America's King of Poetry

Chapter 22: The Road of Suffering

Arthur expected Artest to call, but he didn't expect it to be so soon.

As a relatively senior basketball fan, Arthur knew that Artest grew up in a typical black slum in New York, and was associated with violence, drugs, and crime.His violent temper has genetic reasons, as well as the influence of the surrounding environment.At the age of 87, his grandmother participated in a bank robbery and became one of the oldest robbers; his father was a boxer, and later became a bodyguard for a gang boss, often beating and scolding Artest.

Artest once witnessed a player being killed on the basketball court. It was 1991. In a basketball game organized by the YMCA (Youth Christian Association), Lloyd Newton clashed with his opponent.

For people like Artest, basketball is a pure land of life, but life is far more than basketball. It will be a matter of time before he gets into trouble.A group of cronies and friends is indispensable around Artest. Making friends will bring convenience, but it will also bring trouble.

Arthur walked to the phone, took the receiver from the waitress, and said, "Luciano Restaurant, what do you need?"

Artest's hesitant voice came from the other end of the phone, "Oh...I...it's...Artest? I'm Ron Artest. That day in the gymnasium of Carlow High School..."

"Ron, I know it's you, I know. I left you a phone number, I always remember you, glad you remembered me, call me."

"Thank you, I... I think I have a little trouble, no, my friend has a little trouble, I don't know how to deal with it, maybe I need some advice from you."

Arthur thought, I'm afraid you won't get into trouble or won't come to me if you get into trouble.After all, Artest is only in high school. High school students have limited experience and methods of dealing with problems. Once they encounter some difficult problems, they will seek help.Arthur's shot in the gym that day left a deep impression on Artest, and his teammates kept talking about it on the way back, saying that this man looked like Mafia in Italy.

They also kept asking Artest what this guy wrote him.Artest hid the scoreboard with his name and number in his schoolbag, which became a secret of his, and he didn't even tell the coach when he asked him.The coach reminded him, "Associating with such a person will be dangerous, you should think clearly."

The coach is an adult, socially experienced and knows that dealing with someone like Arthur is risky.And Artest is about the same as Gina, who was shocked by Arthur's handsome temperament at a young age, just like domestic middle and high school students watched "Young and Dangerous", worshiped Cheng Haonan and then wanted to be a gangster.

Dealing with the devil will definitely pay a price, and Artest doesn't understand this deeply enough.

Before making a deal with you, the devil will definitely talk sweetly, threatening to relieve your worries, have fun, and get everything you need; when you are gradually satisfied, you will gradually become the servant of the devil, just like Faust sold his soul to Mephitos.

"Calm down first," Arthur heard a hint of anxiety in Artest's tone, and he comforted Artest first, "I have time to talk to you in the afternoon, but it's not very convenient on the phone. Give me an address, and I'll go there. Everything will be fine, trust me."

Arthur didn't know what happened, but he talked about comforting him first, calming down his emotions, and talking slowly about any problems and conditions later.At first, he pretended to be a friend, gradually entered his life, and then took advantage of him... Arthur suddenly felt a little evil, but he felt an inexplicable pleasure.He told himself in his heart that he didn't want to harm Artest, on the contrary, he wanted to help him achieve higher achievements.

Therefore, Artest gave Arthur an address in Queens, and Arthur wrote it down in the reception notebook, tore it off and put it in his pocket.Then he hung up the phone, went out immediately, stepped on the motorcycle, started it, turned the accelerator, and sped towards Brooklyn.

Before meeting Artest, he has more important things to do.

……

In the St. James Cathedral on the Upper East Side of Brooklyn, hundreds of devout Catholics gathered here early to prepare for the "Worship of the Cross" procession on Good Friday.

Inside the church, the white marble floor tiles are spotless, and the walls and ceilings throughout the church are clean milky white.Three large stained glass windows receive sunlight, and under the cross of Christ's crucifixion, a canopy of golden green pillars shines, which can be said to be resplendent.

Catholic churches are different from Protestant churches. In addition to the statue of Christ on the cross, the church itself is often luxurious and magnificent. This St. James Cathedral designed and built in 1903 is one of the most spectacular churches in the New York area.

