A Gangsta Twist Saga (31 page)

The next morning, Taz, Sacha and Mama-Mama got up early and went straight to the hospital. When they arrived, two nurses escorted them to Tazneema's room. Tazneema was lying in her hospital bed sleeping when they entered her room. Taz smiled when he saw that his baby was breathing on her own without any medical equipment.
She's going to be all right,
he thought as he stepped closer to the bed. He bent over and kissed her on her forehead and said, “You're going to be all right, baby girl. You're going to be all right!”

Tazneema slowly opened her eyes, smiled and said, “Hi, Taz.”

Tears welled in Taz's eyes as he said, “What's up? How are you feeling?”

“Tired.”

“Yeah, you're going to have to stay off your feet for a minute,” he said as he wiped his eyes.

Tazneema saw Mama-Mama standing beside Sacha and said, “Hi, Mama-Mama.”

Mama-Mama came to the bed, grabbed Tazneema's hand and said, “Hey, baby!”

Tazneema waved at Sacha and said, “Well, it looks as if the whole gang's here, huh. I feel kinda important.”

“You are important,” Sacha said as she stepped up to the bed and stood next to Taz. “You gave us all quite a scare, young lady.”

“I know, but I'm fine.” Tazneema turned her head toward Taz and asked, “What happened to Cliff? You haven't done anything to him, have you?”

Taz's smile turned into a frown as he said, “Nah, not yet.”

“Please don't do anything to him, Taz. He was scared. You pushed him into trying to shoot you.”

“So, you're sayin' this is
my
fault?” Taz asked angrily.

“What I'm saying is, there isn't any reason for you to hurt him. I'm all right, and we should let this all go.”

“Don't worry yourself 'bout any of that stuff right now, 'Neema. You need to be getting some rest so you can hurry up and get back on your feet. Taz ain't gon' be doin' nothin to that boy,” Mama-Mama said sternly. She gave Taz the eye. “Ain't that right, boy?”

“Yes, Mama-Mama,” Taz answered without looking in her direction.

Before Tazneema could speak again, there was a knock at the door, and Keno, Bo-Pete, Red and Wild Bill all entered the room, each holding a dozen red roses in their hands.

Keno smiled and said, “Look at my niece, all laid up looking all pretty like.”

Tazneema smiled brightly and said, “Stop it, Uncle Keno! I'm a mess! Look at my hair!”

Keno laughed and said, “You look pretty damn good to me, baby girl.”

“Watch your mouth, Keno!”

“Sorry, Mama-Mama,” replied Keno.

Bo-Pete set his flowers on the counter and asked, “Are you feeling okay, 'Neema?”

“Yes, I'm fine. Just a little tired.”

“That's cool.”

Each one of her play uncles went and gave her a light kiss on her cheek and told her how much they all loved her. Taz took a step back while his homeboys showed his daughter some love. Sacha grabbed his hand and watched silently as the crew spoke with Tazneema.

After a few minutes, a nurse came into the room and said, “Tazneema needs to take her medication. Afterward, it's going to make her drowsy, so it would be better if you all left for a little while so she could get some rest.”

“No problem, ma'am,” Taz said as he stepped back next to the bed and gave Tazneema a kiss and said, “We'll be back a little later, baby girl.”

“Okay, Taz,” Tazneema said, and she said good-bye to everyone else inside the room.

As they all filed out of the room, Taz noticed a police officer speaking with a nurse at the nurses' station
. I wondered how long it would be before they would be gettin' at 'Neema,
he said to himself.

When they had made it to the nurses' station, Taz stopped and said, “Excuse me, officer, but are you here to speak with my daughter, Tazneema Good?”

“Yes, sir, I am. But I've just been told that I won't be able to interview her until later on this afternoon,” replied the police officer.

“Yeah, she's just taken her medication. I can answer any questions that you have for her. I was there when everything happened.”

“That's a start. Could we go somewhere and talk, sir?”

“Taz. My name is Taz Good.”

