Thin Ice (27 page)

*****

“Well shit,” Kaitlyn swore aloud as the Blackberry hit the floor and came apart. Ice had dropped her off after their visit to Platinum earlier, saying he had business. Picking up the phone she noticed the small blue chip.
What’s this,
she thought of the part. It didn’t seem to actually belong to all the others assembled on the floor. Frowning slightly she put them all in her pocket and headed to the cellphone store she’d seen earlier at the mall they visited. Kaitlyn’s mind tumbled as she drove. She’d talked to Tweety last night and the two of them had gone over their plans once more. Tweety told her things were going smoothly on her end and she didn’t foresee any issue. Kaitlyn definitely hoped she was right. They were almost home free. She’d overheard Ryan and Ice talking this morning and neither seemed to suspect anything was amiss.
Thankfully for our asses,
Kaitlyn thought as she arrived at the mall and parked.

Getting out she headed inside and to the Verizon store.

“Do you carry this blackberry,” she asked placing her broken phone on the counter.

“Yeah, we actually only have a couple left,” the salesclerk replied, looking Kaitlyn over and licking his lips slightly.

She sighed deeply choosing not to address the obvious sexual innuendo and asked for the phone. After he retrieved the phone and took it out of the box, Kaitlyn produced the chip.

“Oh, you want your codas chip in this one,” the clerk asked recognizing the chip.

“Is it really necessary,” Kaitlyn fished having a suspicion about it.

“Nah not really,” the clerk replied. “I mean if you want to continue to record your conversations for playback later, you still need it,” he added as the light came on for Kaitlyn and she was immediately tense.

So Ice has been listening to my conversations
, she thought worriedly.
Damn, then he knows about me and Tweety, me and Tariq, fuck, everything
, she was starting to panic before calming herself.

“How can I tell when the last conversation was checked,” she asked pretending she’d forgotten how the feature worked. The clerk took the bait and chuckled slightly before pulling up her number online in the system and clicking on the Codas tab.

“Seems like you haven’t checked them for about four months now,” he replied as Kaitlyn let go the breath she’d been holding.

Damn, that was too close
, she thought

“OK, well go ahead and delete all those,” she told him as he nodded and hit the delete feature.

Kaitlyn watched all the conversations disappear and then be deleted from the trash bin.

“Anything else,” the clerk asked smiling at her once more.

“Yeah, gimme one of those prepaid phones right there,” she told him pointing to the sleek black model.

Kaitlyn then handed him the chip and told him to go ahead and put it back in.
I got your number now muthafucka,
Kaitlyn thought of Ice, smiling slightly. Gathering everything she came for, Kaitlyn told the clerk thanks, giving him her best smile and left him watching her walk to the next kiosk.

31

Day Three

Jaleesa was sipping her tea and thinking about Ryan. They were going out this evening and she was again nervous.
What the hell is wrong with me?
She’d been in the hustle for the last six years, she’d fucked up plenty of people, but now she was acting like a scared child.
This man really loves you,
her mind scolded.
What did that matter now,
she continued to think. She still wanted vengeance for all the pain both he and Ice caused her bringing her to this house and keeping her captive; keeping her away from her family, from KiKi, her sister in every way. Pushing the guilt away, Jaleesa let her mind wander to her beginning.

Jaleesa was young then, only 19 years old messing around with an older man she really hadn’t taken the time to get to know. They’d met in at the rec center and she gave him her number. Deuce had hella swagger and him being 25 was definitely a plus in her book. She found out he hustled and sold dope. Intrigued Jaleesa began asking questions and observing what he did on a daily basis as they hung out. She’d let him talk her into getting pregnant about 3 months into their relationship
That was the worst decision I could have ever made,
she thought again, remembering all the drama and violence that the next four months brought.

Deuce had become even more possessive, not letting Jaleesa out of his sight most times. He beat her regularly just to keep her in line he told her, the small matter of her carrying his child didn’t seem to matter she recalled closing her eyes and frowning deeply remembering.
“Oh, you big and bad now huh?” Deuce screamed as he hit her again. Jaleesa was enduring yet another beating at his hands. “Get off me Deuce!” she screamed at him. She had enough and was finally trying to leave, but he’d unfortunately caught her.

