The Legend of Johnny Hustle: Crown Me King (14 page)

$$$

Later that day, I was getting used to the larger space in the new suite when Red came in and placed three large on my table. “That’s your cut for today, please don’t ask me about the job until I’m done.”

I thought about the Christmas gifts I wanted to give out and asked, “Are you saving, or bringing it all to me?”

In a sexy manner, Red put her hand on her hip. “Honey, I love you.  I’m not getting in your way, and I don’t plan on leaving unless you disrespect me.  Like Roxy, I don’t care about other women you have, as long they know who’s in charge.  The only way you’ll lose me is if you put your hands on me.”  She paused and pointed to the ceiling. “But.  As God is my witness, I will
never
give all of my money to a man and leave myself stranded.  You gave me a new life, and you keep me happy.  Money is a small thing compared to that.”  She walked over and kissed me, and then looked around the place. “They told me downstairs that we moved, but this is really nice.  You see?  You take care of me without knowing it.  But, I have to hurry and move all of my stuff in the big room before Joy come in here with her loud self, taking up space.”  She ran to move clothes in and out of the other rooms.  I headed for the master bedroom so I could catch a TV show.  Suddenly, Red stopped short, put her hands inside her crotch, and with a big smile, said, “Hey, sugar, when I’m done moving this stuff, I want you to come and move this stuff.”

I think she fell in love that day, but with Red, anything is possible.

$$$

When we finished making love, our hot exhausted bodies laid on top of the wet satin sheets.  I dozed off to the sounds of Red whispering, “I love you—I love you—I love you,” over and over again.  It was clear that she had been properly satisfied, so I was off to sleep until I heard a pounding on the front door.  We both jumped up, but instead of expecting me to jump up and get dressed, Red left the bed in a dash and opened the door in her nakedness.

“They told me we moved.  I ain’t know what suite so I had to bang on the door,” Roxy said excitedly.  She nodded to Joy.  “This bitch done loss her mind,” she announced, walking over to me and putting her head against my chest.

I looked over to Joy and saw that her right hand was bleeding inside of her cheap yellow coat.  She held a small pool of blood, careful not to make stains in the carpet.  Red closed the door and cupped her hands under the dripping blood.  Together, she and Joy walked into the hall bathroom.

“What the hell happened, Roxy?”  I asked.

“You ain’t never gonna believe this, baby.  We in trouble now.”  She replied, slipping out of her heels and rubbing her feet while sitting on the couch.

I said, “Try me.”

She wiped her face. “That chick in there is lunching.  I went to turn a trick around by the park on the Ave, right?  When I come back, Joy got all them young girls handing they money over.  Talking ‘bout, ‘Get Johnny money right 'cause you don’t want him coming down here.’  This chili lame ass pimp got all up in Joy’s face, talking ‘bout she ain’t nothing and her man ain’t nobody.  So she told him to stay right there while she called you down.  This lame go and get in his beat up Caddy and pull off, scared—to—death.”

I was about to speak and she said, “Baby, wait,” and continued.  “So I figure everything cool and his girls is gonna come over to our side right?  Wrong.  Joy the lunch box in there, decides she wanna smoke a joint, and she tells all the pimps they better leave cause
you
coming.  So now all the girls is on some independent women stuff for
my man.
And I like that, but then Antoinette jumps up in Joy’s face and screamed, ‘Johnny Hustle is a simp, he ain’t no pimp’ and she spit on Joy.”  Roxy moved closer to me.  With her eyes popping out, she whispered, “Now check this out, baby.  Your sick ass
lunch box
in there pulls out her dagger and starts stabbing Antoinette and screaming, ‘Don’t you talk about my daddy like that.’”  Roxy fanned her face, forgetting it was dead of winter, and said, “The chick disturbed.  I’ll do whatever you say, but I ain’t messing with her tonight.  That’s your problem—if it’s okay?”

It took a minute to understand exactly what happened.  When it all came together, I asked, “So what happened to the girl?  Where is she?”

Roxy snapped her head to me.  Her eyes grew to the size of saucers when she asked, “Oh, I left that out?  That bitch is dead.  They took her in the ambulance.  Lunch box in there made the strip hot.  Baby, you should know I wasn’t leaving all that money behind unless I ain’t had no choice.  The poe-lease—is everywhere.  Whatever you do, I’m staying in the room with you tonight, lunch box need to go hide in the basement.”

