Childhood Sweethearts PT 5

by Jacob Spears

  Damn! Spencer thought as he watched China drown Ham.

  After two minutes with the hose down his throat, Ham’s wiggling came to a halt.

  “He looks dead to me. Tic, get rid of him,” Spencer said as Tic began chopping Ham up with an ax.

  Spencer and China left the apartment together, satisfied with how things turned out. As they were pulling out of the complex, Spencer’s curiosity got the best of him, and China just knew that he would ask.

  “Where did you learn to waterboard?”

  China looked over at him and smiled. “YouTube. Now let’s find us a room. I want to rest before the sun comes up,” she said.

  * * *

  Smooth awoke out of his sleep when the cell door rolled back. It was after 8:00 a.m., the second roll out for the day. He did his routine hygiene and then dug into his locker for something to eat. As he reached for a honey bun, he heard a click from his cell speaker.

  “Inmate Johnson, you have a visit at booth 24.”

  Smooth’s stomach quickly formed butterflies. He knew that it couldn’t be anyone but China. He was excited, yet he was still undecided whether to tell her of his status or not. Smooth walked out of the dorm to the visitation room. There weren’t many visitors since it was so early in the morning.

  When Smooth got to booth 24, he saw China smiling bright and looking real good.

  Damn! She’s beautiful, Smooth thought as he sat down and picked up the phone. “What’s up, baby?”

  “A lot is up, Smooth. I just hope that you can be a man and keep it real. Because when I leave here with the wrong answer, consider me out of your life forever, Smooth!” she said as she stared at him and noticed the stitches on his lips. “And it looks like someone beat your ass, nigga!”

  “Yeah!” Smooth said and then sighed. “Listen, China. I kept it real with you about Amanda.”

  “Nigga, I’m not talking about no Amanda. I’m talking about this!” China said as she held up the letter that he had written to Jane.

  Shit! Smooth thought, realizing at the same time that China killed Jane.

  He had heard what the media was saying about Jane by Sue Rabbit, and he had no doubt in his mind that China knew as well.

  I gotta keep it real; there’s no way out! Smooth thought as tears cascaded down his face.

  “China, I fucked up bad. She came on to me, and I fell for the bait instead of standing strong on my love for you.”

  “Did you use protection?” China asked.

  Smooth swayed his head, and instantly China broke down.

  “Smooth, you could have killed me! How could you do this?” China shrilled.

  “China, you’re okay. I seriously doubt that you’re infected with anything.”

  “And what about you, Smooth, huh? Could you say the same? Look at you. You’ve lost a tremendous amount of weight.”

  “That’s because I have HIV, China. I’m sorry. I know I fucked up, but please don’t come up here making my life any more miserable than it already is. Woman, there’s nothing I could possibly say that’ll take back the hurt I’ve caused us both.”

  He’s pouring his heart out. He’s hurt, China realized as the tears cascaded down her face.

  “China, you have a chance to live your life. I’ve killed myself trying to cheat life!”

  “Don’t feel like that, Smooth. We could have been friends,” China said, not believing what she was saying.

  At that moment, she realized just how much she loved him in spite of his cheating and the revelation of his new status.

  “I love you, China. But I will never see them streets again, and I will never harm you,” he said.

  “That problem you had is gone, Smooth. It’s handled. You’re coming home.”

  “No, China. The DEA from Miami paid a visit yesterday, and I’m charged with Juan’s and Tracy’s murders.”

  “But you didn’t do it,” China said.

  “We know this,” Smooth replied, “but the other charges, they have an unknown CI. Someone in Miami is talking.”

  “Smooth, why didn’t you just let the game go? None of this shit would be happening,” China said.

  “I’m sorry, China. I fucked up!”

  “I got to give it to you. At least you didn’t try to justify this letter. You know we can’t be together, Smooth, but I’m not just gonna leave you out to dry. If you have to do some time, I’ll sell your house and send you the money. But as of now, I just want to distance myself from you, Smooth. I’m seeing someone else, and I want to focus on what we’re developing.”

