“I…I don’t want any problems. Take whatever it is that you want,” the old lady stammered.
Symir gave her an evil smirk as he kept walking towards her. “Okay,” he said as he aimed his gun at her head and pulled the trigger, putting a bullet in the middle of her eyes.
“The rest of the rooms are empty,” Khyree informed him.
“Good. Let’s go,” Symir said with no emotion in his voice.
An idea came to Symir as he walked over Linx’s mother’s body and continued to her room. He looked on her dresser where he found some lipstick and smiled. He walked back out in the hallway and wrote a note on the wall.
Symir walked back out to the truck with a satisfied smirk on his face. He knew killing Linx’s mother wouldn’t bring Asia back, but it damn sure evened the score.
~~~~
Asia sat on the bed in the cold basement with her knees pulled to her chest, rocking back and forth. It had been four days since Cordae and his minions took her and she felt as if she was slowly losing her mind. The only thing she could think about was her babies. Wysdom had only been home from the hospital for a few hours before she was separated from her. She didn't know if she would ever get to see her take her first steps, hear her first words, or hold her in her arms whenever she cried.
Symare may have been young, but he was no dummy. She knew he had to be driving his dad and uncle crazy with his questions wondering where she was. His fourth birthday would be coming soon and she wouldn't be there to see it.
Linx stormed into the room with rage and hurt in his eyes. He rushed over to Asia and grabbed a handful of her hair before punching her dead in her face. Never being the type to go out without a fight, Asia started swinging back.
“Your brother is fucking dead! Do you hear me?!? That bitch is dead!” Linx bellowed as he continued to punch Asia in her face.
Cordae had just walked in the house when he directed his attention to the security system that led to the room Asia was in. When he noticed Linx using Asia as a punching bag, he took off for the basement.
“What the fuck are you doing?” he yelled as he punched Linx in the side of his face.
Linx stood there with his chest heaving as he fought to catch his breath. He was so angry that he was foaming at the mouth. “My momma and brother are dead and her punk ass brother killed them!”
Cordae turned his head and looked at him like he had lost his mind. “How the hell do you know it was him?” questioned Cordae.
“There was writing on the wall next to her body that said, ‘A life for a life.’ Now think about that shit, dumb ass!” Linx yelled.
Hearing that caused Asia to bust out laughing as she sat on the floor with a bloody face. Cordae and Linx turned their attention to her and looked at her as she continued to laugh like a lunatic. Linx tried to get to her but Cordae stopped him.
“You think that shit is funny, bitch? Huh?” Linx yelled.
“I do. I really do, because you're next. Symir is not going to rest until you are taking a permanent dirt nap,” she said as she looked up at Cordae. “You out of all people should know that.”
Cordae didn't and couldn't say anything because he knew she was telling the truth. He had known Symir long enough to know how he got down. Symir was going to be on some ruthless type shit until he felt as if he was vindicated. The fact that they made it seem as if Asia was dead let him know that he was going to keep killing until he was good and satisfied.
“Linx, don't come around for a few days. Take some time and get the funeral arrangements and stuff together,” Cordae said.
Linx looked down at Asia with cold, menacing eyes. “This isn't over, bitch.”
“Of course not. I'm still breathing, aren't I?” Asia smiled with a bloody mouth.
Linx wanted to say fuck everything and just put a bullet in her right now. He didn't feel as if there was a reason to keep her alive anyway. He smiled to himself as he thought about the fact that Cordae wouldn't always be around to protect her.
Chapter Three
Knowledge and Symir drove two separate cars to the airport as they awaited the arrival of the women and children. Knowledge’s mind had been going one hundred miles per minute since they got the news that Asia was dead, so he didn't even have a chance to process the information. It had been four days since he had seen his daughters and they were exactly what he needed to keep his mind off of other things.
He got out of his truck and walked over to Symir’s. Symir was in such a daze that he didn't even notice him standing there until he tapped on the window.
“You good?” Knowledge questioned.
“I would love to lie and say I am, but everyone, including you, knows I'm not,” Symir said.
Knowledge nodded his head in understanding. “Take these few days to be around the family. You all need each other right now.”
“You're right.”
“I'm going in here to see if I see them,” Knowledge informed him.
“I'm coming with you. I wanna see my baby girl as soon as she step off that plane,” Symir said as he got out of his truck.
As soon as they stepped in the airport, Symir heard his daughter yell his name. “Daddy!” Sasha yelled as she took off running in his direction.
Symir smiled brightly as he bent down to scoop his daughter up in his arms. When Sasha reached her daddy, the two of them hugged each other tightly, as if it had been months since the last time they had seen each other.
“I missed you, baby girl.”
“I missed you, too, daddy,” Sasha said as she kissed him all over his face.
Serenity hugged Knowledge’s neck tightly as she laid her head on his shoulder. He was feeling a little better now that he had his babies back with him, even if it was only for a little while.
“Sister,” Serenity said as she pointed to the car seat her grandma was holding.
“Yea, sister,” he said as he walked halfway to meet his mom, sister, Anika and Symare. “Hey, Ma, let me see my baby.”
