"Popular Thug II: Beautiful Disaster"

Ch.1

       (Three Years Later)

       "Fax me last week's sales and a file for the "Blue Ice" Lip Gloss Promo, A.S.A.P.," Brittney said before hanging up the phone, with an exhausted sigh.

       She had moved to Los Angeles three years ago to take over a Vice President position of a best-selling Beauty Line Corporation and eventually became a major holder in the stock for the very competitive company. She used all of her clout and vision to take her mind off of the past. Her job was important to her and she took it seriously. She didn't date, she didn't spend anytime relaxing, and she never went home without some work with her. It was just her life.

       As she walked out of her office she smiled at her secretary, who was old enough to be her mother, "Well, I'm off to home Sandra."

       "Well, I'm praying you try to relax, that competitive Powwow is tomorrow at seven," Sandra smiled, knowing that Brittney never relaxed, it just wasn't her style.

       Brittney rolled her eyes, she didn't even want to attend the Powwow, "What day is it Sandra? It's been weeks since I've actually looked at a calendar."

       "Shut up and go home, you'll need that Palm Pilot ready because I will be sending you notes before the Powwow. I know it doesn't mean a thing to you Boss woman, but to your boss, the President of Glamco, Mr. Lansing, it is everything," Sandra replied, knowing that any mention of the President and the founder's grandson would straighten Brittney up.

       "Yes, Ma'am," Brittney laughed walking toward the elevators, "see ya in the morning Sandra."

       "No, you won't, seven, Brittney, seven at the Complex downtown," Sandra yelled as Brittney stepped into the elevator waving.

       As the elevator hit the ground floor Brittney sighed, she had looked at the calendar this morning, this year hadn't passed her by completely. And she remembered that this month, five years later, Druex Fredricks would be up for bail. Her father had called this morning, saying that Druex had gotten out and headed straight for California. And it had dampened her spirits the entire day.

       Though she tried to push the past away, it wouldn't go down without a fight. It had been five years since she had visited Dr. Alderson, it had been five years since she had laid her life out on the table and asked someone else to sort it out for her. After the trial she had no intention of going to see the Doctor, she had no intention of letting the woman question her about that time, it was to painful, especially the ending of it all.

       "Your honor, we find Druex Fredricks not guilty on the charge of third-degree murder of Debo Watkins, however we find him guilty on the charge of adding and abetting criminals and the accusation of his superior presence in organized crime."

         Brittney flinched in the warm air, the memory still gave her goosebumps. The moment she had lost the love of her life, the man that had brought her through so much. And now she was back to just concentrating on waking up every morning, back to remembering her life before it crumbled, now she was back to a life devoid of any real joy.

        "I hope you have the happiest life."

       She could hear his voice in her head, she blinked away long forgotten tears and headed for Starbucks for some hot coffee before heading home for a TV Dinner, a Lifetime Movie, and those Promo Files.




       Druex Fredrick's smirk at his boys as he stretched his tired, yet powerful, muscles. It had been a long flight but it had been a good a one, it was the closest to freedom he had had in five years. Five years without a walk down the street, five years without a restaurant, five years without money, but most of all five years without her.

       In some ways he was happy he'd given her up, for her own safety, but in other ways he'd like to kick himself in the ass for giving her up. She never wrote, he asked her not to, she never visited, and he knew she couldn't.

"You have to baby, I won't let my mistakes fuck up your life. So...I want to say this," He whispered staring down at her hands trying to fight his own tears, "I love you. That's important to me, it's important to me to know that you know that I love you."

       "I do know that Druex, but I refuse not to see you. You could be out in five years or less Druex, then everything will be fine, I promise."

       He could still hear their last conversation clearly as if it had happened this morning. But he had to focus, focus on the future, on his job and his responsibilities. He had an order to come to LA immediately after getting out of prison. It was an order he had known before he was sentenced, after the trial he was ready to break if off with Brittney, whether or not he was convicted of anything.

       "E, how's it goin man?" Druex asked as he followed the big, burly, Hispanic man back to his office.

       "Better than ever young," E, better known as Eliot "Quickeye" Lopes. He had been branded with the name "Quickeye" years ago when people saw the moment he glanced at you, you were hit.

       "So what Ima do?" Druex asked sitting in front of the huge Oak desk that E was perched behind.

