Commit To Violence

Having accomplished his purpose, Nick walked back to his car. Once he and Rain had driven a little ways, Rain asked a question. 'How’d you know Bo had something big goin’ tonight?'

'You don’t know?'

'No. How you know?'

'I know everything,' Nick said and smiled at her.

No you don’t, nigga. Your ass don’t know every fuckin’ thing, Rain thought and smiled back. There was a lot going on in Rain’s life that Nick didn’t know about. Most of it, Rain knew she needed to tell him about. She looked at Nick and knew that this was not the time to tell him about her problems.

'What’s up with you and Bo anyway?' Rain asked.

'What do you mean?'

'I mean it’s obvious that you don’t like him, and that mutha fucka hates you.'

'Two things.'

'What’s that?'

'He blames me for Freeze,' Nick said.

The truth was Nick wasn’t mad that they blamed him for Freeze’s death, because he blamed himself. They were both caught off guard when Mylo went for his gun. 'How come he still had his gun,' was the question Bo shouted at Nick at Freeze’s funeral, and Bobby had to separate them.

Nick asked himself over and over, why didn’t they take the gun from Mylo when they caught up to him? There was only one answer to that question: They both got careless; a mistake that cost Freeze his life.

Why did I let him get away? Why didn’t I shoot Mylo? Why didn’t I go after him? All Nick could think of at that moment was that he couldn’t leave Freeze. He had to get help for him. 'Somebody call an ambulance!' But it was too late. Freeze was dead before they got to the hospital.

No matter how many people told him so many times that it wasn’t his fault, Nick felt responsible. It was a burden he would carry for the rest of his life.

'You said two things, what’s the second?'

'Bo, and some other people, thinks he should have got this spot after Freeze died. Not the man that got him killed.'

'What you think about that?' Rain asked, and Nick didn’t say anything. 'Okay. Why did Black choose you over Bo?'

'Trust. Black couldn’t do what he’s doin’ now and not be able to trust him completely.'

'What that mutha fucka think was gonna happen? You and Black got years together.'

'Yeah. But it’s more than just years,' Nick said. 'I told you, it’s about loyalty and trust.'

Rain thought about loyalty and trust and her situation with Blue. She had known Blue for as long as she could remember. Over the years, he had been a loyal soldier to her father’s right-hand man, Jeff Ritchie. But did that mean he was loyal to her? And if Blue wasn’t loyal to her, could she really trust him?

'Did Blue talk to you?' Rain asked as they drove.

'No more than he usually does. Why?'

'He’s about to get on my last nerve.'

'What he do this time?' Nick asked.

'He came to me yesterday and said that some mutha fucka was playin’ wit’ loaded dice and hit us up for ten G’s.'

'And they let him walk outta there?'

Rain didn’t answer.

'I been tellin’ you for the longest that Blue runs a sloppy operation. Shit like this keep happening maybe you’ll believe me.'

'Believe me; I’m startin’ to agree with you. Maybe it is time for him to go.'

'You’re the one that insisted that we keep him.'

'I told you, Blue was a real loyal soldier for my father. I thought he’d be the right one to watch out for my interests.'

'I’m lookin’ out for your interests,'

'You are, aren’t you,' Rain said and thought about her real problem. After getting hit twice, she was running low on product and money. Rain had to do something and she knew she needed help. Telling Nick was the last thing she wanted to do. Not that she didn’t think he would help her. Rain knew she could get Nick to do anything she wanted. She just didn’t feel like hearing his mouth.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Bobby turned on White Plains Road and headed back uptown. Each place they stopped, nobody knew anything about Kenny’s murder. After talking with Sherman, Black and Bobby went by Luke’s apartment, but he wasn’t there. Black told Bobby to ride by there again to see if he had come back.

'So what you think about this big thing Sherman was talkin’ about?' Bobby asked as he drove.

'I don’t know, Bobby. I’m just hopin’ whatever it is doesn’t involve us.'

'Yeah, me, too, but I got a feelin’ that it does.'

'You know I hate it when that happens ’cause you’re usually right. You think somebody’s comin’ after us?'

'Killin’ Kenny may have been the first move.'

'Happens every time,' Black said.

'What’s that?'

'Every time we step back a little, somebody sees that as weak, and they try us.'

'Then we kill them; and everything goes back to normal. It’s the natural order of things,' Bobby said.

'Yeah, I guess so,' Black said and looked out the window.

The fact that he couldn’t keep living this way was never far from his mind. Black thought about how he was shot and almost died at a meeting with legitimate businessmen.

It began when Congressman Martin Marshall called and said he wanted to meet to talk about a new business opportunity. Black and Martin usually met on the corner of 34th Street and 7th Avenue. They blended into the crowd and talked. 'I’m thinking about making a little investment, and I need a partner.'

'I’m listening.'

'How much do you know about sugar-based ethanol?' Martin asked.

'Not much.'

'I’m thinking about making an investment in Cuba.'

'Isn’t that illegal? Like treason-type of illegal?'

'That’s why I need partners. You being one, and some Chinese businessmen,' Martin announced.

'That supposed to make me feel better about it?'

'With its huge potential for producing clean, renewable sugar-based ethanol, Cuba represents a significant source of energy that will remain unavailable to American consumers unless we undo the embargo.'

'Is our new president moving in that direction?' Black asked.

'He’s already relaxed some restrictions,' Martin told Black that day. Martin went on to explain how the huge potential for profit would be if the Cuban ethanol would become available for export to its nearest neighbor.

'I see your point. What’s the next step?' Black asked.

'I’m going to arrange a meeting with my Chinese friends and some enterprising members of the Cuban government.'

'When?' Black asked.

'I’ll call you in a couple of days, and I’ll let you know where and when.'

'I’m going to the Bahamas day after tomorrow,' Black said. He had made arrangements to meet Jamaica in Nassau to talk about expanding and to look into buying some property on the island.

'Bahamas, huh? Business or pleasure?'