SYX #3
Amai leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees, his eyes locked on mine. “It’s a simple question, Syx. How. Long.”
“I don’t—” I swallowed hard. “A few weeks. Maybe longer. I don’t know.”
“You don’t know.”
“It wasn’t—it didn’t start as—” I struggled to find the words. “It just happened.”
“Things don’t just happen.” His tone didn’t change. Still calm. Still controlled. “You made a choice. She made a choice. And now I need to know what else you’ve been choosing.”
“I didn’t choose to betray you.”
“Then let’s find out.” He sat back, crossing one leg over the other. “Did you give Yahmaria information about Landry business?”
“No.”
“Did you tell her where the vault was?”
“No.”
“Did you help Victor access it?”
“No.” My voice cracked. “I didn’t even know Victor was planning anything.”
“Did you know about Rahsaan?”
“What about him?”
Amai’s eyes narrowed. “Did you know he was working with Victor?”
“No! I didn’t know shit about any of that!” I pulled against the restraints, panic ripping through my chest. “I’m not a fucking traitor, Amai—I would never—”
“Then what did you do?” His voice was soft now. Dangerous. “Because from where I’m sitting, you fucked my ex-wife, kept it a secret, and now my money’s gone and my family is at war. So, tell me, Syx—what the fuck did you do?”
“I loved her!” The words exploded out of me like diarrhea before I could stop them. “That’s what I did! I loved her, and she loved me, and we tried to stay away from each other, but we couldn’t!”
“Love.” Amai’s expression didn’t change. “You think that makes this okay?”
“I think it makes it real.” My voice was shaking like a muthafucka, but I didn’t look away. “I think it means I’m not some pawn in Victor’s game or some spy trying to take you down. I’m just—I’m just a man who fell in love with someone I wasn’t supposed to. That’s all I’m guilty of, cuz.”
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Amai stared at me, his face unreadable, and I couldn’t tell if he was about to kill me or let me go.
Finally, he stood.
He walked to the table against the wall—the one with the tools—and I felt my entire body tense.
This is it. This is where it happens.
But he didn’t pick anything up.
He just stood there, his back to me, his hands resting on the edge of the table.
“You know what the fucked-up part is?” he said quietly. “I believe you.”
I exhaled, relief flooding through me so fast I felt dizzy.
“But that doesn’t change anything,” Amai continued. He turned around, and the look in his eyes made my blood run cold. “Because love doesn’t make you innocent. It just makes you stupid.”
“Amai.”
“I’m moving you to a different room,” he said, cutting me off. “You’ll stay there until I’m done with Yahmaria.”
Panic surged through me. “Wait—what are you going to do to her?”
“That depends on what she tells me.”
“She doesn’t know anything!” I pulled against the restraints, my wrists burning. “She’s not involved in this—she’s just caught in the middle.”
“Then she better have something useful to say.” Amai’s voice was ice. “Because if she doesn’t, she’s dead.”
“No—” My voice broke. “Amai, please—don’t hurt her!”
“Why the fuck should I care?”
“Because she’s the reason I can sleep at night!” The confession tore out of me, raw and desperate. “The nightmares—the ones I’ve had since my mom died—they stopped when I was with her. She’s the only person who’s ever made me feel like I wasn’t drowning.”
Amai stared at me, and for a moment—just a moment—I thought I saw something flicker in his eyes.
But then it was gone.
“I don’t give a fuck about your nightmares,” he said flatly. “I don’t give a fuck about your feelings. And I don’t give a fuck about whatever you think you have with her.”
He walked toward the door and opened it.
Two guards stepped inside—big, silent, efficient.
“Move him,” Amai said without looking back. “Different cell. No contact with anyone.”
“Wait—” I struggled as the guards approached. “Amai, please—just listen—”
One of the guards unfastened the strap across my chest.
“She’s all I have!” I shouted, my voice cracking. “You can’t just—”
The wrist restraints came off next, and I tried to lunge forward, but the guards grabbed me before I could move.
“Amai!” I twisted in their grip, my voice rising. “Don’t do this—she doesn’t deserve this, and you know it!”
Amai finally turned to look at me.
“Yahmaria better give me something I can use,” he said quietly. “Information about Victor. About the money. About the war. Something.”
He stepped closer, and his voice dropped to a whisper.
“Because if she doesn’t, she’s dead. And you can see her in the afterlife.”
“No!” I thrashed against the guards, but they held me tight. “You can’t—she’s not—”
“Get him out of here,” Amai said, turning away.
The guards dragged me toward the door, and I fought them every step of the way.
“Amai, please—please—”
“Yaya!” I screamed as they pulled me into the hallway. “Yaya, I’m sorry—”
The door slammed shut behind us.
And the last thing I heard was the sound of the lock engaging.
Leaving Yahmaria with the man who had no reason to let her live.