The sound of a car coming to a halt caught her attention as she turned around. A black Suburban with dark tinted windows came into view and parked right behind her as she held her hand over her eyes to block out the sun. The window slowly rolled down, and her father’s voice hit her ears.
“Take a ride with me,” Boss ordered as the door opened in front of her.
“It’s cool,” Aphtan called out to Cole, who was running toward the truck. “It’s my father. I’ll call you later.” She got inside the car, and it drove off.
“Cole sure has grown up.” Boss fixed the cufflink to his shirt.
“I thought Cole just moved here.”
“He’s still Money’s son. His mother just took him away for a while.” He held his hand up to the driver. “Are you moving in with Scooter?”
“Who told you that?”
“I know everything.” He looked at her. “I’m not here to try to change your mind. You’ll be eighteen in a couple of days, and you can make up your own mind. I just want you to be able to protect yourself.”
“Daddy, we’re not doing that.” She turned red.
“Baby girl.” He tossed a gun in her lap. “I’m talking about life or death.”
She picked the gun up and felt it. “Why would I need this?”
“You’re about to be with a gangster, and that’s all the reason you’ll ever need.”
“We are not going to be in that life anymore.” Aphtan held the gun out for him to grab it.
“Believe me.” Boss pushed the gun away from himself and put his hand on her knee. “Sometimes it’s not about you. I run these streets, and if a nigga can’t get to me, then he will try to get to you, to get to me.”
“What are you saying?”
“You need to stay ready to keep from getting ready. I’m not telling you to live in fear.”
“I have Scooter to protect me.”
Boss laughed. “You’ll be safer if you learn how to handle a gun. You need to keep one on you at all times.”
“I understand.” Aphtan looked out the window. “Where are we going?”
“The shooting range,” Boss answered dryly. “You need to practice.”
“Right now?” Aphtan sat back in the seat.
“There’s no time like the present.”
The chill of the gun ran through Aphtan’s hand with an intensity she’d never known before. She felt one with the gun. It was as if she was meant to hold it; meant to shoot it. It felt like home to her, and she’d never felt safer.
She pointed the gun out in front of her as best she could, being confined to a backseat. Learning how to use it, she was okay with. It was the using it part that she had a problem with. She dreaded the day she would have to use it. Knowing her life, it would be sooner than she anticipated.
PHASE THREE
ADULTHOOD
CHAPTER 17
“Keep your eyes closed, baby.” Scooter covered Aphtan’s eyes with his hand as they walked through a door.
“What do you have planned?” Aphtan tried to remove his hands from in front of her eyes.
“You’ll see.” He pulled his hands away from her eyes.
“Happy anniversary!” the room shouted as they clapped and cheered.
Aphtan smiled as her eyes scanned the room and she saw all of her friends. “I love you.” She turned around and kissed his lips.
“I love you more.” He held her as tight as he could. “Happy fifth anniversary.”
“Happy fifth anniversary.” She kissed his chest through his tuxedo as her girlfriends surrounded them.
“We’ll bring her back,” Mila called out as she pulled Aphtan by the arm in the opposite direction.
“Y’all have fun.” Scooter waved her off as Levi approached him.
“You sure have molded her into a goddess.” Levi admired Aphtan’s beauty from afar. “Who would have thought the last six years would be so good to her.”
“I did.” Scooter grabbed a drink from a silver tray as the girl holding it passed by. “That’s why I married her.”
“Smart decision.” Levi hit his glass against Scooter’s. “Happy anniversary, cousin.”
“Thank you.” He sipped from the glass as Aphtan’s eyes locked on him. “I love you,” he mouthed to her.
“I love you back,” she mouthed.
Aphtan played with the tennis bracelet around her wrist and began walking through the crowd. She knew once she sat down, all eyes would turn to her. They always did. Then they would look away again, pretending they didn’t see her. People in their circle were like this. They always wanted to make themselves look as good as they could. It was all about dresses and gentlemen, or the horse racing and women. They didn’t stop to look at the world, and she resented them for it.
