Josie was often a mute child, mute as in doesnt have a big mouth and tell secrets. She is very outgoing, but kept things to herself. Once she saw her uncle and mother in bed, all she did was stare then hurry back into the other bedroom. She figured it wasnt any of her business, it wasnt actually.
"Fuck off me, see what she just had to see?" Chris yells as Cy falls onto the floor, head first. He exits the room and goes downstairs for a glass of water. Where Austin, Aaron and Kim are all chatting and eating pizza rolls.
"What was that thump, everyone okay?" Kim asks him as he walks past them.
"We good." He replies getting his water.
"Aye man, we finna roll out soon. You sure y'all good?" Austin asks and pats his shoulder.
"Take my sister with you. I don't care where she goes but she gotta get out my house." He mumbles as Austin nods.
The next morning Cyrillè comes back to pick up Josie, to go home. Only Josie loves her uncle too much to not put up a fight.
"Josie Nicole. Lets go." Cy snaps at her daughter as she throws a tantrum.
"No! Im not leaving!" She yells down to her mother. She unzips her child sized duffle bag and kicks it down the staircase, everything flies out as Cy stares. She even throws her juice-box with it too. "Im not leaving." She huffs.
"Josie, you have three seconds to get down here before I drag you down here." Cy coaches at her.
Josie stands her ground and folds up her arms.
"One, two..." Cy begins counting.
"I can count too, you're not special mommy." She pouts with her smart mouth. After that comment Cy marches up the stairs and pulls Josie by her shirt and almost, literally drags her down the stairs like she said she would.
"Listen, I wont tolerate your little bitch ass behavior today-" Cy yelled at her as Josie cried.
"You dont talk to a little girl like that, especially when it's your daughter." Celeste says stepping from out of the living room.
"You just mad cause you aint got no kids, all those abortions you probably cant have no kids. And you got shot-" Cy stops talking as she notices Chris at the top of the stairs. Walking down them he stared at his sister as she stared back. He looks down at Josie who is still crying and opens the door.
"Out you go." He says looking at Cy.
"Lets go Josie." She says holding her hand as Josie still resists. At this time Celeste broke down for a moment, she had lost a baby one too many times and her emotions caught up with her, going into the bathroom, she let herself cry.
"If the child wants to stay, let her stay." Chris says trying not to lash out on his sister.
"She's my child and she goes where I say." She claps back. She tugs on Josie's arm trying to pull her out the house.
Eventually, Josie is on her stomach being dragged onto the cement.
"Fuck you doing?" Chris yells and pushes his sister, picking up Josie he lets her cry into his arms as he rocks her. Just as Cy gets up he shut the door in her face and locks it.
"My mommy is so mean to me uncle Chris." Josie cries making his dress shirt wet.
"I know baby, you can stay with me. You'll be alright with me." He cooes effortlessly, placing her on the island counter. He moved up her sleeves to see small scrapes from the cement.
"Oh no, I have boo boo's too!" She cries even harder.
"Shhhh." He says looking around in drawers for bandaids. Once he finds them, he places them on her and her sobs wind down. "You wanna stay here with auntie Celeste?" He asks her.
"Please." She says quietly.
"Let me go tell her alright?" He says going off to find Celeste. Chris never thought he'd be good with kids, but he loved Josie, more than her own mother did.
Looking around for Celeste, she exited the bathroom and headed upstairs. Following her into the bedroom she laid under the covers, covering her whole face. He stood in the doorway watching her.
"Cmon show me your face." He says approaching her, sitting next to her he sighs. "Your beautiful stop hiding that face of yours." He says and can't help but grin as she slowly uncovers her face. "So beautiful."
"I just wanna sleep, bring Josie up here." She says watching him adjust his bowtie.
"Sure, don't mind Cy. She just has issues."
"What issues, can she harm anyone?" Celeste asks him. She didnt want to wait and find out herself.
"Don't worry babe, I got you. Ill be back later tonight after this meeting." His lips lean over to hers and he kisses her then leaves, heading back down stairs to get Josie.
Cyrillè dramatically answers the phone as she drives into the parking garage of her condo complex.
"What nigga?" She says with a attitude.
"Any other time you wanna call me daddy, whats up boo?" He says back.
"Noah, Im not in the mood right now. Chris and his little hoe think they run me, Im bout to show that girl he got who really run shit." She spats pulling into a parking space.
"When can I meet her?" He asked.
"When you fly your ass over here, whenever that will be." She replies.
"You kidding me? You flew out here five times so we could fuck. If I'm flying back out to Baltimore, it will be shoot yo brother up, not to see my daughter." He scoffs.
"Noah. Goodbye. Are you going to come see your daughter or not?" She says getting out the car.
"Maybe." Then the line goes dead.
Josie continues to color in her coloring sheet in front of her as Celeste sits across from her texting her friends in Florida.
