Chapter 14
Chapter
Fourteen
EMERY
Iwatched as Terrica turned over and jumped at the sight of me sitting on her dresser, eating a bag of Famous Amos cookies that I’d found in her kitchen upon my arrival.
“What the fuck? Who the hell are you, and what are you doing in my house!” she yelled.
“Aye, stop all that fucking yelling, shorty. We in the same room. No need for all that loud shit.”
She hurriedly reached under her pillow but realized what she was looking for wasn’t there. I held her little .22 up so she could see. “Looking for this?” I could see her swallow deeply and her eyes water.
“Plea—”
“Aht aht, don’t start begging. Do you know who I am?
” I asked. “Nah, don’t answer that. You can’t know who I am if you’re getting on the stand to testify against some niggas you don’t even know.
Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t make you write a suicide note.
This is your only chance, so you’d better convince me not to put this gun in your hand and make you blow your head off. ”
“I was subpoenaed! That bitch Leyla said my name in court, and then the lawyers came by here and told me I had to testify!”
I frowned, cocking my head slightly. “What were you going to tell them exactly?”
“They told me to say that I saw who killed Ray and Al.”
“So, you were going to get on the stand and lie? Don’t you know that’s perjury, and you can go to jail for that?”
“I know, but they scared me and told me you guys were unhinged and were going to come for me since Leyla told them I was there that night.” She was now crying and shivering, something I didn’t give a fuck about.
“Damn. They put your ass in a trick bag. Set you up on some crazy shit because they wasn’t even thinking about your ass.”
“Please don’t kill me. Please. I’ll do anything you want!”
“That’s good to know. Because you’re going to get on that stand on Thursday to tell the judge and jury exactly what the prosecution told you to lie about, and don’t think they can protect you.
I’d hate for Nova James, who lives on 11345 Rutherford Street, to bury her daughter.
” I intentionally let her know I knew more than she thought I did.
I got down from the dresser and advanced on her.
I watched her cower and beg as I smiled at her, handing her the gun back.
“Do what’s best for you, shorty.” With that, I left as quickly as I had come.
I sat at the table at the warehouse, tossing out the brown M&Ms in the family-sized bag. I hated the brown ones. It was too much chocolate for me. Usually, I’d give them to my nephews, but they weren’t around me now.
I saw headlights approaching through the camera we had installed. I pulled out my phone just as a text came through.
Yummy: What time will you be home?
Me: Give me an hour, baby. I’m wrapping some shit up right now.
Yummy: I miss you.
Me: I miss you more, baby. Keep that shit warm for me.
Yummy: You better hope I’m not asleep when you get here, sir.
Me: I know how to wake that ass up.
“Get the fuck off of me!” I looked up to see Juno, Lou, and Kev dragging a very conscious Demarion through the doors.
“Shut up! Snitch ass bitch! Kevin sent a fist flying into his face.
“I swear to God, when I get loose, I’m gon’ fuck ya bitch ass up!”
“Let his ass loose, niggas. I’ve been waiting to tag this bitch ass clown,” Kevin commanded, taking off his jacket and rolling up his sleeves.
I chuckled because Kevin loved to fight.
It was how I met his ass. He was a part of this illegal fight club that Mill, Mook, and I attended some years back.
He was damned good at it, and I knew I needed someone like him on my team.
When I approached him after a fight and asked how much he was making to do that shit, he told me he didn’t make enough to live the way he wanted, but he got paid.
I offered him a job as my street enforcer, paying him way more, and he gladly accepted.
The nigga had hands of steel and could knock a nigga out with one hit. What he just gave Demarion upon arrival was light work.
“Easy, Kev,” I said to him, smirking. “Put his ass over there in the chair.” They dragged him over to the wooden chair and secured him in it. Juno snatched the sackcloth from his head, and I could see a slight fear in his eyes when they landed on me.
“Emery—”
“Shhh.” I shushed him. “So you do know who I am,” I stated rather than asked.
“Listen, bro! Them motherfuckas set me up! You gotta believe me!”
“No, I don’t.”
“Come on, man. You know I would never rat them out!”
“Yet you were in line to testify against them on Thursday.”
“I wasn’t even going to show up!”
“Too bad, nigga. The fact that you haven’t skipped town yet lets me know you were about to perform and sing your fucking heart out. Since you claim you weren’t going to show up, let me help you with that.” I pulled the .50-caliber from my waist.
“Em, wait—”
I pulled the trigger, emptying the clip into his face and chest.
“Put his ass in the incinerator. I don’t want a trace of his bitch ass to be found.”
“What about ol’ girl? The other witness?” Kev asked.
“Already handled.” I walked away with Juno following close behind.
The more motherfuckas I had to shut down, the more I became anxious about leaving this bullshit behind.
None of this was worth the sacrifice when I knew the kind of future I had planned for my life.
My brother and Mook may have been on trial, but I felt as if I were the prisoner.
This life had chained and bound me since I was a teenager.
Shit used to be fun, being able to exude a certain power, make a lot of money, and reign supreme in the streets.
But, as I got older, shit started to become less appealing, and thoughts of Yumi began to surface, and I wanted what I had envisioned with her.
