The Mike Black Saga Volume 2

by Roy Glenn

  Bobby took the bottle from Angelo. He poured himself a drink and one for Mike. “How you wanna play this, Mike?” he asked.

  “I’m not gonna let on that I know he has her. Let him lay it out anyway he wants …” Mike was interrupted by a knock at the door.

  “Come on,” Angelo yelled.

  Jimmy opened the door and showed Diego Estabon into the room. “Get two more glasses, Jimmy,” he said as Diego walked toward him followed by another man.

  “Diego; how are you,” Angelo said as the two men embraced.

  “Very well, thank you, Angelo.” Diego turned to Mike. “Mike Black, my old friend, it has been too long. You must come to Lima someday soon and let me show you how we live.”

  Mike stood up and embraced Diego. “Like the king that you are Diego, my friend.”

  Bobby shook his head in disgust and offered a hand. “How you doing Diego?”

  “Like Mike said, like a king, Bobby,” Diego said and tightened his grip. “Like a king.”

  Once everyone had taken a seat Angelo asked, “So tell me Diego, what can I do for you today?”

  Diego paused and looked at Angelo. “For me, nothing.” Diego turned to Mike. “Today there is something that I can do for you, Black.”

  “You have my undivided attention,” Mike said trying to sound as gracious as he could.

  “I heard about that unfortunate business that went on in your club.”

  “Bad news travels fast,” Mike said and leaned forward.

  “A man in my position, I hear things, things that only men like us are in a position to do something about. This is what I have done for you, my friend. When it came to my attention that your wife was taken, I took steps to intervene on your behalf.”

  “So, what are you saying, Diego?” Angelo asked. “Are you saying that you got Shy?”

  “I was able to use my influence to assure her abductor that our business is not your business and that despite appearances to the contrary they have nothing to fear from you. They have assured me that your wife has not been harmed and she will be released.”

  “When?” was Mike’s single word question.

  “Tonight, at Penn Station.” Diego looked at his watch. “At ten o’clock, which is in thirty minutes.”

  “Bobby.”

  Bobby took out his cell phone and called Freeze to have somebody get down to Penn station as soon as possible. Mike’s eyes narrowed as he continued to stare at Diego.

  “I am sorry about the short notice, my friend.”

  “Yeah, I was just about to mention that,” Angelo interjected. “You coulda told me and he coulda had somebody there to meet her.”

  “This is true. Somebody could have met the woman and perhaps kill them in retaliation. I’m sure her abductor considered that possibility very carefully when he negotiated that point.” Diego turned to Mike. “What can be done to make this right?”

  “What about her abductor?” Mike asked knowing that he’d already killed Sal and Julio.

  “You have my word that they will be dealt with once her safe return has been established.”

  “Turn them over to me,” Mike demanded.

  “If I were to do that, would you kill them?”

  “Yes, Diego, I will kill him, and anyone I find who was involved in it.”

  “Why, when your wife is unharmed and to my knowledge has been well treated?” Diego asked.

  “He’s got a point, Mike,” Angelo had to agree.

  “Okay, Angelo,” Mike said. “I’m a reasonable man, and I want to take care of this in a reasonable manner. I’m sure that you understand my anger and my desire for revenge, but out of respect for you, Angelo,” Mike paused long enough to make his point. “I will not seek retribution in this matter of disrespect.”

  “I am very glad to hear that,” Diego said and got to his feet quickly. “Now that the matter is dispensed with, I have some business that I must attend to. Please let me know if things do not happen in the manner that we have discussed,” he said as he walked to the door then he stopped. “And please let me know if there is ever anything that I can do for you.” And with that, Diego Estabon closed the door and was gone.

  “Can you get somebody to follow him, Angee?”

  “I’m on it,” Angelo said and left the room.

  “What you gonna do now?” Bobby asked as he and Mike got up from the table.

  “I’m going to make sure that Cassandra is safe, then I’m gonna kill him and anyone I find who was involved in it.”

