“Cost me what?” RJ asked.
“She a cheap ho, so I’m gonna let you have her back cheap. You get fifty g’s and then you and one man meet me on the top level of the parking garage on Broadway and West two thirty third. I’ll be there in two hours and I’ll just have one man with me. Bring the money or this worthless ho is as good as dead,” Sterling said and ended the call.
RJ hung up the phone and told his brothers what was going on. At first, there was silence in the office and then Marvin spoke up.
“This is just me playing devil’s advocate, and
I’m saying this not knowing how or what you feel for Venus. But, is she worth fifty G’s to you?”
“Whether she is or not ain’t what’s important. What is important is that I can’t let him disrespect me like this and I don’t do shit about it. So, I’m gonna get Venus back, and then I’m gonna kill him.”
“No,” Judah said. “We gonna get Venus back.”
“And then we gonna kill him,” Pills added.
In two hours, RJ and Marvin were at the parking garage, standing by their car, bag full of money at their feet, waiting for Sterling to arrive. Since he didn’t trust Sterling to come alone, Pills and Judah were parked close by in separate cars just in case things got wild.
When Sterling arrived, he was true to his word and only came with Barnes. They got out and as Sterling looked at RJ and Marvin, Barnes opened the trunk and helped Venus get out.
“I brought your ho; you got my money?”
RJ picked up the bag of money and began walking toward them. Once he was close enough, he tossed the bag to Sterling and he laughed.
“You can keep the money. I don’t need your money. This ain’t about that,” Sterling said and then he paused. But since RJ didn’t ask what it was about, he told him. “It’s about honor and respect. Two things you don’t know nothing about. So, you take that ho, I was done with her anyway,” Sterling said and pushed Venus toward RJ and she stumbled and fell.
She got to her feet and ran into RJ’s arms.
“Are you all right?”
“I’m all right.”
“Did he hurt you?”
“No, mutha fucka, I didn’t hurt her ass. I’m trying to tell you, nigga, this ain’t about her. It’s about you and me.” Just then, Barnes handed him two aluminum baseball bats. “It’s about what you tried to take from me.”
“I didn’t try shit. I took her from you.”
“Now we gonna settle this like men. We fight,” Sterling said and then he tossed RJ a bat. “Until the last man is standing over the others dead body.”
“Get Venus,” RJ said to Marvin and he quickly escorted her to the car. Then RJ raised the bat. “Come on with it.”
Sterling rushed at RJ and their bats collided with a pop. They struggled against each other for a few seconds, each trying to gauge the other’s strength and gain an advantage at the same time. When none was gained, Sterling brought the bat back and swung it at RJ. He ducked, and it missed him.
Sterling kept swinging away, and RJ kept ducking and jumping back out of the way of each swing. Finally, Sterling connected with a blow to the back. RJ screamed out in pain and stumbled forward a little, regaining his balance before Sterling could hit him with another blow. He swung the bat and RJ blocked it.
Sterling swung again and missed, but this time it hit the hood of a car. His next swing and miss shattered the windshield, but Sterling kept swinging that bat and RJ kept moving to avoid it. When he swung and missed the next time, it made contact with the hood of another car. RJ hit him in the back and kicked Sterling in the stomach. He quickly brought the bat down on Sterling’s back and he went down, dropping the bat on impact.
RJ stood over him with the bat raised, and then he dropped it. “Come on!” RJ shouted.
Sterling bounced to his feet, rushed at RJ, and took him to the ground. He hit RJ with blow after blow, until he got a shot in and Sterling rolled off him. Both men got to their feet, stood before the other and exchanged blows. Lefts and rights to the face and body of their opponent until Sterling went down. Seeing a bat nearby, he rolled to it, and once he had it in his hand, he got to his feet and ran at RJ swinging.
When Sterling raised his arm to swing again, RJ grabbed his hands and was able to wrestle the bat from his hands. RJ swung the bat and it hit Sterling in the arm. It knocked him off balance for a second, but before he could steady himself, RJ was on him and caught Sterling with a shot to the head. Blood splattered everywhere as RJ swung again; and once again, he hit Sterling in the head.
As his own blood cascaded down his face from the blows he had taken, Sterling wandered around the roof of the parking deck dazed. Thinking that Sterling was beaten, and it was over, RJ dropped the bat and started backing toward the car, as Sterling continued stumbling toward the barrier.
“Look out man!” Barnes shouted and began running toward him. RJ, Marvin and Venus watched as Sterling tripped on a parking space stop, and before Barnes could get to him, Sterling stumbled over the concrete barrier to his death.
Barnes turned to RJ as he continued toward the car.