Chapter 6

 

“Hello?” Trina finally asked after reaching for her phone that sat on the nightstand beside her. The all-white goose down comforter she was buried under hid her face from the sunlight.

“You still sleep?” Ron yelled into the phone.

“No,” she lied.

“Listen, shorty, if you’re really serious about this shit, you gotta be about this life. I’m not about to vouch for you and put my name on the line for some some-timey shit.”

“Ron, I said I was up.”

“Reko said that he wanted to hold a meeting today…”

“A meeting for what?”

“To let everyone know that he’s the man now, and Omari is second in command.” Trina remained quiet as Ron continued. “To be honest, I think Omari should of stepped up, but he’s lowkey. He likes the background, you know?”

“Well, I’m ready to put my name in the race. I mean Franco was right. Jonah didn’t lace me for nothing. Everything’s in my name. Reko needs me.”

“It’s gon’ be a hard sell, baby, but I’m behind you one hundred percent.”

“Thanks, Ron, I don’t know what I would do without you,” she said pausing, “Can you do me a favor?”

“Anything.”

“Can you see if Reko will have the meeting here?”

“Yeah.”

“I just want to get the chance to tell my side of the story.”

“I’ll hit you with the details later.”

“Okay, talk to you then,” Trina said hanging up the phone as she threw the comforter back over her head. Her heart was beating a mile a minute. As nervous as she was, she knew what she had to do. She couldn’t imagine handing over what Jonah had worked so hard for over to Reko. She just prayed that RG saw things her way. Before she got the chance to calm her nerves, her phone rang again. This time it was Yari.

“Hello?”

“Uh, hello to you too, tramp. I’ve been calling you for like a week now.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I’ve been dealing with a lot of shit. I’ve just been caught up.”

“Save the excuses, Trina. I know when you’re bullshitting.”

“Okay,” she sighed, “I’ve been avoiding you.”

“Why?” Yari screamed into the phone.

“Cause with everything going on with Jonah, I haven’t had the energy to deal with anything else.”

“That’s fucked up. I’ve been here worried sick, and you’ve been avoiding me on purpose?”

“Yari, stop with the dramatics. I’m sorry, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, how you been though?”

“Okay, I guess. I can’t think about Jonah without crying every two seconds, but being in this house alone all the time doesn’t help either. I never knew how much I really depended on that man. I miss him, Yari,” she said beginning to cry again.

“Trina,” Yari whined into the phone, “I didn’t mean to make you cry, mamas. I’m sorry.”

“No, no, it’s okay,” she said wiping her face, “How are you holding up?”

“What, you talking about that shit that happened with Omari?”

“Ummm, yeah.”

“I’ve been past that. I met somebody else.”

“Who?” Trina asked ready for a needed distraction.

“Well, his name is Malachi.”

“Malachi?” Trina asked laughing, “Where you meet him at?”

“I was coming out the Wells Fargo off Stockton, and he was pulling in.”

“He’s from out here?”

“No, I think he said Atlanta. I can’t remember. I just met him like three days ago, but the $2,000 Armani suit he had on was all I needed to see.”

“Here you go.”

“Look, Omari has me more than fucked up, so I have to show him that he’s not the only one who can move on. I’m more than capable especially with a man who looks, smells, and feels like nothing but money.”

“Well, I’ll definitely put that in his ear when I see him tonight.”

“See who?”

“Omari.”

“What are you seeing Omari for?” Yari asked sucking her teeth.

“Reko’s having a meeting with RG, and I wanna be there.”

“For what?”

“Damn, Yari, you are asking hella questions. Listen, an opportunity presented itself, and I intend to take full advantage of it. I’ll let you know when I find out more.”

“I don’t like all this secretive shit.”

“Bye, Yari, I’ll talk to you later.”

“I don’t know what you and Omari are doing,” she hurried to say before Trina hung up, “but don’t tell him about Malachi. I want him to hear it from me, so I can see his face crack.”

“Bye,” Trina said laughing. All she could do was shake her head as she rolled out of bed. After all of Yari’s morning pettiness, she was finally ready to start her day.

. . .

Ding. Dong.

Trina walked to the door in her black Giuseppe heels, white button up shirt, and gray pencil skirt. When she opened the door, Ron was standing there.

“Where you going?” he asked laughing as he walked inside.

“What?” she asked looking down at her outfit.

“You look like an accountant or some shit.”

“Well, good, I’m tryna count this money.”

