by Jacob Spears
“So what are you in for now?”
“Murder and carjacking.”
“How long you been in?”
“I’ve been in prison for 13 years. But I’m here in County on another charge, because I killed a child molester at Martin Correctional Institution.”
“So you caught a body while in prison?”
“Yeah,” Kentucky answered.
“Damn, you must have been willing out.”
The doors opened and a guard screamed, “Clear count.”
“Come on, they gonna serve chow any minutes,” Kentucky said.
* * *
Ronny and two of the new guys were on the corner in the hood that Banga and Neko normally hung out at. But Banga was out of town, and Neko was on a new corner with two other dues.
“Man, I’m telling you that Jay Z owns part of the Brooklyn Nets,” one dude said.
“I thought it was the Celtics!”
“Nah, nigga, it’s the Nets!”
“Can’t you two agree on anything?” Ronny asked.
“Yeah, we both think that Beyoncé is the baddest bitch.”
“Yep, we agree on that.”
Being almost 9:00 p.m., the streetlights were on and the three were off in the shadows, until a car pulled up and one of them would serve the customer. A car turned the corner and slowed, and one of the two dudes with Ronny headed out to take care of the customer. Ronny watched for trouble. As the dude reached the car, Ronny saw someone pop up from the backseat with a shotgun. Boom! Boom! Boom!
The car then burned rubber and took off. Ronny pulled out his Glock 26 9mm and started unloading into the car. Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Filling the car with holes and busting the back window out, the car finally turned the corner. Ronny ran and checked on his crewmember. But one look and Ronny knew he was dead. Half of his face was missing, and his chest was shredded like hamburger meat.
Damn, this shit getting serious, Ronny thought.
“Come on, Jit. We gotta get ghost,” Ronny told the other dude.
* * *
The phone rang and woke Smooth out of a deep sleep.
“Hello,” he answered.
“Hey, boy, you sleeping?”
“Roxy, do you know what time it is?”
“Yeah, it’s 7:35 a.m.”
“And you woke me at this ungodly hour for what?”
“Boy, don’t you know what today is?’
“It’s Wednesday, so what?”
“Yep, it’s Wednesday, mister. And in case you forgot, I open my restaurant in 45 minutes for the first time.”
“Damn, I forgot. Don’t worry. I’ll be there before ya open.”
“Alright, see ya soon.”
Smooth hung up and got out of bed. After he finished taking a quick shower, he dressed in a pair of True Religion jeans, a grey Nike shirt, and a fresh pair of Nikes. After dressing, he grabbed Zorro’s leash.
“Come on, boy. Let’s get your outside.”
Zorro came bouncing down the hall. Hooking on the leash, Smooth headed towards the elevator. Once outside, Smooth let Zorro handle his business, and then he brought him back inside. Once Zorro’s bowls were filled of water and food, he headed toward Roxy’s.
He made it there at 7:48 a.m. Getting out of his car, he went inside and saw Roxy laying out silverware and napkins on each table.
“Well, look who showed up!” Roxy exclaimed.
“Told you I’d be here.”
“I know I’m just so nervous.”
“Just cool it. The place looks beautiful.”
“Okay, you’re my first customer so have a seat. Now what can I get you to drink?”
“Coke, no ice.”
“Be right back.”
Smooth checked out the menu while Roxy got his drink. She had a pretty good menu, and the breakfast looked good.
“Here’s your drink. Are you ready to order?” Roxy asked.
“Yeah, give me scrambled eggs, biscuits, gravy, and bacon.”
“Alright,” she said, as she headed back to give the order to the cook. As she exited the kitchen, a couple walked in the front door, so she headed to help them.
While waiting for his breakfast, Smooth’s phone rang. Noticing it was from Ronny, he answered, “Hello?”
“Glad you’re awake. We need to talk.”
“Okay, well, I’m at Roxy’s new place getting breakfast. Do you know where it’s at?” Smooth asked.
“Yea, I know where it’s at.”
