It's Like Candy (38 page)

Starr was shocked and wide-eyed. She couldn't believe what just came out of his mouth. She had never spoken about River to anyone except to Ms. Henderson, so she knew Eric had to be telling the truth somehow. She stopped being so reluctant and willingly followed him to his car.

Starr wanted to ask Eric a thousand and one questions, but Eric said he would explain it to her in due time. He was in a rush.

 

.   .   .

Eric quickly moved down the stairs
who was bound to a chair, gagged, and helpless.

“You got my cousin trippin', bitch. . . . Your pussy gotta be made out of platinum or gold,” Yung Slim said. “Because of you, I might have to murder him tonight. But not before he watches me kill you.

River was in tears. It was hopeless to try and struggle to get free. The ropes that burned into her skin were tight and knotted well. She figured this was her end.

Yung Slim had a dozen soldiers at his side, including Bishop and Barnes, his most lethal enforcers. He was ready for anything. Snowman was helping him out with the slain officer, taking care of things
at his end. And Yung Slim was cleaning up his mess, starting with River and a few others.

“Slim, why you keeping this bitch alive?” Barnes asked.

“She's a commodity right now. If my cousin is willing to pay eighty grand to get the bitch back, then hey . . . I'm about business. He's gonna get her back, but she won't be alive for that long,” Slim proclaimed.

Critter overheard them talking and his conscience was eating away at him. He regretted making the phone call to Slim, informing him about everything. Now Uncle Pumpkin was dead and a New York City cop was murdered, and Critter knew that there would be a massive manhunt for the shooters responsible. And he'd recently heard on the news about Rahmel's death. He was starting to believe what Eric was saying to him, that maybe this game was becoming too much for him to handle. The money was good, but the extra stuff that came along with getting paid, like the murders, were burdening him. Critter was stressed, and he knew it would only be a matter of time before his past caught up to him.

As Yung Slim talked to Barnes, his cell phone went off. He wasn't familiar with the number, but picked up anyway.

“You have something that I want,” a voice said to him.

“What?”

“You murdered my partner, but I'm willing to let that be, in ex-change for the girl you're holding hostage,” Big Red informed him.

“What's wit' this bitch, why is she so important to everyone?!” Yung Slim shouted through the phone. “Fuck you, pig! How the fuck did you get this number anyway?!”

“Listen, we can do this real easy and on some gentleman shit, or I swear to you, I'll have the entire NYPD task force down your throat by tomorrow morning,” Big Red threatened. “Now, I'm willing to make a deal wit' you. . . . I have some valuable information that I know you will want to hear.”

“And what's that?”

“About two snitches in your crew,” Red told him. “So, do we have a deal? You give me her, and I'll give you their names.”

Yung Slim thought about it. “How do I know you're not lying?” “Can you risk having snitches in your crew?”

Yung Slim knew he was right. He couldn't risk going back to jail, and whoever it was, he knew he had to take care of that immediately.

“We have a deal,” Yung Slim announced.

After a meeting place was agreed on, Yung Slim hung up and proclaimed to his people, “Change of plans. I want her alive.”

Eric mt up with DEA agents
not too far from the meeting site with his cousin. They passed him eighty thousand dollars in cash in a brown duffle bag, and wired him up.

“They're gonna search me once I'm there,” Eric said.

But one of the agents explained to Eric that the wire was wired in-side his belt and could not be seen. Eric was nervous, but allowed them to continue.

Starr was baffled. Eric explained to her how he met her sister, and she was so relieved that River was still alive and nearby. But when she also got the news of her being kidnapped, her joy was short-lived. She'd never prayed so long and so hard in her life. She would do any-thing to see her sister alive again, and she was willing to give her own life to save River's.

One of the agents passed Eric the cash, thinking the money was for Eric to purchase several kilos of cocaine, but Eric went in there with the intention of buying River back from Russell. He misin-formed the agents about the deal.

“Okay, once you're in there, we'll be listening to everything from a small distance. You get your cousin to talk about the murders,
have him make the transaction very quickly. Time is vital,” Agent Morris informed him.

Eric nodded.

“You're doing the right thing,” Agent Merchant stated.