“Trina, listen, if you want these dudes to respect you and want to do business with you, you gon’ have to relax a little, ma. Be yourself.”

“I am being myself,” she snapped, “Just cause I don’t have my titties out doesn’t mean that I’m not being myself, Ron.”

“I’m just saying maybe if you had them things out, you would get a better response.”

“Is that really how you look at me? Like just another piece of ass?” she asked not giving him a chance to respond, “Let me do this my way please.”

“Yes, boss,” he said saluting her, “Ay, is anybody here yet?”

“Nope, you’re the first one. Help yourself to some refreshments,” she said pointing into the kitchen.

“Refreshments?” Ron walked into the kitchen to see every counter filled with different finger foods, fruit, and waters. “What is all this?”

“What? I thought people would get hungry,” she said as the words spilled out of her mouth, “I’m nervous.”

“Trina, look at me,” Ron said popping a garlic meatball in his mouth, “You’ve turned this shit into a mothafucking PTA meeting. Jonah did a lot to help niggas wash they money over the years and finally go legit, but those aren’t the dudes coming over tonight. These niggas sell drugs, and essentially, you are asking to lead them in doing so. They are not looking for fucking cucumber sandwiches. They are looking for someone like Jonah, and you are that someone. Everybody knows that Reko doesn’t have that same mindset, feel me? But his pride would rather run RG into the ground before he would admit it. His first priority is to find out who killed Jonah as it should be, but what’s the next step? He’s ready to go out shooting when that’s not even our style. Jo was very strategic. Be strategic. Stop tryna be these niggas’ friend and just show them that you are about this money, period. Can you do that?”

“Yeah,” she said softly.

“Trina, can you do this?”

“Yes,” she said louder.

Ding. Dong. Ding. Dong. Ding. Dong.

“Prove it,” he said walking into the living room.

Trina took a deep breath and put all of her reservations aside. She felt like if she didn’t fight for a piece of Rich Gang, she would be losing Jonah forever. She had his kids to think about and his mom, and fuck it, herself, and for the first time, she finally embraced what life had created her to be, and she didn’t have to pretend anymore. She walked to the front door and took one last deep breath before opening it.

“What’s up, Trina?” Reko asked walking inside.

“What’s up?” Omari said following behind him as he shut the door.

“Hey.”

“Good looking on letting me have the meeting here.”

“No problem, but I was hoping I could talk to you about something.”

“Something like what?”

“About what Franco said,” she said looking him in the eyes.

“I thought we deaded that shit in Miami?”

“Maybe you did, but I started thinking about what he said when I got back home.”

“And?”

“And I want in. Franco said that if I give him the word, he’ll only deal directly with me.”

“Is that a threat?”

“No, it’s strategy. You need me, Reko. I now have the work, the money, the assets…”

“Trina, this is not an election. You don’t get head of the table just cause you were sucking my man’s dick.”

“Come on, Reko, bruh,” Omari interrupted.

“No, it’s okay, Mar. Reko, it seems like you’ve been feeling some type of way.”

“Yeah, I have, but out of respect for Jo, I kept my mouth closed.”

“Well, he’s not here now, so say what you gotta say once and for all.”

“I never saw what he saw in you. I mean I see it physically obviously,” he said standing back looking at her curvaceous body, “but up here, I don’t see it. He saved you, so basically before King Jo, you was out here shaking your ass for dollar bills, and now you think you about to cash in on my nigga’s fortune? The craziest part was I knew something was up with you, so I talked to a few people, and they said that you chose to be a hoe.”

“Excuse me?”

“Sorry, let me rephrase that. You chose to let niggas stuff crumpled ones in your pussy. You don’t have any kids, your parents are well-off, still married, and currently living in Elk Grove where they have been for over thirty years. You’re a fraud. The fake blonde hair, the attitude, the pretend hustle, all fraud. I let Jonah know as soon as your card got pulled, but he didn’t listen.”

“Reko, you don’t know me, and whatever little investigative work you think you did was a waste of your fucking time. Why I decided to dance is none of your business. I said what I had to say. We can either do this the easy way, so we all can eat, or you can play yourself and be out here dry as fuck. The money slows down when there’s no work, baby, you should know that. Either way I win.”

“You think RG is gonna push for you? You’re crazier than I thought.”

