The Syndicate 3

by Brick

  Everyone stopped. We had come to a fork in the tunnels. We all listened to see where the most gunfire was, and then we went in the opposite direction.

  “I gutted him like a fish. Made an offering to the ancestors and the children who were hurt by this man. After, the elders came from their homes, walked by him, spit on him. Then I took him down and dragged him to the swamps. Left him there fah the fish and gators. Made sure he was in there real deep too,” Uncle Snap explained.

  He went on. “After that, we left with yawl’s mama and grandmama and Deedee. Yawl’s mama was never the same after that. That nigga tainted her soul and her mind. Rewired it something fierce. Mama tried to help her, but ya mama couldn’t trust anymore. Could only see using people as a means of survival, and yet—brokenhearted again and in deep grief—Mama still did all that she could for yawl’s mama. As did I, for Mama’s sake.” Uncle Snap slowed his step and pointed at a door haloed in light. “See. I take care of Mama. Always have and always will. Be it in honor of King or for myself. I ain’t no second with her, and she knew that. Knew that so well, she killed for me too.”

  His words helped fill in some missing info. I also knew what he said at the end was a jab at Luci.

  Luci’s wheezing became hard, and Uncle Snap chuckled.

  * * *

  After treading through the tunnels, we made it out on the first level of the old hospital. Glancing around, I noted that everything was like in a ghost town. Dust, dirt, rocks touched everything, from old welcome desks to old help stations and then some.

  Several overhead signs were hanging from their hinges. On the walls were stock photos of medical staff grinning in their scrubs. PARISH HOSPITAL and the hospital’s logo were stamped across the front of their shirts. Those photos were also coated in dust.

  Everything was so quiet that it bothered my soul.

  “This shit ain’t right,” I said, hearing the battle raging on below us. “Feels off. Feels like death.”

  “You ain’t lying, kuya,” Cory said, shifting on his feet.

  My gaze traveled around. Through the broken panels of glass in the windows, I could see the masses of cars parked in front of this place. Felt like we had a million eyes on us, and it made the hairs on my nape stand on end. We were locked in, with no real way out without being noticed.

  “I’m sorry,” came from Luci, and we all gave him a look.

  “Why?” Lucky asked.

  “T-the hate runs bone deep. I—I’m sorry for not . . . correcting it,” he said. “For thinking we were protected here. For . . .”

  See, I knew some shit, so his words were falling on deaf ears. Shit was working me, but again, I kept quiet to get my thoughts right. It wasn’t the time, and I let him know. “All things come to light when sloppy as fuck, and as the old die and the young discover all ain’t right in these here woods.”

  “Von,” I heard Cory say.

  I gave him a quick glance, then thought, Fuck it. If we were going to die, then I was going out with a bang.

  “No. See, all this shit seems to be the fault of Mr. Acardi,” I began.

  Lucky looked at me, then frowned. “Why are you going hard at Uncle . . . I mean, my father? Why now?”

  “No disrespect to you, because you are still in the dark about who the Old Italian really is, but it’s like this.” I thumbed my nose, then moved around to stare Luci in the face.

  Everything I read, all the pieces, all the running around this damned city, had me stewing. I wanted to cage the man I had come to trust myself, a man Mama had led me to. But I couldn’t, because if I did, Lucky would put a bullet in the back of my skull before I could snatch his throat out, so I chilled.

  “King trusted you, Luci. He trusted you with his life. It is all there in King’s journal, all between the lines,” I said. “See, King had said at the last summit, his father had personally told him how proud he was of him. Earlier entries had it documented that King Sr. had already been dead, by several years prior. Was no way that Mama’s King was talking about a dead man. But above all that, Mama Claudette trusted you. Never would have suspected you’d turn on them both.”

  “Von, what you talking about, nephew?” Uncle Snap slowly inched up to me, his voice shaking.

  “Naw . . . naw. Wait. He told you he had nothing to do with that, Von, so drop this shit,” Lucky muttered as he stood between me and his ailing father.

