B00CD6BCB0 EBOK

by King, Joy Deja

  “You know what, mother, I’m so over Amir. I wish him and his girlfriend lots of luck. I’m not going to waste any more energy on him. Plus, I’ve moved on.”

  “Moving on must be in the air because Nico has done the same.”

  “You must be talking about Ashley.”

  “You met her too?”

  “Not yet. Dad said if they got serious he would introduce her to me.”

  “Be expecting that introduction soon because I met her the other day. Nico told me he’s considering proposing to her.”

  “What! Wow, how does she look? Did you like her? So many questions.”

  “She’s a very pretty girl, somewhat young.”

  “Please don’t tell me she’s my age.”

  “Not that young. She’s definitely older than you. Knowing Nico she must be very mature and smart because your father would never consider marrying a dumb woman.”

  “So many things are changing. I can’t believe

  I’m going to have a step mother.”

  “That’s life my dear. But I’m sure she’s going to be more like a big sister then a step mother.” While my Mom was talking about my Dad’s future wife I noticed I got a new text message.

  “Mom, can you excuse me for a second. This is my job texting me and I need to call them.”

  “Go ahead. I’ll order our food while you’re gone. Do you want me to order what you normally get?”

  “Yes, that would be great. I won’t be too long.”

  “Take your time.”

  By the time I made it upstairs Amir was already there waiting for me. “What do you want?” I popped once we were standing face to face. “Do you think it’s really appropriate sending me text messages while you’re having lunch with your girlfriend?”

  “Let me handle Latreese. This is about you. I’ve been calling you for the last few days but you haven’t returned any of my calls. Why?”

  “I’ve been busy. And I don’t owe you an explanation. In case you’ve forgotten I’m not your girlfriend anymore.”

  “Don’t flatter yourself. I know who my girlfriend is and it isn’t you.”

  “So what do you want? You made it sound like it was urgent I meet you up here.”

  “If you had returned my calls then this wouldn’t be necessary.”

  “Like I said, I’ve been busy. So are you gonna tell me what’s up because I don’t want to keep my mother waiting.”

  “Why were you having dinner at Masa with Juan Alvarez?”

  “Are you following me? How dare you!”

  “No I’m not following you. An associate of mine was leaving out the restaurant and knows who Juan Alvarez is and noticed you were sitting at the table having dinner with him. How do you know a man like that?”

  “I don’t know him. When I’m in town I occasionally hang out with the woman he was on a date with. She asked me to come with her because he was going to have a friend with him so I did.” “What was his friends name?”

  “I have no idea. What is up with you and all these questions?”

  “Juan Alvarez is a very dangerous man and you need to stay away from him.”

  “I told you I don’t even know him.”

  “And you need to keep it that way. Next time your girlfriend ask you to go on a dinner date with her and him, you say no.”

  “Amir, you’re not my man and you’re not my father. You don’t run anything this way. I can do whatever I want to do. I’m a grown woman.”

  “Then fuckin’ act like it,” Amir barked, leaning in close to me. “This ain’t no lil’ kid Sway Stone type nigga. You stay keeping company wit’ a man like that, you’ll be dealing wit’ a lot more than a bogus murder charge. I don’t wanna take this to your mother or your father but if I find out you still hanging around that man, I will. So you’ve been warned.”

  When Amir stormed off I wanted to stomp my heel right in his back and knock him down the stairs. I was pissed he spoke to me like that and it took all my strength not to curse him the fuck out. The only reason I held back was because the threat of him telling my parents had me concerned. If they got a whiff I was within a foot of a man like Juan Alvarez, they would dig until they couldn’t dig no deeper to find out the details of our relationship. No doubt they would find out we were in business together and all hell would break loose. That would be the end of my Bad Bitch status as a top-notch player in the drug game. My parents would personally lock me up and hold me hostage to make sure I never went near the white powder again. In my mind I continued to call Amir every name in the book until I got back to the table. I was gone so long our food had already been served.

  “That was a long phone conversation. Is everything okay?” my Mom asked, when I sat down.

  “Yes, it was a lot of back and forth. I was scheduled to work tomorrow but my flight wasn’t going to get back in time so I had to make some calls to get somebody to cover my shift.”

  “Did you find somebody?”

  “Yep, it took forever but I finally found somebody.”

  “Oh good. Now go ahead and eat your food. I know you must be starving.”

  “Yeah I am,” I said, dipping my fork into the red wine risotto with braised oxtail. But as hungry as I was food no longer was on my mind. Amir had singled handedly fucked up my appetite. Between having to let Maya live and listening to Amir’s threats, I couldn’t wait to get the fuck out of New York and take my ass back to Miami.

  Precious

  “I’ll be in New York in a couple of weeks for business and to finalize the settlement of our divorce.” “Can you bring Xavier when you come? I would love to see him even if it’s only for a few days.”

  “That’s not a problem. I’m sure he would love to see you too. When I bring him do you want me to take him to your place in the city or Jersey?”

  “He prefers our house in Jersey.” The moment I said it, I caught myself. “I meant my house. Although technically it’s still our home.”

