7. Harli
Harli
My mind felt free as I rode down the canopy-covered road.
These last few days I’d been trying to make sure that everything I had been plotting would come together.
After some convincing, I was able to get Kruz on board with the robberies.
I completely understood her hesitation, but I was going to be the leader; I wanted to be the only one feeling any losses we took.
Now I just needed to get both of them in the room together to let them know what I was cooking up.
As I came to the end of the road, I noticed a building out the corner of my eye.
Coming to a complete stop, I peeped the dirt road that led to the ducked-off building.
I made sure I had my blade on me as I made a little detour to check it out.
I’d been driving around Magnolia Valley aimlessly to clear my head with all this mushy shit I’ve been feeling since I started dealing with Trench.
He was becoming a distraction from what I needed to focus my attention on, and that was getting to the money.
“The roses are thrivin’ out here,” I observed as I walked up to the building with rose bushes on each side of the door. I gave the handle a twist and just my luck it opened. “The inside needs some work, but this isn’t bad at all. Matter of fact, this is actually perfect!”
Pulling out my phone, I sent a 911 text to both Ryda and Kruz that included a pin of my location.
While I waited for them to get here, I continued to explore the building.
It was a large area with two doors inside.
One was the bathroom, and the other was a smaller room.
The way I could see this being our meet-up spot had the wheels in my head turning.
I just needed them to see my vision, and then we’d be in business.
As I moved around the large area picking up trash, my phone started to ring.
“Speak of the devil,” I chuckled to myself as Trench’s name popped up on my screen. “Yes, Trench?”
“Dang, why you answerin’ the phone like that?” He questioned.
“How I answered the phone?”
“Like a nigga botherin’ you. Am I botherin’ you, Harli?”
“No, you are not.”
“Didn’t think so. Now let’s try this again. Ring, ring.”
“You can’t be serious?”
“Ring, ring.”
“Hello, Trench.”
“Aht, aht. Still sense a lil’ hostility.”
“You should sense me ‘bout to hang up on you ‘cause that’s what I’m ‘bout to do.”
“Well damn, let me stop playin’ ‘cause I’on want you hangin’ up on me.”
“That’s yo’ problem you always playin’.”
“Maybe the problem is you don’t play enough.”
“Sir, what do you want?”
“Just tryin’ to see if you gonna renege.”
“Again, you only won because my bike messed up mid-race.”
“But I won though. A win is a win. So, you gonna be ready at eight, right?”
“I maybe ready at eight,” I blushed as I thought about going on my first real date.
“Ain’t no maybe! She gonna be dressed and ready to go by seven thirty!” Ryda yelled, scaring the shit out of me as I turned to face her with her gun out.
“Um, I gotta go, but I’ll see you at eight,” I expressed to Trench before hanging up the phone. “Yo’ ass got here fast as fuck.”
“I mean you sent a damn 911, and you know I’m TTG when it comes to you,” Ryda explained as she put her gun in her backpack.
“TTG?”
“Trained to go. Girl, don’t start havin’ senior citizen moments on me now. And why the fuck you at this abandoned buildin’?”
“I’ma tell you soon but we just waitin’ on another person.”
“Another what?”
“Person.”
“Man, Harli, what yo’ ass up to? You know I don’t fuck with bitches outside of you and Sapphire. So, who is this other person?”
“She’s the third that Dice said we need.”
“You sure…”
Before she could get her question out, the door opened slowly, grabbing our attention.
When Kruz came in with her pistol drawn too, it was confirmation that I picked the right person to rock with us.
Soon as Kruz saw me and Ryda standing there unharmed, she lowered her weapon before walking over to her.
I could see the confusion on her face before she said anything.
With them both here, I was more than ready to spill the beans before I could get anything out; Ryda had to be Ryda.
“Now, Harli, this is who you picked as a third?” Ryda suspected as she sized Kruz up and down.
“And what you mean by that?” Kruz countered before I could speak, causing me to look between the two of them, interested in how this was going to play out.
“I mean that you can’t be a third because you don’t look like you know how to get down and dirty.”
“When it calls for that trust, I can do what needs to be done. I don’t need to do much talkin’ I let my work speak for itself.”
“All you do is work on bikes. Girl, we can get anybody to do that.”
“Tuh, you think I only work on bikes. That just lets me know your role is supportive like mine. And if we can get anybody to do what I do, then the same can be said for you. Matter of fact, Harli, what she brings to the table?”
“Oops, well excuse the hell outta me.”
“You excused.”
“Alright, alright,” I stepped in to redirect the conversation. “Let’s make this clear each of you have an important role, and honestly, Dice was right we need a third, Ryda. Kruz yo’ hackin’ skills will help us run like a well-oiled machine.”
“Harli, how you let me get into it with a hacker? My bad, Kruz, I don’t need you hackin’ in my shit or nothin’ like that,” Ryda apologized.
“It’s cool, I know I’m new, and I’d already been warned ‘bout you, so you good,” Kruz laughed.
“You warnin’ bitches ‘bout me now, Harli?”
“Ryda, can we focus on the important shit?”
After I explained to them the vision of the space we were in, I shifted the conversation to the hit I wanted to do on the grocery store.
Although this wasn’t a requirement of Dice and her crew, I still wanted to come to her with more than just another person.
If I was giving some shit to somebody, I would want to make sure that they could handle it.
A hit would show them not only that we could handle it but that we are ready for it.
Once we were in agreement about everything, we planned to come back to clean up our new clubhouse.
When I got back to Golden Shores, I had a little over an hour and a half to get ready.
With Trench being on some be ready at eight type of energy, I felt like it was only right that I actually dressed up.
I loved me a good graphic tee and sneaker combo, but I could switch it up when needed.
Pulling out the blue dress that I paired with some gold heels and accessories, I laid it on the bed before getting in the shower.
It took me forty minutes in the shower that turned cold after fifteen minutes because I had to shave my body just in case.
I wasn’t looking to get my back blown out, but I had to be prepared either way.
“Ooh, yeah you were in there shavin’ yo’ pussy,” Ryda announced soon as I walked into my room.
“Now see, your area is the living room, not my room,” I shook my head. “I just knew you was gonna be with some nigga tonight and I wouldn’t have to get harassed.”
“Girl, you love havin’ me here so don’t even do that. And it was no fuckin’ way I was goin’ to miss sendin’ you off on your first date.”
“Lucky me.”
“Don’t piss me off, Harli. Plus, you gonna need me to help you to the car with them heels on.”
“You right.”
“Exactly, now let’s get you ready for yo’ man.”
“He is just a friend.”
“But you tellin’ me he just a friend.”
“I cannot stand yo’ ass.” I laughed at her Mario reference.
“Ooh, baby you got what he needs, but you say he just a friend. Yo’ ass better come on before I break out doin’ the lil’ eight count dance.”
“Yeah, we don’t need you doin’ that.”