by Wahida Clark
“You woke up the neighbors. You didn’t hear the knocking?”
“Umh. Umh.”
“You hear it now?”
There was banging. And whoever was there was also ringing the doorbell.
“Shit.” I climbed off of Faheem and snatched my robe off the bed. I peeked out the bedroom window and saw the squad cars. I caught a lump in my throat.
“Fuck! It’s the police!” I yelled out.
“See? I told you to let me handle shit. Put some clothes on, and I will call Steve.”
“Wait, maybe they just want to ask some questions.”
“Not at five in the morning. You know how they roll. Put some clothes on, Jaz.”
I did and headed downstairs to see what they wanted. They were there to take Faheem in for questioning. His baby mama was found dead.
16
TASHA
Trae came back from his so-called meeting with Charli wearing his poker face—and it was driving me insane. I hadn’t heard from Jameer, so I didn’t know if I should panic or not.
Trae was standing on the front porch, waiting for his ride. I was standing inside the doorway, watching him. I didn’t know where he was going, and according to his body language, I shouldn’t even think about asking.
“Do you mind me inquiring as to how long you are going to be away?”
“Not sure, but you know I’ma call you. So no need to even trip, Tasha.” His back was still turned away from me.
“I’m not tripping. I’m just wondering how long you plan on being away.” I opened the screen door. “For real, it’s no sense in going, because your side bitch is done. So I’m trying to understand why you have to go.” Fuck. That slipped out, and I hoped like hell that Trae didn’t catch it. But when he turned around and cocked his head to the side, I knew it was on.
“Tasha, what do you mean, she’s done? Who is—fuck, Tasha! Do not tell me you did what I think you did!” He gritted, turning slowly in my direction.
His mood and his face turned dark. When I saw that, I eased the screen door shut and locked it. He lunged at it and tried to snatch it open.
“Tasha! Open the fucking door.” He threatened.
“No. Go be by the bitch’s bedside. You think I didn’t know where you were going?” I yelled.
“Open the goddamned door!” He looked as if he was trying to yank it off its hinges.
I walked away. Then I heard a crash and turned around, and Trae’s arm was inside, unlocking the door. My vase that I had made all by myself in pottery class was now broken up in big chunks.
Trae caught up to me, snatched me by the shoulder, and turned me to him. “Tell me you didn’t do what I think you did.” He shook me. “Tell me!”
When I didn’t say anything, he looked as if he wanted to cry, and that’s when I lost it. I hauled back and slapped the shit out of him. “Fuck that bitch!”
He grabbed the front of my shirt, lifted me up, and slammed me into the wall, pressing me and holding me there.
“How many times have I told you it ain’t about her? This was business, Tasha. Money, security, knowledge, business, not pussy! You fucked with the wrong bitch, Tasha. And why? ’Cause you’re scared that she’s gettin’ your dick?”
Marva came bursting through the door. “There’s a limo parked in the driveway. And put that girl down. What’s the matter with y’all? Trae, you better get your hands off of that girl. Now!” Marva warned him.
Trae let me go, and I almost tumbled to the floor.
“If I don’t come back, make sure you tell my sons why. I can’t believe how stupid you allow some bitch to make you act. Now I don’t know what the fuck I’m walking into. You told me you trusted me, Tasha.”
“I do. It’s her that I didn’t trust!” I screamed as he walked out the front door. “She sends someone to blow up our home, and it’s fine. I sick some dogs on her, and I’m a dumb, jealous, insecure bitch. Fuck you and her, Trae! Y’all deserve each other.” He didn’t even bother to look back.
I thought about what he’d said, the reality of his words sunk to the pit of my stomach. And what if he didn’t come back? I had promised myself that I wasn’t doing any more bids with another nigga. Trae promised me that he was never going back to jail, that he was going to stay clean. The game was over for him. That’s what he said. Now this.
