SAVAGE

12

The sounds of the Hamilton Beach coffee maker distracted Detective Newton from his paperwork. He was so busy trying to get the whole story on Rudy, and that left him with tons of incomplete work on his desk.

"Can't you stop that damn thing from making those loud noises?" Newton asked, shuffling his files.

"What's the use? This old thing is almost done." Tilly replied as she banged on the black coffee maker, the noise seemed to go even louder with every hit she made.

"Might as well make the use of it, right? Stanley isn't going to get us a new one. With the budget this station is on, he can barely afford light bulbs."

"Well, you do have a point." She replied while dressing her black coffee. Tilly made her way towards her desk and took a seat.

Newton leaned in his chair and looked off in concentration. He punched his ink pen rapidly as while trying to think.

"A fifteen-year-old boy was shot and killed on Crawford Boulevard." Newton announced, causing Tilly to dart her eyes at him.

"I heard...Detective Gaines was talking about it."

"I covered the story while Gaines was out. I just gave him the case, so that's probably why you overheard him talking about it." 

"So, give me the information on this kid."

Newton sighed and said, "Well...he was shot and killed in the Crawford building. They found him dead with his eyes open. He was a bloody mess and—he had four bullet wounds. One in the leg, one in the stomach, and two in the chest."

"Shit." Tilly cursed. "Any witnesses?"

"I'm afraid not." He replied. "You know the usual...everyone's too scared to say anything."

Tilly sat there in deep concentration as she thought about the situation. It was hard being a police officer and working beside a police detective. People barely gave her respect or answers. She had to assert herself in order to get something.

"I was out there the other night and I ran up on this girl. The same girl who works at Malcolm's Bar. Jersey." Newton continued as he twisted his ink pen in between his fingers.

Tilly furrowed her eyebrows as she sat there in suspense. "Why was she there?"

"Apparently, she knows him. She's kin to him." He replied. "And if anybody has any answers about this case—it's her."

Tilly licked her lips and said, "Well, good thing this case belongs to Gaines. We're narcotics, not homicide. You did what you had to do—you covered the story."

"It won't hurt to get a statement from her. Don't forget that she's on the board now and she’s working at the bar. She knows what's going on in there." Newton replied as he stood up to pull the white blinds down.

He revealed a board that had pictures of possible suspects, along with their name and age. Tilly gave him a nonchalant expression as she looked over everybody. She didn't know all of them, just a few.

There was Malcolm, listed as the primary suspect and supplier. He didn't have a mugshot since he never got arrested before. Tilly also noticed Jersey at the very end of the board. Newton had her listed as an informant/possible suspect.

"You better get this out of here. If the chief sees this, he's going to suspend your ass. You know he doesn't want you near this case. This is not even supposed to be a case, Newton."

Officer Newton pulled the blinds down and looked over at Tilly. "This a case and I'm going to figure everything out. Malcolm will not win; I can promise you that. Now, I need you to go to that bar and speak with Jersey—alone. Let her know that you're my partner and she can talk to you about everything that's going on."

Tilly raised her eyebrows as she stared at Newton. She didn't know if she wanted to go to the bar and talk to Jersey. Malcolm's uncle, Dock, didn't want her hanging around. She would definitely have to catch her.

"Are you sure? I mean, I don't want to badger the girl."

"I'm serious and you better have a statement from her when you come back in this office."

_____________________________

"I hate dresses..." Jersey complained as she tossed the black dress Kelli handed her. She looked at herself in the mirror and smoothed out the front of her outfit. She wore all black. Of course, her aunt requested that color for her son's funeral. All black. Solid. No other colors. Jersey had on a cute blouse with some matching trousers that fit her little curves nicely. She wore some heels that were already starting to make her feet ache as well.

Kelli caught her dress before it could hit the floor. She darted her eyes at her friend and said. "You hate dresses, you hate heels. Friend, I'm starting to think you're a lesbian." She commented while thinking about her friend's s****l encounter with Malcolm, "Or at least bisexual."

