The Cost of Vengeance (14 page)

“So what’s up with you in a dress, Shay?”

“I just felt like wearin’ a dress. I didn’t think it was a big deal,” she said and looked around for a waitress. “So what we didn’t know?”

“Bryce killed Kenyatta,” Teena said.

“No.”

“That’s what Jay just told us; said the cops is looking for him,” I told her.

“I forgot to tell y’all, but I saw him the other day,” Shay said.

“What was he talkin’ ’bout?” Teena wanted to know.

“Nothing. Just talkin’ shit about how fine I was lookin’ and how he always thought I was fine, and that he should have got with me before I got married. You know, his usual bullshit. Ain’t that some shit? That nigga was smilin’ in my face and he killed Kenyatta.”

“That’s the kind of snake-ass, backstabbin’, bitch-ass nigga he is,” I said. I hated Bryce and this just gave me one more reason to hate his ass. I tried not to let it get me too upset though. This was my last night with my girls and I wasn’t gonna let my hatred for Bryce Tyler ruin it for us. We spent the rest of the night drinking, eating chicken wings, and reminiscing about all the good times we had together. We left Jimmy’s with the intention of rolling by Teena’s to smoke a blunt, but all that changed when I walked outside and saw Bryce walking across the street from Jimmy’s.

“There that snake-ass bitch go,” Teena said.

“I see him. You got your gun, Teena?”

“What you gonna do, Nina?” Shay asked as Teena got her gun out.

“Give it to me,” I demanded.

“What you gonna do, Nina?” Shay asked again.

Teena handed me the gun and I put one in the chamber. “What somebody should have done a long time ago,” I said and started across the street. Teena was right beside me.

“No,” Shay said.

I looked back at her. “Go get the car, Shay.”

While Shay hurried off to get the car, me and Teena walked up on Bryce. I hid in a doorway and Teena called out to Bryce and tried to get him to come toward me. If that didn’t work, I was just gonna start shooting and hope every bullet found its mark.

It worked.

Bryce stopped and came back toward Teena. As soon as he was close enough, I stepped out and placed the gun to the back of his head. Teena took his gun just as Shay pulled up in the car. I walked Bryce to the car and we got in. “Where y’all takin’ me?” the bitch wanted to know.

“To the killin’ floor,” I said.

Shay must have known exactly what I was talking about, because she drove straight to Kenyatta’s old spot. When we got there, we walked Bryce in and took him to the same apartment that we killed Shantia Lewis in. Teena pulled the police tape from the door and went in.

As soon as we were inside, Bryce turned around quickly and tried to get the gun from me. While we wrestled for it, Shay tried to rush Bryce. He kicked her and she fell. Bryce got the gun away from me. He punched me in the face and pushed me to the floor. Teena came running at him and he shot her. I heard Teena scream and she dropped her gun. When I looked I saw Teena on the floor and I went to get her gun. Shay got up and went at Bryce, but he grabbed Shay around the neck and held the gun to her head. “Get back, Nina, or I’ll put a hole in her head,” Bryce said and I stopped. “Now! Right over there.”

I backed away and moved to where Teena was lying on the floor. “Teena, you okay?” I asked and shook her, but she didn’t answer. “Teena!” I shook her again and started to cry. I yelled her name over and over, but it was too late—Teena was dead.

I looked at Shay. Bryce pressed the barrel against her head as tears rolled down her cheeks. He began running his hand over Shay’s breasts and squeezing them. He pulled up her dress and was feeling her ass and legs.

Shay jerked when he stuck his hand in her panties and reached between her legs. “You move again, Shay, and I’ll kill you.” Bryce looked at me. “And that goes for you, too, Nina. You move and I’ll kill her,” Bryce said and ripped off her panties. Shay tried to get away, but he pulled her back and began unbuckling his pants.

He pushed Shay over and put the gun to the back of her head. I couldn’t believe that he was going to rape her right in front of me. He forced himself inside her and Shay screamed. “Shut up!”

