by K Elliott
“Are you asking me?”
“I’m telling you, the information is right in front of me.”
“What the hell are you here for? Is it that measly fuckin’ marijuana plant in my attic?”
“No.”
“Then what is it? You’re the DEA, I don’t understand.”
“Do you know Tommy Dupree?”
Matt took a deep breath, then he thought about the meeting he and Tommy had about Tommy’s friend getting caught with the dope. Maybe somebody had forgotten to disable the GPS system in his friend’s vehicle too. Maybe he was the reason Tommy’s friend had gotten busted.
“I think you already know that I know him.”
“So what’s your affiliation?”
“We done time together…you know we’re just friends.”
Pratt’s face hardened. “Listen, Matt. Cut the bullshit. You’re about to be indicted for running an auto theft ring.”
“I still don’t understand.”
“Are you trading cars with Tommy for dope?”
“No.”
Another man entered the room—a tall blondish guy about thirty. He shook Pratt’s hand then flashed his badge. “I’m agent Connor of the F.B.I.” Connor offered his hand to Matt, but he declined.
When Connor sat down, Matt said, “We didn’t trade drugs for cars.”
Connor opened a briefcase and presented Matt with pictures of three cars—a BMW and two Benzes. “Recognize any of these?”
“Why would I recognize them?”
Connor’s face became stern. “Because you stole them, that’s why.”
“Hey, I want my lawyer.”
“Matt, your lawyer’s not going to be able to help you now.”
“What do you mean?”
Pratt’s Nextel chirped. He held the phone to his mouth. “Let me call you back. I’m in the middle of something.” He looked at Matt. “You’re no longer a first timer, you’re going to do ten years minimum.”
Matt held his face with his hands and looked down at the floor for a long time. Finally, he raised his head. “So you want Tommy?”
“We want you to tell us everything. I want you to tell us about Jay, too.”
Matt took a deep breath. Giving up Tommy was one thing,
Dear Summer
but he and Jay had been friends since they were seven years old. “I can’t do that.”
“Well you have to get him to help us too or he’s going down, Matt, it’s just a matter of time.”
“I’ll talk to him.”
Pratt sat back down and leaned forward. “I really want Tommy.” Matt looked at Pratt. The man looked serious. Matt knew that
he would get Tommy with or without his help. He wanted to save his own ass but he didn’t know if he would want to be known as a rat. He didn’t know if he could live with the stigma.
***** When Tonya entered Summer’s home, Summer burst into tears. “I think I’m pregnant.”
“What? By who? How did this happen?”
“It’s Q’s child. I mean, I haven’t had sex with Tommy in a while.”
“Damn, does he know?” Tonya asked as she embraced her girl.
“No, not yet. I don’t know how he’s gonna take it.”
“What about Tommy?”
“Haven’t told him. Haven’t spoke to him in a while. He probably hates my guts. I let his girl listen to him say he loved me on a three-way call.”
“You did what?” Tonya asked.
“That’s a long story, Tonya.” Summer paced. “What am I going to do? I don’t know nothing about raising a baby. I can’t take care of a baby.”
“Are you sure that you’re pregnant?”
“No, I’m not sure, but I think I am. I took the home pregnancy test and the results came back positive.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah.”
“What? Girl, are you crazy? Why did you have unprotected sex?”
Summer shrugged. “It just happened. I don’t know how it happened, it just did.”
“Come on, Summer. Having unprotected sex doesn’t just happen. You knew he didn’t have a condom on.”
“So what are you here to do… get in my shit?”
Tonya embraced Summer “No, baby, I am here for you.” She then held her face. “But you have to tell Q.”
Summer stepped away. “I don’t want to.”
“What do you think he will say?”
Summer made eye contact with Tonya then turned away. “I don’t know what he’ll say.”
“But you have to tell him.”
“I know, and I have to tell Tommy,” Summer said.
Tonya stared at Summer. “I don’t think you should tell Tommy just yet.”
“Why not?”
“Because you don’t even know if Q wants the baby or not.”
Summer frowned. She hadn’t thought about that possibility. She thought that maybe he would be a little upset because of the unexpected pregnancy but she’d never thought that he would want to abort the baby. Summer said, “You know what? I am going to keep the baby regardless of whether he supports me or not.”
“You think you can support a baby?”
“Yeah.”
“Summer, you braid hair and you’re trying to write a book that may or may not sell.”
“I can’t abort my baby. I will not abort a baby.” She turned away. For the first time she was afraid. Tears rolled down her face. She finally looked at Tonya and said, “I don’t know what to do.”
Tonya hugged her tightly.
Chapter 33
S
ummer was lying across her bed when she heard a loud knock. She opened the door; it was Tommy. “Hey, haven’t I told you about popping up at my house?”
“Hey, I tried calling you and you didn’t answer the damn phone.” “Tommy, can you leave me the hell alone? You have your woman. Could you just leave?”
“Let me come in for a minute.”
She reluctantly let him inside. He followed her to the living room. “Summer, what the hell is your problem?”
