“What if I’m already certain?” Kari asked, and then looked at Alex.
“In this family,” Alex said, “I have the final say. And I’m not certain yet.” Then he glanced away from the road and looked into Kari’s eyes. “Neither are you,” he said.
Kari stared at him, as if he was being presumptuous, but then she looked away.
“Am I right?” Alex asked her.
Kari exhaled, and then nodded. “You’re right,” she said.
“Why aren’t you certain?” he asked her.
“Because you aren’t,” Kari said, “and I trust your judgment above any human being alive. Unfortunately,” she added, her face now unable to mask her distress, “you’re never wrong about things like that.”
Alex understood what that confession meant for Kari. It meant the former love of her life might be more about perpetuating a fraud on them than having love for them. He took Kari’s hand.
“I’m more worried about Jordan than anything,” she said. “I still have strong feelings for DayVon,” she admitted. “I really do.”
Alex glanced at her. His heart was in his shoe.
“But,” she added, “I’ll kill that motherfucker if he hurts Jordan.”
Alex smiled and then laughed. “Your ass don’t play!” he said, and Kari laughed too.
And that was when Alex saw through his peripheral vision, as he drove through an intersection, an SUV suddenly hitting on gas and barreling straight for his Mercedes.
He snatched his hand from Kari’s and swerved the wheel of his car to avoid the collision. Because he was that kind of driver, he was able to miss the brunt of the hit, but not all of it.
It was still a powerful crash, one that caused Kari to slide sideways against the passenger door, and it took all the considerable strength Alex had to keep his car on the road and avoid losing total control. The SUV, after making contact, took off.
But as soon as Alex regained control, he took off too. Behind that SUV. “Are you okay?” he asked Kari as he drove, glancing at her.
“I’m good,” Kari said, reaching in his glove compartment and pulling out the .357 Magnum and cartridge she knew he kept there. “What was that about?” she asked anxiously, as she put the cartridge into the gun.
“I’m going to find out,” Alex said, flooring it, as he was easily catching up with the bulkier SUV.
“Unfortunately,” he said to Kari as he drove, “I’ve got so much going on that whomever it is in that SUV could be from any of a number of enemy camps. From the governor of Florida’s camp; to some past enemy that’s not on my radar anymore; to DayVon’s camp. It could be any of’em. I don’t know.”
“And you don’t care,” Kari said because she knew him.
“Damn right I don’t,” Alex said, as he drove even faster, determined not to lose that SUV.
And he didn’t lose it. He, instead, was closing in on it. So much so that the driver of the SUV, obviously surprised by Alex’s deftness at avoiding most of the collision, and then at following right behind HIM, swerved off of the beaten path onto a long, dirt road.
Alex put his Mercedes in off-road traction, and followed too. “Be ready,” he told Kari, who held that gun like she aimed to use it.
“No worries on my end,” she said. “His ass is the one better be worrying.”
“Keep that attitude,” Alex said as he drove the rough terrain. “We’re going to need it.”
But the off-road terrain wasn’t rough just for Alex and Kari. The driver of the SUV was having a tough time of it too, with his SUV bouncing with every bump and dip. So much so that he swerved again, as if to turn onto a smoother surface, but he swerved so wildly that he lost control of his vehicle.
Alex slammed on brakes, to avoid speeding straight into him, as the SUV leaned on two wheels and then crashed with a sudden, violent stop, into a massive tree. So violently and suddenly did it stop that the back end of the SUV lifted off of the ground as if it was being hoisted up, and then buckled and crashed back down.
Alex quickly unbuckled his seatbelt and grabbed the .357 from Kari. “Wait here,” he said. “I need to see who that fucker is.”
He hurried out of the car and Kari, knowing her role, hurried behind the wheel of the car. If they needed to get out of there, she was getting them out of there as quickly as she possibly could.
