by S. K. Hardy
Impressed, Hawk slowly nodded. “Nice. Might have to look into finding one of these back home.”
Chuckling, Angel walked through the door without responding. However, all amusement fled from their faces, leaving them somber and deadly serious as they entered the large room. Angel’s men were spread out more than half a dozen deep. Two identical pit bull terriers with shiny, black coats, were lounging on the floor, quiet but alert. When they saw Angel, they sat up and whimpered in recognition but didn’t move until Angel snapped his fingers. They instantly ran to him, nuzzling his hand until he gave them the command to heel.
When Angel gestured towards the corner, Hawk immediately saw Thompson, deadly still and slumped over in a metal chair. His wrists had been strapped behind his back while his ankles were tied to the legs of the chair. His feet were bare and his shirt stripped off, leaving him with just a pair of dirty, blood stained jeans.
Hawk walked over and stopped in front of him. It took several seconds for Thompson to slowly raise his head. When he finally did, he gave Hawk an unblinking, malevolent glare, which was difficult to do with one eye almost swollen shut. Blood gushed from a nasty cut above his ear and rolled down the side of his face. A dark, purple bruise stood out starkly against his side, which told Hawk his ribs were either broken or fractured. However, none of Benny’s injuries diminished the deep hatred he felt for Hawk that emanated off him like static electricity.
Hawk glanced at Angel and arched a smooth brow. “Started the party without me, huh?”
Angel lifted his shoulder in unconcern and took out a cigar. “I told you he had to be persuaded to give me the tapes. The more he resisted, the harder he made it on himself.”
Hawk turned his attention back to Benny. “Damn. You crazy or just a special kind of stupid? Muthafuckas have died for less fuckin’ with Angel like that. Either you been out the game waaay too long or you just a dumb mu’fucka. Which is it?”
Benny’s answer was to avert his head and remain in stubborn silence.
“Oh, okay,” Hawk nodded. Grabbing a nearby chair, he turned it backwards and straddled it to face him. “I warned you to stay away from Raven, didn’t I? Told you that if I ever saw you again you’d find out exactly what I was capable of doing.”
Benny tried to remain hardcore and unaffected by the predicament he now found himself in, but Hawk knew he was anything but. He could tell by the rapid beat of the pulse in his neck and the way he jumped every time Hawk moved. Yeah. He came across men like Benny every day, muthafuckas who played a role. They tried to intimidate people by talkin’ the talk and sounding the way they thought they were supposed to sound. However, when it came time to put that talk into action by walkin’ the walk? They folded just like Benny. Everybody wanted to be gangsta until it was time to do gangsta shit.
“So you gave Angel all the tapes you sent samples of to the Las Vegas DA, right?”
Angel’s eyes shot to Hawk. “He did what? When?”
Hawk answered without turning around. “Earlier today. It’s being taken care of as we speak.”
“Son of a...” Angel’s eyes glistened brightly underneath a layer of artic frost as they landed on Benny. “I’ve always known you weren’t too bright but I had no idea how foolish you really were.”
“Yeah.” Hawk slowly shook his head from side to side. “This mu’fucka was really tryin’ to send Raven to prison. Ain’t that some shit?”
Benny’s eyes darted from one of them to the other. “Let me know when ya’ll finished with the mobster act, then we can get down to negotiatin’.”
“Negotiating?” Hawk scoffed. “If that’s what you think we’re doin’ then you’re even more dense than I thought.”
“The message I sent to that DA was just the beginnin’. Things ‘bout to get crucial for your lil girlfriend if you don’t let me go right fuckin’ now.”
“Oh yeah? And why is that? We have the tapes. That shit gettin’ squashed from the top. You light work, mu’fucka; I didn’t even have to break a sweat to deal with you. After me and Angel finish here, we’re goin’ out to enjoy a nice, juicy steak, then go on livin’ our best fuckin’ lives while you...well, even you know how this is goin’ to play out.”
“Think so, playboy?” Benny threw his head back and started laughing, his cockiness and stupidity overflowing even in the precarious situation he found himself in. “You think you so big and bad and powerful, don’t you Pattel? You ain’t untouchable and neither is Raven.” Sobering from his amusement, his face reset itself to an evil glower. “You didn’t really think I was bankin’ on just those tapes to keep me alive, did you?”
