Welina Hou
ORI
“The fuck are you doing here?”
My gun was at the side of his head having gotten the drop on him. Despite this being his club, he should’ve known better than to walk into any space with dark walls and hallways without flipping on a light. The hall only had sconces on, which allowed for multiple places for anyone to hide.
“Me? Nigga, you’re the one who’s supposed to be dead but you questioning my presence? Where they do that shit at, Lazarus?” Hakeem’s face was contorted in aggravation as he flipped on the switch next to us bringing up the full hallway lights.
None of this was funny but with the way my life had been fucked up in the last few months I was glad that something was lighthearted in this bitch. I laughed. Like genuinely laughed at this man whom I was happy to see.
He looked surprised at the sound and I had to remember he had never seen me any way but serious.
I tucked my gun in my waistband because I knew he wasn’t a threat. The things I learned about my life after I’d died were surprising. But it was all the information I needed to help me come back. And live completely.
“How long have you been a part of this?”
I wasn’t about to ignore the elephant in the room. It was too fucking big and too damn noisy for me to pretend it wasn’t there by trying to fake niceties I didn’t feel. Part of me was thankful that he had been in position while I’d been gone.
Five months. Longer than I’d been allowed to enjoy being married to my wife.
I had to disappear because too many things were closing in on me at once.
Staying would’ve put Asha in danger and despite knowing she was gonna try to cut my dick off the second she saw me, I’d rather be a eunuch than to be without her.
Gotdamn I am really in love with her.
“Since I was old enough to know what the hell was really going on with our family.” Hakeem sighed and I knew having to be deceitful had to have weighed on him. He’d carried secrets only being allowed to divulge a little at a time because of our family. My return meant he could unburden himself.
“So, the beginning, then.”
He nodded his affirmation and together we moved silently through the private hall toward the elevator.
The doors opened and we stepped through them and instinctively I knew we were heading to his office.
“Pretty much. We didn’t trust anyone on either side of the family but we needed to remain neutral. ”
“To see if you could grab the seat for yourself?” I trusted him more than Theo but I still had questions. Mainly about the way things were handled. Why they felt the need to remain neutral and only watch what was happening instead of stepping in.
“Nah. To ensure that it didn’t fall into the hands of the wrong muthafucka. Mainly Theo and his crazy ass daddy who apparently tried to have you killed.”
That revelation irritated me. Not that they tried to have me killed, I expected that.
But that they didn’t even put effort into that shit.
With the amount of training I’d had professionally and from the Consortium, they should’ve gone all out.
But just like they were lazy with every other aspect of their lives, they were lazy about this too.
I should’ve been grateful they half-assed it but I was insulted.
We stepped out of the car and walked down the hall toward his office. I had to laugh at Hakeem thinking Theo or his daddy was a threat.
“Should never send a crackhead to do an assassin’s job.”
“Real talk though, them niggas be efficient as fuck. I got a few I keep on payroll when shit gets too crazy down at The Strip.” He tossed his keys on the desk before leaning on it facing me.
“You can stop with that club shit. I know an Angel when I see one.”
He just grinned broadly and continued to chew his gum like he was happy I finally figured that shit out.
Everyone in the family underwent training with The Order.
It was to ensure that no one branch had an upper hand on the other.
Love and loyalty were what The Consortium was built on but that didn’t always stand the test of time and the pinch of financial hardships.
People could turn on you so everyone had to be ready.
I’d assumed that both of my cousins who were still attached to the Consortium had gone through the training.
Given the state of our family we never trained together.
What I didn’t know was that he’d been picked to be my second years ago and had been working behind the scenes to keep shit together while I was serving my sentence in the government.
When Faith revealed that I was pissed I hadn’t seen it for myself.
“I was wondering how long it would take you to catch on. What gave it away?” I was sure he wondered how he’d slipped up so he wouldn’t make the same mistake in the future. Of course I was sure he’d only been at ease because it was me. And despite my not trusting him, he trusted me completely.
“The night we dropped that man in your office. You pulled your shot but when I looked at him I saw only one entrance wound. Only someone who’d made it to that level could’ve double-tapped the same spot I had.
