Eve

by K'wan

  “What’s up, Felon?” he asked with a smile.

  Felon returned his smile, then hit him with both barrels of Butter’s shotgun.

  Carlo shrieked as Evelyn caught him with an elbow to the nose. He tried to swing, but she countered and dazed him with a left hook. When the first bodyguard tried to get up, she plunged the knife into his cheek. The man clutched at the utensil, but the blood squirting from the wound made it hard to grip. He fell backward, knocking Franko to the floor.

  Evelyn had managed to retrieve her pistol from her purse when Sal put her in a choke hold. She tried to knock him off but lost her footing in a puddle of blood. The momentum caused Sal to release her or risk falling himself, but it also put her on her back and her gun under a table. As she looked up at the faces of her enemies, all hope fled.

  She knew there was a possibility of the hit going wrong, but in the wake of her impending death it became very real. She had come so close to avenging her loved ones only to fail. Just as Sal was reaching for her, the front doors to the restaurant exploded.

  Felon stepped through the shattered glass doors, holding the smoking shotgun. Blood coated his face, and murder lurked in his eyes. Sal turned from Eve to the new threat, but he was too late. A hail of buckshot hit him in the back and sent him skidding across the floor.

  Carlo tried to make a run for it, but Eve tripped him up. He tried to scramble away, but the floor was slick with blood and food. Eve managed to grab hold of his hair and yanked him back, then gave him a sharp knee to the ribs and flipped him over on his back. She channeled all of her rage and hurt into her fist as she bashed his face bloody.

  By now, the second bodyguard had managed to draw his gun and opened fire on the man wielding the shotgun. Innocent diners took stray bullets and buckshots trying to get clear of the gunfight. Felon dove for cover behind the table that was closest to the kitchen entrance where he crouched and reloaded the gun for another attack.

  He cursed silently for underestimating Eve. He not expected her to be in the restaurant when he made his hit. He thought that if he moved quickly, he could have it out with Carlo before she put the last phase of her plan into motion. Now she was smack dead in the middle of the bullshit he was trying to protect her from. What had begun as a suicide mission had turned into a rescue.

  Felon prepared for his next assault. Eve had Carlo tied up, so all he had to worry about was Franko and the remaining bodyguard. Just as he stood to let off a blast, pain shot through his back. Felon’s left arm instantly went numb, causing him to loose his grip on the shotgun. He turned around and found himself confronted with the waiter holding a bloody kitchen knife.

  Carlo lay on the floor almost unconscious from Eve’s beating. She spared a glance over her shoulder to see how Felon was faring. Of all the scenarios Eve had played out in her mind, Felon bursting through the doors like some wild cowboy wasn’t one of them. She didn’t know whether to kiss him for saving her or kick his ass for crashing her party.

  Felon found himself in a bad way. On one side of him was the bodyguard trying to get a bead with his pistol, and on the other the waiter slashed at him with the kitchen knife. He fended the blows off as best he could, but his useless left arm made it difficult. He had to gain the advantage so he could help Eve.

  The waiter lunged at Felon, giving him the advantage he needed. He stepped to the side and flipped his shotgun around. Using the rifle like a club, he brought it around and bashed in the back of the waiter’s skull. The man crumbled at his feet and blood pooled out around his body. Felon dropped the shotgun and pulled his nine from his waistband. He turned around just in time to see the muzzle flash of the bodyguard’s gun.

  “Noooooo!” Eve shrieked. The bullet struck Felon in the chest and sent him crashing into a table. He tried to get up but didn’t have the strength. He lay on the floor gasping, but he was still alive. The bodyguard advanced on him with the intention of finishing the job.

  Eve couldn’t allow it. She had lost everyone else she cared about to the mob and she refused to let them add Felon to that number. Completely forgetting about Carlo, she got to her feet and rushed to help Felon. She had only made it a few feet when a mammoth hand grabbed her by the hair.

