Lost Boy, page 3
He stuck out his hand real cool towards Riko and said. “Wassup.” He looked down at it, then spit on the ground beside me. Never taking his hands out his pockets.
Least until Rip came over suckin’ up, fuckin’ shit up. “What the fuck y’all turn around for, Rip? Something going on that I should know about!” He glanced Jabari’s way, checking him out.
“Naw.” Rip said as he peered over at him, too. “Just my man over here got a little sick, that’s all.”
Hulie laughed as he gazed over at him. His eyes were red and glossy as the high started to seep in on him. He’d recognized him. “Damn, ain’t you, Tangie’s brother?” He said it like he knew her like that, but the fact remained he once fucked his sister. Let her tell it, he was the one who really got screwed. “Yeah...that’s me.”
“Damn...you hooked on beans...” He eyeballed him in disgust, and Jabari felt offended.
Never thought it would come down to this. Not in his wildest dreams. Shamefully he lowered his gaze and kicked rocks on the ground. As was his habit he chewed on his bottom lip. Hulie knew he’d touched a nerve and even perhaps found a weakness he could exploit later.
He called over to Rip, and Riko as they rapped about bullshit, and told them all to get in the ride. “Let’s go across town and kick it.”
“Where?” Riko asked.
“I don’t know...past Rivers Avenue, somewhere...”
“Cool.” He responded as he cranked up the truck.
Jabari and Rip hopped in the back seat and the truck cut a U-turn in front of traffic on Spruill heading towards Reynolds Avenue, past the rough end of North Charleston. The Makin’!
Chapter Two
They didn’t go too far. They ended up parked near the front of the old Winn Dixie parking lot near Rivers Avenue. Riko scanned the area before pulling out a sack and rolling a blunt. He lit it up and passed it Jabari’s way. He exhaled it’s sweet, vaporous fumes into his nostrils and let it swim throughout his brain as he leaned back to let it mellow. He then noticed, Hulie staring at him.
‘Now what?’ he thought and immediately tensed up.
He didn’t want to give him anything that would make him think he was slacking, or even jeopardizing the lick. Still, he kept his eyes beaded on him. Jabari passed him the joint. “My bad...here you go.”
He nodded his head, no, so he tapped Rip on the shoulder, and he greeted it eagerly. Jabari leaned back wondering what was going on with Hulie, and it didn’t take long before he let him know.
“So, uh...what’s been up with your sister, lately?"
He didn’t see why he was asking him some shit like that. Jabari hadn’t seen Tangie in a while. Last time they kicked it, they argued. “Couldn’t tell you, haven’t seen her in a minute.”
“I hear you,” Hulie said as he leaned back, and finally reached out for the blunt as Riko passed it back his way. “Remember, when we used to date...right?”
“I was a little dude, then.”
“Yeah.” He blew smoke his way. “You was, wasn’t you.”
Hulie passed him the blunt, then kept watching him making Jabari feel uncomfortable, and he knew it. Jabari started tapping his feet, and he could feel the palms of his hands getting a little sweaty. Trying to stay cool, but it was like he’d been trying him since the minute he walked up to the truck with Rip. “Is everything alright?” he asked.
“Yeah, everything’s cool.”
He damn sure hoped Hulie wasn’t on some old bullshit. Thinking he might try him, cause he kept eyeballing him.
“Your sister is one hell of a girl...high powered...”
Jabari looked over at him. He knew good and damn well she was. “Hey, uh, you got something you wanna say?” That caused Rip and Riko to turn abruptly his way as if to say, ‘Are you crazy?’ “I mean hell, you can speak your mind...”
“You’re right, I can, and I will. Look, this the muthafuckin’ deal, a’ight! The shit we about to do is major, and I need to know if you can keep your mouth shut. How ‘bout that?”
“I ain’t no fuckin’ snitch if that’s what you sayin’!”
“Probably not, but maybe so if the right situation was to come along. Like...your sister.”
“Hell, you was the one fuckin’ her.” Jabari shot back at him.
“You damn right, and every time I put dick up in her, she sang like a fuckin’ bird telling me all types of shit that was going on in her life.”