"I'm straight." Jersey replied while fixing her pants. "Not liking dresses and heels does not automatically make me a lesbian or bisexual."

Kelli didn't even bother to reply. She wasn't going to argue with her friend about her s****l preference.

A couple of knocks on the door grabbed their attention. Both girls looked at each other for a second and eventually made their way towards the front. They were in the middle of getting ready for Rudy's funeral. Only Vena was supposed to be coming over, so they expected for her to be at the door.

Kelli carefully checked the peephole before opening. After Jersey started getting weird calls from Rudy's phone, they had been on pins and needles. Desperately trying to stay alive and watch their surroundings.

"It's Malcolm." Kelli stated in a low tone as she unlocked the newly added locks on her door. There stood Malcom. Looking dapper as ever. He wasn't dressed for the funeral since he wasn't going. Instead, he was dressed casually.

Damn. Malcolm cursed in his head as he looked at Jersey. Carefully, he examined her whole outfit. Instead of showing his feelings and complimenting her, he decided to speak on another subject.

"I see y'all getting ready for the funeral."

"That starts soon." Jersey replied, slightly rushing his visit.

"I came over here to make sure y'all good." He stated.

"We're fine." Kelli replied.

"Yeah, just a little jumpy."

"You two can't be moving around Brooklyn like everything is all good." Malcolm stated.  "Yo, what y'all need is some protection."

"Well, we don't have that kind of pull to just get protection." Jersey spoke up.

"That's why I'm going to help." He replied back.

Malcolm explained to the girls that he had an apartment out in Manhattan that they could use until everything was settled. Jersey wasn't feeling it because she didn't want to owe him anything. Kelli, on the other hand, was ready to leave.

"I don't know..." Jersey trailed off. "I just paid my debt off with you. I can't afford to pay you again."

Malcolm glanced over at her and said, "I'm not worried about you paying me back. Just go—so you can be safe. After the funeral, come back here and pack your bags. Call me on Kelli's phone when you're ready. I'll be over here to pick y'all up."

"Jersey? We need to be protected, so we're going." Kelli instructed her while looking over at Malcolm. "Thank you, put your number in my phone."

"It's no problem." Malcolm responded while grabbing Kelli's phone. He added his contact quickly and looked over at Jersey. "Get her to change her mind."

_____________________________

"Staying out late, again? This is the fourth time, Ryder." Hope told her boyfriend as she sat on the couch. She was busy folding up the laundry.

"I know." He replied while locking the door. "I had some business to take care of."

"All night long?"

He sucked his teeth while making his way into the kitchen. Hope struggled to stand up, but she managed to do so. Her protruding belly was huge and ready to pop. She waddled into the kitchen and eyed Ryder who was busy washing his hands.

"I know what you're doing, and I can't keep letting you walk all over me." Hope told Ryder as she stood there with a mean mug on her face.

"I ain't doing shit." Ryder replied coolly as he sipped on some water.

"You're cheating on me." She replied calmly while nodding her head. "And I'm hearing it from a lot of people."

Ryder gave her a look. He was disgusted but he knew she wasn't wrong. He had been cheating on Hope. For a very long time, with more than just one woman. Unfortunately, he wasn't ready to fess' up.

"That's your problem, you're always listening to other people. Don't you understand? Bitches want to see us broken up. They don't like what we have going on. Most of them hoes probably mad because you pregnant for me."

Hope looked down at her belly and back at Ryder. She was seven months pregnant and feeling every bit of her pregnancy. She had morning sickness, stomach aches, and breathing problems. Her first pregnancy was smooth, but this second pregnancy was giving her hell. She wasn't surprised since her current pregnancy was from messing with Ryder. He gave her hell as well.

He walked towards her and touched her belly. Immediately, the baby managed to react to his touch. He looked at Hope and noticed the hurt in her eyes. He knew that she loved him and would do anything he asked her to. She loved Ryder and she was in love with him. However, he wasn't in love with her. He loved her but not enough to stop sticking his d**k in other women.

