by K. C. Mills
“Kiss my ass Brit, if anybody is dysfunctional it’s you,” Jodie said, playfully mugging Brit.
“Both y’all are dysfunctional,” Jaysyn said and then jumped back away from Brit who turned and frowned at him.
“You’re supposed to be on my side. Don’t agree with him,” she snapped, rolling her eyes at Jay.
He laughed, “I didn’t agree, hell, I said both of y’all dysfunctional.
Jodie just laughed. “So what’s good Tay? I see you doing big thigs over there. All over social media and shit. Can I get you to hook me up?” He held his hands out and we all turned to look at him.
“Shit, for what? Your ass wear the same damn thing, all day, every day: jeans, Timbs and a hoodie. Why the fuck she need to waste time hooking you up with shit you not gonna wear?” I said.
Jodie chuckled, “You right, but fuck it. I just wanna say I was styled by a celebrity. Have niggas blowing up my Instagram and shit too.”
“You’re so damn stupid. Styled by Tay or not, don’t nobody want your creepy eyed ass,” Brit said and the jumped behind Jay.
“Oh hell no, you not about to make him hit my ass by mistake, trying to go in on you.” Jay grabbed Brit and pretended to shove her towards Jodie but then pulled her back and locked his arms around her. “I’m just plying. You know I got you.”
“Mm hmm, you better,” Brit said.
“Jay can’t do shit; I’ll knock his ass out too,” Jodie said with a grin.
“You might look crazy, but you know better,” Jay said.
“Man, ain’t neither one of y’all hitting on shit,” I laughed and then looked around the block. It wasn’t real late but it was quiet. “Where is everybody? It’s quiet out here?”
“They’re around. You know them niggas don’t like to be seen unless they have to be, but let me call Talen. I told him you were rolling through and he wanted to see you.”
Jodie pulled out his phone and called Talen, while the rest of us chilled on the steps of the brownstone we were standing in front of. A few minutes later, Talen came walking out of the alley a few houses down, yelling.
“Well damn, not only did you roll through, but you got Tay’s yellow ass to come with you. I thought the city swallowed both your asses up.”
He walked up the steps, grabbed Tay by the arms and pulled her into a hug, before he released her and dapped me.
“What’s good bruh? Yeah, we needed to fall through. It’s been a minute.”
“Hell yeah it has. It’s all good though, I know you’re both doing your shit over there. Just don’t forget who raised you,” Talen said referencing the fact that we were from Jersey.
“Nah bruh, never that. It’s in my blood,” I said.
“What’s good Jay, what up Brit?” Talen hugged Brit and dapped Jay before he turned to dap Jodie.
“Shit, you know what it is, just chillin.”
“You must be off tonight; I haven’t seen you out here,” Talen asked Jay.
“Yeah, had to do that family dinner thing,” he said and kissed Brit on the neck.
“Better you than me. Neicy’s folks hate my ass. I can’t even be on their block, so I damn sure won’t be up in their crib,” he said and then chuckled.
“Damn, it’s still like that?”
“Bruh, you have no idea. Got twins on the way. They want my ass dead and gone but I’m like fuck it. Neicy grown, there ain’t a damn thing they can do about it.”
“Fuck nigga, twins? You ‘bout to be broke as hell,” I said.
“Trust me, I know. Shit already breaking me and they’re not even here yet. It’s all love though. I can’t wait for my shorties to get here.”
“You know Keem’s got a daughter too,” Jodie said.
Talen looked at Tay and then me. “I know your ass ain’t had a baby because I just say you a few months ago.”
“It’s magic,” Tay said with a grin.
“Hell no, but Janelle’s dumb ass did. Two fucking years ago and kept it from his ass. He just found out,” Jodie said.
“Say word?” Talen said running his hand across his short dreads.
“Hell yeah. Pure fuckery,” I said.
“Damn, that’s some shit right there.”
“It’s all good. I got her now and I might be keeping her from Jay’s ass for two years to see how she likes that shit,” I said half joking, but then again I was serious too.
