Page 40 of Obsessive Love

PYRITE

“You sure she’s going to like this?” Zane asked as we walked around the newly remodeled storefront. She and her team had worked around the clock for the last week to complete everything, and now Yuri was finalizing the details.

“Fuck yeah,” I said, nodding. I knew that from the sketches that Zane and Yuri had done that this muthafucka was going to be nice, but I had no clue it would look like this.

Expanding into the second front gave Fable enough space to work and have a small team with her.

The blue and purple décor fit Fable’s brand, and the plants in the corner would make her happy. “She’s going to love this.”

“Where is she?” Zane asked as she leaned against the counter.

“She’s tied down at the moment,” I answered with a shrug. After breakfast, I washed her down, then literally tied her down to the bed. The entire time, she cussed my ass out, and my dick stayed hard. “She will be free in a few days.”

“You sure about that?” she asked, and I nodded. “Have her call me so we can do a walk-through before she opens.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” I said. We chopped it up for a few more minutes before I let her and Yuri return to work.

Instead of returning to my office, I went to Hood’s office to check in with him.

“What’s good, my guy?” I greeted him as I knocked on his open office door. Even though this was technically my building, I still respected that this was his office, and he didn’t like visitors in his private space.

“Shit,” he said, laughing as he waved me in. He stepped around his desk as I approached him, and we exchanged a brotherly hug. “What brings you down to this part of the arena?”

“Nigga, you mean down the hall?” I laughed and sat in the chair across from his desk. “Because last time I checked, my office is on this floor, too.”

“I’m just fucking with you,” he replied as he ran his hand over his head. “What’s up, though?”

“Shit, just came to check on you, see how your vacation was and shit like that,” I said, shrugging.

A big ass smile spread across Hood’s face, and I knew the answer to all my questions. My boy had enjoyed his time with his woman and family. “It was dope. Me and Point Guard got closer. She built a relationship with my folks. We came back solid as shit.”

“That’s what I love to hear,” I said, nodding. “Speaking of your people, how is your mama?”

“She’s strong,” he answered, and his smile dropped. Hood’s mama had an on-again-off-again fight with cancer. She’d recently told him she was no longer willing to fight and was ready to let life happen. It had broken him, hell, us too, because we looked at Ms. Arlene as a mother.

“We are going to see her this week,” I said, and he nodded. “Just know yo ass ain’t invited, either.”

“Nigga, that’s my mama,” he laughed. “How the fuck you gonna tell me I ain't invited to my own mama's house.”

“Just like I did,” I replied with a shrug. “You already know how the squad feels about Ms. Arlene. You had her for a week; let us get a day in.”

“I had to share her with Pops and Point Guard’s spoiled ass.”

“And that’s our fault, how?” I questioned. “Listen, Hood, you are my boy, but your mama is my people. Let us chill with her; you can have her back afterward.”

“Man, alright,” he agreed. “What day y’all going over there?”

“Tomorrow,” I said, standing. “I already talked to the fellas, and they are good with going. You just stay the fuck away.”

“Deal.” He reached across his desk and dapped me up. “When do you want to announce the new recruits?”

“Let’s wait and see how they do in practice; Diara is ready to put them to work. If she’s good with how they play together, I say we announce them on the Friday before the press lunch.” Hood turned his attention to his computer. “That work for you?”

“Yeah.” He nodded. “It’s a few weeks away, so I’m good with that. Their physical reports already came back, and they're clear.”

“That’s what I like to hear.” I checked my phone to see that Fable was still giving me a death stare through the camera. I chuckled, then put my phone away.

“How is your house guest?” he asked.

“We chill,” I answered as I walked away. “Stop by the house soon to meet her.”

“Alright, Ms. Arlene, what you got me into?” I asked her as I pulled my truck up to the address she’d given me.

I shut the truck off and turned to face her.

“I already know it’s going to be some nigga shit cuz you got your homegirls with you.

” I nodded at Ms. Nadine, Nine’s mama, and Mrs. Mary, the head of the DeCorte clan, and shook my head.

“Mind your business, Pyrite,” Ms. Arlene said. She turned to the women in the back seat and sighed. “This is just a peaceful conversation.”

“Okay,” Ms. Nadine said, nodding. Her dark eyes sparkled with excitement, and I had a feeling her ass was going to be anything but pleasant. She’d pulled her normally curly hair into a sleek bun and wore a dope-ass Nike tracksuit. “Just a friendly hello, got it?”

