by Kiki Leach
"This shit is liable to get you fucked if it goes south; that's what it's about."
"Me, you, your old man -- all of us, motherfucker, just like I keep saying. Finding somebody outside of this chick can't be hard when these bitches have been lining up for your ass since you were a fuckin' kid. I remember clear as day seeing 'em come over while me and your old man were downstairs working on shit for the casinos; you'd take 'em up to your bedroom and wouldn't come down for hours at a fuckin' time -- almost every goddamn night some new pussy was rolling up there like she was making her way to free steak night at the goddamn Sizzler."
"I wasn't having sex with any of 'em," he muttered. "Some of 'em just liked to talk."
"Christ with this continued bullshit -- and you're one they chose to talk to like this one? About what?"
"Random shit; whatever the fuck they felt like getting off their chest at the time."
"And was this shit before or after you felt 'em all up or they sucked you off or both?"
"That's not the goddamn point."
"No. The goddamn point is that this one shouldn't be any different than the rest no matter how pretty of a fuckin' picture you're trying to paint with all these goddamn feelings you think you're starting to develop. You wanna stay married cause the pussy is fresh and tight and good enough for your cock, but not for anything else we've got going on. Get it through your thick ass, fuckin' skull before it all goes to shit thanks to a pile of unnecessary hiccups brought upon by your own bullshit. Stop trying to make her one of 'em."
"Use her fuckin' name, asshole."
"I did, motherfucker. But frankly, I don't need to do it again 'til after we get what the fuck we need from her, just like you shouldn't." He moved behind his desk without another word and dropped down to his chair; he reached inside the front pocket of his jacket for his cell, yanked it out and began dialing a few numbers.
Nikko stepped in front of him with plans to rebuttal, but was stopped as soon as the door reopened and Chino stepped inside.
"About fuckin' time." Benny threw his cell on top of the desk as if it were no more than a piece of rubber and stood back up as Nikko eyed his old man with mild disgust. "I was just dialing up your ass -- Where the fuck have you been?"
Chino gradually closed the door and dragged his hand across his mouth. "Handling some shit with a motherfucker down at Rikers. Business and whatnot."
"What the fuck kinda business shit are you talking about? With who--?" asked Benny, moving back around to the front of his desk, arms open as he stared. "And what the fuck without me being there to back your ass up or shut you down for over speaking on shit you shouldn't even be saying? Isn't that what the fuck I'm being paid for?"
"You're being paid 'cause nobody else is willing to sit on this case without a goddamn knife up his ass at the moment; and I never said shit to anybody who didn't need to know anything first, alright?"
"What the fuck were you doing down there, old man?" asked Nikko.
Chino turned to his son and frowned. "Having a conversation with Cheyenne's old man."
"What?" His brows pinched as he snarled. "What the fuck were you out there talking to Rox about?!"
"The Gambiano's, who also just so happened to call me up right before he did."
"Christ." Benny shook his head. "What the fuck could Rox tell you about those two assholes that's not already been known by the rest of us?"
"That they want him taken out," he started, "and for Nikko to be the one to do it."
"You're fuckin' serious?!"
"As a goddamn heart giving out on The Strip mid-fuck."
Nikko swallowed hard as a flood of irrational emotions scattered through his chest like a swarm of killer bees. "Why the fuck are they looking for me to take him out?"
"Beyond your need to otherwise prove you won't backtrack on what they're owed? Cheyenne's old man snitched on a business deal that went bad between 'em years back involving bones in the river; word's spreading on 'em thanks to his running off at the mouth while inside. Gambiano's called me up after learning about it from the asshole Rox snitched to; Rox hit me up right after to see if I could somehow stop the shit from going down by playing mediator."
"Shit."
"Mediator with the motherfuckin' Gambiano's?!" said Benny. "Bull. Fuckin'. Shit." He brought his hands to his waist and exhaled. "Idiot's lucky they didn't have him blown the fuck away as soon as they found out he flapped his gums like a bitch!"
"That was the only thing I was able to keep 'em from doing."
Nikko whipped his head back around to his old man. "Your bullshit is the reason I'm being forced to take him out?!"