But as soon as Alex was out of the Mercedes and running toward the crash, with his gun ready for action, Kari saw, through the bushes, another car creeping in from the side of the scene, heading toward the action too. It was as if that car had been waiting for the SUV to arrive, which meant the SUV driving down that dirt road was no accident. Crashing into that tree, she realized, had to be, but going that way apparently wasn’t. It was no accident, she quickly realized, it was a setup!
She immediately placed the Mercedes in Drive even as Alex was aiming his gun inside the wrecked SUV to see who it was that tried to kill him, and if he was dead or alive.
But the car arrived on scene so fast that Kari barely had time to warn Alex. She was pumping anxiously on the horn, but it wouldn’t blow, and the two gunmen got out and began running toward Alex.
“Jesus!” Kari cried and kept laying on the horn, to warn Alex and to force those men to look her way. And then it suddenly began to sound, as if she had been pressing the wrong part of the steering wheel.
Alex turned, the two men looked her way, too, and she began speeding toward them even as one of the men turned back toward Alex and fired shots at him.
Alex fell on his back, returning fire.
One of the gunman got a round off on Alex, but missed him, and the other gunman attempted to take a shot at Kari.
But Alex was too fast for the gunman that shot at him. He took him out with a volley of bullets.
And Kari, doing all she could to duck what could have been a bullet sailing her way, too, sped into the second gunman and knocked him high into the air. He fell back down, with a hard crash, onto the hood of her car.
Alex jumped up, and ran to his wife, just in case that asshole had fired on her.
Although Kari’s entire body jerked forward when she ran into that gunman, and her forehead just missed hitting Alex’s steering wheel, she was otherwise just fine. She had not been struck.
As soon as Alex opened the door, she reassured him. “I’m okay,” she said. “Let’s get out of here in case there’s more!”
Alex knew it too. He made sure all three men were dead: the driver of the SUV, who was in the SUV alone, and the two men who had arrived on the scene. Once satisfied, he nudged Kari back over to the passenger side, got back in behind the wheel, and backed out, swerved around, and took off.
He also called Oz and ordered him to get a cleanup crew to the scene at once.
Then he looked at Kari and placed his big hand securely around her small hand again. A better man than him would let her and Jordan go. They didn’t deserve the kind of danger his lifestyle sometimes forced upon them.
But he loved them too much to let them go.
He was not that better man.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
It was a week later, and it was the night of Jordan’s birthday party. The off-road incident of the week before yielded no leads. The three men involved were not known by the Drakos organization, nor by anybody else who would know. Like Reno Gabrini and other connections Alex had.
The most likely culprit, conventional wisdom was telling Alex, was the governor’s camp, since he was still appearing on any talk show he could appear on, demanding justice for his daughter, and demanding answers from Alex and Oz. And he was sounding more and more bitter with each passing day. But Alex kept his eyes on all of it.
But on that Saturday night, he and Kari both agreed to let Jordan have his day.
The party was on the roof of The Drakos, and it seemed as if every teenager in Apple Valley was in attendance. Jordan and his friends were in the massive infinity pool, either throwing the girls in or being pushed in themselves
, while the grownups, like Faye and Benny Church, and Lucinda and other locals, were lounging around, or playing tennis on the tennis courts, or dancing to the old school music of the live band whenever it wasn’t playing Rap music. They were having a ball too. It was a festive occasion.
Until DayVon arrived and headed straight for Jordan. “Follow me,” he said to his son, pulling him away from his friends.
“I wanted you to meet my friends,” Jordan said to his father.
“Not right now,” DayVon said firmly, with Jordan by his side, as he headed toward Alex and Kari.
When Alex saw him coming, he knew he was coming to confront him. His men were leaving a heavy footprint on the island of Cecoya, and DayVon, he was certain, didn’t like it. But he wasn’t going to let him confront anybody in front of Jordan, nor any of Jordan’s friends.
“Come with me,” Alex said to Kari, and began walking away.
“Why?” Kari asked, looking free and airy in her bright yellow dress with a yellow headband to match it. “DayVon just arrived.”
