Lighter Shade of Brown (Urban Fiction) BWHM

Chapter 15

"Every thing's locked down," Putt said from his seat at the breakfast table.

"Alright." C's nodded as he transferred a pot of baked beans to an aluminum pan. "What about the rides?"

"Ducked off in the bushes near the interstate. The heat's already loaded in the trunk too." Putt answered, eyeing him through hooded lids. "Like I said, everything is locked down and ready to pop when we leave the club."

"Good," C's said, as he covered the pan with foil. "I want this shit to go down like it's been rehearsed a thousand times. Smoothly, with no bullshit complications. Mistakes will get our asses killed if we don't respect the obvious variables."

Putt's head bobbed as he stood, shuffling his feet on the ceramic tiles of the kitchen floor, while his mouth snapped open, and then closed as if he had something else he wanted to say.

The corner of C's mouth hitched. "If you got something on your mind, folk, you better go on and spit that shit now. There won't be any time for talkin' later. Ya dig?"

"I think we should bring Taz with us-,"

"What?" C's turned to face him full on. "Don't tell me he knows about this, because if he does-,"

Putt raised his hands, denying C's words with a shake of his head. "He doesn't know anything, but since Ant isn't comin'-,"

"What you mean, Ant ain't comin'?" Ant asked, standing in the entrance of the kitchen swinging a glance from C's to Putt, and then back. "What's he talkin' about C's?"

Turning back to the counter, C's lifted the pan, purposely keeping his gaze trained on the task at hand. "You're not. You need to stay here and hold down the block. I don't know how it's gonna go down in those woods. We may all come back, or none, and if that happens..." His voice trailed off as he glanced over his shoulder to drill Ant with a pointed glare.

"That's exactly why you need me with you, niño. To make sure that all of y'all come back," Ant said, while his eyes pleaded for C's not to go back and forth with him on this. "Vasquez's crew outnumbers us three to one. The creep attack will only get you so far. For this move to work, you're gonna need all guns on deck." He swung an apologetic gaze to Putt. "And no offense Putt, but you're the only vato in the hood who trusts Taz's snake ass to watch his back." His gaze flicked back to C's. "You need me and you know it."

"Yeah I need you, right where you are, to hold things down while I'm in the field." When Ant opened his lips to argue, C's cut the words from his mouth with a well sharpened glare. "Don't even. My decision's already made. You're stayin'. That's it." He held out the pan to Ant. "Now go run this out to Ma, 'fore she comes in lookin' for it." C's waited until he snatched the pan, and left the kitchen, before he resumed speaking. "He's right, we do need all guns on deck, but I don't trust your cousin to have my back. And this here is hood business anyway. Last time I checked, Taz wasn't hood, yo."

"Look. I know Taz can get under a hombre's, skin like a hellified STD, but he the vato you want at your back when shit poppin' off," Putt said. "He who I want at my back. So get over your got damn pride, C's. 'Cause no matter what the hell you got against my primo, we need him. Don't put us any harder on our dicks than we already are, its more than just you out there on the front line, it's all of us. We all dead if shit takes a dive. So consider the rest of our asses before you tell Taz to kiss yours, by saying no."

"I am considering y'all, hombre. This call doesn't have a damn thing to do with pride. Taz is one part slime and one part snake, and I don't trust him not to go running his mouth back to his peoples. Reyes and Vargas have an alliance, if Vargas hears about this then so will Reyes," C's said as he studied Putt for any signs that his words were taking root in his dome. When he saw unsureness creep into Putt's features he continued. "And then we're all dead before the bandana even hits the ground. The success of this caper is swaying back and forth on our ability to keep our got damn mouths closed. Reyes, Vasquez, Maldonado, all of their asses need to remain in the dark, if this is gonna come anywhere near close to workin'." C's shook his head, bringing the discussion to an end. "Sorry, ese. I want put my plan, or squad in jeopardy by including him. The risk isn't worth the pay off. So if you wanna pull out, I'll understand."