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Judah had already established himself as a loan shark, now he was moving into numbers and Pills had a couple of card games up and running. Even though Marvin ran the gambling at The Four Kings along with Ayisha, and he got a cut of that money, he still felt the pressure to earn on his own. It was pressure that he put on himself, but it was pressure all the same. His father, Nick, was a legend. And now that he had legally changed his name to Simmons, in his eyes, he had a lot to live up to. The problem was that Marvin only knew one way to earn and that was to deal.
I was Money Marv!
Money Marv always had that good weed.
But since that was no longer an option, Money Marv was just a name, somebody he used to be. But that wasn’t the most pressing concern at that particular moment, his mind was focused squarely on Evander.
“Sup, Money?” RJ said when he got in Marvin’s Traverse.
“What up?”
RJ got comfortable. “Trying to keep it light today.”
“Yeah, well, I hate to get in the way of that, but we need to think seriously about going after Evander before he comes after us,” Marvin suggested.
RJ looked at Marvin and took a deep breath. “You’re right. Get him while he’s weak. Cut off the head, and his crew will scatter.”
“But this beast is a Hydra, it has two heads. We gotta do his boy, Big Frank too.”
“You know where to find them?”
“I know where to find Frank.”
“Is that why we’re sitting here?” RJ asked.
“Frank likes to hang out in there,” Marvin said and pointed toward Classics.
“What’s your plan?” RJ needed to know.
“We go in there, kidnap Big Frank and make him call Evander to come meet him.”
“And what if Big Frank, Evander and Mobley, and whoever else he got left, are in there waiting for us?”
“What you trying to say?” Marvin asked.
“That this time we should wait for Judah and Pills. This way we don’t have to call them if it goes sideways on us like it did the last time.”
“That’s a good point,” Marvin had to agree, and he took out his phone to call Judah when Big Frank came out of Classics with two men. “He’s on the move.” Marvin pressed the ignition and RJ put on his seat belt.
They watched as the three men walked down the street, stopped at the corner and talked for a while and then they separated. When Big Frank got in his car and drove away, Marvin followed him.
“So, what’s your plan now?” RJ asked.
“Plan ain’t changed.” Marvin glanced at RJ as he followed. “Except now, we don’t have to walk him out of Classics at gunpoint. Now we just gotta follow him and wait for an opportunity.”
That opportunity came when Big Frank parked in front of his building and got out of the car. Marvin parked the Traverse and he and RJ went after him. Big Frank was on his phone, so he didn’t pay attention to them coming up behind him, nor did he notice when they pulled down their ski masks and were able to catch Big Frank just as he reached the elevator. They both put their guns in his back.
“Don’t make any sudden moves,” RJ said and took Big Frank’s gun from him. When the doors opened, Marvin pushed him in the elevator and took him to his apartment. Once they had him tied to a chair using sheets from the bed, RJ put his gun to Big Frank’s head.
“We ain’t got no beef with you, Frank. We just need you to call Evander and tell him whatever you need to tell him to get him over here now. After that, we out,” Marvin said and held the phone out. When Frank nodded his head, Marvin dialed Evander’s number and waited for him to answer.
“What up, Frank?” Evander said when he answered.
“I got a problem I need your help with,” Frank said calmly, and Marvin quickly moved the phone to hear Evander’s responses.
“What’s going on?” Evander asked, and Marvin told him what to say.
“Not over the phone.”