Power (14 page)

“What Alex say?” Reggie asked, finishing up his drink.

“He want us to meet tomorrow.”

“Man, I hope that GMC info is legit ‘cause them niggas gotta go. What they did to Alex’s girl was the ultimate disrespect. They crossed the fuckin’ line,” Reggie spit.

“You right. But Alex will get the last laugh.”

“There ain’t nothin’ humorous about none of this shit. That nigga lost his wife.”

“You know I didn’t mean it like that, plus that wasn’t his wife.”

“They were engaged. Same fuckin’ thing, and she was carrying his seed,” Reggie said, frowning up at Deion.

“Nah, married and engaged ain’t the same fuckin’ thing. But why we still talkin’ about that shit…she dead and them GMC boys will be dealt with. End of story.”

“You a cold nigga. That woman’s body barely cold and Alex over there sick, so this ain’t hardly the end of nobody story. I just hope our man will be able to move on from this.”

“Listen, Alex know how this game go,” Deion stated, standing up from the sofa and standing in front of his fireplace with a bottle of Rey Sol Anejo in his hand. “Women are a liability. I feel for Alex. I know his heart hurtin’ right now, but he strong. Once he gets revenge, he’ll recover and move on. Dahlia will be a distant memory.”

*  *  *

Deion was sitting on the bench at Piedmont Park watching kids play on a brisk November day. He thought back to when he and Alex were small boys living in the projects, staying in trouble. Back then their trouble was fun and harmless, now it was costing innocent people their lives.

“What’s good, my dude?” Tommy walked up on Deion and said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“You tell me,” Deion replied, before pounding fist with Tommy.

“Same bullshit, just another day. I’m still waiting on you to hit me up wit’ some more of that heroin with that extra discount you promised.”

“I got you, nigga.”

“Cool, but when? You know I’m tryna break free from GMC and get my money up so I can make my own moves.”

“I know what the plan is and we gon’ make it happen. But we have to watch how we move. You know I had to kill my partner’s woman because I found out she was snitching to the Feds. So I was just trying to let things die down a little. But I think things are good now. Plus, we want to make sure the shit is done right and your boys don’t start thinking you up to something.”

‘I feel you, but fuck them. I’m tryna eat good like the rest of them niggas. They want me to be a worker forever and never a boss.”

Deion listened to Tommy complain, trying to keep his patience. All he really wanted to do was confirm the location where the GMC meeting was supposed to be Friday night without arousing suspicion from Tommy. Deion knew Tommy was ready to start running his own shit but he wasn’t prepared to see his crew murdered in the process, so Deion had to proceed with caution.

“I have to go out of town later on today but I’ll be back Friday. How ‘bout we meet up Friday night and I hook you up?”

“Bet, my man.” Tommy started smiling hard as hell at what Deion had just told him. “But can it be early Friday, ‘cause we have a GMC meeting Friday night and that shit mandatory”

“Nigga, you was just sayin’ fuck them, now you worried ‘bout makin’ mandatory meetings,” Deion said, clowning Tommy.

“I know…I know. But until you hit me off a few more times and my money right, I gotta keep fuckin’ wit’ them niggas.”

“I feel you, but I can’t make it early Friday. I won’t be back in town until later that night. Where is your meeting? I can hook up wit’ you right afterwards.”

“The Fire and Ice Lounge.”

“I know exactly where that is. So what time is the meeting?”

“It starts at nine but I’ma try to break out early so we can meet up.”

“How long the meeting normally last?”

“Couple hours. Then niggas just be drinkin’, eatin’ and kickin’ it.”

“So what time you gon’ try to break out?”

“Damn, I just remembered that Carlos need me to go pick up some money for him Friday so I won’t be at the meeting. I’ll probably get back late so can we meet up Saturday instead.”

“That’s even better,” Deion said, grinning inside. Deion didn’t want Tommy to be there when they hit up his crew because he still planned on utilizing him for some other shit. Deion could tell Tommy was the type of dude that would be down to do just about whatever he asked. Now, there would be no headache of trying to figure out a way to get Tommy away from the lounge before they swarmed the spot.

“Good deal. So I’ll see you Saturday for sure. The earlier the better, ‘cause I’m tryna make that chicken.”

