Chapter Twenty-one
Can I live
It was the evening of the trial and Seven celebrated his acquittal at Hazel’s. All of his crew was in attendance and so was Li’l Rah. A live band played while everyone enjoyed drinks and shit-talking. One of Seven’s goons hired an escort service to provide beautiful girls with skimpy bunny outfits to serve the drinks, just to add a cherry on top. It was to be a night of good times and celebration. As a smooth rendition of one of Lauryn Hill’s old hits was being played, Seven smiled in the middle of the party and grabbed his son. He kissed him on the forehead and told him that he loved him. He was determined to take his son to Florida and move away from the madness. The party was a celebration of his acquittal, but in Seven’s mind it was also a retirement party for him. He couldn’t be happier. He looked over and saw one of his goons put Li’l Rah on the table and Rah danced and had fun with the fellas. “I love my family,” Seven thought as he smiled while looking at his son. For some strange reason, he wished Lola was there to share the moment with him. In the bottom of his heart, he knew if it came down to it Lola wouldn’t have had testified against him. It was just a gut-feeling that he had. The mood changed when the band began to play Jay-Z’s instrumental of “Can I Live” and the place went bananas. Everyone waved their hands from side to side, and the song felt fitting to their gangster way of life and triumphant victory. That’s exactly what Seven wanted to ask the prosecutor ...
Can I live?
He wanted to celebrate his night with one of his hand-rolled Cuban cigars that he kept in his office. He put his son down and headed to his office, getting pats on the back all the way to the door.
Seven grabbed a bottle of champagne from one of the bunnies’ ice buckets and went into his office. He walked in and flicked on the lights. He jumped when he saw a man sitting at his chair waiting for him. It was Ball. Ball slowly stood up and both of the men stared at each other, neither one of them muttering a word. Ball knew that it was dangerous for him to come back to Hazel’s, but for the past year it was all that he knew. Seven was his family, and honestly he was the only thing Ball had left.
As the men stared at each other the tension grew in the room. It was so thick that you could cut it with a knife. Ball knew that if Seven pulled out a gun and shot him in the middle of the forehead, he would be justified. Ball just wanted his old life back. For some reason, he believed that Seven would let him back in the crew to do what he did best and that was hustle. Seven smiled, breaking the tension and held out his arms. “I knew you weren’t going to turn on me,” Seven said as he stepped toward Ball. Ball smiled, feeling like the weight of the world had just been lifted off of his shoulder. Ball walked to Seven and embraced him.
“You’re my nigga. I couldn’t go through with it,” Ball said as he released Seven.
“It wasn’t a doubt in my mind, fam. After what we been through I knew there was no way. You all I got Ball ... I mean Braylon.” Seven said. They both began to laugh at Seven’s little jab of sarcasm. Seven walked over to his mini bar and poured them both a glass of cognac. Seven was genuinely happy to have his partner in crime back. They sat back in the office and talked and agreed to let the past be the past. After thirty minutes, Seven decided it was time to let his crew know that Ball was not an enemy.
“Now the problem is to get these niggas to accept you,” Seven said as he pointed at the goons having fun on the main floor. Ball looked through the window and saw everyone partying and having a goodtime.
“That might not be so easy,” Ball said just before he took a deep breath. He knew that the label of being a snitch would forever be on him, but if Seven forgave him then he figured the crew would eventually do so.
“Okay, let me tell these niggas what it is. You come out after I introduce you, cool?” Seven said and downed the glass of cognac. He stood up and headed to the door. “I’m going to call you out ... in style.” Seven said as he grabbed the bottle on the table and headed out. Ball raised his glass and smiled. He understood at that moment that niggas like Seven came once in a lifetime. Seven was in a league of his own and Ball was honored to call him a friend. That type of loyalty will make a grown man cry. Ball watched through the double sided mirror and nervousness sat in as he wondered how they would take the news. He watched closely. Seven signaled for the band to stop playing for a moment as he walked onto the stage.
“Everybody! I need your attention. I’m about to make an announcement.” Seven said as he spoke loudly so everyone could hear him. He looked over at his son who was standing on top of the bar which he was dancing on. “Come over here little man.” Seven said to Rah. One of the goons helped him off the bar and Rah ran over to Seven. But one of the bunnies stopped Rah and she bent down and whispered in his ear. “Hold on sweetheart. You can’t go up there right now,” she said. “Now close your eyes.”
