Southern Narco

Astoria, New York

11:02am

"Mama," Ebony shook her mother's bare shoulder. The skin was slick with moisture. Janet jumped awake as if she'd been hit instead of gently shaken. Her dilated eyes darted around the car and settled on her daughter. "We're here." Janet slowly nodded her understanding and licked her chapped, greyed lips.

Ebony reached into her purse with slightly shaken hands and found her Chapstick. She pulled off the cap and leaned across the car to put some on her mother's lips. Once finished, she offered a meek smile and Ebony returned it with one of her own. Ebony grabbed her mother's hand and ran her thumb over the smooth burn scars that started at her thumb and ran up her forearm.

This was the second rehabilitation check-in for her mother within the last year. The eighth trip in the last four years. She couldn't keep track of how many times it had been total. Each time was more grim than the one before. Probably because they both had one more trip's worth of proof that it was all for nothing.

But Ebony couldn't give up on her. She would do anything to give her mother a second chance at life. Even if it meant working three jobs for six months that each paid their own versions of nothing. She put her art, her passions and dreams on hold and got together the money.

Her mother's head had ended up back against the window of the car. She was shivering in her sleep yet dripping hot sweat. The beginnings of withdrawal were creeping up on her and Ebony had to check her in soon before she turned into something uncontrollable.

"Ma," Ebony swallowed. "Last night you told me something about daddy. Something about him and Bel..." She trailed off as she fought to decipher her mother's twisted words. Ebony replayed the eerie scene over and over again until she couldn't stomach it anymore. Her mother never uttered a word about her father that Ebony could untangle but for the first time, she had. And Ebony couldn't believe she couldn't remember what she said. "Please tell me what you said." She begged. Her mother groaned and moaned her incoherence and Ebony could feel her tears piercing her eyes.

She would probably never know.

Ebony rubbed her hands down the front of her mother's straight backs. Ebony usually did the style before she went in for rehab.

"Okay, Janet." The nurse sighed. She walked over and grabbed the handles of her mother's wheelchair. Ebony bent down to place a kiss on her mother's cheek. Her lips stopped against her ear.

"This is the last time. I feel it." She proclaimed, hoping it meant as much to her mother as it did her to hear the words aloud. Her mother seemed unfazed and continued alternating between consciousness and sleep. Her mother and her things were wheeled down the hall. They reached a door that required a badge and then they were out of sight.

Ebony flicked at her tear and turned on her heel.

Bronx, New York

8:30pm

"I hate this damned city." Silas grumbled as Gael slammed the breaks for the hundredth time. His driver looked into the rearview mirror to smirk at him through the reflection. His toffee brown eyes gleamed against skin set three shades darker. His eyes creased and showed signs that the bottom half of his face was smiling. Silas wasn't as amused and decided to turn his attention to his suitcase of guns instead of the jagged drive. His fingers glided over the selection of sub-machine guns he and his men had to choose from.

None of them could compare to his reliable pistol.

But this wasn't Texas. He didn't have the gift of distance on his side. Men were everywhere and nowhere all at once. The automatic and successive shots of the machine guns were best in this setting. He ran his hand over it once more, trying to imagine it hot from use.

"Fucking beautiful, ain't she?" Jedediah said from beside him. He leaned up from the third row of seats in the SUV and looked Silas in the eye with a wide, giddy grin on his face. Silas' eyes rolled at the excitement. His hitman was thirsty to shed blood and he finally had his chance.

"Listen to me," Silas called for everyone's attention. Armando, who sat in the passenger's seat beside Gael turned back to him. Everyone's silence coaxed him on. He gazed out the window as he spoke. "We aren't home. Act accordingly."

Everyone knew what that meant.

The car came to a slow at a project housing development. People stood outside, conversing, smoking and drinking under the overhead lights. Women sashayed by sitting men, capturing their eyes for just a second and then they'd go back to what they were doing. Gael pulled around the back of the building where they had a key to enter. It was less conspicuous to go around the back but there was a risk if someone saw them. Going through the back door meant you didn't want to be seen. Which always meant you had bad intentions upon arrival.

He sent a text from his throw-away cell. He looked to the building and saw the nearby security camera turn away from the entrance they needed to go through. They put on their gloves and sat their face masks in standby position.

