What Da Lick Read? The Triple Cross (6 page)

“The world will never know because I’m always going to be here. Now can we finally take a shower? Tomorrow we are going to be dead on our feet. Shit it is already tomorrow.” She said as she went into the bathroom.

Gigi’s large bathroom was actually the size of Honesty’s bedroom at her loft. This house was more like a mansion than a house and the only person who lived in it with her was Concrete, her best friend and body guard. He was the only person who knew of their relationship. He never really said anything to Honesty, he just looked at her. Gigi told her that he is just a quiet person and not to take it personal.

Honesty pressed a button on the console in the bathroom; the lights dimmed and the water came on inside the large walk in shower. She opened the glass door, slipped in and waited for Gigi to join her. Gigi walked into the bathroom with her ear to the phone. She sat on the counter as Honesty grabbed the loofa and squeezed some burnt brown sugar shower gel onto it. She closed her eyes as the massaging shower heads worked a miracle on her tired body. She didn’t hear Gigi finish her conversation, or hear her enter the shower. She just felt her take the loofa from her hands and start to wash her back and kiss her neck.

Honesty turned to face Gigi. Both of the shower heads were on, soaking them from behind. She kissed her tenderly at first, reaching to pull her closer so that their bodies were touching. Gigi ran her hands all over Honesty’s curves. Her body was very curvaceous and tight like an athlete. The water made her dark skin look like warm chocolate. She loved the way her skin felt like silk under her touch. Gigi pulled away from the kiss and started to suck on her nipples, alternating between each one. Honesty let out a moan because Gigi always played her body like an instrument. She held her head to her, while running her hands through her hair as she teased her into ecstasy. Gigi parted her legs with one of her own and started to grind up against her. Honesty reached between them and put her hand on Gigi’s clitoris and slowly massaged it. Gigi let out a moan as her mouth came crushing back down on Honesty’s mouth. Their tongues danced inside of each other’s mouth as they breathed erratically. Gigi tensed up as she reached her climax grabbing Honesty’s hand trying to pull it from between her legs.

They got out of the shower in silence and dried off, each of them drying off the others’ back. They walked into Gigi’s master bedroom and got into the canopied California King bed and cuddled up naked to one another. Both of them drifting off to sleep in less than five minutes after their heads hit the pillow.

Khalil sat at his kitchen table trying to make sense of what he had seen tonight. The saying your first mind is always your best mind is really an understatement.

He had retired a while ago from being in the streets much. He had foot soldiers all over the city that were at his beck and call. He was sitting on millions of dollars and his four kids were grown and out on their own. He was still very young looking and he probably should be settling down with a nice female companion to keep him company or even traveling the world since he was no longer on any type of paper work. But, as the saying goes once a street nigga, always a street nigga and Khalil had one foot in and one foot out.

All four of his children were in the street, not by force but because of who they were. For that reason alone, he told himself that he would always be there to keep an eye on them.

Sleep eluded him most nights; he would sit up with his Mac book computer in front of him and write his memoirs. But lately, he had been feeling uneasy a little too much to ignore. Poke his best friend had been calling him a lot more often, but he just took it as Poke leading up to asking him for some money or for him to set him up with some kind of work. Poke never was a saver. He spent the majority of the money that he had made over the years on the cocaine that he sniffed and the young women that he couldn’t keep.

His visit with Poke earlier had him on edge the entire time. He knew that he was high as soon as he opened the door. His eyes were glassy and he was so jittery, you would have thought he had ants in his pants.

Khalil had just stopped by because he was in the neighborhood. Poke wouldn’t leave the Westside. He favorite saying was that he was “Westside born, Westside bred and when I die,
I’mma
be Westside dead.”

He pulled his silver Mercedes CLS AMG into the driveway of the last little shot gun house on Perry Blvd. Poke had inherited it from his grandmother. It used to be his stash spot, but now that he was broke it, was his residence. The paint was peeling and the grass needed to be cut. He had never known Poke to let this house look a mess. He had always kept it up because it belonged to his grandmother.

Khalil got out of the car and walked up the driveway. The neighborhood had improved quite a bit. The apartments on the Hill had a new owner who had tried to renovate them. The other shot gun houses had been knocked down and had been replaced with either Habitat for Humanity Homes or Duplexes. Poke’s spot stuck out like a sore thumb amongst all of the new buildings.

Poke ripped the door open before Khalil could even knock. “What’s good K’ my nigga? Come on in and have a seat. The king coming to visit the peasants; to what do I owe this honor?” He said with his loud booming voice.

“Go head on with that king and peasant shit Poke. I was just in the neighborhood and wanted to stop by and kick it with you my nigga.” Khalil looked around and the kitchen sink was filled with dishes and flies were flying everywhere. The floor was filthy and it smelled horrible.

“I’m just fucking with you Coach. Shit I’m just getting in myself. I have been out all night doing a
lil
’ homework, you know what I’m saying. I just got out of the shower. Need to go and grab me something to eat. I
ain’t
eaten in about three days.” Poke said

“I’m hungry myself, lets hit up one of our old spots and shoot the shit for a minute. We haven’t hung out in a good while.” Khalil said to his best friend as he tried to feel him out. Something wasn’t sitting right and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

“I know, cause you don’t come to the hood and fuck with us like you use to. You went from Coach K, to King K. A
muthafucka
can’t seem to get close to you now. But I understand if I was a millionaire a few times over, shit I wouldn’t be letting the peasants get close to me either. Or should I say piss ants.”

