The Cartel 5

Book 5: Cartel

by Ashley, Jaquavis

Genres: Urban Fantasy

Synopsis

When a Boeing 747 drops out of the sky with the men of the Cartel aboard, the women of the family have to step into their own. With the federal government on their heels and the family on the brink of destruction, a female dynasty is born.

After the government's case is thwarted, the ladies plan to take the family legit. They head west to establish a new endeavor, but with new territory comes new problems. The Carter family name doesn't ring as loud as it did in Miami. It's a new set of gangsters, a new set of rules, as the Cartel finds problems with an Arabic millionaire. Even as the new Cartel struggles to go legit, trouble always finds a way into the family's circle. Larceny, deceit, and murder are all in the cards.

The Cartel 5 is a page-turning thriller that promises to deliver. This mafia family tries to go corporate, but the streets won't let them. This is the rise of the female Cartel . . . La Bella Mafia.

Release date: December 1, 2014

Publisher: Urban Books

Print pages: 266

Sample

Miami

5 years prior

Lost in the morning sky, Carter was silent as he stared out of the window, his mind full of a million thoughts and his heart conflicted. The billows of white clouds gave him a sense of serenity. At 30,000 feet in the air he felt as if nothing could touch him. Fuck a fed, he was flying high. No case could bring him crashing to the ground, or so he hoped. Running from a fight wasn’t really Carter’s style, but things had happened so quickly that he didn’t have a choice. If he and his brothers had stayed in Miami, they would be in federal custody right now. He needed time to make these problems disappear. His mind drifted to Miamor and his newborn son. Guilt-ridden by his sudden departure, he tortured himself with the fact that he wouldn’t be around to take care of the ones he loved. He didn’t know how long he would have to stay away and it killed him that he wouldn’t be around to get to know the life that he had created. He wouldn’t be there to see Miamor transform into the woman she was born to be. He had confidence that she would be a great mother, but to see her playing the role that every woman was made for would have made his heart loyal to her forever. He was missing all of that and it left him with a disgruntled soul. They were half way across the Atlantic, as the private jet ate away at the distance between the States and Bermuda. They were out of U.S. airspace so they were safe. Their escape had been executed flawlessly. He just hated that they had left their families behind. He was confident that Miamor could handle herself in his absence. Unlike Breeze and Leena, she knew the game. Miamor would be just fine until he returned . . . of that much he was certain. Carter looked over at Monroe and Zyir, grateful for his right and left hand. Although they had been at odds, there was nothing like a common enemy to make men come together. The federal case against them was enough to make them put their differences aside for the time being. Carter only prayed that the peace lasted because if he had to choose between the two of them, even he couldn’t call how it would turn out.

“Everything good?” Zyir asked, noticing the wrinkled brow of his mentor. He knew that whenever Carter grew silent and his eyes distant that there was something in the air.

Carter pinched his chin as he rested his elbow against the armrest. He rubbed his five o’clock shadow as he nodded his head.

“We left something undone,” Zyir stated, knowingly. Carter didn’t have to disclose his thoughts in order for Zyir to know what was wrong. “The women.”

Carter confirmed with a nod, still deep in thought. Zyir sat up in the leather seat and rested his elbows on his knees as he rubbed his hands together. “They don’t know anything, they can’t be touched.”

Monroe interjected, “That don’t mean shit. The Feds will catch em’ up with RICO. Just from spending the money they can build a case against all of them. Then what? Li’l Money ends up where? Li’l Carter goes to who? There is no more family left. We are all we got.”

“If the Feds go after the ladies the case won’t stick,” Carter said. “I know Miamor. She’ll handle it and I left a bank account full of money with the lawyers. Nothing will happen to them, they’re protected.”

“I hope you’re sure,” Monroe said.

“I am brother,” Carter confirmed.

Zyir raised his head. “Is there a chance we could go back?” He had left without a good-bye, without warning. One moment he was with Breeze, the next he was not. He had done so many things that he had yet to apologize for and still had so many I love yous that he wanted to express to her. He felt as if he had left his home unstable. He could only imagine how she felt at the moment.

