Chapter 6 #7
“Answer the fucking question, Celine!” I hissed, probing her with a hardened glare.
“He became you.” She whispered, freezing everything around us in this moment.
My hand still trembled with the photo while I scrutinized her.
“The fuck are you talking about?” I snatched her up by the arm and brought her close.
She immediately wept. Her head fell and she cried so hard it gutted me. I knew she was speaking the truth. Pulling away from her, I felt like I was fucking falling as what she said repeated in my head. I watched her fall to her knees in front of me.
“How?” I voiced, barely feeling like my shit was audible.
The ground had been fucking removed from beneath me.
“Tell me every fucking thing!”
“It wasn’t supposed to happen like this.
” Her haunting stare was also full of pain as she stared off like she had slipped down some rabbit hole.
“You should have never been mine.” She was talking, but it was like she was reliving whatever happened and I wasn’t even here.
“Korrin found out that she couldn’t have kids.
I was already working here at the time. Kutlass was nice to me.
He brought me flowers sometimes and made me laugh.
I was young, and na?ve. I never should have gotten caught up in his bullshit.
I didn’t know he was just using me to please her. ” Disgust seeped into her tone.
A drunk mind spoke sober thoughts.
“They asked me to be a surrogate for them. After persuasion, I agreed. It took a couple of tries, but finally it worked, and I got pregnant.” Celine continued.
“They were so happy, and things between them seemed good. Then… I miscarried. Kutlass was there. He didn’t tell Karrin.
He knew she would lose it. So… we decided to do something about it ourselves, at least at the time that’s what I told myself.
I was doing it for her. I didn’t owe her a damn thing.
She knew there were risks with the procedure.
But I still felt guilty because I promised them a baby.
So your father and I started to be… intimate.
After about a week, I was pregnant. I found out a few weeks later.
Korrin found out after I gave birth. I didn’t want to give you up once I saw you.
” Tears spilled down her cheeks at this point, and I was stuck to the ground where I stood.
“She wanted to fire me. But Kut wouldn’t allow her to after everything.”
“Are Kara and Karmine yours too?” I questioned, finally able to form words.
“No. She wouldn’t use me again. They used another woman for them. It was still her eggs and his sperm though.” Celine sniffled and her back fell against her bed as she remained on the floor.
I started toward the door.
“Frequency—”
“Get out.” I growled, keeping my back to her when I reached the door.
I never in my life would have thought that I would speak to her like this or hold the rage inside me that now rested there from her revelation.
“My boy—”
“Your boy!” I belted, turning on her like a wild animal, eyes bucking out of my head, filled with wrath. “You mean your son! That’s why you stuck around. Playing this sick ass game! Acting like you loved and gave a damn about me when you was really trying to ease your own fucking guilty conscious!”
My words startled her, and pain struck her eyes along with more tears.
“And you saw what the fuck Kut did to me, and just like Korrin, you allowed that shit! So what makes you any fucking better than her! You birthed me. I share your fucking DNA and you let him torment me most of my childhood. What kind of mother does that make you, hmm? Pack your shit and get the fuck out of here. I don’t want to see you, and I don’t want to fucking know you!
” I stomped out and practically raced down the steps.
When I got to the door, I snatched my keys off a nearby table before yanking it open.
To my dismay, Kara waited on the other side, with one of my guards holding her up.
She was lit, and I wasn’t sure off what the way her body swayed.
She was catching that nod I often saw addicts do.
The fuck is going on? I hadn’t seen my sister in a while, and there was a drastic change in her now.
“Kara, the fuck Slice.” I grimaced at my guard and he shrugged.
“She showed up like this. I didn’t want to turn her away,” he said, sheepish.
Kara leaned against him, barely able to stand on her own. She was definitely high off something other than life. I took her off his hands, sighing heavily.
“A’ight. Keep watch at the gate. I’ll take care of this.” I told him with a nod.
“Sure thing, boss.” Slice took off down the sidewalk and I helped Kara inside and into the living room.
She was in party clothes and some high ass heels. Easing her down into a chair, I knelt in front of her as she curled up like she was ready to slip off into sleep. I slapped her face a couple of times and her eyes popped open. She stared around, completely discombobulated.
