by London Starr
“I didn’t know where you were, King. What good would it have done if I did? You were doing a ten-year bid because of me. If you keep going the way you are, you’ll be doing life in jail or hell. Anjuwan doesn’t deserve to have to visit her father for the first time and every time afterwards in a goddamn prison, or a grave when you can get a job like everybody else and be free to help me co-parent.” Hopefully, he will not want to help me do anything concerning our daughter because there is no way in hell he will be able to look at me after this without wanting to hurt me back for it, and he can in every way because I still love this man.
“She won’t visit me in jail or hell, because I’m not going to either one. You’re going to take me to her in the morning, and you’re not leaving my side until you damn do.”
I consider that maybe he will be like most fathers that I know of and will disappear as soon as he realizes Anjuwan is real live flesh and blood, and his. I secretly hope that he does not though and chooses Anjuwan over his kingpin lifestyle because she deserves Calen in her life, even if I do not. I can always find some other place to be when he comes to visit.
“Will you leave me alone after that?” I ask softly. Calen’s presence is what I want to be in even though King made it his business to force me into the Blue Kings; but Calen is who I want, and I am convinced that I will never see that side of this man again. I cannot accept the man in front of me now; he is too volatile and unpredictable.
King jumps to his feet a lot faster than a man his size should be able to. My first instinct is to run, but I stand my ground again until he stands over me again while shoving Anjuwan’s picture in his front pocket.
“I’ll never leave you alone, Ajoni!” he sneers. “You’re mine and you’ll stay mine, so will Anjuwan!” Oddly, I do not have a problem with that when I should, and it boggles my damn mind. I begin to struggle with holding on to my own conviction that King is just a moment in time that will be gone permanently from my life in a matter of a few years; the lifespan of a kingpin.
“I was never yours, King. Putting me in the position to have to sleep with you doesn’t make me yours. Taking what you want from me and manipulating me for the rest isn’t the right way to get what you want.”
“Then how else do I get it,” he asks belligerently.
“By earning it, King. You put in the same amount of effort and thought as you would if you were handling a dope deal and figuring out how to keep the cops from finding out about it. You spend time and get to know me while I get to know you, and then we both decide if we want to continue to get to know the other and respect the other’s decision if one of us doesn’t. It’s called dating and deserves just as much respect as you give the streets and your goddamn oaths to the Blue Kings. What happened to us eight years ago happened because you didn’t respect my wishes to not be with you, and you wrote the fucked up beginning of our story the minute you decided I would be your queen when I didn’t want you like that, so don’t give me all the blame because you missed out on Anjuwan’s life. You chose the way you would live yours, and I have the same right, whether you choose to respect that or not.”
His chest heaves like he is trying to breathe in fire. “You could’ve found me the same way Raw found you, Ajoni. Larkin should’ve changed your identity. He left you and my daughter at risk when he didn’t.”
“I’m not tripping about what Larkin didn’t do, and you shouldn’t either. I wasn’t trying to hide from anyone. I just took the chance to get out of Mecca and get my mother some help while it was available, and knew you’d come looking for me some day. That day just came a lot sooner than I thought it would.” Two years and one day too soon.
“So you weren’t trying to hide Anjuwan from me?”
I shake my head vigorously. “No, I planned to tell you both about each other one day, and believe me when I say I feel guilty about not telling either of you before now, but I wanted her to have a childhood before life got messy for her. You both deserve to know who her father is. I just was in no hurry to expose her to the side of you that has no respect while demanding respect and lays bodies down whenever he feels like it.”
More rage fills King’s face. The black Camaro that was here when we arrived takes a hard left into King’s driveway and brakes hard behind the Escalade.
Raw hops out of the car as if his ass is on fire and runs to King’s side. “What the hell is up now, King? You look like you want to kill somebody. Why are you mean-mugging Ajoni like that?” But King does not respond to anything Raw asks, or takes his eyes off of me worrying about dealing with not one but two Blue Kings.
This day is just getting worse and worse.
Raw’s nose scrunches up before his head starts to swing from side to side. “What the hell is that smell? What the fuck happened while I was gone for fifteen whole minutes?”
“That bitch maced us,” Lea says suddenly from the front porch behind me, “and she just told King that she had his baby while he was in prison… but I knew she had a child years ago.”
CHAPTER NinE
King
“Bitch, is your trifling ass still here and talking too?” I ask Lea without looking away from Ajoni. I could not have looked away if Raw did her the favor of turning my head with his hands. I want to dead her right where she stands, but I cannot move or hurt her even though she cost me eight years of my life and cut me out of the first years of my daughter’s. It does not take a rocket scientist to see that she wants it to stay that way. I thought nothing could be worse than being a snitch or feel worse than being locked away from the only woman I want because she was the one to help put my ass away, but I could not have been more wrong. Keeping my own flesh and blood from me is the bottom of the barrel.
Now, I truly know what it feels like to have the bottom of my world fall from beneath me and my heart break because I had a child that I know absolutely nothing about with the woman I would kill everyone for.
