Chapter One: Memphis to Chicago

It was a cold night on the streets of Memphis, Andolph was out sitting on the corner hustling rocked up cocaine to the junkies who came by like clockwork every 15 minutes looking for a fix. He was no stranger to the street life, growing up as a kid his parents were addicted to crack cocaine themselves and the only way he could survive was by selling the same product that ruined his childhood.. He had bigger dreams and inspirations though, the music culture wasn't exactly developed yet but lyricism was a passion and hobby of his and he took his streets name, Young Dolph, and applied it to his aspiring music career...

The Industry was tough on him though, they had never seen or heard of anything he was bringing to the table.. classical music and jazz were more of the fancy right now, and nobody was willing to give him a shot.. so he resorted to what he knew best, being a drug dealer.

"Aye yo Dolph, I just seen 5.0 roll by we best cut out man" his lookout said as he interrupted his train of thought..

"Good looking homie, let's be out then.."

Dolph hopped off the brick perch he was sitting on and began walking toward the safehouse at the end of the block

"So, i heard you gon' be moving back to where you was born cuz, Chicago.. I heard them streets is wild these days.." the lookout said

"Man, who you been heard that from? I just barely found that shit out today..." Dolph said sucking his teeth at the lookout

"Errybody always be all up in my business all the time mayne-"

The two stopped dead in their tracks as that same patrol car turned onto the block and shined the spotlight on the two.. Knowing damn well they had drugs and cash on them, they both took off in different directions as the patrol car through on its lights and ordered the two to stop.. Dolph hit the fence immediately to his right and leaped over it with one quick swoop while the lookout took off down the block.. Luckily for Dolph the cops chased him and let him escape with the cash and drugs..

"Fuck that was a close one dog..." he thought to himself as he finally stopped to catch his breath some 8 blocks away.. The only problem was he was 4 blocks deep into his rivals territory at this point and there was no telling who could be walking the streets tonight. Seeing a cab turn the block was a immediate relief to him as he flagged it down and hopped into the back and ordered the driver to take him back to his safehouse.. Another night of the hustle down with many more to come...

Andolph reached the safehouse and to his surprise, the lookout was standing outside waiting for him.. It was good to know his man hadn't been pinched and there was a possible rat now sitting in jail. People be fake these days, everybody is down for the crime until shit gets real and they gotta do the time, people be turning in evidence left in right to bring down their own charges...

"Yo Dolph, good to see you didn't get pinched mayne.. Big Mike is already waiting for you inside.. I told him not to go in but-" he was cut off

"Oh hell naw, ain't nobody supposed to be up in my crib when I ain't home.. Plug or no plug..." Dolph said furiously as he went inside

"Aye yo Mike, what the fuck mayne.. I was getting chased by 5.0, I aint had no time to come by and pay you yet.. this disrespectful"

Dolph pulled the large wad of cash from his pocket and slammed it down on his living room table as Big Mike sat in the couch with his bodyguard nearby.. he smirked and picked up the cash to count it and make sure it was all there...

" That ain't why I'm here Dolph, I heard you was moving to Chicago.. what's the deal brotha. You think you can just skip out on my crew? You knew when you signed up for this thug life their ain't no "retirements" cuz.. or "getting out" .. you in for life." Big Mike said sternly

"That's anotha story man.. see my mom's sick and she moved back to her roots, Chicago.. I gotta go and support her.." Dolph felt uneasy

"Well, that ain't no pass to just leave. You didn't think I was gonna find out about this? You thought you were just gonna disappear like a ghost?"

Dolph knew what was coming next, and he had to make a move.. His pistol was in his back waistline and he needed a distraction..

"Aye yo RODNEY.. get yo mothafucking ass in here.." Dolph said calling the lookout inside

"Yea Dolph?" 

Andolph pushed the lookout into the two men on the couch as soon as he walked through the door, Big Mike's bodyguard attempted to pull his gun but dropped it as Rodney crashed into him sending it flying across the room, before Big Mike could pull his piece Dolph had already started unloading his clip into him, sending the bullets ripping through his chest as the blood spattered back onto the wall, Dolph turned the gun on the bodyguard and let off one shot into his head as the clip sprang empty... The lookout got up in a frenzy and was in complete shock..

"YO WHAT THE FUCK MAN" Rodney said yelling at him

"You just fucking capped Big Mike.. we're fucking dead men yo!"

"Man shut you bitch ass up, he was gonna pop me if I didn't pop him. Way of the streets cuz."

Dolph reloaded his gun and put it in his back waistline again before picking up the cash that was still on the table

"Look, lets take the cash, and fly out to Chicago.. I know a guy out there who will set us up.."

Dolph also took note of the large duffle bag of coke sitting on the side of the couch, maybe he was wrong and he wasn't gonna get popped. But fuck Big Mike, he was the one who got his mother on the crack cocaine back in the day.. His days were numbered. The two collected the coke, cash, and few belongings and left the place for Chicago, it was gonna be a long drive...

