Little Black Book

Darius sat at the table eyeing the duffle bag cautiously. He knew eventually he had to open it and see what it contained, but remained glued to the chair recapping the events of the day. What was supposed to be a routine pickup from his uncle turned into disaster in a matter of moments. Everything happened so quickly and he was still trying to make sense, slowly playing each moment back in his head over and over again, almost as if he thought hard enough he would be able to change what had taken place. He knew he couldn’t, but it was his own way of coping with and accepting reality.

Lucius sat across the table from him in a similar state of shock but his attention wasn’t on the bag. He was staring his older brother right in his eyes only breaking contact to blink. Darius had looked over Lucius their entire lives, growing up in the rough streets of the South Bronx their destinies intertwined and destructive. His attention went from the bag to his brother and decided it was time they talked.

“Lucius, why’d you have to go and do uncle like that? He’s the only one who’s been giving us a means to eat the last few years. Why’d you have to go and fuck that up?!”

Lucius stood up quickly fist balled and Darius followed suit. Darius loved his brother and would protect him from anything, but at the end of the day he was still a man and would not allow any man to instill fear in his heart. Lucius was 17 years old and regardless of his age was dangerous as they come. The complete opposite of his brother, he had no regard for life and his only goal was to become rich and powerful. Simple yet ambitious goals for a young man to have. Darius was 21, but had the reserve of an older man. He wanted more for him and his brother. He hated the trouble the streets came with, but it was all he knew. His uncle was the only real family they had, even if he was the one supplying them with the drugs to sell. To those in the outside world they would think their uncle a lesser man, disgusting for putting those boys to work the streets. To Darius it was the only person who truly had love for them. He made sure they had a way to put a roof over their heads and food on the table. Now he was gone, all due to the only person that Darius had ever loved.

“You may be older than me Darius, but don’t get this shit twisted. You’re not my fucking boss, no one is. I am my own boss and that’s what Uncle Buck had a hard time understanding.”

“Respect is one thing Lu, but Kill-“

“Don’t call me that. I’m not a kid anymore”

Darius stopped before responding to take the moment in. His brother had been changing right before his eyes and he had not even acknowledged it. Lucius was becoming his own man.

“You know what Lucius you’re right. You are a man, big man. So guess what big man I guess it comes down to this. I’m going to open this bag up and see what’s in it. I need to understand what was so important that you had to kill our own flesh and blood.”

Darius unzipped the duffle bag and proceeded to empty its contents on the tattered floor of their 600 square foot studio.

He couldn’t believe there was that much money in the bag. The only time he had seen that much money was during a sale his uncle would be making. Never in his own home had he had more than a thousand dollars. In the midst of all that cash there was a small black notebook. It looked like one of the fancy Moleskin notebooks his English teacher used back in high school. He couldn’t help but notice how odd it stood out compared to the wads of cash spread out across the floor. What he also didn’t notice was the gun pointing at his face. That was it, Lucius had finally lost it.

“Brother, you going to kill me are you? Over some money? Your my blood bro.”

Whatever evil that motivated Lucius to remove his uncle from this earth now had taken hold of him once again. His eyes were cold and unwavering, which showed this was a man who had his mind made up and could care less about the casualties along the way.

“You’re going to help me get the money back in the bag and I will be on my way. Let’s not make this more than what it needs to be. I didn’t give two fucks about our uncle, it’s why I didn’t give him a chance to live. You on the other hand are my brother and I love you, truly I do. So do me a favor and don’t make this hard ok? Because I need you to understand something, I will be walking out of here with this money, either with you breathing or not. Are we clear?”

“Crystal.”

Lucius smiled a devilish grin and proceeded to grab the bag and place it back on the table, never removing the gun off of his brother.

“Let’s get to work, I haven’t got all day and have places to be.”

It took him some time but eventually Darius got the money back in the duffle, leaving the notebook for last. Before he could throw it in with the money Lucius waved him off with the gun.

“I don’t need no little poetry book where I’m going. How about this, since you were always the “smart” one you could keep that book as a parting gift from me and Unc.”

Lucius always had a sinister laugh and nothing else could have been more fitting for the moment. He continued to laugh even as he grabbed the duffle and made his way to the front door.

“Lucius cmon, where are you going to go. You are young and someone will take that money from you, if the cops don’t get you first.”

“Oh Darius, you think so little of me. Did you think me offing Uncle Buck was accidental? I’ve been planning this for months now. Could you believe the balls on that old fucker? Defiant to the very end. I’m not sure if you heard his last words for you before he passed on to “the great beyond”. “There’s something special in the bag for you D, something of great worth.” That’s what he said to you brother. As if I would let you keep all the money and tell me how we would spend it. Darius I’m warning you, from this moment on we are no longer brothers. I can no longer live in your shadow. This money is my one ticket out to becoming my own man. So do us both a favor and stay the fuck away from me.”

Darius had no words for his younger brother as he watched him make his exit from their apartment. He had no energy in that moment to chase after him and was emotionally overwhelmed from the events of the day.

He sat down at the table and picked up his share of the loot, a small black notebook. He proceeded to opening the book, curious as to why this was stored with the money. To his surprise, it explained exactly why.

Apparently his Uncle was aware that his days with Lucius were numbered. The book was addressed to Darius in the first few pages outlining a few important details. It explained that Buck was suffering from stage 3 Cancer and was living on borrowed time. He had heard about Lucius’s ambition and started making the necessary preparations for when he would meet his maker. The book had all the ins and outs of his business and Uncle Buck had made sure everyone knew once he was gone Darius was the new King in town.

It finally made sense. Lucius was right there was something special in the bag, but it wasn’t the money. His own hubris had blinded him from the most important object in that bag. Their Uncle knew Lucius would only be focused on the money, thus setting up Darius for his own Manifest Destiny. Darius smiled and slipped the notebook inside of his jacket. It was time to get to work.