Chapter 5

"Candyce, now that you in this, I can't have none of this getting back to mama, you heard me?"

I roll my eyes. This was the third time Ace has warned me and it was honestly getting insulting at this point. I'm Santana's child too. I may be green to the drug game but the no-snitching rule been instilled in us since we started talking. No tattle-telling. If somebody did something to you, you handled that shit. If not, Daddy was gonna' handle you. He treated all of us like that. He never played that double-standard bs. And I'm actually glad for it. Cause now I can tell Ace to get the fuck off my back about shit I already know.

"Ace, I'm not no bird. Mama don't gotta know nothing. I wish I ain't know nothing, so why would I bring her into this?" I cross my arms over my chest.

"Besides, she'll kill both of us before Jefe gets a chance," I add.

Ace gives me a death glare, "Don't play like that. Angel ain't killing nobody in our circle."

I wrinkle my nose, "Angel?"

Ace nods his head while he puts a light to the blunt hanging from his lips.

"Yeah. No more of that 'Jefe' shit. That nigga ain't my boss no more," He says.

I laugh to myself. Ace blows smoke out his nose.

"What's funny?" He asks.

"Nothing," I say.

"What, you think this shit a joke?"

I roll my eyes.

"I just thought it was funny that we being threatened by a nigga named Angel. You know, angel of death and all," I say.

"It's all fun and games until he pulls the trigger next time," Ace says.

Was that really necessary?

"Learn how to take a joke, Ace, damn," I say.

"Aight. Next time I'ma be too busy laughing to stop him from killing you," Ace says.

"What happened to 'Angel ain't killing nobody in our circle'?" I ask.

"You wouldn't even be included in that if you wasn't sneaking out to wrap yo body around a pole," Ace says.

"Stripper, Ace. It's okay to say that I was a stripper."

"Yeah, well you just another name on Angel's hit list now," He says.

I act like I don't hear him mumble, "and it's all my fault," at the end of that sentence.

I stare out the shop window, tweaking for Caesar to pull up. He had dumped us at this coffee shop in the French Quarters while he went to handle something at one of the trap spots. He didn't specify what exactly the deal was, but Ace didn't question him so neither did I. I know Caesar and Ace were made to be some sort of business partners, but to me, it looked like Caesar did the bitch work Ace didn't feel like doing. Not to say he didn't have status. But whatever problem they had the trap, Caesar's phone rang, not Ace's. It's like even the men knew not to bring the bullshit to Ace.

But I guess it made sense. Caese was gone a long time. He couldn't expect to jump rank just cause he was cool with my brother. At the end of the day, it was Ace's name on the line. The Santana name he was trying to uphold. Caesar was out here for himself. It wasn't the same.

Finally, Caesar's grey car pulls into view. He honks once even though we're sitting right next to window and can clearly see he's outside. Caesar pulls a twenty from his pocket and sits it on the table, even though we didn't order anything. I had a cup of water and a croissant but it was complimentary to the sitting.

"Let's go," Ace says.

I untie the T-shirt and re-tie it. When I'm done, I look up to see Ace watching me.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"Nothing. That's Caesar's shirt?"

"Yeah, so?"

"We stopped at the house yesterday, I had to grab my gun. I grabbed some shit out ya closet and tossed in his trunk to bring back to you so you ain't have to wear his shit no more," Ace says.

I have to bite down on the inside of my cheek to keep from smiling. If Caesar knew I had my own clothes, and still let me wear his that must mean he liked seeing me in his clothes. Little did he know, my clothes hug and show my body more. I could have given him something better to stare at than me in his big ass shirt.

"Maybe he forgot," I say.

"Hm," Ace says.

Outside, Caesar blows the horn two more times. I wait for Ace to stop staring at me before following him outside.

The second we step outside, Caesar rolls his window down.

"Yo, we gotta problem," He says.

"What happened?" Ace asks as he jogs into the street to climb into the passenger seat.

I step up to the car to open the door, but the sound of an engine roaring to life stops me. Instead of getting into the car, I step into the street to see who the hell was speeding like that. A black Tahoe is speeding towards us. I notice too late that the car doesn't have a license plate.