This is one fucked up way to find out that you really do have a heart, and I will not feel better about how I found out until somebody is deceased.
Luckily for Ajoni, Hankin still needs to be fitted for a toe tag and my daughter needs a mother. I do not bother demanding a DNA test. I can see the truth and fear of me in Ajoni’s eyes, and only me in Anjuwan’s. Besides, Anjuwan’s birth date will tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth. If Ajoni mentions any other month before August or after, well, let’s just say Ajoni will have some explaining to do and she will not leave Mecca until I am satisfied with her answer. But if I ever get proof that she has slept with another man after me, I will not ever be satisfied. Then Lea’s words sink in; she knew about Anjuwan already and did not tell me.
Everyone’s head seems to turn at the same time to Lea standing on the porch with Nina leaning against her, with her eyes shot and red around the sockets; the mace made her eyes slam shut when Ajoni hit her with it.
At this moment, I wish Ajoni had some mace left in her canister to hit Lea in the mouth. Maybe it will make her lips slam shut. Every time they open, she digs a deeper hole for herself, and if she keeps talking, I am going to bury her ass in that hole.
“Lea, are you saying you knew this whole time that Ajoni had a baby and you didn’t think I needed to know this while I was locked up?” I ask softly-I am too mad and do not have enough air in my lungs to talk any louder.
She cocks her head, shrugs her shoulders, and begins walking down the steps of the house while holding Nina up and grinning. The bitch was enjoying trying me; has enough nerve to do it with a smile on her face.
“Yeah I knew she had a baby, but that didn’t mean it was yours, King. Ajoni’s daddy has loose lips when he’s high. He came to one of our parties here about three years ago and was bragging about how smart his granddaughter is, and that she’s just like her mama. I assumed Ajoni had just had the baby then, and let it go.”
My temper gets the best of me. I charge at her and Nina for the second time today. “It didn’t matter when or who Ajo
ni had the baby with! You knew I’d want to know, Lea!”
When I get within a few feet of her, my hand reaches out for her neck on its own. She pushes Nina toward me. Nina wobbles, then stretches her hand out in front of her to catch her balance and keep from crashing into me. I swerve around Nina towards Lea, who is still backing away as fast as her heels will let her. I walk her down, and as soon as my outstretched hand gets close to Lea’s neck, Raw’s hand appears beside mine and knocks it down. He then grabs me by the shoulders, and begins pulling me backwards. Nina and Lea both move backward in opposite directions before stopping in front of the staircase of the house.
“King, this salty bitch is not worth it!” Raw yells in my ear. “Can’t you see that she’s jealous of Ajoni? And now ain’t the time to do something in front of Ajoni that your ass will regret later!”
I decide to listen to him because he is right. Lea would not keep coming for Ajoni, trying to make Ajoni look bad in front of me, unless Lea felt some type of way about Ajoni and knows I do too.
Right now, Ajoni does not need help to look bad. She is accomplishing it all by herself every time her mouth opens. If I do not chill the hell out, I will look even worse in Ajoni’s eyes, and she can use that to keep me away from my daughter. I do not want Anjuwan to continue to grow up like I did, fatherless.
I stop struggling in Raw’s grip on my shirt, for once thinking about my actions before I let loose on a motherfucker. He lets me go, but stands by ready to snatch my ass back again. I straighten up my white Tommy Hilfiger shirt and Figaro chain with a huge crown on it, except fixing my clothes and jewelry does not help with my temper, but I will be civil to Lea while in front of Ajoni even if it kills me.
“Lea, tell me you didn’t think I’d come back to your trifling ass after I got out. I was never your old man, and men don’t go back to jump offs unless it is for their head game and cockpit. And I told you when I got out that you’d have to find somewhere else to live but you could use my shit and take care of it for however long I was locked up. We both know you didn’t take care of anything after moving into my house, and moving Nina’s ass in it without checking with me first, and destroying my damn truck. Now, I think I’ve showed my appreciation for what you keep calling holding me down by giving you the ten grand I promised you when I got out, cause bitch you really don’t deserve it. And I’m sure you’ve found the money in your shit sitting by the door. Now get gone, Lea.”
“King, ten grand and a truck ain’t gon’ hold me and Nina down until I can hit up one of my sugar daddies to finance us another crib,” she whines and reverses even further out of neck-grabbing range.
“Downgrade and move in with your moms or get a damn job then, because I won’t be financing nothing else for you or Nina,” I say through gritted teeth.
“So you’re not going to give me some more money, King?” she screams across the yard.
“Raw, if you don’t get this bitch and her parasite away from here, I’m going to do it myself.” And nothing will stop me.
He walks over to Nina and grabs her gently by the shoulders, to guide her between Lea and me to the Escalade. While he opens the door then helps her inside, Lea stands right where she is, shifting her weight from one foot to the other in black, thick heels. They look nowhere near as good on her as Ajoni’s stiletto boots do. Even as furious as I am with Ajoni, I imagine sticking her while she is wearing nothing but them, and have the erection pushing at my jeans to prove it. I just do not know if I can bring myself to touch her without wringing her neck for keeping my daughter a secret.