“Fuck that, I think you should. I never did like her bourgeois bird ass anyway,” Talen said so seriously that we all laughed.
“Speaking of that shit, let me holla at you for a minute Jodie.” I kissed Tay and then stood to walk down the stairs. We were all tight, but they knew that Jodie and I were fam, so none of them would feel any type of way about us having a private conversation.
“So what’s up?” Jodie asked.
“You know how I was telling you that Jay had some other nigga playing house with Riley?” Jodie nodded and I continued.
“Well, turns out this muthafucka is a cop.”
“He on you over there?” Jodie asked.
“Nah, not in any way that counts, but he ran my name and shit. I’m clean so it turned up empty.”
“He told you that shit?” I knew Jodie had to be curious how I knew he ran my name.
“Shit gets deeper. So you know dude that was after Tay, remember his uncle is a detective. Turns out his ass is dirty and came to me asking for my help to get rid of Howard.”
“Who the fuck is Howard?” Jodie asked looking at me confused.
“Old boy Jay’s hooked up with.”
“So let me get this straight. A cop came to you and asked you to help him get rid of another cop?”
“That’s some crazy shit, right?”
“Man Keem, that’s a fucking set up is what it is. Don’t fall for that shit.” Jodie looked at me like I had lost my mind for even entertaining it.
“That’s what I thought too, but check it, I recorded him explaining this shit to me in my office. His ass didn’t even flinch; I actually believe him but I’m not doing shit until he gets me the proof I need to know that his ass is actually on the take. If it seems legit then fuck it, all he wants me to do is get rid of the body. If he takes Howard out and I get rid of the body, then he can’t prove shit. Howard is gone, I don’t have to worry about that nigga being around my daughter and there isn’t shit that comes back to me. The added bonus is we have a damn cop in our pocket.”
Jodie was quiet while he processed what I was saying. It took him a minute before he finally spoke.
“So if you do this shit, how can you guarantee that it’s not a set up?”
“I can’t, but if he’s really dirty on the take and shit, I can find out in the streets. Streets don’t lie and if he’s really dirty and afraid that Howard is digging into his shit, then he’ll do whatever necessary, even killing a cop. Shit, fuck it. I’ll let him body Howard and handle the rest but trust me, I’ll make sure I cover my tracks.”
“It’s risky as fuck, Keem.” I knew Jodie was concerned, but I also needed to get rid of Howard and if I could make somebody else do it for me, then that was even batter. Besides, I wasn’t going to make a move until I knew it wasn’t going to come back on me.
“I know and trust, ain’t shit happening until I know everything is solid.”
“Aight then. You need me in on this?”
“For now no, but if I do, you know I’ll hit you up.”
Jodie and I rejoined the crew and chilled for a little while longer, before Tay and I decided to head home. To be honest, I missed my baby girl and was ready to lay eyes on her again. Once we made it back to Tay’s parents’ house, we got Riley, said our goodbyes and loaded up to head home. I had a lot on my mind but for now, I was taking my family home and hoping to expand it when we got there. Being around Tay and Riley had me wanting another one, and hopefully Tay could give me a son.
*****
I sat in my office going over bank statements while I waited for Bradford to show
up. He claimed to be coming through with evidence that would convince me that he was on the take, so that I would agree to help him with Howard.
Janelle was blowing up my phone, calling leaving voicemail messages and texts, but I was ignoring her ass. All she wanted was for me to bring Riley home, but that shit was a wrap for now. My baby girl wasn’t going anywhere, at least not for a minute. Jay knew where the club was, but she didn’t have a clue where I lived and honestly, I was surprised that she hadn’t shown up here yet.
“Keem, there’s a Detective Bradford here to see you. Should I let him up?” Mika stuck her head in my office door but wore a concerned look.
“Yeah, he’s good. Send him up.”
“Um okay.” She left and a few minutes later, Bradford came walking through the door carrying a stack of folders. He extended it to me and when I accepted, he sat down in front of my desk.
