Thug Luv 2 (3 page)

Chapter 3

Aaliyah stood in her office staring out the window. It felt damn good to be back at work. She would be lying if she said she didn’t miss waking up to Ace, but that was something she would have to get use to. At the moment, that was the least of her worries. Aaliyah knew numerous well-known street players that owed her father a lot of favors. It was finally time to collect. She was aware that in order for her to live a happy life, she would have to kill J’vion. Months earlier, he had gone into hiding. He wasn’t the type to stay down for long. If she knew him like she thought she did, he would be rearing his ugly head above ground sooner rather than later. She would be prepared and waiting.

“Aaliyah, you have a visitor by the name of Parker Davis,” Jennifer announced over the intercom. Smiling, she walked over to her desk then simply replied, “Send him back.”

She was surprised he had responded to her phone call so quickly. Recognized he was a busy man she would get straight to the point of why she had called.

As her office door opened, Aaliyah stood nervously as she ran her hands down the sides of her dress. Since the day of her father’s funeral, she hadn’t seen nor spoken to Parker Davis.

“Thanks Jennifer.” Aaliyah stated as she closed the door behind her.

“My, my, my, look at how much you’ve grown,” he said, admiring her beauty.

“Thanks for coming out on such short notice. I know you’re a busy man. Therefore, I’ll get to why I called you here.” Aaliyah said, pointing to the empty seat as she walked around her desk to sit in her huge, leather chair. Parker took a seat and waited to hear what Aaliyah had to say as he took in her neatly, decorated office.

“I need assistance with having my ex disappear for good.” She informed him, crossing her legs and folding her arms across her chest as she awaited his reply.

Parker didn’t speak as they stared into one another’s eyes while he rubbed his thinly trimmed goatee. Seeing that he was at a loss for words, she continued talking. “Parker, at least keep these two beautiful little girls safe for me,” she requested, holding up a picture of Serenity and Savanna. “I’ve always been able to handle myself in any situation I’ve been placed in,” she concluded.

“Who are they to you?” Parker questioned.

“Two smart little girls whom I’ve grown to love as if they were my own. I don’t care what I go through or what happens to me; I need to know they’ll be protected from any harm or foul play,” Aaliyah answered.

“Where are their parents?”

“Regrettably, neither of them may make it out of a situation that’s currently occurring in the streets,” Aaliyah answered. “Parker, please don’t sit in my face and act as if you don’t know what’s going on in my life. You may not be around but you have eyes and ears everywhere. I know you’ve been keeping watchful eyes on my every move since my father’s death,” she finished. Parker nodded his head with a smile.

“You’re every bit of your father. I’m sure he’s proud of the woman you’ve become,” he affirmed. “I have a few questions; do you love this Amir cat?” He asked looking into her eyes.

“Yes, if I didn’t, you and I wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

“You’re willing to throw away everything you’ve worked so hard for to not only get rid of a man who has no value in your life, but to protect another one who, when everything is said and done, you may not end up with?” He asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I’m not throwing anything away for anyone. I’m simply protecting myself and the ones I’ve grown to love. Relationships don’t have anything to do with this.” Aaliyah answered. “I’m pledging my loyalty to Amir, just as he has done for me. When I didn’t have anyone else to turn to, he had my back and held me down,” she informed him. “So are you going to do that much for me or what? I can handle myself. I’ve learned from the best,” she declared, referring to her father, as she leaned back in her seat.

Parker got up from his seat. “I’ll have some information for you in a few days,” he said, turning to walk away. He stopped walking then turned around to face Aaliyah once again. “I hope you know what you’re doing.” He said as he exited her office.

Now that business with Parker was taken care of, Aaliyah was ready to get back to work. She had case files to look over. Clients from all over were requesting her for their business needs. Aaliyah closed her eyes then said a silent prayer before she turned her undivided attention to the files sitting on her desk.

*

Ace was riding around Hampton roads with his music blasting and a choppa sitting on the backseat of his ride, a 9 mm on his lap, and a Desert Eagle riding shotgun in the passenger seat. Rumors around town was that J’vion’s pussy ass had formed a small army and was asking questions about Ace, as if he had gone into hiding or his name didn't hold any weight in the streets. Ace found it funny that a nigga who had shot his home up a few months back was acting as if it was difficult to find him. Ace remained the same and so did his address. The only time Ace was MIA was when he was spending time with his lady and daughters. When it came to his daughters, the streets or anything dealing with them was a non-factor.

What niggas needed to realize was that Ace wasn't your typical nigga. One thing about him was he didn't play any games when it came to his family. The sooner everyone realized that, the better off everyone would be.

Ace pulled up in the hood to find his niggas posted up deep as hell. He put his car in park and hopped out.

