Durty South Grind (15 page)

“Oh, man, that's slick as shit.”

“One last thing; when I adjust my chair like I'm getting ready to get up, I want you to be ready to switch the low ball set-up, okay? Just say something to Al or JJ, ah hell, anybody but Debra, so that their attention will be drawn off of me. It'll only take a second.” He finished by popping his fingers to emphasize how really simple it could be.

Stacy smiled. “Yeah, yeah, I getcha, man; let's go get paid, unc.”

“Okay, give me a second,” Sparkle said before he fixed himself up a hit of coke. “Okay, I'll work the slides and shakeouts for now, to let you see this shit at work. I'll help you perfect everything later; we ain't got time right now.” He took a deep breath, gathered up all the decks and headed for the door.

Several hours later, Al was looking at him with a smile that curled to one side of his mouth. “Damn, Sparkle, this must be your lucky night, dude; you done hit up for at least ten g's, maybe more.”

Sparkle swigged down the rest of the can of beer he had been sipping on for a while and folded his stacks of money. “Uh, can I get that beer money now?”

Al laughed out loud. “Man, I almost forgot about that.” He slapped the bill on the table. “Keep the change.”

Sparkle tossed the c-note back and smiled. “It's on the house, partner. No problem, soldier; I only wanted to see if you was a man of your word.”

With his eyes squinted, Al studied him real hard for a few seconds. “Hey, you aight, dude, and I really enjoyed playing with and meeting ya.” He stuck his hand out for a shake. “But don't think for one second that I ain't gonna get my money back.”

“Just a friendly game amongst players, right?” Sparkle winked at him.

Al leaned further back, then took a long drag off of his cigar. “Yeah, yeah, sho ya right. Well, boys and girls, ya'll welcome to enjoy yourselves with my baby here if you want to, but I've got to hit the rack.” He turned to Debra. “Be by yo spot between two and four o'clock, if that's cool with you, baby girl?”

“Sure, Al, you know I'll be there for ya,” she replied.

When he left the room, she pulled up on Sparkle as they were heading for the door. “Nigga, I know you gonna kick some of my ends back.”

“I am?” he squeaked as he reared his head back with a look of surprise on his face.

“Yeah, you are.” She looked under eyed at him and held her hand out.

“Shit, I got out of the way when you got your thang in and if I recall, you did the same thang with yo half-slick ass. And I ain't asked for nothing back from you.”

She leaned back a little further, laughing. “You still ain't shit, is ya, nigga?”

He pinched his nose and shook his head. “Hell, two rags from the same cloth, you and I. Come on, Boogie Bear, and damn you playing big bro for a real sucker now.”

“Okay, okay, but I need a few anyhow. Got to get Ebony and
Mike some school stuff,” she tossed back, giving him a sweet little smile, knowing she had hit his weak spot. “Don't worry about it right now. But you know that I'm about to shine on your stingy ass, right? Uh-huh, get right in front those two smiling faces and tell them that good old unc don't give a fuck if they got new clothes or not. Hmm-mmm, that's exactly what I'm gonna do, for sho.”

“You good, girl. You know that? You good.” He gritted at her.

“Yeah, we are, aren't we?” She winked.

As they entered the game room, Johnny Bee motioned him over to one of their foosball machines. “Got a few games in, ya nigga; it's been awhile since I done laid the Bee-law down on ya.”

They played four games, which Sparkle won three to one, the same ratio when it was an everyday thang for them at the gym in the Columbus prison.

Afterward, they settled on the couch, sipping Olde English. “What plans you got, partner? You need some hoes? Some dope? Hell, you don't need no money; all them greens you pocketed in that game.”

Sparkle took a long swig. “Got money; got dope. What I need is a rundown on a couple of hoes I just met.”

“B” rubbed his chin with hands that looked like they belonged to a seventy-year-old man, all gnarled up and shit. “'Pends on who ya talking about.”

Sparkle flicked the TV remote to a music video on BET. “One's named Dee, redbone, thick in the ass and shit.”

“From Candler Road?” “B” responded immediately.

Sparkle smiled and cocked his head sideways. “Yeah, foxy ass a muthafucka.”

“B” leaned back, laughing. “Ah, man, you mean to tell me that you don't remember little nappy-headed Dee from back in the day?”

Sparkle was confused and it showed as he cocked his head to the side and rubbed his hand across his mouth. “Man, I'm lost, and you got me there.”

“B” coughed into his fist. “The little red bitch from Carver Homes that used to wear pink and red everything… Uh-huh, we all thought she was a fucking tomboy and shit.”

He got up and started pacing the floor. After a few ups and downs, his eyes lit up in recognition. He sat down beside “B.” “Aw dude, now I remember them green eyes. But shit, man, ain't a damn thing tomboy about her now, for sho.”

“B” stared at him for a second and then put his hand back up to his mouth, laughing. “So you done already got some of that super pussy and head of hers, huh? Shit, that bitch has always been a super freak. Hell, I even had her working for me for awhile, until her ass kept putting that geeking shit ahead of my money and the game I was pouring into her ass.”

Sparkle started shaking with laughter. “Oh yeah, she done put that thang on me and I must admit, she's definitely got the bomb on both ends.” He gazed off to the other side of the room. “Man, I put a package in her hand. Hold up now, before you say anything. The bitch be smoking that stuff like twenty-four-seven, but I've got to start somewhere. Hell, might as well get some good pussy and head in the process, ya feel me?”

At that moment, Debra and Stacy came through the door. “Hey, man, what you gonna do?” Debra asked in a gravelly voice. “If you wanna hang with that black-ass nigga there, you can. Or you can roll with us and we are about to roll now, so do what you feel.”

“I'm rolling with ya'll.” He turned back to “B.” “Hey, dog, give me your digits so I can hook up with you in a day or so after I take care of my legal.”

