Duke,” she whispered.

  Hearing Duke’s name sent an eerie feeling and chil s throughout my body. I started to tel her not

  to answer his cal but I couldn’t get my mouth to move. It wouldn’t have made a difference because it

  was apparent she had already made her mind up. “Hel o,” she said.

  I couldn’t hear what he was saying but when Katrina replied to him by asking him if he was outside

  now, I nearly jumped out of my fucking skin. I panicked and abruptly got up from the sofa. Katrina

  stood to her feet as she pressed the end button and then she looked at me.

  “He’s outside for real?” I asked as paranoia spewed from my mouth. I wanted Katrina to tel me

  that I was hal ucinating. Instead, she grabbed me instead and told me that I needed to hide. “But

  where?” I asked.

  “Go upstairs and hide in my oldest daughter’s bedroom,” she instructed me as she lead me to the

  staircase that was not too far from where we were.

  Panic stricken, I ran up the staircase and when I reached the top of the stairs I didn’t know which

  way to go. “Which room is it?” I asked her.

  “The second door on the right,” Katrina whispered as loud as she could. Then she vanished. I

  knew she didn’t want to keep Duke waiting because it would definitely arouse suspicion and neither

  one of us wanted that.

  When I entered into Katrina's daughter's bedroom I froze for brief second trying to figure out

  where would be a good place for me to hide. I looked at her daughter’s bed and thought about hiding

  underneath it. However, when I got down on my knees to measure the space, I realized that my body

  would be too big to fit. So I jumped back up on my feet and dashed into the closet. There was very

  limited space with al the clothes and shoes this little girl had, but I made do and found a spot on the

  floor on the right side of the closet. I hid behind two very large Hel o Kitty suitcases. And when I found

  a comfortable spot I sat with my back against the wal and wrapped my arms around my legs as I

  pressed my breast firmly against my knees. I knew I couldn’t do anything else, so I sat there and said

  a silent prayer while I waited.

  “Who you got in here?” I heard Duke ask Katrina. His tone was very authoritative and it sent shock

  waves through my eardrums. I became more scared than ever. I figured that it was a matter of time

  before he’d be pul ing me out of this closet and kil ing me with his bare hands.

  “Nobody,” I heard Katrina reply. I could tel in her voice that she may have been more scared

  than I was.

  “Bitch! You better not be lying to me!” Duke roared.

  “I’m not,” she assured him.

  “Wel , whose truck is that outside?” he pressed the issue.

  “Remember when I told you this morning that Bishop was driving a suburban?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Wel , that’s it.”

  “I thought he drove it to the club,” he continued to press. From the way things looked in my eyes, it

  sounded like his statement was more of a question and he was waiting for Katrina to slip up and lie.

  Luckily for her she was quick on her feet.

  “He did drive it to the club,” I heard her respond. “But right after the fire broke out I drove it out of

  the parking lot and parked it across the street where the barbershop and beauty salon is.”

  “So how did it get here?” he persisted.

  “I had it towed.”

  “Wel , where is the towing receipt?” he came back at her. At first Katrina was on a rol . Every

  question Duke threw her way, she came back with a plausible answer. But for some reason he

  must’ve felt that she was lying in some shape or fashion, because he kept probing her with one

  question after another.

  “I told the guy not to give me one. I mean would it have made sense for me to get a receipt? Look

  at what just happened tonight. We don't need a paper trail at this point in the game,” she final y

  explained.

  Duke didn’t answer right off. There was complete silence for at least a minute and a half before

  he responded. “You better not be lying to me! Because if I found out that you have, then you’re going

  to be lying in a grave next to my wife.” Then I heard footsteps as they passed the staircase.

  Fuck, if he is this scary, I didn’t want to fuck with the brothers who had him scared as shit.

  Now I had to admit that I didn’t see Katrina coming out of this one. I knew she was about to get

  herself crossed up and the fucked up part about it was I wasn't going to be able to help her. I swear, if

  it were me, I would’ve thrown her ass underneath the bus and told him exactly where she was.

  Because when it was al said and done, everybody was going to look out for their own ass.

  Meanwhile, they were moving about through the house. That’s when I realized I heard three sets

  of footprints. But to be perfectly sure, I remained quiet so I could continue to hear everything that was

  going on downstairs.

  I couldn’t say for sure but it sounded like Katrina and Duke were in the den, because their

  conversation wasn’t as clear as it was before. I damn near had to hold my breath in order to hear

  them real y good.

  Duke basical y ran the entire conversation. He was giving Katrina more instructions than anything. I

  hoped and prayed he wouldn’t be here very long because my legs weren’t going to cooperate with

  me if I stayed in this position for more than twenty to thirty minutes. There was limited space for me to

  readjust my legs so this was only a temporary fix. Thank God I had on a watch to keep track of time.

  If I didn’t have one on I would be up shit’s creek without a paddle or a hope of a prayer to save my

  ass.

