1
Kannon
July 2015
The whole city was turnt. Everybody came out to the heart of Downtown Memphis, Tom Lee Park, to celebrate Rico’s freedom. Kannon really only fucked with Rico off the strength of his brotherhood with Jason. To be honest, Kannon hadn’t trusted Rico from the moment Jason took him under his wing, but it didn’t matter. Jason was cautious and followed his gut, but he was also quicker to give a nigga a chance than Kannon was if they had heart. That had been the dynamic of their relationship since the duo had met over twenty years ago, and Kannon didn’t see it changing any time soon. For him, you started out with none of his trust and respect and had to build it. For Jason, you started with both and only had one chance to fuck up either.
“Big brothas, listen.” Rico’s head shook from side to side as he provided a toothless grin. His eyes were glossy, low, and red, proof of all the weed and liquor he’d digested since they arrived at the park hours earlier. Really, they’d started pregaming before they even made it to the park.
“I don’t know how y’all got the hood to come out to show a nigga love like this, but I shol’ appreciate it.”
Jason shook Rico’s hand and pulled him in for a brotherly hug while Kannon merely nodded. The scent of barbecue permeated the air as all different kinds of liquor and blunts rotated through hundreds of hands. Kannon’s eyes scanned the crowd. He was always aware of his surroundings. Nothing too out of the ordinary caught his attention. People were rapping, dancing, talking and laughing… just having a good time. Kannon may not have cared about the reason they’d come together, but he was glad they were able to come together and not have no bullshit hovering over them.
As soon as he saw Carmen, Kannon was convinced that shit was about to change. With an already irritated sigh, Kannon headed over to the wooden table where Makayla was seated. Her back was to them as she took her time rolling more blunts for their mini crew. Even with the Memphis Police Department heavily on the scene, expecting drama, they still did whatever the fuck they wanted to do. You had that ability when you were connected to Jason Weaver and Kannon Campbell.
Sitting next to Makayla, Jason’s woman, Kannon looked her face over briefly. She was high, too, but not enough to not be fully cognizant. Her already lazy eyes were sitting a little low, and a small smile played on the corners of her mouth. Normally, Makayla wore a mug, and if Kannon were to be honest, she had a lot of shit to mug about. So it was always good to see a smile on her face, even if it was because she was high. His eyes scanned her frame briefly and he swallowed when she looked over at him.
Truth be told, Kannon had always wanted Makayla. But the night the trio met, the stark differences between him and Jason were made evident. While Kannon took a moment to admire and observe before making a move, Jason immediately went in to devour his prey. Where Kannon was methodical and strategic, Jason was quick to fly off the handle with no thought. In business, this balanced them and made them good partners, but when it came to women, it always made for friendly competition.
Makayla looked over at him as she took her time sealing the blunt with her tongue, and the shit had never been sexual to Kannon until he watched her do it. Still, it didn’t matter how attracted to the Werther’s Original caramel candy-colored beauty he was, out of respect for his best friend, his brother, Kannon would never allow himself to act on what he felt.
“Who made you mad?” Makayla asked, and her voice instantly reminded him of his childhood crush, Lisa Bonet. It had that same low, soft, soothing feel to the tone. Often times, Kannon closed his eyes when she spoke, just to let that shit become his peace.
“Why you think somebody made me mad?” he countered, looking her facial features over intently. With him sitting on the bench backwards and opposite of her, he had the perfect view of Carmen and everyone else while still giving Makayla his undivided attention.
“Because you don’t leave Jason unless you’re avoiding some bullshit.”
Kannon chuckled because that was the truth. The two were tied at the hip damn near every day all day. But between Rico and Carmen, he needed space before he said some shit that would cause Jason to do something they both would regret.
“I’m sick of faking the funk with Rico’s fraudulent ass.” Makayla nodded in agreement. “And Carmen is here. I’on know who in the fuck invited her.”
Makayla’s hand absently went to his thigh to calm him before she handed him the blunt.
“We know nothing will go down with Rico until he shows Jason who he really is, and you know I’m not going to let Carmen cause you any trouble. I’ll fold her ass up on this good Saturday real quick before I let her do that.”
Kannon chuckled as he lit the blunt. It was no secret that they had a one for all and all for one mentality in their crew. Any issues they had with females, Makayla and her cousins would handle, and any issues they had with a nigga over anything… Kannon and Jason handled with no hesitation. If it were up to Kannon, he’d keep Makayla out of the streets and this lifestyle… put her on a pedestal like the Queen she was… but she was wild as fuck before she’d even linked up with them, so there was no changing that now.
Puffing the blunt twice, Kannon’s vision returned to Carmen. She was talking big shit to Jason – Kannon could tell by her body language. Her chest was poked out, arms crossed over it, head tilted, and she had a smile on her face. She must have thought she was bad with the slaw-ass crew of niggas standing behind her. They were no threat. No nigga in Memphis was.
With an irritated sigh, Kannon hit the blunt once more before handing it to Makayla.
“Let me go handle this shit,” he grumbled as he stood.
“I’m coming with you,” Makayla informed him as she accepted the blunt and took a hit.
Kannon knew there was no point in telling her no, so he remained silent as they walked over to where Jason, Rico, and two other men were standing. The first thing he heard out of Carmen’s mouth was…
“I don’t know why you protecting this deadbeat ass nigga, Jason. For real! He got a whole ass daughter out here that he don’t do shit for. And y’all worship him like he a fuckin’ King!”
Jason’s head tilted as his jaw clenched. He wasn’t the arguing type. Really, he wasn’t the talking type. All it took was the right word or move to set him off, and he was clearing the whole building out. Kannon had always been the peacemaker that tried to smooth things out before shit went left, but make no mistake about it, he was just as deadly, if not more, than Jason. Jason may have offed a nigga with one shot to the head because he was reckless and angry in that moment… but Kannon would sit back, let shit marinate, and think about all the ways he could make his enemies suffer before he put them out of their misery.
As always, Kannon deflected from Carmen’s accusations. It wasn’t that he was a deadbeat father, and it irritated the fuck out of him that she was always trying to make him look that way.
“I’m only going to tell you this once, Carmen,” Kannon warned. “Get the fuck outta here before I give you the static you lookin’ for.”
Carmen smirked, eyes briefly zeroing in on Makayla as she stepped between Kannon and Jason.