I don’t know if I can ever forgive her for that either, and need to deal with one problem at a time. Lea is not moving from her spot on my driveway, and I hope this bitch will try to extort me for more money just so I have an excuse to take out the hard feelings that I have about Ajoni’s disloyalty on her. Putting my hands on Ajoni will not and cannot happen, especially not when she has a part of me hid somewhere in this world with Seeri on guard duty, but I need an outlet for my anger, and Lea’s trifling ass will do just fine.
Raw approaches Lea from behind, intending to do the same for her as he just did for Nina. When his hands touch her shoulders, she swats them off, turns on him, and screams, “I’m not going anywhere until I get what I want from King!”
“Wrong again, bitch!” Raw yells right back and grips her shoulders again, tight enough to make her holler and ball up on herself while trying to pry his fingers off. He propels her backwards, and damn near carries her toward the front end of the truck while she is kicking and screaming at him.
Ajoni snickers under her breath, enjoying Raw manhandling Lea into the driver’s side of the Escalade, and drawing my full attention. I am surprised she’s not angry about him manhandling a woman, and watch her pale skin absorb the sunlight and flush after a cool breeze blows between us, making the tails of her coat spread apart and blow behind her. I get a glimpse of the tight skirt matching her boots and her long legs that seem to go on for miles. It would be so easy to take advantage of the easy access to her cockpit and drill into her, taking out some of my frustration with her on her. I am not sure if that will make me feel better though, but I am damn sure willing to find out. Then she feels my eyes on her and looks at me. Her smile fades as she swallows deeply, the fear coming back into her eyes. The hand holding her purse reaches up, then falls back down to her side.
“King—” she starts.
“Save it, Ajoni, until we get to a hotel,” I interrupt her before she can say something else and finish pissing me off. It is bad enough that I cannot trust her, but she will not want to stay here for the night or do it quietly since Lea and Nina have lived here. Neither one of us will get any rest. Although I caught a whiff of Ajoni’s jealousy and almost shocked that she has that level of emotion for me, I am in a foul mood that trumps any level of emotion that she has. If it gets any fouler, I will make her stay here with no furniture just for the hell of it.
I turn away from her before I indulge the childish urge to make her pay for everything she has done to me by making her feel worse than I do right now.
“Wait a minute,” she yells behind me, “A hotel? I’m going home!”
I spin around on the heels of my Timberlands to face her again. “You’re going wherever I say you go, Ajoni. Or did you not hear me when I said you’re not getting out of my damn sight until I see my daughter tomorrow? Do you think I’m playing with you?”
She exhales and drops her fists on her hips, getting ready to push back. I expect nothing less of her, would be disappointed if she did not stick up for herself, but now is not the time to be herself.
“Do you really want to test me right now?” I whisper.
She lifts a finger in the air. “One night King, and that’s it or you’re going to have to do whatever you have to do to me because I’m going home tomorrow… and I’m staying there.”
“We’ll see about that,” I murmur before I turn to walk toward the house again, pulling the Suburban’s keys out of my pocket. I push the button for the alarm, turn it off, and ignore my needs to keep her with me for forever. It seems that will never change, but she will not make it to tomorrow if I keep looking at her.
When the Suburban’s alarm chirps, I look back over my shoulder in time to see Lea pull off in the Escalade and veer off course, driving across the driveway instead of around it. The truck goes over the circle of dead grass that has not been maintained, is surrounded by the driveway, and has a ceramic angel fountain in the middle of it. Raw jumps back out the way of the truck, or it would have drove over him too, but the angel stands no chance against the front steel grill guard on the Escalade.
Lea leaves the statue in pieces and a trail of tire tracks behind as she crosses the concrete driveway and swerves onto the main road. I shake my head and continue on into the house while Raw grips the sides of his head with his hands and stares after the truck speeding away. I cannot be concerned right now about the damage Lea is still doing to my house bec
ause I know this is not the last time that I will see her. A bitch scorned is a bitch that will return to wreak havoc sooner or later. I am going to have to stop that shit in its tracks the only way I know how.
“Raw, make sure Ajoni’s ass gets in my truck while I lock the house down,” I order as I climb the front steps then vanish into the living room before going up the stairs.
At the top of them is a floating veranda with mahogany railing and an unobstructed view into four of the bedrooms that also overlook the living room. I know the technical names for this shit because a real estate agent spouted them off to me as selling points. I could not care less about the two round foyers on each end of the veranda that are outside of each master bedroom with personal balconies on the east and west side of the house, but I knew a woman would love it so I brought the damn house.
I turn to the right, entering the master’s bedroom where I found Lea and Nina sleeping only hours ago. In the center of the room, I crouch down to lift a hardwood board hiding the floor safe. Both were buried under filthy carpet that I had removed along with the furniture. A presence emerges on my backside. I assume it is Raw before I look back to make sure. He is posted up on the doorframe with his arms crossed.
“Raw, I don’t want to talk about shit right now,” I say as I turn around and spin the dial on the safe, putting in Ajoni’s birth date.