Page 4
The Safe House
Alexis and Joy walked back into my hospital room. Abel, Will, and I were in the midst of a discussion about the driver that was scheduled to transport me.
“We already paid your driver a visit. He knows what time it is when he gets here,” Will said.
“Cool. We would hate for this to be his last trip,” I expressed. I noticed the look of confusion between Joy and Alexis but didn’t acknowledge it. There were still things she didn’t need to know. Her phone rang and she pulled it out of her pocket.
“Wolf, our ride is here,” Alexis said.
I nodded in agreement and watched as Abel made his way over to his sister. He pulled Alexis in for a hug then whispered something in her ear. After a short exchange, he kissed her cheek. I noticed a tear fall down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away. My eyes never left her as Abel made his way over to me.
“I don’t have to tell you this, but take care of my sister. She will be a little sad, but I’m sure you will find a way to keep her mind off all of this,” Abel explained.
“Bro, I got Alexis, don’t worry. Let’s focus on handling these First Street fools so we can all get back to normal,” I affirmed.
“You’re right. Do whatever she says to get your arm back up. I know how you get when you don’t get to ink anyone. Love you, bro,” Abel said.
“Love you too.” We dapped each other up and hugged, then Abel left the room.
Alexis looked like she was about to cry.
“No tears, Lexxy, he will be fine,” I assured her.
Alexis didn’t say a word as she brought the wheelchair close to the bed. I was fine to walk, but the pain medication made me a little woozy. Once I was in the wheelchair, we were good to go. Will and Joy followed us as Alexis led the way to a door that was labeled employees only. There was too much uncertainty surrounding the shooting for us to go out the main entrance. Since it was dark, I didn’t get a good look at who shot me. Alexis made sure Abel went out this way when he left as well. He knew his way around the hospital from visiting her here.
As we approached the ambulette driver, he appeared to be nervous. Will approached him first. “Hey, Mack, remember what we talked about. This is precious cargo you’re carrying. Be sure to treat them as such, or you’ll be seeing me.”
Mack nodded his head in agreement then seemed to find his voice. “Yes, sir, just like we discussed. Get them to the house and make sure no one is following us. I remember everything we discussed. You don’t have anything to worry about.”
Will looked at him sternly then moved aside as Mack opened the back doors of the ambulette. I didn’t say a word as my uncle already handled the homie. When Alexis left the room with Joy, Uncle Will was sure to place a gun in my duffel bag. Most men didn’t take threats on their life too lightly. Mack could have nodded in agreement all day but one could never be too sure. I was caught slipping once, and it would never happen again.
Alexis pushed me toward the back of the ambulance then helped me stand up. I walked onto the ambulance and took the first seat that was behind the driver’s seat. My movements were slower than I would have liked, but I couldn’t focus on that. I had never been shot before, so this was a new experience for me. A painful one that I never wished to experience again that was for sure. Once I was comfortably in my seat, Alexis took the seat behind me. Will and Joy placed Alexis’s bags on the last seat in the row. Will placed my duffel under my seat.
Joy looked hesitant to leave Alexis now that she knew what was going on.
“You be sure to check in and let me know you’re good, cousin,” Joy said to Alexis.
“Of course. Who else am I going to talk to? No one else knows where I’m going,” Alexis said jokingly.
“Lexxy, take care of this knuckle head. I know he’s hardheaded, but we need that arm healed,” Will said.
“Y’all know I’m sitting right here, right?” I checked. They all looked at me then went back to their conversation as if I wasn’t there at all.
“Don’t worry, he will be fine. I’m going to keep a close eye on him. Promise me you will help Abel with this mess he has gotten himself into,” Alexis expressed.
“You know we look out for family. Abel will be back before you know it,” Will assured her.
“Alright, y’all. We got phones. We have to get out of here. Yo, homie, close this joint up,” I said to the driver.
Once Mack closed the doors, Alexis and I got as comfortable as we could. Within minutes, we were off to my house. Alexis must have been tired because fifteen minutes later, I heard her snoring softly. I felt bad about all of this uprooting and probably scaring her. The look of relief on her face when I awakened was one I would never forget. I had to keep my eyes on the road, but in between I snuck glances at her. Alexis’s brown skin glistened under the sunlight that peeked through the windows. She looked peaceful, and it was a look I always wanted to ensure she had around me.
An hour later we pulled up to my gate. I admired my home as we entered the gate. It was a shame I didn’t come out here enough. This place was my home away from home. It allowed me to reset and get away from the chaos of the city. The ambulance came to a stop, and I noticed Alexis was still asleep.
“Wake up, sleeping beauty,” I whispered in her ear. I watched as she stirred in her sleep.
