My Convict

7-Plan

+Brandy

My mind is blank as the soft sound of music plays through the speaker of my car. I'm parked outside of an old apartment complex, watching the rusty building like a hawk.

From across the street, I watch as the man known as JD sell a couple of Percocets to some teenager. The action causes me to shake my head, he could've told them, no, but like any other drug dealer money was everything. It didn't matter who they got it from. They'd most likely end up selling to a six-year-old if they were to cough up a good amount of money, which was sickening.

It's crazy how our world works.

The government makes the drugs, puts it in low-income communities, which mainly have blacks and Latinos and from there on these i***t drug dealers sell it, f**k up the community some more. Have addicts running up and down the place, f**k up the mentality of kids. And while all this is happening, the government is sitting back, making laws to keep us incarcerated for half our lives.

And the sad part is, you can tell these i***t drug dealers this and they'll still sell.

Why?

Because money is everything. It makes the world go round. But I don't blame them as much. They get arrested and do more time than they should in prison, let's not forget, they get charged with the most outrageous things. And once they get out, they can't get a job because of their record. Which leads them to become drug dealers, because it's the quickest way to make bread.

Then the cycle continues... over and over again.

My eyes linger on the dark skin girl with red hair, that walks up to JD after the teens buying from him left. She was a petite thing and had a body on her. From the 'I love JD' tattoo on her right arm, I already knew it was Yonnie.

It looks like it was true what my girls had said, she does have bruises all over her face. JD must have not liked the words that came out her mouth, because just as soon as she finished talking, he grabbed her by the arm and quickly pulled her inside of her apartment.

That was my cue.

Reaching into my glove compartment, I take out the unregistered 9MM Pistol that I got from some kid who tried to use it on his stepdad. His stepfather was beating him and his mother and all he wanted to do was make it stop. So he bought a gun from off the streets and before he planned on using it, he called me.

Before I could open the car door, the sound of my phone ringing stops me. Letting out a breath, I pick up my phone from the seat and stare at it as Tyson's picture pops up. "Hey, Tyson," I say, cooly answering the phone.

"Where are you?" He questions, not even saying hello.

I lie. "I'm at home. Why you asking?"

He scoffs. "At home." He repeats. "That's funny because I just stopped by your house." My heart rises. "No one picked up." I sigh in relief. "But then I got a call from Mia. She said to call you before you get yourself hurt," he pauses. "Just like last time." From the indication of his voice, it didn't take long for me to know that he knew what I was up too. "Let me handle it, Brandy."

I frown. "You mean how you were supposed to handle it last time?" My voice hardens. "You didn't handle it last time, which was the reason why I got hurt in the first place. And that's fine Tyson, it really is. But now, I'm gonna put on my big girl pants and I'm gonna handle it, just the way that I please. Since your way didn't work."

"You," he clears his throat. "You can't do it your way Brandy. Two wrongs don't make a right." He pauses, before continuing. "As a friend, I'll go to the police."

I blink at his words. "Go ahead, Tyson." I hit end on the call before he could say anything else. Him going to the cops should've worried me, but it didn't. Stepping out the car, I place the gun in my back waistband. My heart pounds deep in my chest as my feet move quickly against the outside concrete.

Reaching Yonnie's apartment, you can hear loud movements and screaming from outside the door. The thought of breaking the door down came to mind, but I quickly dismissed it because sadly, I'm no superman. So with all the courage, I could gather, I knocked.

Everything went dead silent.

You couldn't even hear Yonnie anymore.

"Who is it?" A deep voice booms on the other side of the door.

"It's Brandy," I say loud enough for him to hear me. Not even a minute goes by when I hear the door unlocking. Before he could twist the doorknob and open the door, I opened it, making sure to hit him hard in the face.

JD stumbles back, groaning. His nose is bleeding, heavily. "Yo, you fuckin b***h!" He yells. Walking inside, I slam the door shut, locking it. His apartment was small, a modern size for an apartment here in the ghetto. There is white powder on his glass table, which I'm guessing is crack.