“No problem there, partner; you seen our nig, Rainbow, yet?”

“Naw, I ain't seen him yet.” He squeezed “B”'s shoulder and then embraced his lifelong buddy before he got up and left with his folk.

B
everly couldn't shake off her paranoia as she made the right turn off Peachtree onto Auburn. Subconsciously, she kept checking both rearview mirrors every few seconds, making sure that no one was following her. Most of her police training consisted of being alert at all times, never really knowing when something might pop off. It had become a second nature to her.

She couldn't detect anyone trailing her but that certainly didn't mean that there wasn't. Sensing she was on point, she dared not turn her head; it would be a dead giveaway that she was nervous about something. Yep, a definite no-no.

Perhaps she was putting more into the awkward feeling she had with Lt. Woo earlier. Or maybe it was the run-in she had with Deputy Commissioner Aaron Taylor and the way he always made her feel uncomfortable. Despite his position of rank a step above hers, she couldn't force herself to trust him; neither he nor the assistant police chief, Roger Jackson, better known as RJ. She hated to admit it, but they were two people she would never trust with her life.

A car horn blared loudly behind her, snapping her out of her revelry. She wondered how long she had been idle at the green light. She needed to get those icky feelings off of her mind and put more concentration into the dilemma at hand. Ever since she
had started her climb in the Atlanta Police ranks, she'd made friends, enemies and forced allies. Hell, it came with the territory.

Right now, she had to fight off the nervous energy that came every time she had to go on one of these secret rendezvous. No way could she ignore a request from anyone who was responsible for her being in the position that she was in today.

Even though her loyalty to her friends often had her taking chances that could easily destroy her career, she couldn't find it in her heart to turn her back on them when they needed knowledge or her influence.

So despite the warm and cold feelings she got whenever she had the chance to see or help them, she still had to be careful, extremely careful. Thinking of Lah, Rainbow or Johnny, whichever name he had chosen to go by now, she decided to take the extra time before their scheduled meeting to pay a visit to the MLK Center. It would also give her the opportunity to double and triple check for anyone suspicious that may be following her.

She parked in the center's parking lot and took a little stroll of the historical site. Afterward, she decided to leave her car where it was and walked back down Auburn Avenue. When she got to the Ebenezer Baptist Church, she started feeling good that none of the people getting out of the many limos recognized her behind her disguise. As she watched her image in one of the cars she passed, she adjusted her sunshades and baseball cap. The faded-out jean outfit helped her to blend right in with the regular denizens of Atlanta's red light district—one she had prowled for years when she was on the beat as a rookie, sergeant and on upward through the ranks.

As she crossed the street across from the corner cab stand-poolroom, she noticed a young girl strutting her wares. Right off the top, she wondered if she was one of Rainbow's girls.
Damn,
why couldn't this nigger get out of this life? He's so very, very smart. Hell, he could've been a helluva…a helluva…well, anything he wanted to be
, she thought as she watched a young couple enter the pool-room.

She pushed open the door and tingled at the sound of the bell over top of the door. Damn, she hated how that fucking bell jumped all over her nerves every time.

She spotted Rainbow immediately, sitting in a corner booth with his legs crossed, displaying a shiny pair of Gucci loafers. He was gulping down a huge slug of Heineken beer when he saw her and uncrossed his legs.

He gave her his best Max Julien smile. “What's up, Bevy girl? You looking super fine, as usual.” He faked a shiver of ecstasy. “Gives a playa dreams of sweating your glory.” He stood up from the table and pulled back one of the chairs, offering her a seat with a gentlemanly flair of a wave, like he was accepting royalty into his midst.

“Just answering the call of the wild again,” she said, scoping out the other patrons in the room.

“Hey, you didn't really have to go through your espionage bit again, you know. That call was only that; a call to let you know that our boy done got out.” He looked away, smiling brightly as he motioned for one of the girls to bring him a couple of more brews.

She sat down gracefully. “Well, I haven't seen you for awhile either, and a girl can't ever get tired of looking at a Max Julien look-alike. Have you seen Johnny Bee lately? He still holding down my girl, Yolanda, since she got out last summer?”

He ran a manicured finger under his nose and sniffled. “Come on, Bevy, you know just as well as I do that dat thang there is forever, for life, just like we are.”

Smiling from ear to ear, she said, “Yep, you remember that day that she bloodied his nose when he stomped on her mud pies.” She started laughing into the suds at the top of her glass.

“Look atcha, girl, suds all over your nose and shit.” He flicked a napkin across the table.

She shook her head and started wiping away the tears easing down her cheeks. She took a deep breath and sat back in the chair and coughed. “Aw man, every time I think about that look on Bee's face, I flip out.”

“That was some funny shit, for real tho.”

“Yeah, it was.” She puckered up and leaned forward with her elbows on the table, “On the serious side, how's my baby boy looking?”

“How should I know; I haven't seen him yet, either.” He picked up a saltshaker, sprinkled some on the back of his hand and started licking it off.

She frowned, disappointed, figuring that he would be able to give her a rundown.

“Whatcha frowning all up for, girl? I was just letting you know that he'd gotten out,” he said as he took another long swig of his drink.

“I thought, I assumed, aw fuck it…anyway, when do you think you're going to see him?”

“Hmmm, I expect he'll hang around the family for a few days or so; hell, maybe even for a few weeks. There's really no telling… Aah anyway, I'll let him know you still got the hots for him when I do.” He laughed into the glass.

She giggled for a few seconds before putting on a more serious look. “Hey, man, on the real, let your folk know that Lieutenant Woo's on the war path over there on the hotel strip. Little bitch tried to get me to sign an okay to harass my boys. Oh hell no, I couldn't do that to 'ya'll; my heart wouldn't let me.”