Dirtiest Revenge (10 page)

*****

More than twenty minutes later, Trent, along with Marcos, was anticipating Marquise’s arrival, and Trent was getting annoyed.
Fuck this nigga taking so long for? I don’t want to have to body this nigga, too,
he thought. At that moment, the door to the spot opened up, and Marquise stepped in, wearing a grin on his face.

“
Nigga, we ‘bout to be on,” Marquise said.

Trent looked on with a confused expression. Marquise picked up on the expression that Trent wore. Then, he started to explain what he had found in the trunk of car.

“
I drove the car to a strip mall down by Trade Tech College. When I found a parking space, I popped the trunk to make sure shit was kosher. I stumbled on more than what my eyes planned to see,’’ Marquise said, grinning from ear to ear.

“
Fuck this nigga on?” Marcos asked.

Trent gave him the low down on the events that had taken place earlier.

“
So, what did you find?” Trent asked, raising a brow.

Trent sat on the stool across from Marquise. He liked the young dude, but he would bust a slug in him without warning if he didn’t like what Marquise had to say.

“
I’mma need help with these duffle bags,” Marquise said as he walked out the door.

Once at the car, Marquise popped the trunk. Trent’s and Marcos’s eyes lit up. Each one carried a duffle bag back inside. One was filled with money. The money was thrown around everywhere inside the bag. The other two smaller duffle bags contained all kinds of drugs, from crack cocaine to ecstasy.

Trent dumped the money and drugs on the floor. There was so much money that he didn’t even want to count it. He could look and tell there was way more than a hundred grand. He took out ten stacks and passed them to Marquise. Then, he stashed the dope and money in tiny compartments in the bedroom.

“
Take the car down to Jorge’s Garage on Figueroa and Ninety-Fifth. Tell him I sent you. He will know what to do. He owes me big time,” Trent said to Marquise. “Make sure you have someone to meet you down there.”

Once Marquise was gone, Marcos lit a blunt and asked, “What’s up with you and Kendra. What you going to do?”

“
Shit! She will be back at home on Friday. Don’t even trip, my nigga,” Trent said with a smile and confidence in his voice. “I’m gonna catch up with you later. I was handling shit before I was interrupted.”

Trent laughed. Then, he gave Marcos dap and left the house. Trent decided to wait before telling Nicole she had to bounce. He just wanted to have his dick sucked, smoke a blunt, and chill. When he arrived home, Nicole’s bags were sitting by the door. He looked around for her, but she was nowhere to be found. Trent was glad that she was leaving on her own instead of him making her go. She had made the job much easier for him. Trent rolled himself a fat blunt and turned on the TV. In less than ten minutes, he was out, exhausted from everything and everybody.

Hours later, he was rudely awakened by someone banging on the door. He could hear Nicole screaming, “Trent, I know you’re in there! Now, open the door!”

Furious, he snatched the door open and asked, “Bitch, why the fuck you banging like you the police?”

“
Well, I’ve been knocking for fifteen minutes, and I have to pee,” Nicole answered in a whiny voice.

Nicole looked Trent up and down. She could tell something was wrong, but she didn’t want to ask him because that would have been another argument. So far, she had dodged the bullet of getting her ass beat.

“
What’s up? Why are your clothes by the door, and where the fuck you coming from?” Trent questioned, already knowing the answer. He just wanted to hear her tell him why.

“
I want to be in a relationship, not just here for your convenience,” Nicole stated, sounding sad. She was hoping by telling him her reasons that it would change his mind.

Trent said, “Nicole, I don’t know how many times I have to say—”

“
I have a wife, ma,” she said sarcastically, cutting him off and completing his sentence. Then, she said, “I went out with Treniyah. Don’t worry. I had her pick me up and drop me off by the shopping mall, so your secret is safe.”

Trent grabbed his keys and yelled out, “Let’s roll.”

*****

They rode in complete silence. Neither one wanted to say good-bye. In Trent’s mind, he still wanted to fuck her from time to time and have her on his team, but he yearned for the love and the warmth of Kendra. She had been down with him for six years, and it was still going strong. Even though he had wifed her up and made it so she wouldn’t have to want for nothing, she still went out and got a job. She knew about his hustle, but she wasn’t interested in the streets. After he dropped Nicole off at her house, he returned home and, immediately, went to work cleaning up.

Damn! Time flies when you’re not paying attention
, Trent thought after he’d been tidying up for two hours, making sure everything was in order before Kendra came home. He had bought some new thousand count bed sheets and a quilt from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. He, then, made sure that Nicole hadn’t left anything behind. He knew how women liked to operate, to make their presence known. Just as he had suspected, Nicole had left a Dear Jane letter in the nightstand on Kendra’s side, but Trent was two steps ahead of the game.

“
Ha! The games bitches play, but they are no match for the Don Juan,” Trent yelled out.

Chapter 6

The timer on the oven went off, indicating that the roast was now ready. Then, he went to stir the yams and add bacon to the greens. The mac ‘n’ cheese was in the oven, baking to perfection. He knew that this was Kendra’s favorite meal. Although he hustled in the streets, he still knew how to get down in the kitchen. Because of this, his family called him Homeboy or Dee. Everything was perfect. The house was clean and smelling good. Dinner was almost done. Trent was amazed with himself. He patted himself on the back. A few seconds later, Trent’s phone vibrated. He flipped it open and saw it was a message from Kendra. It read: I’M SORRY, TRENT. I’M NOT READY TO COME BACK. PLEASE UNDERSTAND. I LOVE YOU DEARLY, BUT THIS IS ALL TOO SOON. CALL ME IF YOU NEED ME. SMOOCHES, KEN.

