A Hustler's Son 2 (The Cartel Publications Presents)

by Styles, T.

  “But…,” her voice trailed.

  “You wanna die?”

  “No…but…why kill me?” she asked pointin’ at herself. She looked confused. Like she couldn’t find the logic.

  “Yes. Kill you,” I pointed back at her. “And you have to move, too.”

  “But why?” she persisted.

  “It’s all a game to them, O. They don’t give a fuck ‘bout you, my moms, or nobody else!”

  “Your moms?”

  I made a mistake and was angry at myself.

  “I mean…they don’t give a fuck ‘bout nobody. Trust me, I know.”

  “Aven…this is too quick, where am I gonna go?” she asked lookin’ ‘round the crowded restaurant. I think she was worried somebody was gonna walk up and shoot her right there.

  “Nobody’s gonna hurt you while I’m here, O. You good. Relax.” She dropped her head and shook it.

  I felt fucked up for puttin’ her in this predicament, but I needed her to do what I wanted done. My part of the plan worked. I was in. A part of me started to believe she was ungrateful. She should be happy I wasn’t gonna smoke her and be done wit’ it. The worse part of me was willin’ to do whatever it took to get closer to them, even if it did mean killin’ her.

  “Okay…I don’t work there no more,” she must’ve detected that I was growin’ frustrated. “I’ll find another place in New York somewhere before I go back to Atlanta.”

  “That’s not good enough. You gotta move outta state.”

  “What?!” she yelled causin’ people to stare. “Why outta state?”

  “Stop actin’ like you don’t know what the deal is. And lower your fuckin’ voice,” I demanded through clenched teeth. I wasn’t up for the show.

  “But over some guns?”

  “Naw…ova the principle. They feel played and they wanna see how far I’ll go to get wit’ ‘em.”

  “How bad do you want to be with ‘em?” she asked nervously.

  “I’d give my life to get closer to Kyope.” I confirmed. “But you safe. If I wanted to hurt you, you’d be dead by now.”

  “Why is this so important to you? Why is gettin’ with him so important?”

  “You askin’ the questions you don’t really want the answers to.”

  “But this doesn’t make any sense, Aven,” she said switchin’ the subject. “I can’t leave right now. Where am I gonna go?”

  “On a plane! What’s so fuckin’ hard to understand?”

  “But…I ain’t got no place to go really in Atlanta either. Most of my people can barely take care of themselves right now. I wasn’t supposed to go back needing help. I was supposed to go back different. Successful,” she looked up at me wit’ sad eyes.

  When she started cryin’, I wanted to wrap my arms around her. But an unseen wall kept me in my place and her vulnerability was startin’ to make me irritated. Suddenly I became angry. Why was she whinin’? And why did I always find myself involved in some emotional bullshit? I’m sick of this shit. All I care ‘bout is revenge.

  “Look,” I said as I stood up. “I’m sorry shit got fucked up for you, but this right here…ain’t for me.”

  I reached in my pocket and dropped four thousand dollars on the table. One of the dirty bills brushed her face as if found its way down. I’m sure she had dirty money thrown at her before. And it was two thousand more than she thought she was gettin’.

  “Aven…are you leaving me alone?”

  “I’m not your man, O.”

  “But…but you said you wouldn’t let anything happen to me,” she cried standin’ wit’out collectin’ the money.

  “Sorry, O. I’m out,” I moved quickly to the door.

  “Please, Aven. Don’t leave me. I’m beggin’ you.”

  I paused before walkin’ out the glass door. People stared at us. I felt heavy turnin’ my back on her but what was I ‘sposed to do? Fuckin’ wit’ O would cause more problems than I was tryin’ to deal wit’.

  “Take care, shawty,” I told her pushin’ forward. When I went outside and flagged a cab, the look on her face stayed wit’ me. Her tears. Her pleas. Everything she said ‘bout me not leavin’ her and protectin’ her played in my mind like a movie.

  “Fuck!” I said out loud. A white woman walkin’ by jumped nervously. I was surprised when a cabby stopped.

  “Where to?” he asked after I jumped in.

  I told him.

