CHAPTER NINE
Almost a year had passed since all the tragedy had taken place to and around Rissa. Not only had she gone through hell recovering, but she also had tried working a few jobs to make a few dollars to survive. But, unfortunately, none of the jobs worked out for longer than a month or so at a time, if that. Developing an “I don’t give a fuck” attitude, Rissa didn’t care about holding them down or being responsible.
Rissa was at her second job waiting tables at Bucharest Grill when she met a beautiful young woman named Kimmy. Kimmy was with a well-groomed businessman suited up in a tailored suit with expensive-looking shoes. Rissa thought he was attractive and, of course, made of money, but she tried keeping her eyes in her head. It was hard, though. The mystery man was fawning all over her. Though he was there with Kimmy, seeming to be on a date, he couldn’t stop watching Rissa. Seeing everything unfolding before her, Kimmy couldn’t care less. Her only concern was money.
Rissa stood inside the kitchen door in a daze, looking out into the dining room at the beautiful young Kimmy entertaining the older man. She wore a nice white blouse, blue jeans, and red bottom high heels. As her coworkers buzzed around the kitchen, in and out of the door, Rissa stood gazing into space with a million thoughts on her mind. He got to be paying her. She’s too fine for him not to be. He doesn’t look like any nigga she would fuck with on the daily if he weren’t cashing her out. I’ll bet a bitch’s last dollar on that. Curiosity had consumed Rissa with trying to figure out why a pretty girl like Kimmy was with the dude.
So caught up in her thoughts, Rissa hadn’t realized Kimmy had risen from the table and was headed toward the bathroom. A little voice in Rissa’s head told her to follow Kimmy. Pushing the kitchen door open with no regard, it swung into another coworker. “My bad,” she said, keeping it moving nonetheless.
“Whatever, newbie. You almost knocked my whole tray of food over. I suggest you watch where you’re going,” the coworker shouted to Rissa’s back.
Too focused on getting a private second with Kimmy, Rissa didn’t respond or even acknowledge her coworker’s advice.
“What am I thinking?” she muttered to herself, pushing the bathroom door open and entering.
Kimmy was in a stall on the phone with someone, talking about the date she was on. Rissa stood at the sink with her head cocked toward the conversation but pretending to wash her hands.
“Yeah, I got the money up front like always. He can’t keep his hands to himself. Yeah, I know it’s part of the service. He even offered to give me an extra thousand if I go back to his suite with him. I told him I’d have to clear it with you. I’m good with it if you are. That’s settled then. When I get to his room, I’ll call and give you the room number just in case something goes wrong.” Kimmy ended the call from rambling, wiped herself, then flushed the toilet and came out of the stall. It’s when she was in the mirror fixing her makeup that she noticed Rissa standing there and how pretty she was.
Looking Rissa over, she thought about how much of a finder’s fee she would get for introducing her to Madam Valerie.
Standing beside Kimmy, not knowing how to spark up the conversation without seeming like a pussy eater, she blurted out the first thing she thought of. “Hey, girl. I like your shoes,” she said coyly with a smile.
“Thank you. They might look good on a bitch foot, but my toes are damn near numb.” Kimmy returned the smile with a laugh.
Feeling a good vibe between them, Rissa couldn’t help herself from pushing forward with her real intentions. “Hey, can I ask you a question?” Hoping she wouldn’t be left hanging by the beautiful girl, she was relieved when Kimmy stopped and turned around to face her.
“Sure you can, sweetheart,” she answered, thinking she would be getting some extra cash to blow if Rissa asked for a taste of the good life. Being that Kimmy had been in the trickin’ business for a while, she could spot thirst more than a mile away. Not to jump the gun, Kimmy waited to hear the question.
Rissa, not being the shy type, got to the point without coming across as disrespectful. “I saw the guy you came with and he don’t seem like the typical type of nigga young girls our age deal with, unless there are benefits, if you know what I mean.” Throwing the question out there, she tilted her head to the side and waited for an answer.
Kimmy just looked Rissa up and down slowly thinking she could make a lot of money for herself if she played her hand right. “If you’re asking me whether he’s a sugar daddy, he’s not. He’s a client.” Kimmy wanted her to ask more questions so she baited her with short answers.
