The Cartel Read online

  The Cartel

  Ashley

  Jaquavis

  The port of Miami brings in millions of dollars worth of cocaine every year, and The Cartel controls eighty percent of it. The Diamond family is a force to be reckoned with, but all hell breaks loose when they lose their leader. The most ruthless gangster Miami has ever seen, Carter Diamond leaves behind a wife, twin sons, a daughter, and a secret. The secret is his illegitimate son, Carter Jones. When Young Carter learns of his father's death, he comes to town and is introduced to the legacy of The Cartel. Miamor is a woman who uses her beauty to enhance her skill as a contract killer. She is the leader of The Murder Mamas. When her crew is hired to take down The Cartel, they get caught slipping, and Miamor loses her sister in the process. She is determined to get revenge from The Cartel. Unknowingly, she meets the son of Carter Diamond, and he immediately catches her heart. She is sleeping with the enemy, and when she finds out, she is torn between love and revenge. Young Carter and Miamor lead two different lifestyles. They are on opposing teams, and when their worlds collide, the truth will be unveiled in an unpredictable ending.

  Ashley, JaQuavis

  The Cartel

  The first book in the The Cartel series, 2008

  Prologue

  “Diamonds are forever.”

  – Carter Diamond

  The packed courtroom was abuzz as the anticipation built, and the onlookers stared at the man who made it snow. Carter Diamond was the head of “The Cartel,” an infamous crime organization, and the entire city of Miami knew it. Scattered throughout the courtroom, the entire Cartel was in attendance, all of them wearing black attire.

  With a model’s posture, he sat next to his defense lawyer, slowly rubbing his salt-and-pepper goatee, thinking about the weight of the verdict. Accused of racketeering and using his multimillion-dollar real estate company to launder drug money, Carter could potentially go to jail for the rest of his life. And the case had drawn a lot of heat when key witnesses began to come up missing or dead, including a politician who turned informant to save his own behind.

  A slight grin spread across Carter’s face as he looked at the judge and realized that the chances of a guilty verdict were between slim and next to none. Just the night before, his accountant had wired the judge one million dollars to an offshore account. And just to ensure his freedom, eight of the twelve jurors had family members missing and in the custody of Carter’s henchmen. At 43 years old he was on top of the world. Fuck the mayor, Carter ran the city.

  Carter glanced back at his family, his beautiful wife, daughter, and twin sons, who sat in the front row behind him. He winked at them and gave them his perfect smile.

  It amazed Carter’s family that he could be in the scariest of situations and still manage to make everything seem all right.

  He stared into his wife’s green eyes and admired her long, flowing, jet-black hair. Baby hair rested perfectly on her edges as her natural mocha skin glowed. Taryn, his wife, was a full-blooded Dominican and could have easily been mistaken for a top model. At age 38, she was just as beautiful as when she’d met Carter at 16.

  Carter then glanced over to his daughter, Breeze, the spitting image of her mother and also his baby girl. At age 19, she was beautiful, intelligent, and being mixed with Black and Dominican gave her a goddess look. She had long, thick hair with green eyes, which made her every man’s desire and every woman’s envy. She smiled at her father, letting him know she was there to support him.

  Carter looked at his two sons, Mecca and Monroe, AKA Money. They were the two oldest at 21, and although they were twins, they were completely opposite. Mecca was the wilder of the two. He wore long braids and was a shade darker than Money. His body had twenty tattoos on it, including the two on his neck, enhancing his thuggish appearance. He was the more ruthless one. Mecca, wanting so badly to follow in the footsteps of his father and become the next kingpin of Miami, was notorious throughout Dade County for his trigger-happy ways.

  Money was the humbler and more reserved of the two. His Dominican features seemed to shine through more than his twin brother’s. His light skin and curly hair made him look more like a pretty boy than a gangster, but his looks were deceiving. Unlike his brother, he wore a neat low-cut and had no tattoos. Focusing more on the money aspect of the game, Money was a born hustler, and if the streets gave out degrees he would’ve had a doctorate. And although he wasn’t as coldhearted as his brother, he wasn’t to be underestimated.

