by Carl Weber
Vinnie looked into the rearview mirror and spoke to him. “The Duncans are bad people, son. Very bad people who want me dead. But don’t worry. Daddy isn’t going to let that happen.”
“Is this because you’re white, Daddy?”
At first it looked like Vinnie wanted to say yes, but one look at me and he shook his head. “No, this is because I’m a Dash.”
“I’m a Dash. Does this mean they want to kill me too?”
I turned to see a look of fear on my son’s face, which Vinnie did nothing to soothe.
“Yes, they want to kill all of us,” Vinnie told him, “but I’m not going to let them. I promise you that, son.”
“Vincent, no one wants to kill you. You’re safe. Why don’t you play a game on your tablet?” I suggested. He reached over into his backpack and took out the iPad he loved. Just like that, he forgot about being scared as he became engrossed in a game.
“Why would you tell him dat?” I whispered.
“He needs to know what’s going on,” Vinnie said.
I shook my head. “So, where are we going now?”
He wouldn’t look at me. “We’re going back home to Kingston.”
“Kingston? I told you I don’t want to raise my son in Kingston. Dat’s why we had de house built in Negril.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t take that chance with our safety. Now, I don’t wanna argue about this anymore.”
“But what about our clothes, Vinnie? Vincent’s toys and our other tings?” I asked.
“We’ll buy new clothes; he’ll get new toys. We can send for anything else we need. We can’t go back there. It’s not safe.”
“I don’t tink—”
“Do you still love him? Is that what this is all about? Do you still love Orlando?”
The question was straight to the point, and I knew any delay in my response would affect the credibility of my next statement, so I didn’t hesitate, shaking my head vigorously.
“No! He killed my brother.... He killed everyone we both cared about.” I turned to face him. “No, I do not love him. I love my husband.”
My heart began racing as I waited for Vinnie’s reaction. I was relieved when he reached over and gently touched my leg. I knew that he was satisfied with my answer. I was also glad that he was so focused on the highway that he didn’t see the confused expression that sneakily found its way to my face.
At least I don’t think I do.
Chippy
5
“Please, please, don’t kill my children.”
I saw the tears running down NeeNee’s face and heard the seriousness in her tone, but for the life of me, I couldn’t fathom why she thought my husband would do something so horrible. The scowl on LC’s face told me he was surprised and probably a little hurt by her words—so much so that he hadn’t even opened his mouth to respond.
“NeeNee, what the hell is all this about? You know LC. He would never hurt your children! Hell, your children are our family.” LC might have been stunned silent, but I sure as hell wasn’t. If he wasn’t going to rebuke her comments, then I would, and I’d make sure she understood how irritated I was.
NeeNee swayed her head back and forth, looking very seriously at LC and me. “You say that now, Chippy, but once you’ve heard what’s going on, I’m not so sure you’ll be of the same state of mind. Then we’ll see how much you consider my children your family.”
I still didn’t know what she was talking about, but the conviction in her voice had me worried. I glanced over at LC, who shared my look of apprehension. We’d known NeeNee almost forty years, so there was no doubt in my mind that she thought she had a good reason to come all the way from Waycross, Georgia. I just prayed it was a lot less than the drama she’d been building.
LC slid his hand over his hair then took a sip of his coffee to clear his throat. “Well then, sister-in-law, why don’t you tell us this earth-shattering news and just why you’re here? ’Cause we’re all on the edge of our seats.”
“Yeah, why don’t I do that?” She pointed at LC’s coffee cup. “And in the meantime, can you have one of the kids pour me a cup of coffee and get the little ones out of here? This is gonna be a grown folks’ conversation.”
“I got it, Aunt Chippy,” Sasha replied, heading for the pot of coffee.
I turned to London and Paris. “You two take your children outside while we sort this out.”
London did exactly as I told her to, but Paris didn’t budge. “I wanna hear what Aunt NeeNee has to say,” Paris stated.
I did not have the patience for her, so I turned to LC and said, “Speak to your daughter.”
