Sub-Chapter
Coming up short
There was no shortage of excitement that kept people guessing for days on end. Saturday morning rolled around the next day. To some it was not the kind of weekend to wash their car or mow the lawns for neighbors who tip pennies instead of lush green cash. There are those who take a load off and just go for a ride wherever the road takes them. In one loafer's case, he was nodding off in the driver's seat on a trip back to Stilwater after being away nine months, or two years, depending how this guy in particular looked at his situation. He tried not to think of the past too much.
Then again, every time he closed his eyes he felt he was flying away while the rest of his body fell off a rusty chair and lay limp on the cold, hard ground. It would be one hefty price to pay for one who almost never pays his debts. Pierce Washington: 26 years old, more of a lover than a fighter. He went into hiding sometime after he couldn't pay back a Chicago born loan shark named Davey Hoss. Pierce was your typical wannabe bad guy; did a couple overnighters in jail for shoplifting, nabbing burnt out weapons off the street while police were doing investigations, and going to jail for the sole reason a violent loan shark wouldn't be stupid enough to get his own ass fried on the chair.
He was driving on the highway when he passed the sign "Welcome to Stilwater" when he almost caused a five car traffic jam. Luckily, his cougar girlfriend Violet took the wheel and got back in the right lane before anything happened to her. Pierce's eyes were wide open at that point.
"Stupid fool, keep your eyes on the damn road!" She shouted as a car on the opposite lane hit the horn and flipped them off. "Yeah, what'chu want? Go back to your 400lb trucker girl, ass hole!"
"Damn girl, thanks for not getting our asses squashed." Pierce said taking back the wheel.
"I got stones worth more than this trash bucket. I don't want any One Time selling my shit on ebay."
"Relax it ain't gonna come to that, alright? I got this."
"Mm-hmm, yeah you got this." She replied sarcastically. "I thought we were checking in at the beach resort down at Beverly Hills. What're we doing here?"
"We going there, but I got to make a pit stop first."
"You still haven't told me why you so nervous since we left Nevada."
"What do you mean? I'm good." He assured her.
"You always say that. Ever since we met in Vegas baby, you were on a winning streak at the Black Jack tables there. It was like the outside world can go fuck itself in your eyes. That's what I loved about you. You're a man on a mission, never the one to look back. Then you get a voicemail from some stingy neck beard named Davey Hoss and you get all blue in the face. So who is he?"
"He's not your concern, V. Besides, Stilwater has more character than Beverly Hills. You grew up in…East L.A. right?"
"South Central to the core, baby face." She corrected him. "But hustling came into the mix and was on my way to being the cougar gold digger you see before you."
"Along with the A.D.D…" Pierce mumbled.
"Sorry, what was that?"
Living outside the familiar, Pierce still kept in touch with a few people who were too busy to rat him out to the cops; Tyreese from the Kingdom Come neighborhood being one of them. Driving across the bridge and heading into the city, he noticed the water below looking different than usual. He saw broken pieces washed up on shore and "do not cross" equipment so people wouldn't go peeking at yet another big Channel 6 news story he heard the day after it happened. In his mind, he didn't know the Alderman or the Saint who blew up with him all that well, but it left a lump in his stomach that anything can happen at any time. Hughes was your typical, power hungry politician; gangs didn't like him all that much.
Just goes to show you how karma can be a real bitch sometimes Pierce thought. Violet was getting antsy when she was feeling the stink eyes from city locals and smelling the cheap hobo cologne passing through on an intersection leading to Prawn Court. As she kept looking at her nails and texting on her phone, both came up to a construction site where Kingdom Come Records was getting rebuilt. A group of eight Saints along with Troy Bradshaw was supervising the finishing touches on the building when Pierce parked on the opposite street across from them.
"Alright, stay in the car. I got to holler at my boy Ty over there." Pierce said getting out of the car.
"Pierce, stop wasting my time. I got a schedule to keep at the resort." Violet reminded him with furrowed brows.
"I-I know. This'll just take a sec."
"You're on the clock, baby boy." She replied.
The Vice Kings right hand, Warren Williams had the music scene at Kingdom Come records for years until it got sent up in smoke by a random car bomb. Millions more was lost when Aisha "blew up" along with it. Money was generated by some contractors who put the building on the map in the first place. However, when Benjamin King left Stilwater and his crew fell apart, the renovations were never completed. Troy, Aisha, Ty and Scott's crew took the task into their own hands and started getting the rap scene back on the number one charts.
