Youngblood

Chapter 23

That night….

Kenny

            We had done what we said we were going to do.  I called a meeting with the Bloods’ distribute team and Cameron called one for the Crips.  We met up in Central Park.  Since Cameron called his meeting for in the morning, he was somewhere lurking in the shadows to cover my ass in case anything went wrong.

 “What do you want, Kenny?”  Asked Quazi.  He distributed the southern region of the state.  “I hear you guys are not using teamwork.”  I said stepping to him.  His brother and partner, Quam, stepped towards me.  I looked at him. 

“I didn’t come here for that, Quam.  But I will change my mind if you don’t back the hell up.”  “Kenny, they are setting us up left and right and you still want to ride with them?”  I looked at Melvin.  He distributed the Northern region.  “What do you mean?”  I asked.  “Aren’t you wondering where Mike and everybody else is?”  Mike was his partner.  “Where are they?”  “Dead!”  We stared at him waiting for him to tell us more. 

“I got a call from Benny saying they needed more stuff.  He comes and we go to make the drop and dudes jump out of everywhere shooting.  We got a couple of them, but they got Mike, Benny, Dustin, Jake and Dune.”  Whoa, I thought staring at him.  “I’m sorry that happened to you, man, but let me handle this situation.  In the meantime, lay low until you hear back from me.”  “You want me to miss out on all this money?”  Quam asked.  I looked at him.  “You want to make money or live?”  “Both.  I got a baby on the way.  I need everything I can get.”  “How’s your baby going to feel about having no Daddy?  Listen to me and lay low.  We are working on the situation, just be patient.” I looked up just in time to see Cameron reach for me. 

He yanked me behind the tree as all hell broke loose.  Everyone hit the ground as shots exploded from guns.  Cameron stood over me firing back at the bullets coming at us.  I didn’t realize the gunshots had stopped until Cameron stepped out from behind the tree.  I followed him

            He looked at Quazi, Quam and Melvin as they got off the ground.  We walked over to the two men he had shot.  One was dead.  The other was trying to get away still.  I identified the dead one as Max.  Nelson was the one trying to get away.  Two of them had gotten away.  They were Tyson and Maverick.

 All were the Crips distribute team Cameron was supposed to meet with in the morning. I kicked Nelson over, so he was lying on his back.  “Cam.?”  He said looking up at him.  His attention shifted beside him to me.  “You are turning on us?” He asked looking back at Cameron.  “You just tried to kill my partner and you have the audacity to think I’m the betrayer?”  I looked at Cameron as his temper began to boil over.  “We supposed to be working together!”  “Work with them?!  Are you crazy?!”  He smiled at him.  “Yes.”  He pointed his gun at his head and pulled the trigger. 

I looked at the rage that insisted in Cameron’s face.  He looked possessed with anger.  We all quickly escaped the park.  Cameron and I made it back to his Mom’s.  I followed Cameron in his room as his brain raced and he paced back and forth with his gun still in his hands. 

Cameron

            I was trying to calm down but couldn’t.  I was set in my kill mode.  I can’t believe They got away.  Now I had to stay on guard until I caught their asses.  I knew for a fact they were going to go into hiding.  It’s okay though, I just had to keep calm and keep a clear head.

            Eventually Kenny went to bed in the living room.  I took a shower and laid down in my bed.  I tossed and turned for the longest unable to sleep.  I found myself lying there thinking about Rachel.  I missed her.  I picked up my phone and went to her profile in my phone.  I looked at the picture I took of her sleeping and smiled.  Let’s see if you pick up, I thought pushing the send button.  It rung about seven times before she picked up.

            “Hello?”  She answered unable to hide the sleep choking her voice.  “Hey Beautiful.”  There was a short pause for a moment.  “Cameron?  How’d you get my number?”  “When I put my number in your phone, I called mine.”  She laughed making me smile.  “You’re very sneaky.” She said waking up.  “Not really.  You just sleep very hard, at least when I’m around.”   “That’s a complement.  I know I’m safe as well as my family.”  “I’m glad you know that.”  I smiled again. 

“What’s wrong?”  She asked as I stared across from me in my mirror on my dresser.  I stared at myself and saw my father. 

“Cameron?”  “I’m here, I’m just,” I looked down. I was shaken up by last night.  I hadn’t gotten any sleep and my mind was just racing.  I was too proud to admit how I was really feeling.  Truth be told, I was scared.

 “You know, Maryah made you and Tasha a gift.”  I smiled.  “Really?”  “Yes, she did.  She worked on it all day.”  “Really?  What is it?”  “A picture of all of us, with a dog and a giraffe.”  I couldn’t help but laugh.  “Why a dog and a giraffe?”  I asked.  “Those are her favorite animals.”  We laughed again. 

We sat there on the phone for at least an hour.  We had both cooked breakfast while we were on the phone and were now eating.  Being on the phone with her really eased my nerves.

 “How are your nasty pancakes?”  I asked sitting at the table with my pancakes.  “They aren’t nasty, they’re good!”  “Woman, pancakes are meant to be eaten with syrup, not jelly.”  I protested as we laughed.  “I felt like apple jelly today, and they are delicious.”  I listened to her eating her pancakes as I laughed.  “You’re gross.”  I said making her laugh again.

            I smiled as I listened to her laugh.  I looked up at Mom as she walked into the kitchen.  She looked at me.  “Randy, babe, can you take the kids to school for me today?  I want to get a few hours of work in this morning.”  She poured a cup of coffee then faced me. 

