Chapter 6 #2
“I am glad that you are okay Knowledge, but that’s where it ends. You made things like this.” She responded.
“I know. I fucked up. That’s all on me. Can we just… try again?”
“How many chances am I supposed to give you, hmm? Letting your side bitch work with me wasn’t enough?
I have never felt more violated or disrespected.
And what I do to deserve that shit but be loyal and a good woman and mother.
You don’t appreciate shit, Ledge. And now that I threw in the fucking towel, you want to try again?
Fuck that. It’s time to start living for me and these kids.
I can’t be sitting around here unhappy because that shit bounces off them.
I hope you get yourself together, but no…
we can’t try again. I am glad you are okay.
Goodnight.” She hung up before I could even get another word in.
Sitting there, I gripped my cell tightly in my hand while staring ahead at the projector screen that was showing me the desktop in front of me.
I had done this to myself. Chevy might have been able to just give up, but not me.
The first thing I had to do was put my energy into finding whoever the hell was gunning for me.
I couldn’t get my woman and family back if I was fucking dead.
Frequency
My night took a turn when I got the call from Knowledge.
We might not have been on the best terms, but he was still my ace.
I couldn’t just let go of the fact that he was talking to Kutlass though, knowing how I felt about him.
It was no secret from anyone how I handled my father.
With everything that had gone down with us over the years, I had every reason not to fuck with him.
When I was old enough to separate myself from him, that was the first fucking thing I did.
My parents were always a little off to me.
The older I got, the more I picked apart the way I grew up.
Another reason Ivy was kept away from me was because I didn’t want her to inherit that dysfunction.
Posted at a private table on the outer deck of Terrapin, I sipped my Hennessy while checking out the scenery.
I felt secure because I had snipers at nearly every vantage point.
This wasn’t an ordinary meeting. Watching Harold Lawson walk through the doors and be escorted outside to where I was located, I kept a cool persona.
He was a sturdy man, average height, but with some muscle definition in his arms so that I knew that he was cut and kept himself in shape.
Looking like the average Joe from the outside, I looked deeper and saw the OG’s I was raised around in the hood.
My pops made sure we knew about that environment, but we had never really lived in it.
Thanks to Ledge and meeting him when I did, it was easy to get sucked into that street life.
He lived that shit for real, which was another reason I always had love for him.
He was always fighting that shit. Bro didn’t think he was worthy of anything good in this world.
We shared that sentiment coming up, which is part of the reason we bonded.
“Thank you for making an appearance.” I greeted him, a curious expression clouding my face.
He was stone-faced. I understood that glare. He was a father. To him, I was a nigga that was fucking with his daughter. No matter the kind of father he thought he was, that shit was bound to get under his skin one way or another.
“I was very surprised to hear from you.” He declared, settling in the chair across from me.
“I thought we might need to talk, clear the air,” I placed a hand on the table, but kept the other in my lap where my burner rested.
A mothafucka would never say they caught me slipping.
There were very few people that I even trusted in this world, so when I sat across from a mothafucka that didn’t fit that bill, I was always extra cautious.
Harold narrowed his gaze on me, chuckling to himself before holding me under his hard glare.
“Talk? If you ain’t your father’s fucking son.”
I hated hearing that shit. Mothafuckas just didn’t know how much.
“I’m my own man. Nothing like Kutlass Roth, and the comparison is based on inaccuracy. I’m also not a coward, or some simp like you.”
Harold grilled me bitterly, causing a smirk to fill my face.
“I’ve been in the field a hell of a lot longer than you.”
“And yet here we are.” I simpered before clasping my hands together and leaning forward on the table.
“We don’t have anything to talk about,” Harold worded.
“Hmm, I beg to differ there. You see… we actually have common ground now.” I sneered back at him cockily.
“Oh yeah, and what’s that?” Harold questioned, angling his head to the side.
“Harbor.” I answered simply, changing his entire expression.
“My daughter should have never been a part of this.” He declared.
“You’re right.” I agreed, unbuttoning my suit jacket while my appetizers were placed in front of me by a waiter.
“But because of you, she was brought into this. And now… I can’t picture my life without her.
