“That’s the same thing I said,” Judah said.
“Now we got both of them at us,” Pills added.
“What?” RJ asked. “You two get together and rehearse your lines?” They all laughed. “We laughin’, but this shit is serious,” RJ said.
“We got Barnes and Mobley at us at the same time,” Judah said. “We need to get them up off us.”
“Question is, what we gonna do?” Pills asked.
“I don’t know about Barnes, but I know for a fact that it was Odell, Psych and Latavius that tried to hit me,” Marvin said, no longer thinking about talking to his father about it first. Sometimes you can’t wait. You gotta make a decision and you have to be right. It was something else Nick told him.
“Like I said, Money, it’s your call,” RJ said. “We’re with you.”
“I need to make a call,” Marvin said and took out his phone. He dialed and soon somebody answered.
“Hey, Money.”
“Where that nigga at, Sexy?”
“My girl just texted me a little while ago and she said they at Classics.”
“Thanks, Sexy. I owe you one,” Marvin said and ended the call. “Odell is at Classics right now.”
“Let’s go get that nigga,” Judah said and stood up.
“We about to walk straight up in the lion’s den.” RJ bounced to his feet. “I love it.”
Pills pulled the pump from under his desk. “I’m ready.”
“That’s what I’m talkin’ ‘bout,” Judah said as he and Marvin followed RJ to the weapons safe. Once all four kings were heavily armed, RJ looked at his brothers.
“Suit up. We bustin’ the black tonight,” RJ said.
It was a half hour later when the kings arrived at Classics dressed all in black with ski masks and gloves. When they walked in, Pills fired one shot from the pump at the ceiling and then put both barrels in the doorman’s face as RJ, Marvin and Judah rushed in. They found Odell and dragged him out of there.
They drove him to The Late Night and took him in the back entrance and down the same long hallway that Black, Bobby, Wanda and Rain walked down just a few nights before.
“Where we going?” Judah asked as he and Marvin dragged a hooded Odell down the hall with Pills trailing behind with the pump pointed at Odell’s head.
“You’ll see,” RJ said as he got to the end of the hall and pressed the crack in the wall. The door opened, and the kings walked in.
“Their old gambling room,” Judah said, snatching off his mask and looking around in awe that they were standing in Family history.
“My Pop and Uncle Mike don’t know I know about this place,” RJ said.
“How did you find it?” Marvin asked while he and Pills tied Odell to a chair.
“I was walking through the place with the little Prince, you know, showing him our spot. And I came down here and found this hall that led to nothing and I said, not Pop and Uncle Mike, they wouldn’t have a hall to nowhere. There’s something behind the wall. So I started feeling around on the wall and found it.”
Once the kings got finished reveling in where they were and the history of it and how they were forging their place in that history, they got to work. Marvin began punching Odell.
“You are going to die tonight, so you might as well tell me who was the shooter and where Psych and Latavius are,” was all he wanted to know.
Then Judah took over the beating, and then they started taking turns. One would punch him in the face, and then the other would punch him in the chest.
“I told you I don’t know where Psych and Latavius are,” he said, and Marvin punched Odell again.
“And I said I don’t fuckin’ believe you.” Marvin got in his face. “Now tell me who was with you!”