But Alex was already walking away, toward the private room off from the pool area, and Kari, certain it was important or Alex would not have called her away, didn’t make any scene. She followed him.
When they made it into the room, Kari didn’t have a chance to close the door and ask Alex what was going on before DayVon and Jordan were walking in too.
“What’s the matter?” Kari asked. She could tell DayVon was angry.
“Jordan,” Alex said to his son, “go hang out with your friends. We’ll be out shortly.”
“No, I want him to hear this too,” DayVon said, closing the door behind them.
“Hear what too?” Kari asked him.
DayVon looked at Alex. “What are you trying to do to me?” he asked.
“What do you mean, Von?” Kari asked him.
“Your husband, Kari, and your so-called father, Jordan, has all kinds of people on my island spreading lies about me.” That wasn’t what it was about. Those gunmen and that driver in that off-road incident was his backup from Cecoya. They had been tasked with taking Alex out, but had failed miserably. Now their bodies were nowhere to be found. That was the real source of DayVon’s anger.
But they were selected by Selinda to come to America because they were the kind of men Alex and his own men were not going to be able to trace. They were strongmen on the island. Nobody was going to turn on them.
But Jordan and Kari didn’t know any of the backstory. They thought DayVon’s fake outrage was real. They looked at Alex. “Is that true, Dad?” Jordan asked him.
“It’s absolutely true!” DayVon said, as if he was running that show. “He sent them there to find dirt on me, and when they couldn’t turn up any dirt, they started making stuff up to scare the people of my island. And to ruin my business. It’s disgraceful what he’s doing!”
But Kari was staring at Alex. “Is that true?” she asked her husband.
“No,” Alex said. “Nobody’s over there lying on him. But are they looking for dirt? Of course they are! I’m not letting anybody waltz into my son’s life without checking them out.” Then he looked at DayVon. “And checking them out thoroughly,” he added.
“Including lies that I’m a drug dealer and that I am such a bad person,” DayVon said. “That typical insecure white man attempting to smear the stronger black man shit,” DayVon added.
“That’s a damn lie,” Alex said, his temper beginning to show.
“You’re the damn lie!” DayVon shot back at Alex, and then pushed him hard.
But Alex didn’t hesitate. He took his fist and knocked the shit out of DayVon so violently that DayVon fell on his ass.
But he got right back up, ready to brawl, until Jordan and Kari got in the way.
“Knock it off!” Jordan cried.
“Stop it, both of you!” cried Kari.
And both men, realizing it could easily escalate out of control, backed off.
But it wasn’t lost on DayVon that both Kari and Jordan had left his side and stood in front of Alex, as if they were sending a message. As if they were Alex’s protector, not DayVon’s.
He knew, at that moment, he was going to have to do something to change the game. He decided to start by playing Mister Magnanimous. “You’re right,” he said. “I didn’t like what I was hearing back from my people in Cecoya. But I do apologize, Jordan. Today is your birthday celebration, and I will not ruin it for you. Forgive me,” he added.
Jordan nodded, although DayVon could tell he still wasn’t convinced. Jordan was still on Team Alex. “Okay,” Jordan said, and pushed his glasses up on her face.
“Now let’s go back into the ballroom,” Kari said, “and enjoy the night. We’ll deal with this later,” she added, looking at both men, as they all left the room.
Jordan and Kari might have been buying DayVon’s I’m a good guy act. But Alex wasn’t sold at all.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Later that evening, Benny Church gave remarks about Jordan as a good godson. Kari gave remarks about Jordan as a good son. And then Alex was called up, to give remarks on Jordan as a good man.
Kari and Jordan were sitting alongside DayVon when Alex went up front to give his speech. He looked at Jordan, and then he spoke:
“You’ve been everything a father could hope for,” he said to Jordan, “and so much more. You are kind, you are compassionate, and you’re smart as smart can be. You are not boastful. You don’t disrespect your elders. And, you even sometimes keep your room clean.”
