Hardhearted

by Sherrod Tunstall

  King smirked and loved every bit of his reaction. After this, she knew he’d be the perfect assassin. She reached into her purse and pulled out her switchblade.

  “Here you are. Enjoy.” King stepped back. “Come on, everyone, let’s leave them alone. Playtime.”

  Tyler gripped the switchblade tightly while looking at Paco with twitching eyes. PJ looked at his son and shook his head.

  “The day of your final destination has arrived. Good luck, son.”

  They all walked out, including Josie, who raced out of the room first.

  “Daaaad!” Paco cried out. “Are you going to let him do this to meeee?”

  PJ didn’t respond. Swag looked back at Tyler, knowing what he was going to do to Paco. He also knew that Tyler needed his friend. Even though he hadn’t seen the video, it pained him that Travis was dead. Swag rested his hand on Tyler’s shoulder.

  “Tyler, man, it’s—”

  Tyler shook Swag’s hand off his shoulder. “Beat it.”

  He spoke so softly Swag barely could hear him. “What?”

  “Get the fuck out!” Tyler yelled while looking at Paco.

  Swag stepped back. He knew his friend’s mind was gone. He saw the same thing in Stan back in the Brazil prison. Tyler’s eyes were on Paco. He was so focused.

  “Oh, the little baby got a knife,” Paco taunted him. Shit, he didn’t have a choice. If he was gonna go out, he was going out with a bang. “Put that knife away. You ain’t gonna do shit. You a bitch like Travis was.”

  That did it. Rage consumed Tyler. He rushed up to Paco and stabbed him multiple times in his face. He stabbed his good eyeball, and his mouth so he would never speak his brother’s name again. He even stabbed Paco in his throat.

  Paco screamed in horror. It was music to Tyler’s ears.

  “Die, you dirty motherfucker!” he yelled and kept stabbing Paco. Within minutes, Paco was no longer a part of the world of the living. Tyler’s clothes were covered in blood as he looked at the deformed and deceased Paco. He’d never killed anyone in his life, but Paco’s killing of his brother took him to a whole new level.

  “For you, Travis. I’m sorry I wasn’t here to help you.”

  Swag couldn’t believe what he had witnessed, but he understood why it was necessary. He slowly walked up to Tyler and pulled his arm.

  “Let’s go, man. It’s over.”

  Tyler yanked his arm away from Swag. His eyes were still on the corpse of Paco Hernandez. He looked down at the bloody switchblade. He then stabbed it in Paco’s black heart. Afterward, he walked out.

  Swag tried to talk to him, but Tyler moved quickly. Swag looked at his surroundings and saw that everything was falling apart. What have I done? was all he could think.

  * * *

  Outside, King and PJ shook hands, along with Midnight and Manny.

  “It was a pleasure, King,” PJ said.

  “Pleasure was all mine,” King replied.

  PJ laughed and looked over at Josie, who was standing by her Rolls-Royce.

  “Uh, King, how much you want for that one?” He pointed at Josie.

  Josie was stunned at being treated like cattle. King glanced at her, then back at PJ. “She’s not for sale.”

  PJ laughed. “Okay, maybe next time.” He looked at Midnight. “Come on, Midnight, let’s go back to Houston. I’ll take care of everything, and you should be fine.”

  Midnight nodded. He was so happy that he was going back home to see his family and leaving all this shit behind him. They all went to their respective limousines and took off.

  Once gone, Tyler came out of the mansion, looking like a madman. King smiled, admiring her up-and-coming creation.

  Chapter 21

  Turning Tables

  Back at the Palace, things were tense among everyone, but mainly with Tyler and Swag. Tyler was still in shock and rage. He took the place of Josie in the Rolls-Royce, which King thought was best. The last thing she wanted him to do was harm Josie or Swag.

  Nobody knew what was going to happen. During the limousine ride, Swag, Josie, and Blood were in the limo together. Swag looked over at Josie, knowing she was still shaken up and scared from the events that happened today. He was just glad she wasn’t in the room when Tyler stabbed and sliced Paco. If she had seen that episode, Swag knew she would’ve lost her mind. He could tell Josie wasn’t built for this lifestyle. He wanted to ask if she was okay, but Blood was eye-balling him hard.