Her shoes made tiny clicking noises as she took the last few steps. As predicted, every face immediately turned to her as she sat down. She could see her own face reflected in the eyes closest. Then they hastily looked away again, gossiping, laughing, and dancing.
All the women were shallow, and all that the men were interested in were the other women. Not that she wanted their attention. Even though she loathed them all, she saw every opportunity for photographs. She tossed her short hair in a nonexistent breeze, mouth pouting slightly as she talked to her girls. Women waltzed with their men; couples stared into each other’s eyes so intensely they almost melted. The dark ballroom glowed with elegant candlelight, dark enough to hide anyone’s flaws. It was the perfect scene.
Aphtan couldn’t stop smiling as she thought about the last six years. Life had been perfect and peaceful. With the exception of her mother still being missing, everything else was blissful. She couldn’t have asked for a better life.
She tugged at the Alexander McQueen dress as she crossed her legs and rubbed her belly softly. She was late, and giving Scooter his first child would be the cherry on top of their happy lives.
Eyeing the room one last time, Aphtan looked for her father’s face. She saw him in spells and was hoping he would be in attendance. Seeing as he hadn’t attended her wedding, it didn’t surprise her at all that he wasn’t there.
“Aphtan.” Mila snapped her fingers in her face. “Do you hear me talking to you?”
“Yes, girl.” Aphtan looked at her. “I hear you. Who’s watching my godbaby, heifer?”
“My mama.” Mila rubbed on her breast. “Girl, if I would have known breast-feeding would hurt this bad, his little ass would have started on formula.”
“Leave auntie’s baby alone.” Aphtan pushed her playfully.
“Well, auntie needs to come get her baby when his ass cries at night.” Mila rolled her eyes. “If Levi thinks I’m popping any more out anytime soon, he’s as crazy as he looks.”
“Hopefully, I’m the next to push one out.” Aphtan smiled, making the small dimple in her cheek show. “I’m late.”
“How late?” one of the women at the table asked.
“A month.” Aphtan smiled as the women all gasped in excitement. “I don’t want to get Scooter’s hopes up again.”
“Go to the doctor,” Mila suggested.
“The appointment is tomorrow.” Aphtan looked down at her platinum wedding ring with a diamond the size of a large hailstone. “I want to give him a baby.”
“You’re pregnant.” Mila reached in to give her a hug. “These weird cravings that I’ve been having belong to you.”
“Let’s hope so.” The sound of someone hitting a microphone caught their attention.
“I would like to make a toast to my beautiful wife, who has made the last six years of my life the best years of my life.” Scooter held up a champagne glass as he talked into the microphone. “Would y’all please help me get my beautiful wife up here?”
Aphtan’s dress cascaded flawlessly as she stood up. The dress kissed the shiny, pearl-white floor as she walked to the center of the room to stand next to her husband. The lights shined elegantly on her as the chandeliers seemed to brighten mor
e as she passed underneath them. Her short black pixie cut sat beautifully in place as the red-bottomed heels on her feet thudded against the floor.
“I love you so much.” Scooter pulled a box from the inside pocket of his blazer. “I couldn’t have asked for a better wife. Happy anniversary.” He kissed her passionately before handing her the black jewelry box.
Aphtan smiled as she held the jewelry box up to the crowd. They all looked on as she opened it, the big smile plastered on her face changing into a look of confusion as a necklace with a small locket stared at her. She took the necklace out of the box before throwing it to the ground. She turned the locket around to see if it had her great grandmother’s initials engraved in it—and it did.
Her forehead crinkled in confusion. She looked bewildered and wide-eyed, and really didn’t look like she knew where she was or what she was doing. She kept looking around, and her eyes kept darting back and forth very fast. She looked like she didn’t trust anyone there.
“Where did you get this from?” She turned to look at Scooter as she held up the necklace.
“What?” he asked, the claps, cheers, and music making it hard for him to hear her.