"Vamos." Silas almost whispered. Gael, Jedediah and Armando both jumped out of the car with purpose. They strolled past the uninterested camera, used the doctored door pass and walked into the utility closet of the housing complex. Gael opened the door that led to the lobby with a crack and then threw it open the rest of the way when it was clear.

Silas followed up the steps, bypassing the leftover fast food containers, dirt and roaches flooding the stairwell. They reached the second floor and knocked on the door he'd given the Sureños to operate out of.

Blaring rap music poured out of the door's frame even with it shut. Silas' irritation grew after the third second of waiting. He tried to be diplomatic and make a statement by knocking in the first place. It was a short lived effort.

"Hágale—Go,"

Gael took the key out of his pocket and opened the door.

There had to be at least ten people inside. Silas could feel his men tense at the sight of so many soon-to-be enemies. Probably all with fully loaded guns in the back of their pants.

The smell of weed was a layer of smoke in the air that altered their sight immediately. He stepped to the forefront of his men. When he did, Leonardo appeared from the back bedroom and a smile spread across his profile. His skin was glossed in a youngness that couldn't be faked. He had to be no older than twenty two.

It made Silas sick to know that he made contracts with kids. But the young gangs had something the old ones didn't; nothing to lose and everything to gain. No family, no jobs, no hope. They had one another and sometimes, that could work in his favor. But any other time, he resorted to taking advantage of their circumstances.

"Country ass Quetzalcoatl!" Leonardo approached with his arm prepared for a masculine embrace. He leaned in cheerfully.

Silas reached for the back of the young man's neck instead. The dig into his skin was deep and intentional. Silas held his head close to his just so Leonardo could see the intensity in his eyes.

"Don't disrespect me." Silas growled low enough for only them to hear. The warning was deadly. Leonardo stumbled back, trying his best to regroup after being embarrassed in front of the men. Silas' height and stature already made Leonardo look weak in comparison but the interaction confirmed it.

He had power over the people in his gang but Silas wasn't one of them. He and his men were on a level far beyond Leonardo's world. Leonard reeled his confidence back in. He was right to do so.

"We can talk in the back. Rico is waitin'."

Leonardo escorted them to the back of the small unit. Silas' men followed closely. The smoke cleared the farther back they ventured. A dark purple light overhead cast a glow in the room. Rico sat in one of the only two pieces of furniture inside. A worn desk was in the middle with a chair in front.

Rico was reclined in his seat and a young woman was perched on his lap. He stared up into her eyes and she giggled down on him. She had long, wavy hair that looked wet to the eye but was a known style trend. They both wore thick gold chains around their necks and she wore multiple bracelets that dangled when she reached to caress his jaw. Their gazes turned to the men in the doorway and Rico swatted her on the ass to dismiss her. She scurried off and left the room. Silas could feel Jedidiah's gaze follow her out. He made no attempt to hide his lustful staring.

Silas sat in the chair and his men stood behind him. Leonardo flanked Rico's side.

"Boss," Rico extended his hand with a smile full of gold teeth. His neck length hair was pulled into a ponytail. He moved to offer his hand. Silas accepted his gesture. "You got good news for us?" Silas was tired of these boys' enthusiasm. It came off as a lack of respect. He was not their friend.

But they'd learn that soon enough.

"You moved last month's shipment twice as fast as the one before—even though we gave you two kilos more." Silas got straight to the point. "I was impressed." Leonardo and Rico exchanged a prideful glance.

He glanced at his wristwatch. 8:36

Silas gestured for the suitcase. Gael laid two down on the table before him and Armando followed up with one more. The edges were unclasped and the contents were placed on the table. They waited patiently for all $200,000 to be stacked before them. Leonardo and Rico didn't hide their gleams of pride. Rico rubbed his hands together eagerly, as if he would scoop the money up from the table right then and walk out with it.

"Hell yeah," Leonardo said lowly. He pulled his fitted cap down on his head a little more and crossed his arms over his chest while he waited.