It was still hard for Eric to set up and snitch on his cousin, despite all the grimy things he had done. But he was in love with River and knew this was the only way to get her back and maybe still have a de-cent life with her.

Eric slowly walked to his ride, placed the money on the passenger seat, and got in. He stayed still in the driver's seat for several moments, getting his head right and his nerves steady. The situation was tense, one wrong move tonight and he could end up dead.

As Eric sat, he thought about River and Starr, and how both sisters could finally be reunited tonight after not seeing each other for several years. He thought about his uncle Pumpkin, and he knew he would miss his uncle dearly. And then Donald and Rah came to mind, and he knew their deaths were meaningless, and there was nothing he could do to bring them back.

He knew he had to move forward and bring down his cousin. Russell was a lunatic and he agreed with his deceased uncle that Rus-sell was the devil.

Eric finally started the car and drove off.

Eric drove up to the barren warehouse
and put the car in park. There were two guards outside gripping M-16 machine guns.

Fuck, this niggah think we 9re in Iraq,
Eric said to himself.

He grabbed the cash, stepped out of the car, and slowly headed toward them. Both men stood erect when they noticed Eric approaching them gripping the bag that contained the cash.

One guard smiled, and commented, “Bitch must be that ill for you to bring your ass around here.”

Eric just glared at him as the other man searched him for any weapons.

“That's the cash?”

Eric nodded.

“Open the bag and let me see,” the man instructed.

Eric opened the duffle bag, allowing the thug to get a quick glance of the money.

“Ayyite,” the thug said, satisfied that Eric was clean.

Eric zipped up the bag when he heard the same guard that commented before say, “Let me fuck her for you, E . . . she's definitely a pretty thang. Let me show her what a real man is like. She damn sure got some soft tits, though.”

Eric glared at him and then suddenly struck him fast and hard across his jaw, drawing blood.

“Fuck you!” Eric exclaimed.

“Muthafucka!” the man shouted, trying to strike back, but he was held back by his partner.

“Chill, Rocky—let him be, that's still family to Yung Slim and he wants him alive,” the thug said to his fuming partner.

“I'm gonna fuck you up, Eric!” Rocky screamed.

Eric smirked as he entered the building.

Eric made his way farther into the building, being cautious with every step he took. Eric walked into a vast open section of the building and was surrounded by a half dozen of Yung Slim's men. He looked ahead and saw River gagged and bound to a chair with Yung Slim standing over her holding a pistol in his hand.

“Damn, niggah, you actually came for this bitch,” Yung Slim shouted.

“I got the money. I'm keeping my word,” Eric said.

“You're willing to go all the way for this bitch. . . . Damn, you're a ride-or-die niggah fo' real. But let me show you how serious I am if you fuckin' cross me,” Yung Slim proclaimed, pressing the gun to River's temple.

River squirmed and braced herself for the impact.

“Russell, no—c'mon, it ain't gotta be like this,” Eric shouted.

“I know, but ‘cuz of this bitch . . . it is like this,” Yung Slim replied. “Yo, bring that niggah out.”

Surprised, Eric watched them drag Critter out into the open. He was also bound and beaten badly.

“What the fuck is this?” Eric shouted, looking confused.

“This niggah here is a snake muthafucka! The whole time, he's been an informant, a fuckin' snitch to the NYPD. Come to find out, he tried to conduct business on his own, and got busted trying to purchase a kilo from undercover narcs. But instead of being a man about it and doing his time, he wanted to bring me down. Damn, Critter, I thought we were boys. You were good though, I'll give you that. I never expected for you to become a snitch,” Yung Slim ex-claimed, pressing the pistol to Critter's head.

“Russell, don't—please!” Critter cried out.

“You begging for your life now, after you tried to betray me. I made you a lieutenant in my organization and this is how you do me,” Yung Slim said.

“Russell, it don't have to be this way, we can make things—”
Boom!

Yung Slim didn't even allow Eric to finish his sentence. He abruptly blew a hole in Critter's head, dropping him where he sat.

“You was sayin' somethin', E?” Yung Slim said. “I just made things right.”