“Good! Meet me here, and I’ll buy you some breakfast and we can talk then.”
“I’ll be there in about 10 minutes.”
“See ya there,” Smooth replied, before hanging up.
“Here’s your food,” Roxy said, putting the plate down on the table in front of him.
“Hope you enjoy it,” she said.
“I’ll be having company soon.”
“I will be back to check on you then.”
* * *
Smooth waited for Ronny before he started to eat. After about five minutes, Ronny showed up. Smooth waved him over.
“Hey, Smooth!”
“So what’s up?” Smooth asked.
Before Ronny could reply, Roxy walked up.
“What can I get ya?”
“Ummm . . . an omelet, toast, and coffee.”
“Alright. I’ll be right back with your coffee.”
Roxy headed to the kitchen to place the order and grab a cup of coffee.
“You should eat before it gets cold. Don’t wait on me.”
“Whatever,” Smooth responded, and started to eat. “Damn, this gravy is off the chain.”
“Okay, here’s your coffee. Your food will be out in a minute,” Roxy said, after setting down the coffee cup.
“Thanks, Ronny said.
When Roxy left, Ronny said, “Damn, that is one beautiful woman.”
“Yeah, she’s my girl’s older sister; and believe me, China looks better than Roxy.”
“You’s a lucky man.”
“Yeah, I know. So what’s up? Why we need to meet?”
“Last night, me and two of the crew got hit. They waited until Buddy was at the car, and then someone in the back seat popped up with a shotgun and hit him.”
“He the only one hit?” Smooth asked.
“Yeah, he was the only one of ours. I lit the car up, but I don’t know if I hit anybody.”
“That’s two of ours down.”
“Bro, we on the defense, but we need to go on the offense.”
“What do you mean?”
“We take the fight to them. Find out where they hang out and then take them out.”
“I once read a book that said that ‘men are more ready to repay an injury than a benefit, because gratitude is a burden and revenge is a pleasure.’” That’s us. We need revenge. We can’t just let them keep hitting us one by one.”
“So how do we do this?” Smooth inquired.
Before Ronny could respond, Roxy walked up, set his food down, and said, “Here’s your food. Hope you enjoy it. Would you like some more coffee?”
“Nah, I’m good. Thanks.”
After Roxy left, Ronny leaned forward and said, “When you force the other person to act, you are the one in control. It’s always better to make your opponent come to you.”
“So where do we start?” Smooth asked.
“We find out where they hang out, and then we hit them hard. After that, we let them come to us if we can.”
“How do we find out where they hang?”
“Let me take care of that.”
* * *
“Clear count, ladies,” the office said over the intercom.
“Go grab us some seats for the movie. I’m going to get on the phone,” China instructed.
“Okay, babe,” Rebecca replied.
Once at the phone, she dialed GaGa’s number. China stood there waiting for the call to go through. Finally, “This call may be monitored and/or recorded. Thanks for using Securus.”<
br />
“Hi baby girl,” GaGa said.
“Hey mom. How are you doing?”
“Other than missing you, I’m doing well.”
“How’s Roxy? How’s Smooth?”
“Roxy is doing well. Her restaurant opened today. I ate lunch there and, girl, it was good!”
“I bet.”
“So what are you doing in there?”
“Not much of anything. I play volleyball here and there.”
“Child, I told you to use the time you got to better yourself. Get a G.E.D., take some type of course, get an education while you can, and while you got the time.”
“I promise I’ll look into the programs.”
They spent the next few minutes bullshitting.
“You have one minute left,” the voice announced.
“I love you, mom. I miss you and hope to see you again soon.”
The call disconnected.
* * *
Banga looked around while he was sitting in a chair and waiting his turn to see the judge. There were seven other dudes dressed in orange on his side of the room. On the other side were two females in green outfits. One of them was an older white lady. The other was a dime piece, with ivory white skin, long brown hair, and just beautiful. He was busy watching her when he heard this name and snapped back to reality. Standing up, he stepped to the podium. After saying his name and C.F.N., the judge looked at him through the camera while Banga was staring at the judge on the television screen. Feels weird talking through a camera, he thought.