  Smooth couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Someone had stolen his childhood sweetheart, and he couldn’t even be mad. When Smooth spoke, he spoke genuinely from the heart. “I love you, China. What makes you happy makes me happy.”

  “I love you too, Smooth,” China said as she hung up the phone and left the visiting room, with no intentions of ever returning.

  Smooth sat at the booth and felt relieved from all the stress and pressure that he was going through. He now just had to get used to being alone, and honest if he ever encountered another woman.

  I wonder who the lucky individual is? Whoever he is, he’s a lucky person, Smooth thought.

  24

  One Week Later

  CHINA AND SPENCER were having the time of their lives with each other. Spencer had practically moved in with China and Zorro, being that he was home with her every night. China had opened up to Spencer about everything the night they had returned from Miami. It was evident that the visit wasn’t an ordinary one, from her muteness on the drive back. When they arrived in Miami at China’s place, Spencer offered her his support through whatever mental dysfunction she was going through. The bombshell she dropped on him was not what he had expected to hear. Spencer realized immediately after listening to China that he was the new lucky man. He had promised China that he would do his best to keep her happy, and that’s all China needed to hear.

  Every morning she expected to receive a call from Smooth because she still loved him for being honest about his status. When she had mustered the might to tell Roxy, Roxy cried. Roxy and Smooth were close, and it hurt her to hear that Smooth was HIV positive. But for the most part, she was glad to hear that China wasn’t infected and that she had found a new love—a love that surprised her, since Spencer was a white man.

  As China emerged from the Jacuzzi, relaxing with a bottle of Dom Pérignon, she heard her phone ring. Her first thought was that it was Spencer calling to inform her that he was on his way. It was 8:00 p.m., and she had been relaxing in the Jacuzzi for two hours now. When China picked up her phone and checked the caller ID, she saw that it was Sue Rabbit.

  “What’s up, bro?” China answered.

  “Please tell me that you haven’t put your guns on the shelf,” Sue Rabbit said.

  China looked at her nightstand and saw her two Glock .40s sitting side by side.

  “Why would I do that? What’s up?” China asked, wrapping herself in a towel and then sitting on the edge of the bed.

  “I got a call from Mac, and he tells me that our boy Mario and his men just stepped through the door at Club Rage. Daddy Yanky is in town, and Pitbull is expected to show up as a surprise guest,” Sue Rabbit explained.

  The news was music to China’s ears, and her blood was already pumping. She couldn’t miss the opportunity to kill her biggest enemy.

  “Where are you?” China asked Sue Rabbit.

  “I’m on my way to you now.”

  “Go to the club and wait until I get there,” China said.

  “Okay.”

  With trembling hands, China called Spencer’s phone and got him on the second ring.

  “What’s up, beautiful?” Spencer answered.

  “Baby, where are you?” China asked, with extreme excitement in her voice.

  “What’s the matter?”

  “Club Rage. Mario is there with his men!”

  “So what are your plans, baby?” Spencer asked.

&nb
sp; “What do you mean, Spencer? Where are you?”

  “I’m on my way to you. Am I making a blank trip?”

  “No, come and hurry. We need to get over to the club,” China said and then hung up.

  She then called Sue Rabbit back again.

  “Hello,” Sue Rabbit answered.

  “How much are the tickets?”

  “We’re already taken care of. When you pull up, come to the back and call me,” Sue informed her.

  “Okay, bro. See you soon,” China said before she hung up the phone.

  “It’s going to be a cold day in hell before I miss this muthafucka!” China said as she got dressed in suitable attire for the task that lay ahead of her.

  * * *

  Mario and Javier were enjoying themselves in the VIP room with all the pretty Latinas. The club was packed with M-13s who were happy to see Mario out having a good time with them. Since Juan’s death, the M-13s had only seen Mario a couple times, and he was always in a hurry to return to his low-key spot. Daddy Yanky was his favorite Latino rapper, and he couldn’t miss his performance for nothing in the world.

  “Esé! Do you want another bottle? I’m going for one!” Javier told Mario, who was dancing with a gorgeous but barely-legal five foot two Mexican chica.

