Page 28 of A Boy is a Gun: Part I
“One brother pretends she knows nothing of his wife’s addiction and tries to do holistic methods to get her clean. It works. The wife is more into that Dalai Lama bullshit than anything else. But her relationship with the other brother….” I walk closer to Ethan. His nostrils flare out, and we both know I’ve crossed a line. Little does he know, I’m about to hop, skip, and jump over that motherfucker. “…now that’s the tricky one. Because that brother…well, he takes care of everyone in the family, even when they pretend, they hate what he does. After all, he was why the sister could move within a 24-hour notice, and hmm…you didn’t think anything strange about that, didn’t you?
“And think, if you and baby girl work out? That means the tricky brother, well, he’ll be up and down and inside your home. After all, you love to barbeque and host, as you often have many members from the squad come over for gatherings. And how would that look?” I cock my head to the side. “The one cat you’ve been chasing for over a decade is at the grill flipping burgers while you have to explain to your colleaguesit’s not what it seems.”I sigh as Ethan does whatever he can to restrain himself. “Did you honestly think you were going to fuck my sister and I wouldn’t know everything about you?”
“You’re running on borrowed time, Page,” Ethan huffs, “it’s only a matter of time before everything you do catches up with you.”
“And you know what, Detective? I can say the same thing about you.” I’m face-to-face with him. “I won’t hesitate to destroy everything you love once you bring me down. And yes, I meaneverything.” I put my shades back on. “Now, excuse me, I have breakfast with my friends here. You have fun today, Detective. Tell my sister I said hi and I’ll see her at the family dinner on Sunday. I hope you’re able to make it.”
~~~~
After brunch, Que and I drove Roadie back to his home. He still lives with his parents on their estate, but he lives in the pool house, which is the size of a typical home. He’s responsible for his meals and cleaning, and to everyone’s surprise, Roadie is exceptional at both.
As we gather inside, I look around to see pictures of us. From when we did water polo and a brief stint in the ultimate ‘My Daddy is rich!’ sport, equestrianism. Que even appears in some of the photos.
Despite Que’s looks now, he blended in with us. Nice fade, no facial hair, and honestly, somewhere between looking like a simp and a cornball of a dude. Looking back on it, I see it was more of a survival tactic, as opposed to how he was.
We’ve always been friends, and it’s weird to see how far we’ve come. Roadie is wealthy in his own right, and he doesn’t have to worry about money for the rest of his life. He moonlights as a day trader while his dad works as a hedge fund manager. He is the epitome of a trust fund baby.
“So, I go back to court in November,” Roadie plops on the couch, and Que and I flank him on each side. “But other than that, I’m golden. I’m going to beat the charges.”
“I know you will, but that’s not what I wanted to meet you with.” I begin as I adjust my seat. “We found the perp who set Que and me up. I can’t get close to him for obvious reasons, but you can.” I hand Roadie a manila folder, and he sits up to go through it. “All of his information – his address, whom he hangs out with, the bars he frequents; all of that.”
Roadie nods as he flips through more pages. “This is the one with that huge bounty on his head?”
“That’s the one,” I nod.
Roadie shakes his head as he reads through more pages. “How will I get to him if he’s in hiding?”
“He goes to see his grandmother at the old people’s home. He also goes to various bars incognito. He’s known to frequent Florida a lot.” Que mentions. “We’ve kept abreast of all his movements. You’re going to become an orderly at the home, taking care of his Bubbie. Over the next few weeks, you’ll become her best friend, and she’ll naturally tell her grandson about you. He’ll visit, and that’s when you’ll blow this in his face.” Que hands him a small bag. “Do not take this. This is only for him. You take this, and you’ll regret it.”
Roadie studies the bag and shakes his head. “Heroin?”
“Worse. Burundanga, aka Devil’s Breath. It’s a hundred times worse than the most powerful roofie. It’ll make a victim lose all willpower and be a willing participant in everything.” I explain to him. “It inhibits restraint, so you can let them lead themselves to the fire. They’ll even start it up for you.”
“Nice.” Roadie smiles. He’s fully aware of what I do, and I’m his leading supplier to many Wall Street friends. “And then what?”
“Tell him to go outside and get a Lyft. One of the Administration cats will pick him up. He’ll lead him to the dope houses where we’ll loot everything. We have exactly two hours to complete this before he goes back into full consciousness. Drop him off somewhere and have his set deal with him.” Que instructs.
“Not a problem,” Roadie sets the drugs on the table. “Is that all?”
“That’s it,” Que replies, “you’ll be well compensated for your participation.”
“Not a problem, dude. I’ll do anything for my nigga!” Roadie says to him, and I immediately turn to Que. Que nods, reaches into his back pocket, and pulls out his nine.
“Just checking,” Que quietly says, “to see if this is loaded in case I need to use it in about five seconds.”
I struggle to take the gun away from Que, who stares at me. I give him a ‘we both know he’s a loose cannon, but you’re not going to prison over this idiot’ shrug. “A few weeks, Roadie.” I create a barrier between him and Que. “We have little time, and I feel they’re going to act again since my reaction wasn’t what they expected last time.”
“Got it.” Roadie stands up. “And then what? What happens after this?”
Que sighs and shakes his head. “War.”
Five
Taylor
“And Oh Mmmm Geeeeee!” A young Becky is with her girlfriend and live-streaming for their channel. “We’re here at the world-famous Fresh Espresso café! Do you guys want to come to check it out? Let’s go!”
I’m used to the attention. The café is more well-known than I am, and I’m not complaining about that at all. Since the introduction of TikTok, the kids, as I call them, have become 15 minutes famous. I don’t mind that at all. It means Fresh Espresso gets more attention.
