by K'wan
“Solomon, is what they’re saying true?” she asked but he remained silent. “Boy, you better tell me something before I reach in that cell and choke the shit outta you.”
He sucked his teeth. “Yeah, it’s true.”
Malika wanted to faint. “Solomon, for as many talks as we’ve had about the streets what would make you jump out the window and do something so stupid?”
“You!” he snapped. “Ma, day in and day out I watch you scrape and borrow to get through to the next day and it was killing me. Every guy you get with leaves you suffering and you gotta pick the pieces up and start all over again all by yourself. I just wanted to prove to you that I was a man and that I could do more for you than them suckas you keep falling for.”
Solomon’s words hit her like bricks. With all that was going on Malika had only thought about herself and how hard things were on her. She never once stopped to think of what it was doing to Solomon and hearing it from the horse’s mouth cut her deeply.
“Time is up, Ms.” a uniformed officer notified Malika.
“I’m gonna get you out of this I promise,” Malika told Solomon as she was escorted away. Malika was blinded by tears as she rushed through the precinct lobby toward the exit. Some of the officers who had overheard what was going on looked at her and shook their heads, but the desk sergeant felt sorry for her.
“I’m going on a break,” the sergeant said and came from behind the desk. When she got outside Malika was sitting on the precinct stairs sobbing. “Here you go.” The sergeant handed her a tissue.
“Thank you,” Malika said, dabbing her eyes. “I don’t know how this happened. I’ve done everything I could to be a good mother and it just seems like I’m not doing enough.”
“No matter how much we do it never does,” the sergeant told her. “We work our fingers to the bone to make sure our kids have the things we need and they still can’t get over not having the things they want. Some can fly straight on their own and others need a little coaxing.”
“Do you have kids too?”
“Yup, three boys, one girl, and a husband who is in his second childhood.” The sergeant laughed. “There are times when I wanna beat myself up for the things everybody else does, but I have to remind myself that it’s not me doing dumb shit it’s them. You can’t get nobody right until you get yourself right, and the first step is learning to love and appreciate you even when no one else does.”
“Those are some wise words,” Malika said.
“I’ve been around long enough to learn from trial and error, Malika.”
Malika’s head snapped up in surprise. “How did you know my name?”
“I know your name from when you showed me your ID, but I know your voice from my husband’s voice mail. I’m Dorian, Teddy’s wife.”
“Oh, my God.” Malika covered her mouth in embarrassment. “Dorian, let me explain. I never knew that Teddy was married. We—”
“No need to explain, Malika, because I am so past getting upset with Teddy and his wandering dick. While he’s out doing him you can believe that I’m out doing me. When you came in here and I made the connection I started to lose your son’s paperwork, but as I listened to what y’all were going through I felt bad.”
“Even though I had sex with your husband?”
Dorian nodded. “Malika, it’d be easy for me to be out here trying to put the beats on you for what you’ve done, but at the end of the day I didn’t take those vows with you, I took them with Teddy. You’re just a casualty of the sick little games he’s been playing for years. If you’re smart, you’ll leave him alone for good, but if you’re dumb you’ll keep getting roped into his apologies like I’ve been doing for the last few years.”
“If you know what kind of dude he is then why are you still with him?”
“Out of convenience, of course. Teddy is a low-down dog, but he’s got a healthy bank account and owns a few properties. One day I’ll wake up and leave him but for now I’m content to let him wonder while I slowly bleed his bank account dry. When he’s broke and on his last legs then I’ll kick his ass to the curb with the rest of the trash.” This got Malika to laugh. “Listen, clean yourself up and go get something to eat. By the time you come back I’ll have pulled some strings to have your son released to you with a date for y’all to go to family court. I probably can’t do anything about the charges he’s facing, but at least he can fight the case from the streets. Be strong because y’all are gonna need each other,” Dorian told her and started back up the stairs into the precinct.
“Why are you doing this for me?” Malika called after her.
