“There we go, peg leg!” Don whistled. “It’s because he’s a nigger, Solana. The Rinaldi organization—myorganization—is good for lending money. The Rinaldi Mob is good for protecting daughters, but were not good enough for Mexican pussy? Shits foul, Ledesma. And that”—Don pointed—“That’s gone cost ya. I want an extra twenty percent on top of what you owe.”
“Is that true, father? I mean… You are aware you made me with a Black woman, right?”
“I’m not a racist! I just… I didn’t want you to keep going through what you’ve gone through your entire life. I wanted… I wanted you to be accepted. To belong, Damita.”
“I’ll never belong! Not here anyway…” Solana turned to Don. “How much does he owe?”
“1,421,732,000.00 pesos. Whatever that is in USD. Oh, and the twenty percent too.”
I could see Solana trying to convert the pesos into dollars, her body still sealed to mine. “Sixty? Sixty million American dollars?”
“Eighty,” I corrected. “But the number changes by the day. Currency is unpredictable.”
Solana shifted when I spoke, as if she remembered her hands were in my grasp, before she snatched away.
“I need a fucking address. Her bitch-ass fiancée has my daughter. Or did you already know that, too, Don?”
“That’s why I’m here. I got the call from Ines about five hours ago. Though, I gotta admit… I’m impressed by your resourcefulness to get here so quickly, and I’m not impressed easily. I didn’t think you’d let some shit like this slide by you, though, Shio. Hell, I’m trying to figure out how it slid by me. You must have a baby by Invisigal. Ines hasn’t given me the address yet, though.” Don glared up at the man who had caused so many issues with his dishonesty and bullshit.
“I’ll give you the address, Don Demise. I have no idea what Felipe has going on, Shio. But my son is not a part of it. He’s only there so that we can try and get some insight. It wasn’t easy getting him in. I’m risking my son’s life. Do you think I’d conspire on anything while you have my daughter in your possession?”
“Had. Had your daughter in my possession. You risking your son is for your benefit, not mine. Once I get what’s mine, whoever dies, dies. Whoever doesn’t, don’t. Y’all can deal with your own beef.”
This shit was too much. I don’t know why Don’s nice ass let Ledesma borrow that type of money, but knowing Don, there was some underlying shit he hadn’t divulged.
“Whatever the fuck you and Don giggle about behind closed doors can continue as long as you remove me from the fucking equation. Fuck you and your high-ass daughter.”
“High?”
“Ah, Don… You ain’t know that either? Princess here powders her fuckin’ nose! The fuck can I do with a cokehead? Fuck outta here.”
If looks could kill, Solana would have shot my ass down.
“Shio… She needs your help!” Ines rasped in a plea.
I laughed and looked at his ass like the dumb nigga he was. “She needs fuckin’ rehab! Ain’t shit I can do for her. All this shit was stupid to agree with from the jump. Poor fucking planning. How the fuck I’m gone teach her how to be a wife? I don’t have a fucking wife myself. Oh, my bad… That was just some made-up shit… Hunh, Don?
“And you… You want me to protect her, but you don’t want her with a nigga like me? Nah! You wanted protection, and since I’m the only nigga that doesn’t have a bitch at the crib, I was the fucking chosen one. And stop fuckin’ saying I looked at her a certain type of way. I’m a man. Solana ain’t shit special! I looked at her the same way I’d look at any fuckin’ pretty girl. Do I look like a bitch-ass nigga to you? To any of you? This ain’t Rosetta Stone! The only thing I could teach her gullible ass is how to take long dick, but with the way you check her fuckin’ hymen every three to four business days, that shits impossible.
“Ion want Cocaine Barbie. What’s the fucking address?”
Solana took a step back, chest heaving. Ines stood, blood on his hands, leaving his wife to cry and nurse her own wound.
“My phone… It’s there.” He pointed to a table that was near Don.
Don grabbed the phone and opened it with a few swipes. My fucking head was spinning from all of this shit being brought out into the opening. No matter how Don looked at it or tried to flip it, he’d set me up.
Crossing the room in a fury, gun in hand, I placed it under Ines’ chin before he saw it coming. “You think this shit is a fuckin’ game?”
“Wh… Wh… What?” The metallic smell of blood on Ines’ hands was heavy.
“Make me fall in love with the pretty girl who belongs to another nigga… Have us two cartels go at it. With both organizations out of the way, you couldn’t do nothing but win. No debt owed. A fuckin’ clean slate.”
Don chuckled. “Awl, shit. See… That’s why you my favorite Cuppacio. I ain’t even think of that.”
I watched as he scrolled through Ines’ phone while his phone was in his other hand. Pussy has been men’s downfall for millions of years, but me—I wasn’t so easily fucking fooled. I could feel Solana boring a hole into me with her eyes.
“Shio!” she yelled after I wouldn’t look at her.