He didn't resort to cheating because of Hope's looks or s****l rank. The woman was beautiful, and her s*x skills were ranked pretty high. Ryder just couldn't connect with her all the way.

He stood there and pushed her hair away from her brown face. Hope was biracial. She had the typical interracial parents. White mom, black dad. She sported wavy, sandy brown hair and green eyes from her mom while the rest of her looks came from her dad. Her pregnancies made her weight go up, so she was on the hefty side. Her weight was at 135 before children. After having her son, she went to 150 and now since she was pregnant again, she was knocking close to 190 pounds.

"Is it because of my weight?" Hope asked, looking at him. "I mean, I can lose it. Right after the baby is born."

"I'm not cheating." He responded while placing his hand on her chin. "I'm not worried about your weight, I love it."

Hope sighed while looking off. Her eyes grew watery which made her start crying. This was something she always did. Cry in front of him whenever the rumors about his infidelities riled back up. Ryder didn't say much but he hated when she did it. In his opinion, Hope was soft. She had no kind of backbone.

"Stop crying." He told her while wiping her tears. "This is our relationship. You can't let nobody ruin it, Hope. I'm out here trying to make money, so you and my daughter can eat." He touched her stomach again, rubbing on it.  "You act like you don't trust me."

_____________________________

Rudy's funeral was like any other funeral. Sad, depressing, and dramatic. In fact, it was so dramatic that it had Jersey ready to leave. Lisa fell out twice whilst her older aunt kept screaming. She shed a few tears as she reminisced on the good times she had with her cousin. Luckily, Kelli and Vena were there to help her get through the situation.

Everybody decided to go up to Rudy's casket and view him one last time. Jersey did go up and she examined her cousin for a while. He laid there; arms crossed with his regular mug. His face looked baby smooth and his hair was cut down real low, from his last haircut.

Jersey kissed her two fingers and placed them on Rudy's hand. She struggled to whisper to him, "I'm gonna miss you...so much."

After viewing his body, she took a seat beside her friends. They sat there and waited for the viewing to be over. Unexpectedly, something caught her attention. Jersey sat there with her eyebrows furrowed as she watched a young girl walk towards Rudy's casket.

The young girl looked old enough to be her little sister. She was very thin with light-skin and locs that were shoulder length. She was pretty—facial features wise. Jersey's eyes lingered below and noticed the swollen belly she was carrying around.

She watched carefully as the girl leaned over and whisper something in Rudy's ear. She then looked down at her belly and rubbed it. The girl must've felt Jersey's eyes on her because she looked over. They locked eyes until the girl decided to go back to her seat. 

After the funeral, Jersey managed to mingle with a couple of her family members. As expected, they were all sad about Rudy's sudden death and wished her aunt the best.

Jersey noticed the same young girl getting ready to take off. She decided to go over and introduce herself. Nosily, she lumbered across the room and greeted her.

She held out her hand and said, "I'm Jersey."

The girl looked at her hand as if it was diseased. Jersey, feeling played, pulled her hand back and gave her an innocent smile. "So, you uh...knew Rudy?"

"As a friend." The young girl spoke up. She sounded like a baby since she was one. "Why? Are you supposed to be his girlfriend?"

"Oh no." Jersey quickly replied back. "Rudy was my cousin. I just wanted to talk to you. I thought you were family."

The girl held a look of relief on her face as she touched her belly. "No, I was just a close friend of his."

"Oh, well okay." Jersey replied while leaning her head to the side. "And do you mind me asking, how old are you?"

The girl took a minute to answer the question. "I answered enough questions for you. I don't know why you're all up in my business. Stop being weird."

"No, I—"

The girl rudely walked away without looking back. Jersey watched her from behind in suspense. Something was up and she was going to figure the situation out.