  “And? You’re right. He told me.” I gave a cold smirk and glared at Luci. “That don’t mean that shit is true. See, pictures are a reflection of our souls and vessels of our memories. They sure do know how to tell on people too. Tell all the business.” When I was in Luci’s hospital room, the one thing that had caught my eye was the old fading picture of two Sicilians who looked oddly like King. Shit threw me for a loop, but then we were ambushed, and I didn’t have time to gather my thoughts until the tunnels and now.

  “I—I don’t know what you’re talking about, son,” Luci wheezed. “I’ve been loyal.”

  “Chill the fuck out, Von,” Lucky growled, being the protective former nephew and now son that he was.

  That bond I understood well. But on the real, fuck that shit, I thought. The desire to put one between Luci’s eyes was weighing heavily on me. But, really, it wasn’t time for all of this.

  So I did the hardest thing ever. I backed away, but not before I mouthed to Luci, “King’s your blood brother, right?”

  When Luci began coughing violently, to the point of spitting out blood, that answered my question. Anger rose in me. I wanted to put a bullet in the nigga’s head, but one lesson I had learned was this: let the enemy stew in their own shit before you let them hang themselves. A bullet was coming, but it wouldn’t be from me.

  “Back up, Von. You’re right. I don’t get this shit, but I plan to, so back up.” Lucky continued to block me.

  An indifferent smirk spread on my face, and I backed up. “A’ight.”

  I had every intention to leave payback to the one man who was still around honoring the ghosts of Mama and Kingston, and I was staring him right in the eyes. No words were needed, as the look my face said it all, and Uncle Snap got the message clear and in living color.

  As I walked past him, I whispered, “When this is done, handle it after I reveal the truth.”

  Uncle Snap’s anger seeped from his aura. He gave me a curt nod; then an icy, apathetic mask appeared on his face. After that, I thumbed my nose, walked off, then motioned for us to move out. The love of my family was in my spirit. This felt like the walk of death, and in trying to help an ally, I had learned a lot about how scandal and secrets could corrupt a foundation. It was the sins of the past that were about to kill us all, and it pissed me the fuck off. I was a new father and still in the honeymoon phase with my wife. I had left the rest of the family as protected as I could get them.

  I knew they felt they were sitting ducks, but they weren’t. The Syndicate was there to protect them, along with the rest of our allies. My family was good. I had made sure of that before coming here, but after everything, even that had me feeling weak. It had me feeling worried. See, I didn’t want to go out without being with my family one last time. I felt and related heavily to King’s lessons.

  I might not have known what his real words and thoughts were in his last hours, because there was no way for that man to record any of that in his journal after dying. But I knew this: the fight in a man who loved his family above all things could still be felt in those he had helped. King’s life—his lessons, his strength, power, and love—had formed their own foundation and had been passed on through the blood of everyone he and Mama had touched. I felt his energy, and I even felt Mama’s.

  That was why I knew I didn’t want to die and wasn’t going to die today. No fucking way. I had a legacy to protect, and I planned to do just that.

  Chapter 28

  Javon

  “We have a problem, people,” Mary quipped. She jogged into my view, pointing her rifle away from her.

&
nbsp; In the mix of everything, I hadn’t paid attention to the fact that we weren’t alone anymore. People in robes began spilling into the long main entrance area. Guns were pointed at us. People with swords, hammers, and other medieval-looking shit also pointed their weapons at us. I could hear some shit, like a hymn or a prayer, being said in Latin in the background. It sent a chill down my spine, and it also made me pissed the fuck off at the disrespect.

  “Get Luci behind something and keep him covered,” I ordered the Thieves and Dan while getting my gun ready. “We don’t need that bast—” I cut myself off because I needed to look like a crazy person, and not a turncoat, to those who were devoted to him. “OG disappearing on us.”

  From in between the people dressed in robes, men in all-black military attire, including helmets, stepped forward. These men were Luci’s own men, and their mission was to keep him protected. The fact that they had the unmitigated gall to stand with the Knights made me suck my teeth. Yet again, it proved my point. This shit was internal.

  It also made Luci shout, “I protected all of you, from your family to burials of your dead loved ones. And you do this to me?”