“Who do you think they’re gonna come to, Reko? And let me fill you in on a little secret. Jonah may have convinced you that Sacramento was his only area of interest, but what sense does that make? Jonah has a whole network across the country. I could replace the thirty or so of you in a day. I’m trying to be nice, Reko.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Sac was Jonah’s home, but that’s not where the money stopped. He has hot spots in Arizona, Houston, Miami, New York, just to name a few, and from that stupid-ass look on your face, I’m convinced now that you really had no idea,” she said laughing.

“Shut up,” he said scratching his head, “Shut up,” but she kept on laughing. Reko reached down into his waist band and pulled his pistol from behind his back. Trina quickly closed her mouth as she looked down the black barrel of the gun.

“Reko, nigga, come on. Calm down. We can talk about this,” Omari said as Reko pressed the gun into her forehead.

“Fuck talking. You just saw me. I tried to talk, but as I thought, this hoe feels entitled and can’t seem to stay in her place. You were there to fuck Jonah not make boss moves, Trina, but I can see now that you may have been confused. Jo made you feel included, like an equal, but let me tell you, baby, you have never been or will ever be a part of RG let alone running it. You know why Jonah kept me around? Because I’m not afraid to kill a mothafucka right where they stand. I’d actually be doing you a favor. You and Jonah could be together forever.” Trina never took her eyes off his. “What do you say, Trina? Are you gonna be a good little girl, or am I gonna have to shoot you in that pretty little face of yours?”

Trina looked down at the ground before she spit right in Reko’s face. Before he could wipe it all away, he grabbed her by her throat cutting off any air left in her body. “I’m not Jo,” he whispered as he snatched her closer, “I do not give two fucks about you.”

“Reko,” Ron said finally coming from the back of the house after hearing all the commotion, “I can’t let you do that, bruh. Chill out and just let her go.”

“Fuck this bitch. Everybody wanna save her ass, but I’m not that one. She didn’t want to stay in a woman’s place, so now I’ma treat her like the rest of these fuck niggas,” he said jamming the barrel of his gun into the side of her head.

“Reko, please put the gun down,” Ron said stepping closer.

“Naw, bruh, not this time,” he said tightening his grip on her throat, “I’m not bout to take orders from no bitch. It’s either her or me, and it’s not gon’ be me.”

“Man, I wish you wouldn’t of said that,” Ron said putting his head down.

BOP. BOP. BOP.

Before Reko got the chance to pull the trigger, Ron put three bullets in his chest. He instantly dropped his gun and fell to the floor. Trina grabbed her swollen neck and gasped for air.

“Ron, blood, what did you do?” Omari asked rushing to check Reko’s pulse, but there was none, “He’s dead.”

“He was gonna kill her, Omari.”

“But it’s Reko. That’s our brother, nigga.”

“I promised Jonah that I was gonna watch out for her. I couldn’t just sit back and watch him kill her. What the fuck was I supposed to do?”

“Fuck. Fuck. Fuck,” Omari said punching a hole in the clay-colored wall.

“Trina, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I think so,” she said continuing to massage her neck, “What do we do now? Everybody is still coming over here.”

“Listen, I’ll take care of Reko. Trina, you go and clean yourself up. Omari…”

“Blood, you want me to pretend like you didn’t just murk our potnah?” he asked as anger filled his chest.

“Do what you gotta do,” Ron said handing him his gun, “I did what I swore to Jonah I would do. I fulfilled my promise, so kill me. My blood for his blood. I know my consequences.”

Omari raised the gun and pointed it straight at Ron’s face.

“Mar, listen,” Trina said walking in front of the gun, “Reko was right, okay? RG is not gonna take orders from me, but you, you’re different. You’re smart like Jonah. Reko was just muscle, and he let that go to his head, but me and you can make this work. We can work together to make more money than we know what to do with. What do you say?”

He put the gun down as he thought about Trina’s proposition. “You’re not just a side-kick, Omari. You deserve to be in the front. I know what Ron did was wrong, and I’m sorry. I never meant for that to happen. Let’s not lose someone else, okay?”

“What do I have to do?”

Ding. Dong. Ding. Dong. Ding. Dong.

“Fuck, they’re here,” Trina said starting to panic.

“Trina, listen, go fix yourself up. I’ll take care of this,” Ron whispered as he slowly rolled Reko’s bleeding body in the giant multicolored rug that sat in the middle of the foyer, “Omari, let everybody in and take them to the living room.”

“What the fuck do I tell them?”

“That the Rich Gang has declared a new king and queen.”