Dorian thought long and hard on the answer. “Because I feel sorry for you, Malika. You think you’re a woman and you’re just another baby with a baby trying to make it in the world. Come back in a little while to pick up your son and don’t let me see either one of you again, because you’ve used up your last free pass.”
As promised Solomon was processed and ready to go by the time Malika made it back to the precinct. She was so happy to see him that all she could do was hug him and cry. She looked for Dorian to thank her, but she had gone for the night. The new desk sergeant said something about a family emergency that she had to deal with. Malika and Solomon had a long talk about life and his upcoming court case. They had a hard road ahead of them and they had to be on the same page to face it. Solomon seemed like his stay in a cell had possibly scared some sense into him but only time would tell.
When they got to their building there was a crowd of people gathered in front of it. The police had the whole area taped off and wouldn’t let anybody inside. On the ground there was a body covered in a bloody white sheet. Malika couldn’t see the face, but the corpse was wearing a familiar-looking sneaker. Near the front of the crowd she spotted Jada’s uncle Mookie and his partner Fish, whispering among each other.
“What happened?” Malika asked Mookie.
“The chickens have finally come home to roost.” Mookie nodded at the lobby. The police were bringing Scar and Lloyd out in handcuffs. Scar was still smirking like it was a game while Lloyd looked ready to cry. “Them boys they was shooting at earlier came back with some guns of their own and their aim was just a little bit better.”
“Where’s Jay?” Solomon asked frantically.
Mookie removed his do-rag and placed it over his heart. “I tried to tell him to find another game”—he looked down sadly at the bloody sheet—“but the young ones never listen.”
“NO!” Solomon collapsed into his mother’s arms and screamed over and over into her chest.
Malika tried to console him as best she could, but there was nothing she could do to soothe his grief. She was both saddened and relieved by the sight of Jay lying under that sheet. She was sad because he was a young man with so much potential who just happened to get caught up in Scar’s little game, but relieved because she knew that if the wind had blown the other way it would’ve been her kid under that sheet.
Chapter 38
Animal was numb when he finally made it back to his apartment. Chip had been blowing up his phone, but he didn’t feel like talking. All he wanted to do was crawl into Gucci’s waiting arms and grieve. When he opened the apartment door and saw all of his clothes shredded on the floor and Gucci’s bags by the door he knew his grieving would have to wait.
“What the fuck?” He looked around in shock. “Gucci, get your ass out here!”
“Fuck you, adulterer!” she screamed through the bathroom door.
“What the hell are you talking about? Open this damn door!” He banged on the bathroom door.
“I ain’t opening shit because I don’t wanna see your cheating ass face. My shit is packed and I’m going to stay with my mother.” From the rawness of her voice he knew she had been crying.
“Gucci, I don’t know what you’re talking about so why don’t you come out here so we can talk? I’ve had a bad night and I really ain’t up to arguing with you.”
“Looked like y
ou were having a good night to me the way you had them chicken heads all up on you at Code Red. Which one did you fuck, the big booty Spanish chick or the young-looking one that was dressed like a stripper? I seen it all!”
“You went to Code Red after I asked you not to?” He was surprised. Now her anger was starting to make sense. “Gucci, that shit ain’t what it looked like. I can explain it.”
“Explain it to your little bitch on 106th since that’s where you’ve been spending most of your time.”
Animal was confused. “Gucci, I don’t know any bitches on 106th.”
“You’re a liar because your car has been parked over there every day this week and don’t try to deny it because I had Jada watching ya dumb ass. Animal, I told you not to play with my heart and now you’re gonna see what it gets you.”
Animal felt his frustration mounting. He had gone through too much that night to have to come home and deal with some domestic shit. “Gucci, I’m tired of talking to you through the door.”
“Then stop talking and get the fuck away from me, nigga!”
“Gucci, baby . . .”