  It was in their blood to be gangsters. In the early eighties their Dominican grandfather ran the most lucrative drug cartel Miami had ever seen, and their father was his predecessor. Their family was “street royalty” by all means.

  The media had a field day with this trial, covering it since day one. And CNN news cameras and several other stations had been broadcasting live footage of the spectacle for the last six months.

  The sound of the gavel striking the sounding block echoed throughout the packed courtroom when the jurors filed into the courtroom after two hours of deliberation. The time had finally come for the verdict.

  “Order in the court!” The judge looked over to the jury pool. “Has the jury come to a verdict?”

  All eyes were on the juror as he paused before delivering the verdict, and all of the news cameras were pointed to Carter, trying to capture his reaction to his fate. The courtroom got so silent, you could hear a pin drop.

  The head juror stood up with a small piece of paper in his hand. “Yes, Your Honor, we have. We the jury find Carter Diamond not guilty on all charges.”

  As the courtroom erupted with a mixture of victorious cheers and disappointing sighs, Carter nonchalantly loosened his tie and winked at the judge just before he firmly shook his lawyer’s hand.

  “Congratulations, Carter,” the lawyer said as he gathered his files and placed them into his briefcase, the flashes from the cameras flickering nonstop.

  “Thank you.” Carter turned around to celebrate with his family.

  When Taryn ran to him with open arms, he smoothly spun her around and kissed her passionately as if they were the only two in the room. He looked in her eyes and whispered, “I love you.”

  “I love you too, Carter Diamond,” she replied as she hung from his neck.

  Carter focused his attention on his kids. He kissed Breeze on the cheek, and she whispered in his ear, “Diamonds are forever.”

  “That’s right, baby girl.” Carter embraced her with one hand and grabbed Mecca’s head with the other. He kissed him on top of the head and then did the same to Monroe.

  Carter looked at all the reporters and photographers flocking in his direction and said, “Let’s get out of here.” With his wife and daughter under his arms, and his family around him, he made his way out of the courtroom.

  News reporters tried to get a comment from him, but members of The Cartel stopped them before they could get close.

  As soon as Carter exited the building, he embraced his right-hand man, Archie Pollard, AKA Polo, who was waiting outside of the courtroom, along with a wave of thugs wearing all black.

  Polo leaned close to Carter’s ear and whispered, “We did it, baby!”

  “No doubt,” Carter said. “This city is mine.”

  Carter stood at the top of the steps, feeling on top of the world. He pulled out a Cuban cigar and lit it, his diamond cufflinks blinging as he gave the world a view of his exclusive accessories. Looking out onto the streets, he noticed that the cops had sealed off the area to maintain traffic control. Everyone in the city was trying to get a glimpse of the “king of Miami.”

  Money noticed something wasn’t right. As he looked at each officer and saw that they all had one thing in common. They all seemed to be of Haitian descent. By the time
he realized what was happening, it was too late. One of the fake news reporters pulled out his 9 mm and pointed it at Breeze.

  “Noooo!” Money screamed as he tried to warn his sister.

  Polo became aware of what was about to happen and shoved the Haitian, causing him to tumble down the stairs before he could let off a shot.

  All of a sudden, two dreadlocked Haitians popped out of the oversized dumpster, both with AR-15 assault rifles, and began letting off shots at The Cartel. It was complete pandemonium as shots rang out, hitting innocent bystanders, all in an effort to take out Carter Diamond.

  Outnumbered, the members of The Cartel were defenseless. And Carter and his family were moving targets. As everyone scrambled for cover, Carter grabbed his daughter and wife and threw them to the ground, shielding them with his body.

  A bullet ripped through Money’s arm, and he fell to the ground. Mecca ran to his side, trying to protect his twin brother.