The city was still reeling from Aisha's passing; many fans have dedicated a lot of money and support to even have a holiday named after her. Still living on the down low to avoid naysayer suspicion, Aisha has been working in the Lopez mansion establishing underground tracks in her own self-made studio. One day she hoped to make a resurrection and restore some faith in her fans about the truth behind her supposed demise. Rebuilding a lost label required time, money, and focus to make the place whole again, but for Pierce, disturbing the peace to ask for help was one of his strongest talents. He walked up to the group checking out schematics to ask where Tyreese was.
"Hey guys, what's up?" Pierce asked looking around the group. "Do y'all know where Tyreese at? Last I heard he was frequenting this part of town."
Troy, Scott and the others looked at each other like the individual talking to them had three heads with hardly anything between the ears. Then Scott chimed in and told him, "Uh, dawg, Prawn Court belongs to me and Ty. We don't "frequent" around in it."
"My bad; Ty's an old friend of mine from High School and I need to see him."
"Whoa hold on, that voice of yours…" Scott said thinking. "You were the class clown sophomore in our senior year; class of '81."
"Different times, man. I've grown outta that shit." Pierce replied defending himself.
"Guys, do I need to remind you we have a deadline to keep in the grand re-opening for this label?" Troy told everyone. "Scott, can you handle this?"
"I got'chu…" He agreed as he walked Pierce away from the group and towards his car.
"'Bout time, can we go now?" Violet whined.
If there was one thing Scott couldn't stand was a needy woman. Pierce introduced him to Violet, but she kept going on and on about getting out of the heat and go soak in the sun the right way. Hard to believe she grew up in South Central he told Scott; even with all kinky stuff he and a fifty-seven year old gold digger did in Vegas he felt something was missing in the relationship. Throughout the time he spent with her, he felt like he was the third wheel: His long overdue loan of $367,000, Violet's insatiable appetite for jewelry and continental breakfasts, and of course Pierce's dog ass for slipping into her Gucci arms for the sake of attention. However, in the end it was all living the lavish life with money he never even had in the first place.
Scott dropped a Benjamin and a line to entice her ear to go buy herself something nice. "Make it a quad and I'm gone for a few hours." She snooted as Scott dropped a $5 bill and told her to split before he got cranky. Violet had her nose up high and drove off like she was street racing, nearly causing a car collision on a left turn. Both shook their heads as the neighborhood returned to normal.
"I feel for you, man. I really do; a high maintenance bitch like her would drive anyone insane." Scott said.
"Believe me once I do this thing I got to do with a loan shark, her and I are done." Pierce replied with certainty.
"Two years I heard. You couldn't deal with your mom and pops no more, huh?"
"They never did understand me. I'm a franchising man, Scott. I make things happen…though recently I hit a dry spell."
"Just spit it out, dawg." Scott insisted.
"I fucked up well. I need either you or Ty to look into a loan shark for me. Davey Hoss is his name."
"Okay, you're on your own with that." He immediately spoke before turning away from him.
"Come on, man. I'm in deep shit here! If I don't pay him by the end of tomorrow, he's gonna clap my ass and possibly kill my family."
"You shoulda thought of that before taking money from the Hoss. He never forgets an overdue loan. Ever since the Rollerz went down, he's been hounding Rim Jobs all over the city for payments on races he's bet on."
"Do you know where he is? If I can reason with him…"
Scott interjected and was trying to find simpler words to make Pierce understand what he was going to do. He shook his head and told him, "Did you not hear what I said? If you haven't paid him back by now, it's adios for you. There's no reasoning with that motherfucker."
"Maybe not, but it won't hurt for me to try. I'm good at bullshitting people." He replied.
"Ain't that the goddamn truth; I'm going to regret this, but how much do you owe him?"
"Does it matter? It's not coming out of the Row's pockets, I swear. I'll worry about the money myself. I just need to find him."
Scott gave a loud sigh and mentally kicking himself if things didn't go as plan on Pierce's end. Then again, back in High School he was always an annoying kid to the senior class and certain gang members, thinking he was all bad ass and could join any gang if he wanted to. In reality, he was just a buster with too much time on his hands and living in a fantasy land where money grew on trees as well as Tee 'N' Ay girls sucking his dick whenever he "made it rain" on them. Troy called him back for some input when Scott told him he was going to look into Hoss's whereabouts. Pierce conveniently gave him his phone number as Scott walked away with it crumpled in his hand.
