“Precious, again I made a lot of mistakes and I apologize but people do change. All I’m asking is you give me a chance.”
“A chance for what?”
“For us to have a relationship. You’re my sister and believe it or not I love you.”
“Maya, I have to take this call, excuse me.” I closed the door before answering not wanting Maya in my conversation. “Hey, Genesis, what’s going on.”
“How soon can you get over to my place?”
“I’m at my apartment in the city so it won’t take long at all.”
“Good then I’ll see you shortly.”
“Genesis, is there something wrong?”
“We’ll talk when you get here.”
Fuck and the drama continues I thought to myself as I grabbed my purse. “Maya, something has come up and I have to leave.”
“Ok, I’ll stay here and wait for dad.”
“Then you’ll be waiting in the hallway because you’re not staying in my apartment by yourself.”
“What do you think, I would steal from you?”
‘That’s the least of my concerns when it comes to you…now lets go.”
“Our father is expecting for me to be here when he gets back.”
“Then I suggest you pull out your phone and call to let him know you’ll either come to where he’s at, wait in the lobby for him to return or you’ll see him another time. Whatever your decision is, you’ll be making it outside my front door. Now move it, because I have to go.”
“I thought opening up to you about my feelings would make a difference in our relationship but clearly I was wrong.”
“Maya, I’m going to say this one thing to you and then we’re leaving. I loathe you. I wish whoever took you would’ve did us all a favor and left you for dead. But for whatever crazy reason our father loves you and because of my love for him I’m glad he didn’t have to mourn your death. But we’ll never have a sisterly relationship. You’re evil and sooner or later you won’t be able to keep us this fake facade you’re putting on for our father. And once you reveal to him that there isn’t an ounce of decency in you he will cut you off for good. When that happens, no one but God will be able to spare your life. So enjoy your freedom while you can because even He knows you’re not worth saving.”
I quickly ushered Maya out of my apartment so she wouldn’t get any ideas about coming up with a rebuttal to what I said. I wanted to kill any idea she might’ve created in her sick mind that we could have anything remotely close to a relationship. Maya would forever be my enemy and as long as she was still breathing I wouldn’t sleep on her because that vile bitch was capable of anything.
When I arrived at Genesis’s place, Nico, Amir and Lorenzo were all there. The energy in the room was tense so I knew something major was going on but that always seemed to be the case for the last few months. I was praying for my Father to make a speedy recovery, not only for him but also for my sanity. The sooner he was completely back to himself the sooner he could go back to running QT Holdings.
Initially I was honored that my Father left me to run his business and I was determined to be successful at it. With Aaliyah and Xavier gone it also gave me something of importance to focus on, other than the divorce I was going through with Supreme. I was now at a point in my life where I was completely over this bullshit but I never halfway did anything. I would continue to run my Father’s business until he was able to step in and do it himself but that couldn’t happen soon enough.
“Precious, thank you for getting here so quickly.”
“You made it sound like it was urgent on the phone.”
“We’re headed to the new warehouse in Jersey because our delivery is coming in and I need for you to come with us.”
“Of course I want to be there but that delivery isn’t due until Saturday.”
“I got a call some things got moved around and it’s coming today.”
“So we’re leaving now?”
“Yes, if that works for you. Does it?”
“Supreme is dropping Xavier off at the house in Jersey but I’m not sure what time. They’ll be people at the house so he’ll be fine and Aaliyah is coming today..”
“Aaliyah will be here today?” Amir questioned, cutting me off mid sentence.
“Yes, she’ll be here later on today.”
“I’m actually having dinner with Aaliyah tomorrow to introduce her to Ashley.”
“Does that mean I should be congratulating
you?”
“Yes it does. I proposed to her and she accepted. We’re getting married.”
“I’m happy for you Nico, I really am.”
“I am too. I like Ashley. She seems like a very nice young lady,” Genesis added.
“Thank you both. That means a lot to me.” What really felt good about what I said to Nico, was that I meant every word. I was genuinely happy for him.
“Is everybody ready to go?”
“Dad, I’m going to take my own car and meet you all up there. I just got a text from one of our clients. He has to head out of town so I need to see him before he leaves”
“No problem. We’ll see you when you get there.”
“Genesis, call me and let me know how everything goes.”
“You’re not coming with us?”
“No I have to go out of town. Why haven’t you returned any of my calls?” Lorenzo asked, after taking my hand and pulling me to the side.
“I wasn’t ready to talk.”
“Do you think you’ll be ready when I get back?”
“Yes.”
“I miss you, Precious.”
“I miss you too.”
“I’ll call you when I get back.”
For some reason I felt this urge to reach out and grab Lorenzo, pull him close to me for a kiss but I held back. A sense of regret flooded me for not giving into my feelings as I watched him leave. I mouthed the words come back. The only problem was Lorenzo didn’t hear me.
Aaliyah
Waking up in Dale’s arms was what I needed after the ordeal I went through the other night. I had never felt so close to death in all my life. I had been replaying the incident constantly, trying to understand why the masked man didn’t kill me.
“You’re up already?” I heard Dale mumble, still halfway sleep.
