Dutch by Teri Woods Read Free Book Online Page A

of the lake, then came back for the body. It was
     still heavy, but they managed to drag it over to the cinderblocks and reattach them. Then they rolled the body to the water
     and carried it out a bit as it began to sink into liquid darkness. The two boys watched as the body quickly sank to its watery
     grave. Dutch looked at himself, then at Craze, and saw they were covered with blood and sweat.
    “Take off your shirt and go get those garbage bags out the van. Make sure ain’t no blood in the van. If it is, try and wipe
     it up wit’ your shirt,” Dutch told him.
    Within minutes, all the contents of the van were piled in a clearing in the woods. Dutch set the pile on fire and watched
     as it was reduced to ashes. Then he and Craze returned to the van and drove off.
    For the next three days, Craze was worried sick. He hadn’t seen Dutch and neither had Ms. Delores, who, unlike Craze, wasn’t
     worried a bit.
    “Bernard can take care of hisself,” was all she said, then hung up the phone in his ear.
    Various scenes flashed through his mind about where Dutch could be. On the bottom of the lake next to the body they dumped
     or on the run from Roberto and God knows who else, like the police. The only good sign was there was no mention anywhere in
     the paper of any body or bodies found and there wasn’t anything in there about Dutch getting arrested.
    Craze, through his own personal contact, learned the identity of the dead man he had buried in Lake Weequahic. He was a local
     drug addict named Chester. Chester’s sister was one of Craze’s many young conquests. He had been pestering her about letting
     him hold her pop’s handgun.
    “Boy, is you crazy? You ain’t gonna get me killed. My daddy will go crazy. Besides, Chester took it and ain’t been home in
     damn near a week,” she said as Craze pushed her head back down into his lap.
    A light came on, though, as she was gunnin’ him.
Chester, that’s where I saw them old-ass Pro-Keds before.
He remembered them on the dead man’s feet. He hadn’t thought of it at the time, but it came through crystal clear now that
     Chester’s sister mentioned it. He felt funny to have her giving him head after having gotten rid of what was left of her brother,
     and he felt the vague sense of superiority you feel when you know the answer to the question that is perplexing to others.
    “He’ll turn up,” he said with a slight smirk, amused at the hidden meaning behind his words.
    “He better. My father gonna kill that boy one of these days.”
    So, he knew where the body was, but where was Dutch? That was his last thought that night before drifting off to sleep, only
     to be awakened in the middle of the night with the answer to his question. He heard the familiar bird call as if it was a
     dream, and at first he thought he was dreaming until he heard it again.
    Dutch.
    He hopped up and was down the fire escape before he was dressed.
    “Yo, nigga, where the fuck you been?” His tone was full of worry.
    “Man, I’m sayin’. I ain’t never killed no body before. I ain’t know what to do with myself. So, I figured I had better lay
     in the cut until I knew what was what.”
    “I know who he is, too,” Craze announced cryptically, finally knowing something.
    “Who?”
    “Chester.”
    “Chester?” Dutch repeated, thinking hard.
    “Chester, Sharice brother.”
    “Oh, dope-fiend-ass Chester! Always sellin’ his people shit. Word?” replied Dutch.
    “Word. You seen Roberto?” Craze asked with dollar signs in his eyes. Not only had he been worried about Dutch, he was also
     worried about the reward he knew Roberto would pay for such a job well done.
    “Yeah,” was all Dutch replied.
    “And?” Craze asked impatiently.
    “And everything’s everything. He let me come over his house for dinner to meet Fat Tony.”
    “Aw, man, word?!” Craze’s eyes bulged. He knew Fat Tony was a powerful man in the crime family. He knew they were going to
     get paid now.