As they both listened to the message, Ranae looked down at her husband with tired eyes. She rubbed his back gently to show they were in this together. Sway stood up and walked toward the grill, “Fuck this shit.” He whispered to himself.
All Aboard
I went over the plan for the hits in my mind for the hundredth time. I’d been planning this shit for a year now and it was finally time to cash in. What I didn’t plan on was having to kill two extra muthafuckas along the way. But that’s how it goes sometimes…shit happens and you just deal with it. I had to find out who they were first, once I did that stopping their heartbeats would be the easy part. I called each person in my crew; since the meeting everyone was doing exactly what I said to do and laying low. Although I didn’t need to, I called Omar first to see if he was down. Just like I thought, he was still ready to get it in. I talked to Dallas and Sway and they both said they were more than ready. The one person I didn’t have to call was Angelique, I just asked her if she was ready at the dinner table while we ate salmon and mashed potatoes, “of course” was her response.
Well, it was officially on baby, 20 million dollars in a week! I opened a bag of “skittles” relaxed on my Italian leather sectional and went over the plans again.
Vegas Baby
Flash drove his “Cutlass” to the parking garage where Tyce told him to pick the car up. It was located about an hour away on the edge of the city. All he had to do was park is ride; jump in Tyce’s and hit the highway heading north. Bree told him she’d map quested the address to the garage and would meet him there after she left the mall. Flash was looking forward to getting out of the city for a while, he needed a change of scenery. Plus Bree was fine as hell but she lived with her strict ass grandmother and that made it real hard to hook up during booty call hours.
The Vegas strip was a long way from grandma’s house so fucking at two in morning wasn’t a problem. He liked Bree; he’d been seeing her for about six months but kept her away from his street life. He needed her to be his personal escape from the bullshit. She did more than take his mind off his stress; she made his dick and his spirit feel good at the same time. Flash had to practically force her to take a thousand dollars to buy some new outfits for the trip; she wasn’t a
gold digger by any means. With her being a
sophomore in college, she was used to making what she already had work. But every woman liked to shop so she eventually gave in and hit the mall.
Flash pulled his gray old school cutlass into the underground parking garage and searched the aisles for his weekend wheels. He finally spotted Tyce’s ride and his eyes widened with excitement. He parked a few rows down and grabbed the bags from his trunk. Flash walked to the automobile of his young dreams and searched for the key under the front fender, it was right where Tyce said it would be. His hand landed on the black key box and he quickly slid it open and poured the key in his palm. He hit the unlock button on the remote and got inside the cockpit. He took some time and admired the luxury as the scent of new car filled the interior. An envelope was on the passenger seat that had his name on it Flash started the engine and reached over to grab the white envelope reading the note inside:
What up Flash, I hope you like the whip I chose for your lil’ vacation. Have a good time and do ALL the shit that I would do! I put a couple g’s in the glove box for you and your lady…peace.
Ps. Don’t wreck my shit, lol
Flashed laughed out loud, as he opened the glove box, 20 hundred dollar bills were sitting on the driver’s manual. A smile spread across his adolescent face. He’d never told Tyce but he always thought of him like an older brother. He probably would never share that with him; niggas just don’t say shit like that…they just watch each other’s back. He would do anything for Tyce and he knew that Tyce would do anything to help him. They didn’t need to have an express your feelings man therapy session, there was an understanding between them that didn’t need mushy words added to the mix. Flash folded the note back up and raised his ass off the leather seat so that he could put it in his back pocket. Just as he grabbed his phone to call Bree, she called him,
“Wasup baby? You on your way here?” Flash said in a sexy tone.
“I was til’ my raggedy ass car didn’t start I’m still at the mall! I tried to start it a gang of times and the shit is jus’ dead. I even got mall security to give me a jump but that didn’t work either! I got all my stuff with me but you're gonna hafta come and grab me…is that ok?” She asked frustrated.