After a 8 hour drive, Andolph and Rodney arrived in Chicago safely.. Tired and in need of a place to stay, they searched downtown for a hotel but found that all were either shutdown, or riddled with bullet holes.. In fact, much of the streets were very vacant and police sirens could be heard everywhere, it was almost like a war zone.. Dolph had never seen anything like it in his life, he heard of the stories about the Mob controlling Chicago and that they ran it with an Iron fist, but he never it to be like this..

The two were almost out of gas and needed to pull over to fill up. Rodney went inside to get a bite to eat as Dolph scoped the surroundings of the place. He took note of a fellow walking down the street in a fancy suit, he looked as if he was holding a gun under his coat and was of some importance, Dolph knew he had to go and approach him...

He flung open the door and threw a small bag with a few kilos of coke in it and ran after the man, calling out to him to get his attention

"Yo excuse me man, you got a second??""

The man turned around to him, startled by the man of color standing before him. Dolph could sense his uneasiness and kept his distance

"I'm new to Chicago, and I'm pretty good at spotting criminals from the rest of the crowd.. or "business" men I should say. I've got some merchandise for sale that perhaps you may be interested in?"

Dolph opened the small bag and quickly showed it to the man who was more than interested, Dolph always had an eye for customers..

"The name is @Keats and it's a pleasure to meet you. My boss, @Catalina_Rey may be interested in something like this. We will get into contact with you soon."

The man handed him a business card, Andolph looks it over carefully and makes out the header "The Chicago Outfit" .. Did he just link up with the mafia day one in town? 

It was nearing the next morning as Andolph thrust himself out of bed to run to the bathroom, the urge to piss in the morning was quite overwhelming sometimes and this morning it woke him up abruptly. As the main vein began to drain, the feeling of relief was also overwhelming in itself and he couldn't help himself but to let out a light groan... In those split seconds he thought to himself, where was that phone call from the mafia, this coke in the other room needed to get sold..

At that moment, a loud bang came out the door, startling him and sending piss flying everywhere as he realized his piece was still on the nightstand.. A low voice began demanding he open the door, he couldn't make out the accent but it sounded italian.. He pulled up his drawers and ran to his bed stand to grab his piece before taking cover by the door and looking out the peephole.. The voice talked again...

"Mr. Dolph, a friend sent me to come see you this morning.. said it's urgent that you come immediately. You met him on a corner yesterday..."

The man pounded on the door again, Dolph put the gun in his back waistband and unlatched the deadbolt before opening the door

"Did Keats send you?" Dolph said with a low voice

"No Mr. Dolph, Keats has went back to the old country on some business, another one of his colleagues sent me on behest of Catalina_Rey to bring you down to the North Shore.. a man by the name of Billy_Mastrosimone wishes to speak to you.."

Dolph knew he couldn't refuse the request of a man in the mafia, the fact he even knew anything was dangerous enough so he played along and told the man he would be right out. He threw on a fancy suit, followed by a few gold chains and his rolex watch before leaving the place with the man, bringing his piece along of course...

They both reached the streets where the rain was starting to come down. The eerie quietness has begun to loom over the streets. It had been many hours since the last gunshots, and Dolph was just quite enthused by this all. A streets kid from Memphis, moved back home to where he was born and raised, only to become a potential associate to the mafia. He was stepping up in the world from being a street dealer quick...

The car finally stopped after what seemed like an eternity outside a broken down building on the outskirts of Chicago. Andolph began to get a little nerbous, but they hadn't disarmed him prior to getting in the car so it was comforting to still have it in his waistband. The rain was still pouring as he stepped out of the vehicle, along with the two italian men who worked for Mr. Mastrosimone. Dolph had heard of the Mastrosimones during his short stint already in Chicago, they were a mafia family who were all about business.

"Step inside.."

The man said in a italian accent as he gestured him into the building. Dolph continued to keep his guard up, as the place was not exactly very well lit, it was a wonder a man with such a reputation could be working out of a place that looked like this, the walls were even riddled with bullet holes.. It wasn't a long walk down a hallway before they reached another steel door that unlatched when they stepped before it, making a loud clanking noise as the lock was released..

Inside was a whole other world. The decor and interior was flawless, the lights worked perfectly.. It was almost a army bunker of the sorts, but in the hands of the mafia.. He was quickly lead to the office where a figure dressed in a highly expensive suit sat at the desk, he had a smile on his face as he gestured him to sit in front of him, it was none other than @Billy_Mastrosimone himself.. Upon stepping into the room, he was finally disarmed of his piece, much to Dolph's disapproval, but that didn't stop him from being respectful..

"Mr. Mastrosimone, it is an honor for a man of my stature to finally meet you. I have some business opportunities that you may be interested in, ones that involve cash.."

Dolph sat down in the chair across from Billy and noticed that he was being sized up, it was typical but it did make him feel uneasy.. He slowly leaned back in the chair and awaited his reply, locking eyes with Billy and paying attention to his every movement..