He then turned around only to find out he let Violet go with his car and had no means of getting home. Taxis were a no-go with only ten dollars in his back pocket. With only two bars on his cell phone and wearing Hollywood clothes that would make hobos think they were rich, he took a stroll around the city to see how much has changed in the last two years he wasn't around. One thing was for sure in his mind; he didn't have to take cover while a Carnales shootout was happening, or try to impersonate a Westside Roller to get half price on auto parts for his father's brown Capshaw. As the day went on, the word "homesick" was an understatement for him.
He didn't know why he took off. Other than his parents screaming at him to be a man and find a real job, he really missed Stilwater. His friends were a fair few, most likely moved on up or at least gotten a job at Freckle Bitches to make the rent. All of a sudden, he wanted to go down memory lane by having his favorite meal at the city's hamburger milestone itself. While the outside changed, not so much the inside of Freckle Bitches; it definitely took him twelve pounds back in High School. He always ordered the same thing: large fries, Kackle-berry fruit punch, along with a nice bowl of bacon chili, all $6.83.
For Pierce, having chump change had him eating like a king indeed. He took his meal outside as he sat down, watching purple vehicles roll by and seeing Saints walking down the streets as locals praised them like saviors in their eyes. They took out three major gangs while keeping a tight defense for any newcomers, drawing in good faith from the people. It was a good thing salty fries and meaty chili kept his stomach satisfied; he was leaning towards hating himself for not doing anything important. Then someone who looked like he partied hard the night before sat in front of Pierce with a proposition.
"Wow…man that was some party last night." He said, catching his breath.
"Sorry, who are you…?" Pierce asked eating a couple fries.
"Exactly, I feel like a whole new man today. Apart from soiling myself, somehow giving a blowjob to a tranny with blue hair and silky legs, and the occasional binge drinking, I feel like I can take on the entire city myself. So, what's it going to be, bro? You gonna make this city your bitch or what?"
"My man, are you for real?!"
"He-heeeyyy, take it easy." He replied, balancing himself on the bench. "I sometimes get forward with people I just met. Names Kenny, surname escapes me."
"Pierce…" He introduced himself.
"Nice to meet ya, so Pierce how would you like to make some money?"
"Um…how much are we talking?"
"That depends on the client." Kenny said leaning forward. "Have you ever done an escort service?"
There were plenty of ways to make money in the city. The possibilities could go from turning tricks on a street corner to making big bucks at Ultor. Pierce heard of the escort service being a popular money venture; the Saints had done a couple jobs and made a couple grand in one afternoon. Kenny was immediately ecstatic by how determined he was to make some easy money in a flash, and told him there was an escort scheduled for 8 P.M. High profiled clients that would pay top dollar for some desperate local with cinematic driving skills and blasting the right music at the right time to get in the mood for two backseat rompers. He gave Pierce an address and to look for a millionaire bachelor wearing a black and aqua suit with slick hair along with his bimbo fling with double C's.
If Pierce was able to make their backseat joyride a night to remember, he would get paid $9,000 plus another $6,000 if he would be willing take the client's best man and his girl for a spin; not in the literal sense though he told him. Pierce took the address written on a piece of paper and confirmed Kenny got himself an escort man on the prowl. There was only one problem he told Kenny; he didn't have a car at the moment and asked him if he could borrow his for the night. Kenny had no answer for such a tall order giving away his car to someone he just met. He straight up laughed in his face and said, "That's a good one. If you're really that desperate for money, you better find a car by 8. I'll be seeing ya, buddy." He continued chuckling as he walked away from the table.
At the moment, he was at a dead end with no car to reverse out of, but the sound of fifteen grand in his pocket for one night felt way too good to pass up. All he needed was an address to find Hoss and he would take matters from there. He got out his phone to check and see who would help him out. He had Sampson on speed dial from Rim Jobs, but that was a risky take considering it was going to be $600 for a rental car, double if Pierce had so much made a dent on a tail light. His girl Violet was out of the question because out of all the time they spent together, not once did he ask for her number. Only god knows where she took his car.
That was when he made the hardest choice that caused him to leave Stilwater for two years in the first place; call his pops to borrow his Capshaw car. Even as he dialed his house number, he knew asking to borrow his car was like going through triage in Vietnam. Getting up from his table and walking around the area, he called his father, Derek to give it a try.
