Another Man's Treasure (Joey Bada$$ Story)

Part Sedici

I didn’t know what CJ meant when he said that we had to “strike them before they strike first”. I didn’t know who ‘they’ were exactly, I didn’t know what ‘strike’ entailed of, and I didn’t know why anybody was striking at all. But for some reason, I followed them. I dressed Latara and I followed them into their car outside. I didn’t protest as Kirk drove away, into the dark, terrifying streets to find our target and to - I assume - strike them.

The city blocks seemed to swallow the cars ahead of us. They drove and drove, and then they all disappeared. Some turned left and some turned right, or some kept straight when we made turns. We were always one of few cars on the street, and there were no drivers in front or behind us or more than two blocks. The good news from this was that we weren’t being followed. The bad, of course, was that we were going somewhere no one else was, which meant it was somewhere dangerous. Somewhere me and my ten-month-old baby shouldn’t be going, not at this time and not at any time.

But for some bizarre reason, I followed them.

Kirk made a smooth, stealthy turn into a street full of two-story houses. We parked at the very end of the block, turned off the car, and sat there. All of us, just sitting in the car with no words and no conversation, like a bunch of patient spies. I held Latara tight in my lap.

Finally, CJ took off his seatbelt. “Here’s how things are going to go: Joey, Jamie, her baby and I are going to stay in the car no matter what.”

“How come we have to go out there?” Chuck asked.

“Because these dangerous people we’re dealing with, and we don’t know what they have against us but we know that they’ve seen a lot of us in and out of my house and Joey’s. That makes us two huge targets already. You guys have to go and feel them out.” CJ told him.

“What exactly do you mean by ‘feel them out’?” Powers asked.

“Lay low,” Joey said. “Don’t be suspicious until you get inside the house. Don’t ring any doorbells - break in from the back. Once you’re inside, throw something down. Something breakable. Cause some kind of commotion to scare them. Whoever comes downstairs first and sees you will be the one that you contain. Put him in a headlock or something. I think there’s only one guy in there, but you can never be too sure. Ask him some questions. See where his mind is at, and then get the hell out of there.”

Kirk, Powers and Chuck looked at each other for a moment and then, with annoyed sighs, exited the car.

“Wait, one more thing.” CJ said to them.

“Yeah?”

“Don’t get shot.”

They closed the doors and left the four of us alone in the dark car.

None of them spoke. Latara was dozing off in my lap, and I didn’t know whether I should keep her awake or let her sleep. I was too anxious to entertain her awake, so I let her drift off. CJ watched the guys walk all the way down the block and creep into the driveway of the second to last house. They were out of our sight now and in our prayers. In mine, mostly. I still had no idea where we were and still didn’t have the balls to ask. The only information I knew was that there was a possibility of somebody getting shot.

CJ couldn’t stop looking all around the car. I didn’t exactly know what he was searching for but I looked when he did, peeking my head over Joey’s to see the left side of the car. There was nothing on the block, but anybody could be hiding anywhere. This neighborhood didn’t only look like the hood but like assassin territory; snipers could be hiding in the windows or on the roofs of any of these houses. Of course, they’d only shoot us if they had a reason to, but I think our friends breaking into one of the homes on the block and ‘feeling someone up’ was reason enough.