  Feelin’ guilty, and wit’out thinkin’, I punched the back of his seat. He looked at me through his rearview mirror.

  “What the fuck my, friend!!! Everythin’ alright?” the cab driver asked wit’ a Pakistan accent.

  I ignored him. What did he think?

  Instead of responding, I stared at the large billboards in the city and tried to focus on my next move. Fuck I care ‘bout a bitch I just met? I’m a soldier. And soldiers don’t need nothin’ or nobody holdin’ them back. So why was I sayin’, “Turn around.”

  “What?”

  “I said turn around. I forgot somethin’ at the restaurant.”

  “You people are somethin’ else,” he said under his breath.

  The moment he whipped the car around, I reached through the small window separatin’ us and punched him in the back of his head. The cab came to a complete stop.

  “Get out!!!!” he screamed holdin’ the back of his head. I angrily jumped out.

  What was goin’ on wit’ me? Why was I lettin’ this broad get under my skin?

  I walked back to the restaurant my hand throbbin’ from lashin’ out. But when I reached the spot, I ain’t see O through the large window. Had she gone? I walked in and looked for her. For some reason…I felt fucked up. I shook my head and breathed out cuz I knew she was just like me. Out here alone, and on a mission. For some reason my mother came to mind. I wondered what she must’ve gone through when she was in New York alone. Maybe if she had someone to care for her, she would’ve had an easier life. But who was I? Captain Save A Ho?

  I turned ‘round to leave ‘til I heard, “Aven?” I stopped, turned back around and faced her. She had just stepped out of the bathroom. A smile came across her face. “I thought you left me.” Silence. I walked up to her…she met me halfway.

  “Look…you can stay wit’ me for a few days. I got a crib over on 29th and Crescent in Queens. I’m movin’ in tomorrow.”

  It was a one bedroom joint I found a few weeks back. It was small but plenty for me. The landlord ain’t ask questions and gladly accepted the six months rent in advance I’d given him.

  “Thank you, Aven,” she said softly wrappin’ her arms ‘round my neck. “Thank you for not leavin’ me.” I found myself smilin’ inside.

  “Listen,” I said pushin’ her away. “I’m lettin’ you stay wit’ me cuz all this kinda my fault. But there are some rules you gotta understand before we do any of this shit.”

  “I’m listenin’, Aven,” she said softly. “Anything you want.”

  “I can’t have you askin’ a bunch of questions about what I do when I leave my crib. And most of all, don’t tell NOBODY you stayin’ wit’ me. ‘Specially none of them cacklin’ bitches at Waves.”

  “Okay.”

  “I’m serious, shawty,” I pointed at her.

  “Okaaaay, Aven. Whateva you want. I understand.”

  “Seriously, don’t ever ask me ‘bout my life. If I don’t tell you it’s cuz I don’t want you to know. We ain’t together and this arrangement is only til’ shit blow over. Got it?”

  “Yes, Aven,” she giggled. “Nobody will know anything and I understand I’m not your girl. For now.” I cut her a serious look. “Just playin’. I’m just so happy you didn’t leave me.”

  She was shakin’ her head and agreein’ wit’ me but a part of me wanted to say, ‘fuck this shit it ain’t gonna work’. I knew bitches thought they could change a nigga but again, I ain’t no ordinary nigga.

  “Let’s get outta here,” I told her. “Where you park?”

  “Round the co
rner, Aven,” she said softly. I could tell from the smile on her face that she ain’t understand what was really goin’ on, but I let her have her moment. After all, she helped me get closer to mine.

  The good thing about it is, she ain’t know my real name and I ain’t know hers. And as far as I was concerned, it could stay that way. The less we knew ‘bout each other the better. Cuz I was certain our arrangement wouldn’t last.

  Saturday, 11:32 pm

  ****

  Since I was a kid I never had a place to call home. Why should now be any different?

  -O

  “I gotta leave, Jelly. They wanna kill me,” O said as she drove to her apartment to gather her things. She had just dropped Kelsi off in Queens and he told her to only take what she could carry by hand. They separated because he didn’t want to be seen with her in case Kyope was watching him.