"Washington residence: you got the honeys, I got the barbecue."
"Dad…"
"Who is this? Why are you calling me "dad"?"
"It's your son, pop. Pierce."
"Oh, it's you. So what happened now; being a man was too much for a franchising fool like your-self? What the hell do you want?"
"Well shit, dad. I'm happy to hear from you too." He replied sarcastically. "Look, let me be the first to say I was a crappy son. I'm sorry I left for two years without a phone call."
"Did that female hipster give you amphetamines again?"
"No, listen I was loud, egotistic, disrespectful at times, and I'm in a rut right now, but that's not on you or mom. What I'm saying is I'm ready to come home."
"But…you have a hidden agenda going on, don't you? Boy, I can read the bullshit on the other end of this phone. You shamed this family for all it was worth! How the fuck could you take off the way you did?!"
"Pop, I fucked up okay?" He said, trying to reason with him. "I want to make some changes in my life, and that's going to happen soon. If I could just come over and explain my actions in person…"
"Pierce…your mother died last year from worrying so much about you. A gunfight was happening at a gang stronghold when she decided to walk out of the house and head where the bullets were flying. I was at work when it happened; some white boy racer was making a getaway when she got ran over by his car. It was an instant death. Boy, your attitude and lack of authority broke this family in half. If you had only stayed, we'd…"
"Dad…I don't know what to…"
"That's right, you DIDN'T know! You're a goddamn loser, you know that?! The next time you call this number I'll run you over myself, you ungrateful bag of shit!"
Once he heard that click on the other line, all his previous problems felt like an afterthought in his mind. Pierce knew he messed up good when his mother was the angriest out of his two parents. His face was flushed, and he looked around the neighborhood for a minute as he pressed up against a store wall. He felt his breathing escaped him and couldn't find it in himself. All of sudden, a trench coat wearing hobo came out of nowhere and scolded him, "What are ya doing in my house? You don't belong in my shithole, so get out of here 'fore I…eat your intestines."
Being away from his folks to hang out with friends kept him relatively busy as well as sane throughout his entire life, but at this point he didn't know how he felt. He wasn't the kind of guy to accept defeat, even if his selfishness cost a loved one's life. By mid-afternoon, he was pacing around the University district, looking for things to do to bide his time before his 8 PM escort service. He's never done one before, but he heard rumors about its high payout and even higher risk. The Paparazzi were like sharks on celebrity joyrides, chasing down particular cars and getting footage of revenge sex and the like.
All this time since he called his dad, not once did Violet cross his mind; probably halfway to Beverly Hills he thought. Being back in Stilwater allowed him a lot of time to reflect on the mistakes he's made, and what he was going to do with his future. His future began with a buzz coming from his phone.
"Yeah…?" Pierce asked feeling down.
"What up man? I spoke to Ty and he got a fix on Davey's location. He's counting green stacks at the Developer Offices. But he's been riding around in his blue Bulldog, probably found out you're back in town."
"Good. I won't have to look far then. I got something coming up as down payment for Hoss."
"I don't know dawg." Scott sighed. "Like I said, if you didn't pay him back for the loan you took out, you're a dead man."
"Alright, thanks man. I owe you one." Pierce said before hanging up.
If there was any part in his mind that had him scared for his life, he was only lying to himself. Pierce was beside himself for most of the day, and pretty much accepted how it would end either way. It was already 5:06 in the late afternoon and wanted to visit a friendly face that would have no problem take the edge off any nerves he had at the time. Heading into the campus courtyard, he noticed that friendly face walking past the auto shop building. He ran over and slowly walked behind her, getting the element of surprise in the process. Suffice it to say what he got was more than just a startle from Stilwater's famous hippie.
Her eyes beamed and had a smile bigger than the campus itself. She ran up to him and said, "Pierce, oh my god!" Shaundi laughed with excitement as she hugged him. "Hi! I missed you man."
"I missed you too, girl. How've you been?"
"I'm…doing just great. I finally did it, Pierce. I'm running my own drug business outside of campus. I got so much to tell you." She said as she saw him looking down. "Uh-oh, something's wrong."
"What…naw everything's good. I was just in the neighborhood."
"Honey, we knew each other since grade school. I can tell when you're lying."
"Yeah, I'm an open book. I'm in deep shit, Shaun." Pierce replied.
"Walk with me. Tell me all about it."