"Your bullshit is why your ass got locked up in the first goddamn place," Chino returned, "and what you did with those guards is why the fuck it took so long for 'em to finally get it out -- don't you forget that shit. We've got no goddamn choice but to play into what they're asking for beyond the money!"
"You're an asshole for this shit."
"I'm a motherfuckin' negotiator. You are the asshole in a pile of shit that could've been avoided had you kept your own in check."
"You knew what the fuck I was gonna do the minute you told me what the fuck happened to Rebecca and why," he snapped. "And you knew what would come in me having to save my own ass while inside. Don't keep tryna lay this shit at my goddamn feet as if I had no motherfuckin' reason for any of it going down in the way it has, alright?!"
"You didn't need to take a single motherfuckin' thing as far as you did with her old man, Nik, and sure as fuck not even further with the rest while inside."
"I'd be DEAD NOW, ASSHOLE!" he roared. "Unless it's what the fuck you wanted?!"
"Don't be an idiot," Chino shot back. "You fucked up, and now we're all paying the goddamn price for it--"
"No, motherfucker, you fucked up. We are the ones paying the goddamn price for that shit."
"Regardless of whatever the fuck," said Benny, "I'm sure the goddamn PD is hot as fuck on the Gambiano's asses now, correct? So who the fuck did that stupid son of a bitch run his mouth off to?"
Chino adjusted his jacket and rattled his head. "Elias."
"WHAT?!"
"Fuckin' Christ." Nikko swiped a hand across his forehead as a blaze of fire shot through the back of his throat. "Did that son of a bitch know about the attempted hit put on my ass?"
"He's still claiming he didn't."
"BULLSHIT!" spat Benny. "No other reason that asshole would tell Elias of all goddamn people about whatever deal he made that went wrong with the motherfuckin' Gambiano's?! No fuckin' doubt he trusted him after learning what the fuck he'd planned to do to your kid." He looked to Nikko and wagged his finger. "This is why your cock going anywhere near his daughter's pussy was a bad motherfuckin' idea."
"How the fuck was I supposed to know her old man would be a goddamn snitch to the same asshole looking to take me out?!"
"I told you he would start singing about shit the first chance he got like a goddamn canary," said Chino. "You didn't fuckin' listen."
Benny sneered. "With you gone, he was gonna do anything he fuckin' could to save his own ass."
"Snitching on some years old deal gone bad with the motherfuckin' Gambiano's to an asshole like Elias, that wouldn't care if he stopped breathing tonight as a result of it ain't really within the realm of saving shit for himself or anybody else," said Nikko. "If Rox snitched, it was for another goddamn reason."
"Which would be what?!" questioned Benny.
"I don't fuckin' know just yet."
"That shit is obvious," replied Chino, eyeing him with a fury as he stepped forward.
Nikko grimaced. "What the fuck is your deal with this shit, old man?"
"Too goddamn much, but not enough of what I fuckin' know, which is that whatever the fuck is behind his snitching will end with you and Cheyenne, just like I fuckin' knew it would." He paused. "He said you two linking up would lead to bad shit for Snake that was liable to trickle back down to him, and that's exactly what see
ms to be happening as we fuckin' speak."
"You don't know shit."
Chino stared up into his son's face and lifted the corner of his mouth into a smirk. "What the fuck is currently going on between you and Cheyenne?"
"Nothing you need to know outside of this goddamn wedding and what needs to come after--"
"They're fuckin'," blurted Benny. Nikko shut his eyes and swallowed hard. Chino frowned at Benny as he continued. "Your boy over here is well on the way to catching something from this chick that he might not be able to throw back into the water or get rid of with a quick trip to the goddamn ER. That cock of his has got him thinking all kinds of insane shit while that brain is on pussy malfunction."
"Insane shit like what?"
"Keep your goddamn mouth shut on this shit, Benny," said Nikko.
"Not in the motherfuckin' least when your growing obsession with her pussy could get us all fucked. Like I said before, I'm not fuckin' around with this shit -- nobody else should either." Benny turned to Chino and jutted his chin. "Your numbskull kid is thinking of keeping her on as a wife once the shit settles."
