Can't Stop the Love of A Boss 3 Read online

  “Yeah, you right. I don’t know that nigga. He must be some nobody. Even in here, if your name is ringing bells in the street, it’s ringing bells in this motherfucker too,” Bertha said.

  She watched Nikki pace around the cell for a few more minutes before she reached behind her bunk and took out the illegal cell phone that she had hidden. After placing the phone in her bra, she walked to the nearest supply closet. Pulling out the phone, she dialed a number and waited.

  “Yo, who dis?” Murder answered.

  “It’s me, Maxi, cuzzo. I got a question to ask you,” she said.

  “What up, cuz? I’m gonna put some money on your books tomorrow. I just got out the hospital and shit, but what u wanna know?” Murder asked.

  “You got something going on with this chick named Nikki? She in here talking about you’re her man and shit. Is there something I need to know?”

  “Fuck, nah. Is she in there with you or something?” Murder asked, sitting up on the couch and turning the TV completely off so he could focus on the conversation at hand.

  “Yeah, she’s my fucking cell mate. She’s been talking ’bout you like you’re her man or something. You sure you ain’t fuck this broad?” Bertha asked for clarification.

  “Hell nah. I’m about to marry her cousin. Fuck that hoe and her wide open pussy. You should’ve hit her in her damn mouth when she said my name.”

  “Nah, I played the shit off like I didn’t know who the fuck you were. Then, I bounced out of the cell to call you. You know how I move,” she said and laughed.

  “Real shit, cuzo, if you need to, you can go ’head and look out for her while she’s there. Make sure her stay there is the shit, you know what I’m saying?” Murder said.

  Hearing Murder say that and the tone in which he said it let Bertha know that Murder meant the exact opposite of what he said. He was straight up telling her to do whatever she wanted to Nikki.

  “Word, that’s how you feel? If I do that, then you gonna have to look out on my books too, nigga,” she said.

  “I got you, cuzo, fa sho’. If you look out for me, then you won’t have shit to worry about. I’ll even get you set up so when you come home, you’ll be straight,” he reassured her.

  “Well, then, say no more. I got ya. If you think of anything else that she might need, just hit me up with a text to this phone. I’ll hit you back when the coast is clear. You know how it is in here,” she said and smiled.

  “I don’t know who you think you talking to, but we know you’re running shit up in there, cuz. Boss shit runs in the blood. Stop fronting for the recorders on the line,” Murder said.

  “Says the nigga that don’t have to put up with the bullshit ass COs coming in here searching my shit because of what they thought they heard on the phone tap,” Bertha said.

  She knew that Murder didn’t give one fuck about them boys listening to their conversations. She didn’t either because the searches never got the COs anywhere. Her shit was hidden very well, and they hadn’t caught her slipping. That wasn’t going to change anytime soon.

  “What the fuck ever,” Murder said.

  “Alright, cousin, I found out what I needed to know. I’m gonna get off this phone and go find me something to do until it’s time to go back in our cells. I’ll call you next week to give you an update,” she told him.

  “Sounds like a plan to me,” he responded before they both ended the call.

  Bertha made her way to the yard. She needed time to think about what she was going to do about the Nikki situation.

  Murder sat on the couch thinking about what his next move could be. He was tired of being made to look like a fool because of Lawrynn’s family. It was time for him to break everything down to her. She needed to understand what was about to happen.

  Getting up, he found her in the bedroom lying on the bed reading a book. He was happy that she wasn’t looking at one of those ratchet ass television shows.

  “Yo, we need to talk about some things,” Murder said as he walked in to sit on the bed next to her.

  “Okay, what’s going on?” she asked.

  “Nikki is locked up with my cousin. She’s actually her cellmate. I know that you and her may never have that sisterly relationship, but it might be a good idea for you to go talk to her. I don’t think she knows that y’all are really sisters.”