Juanita slapped his hand away when he tried to reach for Wysdom. “Boy, you better gone. This my baby,” Juanita fussed.
“Knowledge, I'm warning you now. You will not get to hold you daughter at all. The two grannies have been fighting over her for the past four days,” Anika laughed.
“Come on, Ma. I haven't seen her in almost a week,” Knowledge whined.
“She's sleep, Omari. You can see her when we get to the house,” Juanita said.
Hearing his mother call him Omari made him think of Asia. Those two were the only ones who insisted on calling him by his birth name. Juanita could tell by the sudden change in her son’s demeanor that she had said something wrong. Realizing that Wysdom was the only thing he had left of Asia, she gave in.
“Here, take your baby. You need each other,” she said as she took Serenity from him and gave him Wysdom.
Knowledge slightly smiled as he felt someone tap him on his arm. He looked down at Symare who was mean muggin’ him.
“What's up, lil man?” he asked.
“You didn't speak to me,” Symare said with squinted eyes.
Everyone laughed at the exchange between the two.
“I'm sorry, Mare. You good, man? You been taking care of the ladies, right?” asked Knowledge.
“Yes!” he answered excitedly.
“That's what's up, your dad is at the house waiting for you. He has a surprise for you,” Knowledge said as everyone walked out of the airport together.
As Knowledge was strapping Wysdom and Serenity into their car seats, he couldn't help but to smile. Regardless of what anyone thought about him or how they felt towards him, he didn't regret the choices he’d made. Nobody may believe him, but he truly did love Asia and he was grateful that she had given him a daughter. Wysdom was a piece of Asia that he would have until he left this earth.
~~~~
Anika sat holding a sleeping Sasha in her arms as she watched Symir and Crystal go over the arrangements for Asia’s homegoing cel
ebration. She could tell that Symir hadn't slept a wink since everything went down. She hated to see her man in pain and hurting knowing there was nothing she could do about it. She felt like all this was her fault anyway.
She felt that if Symir never would have been trying to save her, he and Linx never would have had any problems, and Asia would still be here today. Linx was on some bullshit all because of some money he felt was owed to him, and the fact that Symir beat his ass didn't make matters any better. In her eyes, if she would have given him his money, none of this would be happening.
Symir got up and headed for the stairs so Anika got up and followed him since she was going to lay Sasha down in her room anyway. Symir was in his office looking through a stack of papers when he came across the insurance policy their father left them. Asia wasn't due to get her money until she was twenty-one but now that she was gone, he was going to make sure all that money went to Symare and Wysdom. He looked up when he heard his office door opening.
Anika walked over to where he was sitting and she grabbed his hand and pulled him out the chair. She wrapped her arms around his waist and just held him. She knew that no matter how strong he was trying to be, he was tired of holding everything in.
“I love you,” she whispered to him.
Hearing that made the waterworks come. Symir really hadn't had a chance to sit and grieve in the four days that his sister had been gone and just having Anika here to comfort him made him feel as if he could grieve. He held her tightly as he broke down. Anika just held him as he cried.
“Just let it out, baby. Let it all out,” she said.
“I let her down. My job was to protect her and I let her down,” Symir cried.
“Stop that, Mir. Never have you let Asia down. You have been her rock and savior ever since that day you and Mama Crystal walked into that foster home. You were there for all her ups and downs and had her back through it all.”
Symir knew that everything she was saying was right but he couldn't help but to feel as if he’d failed his sister. If he would have handled things before they escalated, none of this would be happening. Crystal stood outside the door and listened to their conversation. She was coming to his office to tell him something but stopped when she heard them.
She hated the fact that Symir felt as if this was all his fault. She had made a promise to Syrus and Sasha that she would protect Asia by any means necessary and she also felt as if it could have possibly been her fault. She knew what Symir and Asia were into but she turned a blind eye to it, knowing that they were just following in their father’s footsteps. It’s nobody's fault but the people who did this to my baby.
Meanwhile, downstairs, Knowledge was sitting in the living room in his own little corner with Serenity in his lap and Wysdom in his arms. Right now, this was exactly what he needed — his two girls to keep him sane. He thought it was crazy how much Wysdom looked like a little mixture of him and Asia. She was so little and innocent. He hated the fact that she would never get to know who her mother was and vice versa.
“You know, she really did love you. I can tell by the conversations she and I had that she truly did love you. She was just hurt and confused. One thing I don't doubt is the fact that that little girl right there was made out of love,” Patience said as she sat near him.
“Did she even call to check on Serenity?” Knowledge asked, referring to Chelsea.
“Not that I know of,” Patience sighed. “You haven't heard from her?”
Now that he thought about it, he actually hadn't heard from Chelsea since the day Serenity left for North Carolina. She actually hadn't even been on his mind since he found out that Asia was gone.
“No, I haven't,” he answered.
“She is so trifling.” Patience shook her head.