It had not been long since Billy had finally gotten some sleep after the insanity that ripped apart the entire country. Yet sleep he did, like a rock, and when the dust had settled he found himself on a path that he wanted to walk for a long time. His chance was now, and that meant making new friends, and reaching out to whatever old ones were still around. It meant listening to anyone with an idea, and it meant raising a banner.

"Mr. Thornton. I don't believe we've met yet, but if there's anything you should know about me, it's that I am a business man first and foremost."

He gestured to a glass jar that sat on his desk.

"Would you like a cookie? I know it's a bit early, but my wife makes them for me."

He smiled and took off the top of the jar so the man across the desk could take one at his leisure. He took a breath before continuing.

"Mr. Thornton, I don't want to disappoint you here, so I'll be blunt. I'm going to be picking up the reigns in New York soon, so if your business opportunity has anything to do with Chicago, I am afraid I'll have to pass you along to a good friend of mine who will remain here. Either way, I'm happy to listen, maybe we can get us some breakfast while we chat too."

Andolph was thrown off a bit by the cookie offering, while they smelled good, he found it odd a man of his stature was handing out cookies like a girl scout.. still, Andolph took one from he jar and bit into it, it was cooked perfectly, as it was still soft and chewy, far better than that crap they try to sell at the local market.. 

"Tell your wife that her cookies are da bomb mayne.." he said munching on another one 

"I can't say I'm bound to anywhere right now, Mr. Mastrosimone.. I came to Chicago to offload a duffle bag of coke.. but the mans I normally be pushing to, well, he ain't pushing shit no moe.. I think one of you muhfuckas popped his ass..." Dolph said chuckling as he talked while eating

"Perhaps if we could work something out, I bring you the druuugs, you bring the money.. and perhaps we can start that business thing you was talking about, here or in New York.. don't mattah, the fiends want they fix everywhere around dis country."

It was quite clear the man was heavily uneducated, he had never finished school as he was thrust into drug dealing at a young age..

"So, whatchya say mistah business man, you interested in some pure peruvian flake or what?"

Dolph always had money on his mind, whether it be shipping cocaine out to Chicago or New York, as long as the money was right he was in. He took note as he sat down that @Billy_Mastrosimone seemed to still be fiddling with the cookie jar that @AuroraMastrosimone had filled with those delicious cookies for him, perhaps she needed to use an easier jar to close though because it left Andolph waiting a tad bit for his reply..

Billy nodded.

"I'm sure we can work something out from a supply chain standpoint. You bring in product, I'll pay you and find people to push it out, that's how it works right. Tell me though, how do you feel about getting women and children involved?"

He finally got the lid on the damned jar and put his palms down onto the desk to sigh.

"You see. One of the reasons I became friends with the late Don Posner is that he shot a man in the face for even thinking about dealing near a school. My cousin, a woman dear to my heart, got addicted to pain medication at one point in her life. You see, the shit you deal in Mister Thornton, well it can be dangerous. I'd really like, in fact, to trust you with just doing the legwork, you get your people in, you have them work for you and push your product to reasonable places on the streets and then kick something up to me for the privilege."

He got up from his chair and made his way around the desk.

"So if you can agree to that, no targeting parks, schools, hospitals, or playgrounds. Focus mostly on the red light district, the financial areas of the city, the clubs, warehouses, docks, and maybe even the occasional politician if you can rope them in. Agree to those terms and I'll make you my number one guy in this department. I should warn you though, Miss Catalina_Rey in Manhattan? She's known for having some deep connections with the same kind of product, so you might want to link up with her rather than get into trouble."

Adolph listened closely to what the man before him had to say, dealing to children was something he was very against himself, so it was a business arrangement that happened to benefit both of them. He slowly reached into his pocket and pulled a small bag from it that contained his product...

"I can assure you Mr. Mastrosimone, my pushers on the streets will not be selling to minors, that is something we both can agree on.."

He paused for a moment as he thought about his rough upbringing, both of his parents were addicted to crack cocaine..

"You give me a block to sell on, and I'll stick to it. Memphis is already controlled by a rival gang and they just about pushed me out of town.. I only got a few men still loyal to me.." he said with a scoff

"But I'll bounce back. A real street hustler always bounce back. My product is the best in Memphis and with your protection.. I can finally start focusing on the money aspect.." he said now smiling as he dangled the bag around in his hand before returning it to his pocket

"That's my life insurance policy" 

He glanced over at the bottle of whiskey on the table and gestured to pour them both a drink, it was a great day for Mr. Thornton. A man of color was not well recognized by Italian man, let alone offered protection.. but he had a group of people willing to follow him, Adolph's folk.. the black folk.. It was a community that were well misrepresented and Adolph happened to lead them.. Sort of like the old great Chalky White..

"So with that said Billy, it sounds like we have a new business arrangement for when we arrive in New York...