  “You just told Diego that you wouldn’t do that,” Bobby said and laughed.

  “Fuck Diego.”

  Chapter Thirty-six

  Shy lay across her bed and watched Law and Order on television. She’d never seen it before and was actually pretty surprised at how much she was enjoying it.

  She heard keys in the lock and got off the bed. The door opened and as usual, the same two men walked in. One threw Shy a hood. “Put that on and then hold your hands out in front of you. We’re going.”

  Shy quietly complied with their orders and her hands were quickly tied in front of her. They led her out of the room and down the stairs. On the way down, Shy prepared herself for another ride in the trunk.

  It wasn’t all that bad once you get past the idea of it, Shy thought.

  So naturally she was pleasantly surprised when she heard the words, “You’re getting in the car, so watch your head,” one of the men said as he gently pushed Shy’s head down.

  As the car drove, Shy gave some thought to where she was going and what she could expect when she got there. Suddenly the car stopped. “Hold out your hands.”

  Shy held out her hands and could feel him tugging on the rope. Next Shy felt the man reach across her and heard the door open. “Get out,” he said and gave Shy a push. She stumbled out of the car and quickly pulled off her hood in time to see a taxicab speed away and get lost in a sea of taxicabs. It didn’t matter, she was free.

  Shy looked around to see where she was, and a smile came across her face when she realized that she was standing outside Penn Station. She was home. Shy very happily began to walk down 34th street toward seventh Avenue but stopped in her tracks when she saw two cops standing on the corner. At that moment, she got very paranoid when she thought about the fact that she had a warrant.

  Slowly she came to the conclusion that she wasn’t on America’s Most Wanted list and every cop in New York wasn’t out looking for her, so she calmed down a little. Her next thought was what she was going to do. There was no way for her to know if anybody knew that she was free, much less coming to pick her up.

  Okay, you wanted to be back in New York, big girl, so what now?

  Shy knew that the first thing that she needed to do was call somebody and let them know that she was all right, but she had no money.

  Shy walked down the street looking at the people as they passed until she saw a sympathetic looking woman, sitting on some steps outside Penn station, who was talking on her cell phone. She walked over and stood near the woman, waiting patiently for the woman to get finished with her call.

  “Excuse me,” Shy said, and the woman turned to her. “I don’t mean to bother you, but can I use you cell phone, please? I’m stranded and I need to call somebody to come and get me. I promise I won’t take long.”

  The woman passed Shy the phone. “Take your time, honey.”

  Shy thanked the woman and dialed a number. “Cuisine, how may I direct your call?” the receptionist asked.

  “May I speak to Mike Black, please?”

  “Mr. Black is not in. Can somebody else help you?”

  “What about Bobby Ray?”

  “Mr. Ray is not in either.”

  “This is Cassandra Black, is Freeze or Wanda there?”

  “Mrs. Black are you all right?” the receptionist asked.

  “I’m fine.”

  “Where are you?”

  “I’m on 34th street outside the Garden.”

  “That
’s good. Stay right where you are, Freeze is on his way to get you. Hold on and I’ll find out how long he’ll be.”

  “Thank you, but please hurry, I’m on somebody’s cell phone.”

  “I won’t be long, I promise,” the receptionist said and put Shy on hold.

  “No need to rush. Take your time, honey. I know how niggas get when you don’t give them what they want. I saw them push you out that cab. Niggas ain’t shit,” the woman continued as Shy held on.

  When the receptionist came back on the line, she told Shy that Freeze was on the Westside highway and should be there in ten minutes. Shy thanked her and handed the woman back her phone.

  “Thanks for letting me use your phone. My ride should be here in ten minutes.”

  “No problem, honey. Like I said, I know how niggas get when you don’t give them what they want. They buy you a drink or take you to dinner and they think that’s supposed to make us throw our legs open. I think not!”

  “Tell me about it.” Shy smiled and sat down next to the woman.

  It wasn’t long before Shy heard her name called and she saw Freeze waving to her from his truck. Shy thanked the woman for waiting with her and walked toward the truck, knowing that she was safe now.