Aphtan grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the large glass door to go outside. The cool air attacked their skin as the ushers held the door open for them. She waited for the doors to close before she continued with her rant.
“Where did you get this necklace?” She held it up again in his face.
“I don’t remember.” He scratched his head as he tried to think. “It was in my safe, baby. Why?”
“It belonged to my fucking mother.” She bit her lip and walked off.
Scooter stood frozen as that night came to him and knocked the wind out of his stomach. Small beads of sweat formed on his forehead as he tried to speak, but nothing would come out. His legs wouldn’t allow him to move. The only thing he could do at that moment was tell Aphtan the truth. He prayed it wouldn’t end them.
“This shit isn’t adding up.” She paced back and forth in front of him. “My mama is missing, and all of a sudden you have the one thing that she always wore.”
“Aphtan,” he called out, but it fell on deaf ears.
“You have to remember something.” She continued to pace back and forth.
“Aphtan,”—he grabbed her to make her stop walking—“she’s dead.”
Aphtan never felt a pain so strong, so demanding in her life. Every pore in her skin dripped a little bit of sweat as she tried to register what Scooter had just told her. She didn’t know how to react to it. It was too much to deal with. She felt like Bambi in that moment, and he was the hunter that took her mother’s life.
She told herself to move, but her body wouldn’t listen to her commands. She was in a world of hurt, and her emotions were at an all-time high. She touched her throat to make sure she could feel a pulse as she caught her breath that she wasn’t even losing. She was seeing things, hearing things, and everything around her started to spin.
She was going to fall at any moment. She caught her balance as her heart fluttered when she thought about life without her mother. She had concluded she was dead a long time ago. Speculation and the truth were two very different things, and now that it was confirmed, she had to feel the pain behind that truth. There was no escaping it.
The tears flowed effortlessly. She stood still, hunched over as the tears ran down her face like rain falling onto the window of a parked car. She didn’t want to wipe them. They were a testament to how much she loved her mother. They were falling, each one a piece of her heart leaving her body.
“How did it happen?” Aphtan asked between sobs.
“It was before we moved in together.” Scooter talked with his hands. “She came to my crib for some rock, and she tried to attack me. I didn’t know it was your mother. Had I known, I wouldn’t have pulled the trigger.”
“Oh, my God.” She tilted her head back as she kneeled down slowly. “Oh, my God.”
“Aphtan?” He put his hand on her shoulder.
“Get the fuck off of me,” she screamed. “I can’t believe you let me spend the last six years searching for her, and you knew she was dead.”
“I’m sorry,” he said honestly. “I didn’t know it was your mother, baby.”
“Did my father know?” She rocked back and forth.
“Yes.”
“Go get my fucking car,” Aphtan screamed at the valet who was watching from the front of the street.
“Where are you going? The party is still going on.”
“I don’t give a fuck about this party.” Her hands began to shake. “It’s best that I get away from you right now before I do something I’ll regret.” She walked toward the street to wait for her car. “Do not follow me, Christopher.”
Aphtan snatched the keys from the valet before getting inside of the ruby-red Mercedes. She took her heels off and tossed them in the backseat. She put the car in drive, smashed her foot against the gas pedal, and sped off as fast as the engine would allow her. She didn’t know where she was going, but she had to be alone. She needed to mourn.
CHAPTER 18
The four gentlemen that were dressed warmly instantly took off their coats when they entered the cozy restaurant. The air smelled of pepper, and the hostess glared at them as if they were the reason why she had to be there. One man arched a brow and smiled at his brother beside him. His brother was not paying attention, but he did snort at the hostess’s rude behavior. The third man did not really care about his surroundings, because he was debating with himself. He tended to look angry when he was thinking.
“You are upsetting the waitress,” Money said. His eyes were extremely brown, like honey resting in a jar. But the third man did not hear him. Instead, his face became darker.
“I’m sorry, Pop.” Scooter sat down at the table. “I got a lot of shit on my mind.”
