K'wan - Gutter

“Check this fly shit, Cross,” Gutter began. “If I had it my way you and me would never see each other again, but I need this solid… It’s about Lou-Loc.”

Cross’s sparkling green eyes flashed anger as he leaned in to Gutter. “Dawg, off the strength of my man, I’m gonna allow you to walk out of this place without tearing your fucking head off, but for as long as your asshole points to the ground you’d better never drop his name trying to sway me. He’s gone and our debt is settled.” Cross turned and headed back the way he came.

Gutter shook his head in frustration. As bad as he wanted to put a slug in the back of Cross’s head, he was Satin’s last hope. “Cross, if you ain’t gonna do it off the strength of his memory, do it for his seed,” Gutter blurted out. This got him Cross’s undivided attention.

THE FLIGHTfrom JFK to Long Beach had been anything but comfortable. Gutter hated to fly, but did so reluctantly when he had to. If they’d driven or took the train, Gunn might’ve been gone. Flying was definitely their only option.

The trouble started from the moment Gutter got to the metal detectors at the terminal. A beefy, red security officer played with a jaw full of tobacco and glared at Gutter. He produced his identification, boarding pass, and emptied his pockets like everyone else. The guard looked down at his driver’s license and read Gutter’s full name: Kenyatta Usif Soladine. Glaring at the young man he asked flatly, “You a Muslim?”

“Yes,” Gutter replied politely.

The guard tossed the wallet on the gray table and motioned for Gutter to walk through. Immediately the machine went off. Gutter stepped back through and took off his wide-buckled belt and jewelry. When he made to step back through, the guard stopped him.

“Step over here, you’ve gotta be specially searched,” he said, motioning toward a small roped-off square.

“Is there a problem?” Gutter asked, still keeping his tone polite.

“I said, you’ve gotta be specially searched.”

“I emptied my pockets, why can’t I just go through like everyone else?”

“’Cause you got your ticket off the Internet. Regulations and all.” The beefy guard smiled wickedly.

Danny was about to open his mouth, but Gutter waved him silent. He didn’t want to risk missing the flight due to an argument with the guard. Casting a glare at the guard, he stepped over to the square.

The guard stood in front of him with a wand, shooting Gutter a hateful look. He slowly ran the wand from his feet to his torso. When he got to Gutter’s chest, the wand beeped faintly.

“It’s lead. I got shot a while back,” Gutter told him.

“Is that right?” the guard said with a raised eyebrow. “Take your shirt off.”

“You can’t be serious,” Gutter said in disbelief. “I told you I got shot!”

“Regulations, sir. For all I know, you could be concealing a bomb. You can either take your shirt off to prove you’re clean, or I can have you detained.”

Gutter could feel all of his blood shooting into his arms. He balled his fist so tight that his knuckles began to crack. A haze of red swept over his vision, as he contemplated putting his fist through the man. He knew if he got into it with the guard, he would surely be jailed. God knew when he would be released, but Gunn might be gone. It took all of his self-control to silence the voice that screamed for death. Ignoring the crowd that had formed, Gutter stripped down to his tank top.

“Lift it,” the guard demanded, giving Gutter a look that made his flesh crawl. Gutter did as he was told, exposing the multiple scars from the shooting. They were all healed, but they had left ugly keloids. “Jesus, you must be one scandalous son of a bitch to make somebody put this many holes in you!”

“Man, are you finished?” Gutter asked, finally having enough.

“Yeah, I’m done, Tin Man,” the guard said with an obnoxious snicker.

Gutter snatched his goods, and moved to find his boarding gate.

The flight didn’t go much better than the boarding. The people in the first-class section looked at the two men as if they didn’t belong. They ignored the rude stares and made their way to the seats. Once everyone was seated, they went through the usual routine. Emergency exits, how to properly buckle your seat belts, the whole nine. After the mechanical speech, the plane was lifting off.

Takeoffs always made Gutter uneasy. He hated the dropping feeling in his stomach when the plane left the ground. Once they were in the air and coasting, he tried to relax a bit. The flight attendant came through and set two glasses of Hennessey in front of the two men and continued with her rounds. Danny’s questions seemed to come without end. Gutter wanted time to think, but the youngster kept at his insistent gibbering. He tried to escape the boy’s questions by dozing off, but that proved to be another dead end.

As soon as he went to sleep, he was assaulted by nightmares of his own attempted murder, as well as Lou-Loc’s horrible fate. He was able to see with clarity the men who gunned his friend down. He felt everything that Lou-Loc must’ve felt when it happened, including Satin stroking his head. Gutter didn’t fear much, but he feared these dreams. At times he wondered if it was because of the bond he now shared with Lou-Loc and Cross.

For the hundredth time he wondered how his friend and the demon called the Cross had become so tight. Cross was rude, arrogant, and downright creepy, but Lou-Loc had a knack for finding friends in the most unlikely places. For as much as a scumbag as Cross might have come across as, Gutter knew if anyone could complete the task he could.

After a few restless hours the plane began its descent into the land of the heartless. Against his better judgment Gutter lifted the blind and peered outside. The clouds looked like the softest cotton as the aircraft cut through them on its way back to earth. The 110 freeway looked like a child’s racetrack from that height. Seeing the California skyline brought a feeling of nostalgia to him. He was home.

AFTER THElong flight, everyone wanted to get off the plane. People were pushing and trying to yank bags from the overhead compartment. Gutter and Danny waited patiently until it was their turn to exit the bird, and hurriedly got off.

It was nearly three o’clock when they landed in Cali, but Long Beach Airport was packed. Danny shoved and cursed people on the way to the baggage carousel, while Gutter quietly brought up the rear. Danny began the task of identifying and retrieving their luggage, while Gutter called home to check on Sharell.

The phone rang four times, then the machine picked up. He dialed it again, with the same results. At first he was nervous, but remembering that Mohammad was with her, his mind was at ease. For as soft-spoken as the bodyguard was, he was also a trained killer. Mohammad had been trained from his earliest days in the art of death, and his skills only increased when he was brought over into the death cult Gehenna. If it came down to it Gutter knew Mohammad would kill or die protecting Sharell, which gave him some solace. Knowing Sharell, she was probably asleep. He left her a brief message, then hung up and waited for Danny. After snatching their bags from the belt, they picked their way to the exit, where someone would be waiting to pick them up.

As soon as Gutter stepped out into the night air he could feel the difference. The weather was humid, with a warm breeze carrying the salty smell of the Pacific Ocean. The strip was filled with taxis and private cars. Drivers stood around, chatting and holding signs with the names of their passengers. None advertised Soladine.