Shay closed her eyes and I just hoped that it would be over for her soon; and I wished that I had never gotten us into this. Teena was dead and Shay was being raped because I wanted to kill Bryce so badly. I should have shot him right there on the street, and now I wished I had.

When suddenly Bryce began hitting Shay in the head with the gun. I rolled over quickly and went for the gun. I picked up the gun and held it to his head. “Hit her again and I’ll blow your head off.”

Bryce stopped punching and dropped the gun. Shay snatched the gun from my hand. “Mutha fucka!” she screamed and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit him in the chest and Bryce went down. Shay stood over him and I watched as Shay fired three more shots in him.

“You okay?” I asked.

Shay nodded her head and we walked over to Teena’s body. “We can’t leave her here,” Shay said, and our tears began to flow. We picked up her body and carried it to the car. As we drove away, I couldn’t stop thinking that sometimes, the cost of vengeance is too high.

“It’s Victor,” Bobby said and handed me the phone.

“What’s up?”

“Sorry to bother you, but I just got a call from Jada West,” Victor said and I sat up a little straighter.

“What did Ms. West say?” I asked and Bobby cut his eyes at me.

“She wants you to call her whenever you have time. She said to assure you that it’s nothing important,” Victor said.

“Thanks,” I said and ended the call. I handed Bobby back his phone.

“So what’s up with you and the happy hooker?”

“Nothing. She just wants to talk to me.”

Bobby didn’t say anything; he just kept looking in my direction as he drove.

“What?”

“If you say it’s nothing, then it’s nothing.”

“Then why are you staring at me?”

“I’m just waitin’ to see if you’re gonna tell me the truth,” Bobby said and finally looked where he was driving.

“What truth?”

“Nothing, Mike. So when do I get to meet
Ms. West
? Or are you keeping her away from me for a reason?”

“I tried to get you to ride with me last time I went over there. You told me to take Victor.” I looked at Bobby. “Okay, I am interested in her. But what I’m more interested in, is her recruitin’ a better class of women to work for Jamaica in Nassau.”

“I knew it was something,” Bobby said and his phone rang. He looked at the display and smiled. “Hey, baby. I was just . . .” he began, and then his expression changed. “What? Slow down, baby.”

Whatever was being said wasn’t good.

“Okay, okay, don’t cry, Barbara. Just put your mother on the phone,” Bobby said and made a U-turn that almost caused an accident. Barbara was his oldest daughter. She was eleven years old and very much daddies little girl. “No, no, don’t hang up. Give your mother the phone!” he practically shouted, and then threw the phone down and stepped on the gas.

“What’s wrong, Bobby?”

“Pam is leaving and she’s taking my kids.”

I believed, and at the same time couldn’t believe, what I was hearing. Pam was leaving. I know the last time I talked to her she didn’t sound good. “I’m just sick and tired of his bitches callin’ the house. I can’t go through this again, Mike,” Pam said to me the last time we talked.

“I understand, Pam. And you shouldn’t have to. But Bobby told me it was just a misunderstanding. He didn’t even know that woman like that.”

“That’s the same bullshit he told me,” Pam said calmly; in a voice that I hadn’t heard since the night she killed Cat and Melinda. “And if that’s the case, why does this bitch keep calling here? I can’t go through this again, Mike.”

“I know, Pam,” I said, and I knew she was gonna do something, but I didn’t think she would leave him and take the kids.

“What did Barbara say?” I asked as Bobby weaved through traffic.

“She said that Pam came in her room and just started packing her clothes, and said they were goin’ on a little trip. When she asked her where they were goin’, Pam told her that she was leavin’ me,” Bobby said, almost causing another accident getting on the New England Thruway.