Chino's eyes nearly bugged from his head as he turned back to his son. "What the fuck is he talking about?"
"He doesn't fuckin' know!"
"Then YOU start talking about it!"
Nikko stepped back before tossing a hand between them and glanced at the door. "You gonna keep letting this motherfucker run his mouth before I can?" He looked to a smiling Benny and pointed. "Step out before your ass gets tossed."
"And where the fuck am I going?"
"Give us some time on this shit in private," said Chino, nodding toward the door.
"Where the fuck am I going, Chino?"
"Go find an assistant to fuck on top of her desk or get some coffee -- I don't fuckin' care, just go, asshole."
Benny sighed heavily before turning on his heel and stepping out of the room.
Once the door shut, Chino folded his arms and glared at his son.
"What the fuck is he talking about with you and Cheyenne?" he questioned. "Wanting the ink to remain dry on that goddamn license once you get paid?" Nikko lowered his eyes like a dog full of guilt after having pissed along the edge of his owner's favorite rug. "I told you what would be coming of this shit, knowing full well what the fuck you were looking to get from her beyond what was needed, and you blew it off. That was just fuckin' yesterday. Now you've finally gotten a taste, and what? You're fucked in knowing I was right?"
"No--"
"Then what the fuck is it, asshole?! Tell me she's on the same page as you in wanting to stay married once the Renegades get their due, and I'll back whatever the fuck it is."
"I can't do that shit."
"Why the fuck not?" he snapped. "Unless she's not or you don't fuckin' know."
"I don't fuckin' know."
"Jesus." Chino shut his eyes in annoyance with his son, and wagged his head. "All this shit you're wanting is coming from your own goddamn head and not hers. Is that it?!"
"I don't think there's a chance that she wouldn't want the same at some point--"
"But you don't fuckin' know that, just as you said, which is the goddamn point right now and problem." His attention shifted to a clock on the wall; his brows came together as he peered. "How long had you been waiting for me to show up?"
Nikko shrugged. "Too fuckin' long."
"Were you with her before getting here?"
"Where the fuck else would I have been?"
"And you fucked her again before heading out?"
Nikko dragged a hand beneath his chin and shuffled across the room. "I'm not getting into this shit with your ass anymore than I wanted to get into it with Benny."
"You need to get the fuck into something with somebody else that ain't her, Nik." Chino lifted his hands to crack his knuckles before turning on the ball of his foot to stare at the back of his son's head. "Rox snitching to Elias about whatever the fuck went down with the Gambiano's wasn't the only reason I went to see him, and it's not the only reason they want him dead."
"What the fuck else?"
"Son of a bitch thinks there's a chance the Gambiano's will back off if he gives 'em something to work with against another motherfucker they know."
"Who the fuck else are they wanting something on?"
"I'm still working on finding that out. But the other reason they want him dead is 'cause he still owes 'em for the cash they handed over to help him pay back the Renegades."
Nikko whirled back around to his old man as his mouth dropped. "You're fuckin' serious?" Chino nodded. "Despite him snitching?"
"They didn't learn of that shit 'til after, Nik -- you think they would've given him the money in knowing he can't hold fuckin' water? He went to them before anybody else and they've yet to be repaid for it."
"Jesus. Christ. Where the fuck is the money?"
"That's the problem, 'cause Rox is claiming he handed it over to the Snake, who's saying he never got a dime; that shit is why Rox called Cheyenne back down here to help him out in the first place."
"Why the fuck would Elias snitch to the Gambiano's about what Rox told him? What the fuck was he hoping to get out of it?"
"You dead, which is what he's still looking forward to, in knowing that the Gambiano's want you terminating Rox. He's still got no goddamn clue about 'em helping to get you out and is certain Cheyenne will go to Snake to have you put down like a goddamn dog as a result of taking out her old man. 'Cause it's one thing if their club followed through on that shit for themselves; entirely different when a hit comes from the outside."
"My outside," muttered Nikko. "Shit." He wiped a hand across his mouth and looked to the window behind Benny's desk. "You realize this shit will lead to exactly that."