“Okay, Mr. Good. Can you step over into the waiting room and answer a few questions for me?”

“No problem,” Taz said as he followed the police officer.

Once they made it to a row of chairs, they both took a seat and the police officer said, “Tell me what exactly happened, Mr. Good.”

Taz started from the beginning, and finished with how he had taunted Clifford. “You see, it's all my fault. If I wouldn't have kept pushing and taunting that fool, my baby girl wouldn't be laid up in this damn hospital.”

“So, what you're telling me is that neither you nor your daughter are going to press charges against Mr. Nelson?” asked the police officer.

“That's correct. We want to put this incident behind us so we can move on with our lives,” lied Taz.

“I understand. Mr. Nelson came down to the station yesterday after the shooting occurred and confessed to everything. From what I've been told, everything you have just told me matches exactly with what he told our detective. While I'm waiting to speak with your daughter, I'll give the lead detective a call and inform him of what you've told me. He may decide not to arrest Mr. Nelson.”

“That's straight. If there's anything else that you need from me, I can be reached at my home anytime,” Taz said, and gave the police officer the number to his home as well as his cell phone number.

Sacha, who had been listening to the entire interview, knew Taz was lying through his teeth.
You think you're so damn slick, Mr. Good! I'm not letting you commit another murder, mister!
she thought as she watched Taz shake hands with the police officer. After they had gotten into the elevator, Sacha said, “Keno took Mama-Mama home. She said she had a headache, and she was going home to get some rest. She's going to meet us back here later on, baby.”

“That's cool. I'm kinda still faded from last night too. That XO don't be playin'.”

Sacha smiled and said, “Don't I know it! I'm still feeling it from that time me and Gwen killed that bottle.”

They stepped off of the elevator and into the lobby on the first floor, and were walking toward the exit when Sacha asked, “Why did you lie to that policeman, Taz? You know damn well that you have plans on doing something to Cliff.”

“Why would you ask me a question that you already know the answer to, counselor? I don't want that clown-ass nigga in jail. He has to pay for this shit! And you know damn well I'm goin' to be the one to make him pay!”

“Even though your daughter is still in love with him?”

“What? Are you outta your mind? 'Neema's not goin' to fuck with that nigga no more! He shot her!”

Sacha smiled, shook her head from side to side and said, “I saw and heard all of the compassion on her face and in her voice. She's still in love with him, Taz. Why do you think she said what she said? She's still going to be with him, baby.”

Taz shook his head violently and said, “No, she won't! 'Cause he won't be around for her to be with him!”

“So, you're going to cause her further anguish by killing the man she loves? How do you think she's going to feel about you after you murder the love of her young life, Taz?”

Taz stopped, stared directly into his fiancée's eyes and said, “To be totally honest with you, Li'l Mama, I don't give a fuck! That nigga is a dead man walkin'!” He then stormed out of the lobby of the hospital.

Sacha was so upset with Taz that she didn't say a word to him as they drove back to his home.

Taz pulled into the circular driveway of his mini-mansion, jumped out of his truck and went inside of his home. He was greeted by his beloved dobermans, Precious and Heaven. His dogs sensed that their master was in a foul mood because they instantly became alert. Each gave a low growl deep in their throats, awaiting the command from Taz to kill something. Taz noticed them, smiled and said, “Relax, girls. Everything is good. Go play, you two.” Both Dobermans quickly obeyed their master's command and silently ran off into the large home. Taz went inside of one of his dens and poured himself a drink from his bar.

Sacha followed him into the den, sat across from him on his sectional sofa and said, “I've made an appointment to go see the doctor. Do you want to come with me?”

“When is it?”

“Tuesday at nine a.m.”

“Yeah, I'll go. How far along do you think you are?”

She smiled and said, “I don't have a clue. Maybe a month or so.”

“That's cool. Look, Li'l Mama. I've got a lot on my mind right now. Not only do I have this shit with Cliff to deal with, but I still got issues with Won to clear up. So I'm goin' to need you to give me some space for a minute.”