Jabari knew it was something. He was sizing him up. He must have figured maybe the apple didn’t fall too far from the tree. He wondered what all she told him. The family and all. What secrets did she yell out while he was pile driving dick up in her? And damn, why’s he fuckin’ wit my head! ‘He ain’t shit.’ Jabari thought.
“Yo, snap out of it! I wanna know...”
“What? I ain’t never been about telling shit. ‘Sides, if I was on it like that you wouldn’t have never even bought me this deep into whatever y’all tryin’ to do.” Jabari looked at Rip, for confirmation. If it was that serious, they wouldn't have let me get this close. He pulled out a bluff card searching. “Matter of fact.” Jabari reached for the door handle like he was getting out. “If you don’t trust me. Well, thanks for the get high. I’m fuckin’ out, I don’t need the drama, either.”
He pulled at the doorknob, it wouldn’t budge. Then the door popped open electronically from the front and swung open suddenly. Making him jump a little. He looked up at Rip and turned his head. Pussy muthafucka’s he mumbled. Hulie kept his eyes trained on Jabari, then Riko’s ass said what he was expecting him to say.
“Well, what the fuck are you waiting for?” Jabari started getting out. Hell, it was over with, as far as he was concerned. No biggie. Nothing lost, nothing gained. The bluff card was no good, he guessed.
“Yo...get the fuck back in the truck.” It was Hulie. “Let me tell you something. Matter of fact, both you muthafucka’s.” Jabari got back in, and Riko locked the doors. The windows were rolled up, and the radio turned off. “If any of you muthafucka’s say anything about what’s about to go down. I’ll kill you both, and your families my muthafuckin’ self. Ya hear?”
This was big boy serious. Hulie wanted to kill families and shit. They were going to do something major. Something that needed them all to be quiet, forever. It was more than puttin’ the tim down like Rip said earlier. That’s why they were asking all the questions about Jabari’s sister.
‘Damn, Rip, what the fuck did you get us into?’ Jabari couldn’t help thinking. “What’s the job?” Jabari asked. “Since you threatenin’ my peeps. Then, I’ll make my own decision, one way or another,” he said, then looked Hulie square in his eyes. He was on his own. “Cool?”
Hulie nodded his head, he was on game. He could do with or with or without him, and as far as Jabari was concerned, fuck his sister. She didn’t have shit to do with whatever he did. As far as he was concerned Hulie could be holding pipe down her throat right here in front of him for all he cared.
“This is what’s going down,” he said.
Jabari listened closely to everything as Hulie laid down the plan, at least what he wanted to be done. It seemed simple enough but based on what he said earlier, just a little too simple. Snatch a muthafucka up, and pick up some money, that’s all. Still, based on how he tried to handle him. Jabari really didn’t trust him. He’d definitely have to watch him and keep one in the chamber for his ass.
It was all good though, Riko rolled up two more blunts, to celebrate. Everything was feeling good, shit felt right. Jabari figured he’d go check out Dondi after this before he called it a night. But then, the script twisted. Jabari, nor Rip was prepared for what Hulie said next.
“Oh yeah.” They all turned his way and listened, figuring he’d missed something. “We do what we do...tonight.”
It was going down. All the other shit went right out the window. Fuck it. They were all pretty fucked up as the sun set east, and they watched it fall. They sat in the truck smoking trees and drinking forties. Hulie jumped out of the truck for a piss giving Riko the opportunity to throw salt on him, talking big boy shit.
“This is a real, sweet money run, son.”
“Damn sure wish we could do it tomorrow, cause I’m ‘bout fucked up.” Rip said as he rubbed sleep from his eyes.
Riko popped him upside his head. “Yo man, tighten up.”
“I’m just sayin’.”
“You see, that’s your problem. I put you in the game and look at you. All you wanna do is get high and fuck.”
“What you talkin’ ‘bout, Riko?”
‘Hell, where was all this coming from,’ Jabari thought?
Riko glanced his way and pointed. “You see how he handled, Hulie? That’s what’s up.”
“Bari was bluffin’. He wouldn’t have got out of the truck.” Rip said looking his way for a response. He gave him none, Riko grinned.