Seven was so busy looking for Rah to come to him, he didn’t see one of the bunnies walk up on him with a gun drawn. Instantly all of the bunnies dropped their trays and pulled out pistols that were tucked under their skirt or in their bra. Seven never saw it coming. Millie was the bunny in disguise. She was there to settle an old beef. All of the bunnies in the room worked for Millie and they all weren’t afraid to put their murder game down. Seven’s crew was defenseless and they all had just got caught slipping. It all seemed to happen in slow motion and Ball couldn’t do anything but watch as she walked up on Seven and fired a hollow tip bullet clean through his head, killing him instantly. Ball’s heart dropped as he saw Seven’s limp body collapse to the floor. They had been ambushed and it happened right under their noses. Rah cried and rushed over to his father. He didn’t understand what was going on. The only thing he wanted was for his father to wake up, but that would never happen.
“Noooooo!” Ball screamed as he looked on through the mirror. The whole crew was relieved of their guns, leaving them defenseless. Millie then stepped over Seven’s body and spit on it. “I told you I would be back,” she said as she wiped her lips and rushed out of the door. The sounds of grown men crying filled the room and they couldn’t do anything about it.
With guns to their neck, the only thing they could do was watch. Once Millie got out of the door, the ladies followed as they all jumped into a van and peeled off. Ball dropped to his knees and tears came down. He knew that Seven’s death was a direct result of him not killing Millie months before. Seven always told him to “finish his breakfast.” He didn’t do that and Seven’s life was lost because of it. What Ball did was underestimate the power of a woman. Millie was cut from the same cloth as Seven, and Seven understood that. That’s the reason he sent Ball to murk her because he knew it was only a matter of time before she got him. Ball quickly gathered himself and snuck out the back door ... he knew he wasn’t welcome in that room and it sent a dagger through his heart. He couldn’t even go to the aide of Seven.
Ball eventually would get put in federal custody and never see Ohio again. His heart was ripped from him, knowing that he was the reason Seven was gone. Now he was alone. No Zoey, no Lola, and no Seven. He had no love. He couldn’t go back to the streets because he would forever wear the name ... Snitch.
A tear cascaded down the cheek of Ball’s face as he opened his eyes. He had spilled his heart out to the reporter giving him every detail of his experience as a snitch. It was something that he had to get off of his chest, and he finally did so. He didn’t want it to end the way it did, but Ball was hopeful that the young reporter would shed light on the real story.
“I still have nightmares of that moment. It plays in my head over and over again.” Ball said as he wiped away his tear. “That man taught me so much in such a little time.”
Chris Nicks wrote in his pad and walked circles around the table. He listened closely to Ball’s story and soaked up every word. Over the six hours he took notes and recorded every word, wanting to get Ball’s side of the candid story. Chris took a seat and took a deep breath, trying to take in all that he had heard. He put down his pad and reached into his bag and pulled out a medium sized envelope. He handed it to Ball.
“This is for you.” Nicks said softly. Ball looked confused as he grabbed the envelope. He opened it and pulled out the pictures that were inside of it. He looked at the pictures and saw a beautiful woman on them pushing a little boy on a swing set. As Ball examined the pictures closely, the face became more familiar. It was Lola. She had gained a little weight and cut her hair short, but she was still as pretty as the day was long. Ball couldn’t believe his eyes. It had been years since he had seen Lola. The last time he saw her, she was running into the woods in Aspen.
“You notice something,” Nicks said as Ball’s eyes stayed glued to the pictures.
“This is Lola,” Ball whispered as he flipped through the pictures smiling.
“Look closer. That little boy resembles you, doesn’t he?” Nicks said. Ball immediately paid attention to the young boy who looked to be about nine or ten years old. “That’s your son. It seems like Lola wasn’t alone when you last saw her in Aspen. She had a package with her.” Nicks said.
“Are you saying ...” Ball said as he looked at Nicks. Ball’s heart skipped a beat when he saw the small caliber handgun pointed directly at him. “What the fuck?” he asked as he was startled.
“They live in Oklahoma under the witness protection program. And yeah, that’s your son. But guess who’s son I am?” Nicks said as he smiled and took off the non-prescription glasses. “Daddy always said I would be something special one day. I never thought I would be a writer. Funny how shit works out isn’t it?” Nicks said. Nick had the small gun hidden in his boot and it worked like a charm. He got into journalism under a pen-name and he never would have thought that he would have the opportunity to avenge his father’s death. But when the doors of opportunity arose, he walked through them gladly.
“Damn,” Ball whispered as he took a deeper look into Nick’s eyes and began to see who he really was. “You’re Li’l Rah?” He said, realizing the truth. He kicked himself for not noticing something that was right under his nose for the past six hours.
“That’s right. My father died right in front of me. He died right in front of me because of you,” Rah said as he stood up while still pointing the gun at Ball.
“Look, I never meant it to happen like that. I didn’t know Millie would come back and kill him.” Ball pleaded as he put his hands in front of him. However, everything he said just fell on deaf ears. Unlike Ball, Rah was going to finish his breakfast ... just like his father taught him. If Ball had finished his breakfast years ago, he wouldn’t be in front of a barrel at this very moment.
