Smoke
Smoke’s quick reaction was probably the one thing that saved his life in that afternoon meeting with Quack. The last thing he had expected was to have to shoot anyone after things were all going as planned. As he and Terrance walked beside the men he watched as Terrance distractedly eyed the gun he was holding, turning it over again and again in his hands. They were back within sight of the Range Rover when Triggamane just dropped the gun and quickly spun around shooting with the pistol Scoob had given him. By the time Smoke himself had spun around, Quack was falling to the ground, and the man who hadn’t said anything was raising his gun toward him. Once he heard the first shot from Triggamane’s gun he was pulling his own and he gunned the man down. The other younger man, Gizzle, had turned and ran, and by the time Smoke had pointed at him he was behind a tree. Triggamane was still shooting at a long dead Quack with a rage in his eyes that Smoke had never seen or imagine he would. He stood there pulling the trigger even after the gun clicked empty.
“Shit,shit,” Smoke exclaimed at the situation that had unfolded before him. “Aye come on, we gotta go,” he said and grabbed Triggamane to shake him out of his trance.
Smoke picked up the bag of money and headed towards the SUV looking around to be sure Gizzle or someone else didn’t run out from behind the trees. The various men that had come with them were just arriving when Smoke told everyone to leave. Terrance had jumped into the truck and was slowly taking his time getting out of the park.
“Drive nigga!” Smoke yelled.
Triggamane then snapped back enough to get them away from the park and new crime scene.
“What the fuck did you do that shit for?” Smoke asked Triggamane whose knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel tightly.
“The gun,” Triggamane simply replied, which didn’t make any sense to him.
“What about the damn gun? You didn’t leave it back there did you?”
“Yeah I did.”
“Shit! Turn this mothafucka around ‘cause I damn sho’ didn’t just go through that shit for nothing.”
“If I did it wouldn’t matter, that’s not the gun.”
“What you saying, he was tryin’ to switch guns and keep the real one.”
“Naw, that’s the gun he showed me the first time I met him the other day, but it ain’t the gun I shot back then.”
“I thought you had seen the gun before.”
“I did, but it was dark outside and it looked like it, but when I got a good look just then I knew it wasn’t’ the same one.”
“Nigga you better be sho’, if not ain’t nothing I can do for you.”
“I know, that wasn’t it though, that’s why I spazzed out. These niggas don’ jumped on me and shit, and got me stressed the fuck out over some thirsty ass bullshit. That nigga deserved to die.”
That was another surprise from Triggamane that Smoke hadn’t been expecting.
“Aye let’s go back to the spot so we can try to figure out what the hell to do now,” Smoke said. “I don’t know what that nigga who ran might try, and we need to be ready fro whatever.”
Triggamne didn’t respond to that he just drove along now lost in his own thoughts.
Once they arrived back at the M’Famous building all of the men who had been with them wanted to know what had happened and Smoke told the story. Everyone was surprised at how things had turned out, though no one more than Smoke himself. Though he didn’t believe Triggamane to be more than another embellishing artist, he saw that anyone could be pushed to their limit. There was initially a call to just find out where the man who had gotten away was and get rid of him since he was the only witness.”
“Naw,” Smoke said. “By now he don’ told somebody and they already on us, and if we get him now ain’t no way it will be taken other than what he said already. We gotta come up with something else, at least for now.”
Smoke had shot and killed someone, but he knew at the least he could claim self-defense, and maybe that would be the best thing for Triggamane as well, if the one who’d ran went to the police. He then remembered the call he had gotten just as they were reaching the park and what it would mean to him and his business. But before he stressed himself out with that he had to know exactly where this thing was going with Triggamane.
“You think we can get in contact with that nigga who ran off, you seem like you know ‘em,” Smoke said to Triggamane.
“Yeah, I know the nigga. I used to run with ‘em back in the day, and he that nigga Quack nephew,” Triggamane responded. “I don’t got his number, but I used to fuck on his sisters every now and then, so I can try to call on of them and see if I can get him that way.”
“That’s all we got right now so gon’ make that happen. Maybe we can work something out with this nigga without having to kill him or him goin’ to the cops.”
Triggamane made the call, but Smoke could tell by the words he was saying that the conversation wasn’t going good. Apparently the news had already reached them and they knew who was responsible.
