Page 56 of Stay Dangerous

“Damn.”

“Yeah, damn. ‘Cause you already know who on the phone with the OGs as we fuckin’ speak.”

Fredo was different after Ma passed. He was closer to her, and I suspected he felt a way that he wasn’t home when it happened. He always thought he could save her, that if he showed her how much he needed her, she’d live for us.

That nigga was always idealistic like that, especially when it came to women.

He was a master at hiding, much like Snow. Pooh couldn’t see it, that his isms went right over his second son’s head.

Fredo would go to hell and back for a muthafucka he deemed worthy. His only saving grace was that he felt that hardly anyone was deemed worthy enough for it.

Or so I thought. We already had begun to move differently, with him running with Set and Turk, and me with Ty andPeanut. But after our fight, even after we both swore to never let shit get that bad between us, he began to move sneaky.

Even the night Ma passed, he didn’t come home, and wouldn’t tell Nan where he was.

So many times, I wanted to ask Snow if she knew anything. But I didn’t want her to feel like she had to choose, and I didn’t know how I would react if she did, and didn’t choose me over his confidence.

But just as I never felt the way I’d been feeling, I knew Fredo had never paid anyone any mind. Bitches were always throwing themselves at him, and when he wouldn’t take the bait, the gay rumors started.

Besides one bitch from fourth grade he got a Valentine’s Day card for, he wasn’t out here, not like me.

But, we wouldn’t be one if we both weren’t falling headfirst into bullshit at the same time.

“Regardless, this don’t change shit. I’m not letting them put no more shit on you. I can’t be two places at once.”

“That’s why we split up, gang.” He swerved into a park behind Tower Four and smirked at me.

“No matter what, we gon’ always be straight. Shake out of being a lover boy, nigga. It’s Luney time.”

He hopped out the car as I shook my head, but as usual, the nigga was right.

I was soft as fuck. I was fuckin’ Richard.

I needed to be Luney.

As we made our way to Kilo’s apartment, I shook off all the bullshit I was feeling before. I locked Snow and everything she made me feel away deep in my mind, next to Ma.

By the time Fredo was knocking on Kilo’s door, my eyes were hooded, and I was numb again.

I was ready.

Chyna, Kilo’s loudmouth-assed sister, opened the door, her eyes devouring me.

I told Kisha her ass was no good, but bitches never listen when a nigga tell them they friends are hoes.

“Come on,” Fredo said impatiently.

She moved out the way, eyes still on me. I winked at her as we passed by, making her ass light up like Christmas.

Pathetic.

Set, Peanut, Gee, and Remy were already there, posted up around the living room as Kilo spoke to someone on speaker.

Most of the OGs were locked up or dead, besides Pooh, and the damn Police Chief who made it his mission to lock us all up, too. Big X and Lucci were the head honchos upstate, and everything still had to go through them, even though Big X converted to Islam and was, by all accounts, a model inmate.

“I want they block gone behind my brother, Kilo!” Lucci thundered into the phone. I almost laughed, imagining his big ass huffing and puffing over the phone.

“On baby, you know how the fuck we comin’ behind our fallen soldier.”