TRAE
Walking to the limo felt more like treading through quicksand. I had my doubts about it being known that someone in my camp was responsible for Charli’s mishap, so at least I had a little time. I put my game face on as I got into the back of the limo and was thankful that I was back there alone. I didn’t know what I was walking into. My instincts were telling me that this trip wasn’t business . . . it was personal.
After about an hour, I knew it was personal when we pulled up in front of Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. My door came open, and a gentleman I never saw before greeted me.
They know.
“Mr. Macklin, I am Pu Chang. Mr. Li asked me to assist you this evening.”
“Assist me with what?”
“I will be taking you up to visit Miss Charli Li. Come, follow me.”
We went inside, bypassing security, and stepped onto the elevator. As we took the short ride up, I imagined Mr. Li at his daughter’s bedside and also trying to figure out his reasoning for wanting me to see her.
We walked past the nurses’ station, down to the room where one of Li’s henchmen stood. I recognized him from riding with us on the private jet. He nodded at me as I followed Pu Chang into the room.
Flowers were everywhere, on the floor, against the wall, in the window. Hell, I saw the flowers before I saw her. I walked closer to the bed. She had tubes coming out of her mouth and going through her nose, an IV in her left arm, and her right arm, foot and head were bandaged up.
“Is she unconscious?” I asked in a low tone.
“Yes, she is,” Pu Chang answered. “Luckily, they found four inches of Miss Li’s scalp on the ground and gave it to one of the EMS workers. We are hopeful that her scalp can be reattached. She has severe bites on her right hand and arm and on her left leg. There were two dogs, and we are not sure if they had been vaccinated or tested for rabies.” He stood looking down at Charli and then back at me.
I immediately turned and walked out, thinking the worst. Mr. Li was blaming me for what happened to his daughter.
Pu Chang was on my heels. “I will take you back to the car.”
“I can show myself out, but I do need to speak to Mr. Li.”
“There’s a phone in the limo. It’s already being arranged for you to speak to him.”
I left him standing there and decided to take the stairs. Charli was fucked up, so I could only imagine the magnitude of the repercussions I would have to face. Tasha really had my back up against the wall with this one.
As soon as I got situated in the limo, the phone rang. I picked it up.
“Yes.”
“Mr. Macklin, did you see my daughter?”
“Of course, and I offer my deepest condolences. She had called me and told me that she had new and urgent instructions from you. I called you several times to confirm but was unable to reach you. So I decided on meeting her in a public place, just to be on the safe side. Actually, she was the one who suggested the meeting place,” I found myself explaining once again.
“My instructions to you were under no circumstances to be in my daughter’s presence. If you would have followed those instructions, my daughter would not be lying in some hospital bed fighting for her life. Because of your betrayal of my trust, I can no longer offer you my protection. This concludes our business, Mr. Macklin. And my daughter was right. You would have been a great asset to the Li organization. Kon Li told me all of our people immediately showed respect to you and took you seriously.” He hung up.
And just like that, I was left out there.
TASHA
I had been sitting on the porch for the last two hours. When I saw wha
t looked like a limo coming down the street, I jumped and practically ran off the porch. It didn’t pull up into the driveway but stopped at the entrance. My imagination was running wild. I envisioned a shot-up Trae being tossed out of the vehicle onto the ground. So I was extremely relieved when he stepped out of the car, shut the door, and began to trudge up the walkway. I ran and practically jumped into his arms.
“I’m so sorry, baby. I really messed up this time, didn’t I?”
He didn’t answer me. He pushed me away, and we went up the front steps and sat down. I sat next to him and waited as he called his attorney. I listened in as he told him that he might be picked back up on the murder charges and that Benny needed to be prepared for that. He rubbed across his bald head, while listening intently to whatever it was that Benny was saying.
When he finally hung up, all I could say was, “Baby, I really fucked up, didn’t I?”
“You have no idea! Your shit was not thought out, and now everything will eventually point at me.”
“You really think you are going to jail?”
“What the fuck do you think, Tasha? Mr. Li said all of the protection and connections have been revoked.”