  I glanced over to see him pointing and almost falling out of his wheelchair at the disloyalty. His emotions didn’t matter to them. It was clear from their blank stares. He had been betrayed, and now it was time for our deaths.

  “Uncle Snap,” I quietly muttered.

  “Yes, nephew?”

  “I need you to do something for me, to make a promise.”

  “Won’t be no more promises from me, nephew. I ain’t leaving ya side.”

  As I shifted on my feet, the rising anger in me made me grip my Glock. “Then get near an exit. Stay clear of bullets, because it ain’t your time to die, and you’ll break me if you do, regardless of how I feel about you lying to me, understood?” I gave one look at the old man who, I realized, was my world. “I never had a real pops. You’re it and all I’ve ever known. Do me this solid, and whatever you do, find a safe exit out. Because if I go down and that nigga lives, you need to be the one.”

  After that, a silent standoff went on between me and Uncle Snap. I could feel Cory watching. He stood on the other side of me, with slight confusion on his face. Watching the wall of robes in front of us, I then decided to give a quick rundown as best as I could. It seemed like the whole area had become chilly, chilly in a way that signified rage.

  For a second, I thought Cory was going to say fuck it and off Luci, but when he said, “Please, Uncle Snap. You’re all we got,” it made me see the change in my brother.

  “Mama always said, ‘Give an inch, and they’ll hang themselves.’”

  “She also said, ‘Grab a knife and watch that guppy flap.’” Uncle Snap gave a quiet grunt, then backed up slowly to stand to the far right of us, by the welcome desk, his eyes locked on Luciano.

  Vengeance helped me focus. Something in my gut was saying Luciano was the final chess piece in all of this, so I needed to survive this shit. However, if I was going to die, I needed my thoughts to be clear. When I looked ahead, I shook my head to right myself and stop the sensation I had of the floor dipping, then stepped forward. In the sea of Knights, I saw death.

  When the sound of more feet approaching made me turn, I curled my lips and said, “Fuck my life.”

  At my front and back were nothing but Knights.

  “Looks like a showdown, motherfuckers,” I said out loud. “Only thing about to be cleansed here is the shit that you all are. Let’s rock out.”

  “Maximum effort,” Lucky said near us. He gave a nod, then blazed the fuck up by lifting two hands and pointing in front of us and behind us. “I am the son of Acardi. This is my motherfucking world, you hear me? Mine. You all will die by our hand tonight.”

  Bullets went flying, shattering everything that was left in that old space, while hitting some of the bastards in front of us.

  I ran forward, aiming my Glock at the sweet spot on each bitch’s and bastard’s clocked faces, their third eye. Sweat ran down my face as I ran. My heart pumped a mile a minute. Cory moved with me like my shadow. When he swung out over my head, I ducked low, pumped bullets into the enemy. The moment my gun went dry, Cory tossed me whatever he had on his body, and I used it to my end.

  A sweet karambit-style folding knife was pressed against the palm of my hand. I deployed the blade with my thumb and felt that shit kinetically snap out, ready to slice into anyone who wanted this shit. This baby was so light and compact that it felt like a part of me as I reached out and sliced it across the stomach of one of the people in robes. My reward for being so close was a pummeling hit against my side with a crazy-looking hammer.

  I fell back hard but still had my knife. Mama loved these things, and I realized why. They were the perfect weapon for close combat. When I fell on my back, I rolled left, and that hammer came down near me. I thought I was doing some shit, until I felt moisture against my fingers. It was blood. My thigh hurt, I could see that it had been grazed by a bullet.

  “Bitch. Did you shoot me?” I shouted out, in pain. I looked from my leg to my assailant and then back to my leg. Incredulity was written all over my face.

  What I said caught the person off guard, which I used to my advantage. Swinging my feet out, I knocked his legs out from under his, and he fell and cracked his head on the floor. A beautiful red puddle formed beneath his head. I pushed myself up to climb over him, then pressed my blade against his neck and pushed his hood back so that I would remember his face while I cut his throat.

