Chapter 26
NEW YEAR’S OPP
“You ladies look sexy tonight,” Lunden said to the two women he had on his arm, leaving his condo. He was now in a poly relationship and had been for the last three months. He felt like he had spent a lot of time with Pretti, being faithful. Now it was time for him to get back to being a playa.
“Thank you, baby,” the girls said in unison as they each grabbed onto one of Lunden’s hands.
He was decked out in a red Nike jumpsuit, a fresh pair of white Air Force Ones, and a matching sweatband on his head. His girls were wearing hot pink and lime green Spandex bodysuits and windbreakers. They loved chilling and partying with Lunden and had no problem sleeping in the same bed.
Lunden was still trying to make Pretti’s life miserable behind his boy’s back, but it was hard because she wasn’t falling for anything he had to say.
Dexz and Lunden hadn’t been saying much to each other over the months, especially when it came to Pretti.
An unspoken clarity hung between them: she was under Dexz now.
They had gotten to the point where they only linked up when money was involved.
He was chilling with him at the 90’s party for New Year’s because they both were invited personally.
They kept shit cordial because they still said they were boys and were always loyal to each other.
They promised they would never let a woman come between them, so Lunden let the transition go smoothly when it came to him and Pretti.
His view on everything was starting to change when it came to the cordial shit, though.
He felt like he was the one who made her look at herself as sexy since he was the one who took her virginity.
He showed her that her body was a temple and nothing to be ashamed of.
Now Dexz was digging in her guts, and the thought was becoming an issue for his ego.
Every time he thought about it, it made him sick to his stomach.
His best friend was fucking his ex-fiancée and thought he was untouchable doing so.
Lunden and his girls walked to his two-seater Porsche, and they shared the passenger seat.
Lunden turned up his music and hit the highway to meet with one of his clients.
He parked in front of the address he was given and killed his engine.
He looked over at his girls while they looked through their phones, waiting for Lunden's next move.
“Here, this is to just lighten the mood and get y’all off them phones.” Lunden handed them a small baggie of cocaine. His girl, Bambi, took the bag and made four perfect lines on his dashboard.
Bambi and Bria were eighteen-year-old best friends.
They loved cocaine and liquor, thanks to their new provider.
He was twenty-three but still had a thing for young girls who were legal and easy to manipulate.
He had an addiction to getting young girls and turning them out completely.
He didn't do dope, but watching girls snort his product was a good enough high for him.
He watched them snort two lines each, and their moods changed instantly. They looked more relaxed and open.
“Mmm, baby, we're ready to fuck now,” Bambi said as she started kissing on Bria. Lunden was turned on, but he knew he had business to handle.
“Y'all keep that same energy until I come back, but I have to take one of you inside.” He reached under his seat and pulled out two guns. He handed one to Bambi and the other to Bria. Bambi was more of a rider, so she went in with Lunden while Bria stayed outside.
They walked up the driveway of the huge mansion, and he knocked on the huge wooden door, which opened within seconds.
“My man, Lunden. You’re on time for once. How are you?” his client asked when he opened the door.
His name was Diego, a short Dominican man in a gray, old-school smoking jacket.
He was an older, rich man who had a lot of blood money in his bank account.
For years, he took from the rich and gave to the poor, but not without a price.
He was a loan shark in Harlem. If people in the city needed a loan for anything, he had the money, but if they didn't pay back, it cost them their heads.
“Yup, that’s because I have somewhere else to be late to.” Lunden chuckled at his own cocky joke.
He stepped inside Diego’s long foyer, gripping Bambi’s hand and his duffle bag.
“Well, let’s go to my living room. The wife and kids are out, so we can do business downstairs.” Diego walked them down his long marble hallway.
They reached his white room. Lunden set the duffel bag on the table, and then he and Bambi sat on the loveseat.
“So before we get to business, I heard your man Dexz is back in town, and you didn’t tell me,” Diego said as he sat on his long couch.
“Yeah, he’s been back for almost a year, but he ain't tryna do no business with you, and you know that.” Lunden raised his eyebrow.
