A Hustler's Promise: Some Promises Won't Be Broken Read online

  “That’s not going to happen,” King answered, much to Dayshawn’s relief. “You’re too green.”

  “I can do it,” Rayshawn insisted. “Just give me a chance.”

  “You have potential,” King said. “But I didn’t get to where I am by pushing people into this game too soon. You’ve only been with me for a few months. Give it some time, learn the game, and you’ll see money. I promise.”

  For the last three months, King had been promising that Rayshawn would be making more money soon and he was still doing two bit errands and hadn’t touched a package yet. Rayshawn’s frustration quickly turned to anger and it was all he could talk about as the twins walked back to their grandparents’ house.

  Dayshawn tried to calm his brother down but it was useless. Rayshawn had one thing on his mind and nothing Dayshawn said could convince him that selling drugs for King was not the path that he should be considering.

  Thankfully, no one was home when Dayshawn and Rayshawn reached the brick split level house that they shared with their grandparents, an aunt and an uncle. Ike Moore was probably still at work. He’d been fixing buses for the Washington Heights Transit Authority for over thirty years. He had planned on retiring a few years ago, but with the addition of Rayshawn and Dayshawn in his home, retirement wasn’t an option.

  Their grandmother, Yvette, worked just as hard as her husband. She was the Executive Housekeeper at a hotel downtown. Ike and Yvette were silently counting down the years until the twins graduated so they could sell their house and move into a more convenient retirement community in Florida, away from the root of all their problems; their six children.

  Tina and Troy were the youngest in the house until Rayshawn and Dayshawn moved in. Troy was older than Tina by six minutes and the only thing that the two of them had in common was the fact that they had once shared a womb. Tina and Dayshawn thought alike, even though she didn’t particularly like either of her nephews. Both wanted to better themselves by going to college and getting out of Washington Heights.

  Troy was the epitome of uselessness. At twenty, he didn’t work or go to school. He ran the streets, pulled a string of short cons for money and Rayshawn had a feeling that he was smoking crack. He just couldn’t prove it.

  Ike and Yvette’s other kids left home when they turned eighteen. The worst of the rotten apples was currently serving a life sentence at the Ohio State Penitentiary. Jared was the twins’ father and the reason that they had to live with their grandparents. Five years ago, when Jared killed their mother, the twins had nowhere else to go.

  Rayshawn and his brother sat on the front porch and shared a Black and Mild in silence. Rayshawn’s mind was still trying to figure out a way to convince King to let him run Oak Park. If he could make some fast money, he could get his own place. He hated living in his grandparents’ house. There was no privacy in a house with six people in it. No privacy and no money. He was contemplating a better plan of action when Tina walked up the porch steps.

  “Y’all aren’t supposed to be smoking in the house,” she said without even saying hello to her nephews.

  “We’re not in the house,” Dayshawn answered.

  “You’re not supposed to be smoking,” she replied. “Mommy is going to go off when she finds out.”

  “Go in the house,” Rayshawn growled at his aunt.

  “Who do you think you’re talking to? Don’t forget whose house this is.” Tina opened the front door. “Oh yeah, Troy saw you down at Oak Park today. I’m telling Mommy.”

  “You better not tell Gram shit,” Rayshawn replied almost calmly.

  His tone scared Tina though. Normally her threat would invoke a worse reaction but the strangely calm manner was a bit unnerving and Tina decided to heed his warning and go in the house.

  No one had ever explained to the young twins why Jared had lost his mind and shot their mother, Shani. All they knew was that the woman that they loved more than anything was gone. Neither of them actually cared why Jared had done it. They were two boys who loved their mother more than their father and it was obvious to everyone.

  Like any African woman, Shani believed that boys were gifts from the Gods and she was blessed to have been given two beautiful boys. She doted on them and smothered them with love. Rayshawn took her death the hardest. He hated his father and the last thing he wanted to do was live in the same house his father had grown up in, with family members who didn’t like him that much anyway.