“Say your peace with God,” Rah said as he pressed the barrel to Ball’s head. A moment of silence arose and Ball closed his eyes. He smiled thinking about how his son was a perfect blend of himself and Lola. Ball then murmured a few words and the sounds of two shots rung through the house leaving Ball laying face flat on the table, drowning in his own blood.
“Rest in peace, Daddy,” Rah whispered as he looked down at the ground, knowing his father was
looking up
at him smiling.
Epilogue
Lola stood in front of the sink washing dishes as she stared outside and into her backyard. She looked over at the stove to check on the grilled cheese sandwich she was making for her son. She was expecting him any moment now. He should have been walking from the bus stop and on his way home. Lola wanted to make sure that her son was fed and taken care of because she planned on finally opening up the magazine that had been sitting on her coffee table for weeks. She couldn’t bring herself to open it ever since she picked it up from the local news stand. That day particularly was a memorable date for her. It was the day that Seven was murdered. It had been exactly ten years ago to the day, and it hurt her heart that things ended the way they did. She picked up the magazine and looked at the cover and smiled. Seven graced the cover looking like a million bucks in his expensive Armani suit and diamond cufflinks. She then looked at the headline that read
Inside: the memoirs of a snitch.
She knew that she got off easy because her involvement wasn’t documented like Ball’s was. She had guilt that weighed heavily on her shoulders.
She knew that she had committed the ultimate deception by being a snitch but her hand was forced. She grew up hating drug dealers. While a typical ghetto child would have embraced the drug game after having a father like Bunkie Green, Lola hated it. Once she lost her mother to the drug and then her father, she developed hatred in her growing years and promised that she would make a difference in her community. As a child she loved and adored Bunkie Green. However, as she grew up in foster homes and orphanages she developed a deep hatred for him, and men like him. In her mind, Bunkie killed her mother rather than Teri’s own addiction.
When she went off to college, she didn’t tell anyone that the college she went to was a police academy. She was determined to help save someone’s family and prevent a little girl’s life being ruined by the trickle-down effect of drugs. She had suffered from both sides of the heroin game. She lost her mom to the addiction of the drug, and then her father to the greed it created in men.
When she became a federal agent, she vowed to take down any and every man that resembled her father and Seven fit that mold to the tee. What she didn’t anticipate is the strong relationship and comradeship that she gained from running with Seven and the Goon Squad. She dedicated three years of her life to living a lie and it took a toll on her mentally.
Years back, when Ball let her escape she wasn’t alone. She had Michael “Ball” Green in her stomach. She knew that she had a chance to make a difference in someone’s life directly when she found out she was pregnant. So, she quit the force and went into seclusion to raise her son. It was not a day that went by that she didn’t think of Seven. She always would think about what happened to Rah and she always wanted to go back and save him, but how could she raise the son of a man that she was deceiving for so many years? These were the type of questions that she asked over the years that almost drove her crazy. She looked at the magazine and smiled as tears began to flow.
“Rest in peace, Seven. I will always love you, bro,” she said as she wiped her tears away. She heard her son open the front door followed by the sound of his angelic and enthusiastic voice.
“Mom! I’m home!” Li’l Ball yelled as he made his way to the kitchen. Lola quickly wiped away her tears and put on a fake smile, not wanting her son to see her like that.
“Hey, baby boy!” she said as he walked in and hugged her. Lola hugged him tightly and remembered what her purpose of living was. Li’l Ball was her pride and joy, and he gave her a new take on life. She was honored to have an opportunity to raise a child and shield him from the things she had to see at a young age. Ball’s age was significant for Lola as she felt like it was the age her life ended. However, she was proud to say Li’l Ball’s life was just getting underway. She smiled and hugged him tightly. She let him go and he stepped back and smiled.
“I love you mom. You give the best hugs,” he said as he gave her his charming smile. His dimples were so deep, she could put nickels in them and there was no better sight in the world in Lola’s eyes. She thought about Ball and how much her son resembled his father. She always wished that he was able to see his son, but she knew that she would be playing with fire if she tried to locate him. So she decided to keep that chapter in her life closed.
“I love you too,” she said as he made a tear drop from her eyes.
“Why are you crying?’ he asked.
“Because I’m happy baby boy,” she simply said. “Because I’m happy.”
A knock at the door, interrupted their special moment and Lola instantly looked toward the front door. She wiped away her tears once again and opened her door. It was a young man with nerdy glasses and a small frame standing before her.
“Hi, may I help you?” Lola asked as she looked at the young man.
“Hello Ma’am. My name is Chris Nicks and I’m from Fed magazine. I was wondering if I could have a little bit of your time.”
THE END