“Yeah, calm down baby, I’ll be there in like an hour I’m a lil’ ways out.”
Bree sighed with relief, “Ok well I’ll jus’ go to
the food court and get somethin’ to eat…you want anything?”
“Naw I’m good. I’ma see you in a bit, I’ll call
you when I’m close.”
“Ok, hurry I’m ready to hit the strip baby!” She sang.
Flash pulled out of the garage and headed to his damsel in distress, 45 minutes later the bass was knockin’ as he entered the mall parking lot. He noticed all the double and triple takes he was getting from people as he crept through the rows of countless cars. He spotted Bree’s “Kia” and snagged the empty spot next to it. Flash turned down the music and grabbed his cell phone, he hit the recent calls button, and the phone began to ring. Just as he heard Bree’s voice over the speaker the passenger side window shattered into a million tiny pieces. Flash ducked his head down instinctively and reached for the gun in his waist. A hailstorm of bullets ripped through the tinted glass and body of the “Range Rover.” As Flash reached for the door handle a bullet struck his wrist and another pierced his right shoulder. He screamed in agony as three more bullets entered his back; burning his flesh. His body nudged weakly against the door as he tried to escape the assault; he heard bullets whizzing past his ears before one hit him in the back of his neck slamming his head into the window. His lungs were trying their best to pump air but it was leaking out of his throat as bloody bubbles gurgled from his windpipe. He focused his eyes on Bree’s car until the picture went black. The shower of bullets finally stopped.
“Flash! Flashhh! Flashhh!! Baby!!! Talk to meeeee!!! Flash say somethin’!! Flashhhh where are you?? Flashhh!!” Bree’s frantic voice blared from the phone. “No No No Noooo baby!!! Oh my God!! Oh my God!! Nooo!! Flashhhhh!! Baby please say somethin’!!!”
Flash trembled as he struggled and tried desperately to hold on to life…his chest was heaving as he struggled to breath. His muscles relaxed and his body went limp…as death took over. Bree ran through the mall, crashed through the double doors and sprinted toward her car, while she was running she saw a tan “Camry” speeding away almost hitting a bus bench. Having kicked off her heels in the mall her bare feet pounded the pavement; she didn’t notice the sting from hundreds of tiny pebbles stabbing her toes as she ran towards her man. Tears rolled from her eyes as she saw the horrible scene. Glass sprinkled the ground and the “Range Rover’s” body was freckled with bullet holes. She snatched the car door open and Flash’s head leaned out lazily. The white T-shirt he wore was soaked in blood; it looked like he’d taken a bath in cranberry juice. Bree tried to sit him up in the seat.
“HELP!!! Please help…somebody!!! She looked around wildly.
Bree silently prayed in her head as her shaky hands touched his smooth face.
A small crowd began to form around the scene as people started to realize what was happening. They watched with big eyes as they witnessed the horror.
“Flash! Baby please wake up!! Open your eyes baby, open your eyes!!” She screamed tapping his cheeks.
Flash’s eyes were closed and his body was still. Bree cradled him in her arms like a newborn baby rocking him back and forth, her dress and hands were covered in blood. She squeezed his lifeless body tighter pressing his head to her chest and sobbed uncontrollably.
“No no no no no no!!!!” Bree shook her head side to side in disbelief.
The crowd was q
uiet as the sirens grew louder in the distance.
It’s Quiet
The TV was black…turned off after the news reported on the drive-by shooting at the “Crenshaw Mall.” The white female anchor explained what happened in a nonchalant manner. She broke down the details of the shooting and when she pronounced Flash’s real name as the deceased victim…I turned the TV off and just sat in the dark. No tears slid down my face, I didn’t punch the air, and I didn’t need a hug to let it all out. My feelings were tightly capped inside, for the first time in my life I’d lost someone close to me. Before now, I was on the other side of death, now I felt the sting of losing a friend but rather than mourn-I was on some murder shit. The reporter said the holice had no suspects but I knew what the fuck happened, all those bullets Lil’ Flash took were meant for me.
