Fast Life

by Cassandra Carter

  “When are you leaving?”

  “Later tonight.”

  “When will you be back?”

  “Probably Sunday night. Deshawn’s funeral is on Tuesday.”

  “Oh.”

  “I’m keeping Bryce and Rick here again, just to let you know. So if you need anything, let them know. I need to be out, though. Fucking witchu done made me late.”

  He picked up the half-full duffel bag as he approached the doorway where Kyra stood. He leaned in for a kiss, but she turned away with a look of disgust. Makai looked her over with a cross stare before he stormed out of the house.

  It was Sunday, the day of Makai’s return home, and Kyra was bursting with energy. Tonight was it. Part two of the plan: the end, the getaway.

  Burning candles were the only light in the living room as she awaited his return. She had wanted to be gone before he was even back within the city limits, but her babysitters were staples outside the front door. She wasn’t going anywhere until they were gone, and they would only abandon their posts once Makai gave them the okay.

  She sipped the white Zinfandel from her flute. Makai would be home any minute now. She tapped her fingers against the glass out of her wearing patience.

  She peered out over the city. The beauty of the lights and the water beyond reminded her of why she loved Chicago. No matter where she went, her roots were here, and she could never deny that even if she tried. No matter where she ended up, she wouldn’t forget it. This was the place that had made her who she was. This was the place that had shaped her. This was the place that had offered her lesson after lesson in life.

  Kyra rested her hand on the wall-sized window and shut her eyes, sharing a private moment with the city. She slowly opened her eyes and turned to see Makai coming through the door. He dropped his duffel bag as soon as the door shut behind him. He slipped off his shoes and set his pistol on the foyer table.

  “How was your trip?”

  “Business as usual. We’ll be all right. How have you been? You haven’t missed me too much, have you?” he said sarcastically.

  “Oh, I’m good.”

  “That’s good, but hold that thought.” Makai lifted his heavy bag and began to climb the stairs. Kyra hadn’t anticipated him bringing a collection from one of his stash houses in the city as soon as he got home. He was headed right for the safe, and Kyra didn’t hesitate for a minute to slip out of the penthouse, adding his gun to her bounty.

  “Kyra!”

  She heard him yell her name from where she waited for the elevator in the hallway. Without thinking, she bolted down the stairwell until she reached the parking level.

  Meanwhile, Makai looked at his bare stash and was furious. He had had enough of Kyra’s games. Now she had crossed his line. No one robbed Makai Jackson and lived to tell the story.

  “Come scoop me from my crib now. She’s running,” Makai said to his partner in crime, Avon, on the phone. He was ready to go in seconds, re-dressed in all black, with a backup gun from his large collection hung on his hip, fully loaded. He was headed for the kitchen.

  CHAPTER 23

  Justin was in his bedroom of the hotel suite repacking his belongings. He moved with lightning speed as the thought of being with the woman he loved kept him on his toes. He wasn’t sure how much time he had left before she reached him.

  “What are you doing?” Michael said from the doorway. Natasha was right behind him with a light jacket wrapped around her waist. It was clear they were heading out.

  “I’m leaving.”

  “We don’t leave for another week.”

  “I know, and I’ll explain everything later. Kyra is going to be here any minute….”

  “Where are you two going?” his friend asked. He was somewhat aware of Kyra’s situation, but the specifics were still cloudy.

  “I don’t know,” Justin answered as he finished stuffing the rest of his clothes into his bag.

  “Well, what do you want me to do?”

  “Honestly, I would get home as soon as you can.”

  “Man, what the hell…” Michael spoke with frustration. He wasn’t prepared for the plan, but neither was Justin.

  “Look, Mike, I don’t have time to argue. Just know that I have to do this.” He looked his best friend in the eyes with a serious expression.

  “Ey, do what you got to do,” Michael replied without understanding.

  Why his friend seemed in such a rush to leave the city at this hour of the night, he couldn’t grasp. He was aware of Justin’s motivation on their trip up to Chicago, but why Justin and Kyra now wanted to flee he had no idea.

  “Look, I’ll be at Tasha’s. Call me if you need anything.”