“Yeah, I killed that bitch. Fuck him and fuck ya’ll too,” Triggamane spat into the phone then he ended the call and looked at Smoke. “Couldn’t get pass go.”
Just then there was a knock at the door of the conference room they were in and one of the secretaries stepped in.
“It’s police everywhere downstairs and they looking for you,” she said pointing at Triggamane.
All eyes fell on him and he casually stood up and walked towards the door.
“Smoke hit my lawyer up for me and don’t worry ‘bout that other nigga, I’mma take both shots,” Triggamane said.
That was the third time that day Smoke was surprise by the young rapper.
“Shit this nigga the trigger man for real now,” Scoob said.
Smoke wanted to walk down with him, but there was a chance that the man, Gizzle, was downstairs and could point him out, which would be too much of a setback to his operation. Smoke immediately got on the phone with his own attorneys and told them to be at the police station as soon as they could to deal with Triggamane, and to call up his own attorney, who worked at the same firm. While he was using the phone, he called the police station to get an update on the other situation he’d also be dealing with on top off all the other things that had happened over the course of the last few days. His biggest star was in jail on charges of attempted murder for some kind of shooting he was involved in. The call had come from C-Lo Chain’s mother, whose call had been forwarded to him. She had only given him the basics of what had happened and asked that he do something, though there wasn’t much he could do since he was already in jail other than help him deal with his lawyer. All of this was taking place at the worst possible time, right when the label was being positioned to climb to even greater heights than it had reached already, and on the verge of starting their pending projects with Legendary Entertainment. Smoke almost felt as though they had been set up to fail. He had to figure out his next move, and soon. He could only hope that the situation with Triggamane didn’t come back to haunt him because then all he would be able to do was sit back and watch everything that he and his cousin had built up crumble right before him.
“Aye ya’ll I’m gonna slide to my office to handle a few things,” he said to the men who were still gathered around. “I ‘preciate ya’ll having our back out there today.”
“Shit ya’ll shot everybody up ‘fo we got a chance to do any damn thing,” Buck said.
“Don’t worry, I got a feeling it’s gon’ be plenty mo’ shit that’s gon’ give you a chance to pop off.”
Smoke went into his office and closed the door and lit another blunt. He remembered that he had a press conference planned for later in the day. As much as he wanted to cancel it, he knew that the media would be around with questions regardless. It would be better to just deal with them on his own terms rather than otherwise. He picked up his office phone and called out to his secretary to let her know that the conference would start in around two hours, which would give him time to prepare for the questions and to find out more about the situation with C-Lo Chainz. Another thing he needed to do right then was call Legend and let him know of the setbacks they were now facing. After spending an hour on the phone with Legend and trying to come up with the best alternative to the things they had planned, Smoke called C-Note’s mother to see if there had been any improvement in his condition.
“No, he hasn’t gotten any better, but they said the fact that he’s breathing on his own is a good sign and that’s all the hope I need. This knucklehead gone be fine, but you got to keep him and yo’self out of trouble when he comes out of this place,” she said.
“I’ll try my best, but you know you raised a wild child,” he replied.
“Don’t blame me, he get that from ya’ll side of the family.”
Smoke wouldn’t argue with that since most of his family members were in the streets as he had been before he and C-Note had found a way out.
“I saw something on the news about one of them boys that rap for ya’ll being in another shooting. Is everything alright there?”
“We ain’t have nothing to do with that, as a matter of fact I’m still tryin’ to figure out exactly what happened myself.”
“I hope ya’ll don’t loose ya’ll business. Ya’ll two worked too hard to mess it up with a lot of nonsense.”
“You’re right, we aint’ goin’ lose it though. We gon’ pull through all this stronger than ever.”
Smoke ended the call and went out to prepare himself to deal with the press conference making sure everything was set up properly. He then thought that he should have an attorney sent over to shield him from anything prying that could jeopardize him and his company. The local and national newspapers and magazines all sent out their cameramen and journalists and Smoke spent an hour answering all sorts of questions, some of which were attempts to implicate the entire company in the plots of the recent incidents that had taken place.
