Powder Blu by Brandi Johnson Page A

forehead, picked up his blunt and lit it. He took a few pulls before starting the car. I was so glad when we pulled off. I wanted to get as far away from this little-dick nigga as possible. I couldn’t wait to tell Nikki and Sierra about this preemie-ass nigga. I sat quietly while looking out the window the entire ride to Nikki’s house as Cordell bragged about his money, cars, and clothes. I thought I rolled my eyes so much during his entire conversation I could have sworn my right eye got stuck up in my head a few times.
    I was so relieved when we turned onto Nikki’s street I could have jumped for joy. My joy instantly faded when we pulled up in front of her house and her porch was full of niggas drinking on forties.
    â€œCan I see you again?” Cordell looked over at me and asked.
    â€œYep,” I said, hitting the button on the side of the door watching it open and getting out.
    â€œWhat’s yo’ number?” he asked, grabbing his cell phone so he could program it in.
    I quickly rambled off the number to Arnie’s barbecue spot on Eighty-fifth and 147th while grabbing my backpack out the back seat.
    â€œA’iiight, ma, I’ll hit you later on.” He smiled.
    â€œOkay,” I said with a fake smile before turning to walk away.
    Cordell closed his door and pulled off.
    I shook my head as I headed up Nikki’s walk.
    â€œOkay, bitch, I see you,” Sierra said smiling. “You finally got you some of Cordell.”
    â€œHow was it?” Nikki asked, smiling as well before taking a pull from a blunt someone had passed her.
    â€œBitch, pass me the blunt first,” I said, shaking my head in disgust.

Chapter 7
    Free Man
    After they released me from the county, I didn’t even take the time to go check on my house; I had the taxi take me straight to O’Hare International Airport, hopped straight on a plane, and flew to Miami. I didn’t let anyone know I was out of jail, not even my mom. I needed time to think and get my mind right. I was the “man” in this dope game and if I planned on staying on top, I had to make sure all my ducks were in a row. My squad was air tight, my connect was showing mad love with his prices; the only thing that was missing in my life was someone to help me take my empire to the next level. After my week vacation, I decided to resurface to let them niggas know that the boss was back on the scene and I was about to hustle with a vengeance. I didn’t have time to play no games; I was taking any nigga out who got in my way from building my brand, flat out!
    After touching down back in my hometown and even before tracking down my soldiers to collect my dough, I headed straight over to Nikki’s house to see what was going on in my hood. One thing I could count on with Nikki was she was sure to keep me up to date with everything that was going on. She knew so much, I had started thinking she was the feds. She knew who was fucking who, who was snitching, who was about to get knocked, and anything else you needed to know. I never knew how she found out and didn’t care. She was my own personal newscaster.
    â€œWhat’s up, Nik?” I smiled as I walked in her front door without knocking.
    â€œWhat’s up, Budz?” She smiled widely, standing up from the couch walking over to give me a big hug. “When you get out, nigga?”
    â€œToday,” I lied.
    â€œThat’s wassup.” She continued to smile.
    â€œSo what’s been goin’ on while a nigga been locked up?” I asked, cutting to the chase.
    â€œSit y’all’s asses down,” she yelled into the other room as her kids made hella noise. “Shit, where should I start,” she asked, shaking her head.
    â€œFrom the beginning,” I said while moving a pile of dirty clothes over, taking a seat on the couch and listening as she filled me in on what was going on. I had already heard some of the stories she