Latrice, and Bay hated her for how she played Latrice against him.
âKita. Donât behaving my girl out here fucking with no niggas while Iâm gone. I know how your crazy ass gets down.â
âWhatever, Bay.â She rolled her eyes and tried to brush past him, but he grabbed her arm.
âDonât fuck with me, girl. Iâll have your lilâ dumb ass go missing,â Bay hissed.
Shakitaâs heart pumped with fear. Bay had always threatened her but never to this extent. The thought of her getting killed for interfering with their relationship had gone way too far.
Bay finally released her arm and then laughed all the way out the door. Damn, I hate that motherfucka, she said to herself as she quickly climbed the steps. She reached Latriceâs door and banged on it as hard as she could.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
âBay mustâve forgot to tell me something,â she said softly as she approached the door. When Latrice opened the door, she was surprised to see Shakita.
Shakita looked at Latriceâs blood-smeared face in shock.
âWhat the fuck did he do to you?â
Latriceâs face became flushed. Shakita was the last person she expected to see.
âWhy did he hit you this time, Latrice?â
âI really donât want to talk about it,â she cried softly. She covered her face and then sat on the couch. She was so embarrassed. She always had to make up an excuse for Bayâs abusive behavior.
âHim hitting you every week is getting real old. You need to press charges on his ass like that other bitch, so he could stay in jail longer.â
âI canât do that.â
âYes you can. Donât be scared. Iâll even go down there with you.â
âNo, I canât do that. I need him to come out.â
âCome out for what? He needs to stop hitting on you. Why do you feel like you need a man like him?â
âI donât need him for what you think. Weâre going to go ahead and start that record label together.â
âYou donât need him to start no label. You can do it by yourself. Damn that. You and me can start one if thatâs what it will take for you to leave him alone.â
âYou know we would not be good in business together. On top of that, neither one of us have any damn money like that to start a label.â
âHow do you even know Bay got money like that anymore? What if heâs just trying to spin you to keep you around?â Shakita asked with concern.
âNo, he has money. I know this for sure.â
âAnd what makes you so certain of this? Just because he said so?â
âIâm holding his money here until he gets out. Iâm the only one he trusts with it.â
âFor real? Did he give you a lot?â
âLetâs just say he gave me enough. Itâs enough to make this thing really work.â
âGirl, stop teasing me and tell me how much.â
âTwo hundred fifty thousand.â
âAre you serious?â
âIâm so serious. I hid the money in the vent in my room. Iâm only telling you this just in case someone comes looking for it. Iâm not sure who Bayâs enemies are, but if something ever happened to me, I want someone to know where it is.â Latrice saw a diminutive glimmer in Shakitaâs eyes and could tell exactly what she was thinking. âShakita. You canât use this money to gamble with. I want to make that very clear. My life depends on it.â Latriceemphasized the seriousness of her situation. Shakita was an impulsive gambler and being around money was her Achillesâ heel. Latrice really had no one else to trust with the money. She had no choice but to tell Shakita.
âLatrice, I would never do anything to jeopardize your life. I know how crazy Bay is. He just threatened to kill me over some bullshit, so I know what heâll do about his money,â Shakita said with