CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

BAMBI

 

Standing at the window, I grinned as I watched the black sedans pull up and park in the driveway outside of the bunker. I had to do a lot of shit to get the east coast bosses here and I wanted to be sure everything was perfect.

Excited, I closed the heavy burgundy curtain and faced my family. They were in their respective seats around the long cherry wood table. Dressed in all black, I was proud to say that they all exuded money. We hadn’t looked this good in a long time. And I felt as if we were united.

We were Kennedys.

Scarlett’s red hair hung over her shoulder and brushed against the straps of the black silk dress she wore. Denim’s dreads were pulled in a neat ponytail and Race’s brown hair was in a sharp bob that hung at her jawbone.

The fellas were looking lovely too. Camp in a pair of black jeans, black t-shirt and black jacket. Bradley in his two-piece suit with a designer button down shirt that he released the first three buttons on. Ramirez was sporting black velvet Tom Ford corduroys and a black shirt.

Although my brothers-in-law looked hot, Kevin’s look was delicious. He was dipped in a double-breasted black suit with a red hanky stuffed in his jacket pocket. I wanted to fuck him and kill him at the same time and I knew his selections were on purpose.

They were meant to seduce me.

Good job, Mr. Kennedy.

You succeeded.

“They’re coming,” I told my family as I walked slowly toward them. I stopped at the head of the table and stood next to Kevin. I caught the nigga looking at me. The long black dress that I wore with the slit down the side made way for my thigh every time I moved.

“I hope this works,” Kevin said as he folded his arms over his chest. “You did a lot to get them here, Bambi. Hopefully shit won’t backfire in our faces.”

“Wake up, husband. It already has worked,” I reminded him. “Now you should trust and support me.”

“I’m here ain’t I?”

Fuck Kevin!

Either he was jealous or holding onto animosity about our past beefs. Either way, I was in no mood for drama inside the camp tonight.

I turned my attention toward the door. When our trusted butler opened it, one by one the bosses trickled in. First inside was Nine Prophet of the infamous Prophet family. The collar of the black fur coat she was draped in stroked her high cheekbones and set off her gorgeous dark skin. My butler accepted her coat and I gently shook her tiny hand before shaking her husband’s.

I heard that Nine’s mother and father were brother and sister. And that her husband was actually her cousin. No matter what the circumstance, when it came to business she was deadly and didn’t play.

She was one of Mitch’s top customers and she commanded an army of almost a thousand men.

With her support alone, we were winning.

“Bambi, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” Nine said with a slight nod. It felt like I was in the presence of a queen and I knew that although young, no more than twenty years old if I’m guessing, she was a boss. She appeared regal and a slight smile rested on her face.

“The pleasure is all mine,” I said softly. “The circumstances aren’t the best but I’m glad you could make it.”

“What better circumstance than war?” She winked.

“You have a beautiful home,” her husband Leaf said politely. He handed me a bottle of Ace of Spades even though I requested that the guests bring nothing.

Classy.

“Thank you,” I replied. “My sister will show you to your seats,” I said as Denim approached.

The next bosses in line were Rasim and Snow Nami of the Nami family. This is business, I can’t lie, but the moment that 6-foot something man hovered over me, he took my breath away. With tattoos all over his neck, I could see his muscles protruding through his black button down shirt.

His wife Snow was equally stunning. Much shorter than him, when I looked into her hazel brown eyes I could tell that she deserved to be at his side. I wondered how much a man as handsome as he was had put her through. “Thank you for inviting us,” Snow said. “I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”

“The pleasure is all mine,” I responded shaking her hand. “Thank you for coming.”

After I shook Snow’s hand, Rasim moved closer and I swallowed. “Whatever you need from us, we got you,” Rasim said gazing at me a bit longer than necessary before walking inside.

“Thank you. That means a lot.”

I don’t know what made me do it but when I glanced behind me, Kevin wore a frown on his face.

Jealous ass nigga.