  There was nothing that Yvette and Ike could do to make the transition easier for the twins. Rayshawn and Dayshawn had been spoiled by their mother from the moment they were born. She bought them everything they could ever want or need. She worked long hours in her beauty salon so her boys would have the best of everything. There was no way that Yvette could consolidate all of their stuff and move it into her small home. Most of Dayshawn and Rayshawn’s precious belongings ended up in the trash or at the Salvation Army when they moved in. Five years later, Rayshawn still hadn’t gotten over it while his aunt and uncles felt like the spoiled twins needed to be taken down a notch.

  “I hate living here,” Rayshawn said out loud after Tina had gone in the house.

  “It’s not that bad. At least we have a place to live,” Dayshawn rationalized. “We could be in foster care.”

  That did nothing to change Rayshawn’s attitude. He hated living in his father’s house with the very same people who reminded him his father every single day. He hated not having the shoes and clothes that he wanted. But more than anything, he was sick of hearing his grandparents complain about having to raise two more children.

  “A foster home would be better than having Tina and Troy all up in my business. I swear, when King finally gets his shit together, I’m getting the hell out of here.”

  “That’s why you want to sell drugs? To get out of here? That’s stupid. The only thing that selling dope is going to do is get you shot.”

  “Don’t worry about me,” Rayshawn snapped. “I’m smarter than you think. I can play the game, get money, and get out of this house and out of the hood without getting caught up and getting shot.”

  Dayshawn shook his head in irritation at his brother’s “Goodfellas” attitude. Rayshawn watched too many gangster movies.

  “That’s the dumbest shit I’ve heard you say. If you get caught up in the dope game, you’re never going to get out of the hood. How many people do you know who have done that? Even King, who has more money than anyone we know, still lives in the hood. What makes you think you can do better?”

  “Because I’m smarter than you think. I’m not in it for cars and jewelry. I have a plan.”

  “Mommy never wanted us to be out in the streets selling dope,” Dayshawn reminded his brother. “She never wanted us to be like them.”

  Dayshawn pointed his thumb towards the front door and Rayshawn knew he was referring to Jared’s fucked up family.

  “Why are you so hell bent and determined to ruin the dream she had for us?”

  “You think Mommy wanted this for us?” Rayshawn yelled. “You think she worked her ass off in that salon so her sons could sleep in a tiny ass room? Do you think Mommy would have wanted us to live with the people who didn’t give a damn about us until they didn’t have a choice?”

  Dayshawn didn’t have an answer for his brother’s questions. Rayshawn’s points were valid. For eleven years, Shani had sheltered her sons from the drama that was Jared’s family. She taught her sons to work hard and do better than what their aunts, uncles, and cousins were doing. Jared’s family had always thought that Shani felt she was better than them, and in some ways she did.

  At nineteen, her parents sent her from Ethiopia to Washington Heights. She went to cosmetology school and worked at a reputable salon until she saved up enough money to buy her own salon. Shani valued family and was a beautiful person, inside and out. She was a great mother and wife. Jared was lucky to have her.

  Now, she was gone and so was everything that she’d wanted to g
ive to her sons. Even the money that she’d been saving for the twins was held in an account that they couldn’t access until they were twenty-one. Jared had wasted all the money in their joint checking account to pay for his legal defense.

  “You don’t need to worry about me,” Rayshawn said again. “I have a real plan. If everything goes as planned, when we turn eighteen, we can get the fuck out of here for good. All I need is two years.”

  Dayshawn looked at his brother skeptically. Nothing good would or could ever come from selling drugs. Even if Rayshawn did have a plan, chances of him actually following through with it once he started making some real money were slim to none.

  Chapter 3

  A small tap on the bedroom window snapped Rayshawn out of his sleep. Who in the hell would be tapping on his window unless Tina had snuck out and forgot her key? Rayshawn was tempted not to even check.

  Let her freeze or wake up her parents.

  The tap sounded again so Rayshawn pushed back his curtain before Dayshawn woke up. He hated to be woken up more than anyone Rayshawn knew. If Dayshawn woke up, his grandmother was sure to get up and he and Tina would catch hell from her.

