Cartel Dreams: A Love Story (6 page)

“You been fucking with Mata lately?” Manuel hit me with the question not even five seconds after I handed him the blunt.

“Naw, I told him I would get with him when I was ready. But it’s been a few weeks and I haven’t re-upped with him.”

“You know he’s gonna suspect something.”

“Fuck what he suspects. I’m trying to get money and become my own boss. He’s taxing too much. I ain’t never gonna be where I wanna be if I keep fucking with that nigga,” I snapped.

“Hmm…” Manuel stroked his chin.

“Man fuck that end. I got that shit wrapped. So what’s good on this end, Manuel?” I said keeping my eyes on our surroundings.

“Shit, bro. I told you at the club that I got the hook up for you. But I don’t know if you can handle this kind of weight,” Manuel exhaled an opaque cloud of smoke.

“Man, let me worry about that. Now how the fuck we gonna do this?”

“My sister works for the airline, see. She and her friends will help you but you have to pay them well. They want $5000 each every time they carry a shipment and you all make it back to the states safely. You are to pay them cash the next day. You all can meet at Creed. But my cousin is waiting back home. He’s ready when you are,” Manuel said as he handed me back the blunt.

“Look, I need motherfuckas who ain’t gonna punk out on me at the last minute and shit. If they with it then let’s do this. But if they’re scary leave them where they’re at. You feel me?”

Manuel turned his entire body my way hawking me dead in the eye. “Let me tell you something right now. None of my family is scared of shit, dog. Not even death. We could’ve gone to anybody we wanted with this shit, even Mata. But we decided you would be the better man for the job. We’re trying to get money. So if you’re scared, I suggest you get the fuck out my car.”

I eyed the nigga trying to figure out who the fuck he was talking to like that. He had no idea that at any given time I could have blown his fucking cap off with the nine tucked neatly away in my shorts. I never went anywhere without my Nina. She was my bottom bitch. Instead, I respected his words. I respected what he said because it sounded real. It didn’t sound like he was trying to bullshit me and he was about the same shit that I was.

“Ahhh, my nigga. Alright, let’s get this money.” It was the only time since meeting a few nights ago that we shook up with each other. It sealed our deal and the only way out would cost both of us blood and one of us death, we knew.

“That’s what I want to hear.” He hit the blunt again. “We booked you a flight for tomorrow morning at five.”

“Damn. So you just knew I was going to be with it huh? But why the fuck you make the shit so damn early?”

“Because at those hours, it ain’t that many people trying to do their jobs. Trust us on this. You will never travel during the day when you go there, only early in the morning or late at night. Don’t worry. We’re going to make you a very rich man.”

“Trust you. I don’t fucking trust nobody.” I took a hit of the blunt.

“And why should you? This shit is about business not friendship.”

“Exactly. So where’s the information?”

He handed me an airline ticket along with a long white envelope filled with credentials on how to reach his cousin once I landed.

“You’ll be there for two days so make sure you learn everything you can.” Manuel’s voice turned raspy before turning towards the window coughing up a lung..

“What the fuck is wrong with you? You straight?”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m just a little sick. That’s all.” Manuel snatched a napkin from the glove box and began coughing inside it coming up revealing blood in the white tissue.

“Awe shit and you got me in here smoking with your ass Manuel. Damn,” I snapped.

“It’s not that kind of sickness motherfucka. Look you just make sure you get your ass on that plane,” he said as we shook up and I exited the car.

I headed back towards the house noticing Yessi and Paris exiting the front door. “Y’all leaving already?”

“Well, we just came up here to bring you your birthday gift. I’ll just sit the envelope right here and when you’re ready to open it, then you open it,” She grinned sliding a long white envelope in my back pocket. “He loves you, baby, they both do. Your parents just have a hard time showing it. You know that.”

Her words fell on deaf ears. All I could hear was the music blasting through the house as they jumped in their truck and pulled off. As my lips tasted the grape flavor of the blunt, my lungs exhaled yet another big cloud of smoke releasing it into the air. I was high as fuck, enjoying the mellow feeling that began to come over me. With every puff I started to realize that my parents’ bullshit was irrelevant today. Fuck them. Today was about me.

