Prince of the City (24 page)

“What's up, Malik?” Rico asked.

“Man, that's Soup lying in the middle of the street in a puddle of blood. Look what they did to our boy!”

“Nah, I know these bitch niggas ain't kill my youngin' over some punk ass eighteen thousand. Man, fuck that. I'm going down the Farms and killing everything out that muthafucka. Lil kids and all!”

“Hold up, Rico. We can't just lunch out like that.”

Rico couldn't hold back his anger. “Man, fuck that shit, Malik! Them niggas gotta answer to that. They slumped my youngin'!” He placed his hands over his face and buried his head on the steering wheel.

“Yeah, I know, but we gotta make our move wisely. We just can't go on a mission not thinking. We'll fuck around and get locked up going out like that. Now calm down, slim. It's all gonna work out in our favor. Whatever we do, we do it wisely. Remember, our mission is to get our man and get away with it.”

“Man, fuck that! I want blood right now!” Rico shouted angrily.

“I love Soup just as much as you do, and I want blood just the same, but we gotta think before we react. We gotta do our homework.”

“What homework? We already know that Bonehead and DonDon did it.”

“Then we think of a plan and kill both of they asses first thing in the morning. Now let's just go home for right now and think this shit out,” Malik demanded.

Rico looked at his friend in disbelief. Malik was getting soft, especially after the incident with the infant. “Yeah a'ight. But whatever you come up with, let's do it fast before these niggas get to braggin' like they done something slick,” Rico said.

“Just go home for now, Rico. I'm a put everything together. Just keep your eyes open and watch your back, 'cause these niggas know that Soup was our man, so they might try to hit us before we hit them,” Malik instructed.

“Okay, slim, I'll see you first thing in the morning.”

 

* * * * * * *

When Malik stepped into his house, Peaches stood in the living room fully dressed in her D&G outfit with her arms folded as she glared at Malik.

“Where the fuck you been? We was supposed to be at the show an hour ago!” Peaches ranted.

“Something came up,” he answered, hanging his jacket on the rack.

“What the fuck you mean ‘something came up'? Malik, we planned this evening two weeks ago.”

“Not right now, Peaches.”

“Oh, I see. I guess you too tired to go out. What! You was out fucking one of your hood rat ass bitches?”

“Don't start wit' me. I don't feel too good.”

“I'm not tryna start no fight. All I'm saying is that we never go out anymore. We used to go out all the time. You're never home anymore. Seems like the more money you make, the more you stay away from home. Shit, Malik, I gotta play with my pussy just to be able to sleep at night 'cause you ain't here. What is it! You got another bitch or something?”

“Bitch, stop naggin' me!” Malik turned and looked at his loving girlfriend with tears in his eyes.

The moment Peaches saw those tears, she knew something was very wrong.

“Oh my God. Malik, what's wrong? Baby, what happened?” Peaches asked as she grabbed both sides of his face, trying to look him in his eyes. “What happened?”

“These bitch ass niggas done killed Soup.” Malik's anger was mixed with sadness. He blamed himself for Soup's death. He wished that he never showed Soup how to gamble. Soup was like a little brother to him.

“Damn baby, I'm sorry. Why would somebody kill Soup? He was an angel.”

“I dunno. Niggas just be out here trippin' sometimes.”

“Baby, you gotta be careful out here! I can't lose you to these streets. We need you.”

“What you mean ‘we need you'?” Malik asked, looking confused.

“We need you, Malik—us,” she explained while rubbing her stomach. “Me and this two-month-old fetus in my stomach.”

“What! Why you ain't tell me you was pregnant?” Malik asked, apparently shocked.

“I just found out this morning when I went to the doctor to get a checkup.”

“Well, why you ain't tell me this morning then?”

“Well, baby, I was, but when I called I was so excited that you and I were going out that I wanted to surprise you after making love tonight.”

“Damn, what a surprise.”

“If you don't want me to have it—”

Malik instantly cut her off. “Of course I want you to have it, but it's just a fucked up time to talk about it right now.”

“Okay, boo. We'll talk whenever you want. Do you need anything?”

“Nah, just leave me here in privacy. I wanna be alone for a minute.”