  “Yeah, esé! I think I’ma book us a private VIP room with this bonita!” Mario shouted over the loud music in the club.

  “This is top notch, homie. If we want privacy, we will take mama and her friend to a motel,” Javier shouted to Mario in Spanish.

  The Mexican woman smiled at Javier and blew him a kiss.

  “Me and my girl would love to join you two after the club!” she said to Javier and Mario. “The only problem is I ride solo, so it’ll only be us three, and me phat pussy,” the Mexican chica said as she snatched the bottle of champagne from Mario’s hand and killed what was left in it. “We need another bottle,” she said as she handed it to Javier.

  Javier smiled at the Mexican woman and then strutted off past Marco and Miguel, who were having a splendid time with some chicas on the dance floor.

  Damn, I have to piss! Javier said to himself as he moved through the crowd.

  Javier quickly weighed his options: the bar or restroom. He chose the restroom. When he walked past a garbage can, he dumped the empty bottles of champagne and walked down the hallway to the restrooms, where a couple of his brothers were inside snorting cocaine and smoking pot. Javier never saw the threat on his trail. The only person who did spot the threat was Marco, who expected it to show up. Marco wasn’t naive; no Latino concert stopped an American from attending.

  * * *

  China watched from the camera room as Spencer followed Javier to the restroom at a safe distance. At the same time, China kept a close eye on Mario, who looked like a completely different man than the one in his mug shot. When China looked at the floor camera, she saw a familiar-looking Mexican man looking down the hallway of the restroom.

  “Mac, can you zoom in on this guy?” China asked him.

  Mac tapped the keyboard twice, which controlled the monitor, and immediately had a close-up view of her. Flashes of the driver when she was attacked appeared in her head.

  “It’s him!” she said. “And he sees Spencer. He knows Spencer’s the man who he was in a shootout with,” China said as she racked her Uzi .22 and pulled down her ski mask.

  China was in the same hallway as Spencer. When she looked at the monitor, Javier had entered the restroom, while Spencer was about ten feet away with Marco creeping up on him with a knife in his hand.

  With amazing speed, China stepped out into the hallway and aimed at Spencer’s chest. “Duck!” she shouted.

  When Spencer ducked, China pulled the trigger to her Uzi and hit Marco head-on in his torso with a storm of bullets. The shots rang out loud. And though they were in a club surrounded by M-13s, they had the advantage of having weapons. Everyone else had been checked for weapons before entering the club.

  When Spencer turned around, Marco was still breathing. The music on the dance floor had drowned out the sounds of the gunshots, and the people in the restroom mistook the shots as an imitation of gunshots on a track.

  “Fucker! Tried to sneak up on me, huh?” Spencer shouted as he pulled out his two Glock .50s and stood over Marco.

  Spencer instantly recognized Marco and pumped two shots into his face as China ran up to him.

  “Baby, the restroom. Let’s go!” she said as she pulled Spencer away from a dead Marco.

  Together, the duo ran into the restroom and startled everyone. China let her Uzi bark while Spencer let both Glocks get to work. There were twelve Mexican men, and the duo took down the whole dozen. However, Javier was not in the count.

  China and Spencer looked at each other and then over at the stalls. China backed up to the door and then squatted while aiming underneath the stalls. She saw no feet. Spencer kicked in each door while China aimed, ready to hit their target. When the duo got to the last stall, Spencer kicked the door in and felt a sharp object catch him in his neck. China squeezed the trigger and shot Javier with a storm of bullets, causing his body to sit on the toilet. Behind him was a splattered wall of blood. China looked at Spencer and almost fainted when she saw his blood-covered hands. She looked back at Javier and hit him twice more in the head. Javier was a perfect darter and had won a good shot at Spencer.

  “Baby, we got to get you out of here!” China said to Spencer, who couldn’t talk.

  The knife landed perfectly through his larynx. When Spencer took two steps, he collapsed to his knees while staring up at China, who immediately began to cry.

  “Go!” Spencer managed to let out.

