Page 27

Papa’s arm was straight, and his aim was steady as he held that gun and continued to pull the trigger while walking up to the house.

BLAOW BLAOW!

We all ducked when the shots were coming from outside with us.

Papa turned on his boots and ducked down behind the bushes and fired shots back.

When the shots finally seized, he hopped that gate with ease, as if he was his son’s age.

His eyes had locked on someone, and as he busted a light sprint, he emptied his clip into the man’s chest that was on the bike.

“Yo, get them out of here now!” He told Havoc, who tapped his best friend, and came to grab me and Syn.

The men realized we weren’t in the house, so they were coming out quicker than expected and Papa reloaded and was aiming at their heads like it was a video game. “Papa, you crazy if you think I’m leaving you,” Havoc told him.

“Come on, Blair and Syn.” Kobe grabbed us, and we took off running toward his car that was parked in front of the van.

We hopped in the car, and Kobe pressed the button to start it. With one hand behind the passenger seat, he tried to speed out the driveway, and a car pulled up, blocking us in. Papa did a signal, and Kobe nodded his head.

He spun this car around and came up on his lawn as Papa aimed right in the car that boxed us in with menacing eyes. “My lawn… Jesus… my lawn,” Kobe squealed as he whipped back around, and sped down the lawn onto the street, and kept going until we left his street.

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Both Syn and I looked out as Kobe continued to drive the neighborhood. Once we realized we weren’t being followed, he stopped at a light.

“Who the hell stops at a light in the middle of a shoot-out, Kobe?”

Kobe looked over at her. “Somebody that had a shoot out on their front damn lawn… I need to breathe, shit… You think you can do a better job?”

“Yes… we need to be hauling ass and you over here obeying traffic laws and worried about your damn lawn,” Synthia doubled down on how she felt.

“Then, you drive, Hoe, and I’ll be the look out,” Kobe hopped out the car, and Syn quickly climbed over the arm rest, fixing the seat and mirror to her liking.

Syn beeped the horn, and Kobe quickly ran around the rest of the car, and jumped in. “I hear Bikes!”

No sooner than Kobe’s ass touched that seat, she smashed on the gas pedal through the red light, causing our bodies to jerk back. We sped around different neighborhoods, trying to figure out where we were going. I couldn’t recall a time I had ever been to Yonkers, so I was like a fish out of water.

I leaned forward and snatched Kobe’s phone that rested in the cup holder and put the address for Staten Island so we could stop going in circles. The minute the GPS routed us, Synthia stomped on the gas and we happened to speed right past a block that the bikes were coming down.

“Fuck, they spotted us.” I called from the back, as I kept watch and they were following behind us closely.

“Why aren’t they shoo?—”

POW! POW! POW!

We all ducked as the bullets ricocheted off the car and missed shattering the windows. “Thanks for asking, Syn,” Kobe cut his eyes at her as he cocked his gun back.

My phone started ringing and I quickly picked it up. “Yeah?”

“Blair, where are you?” Capri asked.

I looked out the window. “Getting on Henry Hudson parkway.”

The line went quiet. “Who driving?”

“Syn.”

“Tell her not to take the George Washington Bridge…come through Manhattan and I’m gonna be waiting for you to take the tunnel.”

“We’re taking the tunnel… not the bridge.” I relayed the message as Kobe was hanging out the window. He squeezed the trigger, nearly falling out the window with the way that Syn swerved onto the parkway.

“I told her.”

“I know you’re scared… pull your gun out and just shoot, B. The target doesn’t know that you’re not a good shot… they only know someone is shooting at them, okay?”

Taking a deep breath, I listened to her soothing voice, and it brought me comfort. “I hear you, Capri.”

“You Queen Inferno… shake that shit off and make sure you protect my niece.”

I smiled. “You swear you think you know what I’m having.”

“Queen?”

“Hmm?”

“Bring ‘em to me.” I could hear the smile in her voice.

“With pleasure.”

A few of the bikes had fallen back, however, it was that one pink bike that wouldn’t let up on us.

I could tell it was a woman from the silhouette, and she conserved her shots because she was in no position to reload if she needed to.

She was relentless as we continued to speed on the parkway, merging around traffic.

Like a damn bed bug wanting to suck your blood, and she wouldn’t stay back.

Each time Kobe took a shot at her, she would serve, and he would miss her and hit someone she was with instead.

Wasn’t really girl’s girl of her, if you asked me.

Everything happened so fast that I didn’t have my purse or my gun. “B, I need some help. Under the chair right there… grab that gun.” It was like Kobe knew exactly what I was thinking.

“How many guns do you keep around?” Syn blurted.

“I am a gay Black man that will blow up a down low man’s spot in a heartbeat… a lot.” He kept watch, and that’s when we saw it.

Motorcycles upon motorcycles came behind shorty on the pink bike, and my stomach turned. They all were gathering around our car, not paying attention to the other cars that were driving. Syn swerved, bringing the car back to knock one off his bike.

She almost succeeded until he quickly pulled his gun, and she stomped onto her brake, swerving into the next lane, almost causing the car behind us to slam into the back of us.

Kobe was becoming frustrated with pink bike, and bit down on his lip while sending a bunch of shots out the window, aiming right at her.

My window in the back was tinted; once I rolled it down, the woman nodded her helmet and got closer to my side. It was like the moment she saw me, she wanted me.

With my knee in the chair and crouched down so I was out the window, I cocked the gun back and aimed at the bike beside her.

I wasn’t worried about her; I wanted her for myself.

