Her mind drifted to Kyomi and Deja again as she turned the light on in her room. They had grown up together and were thick as thieves until a couple of years ago when her uncle Henry died. He was Kyomi’s dad and her father’s best friend. She wasn’t really sure why her dad made her cut the Laurent family off after Uncle Henry died, but she was forbidden to see them or reachout. It broke her sixteen-year-old heart, and now she refused to get close to anyone else.
Glimmer took her time taking her new clothes and perfumes out of their bags. She smiled when she placed her three new bottles of perfume on her sleek white vanity. She barely had any more room for any new bottles. Soon, she would have to get a large shelf just for her perfume. Smelling good was something she loved, and she was a fanatic for all kinds of smell goods.
Her pedicured feet sank into the cream-colored carpet. The light pink walls were decorated with lights and butterflies. As a girly girl, her space felt right at home.
When she finished, she decided to go back upstairs to grab something to eat before she settled in with a good movie to end her night.
As she crept up the stairs, she heard her parents talking in hushed voices. That wasn’t like them. She lived in the kind of family that overshared and didn’t keep secrets, so her brows furrowed as she halted her steps to listen.
“This nigga done fucked me over one too many times, Camille,” her father ranted.
“You gotta calm down, Juke. A hot head ain’t gonna solve anything.” Her mother’s tone sounded irritated more than anything.
There was a pause before her father said, “Trick is the reason Big Henry is dead.”
Glimmer’s eyes widened. The tea was apparently piping hot, and she wanted to hear as much as possible. She slowly sat on the top step and listened intently.
“I know?—”
“Nah, you don’t get it. This nigga is relentless, and he’s young as hell. I took a chance on him and bought some work from him, and it was some weak shit. Big Henry died off that fuck ass buy,and it’s my fault, Camille. My best fuckin’ friend is dead because ofme.”
“Nah, that ain’t ya fault. You handled the niggas that killed Big Henry. You did right by him,” Camille argued.
Juke scoffed. “I may have handled the nigga who actually pulled the trigger, but Trick was behind that shit. Killing his goonie who carried out the order don’t stop me from not bein’ able to face Henry’s family. I send them money every month and make sure they straight, but I can’t even go visit my godson and goddaughter or the woman I called my sister?—”
“Please, Charlene never even liked me.”
“This ain’t about you, Camille, damn! Not everything is about you.”
“Well, fuck, okay. I’ll get my happy ass on then,” Camille said.
“Wait.” There was a significant pause. “Trick is tryna say I owe him, Camille. His ass finally caught up with me after two years. He sayin’ I owe him for not re-upping on that fake ass shit he gave me since the prices he gave me were contingent on me coming back. Plus, he wants interest.”
“Then pay him and move the fuck on,” Camille said.
“I already took a big ass loss buying five mil worth of bogus ass product from him.”
“Then kill his ass, Juke, damn. What you want me to do?”
“You can’t ever just listen and be a voice of reason for your man.”
Glimmer could hear the disappointment in her father’s voice. That broke her heart. Her mama had a way of getting under both of their skin, and the way she treated her father made her dislike her mother even more. Let him tell it, the Camille they both knew today was not the same woman he fell in love with. That was the woman he held onto. That woman from back then was the reason he stayed married to her. As a hopeless romantic assthug, he had hope that she would revert to how she used to be. Glimmer couldn’t even imagine that shit.
“Fine.” There was shuffling around before her mother spoke again. “I don’t get what the problem is. You have an army of niggas behind you. Dead the problem.”
“I will, and I want to, but it’s more complicated than that. This lil nigga has pull in the streets. A lot of it. I need time before I can take him out. I gotta be smart about this shit. I gotta avenge my friend’s death, but I gotta do it the right way.”
“So, what you gonna do in the meantime?”
Silence stretched between them. “He’s asking for a lot of money. More than I have. He said I could pay him a monthly balance. I figure I can do that for a few months before I make my move, but there’s something else . . .”
“What?” Camille sounded bored, which pissed Glimmer off. She was a daddy’s girl, and her father was obviously in distress. All she wanted to do was give him a hug while her mother sounded like she would rather be anywhere else.
“He said if I don’t pay him, he wants Glimmer instead.”
Glimmer’s brows pulled together as her heart hammered in her chest.
“Fuck you mean he want Glimmer?”