"Ace watch out!" I scream.

A tanned arm stretches out the window. Black gloves, black T-shirt and a black semiautomatic pressed into his hand.

I take a sharp breath. Ace.

POP!POP!POP!POP!POP!

My feet spring into action. I throw my body behind Caesar's car as the bullets rip through the metal. I lay flat on my stomach and crawl beneath the car until the tires screech off. The engine revvs up again and the car speeds down the street. I lay below the car for another few seconds to make sure they're actually gone. And then realization hits me.

Ace.

"Ace!"

I'm on my feet before Caesar can open his car door. People are running and screaming down the street. I can hear sirens in the distance. Who pulls a fucking drive-by in the middle of a crowded area? Anybody could have been killed.

I knock shoulders with people as they run past me down the street. I almost get hit by a white car as it speeds down the street.

When I reach the street, Ace isn't laid on the ground dead. I let out a little air but it doesn't stop the hammering in my chest. Did they take him?

My worries subside when I spot his Nike's peeking out from in between a blue jeep parked in front of us and Caesar's car. The next thing I see is blood. My heart starts drumming again.

"Ace?" I tip-toe over to the car ahead of us.

He doesn't respond. I distantly hear Caesar moaning and groaning, but I tune him out. At least, I know he's alive. Meanwhile, Ace has yet to call back to me.

"Ace?" I call again.

I close my eyes as I approach the car. I can't hear anything but the chaos in my heart. Nothing else matters but what I'll see when I open my eyes. I already saw one dead body in my lifetime. Seeing your father with his brain on the walls was enough for any little girl. But Ace? I think my heart will stop beating altogether if Ace isn't breathing.

"C-C-Candyce."

My eyes flutter open. Ace is sitting upright with his hand on his stomach. Blood seeps through the blue T-shirt he has on. With his hand pressed to his side, it doesn't stop the blood flow. I take a moment to take in his sweating face, distorted with pain. My big brother's alive.

"Ace," I whisper.

Tears ease their way down my cheeks for the second time in two days. The last time I cried was Daddy's funeral four years ago and before that, I couldn't remember. This drug shit was turning me into a soft bitch. That's not how this was supposed to go.

"Candyce. I got scared you got hit son," He says.

He struggles to get his sentence out before his face is back twisted up in pain. Then I see another hole in his thigh and another one in his right shoulder.

"Ace," I panic.

"Chill, chill. I'm good for now. But we need to get the fuck out here. Where's Caesar?" He asks.

"I-I don't...I don't," I start to look around.

I can no longer hear his moaning and groaning.

"Help me up," Ace says.

The police sirens are louder. The street is practically deserted except for us and a few shop owners. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Angel was responsible for the drive-by. There was no way we was gonna' attempt to explain why we were the only ones targeted.

I lift Ace onto my shoulder. He hops on his one good leg while I guide us back to the car. There's too many bullet holes in the side of the car. I gulp, imagining that those bullets could have been inside Ace. Then I realize they might have hit Caesar.

I lean Ace against the car. He's still spitting and flying out curse words with his hand clamped to his side. He needed to get to a hospital. Who knows what vital organs they might have hit.

When I get to the other side of the car, the top of Caesar's body is sprawled out on the ground. The rest of him is still wedged inside of the car. I notice at least four bullets in his upper body alone.

I rush over to him, the tears steady creeping down my cheeks. I was still in shock that Ace wasn't halfway on his way to Heaven, so seeing Caesar on the ground motionless, wasn't registering the way it should have. Imagining Ace being dead was delibitating. But, the possibility that Caesar could be dead shoves me into action. I crouch beside his body, and check for his pulse. I barely feel the soft bumps against my fingers, but it's there.

"He's alive!" I tell Ace.

"That's my dawg," Ace says back. Not a second later, I hear him groan again in pain.

As heavy as Caesar is, I mentally thank him for helping me out a little by pulling himself at least halfway out of the car. I struggle getting his legs on the ground but that's not even the hard part. The challenge comes trying to get him into the backseat by myself. The sirens are picking up, and I start to panic, trying to shove his heavy body into the car.