She found her aunt and let her know that she was leaving. Lisa stood there looking stressed out. She didn't have herself together. In fact, the funeral wasn't even together. Rudy was being put away in a cheap looking casket—which Jersey could understand since she couldn't afford the better ones. Lisa held his funeral at this small, non-denominational church. He wasn't a member of a church and nobody wanted to hold his funeral because of his bad reputation.

"I have to go."

"But I thought you were coming over to my house. I'm cooking, Shaye and I are making a big dinner for everybody." Lisa informed her.

Shaye gave Jersey a small smile and that caused her to narrow her eyes. She shook her head and said, "I'm sorry, I can't. But I'll check on you later."

Lisa furrowed eyebrows and eyed her niece. The bags underneath her eyes were packed with worry as she stood there. Jersey gave her a small pat on the back and left to find her friends. As soon as she located them, they left before anymore relatives could stop Jersey. She was tired of hearing the same old lines.

Oh, Jersey you look wonderful!

You don't even look like you used drugs. (Rude)

How are you doing now? You still get the urge?

She wanted to get away from New York. 


_____________________________

"Y'all are moving? Where?" Vena asked both Jersey and Kelli with a serious expression written all over her face. "How come I'm just now finding out?"

"I didn't know if I wanted to go or not." Jersey replied to her friend as she took a seat on the couch. "But we're leaving for Manhattan today."

"What? So, am I y'all friend or what?" Vena voiced with an attitude. "Because lately I've been feeling like a f*****g acquaintance. Y'all been sneaking around and holding s**t back from me. What did I do?"

"You talk." Kelli replied honestly.

"I talk?"

"Yes, you talk too much Vee. We don't want our business out on the streets." Kelli replied.

"Yo, that's f****d up." Vena replied as she started speaking in Spanish. She eventually went back to English and said, "I would never do that to y'all. I have never put y'all business on the streets, so don't even try it."

"I think it's safe if you don't know anything." Jersey suggested.

"Try me." Vena begged. "I can keep a secret."

Kelli looked over at Jersey and that's when Jersey nodded her head, leaned back in the chair, and said, "Go ahead. Explain everything to her."

Kelli broke down everything to Vena. She told her about the money Rudy was hiding in his closet, the creepy phone-call Jersey got from Rudy's phone, and the affair that Jersey had with Malcolm.

"I didn't tell you to tell her that part." Jersey stated while sitting up straight. She had a stern expression on her face as she watched Kelli closely. She didn't want people knowing about her affair with Malcolm.

"I know you're not mad." Vena said to Jersey. "I mean, I'm not surprised you slept with him. I figured his crazy ass had a thing for you. Don't worry, I'm not gonna say anything. But I am happy that you got some d**k—is it big?"

Jersey looked over at her friend strangely.

"I don't think it was. That's the same look she gave me when I asked her about the s*x details." Kelli added.

"Damn..." Vena cursed while shaking her head. "All that body for nothing. Men stay d**k-fishing."

Dick-fish, as Vena called it was a term, they used to define men who stayed fooling women. Some body builders, for example, had nice bodies with small d***s.

"I never said he d**k-fished me." Jersey replied, taking up for Malcolm. He didn't have an over-the-top, huge d**k, but he still had length and girth. Jersey was a witness; Malcolm could definitely work his piece. "I just don't feel comfortable talking about him to y'all."

"Girl bye...he's probably talking about you to his friends." Vena replied before she could think. "I mean—he's probably not though. He barely talks."

Jersey rolled her eyes upward and stood up. "I'm going to pack."

"I am happy that you got that debt paid off. Rudy was wrong for what he did, but it is what it is." Vena voiced.

Knock, knock, knock

The girls stayed still as they listened to the knocks on the door. Jersey looked at them and noticed that they weren't going to answer the door, so she did.

"It's probably Malcolm." She said to herself while looking into the peephole. Unfortunately, it wasn't him. Officer Martinez stood on the opposite side of the door. Jersey furrowed her eyebrows while unlocking the door.

