The black effect 2, p.20
The Black Effect 2, page 20
She snatched her phone out of my hand and opened the passenger door.
“Amai, hold up. Let’s just talk this shit over before you start making drastic decisions.”
“Get the fuck away from me!” she screamed at me.
I jumped back, not willing to make another scene. This shit was all fucked up as I watched her get inside the van. Soon after, her father sped off and turned down the street.
“Fuck!” I yelled, feeling so frustrated that I was ready to wreck some shit.
I rotated on my heels and stormed back into the shop.
“Damn, cuz what's wrong with you?” Zay asked.
I rushed him and pinned him against the wall by the collar of his shirt. Reem got up to break us up but my anger was far too great to let him go.
“Aye get the fuck off me!” Zay yelled.
“Why the fuck would y’all do that to her?” I gritted, seeing red.
“Do what?” Reem asked, pulling me off Zay.
“You know what the fuck y’all did. How could y'all do that to her, knowing she was my fucking friend?”
Zay fixed his shirt that had gotten wrinkled from our scuffle. “That hoe lying. We ain't touch her.”
“I believe her. She ain't just gonna pick you two niggas names out of a hat. Y’all have fucked up because now she thinks that I set her up. I swear, I hate you bitches!” I raged.
“So, you gon’ believe her when we’re telling you we didn’t do shit to that bitch?” Reem exploded.
“Are you serious, right now?” I seethed. “Look at your track record. Both of y’all are grimy as fuck. I know y’all saw her truck and knew who her ex was and demanded money. Now all this shit makes sense. All the shopping and shit came from robbing her. I swear, you mothafuckas are the worst.”
“Like I said, she's lying,” Zay said casually.
I was so incensed that my heart was palpitating. Not only did they rob Amai, but they had her thinking I had something to do with it. I would never set her up or have her harmed, but now, shit looked funny in her eyes. I had to get us out of the way because this shit was about to get ugly.
“We gotta lay low,” I said, grabbing my phone off the table.
“I ain't going nowhere. Fuck that lil’ redheaded hoe and her claims. We ain't do shit to her dumb ass,” Reem scoffed.
“Do you know who she's connected to? This shit ain't no game and once she goes and tell him that y’all robbed her, this shit is going to be over. This ain't the fucking time to act tough. You won’t be able to win against her.”
Zay laughed. “I'm innocent, so running away would make me look guilty. Fuck her. I'm not going no fucking where.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration. “Listen, this shit ain't up for debate. You either want to die or follow my instructions. Now, which one is it? Because I'm not believing that innocent shit you're trying to spit.”
I witnessed them stare at each other before their eyes landed back on me. I knew how my cousins were, and I knew what they were about. I one hundred percent believed Amai. She wouldn’t just say them two for the sake of saying it. They attacked her, and I low key hated them for doing that shit.
“Fuck it. Where you trying to go?” Reem asked.
I snorted, “Yeah, that’s what I fucking thought.”
“Now tell me what happened.”
I watched her swallow hard and take a deep breath. I had gotten a call from a frantic Amai that scared the shit out of me. She was trying to inform me of something, but I couldn’t make out what she was saying. So, I told her to meet me at the house. As soon as her eyes fell upon me, she ran to me and began to have a panic attack. I had to spend thirty minutes trying to calm her down enough to get a clear word out of her.
“So, after therapy, I asked my dad to take me to Canton’s shop, so I could show him that I was okay.”
That shit angered the fuck out of me, but for the sake of not upsetting Amai even more, I bit my tongue.
“Then what?”
“So, I went inside, thinking he would be happy to see me alive, and he had an attitude.”
“Why?”
“Because I've been with you all this time. He was clearly in his feelings by his funky-ass remarks, so I snapped on his ass since I felt like he was outta line.”
“What did he say after that?”
“Not much because I turned my ass around and walked toward the door. On the way there, his two cousins walked inside. As soon as they started talking, my body froze up. I listened closely as they spoke amongst themselves and knew right away, that those were the men who had robbed me.”