  Swag felt King was using Blood as a babysitter, or Swag would’ve consoled and told her that everything would be okay.

  Blood flashed his gun at him, wanting to show him that he was still running the show. Swag was sick of him playing that game, so he rubbed his forehead and gave Blood the middle finger.

  King, on the other hand, was having a great day. In her mind, her kingdom was safe from fakeness and haters. She smiled at her accomplishments. Her next goals were to bring her father down, train Josie to rule beside her one day, and get to know Swag more. She figured in time, he wasn’t going to have anyone to run to but her, since his and Tyler’s friendship was coming to an end. She loved the thought of having him all to herself.

  Tyler got out of the car, looking like a zombie. He walked toward the Palace doors, displaying so much hate in his eyes.

  Cleo knew not to mess with him. He opened the door to let him inside.

  Swag quickly got out of the limousine and rushed up the steps to catch up with him.

  Once inside the Palace, Tyler walked by the grand room filled with girls and guys with some of their high-profile clientele. Everyone looked at him like he was a madman as he headed to the elevator. Swag followed behind him.

  “Tyler! Tyler! Ty, man, wait!”

  Tyler ignored him. He wanted to be alone so he could digest his thoughts.

  When Swag caught up with him, he looked at Tyler from the side.

  They waited for the elevator doors to open. Then Swag took a deep breath.

  “Tyler, everything will work out. Trust me on this,” he said.

  Swag put his hand on Tyler’s shoulder, but Tyler yanked it off.

  Tyler looked at him with a cold, evil glare in his eyes. “Don’t you ever touch me again, nigga.”

  Swag didn’t know who Tyler was anymore. To Swag, this wasn’t the Tyler he knew. All he saw was emptiness and darkness as they got on the elevator.

  Swag figured he was taking a risk by getting on the same elevator with his friend, but he was trying to get through to him. Once the doors closed, things got heated between the two.

  “Tyler, man, talk to me. Come on, man.” He touched Tyler’s shoulder again.

  Tyler, however, was thirsty for blood. He pushed Swag back, causing him to fall on the floor. “Get off me, nigga. Didn’t you hear what I said?”

  Swag sat there with his mouth hanging open. He knew Tyler was pissed, but he didn’t like Tyler putting his hands on him.

  “Just leave me the fuck alone!” Tyler said, before getting off the elevator.

  Swag got up and followed him.

  “Ty, man, this ain’t you, man. Let’s talk about this and try to figure out our next move. Don’t you want to get away from here?”

  Tyler stopped in his path, trying to hold back his tears. He was filled with so much rage and hate. Swag didn’t understand what he was going through, so Tyler swung around and shot him a cold look.

  “Are you serious right now? I said, leave me alone. Stop asking me questions, and just go!”

  Swag refused to leave his friend like this. “Look, man, I know how you feel. Travis was like a brother to me too. Words can’t describe how sorry I am right now, but I know Travis is in a better place. Anywhere is better than the shit we’re in now.”

  “Stan was right,” Tyler mumbled.

  Swag didn’t hear what he had said. “What was that, bruh?”

  “Stan was right!” he yelled. “It’s all your fault we’re in this shit. We lost Stan, we don’t know where the fuck Brad is, and my twin
got killed by a petty fool you automatically trusted and got us into some even deeper shit. I hate you, man!”

  Those words, “I hate you,” cut Swag’s heart in two. He knew this wasn’t Tyler at all, but he understood why he felt that way.

  “Man, I know you’re upset with me, but you don’t know what you’re sayin’. That’s your pain talkin’, and I’m hurtin’ too. We gotta be strong. We brothers who just lost a brother—”

  “I just lost a brother—You and me ain’t shit.” Tyler got into Swag’s face and pointed his finger at him.

  Usually, Swag would’ve punched a dude in his face for stepping to him or pointing a finger in his face. But he gave Tyler a pass and remained calm.

  “Stay the hell away from me, or I’ll kill you like I did Paco,” Tyler threatened and walked away.