"Who is that?" Kelli asked but Jersey ignored her and opened the door. Tilly looked inside the apartment turned her expression into a smile.

"Good evening, how's everybody doing?" She greeted.

"Fine..." They remarked dryly. Vena turned around just so she could look at the policewoman. She noticed that Tilly was a fellow Latina like her. She knew the police since she worked in the area.

Tilly looked over at Jersey who had concerned eyes.  "Jersey Coleman, right?"

"Yeah..." Jersey answered with a head nod. "What's this all about?"

"I need to speak with you and ask you a few questions, if that's fine." Officer Martinez replied.

Jersey looked over at her friends with her eyebrows still furrowed. She didn't want to speak with a cop. Why was she being asked questions. She wasn't no criminal and she wasn't involved in any criminal acts.

"Don't get all worked up, you're not in trouble." Tilly assured her. "Let's step outside and talk."

Jersey nodded her head and stepped outside with Tilly to talk. They stood in the hallway and that's when Martinez pulled out her medium-sized notepad and ink pen. She was sturdy with it as she held it on the palm of her left hand.

"So... I was sent out here by Detective Gaines." She started off. "This quick questioning involves the late Rodrick Harris."

Jersey's eyes perked up as she stood there attentively.

"You lived with Rodrick and his mother, Lisa Coleman. Am I correct?" Officer Martinez asked.

"Yes, but only for a while." She replied in a low tone and watched as the officer scribbled on her paper. "I live here now. How did you find me here?"

Tilly looked as if she was caught with her hand in the cookie jar. "I'm a cop, it's easy to find anybody." She excused herself while changing the subject. "So, what was your relationship with him?"

"He was my...cousin." Jersey answered.

"Do you know if he was involved in anything? Like a gang or something?"

"Rudy wasn't that kind of boy. He wasn't involved in a gang." Jersey lied while looking the officer straight in the eye. Truthfully, her cousin was involved in a lot of s**t, but she wasn't going to tell the officer that.

The questions went on and annoyed the hell out of Jersey, but she managed to keep a straight face and lie her ass off. Until one question caught her attention.

Martinez placed her hand on Jersey's shoulder and looked around before speaking. She had a cautious expression as she leaned over and talked.

"I understand that you're working with Detective Newton, as an informant?"

Jersey shook her head no. "I'm not."

Tilly narrowed her eyes and asked, "Are you sure?"

"I'm positive."

"Can you tell me anything about Malcolm Sullivan and his bar?"

Jersey scoffed before pulling away. She eyed Martinez wholly before speaking. "I don't know anything about Malcolm. I don't know anything that goes on in his bar. All I know is that he's my boss and I work for him. He's not doing anything illegal around me, okay? I'm done answering your questions. Have a good day, Officer."

Jersey tried to open the door, but Martinez stopped her by gently grabbing her arm.

"I just want to help you. You're surrounded by bad people, Jersey. If they go down, so do you. Especially if you around illegal acts and know it."

Jersey eyed the woman for a minute before pulling away. "I'm telling the truth. I don't know anything."

"Well..." Tilly trailed off while grabbing one of her business cards. "If you have anything to report, please don't hesitate to contact me." She suggested as she held out her card. Tilly didn't know anything about Jersey's relationship with Malcolm. She figured the girl would say something about his wrongdoings.

Jersey hesitantly accepted the card and opened the door to Kelli's apartment. She heard someone yelp in pain, so she pursed her lips and waited for her nosy ass friends to remove themselves from the door. When they did, she walked inside with an annoyed expression on her face.

"What's wrong?"

"Y'all heard everything." Jersey stated while making her way towards the back. The girls wasted no time following her to her bedroom.

"Why is she questioning you like that? What's going on Jay?" Kelli asked as she sat on the bed.

"People are after Malcolm...and for some reason, they're assuming I know everything about his moves when I don't. She even had the nerve to ask me about Rudy."

