by Brick
A flash of our very first meeting, and me eventually taking over the Syndicate, came to mind. I gave a quiet nod. “I recall, and you have my word that we’ll find out what’s real and what’s not.”
“Good.” There was a sickly silence. One that was sucked up by the sound of monitors beeping and the oxygen machine whirling. “It’s time for the truth to come to light. That was Claudette’s favorite phrase. Loving two women at once is not something I was expecting, but it happened. If it is my time, I only hope that Claudette finds her way to me again.”
Quietly, I stood. Mama was loved deeply, and she loved deeply. “How Mama’s heart was, I’m sure she’ll greet you in stride, old man. But for now, how about we hold that off for some years, okay? You should share that past stuff with Lucky, though, before he shoots my uncle for disrespecting his mother.”
A wheezing laugh came from Luci; he then grabbed my wrist and looked me. “Maybe I will . . . maybe I will.”
I gave him a look, studying the old man while feeling a little annoyed at him for being laid up like this.
“Until then, remove my enemy’s ears and fingers. Save their tongues for their confession. Then slice their throats for the disrespect they reaped.” Luci dropped his hold, the little bit of strength that he had now gone.
“I’ll do that and more. I am a child of Claudette,” I reassured him, then headed out.
I really didn’t have a straightforward plan for finding out who had strategically taken down the Commission, but I knew being at the hospital wasn’t going to kick this off. As I walked out into the pool of tension outside Luci’s room, I paused to address everyone, including the diva, Giovanna Acardi. Cory was leaning against a wall, with his arms crossed, by our uncle. Uncle Snap sat mean mugging Lucky’s mother with a glass against his palms, while Lucky stood pacing in front of her.
“All right. We need to calm this episode of Family Feud and go handle business. The old man is resting. Bella donna Giovanna, he’s asking for you.” I lied about that last part. She looked like Lynn Whitfield did when playing a rude-ass, angry-ass woman, and I just needed her outta the room.
Lucky said, “There is no feud if the OG chills on my mother. I don’t know who he thinks she is—”
“Don’t, sweetheart. Just leave it alone,” Giovanna said quickly. “He’s just a drunk who is still mourning a ghost who never wanted him.”
A quick flash of confusion hit Lucky’s face. His narrowed gaze focused on his mother as he tilted his head but didn’t say a thing. We all could tell that he was wondering how the hell she knew him that well even to say that.
“Always a slick-talking gutta bitch and always thinkin’ ’bout cha self before ya own.”
“Uncle Snap. Let’s dial this back,” Cory interjected. “The old man in the back is waiting.”
Giovanna reached up and patted her son’s face. She then left without a word, strong eyeing us on the way out.
It was clear that the woman formally known as Deedee was problematic as fuck. I thumbed my nose, then looked at my watch. “Yeah . . . anyway. We have a little time here. Lucky, take us to Cavriel’s home.”
“There’s nothing there to see. We went through—”
I held a hand up, stopping Lucky in midsentence. Cory strolled up on my left, and uncle followed.
“Sometimes, you just want to see if niggas are watching, and sometimes you just want to draw them motherfuckers out and have a nice conversation.”
Quirking an eyebrow, I glanced at Lucky.
“Can we all just talk to some niggas, homie?” Cory said, finishing for me with a chuckle.
Lucky scowled, then gave a nod. “Guess it’s game time, then. Let’s go have that conversation.”
We exited the ward, passing nurses who were caring for a few of Carviel’s surviving family and for bodyguards loyal to the Commission. Once we made it to the car, Lucky did his thing as a driver and whipped the car back through the streets of New York City. Cars peddled past us. Pedestrians did their walk, and we prepared ourselves for the shit war that was going to go down.
* * *
Before us was an old forty-foot-tall limestone building. I listened as Lucky explained its history.
“Cavriel bought this home to be near his community and to protect it. The building was built in nineteen fifteen. There’s tunnels that run through the place. They were built during Prohibition,” Lucky explained.
