8. Nova
Nova
Crew and the twins waited for us to grab some supplies and change before we all exited the compound through a back door cut into the mountain that led to a set of trails that would take us through the forest to the right or up the mountain to the left.
We walked for about five minutes down the right path until we reached a small storage shed surrounded by an overgrowth of weeds, bushes and small trees.
Blue walked over to a building and pulled back an army green tarp that blended in with the foliage, behind it was a large door with a scanner similar to the one on the main building.
He placed his palm down and a red light ran up the length of his hand before the heavy door hissed open, letting bright lights and the sounds of baby shark stream out of the small space.
Black stepped up and heaved the door open before hitting a button on the wall quieting the song and killing the lights.
“Why the fuck ya’ll playin’ baby shark loud as fuck.” Tyra asked.
“All part of the plan.” Kema laughed.
Crew held the door letting us file in one at a time.
The inside of the shed was empty except for a metal bench that took up one side of the wall and a reclining chair like the ones you find in a dentist or doctor’s office.
Inside it was Sabrina. The chair held her in a reclining position directly under what looked like a makeshift shower above.
At closer look I noticed that the shower was on but it must have been by accident because only a drip or two of water was hitting Sabrina in the forehead at an annoyingly slow pace.
Sabrina looked like she had been crying, her face was flushed and there were bags and dark circles under her eyes.
There was also a red splotch right in the middle of her forehead where I guess the water had been hitting her.
Black walked over and tightened the knob on the shower, stopping the slow drips to her forehead.
Relief instantly spread across her face, that is until she saw us watching her from the entrance.
Her face drew up in a scowl and pure hate that I wasn’t sure was directed at us or the guys.
She was barefoot and dressed in the same cocktail dress that she had been wearing the night before.
She looked like shit and smelled even worse.
The guys must have kept her strapped to the chair all night, with no bathroom breaks because the strong odor of piss was permeating the air.
I looked back at Crew and he just shrugged.
“We wanted her to experience some of the trauma and psychological torture the women in those trucks went through, no food, no water, no bathroom toilet.” He said.
“Damn bitch you smell like a porta potty.” Tyra said, holding her nose and walking over to the table to drop her bag.
Next to it was a yellow tote with the word supplies written on a piece of duct tape.
“What is this?” Tyra said, opening her bag.
“Just what it says. We thought you guys might need props for this interrogation.” Black said.
We walked over and inside there were an array of knives, hammers, ice picks, a box of toothpicks and some other torture devices.
“I have some supplies too.” Tyra said, pulling out the items from her bag.
The first thing she pulled out was her pink bedazzled taser that she had bought a year ago to keep us safe when we were out late after work.
She passed it to Kema and started to pull more items out of the bag.
Next was a grill lighter and some ORS box perm.
When she had everything on the table she turned back towards us with a huge smile.
“I knew this shit wasn’t gon’ work,” Black said, shaking his head. “This girl got muthafuckin’ Just For Me in her bag.”
“Tyra, what are you gonna do with that?” I asked her.
“Our guest will see if she doesn’t talk.” She laughed, looking directly at Sabrina.
Sabrina’s expression bristled for just a moment before she replaced it with a hard glare. With the way Tyra was looking at her like she couldn’t wait to use her bag of toys on her she should be worried, but I guess she couldn’t do her job if she got scared that easily.
“Really Crew you brought the little woman and her friends to try and help you do what you aren’t man enough to do yourself. You don’t really want to hurt me. Let’s be honest here.” Sabrina said, with her eyes on my husband.
“Bitch the last thing you should be worried about is somebody else’s husband. What you should be worried about is smelling like a porta potty. Did you even try to hold it? Damn you ain't even been in here that long.” Mecca said.
“I’m tired of the small talk. Can we get this shit started please? Tell us about your boss.” I demanded.
“Who are you supposed to be? Huh, am I supposed to be scared of you Nova?” She sneered.
“You should be. Tyra, see if Sabrina would like to test out your taser.”
“A taser really? I’ve had worse.” Sabrina laughed.
“Oh, thank you I didn’t think you guys would really let me help.” She said damn near skipping over to Sabrina.
Without another word, Tyra turned the taser on high and jammed it in her neck with a wicked smile on her face.
The sneer was instantly wiped off Sabrina’s face and replaced with a look of pain and agony.
She bit down on her so hard blood dripped from her mouth as her jaw clenched.
But Tyra didn’t stop, she pressed the taser into her neck like she was trying to brand her.
“That’s enough Tyra we need her alive to talk. She can’t do that if you fry her brain.” Mecca said.
Oh right. Sorry.” She said, almost sad about having to stop.
Sabrina panted and heaved, her body still jerking from the aftershocks of the current sent through her neck.
“Tell us about your boss.” I repeated again.
“Fuck you. Fuck all of you. Crew are you g-going to s-stand there and let them do this to me?” She groaned, looking at Crew like he was gonna help save her from us.
Crew didn’t acknowledge her pleas for help, his face remained blank except for the deepening of the storm in his eyes as he watched me orchestrate Sabrina’s interrogation.