Adolph pushed the cup of whiskey he poured for @Billy_Mastrosimone towards him and picked up his own cup and held it out

"Cheers, to our new long lasting partnership.." 

Adolph took the nod from @Billy_Mastrosimone as the sign that he was okay to leave. Mr. Mastrosimone was due to head to New York, and under his protection Adolph would follow suit. He took his shot of whiskey and placed it down on the table before taking his leave. Upon exiting the building, it was a nice relief that the rain had stopped, a comforting sign that "sunnier" days were upon us. He quickly flagged down a taxi and ordered him to drive back to his hotel.

The drive was fairly short, the meeting spot wasn't far from where Mastrosimone's men had come to pick him up, but he got time to reflect upon his new position as an associate for the mafia. A man of color typically wasn't accepted by the Italians, they were predominantly picky about only bringing in their "own" but somehow Dolph impressed the right person and here he was..

"That will be two dollars and fifty cents please" the taxi driver said with a raspy voice as he interrupted his train of thought

Dolph handed him a 5 dollar bill and began getting out of the taxi, watching his step as the streets were still wet

"Keep the change dog, you look like you could use it" Dolph muttered back to the driver before slamming the door shut

The hotel was fairy vacant still, the streets were quiet.. Perhaps this wasn't the best side of town to be on. He scuffed up his coat and quickly made his way to his hotel room. Rodney wasn't out front smoking like he usually was and the lights were dim.. Feeling a bit suspicious, Dolph pulled his pistol from his back waistband and carefully continued down the hallway towards the door.. It was cracked open and dark inside..

"Aye yo Rodney.. what the fuck man, you in there playing wit yo self dog.." Dolph yelled out into the room but got no reply..

"Yo Rodney this shit ain't cool dog, speak up my G" 

Something moved inside the hotel room and Dolph kicked open the door and began laying down shots towards the shadowy figure that attempted to take cover behind the bed but caught a bullet in the chest, sending his dead body flying into the night stand.. A muffled voice was calling out from the bathroom and Dolph quickly thrust his way inside..

"Yo partna is dead homie, come out and maybe I'll think about sparing yo bitch ass life.." gunshots erupted through the door at Dolph, catching him in the side and shoulder as he took cover against the wall

"I tried to play nice with you, but now you gon' die like the rest.." 

Dolph reloaded his pistol and got ready to enter the door, when he heard the click of the shooter's clip exit his pistol, he kicked in the door and surprised him, unloading his entire clip into him, sending his body flying against the wall as blood spatter flew everywhere. The man went lifeless and slowly slumped down the wall, leaving a long bloodstain as he finally lay rest on the floor..

Dolph noticed Rodney tied up in the shower stall, it looked like he had been tortured and was gagged.. He quickly pulled the cloth from his mouth..

"Dam my homie, you definitely seen better days.. let me get you the fuck out of here.." Dolph said looking around for a knife to cut him loose

"They took my by surprise G, they knew we had the coke here.. but they couldn't find it.. I got it stashed nearby.. had a funny feeling" 

Rodney spit up some blood but smiled as Dolph finally found something to cut him loose with, they both were losing a lot of blood..

"Looks like they got you too, going all superman and shit for me.. I appreciate it dog.." Rodney said with a chuckle

"Save that corny shit for later, the five-o are gonna be all over this place soon like a rat on cheese, we best be out this piece" 

Rodney nodded and lead Dolph out of the room, but not before grabbing his pistol from the bed stand, the drugs were stashed just around the building, in the most obvious place of all, under the dumpster.. but it was perfect. Who would think to check under the hotel dumpster for a duffel bag full of 25 kilos of cocaine.. nobody that's for sure..

"So what ware we doing with this coke anyways Dolph, is your mans gonna take it off our hands or what" Rodney questioned as he pulled the bag from under the dumpster

"Mr. Mastrosimone is going to be heading out to New York, he asked me to come with.. and gave me his blessing to unload under the protection of the mafia.." Dolph said grinning cheek to cheek

"We made it boy, we real street hustlers now. Aint nobody can touch us while we under their protection.. Just gotta kickup to the Capo who will control the district we in once a week and well.. we set boy.."

Rodney was smiling from ear to ear, his boss Adolph had come a long way.. He got run out of Memphis by another rival gang, but things were looking up for the two now. Rodney being Dolph's new Lieutenant, had a place at his new boss' side. The two were going to be unstoppable in the streets Brooklyn.

Upon leaving the "doc's" house of Chicago, the two quickly made their way over to the airport in Chicago. Their flight was due to leave today, Mr. Mastrosimone had already left the night prior and he was awaiting Dolph's arrival in New York. High on painkillers, the taxi ride over to the airport was a "spacious" one, as he felt like he was floating on cloud nine, but it was better than feeling the immense pain from the two gunshot wounds he took the night before..

