Page 31

ADIR

…Shots fired on the corner of Hollywood and A Street…

Ice cold fear shot through me as I reached for my phone to call Russ.

My family was on that corner having dinner.

When I got no answer, I stood from my desk and snatched my door open.

“Get every nurse on duty down here now!” I barked calmly although my heart raced.

Antonias and Micah walked out of their offices upon hearing me.

The feeling in the pit of my stomach was no lie.

Something was terribly wrong.

Shaking, I placed Pretty’s blood drenched body on the gurney and ignored Quilo shouting behind me.

Although Russ’s nearly lifeless body was in the backseat, too, Pretty was my first priority.

Stacy snatched Quilo up to keep him out of the way.

“Lock us the fuck down!” I ordered.

As my day one nurses pushed her toward a trauma room, I slid a blade up her dress, ripping the fabric from her body.

Quickly and methodically, I checked her body for any wounds.

Finding none, I sent up a prayer of thanks.

Inside the trauma room, I ordered everyone around like we were on a battlefield.

My voice was stern and sharp as a blade.

I did what I could to avoid looking into Pretty’s eyes.

The natural light there was gone, and in its place was shock and fear.

If I kept looking there, I wouldn’t make it through this shit.

I never wanted shit to come to this.

However, I knew better than to think that Pretty and I could actually live a normal fucking life.

“She’s clean,” Sean mumbled.

His hands moved just as quickly as mine did.

He focused on getting a monitor on her stomach while another nurse hooked her up to a monitor.

I prepped my baby for an IV and had it in within seconds.

I threw shit left and right, just trying to get my baby the fluids and medication she needed to calm down.

“Code blue. Trauma Room 2.”

Shit!

The message coming over the intercom wasn’t what I wanted to fucking hear.

“Russ.” Still in a daze, Pretty mumbled his name.

Tears spilled from her eyes.

Leaning down, I kissed her lips.

“I got him, baby. Relax for me.” Her crying caused her heart rate to increase.

The baby’s monitor came on, signaling that my baby’s heart beat good and strong.

“You hear that?” I asked Pretty while rubbing her belly.

“Calm down for our baby.” She nodded and drifted off to sleep.

Once I had her in the clear, I left her to Sean and a few other nurses, then went to Trauma Room 2 to find Antonias shocking Russ’s heart back into rhythm.

Staff moved at every bark and order Antonias threw out.

Dazed, Jabari stood pacing outside of the next trauma room.

He was covered in blood.

Blinking past the fury in my eyes, I entered the trauma room.

Haven lay on the gurney, surrounded by Micah and his nursing staff.

Quickly, my eyes darted to her monitor.

Her vital signs were normal.

The baby’s monitor registered that the baby’s heart rate was normal.

Moving to the edge of the gurney, I winced at the bullet wound in her arm.

“She’s good,” Micah assured me.

“I’m taking her up to surgery.”

Exiting the trauma room, I went back to trauma room 2.

Seconds later… “Code blue. Trauma Room 2.”

Moving to the sink to scrub up, I wore a scowl that would probably permanently affix itself to my face.

I stood on the opposite side of the gurney as Antonias prepared to shock Russ again.

“Aight, everybody,” I drawled.

“Let’s save my nigga.”

For the next thirty minutes, we attempted to do just that.

“Everybody cool?” I asked Humble just an hour later.

Once Quilo laid eyes on Pretty and was assured that she was okay, Stacy took him home.

“Yeah. Everybody’s resting. Granny and Granddad are downstairs. Everyone else has left.”

“And Quilo?”

“He’s resting, too. It took a minute.”

“Aight. I love you.”

“Love you, too, Pops.”

Hanging up with Humble, I replayed the footage from Burgers Anonymous Gourmet Restaurant once more as if anything would change.

An unmarked sedan pulled up, and shots rang out.

In the midst of the mayhem, DJ, Humble, and Zel drew their weapons and chased after the sedan.

So far, the sedan hadn’t been located.

“Doesn’t look like much on the feed,” Gunner stated.

He stood over my shoulder, watching the same shit.

“I doubt we’ll ever locate that sedan.”

“Leave it to me,” I stated.

For a minute, Gunner studied me.

“Are you sure?”

Glancing up at him, I said, “Leave it to me.”

He put his hands up and looked relieved.

“Consider it left. I’m outta the way. Call if you need me.” He walked out of my office, whistling.

Standing, I stretched my back.

Leaving out of my office, the sight before me was a stark contrast to how it was a little while ago.

Machines hummed and beeped, the tranquil sounds were music to my ears.

I went down the hallway, hopped on the elevator, and rode to the top floor.

Exhausted and running off of pure scorching anger, I entered my apartment suite to shower and change.

A knock at the door stopped me in my tracks.

Backtracking, I opened the door to Stacy standing there.

“This was delivered to you about an hour ago. And before you say anything, it was on the passenger seat of the Suburban when I went back to move it out of the ambulance bay. I don’t know what’s in here, but it was important enough for somebody to leave it. I had to make sure you were alone before I gave it to you. Plus, I’ve already checked the security cameras. It was a hooded nigga who knew the cameras were there. Can’t make out shit else.”

“Aight.” I took the envelope.

“And thank you, bruh.”

Waving me off, he said, “Ain’t no need for that.” He stalked off down the hallway and back to the elevator.

Tossing the envelope on the bed, I stripped my clothes off, headed into the bathroom, and got my shower out of the way.