Trent, at that moment, felt as if he had gotten played. He couldn’t do anything but laugh at the situation. Going back on the block wasn’t an option, so he decided to fix himself a plate, smoke, and watch the Lakers whoop on the Celtics.

*****

On the other side of town, Kendra couldn’t make up her mind. She didn’t know if she wanted to stay or leave. She was so confused, and it hurt her deeply. Everything that she loved was gone from her life, but she knew she had to put her negative thoughts aside. Deep down, she knew that everyone deserved a second chance. Besides, her bags were already packed, waiting inside the car. Kendra didn’t bother to call Trent. She just wanted to surprise him when she arrived.
I hope I’m doing the right thing
, Kendra thought as she pulled into the driveway of the condo that she shared with Trent. After stepping out the car, she took a look around before opening the front door. She could smell the aroma from the meal Trent had prepared. Kendra’s stomach rumbled hungrily. She licked her lips and hurriedly made a dash into the kitchen. She was surprised at the lengths Trent had gone to so that her return would be perfect. Kendra made herself a hefty plate. She hadn’t had a real home cooked meal in a good while.

Walking back into the kitchen, Trent cleared his throat to get Kendra’s attention. “I’m not good enough for a phone call? You could’ve, at least, called to say you had changed your mind,” Trent said with concern.

Kendra was already seated at the table, preparing to take her first bite.

“
I just made up my mind fifteen minutes ago. Why? You want me to leave?” she said, pushing her plate away and moving away from the table.

“
Calm down, ma. You’re always overreacting. I’m glad you’re back,” Trent said, kissing her on the forehead.

“
Can you get my bags out the car?” Kendra asked with a mouthful of food. “Baby, you did your thing.”

*****

After dinner, they talked a bit. “I’m taking some time off from school. Instead of graduating this summer, I’ll graduate next spring,” Kendra informed Trent.

Trent sat back and listened. He was thankful to have his wifey back in his life.

“
Baby, I just want to say that I apologize from the bottom of my heart for causing you pain,” Trent said, looking deeply in her eyes.

Kendra’s eyes drifted away. She didn’t want to reveal the pain that was still inside of her. “Babe, I accept your apology. I just want to move forward and stop dwelling on the past. Can we do that?” Kendra asked.

Trent nodded his head in agreement as they kissed again. With everything back on track, Trent stayed in the house the majority of the time. Kendra thought he was showing a new side of himself. Truth of the matter, Trent was keeping a low profile. He wasn’t ready to catch a case, so he left the hustling to his protégé Marquise, while he and Marcos stayed at the trap house. Trent was cool with how the situation had turned out. It just gave him more time to be at home and more time to stay in trouble with Nicole. Now that Kendra was back, Trent planned to keep dwelling in his love triangle.

Since she had not been at work in over a month, Kendra had a lot of catching up to do on her first day back. She was swamped with messages and files. Within her first hour, she was in need of a break, and she needed one fast. The secretary buzzed through the intercom and said, “Ms. LaSalle, you have a call on line two, and Mrs. Harrison asked to see you.”

“
Thank you, Morgan. You can transfer the call through,” Kendra answered.

When she picked up the phone, the caller asked, “Hey, baby girl. Are you available to meet me for lunch?”

Kendra was stunned as she spoke in the receiver. “Wiz, is that you? How do you know where I work?”

“
I told you. I’m a man who gets what he wants, so how about lunch?” Wiz asked again.

Kendra agreed to meet up with Wiz only because she was curious to know just how much he knew about her. A part of her thought he was a stalker, but the thrill made it just that more exciting. She watched the clock carefully on the wall. “Ten more minutes. Ten more minutes,” Kendra kept saying to herself until it was her lunch time. Kendra looked in the mirror and did a once over, making sure no strand of her hair was out of place. As she exited the office, she decided to walk instead of drive. She didn’t want to get caught up in lunch hour traffic.

Kendra’s heart skipped a beat the moment she saw Wiz standing there, looking good. He wore a Yankee fitted hat, a Polo sweater with Evisu Jeans, and Gucci shoes with a belt to match. Wiz gestured for Kendra to join him in line while he ordered a venti caramel macchiato without the whip cream.

“
And the lady will have a grande frozen green tea,” Wiz told the cashier.

He paid for their drinks. Once they took their seats in the back, Kendra cut right to the chase.

“
You seem to know a lot about me. You have peaked my curiosity!” she said.

Wiz cleared his throat and said, “Well, I did my homework on you, Miss Kendra. When I see something I want, I usually get it.”

Kendra laughed. Then, seductively, she asked, “And what makes you so sure that I’mma be yours?”

Wiz relaxed a bit more in his seat and answered, “Well, for starters, you wouldn’t be here having lunch with me if you weren’t a little interested. You need to leave that little boy alone and deal with a real man. He’s not going to be around forever. Trust!”

Wiz was pretty sure that Kendra was going to be his. He just wished he could have met her under different circumstances. Wiz had a vendetta against Trent, and what better way to get back at him than through his wifey.

Kendra smiled. Then, she politely said, “Well, Wiz. My lunch is almost over, and I walked over here. Don’t mean to be rude, but I have to hustle back.”

When she rose from her seat, Wiz stood up and said, “I’ll walk you back to your office.”

Kendra smiled, “Sure. Why not? Thank you.”

They walked hand in hand and chatted until they reached her office. Wiz snuck a kiss in, which caught Kendra by surprise. She pulled away quickly and asked, “Nigga, have you lost your damn mind?”