  “Fa sho.”

  “Good luck, man. See you back home.”

  “A’ight, man.” Justin gave his friend dap and a hug before the two parted ways, unaware that it was the last time they would see each other.

  Makai flicked the butt of his cigar onto the lawn and straightened his jacket as he strolled up the pathway to the porch steps. Avon tapped on the door; neither replied to Natasha’s question of “Who is it?” from inside.

  Natasha opened the door to see her visitors and her body grew tense.

  “Kai.” Her greeting was plain and she barely made eye contact.

  “Tasha.”

  “Baby, who is it?” Michael asked, coming from behind her.

  “Nobody.” She spoke to Michael before turning her attention back to Makai. It was obvious that she was bothered by his presence. “What do you want?”

  “I need to talk to you right quick.”

  “I’m busy,” she replied. She didn’t want to be mixed up in anything else that involved him.

  “Well, get your ass unbusy, ho.” Avon flashed his gun in her face.

  Both Natasha and Michael froze in fear at the sight of the gun. Makai led Natasha out onto the lawn by the arm while Avon stayed behind with Michael.

  “What do you want?” Natasha’s voice was shaking as her eyes stayed glued on Michael and Avon, as well as the gun between them.

  “Where’s Kyra?” Makai demanded. His grip on her arm was getting tighter.

  “I don’t know…. Get off me.” She tried to jerk away but couldn’t free herself.

  “Don’t fucking lie to me, Tasha. I know you know,” he grunted as he jerked her by her arm.

  “Look, I don’t know shit.”

  “You don’t know shit, huh?”

  “No!”

  “Avon, she said she don’t know shit!” Makai yelled with a laugh to his partner.

  Avon then punched Michael in the stomach with all his might, knocking the wind out of him. Michael groaned as he grabbed his stomach.

  “Tasha, I know she told you where she was going.”

  “No, she didn’t! Thanks to you, me and her aren’t even friends anymore!” she partly lied.

  “Bullshit.”

  “It’s true!”

  “Avon, have fun.”

  With the signal from Makai, Avon started beating on a defenseless Michael while Natasha winced at every blow.

  Several neighbors emerged from their homes due to the racket but scampered back indoors at the sight of Makai.

  Natasha became vexed as she looked around at person after person shutting and locking their doors. No one even tried to help. They wouldn’t dare.

  Michael had enough of being hit and decided to strike back. His blow sent Avon staggering. Avon was quick to draw his gun and shove it in Michael’s face after recovering his balance.

  “No!” Natasha screamed as Makai grabbed her flailing body around her waist, holding her back as she stretched her hand toward Michael.

  “Tell me!”

  “I told you I don’t fucking know!”

  Avon cocked his gun. In the blink of an eye, he would more than willingly end the life of the man before him.

  “Okay…okay…I know where she is.”

  “Tasha, don’t tell them,” Michael groaned.
/>   “Nigga, shut up,” Avon grumbled as his pistol made contact with Michael’s head, silencing him.

  “She’s at the Sutton Hotel…. I’m not sure if she’s still there, though…. That’s where I last saw her…. I swear I don’t know anything else.”

  A flash of lightning and the sound of thunder filled the sky as Makai threw Natasha to the ground. She crawled over to Michael, who lay injured on her front lawn. She cradled him while her misty eyes watched the sleek car disappear down the road. As Michael rest in her lap, she sobbed for what she had done. She could feel the small drops fall then, not from her eyes but from the sky. A storm was coming.

  CHAPTER 24

  “God, I can’t believe it. This is really it.” Kyra smiled in exhilaration and pecked his lips.

  The elevator ride was an awkward and silent one as the jittery occupants stood and faced the sliding doors. They held hands for support until they reached the ground floor. By this time the following day, they were sure to be fast asleep in another state and worry free.

  Justin stepped out into the lobby with determination, and Kyra hustled to keep up with him. Her bags, filled with money, outweighed his by a great deal.

  The couple made small talk as they stood on the curb. The warm rain was something like a tropical mist as they stood in the elements to hail a cab to the airport.