I brushed my teeth, moisturized, and dressed to prepare for the long night ahead of me.

Downstairs, Pretty slept peacefully inside one of the private rooms while the staff and I continued to monitor her.

Haven was in the clear.

She too was in one of the private rooms recovering.

Jabari and I hadn’t spoken yet, and that was partially because he was still stuck in a daze.

Well, he was deathly silent.

I wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing.

I had my staff watching his ass, too, just in case he had a breakdown or some shit.

I sat on the edge of the bed to put my socks and shoes on, then glanced at the brown envelope.

Reaching over, I grabbed it, then opened it to see what was inside.

Carefully, methodically I scanned the pictures.

With a gentleness that I didn’t feel, I put the pictures back inside the envelope, placed it aside, then stood.

Once I had my wallet, phone, and keys, I headed back out of my apartment and to the elevator.

Inside the metal box, I roared loud enough to shake the state.

With death in my eyes, heart, spirit, and mind, I stared at my reflection.

These niggas wanted me.

Sometimes a muthafucka had to pop out and remind a nigga, behead a nigga, kill a nigga, bury a nigga and his whole blood line…

Or whatever that nigga said.

Downstairs, I merely glanced at Alli and Dothan, signaling for them to follow me.

Glancing at DJ who was in a corner by himself looking stressed the fuck out, I said, “No one in or out.”

“Aight,” he replied.

“Aye, Doc?”

Behind me, Jabari approached.

“‘Sup?”

“I’m comin’ wit’ you,” he said. Funny thing was, he left no room for debate. His eyes were dark, like he wasn’t in his right mind. Well, shit. Neither was I.

“You can’t possibly know what you’re askin’,” I said.

His quick grin was filled with everything except humor before it dropped from his face.

“I’m pretty sure I’on give a fuck right now,” he stated.

“Bet.” I wouldn’t deprive the man of watching the life drain from the eyes of those responsible for injuring his wife.

The four of us exited Dr. Bell & Associates with murder on our minds.

An hour later, dressed in all black, we pulled up to our first destination.

Within minutes, we were in and out, leaving nothing breathing behind us.

The skill with which Jabari handled himself had me side-eyeing him in the back of the black van taking us to our next spot.

“When was you gon’ tell me that you can play like that?” I questioned.

“They fucked with my wife, bruh. I’m willin’ to come out and play un-fuckin’-fair behind that woman.”

“Real shit,” Dothan muttered.

Our second destination was across town, in a dilapidated area overrun with hoes and drugs.

In the back of one of the row houses, the unmarked black sedan peeked through a partially standing makeshift garage.

We went through two row houses, silencing every breathing thing in both of them.

Our last destination was a community on the outskirts of the city.

Ten years ago, this area was desolate.

Now, it thrived with businesses, homes, and restaurants.

The only restaurant I was concerned about was the one owned by the McAroy family.

Alli maneuvered the van to the back of the building where a few luxury sedans were parked.

“It’s dark in there,” Dothan stated.

“They’re in there, though.” His intel was solid, so I didn’t doubt him.

We filed out of the van and rushed to the back door.

It was cracked open, like someone waited for us to show up.

On high alert, we entered the darkened interior.

Quickly, we swept through the kitchen area and hallway, before coming to a clearing where the dining area was located.

All the tables were clean, with chairs propped up on them.

By the smell, someone had cooked recently.

A light coming from underneath the private dining hall alerted us to movement.

Alli moved swiftly towards the door.

I stood in front of it with my gun trained on the wooden structure.

Alli opened the door leading with his weapon.

A strange look crossed his face as he motioned me to follow him inside.

Kody chuckled lowly as I entered the dining hall.

At the front of the large dinner table he sat, shirtless and drenched in blood.

Food was spread out on the table, partially eaten.

Copies of the same pictures I received laid on the table.

Seated at the table were each of the McAroy men pictured in the photographs.

The elder McAroy, Kody’s pops, along with the remaining McAroy men each had gaping bullet holes in their chests and heads.

Just to be sure, Dothan rounded the table to check each of their pulses.

I eyed Kody. He looked deranged as fuck.

“I handled mine, nigga,” he stated calmly as he met my eyes.

“Now you handle yours.”

There was a truce there.

One that I was willing to accept.

Leaving the dining hall, we retraced our footsteps back to the van.

“Now what?” Jabari asked.

Sighing heavily, I removed my mask and said, “My family means everything to me.”

Leaning back against the seat, I watched the scenery pass as Alli steered us back to the office.

Once there, I showered and changed again, I went to see Russ.

He was on a ventilator, but only to keep him comfortable while he healed.

Stepping to his bedside, I placed my hand on his shoulder.

“I got you forever.” If he were awake, he wouldn’t accept me saying thank you.

He knew what it was.

Minutes later, I walked into Pretty’s private room to find her awake and watching television.

A plate of food sat on the side table, uneaten.

Her eyes brightened at the sight of me.

“Hey, baby.” I kissed her forehead, then her lips.

“Sean said that Haven and Russ are going to be okay. Is he being honest with me?”

Smiling, I sat down and placed my hands on her belly to play with our baby.

“He’s being honest, my baby. They’re just fine. So are our sons.”

Tears rolled out of her closed eyes.

“I love you so much, Adir.”

I kissed her again and mumbled the same affection to her.

Several minutes later, I received a text message.

Gunner: Marco is awake.

Shit… That was perfect timing.