That’s the only thing I do know without a doubt.
And I’m not going to make excuses or explain any of this shit to you. ”
He didn’t respond, instead he soaked me in, trying to detect any bullshit was my assumption. I’m sure a man like me was the last thing he expected for his daughter.
“You’re an arrogant son-of- a- bitch.” Harold acknowledged.
“You can take that shit however the fuck you want.” I told him simply.
“The only thing I even care for you to know is that Harbor is a part of my circle. My name is practically branded on her. That’s all me.
She’s heavily protected, and if anyone tries to come for her, they deal with me. That includes you.”
“Why would I come for my own daughter?” Harold queried, sloping forward with a crease in his forehead.
“Why would you give the order for your own wife to be hit?” I fired back.
His empty stare didn’t mean shit to me. I knew what the fuck it was. A fool I was not. “Yeah, I thought that might get your attention.”
“My daughter came to me. She had a theory as well. Are you where she got that from?” Harold bobbed his head at me.
“It’s more than a fucking theory, right, Harold?”
“Oh, like you and Ivana?” His voice turned cold and smug.
My finger was itching on the trigger as the weapon rested in my lap. The more he spoke, the more anxious I got to squeeze one off into him. Arching himself forward, Harold squinted at me.
“You sure this is really about Harbor? Or is this something else?”
“Let’s get some shit on the books right here and right fucking now.
” I pressed my first and middle finger down into the table while forcing a hard glare across the table on him.
“I saw how you handled Harbor from jump. I did take her, because I needed her. She turned out to be a very valuable fucking asset. Falling for her was a bonus in all of this. Now, she’s locked in with me.
And I’m not the mothafucka you want it with by any means. ”
“You think I fear you?” Harold shot across the table, smirking. “I was twenty-four when I tapped into this world. I’ve been in this shit almost as long as you’ve been alive.”
“You’re behind the scenes. I’m in the field. We ain’t the same.” I assured him, glowering.
Shock ignited his eyes, and he didn’t respond.
“Is there a point to your summons? Or you just brought me here to talk shit?” Harold queried.
I snickered a little and grinned proudly.
“Tell me how to get in touch with Arrow.” I requested.
“Now why would you want to do a thing like that?” Harold questioned.
“I have questions that I am sure he has the answers to.”
“You don’t want to open that can, son. Trust me.” Harold assured me, an indefinable leer covering his face.
“How about you let me worry about that?” I suggested.
“For years I’ve watched all you so called OG mothafuckas getting fucked with no lube behind Arrow.
He says one thing and does another. You mothafuckas let the shit go on.
I’m not about to play with this mothafucka.
Either you tell me where I can find him, set up a meeting…
something. Or I go another route. Either way…
I want to be face to face within 48 hours. ”
“You think it’s that easy? What are you going to do when you’re face to face? Mothafuckas fear him for a reason—”
“And he can bleed just like the next man so why the fuck is that?” I commanded, a frown of murderous wrath flashing across my brow.
Silence filled the air around us and Harold stared at me, half hatred and half respect gleaming through his eyes.
His jaw tightened, and I could feel that he wanted to lay hands on me, but something else kept him in check.
I couldn’t be the only one tired of Arrow and how he operated.
Now it was about pulling together all the right resources to lure him out of hiding so that I could snub his ass.
Emptily peering back at me, Harold gave me nothing.
He was fucking pathetic, just like Kutlass.
Two worthless ass house niggas. They were like the other slaves trying to hold a nigga back instead of using their position to make a stand.
I hated them kind of mothafuckas. They were weak and always the downfall behind everyone else.
When they put themself in position it was out of pure selfishness.
Neither had any intention of helping the next. Gatekeeping asses.
“A’ight, nice chatting with you.” I brought myself to my feet.
Fixing my blazer and watching Harold twitch in his seat as I buttoned it back up, I gave him five more seconds of my time.
“You bring Arrow out, and everyone around you will become a target. That’s what I do know.” He voiced while I walked away.
I didn’t like mind games or talking too much. Patience was a virtue, and sometimes I felt less than that.
About two hours later…