Chapter 39
Carlos
When I got the text from Trooper that simply had an address, I dropped everything and headed straight there. I immediately knew it was Sophie’s place, even though I had only been there a few times.
The way Trooper sent only the address and nothing else let me know there was a problem, so I headed that way without giving it a second thought.
“Ay, I’m here,” I said as soon as I entered the lobby. By the time I reached the private elevator to Sophie’s apartment, it was opening and Trooper waited inside.
Neither of us spoke, but he had blood on his shirt and jeans, which made me think all kinds of crazy shit. He and Sophie had been arguing when they left my spot last night, but I really didn’t think things could have gotten that out of hand where one of them was hurt.
My next thought was Orin. I said a silent prayer she didn’t show her crazy ass up to Sophie’s place and her blood was on Trooper.
When we stepped off the elevator, I heard a saw somewhere in the apartment. This was bad.
“Yo, what the fuck is going on?”
“There’s a body in there,” Trooper said, looking me right in the eyes and speaking in a low, hushed tone.
“I figured it out when I saw all that blood on you, but what I want to know is who the fuck did you kill, Troop?”
He smirked and glanced over his shoulder in the direction I heard the electric saw noises.
“Why the fuck you think I bodied someone? Hell, it might have been Sophie.”
“The only person she got beef with is your rude ass, and you still standing, so what’s up?”
“Remember when I told you ol’ boy had some shit with him, the valet driver for the building?”
“Yeah?”
“I went to get breakfast, and when I came back, he was in her room rambling about how he loved her and waving a gun in the air.”
“Shut the fuck up. You said that muthafucker was crazy. What you do?”
“I beat his ass, then snapped his neck after I made Sophie leave.”
“She saw you whoop his ass?” I asked with raised brows.
“It was either that or watch me shoot his ass.”
“So what now?”
“They’re cutting his ass up. We have to get him out of here somehow and it will look suspect as hell if they walk his ass through the lobby in a big ass duffle bag.”
“The fuck you call me for? I can’t help you. Who you call, Charlie?”
Trooper laughed. “Yeah, damn, I know you can’t help. You just here for moral support. Ain’t that what friends are for?”
I cocked my head to the side and looked at his ass like he was crazy. “Hell nah, it ain’t, not when you do shit like that at a place like this. I bet her neighbors are nosy as fuck. They probably calling the cops right now.”
Trooper laughed and walked away to enter the kitchen. He came back a few minutes later with two beers and handed me one.
“You’re my people, Los, who the fuck else supposed to wait this shit out with me?”
“You know you ain’t shit, right?” I shook my head and left him to head to the living room. Trooper followed and turned on the TV while he chilled and waited for Charlie and the team to finish handling their business.
Two six packs later, I was tipsy as hell when Charlie came out followed by two of his guys. They were all wearing backpacks. Nothing special, just regular sized leather backpacks.
“What up, Charlie?” I said, offering him a nod.
Trooper stood and walked over to him.
“What’s good, Los? When you get here?” Charlie asked.
“A few hours ago. Y’all done?”
“Yeah, we’re done.” Charlie grinned and looked at Trooper.
Charlie was a goofy ass white dude, but he was smart as shit and dressed fly as hell.
Like right now, his clothes alone were probably worth five grand, yet he looked clean as fuck.
Why the hell he wore that nice ass shit to come chop up a body was beyond me, but he was always fresh.
They wore plastic suits when they handled things like this, so he knew what the hell he was doing.
“So, where’s the body? You got him in a suitcase?” Trooper asked, and I waited for the answer, curious about what he would say.
“Nope, right here.” Charlie patted his back then glanced at his two men.
“Yo, you chopped his ass up and fit him in backpacks? How the hell you do that and why the fuck isn’t it all over the place?” I asked, looking at him like he was crazy.
“We drained the body in the tub and the packs are lined. It’s easy if you know what you’re doing.”
“Yo, I don’t even want to know how the hell you made that happen.” Trooper’s hand moved down his face and Charlie laughed.
Putting a bullet in someone ain’t have shit on chopping up a body. He could keep that shit.