My eyes widened as I gazed over at the front door watching while Montana bumped up against shorty, Daisy. I must have been so high or too busy watching Yessi and Paris take off that I didn’t even notice her walk up to the porch or him come out. She looked up at him as if he was giving her enough stimulating conversation. That nigga was known for snatching bitches quick, I taught him well, so I couldn’t give him enough time to make her smile.

“Ay, bro.” I said greeting my nigga, shaking up with him. “What’s good wit’cha?”

“Happy Birthday my nigga! Boi, boi, boi. You getting’ old there, boi boi,” he replied in his most unsavory Southern imitation accent. “I just came in through the back looking for you, parked in the garage.”

“Thanks bro, real talk,” I responded casually stepping in between the two of them giving a little space stuffing my fists in my pockets. “Uh, why don’t you go get yourself a drink my nigga? We’ve got much business to discuss. I’ll be in there shortly.”

“Well I was just about to meet um… I’m sorry. I didn’t catch your name Ms. Lady.” Montana reached around me extending his hand out to shake hers. “I’m Montana Black.”

“Oh, so I get a first and a last name from you huh? Hi, Montana. My name’s Daisy Faye.”

“Pleasure meeting you Ms. Faye. It is Miss, isn’t it?” He continued courting her.

“It sure is,” she flirted back.

“Daisy here was a little feisty earlier when I invited her here but it seems she may have come around and decided to join us for the party,” I interjected.

“No, I wasn’t actually coming to have fun. I was just stopping in to make sure that my girl Embry was okay. I told her I would check on her,” Daisy spoke.

“Oh I’m sure she’s fine. She’s grown. She can handle herself.” I waved the thought of Embry off.

“Yeah, that’s the very thing I’m afraid of,” Daisy laughed.

“Well you mind if I speak to you for a minute before you hunt her down?” I stepped completely in between the two of them breaking their gaze to one another.

“Um sure. I guess,” Daisy responded as I turned back to Montana letting him know to meet me inside to talk business later.

“It was nice meeting you, Daisy.” Montana waved.

“Likewise,” Daisy responded as Montana disappeared into the house.

Even though a shitty look of hatred grew slightly on his face, he got the picture pimping off with a sly smirk and a quick jot of his eyes back to her banging body. Her dress was hugging all the right places. It was a classy and elegant yellow strapless sundress that hugged all the right places. Her waist was perfectly contoured as I daydreamed of her backside. I could see the moonlight in her eyes as she looked up at me. I didn’t know what it was about her but something lured me in like a fat kid to cake.

“So what’s this about, rude and obnoxious neighbor?”

“Damn what I ever do to you?” I asked pretending to act shocked. “Okay, okay. Scratch that. I think maybe we may have gotten off to a bad start somehow. Can we at least start over?”

“Why?”

“Huh?” Now I really was shocked.

“Why should we start over?” Daisy crossed her arms. “I’m saying, you don’t owe me anything. So why should we try to start over and make nice with each other?”

“Listen baby girl, I’m just trying to get to know you better. That’s all. I’m not on shit.” I held my arms up in surrender with the most humble voice I could muster.

“You’re a playa. Every time I see you it’s with a different girl every time and just recently you were unable to tame those hoes in the front yard. So why would I allow you to get to know me?” Her eyebrow raised and her attitude became heated. “So you can treat me like those chicks?”

“So you judging me?”

“What? No, I’m just stating the facts I see with my own eyes. Just like I saw you out here with Embry.” Daisy shook her head.

“Woman ain’t nobody checking for your friend. Shit, to be honest, I’m trying to see what you on. But you keep shooting a nigga down and shit. You judging me and you don’t even know me.”

“And I may never know you,” Daisy snarled as she walked away headed back towards her house.

“It’s like that?” I called after tossing my hands in the air. “You just gonna leave like that? On my birthday?”