I shook my head, knowing that my suspicions about Canton were true.
“So, what did you do after that?”
I ran back to the car and Canton followed after me. He asked me what was wrong? And I told him that his cousins robbed me.”
“You shouldn’t have said shit. You should have played it off and then come to me. Now, he probably has put his people up on game and now they're hiding.”
“Well, I was so scared that I didn’t think of that. When I told him that it was his cousins, he denied it. And then when I told him I was calling the police; he snatched my phone out of my hand and told me to let him handle it.”
“Fuck, Amai,” I spat, getting up from the sofa. “You see why I told you not to trust this nigga? I knew he was on bullshit all this time.”
“I didn’t know, Nadir. I never saw him being a part of this.”
“I wouldn’t expect you to because you're still naïve, and ain't nothing wrong with that, but you gotta be able to have some kind of discernment when it comes to new people.”
“I know.” She sighed. “I just… I don’t know.”
I was heated because I felt like Canton had taken shit to another level. If he wanted to get back at me, he could’ve brought that shit to me and not involved Amai in his scheme.
“Listen,” I said softly. “I’ll handle it. I need you to cut off all contact with him though. Don’t respond to shit if he tries to reach out to you.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
“Does he have any social media?”
“Yes, he’s on Instagram.”
“Do you think there are pictures of his cousins on his page?”
“I don’t know, but I can check.”
She pulled out her phone and tapped on the screen. I grabbed my phone out my pocket and walked out the room. I quickly dialed Domino’s number.
“Hello?”
“Amai knows who it was that robbed her,” I said, getting straight to the point.
“Who?”
“Do you remember me telling you about Jaide’s ex-boyfriend that she left?”
“Yes, was it him?”
“I think he set it up, but it was his two cousins. Amai is looking for pictures of them now, so she can show me how they look.”
“Hmmph. Do you think the ex-boyfriend did this to get back at you?”
“I wouldn’t put it past him.”
“Well, once you get the information, come see me.”
“A’ight, I’ll be there in a bit.”
“Bye.”
I hung up, but my phone vibrated in my hand. I looked at the screen and noticed Jaide was calling. I hadn’t spoken to her since she stormed out of the house. I didn’t want to talk to her, but I answered just in case she was calling to see Zain.
“What?” I answered.
“Someone wants to talk to you,” she said.
I immediately caught an attitude. “Who?”
There was rumbling in the background before a voice came through and said, “I need to make a deal with you because I didn’t have shit to do with Amai being attacked.”
I smirked at the tone that was masked in faux toughness. I recognized the fear that was running through Canton, so he wasn’t fooling me.
“You think I believe that shit?”
“You probably don’t, but I'm spitting the truth. If you would meet up with me, I can show you that I'm telling the truth.”
I was curious to what evidence he had that would eliminate him as a suspect.
“Meet me in an hour. I’ll text the address to Jaide’s phone since your ass is with her.”
“A’ight.”
I was about to hang up before I heard Jaide call my name. “What?”
“I want to see Zain.”
“We’ll talk about this shit later. Now go say your goodbyes to your man just in case he doesn’t come back to you tonight.”
I didn’t wait for a reply as I ended the call. I couldn’t lie and say I wasn’t disappointed to see Jaide right back in the arms of Canton. I had failed to realize that she wasn’t the one that was down for me, and she belonged to the streets. I was just glad that I hadn’t invested years into her before the truth was finally revealed to me. After getting my thoughts together, I went back into the room where Amai was seated.
“Hey, I found some pictures of Canton’s cousins.”
“That’s alright. I don’t need them. I have to go.”
“Wait, where are you going?”
“I'm going to meet with Domino. Just be cool. I’ll be right back,” I promised.
I left before she could protest. My mind was only on one thing and that was getting to the bottom of who really robbed and attacked Amai.