“That’s exactly what I think.”
Angel glanced down at his cell phone when it buzzed with a message. “Hawk. Remember that hunch I had? Seems I was right.” He uttered the words with a matter of fact calmness that instantly put Hawk on the alert. Cutting the head off the cigar he held, Angel leaned forward when Big Dre struck a match to light it.
Hawk cut his gaze towards Angel. “Tell me.”
Angel took several short puffs, drawing the flame into the cigar and rotating it until the tip glowed. Once it was lit, he drew in the smoke, held it for a few seconds then let it go before answering Hawk. “It seems our friend here has what he thinks is his monnaie d'échange.”
Benny watched Angel warily as he tried to follow the conversation. “Mona what?”
“Shut the fuck up,” Hawk snapped at him turning back to Angel. “What could he possibly have to use as a bargaining chip?”
“It’s on the way up now.”
Hawk tried to curb his impatience. He didn’t like surprises. “What’s on the way up?”
Unfazed, Angel’s eyes drifted away from Hawk and back to Benny. “Do you want to tell him or shall I?”
A flash of caution seeped into Benny’s eyes as if he wasn’t sure whether or not Angel was bluffing. Deciding that he was, Benny’s arrogance came back and overruled his doubts. “There ain’t no way you know.”
Angel looked at him in amusement. “You think not?”
Hawk slowly stood up from the chair. “Angel, what’s goin’ on?”
Seconds ticked by. Never one to be rushed, Angel didn’t peel his eyes away from Benny until he heard the door behind them open. Hawk watched as one of Angel’s soldiers trudged into the room. But he wasn’t alone. Hawk’s eyes narrowed on the man being forcibly marched towards them. With his hands tied together in front of him and tape covering his mouth, his eyes darted nervously around the room. However, when they landed on Benny they grew wide and anxious. Angel’s men gave him a rough shove to the back that sent him stumbling forward.
Hawk’s gaze shifted to Thompson to gauge his reaction. Yeah, somethin’ was up. Benny’s expression was almost identical to the man being ushered in. The sudden turn of events seemed to have induced momentary paralysis in Benny. He looked terrified.
Hawk turned to Angel. “Who is this?”
“Malcolm Thompson. Otherwise known as Benny’s ‘bargaining chip’. Right, Benny?”
The fear Benny tried so hard to keep under wraps finally broke through the surface and took a desperate breath. “What is my brother doin’ here?”
“Why don’t we let him tell us?” Angel gave a small nod to one of his man, who reached up and ripped the tape off of Malcolm’s mouth. “Speak.”
“Shut up, Mal!” Benny yelled. “Don’t say a fuckin’ word!”
Watching Benny, Angel blew out several rings of smoke before turning mint green eyes to Malcolm. “Let me give you a bit of advice. You can either tell my friend here what he wants to know then walk out of here in one piece–or listen to your brother and experience pain like you’ve never felt in your entire life. Your choice.”
“Mal, keep your mouth shut!” Benny shouted again.
But Mal wasn’t ‘bout that life. He wasn’t built for it. “It was all my brotha’s doin’!” he screeched loudly. “All I did was hang on to the tapes and the pictures! I swear! That’s all I
did!”
“You stupid fuck!” Benny shouted angrily, pulling against the restraints. The legs of the chair jerked off the floor as he struggling to get loose. “What did I say! Shut tha’ fuck up!”
“What pictures?” Hawk asked Malcolm. “What are you talkin’ about.”
“Mal, I swear to god, if you don’t–Ugh!” Benny’s head violently swiveled to the side as Hawk plowed his fist into his mouth.
“Mu’fucka, you ain’t runnin’ shit here!” Pulling out a butterfly knife, Hawk whipped it open with an expertise born from frequent use and held it to Benny’s neck. “Open your mouth one more time I’ll cut your tongue out and feed it to those dogs. Now, try me.”
Blood poured out of Benny’s mouth. He glared at Hawk but wisely remained quiet.
“That’s what I thought.” Cutting his eyes away from Benny, he stared at Malcolm. “Answer my question.”