Having a sibling-type bond with Shaundi didn't grant him much privilege for how much pull she had in Stilwater, both literally and metaphorically speaking. But both of them felt a sense of safety for one another, like they could tell each other anything and not be judgmental about it. It was a long walk from the campus to the drug farm so Pierce thought to lay it all on the table like he usually does with all his problems. It went from being disowned by his dad for having his mom commit suicide out of constant worry, having a high maintenance cougar who think she knew all about the world and not for just its expensive jewelry, all while leaving out the part where he had to pay his huge debt to Hoss. They kept the conversation going with her talking about how her life wasn't all just scoring weed and having sex every night.
Pierce joked about her going three dimensional in her personality; she frowned upon that though. She couldn't remember every explicit detail about what she went through in jail, but she did remember two vital things Shaundi took with her as she celebrated her freedom the only way she knew how: her cell mate Marley and selling Loa dust. There were details they were keeping from each other; one being how Shaundi still felt the moment blood splattered all over her jumpsuit, and how Pierce for the first time was thinking about the big picture other than himself. Both knew something was hurting them more than they cared to admit. Before they knew it, they reached the farm that had six trailer drug labs sitting on burnt grass with smoke coming out of two of the trailers.
In his own way, Pierce was proud of her for how far she has come than just some girl getting high all the time. As a matter of fact, the profits she was making from the drug deliveries, she was able to pay for school and help a couple of her favorite exes stay afloat with the rent she told him. However, her new boy toy didn't take too kindly to that idea. Someone from one of the trailers came out in an insulated suit that looked to be a spaceman outfit in Pierce's eyes. He tripped over the last trailer step before dusting himself off to go meet Shaundi.
"Woo, we are cooking tonight." Veteran Child said after taking off his helmet. "And it's all thanks to me."
"Seriously dude; Natasha and I did all the work bringing this farm back from the Stone Age." Shaundi told him.
"I know you did, sweetheart." He said, kissing her soon after. "But I left this business behind before becoming a DJ. Therefore, I found it first, just saying." He replied before turning his head towards Pierce. "Are you my Corrections Officer?"
"He's kidding." She expressed to him. "V.C., I'd like you to meet an old childhood friend of mine, Pierce Washington."
"What's up, home slice?" He asked holding his fist out.
"You're dating a DJ now?"
"Don't hate homie. I have a lot to offer to this city, you know?" Veteran Child said before checking his watch. "Oh shit, I got to get back in there before I cause a fire. Hey Shaun, don't worry about the graveyard shift. We'll just pack everything together before Tobias comes by in the morning."
The esteemed DJ was definitely on something Pierce told her. He ran off after two minutes of getting introduced and thinking he owned the place when Pierce himself had never heard of him before. He showed concern in his eyes when Shaundi assured him Veteran Child was solid and down to Earth when he wasn't high on meth. She also explained he felt the need to be the boss of both her and the farming business.
"He has a record store opening up next year. If I'm lucky, Natasha and I can run the business in peace and have some spending money left over. Isn't he great?" She asked as she saw concern on his face. "What; ok so he takes some time to get used to."
"I guess so. Look, I'm happy you got your life back together after the jail breakout. I really am. If you got time, I got a favor to ask."
"With you, I got nothing but time. What do you need?"
"A fast car; I met this guy down at Freckle Bitches earlier and he told me I can make some fast money by doing an escort service around the city." He explained as they walked around the farm.
"Yeah, I heard about those. I think one of my exes has a '05 Black Justice you can use."
"Nice. I need the car by 7:30 tonight. I'll be one block away from the Escort locale, near Frostworth Street."
"I'll give him a ring when I finish up here." She promised. "But promise me one thing. When you have time, let's get together and do something like the old days."
Even when Pierce was down on his luck or felt the rest of the world had moved without him, Shaundi was always there to lift his spirits. He couldn't say however he was surprised she moved on to another boyfriend. He kept a list of her exes somewhere, but after like twenty-six he lost count and that was before he left Stilwater. By the time 7:30 came around, his saving grace on wheels had finally arrived. It was a little dirty around the edges and the passenger side had tons of candy wrappers on the floor, but it ran fine and the tank was full.