“So, you’re in here on assault.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You’re not from around here, correct?”
“No, sir. I’m from Miami.”
“I shouldn’t give you a bond, since you’re a flight risk. Do you have family here?”
“Yes, sir. An aunt and two cousins.”
“I’m going to give you a $20,000 bond on the condition you agree to stay in Stuart until your court date. Can you do that?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Then it’s settled.”
“Don’t make me regret giving you a bond.”
“I won’t, sir.”
Happy at his bond, he sat back down, waiting for everyone else to finish, so that he could be taken back to the zones. He couldn’t wait to call Smooth and get out of that joint. Twenty minutes later, everyone was finished. The officers handcuffed them and transported them back to the housing area. As soon as he stepped in the zone, he headed for the phone to call Smooth.
“Please hold while your call is connected.”
Ring, ring, ring. Finally, Smooth picked up.
“Hey Banga!”
“Hey Smooth. I just got a bond. It’s $20,000, but only on the condition, I got to stay in Stuart ‘til my court date.”
“Well, are you gonna stay in Stuart?”
“Yeah, I don’t want to risk getting locked up again.”
“Give me a few hours, and I’ll be there to bond ya out. In the meantime, don’t drop the soap.”
“Very funny, nigga.”
“Alright, let me go get ready.”
“See ya soon.”
After hanging up, he looked around and saw Guru and Sue sitting at a table playing chess.
“So, how’d the bond go?” Guru inquired.
“Got $20,000 bond, so I will be out of here in a few hours.”
“That’s good.”
“When are you two gonna bounce?”
“We’ll both be out within a month.”
“Look, I’m gonna give you both my numbers. If y’all willing to hustle and need work, I will hook you all up.”
“Sounds good,” Guru said.
“Yeah, sounds good, ‘cause I don’t have anything else lined up for when I get out.”
“Good. I’ll be looking forward to hearing from both of you all.”
Banga headed to his cell. Kentucky was in there writing.
“Well, roomie, I got a bond, so I’ll be out soon.”
“That’s good news. I also got some good news. While you were gone, I got a letter. You remember I told you that I sent my book to a bunch of publishing companies?”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“Well, one finally wrote back. Here, read this!”
Banga grabbed the letter and read it.
“So this dude, Ray Brown from Good2Go Publishing wants your book? That’s awesome. Congratulations!”
“Thanks man.”
“Look, I’m gonna give you my number, and I will put money on the phone so you can call. I want to stay in contact with you, okay?”
“Yeah, man. That’s cool! The only one I have to call now is my little sister, Heather.”
“That’s her in all the pictures, right?”
“Yep, that’s her.”
“She’s beautiful.”
“I know. I can’t get over her being so grown up. To me, she’s still my baby sister. Last time I saw her was about 13 years ago.”
“So does anyone visit you?”
“Nah, man. All my family is in another state. Out of all my family, only my little brother, Chris, and my mom write me. Well, Heather writes me every blue moon, which sucks ‘cause I love to hear from her. But she and my mom live in Muskogee, Oklahoma. So no one is close enough to visit me.”
Well, I won’t lie to you. I can’t visit and I probably won’t write, but I will definitely keep money on the phone so you’ll be able to call me.”
“That’d be nice. Make sure you leave your address so I can mail you a copy of my book.”
“Here, let me write it down for you.”
Banga grabbed some scrap paper and wrote down his phone number and address.
“This is my cell phone number, so I will always have it.”
Grabbing another piece of paper, he wrote down his phone number twice—once for Sue and once for Guru. After writing it down, he ripped the paper in half, went to the day room, and handed his number to both Guru and Sue.
“This my cell phone, so you should be able to reach me any time.”
“Bet,” Sue said.