“I don’t know,” Carter admitted. “Right now, this brotherhood here . . .” He pointed between the three of them. “This is all we have. This is the family that we can rely on. We left Leena, Breeze, and Miamor with enough money to last a few lifetimes. The Feds took some of it, but there is so much more that they will never trace. Our families are set. They will survive. Miamor is a shooter with a reputation behind her. Niggas won’t run up on her without thinking twice. She can hold down The Cartel. They are safe. The question is are we?”

“The Fed case is solid,” Monroe said dismally. “If we get caught . . .”

“We can’t get caught,” Carter said with finality.

He stood and walked up to the captain’s cabin. The middle-aged white man had large headphones on his head and aviator shades covering his eyes. He focused intently on the sky before him. The serene look on his face was understandable. As Carter looked out of the front window he realized that the pilot had the best view. Nothing but white clouds filled his vision. It was easy to get lost in the sky and Carter stood mesmerized for a moment at the incredible sight. It was one that not many people got to see. He placed a hand on the captain’s shoulder. “It’s time,” he announced. “Turn off all communication. As far as the government is concerned this plane should drop out of the sky. We’re all dead to the world from this moment forward. You do understand that you can never go back to the States?” he grilled.

“I understand. A million dollars is enough to make a new life somewhere else,” the pilot responded.

“Good,” Carter said. He gave the pilot a pat on the back and then watched as the man made the flight disappear from airspace.

The ocean below them sparkled many shades of blue and turquoise as the plane descended out of the sky. They arrived in paradise as the plane’s wheels touched the ground with a gentle thud. The cabin rocked slightly as the pilot slowed and taxied to a stop on the private clear port. The three men emerged, suited, and unscathed as if escaping federal custody was a simple feat. When the federal scope fell upon most empires it fell instantly, but The Cartel would survive. Carter was smart. He had prepared himself for the scrutiny. It was his ability to foresee the government’s attack that had allowed him to elude it. Carter shrugged on his suit jacket as he frowned from the bright sun that shined into his eyes. A titanium briefcase was gripped tightly in his hand. The three men stood at the bottom of the steps and waited for the pilot to exit.

“Safe and sound in Bermuda! Just like I promised you boys. Now where’s my million dollars,” he said as his face pulled outward in a wide, gap filled, smile. He was already spending the money in his head. His greedy palms couldn’t wait to feel the tax-free dollars flipping through his fingers.

Carter passed the man the briefcase and shook his hand firmly. “Stay out of the states. Go anywhere but there,” Carter instructed.

“You’ve got it, you’re the boss,” the pilot replied. Carter nodded at the warehouse that sat adjacent to the airstrip. “There’s a mechanic waiting inside there. He will get you refueled and make sure you’re good before you take off.”

“Take-off? I though Bermuda was the final destination?” he asked.

“It is our final destination, you will be going elsewhere,” Carter answered sternly. The pilot nodded in reluctant understanding as Carter, Zyir, and Monroe walked away.

They looked like Mafioso as they strutted powerfully across the clear port in their expensive Italian suits.

“You know he is going to go right back to Miami right?” Monroe stated. “There is no telling who he’s going to run his mouth to. We need to dead that nigga.”

“He’ll never make it. The mechanic is going to make sure of it. The Feds will find the plane at the bottom of the ocean, assuming that we were on it,” Carter replied. He swiped his nose arrogantly, feeling no remorse for double-crossing the pilot. He knew that the man would not be able to resist returning to Miami. He had just come into a million dollars. He wouldn’t want to be rich alone; he would want to share it with the people who knew him. There was no point in getting money if you couldn’t floss in front of the people that you were once broke in front of. He would disobey Carter’s orders and surely attempt to return to Miami. Unfortunately for him Carter had anticipated this. The man would be half way across the Atlantic ocean when the engines on his plane gave out. It was cold blooded, but the men couldn’t afford any slip-ups. The pilot was a casualty to the game. No one, not one witness to their escape could remain alive. No one needed to live to tell the story of how they had evaded the law. A black, tinted, Escalade pulled up directly in front of them with two Arab men in dark suits inside.

Zyir instantly reached in his waistline, but Carter grabbed his wrist, halting him. “They’re allies,” he informed. “Polo arranged for us to hideout in Saudi Arabia. We’ll be safe there.”

