The lightin’ wasn’t bright enough to make it feel safe, but it wasn’t dark either.
If you paid attention, you’d notice pieces here and there that ain’t belong to the average setup. It was shit that came fromniggas who thought they could play with my family and ended up down here instead.
I guess most muthafuckas would’ve had ropes, chairs, chains and all that extra shit to control somebody, but I never needed none of that shit.
I ain’t know what it was, but there was somethin’ satisfyin’ about watchin’ a nigga stand on his feet in front of me and get his ass beat. Fear worked better when a nigga knew he could move but still couldn’t do nothin’ with it.
By the time we dragged Kush in here, he was still out from earlier, his body hangin’ heavy while we dropped him right in the middle of the floor.
Kelli stepped back and leaned off to the side like he always did, quiet, observin’ and lettin’ me do what I do without gettin’ in the way. That nigga knew how to stay in his lane, and I respected that about him, especially in a moment like this where shit could turn fast if it needed to.
I looked down at Kush for a second, takin’ him in, really lookin’ at the nigga who thought he could shoot my uncle and go back to movin’ around like life was normal. That anger sat low and heavy in me.
I nudged him with my foot, then kicked him in the stomach to bring him back. “Wake yo’ bitch ass up, nigga,” I muttered, watchin’ his face change as he started comin’ to.
It took him a second to catch up, his eyes blinkin’, unfocused at first, then adjustin’ to where he was. The confusion hit him before the fear did, but that ain’t last long once he really saw me.
His body tensed, and I could see it in his face when reality kicked in.
“The fuck… where I’m?—”
I ain’t even let that nigga finish talkin’. I slapped the shit outta him and his head flew to the side, damn near takin’ his balance with it. He started foldin’, but I caught his shirt andyanked his ass right back up. “Don’t start that weak shit nigga,” I told him. “Stand yo’ dumb ass up.”
“You ain’t in no position to be askin’ me shit,” I told him.
He swung on me off instinct, sloppy as hell, and I saw that weak shit comin’ from a mile away. I slipped it and got right on his ass, snatchin’ him up and lockin’ my arm around his neck so fast he ain’t even get to reset.
“That’s what you doin’?” I muttered low, squeezin’ down while he started grabbin’ at me, panickin’, tryna pry my arm loose like that was gon’ save him.
It ain’t do shit but make it worse for him, ’cause I tightened up on his ass and cut his air clean off while he kept fightin’, his movements slowin’ down more and more the longer I held him there.
I finally let him drop once he went limp, watchin’ him hit the floor and cough his way back into breathin’, his body already startin’ to give up on him even though we had just got started.
He tried to roll and get up, but I was already on his ass before he could catch himself, steppin’ in and punchin’ him straight in his shit. His head snapped back and I hit him again, not givin’ him time to breathe, but just beatin’ on his ass while he was still tryna figure out how bad he fucked up.
“What you want from me?” he asked, breathin’ hard, and bloody as hell.
I crouched down in front of him, lookin’ at him like I had all the time in the world. “I’m gon’ beat yo’ ass regardless,” I told him, calm as hell, “but what I need right now is the password to that phone.”
He shook his head like he could stall his way out of it. “Man, I don’t even?—”
My fist cut him off again, droppin’ him back to the floor before he could finish his sentence.
“Don’t do that,” I said, standin’ over him now. “Don’t play stupid with me, nigga.”
I let him get his ass up on his own, watchin’ him fight to stay on his feet, and soon as he got halfway right I grabbed him again and choked his ass out like it was nothin’. This time it ain’t take long at all. His body was already done, and he dropped quicker than before.
By the time the nigga opened his eyes again, I could see it all over him that he wasn’t the same no more, like all that fight he came in here with was drainin’ out him. His body was movin’ slower, his breath was comin’ heavy, and the look in his eyes was tellin’ me he finally understood he wasn’t winnin’ shit in here no matter what the fuck he did.
I pulled my gun out and pressed it to his head while he sat there breathin’ like his life was already halfway gone.
“A’ight,” I said, noddin’ like I understood his situation. “We gon’ do this real simple then.”
His eyes widened, and he started talkin’ again, tryna bargain, but I wasn’t listenin’ to none of that shit.
I pulled my gun out and pressed that bitch to his head while he sat there breathin’ hard with blood all over his face, lookin’ like he was finally startin’ to understand how bad this night had got for him. I held his phone up in front of him and tapped the screen with my thumb.
“What’s the password?” I asked.