“Kara— “
“Quency?” She replied, face scrunching up with confusion. “How did I get here?”
“That’s a good fucking question. What’s going on?” I queried, and she went to grab her head as if her memories were just running away from her.
“I don’t know. I went to this party on Sunday—”
“It’s Tuesday.” I pointed out, and she turned her face up, baffled.
“Is it?” She ran her fingers through her hair and licked her dry ass lips.
She carried bags under her eyes, like she had been up for days.
“I’m so tired, and hungry.”
“How did you get here?” I questioned; hands clasped together still knelt in front of her.
“I… I don’t know.” She answered, still wearing perplexity as she tried to figure out what was going on. “I left with this guy, and he gave me this pill, and now I just want to eat and sleep.” She whined, resting her head in her hands.
She tried resting on the arm of the chair, but I shook her awake. I didn’t have time for this shit. Dropping my head to my hand, I sighed heavily.
“Fuck!” I cursed myself and quickly stood.
The fuck was I going to do with her? I couldn’t leave her here like this. I was worried that something would happen to her or she might slip off and never fucking come out of it. Doing a little pacing, I went over to the phone and called down to the guard house at the entrance.
“Yo.” Slice picked up.
“I need a favor, bro. Put somebody else at the gate. I need you to come in here and keep an eye on my sister.” I instructed.
“Okay. I got you.” Slice agreed.
“Thanks.” I put the phone back on the base and covered my face with my hands. “A’ight. Kara, stay put. I’m going to check on a few things. I’ll be back later. Don’t leave. Keep yourself right here.” I ordered.
She barely heard me. She curled up in the chair and kicked off her shoes. I watched her lean her head against a pillow and close her eyes peacefully. When I got to the door, Slice was already on the porch. I left to door open.
“Don’t let her leave. Just… keep an eye on her for me. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” I pat his chest on my way out the door and over to my whip.
Slice ducked into the house and closed the door behind him. I couldn’t do any of this shit right now. I was just climbing into my car when my phone started vibrating in my pocket. Pressing the start button, I checked and saw that it was one of the managers at the grocery store I owned with Ledge.
“Tank, what’s good?” I asked, maneuvering my car away from the house.
“Free, we got a problem.” His voice was labored, like he was having a hard time breathing.
“Tank, what’s wrong?” I asked.
“Somebody… they came in, robbed us, and shot the place up. It was full of early morning shoppers, bro. They came in and massacred everybody.” Tank explained.
My blood turned to ice in my veins. The fuck was going on?
This day was starting on some bullshit already.
Something told me my quest to draw Arrow out was the reason behind this.
He was a sneaky ass bastard, and never wanted you to see him coming until he was ready for it.
I pulled off my estate, leaving the mansion in my rearview while punching the gas to the city.
“I’m on my way.” I told him, hanging up.
If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. On the way, I hit Deviance up, reminding him to keep a close eye on Harbor.
Ivy was usually good in school, but I always made sure I had somebody waiting on the outside at release time, just in case.
About thirty minutes later I pulled in front of Meyer’s Grocery.
The cops were crawling everywhere. There were scattered ambulances and fire trucks too.
I parked but didn’t get out. I owned this place, but it was a shell situation, so nobody actually knew that.
I kept shit like that for a reason. I couldn’t believe the carnage I was seeing when they started wheeling out body bags.
I didn’t need this kind of heat right now.
I saw Tank being brought out. He was the owner according to the rest of the world.
A couple of officers were talking to him, and a paramedic led him to an ambulance waiting.
His arm was in a sling, and his head was wrapped in a bandage. He looked like he had been through it.
Our eyes locked briefly from across the street from one another.
It was like he knew to look my way. I could tell by the dark glimmer in his eyes that he had something to say.
Tank was solid though. He was one of few that I knew around the way that always helped me out, and vice versa.
I kept Tank and his family fed. He got to send his kids away and off to college.
I made sure he didn’t have to be involved with anything that was illegal.
He made good money around here, and I sent him bonuses twice a year that were enough to set him right for many years to come if he moved right with it.
This didn’t feel like an attack on Tank as much as it was a message to me.
Sometimes a nigga thought too much, but my shit never steered me wrong.