“What protection? What connections?”
“Tasha, do you have any idea who you are fucking with? I had an agreement with these people. Charlie Li is a made man, Tasha. He can wipe out me, you, and our entire family right now.”
“That ain’t right, Trae. It wasn’t your fault. Anybody could have done her.”
“We better hope that he doesn’t find out who did. Tasha, what—” He got up and started pacing back and forth. He was so angry he couldn’t even finish his sentence. “And you didn’t even check with me!”
“Check with you for what? So you could tell me not to do it?”
“Fuck, yeah! And if I was going to approve of it, I would have told you how to do it! Tasha, baby. You ain’t no gangster. What’s gotten into y’all? First Jaz, now you. You have to think things through. Calculate shit. When you don’t, serious shit like this happens. Now, look. If he somehow finds out that you are responsible for this, you best believe some serious harm is going to come to this family.” He let out a deep sigh. “The dogs? Whose are they?”
“That dude who came over on fight night with Trina.” I saw the gleam in his eyes and the light bulbs go off. “No, Trae. Oh, my god.”
“What the fuck you mean, no, Trae? Nine times out of ten, they are going to trace the dogs to him. And what do you think he’s going to do when put under pressure? He’s going to rat your ass out. This was so sloppy, Tasha. Damn!”
I thought about what Trae said. What if they did find out Jameer sent the dogs? They would kill him. I didn’t even know if Jameer had a family. Kids? A wife? What if Trina was with him? They would probably kill her, too.
Because of my insecurities, I had just signed Jameer’s death certificate as well. And that bitch was still laying up there breathing.
17
ANGEL
When Jaz called, Kaylin and I came as fast as we could. She refused to say anything over the phone, so we didn’t know what to expect. So there we were in her living room, on the couch, with her seated across from us.
“I just needed to talk to my family. Sorry y’all had to travel so far just to hear me vent, so I’ll reimburse you guys for the expenses.”
“Girl, please,” I said. “Now you talkin’ crazy.”
“Jaz, Faheem would look after my wife the same way. So don’t insult me like that. Now, tell me what’s happening with you,” Kaylin said. “And where’s Faheem?”
Jaz took a deep breath. “I know that having this all bottled up inside me can’t be good.” She got up and came over to the sofa and sat next to Kaylin. “I told Faheem I would handle everything. Y’all know that he’s in no condition to put in any work. Hell, he is still not right mentally. He had lost little Faheem, so I felt that he should not have to be bothered with this bullshit. What was I here for? He always underestimates me.”
“Jaz, what do you mean by ‘he’s in no condition to put in any work’ and to let you ‘handle everything’?” Kaylin asked her.
I was already reading between the lines. I knew Jaz. And I knew that she was getting ready to tell us about some outlandish shit that she had done. She didn’t call us way down there to “vent,” as she called it.
“All I’m saying is, I stepped up to the plate and helped him.”
“Helped him do what?” Kaylin asked.
“So where is he now?” I wanted to know.
“He’s locked up.”
“Locked up for what?” I asked. Jaz was beating around the bush, and it was starting to irritate me. And the plot thickens, I thought to myself.
Kaylin had eased up to the edge of the sofa. “You helped him do what, Jaz?”
“It’s me that they should be questioning. But Steve said they should be releasing him today. They are questioning him about Oni’s murder.” She glared at us.
“Jaz, she got murdered? Are you saying that is why they should be questioning you?” I asked.
“Shit,” Kaylin mumbled. He then leaned over and whispered into my ear, “Her ass took her out or had something to do with it.”
I looked over at little ol’ Jaz and couldn’t wrap my mind around her killing somebody. So now that made two of us in the clique who’d committed the deed. But did she really actually do it?
“Angel, I see the wheels in your head turning. Chill out. I didn’t do it, I got someone else to do it. That’s how I know that they are going to have to let Faheem go. They don’t have anything on him.”
