“Oh, my days, how would I survive without big, bad Havoc?” Orlando smirked at me. “We’re good over here, without you, young nigga.”
“You got it,” I said.
“No, Makari,” Hell tried to stop me when I stepped around him to leave.
“I’m good, Kelechi. Enjoy your night, I’ll see you tomorrow.” I made sure to say that part loud enough for that bitch ass nigga Orlando to hear. Regardless of the shit he did to me, he could never break the bond I had with Hell. He and I saw each other every fucking day without fail, and tomorrow wasn’t going to be any different.
Sony appeared at my brother’s side.
“Here nigga, chill out and drink this,” he said, shoving a drink in Hell’s hand. My brother tried to give it back so that he could follow me, but Sony wouldn’t let him. I kept my eyes on Orlando as I walked out of the section. Kairi was gone by then. I thought about going to see her until I realized that Orlando was following me. The nigga was making sure I was leaving! Just fucking pitiful.
I didn’t bother to look for Kairi on my way out because I didn’t want to risk the chance of Orlando seeing me look at her.
By now, I had a crowd following behind me.
“Pops, for real. Why you doing this shit!” Hell was there too, trying to reason with him. But at this point, whatever tiny amount of respect I had for him as the man who helped create me was gone.
“Kelechi, go back inside, let me deal with this.”
“But Pops—” Hell started coughing.
I suddenly stopped walking and turned around.
Sony and his bitch ass friends were now outside, enjoying the mess Orlando was making. It was always his mission to try to embarrass me in front of people. I simpered.
And my mama thought this man cared about me?
I noticed Hell started coughing again.
“Yo, you good?” I asked him, but Orlando put his arm up, blocking my view of my brother.
“He’s good, I got him. We’ll call you when we need you,” he said with a smile on his face.
He started slowly walking toward me, leaving Hell and his friends standing by the club doors. I flicked my eyes up at Orlando and shook my head.
“Whatever makes you feel like a man,” I said. My words hit him—I saw the look of rage flash in his eyes.
Not giving him a chance to say anything else back to me, I turned back around to head for my car.
“Nigga, who the fuck are you?!” I heard someone yell from behind me and then a flash of light…
Pop!
My body jolted when the sound of a gun went off as if the bullet had hit me. I felt my chest cave in, and I grabbed it as I turned around, and then I saw Hell lying on the ground.
The abrupt silence smacked me in the face, as if the world or time stood still, and all I could see was Kelechi on the ground. Then there was movement.
A young nigga was running away. So many things were happening, I didn’t know what to focus on.
“My son!” Orlando screamed. He rushed for my brother, but I beat him to it once my body remembered how to move.
“KELECHI” burst through my lips.
I dropped to my knees. Tears welled up in my eyes at the sight of my brother bleeding from a gunshot wound to his stomach.
“Havoc,” he cried, my name, and then coughed up blood, squirting from his mouth.
“Why you bleeding from the mouth!” I panicked.