I had a wild caged lion inside of me! I was in pain but not the kind a pain “Tylenol” or morphine could take away; I wanted revenge! I felt
responsible for his death. Why the fuck was he at
the mall anyway? I told him just hit the highway and avoid the city streets, I put the car in a garage outside the city to keep shit quiet, I was trying to protect him. Anger and rage swirled inside my chest, I was mad at the fact that a young life was snuffed out over a mistaken identity. Them niggas thought he was me; well I’ll be sure to introduce myself before I murdered them blind ass muthafuckas! I pulled my phone out the front pocket of my hoodie and dialed a dead man’s number…Biz answered on the first ring,
“They missed. You should stop buying your hit men from the dollar store nigga.” I stated calmly staring into the darkness of my living room.
“So you a comedian now huh? Don’t you worry pretty boy; they still got enough bullets for you, as for Angelique, I’m going to fuck her one last time before I bury her fine ass, alive!” He threatened.
My jaws clenched without me knowing it, I wanted to kill this nigga so bad I almost couldn’t breathe.
“Was that little crack star your friend Tyce, was his lil’ black ass close to you? Shit, he had to be if he was driving your Range, either that or the lil’ nigga stole it.” He taunted.
I stood up and walked to the back yard to get some air taking the phone with me, “Thank you.” I said enjoying the fresh breeze of the cool night.
“What the fuck you thanking me for?” Biz
asked confused.
“I work better when I’m pissed off and I’m ‘bout to work overtime on you. I was jus’ gonna kill you before…but now I’ma get real demented on ya ass. So thank you for makin’ this easy, I don’t even mind that I aint gettin’ paid for this one.” I paced the patio slowly. “I’ma deliver death like “Pizza Hut” nigga.”
I didn’t wait for his response; I hung the phone up in his face and continued to pace the patio trying to control my breathing.
Dumb and Dumber
The beach parking lot was empty, it was one o’clock in the morning, and the sound of the waves crashing repeatedly against the shore was the music of the night. The tan sedan sat in a dimly lit corner as Lincoln and T.J. argued back and forth,
“Nigga YOU said it was him! I was listening to your near sighted ass!” Lincoln yelled pointing his finger at T.J.’s head.
“Look man I fucked up aight, I saw the Range Rover with one nigga driving and I jus’ jumped…I been itching to plug that nigga and I jus’ rushed that shit!” TJ explained.
Both men sat in silence as they stared at the black ocean. Biz had already cussed the men out and threatened to take the money back and their lives. To make matters worse they were now tied to a murder investigation. A murder of a known drug dealer who was also black, a common thing in Los Angeles but a murder investigation nonetheless. They didn’t need that kind of attention, they needed to kill Tyce, find that bitch and get the hell out of town. Everything was amped up now; the luxury of time was no longer available and the welcome mat was gone from the front door. It was clear they’d underestimated Tyce but that wouldn’t happen again.
“We need to drop this car and switch locations.” Lincoln said breaking the silence.
TJ nodded in agreement, “Yeah, and we need to step up the game and try something new. I think we need to make him come to us. Maybe shootin’ that lil’ nigga was a good thing, if he was close to him; he might want a lil’ payback.” TJ hoped.
Lincoln liked the way his partner was thinking, the old way of finding niggas on the street was obsolete in this case. Tyce wasn’t on the streets now, so they would need to draw him out…then fill him with some hot shit.