Suddenly, the other car door opens. Ace appears in the doorway, looking like he's about to pass out. His face is fully drenched in sweat now, but that doesn't stop him from leaning into the car and pulling Caesar across the seat by his T-shirt. He helps a lot and soon we have Caesar laid across the backseat. As soon as we're done, Ace drops onto the ground.

"Shit!" I say, as I slam the door and run over to Ace.

The lower part of his shirt is fully soaked in blood now and the hole in his shoulder is staining the top of his shirt. And that's only from the two bullet holes in his torso. He was losing even more blood from the gunshot in his leg.

Ace is weak, but helpful as I get him into the front seat. He flops into the seat with the energy of someone who's about to die. That does me no good.

I climb behind the wheel and do a silent pray that the car starts. When the engine starts, I lean my head against the wheel for a second, allowing myself to thank God for at least one good thing. But the moment doesn't last long because I can see the cops turning onto the street. Quickly, I move the gear to reverse and back the car up. Then, I do the widest, turn in the history of turns.

"Shit, Candyce," Ace grunts as his head slams into the window.

"My bad," I say.

I drill the gas pedal into the floor trying to outrun the police. I'm relieved when I don't see them in the review. But, that doesn't last long. Ace is officially passed out and I have no idea where to bring them. I can't just drop them off at the nearest emergency room. I can't bring them home. I'm seconds away from crying again when Ace mutters something.

I lean closer to him, "What?"

"I said..." But his mouth isn't moving.

I check in the backseat and Caesar is on his back, with his eyes closed. But, his mouth is moving.

"Caesar, I can't hear you. What did you said?"

"I said 2280 Annette St," He says.

"Who lives there?" I say.

When I turn around to check on him, his mouth his partly open and I can just barely hear him breathing. It doesn't even matter who the fuck lives there. Whoever it is, they better save not only my brother, but his best friend too.

...

The ride to the address Caesar gave me is a quick one if the mileage s any suggestion. But to me, it feels like the longest ride of my life. It's a small white house with fake plants around the porch. There's a white dog in the yard. I take the keys out of the ignition, and bulldoze through the rickety chain-linked fence surrounding the house. The dog is barking its ass off which is maybe why a girl.. or should I say woman, opens the door before I can knock.

"Who are you?" She says.

I recognize her voice from earlier today, outside of Caesar's house.

"Keyana," I say.

She steps further outside and closes the door. Her face turns up with confusion.

"Who are you?" She says with attitude.

I guess you could call it attitude, but I've seen worse. Shit, my attitude could put hers to shame. But I have two nearly dead boys in my car, who just so happened to be two of the most important people in my life, so all that extra shit could be saved for later.

"A friend of Caesar's. Look, I know you don't know me but Caesar got shot. Along with my brother, Ace. Caesar's barely making it but he told me this address. Can you help them?" I rush out.

Her face loosens up and all her brown skin beauty seeps through. She's really fucking gorgeous and I can't deny the jealousy that builds in the pit of my stomach. So, this is who Caesar loves.

She looks from me to the car.

"Are they with you now?" She asks.

"Yes, bitch. Can you help them?"

I couldn't help myself.

She jerks her head back and raises her eyebrows at me before rolling her eyes. Then she closes the door completely. I take off down the porch and I open the car door to Caesar first. Her hands go straight to his face as tears well in her eyes. I get it, but we don't have time for this shit. The longer she stared down at him, the less time he had to live.

"Grab his feet," She chokes out.

Together, we half-carry, half-drag him up the porch steps and into the house. Inside, the décor is beautiful. There's plants and bookcases and a huge television against the wall. The sofa's clean and the house is straightened to the Gods. Except for a few toys lingering on the carpet and on the coffee table.

Wait...toys?

I don't have time to ask. Cause we're darting out the door to bring Ace inside. He's sort of functional but we decide that Caesar needs to be treated first. I expect her to call someone over to get to work on them. So I'm surprised to see her come around with a black medical bag. She unzips it and pours some hand sanitizer over her hands. Then she slips her hands inside of some gloves. She strips down to just a white T-shirt and her pajama pants.