“
Bitch, you ain’t going no damned where!” Deuce yelled as he punched her in the stomach. Jaleesa fell to her knees and he kicked her again. She curled herself into a tight ball trying to protect herself from the continued onslaught of punches and kicks he delivered.

“
It’s me or the grave, bitch!” Deuce screamed at her as he began ripping her clothes from her. Jaleesa was too scared and weak to fight anymore, simply choosing to close her eyes and endure the punishment he heaped on her as he undressed himself and proceeded to assault her again and again.

Jaleesa awakened still naked on the living room floor. She looked around the room with the one eye he hadn’t closed and didn’t see him. She gingerly rose from the floor, trying to make her way to the bathroom. The phone rang, making her jump. She let it ring until it finally stopped, only to immediately begin again. Snatching the phone from its cradle, Jaleesa held it to her ear, but didn’t speak.

“
Tweety?” the voice questioned.

She recognized it, but still didn’t speak.

“
I know you hear me Tweety” the voice continued. “Listen, I called to tell you about Deuce,”

Jaleesa finally broke her silence. “What about him?” she queried more out of curiosity than concern. She heard the slight sniffling and assumed the worst. Jaleesa was talking to Deuce’s mother, whom she had absolutely no love for. She’d raised the monster and allowed him to treat her this way. She never took Jaleesa’s side, always chastising her and telling her if she were a better girlfriend, then Deuce wouldn’t hit her.

“
He got locked up last night,” his mother told her.

Jaleesa sighed lightly. Honestly she was hoping he was dead, but this might be just as good. “For what?” she replied again out of curiosity. She was planning ahead, and she needed to know how much time she had.

“
They say he robbed this store on the South side,” she told her, her voice wavering. “But I know my son ain’t do no mess like that.”

Jaleesa rolled her eyes, thinking how deeply in denial the woman was. She thanked her for the information and hung up.
She sighed deeply continuing to remember the events that transpired after the call. Jaleesa hadn’t wasted any time packing her things and leaving the apartment they shared. She’d called KiKi to pick her up, then they stopped by the bank and withdrew all the money from the account she and Deuce shared. KiKi helped her find a place in Conyers, which was a subdivision well outside of the city of Atlanta, and begin her new life. Though she was almost five months pregnant, she terminated the pregnancy not wanting any part of Deuce to remain in her life.

Jaleesa later learned that Deuce was convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to ten years. She and KiKi began grinding after that, using all the knowledge and contacts she’d made through Deuce; already having spent time doing a little selling and transporting with their ex-boyfriends, Devontae and Poncho. Finally able to push the thoughts from her mind, Jaleesa took a deep breath and steeled her resolved to do what she needed too.
No other man is gonna keep me prisoner and abuse me anymore,
she finished thinking as Ryan entered the room and smiled at her. Jaleesa smiled back as he headed to the shower to ready himself for their outing. She sighed slightly and recalled her conversation with KiKi.
Just a little while longer,
she admonished pulling out her make up and putting it on. Tonight was going to be very interesting, in more ways than one.

*****

Kaitlyn was looking for her pills. She’d missed two days already.
Where the hell did I put them,
she thought as she continued to search. Rummaging through her travel bag she ran across the photo she kept of her and Jaleesa from back in the day.
Man we were both young and stupid then,
she thought. “That drama is ended though,” she mumbled aloud still searching. Ice entered the room moments later as Kaitlyn stood before the mirror with her eyes closed trying to think.

“What’s wrong,” Ian asked concerned as he watched her.

Kaitlyn opened her eyes and regarded him for a few minutes. “I’m looking for something,” she replied.

Ian grunted shortly before asking her what.

“My pills,” she replied as he nodded thoughtfully. “I know I put them on the counter so I could see them,” she mumbled once more half aloud.

“I threw them away,” Ian replied calmly.

What the fuck,
Kaitlyn asked inwardly as she turned to look at him. “What did you say,” she asked, hoping she’d heard him wrong.

“I said, I threw them away,” Ian replied calmly.

“Stop bullshittin’ Ice,” Kaitlyn replied hoping he was playing around.