"I hope you're telling him about this encounter." Kelli inserted.

"Oh, I am."

"That's right girl. Let your boo know." Vena teased her.

"See, that's why I don't tell you nothing. You so damn messy." Jersey replied while looking at Vena.

"Jersey, this is serious." Kelli voiced with a stern expression on her face. "You need to really talk to Malcolm about this shit."

"I am."

"Right now, because I'm looking it up now." Kelli replied as she scrolled through her phone. "See, this is why it's good to research s**t. Officer Martinez questioned you about Rudy, right? That's what I heard when I was eavesdropping."

"Yes, that's right. She said Detective Gaines sent her."

"It’s all coming to me now!" Kelli exclaimed. "Remember on the night of Rudy's death? Newton was out there filling in for Gaines. He had Gaine's partner with him."

Jersey thought about it and remembered seeing Detective Newton out on Crawford Boulevard. He was busy trying to get statements from witnesses.

"Yeah, I remember that."

"Jersey...I always see Newton and Martinez together. They're partners—in the narcotics division. They're using Rudy as a way to keep tabs on you. I'm sure Detective Gaines, who is in the homicide division, could've sent his own partner out here to talk to you."

"I figured it was a front." Jersey replied. "But I didn't give her any information. I stayed solid. They just keep worrying me about Malcolm."

"You should report her crooked ass to him." Vena snarled.

_____________________________

"Hey..." Jersey greeted Malcolm awkwardly as she held Kelli's phone in her hand. She had it on speaker.

"Are you ready?" Malcolm asked.

"I—just about." She replied nervously. "But if you want to, you can come now."

"Alright, cool. I'm bringing Ryder with me."

Jersey looked over at Kelli who couldn't seem to stop blushing.

"That's fine. We'll see you when you get here." Jersey ended the call and looked over at her friend.

"You're blushing." Jersey pointed out as she watched her friend. Kelli stood before her looking beautiful, as usual. She was wearing a laid frontal that looked good against her caramel-skin complexion. The frontal was short, black, and very wavy. She made sure to lay her baby hair as well.

"And you're nervous with your shy ass. I don't know why you're you're acting like that. You already gave him the goodies."

"Shut up." Jersey responded playfully.

"But look, I haven't seen Ryder in a minute. We're both always working, you know?" Kelli informed her friend.

"Yeah, so what's going on between you two?"

"Nothing really. I mean—we meet up for s*x. That's about it. That's all I want anyway."

Jersey looked at her friend awkwardly and asked, "You still want to be with Travis?"

Kelli turned her head in aggravation.

"I'm just saying...he's no good. And I don't want him knowing where we're located either. He'll just tell Quinton."

"I'm not going to tell him anything. If he wants to meet up, then we'll just have to get a hotel or something."

"Just like you do with Ryder?"

"f**k you." Kelli cursed with a smirk.

They waited around for the men to arrive. It took them about twenty minutes to get there. Malcolm claimed the traffic was pretty bad. Jersey didn't care about it, really. She didn't have room to be picky nor petty. She watched as Kelli wrapped her arms around Ryder's neck and he didn't hold off on from kissing her.

"I missed you." Kelli told him with her lips still plastered on his.

"'Missed you too." Ryder replied back.

Both Malcolm and Jersey looked over at their gushiness and couldn't help but to feel awkward. Jersey cleared her throat and looked over at him.

"So, um...we should start getting the bags." She announced.

"Yeah, I'll get your stuff." Malcolm replied.

Jersey guided him to her bedroom. She watched as Malcolm grabbed a couple of bags. They would have to get as much as they could since Kelli's apartment was upstairs. It wasn't way up, but she stayed in the middle.

"I need to talk to you before you leave back out."

"What's up?" Malcolm asked as he placed the bag down and looked over at Jersey. She laid eyes on his gorgeous face and couldn't help but to freeze up.

