The Tragic Flaw (29 page)

Q: Is Cicero a completely made-up character, or is he based on someone you know?

A:
He's a combination of people, but there are many elements of his character that are completely fictionalized. He's a combination of a few people I know and grew up with in Kansas City. None of them, though, are that heartless (I don't think.) He's also kind of a symbol that some hip-hop artists “claim” to be: the smooth gangster. But he's educated, too. I think that makes him even more sinister. He had other options, other opportunities, but he still chose to be a cutthroat.

 

Q: Why is Cicero biracial? Does the racial mix bring something to his character? And why Black and Italian?

A:
That goes back to the whole mafia, gangster appeal. We often see movies like
The Godfather
or shows like
The Sopranos,
and we see an “Italian” image of gangsters. There's obviously some truth to that, but it's also a stereotype. Real gangsters come in all forms: Jewish, Chinese, Black, Irish, Latino. You name it. But then you bring in guys nowadays who try to emulate that “gangster” image, and they get it wrong somewhere. They're sloppy. They look like criminals. They're not smooth. I think the character of Cicero is the best of both worlds. He brings the two worlds together, so to speak.

 

Q: Cicero wears designer clothes and alligator boots, and drives a vehicle that cost $100K. Why does he drink out of a red plastic cup?

A:
[
Laughs
] Well, you have to realize, where Cicero grew up is the inner city, not the suburbs or the rich part of town. Carrying around a red plastic cup is pretty standard for a real drinker. Plus, I think that adds to the irony. He'll have a hundred-dollar drink in a ten-cent cup.

 

Q: People tend to believe that people who are void of emotion, morals, and empathy have some dark thing that happened in their childhood that contributes to this. You wrote of one incident where Antonio nearly beat a man to death, which Cicero witnessed. How much, if any, did this event contribute to Cicero not having a conscience?

A:
I see this event, in and of itself, as being monumental to Cicero as a child. Before this, C is a good kid, although he is mischievous as well (as noted by the items hidden under is mattress). He is also obviously born with a few mental defects, which I mention briefly as being a personality disorder and being anti-social. In other words, I think this event kind of gives Cicero the “green light” to be bad and to have no guilt about it.

 

Q: Cicero is an educated man, holding master's and bachelor's degrees. With all of this education, shouldn't he have come in contact with moral lessons in life? Aren't our universities charged with producing well-rounded, as well as well-educated, people?

A:
When I initially wrote TTF, the plan was to make this part three in a four-part series. The next one I wanted to write was going to be C's childhood, probably from grades seven to nine or ten. After that, the next novel would have been his college years. And this still may come to fruition. To answer the question more accurately, Cicero definitely learns a lot of lessons in college, but he ultimately learns how to better control people, a Machiavellian education, if you will.

 

Q: Most villainous characters in novels are bad from page one, helping the reader to identify them and dislike them immediately. Cicero's character starts out being almost likeable, then, page by page he changes. With the strong religious influence of his mother, the reader feels he will find the correct path. Were there signs, real, imagined, or implied or suppressed memories that the reader doesn't see coming to the surface that doom this character?

A:
I tried to sprinkle in a few hints that he needed to change his ways or risk suffering the consequences. Obviously his mother played that role. Olivia played that part to some extent. The woman on this flight to New Orleans. And definitely his dreams and his mother's dreams. So yes, Cicero has plenty of opportunities to change his ways.

 

Q: Lacking in morals, Cicero is true to his friends as they are to him. This bond seems to be more than “honor among thieves;” would you explain this?

A:
C is definitely someone who values loyalty. For example, once he learned of Brad's deceit, that was it. No second chances. Kam is loyal to the end, and even in the second-to-last chapter, Cicero is frantically calling him, trying to reach him. There is definitely honor among thieves, and with that comes a level of respect from other characters who briefly appear (during the club fight scene, for instance).

 

Q: Cicero's mother prays for him. Do you believe in the power of prayer?