“No,” Mrs. Mary said, shaking her head. “I ain’t with it.

” Mrs. Mary was the firecracker of the trio; she was the oldest, probably knocking on seventy-five’s door, but you couldn’t tell that from how she acted.

She didn’t give a damn about what came out of her mouth and dared a nigga to try her.

Pastor DeCorte always said his grandchildren got their short tempers from her, and I believed him.

Being a DeCorte came with a reputation that she gladly upheld.

“Mary,” Ms. Arlene sighed. “We talked about this.”

“You talked; I didn’t agree,” she said as she searched her purse. “I talked to Krude before I left, and he said to knock that bitch head off her shoulders, and it ain’t too often my grandson gives advice, so when he does, I listen.”

“Wait, Mrs. Mary, Krude said what?” I laughed.

I had no idea what the hell they were talking about or even what they had planned, but if she was taking Krude’s advice, I knew it wasn’t good.

When the fellas and I went to Ms. Arlene’s yesterday to hang out, she pulled me aside and asked if I could take her on a run today.

I didn’t think much about it, so I said yes without asking questions.

I should’ve opened my mouth because now they asses had me on a mission.

“Beat her ass.” Mrs. Mary looked up from her purse with a serious expression. “I didn’t stutter. Paxton even agreed.”

“You took advice from Krude and Paxton?” I questioned, and she nodded. “Why?”

“Because when they’re right, they’re right,” she said and shrugged. “Now, come open this door so I can get out.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I laughed, then exited the car.

I took my time walking around the car to send Nine a quick text, asking him if he knew his mama was out here with three other gang members.

I stuffed my phone back in my pocket and opened Ms. Arlene’s door first, helped her out of the car, went to the back seat, and helped Ms. Nadine, then Mrs. Mary.

“Y’all want me to walk with y’all to the door? ”

“Yeah, come on,” Ms. Nadine said, nodding. “As a matter of fact, lead the way. We need to discuss some things first.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I said, closing the door. I walked ahead of them up the driveway and headed toward the front porch. I rang the doorbell and stepped aside. “Whose house is this?”

“Legacy’s bitch ass parents,” Ms. Arlene said.

I turned around to face her, and when I did, I was pretty sure I fucked up.

All three of them stood there in shiesty masks.

The only reason I knew who was who was because they wore different colors.

Mrs. Mary wore red, Ms. Arlene was blue, and Ms. Nadine was black.

What got me the most was that I just realized they wore black forces. “Now, move.”

I stepped aside just as the door opened, but Legacy’s mama didn’t stand a chance.

They rushed her. Mrs. Mary was the first to land a hit, and the other two followed suit.

In disbelief, I watched them beat Legacy’s mama ass.

Three grown-ass older women were beating this woman’s ass, and I didn’t even feel bad for her.

To get any of them to act out of character meant that she did the unforgivable.

Ms. Arlene pulled her mask off and bent to get in Legacy’s mama’s face.

“You did that baby wrong her entire life because you’re a punk bitch.

She couldn’t control the fact that her mama was dying.

Tammy decided to have her child even though she couldn’t raise her.

She loved you enough to give you a gift.

A testament of y’all’s love, and you let her down. ”

“I loved Tammy, not Legacy!” Legacy, mama yelled. “I didn’t ask for her!”

“And it was obvious, but don’t worry because my son has her now.

For the rest of her life, Hood will take care of her.

Love, spoil, and worship the ground she walks on.

” She grabbed Legacy's mama by her hair to make her look at her.

“I may not be here to protect her, but she will be protected for the rest of her life and beyond that. When I get to heaven, I will find Tammy and let her know that her Legacy is safe now because of my Hood. She can finally rest.”

“Shoot her,” Mrs. Mary said, tapping Ms. Arlene on the shoulder with her gun. “Stop talking to that bitch and put her out of her misery.”

“No, don’t kill her,” Ms. Nadine said, being the voice of reason. “Let her see how much Legacy flourishes with Hood. That will be the ultimate revenge.”

Ms. Arlene stared at Legacy’s mama briefly, then nodded. She let her head go, stood, and then kicked her in the stomach before walking away. Ms. Nadine helped her out the door and to the car.