Change Of Plans…Kinda
I was starting to lose focus. Flash’s sudden death was running through my mind like a track team. I couldn’t concentrate; it felt like I had some unfinished business to take care of. I stood in the steaming shower letting the water beat down on my shoulders. The shower had always been my personal therapy session, it’s where I worked out my problems and planned shit out. Tonight, me and my problems could barely fit in my walk in shower room, I pushed the button on the wall activating all the jets; pulses and powerful streams of water gently attacked my body from every angle. My lungs inhaled the moist steam that was filling up the room like a thick “London” fog. The room was becoming cloudy-however my head was beginning to clear up. Over an hour of water therapy and reflection worked once again, I put shit into perspective and stepped out with a new outlook on things.
My reflection stared back at me as I confronted myself in the mirror, I took notice of a tattoo on
my left arm that read “ME vs. WORLD,” that had been my attitude since birth. I could no longer completely think that way, not in this situation. I dried my naked body with a towel, closed the lid on the toilet, and just sat there. Before all this shit happened life was simple for me; I killed niggas and counted cash, now I had more complicated issues to contend with. I had a crew to look out for and on top of that, I had budding feelings for Angelique. She’d put her life in my hands and I couldn’t live with myself if I had to attend her funeral. Sway, Dallas and Omar trusted me to hold shit down and lead the way, I didn’t feel comfortable knowing trigger happy niggas could kill anyone of them to get to me. Flash had paid that price and I wasn’t about to give Biz another sacrificial lamb. I had to take care of these niggas and do it before I made my moves. Looking over my shoulder while I was working wasn’t good for business-or my nerves.
I put on black sweats a black T-shirt and finally stepped out the bathroom. As I made my way to the kitchen I was still forming the plan in my head, the last step in my private therapy session was cherry flavored “Jell-O.” I opened the fridge to find my sweet Dr. and noticed three cups were missing…I smiled at the fact that Angelique and I shared the same cravings. I grabbed a red cup and sat at the table, my spoon broke the smooth surface as I continued my thoughts. Four Jell-O cups later, I knew what to do and how to do it. Angelique’s light was on in her room so I decided to stop by to see what she was up to. I knocked softly and listened for movement on the other side of the door. Her soft voice gave my body permission to move as she told me to “come in.” Angelique was on her bed playing solitaire, she was wearing a yellow satin nightgown that ran out of material just passed her hips. The cards were spread out over the comforter and she was sitting Indian style as she played with herself.
“Who’s winning?” I asked stepping in the dimly lit room.
“Me of course, I could use some competition if you’re up for it?”
I eased onto the bed and sat across from her accepting the challenge. She began to shuffle the cards for an old school game of slapjack. Angelique stopped her dealer style shuffling tricks and just stared into my eyes and whispered to me,
“I didn’t know Lil’ Flash personally but I’m deeply saddened by his death. My heart is heavy for his family…and for you.” Her eyes never blinked.
She stroked my knee as she gently asked, “Are you ok?”
I sighed heavily and smiled, “I’m ok now….thanks for askin’.”
We broke eye contact finally and began to play, “By the way, I need to ask you a favor.” I said repositioning myself on the bed.
“Ok…wasup?” She smiled.
I held my tongue and just looked at her pretty brown face, “I’ll ask you after I whoop your ass in slap jack!” I promised. “And don’t try and distract me with your short ass pajamas either.”
“Pleasssse, I don’t need to show you my cookie to win; besides…I wouldn’t let you eat it anyway.” She lied with a wink.
Foursome
The black on black “Mercedes” swooped toward the curb stopping in front of Malik’s barbershop. The bass from the trunk vibrated the rearview mirror and made the street full of people turn and stare. I hopped out the car and walked into the shop not bothering to set my alarm.
“What up Malik.” I said taking my usual seat.
“Same old shit jus’ a different day Tyce, you seem a lil’ up beat today…what you got goin’ on?” Malik asked as he cleaned his clippers.
I smiled at him taking notice of all the niggas in the shop pretending not to eardrop on our conversation, “Yeah I’m in a good mood. Although my lil’ man’s life was cut short, I’m in good spirits. We having a party tonight to celebrate Flash’s life, I wanted to extend an invite to you and your family.”
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