“He’s lying!” the Vet shouted. “I didn’t give him nothing. I get my hits for free.”
Cam crossed his arms. “I never knew Darren was so generous.”
“It’s because I know his secret.”
“Good for you,” Cam said. “Now get out of here.”
The Vet didn’t move. “Darren is a snitch! A snitch!”
“Shut the fuck up,” I said, taking a step closer to him.
The Vet turned to Cam. “I bet you’re in on it too! Did you snitch to that cop—the one who got killed?”
“I told you, get out of here.” Cam moved beside me.
The Vet lunged at Cam, grabbing at his coat pocket. Cam tried to dodge him but stumbled backward. With surprising speed, the Vet pounced, knocking him to the ground. I tried to pull the Vet off Cam, but he was thrashing like crazy.
Cam screamed. Then I saw the knife.
I slammed my foot into the Vet’s side, partially dislodging him. The Vet bucked, slashing wildly. Cam grabbed the Vet’s arm, and they fought for control of the knife.
Suddenly the Vet shrieked and fell to the ground.
Cam scrambled to his feet, clutching his shoulder. He gasped for breath. “Fuck! He stabbed me!”
I could see Cam was bleeding. “We need to get you to a hospital.”
Cam nodded, mouth twisting in pain. “What about him?”
Blood gushed from the Vet’s throat. I bent over him, heard gurgling sounds. I took off my jacket, and pressed my hoodie against his neck.
“We’ll call nine-one-one,” I said. “But we can’t leave him at our corner.”
Cam pointed to a bus stop a few yards away. “We leave him over there.”
“Okay.” I took out my cell. My hand was shaking. White Chris’s words came back to me. It’s you or him. Who do you want it to be?
There was a gasp. The Vet’s arms had gone limp by his sides, and his eyes were blank. I’d seen that look before.
“He’s dead.” I got up.
Cam went pale. “W-what are we gonna do? I didn’t mean to kill him.”
I glanced down at the knife, the blood, trying to process what had just happened.
My mind switched into high gear. I scanned the area and saw no witnesses. “The alley. Hurry.”
I dragged the Vet’s body into the alley. Cam helped with his good arm. He was breathing hard, swearing over and over.
“We call Vinny,” I said. “He’ll know what to do.”
“Wait—what are we going to tell him?” Cam asked, his voice shaky. “I mean, it was self-defense. You saw it. Tony’s not gonna blame me for this, right?”
“Of course not. I’ll tell Vinny what happened and he’ll explain it to Tony.” I tried to speak as calmly as possible, tried to dissolve Cam’s panic even in the midst of my own. “The Vet started this, not us. He tried to pull one over on Tony. Here’s the proof.” I took out the fake bills.
“Then he went all crazy and started calling you a snitch and—” Cam broke off, his face sobering. “Maybe we shouldn’t mention that.”
“Yeah, there’s no point.” I studied Cam. “You know that was bullshit, right?”
Cam nodded. He believed me. I thought he did, anyway.
I said into the phone, “Vinny, we got a situation.”
NO PROBLEM
Turned out the death of a customer wasn’t a problem as long as the body was properly dealt with.
And deal with it they did.
I rolled over and glanced at the clock. It was 10:36 a.m. Too early to wake up, considering I’d gotten home at five a.m. I turned over and buried my head in the pillow, trying to go back to sleep. That way I wouldn’t have to remember.
But I remembered every detail.
Vinny had called the Cuz—two cousins, Remy and Tyrell—who did dirty work for Tony. They were goons, enforcers, like Pup had been. Whether it was a murder or a crime scene cleanup, if the job involved blood, you could bet the Cuz would be there.
I wished I hadn’t been there to see it, wished I hadn’t wondered how many times the Cuz must have disposed of bodies before.
I was glad Cam wasn’t there to watch. Vinny had dropped him off at the hospital, where he got stitched. When I spoke to him a couple of hours later, he’d calmed down.
