Chapter 50 #2
“That’s good, Red. That’s real good, cuz if you think things was bad with Jackyl, now that me and Dash are running things, you can pretty much expect things to be a little worse.”
He swallowed and licked his lips, his sight darting back and forth between us. “Yeah, that’s why I’m here.”
“Why are you here, man?”
He lifted the hem of his shirt and slowly made a full circle. “Look, man, I ain’t packing. Can you please just chill the fuck out?” he shouted, throwing his arms out, his shoulders curled to his ears.
“You keep your hands up and we’ll move ours,” Dash offered.
Huffing, he did as told, his palms facing us. “I know you killed my boy last night.”
My hand immediately returned to my gun, ready to fire.
“Whoa, whoa!” His voice actually cracked as he stumbled backward a few more feet. “Vinny, man, chill!”
“What the fuck you want, Red?”
“To apologize!” he blurted, sweat coating his face.
Me and Dash exchanged curious looks, but we both moved away from the guns. My arms crossing, I shifted to one leg, peering down the length of my nose.
“For what?”
“Man, he had no business on your grounds. He knows, dammit. He knows the rules, they all know the pact we made with y’all years ago. He was new, Vin, and he had an ego problem.”
“He had a bigger problem than his ego,” Dash grumbled, folding his arms, as well.
He pulled another deep breath and nodded. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure what happened last night and, again, all I can do is apologize.”
A brow lifting, I snorted. “So, you’re okay that we’re gay?”
“Man, I always knew you was.”
Doing a doubletake, I quickly masked my shock. “Since when?”
“Since before we made the pact.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
“I mean, it ain’t a choice I’d make, but what’s that gotta do with me?” His sight lowered to the gun with another gulp. “People out here on the street always known about you, Vin, but no one never said nothing cuz we don’t wanna die.”
A small victory exploded inside, expanding my ribs to contain the thrill. “So, my rep is solid, huh?”
He snorted, a leg bouncing nervously. “No one ‘round these parts stupid enough to test you, Vin.”
“Your boy last night sure thought differently.”
His focus shifted to Dash. “And look where it got him.”
He stepped past the threshold of the door to the carport, his stance wide, chin lifted high. “You afraid of Vin?”
He looked at me and gulped, a bead of sweat trickling down his face from the bandana on his forehead. “No,” he croaked, shaking his head. “I ain’t afraid of no one or no thing. This is about peace.”
I tried to hide my smile but wasn’t sure if I succeeded. The man was seconds from pissing his pants.
“Let me just put this out there for ya, Red. Think about Vin’s reputation.
Now intensify that by a thousand. That’s how I feel about my man, so if anyone comes at him sideways, like your boy last night, the last thing they’re gonna see is the ground.
Like your boy last night,” he repeated slowly.
“I don’t fuck around. I got no tolerance and no patience, and if you think I’m gonna let anyone disrespect my man, you’re wrong. Dead. Wrong.”
Red gulped again, breathing faster. “No one’s here to disrespect no one, Dash. Honest. I just came out here to apologize and assure it won’t happen again.”
“See it don’t because I ain’t like Jackyl. He was happy with just running Mobile. I got no issues expanding our territory and liquidating surrounding obstacles.”
“No need for that,” he said a little louder, waving his hands. “Honest.”
I nodded once and waved a dismissive wrist. “Get the fuck outta here. Get off my land.”
“Sure thing, Vin. Dash.” Walking backwards, barely blinking, he collided with the driver’s bumper of his car, then the side view mirror before getting the door opened.
Sliding onto the seat, he slammed the door, started the engine, and stomped the gas, speeding down the drive in reverse.
A few yards away, he finally turned the Cadillac around and spun tires in the dirt before disappearing down the trail.
Dash burst out laughing and slapped the back of my shoulder. “That boy was shaking in his boots. Damn, Vin, I dunno what you did to him when you and Jack made that pact, but he is terrified of you.”
Staring at the cloud of dust dissipating behind his retreat, I grumbled, “You ever see that scar on his hand?”
“Yeah?”
“He used to own Jackyl’s old house.”
“No shit?”
I nodded, squinting against the sun when the clouds parted.
“He claimed it during the turf war, but Red refused to sign over the deed. I stabbed my knife through his hand, trapping it to the table and held my gun against his head until he changed his mind. Then I drove out to his trailer in Sycamore Park and set it on fire.”
He gawked but laughed. “Oh, shit, that was you?”
I nodded stiffly and stepped into the house. “Mm hm.” Shutting the door, I finally tore my focus away from the drive, locking the bolt and pulling the shade over the glass partition. “Yup.”
Snickering, he went to the fridge and got a couple beers, ripping off the caps. “No damn wonder he’s scared shitless.”
“Yeah, well, it ain’t him I’m worried about.”
His smile falling, he set the bottles on the counter. “Yeah. True.”
I wagged a finger at the bowl of mac and cheese. “Finish up acorn’s lunch. I got a call to make.”
“Got it.”
Groaning and rubbing my face, I retreated to the office to put my gun away and call The Boss about what happened the night before.
If Red knew what happened, that meant at least one person witnessed the whole ugly scene.
I had to make sure Dash was protected or I had to make plans to get the fuck out of Mobile.