“The Middle East? That’s not an easy move bro. We don’t have friends there. We don’t speak the language. This is the plan?” Monroe protested unsurely.

“Your father,” Carter paused. “Our father, had friends there. He put in work that is protecting us today. We will be well taken care of. It’s our only play right now, unless you have a better idea. We can’t stay in Bermuda. The Caribbean will be the first place that the Feds look. Its too predictable.”

“The way you’re talking we ain’t never going back,” Zyir interjected solemnly. “My lady is in Miami. You have a new baby in Miami? Li’l nephew is there . . .”

“What about family?” Monroe finished for Zyir. Zyir shook his head unsurely.

“I’m not going to leave her unprotected fam. You talking about letting them think we’re dead,” Zyir stated. The thought of never seeing Breeze’s face again, or hearing the sweet tone of her voice sickened him. He knew what his “death” would do to her. She would crumble.

Carter sighed in frustration. “Look. I would like to move as a unit but we’re all grown men. I’m going to Saudi, but if this is where the road separates for the three of us I understand. I’m not worried about Miamor. I know her. She is more than capable of holding things down while I’m away. Until I can get word to her that we are safe the girls will just have to go through the pain of our loss. Eyes are on them right now anyway. Their grief will make it look real.”

If Zyir could think of any other solution he would have offered it. The situation was just bad from all angles. Zyir may not like the plan but he trusted Carter with his life. It was time for loyalty to kick in. Everybody in the crew couldn’t be chief. It was Zyir’s turn to take the back seat so that anarchy didn’t divide them.

“I’m with you my nigga,” Zyir conceded.

Carter turned to Monroe. “What about you? We’ve got another flight to catch. What’s it going to be?”

Since Monroe’s return he had been the rebellious soul. Carter half expected him to buck against him once again. Instead Monroe nodded. “I’m with you bro.”

Good. Carter opened the back door of the truck and climbed inside. Zyir and Monroe piled in behind him. “By this time tomorrow we will be half way around the world.”

Breeze’s heart felt frozen. A plane crash. The moment she had heard those words her heart had stopped beating inside of her chest. It was like the blood refused to flow through her veins. Her fingertips were ice cold, her eyes void of emotion, and her mind blank. How could this have happened? Zyir, Carter, and Monroe were three of Miami’s most powerful men and they had been killed. Not by a bullet, a war, a rival or even a cop . . . but by a mechanical error on a private plane. She sat still, staring out of the window as the chauffeured Benz truck pulled up to the church. It was the same church that her father’s funeral had been held in. Now here she was years later, burying not only the love of her life, but her brothers as well. She rode alone. It was how she preferred it. Since hearing of the tragedy she had wanted no one around her. She needed time. Space. Silence. She and Zyir had been beefing before he fled town. Their last words had been hostile ones and it was a regret that she would live with for the rest of her life. What had once felt like not enough time, now felt like too much. With Zyir by her side it seemed like life was not long enough to love him, to be with him. She had wanted a couple of forevers to bask in the joy he gave her. Now with him gone, she didn’t want to go on another day, another year . . . let alone a lifetime without him. She was beginning to think that her family was cursed. No one she knew, no one with whom she shared blood had ever lived without looking over their shoulders. She was the last one standing. The only Diamond left of her generation. A heavy burden had been placed on her shoulders and she could feel it weighing her down already. As the driver sat silently in the front seat, waiting for her command to open her door she sighed deeply. Once she stepped out of the car all eyes would be trained on her. News cameras, the ghetto grapevine, friends, foes . . . they would all be awaiting her reaction. She had been young when her father had been murdered. She hadn’t known the rules. Now she was well versed in the ways of the underworld. She remembered how strong her mother had been during her father’s funeral and she vowed to be that strong today. If she was going to do that however, she needed to get it all out now because there was no way she was going to let the world see her cry. She cleared her throat. “Please lift the partition,” she instructed. The driver nodded and as soon as Breeze saw the dark glass slide up her soul bled through as a gut wrenching cry came over her.