“I will send a cleaning crew in the morning to handle the place. It’s good for now to anyone who doesn’t know what they’re looking for. I’ll take care of the rest tomorrow,” Charlie said like it wasn’t anything. He was on his shit, so if he said he had it handled? He had it handled.
“Aight, I might not be here, but use this to get in and hit me up when you’re done.”
Charlie nodded and signaled for his men to move. They made their way toward the elevator. “My team will look like a normal cleaning crew as usual. No one will suspect a thing,” he said as soon as the doors opened.
Trooper chuckled. “I ain’t worried. You’ll have your money as soon as you let me know it’s done.”
“I’ll be in touch,” Charlie said before he stepped onto the elevator and was gone.
Trooper and I both went to check out Sophie’s room and it looked like nothing ever happened. The wood floor looked spotless, and aside from the bed not having sheets on it, nothing looked out of place.
“How the fuck he do that, yo?”
“Don’t know and don’t care. Long as it's handled, I’m good,” Trooper said.
“You miss this shit, don’t you?”
“Hell no I don’t and this was never a part of what I did.”
“Yo, I know your body count. Don’t act like this ain’t the life you used to live,” I said with a smirk.
“You know what the fuck I mean. I’m talking about chopping up bodies.”
“You right.” I chuckled and we headed back to the living room.
“So am I done babysitting your ass or you still need me?”
“You weren’t babysitting me, you were my alibi, just in case somthing went wrong. I couldn’t say I was with you then your ass end up at a bar somewhere across town.”
“That’s fucked up, Troop.” I laughed and he shrugged.
“But you good though, ’cause Charlie be on his shit, so ain’t no need for an alibi.”
“You talked to Sophie about all this yet?”
“Yeah, before you got here. She’s a little shook up, but she’ll be alright once I get there.”
“You really think she’ll be alright after seeing all that and knowing what went down?”
“She ain’t got no choice. I told her a long time ago that my life is what it is.”
“I feel you, but knowing and seeing are two different beasts. She doesn’t know this side of you.”
“And she won’t know this side of me. It’s a one-time deal. I didn’t have a choice. I’ma make her see that.”
I nodded, hoping it was that simple. It was possible, but I could almost guarantee Sophie wasn’t ready for what she had witnessed.
“Ay, we done here?” I asked after checking a text from Maddie asking where I was.
“Yeah, let me grab a few things and we can head out.”
I shot Maddie a text, letting her know I would be home in an hour and to meet me there. She replied okay and I slipped my phone into my pocket.
A few minutes later, Trooper came out of Sophie’s room carrying a leather overnight bag and we headed for the elevator.
As soon as we stepped off that bitch to enter the lobby, shit got real complicated.
“Well, well. Two for one.” I glanced at Trooper and we caught each other’s eyes from our side view before we peered at what we knew were feds.
“Can I help you?” Trooper questioned.
The female officer smirked and nodded at her partner. “You sure can, Mr. Carter. We need you and Mr. Robertson to come with us. We have questions for you both and you just made our jobs a lot easier.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” I asked, glaring at them.
“We got word that Mr. Carter was here, then we were on our way to your place next. Showing up here gave us a two for one deal. Now if you’ll please come this way?”
“Hell no. I ain’t going with no gotdamn fed,” Trooper said.
They both laughed and pulled their weapons.
“It’s cute that you think you have a choice. Let’s go before I have to call someone to carry you out of here.”
“Ay, don’t sweat it, Troop, let's just get this shit over with then we can sue the fuck outta both their dumb asses. You know they don’t have shit on us, or we'd be in handcuffs already.”
Trooper was mad as fuck and I was just glad Charlie had taken his burner to dispose of it with the body. Otherwise, he’d be screwed. My shit was legal and registered, but Trooper had a record, so he couldn’t legally carry.
“Listen to your boy, Mr. Carter. He’s right. Just a conversation, that’s all.”
“Ay, call me a boy again and I’m fucking you up,” I said, making Trooper smirk.
“My apologies, Mr. Robertson. Let’s just get this over with,” she said, holding her hands up before she lowered her weapon.
I glanced at her partner, who hadn’t said much, then looked at Trooper. He and I were thinking the same thing. This was some bullshit and I couldn’t wait to find out who set this shit in motion.