In a corner of the church, Abramo, his wife and children are praying.

Abramo went out to make a phone call last night, and told his family when he came back that he decided to go to St. James Cathedral the next day to participate in the procession of worshiping the Way of the Cross on Good Friday.His wife Connie was very excited. In the early years, she always hoped that the whole family could participate in this activity to show piety to Christ, but the family always refused for various reasons.Daughter Paula is afraid of getting up early, and son Angelo thinks Brooklyn is too far away.Of course, the main reason is that Luca Abramo, the head of the family, is unwilling to come. The reason is also very simple, he is not so pious.

But a miracle happened this year, so Connie got up early in the morning to make breakfast, took the children to wash and change clothes, and Abramo drove the car across Manhattan to the cathedral not far from the Brooklyn Bridge.Connie is a devout Catholic. She led her son and daughter into the church to pray. She intertwined her hands and placed them on her chest. She closed her eyes and told God what was on her mind.

She's also Italian, but from Philadelphia, and has beautiful chestnut hair and a small face that makes her look young, but she's in her late 40s.She married Abramo at the age of 20 and came to New Jersey. His father and elder brother are well-known gang leaders in the Philadelphia area, and her husband has also become a leader in Jersey.She has never worked since she was born. She only does housework, takes care of the children, and prays for her father, brother, and her husband.

Pray that God will forgive their sins.

His wife closed her eyes and prayed, but Abramo secretly opened his eyes and looked around. He was looking for Arthur.Arthur finally sent a message to his pager last night, and Abramo immediately went to a pay phone near his home to call Arthur back.Arthur was extremely cautious, and asked Abramo to go to a public phone farther away, and then hung up the phone.Arthur himself immediately changed to a public phone, and then sent a paging message to Abramo, and the two talked through the new public phone.

During the phone call, Arthur and Abramo agreed to meet at the Passage of the Cross on the second day of Good Friday, and talk while walking to avoid surveillance.

Arthur knew that a big boss like Abramo was likely to be monitored by the police, FBI or other gangs. He didn't want to be monitored for phone messages, and he didn't want anyone to take photos of himself and Abramo.Meeting among the crowd is one of the safest strategies, Arthur just wants to be a cook in peace.

Abramo was looking around, when his daughter Paula suddenly opened her eyes, blinked at her father, and grinned.Abramo also smiled at his little angel.My daughter is still young, and she is often very impatient with the complicated Catholic etiquette.She quietly approached her and said to her father, "Dad, I saw a very handsome brother."

Saying that, Paula pointed to the seat on the other side, and Abramo thought that her daughter started to pay attention to handsome guys at such a young age, which really made people feel sad.And he looked in the direction of his daughter's finger, and saw that in the front row on the other side, a young man with dark hair was sitting there, his hands intertwined in prayer. He was wearing a brown leather coat, and it was Arthur.

……

A few minutes before, Arthur had arrived on his motorbike at St. James's Cathedral, where he had been a few times while his mother was alive, to take part in one of the Ways of the Cross.Arthur is not religious, but when he came to St. James' Church, he could feel the smallness of ordinary people in the face of giants.No wonder religious buildings are always so grand and magnificent, just to make people feel like kneeling on the ground.

Entering the church, the white floor tiles and inner walls gave people a sense of holiness, and Arthur saw the Abramo family at a glance.He didn't step forward to interrupt, but sat in a more conspicuous front seat and began to pray quietly.Arthur used to believe in God, but now Arthur is dubious.But when he closed his eyes, he suddenly felt an unspeakable irritability in his heart. He felt that the surroundings were shaking, and the whole church seemed to be crumbling.

When he opened his eyes, this feeling disappeared again, and the canopy of golden roof and green pillars was shining brightly in front of his eyes, and the stained glass was painted with the scene of Christ giving grace to all peoples.A Catholic priest wearing a gold-rimmed robe on a white background walked to the podium next to the canopy, cleared his throat, and said, "If a grain of wheat does not fall to the ground and die, it is still only one grain; if it dies, it will bear many grains. Today is the day of Christ's death, but it is also the beginning of his grace and gospel spreading all over the world."