Ace shook hands as he approached the sea of people standing about. “Nigga, you know you can’t be rolling up on niggas like that. You could have gotten yo ass killed.” Jay said as he walked out of Larry’s front door. They shared a laugh and slapped hands.

“Baby boy, you already know I stay prepared,” Ace avowed, showing the 9 mm and Desert Eagle resting in his waistband.

“Fuck y’all got going on over here?” Ace asked as he removed the blunt from behind his ear.

“Taking these nigga’s money,” Boog answered with a blunt dangling from his lips, while he shook the dice in the palm of his hands.

“That nigga ain’t taking shit,” Jay laughed. Boog had already lost a few stacks but wasn't sweating shit; he was just enjoying his night, something he hadn't done in a long time.

“That’s light-weight money,” Boog declared as he blew on the dice before releasing all three. Everything was going well until niggas started getting drunk and talking about things they knew nothing about, like Ace and his current situation with his wife.

"I don't understand how you’re out here shooting dice when ya wife is somewhere needing ya help," Wayne slurred. It was no secret that Sunshine was out there waiting for Ace to save her. Word had spread like wildfire as everyone anticipated what Ace would do to save her, or what was to become of the mothafuckas who had crossed the line.

"You worried about the wrong shit," Ace said as he shook the dice before blowing in his hand, and then releasing them. Ace along with everyone else watched as the colorful dice bounced off the wall and rolled around the ground before each one stopped on a number, reading 4-5-6. "Just drop my money on the ground," Ace demanded as he picked up the dice.

“Wayne, why don’t you shut the hell up,” Jay said joining the conversation.

Ace waved Jay off. "If what you’re about to say has nothing to do with the dice game, please shut the fuck up," Ace stated calmly.

"From the looks of things, you ain't worried." Wayne instigated, taking a swig from the personal bottle of Hennessey he was holding.

"Wayne, why don't you just shut the fuck up!?" Jay spat. For once, he was eager to enjoy his night with no type of altercation. But at the rate Wayne was talking, he realized it was wishful thinking. Everyone knew a drunken mind spoke a sober man’s thoughts.

“Why y'all mad at me? I'm only speaking on what others are afraid of saying," Wayne avowed as he shrugged his shoulders.

Jay started to speak but Ace waved his hand in the air cutting him off.

"None of you mothafuckas ever gotta worry about me or mine," Ace informed them. “Yeah, I'm out here shooting dice with you niggas but that don't mean I'm not doing everything I can to save my wife. A real thug moves in silence." He finished as he tossed the dice to the ground and snatched up his money. He took the blunt Boog had just rolled and lit it. Then he left before he ended up bodying a nigga for talking about something he knew nothing about. Ace respected everyone and their opinions and for that, Wayne had gotten a pass.

Ace hopped in his car and pulled off. As he made it to the corner, he heard two shots. Ace shook his head as he finished the blunt. All because he felt he had disrespected him, he was confident Jay had just bodied Wayne. Ace felt it was a waist of bullets. Niggas were gonna talk; that was the least of his worries. Ace was only concerned with finding Sunshine alive and keeping his family safe at all cost.

*

The block had cleared out just that fast. "Why did you kill him?" Boog asked as he and Jay stood over Wayne's lifeless body. His eyes were wide open as his blood quickly spilled from his body onto the concrete ground beneath him.

"Because he talks too much!" Jay replied as he held his gun up to put another bullet in Wayne.

"Chill, he's already dead," Boog said stopping Jay from pulling the trigger a third time.

"Let's go to the shot house to have a few drinks.” Jay suggested, as he wiped Wayne's blood from his face and tucked his gun into his waistband.

"This nigga can't be serious." Boog thought as he watched Jay walk to his awaiting car.

"I can't tonight. I promised Tamera I wouldn't be out late," Boog informed him, following Jay to his ride.

"I understand," Jay said as he turned around then slapped hands with Boog. They embraced in a brotherly hug before parting ways.

Jay drove through the streets of Hampton thinking about life.

He didn't know what love or family was until he linked up with Boog, Ace, and Moony. Going from home to home would have any young boy’s head fucked up. All his life, surviving was the only thing he knew how to do. Jay shook the thoughts of his past away as he quickly wiped away the tear that was threatening to fall. Emotions were something he hated dealing with. Jay pulled up to the shot house, parked, exited his car, and then headed inside.

Chapter 4

Aaliyah was glad the work week had finally come to an end. Her work didn’t stop there but at least she would have some time for herself. The latest case she had taken on was in its final days. Just as she would any other, she had put her all into this case. She felt pretty good about the outcome.