  Chapter Thirty-seven

  Mike opened the door for Shy, she practically fell out of the truck and into his arms. As tears rolled down her cheeks, he kissed her. “Are you all right?” Mike asked with his lips still close to hers.

  “I’m fine now.” Shy kissed his lips again. “I thought I’d never see you again.”

  “Did they hurt you?”

  “No, they didn’t hurt me. They kept me blindfolded and tied to a bed for a while. Then they moved me to a room with a TV and a shower.”

  Mike looked at his watch. “You have any idea where they were holding you?”

  “No. Like I said I was blindfolded the whole time,” Shy told him.

  “Hello Shy. I’m glad you’re okay,” Bobby said.

  Mike turned around. “Bobby,” he yelled. “Go straight home.”

  “Yes, daddy,” Bobby said as he walked away laughing.

  Mike hailed a cab. “Marriott on Ditmars Boulevard,” Mike told the driver.

  “By LaGuardia?” the driver asked.

  “Yeah,” Mike said and avoided making eye contact with Shy. There was a part of him that wanted Shy on the first plane out of New York in the morning.

  “Marriott, huh? By the airport, huh?” Shy said and moved closer to Mike in the cab.

  “Yeah, it’s a nice place and it’s close by,” he said and put his arm around her. But then there was a part of him that never wanted her out of his sight. He wanted Shy to be happy and if she would be happy in New York then he would have to make it happen.

  “You’re sending me back, aren’t you?” Shy asked with her head on his chest.

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Mike said, feeling the warmth of her body against his. “You be real nice to me at the Marriott and I might let you stay a few days.”

  “Hmm,” Shy purred. “That sounds so good, baby. I promise to be really, really extra nice to you, ’cause I don’t wanna go back,” she said knowing that Mike didn’t want to hear that. But she was home now, and she wanted to stay.

  “I know,” Mike said and kissed her on the forehead. “But let’s not talk about that now. Right now, I’m just happy you’re all right. And that you’re here with me.”

  They made love as soon as they got to the hotel, and then drifted off to sleep. Mike didn’t stay in bed long, he spent most of the night at the window, thinking. Having Shy back was only part of it. He still had Diego and the DEA to deal with.

  He turned her lose for a reason.

  Mike thought as he tried to figure out Diego’s next move. Mike got back in the bed and Shy immediately moved closer to him. He put his arm around her. When Mike woke up it was a little after noon, Shy was already up and dressed.

  “Hi,” Shy said, flipping channels on the edge of the bed.

  “How you doing?”

  “I’m fine. Glad you finally got some sleep.”

  “How do you know I hadn’t slept?”

  “I can always tell when you’re not in the bed with me.”

  “How?”

  “I just can,” Shy smiled and turned off the TV. “Are you taking me back today?”

  “No. You can stay for a while. At least until we work out everything that’s been going on while you’ve been laying around at cheap hotels watching TV.”

  “What’s been going on?” Shy asked.

  Mike took his time and broke it all down for her. From Nick in South America, to her being kidnapped, to Senator Marshall to Diego and those papers. When he was done, Shy said, “Wow. I know that you have a lot to do, so what’s on your agenda for today?”

  Mike sat up in the bed. “Shopping.”

  “But you hate to shop.”

  Once Mike was ready, they went downstairs and caught a cab to Macy’s on 34th street. Along the way, Mike explained that they were going to see Angelo, but he wanted to stop a few times, just in case someone was following.

  “By the way,” Shy said. “How long was I gone?”

  “Four days.”

  “Four days. Oh yes, I really do need something else to wear.”

  Since Shy knew how much Mike hated shopping, and because they had things to do, she agreed to get one outfit and come back for more clothes some other time. When they got to Macy’s, Mike grabbed a pair of black pants and a shirt. Shy bought a Calvin Klein stripe blazer and cropped pant and a pair of Kimel Efik slide shoes and they were out of there. On the way out Shy took her old clothes and threw them in the garbage.