"It would've had I not told Snake what was going down and why the shit was needed without interference. He won't follow through."
"How the fuck do you know that shit for sure?"
"Because touching you means bad news for his club; the Gambiano's would make sure he got fucked."
Nikko rolled his eyes as a beat passed; he grinded his heel into carpet. "Cheyenne won't have a goddamn thing to do with me if her old man winds up dead at my hand; it'll be the end of every fuckin' thing we've started since before I got out."
Chino massaged his temples and huffed. "Pussy Whipped is a goddamn understatement with you at this point."
"Fuck off, old man--"
"I won't. 'Cause I need you to stop treating this chick as if she's beyond a pair of high tits and tight pussy you're only being hooked up to like a goddamn IV 'til this shit is done. Everything after doesn't matter right now -- especially if she's not even fuckin' aware that you're wanting to stay married beyond being paid. Wherever the fuck your head is today -- wherever the fuck you plan on moving your cock once you leave this building? Eradicate the fuck out of it by the time I'm carted outta here in cuffs."
Nikko brought his attention back to the window and swallowed hard. "What the fuck am I supposed to tell her about this shit?"
"The goddamn truth to keep her from losing it later and getting us fucked. Let her know the Gambiano's want her old man dead for lying and stealing from 'em and you're the one being asked to do it. Tell her she was brought down here under false motherfuckin' pretenses and forced to help him out over bullshit 'cause that stupid asshole can't keep his money straight or his mouth closed."
"What the fuck are you expecting her reaction to be outsida tryna stick her entire foot up my ass as a result?"
"One of gratitude that it's her old man they're looking to take out for being a piece of shit and not her to force a motherfuckin' heart attack outta him first. Tell her Snake already knows this shit and he can't touch you at their demand without risking threat to his club."
Nikko rattled his head. "You think Rox stole that money and has it stashed someplace else if Snake saying he didn't isn't bullshit?"
"I think he's got it; where the fuck it might be stashed is another fuc
kin' story."
They eyed one another in silence until Benny reopened the door and stuck his head inside.
Eyes wide, he dragged them left to right and coughed. "Never found what the fuck I was looking for in pussy or coffee but we need to get this shit started and wrapped up before my next meeting."
"Yeah, you should." Nikko tipped his head to him before moving toward the door. "You and the old man can handle this shit while I head out to tell Chey what's going on with Rox."
"Chey?" Benny snickered. "You're giving her nicknames now?"
"I didn't give her shit, motherfucker, the name is hers." Nikko stopped just inches from his face and stared; his eyes widened as the light behind them dimmed. "I've heard all the shit you've had to say since rolling in here, and don't need anymore of it flying out behind me before I go."
"We've still gotta deal with what the Gambiano's are gonna be paid," said Chino. "Along with some other shit."
"Probably best you just send that boy on his way," muttered Benny. "Let him go take care of his business at home so that... maybe if the shit goes south like he's so goddamn certain it might, he still has valid pussy for his overzealous cock to sleep inside before it does." He carefully crossed his arms and flashed a brief snake oil smile. "We can tell him what's up after."
Nikko swallowed back the urge to look at him again; swallowed back the urge to throw both fists into his face, and stormed from the office.
Too much had become valuable to him by this point; too goddamn much had started to mean more than initially planned.
None of what he wanted or needed sat behind the walls of that office and he knew it.
Nothing he desired ever would.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Reality Checked and Balanced
The harsh, throttling sound of an old car backfiring before speeding down the street as if its wheels were on fire sent me racing to the front door and peeking out the window in a panic. After pulling back the curtain, I noticed Nikko pacing across the sidewalk, watching his own feet as they moved between the cracks of each square and anxiously combing his fingers through his hair as if the curls were liable to get tangled unless he personally tugged at each one. His eyes were dark and pinned, focused with the whites flushed redder than a beet; his skin appeared somewhat pale in comparison to his natural olive tone; his clothes were disheveled as if he had been pulling at them for hours until they no longer fit as properly as they had before he left me in bed this morning.
