I turned around and went back in my room. “Where you going?”
“I’m gonna take a quick shower and then I wanna go by the cleaners to see Howard before he closes.”
Once I had showered and put some clothes on, I left with Bobby and we went to talk to Howard.
Howard Owens was a bookie and loan shark, who dabbled in powder when there was enough money and no risk involved. He ran a numbers bank too, his wasn’t as big as Sherman’s, but Howard was a good earner. I needed Howard because he had influence with the loan sharks and the leg breakers. Like Sherman said, with the move that I was making, I was gonna need all the muscle I could get.
When I walked in the Howard’s dry-cleaners, I didn’t see him so I went up to the counter. Since Freeze had been bringing my clothes up here to be dry-cleaned and pressed, I haven’t been there in a while.
“Is Howard here?” I asked the cutie who was running the register.
“He’s in the back,” she said, and smiled her cute smile at me. “Who should I say is looking for him?”
I leaned on the counter. “Mike Black and Bobby Ray.”
The mere mention of our names changed the look on her cute face. The smile on her face had been replaced with one of fear and apprehension. She took a step back.
“I’ll tell him y’all are here,” she said, and backed away from the counter. As she walked back to the office, she kept looking back at us until she got to the office.
Bobby leaned close to me. “See what happens when people hear your name.”
“Me, I thought it was you. Women usually have a different response when they hear my name.”
When Howard came out of his office, two of his men, Bull Harris and Skip Skinner were with him. They both had their guns in hand. Bobby was about to reach for his, but I grabbed his hand and then I raised mine.
“I just came to talk, Howard.”
“Lock the door on your way out Gladys, we’re closed,” Howard said. Gladys rushed past me and Bobby, hit the door and locked it.
Once she was gone, I reached in my coat pocket, took out both of my guns and laid them on the counter.
“What about you, Bobby?” Howard asked.
“What about them two gruesome looking mutha fuckas?” Bobby took his gun out and held it up. “When the gruesome twosome puts down theirs, I’ll put down mine.”
When Howard nodded his head, Bull and Skip held up theirs and they each laid their guns on the counter.
“You wanna talk Mike, let’s talk.” When me and Bobby started to go behind the counter, Howard said, “Just you, Mike. Bobby can stay out here and make sure everybody behaves themselves.”
“Like the perfect gentlemen we all are. Right, Bull?”
“Yeah, like perfect gentlemen,” Bull said as I went behind the counter and I went in the office with Howard.
Howard sat down. “What can I do for you, Mike?”
“I came to talk about what I can do for you, Howard,” I said and began to run down my program. I made him the same offer that I made Sherman.
“Captain of my own crew, huh?” Howard asked and laughed a little. “And they all kick up to me instead of André?”
Howard frowned because he didn’t particularly like André and André felt the same way about Howard. Something about a woman they were both fuckin’. It turned out that she dumped both of them and ran off with a pimp and a gambler named Lloyd Brill before he went to jail.
“You kick up to me and I pay André.” I didn’t see any point in telling either Howard or Sherman that I was partners in this deal with André.
“Can I think about it?”
“Sure.” I stood up. “My offer expires the second I walk out that door.”
Howard laughed. “What happens then?”