No More Tears In The End

“What you gonna do about him?”

“What you think I’m gonna do? I’m gonna kill him.”

“You sure that’s the best idea right now?”

“What do you mean? This is the muthafucka that arranged Cassandra’s murder. He gotta die.” I drained my glass and stood up. I was a little shaky, but I kept my balance.

“Where you goin’, Mikey? Sit down and have another drink.”

“I’m out, Angee.”

“Well sit down anyway and think about this.”

I sat down and Angee poured scotch in my glass. “Think about what?”

“You shouldn’t push your luck. You got away with killin’ those other two assholes ’cause they couldn’t tie them to you, but Vinnelli, that might not go away that easy.”

I started to argue with him but was too buzzed, and besides, I knew he was right.

“All I’m sayin’ is that just ’cause you don’t see them, don’t mean they ain’t coming.”

“You right about that.”

“If you want my advice-and I notice that you ain’t askin’-but if you want my advice-you’ll back off this thing and go back to doin’ business.”

“You’re right, Angee.”

“I know I’m right. So you gonna back off this shit, right, Mikey?”

“I’ll leave it alone, Angee.” I wasn’t sure if I meant it or if I was just tellin’ him that shit.

“And I got your word on this? You’re gonna leave that shit alone and get back to business.”

“You have my word.” But now I had given my word.

Chapter 3

Nick Simmons

“That’s it, Nick. That’s it, baby. Fuck this pussy, Nick!” Wanda yelled as I took her from behind.

Under that business-like appearance and that cool, calculating demeanor, Wanda was allwoman.

Wanda and I had been friends since we were kids. She was the first person that I met when I was sent to live with my grandmother after my parents disappeared. I guess you could say that our relationship began when I was a suspect in four drug-related murders.

Since that night the two of us began spending time together, you know; just two friends that like to hang out together. But we were feelin’ each other. We finally got together while Black was in jail, accused of his wife’s murder. Not exactly the best of circumstances for us to get together, but it is what it is.

Being the private person that she is, Wanda insisted that we keep our relationship on the low. She didn’t want anybody to know about it; especially Mike Black, but I ended up telling him about it anyway. I thought that it was better coming from me.

I held her hips in place and pushed myself deeper inside her, but my mind wasn’t on Wanda, sex, or anything close to it.

There was a song by The O’Jays back in the day that went something like: Your body’s here with me, but your mind is on the other side of town.

Well that’s exactly what and how I was feeling, and it wasn’t ’cause of some other woman on the other side of town that I was messin’ around with.

My mind was on 35^th Street in Manhattan. In my mind’s eye, one of my closest friends is dying in my arms and there is nothing I can do to help him.

This nightmare began the night Frank Sparrow defended his middleweight crown at The Garden. When I got there with Wanda, Black said he wanted to talk to me. Both Wanda and I cringed, thinking that he had found out about our covert relationship and was about good on his threat to kill whoever it was that Wanda was involved with. But what he wanted was something that I never expected to hear from him. “I need you to watch Freeze.”

“Freeze? Why?”

“His boy Mylo arranged for Frank to take a dive.”

“What?”

“Told Frank I wanted him to do it.”

“You think Freeze knew about it?”

“I don’t think so, but this nigga Mylo is his boy. Keep your eye on Freeze, but you don’t let Mylo outta your sight.”

“I’m on them, Black.”

That was the promise that I made.

And the promise that I didn’t keep.

After the fight, Sparrow jumped up on the ring ropes and pointed his glove at Mylo. Black hadn’t counted on Sparrow calling Mylo out like that. We had to fight our way through the crowd to catch up with him. As soon as Mylo and Masters could, they separated.

“Freeze, you and Nick get Mylo. Bring him to the parlor. I’ll meet you there.” Black told me that night.

“Where you goin’?”

“Get Mylo.”

“What about him?” I asked quietly since he thought Freeze might have been involved in the plot.

“He’s good. Just get Mylo,” Black said, and he and Bobby went after Masters.

All they knew was that Masters was involved with Mylo in the plot to kill Black, and that was enough reason to kill him. They both turned out to be DEA.

By the time we caught up with Mylo he had made it out of The Garden and was on 35th Street. He was startled when me and Freeze caught up with him in the crowd. “Where you goin’ in such a hurry?” Freeze asked as soon as he was close enough to put his hands on him.

“No where. Just tryin’ to get out of here. You know, get back to the house; see how things are goin’.”

“You not goin’ to the after party?” Freeze asked as we walked alongside of him through the crowd.

“Yeah, I’ma stop by there later, you know; once the real after party gets goin’.”

“You oughta come ride with us,” Freeze told him.

I guess Mylo knew that if he went anywhere with us that we would kill him the first chance we got, and he was right. Mylo reached for his gun and turned to Freeze.

He fired two shots.

Freeze grabbed his stomach and fell into my arms. I laid Freeze on the ground. “Don’t let him get away, Nick,” Freeze told me as he grimaced through the pain.

I looked around and didn’t see Mylo anywhere. He was gone. “I’m not leaving you.” I said and held onto Freeze.

How could I have been so stupid?

Why didn’t I take Mylo’s gun right away?

It’s my fault that Freeze is dead. Even though they tell me that it’s not, I know better. Freeze is dead ’cause I got careless. And even though I avenged his death so Freeze could rest in peace, I haven’t found any peace for myself.

Freeze started workin’ for Black when he was sixteen years old. He was a kid, but Black saw something in him. That’s what we used to call him, The Kid. Back then, all Freeze did was run little errands for Black and hang out at the club messing with the ladies. That all changed one night after we robbed a warehouse and somebody robbed our load.

The next night when I got to The Late Night, Freeze was there talkin' to Black. They sat there for most of the night, and then Freeze jumped up and headed for the door. A couple of days later, Freeze had caught all of the guys that robbed us.

After that, Black made me work with Freeze. I had mad respect for the kid for catching them muthafuckas by