“My problem, nigga? What do you mean my problem? You are the one with the jealous-ass girlfriend.”
“And you expect me to believe that you ain’t got nobody?”
She thought about Q. She thought about the baby. She wondered if Tommy knew something. This was the second time he’d showed up at her house unannounced. Maybe he had seen Q leaving her house before. She’d known some guys to be stalkers.
“Why don’t you keep it real with me? I know something is going on with you. I know you have somebody else,” Tommy said.
“Tommy, you’re tripping man.”
He began to pace. “Am I tripping? Tell me how am I tripping? You had me telling you that I loved you over the phone.”
“So you didn’t mean it?”
“Of course I love you.”
“So why in the hell did it matter that the bitch heard it?”
He stopped pacing. “Because.”
“Because what?” She was now in his face.
“Just because.”
“Because you love that bitch too.” She said the word with so much venom and hatred Tommy stepped backward.
“I don’t understand,” he said.
“You don’t understand what?”
“What happened...what happened to us?”
“Tommy, we grew apart that’s all.” Summer turned her back and folded her arms. “People grow apart you know.”
“Yeah, but…”
“Tommy stop it. You weren’t going to tell her about me.”
“Yeah eventually.”
She turned and faced him again, then looked directly in his eyes. “Tommy, it’s run its course.” She smiled. “We’ve had some good times, actually some great times, but it has run its course.”
There was a long silence in the room. Finally he said, “I guess so.”
***** At a Starbuck’s in the University area, Matt nursed a cup of coffee as he waited on hi
s friend Jay. Jay noticed something was bothering Matt as soon as he approached the table. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Come on man, you can tell me.”
“It’s over, man. The gig is over.”
Jay sat down at the table still confused. “I don’t understand.” “I know you don’t.”
“What the fuck are you talking about, man?”
“Man it’s the feds, man. They got me. They picked me up
yesterday.”
“For what?”
Matt leaned forward. “Those goddamn cars, man.” “Oh, shit, man,” Jay said. He stood and ran his fingers through
his hair.
“Man, can you just sit your ass down for a minute?” Jay sat back down. “What are we going to do now?” “Don’t worry, we will be okay.”
“How in the hell did you get out?”
Matt took a deep breath. “I agreed to give somebody up.” “What the fuck are you saying, man? Did you rat on me?” “Now if I ratted on you would I be telling you what’s going on?” “So who did you give up?”
“Nobody.”
“I still don’t understand.”
“They want me to give up Tommy.”
“How the hell do they know about Tommy?”
“It’s this agent Pratt motherfucker. He knows everything. He
knows about you and me. He has pictures.”
“Pictures?”
“Yeah.”
“So why didn’t he want me since he knows about me?” “Because I saved your ass that’s why. I refused to give you
up.”
“But you’re giving up Tommy?”
“I have no choice.”
“Damn.”
“I know,” Matt said, looking at the ceiling. He didn’t want to
give Tommy up but he didn’t know what else to do.
***** When Tommy stepped outside of the hotel, J-Black approached him. “Fatboy.”
“Damn, man. You out of the hospital already?”
“Can’t keep a real nigga down.”
“What can I help you with?”
J-Black stared him right in the eyes. “Two things—I need some bread and I need to know where that nigga Q lives.”
Tommy dug into his pocket and peeled off five $100 bills.
“I need at least five more.”
Tommy thought back to when J-Black would rob him. He felt like he was being extorted.
“I can’t do it.”
“Listen, Tommy. I ain’t trying to rough nothing off. I’m just trying to live, you know. I mean, I did just take some hot ones for doing a job for you.”
Tommy knew he was right, and he felt kind of bad for J-Black. He gave him five more $100 bills.
“Thanks, man. Now I need to know where that nigga Q lives, man.”
“I don’t know where he lives.”
“Damn.” J-Black sounded disappointed, then he remembered the night that he killed those three clowns, they’d showed him where Q’s man Country lived. He had all the information he needed.
***** Q saw the pregnancy test on the sink. The results were positive. A baby, he thought. He damn sure didn’t need that shit in his life. He stormed out the bathroom holding the test in his hand. When he entered Summer’s bedroom, he found her talking on the cell phone. “Summer, what the fuck is this?” “Tonya let me call you back.” She terminated the call.
“So what the hell is going on?”
“I’m pregnant, Q. Hell, you see the test.”
“So what are you going to do about it?”
She looked away. Now all of a sudden it was what was she
going to do about it. What about him? Hadn’t he slept with her? “Q, I’m having the baby.”
“Summer, I ain’t ready for no damn baby.”
“So what are you saying? Are you saying that you ain’t gonna
help me?”
“No.”
“What are you saying?”
“I ain’t ready for no baby.”
“And I am?” Summer said, sucking her teeth. “Trust me. I did
not try to get pregnant.”
“I thought you were on the pill.”
“I never said that.”
“Why did you make me screw you raw?”