The brotha was leaning with his driver’s hat tilted to obscure his face. One arm was stretched out, pointing ahead of us, while one of his black gloved hands dangled over the steering wheel.
“Since then, Cavriel reinforced the walls of all the tunnels and the secret passage. Security was put in by his hand, so that no one would know where the cameras were except him. His private monitor room was found by us, though.”
“The building connected to his home?” I asked, taking in the four-story beauty, with its French-style front, wooden door, balcony front, and slanted roof.
“He owned it. Turned it into a storage area for himself and a museum for the Jewish community called Shabbat. It’s also heavily secured,” Lucky explained.
“As we learned, secure don’t mean shit,” Cory explained. “There’s access from the roof. The front, the side that’s connected to the building. Since you know about the tunnels, whoever went at Cavriel more than likely knew about them too. Or not.”
Cory shifted in his seat. “Anyone could scope the place, as we are, by hiding in the several buildings surrounding Cavriel. Did he own them?”
“He owns the whole block and the surrounding area,” Lucky said with a chuckle. “His crew takes up residence in the Jewish deli on the corner. Some in the barbershop over there.”
“And if you know the schematics, so did whoever was able to break in, point being this shit feels in-house, and we know a lot about how your own can turn on you.” Cory shifted to undo his seat belt. “My suggestion here is, snap up that nigga who keeps circling the block as he walks. Take out that black van near the fenced tree and get in Cavriel’s crib.”
“Take the ears and fingers and tongues—” I began.
“For confession. And then slice their throats. That’s the way of the Commission,” Lucky interrupted.
Uncle Snap gave a grunt, then exited the car. He pulled out his Glock, then removed the safety. “And put two to the skull. That’s Snap’s way.”
I watched Uncle Snap walk off. “Cory,” I said.
“All ready covering his back, bro.” Cory pulled his crinkled locs into a knot, then pulled on his hoodie as he followed our uncle.
“Ride around the back, Lucky,” I said while checking my coat.
Lucky gave me a nod. “They’ll be waiting, so move fast.”
I gave a chuckle, ready to end some lives. “No doubt.”
As soon as Lucky drove up, he flashed the headlights to his ride on the goons who were hiding in plain sight. None of them were Commission folk. Lucky quickly removed his coat, revealing his Kevlar vest. He tossed his hat to the side, then pulled out his Glock.
“What you got on you, Von?”
“Several knives and my Glocks. That’s it.”
After hitting the glove compartment, he reached in and tossed me some things. “Now you have a little bit more. Let’s go.”
“Hey. Take them down!” shouted one of the goons outside the car. Bullets rained down and bounced off the armored car.
We dipped our heads and partially rolled down the windows. I popped my hand up and squeezed off my rounds. Lucky swiftly moved out of the car. From the corner of my eye, I saw him pull out two hand knives. He snapped them out so that they were longer, then gripped them and gave a one-two punch toward the goon who rushed him. Dude drew his hands up like a boxer, dropped his gait low to send punches against his foe’s ribs. He then used that moment to run his blade against the man’s side, stabbing him.
I used that moment to rush into the house. I was greeted by two dudes dressed in black. I took my gun
and pumped out more bullets. One to the head, one to the chest, one in the leg. Because we were loud, more dudes came out.
“Who the fuck are y’all, huh?” I yelled.
Sweat dripped in my eyes. I ran forward, sent my fist into the jaw of one of the goons. I followed that by grabbing the nigga and slamming him to the floor, with me following. Shit hurt and knocked the wind out of me.
I rolled to the side and tried to move up but was met with a foot in my side. I bared my teeth and rolled over, letting rounds out. When the body dropped, I was met by more bullets, which flew at me. I finessed and slid across the marble floor, trying to escape them, and made it behind a pillar.
“Nephew, stay down,” someone shouted at me. It was Uncle Snap.
“We have you covered,” Cory hollered.
“Great,” I hollered back. “What went down, and what’s my best options here?”
