Page 25 of Search My Soul (Taylor Family Saga #3)

“Who did this shit?” As soon as I stepped into the hospital room, I bombarded the nurse with all kinds of questions.

Huncho stood up from his chair with a sad look on his face.

I could barely bring myself to look over at Remi, hooked up to all those machines.

Yes, the mothafucka got on my nerves, but he didn’t deserve this shit.

He never had beef with a single soul, so I couldn’t imagine why anyone would even wanna hurt him.

“From what we were told, it looks like a robbery gone wrong.” Remi’s father, Emilio, sounded off from behind us. His face was red from crying.

“It appears that he must’ve been fighting with someone, and they shot him. We found some underwear and a few used condoms on the bed. It seems like it may have been a set up by a bitch he was fucking with. There was alcohol on the table in the living room and leftover food as well.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” I was so pissed I could barely think straight. Who the hell would be dumb enough to hurt Remi? The more I thought about it, the more I realized how complex the situation was.

“Wait, you said it was a robbery?”

“It would appear so. There was a trail of loose bills leading from the closet. I’m not sure how much, but they took it all.

We also noticed his jewelry was taken as well.

He called me last night, but there was no sound on his end.

I had a feeling something was wrong when he never responded.

I got another call an hour later from the hospital, telling me he had been dropped off in the middle of the parking lot.

” This time, there was a crack in his voice.

Remi was Emilio’s only living son. He had lost his other two sons several years ago—one to cancer and the other to a drug overdose.

I could only imagine how this must have made him feel.

“I’ve got a few guys looking into what happened.

Unfortunately, Remi’s cameras weren’t on that night.

He usually turns them off on shipment and drop-off days because he doesn’t want to record any incriminating evidence.

I’m assuming he must have forgotten to turn them back on.

” A part of me felt guilty because I had been on his neck about not screwing up.

“Somebody has to know something. Did you check his phone to see who he was in contact with? It had to be someone who knew his schedule.”

“Yeah, I have somebody looking into that as well. It doesn’t appear to be a break-in, so whoever did this was invited in initially.

I’m thinking it might be some bitch he was fucking with.

Maybe she set him up and had someone help her.

Whatever the case may be, we’re working on it, and we should have an answer soon.

” Soon wasn’t good enough for me. Not only did I need to find out who tried to kill Remi, but those mothafuckas took my money as well.

Whoever it was must have had a death wish because once I got my hands on them, their family wouldn’t be able to identify their body.

“Keep me updated as soon as you find anything. I’m gonna hit up some of his friends. See if they know anything.”

“I appreciate that, son. The bullet next to his spine couldn’t be removed, and if we don’t get him to a specialist, he may never walk again,” Emilio informed us. I still couldn’t wrap my head around any of this because he was fine when I saw him the other day.

It killed me to see him like this because, although he was a fuck up, he never bothered anyone.

Remi was always the happiest and most outgoing of the group.

Growing up, we were practically raised like siblings because our families were connected.

His birth mother abandoned them, leaving Emilio to raise three boys on his own.

My aunt Raven married Emilio when Remi was a baby and raised him as her own.

We used to spend summers at each other’s houses up until Auntie Raven got sick.

Her death broke our hearts all over again, but it solidified our brotherhood forever.

I notified my family after I got to the hospital, so I knew they were on their way.

This shouldn’t have happened, and a part of me blamed myself.

Remi wasn’t responsible, and I knew that.

It was the reason why I tried to get him removed from the team in the first place.

He didn’t have street smarts or any sense of danger.

He was a hothead. He felt like he was invincible, but any real hustler in the game knew that nobody was invincible and death was inevitable.

The moment our family came through the door, I already knew what was gonna happen.

The barrage of questions that were fired at me was too much for me to handle all at once.

“Grandson, what the fuck is going on? Who did this to him?” OG asked, limping over to the bedside with his cane in his hand. I watched as he broke down from seeing Remi in the bed.

“I don’t know yet, Grandpa. I’ve got my men out in the streets trying to find answers right now. All I know right now is that he was robbed, and it appears to be an inside job.” His eyes turned into slits as he stared at me.

“What the hell do you mean by an inside job? One of your people did this? Somebody in our organization?” he questioned with fire in his eyes.

OG may have been sickly now, but he was a killer back in his day.

I could tell that this incident was bringing out a side of him that had remained dormant for many years.

“What I mean is that it appears to be someone he knows. There were women’s clothing and a few other items left behind at the house, which we believe were from a woman he was entertaining.

More than likely she was set up too, and things went wrong.

I already have Huncho and the crew on the scene, so we should have answers soon. ”

“That isn’t good enough for me. You need to be out there trying to figure out what happened to your cousin.

Whoever shot him like this needs to be tortured in the worst way.

I don’t care what you have to do or how long it takes to find the person who did this.

” The OG’s word was law, and there was no questioning his request. Instead, I simply nodded because there were no other words that needed to be spoken.

Whoever had done this would have to pay with their life, and possibly even the lives of those they loved.

We don’t play about our family, and if you come for one of us, you come for all of us.

Pure cleared his throat, causing me to look in his direction. He nodded his head for me to meet him in the hall. Both of my grandparents were upset, so I figured this would be the time to give them some space.

“We’re gonna be right outside if you need us,” I told them, but they were too busy praying over Remi. I wasn’t in the mood for Pure’s bullshit today, so I prayed he kept it cool.

“What did they take?” he asked with an emotionless expression on his face.

“I don’t have all the details, but from what I understand, they got at least two million from us. Whoever they are must be dumb as hell, and I plan to make sure they suffer for the shit they did.” Pure looked away for a moment, his eyes lingering on nothing in particular.

“Salvador reached out to me and asked if we needed help. I told him that we had it under control. We do have it under control, right?” I knew exactly what he was asking, and as mad as I wanted to be, I couldn’t.

Somewhere along the lines, I had dropped the ball, and as a result, our family was hurting.

“Yes. We’ve got it under control. I’m gonna find out who did this and I’m gonna make them pay.”

“I hope so. OG isn’t gonna rest until we find answers, and neither is Emilio.

OG is sick and doesn’t need this kind of stress right now.

” Pure was telling me something that I already knew.

The last thing I wanted was for my grandfather to feel like we were incapable of handling the situation. We had enough on our plates as it is.

“I got it. I’m gonna head out of here so I can hit up a few spots. We need him to wake up so he can tell us who did this, but in the meantime, I’m gonna turn every stone upside down until I find something,” I declared, rage surging through my veins.

“I’m gonna get out of here myself. I’ve gotta be in Toronto in the morning.

When you find something, let me know. I trust you to take care of this but also keep in mind what I said.

Only shed blood if it’s absolutely necessary.

The streets are talking, and there are more eyes on us than ever before.

They are expecting us to retaliate, so we need to be smart about this.

Now is not the time to paint the city red.

The business must come first.” My nostrils flared in irritation because I wasn’t trying to hear all that.

The only thing on my mind was blood, so him telling me that I needed to calm down only pissed me off.

Both of us played our own roles in this business, and it felt like he was trying to step on my toes.

“I’m not about to have this conversation with you again. Especially with my motherfucking cousin laid up in the hospital bed and we don’t even know if he’s gonna be able to walk again or even make it off the operating table.”

“And that is your problem right there. You don’t know how to think with your head.

Everybody is expecting us to react violently.

The commissioner, the mayor, and everyone else are expecting us to do exactly what you’re trying to do right now.

All you’re gonna do is add fuel to a fire that has already started.

I wasn’t asking, I was telling you. No bloodshed unless it’s necessary.

You’re not about to fuck up this organization because you don’t know how to control your temper.