It was clear she wanted me, and the feeling was mutual.

As she got closer to us, I remembered the bike.

It was the same bike that sent those bullets into Ellis that was meant for Quameer.

She took a God from us, so she had to answer to me. Not Capri, or anyone else, she had to answer from the Queen.

“Good shit, B.” Kobe praised, as I sent another bullet flying from the chamber, nearly missing the car that was near her bike.

I said a quick prayer and thanked God, as I loaded back up, and Syn swerved in and out of traffic. “We about to hit Manhattan.” Syn said, as she continued to drive like she was in a street race.

“There go Hamza!” Kobe said, and I watched as Havoc sped by, literally yanking men from their bikes while Yasin had his follow up, sending the final bullet into them.

Papa rolled down the middle and zoomed past us with other bikes, shaking our car in the process.

I didn’t need to see his face behind that mask.

His gun was drawn, and he wasn’t letting up.

Police sirens could be heard, and that’s when I saw a few cruisers behind them.

Their lights were flashing, and they were trying to get around the traffic we had caused by driving crazy and shooting.

Soon as Papa’s bike flew past us with the other bikes, Syn slowly walked this car through the terrorized drivers trying to get the hell out of dodge from us. Soon as she got the clearance, she sped up while pink bike continued following us with a few of the others.

Syn stomped on her brakes when she saw that Papa and the other bikes had blocked off the highway, only allowing us to speed through with the bikes that were on our ass.

He sat on his bike and watched as Syn flew right on by before he spun his bike and was right behind our trail while the Gods and Bullies continued to lock down traffic, not allowing anyone through.

It dawned on me that this was the reason for the traffic. Papa had the bullies locking down traffic to clear the expressway heading into Manhattan.

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As we passed an exit, we kept looking out as Syn breezed by with ease.

We felt the vibration in our chest as we looked and saw Capri’s challenger busting up the expressway, coming from the exit.

As if my eyes were seeing things, three Corvettes merged out from behind her.

I knew it was her car of choice when going to work.

Her window was cracked, and I saw her face as she got close to us.

The same focused look her brothers had when handling business, she had on her face.

One hand on the wheel, and the other holding her gun.

Pink bike decided to merge over to the next lane.

We sped past the water on the expressway, and Capri turned the wheel of her car, knocking one of the bikers over the guard rails.

She was focused as she pulled her gun and shot at the bike that was right on the side of us. When she shot, the biker ducked it, and Kobe used that as the chance to shoot him, sending him flying across the lanes.

I switched windows and shot at the pink bike, almost hitting her wheel. Her hands squeezed the handlebar in anger as I slid my fingers across my nose and spit at her before delivering that final bullet into her shoulder, causing her to lose balance, but she held onto her bike, slowing down.

“The Cruzari siblings,” Syn called out, pointing to the C emblem that was on the corvettes, as they washed up the remaining bikers.

Papa flew on by, and he signaled to Capri to speed ahead.

The sound of her engine could be felt in my chest. Purple bikes came onto the expressway, and I knew it was the reapers.

It was a particular bike that was next to Capri’s car, and she looked over quickly and then nodded as they noticed another pink bike.

The one I had hit, had hung back and quickly got off the exit.

This bike was going after Papa, and he was purposely leading her away from us.

The black corvette with a pink outline merged over in front of us, and we watched as a woman’s lime green nails were wrapped around the trigger and emptied the clip on the biker before the window went back up, and the corvette fell back in line with the other two.

“Yooooooo!” We all cheered as we watched our car being swarmed with the corvettes. Their windows were blacked out like Capri’s windows.

Havoc pulled up beside us and saluted to Kobe, signaling for him to roll his window up. He put his fingers to his helmet’s mouth and patted his heart twice as he looked over at Synthia briefly.

“He’s giving you his love… Sim does that to me when he rides his bike and can’t say it.” I explained to her, and she smiled as she merged over and followed the directions that Capri was giving her.

Capri pointed to the exit as we made it closer to the Lincoln tunnel.

She rolled her windows up, hiding her face because the tint was so dark.

She sped in front of us, and I watched as her plates switched while we followed behind her.

Soon as we got off the exit, we were met with traffic getting on the tunnel.

I already knew she had Core on the phone, and he was working double time, hacking into the cameras.

Syn followed as she took us down W. 30 th street onto 10 th street, further away from the tunnel. We moved slowly down the different blocks because of Manhattan traffic. My phone started ringing.

“Papa?”

“You following Pri, right?”

“Yeah… we’re not taking the tunnel.”

“Nah… she leading you to the Holland tunnel… less traffic and Core already put the blind spot on those cameras.” I could hear the sirens in the background and the engines of bikes. “Tell Synthia to keep up with her and I will see you at the hospital.”

“Okay. Be careful.”

“Always.” He ended the call, and I watched as we finally made it to the Holland tunnel, and it had less traffic than the other, however, there was still traffic.

The tunnel went completely dark, so Capri hit her high beams and Syn followed behind her as we merged through the few remaining cars in the tunnel.

Corleon had switched the signs, prohibiting any cars to come through the tunnel, so by the time we rounded around the traffic that accumulated outside the tunnel, we were able to speed right through.

Capri’s name came up on my screen. “We splitting up… Core is sending you something now, go there first.”

“And what about you?”

“I’m heading to do the same… different location. See you in a little bit.”

“Okay… be safe, Capri.”

“Always.”

Soon as we made it out the Holland tunnel, she took off another way while we followed the directions sent to us the opposite way.