To say she was worn out and tired would be an understatement. Exhausted would better explain how she had been feeling for the past week or so. Between the long hours at work and dealing with the nonstop energy of two six-year-olds, some days Aaliyah didn’t know if she was coming or going. Not to mention how worried she had been about Amir.

As soon as Aaliyah got into her car and powered on her phone, it started going off.

“Hello?” She answered, starting her car.

“Hey, it’s Keema. I was just calling to remind you of ladies’ night at my house tonight,” she said.

“Aww damn,” Aaliyah thought. She had totally forgotten about ladies’ night but it wasn’t intentional.

“I did forget and I’m glad you called to remind me. I’ll be there,” Aaliyah assured her.

This would be Aaliyah’s first time hanging with the ladies without Amir or any of the other men being present; she was delighted. She needed to pick their brains about a few things. She wanted to get an opinion from a few females who were dealing with some of the same issues she was dealing with.

“Okay, I’ll see you when you get here,” Keema said as they disconnected the call. Aaliyah smiled as she laid her cell phone on the passenger seat. Keema and the rest of the girls were cool. Friends weren’t something Aaliyah was use to having, especially female friends.

The driver’s door flew open; before Aaliyah could scream, she was vigorously being pulled from her car.

“Ugh!” She screamed when her back connected to the hard, concrete ground beneath her. Her head banged against the ground causing double vision. The pain that shot through her head and body was indescribable. Be that as it may, her survival instincts kicked it. She started screaming, throwing blows, and kicking at her attacker. Whoever it was had placed a gloved hand over her mouth to muffle her screams, while someone else grabbed and pinned her arms down to her side.

Aaliyah refused to open her eyes. The fear that coursed through her body could have triggered a heart attack.

“Yo, we gotta hurry up, mane.” The male holding her arms down expressed.

The unknown man leaned in closely and whispered in her ear. “Tell that nigga of yours that it’s easy to touch the ones he so call loves.” Aaliyah’s eyes popped open when she recognized J’vion’s voice. They locked eyes for a few seconds. If looks could kill, J’vion would have died right then and there. He removed his hand from over her mouth. Aaliyah hawked up as much saliva as she possibly could then spit it directly into his face. J’vion wiped it away then backhanded her with as much force as he could muster–drawing blood.

Aaliyah could feel and taste the warm liquid as her bottom lip split open. J’vion slapped her across the face again. “Let that nigga know he owes for killing my homey and I’m coming to collect his blood,” he roared, standing to his feet.

“Fuck you, you weak bitch. Tell him yourself since you’re so big and bad,” Aaliyah yelled.

“Oh, you better bet yo ass I’ma tell him.” J’vion snarled as he back-paddled then took off with his thug hot on his heels. “Aaliyah, we could have been so great together,” he said laughing.

Aaliyah tried to pull herself up from the ground. Consequently, each time she tried sitting up, pain shot through her body causing her to lay motionless. So many things were running through her mind at once that she couldn’t collect her thoughts like she wanted to. Serenity and Savanna came to mind, which initiated panic. Then she remembered the people who were watching them would lay down their life before they permitted anything to happen to them. That caused her to settle down as she slowly began to pick herself up. Tears blurred her vision as they rolled down her cheeks. She didn’t know what she had done that was so bad for her to be dealing with all the bullshit in her life.

Aaliyah managed to get off the ground and into the driver’s seat of her car. She closed and locked all the doors as she lay back in the seat and closed her eyes. Her entire body was aching and throbbing. It took her a minute to gather herself enough to put the car in gear then pull off. At first, Aaliyah had no idea where to go or who she could turn to in her time of need; she never really had any real friends. “Keema.” She thought as she headed to Shell Road.

*

J’vion felt slightly guilty for putting his hands of Aaliyah. At one point in time, he loved her ass more than life itself. But because he was sent to jail and she wasn’t into the lifestyle he lived, it didn’t work out. The fact that she had up and left him without as much as a goodbye or a good enough reason as to why pissed him off. Here she was willing to play second to a married man who was deep in the game just as he had been at one point in time. One thing J’vion always admired about Aaliyah was the fact that she was a rider and would hold you down to the very end. Truth be told, he missed her being in his corner; he had no one to blame but himself. He took her for granted and lost out on a good thing.

“Was that really necessary back there?” Will asked J’vion interrupting his thoughts. “I mean did you really have to hit her; she’s a lady?” He asked, taking his eyes off the road to look J’vion in his eyes.

“Let me handle my business the way I handle it. If you have a fucking problem with how I move, you can disappear.” J’vion advised, leaving no room for further discussion.

He smiled as a light went off inside his head. Reaching for his phone, he dialed Adam.