  “As part of our divorce settlement it will be yours. You always loved that house you should have it.”

  “My lawyer told me what you agreed to give me in the divorce settlement. Thank you for being so generous. I wasn’t expecting you to be.”

  “With everything we’ve been through, you were always a wonderful mother and although we both made mistakes in our marriage you were also a good wife. We were married for many years and you deserve to be compensated for that so it’s the least I can do.”

  “Thank you,” was all I could muster up to say.

  “No problem. I’ll talk to you when I get to New York. Bye.” When I knew Supreme was off the phone, all the tears I was holding inside came pouring out. I fell down on the bed and cried like a newborn baby. Each time I thought I was over the marriage and accepting the divorce, I got a slap in the face that let me know the wound was still fresh.

  “When does it get better? When does the pain stop?” I screamed out, wishing this throbbing anguish in my chest would cease. The tears continued to flow steady until the nonstop ringing of my cell phone disrupted it. The first few times I ignored it but it wouldn’t stop ringing. I looked to see who was calling but it was an unknown caller. I tossed my phone back down because I wanted a few more minutes to cry my heart out. I was praying this would be the last time it would hurt so bad but the persistence of the caller made me finally answer.

  “Hello!” I answered, halfway anger and halfway in tears.

  “Your sister Maya is in the trunk of her car at the garage on 10th Avenue and 48th Street. This is a warning that we can get to you whenever we want so watch your back.” Then the phone went dead. The man on the other end of the phone didn’t say whether Maya was dead or alive. I immediately called Genesis.

  “I just got a call about Maya.”

  “From who…what did they say?”

  “Some man. I didn’t recognize his voice and it was from an unknown caller. He said Maya was in the trunk of her car at a garage on 48th street and 10th Avenue. But he
didn’t say if she was dead or alive. I’m on my way over there to check and see if it’s legit.”

  “No, you stay where you’re at. It could be a set up. I’ll send some of my men over there to check it out. When I find out something I’ll call you.”

  “Ok, but don’t mention any of this to my father.”

  “Of course not. Even if we do find Maya in that trunk and she’s dead we’re not telling Quentin. We need for him to make a full recovery before he gets any bad news.”

  “Exactly. So I’ll wait to hear back from you.”

  “I’ll be in touch.”

  “Dear God, please let them find Maya alive.” I couldn’t believe I was wasting a good prayer on Maya but I needed her to be alive for our Father’s sake. “I can’t sit around here thinking about this shit, I’ll go crazy!” I decided to call Lorenzo.

  “What’s up gorgeous,” Lorenzo said, when he answered his phone.

  “I was hoping I could come over and see you unless you’re busy.”

  “Never too busy for you. I’m finishing up some business but I’ll be home soon but you have the key. It’ll be nice to come home and have you there to greet me.”

  “I like the sound of that. I’m going to get my things together and I’ll be on my way.”

  “Make sure you have your driver and the security men drop you off.”

  “I know…I know. I’m about to send a text and let them know I’ll be down shortly.”

  “Excellent. I’ll see you soon.”

  After my called ended with Lorenzo I sent a quick text to my driver letting him know I would be down shortly. I quickly packed an overnight bag so I could leave. I opted to freshen up once I got to Lorenzo’s place because I refused to stay in this apartment any longer. It had nothing to do with Maya and everything to do with Supreme. The only person that could numb this pain was Lorenzo and I couldn’t get into his arms fast enough.

  Stepping into Lorenzo’s penthouse apartment was like visiting a luxury villa in Costa Rica. It had a sleek contemporary design with a laid-back mood. There was sliding floor-to-ceiling glass doors that lead into the living room. Then there were exposed dark pillars and beams framing the huge windows and in some areas traditional walls were replaced with glass. The exposed dark beams overhead seamlessly ran across the vaulted ceilings of the vast open space. It also had nooks built into the interior walls that were illuminated. But one of my favorite designs was the contemporary fireplace that was like a modern art piece that made the entire layout flow. By day the apartment was flooded with natural light and when the sun set you felt like you were on a beach in another part of the world. It was decorated with minimal furniture and simple yet opulent style. Every time I came I never wanted to leave. His place was truly full of tranquility.

  I poured me a glass of wine before heading to the bedroom to take a hot shower. I wanted to be relaxed and in the bed by the time Lorenzo got home. When I put my purse on top of the dresser I noticed a manila folder and in the corner a slight edge of a photo was showing. My curiosity got the best of me and I decided to take a closer look. I opened the folder and the picture was of some beautiful girl posed with Sway Stone. Then there was a bunch of papers but I didn’t understand what any of it meant.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Lorenzo, you startled me,” I jumped, dropping the folder on the floor. The picture and the papers fell out and I felt embarrassed being caught snooping.

  “I’ll pick it up,” Lorenzo said, bending down and gathering up the papers and picture.

  “Who is that woman and why do you have a picture of her with Sway Stone?”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “I can do complicated.”

  “I can’t…at least not right now.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “Exactly what I said.”

  “Lorenzo, you don’t think you should give me some sort of explanation? You have a picture of the man my daughter was accused of killing with some woman I’ve never seen before. Then, papers with what appeared to be information about the two of them. That’s strange to me.”