Peaches looked at her man in his most troublesome moment and placed a gentle, wet kiss on his lips. “Boo, it's gonna be all right. You a king. You know how to handle shit. You were born to address drama. I love you, Malik. Just be careful.” Peaches knew her position. She knew that she couldn't pull Malik away from the Jungle. It was something that had to be done by him alone, so she left him alone while praying for his safety, hoping he realized there was more to life now that she was pregnant.

Malik sat in the living room listening to Jay-Z's “Hard Knock Life,” which was Soup's favorite song. As he smoked a blunt, he tried to figure out a plan for tomorrow. While sinking into the song's lyrics, his house phone rang.

“Hello?”

“You have a collect call from a federal prison. This call is from Linda. If you wish to accept the charges, dial five now.” Malik pressed five immediately.

“Hello?” Linda asked, upon hearing the call go through.

“Hey, Aunt Linda, what's up?”

“Nothin', baby. Just thought I'd call and check up on you.”

“Did you get my name on your visiting list yet?”

“Nah, that shit is kinda hard, but I'm still working on it. How are you doing? Is everything all right?”

Malik badly wanted to tell Linda that he was in a fucked up position, that he didn't have the proper connect, and that somebody killed his friend over eighteen thousand dollars. And to top it off, Peaches was pregnant. His life was in a crisis, and he was on the verge of giving up. But he couldn't put his problems on his aunt, at least not while she was in prison.

“Yeah, everything's cool. Are you okay? Do you need anything?”

“No baby, not right now. I was just calling to let you know that they gonna release me a little earlier than my mandatory.”

“How early?” Malik asked, excited.

“About six months.”

“So then you'll be home before the year is out? That''s good, auntie. Right on time so I can take you to Cancun!”

“No, baby. Been there and done that. I wanna go to Brazil, lie on the beach, drink wine coolers, and smoke my Js.”

“Hahaha! Yeah, I feel you,” Malik said, smiling. “I'll be glad when you get here, because I miss you. I miss our talks.”

“I miss you too, Malik. Just make sure your ass stay alive and keep your eyes open at all times. Them niggas in Southeast some cruddy muthafuckas.”

“I knew this at the age of eight, something I learned from my father.”

“I'm just making sure your ass don't forget.”

“I won't.”

“How's Peaches doing?”

“She's doing okay. The shop is starting to pick up a little more.”

“Have you been keeping her happy?” Linda asked, knowing how hard it was to get Malik to realize that Peaches was a good girl.

“Oh yeah, she's happy. She gets on my nerves sometimes, but it's all good. She just shows a nigga she loves 'im.”

“That's good. But are you happy?”

“As far as me and Peaches, yeah, that's my boo. A nigga's lucky to have her by his side. She's a good soldier. For real, Aunt Linda, one day I might fuck around and marry her.”

Linda laughed. “Well, I hope I'm alive to see it, 'cause boy, your ass know you be running them streets.”

“Yeah I do. But believe me, I know where home is.”

“That's right, Malik. Just stay focused,” Linda stated seriously.

“Trust me, I will. You wanna talk to Peaches? She's upstairs.”

“Yeah, put her happy-go-lucky ass on the phone.”

“After Malik handed Peaches the phone, he went back into the living room, sat down in silence, and contemplated his next move.

 

 

Chapter 31

-HIT ‘EM HARD-

 

 

he next morning Rico and Malik met at the stash spot in Wingate Condominiums. While Rico loaded his Mac-11 with the extended clip, he eagerly waited to hear Malik's plan.

“So what's up? How we gonna do this?” Rico asked Malik.

“You know I sat up all night thinking about how we gonna kill these niggas.”

“Shit, that ain't hard. They from Barry Farms, so you know they gonna be around back on Stevenson Road or on the court.”

“Well, I guess that's the first place we look.”

“Shit. Nigga, we could've done that yesterday.”

“I know. I just wanted you to cool down so we could do it right.”

“Well, I'm cooled down now. So what do you want—the Desert Eagle or the Mac-11?”

“Give me the Desert. I'm tryna flip me a nigga.”