“Yeah, you know I have to catch a flight in a few hours.”
“Where you going?” I guess what I said woke Dale all the way up because now he was leaning up over me. “I didn’t know you were going out of town.”
“I thought I mentioned it to you. I’m going to New York. I’m visiting my grandfather and my dad got engaged and he wants me to meet his fiance. Didn’t I tell you?”
“No you didn’t. I’ll come with you.”
“That’s not necessary. I know you’re worried because we don’t know who broke in but I’ll be fine. I already have two men driving me to the airport and I have a driver that’s going to pick me up from the airport when I arrive in New York.”
“I don’t know, Baby. I don’t feel good about you going without me.”
“I decided to stay at a hotel while I’m there but I’ll be with my family the entire time so you know I’m good. I’ll only be there for a couple days then I’ll be back. Trust me, I don’t want to be away from you either,” I said, before lifting up and straddling Dale’s dick. I wanted to give us both something to miss while we were apart.
When my flight landed I was bombarded with a gazillion text messages and just as many voicemails when I turned on my phone. It was common for me to get a lot of phone activity but this shit right here was abnormal. When I started listening to my voicemails I was stunned that half of them were from Amir and so were the text. Right when I was about to text Amir back I noticed Tori was calling.
“Hey! It’s good to hear from you. You’ve been on my mind heavy since I saw you last. How’s everything going?”
“Everything is good. I was hoping we could meet for a late lunch
today.”
“Girl, I would love to but my flight just landed in New York. I’ll be back in Miami in a couple of days lets definitely do lunch then.”
“I’m here in New York too.”
“Get out! That s crazy. Well lets do lunch then. What time is good for you tomorrow?”
“I really would like for it to be today.”
“Ummmm…”
“Please, Aaliyah,” Tori retorted, in an almost begging tone.
“Is everything okay with you? Have you gotten yourself in some trouble.do I need to call Dale and Emory?”
“No don’t do that. This is between us.”
“What is between us?”
“Meet me for lunch and I’ll explain everything.”
“Okay. I’m staying at the Four Seasons on 57th Street. Meet me there in an hour.”
“I’ll be there.”
I didn’t know what the hell was going on with Tori but my desperation to find out had me rushing through the airport to get to her. When I reached ground transportation on the lower level I searched for the driver holding the sign with my name on it. I observed him off on the right hand side and ran up to him anxious to go. He took both of my carry on luggage and I followed him to the car. Before I even got settled in the backseat of the SUV my cell started vibrating again and it was Amir. At first I was going to hit decline because my mind was completely consumed on finding out what had Tori sounding extra shaky but opted to answer not wanting Amir to keep blowing me up.
“Hey, Amir, what’s going on?” I answered in a laidback voice.
“Why didn’t you call me back? I know you got my voicemail and text messages.”
“I did, after my flight landed. But I literally just got to New York. I was going to call you back when I got settled.”
“Your mother told me you would be here today, that’s why I’m calling you because we need to talk.” “Well talk.”
“Miss, where am I taking you?” I heard the driver ask while I was in the middle of talking to Amir
“Four Seasons on 57 East 57th Street.” After I gave the address to the driver, I went back to my conversation with Amir. “I apologize for the interruption.so what were you saying?”
“I was telling you, that we need to talk.”
“That’s right. It’s probably going to take 30 or 40 minutes to get to my hotel, so I’m all ears to hear what you have to say.”
“We can’t have this talk on the phone. It has to be in person. I can meet you at the hotel in about an hour.”
“I can’t do that. I already have plans.”
“Break them. This is very important.”
“What I have to do is very important too.”
“Aaliyah, this is not a joke the shit ain’t funny…”
“Ain’t nobody laughing,” I snapped, cutting him off. I’ll say it again. I have an important meeting in about an hour. I’ll be more than happy to meet up with you after I’m finished.”
“Fine, then lets do that. Hit me when you’re ready. I’ll come to your hotel. But we have to talk today,” Amir stressed.
“Got you. I’ll let you know when I’m done.” Between Amir and Tori I didn’t know what the fuck was going on. Everybody seemed to have diarrhea of the mouth today but didn’t nobody want to use their phone to spill shit, they were adamant about seeing me in person. I hope all this silly commotion wasn’t a precursor to how the rest of my trip was going to go.
When I got to the hotel to check in, the lady behind the front desk handed me a letter. I opened it between giving her my driver’s license and credit card. The note was from Tori and she was letting me know she was waiting for me at the hotel restaurant The Garden.
“Can you please have the bellman take my luggage to my room. I have someone waiting for me at The Garden.”
“No problem, Miss Carter, I’ll have that taken care of for you. Here is your room key.”
“Thanks,” I replied and made a beeline to the restaurant for my sit down chat with Tori. I noticed her sitting at the corner table. “Don’t you look gorgeous,” I commented when I got to the table. Tori had on a flirty peach colored ruffle off the shoulder romper that was radiant against her skin.
“Thank you,” Tori smiled. “Of course you look beautiful as always.”