“Man quit talking all that nonsense, I wouldn’t be where I am today without you, my nigga. You have been my right hand, when I couldn’t use my left. I will always come where you are, whether I got a one dollar or one million dollars. Now come on, let’s go and get us some grub.” Khalil said as he walked out the door.

Poke followed behind him, his eyes shooting daggers.
Damn right he wouldn’t be where he was without me
. Poke had been the one in the trenches right from the beginning and now he found the green eye of jealousy rearing its ugly head and coming between the friendship that he had with Khalil for the past twenty-five years.

“Man, I like this
muthafucka
right here. I
ain’t
seen this one before. Make my
lil
’ S500 look like a
hoopty
” he said as he opened the door and slid into the passenger side of Khalil’s Benz.

Khalil was becoming agitated with all of the comments that Poke was making. He was acting like he was jealous. He had all of the opportunities over the years that Khalil had and more. Poke had never been to jail once, he had finished college and he had only one kid to take care of. Khalil was the exact opposite. He dropped out of school in the ninth grade, he had a criminal background as long as Bankhead highway and he had four kids to take care of alone. Plus the fact that he didn’t have any extended family, only his kids. Poke had his grandmother, aunts and uncles.

“
Preciate
that my
nig
’ but you know the S500
thang
is far from a
hoopty
.”

“Yeah you right, I like dis right here though, I need to be looking at me one of these myself.” Poke laughed to himself, thinking he would get one even better sooner more so than later.

They pulled up at the Beautiful restaurant on Cascade Road and it was not crowded, which was a good thing. This used to be one of their favorite restaurants back in the day; they would have their weekly meeting here with the rest of the clique to catch up or be briefed on what was going on with everyone in all of the neighborhoods. It had some of the best home cooked soul food in town.

They walked in and were greeted like they had just been there last week. Most of the same people had been working there for years except for maybe one or two new faces.

“Hey Coach K. Hey Mr. Slow Poke, how have y’all been doing? I haven’t seen y’all in a minute.” One of the cooks said as she put more food on the line.

“How you been doing? You are still looking just as young and beautiful as ever.” Khalil told the older lady who had been a cook there since they first opened.

“Hey Ms. Evelyn, I swear you get younger every day. Please tell me you just put some fresh oxtails out here.” Poke looked at the food on the line and knew for sure that he was getting something to go so that he could have some later.

They went through the line ordering all of their favorites and when they got to the register to pay, Khalil pulled out his Black American Express card and paid for all four meals, since he decided to get a to-go plate also.

He wanted to pick Poke’s brain, so as soon as they sat at their table, he asked “What’s been going on my nigga? We have been talking over the phone but we haven’t had a chance to kick it in a minute.”

One of Poke’s down falls in the game of life is that he has always talked way more than he listened. He wasn’t a thinker. He was more of a doer.

“Man, don’t you know Gigi has flooded the entire city with some of the best cocaine Atlanta has seen since the BMF got banged up. She got the game on lock. Hopefully she won’t forget where she came from, cause you know these young niggas out here lurking. She better make sure everybody eat.” Poke stuffed his face with collard greens and candied yams at the same time ran his mouth.

“Gorgeous remembers where she came from. Most of her team is made up of niggas she grew up with. She got some of Westside’s finest riding with her. She knows how to look out.” Khalil said in Gigi’s defense. “But let’s remember, Black
Sillk
snatched her up when she was ten and she only visited the west side. She went to private schools and shit, so even if she didn’t reach back, she couldn’t be held at fault for that. She has lived two separate lives.”

Taking in Pokes’ skeptical look, Khalil continued, “She got the right ones on her team though. I know that for a fact. Black
Sillk
has been dead for over two years, but his legacy will forever live on in the city. No one in their right mind would cross out his granddaughter, the person he left in charge. He helped build this city. He took care of so many people. Trust me Gigi got people looking out for her that she don’t even know about.”

Khalil ate his baked chicken and dressing and pondered on what was really going on with Poke. But knowing Poke like he did, even if he didn’t outright tell him what was going on, he would definitely show him by the time he dropped him back off at his spot.

“Yeah, I go in her club every now and then. One thing I can say is that
Sillk
sure did teach her well when it came to running a business. She got a good head on her shoulders. She had to get that from
Sillk
, cause God knows she didn’t get it from Solitaire.” He wiped his nose as he felt it draining.

“Shit Solitaire was your boo back in the day; you stayed running up behind her, even though you knew she would never leave James. She was strung out on dope and you still wanted to be with her. Gigi might as well be your step-daughter.” Khalil mocked him.

“
Dat
other twin, Beautiful dance at Magic City. Now that is the one that act just like Solitaire. That girl right there is buck ass wild. She is fucking out of both of her panty legs. Every time I turn around I see her with another dope boy or rapper. They look just alike though, one just got blond hair and one got black hair. They don’t even speak.
Ain’t
that some shit? How are you going to have somebody walking around the same city that look exactly like you and you don’t have a relationship with them. Gorgeous is one of the richest young bitches in the city. If she was my sister, I would put all my differences aside and jump on that money train. Shit, if I was a young nigga I would be trying to slide right up under her as we speak. She don’t got no nigga. Every time you see her, she is either with your girl Truth or her body guard. You know
dat
big
ol
’ nigga use to play football for Georgia Tech? I can’t remember what his name is, but I remember when he got hurt playing. He was in a coma for almost a year. He act like he retarded now, I don’t even think he can talk. I know she don’t go nowhere without his ass though.” Poke just went on and on. His mouth was like a faucet, once it was turned on, it just kept running.