Malcolm was handsome with a hint of danger. He always wore this vicious look that caused people to turn away. Jersey, on the other hand, wasn't afraid of it. She was actually turned on by it.

He licked his thick, brown lips and noticed her staring at him intensely. "Jersey?"

"Oh." She replied while shaking her head. "I'm sorry, um...I wanted to tell you about Newton."

"I don't want to hear about him right now." Malcolm replied as he grabbed the bags again.

"But you need to. He's still badgering me about stuff. This time, he brought his sidekick out here to question me about Rudy's death and you." 

Malcolm stood still and looked over at Jersey once again. "Sidekick?"

"Yes, his partner. Officer Tilly Martinez. She stopped by today." Jersey replied as she pulled out a business card and handed it to Malcolm. He grabbed it, examined it, and scoffed.

"I'll deal with it." He responded calmly but in reality, he was pissed. He didn't understand why Tilly was still probing Jersey.

"I didn't say anything." She added while looking up at him. Malcolm only nodded his head and proceeded to leave out.

_____________________________

After packing Ryder's truck with Jersey and Kelli's belongings, they headed straight for Manhattan. On the way over, Ryder headed to this nearby taco stand and picked them up a couple of tacos.

"Don't spill that s**t in my truck." Ryder warned the women.

"We’re not going to waste anything in your precious ride." Kelli assured him while unwrapping her taco. Instead of eating, Jersey decided to sit back and look out the window. The sun was beginning to set, so very few people were out. However, the Mexican elder at the taco stand had a line filled with customers.

"Why aren't you eating your tacos, you're not hungry?" Kelli asked her as she swallowed the remaining food in her mouth.

"I forgot you a picky eater." Ryder pointed out as he pushed his accelerator.

"I eat tacos." Jersey responded back. "I'm just not in the mood to eat right now."

Rudy was heavy on her mind and that caused her to grow sad. She just felt like he deserved a chance. He deserved a chance to live and grow. Rudy was so young—fifteen to be exact. He didn't know anything, and he always looked up to the wrong people. Jersey tried to steer him on the right path, but he wouldn't listen to her.

Malcolm turned around and watched her for a few minutes. He knew that she was still grieving over the death of her cousin. He could see it in her eyes. He nodded his head lightly and turned back around. Malcolm knew what had to be done.

After forty minutes of loud music, weed fumes, and talking, they finally made it their destination. Malcolm walked them towards this building that was similar to any other building you would see in New York. Air conditioning units were in some of the rectangular-shaped windows and there was a couple of fire escape staircases.

They made their way inside and noticed that the security guard sat at his desk with a television on the table. He leaned over the desk while twirling his keys. Jersey looked over at the bald-headed man and wondered if he really did his job. When he noticed Malcolm and Ryder walking in, he gave both of them a head nod and continued to look at his show.

They took the elevator instead of the stairs and Malcolm led them to this particular apartment door. He opened the door and allowed the women to go in first.

Jersey looked around and realized the apartment was basic. She was expecting for it to be extravagant, but she was looking at a basic apartment with basic furniture. Instead of complaining, she just placed her purse on the coffee table.

"It's not much but it'll keep y'all safe." Malcolm stated as he looked around the place. "This is my other safe-house. It's cool out here, nobody knows about it."

"This is a nice spot." Kelli commented with a head nod. "Jersey, they even have a nearby movie theater too."

"Yeah, the places are pretty in walking range." Ryder added as he placed his hand on Kelli's hip.

"This place has two bedrooms—fully furnished and one bathroom." Malcolm informed them but his eyes were on Jersey.

A wave of relief hit her as she looked over at him. She plastered a small smile on her face and said, "Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me." He replied while shaking his head. Malcolm looked over at Ryder and said, "Let's get the rest of their things."

Both men left, leaving the women to talk amongst themselves. Jersey looked over at Kelli and asked, "What do you think about this apartment?"

"It's very plain, but we'll spice it up. You know I have to have some fur on the floor or something."