I could hear feet moving around. Pristine vases shattered. Flowers went flying in the air. This shit was like some sort of movie. When I moved, more bullets followed. I didn’t see Lucky, and that bothered me. We didn’t need him killed.
“Stairs clear!” Cory shouted.
Relieved, I hopped, looked left and right, and then ran by the stairs straight to a hall.
“Behind you, nephew,” I heard Uncle Snap say. He moved to my side, and we made sure to stay near the walls.
“We were about to check out the building but saw you two ride up on a handful of bastards,” Uncle Snap told me. “Shit was lookin’ like a cock fest. So, we busted in through the building connected to the house. Found a passage leading directly into this bitch.”
“You see anything inside?” I said, looking around the corner.
“Naw, but I did find shell casings,” he said.
“That’s damn good.” I got ready to move around the corner, and when I did, Lucky was in front of us.
Sweat ran down his face as well. He was panting hard and shaking his head. “I don’t know who these bitches are, but they are making it hard to kill them. I got it clear in the back.”
“We have it clear upstairs,” Uncle Snap said, pointing his gun down.
“Then . . .” I paused and gave a sharp whistle.
When it was returned in a two-beat rhythm, I exhaled. “Cory has it cleared behind us. Let’s be quick in checking out the passage you two found, Uncle, and then let’s get out of here.”
I looked at Lucky and gave him a reassuring nod. “They found shell casings.”
“Where?” Lucky asked, with a surprised glance.
Uncle Snap explained, and Lucky shook his head. “I’m impressed. Glad I made that call.”
Once Cory was in front of us, we all then went to inspect the bodies. Afterward, we called in the cleaning crew, exited the premises, then went to our private apartment to rest. This shit was by no means an amateur moment. Ambush, surprise, and take down as fast as you could were the steps taken in this type of war. Whatever goods that could be found were going to do nothing but further our investigation.
Chapter 6
Claudette
It felt like the rug had been pulled out from under my feet. Everything in the room began spinning, and I found myself backing away from the couch to find a seat. The baby was Luciano’s? Something in my heart began to hurt. I knew it shouldn’t hurt, but it did. My big sister had effectively gutted me again.
“Right here, Mama,” I heard Snap say to me.
His hand was out, and I took it. It was warm and large. Gave me a bit of stability in the moment as the light creaking of my mama’s favorite chair kept me halfway in the reality I was in.
“Thank you, Raphael,” I muttered, keeping my eyes on my sister. “I . . . I need you to explain to me when you both became reacquainted.”
Deedee stayed standing, pressed against the wall, as she recollected her time with Luciano. “I ran into him last year in Italy. You know how I love paintings, and he happened to be there and saw me. Thought I was you from afar. We talked. Ate. Drank. Danced. Reminisced about the time you introduced us when I went with you and King to his private event at the Shabbat Museum.”
“Then you two decided to screw?” I heard myself say in a strange hurt tone.
“Sis,” Deedee scoffed. “It ain’t like it’s something we hadn’t done already, and you know that. The man is fine, always smells good, and besides, he was still heartbroken over you choosing Kingston over him. So, why not reap the benefits of a good fun time with him again? If I can help him and receive a little money because he sees you in me, then so what?”
My mouth dropped at the disrespect. How could she treat that man like that? How could she treat me like this? All I had ever done was love her while we were growing up, but the older I’d become, the more I could see just how selfish she really was.
“See . . . this is why we have our problems, and I just don’t understand it.” I slapped my hands on the arms of my chair. “When I kicked your low-life ass the first time you tried Kingston, I thought you’d get it in your head to stop trying me, but, bitch, I see you still got a lot of nerve in you.”
“Girl, get over yourself. I was drunk then.” Deedee flipped her hand in the air. “Don’t make this out to be a quarrel over some men, gal. Because this ain’t what that is. I really do care about Luciano.”
As I pushed up from my chair, my face contorted into a scowl. “Then why isn’t your ignorant ass there with him now, huh? Why run? Why hide and marry the town pedophile?”
