Chapter 32 #2
Niggas talked all that shit, but hadn’t done a thing to avenge his death.
Meanwhile, I was tired of muthafuckas walking around like shit was sweet, so I’d taken matters into my own hands.
My money was good, and I didn’t have a problem with paying, so I didn’t understand why Tee had been avoiding me.
He was supposed to be a real shooter, so I figured that he would leap at a hundred thousand payout. However, the nigga had been dragging his feet, making me become a bit anxious. All wasn’t right in my world, and wouldn’t be, until this shit was handled.
“Fuck it,” I grumbled, as I ended the call, before easing out my car.
Taking my time, I traveled up the driveway, then onto my porch, before using my key to unlock the door. Merely having to do that much grinded my gears, because the house simply wasn’t up to my standards.
Since Khamere had kicked me out of the home we shared, life had been humbling as fuck.
The money I made with my daddy depended solely upon the market, and I would spend recklessly.
So, I relied too much of the money that Malice had set up in those accounts.
I had also grossly miscalculated his love for me.
Initially, I knew that we were going through something.
I also understood that Jaylah was a real problem.
However, I figured that we were the two ladies in his life, and he’d always take care of me.
Whether we were on or off, he would always step for me.
Even if I would cut up, or clown, because he loved me.
So, although I’d shown up on Jaylah’s doorstep, I never would’ve imagined that would result in him cutting me completely off.
At the time, I was too deep into the bullshit to see everything clearly.
In hindsight, I should’ve never involved my family.
I had always known who Malice was in the streets.
My daddy did too. But I thought that his love for me and my family would prevent things from going too far.
I honestly believe that everything could’ve cooled down and leveled out eventually, if that dumb bitch Jaylah hadn’t pulled that gun on my daddy. That changed everything, and escalated the situation, for sure. I couldn’t let that go unanswered, and didn’t give a fuck about who she was kin to.
Jaylah had basically ruined my life. I had been in financial ruins, and my daddy had made a few bad investments, which had him primarily operating on credit.
So, I was left with no choice but to move back in with my parents.
Hell, I’d still be living with my mama, right now, if my daddy hadn’t been killed.
It was his three-million-dollar insurance policies that each of us had that put us back on our feet, unfortunately.
I ended up in this house, because my mama felt that it wasn’t safe to live in ours, right then, and this house was all that I could afford, until I could get the insurance money.
With my daddy being murdered, the payout took a while, and I’d finally gotten my money less than a month ago.
Therefore, I hadn’t gotten around to moving yet.
Now knowing what it was like to have hard times, I promised myself that I would be wise with this money and stop living beyond my means. So, the only thing I was splurging on was that hundred-thousand-dollar ticket to get rid of my headache.
As I stepped into my house, I flicked on the light, and nearly shitted on myself as somebody placed a gloved hand over my mouth, and pressed a gun against my temple.
Malice
I stood in the middle of the living room, watching Paisley struggle against PJ. She was trying her hardest to scream, but his glove was obviously muffling the sound.
I would be lying if I said that the tears that was now streaming down her face didn’t make me feel a way. We was together for six years. Had seen a lot of shit together. Thought that we’d grow old with one another. Unfortunately for her, Jaylah happened and everything went downhill from there.
I’d felt bad about falling in love with somebody else.
Would always say that Paisley didn’t deserve the way that I’d hurt her.
So, my intentions were to make sure that she was straight, regardless.
I knew that it would be hard for her to accept that we were done, but I just knew that a girl like Paisley would eventually get it through her head and find somebody else.
Then we could’ve become something like distant friends.
Where we occasionally checked in to make sure that the other was still breathing, while going on to live our separate lives.
You couldn’t have paid me to believe that she’d put her people in our business, because she’d never done so in the past. I also never would’ve imagined having to lay her daddy down.
They’d forced my hand, and we couldn’t take none of it back, but I’d naively assumed that everything was finally over.
Even with Paisley starting most of the shit, she’d never been a target.
Even if her daddy was targeting my woman, I wasn’t focusing on her.
Because in my mind, Paisley had just been letting her emotions get the best of her, and that could just be considered a scorned woman thing.
She hadn’t forced her family to take any of the actions they had, so I would just deal with them. And them only.
As far as I was concerned, Paisley was a civilian, but that all changed when she decided to put money on people’s head and shit.
I was mad at myself, because I could’ve been eliminated her, but I didn’t think that I had to.
Then I couldn’t bring myself to tell Jaylah this shit, and run the risk of stressing her out.
So, I’d just been keeping her closer than close, and thankfully, she just assumed that I was being my overbearing self.
“You know, Ion even do shit like this in person,” I admitted.
“Usually, it’s over, before you can see it coming.
But with you, it’s different. I didn’t want it to ever come to this.
And I’m still asking why. Why the fuck couldn’t you just walk away?
Why did you get your daddy involved? And what the fuck would posses you to put money on Jaylah’s head? ”
She tried to respond, but PJ still had his hand over her mouth.
I sighed. “P, let her talk.”
“You’re right,” Paisley immediately blurted, as her breasts heaved up and down, and beads of sweat dripped down her face.
“I should’ve never involved my daddy. But…
but this is all Jaylah’s fault! She should’ve never laid down with you, while we were going through our shit!
Then she pulled that gun on my daddy. That’s what pushed everything forward. It was all her!”
Grimacing, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, and right then, I knew that Paisley was too far gone to reason with. “So, I take your daddy, and you focus on her? How does that even make sense?”
“Because with her dead, we would both be even. A loss for a loss.”
PJ lightly chuckled. “Say, Ion know how you missed it, my nigga, but this bitch is nuts. Listening to her, I really believe that she put money on Jaylah’s head and not yours, because she was hoping that y’all could still be together.”
Paisley’s nostrils flared. “We would’ve been even. Then I told my daddy that he was going too far. So, so, I get why you did what you did.”
“And she still would’ve fucked with you,” PJ added. “Ion think I want a bitch to love me that much.”
“So, you thought that putting money on Jaylah’s head, while she’s pregnant with my fucking baby was gonna end well for you?” I fumed.
“She didn’t have no business being pregnant in the first fucking place!” She stomped, throwing a full tantrum. “That was supposed to be me! That bitch don’t deserve youuuuuu!”
I shook my head in extreme disappointment. “You mental, man. And I can’t fucking save you.” I turned to leave out the way I’d come in. “PJ, handle that.”
“No, Khamere—"
Even with the silencer, I heard when he pulled the trigger, before her body hit the floor with a thud, causing me to briefly pause.
Angrily, I curled my lips. “Fuck.”