Some people may have thought that what I was getting ready to do was a bitch move. I was going against the grain and a small part of me felt fucked up for it. Then there was the smart part that knew that if I didn’t do this, Zay and Reem would get me and my entire family killed. This lifestyle they had submerged themselves into was dangerous, and they didn’t seem to care about the repercussions of their actions. The way they acted earlier, displayed how much they didn’t give a fuck about me. They had brutally attacked someone I cared deeply for and didn’t show an ounce of remorse.
So, I made the decision to give them up just to ensure that me and my mother would be safe. I knew I shouldn’t have gone against my family. I was aware that I would always feel like a traitor, but I couldn’t risk my life any longer when it came to my cousins. They had to be dealt with, and I was going to be the man to deliver them on a silver platter.
My plan had worked perfectly. I convinced Zay and Reem to go lay low in some apartments on the outskirts of the city. I then called Jaide and begged her to give me Nadir’s number. She was asking too many questions, so I nixed my initial request and asked her to call him for me. I did, and now here I was walking into a warehouse on the south side of the city. I was nervous as fuck since I knew Nadir hated me and was itching to end my life. I also knew he didn’t like the fact that I had become close to Amai.
Damn… that was another aspect that pained me.
Not being able to see her anymore would hurt. She had grown into someone I had love for. At one point, I wanted to be with Amai. Show her that true love did exist and create a life with her. But she had friend zoned me, and I knew the reason why. She still loved her husband, which was a bitter pill to swallow. I knew she would never be ready for me because he was still in her heart, and although I had accepted that we wouldn’t be a couple, I was still going to miss her as my friend.
“Put your hands up,” ordered a burly man.
I did what was instructed of me and watched him pat me down. I thought about bringing a burner with me but knew it wouldn’t be a good idea. The guard stepped to the side and pointed to a table where I saw Nadir sitting with another man. Slowly, I advanced toward the table and stood while they talked amongst themselves. For close to three minutes, they conversed as if I wasn’t standing there, waiting for them to acknowledge me. Finally, Nadir sat back in his seat and glared at me.
“Have a seat.”
Wordlessly, I pulled out the chair and sat down.
“I hear you want to clear your name,” said the other man, who was dressed in a black pin-striped suit.
I cleared my throat. “Yeah, uh, I didn’t have nothing to do with Amai getting robbed. It was my cousins that did it, but I had no idea that they had hit her.”
“How are we supposed to believe that shit?” Nadir questioned.
I pulled out my phone and tapped on the voice memo app. I then went to the recording and pressed play.
“Why the fuck would y’all rob her? Are you fucking crazy? Do you see that it looks like I set that shit up?”
“Nigga, we weren’t thinking about you. All we saw was that her ass pulled up in a G-Wagon and looked like she had money. Then you told us that she used to be married to that rich-ass nigga, so we hit her ass,” Reem said.
“That’s my fucking friend! You mothafuckas are outta line for even thinking that shit was cool.”
“Aye, we did what we had to do. Even if we would’ve told you ahead of time that we were about to rob ol’ girl, you would’ve stopped us,” Zay reasoned.
“And I had every right to do that! She didn’t deserve what y’all did to her. What the fuck? I can’t believe y’all put me in the middle of this shit. Y’all foul as fuck for that.”
“Man fuck you, Canton!” Reem barked. “We don’t give a fuck about you like that to be considering not robbing your friend. She ain't like your ass anyway, so you should be thanking us since she put you in the friend zone.”
“You ain't shit for that!” Zay cackled.
I stopped the recording and looked up at Nadir. “As you can hear, that was me talking to my cousins. They confirmed in this audio clip that I had nothing to do with Amai being robbed. Like I said before, I would never hurt her.”
“So, you only came to clear your name?” the other guy inquired.
I shook my head. “Nah, I have an address to where my cousins are. If you want to get them, they’ll be there.”
“Why are you giving your family up?” Nadir questioned with furrowed brows.