Everything good b?-Jordan
Im fine, thanks for being concerned. Ill probably fly back in another week to get my stuff.-Celeste
Damn, you leaving us already? Stay safe...-Shey replies last, Celeste closes the group chat and looks over at Josie who is well occupied.
"Hey Josie, what you think about going out to the harbor later?" Celeste says, leaning over the table a bit to catch her attention.
"Sure. Uncle Chris takes me there all the time, we even ride the ferris wheel." She smiles. Celeste loved that Josie was a happy kid, at least thats what she suspected.
"Alright, well lets eat first then we can head over there." She replies.
"Okay, you know I wish my uncle was my daddy, and I wish you were my mommy. My mommy is mean to me." She says still coloring.
"Im sorry baby," Celeste says not really knowing what else to say. "How is she mean to you?" She wonders.
"She gives me boo boo's and she always calls me bad names. One time, she even let her friend touch me." She said looking up to Celeste as Celeste stared back in shock.
"Touched you how Josie?"
"He touched my boom boom." She says softly.
"No..." Celeste replies. She had to tell Chris about this, somebody, she couldn't let Josie be abused like this. It disgusted her how much Cy was a bitch, she hated her.
"Wait, you gotta promise not to tell anyone auntie, she told me not to tell anyone that stuff happens, I don't even know why I told you." She says starting to cry. "She's gonna hurt me." Josie mumbles.
"No she won't baby. I promise okay?" Celeste informs Josie as their food is placed in front of them.
Sitting into his chair, he picked up his beverage and sipped from it frowning.
"Theres something in this liquor." He says squinting his eyes at the horrible taste.
"Well it's a new mix were trying." One of the bartenders says to him.
"I don't want this, get me something else." Chris says throwing the glass behind the bar not caring where it landed, then turned back to the table.
"Ready to begin gentleman?" Mr. Davis said looking at all the other club owners.
They all nodded as sign-in sheets were passed around.
"So, we have some good news this meeting. Amaury and Clovis will be renting out the old warehouse on 3rd avenue for their grand-opening of their club." Mr. Davis announces, everyone claps for the men expect Chris.
"They can't do that." Chris rises to his feet and places his hands in his pockets, mugging Amaury and Clovis in the process.
"Why can't we?" Clovis lashes at him.
"My club is literally right there. I won't have my dancers running over to your club, nor my customers. Get your heads out of your asses." He says sitting back down as Mr.Davis glares at him.
"They have been running Baltimore with their clubs for years, they will do as they please." Mr. Davis spats at Chris.
"Guess what Mr.Davis, Im not letting that shit happen. Fuck no, I run Baltimore niggas. They old asses don't run shit but these hoes in these streets, fuck all that. Im out." He says standing again, before he leaves he grabs a shot glass from the nearby bar and tosses it into Amaury's face. "Bitch nigga, can't get no pussy ass nigga, if you do get pussy, its loose, hairy and expired." He scoffs. Amaury stands up to hit him with his right hook, Chris dodges his hit and punches him straight in the gut. A sharp glass uppercuts him in and he groans in pain.
"Get the hell out!" Mr.Davis screams to them. Looking up Chris noticed Mr.Davis is the one who threw a glass at his chin. On his way out the room, he grabs a bottle of wine and heads towards the elevators, grunting with frustration, he kicks the button that alerts the elevator and waits for its arrival.
Back at home Josie and Celeste had just gotten home. There were small grunts upstairs, that frightened Josie.
"Go watch tv, Ill be back in a minute." Celeste says pushing her off and heads up the stairs. She listened to Chris rant on and on to himself before entering the once closed bedroom.
"What!" He screams at Celeste. "What do you fucking want!" He screams.
"What's wrong, why are you doing this?" She said examining drawers pulled out of it place.
"I can't find my fucking pills okay? Do you need anything else! Huh? I can't hear you?" He yells walking over to her, swinging her hand back she backhands him and he holds his jaw. Looking at him, she slowly backs away. "Im sorry, Im just drunk and out of it." He mumbles not getting upset of her slapping him.
"I-I guess, it's okay. Why are you so upset and drunk?" She wonders.
"Because, Amaury and Clovis are trying to ruin my business and I aint having it." He mumbles.
"Okay, so what are you going to do about it?"
"Be my partner in crime, help me take them out baby." He then begins to put the drawers back in their places.
"Take them out?" Celeste says confused.
"Help me take their money, their customers and their company. Be my rider." He insists.
"Chris, no. This is going to land us in trouble with the law-" She starts to say.
"We run this bitch, we will run Baltimore. No one is going to be more powerful and wealthier than me. Say it." He coaches looking over at her as she plays with her fingers.
"Say what." She utters.
"Say, we will run Baltimore." He says waiting for her.
"We will run Baltimore." Celeste says.
"Thats my woman." He grins at her. Chris had created a huge grave for the two, but Celeste trusts him that nothing will turn out wrong, only Chris just doesn't know the half of it.