“Don’t baby me, Animal, because we’re past that shit. If you wanna go play with these tramp bitches then do that because I’m damn sure gonna find me a tramp nigga and let him play all in my mouth.”
Gucci’s threat pushed Animal over the edge and he started kicking the door. “Gucci, if you get out there and try to play me I’ll kill ya monkey ass!”
“You keep kicking the door and I bet I’ll call the police on you. Ain’t no telling what they’ll find if they run up in here. Go get all the pussy you want, Animal, because it’s a wrap for us.”
Animal was too hurt and too angry to keep arguing. “If that’s how you wanna play it then fuck you too, bitch!” He gave the door a kick for good measure.
He had been foolish to blindly trust Gucci when she couldn’t do the same. He had just lost someone as close to him as his brother Justice and she was too busy throwing accusations at him to be sympathetic. Animal took a minute to change his bloody shirt and headed for the door. On his way out his phone rang and it was Chip on the line. Animal hit the ignore button and tossed his phone on the bed before slamming the door viciously behind him.
Gucci listened for a while to make sure Animal had gone before coming out of the bathroom. Her makeup was a mess and her eyes were swollen for crying for so many hours. Jada had tried to get her to come home with her, but Gucci declined. She was going to deal with the issue between she and Animal while it was still fresh. It took everything she had not to come flying out of that bathroom and cutting Animal but she knew that she would get weak and end up taking him back after she looked into those passionate eyes. She knew she had been a fool for letting him into her heart the way she did and now she was suffering the consequences of her actions.
She noticed his cell phone on the bed and couldn’t help but to play the devil and go through it to see if he had gotten any new numbers at the club. To her surprise it rang as she was doing so. “What?”
“Oh, I’m sorry I was trying to reach Tayshawn,” the woman said on the other end.
“This is Animal’s phone. Who is this calling at booty call hours?” Gucci snapped.
“I’m sorry to be calling you at this hour and Lord knows I wish I didn’t have to. This is Maggie. I’m one of the nurses at the home where Ms. Hanna was staying.”
“Hanna?” Gucci asked, trying to match the name with one of the jump-offs in Animal’s phone.
“Yes, Hanna is one of our residents at the seniors home on 106th Street.”
“That wouldn’t be 106th and Columbus would it?” Gucci asked, feeling the knot forming in her stomach.
“Technically between Columbus and Amsterdam, but yes that’s the place. I’m sorry, who am I speaking to?” Ms. Brown asked.
“Gucci,” she said, starting to put the pieces of the puzzle together in her mind.
“Yes, he’s been telling us about you all week. You know we owe you an apology for cutting into your quality time while Animal is here visiting,” Ms. Brown joked, but Gucci didn’t laugh. She was too sick to see the humor. “Anyhow, the reason I called was to tell him that Hanna had passed this evening. I figured he should know since they were so close. Animal did more for Hanna than her blood kin.”
“I’m sorry to hear about Hanna and I’ll pass the message along to Tayshawn,” Gucci said numbly.
“Thank you, Gucci, and I look forward to meeting you real soon. Take care now.” Ms. Brown hung up.
Gucci let the phone slide to the bed as all she could do was sit there with a stupid expression on her face. She had no idea that Animal had been taking care of someone in a nursing home. It was yet another secret in his life he hadn’t seen fit to share with her yet. His visits to Hanna explained what he had been doing on 106th, but it still didn’t dispel what she had seen in the club.
The ringing phone brought Gucci out of her contemplation. She grabbed Animal’s phone thinking it was him, but it was actually hers. She didn’t recognize the number, but she picked up anyway in case it was Animal calling from someone else’s phone. They had to have a long talk before she made any rash decisions. “Hello?”
“Gucci, this is Chip. I’m sorry to wake you, but I’ve been calling Animal for over an hour and he ain’t picking up,” Chip told her in a panicked voice.
“He was here a few minutes ago, but we had a fight and he left his cell phone here. Is everything alright?”