“Yeah, bro. I’m definitely gonna hit you up as soon as I get out of here, ‘cause I’m definitely gonna need the work and the money.”
“You all do realize it’s in Miami, right?”
“Good. I need to get out of Stuart anyway. Ain’t nothing but trouble and problems here.”
“You both can call me any time. I’m gonna keep money on the phone for Kentucky and both of you. But I feel sorry for Kentucky ‘cause he ain’t ever gonna get out, so I’m gonna stay in contact with him and do what I can for him.”
“Yeah, he’s a good dude,” Sue Rabbit replied.
“Alright, let me go get ready.”
“Take it easy.”
Going back to his room, Kentucky was still writing.
“Damn, dude, you gonna be a famous big-time writer. Can’t believe you got somebody wanting your book. I can’t wait to read it.”
“I’ll get you a copy as soon as it comes out.”
“Hey, Kentucky! Do you have someone that sends you money?”
“My mom tries to send me $20 a month, but sometimes she can’t. She lives off a disability check so she only gets about $650 a month, so to her $20 is a lot. But other than that, I got no one to send me money.”
“Well, on my way out, I’m gonna drop some money in your account, alright?”
“You don’t have to do that, man.”
“No, I don’t have to, but I want to.”
Banga heard his name over the intercom.
“Well, that’s me. Take it easy and don’t forget you can call any time.”
“Alright, man, stay out of trouble.”
Heading out the door, he hollered a goodbye to Guru and Sue.
Once up front, they gave him back his clothes and personal property. After dressing, they released him. Out in the lobby, Smooth was waiting for him.
“Hey, nigga. Ready to roll?” Smooth asked.<
br />
“Nah, I got one last thing to do.”
Walking over to the money kiosk, Banga put $300 on Kentucky’s books.
“Alright, now I’m ready to go.”
After getting in the car, Smooth asked, “Okay, where to now?”
Banga gave him directions to 5th Street and then to Booker Park, where his aunt lived.
“Since I’m gonna be down here ‘til my court date, I might as well work, right?”
“Yep, but what kind of work?”
“Figure ya give me one key already cooked up, and then I’ll go from there and see where it takes me.”
“I’ll have somebody bring it up to ya.”
“Nah, I’ll come pick it up ‘cause I gotta go get some stuff from home and talk to my mom, so I’ll pick it up then.”
“Sounds good to me. Just sucks you gotta stay down here.”
“Yeah, I know, but maybe some good will come of it. You never know.”
* * *
“All right, ladies . . . recreation . . . recreation . . . mandatory recreation. Everyone out but the house women. House women, get to work!” the guard announces over the intercom.
“You ready, Rebecca” China asks.
“Yep, I’m ready.”
“Make sure the lockers are locked.”
After pulling on both locks, Rebecca said, “Yeah, they locked.”
“Good, let’s go!”
Heading to the recreation yard, China told Rebecca, “Go find us some seats to watch the volleyball game. I’m gonna go get us some sandwiches and drinks. What do you want?”
“An 18 wheeler and a Coke.”
“Alright, I’ll be back.”
China got into the canteen line to wait her turn. As she stood there, she couldn’t help but overhear the two ladies in front of her talking about how they were running scams on pen pals. China had heard stories about it, but she didn’t have to worry because Smooth kept money on her books. She knew she was super lucky to have Smooth, Roxy, and GaGa. Some people in there had no one. Like Rebecca, she has no friends or family to write and send her money.
“Next!” announced the canteen woman, snapping China out of her thoughts.
Handing the woman her card, China ordered, “I want an 18 wheeler, a big-ass chicken sandwich, two bags of Doritos, two Cokes, a honey bun, and a peanut butter squeeze.”
“Anything else?” the woman asked.
“Nope, I’m good!”
“Alright, step to the side and wait for your sandwiches to cook,” the woman replied, as she handed the card and receipt back to China. After about five minutes, she said, “18 wheeler and chicken sandwich . . . step up!”