  Kyra had just stepped into the street to better their chances of being picked up when she lost all concept of the world around her. There Makai stood, casually leaning against the hood of his Rover.

  “Shit!” She turned around to see Avon already behind her with a gun to Justin’s head. The surrounding onlookers looked mortified, and several shrieks could be heard as people scrambled for safety. The hoodlums were completely undaunted by the law. They were untouchable.

  “Going somewhere?”

  Her legs told her to run but her heart wouldn’t allow her to leave Justin behind.

  “Well, well, well, Ms. Kyra Jones. You have been a very bad girl,” Makai taunted her from where he now stood in front of her. “Is this your little lover boy here?” He waved his gun in the air.

  “Kai, please….” She pleaded for their lives.

  “Shut up!”

  “Just let us go.”

  “Shut up! Ain’t nobody goin’ nowhere until I have my goddamn money!” He now aimed his gun at her. She held her hands up in surrender.

  “Don’t shoot. It’s all there in my bag, under the clothes.”

  “You should’ve known better than to steal from me, Kyra.”

  She didn’t say anything as she saw him reclaim his profits. She stood powerlessly as he loaded the bags into the trunk of his car. She wasn’t going anywhere tonight.

  Makai stepped closer to Kyra and moved his lips as if he was about to say something when without warning, he struck Kyra across the face with the butt of the pistol, sending her crashing to the wet pavement.

  “Leave her alone!” Justin boldly hollered in Kyra’s defense from his vantage point at the other end of Avon’s gun. He was on fire as he watched her shift on the ground in pain. The street was empty and they were alone. Makai and Avon’s wild antics had sent everyone running. No sirens were heard. An entire city street was Makai’s playground.

  “And you! If anyone should be mad here it should be me! Not only have you been fucking my girl, but you mean to tellme you had the balls to rob me?” Makai was in Justin’s face in seconds.

  “He didn’t have anything to do with it,” Kyra confessed.

  “You, shut up!” Makai frowned at her as he watched Kyra hug the ground.

  “Yo, fuck you!”

  Makai turned and without a word punched Justin in the mouth. Avon and Makai started to pound on Justin’s body. They used anything they could to do damage—the butts of their guns, their hands and their feet. Justin did his best to fight off his attackers, but he was on the losing end of the beating.

  Kyra came to Justin’s aid and began to pound on Avon’s back, but he shrugged her off, sending her flying into a brick wall. Kyra couldn’t take Justin’s being hurt, let alone just sitting by and letting it happen. That was when she remembered the gun. She had to get to it, but it was in her car. It was their only hope of survival. If Makai won, both she and Justin would be dead. She was going to make a run for it.

  Kyra dashed from the sidewalk and a sprinted toward the parking lot across the street.

  “Get her!”

  Avon ran to Kyra, his Air Forces proving to be better suited for the situation than her heels. He snatched her up by her waist and lifted her from the ground. She tried to wriggle her way out of his grip and attempted to fight him off but was unsuccessful.

  She screamed for the heavens to hear her as he carried her closer to where Makai stood and farther from the gun. Tears of frustration fell from her eyes, mixing with the rain as Avon set her on the ground. He grabbed her arm and his gun touched her temple. Their fate had been sealed.

  “Look at your man now, baby girl. Isn’t he handsome?”

  Makai whispered his taunts in her ear as she painfully surveyed the damage to Justin, who looked away from her in shame. Makai then went to kiss her lips, purposely for her lover to witness. Her teeth bit through the flesh of his bottom lip as soon as she felt it on her own.

  “Bitch!” he raged as he slapped her, causing her head to turn and her cheek to sting.

  He laughed as he grabbed his bleeding lip and examined his fingers.

  “I’m gonna have some fun witchu. I thought you knew I liked that feisty shit.” He laughed again as he rubbed his bloodstained fingers together.

  “I hate you,” she grumbled as she glared at her old flame.

  “I know, I know. But the thing is…I don’t give a fuck.” Makai accepted her hatred with a chuckle.

  Kyra stood in the rain, her body shaking and shivering from the falling temperatures as she locked eyes with Justin, who was still on his knees on the ground. He was slowly recovering from the previous scuffle.