He pulled out his small notepad and pen, and behan writing some lyrics that came to mind into the paper. He still aspired to be a musician.. someday.. but the culture still wasn't there. Jazz was going to be the mainstay for sometime.. but that didn't stop Dolph from still making his "trap" music, pouring his everyday live into the songs he put out.. "100 Shots" was the title of the song he was writing, and he became overly invested in that, paying no mind to the outside world..

His bodyguard Rodney started tapping him on the shoulder and gestured for him to look, causing him to look up to see the sign..

O'Hare International Airport

Serving America Proudly.

The newly renovated airport was much larger than Midway Airport on the opposite side of town. This one was the new central hub of transportation in and out of Chicago, it also houses planes for the U.S Air Force for times of war. And with the heightening threats in Europe, it was now highly active... Dolph stuck his pen and paper into his suit pocket as the taxi came to a stop at the curb..

Before the driver could say anything, Dolph handed him a twenty dollar bill, effectively paying the driver while overtipping him by a ton..

"Thank you sir." he said as Dolph and Rodney stepped out of the cab

Rodney grabbed the duffel bag of coke from the trunk and flung it over his shoulder, carrying 25 kilos into a international airport was a big crime.. It had him sweating bullets

"You need to calm yourself down dog, shit if anything give me the muhfuckin bag.." Dolph said as he gestured for the coke

"Always gotta do it yourself if you want it done right.. sheesh.."

Rodney quickly handed over the bag, he was not interested in taking the wrap on 25 kilos of coke.. that was a lifetime prison sentence..

"Alright dog, act casual and lets board this flight."

They casually made their way inside, or so they thought as they immediately drew suspicion from the airport security.. but Dolph didn't know that yet. The attendant at the gate greeted them with a smile and took their ID's, processing them while also getting their tickets ready.. Before they could even finish, the security had already surrounded them, and Dolph knew he was fucked.. was he really about to go down already?

"Excuse me sir, I'm gonna need you to step aside.." one of the security said

"We are going to need to check your bag.."

Dolph and Rodney looked at eachother, they both were sweating bullets but began to comply.. The attendant still handed them back their ID's, along with the tickets.. They began walking over to the door when a familiar face appeared from nowhere, he stopped them and smiled..

"Excuse me officers, where do you think you're taking this man.." the Italian man said, he was wearing a fancy suit and fedora

"We think this man may be smuggling some drugs, that's a big felony.. you know this Joey.." the guard said with a chuckle

"This man is under the protection of the new boss of New York, Billy_Mastrosimone .. you wouldn't want to upset a mafia boss would you-"

Joey read the man's badge and pronounced his name out loud as he pulled a wad of cash from his pocket and began counting 100$ bills...

"John Wilkins, perhaps though.. this here money will also help you look the other way. There is no drugs in that bag.. I can assure you this man is homeless and is just moving through Chicago. You won't see him again.."

The security guard stood their for a second and let out a deep sigh as he shook his head, snatching the cash from Joey and sticking it in his pocket.. He turned back to Adolph and spit on the floor before muttering some words as he walked by..

"I best not see you around here again. Next time there won't be no Joey DiMarco to save your hide.. Stay out of my airport." 

The group of security walked off, one of them still closely watching before they disappeared out of site into a different terminal

"Thanks, Mr. DiMarco.. you a friend of Billy's?" Dolph said wiping his brow

"Nah, just a friend Mr. Thornton. I bid you goodbye. Safe travels"

The man tipped his fedora to him and made his leave. Rodney and Dolph looked at eachother and shook their heads, what a wild turn of events. They quickly made it to the boarding area and hopped on the plane for their flight to New York.. Good Riddance Chicago.. 

Chapter Two: Setting Up In The Big Apple

By the time the plane was nearing the airport in New York, it was past dark, and Adolph could see the city lit up fairly well as the plane circled to finally land. Memphis and Chicago were pretty big cities, but nothing compared to what he saw out that plane window as he looked down at the giant city, the new land of opportunity he thought to himself. New York also happened to be the "mother city" of La Cosa Nostra, but long gone were the days of Joe Masseria and Lucky Luciano, @Billy_Mastrosimone was the new head of the New York Mafia, follwoing the recent death of Godfather Petah, the current state of affairs had come to a sort of disarray.

Philadelphia, being the recent head of the Mafia, was gunned down by mobster from Las Vegas. The papers talked all about the bloody mob war that took place, it lasted weeks, and claimed the lives of many Mobsters, the most famous of them all was the former Godfather of La Cosa Nostra, Luis Patangeli, him and his daughter perished during the war. The newspapers called him the "Boss of Bosses" a title that was famously held by Joe Masseria, also a title mainly used by law enforcement to declare the most powerful mob boss in America.

Dolph always followed the papers closely. Being as, it was ALL that was talked about in the news. He enjoyed a good mafia story, where he grew up, the gangs always structured themselves the same.. Black street gangs used the same leadership structure, to a degree.. but were never shown recognition. That's until Dolph met Mr. Mastrosimone. A man willing to take a chance on a man of color..