  I had only been sitting for five minutes and it seemed like I had been here for an eternity. So many

  thoughts were running through my mind and I couldn’t figure out how to line every one of them up.

  Duke’s grimy ass was at the center of it al . I hadn’t laid eyes on him since I’ve gotten out of jail,

  but I could see his face as clear as the day. He had such a negative impact on people’s lives that the

  remnants from his wrath never left a person’s mind. I mean, this guy was so evil and sadistic it real y

  was scary. I had fucked a lot of men in my lifetime but I never seen a man like him ever. He was so

  fucking charismatic on the surface. But deep down in his soul and heart, he had this sick obsession of

  seeing people down on their knees begging him to spare their lives. People’s weakness fueled his

  adrenaline which was a sad way to live. If I was fortunate to walk out of this situation tonight, then I

  was going to show that motherfucker who the fuck I real y am!

  Even though I thought his evil ass was the Devil’s son reincarnated.

  Cheaper to Keep Her part 2 Unique

  Who’s Behind Door #1- Chapter Twelve

  Twenty-five minutes had passed and Duke showed no sign he had plans to leave anytime soon.

  My legs had become numb and my fucking bladder had fil ed up to its capacity. I knew it wouldn’t

  be much longer before I exploded and pissed al over myself. Once again I cal ed on the Good Lord

  and asked Him if he would please speak to Duke’s heart by giving him a revelation so he could carry

  his ass home or back to his Devil’s lair. But it was evident he wouldn’t be able to hear Him because

  Duke served the Darkness Below. And since there was nothing else for me to do, I continued to sit

  there and hoped I’d be able to hold out just a little bit longer.

  “Is there anymore Coronas in the refrigerator?” Duke asked.

  “Yeah, they’re three left,” she replied.

  “Wel , go in there and get me and Chris one,” he instructed her.

  Immediately after I heard Duke instruct Katrina to go into the kitchen and bring him and Chris both

  a bottle of Corona, I felt a knot in my stomach. Not only was it revealed that I was right about there

  being another person in the house, but it also potential y meant that something may jump off. And the

  thought of that real y made my stomach sick al over again.

  Chris was Duke’s right-hand man, so he operated under Duke’s command. He was the massa’s

  puppet. There was a lot of buzz while I was in jail that Chris was the one who actual y pul ed the

  trigger and kil ed Neeko. I wondered if it bothered Katrina to have the man who shot and kil ed her

  husband lounging on her fucking living room furniture. There’s absolutely no way that motherfucker

  would be in my house after he shot and kil ed my man. And to make matters worse, Duke had her in

  the kitchen getting that animal a fucking beer. If it were me, I would have poured his beer into a glass

  and spit in it. And if I wanted to get gangster on their asses, I’d have poison both of those bastards

  and let them die a slow death.

  “What’s taking you so long to bring us back the motherfucking beer?” Duke yel ed. If he had yel ed

  any louder he’d probably shatter every glass in the house. That’s how ferocious he sounded.

  “I’m coming now” Katrina assured him. I heard her footsteps as she scrambled down the hal way.

  Hel , I wondered for a quick second if she had put some shit in their beers. That shit would have

  been righteous if she did.

  “Where is your bathroom?” I heard Chris ask.

  “In the hal way by the kitchen,” Katrina replied.

  Seconds later, I heard heavier footsteps as they walked down the hal way and then I heard a door

  close. But as quickly as he closed it, he opened it right back up. “Where is your other bathroom?” he

  yel ed down the hal way.

  I heard Katrina scramble back down the hal towards him. “What's wrong with this bathroom?”

  she wanted to know.

  “The light doesn't work. It must be blown,” he told her.

  I listened intensely. Something wasn’t right. I hope it was just my imagination.

  “Okay. Just stay right there and I’l run upstairs to get you a new one,” she replied and then I heard

  her footsteps as she hurried towards the staircase. But before she was able to climb one step, Duke

  stopped her in her tracks.

  “Wait! Hold up a fucking minute!” he commanded.

  “What? What's wrong?” she asked and then complete silence fil ed the air until I heard another set

  of footsteps. And when I heard Duke’s voice again, I could tel he was standing directly in front of her.

  “What the fuck is up with you? You’ve been jumpy since I walked into this goddamn house!” he

  snapped.

  “Nothing’s wrong with me,” she told him. But I heard the fear in her voice and I knew he heard it

  too. At that point, I got scared as shit for Katrina. Was she a dead woman?

  “You’re not hiding anything from me are you?” Duke said with venom and vile in his voice.

  “Of course not,” she began to say. “Have I ever hid anything from you?”

  “There’s a first time for everything,” he replied as quickly as the words were out of her mouth.

  Chris must’ve lost his patience because he didn’t waste any time by tel ing her not to worry about

  getting another light bulb for the bathroom, because he was going to use the bathroom upstairs. I

  waited for Katrina to respond but she didn’t say a word. I wished like hel there was some way I could

  see what was going on. But since I was stuck in the back of Katrina’s daughter’s closet I shifted my

  eardrums in ful force.