  Meanwhile, Polo had pulled out his 9 mm and began to return fire. He had managed to keep the Haitians off long enough for the rest of The Cartel to come and help.

  As the two crews traded bullets, many people got caught in the crossfire. The scene was a total bloodbath, with dead bodies sprawled out across the steps of the courthouse.

  Carter, totally disregarding his own safety, tried his best to cover his two favorite girls from the raining bullets.

  The police officer who had escorted Carter out of the courtroom shot at the Haitians. “Come on! Follow me,” he yelled. He looked at Carter and waved his hand, signaling them to follow him.

  Carter hated police, but at that moment he was happy to see one. He gathered up Taryn and Breeze and followed the officer back into the courthouse.

  “I parked my police car in the back. Come on! They’ll be coming in here after you any second now,” the cop said as he closed the courthouse door.

  “Let’s go, y’all,” Carter yelled in a panicked voice to his wife and daughter as they followed the policeman down the stairs and into the basement.

  Carter thought about his sons outside, but he knew they could hold their own. His main concern was the women. They raced through the court halls and finally made it to the exit. Just as the cop said, he had his squad car parked in the back. Carter felt relieved. They all got in, and he frantically searched his wife’s and daughter’s body, making sure they were okay. “Are you hit? Are you guys okay?” he asked as he continued to search their bloodstained clothes. He realized that the blood was not from them, but from all the blood flying from the other people.

  “No, I’m good, Poppa,” Breeze answered, tears flowing down her face, her hands shaking uncontrollably.

  “I’m okay,” Taryn said.

  Carter hugged and kissed them both and thanked God that they were okay. His concern now was for his sons. He looked up at the cop that sat in the front seat and said, “Thanks, bruh. Look, I need you to take them to safety while I go back and-”

  Boom!

  Before Carter could finish his sentence, the cop put a hollow-tip through his head, his blood and brains instantly splattering all over his wife’s and daughter’s face as he stared with dead eyes.

  In total shock, both of the women yelled, “Noooo!”

  The cop pulled off his hat, and his short dreadlocks fell loosely. He pointed the gun at Carter’s body and filled him with four more bullets, ensuring that the job was done. The screams of the women didn’t seem to bother him as he smiled through the whole process. The man wasn’t a cop at all, but a full-blooded Haitian that could pass for a regular joe, his light skin disguising his heritage.

  He pointed his gun at Taryn, and she looked directly in his eyes, unafraid of death, while Breeze gripped her father and cried hysterically. The Haitian couldn’t bring himself to pull the trigger and hopped out the car.

  This was the beginning of a war.

  Welcome to The Cartel… first of a trilogy

  Chapter One

  “Girl, females are going to hate, regardless. That’s how you know you’re that bitch.”

  – Taryn Diamond

  Seven Years Earlier

  Carter sat at the head of the table with both of his hands folded into each other. He briefly stared at each of his ten head henchmen in the face as he looked around the table, then to his right-hand man Polo, who sat to his right. As he always did, Carter took his time before speaking. He always chose his words carefully and spoke very slowly with his deep baritone voice. He poured Dom into his oversized wine cup and took a sip.

  “Family, today The Cartel has expanded. The days of hand-over-fist pay is over. It’s a new day, a new world, a new era. For the last ten years I have flooded the streets of Miami with the finest coke and built a monopoly. I love all of you as if you were my own blood. That’s why I’m giving you the opportunity to grow. You can’t hustle forever. I’ve recently acquired a real estate company, and this way we can turn all of this dirty money into clean money. I want all my niggas to eat with me. So, if you want to be a part of this, here is your chance.” Carter took another sip and passed the cup to Polo.

  Without saying a word, Polo took a sip out of the same cup, signaling his response to Carter’s proposition. He passed the cup to the next man, and he did the same. Real niggas did real things, and the cup got passed around the room, and all men drank from the same cup.