“Please, man, I’on wanna die.” His eyes pleaded with Hawk as they welled full. Malcolm wasn’t like Benny. He had no intention of acting tough and putting on a brave face. Seeing Hawk’s impatience he started to sing. “When my brotha went to the pen he gave me his stuff to hold until he got out. He left for Miami, but he took everything except the pictures, so I–”
“What pictures?” When Malcolm glanced at Benny, Hawk pointed the stainless steel blade at him. “Do not make me ask you again.”
“P-Pictures he took of Raven when he...while they were...uh...” Malcolm’s eyes faltered away from Hawk.
Hawk froze. The blood in his veins ran ice cold. He told himself to breathe, but his lungs felt obstructed by an immovable object that refused to let the air flow through. “Where are they?”
Angel gestured for one of his men to step forward and give Hawk an envelope. “I received a tip that Benny’s brother was going around bragging about how rich they were going to be. One of my men finally tracked him down. He was the opposite of Benny, here. He immediately gave us what we wanted.”
Hawk took the envelope and slipped the knife he held under the sealed closure. Turning his back to everyone in the room, he opened it and took out a stack of faded, creased photos. The muscles in his jaw tensed when he saw the face of a teenage Raven sitting on a couch.
For a moment, Hawk’s expression softened. His baby. It was the first time he saw pictures of her at that age. She looked so young and innocent, but...her eyes. She was clearly trying to put on a brave face but her eyes gave away how frightened she was. He’d seen that same glimmer of emotion at the hotel when she went down to meet Thompson.
He began flipping through the pictures. At first they were fairly innocent. Raven talking to Benny, the two of them sitting in an apartment talking. One by one they took a dark turn. One photo was Benny letting Raven hold a gun...him kissing her...then Raven in various states of undress...
“You son of a bitch.” Hawk’s voice was barely louder than a low whisper, but Benny heard him.
“Look, man, I...I wasn’t gonna hurt Rae like that. After you fired me I was pissed off, ya’ know? I let my anger get the best of me, but I woulda never showed those pictures to nobody. I promise on my life.” Fear finally overcame Benny’s endless rambling. A desperate tinge shadowed his words. “If you let me go you’ll never hear from me again. I swear. I swear on God you won’t.”
The vein in Hawk’s temple pulsed uncontrollably. As he looked at each picture, the images fueled the anger growing inside of him like kerosene poured on a deadly fire. His hand fisted closed, crumbling the photos in the process.
“Untie Thompson’s brother,” Angel ordered his men.
Malcolm’s body grew slack with relief. He glanced at Benny but quickly looked away; his self-preservation was stronger than any familial ties he may have had. Benny was on his own.
“Thank you, Mr. LaCroix. Swear I won’t say a word to nobody about none of this.” He stared at Angel like a puppy waiting for a pat on the head.
“Who said I was letting you go?”
Malcolm’s eyes stretched wide as the words sank in. From the look on his face, Hawk saw the exact moment he realized that he was staring death in the eye and getting ready to die. Before Malcolm could react, Hawk drew his arm back and launched the knife forward in one quick movement. The blade penetrated the left side of Malcolm’s chest and pierced his heart. Malcolm dropped to his knees, looking down at the knife in shock and amazement.
“Malcolm!” Benny screamed. He watched with horrified eyes as his brother fell forward, dead before he hit the floor.
Hawk walked up to Malcolm and flipped him over. Placing his booted foot on the dead man’s chest and using it as leverage, he leaned down and pulled the knife free. After wiping it clean on Malcolm’s shirt he straightened up and headed towards Benny.
Time to end this shit.
“You son of a bitch! You son of a bitch!” Benny screamed at Hawk. Pushing his chest forward, veins of rage protruded from his forehead as he strained against the ropes holding him captive. “You betta kill me now, because if you don’t I swear to God I’ll make that bitch’s life miserable. You hear me?!”
The corner of Hawk’s mouth twitched upwards. His eyes dimmed with an air of detachment that said he gave no fucks about what he’d just done. “Oh yeah? Your brother was ‘bout to leave you high and dry without a second thought. You saw that, right? But go off if it makes you feel better.”