  “Want me to get a light bulb while I’m up here?” I heard Chris ask. By this time, he was climbing the

  staircase.

  “Nah, you don’t have to worry about it. If I told you where they were, you stil wouldn’t be able to

  find them. Especial y with al the mess I got piled up in the hal way linen closet.”

  “A’ight,” Chris replied. As I listened in on their conversation, I heard Chris go into the bathroom,

  which had to be next to the bedroom I was in, because it sounded like he was only a few feet away.

  And when he started pissing in the toilet I nearly freaked out, because if he had the slightest inclination

  I was in the next room, he’d serve me up on a platter to Duke and then he’d torture me while Duke

  watched. So I held my breath because it felt like I was breathing too loud. I couldn’t take the chance of

  being dragged out of this closet.

  Right after that bastard emptied his bladder, I heard him flush the toilet stool and before he exited

  the bathroom, I heard his cel phone ring. He answered after the first ring. “Hel o,” I heard him say and

  then he fel silent. “I'm in the beach right now,” he continued, but then he fel silent again.

  “I don't know how long I’m gonna be,” he snapped. From the way his conversation was going, it

  seemed as if he was getting a little agitated. “Look, Tiffany, don’t be asking me a whole bunch of

  fucking questions. When I do what I came out here to do then I’l be home,” he continued and then he

  stopped talking altogether. The next thing I heard was his footsteps as they passed the room I was

  hiding in. The moment I heard him walking back down the staircase, I stopped holding my breath and

  exhaled.

  Once I regained my composure, I couldn’t help but recal Chris’s phone conversation. It was

  obvious that his disrespectful ass was talking to his wife or possibly his baby mama. But in any case,

  he mentioned to her that he had something to take care of for Duke. So I wondered what that could

  be. First, I thought about the possibility that Duke had Chris were here to eliminate Katrina from the

  equation. But then I thought that it wouldn’t make sense to do that. According to Katrina, Duke needed

  her around to get her part of the insurance money. So what else could it be?

  I racked my brain trying to figure out what was Duke’s motive for coming here and bringing Chris

  along. And when I couldn’t come up with a solid answer, I decided to shift that situation to the back of

  my mind until I was able to come to a conclusion in this matter.

  Once again, I looked down at my wristwatch and noticed I had been sitting in this same position

  for over an hour now. And with no signs that Duke, nor Chris, was leaving anytime soon, I pressed my

  luck and decided to take a chance by sneaking into the bathroom. I knew that I was playing a very

  deadly game. But I figured if I tiptoed out of the room and into the hal way, then I could get away with it

  without getting caught. I mean, what other choice did I have? I didn’t want to pee on myself because

  you’ve got to remember that adults’ urine is a lot stronger than children’s. So why bring the heat to

  myself when it could be avoided?

  It took me almost five whole minutes to get up from the floor. My legs and feet were super duper

  numb. So when I stood up on my feet, I leaned up against the wal in the closest to get some of the

  feeling back and let the blood began to circulate through my veins. A few minutes later, I got up the

  gumption to take the first step. There wasn’t much room to move around in the closet. You could take

  two to three steps and you were in or out. So after I stepped around the two Hel o Kitty suitcases, I

  grabbed a hold of the doorknob and turned it very quietly. I couldn’t tel you why but I held my breath

  again. I was breathing so hard, it felt like as soon as I walked out of this closet and into the hal way,

  they’d hear me. And I couldn’t let that happen.

  Thankful y enough, I was able to open the closet door without making a sound. My next quest was

  to make it out of the bedroom as quickly and as quietly as I possibly could. So right after I took the

  first couple of steps, I stopped because my gut feeling told me to prepare for an escape exit if al

  else failed. And that’s exactly what I intended to do.

  The bedroom window was on the opposite side of the room so I tiptoed over to it and wasted no

  time trying to find the latch that would help me raise it up. While I prepared an escape route, I heard

  bits and pieces of Duke’s and Chris’s conversation. Fortunately, they weren’t talking about kil ing or

  the death of another human being. They were discussing how they were going to make other moves

  to secure the rest of the money he owed those two cats Katrina mentioned to me earlier. So while

  they were putting a plan in motion, I had found the latch and began to lift it very gently. It was moving

  smoothly until I had gotten it halfway up and then it acted like it didn’t want to move anymore.

  Frustrated and scared at the same time, I tried to use a little more force behind my push and when I

  did, the window made a screeching sound. From that very moment, you could hear a pen drop.

  That’s how quiet it had gotten. And from there, my heart leaped out my fucking chest because I knew

  it was a matter of seconds before I would be faced with Duke and Chris.

  I stood there about to piss al over my clothes when I heard footsteps running up the staircase. I

  figured if I stood there any longer, I’d be their next victim. So I forced the window up more and then I

  kicked the screen out with my feet. But when I climbed up on the window ledge I couldn’t help but