“Nah, shit is fucked up. They found Mimi dead around the corner from the club. People saw them outside the club together, but Animal was nowhere to be found when the body was discovered.”
“Who was Mimi? One of his bitches?” Gucci asked.
“No, she was his niece.”
“What?” Gucci’s mouth dropped open. Chip went on to give her the short version of Animal and Mimi’s relationship and in the process Gucci was able to figure out that Mimi was the girl with the platinum hair she had seen him with.
“Gucci, you still there?” Chip’s voice came through.
“Yeah, I’m here.”
“Being that Animal pulled a disappearing act the police are starting to ask some real uncomfortable questions. We got some of the guys out combing the streets so hopefully we find him before they do. He knows we had a studio session tonight so me and Don B. are down here now hoping that he shows up.”
“Oh, my God. Oh, my God,” Gucci chanted, trying to gather something to put on. “Chip, I’ll be down there in about twenty minutes, please keep me posted if you hear anything.”
“You got it.” He ended the call.
Gucci felt like less than shit for the way she treated Animal. He was trying to come to her for help and she couldn’t see past her own jealousy to be there for him. Her sympathy suddenly turned to fear as she realized the seriousness of what had been set in motion. Animal was wandering the streets, drunk, emotional, and armed. Things had gone from bad to worse.
Don B. looked like he had seen a ghost when Animal came skulking out of the shadows. He looked weary, more so than Don B. had ever seen him. “Yo, kid, we’ve been looking all over for you, are you alright?” Don B. inspected him.
“I’m good, man. Just tired, real tired,” Animal said.
“Yo, I got some bad news for you, B., Mimi . . .”
“I already know,” Animal cut him off. “Rico’s boys laid her down right before I laid them down.”
“Rico did this? Yo, that’s my word I’m putting some paper on that nigga’s skull. It’s going down and that’s on Blood!” Don B. declared.
“Where the fuck you been?” Chip came flying out of the lobby of the building that housed the studio they were working in. He hugged his friend for a long time. “Man, we were all worried shitless about you.”
“Thanks, but ain’t no cause for it. You know the Animal is always gonna be alright.” Animal raised his shirt and showed them the butt of his gun.
“What the fuck are you doin
g with that when you’re in enough trouble as it is?” Don B. scolded him. “Give that hammer to Devil or one of them to hold for you.”
“The last time I trusted another nigga to guard my life I lost Mimi. Giving up my strap is a mistake that I won’t make twice,” Animal said coldly. As the three of them stood outside debating about the gun two cars pulled up. One was a black sedan and the other was Gucci’s truck.
“Animal, we need to talk!” she yelled out the window before the truck had come to a complete stop.
“Fuck does this broad want? She better not come over here on some bullshit cuz I might run up in her mouth the way I’m feeling,” Animal said with an attitude.
“Animal, don’t start no Ike Turner shit out here,” Don B. warned.
“Nephew, what it is?” Remo called from the passenger window of the dark sedan.
“This nigga here,” Don B. huffed. “What you want, man? We’re in the middle of a crisis.” Don B. threw his hands up in frustration and walked toward the car.
“I ain’t beat for this shit,” Animal said when Gucci stepped onto the curb.
“Animal, please don’t walk away. I just wanna talk.” Gucci approached. At the angles they were walking at she and Don B. reached the sedan’s line of vision at about the same time.
Gucci did a double take as she noticed suspect movement in the back of the car. It only took a split second for her eyes and her brain to connect to send the message to her mouth. “GUN!” she screamed.
The word seemed to drip from Gucci’s mouth, but by the time she finished it Animal was already barreling down on her. Don B. stood frozen with fear as the guy in the backseat started shooting. Animal ran past and knocked Gucci to the ground before turning his rage and gun on the sedan in a hail of bullets. He could hear people screaming and the sounds of bullets hitting metal but he kept firing. He didn’t care who they were or where they had come from, but he knew that he would not let them have Gucci.
