ALL THE QUEENPINS

~Chapter 3: Madam Rue~

Two weeks have passed and she finally met with Slick to get her first load. "Now look here. Make sure you drop this off at this address by Tuesday. And if you get caught you don't know me and never seen me." He says to Ruth through the car window. "And when this goes well I'm gonna be expecting a bigger load." She says as she adjusts the mirror. Slick laughs as he waves her off. The moment she put that truck in drive little Ruth Ann was gone and Madam Rue was born. The first drop off was easy. Delivered it early and even got a little more money for it. And as promised her responsibilities grew and grew.

Every now and then she would throw officer jimmy the name of a competitor. This way it was easier for him to make sure a blind eye was turned when it came to her and her crew. Couple years has passed and Madam Rue became one of the biggest in the business. Had people working under her and even bought the bar from Madam May. Slick couldn't have been more proud of her. Unfortunately not everyone found joy in her success.

"Sum ain't right." Lee says as he drinks from his flask. "I'm suppose to believe she pulling all this off?" He asks Ray. "Listen man she bringing good money. I don't care how she doing it." He says as he drinks from the flask. "Naw something ain't right and it's gon fall back on us!" He exclaimed "And Slick head so far up her ass he can't tell when it's sunny." He jumps down from the hood of Rays car and walks to his. "Ima get to the bottom of it tho. Believe you me ima get to it." Ray waves him off as he gets in his car and leaves.

As Lee drives down the dark rode he's startled by the bright lights of the squad car. "Fuck!" He yells as he pulls over. The irritation turned into fear when he realized he he had opioids in the trunk and a gun under the seat. He straightens himself up as the officer walks up. The cop shines the light in his face as he signals for him to roll down the window. "Where you headed boy?" He asks. "To my ma house. She's gonna be mad I missed dinner." Lee says hoping he doesn't smell the whisky on his breath. "Hmm fancy car you got here" the officer says as she shines the light across the Cadillac. He quickly stops when he spots the small Queen of Hearts stamp on the car. "My mistake sir. You're free to go." The officer says as he turns off the light. "Umm thank you sir." Lee says puzzled. "Send madam my apologies." The officer says as he walks back to his car. "Sum ain't right." Lee mumbles again as he drives off.

A month has passed and Slick throws a big dinner for his crew in the city. Everyone came dressed to the nines. The food, the ambience of the restaurant. It was all perfect. Midway through the dinner Slick taps his glass to make a speech. "I want to thank everyone who made this all possible. Not bad for some country folk off that dirt road huh?" Everyone laughs and claps at their accomplishments. "But I have to also thank this lady here Madam for all she brought to the family." He grabs and kisses her hand before smiling at her. She smiles back. "There might come a time where I slow down and get someone else to run the day to day and that someone might be you." He looks at Madam. "To the next level" he holds his glass in the air. "The next level" everyone repeats as they toast.

"I ain't taking orders from no bitch." Lee says as he stabs his fork into the table. "Excuse me?" Madam Rue says as she grabs the gun in her garter. "Hold on now." Slick says as he grabs her arm. He already knows what she's up to. "I ain't taking orders from no bitch!" Lee yells as he stands up. "I suggest you sit yo ass down while you still got feeling in them legs." Slick says as he stands eye to eye with Lee. "It's been 15 years Slick." Lee says. "Won't be 15 second more if you keep being disrespectful." Slick says as he motions for Lee to sit. "I know what's best for my business. If you ain't with it you can go." He points to the door. "But before you leave please know you will no longer be under my protection." Slick fixes his hair and sits back down. "Know everything I do is for the best. Y'all understand?" He looks at his crew for confirmation. "Yes sir." They reply. Slick grabs and caresses Madam's hand. An action that was not overlooked by Lee.