  “Yeah, I’ve been thinking about that lately. She deserves to know that we’re sisters. I know she may have a lot of questions that I can’t answer, but we still need to talk. She needs to understand that she did some fucked up stuff behind things that I knew nothing about. I never asked her why she attacked me that day. It seemed like it was out of nowhere. We weren’t even speaking to each other then. She had what she wanted in Pain, so she should’ve just left everything alone. I just don’t get it,” Lawrynn said.

  “What was with all the attitude you were giving Pain?” Murder asked.

  “He makes my ass itch. We had a few words the night you got shot then his little girlfriend had to put her two cents into our conversation,” she explained.

  “Into it about what, though, Lawrynn?” he asked. Murder made sure she heard him call her by her first name.

  “I accused him of shooting you,” she answered. Murder looked at her with a confused expression on his face. “What? You mean to tell me that you never thought he was gonna come for you after we got together?” she asked. Lawrynn couldn’t understand what the hell he was confused about.

  “Fuck no. I know he felt some kind of way, but that nigga would never shoot my ass. Pain and I go way back. This thing that we have was meant to be. He might not like it, but he damn sure respects it. I didn’t push up on you while y’all were together. Now, if we were fucking around behind his back then I could side with you on that. He knows he’s the one who fucked up, not us. Me and him may not be over everything, but we’re definitely not to the point of wanting to kill each other.

  “You’re wilding for coming at him like that. Even if you did think he did it, you don’t let it be known all out in public like that. You’re gonna be the wife of a boss. I know you were all emotional and shit, but never let anyone besides me see you sweat. If something goes down outside of our house, you come home and vent about that shit to me. When you’re out in the streets hold your head up high and show them motherfuckers that you’ve got your shit together.”

  “I’ll talk to him about it soon,” Lawrynn said. “With us about to married, I don’t want to bring any more bad energy into our marriage. It seems like everything that could go wrong did go wrong, and we just started this relationship,” she told him.

  Murder thought about what Lawrynn said, and she was definitely right about not bringing any bad energy into the marriage. He wanted her to be happy and shit. There wasn’t any room for anything that takes her happiness away.

  “That’s all the more reason for you to go talk to Nikki. You don’t have to forgive her unless that’s truly what you want to do. I’ll be right there with you to get all the loose ends tied up before the wedding. I promise you that,” Murder told her.

  “Thank you for being here with me. I know my family is crazy enough to make you wanna run away,” she said with a giggle.

  “Nah, not me. I’m not going any damn where. I do know that I don’t want you going to see Nikki by yourself. Take Nell with you when you go,” he told her and finished off the conversation with a kiss.

  7

  Allen walked in the house to see Nell sitting on the couch in the dark. He tossed his keys on the coffee table and got down on his knees in front of her. This is the one thing he couldn’t deal with, which was seeing her cry. He knew he had to be there for her, but right now, all he wanted to do was kill the person responsible for her tears and for Murder getting shot. He had checked around, and sure enough, the word on the street was that Laura was the one behind the gun.

  “It could’ve been you,” Nell said barely above a whisper.

  Allen remained quiet because he d
idn’t want to lie to her and say nothing would happen to him. Telling her that everything was going to be alright would’ve been an even worse lie. Nothing was going to get better. The shit was about to hit the fan, and Nell would have a lot more tears to shed.

  “I’ll always do whatever I can to protect you from any harm. I’m not just talking about the physical either. You are my responsibility, and anybody can get it behind you. I was wondering when you were going to stop walking around here like everything was alright. You don’t ever have to front with me, Nell. You should know that by now. I’ll always be here,” he said as he wiped her face.

  Her eyes were bloodshot, which made him wonder if she had been crying all day. Being that he was busy handling shit that Murder couldn’t handle, he only had time to text her between his pick-ups and drop-offs. Now, he regretted only texting because if he would’ve talked to her, he would’ve known to stop by to check on her in person.

  “I never want to see you like that. Promise that you will at least wear a bulletproof vest or something. I know that you’re not able to get out just like that, but please think about it. I’m scared that if you stay in, I’ll die from worrying about you before you really get hurt. This was a wakeup call for me. I’m mean, we were all happy and ready to hear Murder propose to my cousin, and just like that, it all changed. The people running around and the pain in Lawrynn’s voice are all I can hear, even when I’m here alone,” she said as she sniffled.

