We cruised the block once so that we could check out the house and the street. I said, “Does she live alone?” Cool T was sitting behind me, next to Ray Depente. “She live with her mama and sister. The sister got a pretty good job with State Farm, so she won’t be around, but the mama be there. She old.” “Okay.” Across the street and two houses down, three teenaged guys in cutoff baggies and gold chains and backwards baseball caps sat on a low brick wall, laughing about something. Pike said, “What about the three guys on the wall?” “The one in the middle Eight-Deuce. The other two are wanna-bes.” Pike didn’t like it. “No good. They see us go in, it’ll be bad for the family.” Cool T said, “Fuck’m.” Pike looked at him. Cool T said, “These niggers used to me. I here all the time.” Ray said, “Don’t use that word again.” Cool T gave hands. “What?” Ray put hard eyes on him. “I’m looking where you’re looking, and I don’t see any. I’m looking in this car, and I don’t see any in here, either.”