“Space? What the fuck do you mean by space, Taz?”

He smiled, held his hands up and said, “Hold up, Li'l Mama! Not like that! I mean I don't need you tryin' to make me feel guilty and shit. I can't have you in my way tryin' to fuck up my train of thought and shit. You have to understand that I'm goin' to do me, regardless. You can't stop me from doin' whatever I feel in my heart is the right thing to do. Do you understand what I'm sayin'?”

“Yes. I just don't want you to do something that you might regret later on, baby.”

“I know, Li'l Mama, but you're goin' to have to trust me and my decisions.”

“I do, and I will, baby.”

“Good. Now come here and give me some love,” Taz said as he grabbed her and gave her a tender kiss.

After a full minute of kissing each other, Sacha pulled from Taz's embrace and said, “I'm going to head on home so I can get some more of my clothes. Why don't you get some rest before you go back up to the hospital? You look like you need a few more
z's
.”

Taz smiled and said, “Yeah, I could use a li'l rest. But first I gots to make a few calls. Hold up though. What do you mean you got to get some more clothes from your house? What, you movin' in with a nigga or some shit?”

She playfully slapped Taz on his face and said, “You got a problem with that, Mr. Taz?”

With a bright smile on his face, he said, “Hell nah!” They both laughed and shared another kiss.

After Sacha left, Taz went upstairs and took a shower. After he finished, he was putting on a pair of shorts when his cell started ringing. “Hello.”

“What's up, Babyboy?” asked Won.

“What's up, O.G.?”

“I'm in town. Tari's taking me over to Mercy to see 'Neema. She already told me that she was straight, but I want to see her for myself, you know?”

“Yeah, I feel you. I was about to lay it down for a minute. A nigga's straight drained.”

“Go on and get you some rest. I'll come by there in a couple of hours. After we leave the hospital, I'm going to have Tari take me to see a few people. Then I'll be by there. Call everyone and have them at your house around one. We need to talk so y'all can understand everything that's going on.”

“All right, I'll holla at you later then,” Taz said, and closed his cell phone.

 

 

By the time Sacha had finished packing a few bags, she felt as if she was going to pass out. She sat down on her bed, grabbed the telephone and called her best friend, Gwen. When Gwen answered her phone, Sacha said, “What it do, ho? What you doing?”

“Sitting here waiting on Bob to call me back. He promised me he'd call me back before he left.”

“Left?”

“Yeah, bitch, he's on his way home. Some guy named Magoo is driving him back to the city.”

“Why are they driving all of the way back from New York?”

“Bob told me that it would be safer that way. Obviously something bad went down and they're trying to stay low-key. Hell, bitch, I don't know! You know more about this shit than I do.”

“Whatever! After you talk to Bob, give me a call, ho. I'm about to finish packing my stuff, then I'm going back over to Taz's.”

“Oh, so you're moving in, huh? 'Bout time, bitch!”

Laughing, Sacha said, “Fuck you, ho!” and hung up the phone. She was happy for her best friend, Gwen. She had endured far too much pain in her life, and she deserved to be happy. Ever since she lost her son and her husband in a terrible car accident, her life was kind of just coasting along. Even though she'd got herself back together by going back to school and getting her degree in physcology, Sacha could tell that her girl still wasn't really happy. Gwen put up a good front though. One could never tell how badly she was actually hurting. But all of her pain seemed to have been eased once she met Taz's homeboy, Bob. Sacha knew every time she saw them together that her best friend had once again found love, and that was a true blessing from God.

But then out of nowhere, tragedy struck again. Bob was shot in his stomach during Taz and the crew's last robbery out in New York. When Gwen found out, she fainted, and Sacha knew in her heart that if Bob didn't pull through, her best friend wasn't going to be able to move on with her life this time around. Thank God that Bob had made it. Now everything can get back to normal.
Normal! Ain't that some shit! Ain't nothing normal about the way Taz, Bob, and the rest of that damn crew is living. This shit has got to stop!
Sacha said to herself as she got back up to finish packing her things.