"I was impressed," Silas started but everyone knew there'd be more. "then I was suspicious and that turned to insult," Silas flicked lint off of his crossed pant leg. He focused on throwing the piece on the ground while he spoke. "I give you the deal of a lifetime with Sinaloa and you steal from me—"

"Boss," Leonardo started to explain, his eyes were wide with horror. "We didn't do shit. We just moved the —" Silas held up his hand to silence him. His auburn eyes were set ablaze and cast on Leonardo. Leonardo saw his mistake in Silas' profile and Silas then turned back to Rico.

The contrast in their expressions was stark. Rico was on guard. His eyes flicked between the door, Silas and his men. He seemed to be weighing his options as if he had any. Maybe he thought he did; Silas' men were outnumbered here as far as Rico was concerned.

"I give you more responsibility and you feel it the perfect opportunity to take money from me. As if I don't keep tabs on my business." Silas pounded his fist on the wood table hard enough to put a crack in the surface. Some of the piled money toppled over. "You think I don't look at my fucking money?" Silas could feel his temperament breaking. He leaned forward as if he really wanted an answer. The men knew better.

Silas reached back into the open suitcase and lowered the hidden panel along the lining. The guns were at the back. He could hear men shouting outside the door but no one came in. Then he could hear other voices—voices he knew. They called for cooperation in Spanish. The Sureños gang had been cornered.

Silas revealed two of the guns in each hand. He stood and set them at the foreheads of both men.

"Everything is mine. The building—the product. You do nothing here I don't know about." Rico clasped his hands together while tears threatened to drop from his eyes. He looked up to Silas with pleading eyes. "This is the money you took from me in three weeks." He glanced down at the table. "I want you to physically see why I'm here."

"Por favor el capo, lo siento. Necesitábamos más - Please boss, we needed more."

"Rico, you took his fuckin money?" Leonardo ignored the gun pointed at him and glared down on groveling Rico. He had sentenced them all to death and no one knew. None of them were involved enough in the operations to see he was putting the gang's lives at stake.

"I was about to put it all back the next drop." Silas lowered the guns. The men almost took a breath of relief.

"Armando." Silas called. He checked his watch again.

Armando swiftly pulled a gun from his pants and shot a hole into Rico's skull. The force blew him backward in his seat and the blood and brain concoction splattered on the wall behind him. Blood dripped down the front of his face and his body slouched down to the base of his chair. Armando trained his gun on Leonardo next.

Leonardo's eyes were shut tight. His whimpering could be heard despite his efforts to keep them suppressed. His white tee had splatters of blood on the side facing Rico. There were a few droplets of blood on his face too.

Silas gestured for Armando to lower his gun.

"Our business is over." Gael and Jedidiah collected the money and placed it back in the suitcase. "Leave." Leonardo took off out of the room. He stumbled on his feet right before he could reach for the door. He regained his footing and continued.

He had three minutes to get out of the building if he was to keep his visit under 15. Silas led the way back out of the room. Every man he'd seen earlier was held at gunpoint. A couple women sat frightened in a corner. At the entrance, Diego stood at the adjacent wall.

Diego was Silas' lieutenant for his business in the northeast. From West Virginia to Maine, he was in charge of all operations in between. Diego was at least six foot two and two hundred pounds. He had a scar over the entire length of the right side of his face. The skin was raised and deep purple against his dark tan skin. He was his second cousin on his father's side. Diego and Silas shared a great-grandfather but only Silas' father had interest in creating a name for himself in the cartel. Silas made sure to give him the responsibility fit for someone of blood and Diego continuously proved himself worthy of the favor.

"We'll talk later." Silas stated. Armando handed him a suitcase as he passed. Diego gave one nod.

Silas and his men left the building the way they came.

Queens, New York

9:44am

"Ebony, why?" Cassandra asked for the hundredth time. Ebony continued hauling her luggage out of the back of her cousin's car. She fought to get her suitcases on the ground without them slamming into the concrete. Cassandra was of no help.

"Let me get this one." Her best friend, Nia appeared with an outstretched hand. Ebony happily handed her bag over. "We need to be supportive." Nia said through clenched teeth. "Stop acting like this." Cassandra inhaled a breath and released, flaring her nostrils. The ride to the airport had been an interrogation.