When the speedometer hit ninety, I thought about telling Bobby to slow down, but I knew it wouldn’t do any good. I thought that I should say something to him, but all I could think of was that he should have seen this coming. They both should. Bobby’s involvement with other women and Pam’s refusal to have sex with him was the only place this was going. Since that wouldn’t be a very comforting thing to say, I kept quiet and hoped that he wouldn’t kill us trying to make it out there before they left.

Bobby turned on his street and sped toward the house. He pushed the button to open the garage door and Pam’s car was gone. Bobby brought the car to a screeching stop, jumped out, and ran inside. I followed him in and went straight down to the basement. I got a big glass and filled it with Remy for Bobby, then poured myself a drink and went and sat down. I knew when he hung up the phone that she wouldn’t be here when we got here.

Once Bobby searched the house, he came downstairs. “Thanks,” he said and turned up the glass.

“Thought you’d need it.”

“Right,” Bobby said and poured another one. Then he walked over and filled mine. He sat down.

“You wanna go see if we can find her?”

“Yeah. But we need to find Skip and be done with that first. I know Pam; she probably just went to her sister’s house. She’ll be back in a couple of days.”

“You sure? ’Cause I could call Victor or get Nick to ride with me on this one. You need to see about your wife,” I said.

“What I just say? She’ll be all right. Now let’s go find this nigga,” Bobby said, and we finished our drinks and left the house.

It was after one in the morning when we arrived at Leonard Drive in Massapequa, at the home of Defense Attorney Quovadda Cobb. Finding the house was easy. Quovadda was a member of some kind of lady lawyer club that Wanda belonged to. I woke Wanda up and she gave us the address.

I had met Quovadda once before at one of Martin Marshall’s parties. I smiled a little when I remembered that the highlight of that evening was dancing with Ms West. If Wanda hadn’t dragged me away from there to go to another meeting, I would have spent some more time with the lovely lady, and found out if she was as good as she looks. And Ms. West always looks extraordinary. But since I was planning on doing business with her someday, maybe it was for the best.

I looked at Bobby. I could tell that he was still on fire about the stunt that Pam had pulled. “Maybe you should wait here,” I said and got out of the car. The last thing I wanted was for his anger at Pam and his concern for his children to cloud his judgment.

Bobby got out of the car and followed me to the door. “I’m all right, Mike. Let’s get this over with,” he said and took out his gun.

I didn’t argue with him ’cause I knew it would do no good. There was a light on in the front of the house, so I rang the bell. It didn’t take long for the door to open; which surprised me since it was after one in the morning. Quovadda opened the door and looked very surprised to see us. I grabbed her and pulled her outside. Bobby put his hand over her mouth and his gun to her temple.

“Hello, Quovadda. If you scream or try to run, he’ll kill you, understand?”

Quovadda’s eyes were wide open and she nodded her head.

“Good,” I said, and Bobby took his hand away from her mouth. “I’m lookin’ for Skip Skinner. I hear that he’s hidin’ inside.”

“He was here, but he left,” Quovadda said quietly.

“Where’d he go?” Bobby said.

“I don’t know.”

I opened the door and Bobby pushed Quovadda inside. “You can search the house, Black; he isn’t here,” Quovadda said and I took out my gun.

While Bobby searched the house, I sat and talked law with Quovadda. Wanda told me that she was good people, and that she was the type of person who would do anything for her friends. That’s probably what made her a good attorney; one who provided her clients with an impassioned defense. “I’m curious, Quovadda, what’s a big-time lawyer like you doin’ with Skip?”

“He was one of my first clients.”

“No, Quovadda, it’s more than that. You mean enough to him that he would hide out at your house.”

“Honestly?”

“I like honesty.”

“I’ve been holding some money for him and he came to get it,” Quovadda said, and I was amazed at how calm and poised she was. At a time like this, with a gun pointed at her, most people would be on the brink of tears.

“His getaway money,” I said.

“And since you’re here, I going to assume that it is you he’s trying to get away from,” Quovadda said.

“You would be correct,” I said as Bobby returned from searching the house.