"You may unbuckle your seat belts, the plane has landed" the attendant called out as she walked down the row, Dolph was mighty lost in thought but he shook Rodney awake who was passed out snoring next to him

"Yo wake yo ass up, we here fool" 

Rodney jolted awake and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Dolph pushed him again and he reluctantly let out a loud groan before moving into the aisle of offboarding passengers. Dolph noticed a woman getting off the plane, one who pushed right past him as he attempted to enter the aisle himself, the thought nothing of it.. probably just some snotty white girl who thinks she's "all that" .. The passengers offloaded quickly and both Dolph and Rodney quickly made their way over to the baggage area and looked for the bag to roll out..

"You spot it yet dog?" Dolph said as he peered around, he took note that the same snotty white girl was standing there mean mugging him

"Nah boss, but I think I see a couple bags coming out now.. aye look it's one of them airport cats" rodney said pointing

The man called for everyone's attention as he drew them closer to make a small speech

"I apologize everyone, but somehow your bags were all mixed up during flight. The tag system has failed on us so please try to use due diligance to try and select your bag from carts. Thank you."

This sent Dolph and Rodney into a panic, what if someone got that 25 kilos by accident.. they would be screwed. They needed that to sell on their new turf, which wasn't exactly layed out yet, but no way they could lose the drugs now.. The carts began rolling out, and just when they thought they saw their bag, that snotty white girl stepped in front of them and picked it up off the cart claiming it was hers, before Dolph could get a word out she stormed out of the terminal. Another bag that was completely identical lay on a cart nearby and Rodney ran over to it and picked it up, it felt rather light though..

They unzipped the suitcase to find that they had someone else's luggage.. fuck! But the passport and ID were in one of the bags, Dolph pulled it out and recognized it as that same girl who walked away with a bag similar to theirs.. The ID read MelanieThomas ..

"Fuck! That white girl just done walked off with all of our drugs.."

The two zipped up the bag and began running out of the terminal after her, hopefully she was still outside maybe waiting for a taxi..

Losing his breath, Adolph had to stop and recover himself.. He was normally used to running long distances.. The cops were always chasing him, but today he was just seemingly out of breath.. perhaps he should lay off the marijuana cigars he thought to himself.. Rodney pressed on as he yelled back to Dolph that he spots her..

"She's waiting outside by the curb boss! Hurry up.." Rodney said with a panic as he bobbed and weaved his way through the crowd towards MelanieThomas 

"Keep going homie.. I'll catch up.." Adolph said as he slowly began walking out of the terminal as he wheezed for breath

Luckily for him, and Rodney.. The woman was having no luck finding a taxi. She tried hailing about 3 of them that had passed, and once she spotted Rodney and Dolph coming towards her.. she tried to make a run for it.. Rodney let out a deep sigh as he had to begin chasing again, as he entered the street he narrowly dodged a car that came flying around the turnabout, almost effectively taking him out..

"Aye yo miss, wait up a minute you got the wrong bag..." Dolph yelled out, he began to pick up his pace as he finally regained his stamina

The woman seemed to pay no mind to them, as she continued racing on in a attempt to flee the men chasing her..

The chase would go on for about 10 minutes, and just when it looked like she was going to escape, she turned a corner and immediately found herself at a dead end.. No way out except going back the way she came.. Dolph and Rodney turned the corner and smiled.. Knowing they had her pinned.. They began slowly walking closer until the woman finally pulled a gun from her waistband and pointed it directly at them, they both stopped dead in their tracks.. Who was this girl??

"Wow wow wow missy, there's no need for all that.. We was just trying to get your attention.. we got your bag here..." 

Adolph said calmly as he slowly took the duffel bag off his shoulder and held it out and slowly placed it on the floor..

"I believe you have something that belongs to us.. perhaps you already know this and it's why your pointing that gun at us.. let's be rational adults here and talk it out now huh?" 

It was the most sophisticated Rodney had heard Dolph talk in a longtime.. He continued standing their with his hands up as he looked back and forth between his boss and the woman pointing a gun at them..

"I've got your name, address, where you live.. where you were born.. Miss MelanieThomas .. So, just put the gun down.. and lets just talk..."

Dolph said one more time before waiting for the woman to reply.. she seemed antsy, like she was trying to find the words to say.. Dolph remained calm and just held his hands up.. If he could get the opportune moment to pull his gun from his back waistband.. Nah, this girl seemed innocent.. she will put the gun down.. or so he hoped.

With the duffel bag laying on the floor next to her, Melanie kept her gun drawn. She made sure to keep both hands on it, the whole one handed thing just wasn't for her. It was something that she learned the hard way wasn't something she should be doing. Needless to say after one shot the gun flew out of her hand, it had hit the ground and went off again. She wasn't exactly sure where that second shot went but boy did it set her straight. Two hands, always!