Hulie hopped back in the truck and said. “Let’s pull up into the K-Spot and make this call.”
Riko cranked up the truck and they dipped. They pulled by a bunch of pay-phones, then Riko and Hulie hopped out the truck and walked over to one. They were on some old secret-shit. Jabari tried to ear-hustle, but he was well out of range. He did know, that whatever it was it had to do with tonight.
Over by the phone, Riko asked Hulie. “So, we tell him...”
Hulie grabbed the phone out of his hand and said. “To meet you over at your trap house. You got something for him.”
Riko dialed some numbers and leaned against the booth until he got an answer, “Uh, yeah, is T-Black there?” He paused, listening, then gritted his teeth. “Sorry, ‘bout that, ma’am...Carl.” He put his hand over the receiver. “He’s there, she went to get him.”
Jabari leaned up in the seat and said to Rip. “Must be going well.”
“What?” Rip asked.
I knew more than him about how they were going to handle the plan. From everything they said so far, they were going to have to draw this guy out from wherever he was, or whoever he was with.
They didn’t know what he did for a living, least from the way Riko was so hush-hush over the phone. Hulie stood off to the side. Then just like that they hung up the phone, dapped each other and started walking back towards the truck. Jabari leaned back playing it off like he didn’t see a thing.
He asked. “Everything cool?”
Riko ignored him and didn't say a word as he cranked up the car. They pulled up behind some abandoned houses and parked. Hulie jumped out with Riko tight on his ass and walked into the back way of an old broke down row house, then motioned for everyone else to come in. Jabari got out and cautiously made his way past the splintered broke down door. Inside as he looked there were roaches everywhere. Towards the bedrooms, they could hear the sound of paneling being ripped off the walls. Rip walked in, and as Jabari peeped through the door slowly, he saw Hulie and Riko pulling out shotguns from a hole in the wall. Handguns were already scattered on the small mattress on the floor.
Riko glanced his way and asked. “You know how to handle these?”
Rip quickly snatched up a semi-automatic 9mm. Ignorantly, he peeped through the front of the muzzle, and Jabari snatched it away from him. He pulled back the slide, and damn sure enough there was one in the chamber. The gun hadn’t been greased or cleaned, and dirt was already formulating inside the creases. Rip was lucky a hole the size of a baseball would have been blown between his eyes.
Hulie chuckled. “He knows what he’s doing, but I don’t know about his homeboy.”
Riko frowned at Rip, picked up a .38, and tossed it over to him.
“Here, now don’t kill yourself with this, a’ight.”
Rip turned Jabari’s way as he handled the gun, he took from him and admired his skill. Jabari picked up a full clip off the bed and shoved it into the butt. So, now each one of them had a gun.
Hulie shoved one of the shotguns he had back into the ripped hole in the wall. and placed the panels back over them. They loaded their guns and took extra bullets. They felt like they were going to war or something. All for one man. The bullshit kicked in high gear from there. ‘Who the fuck are we going after?’ Jabari thought.
They made it back to the truck, pulled off and Hulie said. “Y’all need to forget this spot...a’ight.”
Jabari looked over at Rip, they both hunched their shoulders. It was cool by Jabari because, after this, he was through fuckin’ with Hulie, Riko, and even Rip. They got on Rivers Avenue going uptown and pulled a right into a dimly lit street going past the beer distributor.
Jabari scanned the area as he thought to himself. ‘Damn, we’re on our way to Liberty Hill, I bet.’
Liberty Hill was one of those neighborhoods littered with traps, old and new. There were even generational liquor houses dating back from the 30s and 40s. It was still one of those hoods in South Carolina that bred shystas, hustlas, gangstas and thrived on dirty money. Jabari wondered who the hell were they going to put the tim down on over there? From what he knew of the area, if they weren’t careful, they would have the tim put down on them.
They got to the corner of East Montague Street near the railroad tracks and Riko pointed up the street. Hulie nodded his head, they pulled in front of a building. Looked like old, dry cleaners, then he motioned for them to get out. He pointed toward the back, and they walked around into a small wooded area.
