Page 1 of Rhyot & Nyelle (D-Ville Projects #6)

Chapter

One

Rhyot raced like a bat out of hell in the older model Sprinter van as he held on to the steering wheel for dear life. His plan was simple. In and out in under seven minutes, that was it, but unfortunately shit went left.

Woop! Woop!

Quickly glancing into the rearview mirror, Rhyot saw two police cruisers still hot on his tail, red and blue lights flashing through the back windows.

“Fuck!” Rhyot cursed as he pressed harder on the gas to accelerate which didn’t help.

“Can this car go any damn faster?” Nyelle snapped, staring a hole into the side of Rhyot’s face.

“This ain’t a damn Hellcat, Nyelle. The fuck you want me to do?” Rhyot heard her suck her teeth and his mood softened a little. Removing his right hand from the steering wheel, he lightly grazed the side of her cheek. “I’m sorry, Boog, I ain’t mean that.”

Rhyot was down with the Bedford Boys, a well-respected and feared gang located in Diamond Falls.

They had their hand in the sex trade, which Rhy wasn’t interested in, however he did set up shop with a few other BBs and began hitting licks.

If you asked anyone, Rhyot would be considered a big dawg within the ranks of the BBs and he repped his green flag proudly.

Which brought him to his current situation.

He was now attempting to get away from the cops after his boy Chop had put him on to a sneaker store drop that would be a “quick in and out”, or at least that was what he told Rhyot when feeding him the intel.

Rhyot and his crew stole a little bit of everything: electronics, car parts, jewelry, luxury streetwear, and sneakers.

As long as their clients were willing to buy it, they were willing to supply it.

Rhyot had his own side hustle but he loved the rush of hitting licks.

Aside from that, he ain’t really trust nobody to have Ny’s back like he had her.

“I don’t know, nigga! Maybe get a fucking car that can actually drive!

” she sassed sarcastically before tossing her ski mask out of the window.

Rhy flexed his jaw, biting the inside of his cheek to prevent from cursing her the fuck out.

There weren’t too many people who could get away with coming out of their face to Rhyot but Nyelle was an exception.

Plus he knew she didn’t give a fuck how flip her mouth got; she’d say whatever she wanted and he loved her for that.

They didn’t have to say much but their exchanged glances let Rhyot know what he needed to know. She was scared.

“The shit was simple, Boogs. We went over this a million fucking times,” he stressed, his voice low but tight with frustration as he swerved around a city bus.

The tires shrieked as the stacks of boxes slid from one side of the van to the other.

“You were supposed to keep your eyes out and stay in the car.”

Her stubborn ass just don’t know how to listen, Rhyot thought to himself.

Rhyot had been casing this place for two weeks.

He learned the whole operation, watching the entrances like clockwork.

He knew when the workers arrived before the shop opened, when they dipped after closing, how often shipments came in, and most importantly, which days the exclusive inventory came in.

Not the basic shit either, but limited-edition items. The thought of how much money people would’ve been willing to pay had Rhy pissed the fuck off.

Rhyot had been referred to as a lot of things but sloppy or unorganized never left a nigga’s lips when speaking on him.

But this shit right here? It was not part of the plan. The shit had Rhyot trying to rack his brain about how he got caught slipping. He had come up with a conclusion, but hoped it wasn’t that.

“I wouldn’t have had to if you grabbed the last crate like I told you!” she shot back, snapping him out of his thoughts “Chop said?—”

“Bro, Ion give a fuck what was in the damn crate!” he barked, causing her to snap her mouth closed. “You should have stayed in the fucking van! Listening to that nigga got us fucking caught, Ny!”

It was just like Rhyot, losing his cool, especially when shit went left. He loved Nyelle though. The pair considered each other to be best friends. What he cared about more than anything was making sure she was good.

Nyelle parted her lips as if to say something but Rhyot glared at her with fire in his eyes, causing her to keep whatever comments to herself. Rhyot then refocused his gaze on the road as he tried to think of a way to get them out of the mess they were currently in, more so for her than himself.