  “You fucking bitch!” Franko snarled. “I thought I had killed you with your nigger-loving father, but I guess you survived. It doesn’t matter though. I’m gonna finish the job today.” Franko slammed his fist into Eve’s face, breaking her nose. She almost blacked out, but the pain of his holding her up by the hair wouldn’t let her. Franko rained blows onto her face, sending blood and spit flying everywhere.

  As much pain as she was in, all she could think about was the bodyguard who was now leaning down to slit Felon’s throat. Franko tossed her around like a rag doll, kicking her viciously every time she tried to go down. Eve’s vision lost and regained focus at least a dozen times during the beating. She saw Franko pull a small handgun from his pocket, but didn’t have the strength to do anything about it. At least if she had to die, it would be with Felon.

  Felon lay on the floor, fighting to stay conscious. He had lost all feeling in his arm, but his chest burned terribly. He managed to move his head enough to see Franko beating the hell out of Eve. He tried to call out to her, but he had no voice. He knew she was going to die, but there was nothing he could do about it. As his eyes closed on the bodyguard approaching him, all he could do was hope that he died first so he wouldn’t have to watch her suffer.

  The bodyguard approached Felon with a hard look on his face. Slowly he unsheathed a butterfly knife and flicked the blade out. He smiled triumphantly as he leaned in to finish Felon off. Suddenly he paused to investigate a humming sound coming from the doorway.

  Uncle Bobby’s wheelchair came rumbling over the broken glass that was once the entrance of Poppa Frank’s. The bodyguard tried to raise his pistol in defense, but he was a little too slow. He managed to get a shot off, but not before Bobby speared him with the bayonet that was attached to the end of his army-issue machine gun. A wicked grin crossed his face as the man shook once, then died.

  “What the fuck is this?” a shocked Franko asked.

  “Payback, muthafucka!” Bobby shouted as he squeezed the trigger.

  Eve rolled out of the way just as the first shots hit Franko. The mob captain whipped back and forth as lead entered and exited his body. It seemed like an eternity before the shooting finally stopped. When the smoke cleared, Franko lay on his side, with blood leaking out of at least a dozen holes. His cold eyes stared into space as the life drained from his body.

  Eve crawled from her hiding place under the table to assess the damage. Carlo had managed to slip out at some point, but with his father not being around to protect him, it was only a matter of time before he managed to piss off someone else. Cassidy’s killer had escaped, but Eve had finally managed to lay her family’s demons to rest. Franko lay on the ground with holes decorating his face, chest, and legs. Eve spat on his body before rushing to Felon’s side.

  “Oh, baby,” she sobbed, “hold on, we’re gonna get you some help.”

  “No,” Felon croaked. “Too late for me.”

  “That’s bullshit and you know it!” She screamed. “You better not die on me.”

  “Eve.” He took her hand, “I love you, ma…. If I had it to do over again…I’d have told you sooner.”

  “I love you too!” she cried. “Now don’t try to talk. We’re gonna get you to a hospital.”

  “You gotta go,” he said, his voice raspy. “You gotta go.”

  “Felon, I won’t leave you here. You hear me!”

  “Too late.” He coughed out a mouth full of blood. “Please…go.”

  Eve continued to kneel by Felon’s side, shaking him. His loving eyes took in her measure one last time before they glazed over. Felon was gone.

  “How did you know?” she asked her uncle, without looking up at him.

  “You’re my blood,” he said, his expression sober. “I knew you couldn’
t let this debt rest no more than I could. I wish you had come to me.”

  She broke down crying. “I’m sorry, Uncle Bobby.”

  “You quit that crying.” He helped her to her feet. “The police will be here soon. Somebody is gonna fry behind this shit here. You gotta get outta here, Eve.”

  “What about you?”

  “Don’t worry about your uncle.” He tossed the machine gun aside. “I should’ve been dead years ago. The only reason I hung around this long was to try and raise you right and settle up with Franko. It’s done now, baby. Your parents can rest.”

  Eve hugged her uncle tightly as they both cried freely. All those years she thought he was just a bitter old man, but Bobby had his demons too. Eve wiped her eyes and kissed her uncle’s forehead. She wanted to say something, but he pushed her away. Eve took one last look at the last what remained of her life and fled into the night.