From the corner of my eyes, a green light shines under a closed room door. "I warned you JD." Walking closer, my hands go behind me back. "The last time I was here, I warned you. Told you everything that would happen if you didn't keep your hands to yourself." My head shakes. "But you didn't listen, you continued to hit Yonnie, the only girl stupid enough to love your black ass."

JD glares at me as the blood from his nose begins to blend in with his dark brown skin. "I'm gon kill yo ass." He says, wiping at my nose. "And when I'm done, I might even take yo son in. Show him the way of the streets."

I walk closer, getting in his face. "I'll never give you the chance." Yonnie groaning in pain distracts me. I turn away from JD to get a good look at her. She looked messed up pretty bad, there was blood all over her face. Turning around to look back at JD, his forehead connects with mine. "Fuck." I curse, as I feel his wrong hands wrap around my neck.

"You stupid b***h, always getting in my motherfuckin business." He yells, applying more pressure to my neck. "Yonnie is mine and if I wanna beat her, then I'll beat her." He leans in closer. "I'll beat you too."

"Let go with me, you son of a b***h!" My fist comes up to punch him, but he's quick and blocks it. Lifting up my knee, I ram it in his d**k, causing him to let out a shriek. The feeling of his hard hands around my neck disappears instantly. Pushing him away from me, I quickly stand up. "Brotha's like you is what's wrong with the world." Bringing my leg up, I kick him. "Always want to put your s**t on other people. Blaming everyone for what's wrong with your life, except yourself." I kick him again, this time in the stomach. "This right here, it isn't me. But it has to be because I'm the only one that can protect these girls. I've never killed before, but I've come close to it. You're going to be my first kill JD." He starts groaning and yelling. "And it's your fault because you didn't value your woman or your life. So I'm going to end your life before someone like you does it. And when I'm done, I'm going to go home, have a drink, talk with my girls and hang with my son. You'll never be on my mind, and I'll never think about you ever again."

"Please don't." He finally begs. "Look I'm sorry, I'll change. I'll change."

My head shakes as I grab the gun from my waist ban. "Men like you don't change, you just make false promises." Pointing my gun at him, I sigh. "You prey off women who wouldn't stand a chance against you JD. And now, because of me, you'll have the rest of your dead life to think about what you could've done differently."

"Isaac." He says, out of the middle of nowhere.

My gun goes down, slowly. Raising an eyebrow I ask, "What about him? How do you know him?"

JD lift up his head, moving his dreads out his face. "He's the only reason why I didn't kill your ass the last time you were here. He said hurt you, but not enough to kill you."

My eyes squint. "What the f**k does this have to do with anything? And once again, how the f**k do you know each other?"

"I've been selling for him for the past two years now," JD explains. "He's on the top of the food chain right now and messing with one of his top dog dealers will set him back. Majorly." He licks his lips. "What I'm trying to is. If you kill me, he'll know it was you and he'll come after you. Do you really want that type of trouble?"

I frown. "I guess I do." Before he can even say anything, my gun is already aimed at his head. And with a deep breath, I pulled the trigger.

His brain matter was everywhere.

Walking into his black and white kitchen. I open his sink cabinet, looking for gasoline. When my eyes land on it, I unscrew the top and get to pouring it on the ground. Opening the door to the room with the green lights, the first thing that my eyes land on is weed. A Lot of it.

From the looks of it, it looks like the weed was ready to be pulled out and sold onto the streets. The green herb stands tall as it's many other parts does the same. I could see why JD was Isaacs top dealer, he was really active with his weed.

Taking the rest of the gasoline, I pour it on the weed and walk out the room.

"Yonnie, wake up," I say, shaking her.

She groans, sitting herself up. "What's going on?" She asked she could barely open her eyes.

"You look like s**t, that's what's wrong girl." Helping her up, I wrap my arms around her waist. "Come on, we have to go."

"Go?" She asks. Her head tilts. "What do you mean go? Where's JD and what are you doing here?"

I glare at her, pulling her by the chin. "Your face is all bruised up and you can barely even see. You're bleeding like crazy, so yes we have to leave. I'm here for your hard headed ass!" I say slightly getting angry. "JD is dead."

