Chapter 5 #2
Cairo grunted, stroking the hairs of his overgrown beard. Even unkempt, Cairo was handsome, whatever he kept under that was bound to drive the women crazy. Probably why QaMeesha was willing to throw herself at his feet.
“What was the grunt about?” Kamilla asked to distract herself from staring too hard.
“You said it was missing some keys on top the treble?” he questioned, keeping his musing to himself.
“Yeah,” Kamilla answered, looking at her phone. A habit she had to learn to break because her mother hadn’t texted in months about her location and who she was with. But for the mere longing for the comfort, she texted a number she knew was off.
K: I’m safe, headed home.
She chewed her trembling lip and stuffed her phone back in her bag. A steadying breath prompted her next question. “Where are we now?”
“Highway 250, headed to the other side of Volts for Ray’s. You against a fried fish basket?”
“I’m not against anything, just keep my tab open so I can pay you back when I get paid,” Kamilla said, earning a grunt. “What?”
“Your money ain’t good here, Kamilla. It will never be. Keep your shit and stack it.”
“I was raised to never owe a man so… I’ll be paying you back,” Kamilla fired back, the fear of ending up like her mother laced through her words.
Cairo peered over her. “You gon’ tell me more than that or nah?”
“No,” she said before sighing. “I don’t know you like that.”
“Don’t worry, you will. Small shit. Might as well get to sharing,” Cairo pressed, just enough to make her huff and roll her eyes. “Let me hear this reasoning.”
“If I owe you, I’m indebted to you. I heard men tend to exploit that. I don’t want to experience that,” she shared.
“What have you experienced?” Cairo asked, maneuvering the car off the highway.
She sighed, embarrassed to admit that at eighteen, her only experience with the opposite sex was Tony Hardmen forcing a kiss on her in the second grade.
A kiss she didn’t want, that she got in trouble for, and her parents showed up as a joint force at the school to go off on the teacher, principal, and his parents.
The result was her infraction went away and her father was permanently banned from the school for teaching Tony’s father a lesson about raising sons who couldn’t comprehend that no meant no.
“Outside of being kissed by a nasty boy in the second grade, not much. But I’ve watched my mother and my aunt. That’s enough experience for me,” she shared.
Cairo’s thick brows knitted as he looked at her. “You don’t have no heartbroken country bumpkin back in Greenwood crying over your photo or nothing like that?”
“No. If you’re the lone wolf, I guess I’m a sheep without a herd,” she softly shared.
“Hm,” he buzzed, parking the car, killing the engine and getting out.
He opened her door and led her inside the barred restaurant. “Ay yo, Ray.”
A heavy-set man with a Los Oceania Royals baseball cap popped his head up from the kitchen. “C4, what’s up? Who you got with you?”
The shock in Ray’s voice was apparent.
Cairo threw his arm over Kamilla’s shoulder and guided her to the counter. There were a few patrons enjoying a meal and he wanted the message to be crystal clear that she was off limits. Any violation to her would be violating him, and no one wanted that type of trouble on their hands.
“This is my friend, Kamilla,” Cairo shared.
Ray observed them both. Cairo possessive. Kamilla, subconsciously finding comfort. “Friends, huh? She knows y’all friends?”
Kamilla wiggled herself out of his hold. “I’ve determined he might be a little…out of sorts, so I’m going along with it.”
Ray let a hearty laugh fill the small restaurant. “A little? Oh, babygirl, you’re in for something with this one here. If he gets to acting up, you come find me, I’ll handle it.”
“Man, Ray, come on. I’m no-”
Ray rose his brows. “Nigga, I know you’re not about to tell me you ain’t out to space.”
Even Kamilla looked at him with concern. “Um, Cairo…are you a liar?”
He offered her a lopsided smirk, prompting the appearance of a tiny smile to fuse over her full lips. The wider his smirk spread, the more she mirrored until she realized she was smiling and let it drop.
“Nah, I’m not a liar,” Cairo shared. “I was gonna say I’m not gon’ do nothing to make you find Ray. We good.”
“Oh,” Ray and Kamilla hummed in tandem, each with a different meaning.
Ray chuckled, his soul was delighted when the young men who’d dedicated their lives to gang life found something more to live for. “What y’all getting? I don’t have salads here.”