I’m sure he’d be trying to fuck me after this meeting was all said and done. Because although the men were attractive, I had no doubt that Nine Prophet with her body of a goddess and Snow with her elegant curves had his dick rock hard.

Female bosses were so intoxicating.

After greeting the Namis and the Prophets, the next group that trickled in was Carissa, Mercedes, Yvette and Lil C. Back in the day, they ran an operation called Emerald City. There was so much money coming out of Emerald City that their husbands were considered rock stars in Washington, D.C.

I’m not sure of the exact story but from what I’m told, although their men ran Emerald City, to expand their reach they put their girlfriends onto the city while they tended to business in their outside shops.

Shit was sweet and a lot of money was made until one of the men, who I believe fucked with Yvette, brought another bitch into the picture. This caused a feud amongst the men and compromised things. And like the saying bros before hoes, the women stayed together and moved their men out of Emerald City by taking command of their soldiers.

The last I heard, every last one of their men died.

Later, Lil C, Mercedes’ son, ran Tyland Towers, which he called Camelot. He was doing pretty good too but eventually Emerald City and Tyland were torn down by a company called National Improvement for a Greater Generation Association, or NIGGA for short, and they lost everything.

This is where I came in.

Generally, I didn’t fuck with new bitches but my good friend Toi introduced me to them after the tear down. Mercedes, Yvette and Carissa were down on their luck and I helped them out because she vouched for them.

I allowed them to stay in one of my homes and in return, they moved coke for me. Under my watch, before long, they reclaimed the new towers that the organization built and flooded them with our work. Not being able to battle the violence and keep the property drug free, NIGGA sold the property back to the government and now it belonged to Yvette and her crew.

Mercedes shook my hand and said, “Thanks for inviting us, Bambi.” I never got over how beautiful she was. If I’m telling the truth, they were all stunning.

Mercedes’ light skin was red probably because it was a bit chilly outside.

Carissa shook my hand next, her fine hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she looked as if she was part Indian.

Yvette greeted me last and her grip was firm. Although she was the shortest of the crew, I always got the impression that she was the most deadly, just like Race.

Unfortunately, I also sensed jealousy of my success whenever she was in my presence. A few times my instincts said to cut her off but Toi begged me not to. My friend was the only reason Yvette was still getting money and she was the only reason she was still alive.

Yvette smoothed her short haircut with her hand and looked at the bosses and then back at me. “I guess it’s time for war.”

“Indeed,” I said as Denim showed them their seats.

With them out of the way, Lil C walked up to me next. A large gold medallion rested on his black t-shirt and the scent of his leather jacket was so strong I could tell it was new. He was young and a little arrogant but I could see he was born in the dope game and that made me respect him.

He reminded me of my sons, Melo and Noah.

He scratched his curly hair and smiled. “Looking good, Ms. Bambi,” he said licking his lips. “Very good.”

He was always coming on to me, which was hilarious in my book. This lil nigga couldn’t handle one of my titties if I put the nipple on his lip. Let alone my pussy. The only reason I didn’t hurt his feelings was because he was harmless. For now anyway. “Have a seat, C,” I said shaking my head.

“My bad,” he smiled raising his hands in the air.

The final person to walk in was Kelsi and I had great respect for him also. Just like Lil C, Kelsi was born in the dope game and used to move coke with his mother Janet.

Although he was from the D.C. area, he moved to Atlanta and made a huge name for himself. He exuded strength and when he stepped into my house there was something about him I respected immediately.

Although I knew he couldn’t be any older than thirty, he still rocked a few grey hairs in his goatee.

Shaking my hand firmly, he handed me a bottle of Chateau Margaux, the most expensive wine in the world. Loving his swag, I gave it to the butler with a nod and he sat it on the table.

“Bambi Kennedy. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Your reputation precedes you.”

“Kelsi Stayley,” I responded with a smile. “The pleasure is all mine.” I gestured toward everyone else. I caught him checking out Denim and Bradley caught them looking at each other. “Please…have a seat.”

With everyone now present, I swaggered over to the table. I was preparing to thank them for coming but Sarah walked in. She was wearing a white t-shirt and soiled grey sweatpants.

