Ricky

Blayze is Back

         “Hello?” he answered, without even looking at the caller ID. If he had, he would’ve been expecting the voice on the other end. As it was, he didn’t know what to expect.
         “Ricky, where are you?” Blayze asked, the voice calming his little brother’s heart, Ricky sighed and glanced at Deuce before he told Blayze where he was.
         “I’m back in the hospital parking lot with Deuce. Did they let you out?” Ricky questioned. At that, curiosity slid into Deuce’s eyes and Viper came over to Ricky. Viper opened his mouth to say something, but Ricky put a finger up to stop him. Ricky wanted to hear Blayze’s answer.
         “Yeah, they let me out. They said that they’d arrested me because of an unreliable witness. Oh, and they told me that my brother was a major part in getting me released,” Blayze informed Ricky, with pride in his voice. Ricky laughed and now Viper looked curious, so Ricky tilted his phone back and directed his next comment at Viper.
         “They let Blayze out and told him that I helped the cops find out that Blayze was innocent,” Ricky explained to Killer’s brother and the curiosity disappeared, replaced by happiness, but the hint of sadness still remained. Ricky glanced over at Deuce and found that the gang leader was watching Viper contently.
         “Blayze, you gonna come here?” Ricky asked, hoping that his brother would be coming, so Ricky would know that Blayze was actually okay.
         “Yeah, I’m on my way right now. I’ll see you in about five minutes, little brother,” Blayze reported. Ricky grinned and glanced back at Deuce before he said good-bye to his brother and they hung up.
         “Blayze is coming?” Viper asked Ricky, who nodded. That’s when Ricky realized that Killer’s brother didn’t even know Blayze. Maybe he’d seen Ricky’s brother around town or something, Ricky was thinking, but Viper’s voice cut in.
         “He won’t be mad at me, will he? I mean, for the whole Drake thing,” Viper explained. Ricky realized that an outsider wouldn’t have any clue what Viper was talking about. Maybe that was the point and maybe not, but either way, Ricky was letting his mind wander again. He quickly shook his head, then realized that that simple motion could be seen as an answer to Viper’s question.
         “No, he probably won’t be once you explain it to him. Besides, he doesn’t know you,” Ricky added, to see Viper’s reaction. Viper quickly glanced at Killer, which caught Ricky’s attention. Other times when Killer’s brother had been unsure, he had looked to Deuce, not to Killer. Viper’s brother sighed, then he explained to Ricky the fact that Blayze did know Killer and Viper.
         “I went to school with your brother. He used to hang out at our house until your school let out. Viper didn’t go to school half the time, so the three of us would just chill for that hour or so. He’ll probably get upset when he finds out that we’re both in a gang, much less what Viper did. He ain’t gonna be too happy,” Killer explained, and it made sense to Ricky because he didn’t know Blayze’s friends from high school. Also, Blayze had gotten out about an hour before Ricky had and Blayze had always been at Ricky’s school to pick him up. As Ricky was thinking about that, he saw a black Mustang pull into the parking lot. He perked up and looked closely. It didn’t take long for him to spot the obvious silver.
         “Blayze is here,” Ricky announced. At that, Viper and Killer both turned around. The Mustang pulled into the spot next to the Ram. Blayze hesitated, then turned off his car. The silence seemed to echo through Ricky’s head for a moment, then he started strolling towards his brother. Blayze stepped out and met Ricky halfway and the two walked back to Deuce, Killer, and Viper. When Blayze saw Killer and Viper, it was obvious that he recognized them. His eyes slid to the neck on each of them, where he saw the gang tattoo, a two of spades.
         “Blayze, I’m sure you know Deuce. And this is Killer and Viper,” Ricky explained, knowing full well that his brother knew those two brothers.
         “Killer and Viper, huh?” Blayze questioned, standing between the two. Ricky was standing next to Deuce, facing the other three. Blayze glanced from Killer to Viper and back again.
         “Yeah, Blayze. We haven’t seen you in a while. How’ve you been?” Killer added, looking back at Blayze. Ricky glanced over at Deuce, not sure how this reunion was going to work. Deuce ignored the look and stepped over to Viper, Blayze, and Killer. Viper straightened up suddenly, making Ricky laugh at his quick change.
         “Sorry to break this up, but, Viper, you’ve gotta take care of something for me. Killer, you too. You already know what you’ve gotta do,” Deuce told them. Blayze glanced at the leader and Ricky. Killer and Viper both slipped away from the group, leaving Deuce, Blayze, and Ricky.
         “I’m sorry, Ricky, but my boys have taken a lot of time for you today. I need them to get back to work by now so we’re gonna leave everything else up to you two. Good luck, Ricky,” Deuce told him. Ricky nodded and Deuce slid back over to his group of gangsters that were waiting for him by the red car. Ricky tried to push the thought of Drake in the truck out of his mind, but it didn’t work. Suddenly Ricky felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned and looked into Blayze’s blue eyes.
         “Little brother, let’s head out of here, okay? There’s not anything else here,” Blayze added, slight concern in his voice. Ricky forced a slight grin and nodded. He knew that his brother could see right through Ricky’s fake smile, but Ricky didn’t bother to clear his eyes of emotion. They both began strolling towards the car. When they got in the Mustang, Ricky sighed and leaned back, thinking about the day. Everything had been speeding by and he just wanted to go over it all. In just a few hours, Ricky had witnessed four murders, one of them being his best friend; he’d made a new friend, lost an old friend, and also lost his worst enemy.