“Mom, I’m Cameron, not Randy.  I’m your son.”  She stared at me a moment.  “Of course, you are.  Who else would you be?”  She kissed me and then walked out the kitchen.  “Is Randy your dad?”  Rachel asked snapping me out of my worried mode.

 “Yes.  I’m taking her to the doctor today.  She scares me when she does that.  I know she can’t help it, but it still scares me.”  “The best thing you can do for her is what you’re already doing.  Being there for her, letting her know you love her, remind her of who you are.”  “That’s what the doctor told me.”  I felt myself beginning to get down again. 

So, I decided to change the subject. “Don’t you have exams today?”  I asked trying to shake it off.  “Yes, I’m going to take them after I drop the girls off.”  “Are they still asleep?”  “Yes, they got about twenty minutes until they have to get up.”  I smiled.  “A lot can happen in twenty minutes.”  I said making her laugh.  “Not enough can happen in twenty minutes.”  I couldn’t help but laugh.

After we hung up, I felt like a new man.  I got dressed and fled the house before anybody woke up.  The entire day I spent it trying to draw out Tyson and Maverick.  I tracked Tyson down a few hours later at a restaurant with his girlfriend and daughter.  I watched them sit there eating and laughing until they finished.  I followed them out the restaurant.  

They walked down the street without a care in the world.  They were so happy.  I followed them into their apartment building.  I stood back and watched them disappear into their apartment.  Either he was expecting me, or he just wasn’t thinking I was going to retaliate, which pissed me off.

 My anger took over and I took my gun out.  I ran full force at the door knocking the door down.  His girlfriend screamed her head off from the couch as Tyson dived towards the hallway.  I shot at him as his girlfriend rolled on the floor.  I dived behind the couch as she shot at me.  I crawled around the side and fired back at her as Tyson emerged from the hallway with his gun.  I shot at him as he fired towards me. I hugged the ground letting the bullets fly over me.  “NO!”  I heard his girlfriend yell.  I looked across from me in the doorway leading into a bedroom at the little girl.  She toppled over with blood flowing out her chest as her mother ran to her.  I took the opportunity to flip the couch at Tyson.  He dived out the way as I fired at his head.  He landed on his side letting the blood pour out his head as he stared at me.  I looked at the woman grieving over her child.  I pointed at her and shot her in the back of her head killing her.  I looked around at the three dead bodies.

 All were definitely dead.  I quickly fled the building leaving out the back entrance.  I spent the rest of the day looking for Maverick.  He was definitely in hiding.  I went to all of his hang out spots and he wasn’t there. 

By nighttime I had decided to call it a day.  I made my way home.  I walked through the front door waking up Kenny on the couch.  “Hey Cam.  Where have you been?  I’ve been calling you all day.  Are you okay?”  “I got Tyson.  Maverick is on the run.”  His mouth dropped open.  “CAM!  Please tell me you didn’t just go on a man hunt by yourself!”  I stared at him a moment.  “I didn’t go on a man hunt by myself.”  I said sarcastically making him snap.  “YOU ASS!  ARE YOU TRYING TO GET KILLED?!”  He asked sitting up.  I stared at him wondering whether to b***h slap him or punch his teeth out.

 “I somehow managed to make it here to you so you could tell me about my ass!”  He rubbed his head trying to calm down.  “Cameron, this is a very serious situation.”  “Kenny, you think I don’t know that?  I’m trying to defuse the situation.”  “They killed five of us!”  “I managed to get all but one!  I’m working on it!”  I got up and walked into my room.  “You hot headed mother fucker!”  He yelled as he laid back down.

            I took off my jacket and shoes, and then my shirt and jeans, leaving me in my boxers and tank top.  I pulled the covers back and slid into bed.  I laid there on my back staring up through the darkness at the ceiling letting my mind race and scramble.  I knew we were sitting ducks as long as Maverick was out and about.  He had gotten away from me twice already.  I vowed not to let it happen a third.

 I looked at my phone as it began vibrating.  “Hey beautiful.”  I said smiling.  “Hey, I can’t sleep.”  Rachel said as I laughed.  “Why not?”  I asked.  “I don’t know.”  “Aw!  You miss me, don’t you?”  I asked.  “Shut up.”  “Aw!  That’s so cute.”  We laughed.  “How’d your exams go?”  I asked.  “I feel pretty good about them.”  “You have more tomorrow?”  “Yeah two.  I studied all week for them.  I feel ready to get it over with.”  “I wish I were with you.  I really miss you.”  I smiled.  “Well, that’s why I called.  Put your phone on speaker.”  She said making me hit the button on my phone.  “I did.” I replied.  “Now lay it on the pillow beside you.”  “I did.”  I smiled.  “Now, I’m lying next to you and you’re lying next to me.”  “I at least want to sneak and touch your ass or something.”  I said making her laugh.  “Well, you’ll have to settle for this for now.”  “So, you’re saying I can touch your ass when I see you?”  She laughed again.  “Only if my foot will fit up yours.”  “You’re so violent.”  We laughed again.  We played around and laughed until we both fell asleep.

            I awakened a few hours later.  Something just didn’t feel right.  I sat up and looked around the room.  I didn’t see anything.  Something just didn’t feel right.  As I sat up, I looked at the shadow easing by the window.  Amateur, I thought reaching under my pillow for my gun as I slid into my jeans and shoes.  I pulled the safety off just in time for something to crash through the window.  My reflexes took over making me dive on the other side of the bed.  I jumped up shooting towards the window as I listened to Rachel screaming.  I looked up just in time to see the figures running away.  I dived out the window after them as Kenny skidded in my room.

“CAMERON NO!”  Kenny yelled as glass shattered under my feet.