Married To The Game

C:10 | What's Done In The Dark Pt. 1

When I woke up, I shot Omari a text. I didn't want him to think I was up to no good by not telling him I had made it back. I didn't know how much time I had until he figured everything out, so I needed to be swift with everything. I texted Vito's connect, whose name turned out to be Gianni, from his phone. I figured I'd text him pretending to be Vito. I told him everything was good on my end, and I just got caught up with work. I was going to wait until I sold everything before I did the big reveal. My phone buzzed. Snow. "Back in town and didn't tell me?" "Omari told you?" That was quick. Knowing Omari he probably told everyone I was back in town for some reup. "Yeah he told me, and I wanted to talk to you." "Okay, shoot." "Can I come over?" "Um, yeah that's cool. I need help with this drop anyways." I really didn't feel like being bothered, so she was gonna make herself useful. I unpacked all the cocaine I had managed to smuggle from New York. I can't wait for this to hit the streets. I had been without fast money for a whole week while I was in New York. I know my feins were sick trying to find some more coke like mine while I was gone. I told most of my regulars I would be gone for a while so they knew to get their fix from Snow. I decided to go ahead and make the crack while I waited on Snow's slow ass. She would be the one in charge of bagging it. Surely my feins had suspected I was back in, and it would only be a matter of time before my phone started to go off the hook. Crackheads can smell coke from a mile away. Taking the cocaine into the kitchen, I get everything I need to freebase and to make crack with. I did a little bit of the freebase, so I'd have extra money to present to Gianni when that time came, to seal the deal. Because how could you say no to money? You can't. That's why when feins came to me with only quarters nickels and dimes, I'd still take it. Omari thought it was stupid though, and he made it clear he'd never be the one caught counting coins. But I didn't care, money was money. It all spent the same, no matter how you got it. I had just emptied trays of ice in the Pyrex when Snow arrived. "Mmm, smells good in here." She said, giving me a hug. I nodded, "Smells like a million."