“That should be enough to convince you how serious I am about this.”
I looked at him and then began flipping through the folders, while he sat silently. It was all arrest warrants and cases for local dealers. I was familiar with a few of them, but most of them were small time and based out of New York, so I didn’t know much about them. One case caught my attention though. Roger James Worthy aka Rasta. I scanned the documents and found that two years ago Bradford had arrested Rasta, but no charges were ever filed.
I held up the picture so that he could see it. “Tell me about this one.”
“Rasta, he’s just a small time dealer on the Eastside. I hit him a few times but he didn’t have the revenue to keep paying, so I eventfully let it go. He disappeared so I don’t think he’s in anymore.”
“When is the last time you collected from him?”
Bradford had a curious look on his face. “Over a year ago. He one of yours?”
“Nah, but I need to verify this shit is legit so I need to hit the streets. How am I supposed to know this shit is real?”
“It is, but you can’t go talking to them about this. That will create more problems for me and I’m trying to solve one. Not get stuck in the middle of more bullshit.”
“Yeah aight, I’ll figure something out, but I need to be sure this is legit so you had to know I was going to wanna do some research.”
Bradford exhaled and then looked around my office. “Look, do what you have to but just try to be discreet. I’m sure you know how things work in the streets.”
I chuckled. Fuck him. I wasn’t admitting to shit. “I’m a club owner, how would I know that?”
Bradford stood looking frustrated. “Just be discrete and also, I’m sure you’ll find this interesting. My nephew is the one who attacked Sky, the girl who used to work with your girlfriend.”
“Why would I care about that?” I asked.
“Because the more of my secrets you know, the more I hope you’re convinced that I’m not trying to set you up. You could easily take me down with that alone. As a cop, it’s my duty to divulge this kind of information, family member or not. I’m sure my sergeant wouldn’t appreciate knowing that I was protecting my nephew, and once this is all said and done, he might be disappearing too. He always did have issues with fighting against suicide,” Bradford said with a smirk.
I just looked at him and shook my head. He was sitting here telling me he was go going to off his nephew and make it look like a suicide. His ass was beyond desperate, but fuck it. After I talked to Rasta I would make my decision. If Rasta confirmed, then Howard would be dying soon, but it also meant that I might not be able to trust Rasta with my shit anymore, so he might be disappearing too.
When I pulled up on the block, Rasta was in his usual spot on the porch of the house he worked out of. He liked to keep an eye on his corner boys and he was forever getting blazed. I grabbed the folder, got out and made my way to him. I handed it to him without saying a word, and he gave me a strange look before he grabbed it and flipped through the pages.
“Where did you get this shit from?” he asked looking up at me with no real expression. He didn’t seem moved at all by it, which threw me a little.
“Bradford,” I said.
Rasta let out a cloud of smoke before he dropped the blunt he was holding on the stairs next to his feet, and stepped on it with the heel of his boot to put it out.
“That nigga trying to hit you up?” Rasta asked looking across the street as one of his guy’s serviced someone.
“Nah, but apparently he got you. Arrested, no time served,” I said summing up what was in the file.
“You insinuating something Keem?” Rasta looked up right into my eyes since I was standing and he was sitting.
“Just needing clarification is all,” I said.
“He hit me with a bullshit warrant, took me in and then came to visit me in holding. If I could provide him with 100K all at once or 120K over time, 10k a month for a year, then he was gonna let me go.”
“You took the deal?”
“I didn’t take shit. Mallard did. He gave me 100K to give to Bradford but that nigga was greedy. He kept coming around until I finally told him I didn’t have shit. I was getting off the block because he was taking all my profits. That’s when I left Mallard and started my own shit here. I never paid Bradford a dime of my money and never will. I figured he’d eventually come around when he found out I was on my own, but he never did. I’m not a CI, I don’t fuck with cops and yes, you can trust me. All I can do is say it, but it’s on you to believe it. I would hope I’ve proved that to you by now.”