Leena held Carter Junior in her arms as Monroe’s heir rested his curly head in her lap. Her red-rimmed eyes cloudy as she sniffled slightly. She wasn’t ready for this day. Burying Monroe. It was too soon. Life was not supposed to come to this. She had done this routine before and he had promised her that she would never have to see him lying in a casket again. She couldn’t help but be mad that he had broken their pact. She hadn’t bothered to put on make-up. She knew that her sorrows would do nothing but wash the charade of happiness away. She was shaken to her core. Her baby, their baby was left without a father and Leena didn’t know if she could do this alone. She had gone through a lot being first Mecca’s, then Monroe’s girl but nothing had ever made her feel more alone than this. “Where is daddy?”

When her son asked the question her entire body quaked. He was old enough to realize that Monroe wasn’t around. He missed his father and Leena’s lip quivered as she searched for a response. “Daddy’s . . .” she paused, unsure of what to say. She gripped her son’s hand and took a deep breath. Get it together. You have to keep your shit together for your baby. You’re all he’s got now. Do not break down in front of him, she told herself. “Remember when I told you about God and how he has angels by his side baby?”

Her son nodded innocently. “Well God loved daddy so much that he needed him by his side baby. Daddy is resting now. He lives with God and we won’t be able to see him anymore. More he’s always with you. He’s your guardian angel and if you close your eyes and listen to your heart you’ll feel him. He is always watching over you baby. Do you understand?”

Monroe Jr. nodded and smiled as he closed his eyes, squeezing them tight as he said, “I feel him mommy! I feel him!” He opened his eyes excitedly. “Close your eyes too mommy! Hurry, hurry!”

When Leena closed her eyes she felt the tears drop out of the sides of them but she didn’t make a sound. Her heartbeat increased and she sobbed silently, not wanting her child to hear her grief. “Keep them closed baby. Just be with daddy for a little while,” she said. She opened her eyes and saw her driver extending a handkerchief to her. She mouthed the words, thank you, and wiped away her tears. Taking a deep breath she said, “Okay baby. Its time to go inside now. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

The smile of her child put the strength in her legs that she needed to stand on her own two. She reached into her bag and pulled out the Xanax she had been prescribed. She needed to take the edge off a bit. She placed it inside of her mouth and took a swig of her son’s apple juice before she readied herself to face the world or rather the underworld of Miami.

Miamor sat behind the windows of the tinted Maybach. She was last in the procession of fancy escorted cars. The fleet had cost them almost $50,000 but she had spared no expense. Bulletproof everything was not a luxury it was necessity and she took an extra measure of security by putting Leena in a car with the kids because she knew that no one would target her. They saw her as a grieving widow not a member of the Cartel. Leena would be the last to be hit if anything did go down.

Miamor hadn’t actually gotten time to process the plane crash just yet. She was in shock. So many things had fallen apart simultaneously that the only thing she could do was go into autopilot. She was handling the Feds, the organization of the memorial, a newborn baby. It was all so overwhelming and time consuming that the fact that Carter was never coming home to her had not yet hit her. She would never see his face again and still no emotion had materialized within her . . . not just yet. Miamor knew that once she allowed herself to feel that she would feel it all and falling apart was not an option at the moment. She would mourn him in private, after the memorial was over, but right now she had to protect his legacy. She had to protect his seed, his sister, and what was left of their family. She clicked her gun off safety and placed it inside of her Chanel bag. She wanted to wear it on her body, but the black Herve Leger dress left no room for her to tuck it inconspicuously. Miamor hoped she wouldn’t have to use it but in any case she would be prepared to pop off. She herself had once walked into a Cartel funeral with the intent of murder so she didn’t put it past anyone. The Cartel was weakened by the death of their men, it was the perfect time for infiltration. She looked out of the window at the massive crowd that was filtering out of the church. Even the mega church wasn’t big enough to accommodate the amount of people that had come out to pay their respects. Everybody was there, but not all that attended came out of love. She was sure a few enemies lingered in the crowd to confirm the deaths. The Feds were lurking. She could sniff out the pig bastards from a mile away. They were so obvious that she almost wanted to go and say hello. But the majority of the attendees were Cartel affiliates. Wives, girlfriends, hustlers, runners, muscle, groupies. Eve. . .