Page 1 of Gang of Roses: Kash

PROLOGUE - COVERING A ROSE

SOLENNE “KASH” SINCLAIR

For years, I woke up to my best friend’s smile, it was the best part of my day. If she wasn’t jumping on my bed screaming my name, the heffa was waking me up with her special pancakes. We were two peas in a pod. I loved that girl. It was bittersweet seeing her lay in that casket.

Rose was the sweetest person you could ever come across. I hated that no one else would get to experience her the way the gang had. One stupid mistake cost my girl her life, but you better believe I held my bitch down and avenged her within seconds of getting hit. She just had to stall and spare that hoe. Anger had been surging through my body since.

“We’ll now have a word from one of Rose’s good friend’s, Solenne. Solenne…” The chosen pastor gave me the floor.

Standing, I walked across the grass to the podium. I was irritated already seeing my girl in the casket. However, I would regret this day if I didn’t take the opportunity to speak my peace. This was the last thing I could do for my girl, so I was sending her home right.

Rose didn’t have many folks in her life she could call. The gang held her down though. There wasn’t a person alive that could say we were anything but sisters. We rode together, ate together, bled together, even fell together. This sisterhood was something we built brick by brick and we refused to let it go. It was just unfortunate that one of us was parting before our time.

Looking into the small crowd, my focus landed on my sisters. While Dice and I were bonus sisters to Rose, Rebel was her blood. I was an only child, so I didn’t know how the whole sisterhood worked until they taught me the ropes. I learned how to love someone other than myself, dependency, and the real definition of family with these women. They were all I had, there was no denying that.

I watched tears race down their faces. The hurt was evident. We lost the glue to our sisterhood and there was no getting her back. I couldn’t even form the words I’d rehearsed for days on end. It was like a rock was plunged in my throat and I had to suffer through it. This was a pain I’d never get over.

The pastor stepped up behind me and whispered in my ear, “Solenne, it’s alright. If you can’t do it, we can move on.”

“No. I need to do this… just give me a minute.”

He nodded, and I stood there gathering myself. When I looked back to my girls, they both followed the pastor’s head nod gesture.

I returned it before saying, “Rose was a chick I met in a bar one night giving grown men the blues. God, she was putting them down left and right with Rebel right beside her. That night me and Dice jumped in for the hell of it and had a ball. We were so young. Freshmen in college if I’m being specific. That was also the night our gang was formed. Once we got out of jail the following morning, we realized everybody was into bikes and knew how to get busy on one.”

Both Rebel and Dice cracked smiles. Me and my girls really did have a grand old time that night. When the officers arrived, they thought because we were women we were getting abused.

Imagine their surprise when they realized we were the aggressors.

“Here we are years later burying the heart of it. I don’t want to question God but I’m asking… Why her? Her presence could turn a mood from gloom to happy. I’m gon’ miss her laugh, her rants, and damn sure the meals that kept us all fed. She is and forever will be irreplaceable. Gang of Roses is and always will be home, not just for her but all of us. To my dear sister, I bid you farewell. Tell my dad I’m trying my best. I love you, baby girl.”

Stepping away from the podium, I placed my bouquet of yellow roses on her casket. This was tailored to our girl for real. While I sported everything green, Rose took on yellow, Dice with red, and Rebel strictly gold. We never steered away either. Moments later, I took a seat in between Dice and Rebel. This was hard for all of us, but Rebel lost the only person that knew her inside and out. I felt so bad for her.

“Y’all my sisters for life. I love y’all,” I whispered.

“You know how I feel, sis’. It’s gon’ always be love,” Dice replied.

“Blood don’t make us family, sis’. You know what it is,” Rebel added.

We went through a lot together and although we all agreed on our lifestyle, we never thought it would come to this. We knew the risk and still stayed because we had each other. This situation was one we didn’t ever think would come to the forefront. It threw us all for a loop and now we were grieving a sister.

The pastor finished going through the program we set up. I could barely keep my composure when he read the eulogy. We all knew how this would end, but I didn’t think I could handle seeing her lowered into the ground forever.

“Look, I’m ‘bout to roll out,” I said grabbing my helmet.

Rebel was on her feet right behind me, with Dice following suit. They followed me down the aisle trying to keep up. I was over this shit. One thing I would never accept was lowering any of my sisters into a hole she would be confined to. If they wanted to stay for that, then so be it.

With my arm being grabbed, I was stopped in my tracks and swung around. Seeing that it was Dice, I rolled my eyes before snatching myself loose. I didn’t want to shift blame, but she was making it very hard not to do so. I really wanted to put a hot one in her, but I would lose my shit for real if I lost another sister.

“Don’t ever put yo’ hands on me again, Dice. I ain’t fuckin’ with you right now!” I shouted with my finger pointed in her face.

Slapping my hand out her face, she closed the small gap by getting in mine. “I ain’t fuckin’ with you right now either, bitch… or her,” she said referring to Rebel. “I came to pay my respects and bury my sister, not get tore down by you or her.”

“I ain’t said shit to you, so why am I in it?” Rebel chimed. “You know what… I ain’t even ‘bout to go back and forth with you, bitch. I’m putting my sister in the fuckin’ ground right now.”

“Don’t even trip, Rebel, it is what it is. We’re all here for the same reason, so I’m gon’ let Dice have it. I’d hate to bury another one of us,” I said walking away.

“Likewise, hoe,” Dice commented. She was going to have the last word no matter who the conversation, debate, or argument was with. She wouldn’t let it go if she didn’t.