  “Why are you just telling me this? That was days ago. Have you been able to get any sleep? Did you eat?” Allen asked all at once. Now, he was really on high alert.

  “I remember eating last night. I don’t have an appetite. I didn’t tell you because I knew you were out there trying to find out who shot Murder and why. As for sleeping, all I do is toss and turn,” Nell said.

  “Okay, so check this out. We’re gonna go get something to eat. After that, you’re gonna come home, take a bath, and let me hold you for the next forty-eight hours,” he told her.

  “No, Allen, you have more important things to handle,” Nell tried to tell him.

  “Ain’t shit in these streets more important than you. If you hurt, I’m hurt. If you cry, then I’m gonna make somebody pay for those tears. Now, get up and go get ready,” he said and kissed her on her forehead.

  “Really, just a damn forehead kiss?” Nell asked while trying to force a smile.

  “Right now, that’s all you’re getting from me. I know if you haven’t eaten then you haven’t washed your ass either. You need to go handle that,” he said with a smirk.

  “Shut up. You get on my damn nerves. I did wash my ass today, thank you very much. I should’ve known you were gonna say something crazy sooner or later,” Nell said and giggled as she stood up.

  “You know I had to get a smile up out of you some kind of way. I can’t handle all that sad shit, especially when it’s coming from you.”

  Nell gave Allen the finger and walked toward the bedroom to get ready. Allen used that time to call Murder.

  “Yo,” Murder answered.

  “I’ve been checking around and shit, and it looks like what you saw was really what you saw. The problem is, I can’t find the bitch,” Allen said.

  “It’s all good. The bitch gotta surface sooner or later. Law-Baby put two and two together, and she knows,” Murder revealed.

  “Shit, what are you gonna do?” Allen asked.

  “Right now, just wait ’til she shows her damn face. Has Nell talked to her punk ass pops yet?”

  “Not that I know of. I’ll ask her when we go eat in a few. I came home, and she finally broke. She was in here sitting in the dark crying and shit. Just seeing her cry made me wanna shoot Laura my damn self,” Allen said.

  “Damn, well you chill out with her and make sure she’s good. Laura’s ass will pop up sooner or later. She’s either gonna come around when she thinks shit is all good or whoever is hiding her ass is gonna rat her out when she starts getting on their nerves,” Murder said and chuckled.

  “You might be right, but I need one of those things to happen like yesterday,” Allen replied.

  “That nigga Pain came to see about me,” Murder mentioned.

  “Oh yeah? Lawrynn didn’t slap the shit out of him?” Allen asked seriously.

  “Hell nah. She was walking around all pissed and shit. Slamming doors and all that bullshit,” Murder told him.

  “I told you before that she was turning into you. Lawrynn never went off unless y’all were in the house. Now, she don’t care what she say or when she say it. I hope y’all don’t have any psychotic ass kids no time soon,” Allen said.

  He had noticed the change in Lawrynn slowly but surely. He just hoped she had her stuff under control because they both couldn’t be crazy and ready to fight all the time.

  “She’ll be alright. The shit that got me looking at her sideways is that she never said don’t kill her mama. I guess she knows that her mama gotta go. There’s no way around it anymore. She’s fucked for real this time. You go check on Nell’s ass while I go in here and make sure Law-Baby ain’t looking at that damn ID channel bullshit. I swear she be trying to learn how to kill a nigga,” Murder said.

  “Nah, it’s not you. I wouldn’t put it past her to take her mama herself. It’s not like they were close in the first place, but with her doing all this extra shit lately, Lawrynn is not acting like herself. Keep an eye on her. I would hate to see her when she feels like she’s backed in a corner. I’m telling you, man. Nell is another one I have to watch as it is. It seems like they should get shirts made that say Law and Nell vs the whole damn family. I know they’re the only sane two out of that damn family tree,” Allen said. He looked up to see Nell dressed and ready to go. “I’m gonna hit you up tomorrow. Me and Nell are about to dip,” he said before ending the call.

