Snickerdoodle

I  remember that Chris Thompson always told me that even though he was out of the street life...He never the less never wanted to get so comfortable that he was caught slippin.  My guess was that this was why he still carried a piece and why he still moved from apartment to apartment and kept his address basically a secret except for me and Donald Smooth...He always feared that somebody from his gangster days might be lookin to make a name for himself or to settle an old score....

Me? My name is Chess...I'm his best friend and business partner...Sometimes I carry a piece too...Today wasn't one of those days!

It started out pretty normal...For me at least!... I met with Grady and his construction crew at the apartment complex that we had bought from Rita Davis....Donald Smooth was with me...Chris had been out with Rita the night before and had called and said that he wasn't going to make this meeting...It was cool because there really was no pressing need for him to be here...He had handled the final negotiations about two weeks before and the crew was here and ready to begin work..

"So Chess..We are going to put in new windows....and siding and take care of that roof..It's in shoddy condition." said Grady..The contractor.

"Good and I want all new plumbing fixtures." I said.

"We on it and we got carpenters coming in to look at the apartments...We are going to make them all ultra -modern, Euro type suites...I got a team of painters comin to look at the joint tomorrow too." he said.

''Cool beans..I love what you did to that English woman's loft." I said.

"English woman? Oh ..the Black babe that Ralph Scallion is screwin?  Yeah, we hooked that place up...When were you up there?" he asked.

"I own it Grady...I was up there before she moved in." I said , shaking my head...

Donald Smooth laughed....

Just as he did.... A Black BMW turned the corner....The windows were dim so I couldn't see the driver...It was broad daylight and he turned the high beams on....That was odd I thought...but I didn't think...Then the car sped up and headed toward us....The window came down and a guy with an uzi aimed at me...

''Chess, look out!" screamed Donald Smooth who dove and knocked me down... Grady and his crew ducked and bullets were sprayed all along the avenue...breaking the windows of several cars... We all crawled on our bellys and attempted to find cover...Then the BMW stopped and began to back up....

Donald Smooth pulled out his .38 smokeless and fired two shots at the car...The first shot blew the back window of the car out and we heard a yell...

"Arrrghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....I don't believe it..I've been shot.."

Donald let fly with yet another shot and the gunman dropped his uzi in the street.. and yelled...

"I been hit....I been hit...Oh my goddd...stop the car...put it in drive....drive nigga drive....come on.. we gettin hit...aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...I didn't come out here to get shot...arggghhhhh it hurts...it hurttttss..." he yelled...

The car then sped off.......

When the smoke cleared...We all stood up......

"What the hell was that about ?" said Grady...

"I don't know....Your guys okay?" I asked.

"Yeah..we alright..." he said as the men dispersed...

"Must have been a case of mistaken identity" said Donald Smooth...

" Yeah" I said... we both knew that that was a lie.

II-

A few hours later....Donald Smooth and I sat in our office in the shopping center we owned.

''What do you make of that?" asked Donald Smooth.

''I think somebody definitely doesn't want us in the housing business or at least not THAT house." I said.

''But why?"asked Donald Smooth.

"Guess you don't know who used to own those apartments and who lived there and conducted business there do you?" I asked.

"Nah, who?" asked Donald Smooth.

''Mingo" I said.

"Mingo?  He's dead...I thought that babe that Chris is bangin owned them units." asked Donald.

"She won em by default after he died....She couldn't or didn't want to be a landlord...and after everybody more or less moved out, the place fell apart...That's why she put it up for sale. She used to be his woman." I said.

"You think Chris knows?"asked Donald.

"He's gotta know by now..." I said.

"That aint exactly pillow talk Chess." said Donald Smooth...

"Trust me..Chris knows."I said.

"Knows what? I know what?" came the unmistakable voice of Chris Thompson.

"That your babe used to be involved with Mingo." I said.

"Yeah , she told me....She told me the first night we was together...They was engaged...Here try these, they are good." he said.

He had a tray of hot cookies with him that he put on the table...Donald and I ate the cookies...They were good..Not just good, exceptional!!!!

"Wow these are great..where did you get em?" I asked.

"My baby made em...She bakes...They're sugar cookies..called Snickerdoodles." he laughed.

"Snicker whats?" asked Donald Smooth...

"Snickerdoodles.....In fact, that's my little pet name for her...My little snickerdoodle.." laughed Chris.

"Some men have women making pancakes for em after a night of good lovemaking...This guy has em bakin cookies." said Donald Smooth....We all laughed as we muched on the cookies.

"So what about Mingo?' he asked.

"We had some company at the site today man.....Company in a Black BMW with tinted windows and an uzi."I said.

"What?" asked Chris.

"They  shot the place up...but nobody got hurt....and I think Donald Smooth hit two of them.." I said.

"Kill em?" asked Chris...

"No..just wounded them.....Mingo has been dead for a minute now...Think he's got any crew left that wants to claim that property?" I asked.

''Nah..that crew fell hard...they all got stiff sentences or they got killed..Aint none of them left....Except...Oh my God.....Except....Bruce....Bruce Studden..." he said.

"Killer Bruce?" I asked.

"The one and only...His number two man...He got paroled recently I heard...He went up a couple of years ago for manslaughter."said Chris.

"Damn...the court system in this country has got to be improved." said Donald Smooth.

Chris and I both grew silent and gave him the side eye for a minute....I saw Chris smile slightly and just shake his head.

"I didn't see him, but I couldn't make out the guys in that car." I said.

"He probably sent some muscle...He wouldn't come himself.." said Chris...

He went in the drawer and pulled out a .22 and tossed it to me...

''Come on....I know you done got comfortable and didn't have your piece." he said.

I smiled....Donald Smooth went downstairs and started the car....

III-

The first place we stopped was at Walter "Kool Kat" Jones's house... Kool Kat as he was known was as fierce an enforcer as has ever walked the streets of Philadelphia....Like Chris Thompson...He had retired from the street life and was an honest man...He mostly helped our friend, Kevin Morris, the private investigator out with his cases...Serving as back up muscle.


"Chris...Chess, Donnie Smooth, to what do I owe the pleasure? And what is that you guys are munchin on?" the big six foot four, heavily muscled man asked when he came to the door.

"I need a favor." said Chris Thompson.

''Ahhh When Chris Thompson asks for a favor...Who can refuse? " the big man laughed.

"I know you mainly roll with Kev...but do you think he can spare you?" asked Chris.

''What's shakin?" he asked.

"Bruce Studden is back on the streets." said Donald Smooth..

''Killer Bruce eh? Mingo's boy.....I heard he got paroled...Heard you was uh seein Mingo's old fiance ." laughed Kool Kat...

''Damn man...Nothin get by you Kools" laughed Chris...

"Can't...That's why me and You and maybe Deacon Basil are still alive in our retirement." he laughed...

"I figure you, Smooth and Chess is all the muscle I need for right now....You know where Killer Bill lays his head now of days?" Chris asked.

"You got me there..but I know somebody that might know." said Kool Kat...

''Cool...Tomorrow, we'll pay Killer Bruce a visit." said Chris....

"Okay...but hey man, before you leave...pass me some of those snickerdoodles...I love em." said Kool Kat.

"You've heard of snickerdoodles?" asked Donald Smooth.

''Hell yeah...Loved em when I was a kid." said Kool Kat.... Chris just beamed...and gave me and Donald Smooth a  "See I told you ." look.

(To Be Continued....)