  Swag rushed up again and touched his shoulder. “Ty, man—”

  Before Swag could get another word in, Tyler punched him on the side of his face. The hard blow caused him to fall ass first on the ground.

  “You are dead to me,” Tyler said. “Dead!”

  He opened the door to his bedroom, went inside, and slammed it.

  Swag lay on the floor, thinking about how life was so fucked up. He felt like a big loser and thought about the words Tyler had said, “It’s your fault.”

  Swag realized that he had so much blood on his hands. He should’ve been back in St. Louis kicking it with his fellas, playing with his sons, trying to work things out with Zaria, or moving on to the next best thing. He was determined to fix this, and he prayed for God to give him strength. Tears flowed down his face, even though he viewed tears as a sign of weakness. He was broken. There was no one else to turn to.

  * * *

  While in her suite, King watched the whole showdown with Swag and Tyler. She laughed, especially when Tyler punched the hell out of Swag. She looked at Swag, who looked like he was a sad little puppy that had been abandoned by his owner. She laughed again that her plan to break up Swag and Tyler’s friendship had succeeded.

  Now that their sorry-ass friendship is dead, Swag will have no one to turn to but me. “Here comes mama,” she giggled.

  Chapter 22

  Would You Mind?

  Tyler took a long hot shower to cool himself down. He started to wash off all the blood and essences of Paco Hernandez. He broke down crying, thinking about Travis. So many flashbacks of his brother played in his head. He thought of times when they were little kids, their good and bad times. He even thought of the last few weeks of how his life had turned around. Ending his friendship with Swag felt good. Swag was toxic to him, as far as he was concerned. He was the venom that broke the fellas’ bond forever. Tyler regretted not having his brother’s back and for not defending him when King cut off his finger. He abandoned him when King kicked him out. He thought that he should’ve been with his brother. As the water ran down him, he felt if he were with his brother, they could’ve fought Paco and his crew together. Or they could’ve died trying to fight for their lives.

  An hour later, Tyler got out of the shower and dried himself with a towel. He exited the bathroom, went to the bedroom, put on some clothes, and chilled on the sofa. While in a daze, he stared at the ceiling, feeling dead on the inside. Tyler wanted to cry again, but couldn’t. He needed something to stop all the crying and hurt. He leaned back and massaged his aching head. Damn, Travis! Damn! A tear rushed down his face, but he swiped it away.

  Feeling hungry, he wanted to go to the dining room to get something to eat, but he didn’t want to be bothered with anyone. Minutes later, someone knocked on his door.

  Tyler hoped that it wasn’t Swag, still trying to talk to him. He was done with him, and he meant what he’d said.

  “Who is it?”

  “Room service! It’s Chef!” a man with a deep voice said.

  Tyler took a deep breath and opened the door. The last person he wanted to see was Santana Costello, who came in with a food cart that had three different plates on it.

  “Hey, friend,” Santana said with a broad smile on his face.

  Tyler didn’t say a word. He just wanted Santana to drop off the food and get out. But then, he took notice of what Santana was wearing. He had on a melon-colored shirt, white pants, and Jordan sneakers. Tyler thought for a gay dude, Santana could dress. He started to feel hot in the room, even though the air was on.

  Santana swung around after he set the plates on the coffee table. Tyler looked at him as he took his time bending over with his butt in Tyler’s face. Looking at Santana’s ass made Tyler’s manhood a little stiff. He didn’t know why he was having these feelings for another man. In his opinion, all gays had AIDS, which his family believed was God’s punishment on them.

  Santana looked at him and stood up straight.

  “Is there anything else I can get you, sir?” He lowered his eyes to the stiffness in Tyler’s boxers.

  Tyler bit into his bottom lip. “If you don’t mind, could you take the lids off the plates?”

  Santana laughed. He knew Tyler wanted to look at his ass again. “Sure.” He bent over and took the lid off the first plate, which had slices of a turkey breast, dressing, green beans, and a dinner roll. The second plate was a seven-layer salad. But Santana hesitated to remove the lid off the third plate.

  Tyler looked at him with suspicion. “What’s on the third plate?”