  There was satisfaction in the kill, but I wasn’t done. More fools were coming at me. I grabbed a hammer I saw on the floor, got up, and went swinging. I could see Cory going ham on some folks. He found a way to choke some folks with their own beaded belts, while sticking them in their sides with his jagged-edge hunter’s knife. To the other side of me, in the crowd, I could see that Lucky was surrounded. He was letting off rounds, then switching to his own blades. This shit was hectic.

  Even though the Thieves were doing their magic, Dan was holding it down, and Luci was awake enough to slice at Knights with his blade from his wheelchair, I knew that there were too many of these resurrecting motherfuckers. The whole area was littered with bodies. When Alex and then Dan caught a bullet, I felt my blood boil even more.

  Mary appeared, with Jules flanking her. They rushed forward as one. Mary took a loose steel pole and slammed it into the bodies of several of the Knights. Though her bloody face was a mask of rage, tears fell down her cheeks. Jules cleanly decapitated every Knight who got too close to Mary. I watched Jules take a bullet to his hand, but he kept on fighting.

  Uncle Snap was blasting skulls. His face was a blank canvas of “Piss the hell off.” He snarled, “Hold the hell up! This ain’t Enter the Dragon, a’ight? When I kill you, stay the hell down and don’t not nary one of yawl rosary-wearing bastards come into this room again. Ya feel me?”

  He was right. The more men we killed, the more men came. And as blood from my thigh leaked out, I did my best to keep the grim reaper away.

  Thank God for that.

  Glass shattered and rained around us. Smoke appeared, and bullets that weren’t from us or from the robes whizzed all around us, the sound mixing in with that of . . . Motorbikes?

  Everyone stopped for a second, except me. I was busy cracking bones in the face of a Knight with my fist. This Knight had a chain on him. I wrapped it around my knuckles and began making ground beef. It was only when a massive collective of people in all black, their faces covered, came riding into the room on racing bikes that I stopped my face bashing.

  I looked up from where I had moved, and kneeled next to a dead Knight. My thigh was on fire from the bullet wound there. As the chaos was going on around me, I watched as those bikes slammed into the Knights; then more gunplay followed.

  From the design of some of the bikes, I knew they were the Forty Thieves. One of the ringleaders took off their mask, and my mouth dropped. Shanelle sat on the b
ike, frantically looking around.

  Another rider, who was clearly male, came over to her, and she leaned in to hear what he wanted to tell her. “We’re cornering Absolan now and reclaiming the lost stash,” he said.

  “Cory’s message to you came just in time. Are you sure they are with Absolan?” she replied.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  I heard all of that through the chaos because I wasn’t that far away. I watched as the second rider shifted on his bike and muttered more stuff. He removed his mask, and it was Sino. She pointed for him to go a specific way. Then she looked around again, grabbed something from her back, then swung it forward. It was one of Uncle Snap’s semiautomatics.

  On everything I felt pride and straight-up relief. I didn’t have to die today. I watched my baby let that shit go off, spraying bullets. Bodies dropped without care due to her gun. Shanelle flung her foot out, kicking in the face of anyone who came at her. When she revved up her bike, she made that shit smoke, then lifted it to run down another target. I had to clear my throat.

  Shanelle loved her bikes. Lost in the bloodlust, I watched her shoot off more rounds in a circle like Rambo, until she stopped shooting, turned the gun my way, then gasped, “Von.”

  My queen was here, and she wasn’t alone. Marks on the bikes let me know that the Syndicate was here with her. My baby had the calvary and had ridden in like the boss she was. Had I not had to, you know, kill motherfuckers, my dick woulda been all up through her body, while I shook her ass a little bit for stepping onto hell’s battlefield. But for now, on a deep love level, a brotha was happy. Today had indeed turned into a good day.

  I tried to stand the moment Shanelle rode up to me, but I couldn’t. My fucking thigh was hard as fuck, tense and jerking at the pain inflicted on it.

  “Baby, the fuck you doing here?” I tried to hide the pride I felt in seeing her and saving my ass, but I knew she saw it in my eyes.

  “I figured something out and couldn’t have you assed out. This is a trap. Luciano isn’t—”