Kamilla softly chuckled. “I’m from Greenwood, I wasn’t expecting a salad.”
“Mm, Greenwood. Who your people?” Ray asked.
Kamilla shook her head. “No roots.”
He grunted. “Well, you grow some here in no time. What you eating tonight, babygirl?”
Kamilla looked up at the felt board with the black letters. “Your two-piece basket with the greens and extra hot sauce.”
“There’s pork in the greens,” Ray shared.
“Is there any other way to make greens?” Kamilla queried.
“Ah shit, I’m going to like you. C4, bring her back. You walk in here with someone else, I’m telling. What you want to drink?”
“Just a cup of water,” she announced.
Ray nodded toward the cooler. Kamilla slightly turned to protest before Ray continued. “Take a seat, babygirl, he got it. Ain’t nobody gonna bother you, you in good hands.”
Kamilla started to a booth and Cairo grasped her wrist, leaned in and spoke. “Near a window so I can see the block and the door, aight?”
She nodded, subtly inhaling his scent. When he released her, she found a spot that honored his request. She watched Cairo and Ray finalize the transaction in a hushed tone, only looking away when Cairo glanced at her with that stupid smile on his face.
He joined her, sliding in the booth and taking her in again.
“Why you change?” he asked.
“Because that uniform shirt is itchy, and I was smelling like onions and cilantro,” she shared. “It was too many smells to sort through. And I really don’t like unpleasant smells.”
“All I smell is mangos,” Cairo admitted. “That shit lingers.”
Without much thought, Kamilla responded. “My mom used to make body butters and oils as a side hustle. It’s all I use.”
“Used to?” he asked, leaning in to take in every word she spoke.
Kamilla swayed her head. “I don’t want to get into it. Anyway, that beat, are you going to fix it?”
“You going to listen to it if I do?”
“I might.”
“Aight bet.”
They ate and enjoyed the silent ride back to her tiny corner of the hood. When she arrived, Martez was sitting on the porch smoking a blunt. Her groan of detest was audible. Kamilla checked her phone for a text from Aunt J. There wasn’t any, so she prompted the conversation.
Kamilla: porch full of CKs and Martez…I have to come back to this every day?
Aunt J: he paid half the rent. You pay half the rent, you can have a say so
She pushed out a scoff and swiped her hand over her face.
“Who's that?” Cairo asked as if he didn’t know.
“My stupid ass cousin who really isn’t a cousin and no one in my family can tell him no,” Kamilla grumbled, as she gathered her things.
“He be bothering you?” Cairo asked.
Kamilla looked at him. A loaded look that told Cairo all he needed to know. In the drop of the CKs were Hype and Chuckee who had just held her at gunpoint. Busted lips and black eyes. Cairo grunted and got out of the car.
“Come on,” he directed.
Kamilla’s eyes bounced in trepidation as he pulled her door open.
“Look at this shit here,” Martez spat, sitting up like he was like that. “Little Milla riding with the opp. Fuck is up with that? I would’ve given you a ride.”
Cairo didn’t like the way he said it. He grabbed Kamilla’s bag and walked her up the steps. He didn’t say anything to the men sitting around. No words were spoken until Cairo insured Kamilla was inside the house.
“Lock this shit up,” he ordered before closing the metal screen door. When the door closed and the lock turned, he looked at Martez. “You can choose if you want your ass beat with an audience. I’ve already put two of your boys through the concrete.”
“Nigga, you ain’t going to do shit. If I touch you, I’m bringing the whole hood out,” Martez spoke, looking at everything but Cairo. Kamilla lowly watched from the small opening in the living room curtain.
“You gon’ need them, too. You know these niggas had your cousin held up at gunpoint two days ago at the corner store?
Look on your face tells me you don’t. Now, between you and Kamilla, which one of y’all is really moving with the opps?
” Cairo proceeded down the steps without defense.
“Whenever you ready for me to end this feud with your funeral, let me know. I’m ready. ”
“Do it right here,” Martez taunted, finally standing once Cairo’s back was turned.
Cairo rounded his car, offering Martez a soul-chilling smile. “Nah, today was a good day. Eyes up, nigga, I’m coming.”