Knowing how escort services work, it didn't matter whether the car smelled fresh off the lot, or festering behind a gas station for three weeks. Pierce caught the keys from Shaundi's ex Franky and thanked him for looking out. Soon after, he jumped in and drove towards Frostworth Street. Anxiously waiting in the car, Pierce could smell the fifteen stacks ruffling through his fingers while having a deep empty feeling of dropping it on Hoss's desk. All day, he prayed he could bullshit a way to get an extension on his two year debt.
A part of him took what Scott told him to heart when he told him he was a dead man walking if he didn't pay back the loan on time. Depending on the withdrawal, the timeline could last up to a month to a full year based on Davey's mood at the time. Most of the time, as long as he was winning racing bets from the Rollerz, he was as content as anyone with a lot of money would. On the other hand, Pierce never had the luxury of seeing what would happen to those who didn't pay him back. He kept checking his phone for any messages from Violet, but still no answer to anything.
For all he knew, she probably maxed out his father's gold card to buy the necklace from the movie "Titanic". Ten minutes to eight, he was greeted by Kenny driving a beige Cavallaro with some one-on-one action you can only hear from Tee 'N' Ay.
"Hey-hey-hey-HEY I remember you!"
"What's up man?" He asked.
"I'm just great." Kenny replied looking at the backseat. "Lesbian action, bro; can't beat it. Well, not now since I'm driving ha-hah-hah. You ready to make some big bucks?"
His rearview mirror showed two news vans closing in one them. Still riled with excitement, Kenny revved the gas and said, "Gotta go Pierce; woo-hoo!" before taking off like a bat out of hell. Good on him he said to himself. Not a moment too soon the rich bachelor was ready and waiting to get picked up, and driven over to his fling for the evening. That was until he noticed something oddly familiar at the end of the street; the Bulldog Scott told him about. It wasted no time ramming the two news vans off the road like they were soccer balls and sped on the same path Kenny was on.
Pierce's instincts kept screaming in his ear to follow him. Without putting any actual thought in his plan he drove away and went after the Hummer. He made one sharp turn and flooring it to catch up to both cars. After two miles of playing bumper cars on the road, the Bulldog made one last ram to the right side of Kenny's vehicle, sending one of the girls flying out of the backseat and one with her head on the window. The Cavallaro spun out of control and crashed into a broken down stronghold that used to be Vice King territory. Without stopping, the Bulldog kept bum rushing through the neighborhood until it disappeared from Pierce's sight.
He skirted off the road and ran out to make sure Kenny was okay. He couldn't really speak for the other two girls. Running through the broken wood pieces and smoke coming out of the car, he found Kenny firmly sitting in the front seat with blood gurgling from his mouth. "Hang on man, I'm gonna get you…" He said before noticing at his chest had a big piece of sharp wood sticking out. Not only that, he heard a beeping sound coming from the pile of wood pieces hiding under.
Pierce slowly looked at Kenny one last time before an explosion forced him away from the car, landed three feet away from the burning stronghold. A few minutes later, he heard sirens coming his way as he was trying to hoist himself up with a pulled muscle in his left calf. The night was shaping up to be a blast from the past, but getting caught by the cops for arson was not something he wanted to end his day with. He got back in his car and drove off towards the Developer Offices near the Hotel district of the city. Along the way, he pulled out his phone; he couldn't call Scott to tell him what happened due to it breaking his fall.
When he finally pulled up towards the offices, it was already after hours for illegal activity to handle its business before the sun rose. Davey wasn't much of a sleeper; he preferred to count his cash in the privacy of the one place he could be the least exposed. Knowing him, he would probably have a skeleton crew watching his back Pierce told himself. He was looking in the glove compartment for anything he could use as a weapon. The only thing in there was a pen, some smoked out joints, and some F.A.F. body spray. He grabbed the spray and the pen for good measure. Suddenly, a feel of apprehension swirled in his breast, gave him a few more seconds to decide what his next move was going to be.
"This is it, Washington. You've made it this far. Do something right for once…"
Slamming the door behind him with a half burnt shirt still attached to his body, he marched through the side of the building and got some window access inside. Everything was still active, even the cameras which only Hoss's crew would do to keep watch on any uninvited gang members snooping around. He took the elevator up to the thirteenth floor and noticed two guards wearing expensive suits and standing tall guarding their master. Pierce limped towards them before they stopped him at the door. Carrying Chicago accents they asked, "What's your business, kid?"
"I got a date with the Hoss." He replied.
"You don't have his money, you're not getting in." One guard told him.
"Davey's in a good mood tonight. Want it to stay that way, I'd run along."