“Make you? Nigga I ain’t never make a nigga get no pussy,
and I damn sure ain’t make you get it; you did have a choice.” Q stared at the pregnancy test again. He couldn’t believe it had happened to him again. He had one baby’s mother that he didn’t get along with, and he knew, though Summer was cool, that if you brought a baby into the picture all of that would change.
“So what you want me to do, Quentin?” He wanted her to abort the baby, but he couldn’t say that. It would be heartless.
“I don’t know.”
“Me either,” she said, looking away.
He sat on the bed still holding the test. He looked up at Summer. “You know I didn’t ask for this.”
“You see Q, when you say shit like that it makes you seem like the insensitive motherfucker that you are.”
“You don’t know me.”
“I’m realizing that.”
“You want me to get an abortion, Q? Why don’t you just go ahead and say that you want me to kill the baby; kill your child.”
“How do I know it’s mine?…I mean, you did have a boyfriend or a sugar daddy when I met you.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Talking about fat-ass Tommy. I know you were fuckin’ him too.”
“You know Tommy?”
“Yeah,” Q said, avoiding her eyes.
“How do you know him?”
He laughed then walked to the other side of the room as he thought of how he would explain it to her that he knew him.
“Quentin, how do you know Tommy?”
“I’ve known him for a long time. Tommy has sold me cars.”
“How did you know that I had been with him?”
“Fuck that shit. Answer my question first. Is it my baby or his baby?”
Summer ran her fingers through her hair. This was too much for her to deal with. Were Q and Tommy playing with her or something? How in the hell did they know each other? Was Q telling her the truth? Did Tommy sell him cars? So many questions; she needed answers.
“So is it mine or Tommy’s?”
“You’re an asshole.”
“You can say what you want, but you ain’t trapping Q with no damn baby.”
“Nigga it’s yours and you’re going to pay for it.”
“That’ll be the day.”
Summer walked over and stood so close to Q she could almost taste his breath, then she stepped away. “You know what, Q? Fuck you. I don’t need shit from you.”
“How many months are you pregnant?”
“I don’t know.”
“My point exactly. You don’t know if it’s mine or Tommy’s.”
“Q, how the fuck do you know Tommy?”
He left the room without answering.
Chapter 34
“I
got a Maserati for eighty thousand, Tommy,” Matt said.
“Don’t talk like that,” Tommy said, looking at his phone.
“What you talking about?” Matt said. “Relax, Tommy. It’s not like we’re drug dealers. We’re car thieves. Nobody is watching us.”
Tommy relaxed a little. He knew Matt was right, plus he trusted him.
“What color is the car?”
“Silver. Tommy, you’re going to love it.”
“Eighty huh?”
“Hell yeah. Man, this is a steal.”
“I can’t make no money off this car, man. If you charge me eighty how in the hell am I going to make some money? I will have to sell it for one hundred.”
Mark Pratt wrote down 60K on the yellow piece of paper. “Sixty thousand and it’s yours,” Matt said.
Tommy’s mind went back to Q. He knew he was stupid enough to take t
he car. But they weren’t friends anymore. He thought about Dino, a big player from Atlanta he’d done fed time with. He’d ran into him a few months ago. Dino was driving a Maybach. “Okay, can you wait until Thursday? I have some things to take care of.”
Matt looked at agent Pratt who was shaking his head no.
“I can’t, man. We have to do it today.”
“I can’t do it today. I have to take care of some things. Right now I’m living in a hotel. I gotta find me a place to stay.”
Pratt scribbled on the paper, Thursday is fine.
“I will see if I can hold it till Thursday.”
FBI agent Connors said, “We have enough to indict him.”
***** Country was about to get into his Chevy Tahoe when a man walked up behind him then put a gun against his back and said, “Walk with me.”
“What the fuck is going on?” “I got a 9mm on your back, and if you make one move I swear I’ll… ”
“Who are you?”
“Motherfucker walk back into your house!”
Country attempted to look at the man.
“Don’t try nothing. I will blow your back out!”
“What the fuck is going on?”
“Back in your house.”
When they were back in the house the man made Country take a seat on the sofa. He sat across from him in a recliner. Country didn’t recognize the man; never saw him in his life. “What are you here for?”
Smiling, the man said, “Revenge. You niggas didn’t think you were going to try to kill me and get away with it did you?”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Nigga, I’m the motherfucker that you tried to kill.”
“I ain’t try to kill nobody,” Country said.
“Where the fuck is Q?”
“Q?” Country said, trying to sound puzzled.
The man was now in Country’s face. “In case you haven’t realized it, I’m J-Black, the nigga that you tried to kill.”
“I’m telling you, man, I ain’t have nothing to do with that.”
J-Black grimaced. “Call Q. Call that motherfucker now.”
“That’s my brother,” Country said, realizing that J-Black was the nigga that killed Puff and ‘em. He knew that if he called Q they would both end up dead.
“That’s my brother,” he repeated.
“I don’t give a fuck who he is. Call him or you going to hell tonight.” He put the gun against Country’s face. The steel was cold against his temple. Country struck J-Black’s arm, causing him to fall backward, but J-Black still held onto the gun.