  The police stormed Poppa Frank’s and were in total shock at what they saw. There were several bodies lying about, but the most astonishing was that of Franko De Nardi. Uncle Bobby confessed to the murders, but the police had a hard time buying it. They couldn’t see how an old man in a wheelchair had managed to murder a mob capo and his bodyguards. Like it or not, that was the story he gave them. Bobby would spend the rest of his days behind bars, but it was a small price to pay for his niece’s freedom.

  Bittersweet

  It had been three months since the murder of Franko De Nardi and his bodyguards. The mob had been trying to locate Carlo to find out what really happened, but he decided he wasn’t ready to talk yet. Maybe they would buy his story, maybe they wouldn’t. He figured, why risk it? He began traveling from city to city to stay one step ahead of his pursuers. His port this month was Philly.

  The weather had begun to change, so he decided to pick up a few fall items from the mall. He strode down Market Street, carrying his bags, smoking a cigarette. Carlo had made it all the way to his car when he felt someone behind him. He tried to turn around, but the wire had already been looped over his head. The more he struggled, the tighter the noose became. After a few minutes his body dropped limp to the sidewalk.

  “Eve sends her regards,” Bullet whispered. He spat on Carlo’s body and disappeared into the night.

  Somewhere in Monaco:

  Beast drew quite a few odd stares as he stepped off the small boat. Fisherman as well as merchants stared curiously at the giant as he made his way through the port. He pulled a stack of postcards from his backpack and read the top one again. “You’ve always got a friend,” is what it read. He had been receiving the cards and small sums of money regularly for the last month or so. The only return address he could find was that of a small post office in Monaco. When his curiosity couldn’t take it any longer, he decided to investigate.

  As he lumbered down the boardwalk, he noticed a woman staring at him. She had a short black Afro and her eyes were hidden behind a pair of dimestore sunglasses. When Beast returned her stare, she only smiled. When he was within feet of her, she removed the glasses.

  “Eve!” he squealed. Beast charged down the gangway, scaring quite a few people. When he reached Eve, he lifted her over his head. “How’d you get here?”

  “It’s a long story.” She chuckled. Before Eve had left the city, she decided to see what was behind the door that the little key opened. Inside the locker was Felon’s driver’s license and birth certificate. In addition to his identification, there was a large duffel bag. It was wedged in so tight that Eve ripped the bag trying to pull it from the small locker. Sticking out of the bag was a large stack of money. She peeped into the bag and saw that the stack had a lot of company. There was almost two hundred and fifty thousand dollars in the bag. Eve sent a hundred thousand to Felon’s mother and vanished with the rest.

  “Eve, I thought you had left me forever!” he shouted.

  “I told you, we’d always be there for you.” She smiled. Their touching reunion was broken up by a small pug nipping at Beast’s ankles.

  “What’s that?” Beast put Eve down to examine the creature.

  “It’s a dog, silly.” She scooped up the pug.

  “Looks like a pig or something.” He scratched his head. The dog let out a high-pitched bark in response.

  “Her name is Cassidy. She lives with me.”

  “You live here?” Beast asked.

  “Yes. And you can too, if you want.”

  “I don’t know, Eve. This place is pretty, but I don’t know nothing about it. What happens if you have to leave me again?”

  “You don’t have to worry about that.” She patted his cheek. “I think I’ll be staying for a while. Evelyn Panelli is tired of running.”

  Other Titles by K’wan

  Gangsta

  Road Dawgz

  Street Dreams

  Hoodlum

  Anthologies

  The Game

  EVE. Copyright © 2006 by K’wan Foye. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.

  www.stmartins.com

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Foye, K’wan

  Eve / K’wan Foye.—1st ed.

  p. cm.

  ISBN: 978-0-312-33310-2

  1. Women ex-convicts—Fiction. 2. Harlem (New York, N.Y.)—Fiction. 3. Street life—Fiction. 4. Gangs—Fiction. 5. Drug traffic—Fiction. I. Title.

  PS3606.O96E94 2006

  813'.6—dc22

  2005045646