"Not going to happen, ass holes." He replied spraying both of them, grabbing one guard and slamming his head against the door twice. Dodging one bullet past his head, he took the other guard's gun and shot his kneecaps.
All those months pumping iron in front of Vegas showgirls working on their glutes, Pierce still couldn't believe his version of throwing down worked. Opening the door, he found himself looking at Davey Hoss for the first time in two years. It was a dimly lit office and Pierce had no intention taking his eyes off him until their business was concluded. The Chicago bred loan shark looked up at him and said, "Nice entrance you made. Two years it's been, right? I gotta say you've grown quite a set since last time I dropped over 300 G's on you."
"Good to see you, Hoss. Nice Bulldog you got out front. You must have a "blast" driving it around at night."
"I'm glad you like it." He chuckled. "Models like the Bulldog are hard to come by in this city. You actually have to work your ass off to buy one pre-owned."
"Do the newer models have car bombs or do they cost extra?" He asked Davey. "C'mon man, I'm tired. Let's just get this shit over with."
"There's nothing more to discuss." He said placing his AS12 riot shotgun on his desk. "I gave you a tall loan, I expected return payment within a month after, and yet you disappear into Vegas and Miami. Yeah, I keep tabs on all my loaners. What I don't understand is how a simpleton like you is able to squander over 300 grand in only two years' time. You're not exactly a stranger to spending boatloads of money."
"Luck made a nice turnaround at the blackjack tables. Past is past, Hoss; I didn't come here strapped." He said as Davey looked at his two downed guards. Looking behind, Pierce retorted, "I got lucky that time. Nobody else knows I'm here; all I want to know is why you pussied out when you rammed an innocent man off the road and sent his ass in smoke. I'm not perfect, getting ridiculed by others is a daily routine for me. What I'm saying is I don't have your money; so go fuck yourself you shady ass bastard."
"Mr. Washington, I thought after all our brief transactions together you'd realize how my business works by now. Sure, some end in with a huge hole in their chest, some are beaten to death, but I feel in this case, we could negotiate a consolation prize to dissolve my financial loss."
The rest of the room lit up with the snap of his fingers. Pierce's eyes widened to the point of bulging out when he saw none other than Violet strung up on the ceiling by barbed wire and duck-tape. She bled from her arms and legs onto a thick padded quilt Hoss placed behind his desk to hide the sound of drops hitting his new carpet. Anger was slowly building inside his stomach; his face was turning beat red as he saw the sickening grin on Davey's face. He was pissed off but at the same time nervous about his own fate.
"You're right about one thing, Pierce." Davey said looking at Violet passed out. "Killing an innocent man making a quick buck on the escort service was a weak move on my part. But the thing is…I was never behind the wheel. Jeez, I got nothing against fine wine walking about, but did you really have to go for the shallowest one?" He asked as Pierce was about to tackle him.
"You son of a…" He shouted before a shotgun blast hit by his feet.
"Next one's going in your mouth! Now, you're looking at a onetime free pass here, Washington. What's it going to be: her diamonds or your life?"
"This ain't you, Hoss. I'm the one who fucked up. Take my life instead!"
"Time's up…" He said coldly as his trigger finger "slipped" as the next shot went through Violet's stomach without a second thought to be had. Her emerald necklace fell off her neck and landed on Davey's hand. Suddenly, Pierce's desire to beat the living daylights out of him fleeted away in a pinch. He lost feeling in his arms and couldn't move after the first shot nearly made him a disabled guy. Another twist gave both surviving bystanders a scare when Pierce wasn't the only person with a bone to pick with the loan shark.
Jason Camden struck back again when he had his gun aimed at Hoss as he shouted, "Stilwater PD! There's nowhere to run, Hoss. 3rd Street's on the way right now; I'm taking you in."
"Who the hell are you?!" Pierce demanded, still sweating from being nervous.
"Thanks for calling the purple gang sign brigade. If he manages to get away, it won't matter. The Row will shoot him and all that money he has there will go back to the clients he stole from; ones that are still alive anyway."
"How itchy is that trigger finger, Camden?" Hoss asked pointing his shotgun at him. "Even if I die tonight, somehow it's going to get traced back to you. The bitch is just collateral damage; no one is going to miss her."
"Sexual assault, murder, money laundering on familiar networks, and don't get me started on the charges for your boys out in the hall." Jason replied, looking at Pierce he said, "You did good tonight, kid. Your debt's been paid; he won't come after you anymore."