  “That’s dessert. A specialty by me.”

  “Dessert? What kind of dessert? Cake or pie?”

  Santana stared at him with seriousness in his eyes. “Nah, it’s just a little something to mellow you out. I heard what happened to your twin brother. I’m sorry about that, man.”

  Tyler lowered his head down for a moment. He sighed before lifting his head. “It’s cool. Now take that lid off the plate. I’m the type of dude who eats dessert first away.”

  Santana removed the lid. The plate was full of pure white cocaine with a razor blade and a rolled-up hundred-dollar bill. Santana knew that King hated drugs in her palace, especially after what they did to their mother. But under the circumstances, he didn’t give two shits. Plus, the cocaine he was serving Tyler was the real deal and not the cheap street shit that nickel-and-dime boys passed out. It was pure Colombian cocaine. Santana picked up the first two plates and placed them back on the cart.

  Tyler looked at Santana. “Dessert, huh?”

  Santana nodded. “Dessert, and it’ll make you feel better.”

  Tyler needed something right now to get his mind off things. He needed to let go. Plus, he hadn’t had good cocaine since he’d graduated from high school. He picked up the razor blade and put some of the cocaine in three lines. Then he picked up the rolled bill and used it to snort the cocaine in his right nostril. He then closed his eyes and let the coke take effect.

  Santana studied his every move and was surprised when Tyler asked him to sit down.

  “Excuse me?” he said, touching his chest.

  Tyler laughed. “You heard me. Come sit next to me.”

  Santana flopped down on the sofa next to Tyler. He didn’t know what was going on in Tyler’s head, but he loved the mood and didn’t want it to stop.

  Tyler pushed the plate over to him. “Want some?”

  Santana hadn’t had his fix all day, and even though he only snorted cocaine two days out of the week, he was stressed out dealing with King. He indulged with his eyes closed. Tyler didn’t know if the cocaine was talking or if his true self was coming out, but he thought Santana looked beautiful. At this moment, he didn’t give a shit anymore.

  He gazed at Santana’s half-opened shirt and saw part of a tattoo.

  Santana opened his eyes and cocked his head back. “What are you looking at?”

  “What’s that a tattoo of?”

  “Would you like to see it?”

  “Yeah.”

  Santana unbuttoned his shirt and showed off his ripped chest with six-pack abs. Tyler admired the tattoo of a sword in the middle of his chest.
r />   “Damn, that’s cool. Who did that for you?” Tyler really didn’t care about the tattoo. He was just trying to get to know Santana a little more.

  Santana played right along. “I got it done last year in San Francisco, California. Some dude did it during Pride week. I decided to go on a vacation to Cali with this dude I was with at the time. He took me to a tattoo shop there. It took the tattoo artist all day to get it together. For the rest of the trip, it hurt like hell. Shit, for a while, it was almost too painful to touch, but it’s better now.”

  “Nice,” Tyler said, then reached over to touch Santana’s chest.

  His skin felt so smooth, and he touched his nipple, up to his shoulder, and then his washboard abs.

  Santana looked at Tyler’s hand on his stomach. “What are you doing?”

  Tyler looked into Santana’s eyes. “Don’t you see that I’m trying to seduce you? Besides dealing with the shit I’ve been through today, I also thought about you. I jacked off in the shower earlier, thinking about you.”

  Santana was shocked, but then again, he wasn’t. “Oh really?” he said, grinning and moving closer to Tyler.

  “Yeah.”

  Tyler touched Santana’s face and put his thumb on his top lip. Santana sucked on it while looking at the lining of his penis in his boxers.

  Tyler enjoyed the erotic display Santana was giving with his thumb. He didn’t even pay attention to Santana opening his boxers and reaching for his penis.

  “Mmmm,” Tyler moaned and closed his eyes.

  The one thing that Santana loved about South American cocaine was it made you freaky as well as high. He rubbed up and down on Tyler’s shaft, loving his reaction.

  Tyler opened his eyes and tried to process another man touching his dick. At that moment, he didn’t care. All he wanted was to be held by someone who could make him feel good. He went along with Santana choking his chicken.