“I hear you. I’ll have that heroin to you first thing Saturday morning.”

“Appreciate it. See you then,” Tommy said, shaking Deion’s hand before walking off.

Deion stood with satisfaction as he envisioned his plan unfolding correctly. In just a couple of days he would be gaining even more power on the streets and resolving some problems that needed to be put to rest. With the GMC members dead, Deion would be able to supply the majority of their customers, which equated to a major boost in revenue. Not only that, Alex would finally get retribution for Dahlia’s death and put that shit behind him once and for all.

Alex could never find out that it was him that raped and killed his fiancé. Deion knew that was the one sin Alex would not ever forgive him for and it would be the end to not only their partnership but also friendship. He refused to let that happen. Deion had convinced himself that Dahlia was better off dead because she was coming between the lifelong best friends, and that what he did to her was justified. As Deion stared out at the children playing in the park one last time, he vowed no one would come between him and Alex ever again.

Chapter 24

Stick To The Script

“So you sure that meeting is going down tomorrow night?”

“Positive. My inside connect confirmed the time and location.”

“If he’s down with GMC, how do you know it’s not a setup?”

“The dude has no idea that we’re taking down the entire crew. He gave me the info on some casual shit. He mentioned it to me a few weeks ago and yesterday he confirmed that it’s still a go.”

“I wish I could personally put a bullet in each of those niggas myself,” Alex said, walking over to a picture of Dahlia that he still kept on a table in the living room. He picked up the frame and stared at it for what felt like an eternity to Deion.

“I got everybody lined up. We going in there deep. Not one member of the Get Money Crew is gonna make it out of that lounge alive,” Deion stated, wanting Alex to snap out of that trance he was in. “We all meeting up at our warehouse tomorrow night at eight, then we head to Fire and Ice. You’ll be ready…right?” Alex didn’t say a word. He was completely engrossed in his own thoughts and he hadn’t even heard what Deion had said. “Yo, Alex. You gon’ be there right?” he asked in a louder tone.

“Be where?” Alex finally said as if in a slight daze.

“Man, I know you going through a hard time but it’s time to let this shit go. You not even focusing.”

“How the fuck can I focus on anything right now?”

“You about to get revenge on the niggas responsible for this shit, what else do you want?”

“I want my woman back. I want the child we were supposed to have together. Can you give me that?” Deion could not only hear the rage in Alex’s voice but he could see it in every muscle in his face and body.

“No I can’t, but I can give you the next best thing…those niggas’ blood on your hands. I promised you that we would get retribution and I’m delivering on that promise.”

“And I love you for that, Deion. You’re my brother. You’ve held it down in every way since this shit went down and I’ll always be grateful to you for that. Thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me…we family. You always have my back and I’ll always have yours. It’s nothing but love between us,” Deion said, giving Alex a brotherly hug.

“Listen, I gotta go handle some business wit’ some people but don’t forget, tomorrow night at eight we all meeting at our warehouse.”

“I’ll be there. I’m ready for this shit to be over with.”

“Cool, but we’ll speak later on,” Deion said before heading out.

Before Deion even reached his car, he heard a text message come through and saw that it was from Alex. It simply said,
Thank You Bro
. Deion smiled. For the last year, because of their different views on business, unnecessary deaths and other bullshit Alex and Deion’s relationship had seemed to be crumbling. Their once unbreakable bond was showing signs of discord. But since Dahlia’s death, the two men seemed closer than ever. Deion figured a big part of it was due to them coming together to seek retaliation for Dahlia’s murder. Of course, it was based on all lies, but that didn’t bother Deion in the least. As he thought about how all this would be over tomorrow night, he noticed Passion was calling him.

“Hey baby, what’s up?”

“Deion, there is some dude following me.”

“What you mean following…like a stalker?” he asked, hearing the panic in Passion’s voice.

“I don’t think he’s no stalker. I mean, I don’t recognize his face and I haven’t worked at the club in months.”

“Where you at now?”

“At home.”

“Okay, I’m on my way over.” When Deion hung up with Passion he called Popcorn to let him know he would be a little late meeting with him.

“I was just about to call you,” Popcorn said as soon as he answered the phone.

“Why is there a problem?”