“I need to take a couple,” she told him as Ice rose from the bed, where he’d sat down, and walked over to her.

“I threw them away,” he repeated, looking directly into her eyes as he stood face to face with her.

“Why would you do that, Ice?”

Ian smiled slightly before answering. “Just thinking how nice it would be if we had a child together,” he said softly watching her closely.

Kaitlyn was absolutely terrified at the prospect of becoming pregnant from Ice.
This man has lost his damned mind,
Kaitlyn thought as she fought to keep from frowning.

“I don’t think I’m ready for that right now Ice,” Kaitlyn replied gently.

“Why the hell not,” Ian threw at her his anger beginning to boil over. “Because I’m not Tariq,” he accused as Kaitlyn remained mute, thinking how right he was. “Would you have a different answer then?”

“Come on Ice, it’s not even like that,” Kaitlyn tried evenly as he continued to glare at her.

“Look me in the eye and tell me you’re over that muthafucka,” Ian dared.

Kaitlyn took a deep breath, blew it out slowly, and looked into his eyes.

“Ice, I’m with you,” she replied. “I make love to you and no one else,” she lied as Ian watched her every nuance. “I’m just scared of having a baby right now with all the heavy activity we’re into, that’s all, nothing more,” she finished hoping that she’d done a successful job of convincing him.

Ian continued to regard Kaitlyn quietly as his mind processed what she’d just said to him.

Maybe she was actually being straight with him, Ian thought as he sighed deeply and addressed her again.

“No one is ever really ready, it just kinda happens,” he replied taking some of the venom out of his voice, as he laid her down and began touching her.

Kaitlyn found herself fighting not to reject his advances. Neither she nor Tweety needed any complications right now.
You can always have an abortion if he does manage to knock you up,
she thought as Ian began kissing her softly and she kissed him back. After they made love, Ian kissed Kaitlyn gently and looked into her eyes as he spoke.

“I got everything covered KiKi,” he told her sincerely. “Relax and let this happen,” he added, his tone leaving no room for discussion.

Kaitlyn forced herself to smile slightly as Ian kissed her again and pulled her close, drifting off to sleep.
4 more days, 4 more days,
she kept telling herself to calm the rage inside her at the moment. Finally managing to calm down, she closed her eyes as sleep immediately found her.

*****

“Everything’s ready and we can pull out first thing in the morning,” Ryan was telling Jaleesa as they lay in bed together. They’d just finished a few rounds of vigorous lovemaking after returning from a fabulous night out. Ryan was yawning and ready to go to sleep, Jaleesa’s mind was restless and keyed up about the trip tomorrow. They were headed to Florida for the next couple of days.
Damn,
Jaleesa thought. This was not a complication she needed. Everything was already planned for right here in Louisiana.
What the hell am I supposed to do now,
she continued to think as Ryan snored lightly next to her. He’d said they would only stay two days, which would be fine. Problem was Jaleesa knew how uncertain these kinds of trips and deals were. They could end up staying days longer. That would effectively ruin the plans she and KiKi had in place.

They were taking the SUV. Jaleesa knew for certain they were delivering weapons, but she suspected there was dope too. The operation in Florida was starting to come alive and Ice decided Ryan needed to make an appearance.
Please let this go right and us get back here in two days like he said,
Jaleesa thought as Ryan turned over and put his arm across her. Looking into his peaceful face once more, Jaleesa again felt a familiar pang of guilt. For all the violence that Ryan had inside, he’d been nothing but loving and gentle toward her. Even from the beginning when he could have hurt her and violently raped her that day in her apartment, he hadn’t. He’d taken his time and actually made love to her. When he brought her here, he’d bought her everything and treated her with respect. Sighing softly Jaleesa closed her eyes, unable to stop the single tear that rolled onto the pillow.
You have fallen in love with this man,
her mind dared her. Jaleesa frowned deeply not wanting or choosing to acknowledge the accusation.
I gotta do, what I gotta do,
she reminded herself as Ryan stirred once more, pulling her close this time as he once again changed positions. Deciding there was nothing else she could do about it right now Jaleesa closed her eyes as sleep found her.