The Corner II (25 page)

The sun beamed through the window and with the smell of Clara’s country cooking, it was hard for Lisa to stay asleep. She looked over at the alarm clock and it would have been going off in a couple of minutes anyway so she got up and got her things packed. There was a knock on the door and then it opened slowly. Lisa thought that it might be Clara, but it was Devin sneaking in.

“Boy, get out of here before you mother catches you in here!” she scolded with a low whisper.

He wrapped his arms around her pulling her close. “Damn, I haven’t had any from you all weekend. I got it bad, woman.”

She felt his erection rubbing against her and knew she had to get him off her before she got as weak as he was and did it under Mrs. Anderson’s roof. She pushed him away. “You know we can’t be up in here doing it. I’m trying to make a good impression with your mom and you’re in here with nothing on but a pair of grandpa pajamas,” she laughed.

He took a step back and looked down at his attire. “Aw you got jokes, huh?”

“Get out,” she forcefully whispered as she placed her hands on his chest and pushed him out of the bedroom.

Devin couldn’t help but to smile seeing as how she had the biggest grin on her face when she forced him out of the room.

The three had eaten, and it was time to go. Clara gave Lisa a big hug and told her that she was welcome to visit anytime she wanted even if it was by herself. She even gave Lisa her phone number and told her to call if her son didn’t treat her right. That put a smile on Lisa’s face and it spoke volumes. It convinced her know that Devin’s mother had taken a liking to her just as she had to her. Clara made her think of her mother, and that brought an even bigger smile to her face. Devin hugged his mother and she whispered in his ear that Lisa was a keeper. He put the last luggage in the trunk, and before slamming it shut, he told her that she couldn’t have been more right.

*     *     *

LaTanza awoke and was in a cold sweat. She looked over at Carlos’ side of their king sized bed only to see that he wasn’t there. His pillows were in the same position they were in when she had crawled into bed leaving him in his office chatting on the phone. He was back at it talking with Lucky brokering a deal. She went into the office and asked Carlos to come to bed, that she was lonely. She didn’t want to sleep with him, but her mind was telling her to get him off the phone, that maybe the lack of her loving was making her man loose his mind. He wasn’t the same suave confident man who swept her off her feet ten years ago. Maybe it was the death of his father that had made him this way, which would in turn cast the blame on her seeing as how she was behind the head of the family’s death. But self-preservation was a motherfucker and an instinct she possessed.

LaTanza had dreamed that Carlos had stepped out to be with the Angelina woman, and here it was two in the morning and he was gone. Hadn’t even laid his head on his pillow. She stepped onto the plush carpet and grabbed her silk robe from the foot of the bed. She tied it and headed off barefooted for Carlos’ office hoping that he was there. When she got to the door she noticed the light was off. She trotted down the spiral staircase hoping that her husband was in the kitchen eating a snack or in the media room looking at a movie. After searching the various rooms without success of finding him, she went to the garage. When she flicked the switch the light blinked quickly then came to life. Mercedes, Navigator, Corvette and GMC Sierra were all parked in their spaces, but the Harley Davidson Soft Tail wasn’t. The hair on her neck rose and she could feel the bumps rising on her body. She ran to Carlita’s room to make sure her daughter was sound asleep. She pulled the cover that was down to her daughter’s ankles up to cover her torso. She then went to Consuela’s room. She woke the housekeeper and thought how it was convenient to have her living in the house especially for times like this. LaTanza told her that Carlos was gone and that she had to run out for a couple of hours. Consuela got out of bed and headed for the kitchen to fix a pot of coffee so she could stay awake.

LaTanza was getting dressed in an expensive warm up suit. She tied her hair into a ponytail. She took her .380 auto out of her drawer and was ready to head who knows where. When she reached the garage, she heard the sound of Carlos’ hog thundering up the street. She thought about hurrying back to bed, but Consuela was already awake fixing coffee so she had to think up an excuse. The door to the garage raised and Carlos was shocked to see LaTanza. He was dressed in his leather biker’s outfit and when he stepped off the hog he looked surprised to see LaTanza then asked, “Where are you headed at this time of night?”

Innocently she answered, “I had a dream that something happened to you. That you had crashed. I was worried.”

“So you were going to drive all over the city to look for me? Why not call my cell?”

“I did and it went straight to voice mail,” she lied. She just used that as an excuse knowing that Sprint had a few dead zones in their area where a signal was sometimes hard to get.

“I’m fine, I just needed to get out and let the wind hit my face. Soon it will be too damn cold to ride. I just had a lot on my mind. Let’s go upstairs.”

When Carlos passed by LaTanza she could smell another woman and she wanted to take out her .380 and end Carlos’ life. Men were so stupid that they, for some dumb reason, didn’t understand that a woman’s sense of smell is far more sensitive than theirs. Especially when it came to women’s fragrances and another woman could detect the slightest bit.

Once upstairs Carlos made advances toward his wife and to his surprise she was in the mood. She fucked him like she missed his loving like crazy. Maybe since it had been so long it just seemed better. But no, LaTanza was fucking like a woman possessed and that was because she wanted her husband to know what he would be missing since this was going to be the last time he got some ass—at least from a
woman
that is.

Sister, Sister

L
ast night LaTanza looked into Carlos’s eyes as she sat on top of him and rode, and for some reason all she saw gazing at her was love. But how could that be when he was fathering a child with another woman? A child that was to take over the family years from now. Maybe her pussy was that good that it could make his facial expression lie. But regardless she had to do what she had to do. She was sitting in the parking lot of Jewel’s grocery store. She was on the phone with Styles who was feeding her some information about Slim possibly being in the country. She took the info in then got the detective off the line so she could have a little chat with his boss—her sister.

