A Dollar And Dream. Carl Weber

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СКАЧАТЬ “Your wife called while you were gone. You fucking bastard, you’re married. You were married the whole fucking time we’ve been together. And I thought you wanted to marry me.” I was screaming as memories of my mother’s pain came flooding back to me. “How you gon’ disrespect me like that? How you gon’ disrespect her like that? You are a trifling bastard, just like all the rest of them. Get the fuck out of my house!”

      “Wait, Kerri. Let me explain.” He reached for me, but I backed away before he could touch me.

      “Get the fuck outta my house before I call the cops. Now!” The threat of me calling the cops must’ve worked, because the next thing I knew, he hauled ass and the door closed behind him. Shit, all that and I still didn’t get the damn money! Just a couple of damn lottery tickets.

      4

      Rodney

      “Goddamn it! Where the fuck is it? It’s gotta be around here somewhere! I just had that shit!” I screamed, grabbing my head with both hands and pulling on the little bit of hair I had in frustration. I pulled both the cushions off my couch and threw them out of the way, desperately searching the seams of the couch and love seat for the brown envelope I’d lost. I found nothing but some loose change.

      I was in trouble, big trouble, fifteen thousand dollars’ worth of trouble, and the only person I had to blame was myself. If I had taken my ass over to Big Red’s and dropped off the money like I was supposed to, instead of shooting craps down in the basement with that nigga Jordan, I’d be all right now. But Jordan was such a loser I couldn’t resist the opportunity to take his money. Now I had eight hundred dollars of his money, but I was missing fifteen grand of Big Red’s money. A position I did not wanna be in, because that shit could get me killed.

      There was a knock on the door and I almost peed on myself. Could that be Big Red wondering where I was with his money? Or worse, his enforcer Bubba, the brother with no neck? God, should I open the door or should I pretend like I wasn’t home? Shit, it didn’t matter. If he wanted to kill me, he was gonna find me no matter what. Besides, where the fuck was I going with only eight hundred dollars in my pocket? I decided to answer the door. If it was Big Red, maybe I could reason with him.

      “Who is it?” I yelled from where I was standing.

      “It’s Katrice.”

      I let out a long and thankful sigh as I walked to the door. “Hold on a sec, Trice. I’ll be right there.”

      I didn’t want her to see how trashed my apartment was, so I opened the door and stepped out in the hallway.

      “Hey, Katrice, what’s up?” I glanced over at the front door nervously as we talked, praying Red and Bubba wouldn’t bust in the building while I was talking to my landlord.

      “Look, I know you still have ’til Sunday, but I was hoping you could pay your rent a few days early so I could pay the mortgage before the first?”

      “Oh shit. Didn’t Jordan tell you?”

      “Tell me what?”

      “I’m paid up for the next two months.”

      “What? No, you’re not,” Katrice snapped. But something in her eyes said she already knew the rest of what I was about to tell her.

      “Yes, I am. And I got the receipts to prove it.” I went in my pocket and handed her the rent receipts Jordan had given me after I’d whipped his ass in craps. Even after that fool lost his entire paycheck to me, he still wanted to play double or nothing for my rent money.

      “That motherfucker,” she cursed. It looked like she was trying to hold back tears. “You beat his ass gambling, didn’t you?”

      “Yeah, he ain’t got no luck with dice.”

      “Tell me something, Rodney. How much cash did you take from him?”

      “’Bout eight hundred.”

      She lost all expression in her face as she shook her head, mumbling, “His whole fucking paycheck. Goddamn it!”

      “Hey, Katrice. You a good-looking woman. Why you fuck with that nigga anyway?”

      “’Cause I love him, Rodney. Because I love him.” And on that note, she headed for the stairs, probably to talk to that fine-ass Kerri.

      I watched Katrice walk up the steps, then almost shit on myself when the front door to the building flew open and Big Red walked in. He was followed by the human gorilla Bubba.

      Red, a short brother who looked more like a pimp than the city’s biggest drug dealer, always wore red. Today was no exception. He was wearing a red jogging suit, red sneakers, and a red baseball hat. Oh, and all his jewelry had red ruby stones.

      “Where’s my money, Rodney?” Red demanded coolly as he approached. “You was supposed to drop off my money six hours ago.”

      “I know, Red. But the funniest thing happened on my way to your office.” He was in my face now and I felt like I was pinned to the wall.

      “Oh yeah, what’s that?”

      I gave him a big, pitiful smile as I whined, “I lost the money. Ain’t that funny?”

      Red glanced at Bubba, then Bubba glanced back at him. They both bust out laughing and I tried to join them, though mine came out more like a nervous cackle.

      “Yeah, man.” Red continued to laugh. “That shit’s funny as hell. Tell me if you think this shit is funny.”

      Before I could react, Bubba punched me in the stomach then grabbed me by the neck, lifting me off the ground like I was a rag doll.

      “Where the fuck is my money, Rodney?” Big Red asked sternly. “I gave you twenty thousand dollars’ worth of drugs and all I asked for was fifteen thousand dollars in return. Now I want my money or I want my product.” Big Red stared at me as if he thought I was gonna answer him. But the way Bubba was holding my neck I was having a hard enough time trying to breathe. Talking wasn’t even an option.

      “Let him go, Bubba.” Bubba did as he was told and I dropped straight to the floor like a piece of lead. Red bent over and got in my face.

      “Where’s my money, Rodney?” Red demanded again.

      “I’m sorry, Red. I don’t know how but I lost it.” As much as I hated to look like a punk, I was crying by now. Red glared at me, then nodded his head three times like he’d made a decision.

      “Carry this nigga in his apartment so I can put a cap in his ass,” he told Bubba. Before I could even think to holler for help, Bubba’s huge hand was around my neck, lifting me up in the air again. A few seconds later I was in my apartment, about ready to pee on myself. I was sure I’d be dead in ten minutes.

      “Where the fuck is my money, Rodney?” Red demanded again as he pulled out a gun and pointed it at my head. He pulled back the clip and I closed my tear-filled eyes, praying that there was a heaven and God was going to accept me into it. “I asked you a question. Where the fuck is my money?”

      Bubba eased up on my throat so I could speak. “I lost it, Red. I swear to God, СКАЧАТЬ