Under the guidance of the pastor, the believers who participated in the Way of the Cross began to pray collectively:

"Lord, Jesus Christ, we died and were buried with you by baptism; you were raised from the dead by the power of the Father; make us also live a new life..."

Arthur didn't say a word, he looked back, his eyes happened to meet Abramo, and the two nodded in agreement.

Ten minutes later, the crowd left the church and embarked on the Way of the Cross under the guidance of a pastor holding a cross.Starting from St. James' Cathedral, passing the Brooklyn Bridge, and ending at St. Peter's Church on Barclay Street in lower Manhattan.Abramo led his family in the middle of the team, while Arthur followed at the end of the team, waiting for an opportunity to contact Abramo.

On the way of worship, under the leadership of the pastor, everyone should kneel down, pray, and meditate, so as to feel the sufferings of Christ that year.

All the people along the way remained silent, followed the cross and obeyed the priest's guidance.Abramo took the opportunity to slowly drag to the end of the line, parallel with Arthur.

"Lord, Christ, we adore you and praise you!" The pastor introduced, and everyone knelt down on one knee.

Arthur also knelt down, reached into his jacket pocket, took out a photo and secretly handed it to Abramo, who put the photo in his arms.Arthur whispered: "Russell said you have friends in the police station?"

"Yes."

"Ask someone to check this girl's background, it should be a missing person."

"no problem."

Arthur had handed over a picture of the little girl, which Russell had recently taken.It is said that in order to take pictures of the little girl, Russell specially bought a camera, took a lot of pictures, picked one for Arthur, and the little girl put away the rest.Arthur wants to know the identity of the little girl, but he can't make a big splash, so he needs Abramow's informant inside the police.

"Don't show the photos to anyone, and it's best not to show them to anyone. Just describe it to your friends after you see it." Arthur emphasized.

Abramo nodded, and said in his mouth: "We still don't know self-love, and we often offend and violate you. Please help us know and love you, and stay away from sin... Please have mercy on us!"

After speaking, the two stood up and continued to move forward with the team.

They were on the Brooklyn Bridge in no time, and both Arthur and Abramo tightened their clothes as the wind blew in from the Hudson.The procession walked on the footpath of the bridge while cars whizzed by.

"Lord, Christ, we adore you and praise you!" The pastor once again led the crowd to kneel on one knee, "...the soldiers brought Jesus into the governor's mansion, gathered the whole team of soldiers, surrounded Jesus, and then took off his clothes, asked him to put on a purple robe, and wove a crown of thorns for him to wear..."

After Abramo knelt down, he said to Arthur: "The person who wanted to assassinate me in East Rutherford has been found out, and he is a member of the Gandolfield family."

"Gandolfil?" Arthur was very familiar with the name, and then he thought that it was the Gandolfer family who ordered Tony to kill his father, and it was also the largest gang family in the New York area.It turned out that they were the black hands behind the scenes who provoked the people below to fight.Abramo is just a pawn of theirs. Of course, it will be killed when it is used up. It will lead to a war between the three major families and Jersey, so that they can reap the benefits.

They are very proficient in using this method.

"One of Massino and Gigandi must have taken refuge in Gandolfiel, otherwise the timing would not be so coincidental."

Arthur knew that there was a traitor among the three families.Because the three of them are relatively weak, they have always acted together as an alliance.And alliances have always been breached from within.

"What to do next?" Abramo asked, his heart was also raging with anger, and Gandolfier used him as toilet paper and threw it away after use.Thinking of Vera who died innocently, his heart ached.

"But we have forgotten the pain of others, and we have also ignored you who is carrying the heavy burden beside us. Even if we knew about it, we never helped. Please make us stop being self-centered and take care of others, just like you take care of us."

Arthur followed the crowd and recited prayers. This is the second place of the Way of the Cross, where Jesus shouldered the cross.

"Please have mercy on us!" After the recitation, Arthur got up from the ground, brushed the dust off his knees, and said to Abramo, "In this case, kill them all."

(End of this chapter)