Page 35 of Search My Soul
“Is everything okay, boss? Do we need to call an ambulance or something?” one of his female workers asked. Her tone seemed so genuine, and it made me even more embarrassed.
“Naw, she’s fine. She had a minor accident while operating some new machinery. She’ll get used to it in no time.” I didn’t have to see him to know there was a smirk on his face. I heard a few giggles, so I knew they read between the lines.
Once we made it to my car, he lingered in the doorway. He made sure to express his disdain for my car once again before handing over the keys.
“I’ll call you later. Don’t make me have to chase your ass, Juicy.” With that, he kissed me and then headed back to the shop. I sat there for a while, trying to come to terms with what had taken place. Soul Taylor made his intentions crystal clear. My only concern was whether he would live up to his word.
“Why the fuckdo I have y’all around if I have to come and take care of shit?” I vented in frustration. Ever since Remi got shot, I’ve been on edge. No one seemed to have any answers, yet every time I turned, someone needed something from me.
“My bad, boss. If we thought it was something we should handle on our own, then we wouldn’t have bothered,” Huncho replied. The seriousness on his face let me know this would be a long day.
“What seems to be the problem?”
“You remember how we took care of Jarvis and nem a while back?” Now my irritation was growing, because how was a dead person someone I needed to be concerned about?
“What about him?”
“Well, according to my people, his girl and his sister went to the police. Word on the street is they are saying they have evidence that you killed him, but also that he was doing illegal business for us. From what I was told, Jarvis was working with a private investigator that’s been trying to take Salvador down. I checked with our contacts at the station, and they said he doesn’t work for them. He has some type of ax to grind with Salvador so he’s digging his nose into our shit, and he’s been trying to get some folks to flip on the gang.” Huncho’s explanation took me by surprise, but I kept my face neutral. The last thing I wanted to do was alarm my team when I still didn’t even have all of the information.
“Do you have a name for the investigator?”
“Yeah, here’s the file I obtained from our people. He’s from Milwaukee, but I guess he was born and raised here.” My eyes scanned the photo, but there was no recognition on my end. Hell, I’ve crossed so many people over the years, I wouldn’t remember them all. Except most of my enemies were six feet under, so there had to be more to the story that I wasn’t privy to.
“I appreciate you for being on top of things. I’ll look into him and get things squared away.” Huncho and Draco peered at me as if they were expecting me to fly off the handle.
“That’s it?” Draco let out.
“Yeah. I need to assess the situation to determine how to proceed. This isn’t our first rodeo with someone trying to take us down, and it won’t be the last. What I do know is I’ve built a solid team, and if that mothafucka thinks he can come in and disrupt our organization, he’s in for a rude awakening.” My grandfather trained us for stuff like this, so there was no reason to fear. Our lawyers were some of the best and grittiest defense attorneys on the North Coast, so I had no worries. This would be nothing more than a minor fire I would need to extinguish.
“Well, you already know I’m down for whatever. Call me as soon as you’re ready to move on that situation,” Huncho proclaimed.
I nodded, agreeing with everything he said.
“Fasho. I don’t like the idea of him doing that sneak shit. Everybody ain’t solid,” Draco added.
“I’m not worried about the team because I know who I can trust and who I need to keep my eyes on. Even if he was to get someone to turn on us, I guarantee they would never make it to trial.” My phone rang, and when I saw the number on the other end, I already knew my day was about to get worse.
“Good afternoon, Salvador.” I greeted our Colombian contact as Huncho and Draco held their positions next to me. You would have thought the man was standing in front of me with the way they were standing guard.
“How are you, Mr. Taylor? I hope you are doing well on this beautiful day. I presume you know the reason for my call.” Salvador wasn’t one to mince words, so I wasn’t surprised that he got right to the point.
“I can assume. You only call when there’s an issue with the shipment or the money. From my understanding, the shipments are still on schedule, and the last wire transfer went through successfully.”
“Ahh, a very wise one you are. You are correct. The money was received, and business is moving smoothly. However, those aren’t reasons for my calls or concerns. I heard through the grapevine that one of your men was shot and robbed. That concerns me because I did not receive that update from the source.” My jaw flexed, anticipating the bullshit on the horizon.
“I apologize. The information is correct. One of my family members was injured, so it slipped my mind. My main focus was to make sure my family was okay and that our debts were settled. Your money was not delayed due to this inconvenience, so I didnot feel it was necessary to bother you with our family matters.” Pure told me I needed to call him, but since I had used my own money to replace what was stolen, I decided to continue with business as usual.
“I don’t appreciate being kept in the dark, Soul. It makes me feel like there may be some bad business going on when I’m left in the dark. As a leader, it’s imperative that I’m aware of any and all happenings within my organization. There cannot be any loose ends. Do you understand?”
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep myself from telling him how I really felt.
“It’s understood. It was an oversight on my part, but it will not happen again.”
“Good. Good. I trust that your word is bond. Have you gotten rid of the culprit of the unfortunate attack?”
“We are looking into things now. Since he is in a coma, we aren’t able to get an account of what happened. Once we get to the bottom of things, they will be dealt with accordingly.” I hated having to explain myself because I didn’t like anyone questioning my actions. When it came down to handling my business, no one needed to check behind me.
“I’m glad to hear it. Please keep me updated, and if you need any assistance, don’t be afraid to reach out to me. You guys bring me a lot of money, and I would hate to see things change because there are holes within your team.”