LaDonna couldn’t believe that her sister had reached out to her. They hadn’t talked in almost three years. The last time was when they crossed paths at the mall and only a few words were spoken. How are you doing? Fine and bye. The time before that was when LaDonna had called her baby sister to tell her congratulations when she gave birth to Carlita. LaDonna had sent a few items; blankets, baby’s photo album, clothes and paperwork for some bonds that she’d gotten for the baby, but used LaTanza’s name. Her thinking was that the baby would have money when Carlos left her sister, whether it was by going to jail, death or another woman—the three ways she figured all drug dealers left their women. LaDonna missed her sister and what they had. After their father’s death, LaTanza moved in with Carlos Fuentes, the son of the biggest drug dealer in Chicago. LaDonna was a Chicago police officer who had ambitions of being the Superintendent one day so she couldn’t let the word get out that her sister was married to Carlos Fuentes. So she distanced herself from LaTanza the same way LaTanza had done her since she was five-o.

LaDonna cruised the silver Acura up and down the lot looking for LaTanza, who had let her sister pass by her a couple of times. After about the third time, she opened the door and stepped out. LaDonna noticed her younger sister and had forgotten how beautiful she was—statuesque and elegant. Little did she know the other side of her sister that came out of her when she felt threatened; crazed, ruthless and unsympathetic. LaDonna stopped in front of the Mercedes. LaTanza closed her door.

LaDonna asked, “Are you getting into my car?”

“No, meet me in the store. I have a few things I have to get so we can talk while I shop.”

LaTanza didn’t wait for a response she simply turned and walked toward the store. LaDonna drove to an open parking space up ahead and hoped that her meeting with her sister turned out well. She missed her and wanted to be in little Carlita’s life. She wanted to hear the little girl call for her Auntie Donna. Wanted her niece to go shopping with her, to the carnival and all the other kid stuff. She just wanted to be in her niece’s life since she didn’t have a child and was realizing that she needed a man for that and that was hard seeing as how she was married to her job.

LaTanza was in the produce section of the store and putting some tomatoes in a plastic bag. LaDonna figured since she was at the store, she’d buy a few items that she needed so she grabbed one of the small baskets. She caught up with her sister and decided to break the ice by asking, “So, how is my little niece?”

“Carlita’s fine.”  LaTanza answered nonchalantly without looking at her sister as she put some bananas in her cart.

“I bet she’s really growing.”

“Well, that happens in three years. I’m glad you brought her up. I better get her fruit roll-ups or she’ll have a fit.”

LaTanza pushed her cart toward the isle that the fruity snacks were in.

LaDonna told her, “Maybe the three of us could get together and have lunch or even take her to Chuck E. Cheese’s or any of those kids’ places, my treat.”

“We’ll see.”  LaTanza grabbed the fruit roll-ups and tossed them into her basket. She then reached inside her Prada bag and pulled out a picture. She handed her sister the wallet sized school photo. LaDonna almost melted as she stared at her beautiful niece. She was so happy to receive the photo from her sister and was hoping that her sibling was finally opening up. Little did she know, her sister hated her. The picture and the sister talk that was about to come out was only a ploy to get what she wanted.

LaTanza ran a sob story to LaDonna. She told her that she was thinking about leaving Carlos. That even though she did love and enjoyed the life of being rich, she didn’t like the fact that her daughter was growing up in the type of environment that she had put her in. LaTanza told her that Carlos had stated that he’d kill her if she left him and that his daughter would never be away from him. It was all a lie. Carlos would never do anything to hurt the two special women in his life, but LaTanza had to use what she knew would be the best play to hook her
by the book
sister.

LaDonna told her that she would help her the best way that she could. That they were family and needed to be there for each other. LaTanza managed to whip up some tears and could have won an Oscar right there in the deli section. Her big sister hugged her and got a bit choked up seeing as how she couldn’t remember the last time she and her sister shared a loving moment. Little did she know that her mentally disturbed sister had a plan. Her mind worked like a game of chess and LaDonna was just a pawn, a piece to be sacrificed for the sweet taste of victory.

They broke free from their embrace. LaTanza adjusted her sister’s suede jacket telling her, “Thanks for talking to me sis, I feel much better, and this is a nice jacket and it hides that cannon you’re carrying.”  She was joking with her sister about the department issued pistol she’d felt when she hugged her.

“Got it at Wilson’s at half off.”

“My big sis always finding the deals,” LaTanza said as they headed to the checkout.

They were rung up and bagged and were heading out of the store when LaTanza asked “Hey sis, are you free tonight?”

LaDonna thought about the dinner date she had with the commander of the Austin district. He was her plug to moving up just as her friend in the DEA was for getting her into the federal agency, but if her sister wanted to spend some time together she was just going to have to cancel.

“Sure, what’s up?”

“I figured we could get a bite to eat at Friday’s. I usually take Carlita there after we do a little shopping so if you want to hang with us, we’d like that.”

That surprised LaDonna and she hurriedly accepted the offer and it was set, she was going to see her niece after all these years. She planned on spoiling her tonight buying her whatever she wanted. She got inside her Acura and made the phone call canceling her dinner date with the married commander.

*     *     *

“We can meet at that restaurant downtown. The same one you and my dad met at years ago, you remember?” Carlos asked Lucky.

“That will be fine.”

“Like I told you, I have a gift for you that I think that you will like. It’s something that will make life a bit better for us. Something that will make us both a lot of money.”

Lucky told him, “Now that’s what I’m talking about. I’m gonna have one guy with me while we sit down to eat. I expect the same.”

“No doubt. We eat, talk business then take care of business. I’ll see you there. And one other thing. It’s confirmed, Bone is getting his shit from the Giadanos now.”