“I’m so tired. I can’t believe I fell asleep as soon as I sat down.” She groaned. Alexis’s eyes fluttered as they adjusted to the sunlight. She looked around as she attempted to familiarize herself with the new surroundings. Mack got out of the ambulance then walked around to open the back doors for us.
“I’m glad you slept so well. All that snoring you were doing I couldn’t focus on my own thoughts,” I said followed by a low chuckle.
“I see you have jokes. I wouldn’t be so exhausted if I didn’t have to save someone’s life last night.”
“Touché, Doc. Touché.”
We made our way out of the ambulance. The meds were doing their job, so I moved a little better this time around. I grabbed my duffel and one of Alexis’s bags as I made my exit. Usually, I wouldn’t allow her to lift a finger, but in my current state I didn’t think she would mind.
“Thanks for the ride, my man. Remember to keep your eyes open when you leave here. Don’t forget what my peoples told you,” I expressed to Mack. I didn’t wait for a response, but I watched closely as Mack got back into the ambulance. Before I headed into the house, I made sure he was off my property.
I didn’t have my key for this house on me, so we had to go through the garage. Alexis followed me as I walked toward the six-car garage. I punched in the key code, and the first set of doors lifted. As we entered the garage, I took a moment to admire the cars I stored here. There were two Range Rovers, two Chevy Suburbans and two tricked out Mustangs, all black on black. I couldn’t wait to get behind the wheel of my Mustangs again.
As we walked past the cars, I walked toward the set of stairs that led to the back door of the house. There was another keypad there. I punched in the numbers and the door slid open.
“Welcome to my hideaway,” I said.
“This is nice. I see someone really likes gray and white,” she said while walking into the house.
“Yeah, my interior decorator. Come on, let me show you your room.” I walked from the kitchen to the living room toward the staircase that led to the second floor.
Once we made it to the room she would be staying in, I heard Alexis gasp. I knew she would like this room. She loved to read, and there was a built-in bookshelf over the bed.
“Wolf, your home is much more than I expected. I don’t know what I expected at all honestly, but this wasn’t it.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment. The bathroom is to the left, and the walk-in closet is to the right through that set of doors,” I told her. She went through each space in excitement admiring everything. I was about to put her heavy ass bag down when she stopped me.
“That’s my medical bag. Take me to your room so I can show you how to change your wound dressing.”
“Show me for what? Isn’t that what you’re here for?”
“No, smart ass. According to my brother, I need protection. As my patient, you need to know how to change your dressing. I’m here to assist not be your servant,” she said with a hint of annoyance.
I didn’t know how long we would be stuck together in this house. In this moment, I wasn’t about to argue with her. So, I made my way to my room. Alexis was slow to follow but eventually she made her way over. I set her bag on my dresser as she took out the items she needed. Once she grabbed what I would need, she began her tutorial.
“It’s really simple to change the dressing. Here is the gauze and the tape. Don’t put anything on the wound. If the dressing gets wet in the shower it’s not the end of the world. Just try not to submerge it. Any questions?”
“No questions, but can I say you in doctor mode is hella sexy? I never knew I would enjoy the day you bossed me around.”
“Wolf, be serious. We don’t want your wound to get infected,” she said as she blushed.
“If I would have known I needed to get shot for you to be this close I would have done it a long time ago.” I laughed. What I thought was a joke caused Alexis to burst into tears. This wasn’t the reaction I expected but I pulled her in for a hug to console her. I gave her a few minutes to cry. She needed this release. I watched her fight back her tears more than once today.
“Lexxy, it was a joke. I’m sorry, please don’t cry. I hate it when you cry,” I said as I consoled her.
“I’m sorry, but when you came in the hospital, I had to put my fears aside to make sure you would be good. To see you so helpless when you’re usually the person I go to for protection and advice... Anything could have happened during surgery. I’m just grateful you’re here with us,” she expressed through her tears.
Her voice was laced with fear and concern. Now I felt like even more of an asshole. I figured she must have been worried about me but to hear her express it made me feel awful. The shooting was out of our control, but I owed it to her to not give her a hard time during my recovery. I broke our embrace and used my finger to lift her chin up.
“I know that must have been hard for you. I’m glad that you were there to work on me. I won’t make any more jokes about being shot. Thanks to you I’m still around to get on your nerves and kick your boyfriends asses like I used to. No more tears, okay?”
Alexis nodded in agreement. I hugged her again a little longer this time. Maybe she just needed some more rest. She lived such a simple life, and her brother basically turned it upside down in a day. Whatever needed to be done to get Alexis back to her routine needed to happen as soon as possible. This version of Alexis wasn’t one I liked to see. The version where she was a fraction of her usual lighthearted bookworm self. Tomorrow, I would reach out to the crew to see what they had found out about those First Street losers.