Page 99 of Makai

“Aunts, uncles, cousins?”

“Damn near the whole family tree done got a knock from me.”

“So, this nigga hiding for real, for real.”

“Yeah, and as much comfort as that brings most, that shit has me uneasy. I like to hit my target dead in the center of their forehead within one to two business days. Shit, one to two business hours.”

“Minutes.”

“My point! I tried to pop that bitch’s top at county. Mercer’s big, buff ass jumped in front of a nigga and shit. I put Ghost and Midnight on him.”

“And you wonder where that nigga at? Probably nursing his fucking wounds. I hate them big motherfuckers. Fuck you be feeding them? Human?”

On cue, Midnight and Ghost appeared and they were less than happy to see Lawe standing in their home. Perked ears and defense stances displayed their discomfort and willingness to attack.

“Tell them niggas to chill. I ain’t dude. I’ma lay their big asses down, right beside one another.”

“Don’t fuck with my dogs!” I warned.

“Tell them not to fuck with me, and where the fuck you going? Leaving me in here with these niggas.”

“Watch ’em,” I demanded, heading down the hallway.

“Fuck you mean, watch them?” Lawe yelled.

The sound of him loading his chamber stopped me in my tracks. I turned to find him aiming his Glock at Ghost.

“He the first one I’m hitting. He’s too fucking calm for me.”

“He’ll rip your airways from your throat. He’s the first motherfucker you should shoot.”

“Say less.”

“Chill,” I called out to the boys. Immediately, they relaxed. “That’s family. Though the nigga crazy with bad energy, that’s family.”

It wasn’t the first time they’d met Lawe. Every time, there was unspoken beef between them.

“You coming or what?”

Hesitantly, he followed me outside where I passed him the bottle of brown. Back and forth, we took swig after swig, keeping the blunts in rotation. As the night unfolded, my yearning for Glacier increased. I could taste her on the tip of my tongue. I could feel her in my arms. It had been a week since I’d laid eyes on her, seen her anywhere besides a cell phone screen.

“I’ma marry her,” I blurted mid-conversation.

“Nigga, how the fuck you jump from football to I’ma marry her?”

“Because I am.”

“Do that shit, then. After this shit, you should.”

“Why haven’t you married Kleu?” I puffed, preparing for some bullshit to come from his mouth.

“Because what will it change? Real shit. How will marriage benefit either of us more than our current arrangement? Honestly. Tell me. Think of one thing aside from ‘papers’ motherfuckers love to say they have on a person as if they’re an object or some shit?”

I paused, trying to think of something significant. I couldn’t.

“Ain’t shit gon’ come to mind, so you might as well stop straining your fried-ass brain to think. If I leave today, everything goes to Kleu. If I were to fall into a coma today, Kleu has the power of attorney. And that shit works both ways. It won’t make me love her ass any differently. Ya feel me?

“That girl got my whole fucking chest. Fuck my heart. What are we missing? She’s got a ring on her finger. She’s in a fat crib. Endless funds. A nigga that loves and worships the ground she walks on. What more is there to give her besides some paperwork? I think motherfuckers crazy for putting papers on a relationship and using it as a means to confirm a bond.

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