She could feel her adrenaline increasing as her core body temperature began to rise. It wasn't often she found herself backed into a dead end alley with two guys coming at her. Actually this was a first and it was rather uncomfortable, she was trying her hardest to figure out what to do. So hard in fact that she completely drowned out all the sound within the area, including the two men standing in front of her. 

All she could do was see their lips moving, for a moment she thought they were fucking with her as she yelled out herself. "Don't you come any fucking closer!" Now she knew she said it but she just couldn't hear herself say it. Was she going deaf? Was she already dead and just didn't know it yet?

Her eye's widened as her heart began to race.

"Hello.... You guys hear me???"

By now both men have their hands in the air and are nodded at her. They could hear her, instantly what she thought was the onset of a panic attack began to subside. That's when she finally heard it.

"I've got your name, address, where you live.. where you were born.. Miss MelanieThomas .. So, just put the gun down.. and lets just talk..."

It was a line that basically stopped her in her tracks.

"Wait... what the fuck? What the hell is going on and who the hell are you guys?"

The once man stepped forward, hands still out in front of him.

"Can you please just put the gun down, like I said I just want to talk."

Melanie took a slight step back to match his one step forward and slowly lowered her gun. She made sure though to keep her finger on trigger, just not to point it at the man.

"Who are you and why are you chasing me?"

Dolph was quite relieved that the girl put the gun down.. He could tell she seemed overly distraught, he kept his hands up in a effort to show her that he meant no harm.. It was quiet for a few moments after the girl asked who he was, Dolph was still taking in the surroundings, and noticed the girl still had her finger on the trigger..

"The name is Adolph Thornton.. but most just call me "Dolph" .." he said slowly as he began to put his hands down

"I believe you have something that belongs to me and my associate here.. and I have something that belongs to you..."

Dolph pulled the bag off his shoulder now, slowly of course as not to spook Melanie who was on high alert, and plopped it on the ground..

"Your ID, passport, and whatever worldly possessions are still inside.. all I ask for is the bag you have over there by your feet..."

Dolph said with a scoff, he wondered if she had even opened the bag up to see what was inside. Or if she knew and she was just playing dumb.. He tried to take a small step closer but Melania was having none of it.. she went to pull her gun upwards at him but he stopped dead in his tracks.. She was sweating bullets at this moment and it seemed she was trying to take this all in still.. He smiled and instead took a step back..

"I ain't gonna hurt ya now.. you should really calm yourself down. If I wanted that, it would be done already.." Dolph said with a chuckle

"Maybe we started off on the wrong foot Missy, I assure you I am no bad man.. or atleast I think so.." 

Dolph pulled a marijuana cigarette from his pocket and stuck it in his mouth, the smell of nicotine and marijuana became overly pungent

"So, where you from Miss Thomas? You seem a bit out of your element on this.. and where'd a pretty young girl like yourself come by a piece.. you intrigue the hell out of me.."

Dolph said with a smirk as he ignited his cigar and let out a large cloud of smoke as he waited for MelanieThomas to reply..

Melanie cocked her head to the side just a bit, did he really just ask that question? Clearly if he had her IDs then he should have known where she was from. Perhaps this was a set up after all, perhaps they were after her for something. Quickly she raised her gun back up, pointing it directly at the man.

it was something he wasn’t expecting as the marijuana cigarette dropped from his mouth as he opened it in awe. 

“Where am I from? If you have my IDs how come you’re asking me that simple of a question???” She said in a rather stern but nervous voice. 

She had never shot anyone but the way things were going here and now it looks like that may change. The thought of her demise was also lingering in her head, she knew she wasn’t the best shot and wasn’t completely confident she’d be able to shot them both back to back without them getting off a shot on her. 

“Seriously what the fuck do you want with me? Who sent you?” 

Her heart began racing. 

“I want answers and now!!!”

Dolph glanced slowly back at Dolph and mouthed the words "Dis broad is crazy yo" before turning his head back with a smile. He didn't get to read the full ID, just skimmed over the name.. He let off a big grin before putting his hands back down and gesturing for Rodney to do the same..

"Girl, you just need to calm down. I ain't no mothafuckin detective as you can see.. I ain't gone through your entire life or some shit.. I was just looking for a name after you stormed off from the terminal" he said with a chuckle

"If you really wanna know why we're chasing you, then unzip that big that's laying in front of you..."

Dolph bent down, noticing the tremble in the girls hands as he picked back up his blunt..

"If you gon' shoot me, then do it.. but I think we both know you too scared to do that.. so put the gun down and start thinking rationally.."

Dolph said as he took another puff off his blunt and gestured at the duffel bag in front of MelanieThomas

He kept on mentioning the bag... her bag. With gun still held up aimed upon the men, Melanie glances down out of the corner of her eyes at the bag by her side. It looked like her bag but then again it didn’t. She tried to visualize something that would uniquely identify it as hers but nothing came to mind. 

Looking back over to the guys she finally noticed the bag sitting next to them. It was identical to hers, maybe it was hers... 