"Whoa, whoa hold the fuck up. My girlfriend's dead and that's it for me?!"
"You can testify in court, send this bastard away for life, but come on Pierce. How is Legal Lee going to set up your case when you don't meet the financial requirements? Justice is going to be served tonight for your lady friend, but you need to let me handle this."
"I'll die before you take my business away." Hoss said before firing two shots, leaving Jason and Pierce running for cover.
Who says money can't protect you in the big bad world? Hoss fired a third shot as Jason fired off a few rounds while both were taking cover. A few seconds later, he grabbed two sacks full of money and hoofed it out of his office and taking his downed goons with him. Jason left Pierce in the confusion to go deal with Hoss's two bodyguards elsewhere as Pierce found himself looking at a wad of cash on the table. He got up slowly and took as much as he could carry in his pants pockets.
Before taking off, he looked back at Violet and told her, "We had some good times, V; 'till I found out you had five platinum cards from other sugar daddies and played me for a fool. But still…I'm sorry." Only been back a day and had one hell of a refresher course on what Stilwater always was: A rollercoaster ride of fun and mayhem. As he was making his way out of the building, he came across the two guards who were giving him hassle earlier. Both were shot to death in the chest by Camden himself. He didn't know why he showed up out of the blue to save his sorry ass, but some part of him felt grateful that he did.
When he was finally out of the Developing Offices, the outside was quiet for a minute until he heard sirens again coming from the car explosion to the loan shark shootout. He got clear of the neighborhood with no purple vehicle rushing down to deal with the situation. At that point, he didn't care anymore. His girl was dead, his father disowned him from the family, Shaundi was the highlight of his evening until Veteran Child intervened, but at least he had a good $4,200 sitting comfy in his pants. Making his way to a payphone, he gave Scott a ring to tell him what happened.
"Yo Scott, it's me Pierce." He said, trying to catch his breath. "I met up with Hoss tonight. He killed my girl man. I knew she was high maintenance and had a…tendency to yawn whenever we had sex, but she didn't deserve to go out the way she did. Look, is there any way I can crash at your place for a few days? I have money; just long enough until I can figure things out."
"Your time has expired. Please insert five cents to continue the call."
"Hello…" Pierce asked after he put five cents into the slot. "Hello!"
"The number you are trying to reach is incomplete. Please hang up and dial again…"
"Fuck!" He shouted hitting the top half of the phone against the booth. He took a few minutes to breathe before saying anything else on the phone. When he thought about it, he felt like a stranger coming back to the one place he belonged, the one place he could call "home". He placed the phone back on his left ear and spoke to his long deceased mother, Caylee on things he didn't have the heart to say when she was alive.
"Mom…It's me. Weird huh; your wannabe gangsta son calling his moms back after two years leaving her to worry. God…stupid…I am really sorry I left the way I did. I can apologize in English to Klingon and it still won't express how sorry I am. Dad disowned me today; I don't blame him for having nothing to do with me.
Heh, I remember that one winter I took his car out to a party and thought doing donuts on black ice was a good idea. He and I didn't speak until the new year. Do you wanna know why I packed my bags and left after our argument? I was tired of being told what to do all the time. I wanted to be my own man, but every time I tried, I ended up crying myself to sleep. Coming back to Stilwater gave me a wakeup call. I realized a lot has changed since the Saints stepped up and took their fight with the other gangs.
I can't keep blaming them for my screw-ups anymore. If I were to tell you I was gonna change, I wouldn't expect you to believe me. But the thing with me is I'm always going to screw up, I'm always going to do something or say something other people won't like. I can't change who I am; I'd be lying to myself if I was trying to be someone else. It doesn't hurt to keep trying though. Look, mom for real I will try to be a better man going forward, and maybe one day either you or dad will be proud of me. I love you, mom. Keep it real up there. Bye…"
He granted himself a short reprieve from all he went through from entering Stilwater to making his peace on a payphone. Walking out of there wiping off a tear, he looked up into the sky with a new perspective on where to take his life. Being at rock bottom didn't feel so bad he thought; especially with $4,200 breaking his fall. There was nowhere else to go but start from scratch. He cracked a smile as he walked away from his past mistakes and set a goal to rebuild his life for the future. Whether or not that future was going to be purple or many different colors, well that was the beauty of the city. You never knew what was going to happen next.
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