My cell buzzed. I groaned and grabbed it off the night table. It was Jessica, I saw with relief.
Wanna come over?
I texted back: Thanx but I’m not feeling good today. Should stay home. There’d be nothing better than to hang out with Jessica, but I knew she’d ask what was going on with the Vet. I wasn’t ready to answer her.
She replied right away. Take care. C U soon. xox
I wasn’t sure what was worse: the horror of what I’d seen last night, or the fact that I felt no regret about it. Shouldn’t I feel bad that a man was dead, even a pathetic one like the Vet?
But the truth was, from the moment I saw the body slip beneath the black water of the Humber River, I felt nothing but relief. The Vet was gone and my secret was safe.
For now.
THE UGLY
Monday morning. I’d hoped school would be a distraction from my thoughts, but no such luck. By the time I showed up to Filimino’s class, I was ready to get lost in the beats. I rapped inside my head:
You can’t wash off the ugly
The stain of this game
You carry it with you
You’ll never be the same
It’s a disease inside you
Taking over your being
You see all these people
Go from normal to fiends.
Ricky tapped me on the shoulder, killing my flow. “I’ve been working on some new lyrics,” he said.
Great. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with him right now, but I didn’t have a choice. “What kind of beat do you need?”
“Anything. I’ll make it work.”
“Okay.” I put on a generic beat. “Go for it, then.”
As usual, Ricky waited too many beats before starting. Just when I was getting really annoyed, he went, “Greatness is the aim/When you get into the game/The deals get done/The money, you get some/People running scared/But the kingpin has a plan/He rules over the streets/Don’t mess with Diamond Man.”
He looked at me for approval.
What was he trying to do, rap like a gangster? He had no clue what Tony was made of. No clue about the game.
“What do you think?” he asked eagerly.
“I think you should rap about what you know. About your life. Not this gangster shit.”
His face fell. “My life’s too boring to rap about. But I could rap about yours.”
I gritted my teeth, telling myself to be patient with the kid. There was a time when I’d been just like him—innocent, stupid. A time when I’d thought working for Diamond Tony meant a chance at an exciting life.
“Your life is boring? Well, I spent two years in juvie. Now, that’s so boring you want to blow your brains out.”
“Yeah, but . . .”
“But what?”
“Now you’re back in the game, right?”
I loomed over him. “You keep asking questions like that and people will start talking about you. Thinking maybe you’re a snitch or something. And you know what the Diamond Man does to snitches?”
Ricky swallowed and bent his head. I’d finally gotten through to the kid.
* * *
At lunch I stayed in the music room. That’s where Jessica found me.
“I thought you weren’t at school today. I was really worried.” She wrapped herself around me.
“I’m sorry. I should’ve found you.”
“You okay?”
I wasn’t sure I knew the answer.
“Did the Vet come back?” she asked in a whisper, though we were alone in the room.
“Yeah. I told him that if he didn’t back off, I’d tell Tony he gave me fake money. He got spooked.”
“So he’s going to leave you alone?”
br /> I nodded.
“Thank God.” She sighed with relief and hugged me.
I was tempted to tell her the truth, to get the ugliness off my chest. But I couldn’t do that to her.
I squeezed Jessica tight. She was like an anchor keeping me grounded. How the hell had everything gotten so out of control?
GOING FOR A RIDE
Friday night Cam and I finished another cold shift. When Vinny approached to collect the stuff, I knew something was wrong. His swagger wasn’t the same. He was edgy.
We did the usual exchange.
Vinny took a deep breath. “Darren, you gotta come with me. Tony wants to see you.”
Panic shot through me. “N-now?” I couldn’t help but stutter. Should I run?
“Yes, now. Let’s go.”
I glanced at Cam. He gave me an awkward wave and headed toward home. Had he talked? Had he told Tony that the Vet said I was a snitch?
Don’t run, I told myself. The meeting could be about something else. If I ran, I’d look guilty. And what was the point? Tony could still get to my family, like he got to Pup’s brother.