Leaning up against the wall, obviously drunk out of her mind, she said, “I’m sick of you bitches not inviting me to the party. With all these fine ass niggas in here.” She eyeballed Kelsi, Rasim, Leaf and Lil C. “I’m a part of this family too, you know.”

When I looked at Denim she appeared frozen.

Sarah raised her hand and that’s when I saw the glass. Slithering her tongue into the cup, she lapped at the wine a little while looking at me through the bottom.

That was it!

I was done with this fat, ugly bitch.

I was headed over toward her to lay hands but Kevin got up and put his palm on my lower back. “I got her, baby.” He kissed me on the cheek as if we were still a couple and for some reason, I was relieved.

As he ushered her hating ass from the place where only bosses roamed, I looked at the guests and said, “Sorry for the distraction. Let’s eat and then do as bosses do.”

 

****

 

Dinner was over and cocktails were served. “Where is Mitch?” Nine Prophet asked as she leaned back in the chair with her legs crossed. “Shouldn’t he be present at this meeting?”

“He should, but considering that security is high, we feel it best to keep him out of it,” Kevin responded.

“Besides, we’re all grown,” I joked. “We don’t need daddy.”

“So you don’t trust us?” her husband responded.

“We’re in the dope business,” I replied, “where the motto is trust no one.”

They all smiled.

“And yet you invite us to your home anyway,” Nine winked at me.

“Trust is one thing,” I said. “Respect is another. And you earned that.”

Nine nodded and winked again. The chick had mad swag and I must admit I liked her a lot.

“Tell me something, what makes you think the Russians will try to take out our entire operation?” Kelsi questioned as he wiped his hand down his chin. “It seems a little ambitious.”

“Because the hope is that if your operations are down, you won’t have money to cop coke from Mitch,” Denim said.

“And if you don’t have money, Mitch isn’t eating the same way he has in the past and his profits will be down,” Bradley added. “So they’re trying to smoke Mitch out to force him to do business with them.”

“But if they can’t get Mitch, why impact our businesses?” Yvette asked. “We don’t buy from the Russians.”

“Because eventually the Russians hope to bully you into a business relationship with them using whatever bullshit product they secure,” Kevin responded.

“And we’ve gotten information that if you choose not to use their powder, once they’ve secured another connect, they will attack,” I said.

“Any idea on how much this mothafucka wanna charge?” Kelsi asked.

“I’m not sure but I hear it’s as high as forty percent,” I said. “Way more than Mitch charges.”

They moved around a little and I could see the agitation. “Why is all of this happening now?” Rasim asked. “The Russians haven’t wanted in on our business before.”

“They’re doing this now because they want to deal directly with Mitch,” Race replied. “And we won’t let them.”

“So why not let the niggas cop from Mitch straight up?” Lil C asked readjusting his gold chain on his chest. “Seems like all our problems would be eliminated with that.”

“That’s a good point,” Snow responded. “We purchase directly from Mitch. So why can’t they?”

Yvette frowned. “Oh, so ya’ll get to go straight to Mitch?” she asked looking over at the Namis. “Because we gotta go through Bambi with a markup.”

I could feel the tension in Yvette’s voice and I didn’t like it. “You deal through me because I brought you in when your other supplier dried up.”

“Oh yeah, that’s right,” Scarlett said. “What was his name?”

“The nigga’s name was Saint,” Denim responded.

“Didn’t he want to fuck you?” Scarlett continued. “And when you refused, he kidnapped you for three days before our men saved your life?”

Yvette rolled her eyes and sat back into her seat.

“Are you saying my prices aren’t fair?” I asked returning to the subject now that my sisters put her in her place. “Because I know for a fact that I’m giving you a better deal than your first connect, Dreyfus. Who, by the way, was getting his product directly from Mitch.”

“I’m not saying that your prices are unfair,” she responded.

“Then what the fuck you saying then?” Denim snapped.