Once the conference was over, Smoke went straight home smoking two more blunts to help him relax. He couldn’t remember the last time he had smoked so much weed in so little time. At home he crashed on the couch and all of his problems took turns occupying his mind one at a time. Smoke called up the one person who he felt would be able to see something worthwhile that could help him through all of this.
“Hey you. I just saw the news and all the stuff that’s happened with ya’ll today,” Alicia said. “I’m glad that you’re okay and not tied up in any of it.”
“Well one way or another I’m tied up in everything that happens because it affects my livelihood,” Smoke said.
“Boy with all that jewelry I just saw you with yo’ livelihood is just fine.”
Smoke couldn’t help but laugh, he was glad as usual that he was talking to her. As their conversation went on it dawned on Smoke what he could to alleviate some of the building pressure of him.
“Alicia did you ever find a job?” he asked her though almost certain that she didn’t in the last few days”
“Ha! You know I haven’t found a job in the day and a half since I met you,” she replied.
“If I offered you a job would you take it?”
“Do I have to duck any bullets, ‘cause it look like ya’ll trying to live up to ya’ll label name, and I am too cute to be all shot up.”
“You ai’ight, but ain’t nobody goin’ be shooting at nobody, so do you want it or not.”
“Doing what?”
“I need somebody on the executive side to help me manage things now that my cousin laying up in the hospital. So you would be like my executive vice president of operations or somethin’ like that. I’ll handle the artists.”
“I don’t know, that’s not really my field. I don’t know anything about running a record label.”
“I’m goin’ to show you everything you need to know. As a matter of fact, I think you should come over. I can dictate to you some of the requirements of you position.”
“I bet you do want to dictate something,” she said and laughed. “You ain’t even took me out nowhere and talking ‘bout dictating somebody.”
“Girl, yo’ ass is crazy, college education and all,” Smoke said with a laugh of his own.
“I ain’t crazy, you know what they say about mixing business with pleasure,” Alicia said.
“Yeah, it becomes pleasurable business. Girl stop playing, is you goin’ take the job or not?”
“I guess so. You gon’pay me to do something that I don’t know nothing about, but that’s on you. So tell me Mr.CEO, when do I start?”
“As soon as you come over and I dictate to you. I’m just joking, come out and meet me at the office tomorrow and we’ll go over some of the things I need from you. From the conversations we’ve had I can tell that you are good at coming up with ideas and you can probably handle some decision making, so I think you’ll be a good fit.”
“Okay, I’ll be down there early, as a matter of fact you can take me in yourself.”
“I got to pick you up for the job I just gave you. This ain’t a way to start a relationship with yo’ employer.”
“What if I just came over, will it still be too much trouble then or is that bad for a relationship with my exploiter, I mean employer.”
“You real funny, I might be offering you the wrong job.”
“So now you don’t want me to come over?”
“Stop playing, as stressful as my day been ain’t no way I’d turn yo’ company down.”
“You know since you sound like you need a hug I guess I can come by for a while.”
Alicia showed up at his place and the two spent hours just talking, though they never came on to one another. Smoke didn’t want to rush it, as he‘d done with a lot of other women, and spoil the communication part of their budding relationship.
Smoke got a call from his attorney, who told him what had happened in C-Lo’s situation according to C-Lo himself. C-Lo had shot a man once in the chest, but the shot didn’t kill him. Ironically, the man himself was being charged with vehicular homicide and first degree murder for running a woman and a child off the road, which C-Lo had just learned was his own son. Smoke’s heart went out to his partner for having to bear such a loss and he understood his actions and would stand with him through everything. The lawyer said that one defense to C-Lo’s case could be emotional distress, and with the right argument his sentence could be as simple as probation and mandatory counseling. There would be more options when they found out what judge would be trying the case and worked on him a little bit.
Triggamane’s case was just beginning to be investigated so there wasn’t much to say, but the early defense would be to spin the story of an attempted extortion which ended in violence. There was no way to tell if it would hold up yet, but they would work to get the case in the hands of one of the judges their firm had a working relationship with; one who they had worked with before on murder cases, who would be somewhat agreeable. If things went sour though, at the most he would be facing a second degree murder or voluntary homicide. Smoke relayed the entire conversation to Alicia, and told her that she would need to start handling things with the attorneys beginning the first thing in the morning.
“Save the day for me superwoman,” Smoke said.