"Faux fur." Jersey corrected her as she looked around the apartment. The kitchen was small but tidy and neat. The rooms were small as well, but they were fully furnished with up-to-date beds. Kelli beat Jersey and grabbed the room with the high, upholster bed. She left her friend no choice but to get the low, platform bed. It was covered in pillows and blankets.

Malcolm placed Jersey's bags on the bed and a pill bottle fell on the floor. He picked it up and noticed that she was taking medication for hallucinations. Instead of questioning her about it, he decided to mind his business by putting the pill bottle back in her bag that was filled with medication.

The men helped the women settled in and they decided to leave afterwards. Jersey noticed Malcolm reaching for his keys, so she called his name.

"Malcolm."

He looked over and that caused her to freeze up.

Why did I just do that?

Why did I call his name?

Honestly, she didn't want to be left alone. Whenever he was around her, she always felt protected. She also wanted to be under him since he was doing so much for her.

"I—uh...wanted to ask you about that phone. Did you get it traced yet?" She asked, trying to keep from making a fool of herself.

"I haven't got to it but I will soon." He remarked. "I'll let you know."

"Well, okay. That's fine." She replied in a calm voice.

Jersey watched as he and Ryder left. Kelli locked the door behind them and told Jersey that she was going to shower. She nodded her head and went into her new room to discover everything. She made sure to close the door as she began to peek and probe around. Jersey was nosy, so she made sure to check the drawers, the closet, and etc. She found nothing since everything was empty.

To keep herself busy, she decided to put her clothes and other things away. While digging through her bag, she ran up on a journal that she found in Rudy's closet. Jersey grabbed the journal and opened it. She told herself that she wasn't going to read it because she didn't want to invade her cousin's privacy. However, she let her nosiness get to her.

Jersey noticed Rudy's signature; his handwriting was terrible. She flipped through the journal and read through some of the stuff he wrote. He talked about how he wished his dad was still alive and how hateful his mom was. Rudy even wrote about Marcus and his plan to rob Malcolm.

Her eyes bugged on one page that had her stuck. She took a seat on the floor and proceeded to read the whole page. From word to word.

I have $20,000 and a plan. I'm still trying to figure everything out and what can I do to get Ashanti to agree to run with me to Colorado. I don't have to hide or look over my shoulders since Jersey is taking the blame. All I need to do is see how I can get Ashanti on the same page. She doesn’t want to run off because she's scared. I don't want to leave her behind. I don't want my baby to grow up without a father. But I can't get in trouble either.

"I don't want my baby to grow up without a father, but I can't get in trouble either." Jersey repeated to herself in disbelief.

What did he mean by that?

She looked up and put everything together. Ashanti was the young, pregnant girl who attended Rudy's funeral.

She was a little hurt that her cousin was going to leave her in such a mess with Malcolm. However, she felt bad for Ashanti. She had to do everything on her own now. Rudy wasn't around to help her with the baby.

_____________________________

Malcolm hopped in the shower and made sure to bath every crevice and crack there was. After drying off thoroughly, he moisturized his body with some lotion. He threw on some clothes and went straight into his room to chill out.

His dog, Ivy, trotted inside the room. Malcolm called her over and she wasted no time climbing in his bed. He rubbed her clean coat and eyed his dog for a minute. Ivy was a bluenose Pit-bull and very friendly. Malcolm didn't train her to be aggressive since he didn't want her like that. Although, she was very protective of him, but that was natural.

He grabbed his phone and called up Micah who answered on the second ring.

"Did you make it yet?"

"I'm over here now." Micah replied coolly.

"Good. I'm giving you the go to do whatever you need to do. It's over. Just make it quick." Malcolm ordered.

"I got you."

He ended the call and thought about the hit he just ordered Micah to do. Marcus and Jamar were done. After all the s**t they caused, it was time to put an end to them. He didn't know what Micah was going to do, he just hoped he did it with no problem.