Cassandra couldn't figure out why Ebony would up and go to Texas for three months. None of it made sense to her and it didn't help that Ebony hardly had much of an answer herself. That seemed to fuel Cassandra even more. With a sucking of her teeth, she took Ebony's other bag and they all walked into the airport together—Ebony gleaming from the unspoken support.

"And a bed and breakfast of all places!" Cassandra was back on her tangent. Her cooperation was very short lived. Ebony had checked in her bags and had a few hours of free time before her departure. She and her friends sat at a small table in the corner of the airport. "Auntie just went into rehabilitation, Ebb. She needs—" Nia quickly put down the smoothie she was drinking and spoke before Ebony had the chance.

"What about what she needs?" Nia's shoulder length honey blonde bob swung with the attitude in her voice. Ebony watched her as her beautiful face scrunched up with visible irritation. Her bright yellow manicured nails flung with her hands while she spoke. "Ebony has taken care of everyone else all the time. I love Mama Janet and I will be here if she ever needs anything but I can also say I'm happy to see Ebony doing something for herself. It isn't for either of us to understand." Ebony smirked down at her pineapple soda.

Cassandra flipped her extensions over her shoulder while Nia's words sunk in. Her medium brown skin was radiant against a peach tank top. Her nose stud sparkled from the natural light let in from the windows.

"I don't know," Cassandra started quietly. "I guess I'm just going to miss you." Finally, Ebony could see the sadness and worry in her cousin's face. It all made sense then; it didn't matter what excuse she had for why she was leaving. The problem was that she was leaving at all.

"Oh, you'll be okay." Ebony reached across the length of the table and captured her hand. She looked to Nia and grabbed hers, too. "It's something I need to do for myself. I don't know why and I can't really explain it but I'm ready regardless." Ebony took a breath and controlled her smile. "I wanted to announce something but I didn't get a chance with everything going on." They both anticipated her words and she almost felt bad for trying to be suspenseful. "I was asked to create an exhibit for the Metropolitan Museum of Art."

Cassandra drummed her feet on the floor while in her seat. She squealed with her eyes closed while Nia clapped proudly. Ebony chuckled at her friends.

"Oh my God, congratulations!" Nia reached over and grabbed Ebony into a hug. Nia fought with her mass of curls and coils but eventually settled into the embrace comfortably.

"Thank you—but I wanted to take some time to find my inspiration again. I think the city isn't the place for that." Cassandra listened.

"We'll be there to visit at least once." Cassandra said. Nia nodded her agreement. "And we'll be here to visit Auntie Janet and make sure she's alright." They'd been there to help with putting her mother in rehabilitation more than once. They seemed just as committed to making her better as Ebony was. As she looked into her friends' faces, she knew this trip to Texas would be the best thing for her.

She'd never gotten the chance to do anything because she wanted to. She was chained to the city because her mother was chained to the streets. She couldn't bear to leave her suffering alone. Her entire life revolved around her and it'd been that way since before she could remember. But she'd had the courage to do something different and her friends were cheering her on.

That was all she needed.

"I love ya'll." Ebony laughed.

Two

Harper, Texas

5:55pm

Ebony closed the taxi's trunk while the driver sat her bags on the curb.

"Thank you." Ebony held out a five dollar tip. The man took it with a smile and a nod. Ebony started to walk her suitcases up to the grand, homely three story house. The home was plotted on at least fifty acres. There was a farmhouse in the back from where she could squint. Horse stables a little farther back behind. She was sure there was more to see that was blocked by the sheer scale of the house itself.

The outside of the home was charming and screamed southern hospitality. It was eggshell white with matching trim. The porch wrapped around the perimeter and provided protection from the blaring June sun. The second floor had a double door balcony that could let you gaze out from above.

"Ebony! Come on in here, honey!" Ebony's attention drifted to the woman in front of the house's double door entrance. Ebony got to the entrance and the woman hugged her. Ebony was taken aback by the embrace but tried to flow with it. The large woman's embrace was welcoming, protective and genuine. Ebony assumed this woman was the owner, Willadeene.

The bed and breakfast was called Villa Deene's Bed and Breakfast. Aside from the beauty of the house and price per-night, the cleverness of the name had definitely sealed the deal for where she'd stay.