Hard Time (Hard Time Series Book 1)

From The Ground Up

Most people would have killed Roxy or most people would have disowned her and it was safe to say both thoughts crossed Stef's mind. Was she furious that Roxy let the Lions Den go to shit? Yes. Did she want to ring her neck? Yes, she wanted to ring it and literally strangle her for she had a shit load of work to do now. A shit load and it would require time, patience and skill to put everything back together in an even stronger way then she originally had.

First she would need to figure who she had left, what more she could get her hands on, what girls she could recruit, who she could trade with, what debts were still hers left to collect, and start from zero. But not completely from zero for what many of the girls didn't know and not even Roxy was Stef had other means. She had set up other ways to distribute and had a plan B, C, and D just like her father taught her. Never did she have just one plan ever and in most cases she planned for the worst case scenario. Believe it or not this was not even the worst case. Yes things would have to be shuffled around a bit and she along with her girls and most likely Lena when she got out were stuck with cleaning but it was what she wanted. It was exactly what she wanted for it gave her access to just what she needed and a place to store what she had left. And above all control. The control would start slow and right underneath Cheryl who had no clue. None for she had built The Panthers with no foundation and it could crumble in a minute and it most likely would. However, after her stint in solitary Stef realized just how vulnerable her girls were without her and that needed to change for there was no way all twenty went to Cheryl willingly. No way and she would need to find that out quickly and she also needed to train her girls for it was possible she could end up in solitary at any point again and they would be back to square one. As much as she wanted to be able to rely on Roxy she had proven that under certain conditions it was not possible. She did not know how to run the Den. Addressing her Den had been the utmost important thing to her as soon as lunch was over to inform the girls of their next steps in restoring things.

"Ma cleaning jobs suck. And Callie? She's on bed rest." Tracey said as her, Angela and Desiree gathered in the blonde's cell along with Callie who was resting on Stef's bed. The young teen was the most relaxed she had ever been in the last month now that Stef was back and once Lena returned she would feel even more complete. The two women had really become her mother's more than anyone ever had in her life.

"Trac, I know what I'm doing. They are giving me exactly what we need. Believe me love."

"A mop?"

Shaking her head at the girl Stef gently lifted her chin up as she looked worried and concerned toward the blonde.

"Have I ever lied to you or steered you the wrong way? MM?"

"No."

"Then why would I start now?"

"You wouldn't mom I know that but I just worry."

"Don't. We don't have time for that worry shit Trac. We got shit to do, we got deals to make, we got shit to run."

"But Cheryl got it all."

"Fuck what Cheryl has. She doesn't have shit. She only has what she fucking thinks she has which is all surface. Believe me. You babies have to understand something and maybe it's my fault for not teaching you how to use what you have. How to use all available things that are laying out right in front of you to your advantage." Whispering to each one of her girls they all soaked up every single word she spoke as this is what they had missed, this is what they had needed for without Stef's strong presence and words they felt as if they were dropped on a planet they knew nothing about. Yes, she was a fair leader, but she was a tough one leaving no room for error, tears or bullshit. Each girl knew that, each girl knew their place and did whatever was asked of them and more. Respect, that was what Stef required and it went both ways on her end.