I wanted to pick up the phone and call Cashmere.  Instead, I called the head of security and told him that if someone was looking for me to give me a call first.  In the event Vance and Jackson came snooping around, I was going to bounce Joy to another room before they got there.

While walking with a bundle of cash in her bandaged hand, Joy said, “Daddy, I’m sorry.  I ain’t mean no harm.  It’s just that I can’t sit ‘round and listen to anyone down you, or insult you, or talk about doing anything to a hair on your soul.  I reckon she had it coming a long-long, long time ago.”

It was true.  Joy was disturbed.  I knew it from the day she walked into my bedroom, but she was right, she didn’t mean any harm.  Without me she was hopeless.  That night, I told Red to handle her, and like a big sister, she comforted Joy the entire time.  I then called Proverb to find out if Antoinette died.  In ten minutes, he called back to tell me that she was alive and in critical condition, but it didn’t look like she was going to make it.  The blade just missed her jugular vein.  I slept with Roxy that night, christening my new bed with the woman who put my small family together.

$$$

Roxy, Joy, and I stayed in the suite for five days while Red went to her job.  I made Roxy remove her contacts and dye her hair back to the original dark color, and she still looked as beautiful as ever.  I didn’t allow them to leave the room unless they were going to run the steps or utilize the hotel gym.  Due to stress and working out, Joy lost twenty pounds.  With the amount of rest she got, and the strict diet Red and Roxy had her on, she blossomed into a new woman.

I took Roxy out on Christmas Eve, leaving Joy in the suite.  While Roxy waited outside the hotel, I had a brief talk with the maitre‘d about arrangements for that night, and Christmas day.

Roxy was dressed to call attention, but it was hard for anyone to recognize her.  She had on her beige Liz Claiborne turtleneck, beige stretch corduroys, and her beige and chocolate multi-print, Louis Vuitton high-heeled boots.  Covering her luscious body was her chocolate, full length, satin HOBO trench coat.  Roxy shined.

“Proverb, what’s the word?” I asked, stepping through his door.

“Who can find a virtuous wife?  For her worth is far above rubies.  The heart of her husband safely trusts her; so he will have no lack of gain.  What up homeboy?”

“Just came to take care of some business,” I stated as he handed me a large envelope and $5,000 in cash.

I turned to Roxy when I stepped out of the store. “Take me to the two girls who were on the Ave sending their money to me.”

With no fear in her heart, she led me down 43
rd
Street past the Carter.  As we walked hand-in-hand like a genuine couple, I felt a massive hand snatch away the cash and push me away.  Roxy turned.  In an instant, I saw a massive black hand pin her against the wall, knocking the wind out of her.  Instantly, sunrays gleamed off her ice pick.  When I looked around, the gorilla-Black Justice was cutting the corner on 43
rd
Street.

“What the fuck?” Roxy asked, stomping her foot and trying to catch her breath.

She tried to run after Justice, but I caught her and barked, “Calm down!  The robber just got robbed that all.  Relax, I’m gonna take care of this.  Nothing gonna stop my Christmas spirit.”

Don’t get mad, get even
.  Yoda’s advice dropped into my mind and instantly calmed my temper.  I walked over to Proverb, withdrew another $5,000, along with two rolls of quarters worth $10.00 each.  I dropped the loose change into my coat and walked down the Deuce with Roxy in tow.

Phill with bills was bouncing my way with his long trench coat on.  “What’s up John-kneee Hustle?”

“You see Black Just?” I asked in a panic.

His eyes were glued onto Roxy. “Yeah, baby, just copped about a thousand vials of Crack from Big June and them boys from uptown.  Probably up in the Holland smoking.  Top floor, but you ain’t heard it from me.”

I didn’t even take the time to thank him.  I had a new mission that I needed completed.

Roxy and I walked down to the Holland.  Buffy and Tweety were outside advertising their product.  I pulled the two girl’s aside.  “I need you two to do something for me.”