The two of them had history. Growing up in the same projects together, stealing from corner stores, going on licks, holding each other down when the cold world closed them both out. They were locked in before they ever crossed paths with Chop.

“I don’t want you wrapped up in this shit, Boog,” Rhyot muttered under his breath, more to himself than her.

She didn’t respond, simply glanced out of the passenger window, chest rising and falling hard, probably sharing the same thoughts Rhyot just had.

In the rearview, the lights lit up again, closer now. They were running out of time and he had to think fast if he wanted to protect her. He could handle whatever came his way but he didn’t know if he could bear the thought of her being locked up too.

Another hard turn.

The van lurched, causing Nyelle’s body to jerk forward. One of the boxes slid toward the back doors with a thud. Rhyot cursed and floored it again. But it was no use. Up ahead two more cruisers came from each direction. They were boxed in.

“Shit!” he cursed, feeling fresh out of options. His knuckles were white around the steering wheel.

“What do we do?” Nyelle asked, voice cracking just slightly.

Rhyot scanned the blocked off street they were entering. No exits. No way out. Rhyot slammed the brakes. The van jerked to a stop.

“Driver! Step out with your hands where we can see them!” the police prompted, causing Rhyot to flex his jaw as he internally got his emotions in check before turning to prep Nyelle, taking her hand into his. He examined her face as he watched tears pool in her eyes.

“Don’t say nothing.”

He spoke firmly, feeling the weight of his words as they left his lips.

“I got you, Ny. When we get down to the station, they’re gonna try and trick you to get you to turn on me.

Don’t believe anything they say to you, no matter what bullshit they throw your way.

You invoke your right to remain silent and just keep repeating the same thing over and over, that you want to speak to a lawyer.

I’m gonna get us out of this, that’s my word! ”

“Rhyot I—” she stammered as she started to protest but he cut her off.

“What did I say? Let me handle it,” he emphasized while staring into her eyes. Needing her to understand the weight of his words, he cupped his hand under her chin and asked, “You trust me?”

She nodded slowly but as he searched her eyes he could see the unsurety and fear. It killed him. He needed her to be solid and prepared for what was to come. Whatever came his way he could handle.

With a nod he opened the door and stepped out with his hands raised high.

The police rushed him. One officer tackled him to the ground, no prior warning.

Rhyot’s body smacked against the pavement, his lip splitting on impact.

A second officer pressed a knee into his back, forcing his face harder into the slightly wet concrete.

“Don’t fucking move! Stop resisting!”

“I’m not resisting, damn!” Rhyot growled as cold cuffs cut into his wrists. Then, what he heard next was enough to make his heart stop.

“Get off me! I’m not…let me go!”

Nyelle’s voice penetrated his ears, causing his heart to drop.

He tried to move but the knee in his back and the one pressed against his head had him pinned.

“What the fuck, yo! Don’t fucking handle her like that; she’s a woman!

” he spat with blood coming out of his mouth.

However, his words fell on deaf ears as the cops ignored him while they continued with what they were doing.

He watched in anger and helplessness as the two officers dragged her out of the van. One twisted her arm behind her back, the other grabbing her by her hoodie, but she still tried to fight them off.

They slammed her against the hood of the cruiser. Her hair fell forward, slightly covering her face. Her legs buckled and they cuffed her like they did Rhyot.

He didn’t give a fuck how they mishandled him but he was ready to lay every last cop down for mishandling her.

As they raised him to his feet, they began to read his Miranda rights. However, his eyes never left Nyelle. They made eye contact briefly; their eyes communicating.

“Do you understand your rights as I read them to you, Mr. Battle?” the balding officer asked, slightly looking up at Rhyot with a smug grin on his face.

“Eat a dick… pig ass nigga!” Rhyot spat, some of the blood from his mouth getting on the officer’s boot before he was snatched away and put into the back of a squad car.