Pʀɪɴᴄᴇss {Prince Rogers Nelson}

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 21: ᴘᴀʀᴋ

March 19

The bright sun is out, heating up the entire town. People at home probably have the AC on. The kids playing outside near a water sprinkler. Parents making cold drinks for the kids. As for the adults, a cold can of beer cools them soothly. For those who don't own a AC, a paper fan of Martin Luther King Jr. face on it keeps their body cool too. And it brings out the holy ghost too. But as for me? The mild wind blowing through Minneapolis Central Park is cool enough for me. Me & Uncle Tony, Damon, & Kirk are playing basketball in the courtyard. Well, me & Uncle Damon are playing mostly. Kirk & Tony are just watching us & keeping tracks of our points. He was talking trash all week about how he's gonna whoop me one-on-one in basketball. Little does he know, I went to basketball camp in 3rd grade. So you can say I'm whooping his ass instead. Good thing, he hasn't betted on anything.

"Fuck man!" Uncle Damon cursed out loud. My skills are too hot to handle.

"Yeah nigga! I told you she was gonna whoop yo' ass!" Uncle Kirk cheered.

"She cheated!" Uncle Damon said in denial.

"Nah, you just suck."

Tony & Kirk laughed while Damon waved me off. Don't hate the player, hate the game. I went over to the bench & dried myself off with a towel. I was soaking wet in my sweatshirt. (I know i shouldn't be wearing it in the hot weather.) Good thing, I brought a pair of changing clothes with me. I quickly took off the drench shirt & put on a black tank top. I'll let the wind do the rest of the work.

"Are you hungry, Princess?" Uncle Damon asked.

"Yeah, I can go for some food."

"We ordered some pizza & wings. Me & Kirk are gonna go get it." Uncle Damon said.

"Okay."

"We'll be right back!" They both exclaimed as they walked off the courtyard.

I wonder why Rebecca was in my room the other day. Did she hear everything I said? If she did, I bet she told Prince about it. I needed to investigate Michael. I'm starting to look at him differently after reading those files. Those woman could be dead & nobody knows about it. If they are dead, they deserve justice. I just have to find those tapes. I need any possible lead. I walked towards Uncle Tony who was sitting on the bench with a laptop in his lap. He was typing so fast that I couldn't see the words appear on the screen. He was very focused. I don't think he even saw me & Damon play.

"Work from daddy?"

"And the rest of the N.P.G." Uncle Tony said without looking up from the laptop.

"How come your not hot in that sweater?" He was wearing a oversized gray sweatshirt, a baggy black pants with black leather gloves.

"I can handle the heat, some people can't." His forehead was full of sweat, slightly dripping down his cheek. I took my towel & wiped away his sweat. I hope he doesn't catch a heat stroke.

I sat beside him, the laptop screen was full of words from left to right. Honestly, I don't understand some of the words. Either I've never heard of them or can't pronounce them. I wonder what kind of work he does. From the looks of it, he seems pretty good at it.

"Uncle Tony?"

"Yes?"

"Does daddy work you too hard?"

"He works all of us hard. When you get in the N.P.G business, you'll see all the work we do."

I folded the towel that I dried myself off with. "What did you do before you joined the N.P.G?"

"I've always been with N.P.G."

"So you've been with N.P.G ever since you were an infant?" I arched an brow.

He looked over at me. "Yes."

I laughed, "Stop playing, Uncle Tony."

He chuckled, "My past isn't that interesting. You'll find it very boring."

"I still want to hear it."

"It's a long story."

"I got time."

He lowered his head down a bit. He sighed deeply & closed his laptop. He sat it aside as he turned towards my direction.

"Before the N.P.G, I was a juvenile delinquent. I was pick-pocketing folks, stealing from stores, theft, assault. I even embezzled from my first job. I went to prison for the first time & was sentenced to 40 years. I only did 10 years. I thanked your father for that. He came to my rescue before he went away for his time. He offered me a job & a lifetime friendship for an exchange for freedom from prison. So, I accepted it. I couldn't handle prison anymore. It was too much for me. It sucked the life out of me. Fighting for my life in a cell, depression, fear. Prison ain't fun, you don't want to be anybody's bitch in there."

"I didn't know you went to prison. Did Damon & Kirk go too?"

"Damon & Kirk were just jailbirds. They did little petty crimes. They didn't do crimes like I did."

"Did anyone else in the family went to jail or prison?"

"Besides your dad? No, not really. I think Diamond went to jail for aggravated assault."

His forehead was sweaty again. I unfolded the towel & wiped his forehead clean. He smiled & gently grabbed my hand. "You are very special, Princess. Your father went through so much trying to get you back. You should be thankful."

"I am! I am thankful."

"Princess, when you get in the N.P.G business you have to be tough. Tough like you never been tough before. Prison taught me to be tough. This business ain't no playing matter. Its dangerous & life threatening. Too many lives on the line, Princess."

"I understand."

He kissed my hand, "I just want you to be careful when the time comes. God knows, what would happened if you get hurt. Promise me you'll be careful."

"I won't get hurt, I promise."

He smiled & pulled me into a tight hug. I like this strong affection from Uncle Tony. It tells me that he's a good man with a good heart. He cares about me a lot. Tough looks with a good personality.

"We're back!" A loud male voice exclaimed interrupting our moment.

"What's with the all the hugs & shit? I want a hug too!" Damon came towards me with open arms. He tackled me to the ground with his sweaty arms. A squeal came out of my mouth as he gently squeezed me.

"Hey nigga! I want one too!" Kirk jumped on top of Damon's back, wrapping his arms around me too.

"I can't breathe!" I laughed uncontrollably.

"Get off of Princess before prince kills us!" Uncle Tony peeled Kirk off of Damon's back.