Eric was shocked and furious as he watched another friend of many years murdered in cold blood.

“Now, do you got somethin' to confess?” Yung Slim asked. “If so, now is the time.”

“Nah,” Eric dragged out.

“You sure, Eric? Say so now and I'll be easy on you and this bitch. But if the truth comes out—and eventually the truth will come out—it won't be pretty for you.”

“You're a fuckin' monster. I'm disgusted to have the same blood running through my veins as you,” Eric angrily stated.

“Niggah, whatever. Come clean wit' me, Eric—you a snitch, too?” Yung Slim asked, staring at Eric with contempt. “Tonight's your night to come clean and confess all your sins against me.”

Eric's heart pounded rapidly. His nerves were edgy. He wanted nothing more than to kill Russell.

“I got your money. I came for her,” Eric said, staring at River. “Yeah, whatever,” Yung Slim muttered as he pressed the gun to River's head again. “Now tell me, are you a snitch?”

“Russell, I said no!” Eric shouted.

“Somehow, I don't believe you. And you know why I don't believe you . . . ?” Yung Slim focused his attention on a doorway where Big Red loomed, and both Eric and River were shocked.

“Surprised to see me again?” Big Red asked, mocking Eric and River. “What I told you, niggah? I always get what I want, no matter the risks or the cost.”

“See, me and Officer Gibson had a quick talk before your arrival, and he enlightened me on some shit about you, Eric.”

“Fuck you!” Eric fumed.

“Nah, you the one fucked!” Yung Slim chided back. “I promised him River for information.”

“I'm gonna fuck your little girlfriend a few times before I cut her throat,” Red proclaimed.

Eric was furious. He stared at River as he squatted down near the duffle bag and slowly unzipped it. “Russell, I came wit' your money as promised,” he said, holding up a small bundle of fifties and hundreds. “You gonna diss me for this pig, after he the one that set me up and caused all of this? You can't trust him.”

“I thought I could trust you, cuz,” Russell replied.

“It seems like you can't trust anyone anymore,” Eric replied. The situation was tense. Eric slowly reached his hand deeper into the bag and gripped a hidden .45 he had stashed under the money. He
knew it was the only way to sneak the gun in without them finding it after the body search.

It was a standoff, and Eric knew that the chances of him and River leaving there alive were very slim. But he was going out with a fight. Eric knew the DEA had enough evidence now to convict his cousin. Critter's murder was caught on the wire, plus the kidnapping charge, among other counts they had against Yung Slim. Eric wondered why they didn't raid the place yet.

Eric stared at Critter, waiting for the right moment.

“You know, Eric, you're a disgrace to this family by cooperating with the DEA. Fuck is wrong wit' you?! Our family has never snitched, and your weak ass wanna be the first! Red, you can have that bitch,” Yung Slim said.

“No!” Eric shouted, seeing Yung Slim finally lower the gun from River's head. He sprang into action and fired two rounds at his cousin, striking Yung Slim in the shoulder. Yung Slim fell back in shock.

Big Red pulled out his firearm, but Eric shot him twice in the chest. He quickly ran for River as Yung Slim's soldiers opened fire on him, barely missing him. He snatched up River swiftly, and took cover behind some empty steel drums. Eric's adrenaline was pumping as he quickly began untying River.

“Ohmygod . . . ohmygod . . . ohmygod,” River huffed, terrified. She hugged Eric tightly, but Eric knew that this was no time to get sentimental. He gripped his gun and heard Yung Slim's goons coming their way.

But the loud crashing sound from afar, and the rough voices of men shouting, “DEA! DEA, everybody get down! DEA, put your guns down now!” distracted the thugs.

But unfortunately, Yung Slim and his thugs weren't going down that easily, and opened fire on the dozens of agents. Loud and intense gunfire erupted throughout the room, sounding like a small war.

Eric's main concern was getting River to safety. They bolted out the back exit, but were unaware that they were being followed.

Big Red took cover, still feeling the effects of two bullets penetrating his vest and pushing him back as if he'd gotten hit by a small car. He pulled out his police shield and tried to make a covert escape as he crept toward the nearest exit with his Glock gripped in his hand.