It didn’t take but a look from him before she scooped up Jordan, following behind London with a scowl on her face. I tried my best to ignore her, making a mental note to address her disrespect once things with NeeNee calmed down. I turned my attention back to NeeNee, who was now sipping her coffee.
“What’s going on, Nee?” LC asked. He was now flanked on his other side by Vegas, who stood there with his arms folded.
As she sipped her coffee again, NeeNee scanned the room, making eye contact with everyone present. She made sure she had our undivided attention before she spoke. “I don’t even know how to tell you this, LC, but Larry’s back.”
There was a silent scream in the room, and I have to admit my knees buckled to the point Orlando had to help me into a chair. There was some combination of shock and dread on everyone’s faces.
Larry Duncan was LC’s older brother and a homicidal maniac. He was, without question, the closest thing to Charles Manson that I’d ever met. However, what really scared me about him was that he was also the only man who could put fear in my husband’s heart.
“What do you mean, he’s back?” Vegas snapped angrily. Like most of my kids, Vegas was well aware of what his uncle Larry was capable of, and unfortunately, a witness to his instability.
“He just showed up at the house a few months ago,” NeeNee said, sounding either weary or sorrowful; but at that moment, it didn’t matter to me which it was, because I was coming to an uneasy realization.
“Nee, he’s been back for months and you never said a word?” I stared at her in disbelief. We talked almost every week, sometimes two or three times a week. “How come you never told me?”
“’Cause I love him, Chippy. He’s my husband, the only man I’ve ever loved. If I had told you, you would have told LC. Then he and your boys would have come down to Waycross and got him, or worse, killed him.”
“Aunt NeeNee, we understand you love Uncle Larry, but he’s a very sick man. He needs to be under a doctor’s care,” Vegas reasoned, kneeling down and taking her hand.
“She doesn’t understand what he’s capable of, Vegas,” I said.
“I know exactly what he’s capable of, Chippy. He’s my husband. I know his dark side better than any of you. I’m not stupid, despite what you think!” She raised her voice for the first time. “I would never release an ill Larry on the world.” Tears were beginning to well up in her eyes again. “When Larry knocked on my door six months ago, he wasn’t sick. He was himself. I swear, he was my Larry again.”
“How can you be so sure of that, Nee? You’re not a doctor,” I said skeptically.
“No, I’m not, but Larry was seeing a doctor, and I went to CVS and filled the prescription myself. He was doing good, too, spending time with the boys, taking them huntin’ and fishin’. We were a family again, Chippy, just like yours.”
“So, what happened? What changed things?” LC finally spoke up.
NeeNee looked up in LC’s face, and tears began to roll down her cheeks. “About three weeks ago on her birthday, he started to visit your mother, and last week he started taking the boys with him.”
The kids shook their heads and exchanged glances, while LC started mumbling to himself.
“Hey, y’all, this is some serious shit. Let’s try and stay focused,” Vegas commanded. “So, where is Uncle Larry now, Aunt NeeNee?”
“Two days ago, I woke up to an empty house and a note that said the four of them were going to reclaim what was rightfully theirs by any means necessary. They took every gun and round of ammunition in the house,” NeeNee replied warily, lowering her head. “I assumed they were headed here.”
“Uh-oh, that can’t be good for us.” My son Rio said what everyone else was thinking.
“No, it’s not, and neither is this.” NeeNee held up a medicine bottle, which Orlando took from her and began examining. “I found it in the bathroom trash. He’s off his meds.”
Orlando sighed heavily. “I’ve got news for you, Aunt NeeNee. If these are what he’s been taking the past few months, he was never on antipsychotic medication. These pills are generic Crestor used to control high cholesterol, not mental illness. I think he duped you.”
“Shit!” Vegas cursed. “Orlando, call the psych hospital and find out when and why he was released.”
“There’s no need for that, Orlando. He’s been out about six months,” LC said calmly.
“Six months?” I repeated. All eyes were now on my husband. “How do you know that?” I asked, totally unprepared for his answer.