“That’s fine with me. Even though he’s supposed to be dead, and I spared him his life all those years ago,” Diego responded coldly.
The room fell silent.
Lunden knew what he was getting at and knew it was going to come up soon.
Not only was Diego his client, but he was also the killer of Dexten’s parents.
Lunden held onto the secret for a long time, never saying a word because he was making thousands off Diego before Dexz came back into town.
He thought countless times not to do business with the enemy, for the sake of Dexz, but Diego was addicted to his product and was always throwing him extra cash.
After Diego killed Dexz’s father, he sent his wife to California for his mother.
His wife was born and raised in Harlem. She worked at the local high school and was Dexz’s English teacher.
She lived a double life with Diego, so she was forced to do something she didn’t want to do.
She always saw so much potential in Dexz and didn’t have the balls to kill him.
She snuck into the house while Dexz was gone and killed his mother in cold blood, thinking Diego would still let her live since she killed who she really came for.
Diego didn’t like her decision, so he killed his wife and moved on with his life until he got word that Dexz was back in New York.
He felt like not killing Dexz was a chapter still open in his life.
Now he wanted to close it by taking him down.
“Yeah, I know, but what does that have to do with me?” Lunden asked, breaking the silence.
“A lot. You said you needed more money in our last meeting, so I got you. Give me an address, and I'll triple up in money tonight. All I need is an address, and your hands are clean.”
“An address, huh? Now why would you think I’ll just give my nigga’s address out like that?” he challenged Diego.
“Because you’ve betrayed him this long, taking my money and passing it off to him, so I don’t see why I can’t get an address for a little more.”
Lunden huffed and then chuckled as he went into deep thought.
Ever since Dexz had come home, the city was raving over him, and Lunden felt like he ran the streets of Harlem. Now it was like his friend started everything, even though he'd done all the work with Burner. Not to mention, he hated the way Pretti fell into Dexz’s arms effortlessly behind his back.
When he saw that change in her, he knew he had lost his brother and fiancée.
He had hatred deep in his heart for his partner in crime and had no sympathy for anything that was going on in his personal life.
He felt like Dexz was disrespectful and cocky, and he was showing him firsthand that he wasn’t loyal when Pretti was involved.
If I can get this nigga off the streets, the city would be mine again, and I can get Pretti back. This is an easy setup that I can’t pass up.
He stroked his chin hairs.
“Give me a piece of paper, papi,” Lunden said, making up his mind.
“You got it. I’ll get your money and your paper.”
Diego rushed out of the room and came back with a Louis Vuitton duffle bag and a sticky note. Lunden wrote down the address to Dexz’s condo, and then they switched duffle bags. Lunden opened the bag of money and smiled.
“It’s one hundred grand.”
“A’ight, I'm going to get out of here. I have a party to attend. If I find out you put my name in this shit, Diego, I'm coming after you. You know I don't give a fuck about your status. I ain't no weak nigga, I'll take you out,” Lunden said sternly.
“You got my word, amigo. I'll see you in two weeks for a re-up.”
They shook hands, and Lunden left out with his money and his girl, feeling exquisite. He went in knowing he'd make sixty grand and left with one hundred. He didn't care that he earned the money setting up Dexz, and he wasn’t giving him his cut. All he cared about was himself moving forward.
“We're out of here, ladies. I'm ready to get drunk and fuck on y'all. Snort some more of that shit for me and get loose. Happy New Year to me,” Lunden said as he started his car and drove to his next destination to party.
$$$$
THE FOLLOWING MORNING
Lunden woke up bright and early with liquor still in his system and a wandering mind.
For some reason, he couldn’t sleep. He had gone out with his girls and had a nasty threesome when they got home, but he couldn’t get Pretti and Dexz off his mind.
He saw them hugging at the 90s party. It was the first time he saw them in public, letting the world know they were together, and it irritated his soul.
It was a Sunday, and he knew her shop wouldn’t be open until two in the afternoon, so he got her spare key that he stole and drove to her place of business.