A:
Yea, I believe prayer can change things. But I also think the person being prayed for has to want change, or at least make some type of effort to change their ways. We get none of that from Cicero. He's consistent in that way. Even when he is facing a loaded gun, he doesn't flinch. But as we see, his unwillingness to change is his undoing.

 

Q: What makes
The Tragic Flaw
different from other crime novels?

A:
I tried to add different elements that your typical crime or street novel might not have. Elements of religion and the supernatural, almost science fiction elements. That and the educational background of the characters. Almost all of them went to college, except maybe Lana and Lucia. Not sure it's all that different from other books. I just tried to give the subject matter my take, my spin, if you will.

 

Q: The obvious moral to
TTF
is wrongdoing will be punished. Is there a deeper message?

A:
Not really [
laughs
]. I think that sums it up. I think we live in a culture that says “live fast and die young.” You know, “eat, drink, and be merry.” But at the same time, I think there are consequences for those actions and we have to be prepared for that as well.

 

Q: All of the characters in
TTF
are interesting in their alliances. Will there be more novels to explain in depth, for example, Olivia's devotion to Cicero, in spite of her instincts that he really doesn't care about her?

A:
Yea, as I mentioned earlier, the plan was to show Cicero in college, mostly grad school at this point, when he meets Olivia. C actually thinks Olivia is beautiful (there are hints of this throughout
TTF)
, and his initial thoughts of her are those of attraction. I'm still toying with the idea of a setting, which college campus where they meet. Could be in Louisiana, could be Atlanta, or maybe D.C.

 

Q: Kansas City is allegedly a mafia town; have you ever experienced or heard of any “Family feuds”? What is your knowledge of the mafia based on? And why use Kansas City, as opposed to Chicago or New York, as the backdrop of your novel?

A:
I was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, and when I was growing up, you would hear all kinds of stories about mafia violence, families battling, real stuff, real violence, shootings, bombings. A lot of it occurred in the '70s in the River Market area, just north of downtown, and even earlier. You would hear these stories a lot. As I got older, I actually met a few people with “family” connections. My father went to a Catholic High School and he had a lot of friends who were Italian, so there were all these stories that would float about in my family. I could drop a few names, but I won't do that. Many people I've come across have seen murders, have helped the mob dump bodies (and that was their sole function). At one point my aunt dated a known mafia hitman, unbeknownst to her, of course. And it's not like the movies, at least not in Kansas City, which may have been unique. People of all races played their part. It wasn't just an Italian thing. Blacks, Irish, all types were involved. Even all the way back to Tom Pendergast in the '20s and '30s, Kansas City was known to have mafia activity. Yea, it was
real
deep in those days. None of this really comes out in
TTF
because C is really an outsider, for all intents and purposes. There was a scene involving Cicero's father where I mentioned a “family” name in the book. A connection of mine in Kansas City read that and suggested that I remove the name, for my own benefit [
laughs
], which I did. But there's definitely the chance that any one of these guys from Kansas City's past could be the subject of a future project. I've also been approached by that same Kansas City connection to write about some real events that took place in his family, which would be an amazing story. But I think we'll have to wait and see. There's a lot of possibilities.

 

Q: Cicero thinks Olivia's plot in life is unfortunate and not deserved. Yet his feelings for her are “matter of fact”-like. Is there a reason why his attitude toward her is that of a hired “ninja,” making light of her situation?

A:
This is a subject that I didn't want to take lightly in the book. To me Olivia is the most human character in
TTF
(Her life may be the subject of my next book.) I initially wrote this piece with some ignorance of AIDS and HIV, but that ignorance works well in Cicero, I think, which is key. He involves her in these trysts because it's some “sick shit” to do. And that makes sense coming from a character like him. In the big picture though, I would like for this to generate more dialogue about preventing disease and living healthier lifestyles in the black community. There's WAY more that can be done, especially for the younger generation coming up now.

Che Parker has worked as a crime and politics reporter and staff writer covering national health care issues and Capitol Hill hearings. He is currently a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University. He works in public relations and lives in Alexandria, Virginia. Visit the author at www.cheparker.com or email [email protected]