“You think you so fuckin’ funny, don’t you, Pattel?” Benny’s features morphed into an evil mask of crazy. “Yeah. Alright, muthafucka, but guess what? I’ll die with the satisfaction of knowin’ I fucked that bitch of yours in more ways than one. Remember that.”
Hawk’s stride slowed. He did his best to keep his expression neutral, but something in his eyes must have told Benny he’d hit the only weak spot Hawk had. “What tha’ fuck are you talkin’ about?”
“Every time I screwed her I knew I was getting’ the final laugh. Wanna know why?” Benny’s grin was that of a man who knew he had nothing to lose. He knew he was going to die, but not before he got Hawk where it hurt. “I gave her the men who gunned down that punk ass brotha of hers–but what she didn’t know is that I was the one who ordered the hit. Jacoby thought he was on some kingpin shit, that he was top dog. I took him out and slept like a baby that night. I was responsible for smokin’ him. So make sure you tell her that when you see her.”
For a moment, Hawk didn’t move. He didn’t flinch. A coldness he’d never experienced invaded his body. It seeped into his blood and wrapped around his bones as Thompson’s words played out in his head. Raven had more or less sacrificed her innocence to get revenge for Jacoby because no one else had. However, the entire time, she had been sleeping with the very person responsible for her brother’s death.
As Hawk stared at Benny, the ice in his veins thawed out little by little. He took a couple of steps towards Thompson, intent on tearing him to pieces with his bare hands, one limb at a time. But then he came to a sudden stop. Nah. That would be too easy. As hard as it was to control the urge to finish Benny off, Hawk held back. By doing so, he effectively took the power and shifted it back to him.
Suddenly he heard the terriers whimpering behind him. Hawk glanced back at the dogs, then at Angel. An understanding passed between them before Hawk turned to Benny.
“This could’ve been fairly painless, but you just couldn’t help yourself, could you? You just had to keep runnin’ your fuckin’ mouth. That was a mistake.” He took his time, savoring the fear that slowly crept into Benny’s crazed eyes. “I mean, do you really think I’d take that information back to Raven and hurt her like that? Huh?” Hawk slowly shook his head. “If you did, you got me all tha’ way fucked up. Rae’s life is gettin’ ready to be beautiful and stress free. Nothin’ will ever touch her. But you? The next few moments of your life are about to be a living hell. And messy as fuck,” Hawk added, grimacing in distaste. “Blood, flesh, guts everywhere. Damn.”
“What are you talkin’ about?” Benny asked warily. Then t
he answer came to him.
He pulled his eyes away from Hawk and gawked at the massive dogs still sitting beside Angel. Growls rumbled from their muscular chests. They saw Benny’s fear, sensed his panic. And when Hawk reached forward and sliced a cut across the front of Benny’s chest with the knife...they smelled blood.
Ignoring the other man’s scream of pain, Hawk stepped back and flicked the knife closed. “You may have taken something away from Raven and her family that can never be replaced, but you didn’t destroy them. You didn’t destroy her. She’s strong. She’ll get through this just fine. I’mma sure of it.” Giving Benny one last scathing glare, Hawk looked at Angel. “Your dogs don’t look like they’ve missed any meals, but I’m sure they wouldn’t mind a snack to get them through the night.”
Angel gave Benny a thoughtful look. “I was thinking the exact same thing.”
“Wait! Wait! What are you doin’...?” Rapidly shaking his head Benny, turned horrific eyes to Hawk and Angel. His heels dug into the floor trying to push the chair as far away from the vicious animals as he could get. “No! Just kill me! Kill me and get it over with!”
Everything seemed to move in slow motion. Hawk picked up the photos that had scattered to the floor. He followed Angel towards the door, leaving the dogs in the room with teeth viciously bared. The loyal beasts didn’t move a muscle until they heard Angel utter the one word they’d been waiting to hear:
“Eat.”
As they went down the stairs, Hawk could hear Benny’s horrific screams as the terriers eagerly followed their master’s order. It sounded like music to Hawk’s ears. Death was a funny thing. It hung over every living soul. Some it took peacefully, without fanfare or disturbance. Others were snatched away without a moment’s notice, sometimes violently. Death would not be kind to Benny. He would be ripped out of this world in the most horrifying way possible. Slowly. Brutally. Savagely. And that was just the way Hawk wanted it.