  Rayshawn peered out the window but it was hard to see in the dark. The tapping figure shifted and Rayshawn caught a better look. Standing outside, shivering in the cold was Jaicyn. He opened the window.

  “What are you doing here?” he whispered.

  “I don’t know.” Jaicyn shrugged her shoulders.

  Rayshawn didn’t want to leave her standing in the cold so he told her to go around to the back of the house. He threw a pair of sweats over his boxers and met Jaicyn at the backdoor. He ushered her to the basement.

  The small basement served as the laundry room and the family room. The only television in the house was in the basement and no one in any of the other part of the house would know what was going on, especially since everyone was supposed to be asleep. It was almost one in the morning. Plus the basement was warmer than outside. When the both of them were seated on the old sofa, Rayshawn looked at Jaicyn and repeated his earlier question.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I don’t know,” Jaicyn said again. “I was bored and the phone’s still off so I couldn’t call you. Then Angelina came home with some guy and I wasn’t sticking around to watch that go down so I came over here.”

  “It’s almost one in the morning. Is this some kind of booty call?” Rayshawn asked. Jaicyn looked at him like he’d lost his mind.

  “No,” she answered, shaking her head. “This is not a booty call. I like you Rayshawn, but not like that.”

  “So, you do like me,” Rayshawn said.

  “Yeah,” Jaicyn replied back. “Why else do you think that I let you in my house the other day? The only person who’s ever seen the inside of my house is Autumn.”

  “It’s not that bad, Jay-Jay. Your house is fine.”

  “No, it’s not. It’s triflin’. Our furniture is cheap. The girls’ bedroom is a closet and I don’t even have a room. All my shit is stashed all around the house.”

  Since they’d been hanging out, Jaicyn found Rayshawn very easy to talk to. For the first time ever, sharing her real feelings about her living situation didn’t really bother her. She knew Rayshawn wouldn’t tease her or tell anyone about it. He was sincere like that. She felt comfortable talking to him, more comfortable than even talking to Autumn.

  “At least you don’t have to live in the same house with the family of the man who killed your mother. This shit is torture.”

  Jaicyn and Rayshawn were quiet for a long time, both thinking about their own living situation. Finally, Rayshawn broke the silence.

  “I thought you didn’t like to leave your sisters alone with your mother.”

  “I don’t,” Jaicyn said, “but I didn’t have a choice. I couldn’t stick around and listen to her and her crackhead friend reminisce about the past.”

  Rayshawn burst out laughing and shook his head.

  “Don’t laugh,” Jaicyn playfully ordered. “It’s not funny.” But she laughed too.

  For a second, Rayshawn watched Jaicyn smile and was amazed that a person who had it as bad as she did could find any reason to smile at all.

  “How do you do it, Jay-Jay?” he asked.

  “Do what?”

  “Not be pissed off all the time? I mean, I hate it in this house and your situation is worse than mine but you’re always laughing and joking with me and your friends.”

  “I don’t know. I just can’t let it get me down all the time. My mother already messed up her life and most of mine. I’m not going to let her bring me all the way down.”

  For some reason Rayshawn wanted to be closer to Jaicyn. He just wanted to touch her and have some of her positivity radiate onto him so he eased closer to her on the couch. It was easy to see that Jaicyn felt comfortable around him, like she’d been waiting for him to come into her life so she could have someone to talk to and not hold anything back. The idea that he was special to someone again made Rayshawn feel good. He hadn’t felt that way since his mother was killed. He didn’t want that feeling to go away.

  “You want to watch Scarface? Some girl gave Dayshawn a bootleg DVD. It’s pretty clear too.”

  “Yeah, that’s cool.”

  Rayshawn hit play on the DVD player and switched off the table lamp. For two hours Rayshawn and Jaicyn laughed and only talked about the movie. Rayshawn didn’t even care if someone woke up and caught them down in the basement.

  When the movie was over Jaicyn looked at her watch. It was almost three in the morning and she needed to get back home.