“Because it was about six months ago that Larry shot me.”
Larry
6
“Pass me those potatoes and one of those biscuits,” I said, piling two pieces of fried chicken on my plate. My oldest son, Curtis, or Curt as I called him, was so busy stuffing his face that he didn’t move. His younger brother, Kenny, was the one who put his fork down and passed me the container of mashed potatoes and then one of the brown biscuits out of the box. “This Popeye’s chicken ain’t half bad.”
“It’s all right, but it ain’t as good as Ma’s,” Curtis replied.
“Ain’t nobody’s chicken as good as my Nee’s chicken, but it’s damn sure better than that rubber shit they served me in that hellhole of a hospital your uncle had me locked up in.”
“Well, you’re not there anymore, son, and that’s all that counts.” My mother, Bettie, placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder then sat down next to me. She nudged me, glancing across the table at my youngest son, who hadn’t touched his food and had been a little more quiet than normal.
I put down the chicken breast I was eating and asked, “What’s your problem?”
Kenny looked over at Curtis, who kept on eating, and then realized he was the one I was talking to. “Uh, no–nothing.”
“Don’t lie to me, boy. You’ve barely said two words since we got back this evening.”
“I don’t have no problem,” he said, picking at the food on his plate.
“You sure?” I pressed.
“Yeah, I’m sure. But I do have a couple of questions.”
“Oh, Lord. Here we go with that fifty thousand questions shit again,” Momma said with a sigh as she fell back in her chair dramatically. “I bet you LC’s kids don’t ask him fifty thousand questions. I bet they do what they’re told and shut the fuck up.”
It was then that Curtis finally stopped chewing. We looked at one another, then turned our attention to Kenny.
“What is it?” I sat back and waited for him to say whatever was on his mind.
He hesitated and then asked me, “Did you have to kill that guy? Was that really necessary?”
“Are you fucking kidding me? That guy had to die.” He was starting to aggravate me.
“Why? We just paid him fifty fucking grand. He wasn’t gonna say nothing,” Kenny replied in an elevated voice.
“Boy, don’t you raise your voice at me.”
“Kenny, the guy was an informant,” Curtis cut in, trying to defuse the situation. “He’ll give anyone information for money. Last thing we need is for LC and his folks to know what we’re planning. Dad’s right. He had to be eliminated.”
“I disagree. Whatever happened to the honor amongst thieves you always preached to me, Curtis? Mommy told me that half the reason LC is where he’s at is because he’s got loyal folks behind him.”
“That’s bullshit! The reason LC has what he has is because I killed everyone standing in his fucking way, and what did I get for it?” I stood straight up, but Momma pulled me back in my chair. “I’ll tell you. I got fourteen years in the nut house.”
“Dad, we can’t keep killing everyone we encounter. I’m not going to do it!” He folded his arms defiantly like it was the last word.
A slow smile spread across my face, and then I began to laugh. It was a deep, hearty laugh that came from my belly and shook my body so hard that I banged on the table. Momma and Curtis started laughing just as hard. Kenny just stared at us like we were crazy. For some reason, that made me laugh even harder. Then I just stopped laughing abruptly, leaned over the table, and smacked the shit out of him.
“You do what the fuck I tell you to do.” I sat back down, and my mother gave me a reassuring pat on the back. “So what, he’s dead? There’s going to be a lot more people dead when this is all said and done. You wanna be a pacifist, go find LC and join his merry bunch of faggots.”
“I told you his ass was soft as cotton. He’s been sitting home sucking NeeNee’s tit the whole time you been gone. I don’t know why we brought his ass with us in the first place,” Momma said. I cut my eyes at her then turned my attention back to the table.
“Well, Kenny, is it true? Should I have left you home with your momma?” I smiled at Kenny, who looked at me strangely, then at his brother. Curtis looked down at the table like he was avoiding eye contact.
“No, I belong here just as much as Curtis. I was just wondering, that’s all,” Kenny said, shaking his head.