  “Are you driving, or am I?” Nell asked.

  “I got it. You just sit back and enjoy the ride,” he told her as they walked out the door hand in hand.

  The ride was peaceful with the music playing softly. They both were thinking about everything they had been through. Allen reached out for Nell’s hand and lightly caressed the back of her hand with his thumb. That was his way of reassuring her that they would get through this together. He had already told her, and now it was time for him to show and prove that everything he said was more than just words.

  In his eyes, everyone around Nell was flawed except Lawrynn. He was determined to be the other person. They ended up in Portsmouth at Lisa’s Bar and Grill. Allen knew they weren’t dressed for a fancy restaurant. Besides, the vibe between needed a more relaxed atmosphere. This was just the place for it. Good food, and a nice variety of mixed drinks was sure to change the mood that Nell was in. They walked in, got seated, and were about to order their drinks when Lamelle, Lawrynn’s brother, walked up to their table.

  “Hey, cuz, how have you been?” he asked Nell.

  “I’m hanging in there. How about you?” she asked.

  “Everything is straight. If you don’t mind, can I grab Allen up for a few minutes? It won’t take long. I see y’all doing the date thing,” he said, which made Allen’s face ball up.

  “Go ’head. If you take too long, I’m coming to get him. I’ll order our drinks,” Nell said as Allen stood to his feet.

  Nell watched the guys closely as they both headed outside the bar.

  “This better be good. What the fuck do you want, man?” Allen asked.

  “How’s Murder doing?”

  “I know damn well you ain’t pull me out here to ask some shit that you could’ve said in there. Get to the point,” Allen said as he slid his hands in his pockets.

  “Nah, not at all. I came because me and my brother want a sit down with you, Murder, and Jimmy,” Lamelle said.

  “Sit down? What the hell for?” Allen asked, and then the reason dawned on him. “Oh, you know where ya mama is, huh?” he asked with a smile.

  “Yeah, we want to squash all this s
hit before somebody loses their life,” Lamelle confirmed.

  “Y’all a little late for that shit. I know y’all niggas been seeing how fucked up Laura’s ass has been moving. Why y’all ain’t step in before she shot Murder? Now that she knows it’s a price on her head, she wanna talk. That’s backward as fuck if you ask me. Is that all you want?” Allen asked.

  “Yeah. My Pops went to talk to Jimmy,” he said.

  “So, who’s gonna talk to Murder? Since he’s the one who got shot, he should’ve been the first stop,” Allen said.

  “LJ is going over there now,” Lamelle answered.

  “I’m not the one who can make the call on a sit down, so whatever Murder says, I’m down with it. Are we finished or are we done?” Allen asked.

  He knew they were up to something. He also knew that they were wasting their breath with a sit down. Laura was going to die; he just didn’t know who would be the one to take her life.

  8

  Uncle Jimmy was in the kitchen grinding on Ms. Ella’s ass as she cooked what was supposed to be for dinner. She was used to him being all up on her by now. It seemed like he just had to be touching her in some kind of way ever since they had gotten together.

  “If I burn this food, we’re gonna fight, Jimmy. Back up some,” she whined.

  “Hush up, woman. I’m not going nowhere. If you tell me to move again, I’m gonna spank you tonight,” he playfully told her.

  There was a knock on the door. “Who the fuck is that?” he said to himself as he walked to the door with an attitude.

  Whoever this was better had something important to say. He was shocked to see Cornelius at the door. “Why the fuck you at my damn door?” he asked.

  “Is that how you greet an old friend?” Cornelius asked.

  “Nigga, get it right. We know each other from back in the day, but we ain’t never been friends. Now, like I said before, why are you at my house?” Uncle Jimmy asked.

  He was about to get pissed at Cornelius. Him standing there was feeling more like disrespect than a friendly visit. In Uncle Jimmy’s eyes, Cornelius was a want to be hustler slash drug dealer. He was never on Uncle Jimmy’s level because he made moves off emotions. In the streets, that was a big no-no. They weren’t exactly enemies, but they damn sure weren’t friends.