  China pulled out her iPhone and called Sue Rabbit.

  “Yo!”

  “Spencer’s down. Let’s do this shit and go!” China ordered as she watched Spencer fall to the ground before she could catch him. “No, baby. Please don’t do this!” China cried as she heard the club go into frantic mode at the sound of the gunshots.

  China saw that Spencer’s eyes were wide open. She knew that he was dead and that there was no need to check for assurance.

  “I love your crazy ass!” China yelled before she ran out of the restroom toward the VIP room where Sue Rabbit and Tic had Mario cornered.

  “We finally meet, huh?” China shouted at Mario, who looked fearless and prepared to die.

  Tic and Sue Rabbit never saw Miguel, who had crept back inside the club with his MAC-10. Their only focus was to kill Mario and make their exit out the back door, the same way they had entered.

  “Bitch! Do you think you put fear in Mario?” Mario said to China as he boldly began walking toward her like a fearless man.

  He didn’t make it past Sue Rabbit, who cracked Mario in his face with the butt of his AK-47, knocking him to the ground.

  China walked up and stood over him with her Uzi. She lifted up her ski mask to let Mario see her face. “Remember me in hell!” she shouted as she squeezed the trigger, filling Mario’s body with a storm of bullets.

  When Sue Rabbit looked out onto the dance floor, he spotted Miguel at the bar, aiming at China. Before Sue could raise his gun, Miguel squeezed off, rapidly hitting China multiple times.

  “Nooooo!” Sue Rabbit screamed as he squeezed the trigger of his AK-47 and hit Miguel in his face, sending a spray of blood everywhere, along with his body flying backward behind the bar.

  “Shit!” Sue Rabbit exclaimed as he made a dash toward China.

  He was happy to see her eyes still open and that she was still breathing.

  “Tic, help me get her out of here! Get her gun and cover me!” Sue Rabbit ordered Tic, who did as he was told.

  Tic wanted to get out alive just as much as Sue Rabbit did, so he decided to follow the prudent man in the crazy situation. Sue picked China up into his arms and carried her down the hall toward the back door while Tic watched their backs.

  “It’s burning, Sue.”

  “Don’t talk, China. Pl
ease let me get you out of here. You’ll be okay. Let me talk, not you!” Sue Rabbit told her as he carried her out the back door with the help of Mac, who had come out of the camera room with the keys to unlock the back door.

  “Tic, drive us to the hospital. No red lights. Go ninety miles per hour, man. She’s losing too much blood,” Sue Rabbit shouted as he climbed into the backseat of his Range Rover with China. “Be a good, strong girl and hold on for me, China!” he said to her.

  China smiled at his words of encouragement.

  She was in too much pain to speak what was on her mind.

  Tic had the pedal to the metal, nonchalantly running through red lights like Sue Rabbit had instructed him.

  “It’s so cold, Sue. Cut off the AC,” China said in pain as she felt her body get extremely cold.

  Sue Rabbit looked at the AC and saw that it was off. “Damn it, China! Stop talking!”

  “Cold, Sue. I can’t see you!” China could barely get out.

  “I got you. I’m here, China. We’re almost there, okay!”

  “Tell Roxy, GaGa, and Smooth that I love them, please.”

  When Sue Rabbit looked down at China’s hand and saw the strength leave it, he knew that she had died in his arms. “China, hold on! We’re almost there!” Sue Rabbit said to her, even though she was no longer with him.

  Sue Rabbit knew it, but he didn’t want to believe it. China had just taken her last breath.

  “Damn, China!” Sue Rabbit cried as he closed her eyes and kissed her on her forehead. “Rest in peace, sister-in-law,” he said as Tic pulled into Jackson Memorial Hospital.

  EPILOGUE

  Five Years Later

  ROXY AND SUE Rabbit were celebrating the anniversary of China’s death, like they had been doing every year since she passed. It was free food day at all their restaurants throughout Dade and Broward Counties. Roxy had opened six restaurants with the help of Sue Rabbit. The couple had married and now had two beautiful girls a year apart named Taneshia and Chinetta.