“Hold up, why you coming at my friend all hard and shit?” Carissa barked, slamming on the table with a closed fist. “She got a right to ask questions. Isn’t that why we were all called? To weigh in on the matter?”

“Wasn’t nobody even talking to you anyway,” Mercedes said to Denim.

“Bitch, you sound crazy,” Race said as she stood up. “This our mothafucking house! Check the Kennedy name on the door!”

“Sit down, bay,” Ramirez said tugging on her elbow. She looked at him and took a seat. “I know it’s a lot of tension in this room right now but we shouldn’t be fighting each other.” Ramirez looked at everyone and then his eyes rested on Yvette. “You don’t have to use our coke if you don’t want to, shawty. If you can get a better price, then so be it. The door is over there. Use your wings…they work.” He pointed.

Yvette looked at Carissa, Mercedes and Lil C. I guess she didn’t get the permission to walk out that she was looking for because she sat back in the chair, crossed her arms over her chest and stared at me. “I’m listening,” she responded.

I liked Yvette. I really did but if she came at me sideways again I had intentions on snatching her heart out. But when I did, she wouldn’t see it coming. It wouldn’t be in a meeting with all of the bosses present, so that they would think that I couldn’t control myself. It would be in private, within a dark alley.

Just her and I.

“Let’s say the Russians do want war,” Nine said bringing me back to the meeting at hand. “And let’s say they try to dismantle our operations if we refuse to use their coke. What is your plan?”

“Yeah, why we here?” Kelsi asked.

“You’re here because the Russians have connected with other bosses,” I said. “Together they are calling themselves the Russian Cartel and they command a big army. I was hoping that we could do the same. Combine our soldiers and fight back. Together we are a legion.”

“And where’s Mitch again?” Rasim questioned.

“We have him held up for his protection,” I responded. “Once we deal with the Russian Cartel then we’ll let him go. But don’t worry, while we have him in custody, business will still move as usual. Bricks are still being sold.”

“And how does one deal with the Russian Cartel?” Snow asked.

“We kill them,” I responded.

Silence.

Nine smiled and said, “War is a necessary evil.”

I nodded. “Yes it is, friend.”

“So when do you think they’ll make a move?” Nine asked.

“One of their fiancés was murdered today,” I said looking at Race. “The order was given by us in response to the men they killed in our organizations. We also took out their best soldier. A man by the name of Larry. And I’m sure because of it, they’re angry and disabled.” I paused. “I reason that they’ll make another move on your camps any day now.”

“Well if they do,” Nine said with a smile on her face, “we will be ready.”

“So are you all in?” I looked around the table. “Because I need an answer tonight. Can I see a show of hands?”

Starting with Nine Prophet, one by one, the bosses raised their hands. In my family, Race was the first followed by everyone else. And when I looked down at my husband he raised his hand too.

My pussy jumped.

I don’t know why the small action caused my heart to pump rapidly but it did. Finally, he had my back.

“Thank you,” I said to all of them, especially the nigga whose name I chose. “As you know, I invited you all to stay here in the bunker tonight and I hope that you will take me up on my offer. In the event the war is extra bloody, you and your families are welcome to come here for protection. This place is off the grid to everyone, including the police.”

Nine stood up and Leaf went to grab her fur coat from the butler. “I appreciate the offer, friend, but my husband and I have a war to plan for in the privacy of our own home.” She strolled over to me. She reminded me of Cleopatra. Strong, bold and elegant.

“Don’t worry about us,” Nine continued. “We will be ready for them.” She extended her hand. “It is such a pleasure to be in the company of a real king. A real woman. I look forward to doing more business with you in the future.”

I shook her delicate hand. “Same here.”

I walked them to the door after they said their goodbyes to everyone. When they were gone I looked back at the table. “So is everyone else staying?”

They all nodded.

“I guess it’s a celebration,” Rasim said raising his wine glass in the air.

“The party before the storm,” Lil C added.

I smiled and when I looked toward the back, I saw Sarah. She grinned at me and walked away.

I wondered how long she was standing there.