The young women nodded, and we walked into the dim, half-abandoned, lobby of the ruined welfare hotel.  I nodded to Roxy, pulled out the cash, and gave them $2,500 each.

“This is your Christmas present.  Right now, I need you to work your way up into Black Just’s room.  Give him whatever he wants, and put him to sleep.  Call down here when you’re done, and leave the room door open.”  The young women smiled at each other and raced to what was left of the check-in counter, asking for Justice’s room.

Patiently, I waited while watching Roxy pick up a trick.  A half-hour later, puffy-cheeked Tweety’s oriental eyes smiled at me when she came down the stairs.  She was sucking a pink lollypop when she said, “Johnny, Buffy’s up there waiting for you.  You got to hurry up.  Room eleven ninety nine.”

I darted to the elevator.  Before the door closed, Roxy slivered through the closing doors smelling like sex.  She shoved $150.00 in my hand; I showed no concern.  I didn’t interfere with her hustle and she didn’t interfere with mine.  She pulled out her gleaming ice pick, and we exited the half-abandoned floor.

A naked Buffy impatiently stood by the cracked door wearing a devilish grin.  She couldn’t have been a day over nineteen.  Her pear shaped body was ashy, and her wide hips were way out of proportion to her B-cup sized-breasts.  Her innocent eyes hid her frozen heart.  She put her hand to her lips and indicated with her hands that Black Just was in the room asleep.  I nodded my thanks.  Happy that I was pleased, she kissed my cheek.

Roxy and I crept into the burnt coffee smelling room.  The naked gorilla was asleep with his black skullcap on.  His old smelly socks had a hole at the big toe.  His bed was covered with what once resembled white sheets.  On the cheap nightstand next to him were a pile of white tops, empty Crack vials, a large pipe, and a miniature butane torch.

Roxy held his limp huge cock in one hand, and her wood handled ice pick in the other.  I stepped around her, stopping at the small space between the filthy bed and the nightstand that sat against the grimy wallpaper.  I opened my palm and brought it down with as much force I could muster.  I tried to dislocate Justice’s jaw.

The beast should have awakened, but nothing happened.  I expected the creature to jump up, but his eyelids didn’t move until I smacked him again.

“What?” he asked with his eyelids still shut.  He was probably caught in a dream.  Again, I smacked him, and his hollow midnight eyes slowly opened.  When he realized his predicament, he smiled humbly.  His eyes darted to Roxy’s hand around his cock and then up at me.

I started my speech.  “Black Justice, my beef ain’t with—”

BLAAW!  His blow sounded like a gunshot.  He slapped Roxy, sending her across the room.

Before I knew what happened, Black Just jumped out of the bed.  His huge left hand swallowed my face.  When he moved it, he clawed my eyes, and then his right hook caught my jaw, sending me down beside the bed.

              As I tried to get the cobweb’s out of my head, I heard Roxy yell, “Mother—fucker!”  She jumped up from the grimy floor with her ice pick held over her head.  Black Justice caught her by the scalp of her hair in midair with his left hand.  Her legs wrapped around his waist. “Ugh! Ugh!” Roxy yelled, stabbing into his back and shoulder blade.

“Bitch!” he yelled out.

BLAWW!

I heard the thud on the blow and looked behind me.  The gorilla folded Roxy into the corner with another one of his deathblows.

Everything moved in slow motion.  I palmed the two rolls of quarters I had in each pocket.  I stood slowly, letting my heavy coat slip to the grime.

“Mother fucker you dead!” Roxy screamed.

“Move Roxy.  Stand by the door,” I said, holding both of my fists close to my temples like I was trained to do.”

“Hee-hee-hee,” the beast growled.  “First you want to be a hustler, now you want to be heavy weight champ,” Black Justice laughed, clearly enjoying himself.

He threw a haymaker.  I bobbed his hook and threw my own hooks to his midsection.  With our tussle and the Crack freezing his lungs, I hoped Black Justice smoked cigarettes, too.  I needed everything on my side.  All I was going to throw was shots to his body.

“Arrgh,” Justice squirmed when my right hook caught his rib cage.  I planned on showing him what $20.00 in change could do.  “Arrgh—arrgh,” he screamed out again.  I threw punches like my life depended on it.