Riko sped off up the street. “We walk from here,” he said. “It ain’t far.”
They walked up Nesbitt Avenue until they got to Lester Street, and dipped behind a house into the backyard of another house. This time a decent, steel fenced, ranch style home. Hulie again pointed them across the street towards an old house, surrounded by a high brick wall, with a fenced front...Riko’s trap. That must be where it was going down. He pulled out some lawn chairs from the back porch and sat.
“Relax, they’ll be here shortly.” Those were the first words he spoke since they got out of the truck.
He put the shotgun off to the side out of view and leaned back crossing his legs. Reaching deep down into his pocket he pulled out a small plastic bag with some brown pills. Adams, Jabari hadn’t seen them in a while.
“Want some?” he asked Jabari.
At first, it seemed like he started to say no. He even turned his head away, but it was no use. He was addicted, and he knew it. He grabbed at two and swallowed them whole. Hulie snickered, Rip looked his way too wanting some also, but he pulled out a blunt and tossed it his way instead.
‘Strange,’ Jabari thought.
He knew Rip meant nothing to him, but somehow, he felt like he wanted him for something. What, he couldn't quite put a finger on it. He had one hell of a role to play, he guessed. He believed he was about to be set-up for one hell of a performance in this twisted scenario. The pills had just started to kick in. There was no turning back.
****
There was no more turning back for Jabari. For him now, it was what it was. The here and the now. They didn’t say a word to each other. It was like ice inside the truck as they slowly drove Rivers Avenue to Charleston Heights or The Heights as it was called. They watched car after car of police speeding off to where they’d just come from. Someone must have called in shots fired into a dwelling because they were jetting up there like it was that big or something.
Jabari couldn’t quite figure it out, and he didn’t try to anymore. He was too busy thinking about Rip. He couldn’t believe he was dead. His mind wrestled with the thoughts that they were supposed to be getting fucked up right about now. Laid up in a Days Inn, knee-deep tricking their asses off. Just the two of them. He remembered the last thing he’d said to him. Talking something about getting Dondi’s hair done with his end of the money.
Damn, it hit him. ‘Was he catching feelings for her? Come to think of it, he did use to look at him funny whenever he messed around with her. ‘He shoulda said something.’ Jabari rationed, he would have respected that.
She needed to slow down anyway. After all, at her age with no diseases, and a little fixin’ up she could still be worth something. Maybe not a dime piece, but a good nickel for sure. Rip needed something like that in his life.
‘It was time we all slowed down,’ Jabari thought.
He peered over at Hulie, he was fixed on the road in front. He started to say something to him, but he could tell he was heavy in thought. It wasn’t the time, but he had so many questions he didn’t know where to begin. Like, how was he going to explain this to Dondi? She was the last person to see them together. He knew the police would be coming to see her once they identified the body. A known drug user and thief, who was associated with him. He was sure they’d come looking for him, too.
But hell, that damn Riko, his mind couldn’t get away from it. What was his take on all this? ‘Was he the one that called the police?’ He wondered.
T-Black was saying something to Hulie, but he shot him before he finished. What kinda mess did he get himself caught up in? Jabari knew he needed to go somewhere and collect his thoughts. Try and figure out what he was going to do. His anxiety had kicked in overdrive.
Okay, Jabari rationed, after Hulie gave him his money and dropped him off. He might as well ask for Rip’s cut, too and give it to Dondi. Then try to find his people, so they could bury him right. More than likely he would probably double back and stay at the room they got earlier. He was sure Dondi was still there. He’d let her know what was up. Out of nowhere, the truck started skidding. He braced himself and looked over at Hulie. He had the brakes stomped.
He hollered at him. “What the fuck you doing!” Hulie didn’t budge as he held onto the steering wheel of the out of control truck. It veered into oncoming traffic, and he jerked it back. Then, it shut off and slowly came to a stop at a curb.
It was a miracle it didn’t tip over and flip. Jabari looked out the window around them, thinking luckily there was no one on the street.
Catching his breath, he started screaming at Hulie. “What the hell is the matter with you, you crazy or something!”