  “Why you gotta leave ova that dumb shit?” O had already briefed her on what Kelsi had her do to Kyope a few days back at the club. O was too naïve to understand the importance of being quiet despite Kelsi’s warning.

  “Cuz they trippin’ that’s why.”

  “Well where you gonna stay? You welcome to stay at my crib. It’s small but I got room.” O was thankful she at least offered. Because before Kelsi came back to the restaurant, she didn’t think anybody else cared.

  “Naw, I can’t do that,” she said softly. “I’m stayin’ wit’ Aven and he don’t want me tellin’ nobody. He’d be pissed if he found out I told you. But I had to tell you in case something happened to me.”

  “So you stayin’ wit’ the same nigga who got you caught up in all this shit? Is that smart, O?” She didn’t respond. “He seems weird,” Jelly continued.

  The only reason she said he was weird to Jelly was because he never gave any of the other strippers the time of day, including her. Jelly had done everything from offering to give him a free lap dance, to test driving her worn out pussy. No matter what he refused.

  “He’s not weird, just cautious.”

  “So what…he don’t want you to have no friends?”

  “It’s not even like that. We not together.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yes. He’s just tryin’ to protect me,” she said as she pulled up a few blocks from her apartment in Brooklyn. She avoided pulling directly in front in case someone was waiting to hurt her. The streets were dark and she couldn’t see clearly.

  “Humph…you betta be careful. He sounds like a controllin’ ass nigga to me,” Jelly complained. “But let me go, girl. I gotta make this money. Some ballas just came in here and they spendin’ plenty cash.”

  O giggled and said, “Get that money! Later!”

  While O thought about her situation, a light smile spread across her face. The best thing about leaving was that she wouldn’t have to dance anymore. O had dreams of owning her own nightclub. But first, she’d have to wait for things to die down. She hoped she could count on Aven to protect her. In fact she prayed on it.

  Wednesday, 12:42 am

  ****

  Bein’ the Boss ain’t a luxury, it’s a liability.

  -Kyope

  Kyope agreed to meet D-9 at an undisclosed location. So there would be no mistakes, Kyope had D-9 picked up. And when they arrived at the destination, they were in front of an old apartment building in Queens, New York. D-9 decided to meet with him because as Jarvis promised, he’d beat his grandmother repeatedly. And as it stood, she was on her death bed. Kyope didn’t agree with Jarvis’s tactics on finding out who was robbing their stash houses, but his unconventional plan worked.

  When D-9 exited the car, he was directed to the building’s entrance. Once inside, he was instructed to walk down a dark stairwell.

  “Go straight downstairs,” said the driver pointing. “Kyope will be inside.”

  “O…okay,” he said nervously taking one last look at the driver. He felt a strange sense of comfort with him considering he arrived in one peace.

  The stairwell led to a cold basement. Inside, Kyope stood in front of three men. He recognized Prangsta and Crane but not the third man. D-9’s albino colored skin finally got its color due to his blood rushing to the surface. He was terrified.

  Kyope called Jarvis to tell him that he finally found D-9 but he wasn’t answering his calls. Kyope wanted Jarvis to deal with this matter since it was his shops that had been hit lately. But lately Jarvis hadn’t been the same. And he wondered if Steele’s death had anything to do with it.

  “Have a seat,” Kyope said calmly. It was the only chair in the room. Kyope’s kind jester put D-9 at slight ease.

  Pwwwww. Bwwwwww. A foul odor escaped his body.

  “Relax. Everything gonna be okay,” Kyope said, fanning the air. D-9 took his seat looking at Prangsta, Crane and Kelsi who remained like soldiers standing in a line up.

  “I’m glad you finally came out,” Kyope started. “I hated how things have been for your grandmother. Shit’s real fucked up ain’t it?”

  “I know, man. I ain’t do nothin’ though,” D-9 shivered. “I know what Jarvis think, but it ain’t me. I ain’t been robbin’ your houses. I would neva do nothin’ like that man. Ya’ll been too good to me.”

  “So why you runnin’?” Prangsta asked.

  “I was scared cuz I knew what people was sayin’.”