We went to Vinny’s car. I got in and was about to buckle my seat belt, but decided not to. I might be better off if we got into an accident.
“What’s Tony want to talk to me about?” I asked.
Vinny started the car. “He didn’t say.”
For all I knew, he was driving me to my death.
I should’ve run. Why didn’t I run? I could’ve hauled it back to my apartment and called 911. Kessler would have protected me and my family. At least, she would’ve tried.
“You heard about Donut?” Vinny asked as he pulled onto the road.
“Yeah.” Of course I’d heard about Donut. Everybody had. He was one of Tony’s executives, and he’d gotten shot outside a club Tuesday night. “He okay?”
“He’ll pull through. But he might not be able to walk again.”
“Damn.” Like I gave a shit about whether Donut walked or not. I just wanted to survive the next hour.
Maybe it had been a mistake to stay on after the Vet had been killed. I’d thought I should wait a couple more weeks before quitting. Cam had seemed traumatized by what’d happened, and I’d wanted to stay close by in case he was tempted to talk.
Maybe he had talked.
Dread rose inside me, and I tried to squash it down. I was being stupid. Diamond Tony wouldn’t murder someone this way, would he? He’d catch them off guard in a parking lot or an alley, not send one of his lieutenants to pick him up. Anyone could see us driving together.
Then again, anyone who saw us wouldn’t talk.
I prayed we were going somewhere public, but when Vinny stopped the car, my stomach dropped. We were parked in front of a row of town houses that were splattered with gang graffiti. The whole block was dark and deserted.
We got out of the car, and Vinny led me toward a town house with boarded-up windows. “Somebody live here?” I asked.
“Nah. It’s a place we use sometimes.”
To kill people? Oh God.
I followed him inside. When I caught the door behind him, it felt as though it could fall off the hinges. We walked down a dingy hallway that looked like a future crime scene. I just hoped I wasn’t going to be the crime.
“There’s something you should know about this place,” Vinny said, stopping in front of another door. “It surprises you.”
He did a series of knocks and the door opened. The Cuz were standing there. I froze.
“Come on in,” one of them said, and I forced myself to move forward.
When we walked in, I hung back, as if standing behind Vinny would protect me from whatever was coming. Vinny shoved his hands in his pockets like he wasn’t sure what to do either.
We were in a posh living room set up with leather furniture, a minibar, and a sound system. Sitting around the room were Diamond Tony and three of his executives—Marcus, Kamal, and Pox.
“Soljahs.” Marcus stood up and bumped fists with us. “Darren, my man. Good night out there?”
“Yeah.” It came out as a croak. My mouth was bone dry. “Business is great.”
From his chair, I saw Diamond Tony nod.
“I guess you’re wondering why we brought you here tonight,” Marcus said.
“A little.” My voice wavered.
Marcus smiled. The whole room could smell my nerves. “We have a matter to discuss, you see. One that has to do with you and Vinny.”
Vinny looked like a deer in the headlights. This was catching him by surprise too.
“Sit down,” Marcus said. “Sit down and relax.”
Relax. Yeah, right. Vinny and I sat down on the nearest couch.
Tony took over. “Tonight’s a big night for both of you. Your lives are gonna change.”
I heard a gulp. I wasn’t sure if it came from Vinny or me.
Tony said to Vinny, “I’m inviting you to become an executive. Donut won’t be coming back. It was our unanimous decision that you should replace him.”
“Shut up!” Vinny jumped off the couch and pumped his fist. Then he sat down and composed himself. “It’s an honor. I’d be proud to be an executive.”
Diamond Tony turned to me. “Darren. I’ve heard nothing but solid things about you. You been loyal and dependable. And you’re cool under pressure. Which is why I’m promoting you to lieutenant.”
I smiled. He wasn’t going to kill me.
“I think you’ll find it very rewarding,” Tony added.