It was funny how life worked.
I was manifesting her return to me without even knowing I was doing the shit. When she walked into my house, I just knew the Big Homie had finally answered a nigga’s prayers. Knowing that, at this very moment, she was in our home, I vowed to do everything I could to make sure she remained there.
Since I drove the decoy car, I left it at the warehouse and hopped in with Juno.
Without even acknowledging it, this nigga had become my unofficial bodyguard/driver.
He used to be security for my pops a long time ago until I transitioned him to driving for me when I didn’t feel like driving myself.
But, as time moved on, and motherfuckas’ loyalty started to become faulty, he was the only one I knew who remained solid.
In my line of work, you quickly began to tap into discernment.
The more money a nigga made, the more he started to feel himself, and those true colors began to shine bright.
I couldn’t count on one hand how many bodies I dropped over the years from people being disloyal.
I didn’t kill women unless I really had to, which was why Leyla and Terrica were able to live to see another day.
All I had to do was pay Leyla to go away and threaten the bitch Terrica.
It would be up to them if they wanted to keep their lives moving forward.
Juno pulled up to my house thirty minutes later, and I stepped out of the car.
“Tomorrow night?”
I nodded. “Affirmative. I won’t need you in the morning, so enjoy your family.”
“You got it, boss. Goodnight.”
I saluted him and went inside. The house was quiet, as expected at this late hour, as I checked that the doors and windows were locked. Even though I had a security system, I still checked to make sure nobody slipped in this big motherfucka.
I headed upstairs to the presidential suite, hearing a girly laugh coming from my bedroom and the TV on low. I pushed the door open, seeing Yumi on her side, hair wrapped, with snacks on the nightstand. My heart smiled when I saw her in my bed, hell, in my presence at all.
She looked up to see me standing there and smiled.
“I thought you would be asleep,” I said, walking over to her.
“This house is too big for me to sleep without you being here with me.”
“Oh yeah?” I leaned down, kissing her lips and running my palm over her round ass. “You know you’re safe here, right?”
“Yeah, . . . but it doesn’t make the house less creepy.”
I chuckled. “What would make it less creepy?”
“A decor change. You have way too many dark tones around here.”
“Noted.” I kissed her lips again and deepened it as her fingers caressed my hair. I had to pull away because I needed a shower before I fucked the shit out of her pretty ass. I lifted her from the bed as she yelped and laughed.
“Emery, what are you doing?”
“I ain’t seen you since this afternoon. I want you to shower with me.”
“But I already did my nightly routine.” Her face held a cute ass pout as I chuckled.
“You don’t want to shower with me?” I asked, sucking on her neck.
A low moan escaped her lips, and she nodded. “Okay.”
I carried her across the massive room to my en-suite bathroom, set her on the double-sink counter, then began to undress.
“How was your day after the meeting earlier?” I asked.
“It was okay. I decided to go to Carmen’s instead of inviting them here. I don’t know if I can trust Chanel. Her not showing up at Carmen’s house only confirmed that I shouldn’t invite her here. She’s been . . . different.”
“Different how?”
“Like she used to be so for our relationship back in the day, but now, she’s siding with our family and not answering my calls or texts.”
“Hmm. Is that right?”
“Yes. I just . . . I don’t know.”
I walked over to her, palming her face, bringing her eyes to me. “You know the way I feel about you, right?”
She chuckled mirthlessly. “Of course I do.”
“Then all that other shit don’t matter. As long as you know I love you, and you love me, nothing or nobody else matters.”
“I just hate being at odds with my family. We were never like this, and it hurts to think things will change if you and I pursue this relationship.”
I sighed, then kissed her forehead. “If it’s us against the world, then so be it. There is nothing I won’t give than to be your protector, healer, or soldier. If anybody wants to get in the field about what we got going on, I’m ready to square up and knock them the fuck out.”
She laughed and tossed her arms around my neck. “I love you, Emery Aldana.”
“Ditto, baby.” I slipped my tongue in her warm mouth and began to undress her.
Her dainty palms caressed my back as my lips descended to her neck.
Lifting her legs, I guided myself inside of her as my eyes closed from sinking into the softness of her walls.
It was hard to describe the feeling. Shit felt like marshmallows when you first bit into one: sweet, soft, and fucking yummy.
“Emery . . .” She whined as I slowly rocked inside of her and took her right nipple into my mouth.
The passion and ecstasy on her face had me driving my hips fast, then slow.
With each thrust, her facial features switched from cute to pretty to beautiful to fucking astonishing.
I was losing my mind, trying to figure out what kind of pre-push gift to get her already.
“Fuck, Yummy.” I lifted her from the counter and bounced her on my dick while her moans echoed off the walls. Moments later, we were both climaxing and breathing heavily.
Our eyes met as she giggled. “You don’t like to have sex in beds, I see.”
“I never can make it to the bed with you, Yummy.”
“I like that, but if you want to see my new tricks, you have to get me to bed first.”
“I got you, mama.” I kissed her lips, then took us to the shower, ready to see these new tricks she wanted to show me.