       "Takeover. The Boss and I have been very impressed with your work out east. How you dodged the charges, how well your crew has worked toward parole, how well you ran your operations. All of it but we have a problem. While you were out east taking care of business the Boss and I were in Columbia and Panama taking care of more business and some assholes have infiltrated all of our western territory. Damn Japanese Mafia signed a cease-fire with us a couple of years ago and it has set the tone for the others to come in. And we don't know who it is," E snarled angrily, obviously out for blood on whoever was taking their territory

       Druex was confused, "What does that have to do with me? In New York it's common knowledge about the cease-fire, hell, we had one with the Russians. We just kept our parole up, rounds up, and costs down to keep any takeovers from happening. I'm not saying some suckas didn't try but all were unsuccessful."

       "That's where you come in, it's common knowledge about your success in New York, and we want you to takeover the entire West Coast. The boss wants what's his and you are the only way to get it back. Now, I'm not saying we didn't try to keep the assholes from taking the territory we just weren't organized and our leaders weren't even loyal. If you know what I'm sayin' young," E replied sitting his clasped hands on his lap with a steel gaze that didn't move Druex in the least.

       "I know what you're saying Lopes," Druex replied, his expression as clear and stern as his voice. He was pushing some respect buttons by calling him his last name and he knew it.

       E smirked at Druex's change of tone, "Now, do you agree to take the job?"

       "What's in it for me?" Druex asked in true professionalism form.

       "Total control of the Western Seaboard. The Boss promises it, he said if you can get the West coast, meaning Colorado to California and all in between, north and south, back in our hands you can have total control of California, Oregon, Washington State, and Hawaii. There is no deal on Alaska, we are just starting organizations up there, it's too cold to do much else. So what do you say Fredricks?" E asked leaning against the desk, looking Druex right in the eye.

       "Deal," Druex replied standing up and shaking E's hand with a smirk.

       "Good, glad to hear it, you start tomorrow. There's no rest for the weary," E smiled opening the door to office.

       "Aiight," Druex replied simply walking out, fumbling the keys to his car in his hand, he had to find the apartment that E and the Boss had bought for him.

       He drove off the dark lot with a sigh, he was tired, sick of working this job. But it was all he had and he had to know everything about the situation by tomorrow night. That called for some coffee, no place better than Starbucks.



       Brittney walked into Starbucks staring up at the products yet already knowing what she wanted. The girl behind the counter smiled, greeting her, "Miss Anderson the usual? Zimbabwe African Coffee?"

       Brittney smiled at the girl opening her purse, "Of course Lauren and bring me a one pound bag of that Zimbabwe, it's going to be a long night."

       Lauren turned around and told the boy beside her to make Brittney's coffee, "Whole bean?"

       "Yea," Brittney replied, pulling out her checkbook, she had become addicted to the coffee when she first took the job as Vice President.

       Lauren handed her the bag of coffee and the cup, "That's $16.54."

       Brittney handed her the check, before walking over the other counter to add sugar and cream. She was reaching over to grab a straw when another hand smashed into hers, she looked up to say excuse me and her eyes almost leaped out of her hand.

       Druex stood looking at her with a cool expression but his heart raced and words failed him completely. It had been five years and she didn't even look like herself anymore. Her hair was longer, her perfume different, she dressed more corporate, and she was showing a lot more leg than she did in New York.

       Brittney had recognized him immediately, he had changed much except for the extra muscles in his arms. His hair was still cut the same, his face was still the same, and he looked as if he had never seen the inside of a prison before.

       After a while her voice returned and she stumbled, "Druex."

       "Brittney," Druex replied trying to smile, his biggest dream and greatest fear had come true. Brittney was in Los Angeles.

       She looked him over once, picked up her coffee and tried to smile, "It's nice seeing you, well, I need to go. Good-bye."

       Druex watched her walk off as a battle raged in his head and somehow his heart won. He ran after her just as she was about to get into her Navigator, "Brittney! Brittney."

       Brittney looked back at him slowly, almost hesitantly, "Yea?"

       "You know, since you are in town why don't we go out for drinks tonight or somethin?" Druex offered with a smirk, the black Navigator fit her perfectly.

       Brittney smiled, for the first time since their encounter, "No, I'm sorry, I have a lot of work to do tonight. I have this huge competitive Powwow at the Complex tomorrow morning, so it's going to be a late night."

       "Oh well, maybe later?" he offered, trying not to let her job impress him in the least.

       She nodded digging in her purse and pulling out a card, "Here's my card, it has all my numbers on there, so call me up."

       "Will do," Druex replied as the opened the door to her truck, he didn't mean to watch her but he couldn't take his eyes off this woman.

       "Druex," she smiled before closing her door, "it was nice seeing you again."

       "You too Brittney, you too," Druex replied as she pulled off leaving him to walk back to his Benz.
....
He’s soft to the touch
But frayed at the end he breaks
He’s never enough
And still leaves more than I can take