  Mecca and Money peeked around the corner, listening in on their father’s meeting. Although they were only fourteen, they wanted so bad to be a part of The Cartel. They both noticed at an early age how much respect their father received from everyone in the streets. They would get special treatment in school from teachers and students. Some of their friends’ parents would go as far as giving them presents and hinting to them to mention it to their father. They loved how real their father was. He would talk to bums on the street as if they were the president of the U.S.A. He treated every man as his equal, as long as they respected him and his family. For lack of better words, Carter was a real nigga, and both of the twins admired him greatly and wanted to be just like him… but for different reasons.

  Monroe loved the way his father stayed fresh at all times and was a great business and family man. He observed his father’s style and immediately idolized him. Carter never wore the same shirt twice and only wore the finest threads. Money also took note of and admired his father’s business savvy. Every move he made was a business move, a move that would benefit him in the future.

  Mecca, on the other hand, admired his father’s street fame. He loved the way the street respected and feared his father. He would hear stories about his father being the man that made it snow, in a city that had never seen a winter season, or cutting off fingers if workers stole. In Mecca’s eyes, Scarface didn’t have shit on his father. While other kids were worried about candy and chasing skirts, Mecca was thinking about chasing money and being the next king of Miami.

  As they eavesdropped on the conference, they watched as each man took a sip out of the cup.

  “Mecca and Money, come in here.” Carter calmly grabbed the cup that had rotated back to him.

  Since Carter’s back was toward them, when he called there name, it surprised them. It was as if he had eyes in the back of his head. They slowly walked into the room. The boys stood nervously next to him, knowing that they got caught spying on him and that their father was very strict when it came to handling business. They eased up when they saw a slight grin form on his face.

  Carter passed Money the cup and looked around to make sure their mother wasn’t around. “Take a sip of that,” he said.

  Money looked at the cup as if he was scared to take a sip.

  Mecca noticed his brother’s uneasiness and grabbed the cup from him. He took a gigantic gulp of the liquor, and a burning sensation rushed down his throat. It took all of his willpower not to spit it out. His face twisted up as he put one hand on his chest, hoping that the burn would go away.

  Polo noticed his expression and laughed loudly. �
��That’ll put some hair on ya chest, nephew!” he said in between laughs.

  Carter joined him in laughter as he watched his other son take the cup and take a moderate sip. Money’s face didn’t change its expression. He took the gulp like a man.

  Money handed the cup back to his father and stood there with his chest out, as if he was trying to prove that he was a man. Mecca followed suit.

  “Why were you two eavesdropping on Poppa?” Carter playfully hit both of his sons in the chest.

  Money shrugged his shoulders as if to say, “I don’t know.”

  Mecca looked around the table, seeing nothing but hustlers and killers. He then looked at his father, who sat at the forefront of them, and a smile spread across his face. “Poppa, I want to be just like you. I wanna be a gangster,” Mecca said as he stepped in front of his brother.

  One of the hustlers at the table chuckled as he looked at Mecca. “Li’l man got hustle in him. That’s a gangster in the making right there,” the man said.

  Carter shot a look at the man that said a thousand words. If looks could kill, the man would’ve been circled in chalk. “No, my son will never be that. Watch ya mouth, fam,” Carter stated firmly as he focused his attention back on Mecca. “Look, sons, you are better than this. This game chose us, we didn’t choose the game. You got the game twisted. I do this, so you don’t have to,” Carter said, as a somber feeling came over him. It hurt his heart to hear Mecca say that he wanted to be a gangster like him.

  “Let me show you two something,” Carter said before he looked at his henchmen that sat at the long red oak table. “How many of you have lost someone close to you because of this drug game?

  Slowly everyone at the table raised their hands, to help Carter prove a point.

  “How many of you go to bed with a pistol under your pillow?” Carter asked. “And how many of you want to get out of the game?”