“If that bag is really mine then open it up and let me see what’s in it.” 

The man in front of her motioned back to his guy. His movement startled her just a bit.

”WAIT!!! Just step back and I’ll open this one.” 

The man in the background stopped and the man in front of her took a step back. “Listen girl, I just want my stuff back. Do what you got to do but once you realize I’m telling the truth you need to put that piece away before you hurt someone. You know like yourself.” 

She paid him very little mind but kneeled down and directed her attentions to the bag, making sure to keep an ever so watchful eye on the two me from the corner of her eyes. She placed the gun down and gave the bag an unzip. They weren’t lying, it wasn’t her bag. It was much better then hers, so much better.... 

“Well... seems you guys were right.” Melanie zipped the bag back up, stood up and tucked her gun away. The man motioned for her to give it back to him, Melanie just stood there and smiled before speaking up. “I actually like this bag so much better, so I’ll tell you what. Whatever you all got going on, I want in. Plain and simple!”

Dolph was taken aback by her statement.. she wanted in?? What the hell would a white girl do for him on the streets?? Better yet, where did she get that piece in the first place.. There was more than what meets the eye here he thought to himself, he let out a deep sigh and walked back to Rodney slowly..

"You here this girl cuz? She want in?? The Don don't even know about this girl.. and speaking of that.. we suppose to be meeting him in two hours.. we need to rap this up homie and get that bag back.." Rodney said as he kept and eye on Melanie

"Yea I know.. but there is something about this female that got me tripping dog, where she get a piece from to start.. number two.. why is a pretty little white girl carrying a piece.. and numba three.. Man I ain't got a number three.. but this broad suspicious.. maybe she connected somehow.." Dolph said with a whisper

He glanced back at Melanie who was tapping her foot now, he shook his head and whispered a bit more with Rodney before turning around..

"Arlight Miss Thomas.. I guess we can both be frank with each other now right? Seeing as you know that bag is stuffed with cocaine.." Dolph said with a smirk

"I smuggled that cocaine here from Chicago under the protection of the Mafia.." he said with a whisper as he stepped a bit closer to Melanie

"Ain't my call to let you in on this deal..." 

Dolph got close enough that he was able to grab Melanie who began fiddling with her gun as Dolph tried to tackle her to the floor.. Rodney sent off a shot into the air and everything stopped.. Melanie's gun went flying across the alleyway and hit a trash can that caused a loud clank noise..

"This has gone on too fucking long homie, grab the muhfuckin bag and lets be out this bitch..." Rodney said upset as he pointed the gun at Melanie

"Sorry Miss, just business.." Dolph said with a smirk as he picked up the black bag of coke and flung it over his shoulder and began to walk away

The two slowly backed out of the alleyway, keeping the gun drawn on Melanie before booking it around the corner and making a run for it.. Surely she would pickup her gun and give chase.. 

It all happened rather quickly, she had let her guard down ever so slightly and that's when they struck. Before she knew it she was on the ground, gun out of reach and couldn't move. This Dolph guy was a bit stronger then he looked, it was something that she used to against him. Yeah they got the bag, yeah they knocked the gun out of her hand and basically tackled her to the cold concrete. There was one thing though that the two guys didn't know and didn't see coming.

She played it off that she had been defeated, even forced a tear down her cheek. As the men backed out of the alley, gun still drawn on her. Melanie had a couple choice words for them.

"Fuck you two, fucking wanna be gangsters!"

She could tell Dolph wanted to say something before completely turning the corner but didn't, instead just following his guy. She gave it about 30 seconds before picking herself off the ground and giving herself a bit of a dusting off. She had gotten a little bit dirty during the ordeal and a few scratches on her legs and elbows. It didn't matter too much though, cause during the scuffle she managed to slip her hand into one of his pockets and pull out some sort of envelope. The envelope that she was now holding to her side.

Nonchalantly Melanie made her way over to her gun, bent down and picked it up. She gave it a look over, there was a massive scratch on the one side of it. "Fucking Hell!" She said to herself as she shook her head. It was something that she'd have to get buffed out somehow, otherwise it would bother the hell out of her. With one more head shake she put the gun into her back pocket and gave the envelope a look at. It was just a normal white envelope but it was thick, like super thick. Something like this only meant one thing, especially to men who had an entire duffel bag full of cocaine.

Holding it in front of her, she opened it up. It was exactly what she thought it was. Money!!! Lots of it, all hundreds. She had no idea how much but knew it was a lot and knew that once they figured out it was gone they'd come rushing back to the alley. With a smile on her face Melanie walked over to her bag, made sure he IDs and such were still there. Which they were then placed the envelope inside of it then picked up the bag. She gave herself a dusting off one more time before leaving the alleyway.

She hailed the first cab and got in.

"Where to ma'am?"

"Where ever the nicest hotel in town is..."

The driver paused for a moment to give it a thought and without a word started driving away.