I thought about it for a minute and everything he said made sense. The timelines added up from Rasta branching off on his own and true enough, he had been loyal as fuck. He knew about a body with my name on it and shit never popped off from it, so bottom line, he gave me the confirmation I needed on Bradford.
“We’re good.” I extended a hand to him which he met with his and that was that.
“So you wanna tell me what that shit is about?” Rasta asked.
“In due time, but we’re about to get acquainted with a cop though,” I said with a grin.
Rasta just shook his head as a smirk crept across his face. “Just tell me what you need and I’m there.”
“I’m out. I’ll holla at you soon.”
Rasta nodded, pulled another blunt from behind his ear and fired it up. I made my way to my truck and began making plans. Shit was starting to come together and that had me happy as fuck.
-15-
Mason
I sat across from Janelle at the kitchen table, trying my best not to jump across it and wrap my hands around her neck. Her beautiful face was stained with tears, as she tried to explain why my baby girl still wasn’t home. It had been almost two weeks and she allowed that nigga to keep her. There wasn’t shit that I could do about it for now, but it pissed me off every day that I came home, looked in her room and she wasn’t there.
Janelle’s dumb ass acted like she didn’t care and kept making up excuses. “He won’t answer the phone, and the court said he’s allowed to keep her.” Fuck all that bullshit. He was breaking up my family and I could not let that happen. On top of that, Jay keeps going on and on about us having our own kid. She wouldn’t let that shit go and it was pissing me the fuck off. If I could have my own kid, I wouldn’t need her dumb ass. I would still be with Charlene and Charlie; fuck, I missed them. What kind of man can’t reproduce?
I got heated just thinking about it. The day Charlene and I sat in front of that doctor and he told us that we would never have a kid of our own because I was sterile, was the worst day of my life. Most men probably would have been happy as hell, a free pass to fuck any bitch they wanted without consequences, but it had my head all fucked up.
I loved Charlie like he was my own, but the problem was he wasn’t, so when Charlene and I kept trying and it never happened, we got tested. She had Charlie, so she insisted it had to be me; turns out it was. After that, I lost it. I tried my best to become Charlie’s father but his sorry as biological parent
kept getting in the fucking way and Charlene let him. This muthafucka didn’t work, laid around all day playing video games and getting high, but still Charlene insisted on letting him be a part of Charlie’s life. I tried everything to get rid of his ass, even setting him up, but Charlene found out about it and left me. She took Charlie away from me, mailed me my engagement ring and got a restraining order.
Then I met Jay and thought I had another chance to have the family I wanted, but now here we are again with another motherfucker trying to take that away from me. Fuck that. I’ll kill them all before I let them have a happy life without me. I could feel a smile forming as the thought of putting a bullet in Hakeem crept through my mind.
“Mason, are you listening to me?”
“No, I’m not, because the bullshit you’re saying isn’t what I want to hear.” I stood and slowly walked over to Jay. I reached for her hand and she accepted it and stood. I pulled her into my body before I reached behind her head, and roughly grabbed a hand full of her hair, pulling her head slightly back before I kissed her on the neck.
“Get my daughter home.” I adjusted my hold so that I could look in her eyes and as a tear slid out, I gently kissed her lips and then let her go.
I walked to the door and just before I left, I turned to face her. “I’m a cop. You can try something stupid if you want, but trust me. I have more power than you know, so be smart Jay. Get my daughter home.”
With that I left her standing there. I had shit to do so I didn’t have time to fuck around with her right now.
When I made it to the hospital, I was glad to see Hope at the nurse’s station. Since Jay wasn’t making any progress getting my baby girl home, I wasn’t really fucking with her too tough and I needed to fuck bad. It had been a few days and I was used to going at it least several times a day. Hope was about to fix that for me. As soon as I approached the nurse’s station, she smiled and greeted me, but I didn’t say a word. I just walked behind the counter, grabbed her hand and led her to Sky’s room, but to my surprise when we walked in, I was met with a pair of beautiful green eyes.