Wanda is the smartest person I know, she always has been. I trust her like I trust Bobby.
“I know you'll always do what’s best for us,” I said and turned to leave again.
“One more thing.”
“What?”
“You really going to see Montel now?”
“Yeah, why?”
“How you getting there?”
“On the train. Kid has the schedules down pat.” I pointed to my head. “Kid’s sharp.”
“Why don’t you let me and Vickie take you?”
“Why you let Vickie get fucked up like that?” I asked to change the subject.
“I am her friend, Mike, not her mother.”
“You couldn’t say ‘you had enough’?”
“Honestly, Mike, I don’t know how she got so fucked up. We were hanging out at Ricky’s and like one minute she was fine, and the next.” Wanda shook her head. “I mean this happened while I was dancing. I come back and sit down and she’s talking all over herself. What did you expect me to do?”
“Nothing, I guess,” I started to leave again.
“So you want me to drive you to Montel’s?” Wanda asked as she walked past me.
“Okay, Wanda, you can drop us off, but take Vickie home first.”
“That’s exactly what I had in mind.”
It took a while, but once we found Vickie and convinced her that it was time to go, we left The Late Night. On the way to Wanda’s apartment, Vickie fell asleep. Talking all over herself and now, she’s crashed out on The Kid’s shoulder. I wondered not if she was sniffing blow, but how much blow she was sniffing. Me and Freeze waited outside while Wanda put Vickie to bed.
When we got to Montel’s building, Wanda parked down the street and I asked her why. “I know you don’t think you’re coming with us,” I said even though I knew that was her plan all along.
“Why can’t I go inside? It ain’t like I haven’t been there before. And besides, if you’re just going to talk, why can’t I go inside?”
She had a point. Wanda had been up in there plenty of times and since killing Montel wasn’t part of the plan, and there wasn’t a real good reason for her not to come … other than … because I said so … I didn’t say anything; I just started for the building. Freeze followed me and Wanda quickly locked her car and then rushed to catch up with us.
Once the doorman let us in, I looked at Freeze and pointed in his face. “I don’t have to tell you what your job is, right?”
“Protect Wanda.”
“With your fuckin’ life, my nigga,” I said, and went looking for Montel. When I saw him coming out of one of the back rooms with a hoe named Stylisha, I knew I had picked a good time to talk to him. I heard Stylisha got good pussy, so he’ll be in a good mood.
“What’s up, Black,” Montel said when I approached.
“You and I need to have a conversation.”
Montel laughed. “Sounds important.”
“It is.”
“Well, come on; let’s talk out on the fire escape. Too much noise in here,” he said, and began making his way to the window.
I made eye contact with Freeze. He tapped Wanda on the shoulder and they began making their way to the window behind me. When Montel and I were outside on the fire escape, I looked back inside, and saw that both Freeze and Wanda were standing there.