Page 55 of 4 Corinthians

“But I should have!” He yelled, looking at me. “I should’ve known because that cold ass look in your eyes is a reflection of mine.” I’d seen Uncle Bradon mad before, but nothing like this. This was a different type of hatred in his eyes. I’d seen it in my own as a kid.

“That nigga wasn’t the only monster,” he said, then pulled a towel and lighter from his pocket. He stuffed the towel into the car's gas nozzle and lit it. He walked away from the car and went to the front door of the house. Uncle Bradon kicked the door in, not giving a fuck who was in the house, and walked through the house as if he owned it. I heard yelling, then gunshots. A minute later, he came out, blood splattered across his face and clothes. “Most niggas will vow to make the city bleed. I don’t want blood; this shit is messy.” He pointed to his clothes. “I want to see it burn.” He flicked his lighter and dropped it in the grass where he’d poured the gas, then stood there. The sound of police sirens echoed through the air, but Uncle Bradon didn’t give a fuck. He wanted niggas to know who’d set damn near six blocks on fire so they would know who was coming for them.

***

“I’m not asking you to do that,” Uncle Bradon said, shaking his head. We’d been working nonstop to try and figure out exactly what was going on. Everything led back to the same thing; Robert had won. We needed an inside man now, someone who could figure out what the hell was going on and give everybody a heads up.

“You aren’t asking shit,” I told him as I looked out of the window. “I’m telling you what’s going to happen. I’ll reach out, make a little noise, and Robert will show his face.” No one had seen or spoken to Robert in years. His going underground wasn’t surprising; it was expected. Denzel’s death gave him the way back he needed, and he took it. “I’m telling you what I’m going to do.”

“Four…”

“There isn’t another way,” I told him.

“I can figure something else out,” Uncle Bradon told us. I looked over at Kenbral, who had the same surprised look I did. “I can't ask you to go work for that nigga.” He gave us a sad smile and shook his head. “You ain’t stepping back into that shit.”

“I can do it,” I told him. “Even if it’s for a little while.”

He looked at me, then to Kenbral and Gentle and leaned back in his seat. “You’re scared of the dark,” he said, pointing to me. “At your grown-ass age, you sleep with a nightlight.” He pointed at Trey. “You are afraid of water. You can't shower for longer than seven minutes, and you never take baths or go near open water.” He pointed at Gentle. “You can't –“

“We know our shortcomings,” I said before he could start up on Gentle. “We don’t need you to remind us.”

“It ain’t shortcomings; it's trauma from years of abuse at the hands of your fathers.”

“They aren’t our fathers,” I corrected him. “They are two niggas who found joy in abusing us. That ain’t a father.”

“And they know your weaknesses,” he replied. “Robert knows how to get into your head and stay there. You can't handle that.” He shook his head. “I’ll call your mama.”

“Ain’t no way she’s going to turn her back on Robert. Not after all the shit she been through,” I told him.

“She may come around if I ask her,” Uncle Bradon replied. “She needs-“

“Sharon doesn’t give a fuck about nothing but making sure Robert is happy. She doesn’t give a damn, trust me,” I replied. She wasn’t a soft spot for me; she would never be. She knew the nigga she was with. She failed to protect the children she brought into the world.

“Four-“

“I’m going,” Kenbral cut him off.

“Nah,” I said, shaking my head. “It can't be you. Robert won't believe you want to come back.”

“Yes, he will,” Kenbral chuckled. “He will believe me coming back well before you. He knows you hate him, knows that if you walk into his space, you’re there to kill him. Me going back will work.” He wiped his hands over his face. “I have the connections, the ability to move through rooms he can't. He will need me.”

“Trey-“

“Damn it, listen for a second, Four,” Kenbral sighed. “Be the little brother for a second and let your older brother take the fucking lead. You reaching out to Robert won't work.” He stood and started pacing in front of us. “Robert knows you hate him; knows you will kill him over everything he did. Me going back?” He smiled sadly. “The child that was forgotten about? Yeah, it would make perfect sense. I need you to do something for me first.”

“What?” I hesitantly asked.

“Fight me,” he answered, and I immediately shook my head. “Look, I know you don’t want to. We promised each other we’d never do it again, but for this to work, you are going to have to do it. It will get Robert’s attention and me the in that I need.”

“What do you have in mind, nephew?” Uncle Bradon asked Trey. I watched my brother, hating that he thought this was the only option but hating myself more because I knew he was right.

“There’s a junior agent that asked me to investigate an underground fighting ring in Oklahoma. I did just to keep her from getting on my nerves. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was connected to Robert.”

“How do you know?”

Trey smirked then shook his head. “No matter how many years it’s been, I’ll never forget the setup. The cages, torture wall.” He wiped his hand over his mouth. “And I saw pictures of him and Logan,” he answered, then exhaled. “I already talked to Gentle; we have our in.”

“You were doing this no matter what I said?” I asked him as I stood. “You were going back in?”