“Because it’ll only be a matter of time before they get me in some bullshit that could possibly kill me. I'm not about to die for nobody’s mistakes and seeing as though they didn’t give a fuck about me, well, I'm done caring about them.”
I felt bad for saying that, but that was truly my sentiments. My cousins could go to hell for all I cared because they didn’t care about me.
“Hmmph, well, give us the address?”
I pulled up the address in my phone and recited it off.
The older gentlemen nodded. “Now do you have anything else to add?”
“Nah, not really… well, can I ask how Amai is doing?”
“No, you can’t!” Nadir barked. “As a matter of fact, don’t ever ask about her again. That shit between y'all is done, so hang it up and try again with Jaide’s no-good ass. Now I suggest you get outta here before shit go left real quick.”
It took everything in me not to retort to his ass. I could’ve said some shit that would have Nadir in his feelings, but I decided against it. They were allowing me to walk out of here with my life, so I had to take what I could get and get the fuck on. Without saying another word, I got up and proceeded toward the door. I was scared that they might renege on their word and shoot me in the back, but I was relieved when I made it outside.
I had to prepare for that call that would confirm what I had just sealed. A guilty feeling was consuming me like crazy, but it was either them or me, and I chose me because ultimately, my cousins didn’t give a fuck about no one but themselves.
“I was itching to take his bitch-ass out.”
Domino chuckled as he turned toward me. “You're still mad, huh?”
“Yeah, he’s trying to portray himself to Amai as if he was innocent, but I see right through his hoe-ass. He’s been mad ever since I took Jaide and now that her ass is with him, I'm sure he’s satisfied.”
“Wait a minute? What's going on with you and Jaide?”
I hadn’t realized that I never told Domino about her leaving my house.
“Her ass left me. She tried to give me an ultimatum, and when I didn’t choose, she moved out.”
“What was the ultimatum?”
“She wanted me to put Amai out while she was damn near on her death bed.”
Domino’s forehead creased. “Why all of a sudden she doesn’t like Amai? Is there bad blood between them?”
“Not really. I mean, Amai did fuck Jaide up by throwing a glass at her head, but the real issue is my mama. Jaide let Lena get in her head and turn her against Amai. She even tried to turn her against Raye.”
“But why would Lena do that? Why would she get involved in your personal business and ruin your household?”
I shrugged. “That’s a question you would have to ask her. I've known that Lena wasn’t a big fan of Amai, but I never thought she would try to ruin my marriage. I don’t think I would ever forgive her for doing that.”
“Yeah, that’s a lot, and I know she crossed the line, but that’s your mother. Try to work it out in a way that will give her boundaries. Don’t write your mother out of your life because you might regret it in the long run.”
I appreciated Domino’s advice, but I didn’t have plans to reconcile with Lena anytime soon. She had disappointed me in a way that prevented me from having a civilized conversation with her. Her insistence to turn my wives against each other was cruel and uncalled for.
“So, what are you trying to do about these two?” I asked, referring to Canton’s cousins.
Domino waved his hand. “I’ll let my men take care of it. You go home and deal with your life. It seems as though you have a lot going on, so let me help.”
“Good lookin’, Domino. I owe you one.”
“No problem. You know I’ll cash in soon. Besides, I'm going to need you when I retire.”
I stood from my seat. “I got you.”
We shook hands and gave each other a brotherly hug before I made my exit out the warehouse. I was relieved that searching for Amai’s attackers were now over. I had them, and they were about to be dealt with. Currently, I had to figure out my situation with Amai and prep Raye because she was going to be my only wife now.
Weeks later…
I sat at my makeshift desk, staring at my laptop screen. Sounds of H.E.R.’s “Comfortable” played in the background while I edited a video I had recorded before my attack. I was slowly getting back to myself and wasn’t in as much pain as before. I had even rid myself of the hideous sling I had been wearing for the last few weeks. Thanks to physical therapy, my arm was progressing well. It wasn’t one hundred percent back to normal, but it was getting there.