“Hey, what do you want?” the waitress said defensively.
“Well, aren’t we unhappy today? Four scotches,” Danny ordered.
Danny was six-foot-eight in height, with a neat fade, dark skin, and dark brown eyes. He had a scar from his left pectoral to the right of his hip, which some people said he received from the streets, yet his abdominal muscles were gained through manual labor. He had a slight five o’clock shadow, visible but not overgrown. On his right shoulder there was inscribed a tribal wolf tattoo, perhaps a hint at his true identity.
“I don’t drink no fucking scotch,” Buggy interjected.
Buggy had blue eyes, the color of a shallow pond in the middle of the day, that rested above his curved nose. A smile stretched across his face, his perfect white teeth almost shining against his pale pink lips. His slightest bit of stubble matched his dark chocolate, barely waved hair that grazed his forehead ever so slightly. His black shirt, unbuttoned at the top, contrasted his fair skin, making him stand out, which made tearing your eyes away difficult.
“Three scotches and a beer,” Danny corrected his order.
Money waited until the waitress left and said, “So, is it time yet?”
“I don’t think so.” Scooter shook his head. “Aphtan and I are already going through enough bullshit.” He looked down at his phone. “The last thing we need is her father coming up dead. She doesn’t even know I’m back in the game.”
Money sat up in the chair. “Son, this isn’t about your marriage woes. This is business. You know some of the decisions you have to make when you’re in this business.”
Danny pulled a cigar out of his blazer pocket. “Nonetheless, Boss isn’t an easy man to get to. After he did that bid, his security got airtight.”
“That’s true,” Buggy agreed. “We worked for the nigga in the beginning. We know how he operates.”
“He’s touchable.” Money looked around the table. “Trust me, he can be touched. Anyone can.”
The table grew silent as the waitress set the three oval glasses and the beer in front of them. They ordered food and drinks for
the future before the waitress took the menus and left. They all sat for a moment, to let what Money said marinate.
Scooter felt uneasy as he took a sip of the dry scotch. Aphtan wasn’t answering his calls, and it had been well over three days since the night of the party. No one had seen or heard from her. His first priority was fixing his marriage, and plotting Boss’s death wouldn’t help his case any.
“Scooter can get to him,” Money tossed the idea out there.
“I’m not doing it.” Scooter set his glass down. “I’m not killing that man, Pop.”
“I agree with you, Money.” Buggy sipped from the cold beer. “Scooter is the only one who can get to Boss.”
“Boss doesn’t trust Scooter.” Danny dipped his cigar in of his drink. “I know that for a fact.”
“Exactly.” Scooter took the scotch to the head and waved for the waitress to bring him another one. “I can’t get any closer to Boss than anyone here.”
“Scooter,”—Money held the oval glass firmly in his hand—“I’m not asking you to do shit.”
“You’re not telling me, either.” The waitress set another glass in front of Scooter and left with the empty one. “I’m not a kid anymore, Pop. If I don’t want to do something, I don’t have to dance around it. I’m just going to tell you no.”
“Is that so.” Money laughed. “Son, your nuts will never be bigger than mine.”
“Listen.” Danny stopped the argument that was about to happen. “If there’s any other options, let’s go over them.”
“I don’t trust you two yet.” Buggy pointed at Money and Scooter simultaneously. “If you want me on board, one hundred percent, Scooter has to kill Boss. I want to know you two are loyal.”
“Y’all niggas can’t hear or something?” Scooter stood up. “I don’t give a fuck what you want, Buggy. I don’t trust anybody at this table. Either we’re going to handle this business or not.”
Scooter’s face was beyond just red as he threw the oval glass as hard as he could. He was turning different shades of crimson and even a tinge purple, while a sort of an unearthly, demonic look over came him. His breathing became strange, sort of ragged. The men around the table noticed as he tried in vain to control himself, but his anger still sparked through the air, giving them a cold jolt of fear.
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