  “I’ve had those clothes on for four days. I don’t ever want to see them again. I don’t need anything to remind me of that experience.” Mike kept his old clothes.

  After leaving Macy’s, Mike and Shy caught another cab to Harlem. Along the way, Shy looked out the window enjoying the ride through the city, and thinking about turning herself in and serving her time if necessary. Now that she was finally back in New York, she found it was a lot easier to sit in her island paradise and talk about going to jail. Being in the city was forcing her to realize that she didn’t want to do time at all.

  When they got to 125th street and Malcolm X, they exited the cab and lost themselves in a sea of people. They didn’t buy anything; Mike thought that if anyone were following them that they would be easier to spot. Half an hour later, they were back in a cab and heading uptown through the Bronx on their way to Yonkers.

  It was late afternoon when they got to Angelo’s place, and to Mike’s surprise, Angelo was sitting outside. “Angelo hates the sun.” Mike got out of the cab and extended his hand for Shy.

  Angelo stood up. “Mr. and Mrs. Black, this is definitely my lucky day. Jimmy, was I just saying I feel lucky?”

  “Yeah, you was just saying,” Jimmy agreed.

  “Shy,” Angelo said and hugged her. “It’s good to see you’re all right. They didn’t hurt you or nothing?”

  “No, Angelo, I’m fine. And thank you for helping out. I really do appreciate it.”

  “Forget about it. Anything you need, ever, I’m here for you, the both of you. Now, have a sit down, and let’s enjoy this beautiful hot-ass day.”

  “What’s up with that anyway? You hate being out in the sun,” Mike said.

  “I thought, you know, I could sit out here, maybe I could work on my tan or whatever. But the truth is Mikey, you got your problems, I got mine. Better we talk out here; if you know what I mean?”

  “I may have those same kind of problems, but I’m sure we’ll talk more about that at another time,” Mike said.

  “To be sure. You still a Yankee fan?” Angelo asked.

  “’Til they bury me.”

  “Let’s go to a game while you’re here.”

  “A night game.”

  “Of course. Hey, we could sit out in the bleachers like we used to when we was coming up
,” Angelo said and turned to Shy. “Me and this guy, we used to go to the stadium, drink all the beer we wanted, get drunk, watch a ball game. Those were good times, huh Mikey?”

  “Life was good then, Angee. Look at us now, both of us businessmen with problems.”

  “Nothing we can’t handle.”

  “That’s why I came to see you.” Mike leaned close to Angelo and spoke softly. “What can you tell me about this five mill that Diego is here for?”

  Angelo looked at Mike for a second and then he smiled. “That’s why I love you, Mikey,” he said and then said softly. “You know Diego owns a pharmaceutical company; Frontier pharmaceutical is what it’s called? But in addition to their legit business, they also manufacture all kinds of other drugs. You know like Valium, Viagra, Prozac, Paxil, Xanax, shit like that. Well the way I get it is that he’s got a deal with some people from one of the old soviet republics, Lithuania or someplace like that. Anyway the deal gets done in a couple of days. Now, let me ask you something?”

  “What’s that?”

  “Why you wanna know?”

  “I think five million dollars will make this right.”

  “You gotta love this guy, but it ain’t gonna happen. What, you think you was gonna walk in there, take their money and walk out with it?”

  “Something like that,” Mike said confidently. “Unless you got some reason why I can’t.”

  “It ain’t gonna happen ’cause there’s no money to walk out with. The five million gets transferred from one account to the other. It’s all done with computers, gives it an air of being a legit transaction.”

  Mike sat back and thought for a second. “How’s Gomez? He still live in the same place?”

  Chapter Thirty-eight

  It was a little after seven when Nick parked his car on 74th street and walked up to Amsterdam. When he got to Citrus, Nick noticed that there was a limo parked out in front and a man that he thought he recognized was getting in the back seat. Nick remembered the place from the old days. The last time he and Mike were there, they threw somebody out the restaurants front glass window.