Keyana uses some tiny scissors to open Caesar's white T-shirt. She chokes back tears as she takes in the bullet holes drilled into his perfect, tattooed chest and stomach.

"Get me the gauze out of the bathroom," She says.

I go where she's pointed. On my way to the bathroom, I notice a little boy's room. So, she has a son. But was it Caesar's?

I rummage through her medicine cabinet before I find it. I stare a second longer, eyeing myself in the mirror. My hair is stained with blood, as well as my face. Caesar's shirt is marked with streaks of blood too. There's no way to tell who's blood it is. Thinking about that makes me remember the two men laid in the living room. I hit the lights and race back over to Keyana, who's busy using tweezers to extract the bullet from Caesar's chest.

I watch while she does this for the other bullets. The one in his stomach causes a lot of blood to spill out. Keyana orders me to press against it, so I do. I do whatever she says since she looks like she knows what to do. When she's done with Caesar, she wraps his body in guaze. Together, we lay him onto the sofa.

Next, she gets started on Ace. I feel a little at ease when he starts to wake up so at least I know he's fighting to stay alive. But that only proves to work against us cause he starts to fight us too. Since he's awake, he feels everything Keyana does to his body. He's thrashing around on the floor while she's trying to extract the bullet. Eventually, Keyana leans back on her knees with her hands in the air.

"I can't do this. The more you move, the more the bullet gets wedged deeper into your tissue. If it goes too deep, I can't help you. You'll need to go to a hospital," She says.

Ace bangs his head against the floor twice before letting out a string of curse words. Keyana must be glad her son isn't here to witness all of this unfolding. Finally, Ace caves in.

"Aight man, fuck. Just do the shit. But do you got some pills or something a nigga could take to ease the pain? I can feel your fucking fingers digging into me," Ace says.

Keyana gets up to retrieve something from the back of the house.

"You know her?" I ask when she's left the room.

"Yeah. That's Caesar's ole lady. How you know her?" He questions.

I don't know why it stings hearing him address her as Caesar's girlfriend. I could have sworn I heard them break up this morning.

"I don't. Caesar told me to bring y'all here."

"How's he doing?" Ace asks.

I turn to look at Caesar on the sofa. His chest is just barely moving up and down.

"I don't know."

Keyana enters the room again with a bottle of Jack Daniel's in hand.

"This work?" She says.

"Hell yeah," Ace says.

He takes a few sips out of the bottle. Then, when he notices Keyana putting her gloves back on, he starts to chug it.

I snatch the bottle from him.

"Nigga I almost lost you to a driveby. I'm not losing you to alcohol poisoning," I tell him.

"A driveby? That's what happened?" Keyana chirps up behind us.

I look at Ace, afraid that I've said too much. Ace takes the bottle from my hand and takes another sip.

"That soft ass nigga prolly pillowtalk to her anyway. You ain't say nun she haven't heard before," He says.

I take the bottle back from him. Keyana looks sad for a moment but saves face quickly. She get back to work on Ace, ignoring his grunts of pain. I watch her work on him. I think working on Ace is serving as a good distraction for her. At least, it is for me. It's not the most fun hearing Ace cry out in pain, but at least I know he's alive. I look over at Caesar on the couch. Keyana seemed like an expert on this shit but I doubted even she knew what the outcome for Caesar was gonna be.

Soon after, Ace was bandaged stitched and drunk. Keyana only had a small loveseat couch and an arm chair, both of which was occupied by Ace and Caesar. I sat perched on her black coffee table in the middle of the living room.

She offered me a place in her kitchen, but Ace was rambling, drunk off his ass so I needed to watch him. Besides, another part of me wanted to be the first one Caesar saw when he woke up. That's if he woke up.

Keyana had excused herself into her bedroom to make a phone call. I was instructed to call her if Caesar stirred at all, but so far nothing was happening. I checked his pulse a few times to be sure he was still with us, but that was about it. When Keyana finally came back into the living room, Ace had talked himself to sleep and Caesar was still out.