“Good, 'cause I'm tryna make swiss cheese outta a nigga.” Malik and Rico both dressed in dark clothing. Before they left for their mission, they embraced.

“Nigga, this for young Soup,” Malik said.

“That's right, slim, and when we hit, we hit 'em hard. We 'bout to send the Southside another message,” Rico said.

“Yeah, let's just make sure no mistakes this time.”

“Fuck these niggas. I'm killing whoever out there.”

Malik shook his head and ignored his hyper friend, knowing Rico meant every word.

As Malik and Rico smoked their last blunt before entering Barry Farms, they made a right turn off Martin Luther King Avenue onto Summer Road. Rico sat slumped down in his seat while Malik drove at a very slow speed, looking around to make sure the area was safe from any possible witnesses or police.

“Oh shit! Hold up! Slow down, Malik. I think I see DonDon's car over by the basketball court,” Rico said, pointing.

Malik slowed the car down while Rico double-checked to make sure the black BMW was DonDon's car.

“Yep, that's it. The black BMW with tinted windows,” Rico said.

“You sure, Rico?”

“Nigga, I'm positive. I know this nigga's car when I see it. Plus, he the only one in Barry Farms wit' a car like that. Pull up a lil closer. I think I see him.”

DonDon stood in the middle of two other guys engaged in a serious game of craps.

“Bingo! What I tell you? There they go right there. That's DonDon bending down shooting the dice.”

Malik looked over at the men. “Yeah, that's him, but where the fuck is Bonehead?” As soon as Malik asked, Bonehead appeared out of nowhere and began shooting dice.

“There he go right there! We can peel they wigs right now. Let's just ride through the alley and punish they asses,” Rico said, anxious to get at them.

“Nah, that might draw too much attention. Let's just get out and walk through. That way we can get all the way up on 'em before they're able to pull out their straps.”

“However you want to do it, let's just do it.”

Malik parked the car on Summer Road. He and Rico put on their caps and pulled them down over their eyes while tying bandanas around their faces. Before they got out of the car, they embraced each other with a look in their eyes of both fear and love.

Rico was the first to get out. He walked down the alley six steps ahead of Malik. As they got closer, butterflies grew in both of their stomachs. Even though they'd both killed before, they were still a little fearful of their fates, not knowing if these four men were strapped. The closer Rico got, the more tension he felt. Malik trailed right behind him with his Desert Eagle ready to blow. Rico was at least fifteen feet away from the men before one of them noticed that he and Malik were creeping up.

As DonDon rolled his last shot, one of the young men that was gambling screamed, “Watch out!” alarming Bonehead, who reached for his strap. Immediately, Malik ran toward him while reaching for his gun. He delivered two shots, hitting Bonehead in the neck and chest.

The impact from Malik's gun lifted Bonehead from his feet, making him fall flat back with his eyes wide open. While the other two men fled, Rico was focused on DonDon. DonDon tried to get up and run, but Rico chased closely behind him. DonDon had only taken eight steps before Rico cut him down with the Mac-11.

DonDon fell on the ground face first. He was hit, but he wasn't dead. The shots Rico fired hit him from the waist down. As Rico ran up and stood over DonDon, he pulled the trigger and found out that his gun had jammed.

“Fuck!” he yelled, desperately trying to unjam his gun while DonDon rolled over and reached in his waistband for his own gun. Before DonDon could get out his gun, Malik came up behind Rico and placed his Desert Eagle right between DonDon's eyes. Before he pulled the trigger, Malik pulled down his mask and revealed his identity.

“Look at me, bitch!” Malik demanded. “Look at me! I want you to witness your own murder, nigga.”

Boom!Boom!
Two shots emptied from Malik's gun as DonDon's head jerked back and his brains oozed out of his head and onto the concrete.

Ten minutes later while driving up Martin Luther King Avenue, Malik sat in silence as Rico continued to try to unjam his gun.

“You gotta take out the clip, then pull back and shake it until the jammed bullet falls out.”

Rico followed Malik's instructions and unjammed his gun in seconds. “Thanks.”

“You just put too many bullets in the clip. Next time don't overload it. Leave some room so the bullets can breathe.”