“Kema, would you like a turn helping Sabrina find her words?” I asked.
“Most definitely. Tyra, can I borrow your lighter please?”
“Sure, keep it.” She said, handing it to her.
Kema stepped to the end of the chair where Sabrina’s feet were being securely zip tied.
She asked Sabrina if she wanted to talk and just like before she had nothing but vial words and disrespect.
Kema smiled and flicked the lighter before holding it to the bottom of Sabrina’s foot.
Her screams pierced the air as the smell of her burning flesh filled the room.
“How you doing over there, Nova? Do you need to step out?” Mecca asked, trying to make sure that I wasn’t getting nauseous from the smell.
“No, I'm good, keep going Kema. Do the other foot too.” I said, breathing through my mouth to dispel the odor of burnt flesh. “No more red bottoms for you, bitch.” By the time Kema was done Sabrina was unconscious, her feet blistered and charred black.
“I think it’s time for the showstopper.” Tyra said, opening the box and mixing the perm at the table. “Mecca throw some water on the hoe so we can get these answers.” She said confident in her form of torture.
“You really think this is gonna work?” I asked.
“Just watch.” She said.
Mecca turned the hose above Sabrina’s head on full blast sending a torrent of water down onto her face. She awoke, gasping and sputtering for her life.
“Crew please help me. We can work this out. Please.” She begged.
“Sabrina, I don’t know much about you, but what I do know is that you have been trying to help hurt the people I love and it may seem like I am not dangerous at first glance,” Tyra said as she had Black strap Sabrina’s head down.
“But what you don’t know is that I will do anything for my family and that includes peeling the skin off your head with this perm.
No lye straightener burns with only the regular ingredients that the manufacturers include but how much do you think it will burn when I put the lye back in it? ”
She pulled a pair of gloves out of her pocket and started applying the straightener to Sabrina’s wet hair.
If you didn’t know that this was part of some weird torture session Tyra thought up in her head, it would look like she was straightening a friend’s hair.
That was until Sabrina started screaming and trying in vain to free herself from her bonds while Tyra happily continued to apply the last bit of perm to her scalp.
Once it was all applied, she stepped back, carefully removed her gloves and applied a new pair.
“Now ask her what you need to know.” Tyra said going to stand with the twins who both had impressed expressions on their faces.
We all did. I wasn't gonna lie Tyra had always had my back and never played about me or Timberly, but I would have never thought she had this in her. But what could I say we’ve all changed since Kyle, and his family brought this drama to our doorstep.
“Tell us about your boss.”
“Ahhhh, please take it off. It burns. I’ll tell you anything. Pleeease.” She screamed, this time looking directly at me.
“Nah bitch stay quiet. You was so tough a few minutes ago. Tough Tony, nah keep that same energy.” Mecca laughed.
“Take it off. Pleeeease. I swear I’ll tell you everything.” Sabrina screamed.
“Tyra.” I called over to my smiling best friend.
She rolled her eyes clearly enjoying the show before going back to her bag and taking out a container of clear liquid.
She popped the top, coming back to the head of the chair where Sabrina was writhing with pain and with another roll of her eyes, she poured the liquid soaking Sabrina's scalp before rubbing it in with her gloved hand.
“Bitch stop crying and be still before I blind you with this shit.”
Sabrina’s reaction is instant, she was clearly still in pain, but it wasn’t as bad as when the lye was eating away the layers of her skin.
Her breathing was ragged and strained as she cried and groaned as clumps of her hair fell to the floor with wet slats.
Her scalp had patches of raw and angry blistered skin.
“H-He will kill me if I t-talk,” she sobbed.
“What do you think I’ll let them do to you?” Crew finally spoke to her. “Now talk.”
“What d-do you want to know?”
“Everything.” I said.
And that was what she gave us. At this point I think she would have given us her whole life story if we asked. Instead, she told us everything she knew about Valdez’s empire, from the top secret, to the mundane. She laid all his secrets bare, well the ones she knew of anyway.
“Thank you so much Sabrina. That wasn’t so bad, was it?” I told her after she had finished telling us what we wanted to know.
“He will come for me, you know. He needs me.”
“Will he now?”
“Yes, and when he does, he won't just take your little brat. I’ll make sure he takes them all,” she sniffled looking at Tyra. And then she looked directly at me. “And that little bastard too. I'll make sure to cut that bastard from you myself.” She seethed.
It wasn’t the first time someone had promised to cut my baby out of me but for some reason this time got under my skin.
I grabbed a scalpel handle out of the tote, picked the finest blade they had in the box and then affixed the two together and then turned to Sabrina and said, “You first.” Bringing the blade down across her face.
The steel sliced through the skin of her cheek like butter sending blood spray all over me and the floor.
“Remember this the next time you threaten me.” I said dropping the scalpel back in the tote and walking over to Crew.
He pulled me into his arms and walked me out of the door.
I pulled in a lung full of fresh air steadying myself as I thought about what I just did and what I would do when it came to protecting my family.