“What’s Faheem saying about all of this?” I asked, but I already knew the answer.
“You know Faheem. He’s livid. That’s why I called y’all down here. Kaylin, I need you to talk to him. He already knew about the first one but just found out about Oni when they came and picked him up.”
“Oh, my God, Jaz! Who was the first one?”
“Who do you think? That nigga responsible for lil’ Faheem, Steele. He was the first one, and he deserved to die, just like she did. Don’t judge me, Angel.” She looked at me with one eyebrow up and one down.
“Jaz, cut the bullshit. You know I’m not judging you. But if you think I can just sit here while you tell me you had your hand in bodying two people and me not be stuck on stupid, you must be crazy.”
“Angel, please.” Kaylin raised his hand, putting it in my face. Translation: Shut the fuck up. “Jaz, so what do you expect me to say to Faheem?” Kaylin asked her. I knew that he was just as surprised as I was.
Her eyes got big, and she began to frown. I could tell that she was shaken at the thought of dealing with Faheem on this. “I’m not sure. I just need you to talk to him before he talks to me. I only did what I did because it needed to be done. What else was I supposed to do?” Jaz popped up off the couch and started pacing back and forth.
“I’ma be straight up with you,” Kaylin began. “You acting like what you did ain’t no big thing. Have you thought about the moves your opponent would make? I can tell you right now, that’s gonna be Faheem’s beef. You can’t do what you did and not overthink your opponent. You can never plan for the worst, let alone the unexpected. I mean, it is what it is. And I’m sure Steele had people. You don’t think they comin’ after you?”
“Are you done? Can I talk now?” Jaz asked in a condescending tone.
“Go ahead. I’m just keeping it real with you. That’s why you called me down here, ain’t it? I’m anxious to hear your logic.” Kaylin was talking to Jaz as if she rode the small yellow bus.
“Kay, what the fuck was I supposed to do? The nigga needed to be got. The bitch did, too. So what? As far as I’m concerned, I did the right thing.”
“But it wasn’t the right thing, Jaz,” I cut in.
“Red!” Kaylin motioned for me to shut up once again. I turned my head and began to rub my hands together. I was ready to slap the shit out of both of them.
&
nbsp; “Angel, I know you ain’t talking! You forgot that you did a nigga before? You felt as if it was the right thing to do. And Kaylin, you were down with her. You had her back.”
“So what, you think Faheem ain’t gonna have yours? Is that what this is all about?” I asked her. “Why would you even think that?”
When she got all choked up, I knew that’s what the whole thing was about. Faheem had such a temper. And whenever Jaz did anything he didn’t like, he would punish her as if she was a child. And now it looked as if she was petrified. She was more worried about Faheem when she should have been worried about some drug dealer shooting up her house and coming after her whole family.
“Angel.” Jaz started crying. “He is going to flip. If I could do it over, I would have let him handle it, but I can’t. It’s done. Please don’t leave until you talk to him, Kay.”
I got up and hugged Jaz. I could feel her body trembling. I knew that she was scared shitless. “I’m here for you, Jaz. And I’ll be here for as long as you need me.”
TASHA
My sister had been blowing up my phone. This was her third time calling me tonight.
“Tasha, something’s up. Why would he leave his truck in front of the house? His neighbors say it hasn’t moved in days. And where are those damned dogs?”
“Trina, chill out. You said yourself that he was getting rid of them.”
“But he would have told me first. Tasha, he’s not even answering his phone.”
I tried to put her mind at ease before I hung up. I didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure that one out. Trae got to him already. But for now, I was on a mission. I had to do this. This would complete the deed. I concentrated on the click of my stilettos against the shiny hospital floors. As I got closer to Room 311, the gentleman sitting outside of the room became more attentive. He finally stood up.
“Can I help you?”
“Hello. I’m Rosalind, a friend of Charli’s. I just wanted to drop these flowers off and to see how she was doing.” I tried to get a peek to see if anyone else was in the room with her.