She gasps, covering her mouth. Tears brim against her eyelids. "W... why?" She asks, stuttering.

"Why?" I repeat. "Because he beat the s**t out of you... again. Like he always does. And as usual, he would've apologized and you would've taken him back. So I ended the fuckin cycle. Now go outside, while I finish this." She huffs but does as she's told.

When she walks outside, I take one of the many lighters sitting on the glass table filled with crack and light it. Connecting the lighter and gasoline I watch as the fire starts up. Moving like a snake, it lights up everything in its path.

Whitten seconds, a scorching flame is everywhere.

"Burn in hell JD," I whisper, before walking out the apartment. Not daring to look back.

○•○•○•○•

By the time I got home, it was one in the afternoon. The sun was bright as hell and my throat was hurting like crazy. I decided it would be best to get home early and just take a nap before Elliot got home. Since Michelle wasn't busy, I asked if she could pick him up from daycare and she said yes. I also decided it was best that Mia and Savannah come with Michelle when she drops Ej off.

"What the f**k happened to your neck?" Is the first question I'm asked when I walk through the front door of my house. Elijah takes short strides towards me, holding my chin up once he reaches me. His touch causes me to freeze as he examines my neck. "Brandy, what happened?" He asks again, this time more softly.

"I... I killed someone." I turn to leave, but he grabs me by the arm.

"What do you mean you killed someone?" He asks, confused. "Explain what the hell is going in right now."

My eyes start to puff up, but I keep my tears at bay. "I have this thing, where I black out sometimes and I do things. Things that I wouldn't normally do. This girl, that works at my shop. Her man beat her, he beat her like she was a fuckin rag doll and I couldn't handle it no more." I rant. "My mind blacked out and I went over to her house and killed him. Because, if I hadn't he would've done it again and killing him was the only way to stop him."

Elijah nods. "The girl is she alright."

I nod. "I took her to a clinic out of town." A scoff escapes my lips. "She was mad at me because I killed him."

"Because she loved him," Elijah says, causing my head to snap forward. "Most women who suffer from domestic violence, take the beating because they love their abusers." He pauses. "She probably loved him a lot and the thought of him being dead, even though he beat her, hurt."

"How do you know?"

Elijah shrugs. "My sister went through it." He says lowly. "She felt the same exact way towards my dad when he killed her abuser." Elijah let's go of my chin. "Did you get rid of any evidence of you being at that apartment?"

"I did, but it wouldn't have mattered if I didn't." He raises a brow in confusion. "JD was a black man that sold drugs, cops aren't investigating s**t like that. The system is cracked. They'd very much rather investigate a white woman whose purse been stolen."

Elijah stares into my eyes. "A... are you crying?" He asks, taken back.

I touch my face, feeling the wetness of my tears. "I am? I didn't even notice till now." Wiping my tears only seemed to make it worse. My lips trembles. "I'm just so tired of this stupid cycle. My dad beat my mom and she left him. And then I go and get a man that's just like him and he beats me. We all leave, but the damage... it stays." Elijah quickly pulls me in, wrapping his strong arms around me. The tears start to come down more to the point that it blurs my line of vision. "Some of these girls... they don't leave. They stay and... And they die."

"You can't carry the weight of the world on your shoulders perle. It just isn't possible." He says, tightening his arms around me. "Come on." He pulls my hand, encouraging me to walk. "You need some rest."

"Yeah, I do." I don't even put up a struggle as we walk. When he reaches my bedroom, he tucks me into bed. "My friends, they're coming over in a couple of hours. Ej will be with them."

Elijah scrunches up his nose. "Ej?" He asks.

"It's Elliot's nickname," I tell him. "His full name is Elliot James Robinson."

Elijah smiles. "My brother's name was James." He chuckles slightly. "Thank you, it means a lot."

My face falls as my eyes close. "You said was?"

His posture suddenly straightens. "I'm afraid that's a different story, for another time." Stepping away from my bed, he walks to the door. "Get some rest, I'll handle everything."

"Thank you," I mumble, feeling sleep taking over my body.

"Kein problem perle." Is the last thing I hear him say, before walking away to let me sleep.