High Price

watched as Run’s performance captivated Amanda, a girl I’d once dated. I thought, Hmm, maybe there is something to this rap thing, maybe this guy has some talent, maybe this stuff could impress girls. It was hard to believe, but there I was watching her watching them in their black hats and jeans. Run seemed to have her starstruck. Still, the turnout soured the deal for my brothers-in-law, who nixed any future collaborations because they hadn’t made much money.
    A few years later, in 1986, when I was in the air force in England, I paid to see Run-DMC when they toured Great Britain for the release of their album Raising Hell . It started getting major airplay all over the world. And when I returned home the following year while on leave, I found that rap had blown up. Every party, every night, you’d hear LL Cool J’s second album and Run-DMC, everywhere.
    I saw Run-DMC in interviews telling kids to say no to drugs and staying in school. I had to laugh, remembering those brothers smoking weed with my friends behind Washington Park Gym. But it would still take some time before I could consistently distinguish between truth and bullshit about drugs.

CHAPTER 7
    Choices and Chances
    Chance favors only the prepared mind.
    — LOUIS PASTEUR
    I caught this fucker stealing,” the overweight white guy told his boss as I vehemently denied doing any such thing. I was at a garage/auto supply store. I had already taken four car batteries and loaded them into Derrick Abel’s car when I was seen trying to take one last battery toward the door. Realizing that I’d been spotted, I turned around and told the disheveled-looking mechanic that I had a question about this particular battery, hoping he’d think I intended to buy it. The young man responded that he needed to get his manager to answer my question. Then he’d led me to his supervisor, springing the trap on me. He tried to grab me and I knew I had to get out of there, fast. I dropped the battery and bounced.
    As I sprinted away, Derrick had already rolled out ahead of me. He knew that the out-of-shape store employee had no chance of catching me so he didn’t want to risk slowing down to pick me up. Seeing no better exit, I scaled the fence that surrounded the parking lot. I was on Hallandale Beach Boulevard just outside of Carver Ranches, an area that was a mix of small businesses and homes. The employee—whose belly was hanging over his belt—took off after me.
    But I was an athlete, in peak condition. I raced through the next yard. I knew that getting caught could ruin my life. It would almost certainly get me kicked off the basketball team, even if I wasn’t convicted or locked up. The guy continued to follow, trying to catch up. He ran as hard as he could, but he was puffing with effort from unexpected exertion.
    The next yard I jumped into, I realized belatedly, had several vicious dogs in it. Their loud barking made my heart only pound faster. I could see their eager eyes and menacing mouths. Trying to keep myself calm, I looked for the best way out. Racing across the grass and barely dodging clotheslines and palm trees, I managed to climb the next fence. The dogs were closer to me than the man was, but neither of them was going to be able to catch up as I shimmied up the fence.
    My hands were getting scraped but I felt nothing. The hounds continued loudly snarling as I made my way toward Twenty-Fifth Street. The guy from the shop was now nowhere to be seen. I had lost him at the first fence. But I was sure that a call to the police had been made by then. I wasn’t sure if they were for me, but I could hear sirens in the distance. They seemed to be getting louder so I kept running. Inside, I was laughing at the fat man, but I knew that if I did get arrested, the consequences could be serious.
    Soon, however, I caught a break. My friend Reggie Moore, whom we called Tudy, happened to be driving by and saw me racing down the sidewalk. I flagged him down. I was dripping with sweat. He stopped just long enough to let me in to his ’72 white Buick Skylark and rapidly drove off. As we got farther away, I began to relax and my heartbeat slowed to a more normal pace. I laughed as I realized how lucky I’d been and eased down in the front seat. I shuddered at the chain of coincidences that had made my escape possible. I don’t know if I’d ever been happier in my life to see someone.
    During my last two years of high school, I’d become increasingly involved