers,” Snake answered, looking into her eyes.

“Oh, well. We're just deadlocked, then, aren't we?” She didn't look away from his stare.

“Deadlocked, huh? So, you must be a law student.”

“Maybe, maybe not.”

He had already seen the Rutgers parking sticker on her windshield.

“So, what's your name?”

“So, what's yours?” she teased.

Needless to say, Snake was enjoying this little game. “My friends call me Snake, but it's Keenan Hightower.”

“My friends call me Angel, and it's Angel Smith. Now, may I go?”

“After I get your number.”

“I'm listed,” she snapped as she rolled up the window.

Snake smiled and turned back toward his car. He slid into his Benz, pushed number four on the CD player and pumped “Ascension” by Maxwell. Angel sat and watched the Benz ease around the corner.

“I think that went quite well,” she spoke out loud to herself. “If he's all that, he'll find me.”