My relief suddenly switched to panic. A lieutenant? Could I say no without pissing him off? It hadn’t exactly been an offer—it sounded more like an order.
“Got nothing to say?” Diamond Tony said.
“I’m surprised, but . . . it’s an honor,” I said, borrowing Vinny’s words.
Diamond Tony’s mouth moved in a fraction of a smile. Then he got up and slapped hands with both of us. “Congrats, soljahs.”
The other executives congratulated us too. I thanked everybody, but I was totally stunned. As for Vinny, he was so excited that he couldn’t sit still. Champagne was passed around, and the group broke into different conversations.
Vinny leaned over to me. “Sorry to scare you there. I was feeling bad for you. Last time Tony made me bring someone here, he left in a body bag.”
I choked down the champagne.
The next few hours were dizzying, and not just because somebody kept refilling my glass. It felt like I’d been eavesdropping outside a doorway for months and now I’d finally been let into the conversation. They talked business. They talked about Andre rotting in prison. They talked about the next step in the plan for vengeance against the Bloods. They talked about their baby mamas and their naggy mamas.
They treated me like . . . not an equal exactly, but maybe a little brother.
Girls arrived at some point. They were classy, not skanky—you could always tell by the perfume. One of them ended up on my lap. She told me she was mine for the night, for whatever I wanted. But she wasn’t the one I wanted. So I passed her off to Vinny, who said two was better than one.
I got home after sunrise. Some driver took me, but when I woke up the next afternoon, I didn’t remember much more than that. I spent an hour in the bathroom, my stomach churning and my mind reeling.
I was in.
THE LIEUTENANT
Over the next forty-eight hours, I realized two things:
The stakes were higher than ever.
And there was no going back. When Diamond Tony made you an offer, you didn’t turn it down.
“You start and finish the day at the stash house,” Marcus explained my first day on the job. “We give you the money and the product, and you distribute it to your dealers. You check in on them a few times, see if they need any re-ups. Then you collect and drop it off at the stash house, where one of us execs will count it right away.”
“So this is the stash house,” I said, surveying the grimy walls.
“It
is today. It’ll change soon. We used to change it every couple of weeks, but Tony’s taking extra precautions. We gotta stay a step ahead of the cops.”
I nodded, thinking that I could bring a raid on this place anytime I wanted. It would give the cops a sweet photo op, but I doubted Diamond Tony would stop by a stash house to count his money anytime soon.
I’d called Kessler yesterday and told her about my promotion to lieutenant. After several beats of silence, she’d asked, “Are you sure you still want to do this?”
I wasn’t sure about anything. But there was no point in telling her how close I’d come to quitting. It wasn’t an option anymore. “I’m doing it. We’re going to put away Prescott’s killer.”
“It’s not ‘we,’ Darren. Don’t forget that. I’ll do whatever I can to help, but you’re not a CI anymore. You’re on your own out there.”
She didn’t need to remind me.
Marcus’s deep voice brought me back to the present. “Wallop will be here soon to train you. He’s the lieutenant who does the southwest. Tony’s moving him to the northeast. You’re gonna take over for him.”
It took me a minute to process that. The southwest? The busiest and the most dangerous corners, right smack in the middle of Blood/Walker territory? “You’re kidding me.”
He gave me a flat look. “I don’t kid.”
It was true. Marcus had no sense of humor. “I thought you’d want someone with more experience there.”
Judging by Marcus’s expression, I wasn’t owed an explanation. “Tony’s decision, not mine. You want to take it up with him?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m cool with it.”
Wallop showed up soon after. He was short with a fat head and satellite-dish ears. I couldn’t picture him walloping anyone without getting flattened.
“You can follow me around today,” he said as we got into his car, an old Camry littered with fast-food wrappers and empty bottles. “Tomorrow you’re on your own. You got a car?”
“No.”
“Tony’s got a few beaters like this you can use. Cars that don’t attract attention. Marcus will hook you up. I keep my Camaro at home, see. Gotta keep it spotless for the ladies.”