There was no need to speak on it then but I’ve had nothing but time on my hands the last few months. ”
“Miss wifey that bad, huh?”
I barely wanted to think about her until I got a few other issues wrapped up. Being back in DC meant I was fighting every natural urge I had to run to her side and see her. To be close to her was the normalcy I craved but I still had to wait.
“Like a white man would miss supremacy.”
Hakeem burst out laughing, and even I cracked a smile. “Damn, that’s deep. Don’t tell me that being away made you witty. Damn, she ain’t gone believe it’s you when she sees you.”
My hair had gotten longer now hanging past my collarbone and I tugged at the strands thinking of my wife.
“I might need to bring your ass with me to make sure I survive to get this shit back together.” I wasn’t big on emotion so even saying this was a sign of growth.
I let my eyes roam over everything in the office including the wall of surveillance screens.
I wondered if the film of the night I met Asha was uploaded somewhere and on the hard drives.
Definitely need to get that.
“You know she loves you, right?”
My eyes went to my cousin wondering if he had insight on Asha that I didn’t. “You trying to tell me something? Am I about to walk back into some shit?”
“Hell nah. Well, she’s lost a bunch of weight and looks more like her sister right now.”
“The fuck? Y’all got my wife starving and shit?”
I had surveillance on her the entire time I was gone but seeing her sad was fucking with me. I had to stop watching after a few weeks because I couldn’t bear to hear her sobs.
“You can’t force-feed somebody—”
I pushed his shoulder angrily because, as messed up as this situation was they were supposed to be protecting her while I was gone. “The fuck you can’t!”
He pushed my ass back a sign that things had shifted with us. “It’s grief, Ori! She really misses you. The last few months…”
“What?”
“She quit her job. Started working for her dad and her brother was about to get a bullet in his head.”
“The fuck he do?”
“Try to flex but she’s tough, she handled it.
You know she got that shit wrapped up with her mama smooth as hell and that weird ass bitch she was working with.
I wish I would’ve been able to see her whip ol’ girl’s ass.
I didn’t think your wife had it in her but that bitch looked to’ the fuck up in her mugshot. ”
I’d seen the fallout from Margo’s arrest two weeks ago. And Asha had in fact fucked her up. The way she’d uncovered the deceit that she’d had to live with for the last dozen years made me even more proud that she was my wife.
“Why weren’t you with her?” I trusted Alec and knew personally and professionally he was going to ensure that Asha was protected. I’d never known the Consortium to hand over details to people who weren’t in the family.
“Not my assignment. Besides, your wife isn’t stupid.
I feel as though my hanging around is already suspicious.
I figured you’d want to be the person to announce that you were back from the dead.
She thinks I’m a piece of shit that is trying to take your position.
Never mind that I’ve been trying to keep her ass alive.
But she’s loyal to you and my stepping in and having to deal with Theo’s ass makes me look suspicious to her. ”
I folded my arms over my chest hearing firsthand how she’d been taking up the charge in keeping the family together in my absence. “Be glad she hasn’t tried to kill you.”
Hakeem slid back on his desk grinning as he did. “Oh, she did.”
My eyes widened in shock and now I was worried Asha had a mental breakdown after finding out the details on Margo. “The fuck?”
Hakeem started laughing like the shit was funny and it just affirmed everyone I knew was insane.
“I’m dead ass. I think she tried to poison my ass a few weeks back. I stopped by on some family shit and she fixed me a drink that had my ass down for a few days. Couldn’t keep shit on my stomach. I kept telling myself that I caught a bug or something but—”
I cracked up knowing that even worse than the shits was in store for me when Asha got her lick back. “Nah, that was a test. If she wanted to kill you, she’d have followed through. That was a loyalty test. You've been back since?”
“Hell, yeah, that’s family. I knew from Alec the shit she’d gone through so I wanted to ensure she was straight. I ain’t been crazy enough to take shit she offers me since.”
“Insulting my wife by not taking her hospitality?”
He looked unbothered with my accusation, and I couldn’t blame him. “My nigga, I had the runs for five fucking days. We can throw hands right now because it’s gone be a minute before I eat some shit she made, real talk.”