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"Cops don't get called around this way. In this part of Briar Ridge, people mind their business," Kysre answered.

"Good," I said, not giving a fuck either way.

"Wha... what the fuck is... my fucking car!" An older gentleman who looked to be in his sixties rocking the salt and pepper look came rushing out of the shop. In his hand was a shotgun, another thing I didn't give a fuck about.

"Aye, are you Rook?" I tossed in his direction.

"Kysre, what the fuck is this?" he seethed in her direction.

"Watch your muthafuckin' tone speaking to her," Rize calmly spoke, walking up on dude.

"Little nigga, I'll blow a hole through your chest." Dude raised his shotgun, and Rize walked right into that bitch.

"We all gotta die someday." He shrugged.

"And if you shoot him, I won't have a choice but to kill you," Kyree spat, circling dude.

"Rook, we didn't come here for trouble. Put the gun down and let us speak with you," Kysre tried to reason.

"Speak with me? I just fucking met you and you shoot up my fucking car then want to have a conversation!"

"He wants to talk." With her gun, Kyree tapped under dude's chin, lifting his head and directing it in my direction. "I need to see River's car."

"Why do you need to see it?"

"Don't worry about it. While you speak to him, we're going to check out her car."

This old ass nigga must've been something back in his day from how he took his time pondering over what Kyree said. The nigga was cocky, and his gaze never left mine.

"Fine." He lowered his gun and then tossed Kyree his keys. "You all have until our conversation is over."

Kysre and Kyree walked into the shop first. Rize took up the rear but stopped next to Rook, chuckling. "Count your lucky stars. You won't get a chance to do that shit twice."

Rook snarled, making Rize's chuckle heighten. In one quick motion, he grabbed the shotgun and then hammered the handle of it into the back of Rook's knee.

"Fuck!" Rook groaned, falling forward.

Rize walked into the shop, and I waited for Rook to stand his old ass back up. The nigga was probably embarrassed, but it was cool. I wasn't planning on staying longer than necessary.

"I'ma ask a question, and you're going to answer honestly. If not, I got a friend who has a baler for me to toss your ass in."

As I talked, I moved toward him to make sure he knew there was no bitch in my blood. I liked a quick kill, but behind Four, I didn't mind getting a little creative with how I put her enemies down.

"And you think killing me is going to make River happy?"

" Four is already happy. Killing you is more about appeasing me than anything else.

I heard you had a conversation with Four before her race.

" He frowned any time I referred to River by her nickname.

"Nigga, fix your face 'fore I slice it off in pieces for your bitch to stitch back together. Did you talk to her or not?"

"Why?" I couldn't do shit but chuckle. Pulling my second gun from my waist, I bashed the nigga in the head. "Ah shit, man!"

"Honey said you’re something like a father to River, but I'm having a hard time believing that shit with how secretive you're being about a conversation. Hol’ up you one of them old niggas with an old bitty at home who don’t do it for you no more, so now you tryna replace her with Four…

my muthafuckin' Four?" I scratched the gun along my jaw as the math started mathing.

"Wha... what, no!" Rook shrilled, sounding just like a bitch.

"I might've believed you, but your response was delayed as fuck. A real father would've nipped that shit in the bud before I finished the question."

"I... I... I don't see River in that way. She's young enough to be my daughter."

"I fucking know!" I gritted, stepping further into his space until his back pressed against the building. "All I'm saying is, you don't seem too worried about your daughter for Honey to say you're like a father to her."

"I always worry about River, but I also know how she is."

"Oh yeah? How the fuck is she?"

"She hates people crowding her and trying to pick her brain about how she feels. She needs time to process what happened, and when she's ready, she'll open up."

"Nigga, I don't need your fuckin' advice." I didn't like this nigga trying to tell me how to handle my woman.

"What did the two of y'all talk about?"

"It's personal." Taking a step back, I pinched the bridge of my nose. This nigga was trying the fuck out of me.

"Didn't I fucking tell you I'll throw your stupid ass into a baler? That fuckin' machine will snap every bone in your body. That's the type of shit I'm on behind Four, and you wanna tell me what y'all talked about is personal!"

My temperature was rising like a muthafucka. The rage simmering when I first pulled up had boiled over.

Rook parted his shaky ass lips to say something, but I busted him in 'em first. Blood squirted from the baby ass wound, but that shit wasn't enough for me. I fucking lost it. The butt of my gun slammed against his face, splitting his skin like a crack in the sidewalk.

"Crown, stop!" I heard Kysre shout. "Four won't forgive you if you kill him."

At the mention of Four, the anger started to settle. I wiped my gun on Rook's shirt, then backed up as he fell to the ground.

"God damn, you fucked him up. He looks worse than when Debo beat the nigga over his grand momma's chain," Rize winced just from looking at dude.

"Will you shut your goofy ass up!" Kyree spat, biting back a laugh.

"Nah, fav, I can't. This nigga looks crazy." Rize shook his head.

"Ain't shit a few stitches and pain medication can't fix." I shrugged not really giving a fuck. Had it not been for Kysre mentioning Four, the nigga might’ve been dead.

"Ho... ho... how could yo... you allow this?" Rook cut his eyes toward Kysre and Kyree.

Kysre scoffed, but it was Kyree who crouched down to meet him eye to eye.

"My sister was in the car with River. By the grace of God, she was able to walk away with a few scratches.

The same can't be said for River, so we're trying to figure out what happened, which is what you should've been doing since you had her car towed here.

Someone fucked with River's steering wheel.

That's why she crashed. As far as I'm concerned, you got what you deserved.

Just be happy it wasn't death." Kyree shrugged, then stood and walked over to Kysre.

"For what it's worth, Crown, I don't think it was him. "

Ignoring Kyree's opinion, I went and grabbed Rook from the ground. "Did you fuck with Four's car?"

"No," he trembled.

"Do you know who did?"

"N... no... no."

"Ight. Get to a doctor and get stitched up." I shoved him away, then turned toward Kysre and Kyree. "Exchange numbers with Rize. I'll be in touch."

"Okay," they agreed.

"Rize, take 'em home."

"I got you."

Dapping him up, I jogged across the street and hopped in my car.

Speeding off, I felt like I was about to go insane.

Shit was coming at me from all angles. Before I could handle the shit in Ember Hills, I had to make sure Four was good.

Doing that seemed damn near impossible. Even with his life on the line, Rook wasn't willing to betray Four's trust. I couldn't even say Four because that nigga was protecting River.

Maybe that's where I fucked up. I didn't give a fuck about River because I was hooked on Four.

She created this persona that was easy to fall in love with, and a nigga fell.

Now shit was getting real, and Four was pushing River to the forefront.

River came with boundaries, secrets, and insecurities that her ass wasn't gon' let me get to without force.

Bulldozing my way to answers wasn't how I wanted to play shit.

I wanted to give her time to see I wasn't on fuck shit and anything I said to her I was willing to stand on.

That shit was gonna take time we no longer had.

Someone was coming at River. What happened with her car was a message, one I heard loud and clear.