“I’ve got it, Ellie. Let me go clear this up,”Shy said in a low tone as she eased by their group and walked up to the officer and the white woman giving the statement on the front porch.
Shy disappeared inside the house with the white woman and the supervising officer.
“I’llbe right back,” Loyal said, walking toward the officer.
“Yo, my man, let me holler at you for a second,” Loyal said. He rubbed Tessa’s back as he stepped out of earshot of Ellie and Courtney.“Fuck is going on here?” Loyal asked.“Be straight up because putting these kids out in the middle of the night in this weatherain’t making sense.”
“Look, man. We didn’t want to put them out, but the white lady insisted. She showed us the title of the home. She says they’re trespassing and refusing to leave. Apparently, it’sa property that she’s put up for sale. No one is supposed to be living here. She got a water bill that was higher than it should be because it’s vacant and only open for showings. When she came over here to check on it, she found it’s being lived in.”
“Look, I need to get these kids and my lady in the car. Nobody’s running off. I’ma square everything, don’t matter how much it cost, but it’s freezing fucking cold out here. Theyain’t even got on shoes,” Loyal stated.
The officer looked sympathetically at the group and said,“Women and kids in the car is fine.”
Loyal trudged back over to Ellie.“Get in the car. Everybody get in and get some heat,” he instructed.
“What’s happening? What did he say?” Ellie asked.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ma go inside and handle it. Just get warm,” he said. They all climbed inside the Maybach, and Ellie looked at Loyal curiously before she closed the door. His anger was apparent. His handsome facial features were set in a deadly grimace.
“Should I come?” she asked.
“No,” he answered. No elaborating, no nothing. He kissed her forehead.“Everything’s going to be fine. I’llbe right back,” he announced to the entire car.
“Girl, what the fuck?” Courtney said as they all watched Loyal head toward the house.
“Is OG going to be okay, Mommy?” Tessa asked.
“He’s going to be fine,” Ellie reassured.“He’s going to figure all this out.”
“OG?” Courtney questioned.
“That’sthe name they came up with together,” Ellie smiled.
“Oh, girl!” Courtney smiled back, shaking her head, and raising her brows knowingly.“You’re in over your fucking head,cuz, chileeee. Well played, sir.”
Ellie blushed as she watched Loyal assert himself over the situation.“Yeah, I think I am.”
“I didn’t break in here. I’m renting this place from my realtor,” Shy argued. She couldn’t believe this was happening. She had always kept her image intact. She was the popular friend. Shy was the one with influence and with money. She was the one who wore designers the others couldn’t pronounce and who flew in private jets to exotic places. She was living a lavish lifestyle. Shy posted everything and bragged endlessly, making all the bitches who talked about how raggedy her clothes were and how poor her family was as a child sick. The only problem was her posts didn’t match her reality. Her entire life was smoke and mirrors. She had been squatting in this place for two weeks, just to have somewhere to host Christmas. She had the hook up with a realtor, who would let her use brand-new show homes to film content. All she had to do was throw the realtor a few hundred dollars, and she’d let her keep the keys for 48 hours. She had only needed this one for two weeks to make it through the holidays. Only, this one wasn’t a new build. It was for sale, and the family who owned it was supposed to be in Switzerland for the holidays. It had been a perfect plan. She Didn’t know how it had blown up in her face.
“This placeisn’t for rent. That’sa lie. She’s trespassing, and I want her arrested!” The homeowner was vehement about pressing charges.
Loyal walked through the door, and Shy knew she really had to save face.
“It’s late; my realtorisn’t available tonight, but I can easily clear this up in the morning with a phone call,” Shy stated. She was calm on the outside. She had grown used to the art of fronting. Her car was a rental for the month. This home was borrowed. Her clothes were purchased and returned as soon as she shot them and posted pics online, and her shoes were purchased second-hand. Everything else was attained through influencer contracts. Wigs, makeup, and boutiques flooded her P.O. Box with merch in exchange for posts, so she was never short on looks. It was easy to find a man to spend money on her and cover a few months of living expenses. They gained clout when they dealt with her anyway, so it was a fair exchange. Even Lola was an intern. She was working for product and under the promise that Shy would eventually help her build her own influencer brand. She was going through life on the barter and beg system, and this hiccup was humiliating.
“I’m not waiting until the morning, and it doesn’t matter what your realtor says, they weren’t authorized to lease my home. Here is my deed. Here is my listing, proving that my home is for sale, not rent. She’s trespassing, arrest her, now.”
“I think we can work this out without making a bad situation worse,” Loyal said.“She’s clearly living here, and you haven’t been paid, is that right?”
“I don’t know who’s being paid, but itisn’t me,” the woman stated adamantly.
“How long have you been here?” Loyal asked.
“This reallyisn’tnecessary. I’ve already paid…”
The look of impatience Loyal hit her with shut her up mid-sentence. He knew she was lying. She refused to answer, however.
“I checked on this house after Thanksgiving, so it had to be after that,” the woman said.“She’s been here almost a month.”