“Thanks but I don’t feel beautiful right now,” I rolled my eyes. “These last few days have been chaotic to say the least. Maybe after I hit the spa and get relaxed, the beauty thing will sneak back up on me.”
“I’m sure it will.” I couldn’t help but notice Tori was fidgeting with her napkin and seemed very nervous.
“So what’s going on with you, besides looking stunning. You’ve stepped it up even more from when I saw you the other day. Your clothes, makeup and that ring…it’s stunning! I guess all that work has really paid off.”
“Yes it did, even better than I imagined. That’s what I wanted to talk to you about when I saw you the other day but we didn’t have the time to get into a heavy conversation.”
“Emory and Dale must be pleased. From what Dale told me the other night you already gave them some inside scoop that might be helpful.”
“No, if Emory and Dale got any inside scoop it didn’t come from me,” Tori said, in an almost defiant way. “I don’t want to be a part of this anymore.”
“What do you mean you don’t want to be a part of this?”
“I don’t want to do this anymore.”
“Hold up. Don’t tell me you’ve actually falling in love with the enemy?” Tori put her head down and I noticed a tear rolling down her cheek. “What happened to your loyalty? Some good dick and some gifts have you turning on the two men who always looked out for you.”
“Aaliyah, it s so much more complex than that.”
“Nah, you played like you were so tough and hardcore when I first met you but you just another weak bitch that has lost her mind over a man. I hope you didn’t come to me thinking I would feel sorry for you and sympathize with your situation ‘cause I don’t. At this point, I don’t trust you can get the job done and I’ma have to speak my concerns to Dale and Emory.”
“Please don’t do that!” Tori reached over and grabbed my hand. The look of fear, sadness and hopelessness on her face disturbed me.
“What the hell is going on with you?” I questioned, pulling my hand away from her. “I have too much going on right now to deal with your mind games.”
“These aren’t games.”
‘Then what the fuck is the problem! Just tell me.”
“I’m Ashley.”
“You say that like it’s supposed to mean something to me. What that’s the alias you’re using with the Dominican guy…okay…and…” Then like a snap of a finger a small memory chip that was shelved off to the side, pushed it’s way to the forefront and I swallowed hard. “Not that Ashley”
“Yes, that Ashley” Without warning I jumped up and wrapped both my hands around Tori’s throat. If I had a gun I probably would’ve shot her. Luckily two things worked out in my favor. First, there was hardly anybody in the restaurant so they didn’t notice me about to commit murder and secondly, I caught myself before I let my anger get the best of me and I actually did kill Tori’s ass in broad daylight. I released her from my grasp and she fell on the floor gasping for air.
The least I could do was give her some water to help her catch her breath, so I tossed a glass of it in her face and sat back down. Tori struggled for a few minutes to regain her composure. When she finally got up and sat back down in her seat, the waiter was coming towards our table.
“Are you ladies ready to order?”
“Can I please get a glass of water,” Tori requested sounding out ofbreath. Then the waiter turned towards me with a perplexed look on his face. I could tell he knew something happened but he couldn’t figure out what, and if we didn’t volunteer the information he wasn’t going to ask for it.
“Nothing for me right now.” I wanted the waiter to hurry and get the fuck out
the way so I could grill Tori. When he walked off I slid my glass towards her. “You can drink my water cause I need you to get to talkin’.”
After Tori took a few sips of water she swallowed hard before speaking. “I honestly didn’t know Nico was your father when I first started dating him. All I knew is that he was the man I had to make fall in love with me. I had no idea I was going to fall in love with him too.”
“Bitch, I don’t wanna hear ‘bout your fuckin’ Cinderella story. When I got this project you and the brothers told me I was grooming you for a Dominican Drug Lord who had a thing for black chicks. How we go from that to you fuckin’ wit my dad? I need you to explain that shit to me.”
“From jump that was the story Emory told me to run with whenever you asked. He said he didn’t want you to know the identity of the real target because he wasn’t sure you could be trusted. I didn’t know anything about you and my loyalty was to them so I did what he told me to do. It wasn’t until recently when Nico showed me a picture of you that I realized why Emory was keeping it a secret from you.”
“Did Dale know about this?” I could barely ask the question without my voice cracking.
“Honestly, Aaliyah, I’m not positive but I don’t think he did.”
“Don’t lie to me.”
“I’m not. The reason I don’t think he did was because when I found out who you were I confronted Emory. He told me your family was actually our rivals and that’s why we couldn’t trust you because the same way I was infiltrating Nico’s operation, you were doing the same with ours. When I told him we had to warn Dale, he swore me to secrecy. He said it wasn’t time for Dale to know yet and when it was he would do it.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Even if Dale didn’t know in the beginning I couldn’t help but wonder if Emory finally came clean with him and now he knew the truth. If that nigga had been plotting on my family all this time I was going to kill the motherfucker myself. My mind was spinning.
“I guess you decided to come clean since I’m supposed to be having dinner with the happy couple tomorrow,” I said, shaking my head. “I can’t believe my father fell for you. But then why should I be surprised. I created you based on everything he taught me made a woman a Bad Bitch.”
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