She couldn't understand what mother would allow their child to leave the state and not even call to check on her. That just let her know that she had no idea that Serenity was even in town. Not only that, but for her to claim that she loved Knowledge, she couldn't even call to check on him to see how he was doing? Never mind how she felt about Asia. If she loved him like she claimed she did, she would be right here comforting him.
Chapter Four
Symir sat in the front pew with one arm around his mother and the other around Anika. He looked down the pew and slightly smiled at how everyone was matching. Everyone had on some article of clothing with lime green in it to represent Asia’s favorite color. Even little Wysdom had on a white and green dress with the ruffled green socks to match.
He glanced back up at the green urn he and Crystal picked out especially for her. Behind the urn was a life-sized picture of Asia that was taken on their trip to Rome. She was smiling hard in the picture and she looked so happy. That’s how he wanted everyone to remember her. The church was packed with business associates and people that knew and loved Asia.
When it came time for Symir to give his speech, he took a deep breath before getting up and walking to the podium. He looked over at the picture of her before he looked out towards the audience to speak.
“Those that really knew my sister knew that Asia was very strong-willed and could also be stubborn sometimes. But despite her stubbornness, she had a big heart that was very pure. When she loved, I can honestly say that she loved hard. They say you never realize what you have until it’s gone and I’m finding that to be true. I never realized until she was gone how much of a confidant and friend Asia really was. I could tell her anything and I knew that she would always tell me how she felt, what I needed to hear and not what I wanted to hear.
“She left behind two beautiful children that I know will be well taken care of by their fathers. I know she wouldn’t want me to shed any tears, but then again, she probably would have just so she could talk stuff.” He smiled which gained chuckles from the church. “All-in-all, I’m going to miss her and that’s without a doubt, but as long as I have breath in my body, her memory will live on.”
With that, Symir went to sit back down in between his two support systems. Sasha climbed off her mother’s lap and sat on dad’s while placing a kiss on his cheek.
“I love you, daddy,” she said before laying her head on his chest.
“I love you, too, baby girl.” He kissed the top of her head.
Chelsea sat in the back of the church, fuming. She couldn’t believe that everyone was trying to portray Asia to be some type of angel or something when she was far from it. If she was all these great things, why would she mess with a man that already had a family then continue to mess with him even after she found out? Chelsea felt no type of remorse for what Asia was going through and she believed she deserved everything she getting and much more. If it was up to her, she really would have been in that urn burned to a crisp.
After the memorial, everyone gathered over at Crystal’s house to eat and have some family time. Crystal and Juanita had been up all night the night before preparing a big meal. While they were waiting for the food, the men were in the living room reminiscing about the good times they had with Asia.
“No, when she was pregnant with Wysdom, she rode down on me one day when I was talking to this hottie and scared her ass off,” Cole laughed as if it happened yesterday. “She jumped out the car, or should I say more like waddled out the car, talking stuff. She was like, ‘Seriously, Cole? I been blowing your phone up for an hour straight. That’s how you do me and your daughter? You must wanna get fucked up!’” Cole cracked up as he impersonated Asia.
“That girl was a mess.” Khyree shook his head.
“That she was. I swear it’s going to be different without her around, threatening us and trying to cuss us out every ten minutes.” Mickey smiled.
“Man, I’ll never forget the first day I met her,” Knowledge said. “She cussed me out for about a whole hour straight. All because I said she shouldn’t be out in the streets putting in work like she was a nigga.”
Hearing that story reminded Symir that he was supposed to give Knowledge s
omething. He reached in his suit pants pocket and pulled out the necklace Knowledge had bought her for her birthday.
“Here, Knowledge. I know she loved it because she never took it off ever since you gave it to her for her birthday,” he said as he handed to him.
Knowledge took the necklace from Symir and just stared at it. Memories of that day came rushing back to him. He had only known her for a few days but went out and bought her a very expensive gift for her birthday. Everyone probably thought he was crazy out of his mind but seeing the smile on her face when she opened her gift and saw the necklace was worth every penny he’d spent.
He didn’t even realize he was crying until he felt the tears rolling down his face. This was actually the first time he’d cried over her being gone. He tried to keep himself occupied so that he wouldn’t have to think about it but now that he was sitting with a clear mind, his emotions were running high.
Symir watched Knowledge and he knew for a fact that he loved his sister. They may not have had a normal love story but he couldn’t deny the love between the two of them. No matter how much they tried to fight it.
~~~~
Anika sat in her bedroom alone, just thinking while everyone else was downstairs. She knew that in a day or two, Symir was going to try to send them all back to North Carolina until he found Linx and Cordae but she wasn’t going back with them. She wanted to be here for her man and help him through this tough time. She felt as if she could also help him locate Linx. It’s the least I could do.
There was a soft knock at the door and she told whoever it was to come in. She looked up to see Patience walk in with a plate of food. While in North Carolina, the two ladies had a chance to get to know each other better and it seemed as if they clicked instantly.
“The king of the castle ordered me to bring you your food.” Patience smiled.
“Girl, cut it out,” Anika laughed.
“No, but seriously. Eat this. What’s wrong? I can see it all in your face.”
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