“Not sure. I’ve seen this car a couple times in front of my apartment today. When I was about to leave to come meet you, I looked out my window and saw it again. It could be nothing, ‘cause mad motherfuckers be over here, but something don’t feel right.”

“That’s crazy, ‘cause Passion just called me saying she thought somebody was following her.”

“Oh shit.”

“Exactly. This shit can’t be no coincidence. I’m about to go over to see Passion now and check things out. Have you left your crib yet?”

“Nope. I called you right after I looked out the window and seen the car again.”

“Cool. Stay there until I’m done wit’ Passion. Do you think whoever it is would come up in your spot?”

“They can play wit’ they life if they want to ‘cause I’m armed and ready.”

“I know you are,” Deion laughed. “I’ll hit you when I finish up with Passion and let you know how we gon’ do.”

When Deion arrived at Passion’s townhouse he noticed her BMW parked out front but no suspicious cars. Instead of pulling right beside her crib, he decided to park across the street. Just in case somebody was planning a drive-by they wouldn’t know he was there. As Deion started walking towards her place, he dialed her cell but she didn’t answer. He tried two more times before deciding to try her at home. Right when Deion was about to call the landline, what sounded like a sonic boom jerked his body in the air, sending him crashing to the ground.

Deion could see windows being blown out and glass shattering from Passion’s townhouse. The sudden violent burst of energy had Deion’s ears piercing, body numb and head throbbing. His eyes could barely focus, but he could see that the engulfed flames were swallowing Passion’s townhouse. Deion attempted to go towards the home to see if Passion was inside so he could help her escape, but a second explosion went off, making that impossible. Whoever was inside was dead and there was no saving them. Deion thought about Passion and her son and all he could do was shake his head. Deion had to practically drag himself to his car, and once inside the next thing he did was call Popcorn.

“Everything good?” Popcorn asked when he answered the phone.

“Nah, ain’t nothin’ good right now.”

“What happened?”

“Passion’s crib just blew the fuck up.”

“Are you serious? Was she inside?”

“Yeah I think so. I think her lil’ man was inside too. Her car was parked out front and she knew I was on my way over. This shit crazy. I ain’t never seen a building just blow up like that.”

“Fuck! Who you think behind this shit?”

“Hell if I know. I done fucked over so many motherfuckers it could be any damn body.”

“We need to figure this shit out before things get any worse.”

“I agree. Have you seen that car again?”

“Nah, not since the last time I spoke to you.”

“So do you want me to meet you at your crib or do you want to meet someplace else?”

“I’ll come to you. I ain’t feeling too good about staying up in here.”

“I feel you. Where you wanna meet?”

“Umm, let’s meet at that…what the…” those were the last words Deion heard Popcorn say before a loud
Pow…Pow…Pow
rang out and then what sounded like the phone dropping to the floor.

“Hello! Hello!” Deion screamed through his cell, but there was dead silence for a few seconds until he heard a deep, raspy voice say.

“Nigga, you next,” before the phone went dead. Deion leaned back in his car seat and closed his eyes. At that moment he couldn’t fathom shit getting any worse.

Chapter 25

Flesh Of My Flesh, Blood Of My Blood

“Thanks for coming to pick me up,” Deion said, when he got in on the passenger side of Alex’s Range Rover.

“This ain’t nothin’. We headed to the same spot anyway.  I was a little surprised when you asked me to pick you up since you don’t like to wait around on nobody for a ride,” Alex joked.

“True, but I wanted us to have some time to talk in private before we got to the warehouse.”

“What’s wrong, is there a problem?”

Deion let out a deep sigh before answering. “Man, a problem don’t begin to describe what the fuck is going on right now.”

“Do I need to pull over?” Alex asked, observing the seriousness on Deion’s face.

“No, keep driving. So much done got fucked up, I at least want this shit to go down correctly tonight.”

“Talk to me.”

“Both Passion and Popcorn got killed yesterday. I think her son might be dead too.”

“You have to be fuckin’ kiddin’ me!  What the fuck happened?”

“Passion called me yesterday after I left your crib saying she thought somebody was following her. On my way to her spot, I called Popcorn to let him know I would running late to met him and he tells me he think somebody been driving past his apartment watching him too.”