“Somebody shot up Conversations, killed four people,” Pills said nonchalantly.
“Damn!” R.J. said with his face contorted.
“And Paradise Fish and Chicken,” Pills said.
“What happened there?”
“Same thing, mugs shot up the place, killed a bunch of people,” Marvin said.
“That’s fucked
up,” R.J. said, nodding his head and he was starting to get the picture the other Kings were painting.
“Ed Weather’s wife died in the shooting at Paradise,” Pills continued delivering the bad news.
“Damn. Anything else?”
Marvin laughed. “I heard Jackie killed Flip.”
“That nigga had that shit coming for a long time.” R.J. shook his head. “Anything else?”
“I think that’s it,” Judah said, nodding as he looked around the office.
“So while you were off somewhere getting your rocks off, The Family been at war,” Pills said.
“Okay, okay, I get it,” R.J. said.
“I don’t think you do,” Marvin said. “We at war, and we can’t hear from you because you’re fuckin’ phone is off.”
“Okay, Marv, I get it,” R.J. said.
Judah sprung forward and pounded his fist on the desk. “I don’t think you do, R.J. We thought you were dead.”
R.J. looked at the other Kings, his brothers, the men he’d sworn a blood oath with and finally got it.
“I’m sorry. It won’t happen again. I gotta remember that it ain’t just me no more. All there is now is us.”
“Especially now,” Judah said as the door opened, and Doc came in. Judah immediately bounced out of his father’s chair.
“That chair don’t quite fit you yet,” Doc said, and sat down in his chair.
“That’s okay, Pop. One day it’ll fit me perfectly,” Judah said to his father.
“One day, but not today,” Doc said, and then he looked at R.J. and shook his head. “Look who finally came back to the world. I hope whatever her name was, that she was worth it.”
“Sorry, Doc. It won’t happen again.”
“See that it doesn’t. There are people that depend on you now, you have to be there when they need you.”
“Yes, sir,” R.J. said and accepted the reprimand.
He had known Doc as long as he could remember. R.J. respected him enough to understand that this, like everything else, is a lesson you gotta learn, he could hear his father saying.
“I expect a lot from you boys. You’re the future of this family. So play time is over,” Doc said, and then he explained what he had learned at that night’s meeting and then he told them that Rain had assigned him to hit the sports betting spot. “And I’m assigning that task to the four of you.”
All four Kings smiled because this was the opportunity to step up that they’d been waiting for, that they had talked and dreamed about. They listened as Doc explained the details of the job and how Rain wanted it done.
“Get the civilians out, kill everybody and burn the place to the ground.”