“What kind of client? What are you? I mean, what kind of job do you have where somebody your age has clients?” Rissa asked.
“The type where I want for nothing. I eat, dress, and live a charmed life every day. And your name is?” Kimmy was sure and confident of herself.
“I’m Rissa. What’s your name?”
“You can call me Kimmy.”
“I heard you on the phone in there.” Rissa pointed to the toilet.
“So you were game tapping, huh?” Now Kimmy had her hand on her hip, teasing her hair with her free hand and smirking at Rissa.
“Well, you weren’t exactly whispering. And I wouldn’t say game tapping either. I’d say I was taking notes is all.”
Both girls laughed. Kimmy told Rissa she liked her and they would hook up and talk more if she really wanted to get up on the game. They exchanged phone numbers and Kimmy told Rissa to be looking for a phone call sometime the next day. With that, Kimmy went back out to her date and prepared her mind for whatever he was planning on doing to her in his suite.
Rissa went back to waiting tables while daydreaming about living a life where she didn’t have to struggle to survive. She was tired of walking on eggshells everywhere, scared she’d be asked to leave Wanda’s mother’s home for wearing out her welcome. “Shit, I can fuck with men. Especially if all I have to do is kick it with them. I need a come up like right now. I need my own crib, car, and some better gear.” Looking over at Kimmy’s table, she saw Kimmy and the dude getting ready to leave. They made eye contact and Kimmy’s lips moved. Rissa wasn’t sure what she said, but she guessed she was saying again that she’d call her. In response, she smiled while nodding and waved good-bye.
* * *
When Rissa got back to Wanda’s after her shift at work she told her all the gossip that went on among her coworkers, and they laughed and smoked weed for the longest. Then Rissa told Wanda about meeting Kimmy and what they had talked about. She even told her she would get the easy money if things turned out being on the up and up. Wanda told her that she was crazy and she asked Rissa what her mother would think if she were alive and knew what she was planning to do. Rissa got upset and told Wanda that she wasn’t and she had to do what she had to do. Wanda tried to talk her out of dealing with Kimmy, but in reality Rissa’s mind was already made up. Rissa knew her time had come and no one would talk her out of it.
The next afternoon around one, Rissa was still in bed with the covers over her head when Kimmy called her phone. She and Wanda had been up all night binge smoking weed and talking about the good and the bad things that could come from dealing with Kimmy. Wanda reminded her that there were crazy bastard killers with money, too, some who got off on taking pussy, beating on the girls, and some cases even ending up killing the girl. With all that being said, it didn’t change Rissa mind. She wasn’t scared at all. Since her mother died and she had been raped by her aunt’s husband, and then she saw Bobby murdered in front of her, all sense of fear was lost forever.
Rissa took the cover from over her head, grabbing her phone off the nightstand, and she looked at the incoming call. She didn’t recognize the number so she hesitated to answer it. Four rings in, she swiped the screen answering the call. “Hello,” she said tiredly, still feeling the effects of last night’s smoke fest.
“Girl, is you still in the bed? It’s almost one o’clock in the afternoon. I’ve been up and out in the streets, sold some conversation, and made a grand already.”
Rissa sat up, holding the phone to one ear while rubbing her eyes with the free hand. Her heart was beating fast and she was shocked that Kimmy had taken her seriously and was really hitting her up. “Kimmy? Is this Kimmy?”
“It’s the one and only. Who else got game to give a bitch? Girl, you not gonna get shit given to you but dick lying up in bed all day. So do you want dick or dough?”
“No, I’m up. I was on my way to get in the shower when the phone rang,” Rissa lied as she jumped out of bed half asleep, gathering things so she could get in the shower for real.
“Good. Now, meet at the Motor City Casino in forty-five minutes, unless you got to punch the clock,” Kimmy said with a chuckle, taking a jab at Rissa’s nine-to-five occupation.
“No, I’m off. I’ll be there in thirty minutes. See you when I get there,” Rissa replied as her heart raced. She was excited and anxious at the same time. Grabbing a rolled blunt from the night before Rissa headed to the bathroom to blaze up, shower, and hurry to get dressed.