“Yep. Goodnight Q.” She waved swaying her lovely wide hips as she moved up the stairs. “And happy birthday.”

“It’s Quince, to you,” I replied as she turned back to me shooting me a faint smile. I knew I was breaking through that Berlin wall she had up slowly but surely.

“Q. How long you gonna leave me in here waiting on you?” Embry pushed my door open just as Daisy closed hers.

I sighed heavily in disgust as I skipped up my stairs heading past her to find Montana. She threw her hands up in the air following up behind me inside. The music banged so hard that I bounced trying to get as far away from her as possible pretending to be dancing. I found Montana and wrapped one arm around his neck pulling him out the door onto the deck so I could hit him with the knowledge I had for him. Embry stood in the corner sipping on a beer keeping one eye dead on me. I’m gonna see if I can pawn her ass off on Montana when we’re done talking. She was just too damn thirsty.

Chapter 6

Daisy

I was late as fuck. I don’t even know how the fuck I ended up oversleeping. Momma hadn’t even come home last night. I could only assume she had too much fun last night with her little date. I started to just throw on a fitted jogging suit and go. Instead I opted for my mother’s all white lace Jovani dress with the nude underlay. It had a plunging neckline so I knew I would stop some hearts with my girls pushed up to my chin.

After I showered, I lathered my body from head to toe in Victoria Secrets lavender smell goods, dressed and hit the bathroom again for the mirror to complete my beauty. As I finished applying my makeup to my face, I released my mid back length dark hair from it’s bondage thankful that I had previously flat ironed it from its naturally curly look and hadn’t gone to the gym today to sweat it out.

Checking my make up for a final time in the hall mirror, I jetted out the house spilling all of my paperwork out of my folder as I struggled to lock the front door. It was a mess and the papers flew everywhere.

“Fuck,” I bellowed gritting my teeth.

“Aight, I’ll holla at you,” Quince said as I looked up into his and Embry’s faces.

Out of the clear blue, my heart dropped out of my chest and onto the ground. I didn’t even like the guy…that much. Why the hell was I feeling this way? Probably because I knew Embry had to let him dog fuck her into oblivion so she could get whatever she wanted out of him. He wasn’t even her type. She didn’t like regular guys. She liked niggas that balled out of control, drug dealers, and ones with good jobs that made as much as her daddy. Why did she have to go and fuck with him and why the fuck did he have to live right next door to me? Ugh. I dreaded the thought of having to look at them all hugged up everyday.

“Well, I see you all had a great time last night if it’s spilling over into today,” I grinned devilishly picking up the last of my graduate school application. “Sure didn’t take you long, huh girl?”

“Girl, yes. That party was everything. You should’ve came.” Embry winked her eye at me as she moved towards me.

I looked up into Quince’s eyes seeing nothing but guilt in his eyes. A nervous angry laugh escaped my lips but I knew I couldn’t even be mad. He wasn’t mine even though he was checking for me. I kicked him down and that was that. He was free to fuck whomever he decided he wanted to. I just wished it hadn’t had been my best fucking friend. Deep down inside I was beyond heated. My flesh crawled at the thought of the two of them together. I wanted to burn their fucking faces off with a blowtorch. That’s how heated I was about the shit.

“So what are you all an item now?” I smirked as he slowly slid his snake ass back inside the house.

“Hmm. Something like that. You jealous yet?” Embry cackled.

“Nope, not at all. Why would I be? Shit you’d sleep with a caterpillar bitch if it had a big dig and stuffed pockets,” my lips blurted. “So why would this be any different?”

“Okay that was mad harsh, D. Just because you’ve got dust and cobb webs on your pussy doesn’t mean you should judge anybody else and call me a ho,” Embry snapped.

“But you are a ho. You’ve always been a ho. I call it how I see it. You should just accept what the fuck you are and deal with it. I have. I’m tired of pacifying your fucking feelings.” I waved her off as I headed towards my truck. “Somebody has to tell your dumb ass the truth anyway.”