I move the crack from the stove to the dining room area. "How's business been? I know y'all been making all my money." "They always ask for you! Girl i'm so sick of your feins. All they wanna know is "when's Esther coming back?"" I laughed. I had the most loyal clientele. Snow's phone went off. I waited until she got off the phone to ask the million dollar question. "So what's up, you wanted to talk to me?" "Yeah." "Okay, hit me?" She moved around, uneasy. "What's wrong?" She said nothing. "Snow?" Still nothing. "So you came all the way over here to play the quiet game?" Instead of responding, she began to break down the crack in the kitchen. Whatever she wanted to say she needed to spit out. I had deliveries to get to, my phone hasn't stopped buzzing since I woke up. I wasn't about to beg Snow to spill the beans, but if she wasn't ready to talk by the time I was ready to get back to the block, she would be out of luck. "I haven't told anyone this. This is very personal for me, Esther." She starts. This time I said nothing. Maybe my patience had just wore thin, or this was just like pulling teeth. "Esther, I have aids. And I got them from Omari. And I refuse to work for that fat motherfucker." "What?" That was the last thing I expected to hear. "How do you know Omari has it? It could be from anybody, right?" "He had me clean his house for him one day, and something told me to go through his shit. So that's just what I did. Would you believe the bitch done had it for years! Esther, I wanna kill him! I hate him." I took a minute to gather my thoughts together and to process everything. Then it dawned on me, the fact that they had been sleeping together. "Wait, I thought your ex gave it to you?" I said, playing the flashback of me getting thrown off her nigga's back.  "I thought so, too. But he just got tested again. It was a false positive. All this time I thought he ruined my life, when it was Omari!" "When did you guys sleep together?" "Almost two years ago, before me and my ex got together. I thought it was just an STD I had from Donte. But the symptoms got worse. When I went to get tested they told me it was aids, that's why I fucked his car up! But he just told me while you were gone that he showed up negative." "You're sure it was from Omari?" For some reason I just couldn't fathom Omari having aids, or passing it to someone at that. I barely accepted that Snow had it. It was still news to me. "I'm positive, Esther. I haven't slept with anybody else but him." I sat and thought. This could be a good thing. Of course not for Snow, necessarily. But it depends on how you wanted to look at it. "So, what now? You said you don't wanna work for him. You getting out the game?" I couldn't come up with a reason for her telling me, considering she'd only known me for two months. Normally when people tell you something it had to be a reason. Especially something big as this. "Matter of fact, fuck Omari. We can do this shit ourselves. We don't need him. He already taught me everything, and you know just about as much, if not more." "I don't know how to freebase." "So what, I can handle that." This was the perfect opportunity. It was a win win. I was already in the process of screwing him over anyways. At least Snow had a reason. I did need somebody to work with. I couldn't do everything. I wouldn't mind having Snow as my right hand, as long as she remained loyal and played her part. But I wanted it to be clear that I was the boss and the head of this show. "I don't know Esther. Omari's really powerful.. and besides, we don't even know his connect. He'd never give it up, I asked before." Little did she know he didn't have to give it up. I already took it. "So what are you saying, Snow? You wanna give up all this money? You wanna go back to your regular lifestyle, working for the man. Barely making shit. Or you wanna ball." I go into my back bedroom and grab a stack out of my safe. I come back and start showering the living room with hundreds, to show Snow what she would be missing. "Okay, okay. You're right. What about the connect?" "You just let me worry about that." I decided against telling Snow that I was already a step ahead of her. I didn't wanna let all the cats out the bag. And I wasn't really thrilled with the idea of her being introduced to Gianni. Hell I hadn't even met him myself yet. I guess I would let her meet Gianni, I wanted a partnership with Snow, verses her being my worker. I know I wanted to be in charge, but things would be a repeat of what happened with Omari. Greed would eventually take over her, like it did me, leading her to cross me. "I do have a request. The only way I'll agree to this, though, is if you do something for me." I said, reigniting the conversation. "Anything?" "Anything?" I repeated. I had another idea. This one, however, was more brutal. I didn't know how Snow would feel about what I was about to ask her. "What's the worst thing you've ever done?" I asked, before asking my multi-million dollar question. I needed to see if what I was asking would be up her ally or not. "Probably helping Omari get rid of some bodies. They were niggas I set up." Her response took me back. The game was fucked up. "Hey, don't accept shit on consignment." She added, shrugging her shoulders. I guess she noticed my facial expression. But I had no room to judge, I had just killed a man myself over some drugs. The money changes you.

No wonder Omari was big on consignment. He drilled it in my head that if you didn't have a sufficient base to sell to, you don't take crack on consignment. "The only way i'll agree to do this with you, is if you help me with my ex." "Okay?" She agreed, still clearly confused. I looked at her, right as she caught on. She made her face do a "Oooohhhhhhh" expression. I nodded. Marcus definitely wasn't off the hook. I meant when I said he would get his. He would be getting his and then some. Even though this wouldn't give me my house, money, time, or baby back, it was pretty damn close.

"I've never been asked that before." She admitted. I couldn't tell how that made her feel. I hope she didn't feel like an object, or as if she was being used. Technically we were using each other. "How do you feel? If you're not comfortable-" I stopped myself. Now I kind of felt bad, asking her to take someone's life the same way they took hers. "What did he do to you?" I let out a sigh. I didn't really want to get into detail, but I know it was only right, in exchange of my barbaric question. "He got my cousin pregnant in our home. We had been trying to get pregnant for months. But I guess God was just blessing me. And when I came home and caught them fucking, he beat me and put me out. I bought everything from the ground up, but since everything's in his name, wasn't much I could do." She took a second to process everything. "What about the cousin?" "If they're still together that's even better. Kill two birds with one stone. She's getting hers regardless, I just want this for Marcus." I kind of laughed to myself at the chilling reference I had made; kill two birds with one stone. Probably should of used a more appropriate  phrase. Maybe this will teach Marcus about sticking his dick everywhere. "What's his name?"

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