  “It’s sad it has to end like this. I really did love you, nah mean? The shit just got complicated,” Makai said as he glanced at Justin and then back at Kyra, taking notice of the gaze she fixed on the one who held her heart. “Ey, Avon, should I let her see him die?” Makai coldly asked his main man.

  “Hell yeah.” Avon pushed his weapon closer to Kyra’s face.

  Makai turned from Kyra and rushed up to Justin, kneeing him in his chest.

  “Come on, get up. Fight me, bitch,” he provoked Justin as he listened to Kyra’s screaming in the background.

  Justin’s eyes grew dark as he looked at Makai towering above him. His anger was immeasurable, and using that energy, he caught his adversary off guard with a concentrated push that sent him to the ground.

  “Oh shit. This nigga got heart,” Makai chuckled as he lay on the wet ground.

  Avon’s body flinched at Makai’s landing. He was ready to jump in.

  “It’s cool. I got this. Here, hold this for me.” Makai handed his gun over to his accomplice. He wanted Justin for himself.

  He stood up and faced Justin, who now was in a firm fighting stance. He was ready. Makai threw several jabs to his body, and Justin wasted no time in throwing fists back. Their fists were flying so rapidly it was difficult to tell where each punch came from before it hit its target. Kyra almost forgot to breathe as she watched the scene unfold. It was Justin and Makai, one on one.

  Justin moved with ferocity in the rain. His fists slammed swiftly into Makai’s body, one blow after the other. He moved so quickly that by the time Makai could register that he’d been hit once, he was struck again.

  Makai lost his balance and Justin pounced on him, tackling him to the ground and pinning him beneath his weight. He wrapped his hands around Makai’s neck and began to squeeze. Kyra felt her heart in her chest as she watched Makai squirm under Justin’s body, gasping for air and beating at his attacker’s hands. He had no effect on Justin’s grip.

  “Get up!” A
von hollered as he cocked his gun and aimed it at Justin.

  The noise of the gun caught Justin’s attention for a second, causing him to look away from Makai and be caught off guard by Makai’s backup knife, which he kept in his back pocket, as it was thrust deep into his abdomen.

  He fell back. His death grip around Makai’s neck was now gone and his hand held his wound.

  “Hand me my shit!” Makai raged as he held his hand out to catch his firearm. “I’m finna kill this nigga,” he growled as he put his gun to the side of Justin’s head and cocked the weapon. He was prepared to fire, his embarrassment fuel for his anger.

  “No, Kai! Stop! Stop! Makai, please!” Kyra wailed as she once again tried to fight her way out of Avon’s grip.

  A sudden roar of laughter and applause emanated from the darkness.

  “Reggie?” Makai queried through squinted eyes. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. He had assumed his rival was dead.

  “Makai, Makai, Ma-fucking-kai,” Reggie shot back as he stopped where he stood, Curtis standing to his left. “Damn, partna, I see you ready to take another life tonight, huh? You’re good at that. I should know. After all, you killed my daughter,” Reggie continued. As he spoke, he ran his fingers over the barrel of his gun, toying with it.

  “Nigga, fuck you and your mothafuckin’ daughter! You killed De!” Makai hollered. He was enraged to see his enemy in the flesh, alive and well. He quickly turned his gun on Reggie and fired several shots in his direction. Avon threw Kyra to the ground as he joined the fight. She lay on the ground covering her head as she heard the four enemies open fire on each other. The barrage of bullets discharged from their chambers was deafening.

  Kyra lifted her head just enough to see what was going on around her. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. She saw Curtis hiding behind an old car parked on the side of the road. Every so often he would peek around the side and shoot at Avon, but he was eventually silenced by Avon’s aim with a bullet between the eyes.

  Reggie used Makai’s own Range Rover against him by opening a door and using it as a shield while he emptied his clip. Avon and Makai stood out in the open and fired without fear, both aiming to kill Reggie, and doing so faster than anticipated. His body slumped to the ground behind the bullet-riddled door, and they knew that this time for sure their job had been done.