  “Are you accusing me of having something to do with Sway’s murder?”

  “I don’t know what to think. You were involved with Chantel.”

  “So..”

  “Just give me an explanation! Is that asking too much?”

  “Her name is Dior.”

  “Who is she?”

  “She was my fiance before she died.”

  “You were engaged?”

  “Yes.”

  “How she die and what was her relationship to Sway Stone?”

  “When I met her she was Sway’s girlfriend. He got her hooked on drugs and she died of an overdose while I was in jail.”

  “That’s horrible…I’m sorry.”

  “Yeah me too.”

  “But I still don’t understand why you have that picture and folder with all those papers.”

  “Because there’s a chance Dior might be alive and I have a private investigator searching for her.” “That wasn’t the reason I was expecting,” I admitted, sitting down on the bed.

  “You asked for an explanation. I wasn’t gonna lie to you.”

  “Are you still in love with this woman?”

  “If she’s dead does it matter?”

  “But clearly you’re hoping she’s alive.”

  “Love is a complicated thing. If anybody should know that it’s you. You’re still very much in love with Supreme.”

  “Supreme and I are divorced. I’ve accepted we’re both moving on with our lives.”

  “I believe that but it doesn’t mean you’re not still in love with him.”

  “Supreme and I were married for years and share two children. Of course there is always going to be love there, but you’re out searching for your ex fiance. Who would still be your fiance if she hadn’t have died. “

  “And your point?”

  “The point is, if you found out she was alive

  and she showed up on your doorstep tomorrow would you take her back?”

  “First I would need to know why she left and made me believe she was dead.”

  “I have to go.” I said, gathering my belongings.

  “Precious, what are you doing? This is stupid. Everything you talkin’ ‘bout is hypothetical bullshit.”

  “I’m leaving!”

  “Why….’cause I have an ex fiance?”

  “No! It’s because you’re hoping she is still alive and she comes back to you with some pathetic excuse as to why she faked her death, so you’ll feel justified to take her back. I’m Precious Cummings and I’ve never been anybody’s rebound chick and I’m not about to start with you.”

  “I’m in love with you,” Lorenzo declared, grabbing my arm and transfixing his eyes into mine to convince me he was telling the truth.

  “But you’re still in love with her too or some make believe ghost you’ve created in your mind.”

  “What do you want me to do? I love you. I don’t want to lose you.”

  “I want you to get some closure. Find out if Dior is alive or if she’s dead. If she’s dead, then you can finally accept that and move on with me for real. But if she’s alive then you need to deal with that. Any man I’m with, I need to have all of his heart, anything less than that is unacceptable to me.”

  “You’re making a mistake.”

  “No, I’m avoiding one. And here,” I said, taking off the diamond bangle bracelet that I absolutely adored. “You can have this back,” I continued, handing the bracelet to Lorenzo. “I only take these types of gifts from my man.”

  “Precious, please don’t go,” Lorenzo pleaded, as I walked out the door but I knew I was doing the right thing. I did love Lorenzo and I knew he loved me too. I had even began considering having a future with him but I wasn’t a fool. There was deep love in his eyes for Dior and I wasn’t about to try and compete with a ghost. He needed to find out for sure if she was dead or aliv
e and only then could we decide what to do about our relationship.

  I was so engrossed in my thoughts about Lorenzo that it took me a minute to realize Genesis had called several times. I immediately called him back, thinking he had information about Maya.

  “Finally, you called me back.”

  “I apologize. I was caught up in something and didn’t realize you called. Did you find Maya…is she alive?”

  “Yes to both of your questions.”

  “Great! I needed some good news.”

  “Yeah, she was beat pretty badly but she’s healing.”

  “Where is she?”

  “At the hospital. I have a doctor looking her over to make sure everything checks out.”

  “Was she able to tell you anything about who took her?”

  “No. They had on mask and she was also blindfolded the majority of the time. She said they kept her in a basement, basically starved her and practically beat her to death. Then a few days ago a doctor showed up and got her better. Her captures started feeding her taking much better care of her, it was like they did a 180 before leaving her in the trunk of her car.”

  “What sort of games are these sick fucks playing!”

  “I don’t know. It’s hard to gage what their next move will be because it’s becoming so unpredictable. Until we’re able to completely shut their operation down, we have to keep our security tight.”

  “As much as I wanted Aaliyah to stay, I’m glad she’s in Miami and not here in the middle of this drug war. No one seems to be exempt.”

  “You’re right. She’s exactly where she needs to be. I’ll keep you posted on Maya.”

  “What are you gonna do with her?”

  “She’s wants to go home so I’m going to keep security on her too. Make sure they can’t snatch her up again. Let me get back to trying to get our problem resolved. I’ve had more than enough of this shit.”

  “You and me both. I’ll talk to you later.”

  Genesis was right, this fuckery needed to be resolved soon. Constantly having to watch my back and living in paranoia was some straight bullshit. Between this, dealing with my divorce and letting go of Lorenzo, I was in desperate need of a vacation. And I planned to do precisely that once this nightmare was behind us.