The audience laughed.
“But you have been wonderful, Jordan,” Alex continued, with all sincerity, even though he was not a man who enjoyed showing his affection in public. “You are a beautiful young man. Happy sixteenth, my son,” he said, raising his glass in a toast, and everybody applauded.
But when Alex sat down, with Jordan and Kari giving him a hug, DayVon stood up, without invitation from Benny, and kindly took the microphone.
“As many of you now know,” he said, “I am Jordan’s biological father.”
The audience applauded. It was a fact. Although they also glanced at Alex.
“And I agree with Alex,” DayVon added. “Jordan is a wonderful young man. He’s my boy, and he’s a good son. But I also wish to give a shout out, as they say, to the woman who raised that fine young man. To Kari Grant,” DayVon said, and although he slighted Alex by not using Kari’s married name, nobody seemed to catch it, as they all applauded. Even Jordan stood up applauding, and so did his friends. They all knew what kind of good, caring mother Kari was, regardless of who was saying so.
When they stopped clapping, and sat back down, DayVon surprised them all by cueing the band, a band he had already asked to do him a favor.
And they did. The music to the Masser-and-Snow penned, Peabo Bryson ballet, If Ever You’re In My Arms Again, began playing. And DayVon, to everybody’s shock, began to serenade Kari:
“It all came so easy,
all the lovin’ you gave me;
the feelings we shared.
And I still can remember,
how your touch was so tender;
it told me you cared.
We had a once-in-a-lifetime,
but I just couldn’t see,
until it was gone.
A second once-in-a-lifetime
may be too much to ask;
but I swear from now on:
If ever you’re in my arms again:
This time I’ll love you much better.
If ever you’re in my arms again:
This time I’ll hold you forever.
This time
we’ll never end!”
The audience, at first, was silent. They were all looking at Alex. Did that man just make a play for Alex Drakos’s wife?
But Alex was looking at Kari. Pain was in Kari’s eyes as she stared at DayVon, and Jordan held her hand. There were too many memories, and Kari was remembering how sweet a man he used to be to her.
Kari, Alex realized, was still torn.
But then the audience applauded as DayVon made his way back to his seat, and he leaned down and hugged both Kari and Jordan, as if there was nothing whatsoever wrong with a man serenading another man’s wife. It was as if DayVon had picked Alex’s pocket in front of a hundred witnesses, and Alex sat back and let him.
But Alex wasn’t sitting back. He was plotting and scheming too. He knew he had to either stake his claim, or risk allowing a shameless man like DayVon, and the image of the man he used to be but Alex was convinced he no longer was, steal his family away from him. And although it would have been so much easier for Alex to fight it out with DayVon, man to man and fist to fist, he knew holding onto Kari wasn’t going to be that easy.
He had to fight DayVon, alright, but not on his turf.
He had to fight DayVon on DayVon’s turf.
Alex stood up, as DayVon sat down, and walked over to the bandleader. A bandleader that Alex, after all, had paid to perform. He made his request even as Jordan looked at Kari, wondering what in the world was Dad thinking about doing?
Dad wasn’t thinking about doing anything. He did it. Because a stunned room sat in awe, shock, and surprise as Alex Drakos, a man not known anywhere for wearing his heart on his sleeves, or for having much of a heart at all, began to serenade Kari, too, as the music to the Barry James Eastmond-penned, Freddie Jackson ballet, You Are My Lady, began to play.
And as soon as Alex began singing, many in the audience, who loved that old-school tune, jumped to their feet. Especially Faye and Lucinda, who both loved that song and loved Alex for refusing to sit back and let that showboat DayVon Clarke get the upper hand on his family. The two of them and a group of ladies were standing and swaying their attractive bodies and snapping their fingers as they moved to the groove. Alex began singing a little offkey compared to DayVon’s melodic voice, but he sung it:
“There's something that I want to say;
But words sometimes get in the way.
Alex Drakos: Branding Her Again Page 16