  “Easy…easy,” Kyope said in a soothing tone. “Aye Prangsta, go get him one of them beers in the fridge.”

  “No problem, Boss,” Prangsta said stepping out of the line up.

  When he returned, he handed D-9 the beer. His hand shook so badly, he almost dropped it, so he sat it down on the gray concrete floor beside him. Kyope walked up, and knelt down in front of him.

  In an easy voice he said, “We just want you to tell us, what you know ‘bout the recent robberies. That’s it, man, and then, you free to go your way.”

  “I’m tellin’ you, Kyope, I don’t know shit,” he said again. “If I knew who was fuckin’ wit’ your operation, I would’ve told you. I don’t know what happened to Marble eitha. I’m loyal to you, Kyope! I swear on my grandmother’s life. That’s why I’m here man. I coulda ran like a bitch but I’m here.” Kyope stood up and looked down at him.

  “So you don’t know nothin’ ‘bout who’s been hittin’ my shops or who killed Marble?”

  “Nothin’,” D-9 whined looking up at him. “I swear to God, Kyope! I promise I ain’t got nothin’ to do wit’ this shit here.” Kyope looked back at his crew and then at D-9.

  “Well, I guess you free to be with you grandmother.”

  “For real, Kyope?” he asked hopefully. “This is finally over for real?”

  “Yeah…it’s done.”

  With that he walked back toward Kelsi and whispered something in his ear. And then Kelsi stepped up, drew his desert eagle and unloaded multiple bullets in his face. D-9’s blood splattered on his clothes and he wiped it with the back of his hand. Kelsi hated putting in work for a man he was trying to bring down, but all this was needed to make things crumble.

  “Good work,” Kyope said placing his hand on Kelsi’s shoulder. “Get rid of the body,” he told Prangsta and Crane. Kelsi’s skin crawled when he felt his touch but he didn’t move.

  “I don’t think he was lyin’,” Kelsi said so that only Kyope could hear him. He watched Crane and Prangsta lift D-9’s lifeless body. “I been hearin’ that Jarvis ain’t been managin’ shops no more. I know I ain’t meet ‘em yet, but it don’t look good.”

  “I know he wasn’t lyin’,” Kyope confirmed. “But a statement had to be made, and it had to be made wit’ him. He shouldn’tve ran. Maybe whoever is fuckin’ wit’ my money and my crew will think twice now.”

  Kyope wiped his hands with the handkerchief he kept in his pants pocket. And gave the dirty cloth to Kelsi to wipe his face.

  Kelsi didn’t use it.

  “Anyway, he wanted to be wit’ his grandmother, and I gave the order to kill her over an hour ago. They together now.”

&
nbsp; Kelsi looked at him like he wanted to rip his heart out. It was one thing to murder a street dude in the game but where was the honor in killing an old woman?

  “You aight?” Kyope asked picking up on the evil glare in Kelsi’s eyes. Kelsi realizing his error straightened up his face.

  “Yeah…I’m cool. Just don’t know why you got Jarvis ‘round you if you know he fuckin’ up.”

  Kyope smiled. After only a short time, he already liked him. He felt he had heart. Kyope ordered Kelsi to kill three people and he murdered each one of them without flinching. Although Kyope was in his early forties, he felt he was getting too old for the game. He was looking for someone he could trust to take over. Originally he thought it would be Jarvis. But he was just as old as him and not as wise. He felt Kelsi had a warrior spirit and he needed someone like him around.

  “Aight, let’s roll,” Kyope told him. “I know a place that makes a hell of a fried steak.”

  Kelsi went but he wouldn’t forget.

  Thursday, 12:42 pm

  ****

  Ever since I could remember I loved to floss.

  -Kenosha

  Two Months Later

  People rushed up and down the block as I hustled toward Jarvis’s car. He’d given me some money to go shopping while he handled business. Ever since I’d been with him, life had been good. And just like most men after a few months of knowing me, he started spoiling me rotten. I made a decision that there was no reason for me to continue to lie to Skully about following Kelsi. I was going to come clean with him today. Not to mention I ain’t even know where Kelsi was or what he was doing.