“You said you had a couple of questions. What else you need to know?”
“Nothing. Never mind.”
I backed off a little. “Look, I’m sorry for slapping you, but we might as well get everything out in the open and on the table now.”
“I just want to know what the end game is. Ever since you got back, you’ve been preaching that family is everything. Well, Uncle LC is your brother. Ain’t he family?” Kenny asked.
“Yeah, but he’s the worst kind of family.”
“Why is that?”
“Okay, let me see if I can explain.” I glanced over at my mother, and she nodded her approval. “Who is the one person you love more than anyone in the world?”
“Ma,” he said without hesitation.
“As you should. There’s nothing like a mother’s love. I feel the same way about your grandmother.” I glanced over at her, and she smiled. “And then who?”
He frowned then mumbled, “Probably Curtis, and then you.”
“Okay, that makes sense. Your immediate family comes first, and hopefully one day you’ll find a woman to marry and love her too.” Kenny was paying attention, but he still looked confused. “And hopefully the two of you will have kids that you will love like your mother and I love you boys.”
I stared at my son, looking just like his momma. He not only had his mother’s dimpled smile and nurturing spirit, but he also had her intellect. He liked to think things through. It was something that I appreciated, and I knew it would come in handy with my plans. What I didn’t appreciate was him questioning my motives or my actions. I had a method to my madness, at least I wanted to think so, and I needed him to trust me. It was okay for the world to think I was crazy, but not my kids.
“Now, imagine if Curtis, the brother you love and work with every day, took that all away from you. In the blink of an eye, he snatched your mother, your wife, and your children, all to fill his pockets with money.” I was sure my voice was starting to sound a little intense, but this was a topic that filled me with rage every time I remembered what LC had done to me. “Imagine him locking you away in a damn psychiatric hospital and telling them to throw away the fucking key.”
Curtis stepped in to explain, probably because he could see how worked up I was getting. “Kenny, listen. Uncle LC was the one who had Dad locked up in that dungeon all those years. Shit,
he destroyed our family. Momma had to fend for herself and take care of us. Who does that to his own brother and his nephews?” Curtis asked. “What if I did that to you? What would you do to me?”
“Don’t get me wrong, Kenny,” I said when I’d calmed down enough to speak again. “I’m not perfect. Matter of fact, I’m far from it. Vietnam fucked me up, but I didn’t deserve this, and neither did my family. Hell, ask your mother. I didn’t even wanna move to New York, but LC, Lou, and I had built a dynasty, and my family has been cheated out of it.”
Kenny remained silent. I got up from the table without finishing my meal and sat on the small sofa. I picked up my gun and began cleaning it as I thought about my brothers. At one point, all three of us were so close. If it wasn’t for me and Lou, who had bought LC his first service station back in Waycross, he would probably be sitting behind a desk in a bank somewhere, working for someone else. Duncan Motors was a product of a whole lot of blood, sweat, and tears, and not just his, either. After everything I had done to aid him in his success, LC had me locked up like some wild animal. And that wasn’t the only thing he had done. Now, it was time for him to be dealt with.
“Boys, I’m not forcing either of you to take this journey with me. If you can’t understand that our family honor is at stake by now, then I’m never going to convince you. This is not about the Duncans as a whole. This is about LC and his family, and me and mine. I’m not gonna lie; my intentions are to hurt LC as bad as he hurt me. I tried to kill him, but the son of a bitch won’t die. So, I’m going to do something far worse. I’m going to take away the thing that means the most to him.”
Suddenly, Kenny walked over and picked up his gun. I frowned, wondering what the hell he was about to do. To my surprise, he sat down next to me and began cleaning it. “Don’t worry, Dad. We are going to handle LC and his family. Nobody fucks with our family honor.”
“Well, I’ll be damned.” My mother smiled from her seat at the table. “I guess we gonna make this boy a Duncan man after all.”
“Yes, indeed,” I said, nodding my head. I had never been more proud of my son than I was at that moment.