  “I should go. We have to go to school tomorrow,” she commented, even though she could have stayed with Rayshawn forever.

  Rayshawn groaned at the thought of spending a Friday at Lincoln High, especially when he had a little money in his pocket. He didn’t want Jaicyn to leave but he had to be up in four hours to get ready for school. If she was going, he was going to school the next day too. Actually, he didn’t have a choice.

  Before he’d gone to bed, King had called and insisted that Rayshawn stop skipping school. He wanted the boy to be better than just a high school dropout selling drugs. He wanted him to get an education. King knew that he probably couldn’t talk Rayshawn into going to college, but at least he could make sure that he graduated from high school.

  King gave Rayshawn a twenty minute lecture on the importance of education and keeping up appearances. He scolded Rayshawn like a father would. Rayshawn kept his thoughts to himself, but he actually appreciated that King was looking out for him. It had been so long since anyone besides Dayshawn had actually shown that they cared about his well being. He knew from their conversation that as long as he did what King wanted him to do; King would teach him the game and keep money in his pocket.

  “Do you have plans this weekend or are you working?” Jaicyn asked while tying her shoes that she slipped off during the movie.

  “I’m supposed to be riding up to Cincinnati with King on Saturday but I’ll be back on Sunday. I’ll call you.”

  Jaicyn laughed. “My phone won’t be on. I used the last of my money to pay the cable bill and buy some food. The girls can’t live without Nickelodeon.”

  Jaicyn may have been laughing but Rayshawn didn’t think it was funny at all. How could a mother not care that her fifteen-year-old daughter was boosting clothes in order to keep food on the table and keep her sisters distracted with cartoons?

  “Don’t leave yet,” Rayshawn said, heading up the stairs. “I’ll be right back.”

  Rayshawn quietly walked through the house and into his bedroom. He opened his dresser drawer and fumbled around in the dark, looking for his stash.

  “What are you doin’?” Dayshawn asked.

  “Nothing. Go back to sleep.”

  Dayshawn sat up in his bed instead and turned on the light.

  “So, did you hit it?”

  Rayshawn turned around and glared in his brother’
s direction. “What?”

  “Don’t play dumb. I know Jaicyn’s in the basement. Answer the question.”

  “No, man,” Rayshawn said. “I told you before, it’s not like that.”

  “Whatever. Just be quiet because I heard Pops get up a few minutes ago.” Dayshawn turned the light back off and laid down.

  “Good lookin’ out. I’ll be right back.”

  Rayshawn tiptoed past the closed bathroom door and hurried down to the basement. Jaicyn was sitting on the couch with her coat on, ready to leave.

  “What were you doing?” she asked.

  “I had to get something,” Rayshawn said.

  “Well, I’m about to leave. Come over when you get back from Cincinnati.”

  Jaicyn started to walk up the steps but Rayshawn reached for her hand and pulled her close to him. She started to protest but when Rayshawn pressed his lips against hers she didn’t say anything. She wasn’t expecting the kiss but she kissed him back as he held her tight. His hands were fire burning through her thick winter coat. When they pulled apart, Rayshawn dug in the pocket of his sweats and handed Jaicyn the money he’d gotten from King that afternoon. She looked down at the two one hundred dollar bills and shook her head.

  “I’m not taking that from you,” she stated firmly.

  “Take it, Jay-Jay.”

  “No,” she insisted. “I can’t take money from you, Rayshawn.”

  “Take it. You need it more than I need a new pair of Jordans. Take the money and get your phone turned on and buy your sisters something.”

  Jaicyn felt torn. She really needed the money but she knew that Rayshawn was only giving it to her because he thought he had to. Just like everyone else, he probably thought she only liked boys with money. She didn’t want him to think that about her. She wasn’t that kind of girl, despite what people said. She didn’t actively scope out boys with money. They came to her. Still, Rayshawn wasn’t the kind of guy who just had plenty of money like Cameron. He worked hard for the money that King paid him. She couldn’t take his money.