The apprehension in Ivoree’s tone broke Cashmere’s heart. “I don’t know. Let’s just go.”
They turned and walked out of the store feeling defeated. She had no words as they walked through the mall. They ended up back by the food court, and just when Cashmere thought about putting her pride to the side and asking someone to buy them a sandwich to share, she spotted the woman from the store walking briskly toward them.
“I thought I said I wanted to talk to you,” she yelled from across the food court as she made her way toward them.
Cashmere noticed her struggling to waddle quickly through the crowd. She rolled her eyes, wondering what exactly the lady wanted. A year ago, she had some sympathy for the girl because she seemed down bad just like Cashmere, but times either changed or she had Cashmere fooled back then.
“What do you want?” Cashmere asked when the lady was near them.
She breathed hard as she looked at Ivoree and Cashmere. Finally, she pulled a jewelry box out of one of the dozens of bagsand handed it to Cashmere. “This is for you.” Cashmere’s brows pulled in as she reached her hand out, but the lady pulled it back before she could grab the box. “In exchange for a meeting.”
“A meeting?” Cashmere asked.
“A meeting,” the lady confirmed.
“For what?”
The lady smirked. “Just trust me on this. Let me get your number.”
Cashmere sized her up but then thought about that necklace. She needed it badly. There was a pawnshop not far from here that would give her a really good chunk of change for this necklace.
“Fine.” Cashmere rattled off her number.
“What’s your name?”
“Cashmere.”
“Cash. I like it. I’m Cassydie. Answer when I call. I’ll be able to find you and get that necklace back . . . with interest.”
Cashmere frowned at the threat, but Cassydie had already turned around and walked away. It was then that Cashmere noticed a gang of niggas following Cassydie. They were all inconspicuous, but big as hell, making Cashmere think Cassydie was important.
“Whowasthat?” Ivoree asked.
“No idea, but I have a feeling we’re going to find out . . .” Cashmere said as she watched the mystery woman disappear from her sight.
7 years later . . .
Everything had changedin seven years. Some days it felt like those years flew by in a blur. Other days it felt like the longest years of her life. This day, Cashmere sat back and marveled at how short those seven years felt as she watched King Ro pace back and forth. He spoke about the distribution of everything from drugs and weapons down to cars and jewels.
King Ro really was the leader of the council, quiet as it was kept. Nothing moved without him, and he held an air of being a natural leader. He was born for this role. His father bred him to be the best plug the country had ever seen.
The space was a luxury meeting room, different from the one they were in last month. They moved the council meeting every month for extra security measures, but the space was always luxurious. It took a while for Cashmere to get used to. Comingup from the hood, everything in this new world was bright and shiny and exciting.
Cashmere thought about the first time she came to one of these meetings. She wasn’t a bitch that got intimidated often, but she knew she had stepped into a whole lot of power when she entered that room years ago.
“Cash, you got any updates before we wrap this shit up?” King Ro asked, effectively breaking Cashmere out of her thoughts.
Cashmere cleared her throat and stood. “My team has a new shipment coming in on Tuesday. Jewels from Switzerland. Once we get the products, we’ll sort through them and price them out for re-sale.”
“That’s the load that’s two cargo planes, translating to three trucks?” King Ro asked as he looked down at his iPad.
“Yup,” Cashmere confirmed.
“That’s a big hit, Cash. You sure nothin’ is tracked back to us?” King Ro asked.
All eyes were on her as she responded. “Positive. My team is the best.”
King Ro nodded, signaling his trust in Cashmere, which meant a lot to her.