“He was offer’n’ is why, and . . . I didn’t want Luciano to know. He still loves you, and I ain’t blind to that shit. Fun sex with him is one thing, but being locked in a marriage with a man that loves my sister . . .”
“Please. Now you get over yaself. Luciano is an honorable man. He may or may not love me, but I rememba him speaking about cha. Lovin’ that ya are an artist. Lovin’ that ya were carefree . . .” My heart ached to say these things, but they were true. Kingston was too deep in my heart for me ever to think about leaving him for Luciano. I had a problem with my heart. I wanted too much. Maybe that’s why my sister left me in this town so long ago. I was greedy.
“Hmm. Yet here you are, jealous ’bout me pulling that wealthy, sexy man.” Deedee laughed. “Or are ya worried ’cus he’s a big kingpin and you still want me away from that life?”
“Kiss my entire ass, Delores. All of it,” I spat out. “You never understood me. You left me here after lyin’ ’bout brangin’ me with ya, and then you turn into this otha person, hell-bent on hurting me. If you eva in your lowlife life eva throw in ma face about you being pregnant, I swear on our dead daddy’s and mama’s graves that I’ll bury you right next to them.”
I was breathing so hard that I looked like a dragon. I saw red. The heat in the house due to the weather, along with my anger, had me sweating. All I wanted to do was wrap my hands around Deedee’s throat right now. This wasn’t how she should be treating me, but here she was, being a crass-ass piece of trash.
“Did you call me down here just to gloat, Delores?” I needed to know. I wiped my brow. Snap still stood in between us as a buffer.
My sister pushed away from the wall and moved toward the kitchen. “You’re the only one left in the family who I knew could do what needs to be done. Lonnie is disgusting. He knew this baby wasn’t his, and he married me, anyway. Said he always wanted a Haynes girl.”
I felt sick. “Why, Deedee? This doesn’t make any sense,” I muttered.
“If Luciano’s enemies knew that he was about to be a father, we . . .” Deedee paused and laid a hand on her belly. “We’d become a liability. This was the best way that I could protect us, and that’s the full truth, Cece. I came back and hid. I thought I could keep Lonnie away from the girls since everyone here was too afraid to kill him, but I was being stupid. It was about hiding, nothing else, until he put his hands on our goddaughter. I couldn’t let that go.”
Tears of anger slipped down my face. My life felt flipped. I had always been the one
to protect Deedee, as if I were the elder sister. Now her choices were causing problems, and I had to clean it up.
“Where he at?” I muttered low.
Deedee quietly walked to the kitchen, then came back with a cold beer, two glasses, and a pitcher of ice water. I watched her pour the clear liquid in the glasses.
“He probably knows y’all in town. Probably relieved it ain’t Kingston. So, he’s hiding at the bar.”
I glanced at Snap, then wrapped my arms around myself. “We’ll let him stew, and tomorrow he’ll be handled. Then we’ll go. But before that, you need to reach out to Luciano. He’ll never forgive either of us if we hid his child. That man will protect you come hell or high water, and you know that I will.”
“Why? Because you love him?” Deedee just had to throw digs at me.
“No. Because I’m not selfish like you.” With that, I knocked over one of the glasses and walked past my sister. Stopping, I gave her a glare. “Don’t bother me. I need to think.”
After that, I stood in my old room, talking to Snap. “I want ya to rememba all of this, Snap. I loved my sister, but she’s always been the type to reach fa the stars an’ stand on whoever can get her there. It took me a long time to understand that in her an’ accept it.”
“Yes, ma’am, I will.” Snap sat my bags down, then took his hat off and held it in his hands. “Sometimes family can be broken so bad that all ya can do is let them be how they be. Ain’t nothing ya can do ’bout that.”
Staring at Snap, I sighed. “My heart has always been only for Kingston. He knows everything about Luciano . . . knows I had my trysts.”
“Mama . . . if you don’t mind, but don’t let your sista twist ya mind. That’s all I’m gonna say ’bout that. The rest ain’t my business. I’m just here to protect ya.”