J’vion had gotten a lot of information about Ace from Adam. He knew Ace would do just about anything to protect the ones he loved; he was sure Ace had fallen in love with Aaliyah. Hell, look at her, who wouldn’t. She was beautiful and intelligent–a deadly combination. How would he handle the situation with both women in his face?

“Talk to me,” Adam answered on the third ring.

“I just made the first move, one I’m sure will have Ace out in the streets looking for me,” J’vion said chuckling.

Adam didn’t give a fuck what J’vion did or how he moved. He had continually warned him that Ace wasn’t the conventional street nigga. Random acts weren’t going to cause him to slip up or move without calculating his moves accordingly.

“What did you do?” Adam asked out of curiosity.

“I just attacked Aaliyah.” He stated nonchalantly, as if he had just beaten the hell out of another nigga. “Remember when we were talking about you letting Sunshine go?” J’vion inquired.

“I remember but I still don’t think it’s a good idea,” Adam responded.

“It may not sound like a good idea, but I promise you everything will work out for us,” J’vion reassured him. Adam sighed deeply on the other end. He believed if he released Sunshine, his work of kidnapping her would have been in vain. He would still have lost; he was tired of losing. Adam disconnected the call without responding. He needed to weigh his options before he agreed to release her. Adam’s concept was if he was going to die, so should Sunshine. After all, she wasn’t as innocent as everyone assumed she was.

*

Aaliyah pulled up to Shell Road in shambles. Her face was messed up; her head was pounding. All she wanted to do was crawl into bed and cry herself to sleep. She didn’t want to tell Ace. However, she knew she had to.

“Aaliyah, what happened?” Neisha asked being the first to spot her approaching.

Aaliyah walked into Neisha’s awaiting arms and broke down even more vigorously.

“He attacked me,” Aaliyah cried in her arms.

“Who did?” Neisha asked as she led Aaliyah inside the house.

“J’vion, my ex,” Aaliyah answered as she took a seat while Neisha went to get her a washcloth to clean her face.

“Your ex?” Tamera asked confused. Aaliyah nodded her head as she attempted to wipe the tears away. The more she wiped, the more they fell.

“I’m sorry to mess up ladies’ night but I didn’t have anywhere else to go or anyone to turn to,” Aaliyah confessed.

“There’s no reason to be sorry. That’s why we’re here.” Keema consoled her, walking into the living room. “We hold each other down just as our men do.”

“Have you called Ace?” Tamera asked; Aaliyah shook her head no.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to tell him,” she said. “He already has so much on his plate.”

“You have to tell him,” Neisha replied, handing her a damp cloth.

“I know I have to tell him eventually and I will. But can I pick you ladies’ brains about something?” Aaliyah asked as she cleaned her face.

They all took a seat around Aaliyah and waited to hear what she had to say.

“How have you guys been able to do it this long?” Aaliyah asked. “I mean dealing with the all-nighters and the unexpected events? Don’t get it twisted, I’m holding shit down but that doesn’t stop me from worrying.” She confessed as she looked around the room.

“It’s in our nature to worry,” Keema told her. “This lifestyle is something that you could never prepare yourself for. You just have to roll with whatever is thrown your way,” she ended.

“Love will have you doing things you said you would never do,” Neisha admitted.

The ladies talked about this and that until the front door flew open. Their conversation came to a halt when Boy, Boog, Jay, and Ace entered the room. Aaliyah looked around eyeing everyone, trying to figure out who called Ace.

“I’m sorry,” Tamera mouthed. “I had to call them,” she confessed. Aaliyah smiled; she wasn’t mad at all.

“Who did this to you?” Ace asked as he examined Aaliyah’s face.

“Amir, I’m fine,” she tried to comfort him.

“I didn’t ask you if you were fine or not. I asked who did this to you,” he repeated.

Ace felt bad. Here he was in the streets doing everything he could to find his wife but was neglecting his duties with Aaliyah and his daughters. He was obligated to protect them as well.

“I’m sorry,” Ace said before Aaliyah could say anything. “I’m fucking sorry,” he said planting kisses all over her face. “Here I am supposed to be protecting you and I’m not doing my job. I promise you this will never happen again,” he said, pulling her into a hug.

“Amir, this isn’t your fault. So, you have nothing to be sorry about,” Aaliyah said.

Amir and Aaliyah stared into each other’s eyes as he caressed her cheek.

“I don’t mean to break up ladies’ night but I need Aaliyah to come with me,” Ace stated, helping her from her seat.

“But why? Amir, I’m fine,” Aaliyah whined.

“Girl, go with your man. There will always be another ladies’ night,” Neisha declared. Aaliyah pouted as she gathered her things. Even though she wasn’t ready to leave, she wasn’t about to argue with Ace over it.