Chapter 27
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
KAIRI MOORE
Was this life now?
I looked up at the ceiling, wondering how my life took such a dramatic turn in the blink of an eye.
Working at The Cove was something I’d wanted to do for the longest, and when I finally got to do it, I had no choice but to let it go. That hurt more than anything, but at the same time, I knew it was the right thing to do.
I was tired of my drama following me to my job. I knew that, eventually, Mr. Blair was going to fire me anyway, so it was the best thing for me to walk away on my own.
It had been days since I quit my job, and all I’d managed to do was lie in my bed, looking up at the ceiling, wondering if I was going to ever wake up from this hell.
I had to leave The Cove, but at least I wouldn’t have to deal with Sony or Ocean any longer.
The thought of him made me feel nauseous, but I was glad to be in a safer place far away from his reach.
They might have been bold enough to come to my job, but I knew they weren’t that stupid to come to my house. That had to count for something!
Feeling like I’d sat in this depressive state long enough, I rolled out of bed, determined to keep it moving. Another job will come along. For now, I had to be grateful because shit could have been worse.
I headed for the bathroom to start my day or afternoon, since it was almost three in the afternoon, but at least I got out of bed, which was better than yesterday, when I barely moved.
My dad and brother believed I was just tired—catching up on all the rest I missed from working, but honestly, I was hiding.
Hiding from my damn self and the reality of life, as if that was going to solve anything.
No, it was time I bounced back, or at least tried.
I turned on the shower, stripped out of my clothes, and climbed inside. A sense of relief hit me as the water poured over my head. Feeling like a little self-care would help kick me in the right direction, I decided to wash my hair too.
Thirty minutes later, I walked back into my room feeling a little better. My improved mood even had me humming a Summer Walker song as I found something comfortable to wear.
Something fell from my closet, scaring the hell out of me. This was so unlike me, and I just wanted my old self back.
Once I was dressed, I dried my hair and put on a little makeup. The bruises Sony left behind from his last attack were almost faded, but I wasn’t taking any chances.
After I was done, I left my room to find something to eat.
On my way downstairs, I sighed in relief, knowing that all that mess with Ocean and Sony was finally over.
He wasn’t going to come here, and Ocean would keep her distance as long as I stayed away from Havoc, which I was planning to do. As hard as it was going to be, me not working at The Cove anymore made it easier. It wasn’t like he would come to my house or something!
I stepped into the kitchen and smiled, seeing my daddy and...
“Makari!” I squealed. My eyes widened in surprise that this man was sitting in my damn kitchen. I looked at my daddy, knowing that he was about to murder me because there was no way I could explain why the hell this man was in my house!
He just sat there looking at me with a smirk on his face like I’d invited him over or something.
What the hell was going on?
My dad just sat there looking at me, as if he was waiting for me to speak first. Did I act like I didn’t know him or ask why he was here?
I froze. Literally stood there, stuck, staring at Makari, wishing I could disappear.
I heard Shakur enter the kitchen behind me, and I closed my eyes, knowing he was going to lose his whole mind seeing Havoc sitting there. Compared to my dad, Shakur was the one who was on me the most about staying away from Havoc, and I promised him that I would.
I looked at Havoc, and my mouth fell.
What if he was here because of the night he came to my job?
As far as Shakur knew, we hadn’t spoken to or seen each other since the night Hell was shot, so he had no idea that Havoc came to my job only a few nights ago.
This is bad!
Shakur tapped my head in greeting and headed over to where my dad and Havoc were sitting.
I held my breath, expecting Shakur to yell, but I damn near choked when the two of them actually slapped hands. Like, was I missing something?
After they greeted each other, Havoc turned to look at me with a smile on his face.
“Uh, what the hell is going on?” I finally asked.
“Busted,” Daddy sang, making them laugh, but I wasn’t laughing at all. I was too busy trying not to have a complete mental breakdown!
“I thought y’all weren’t seeing each other and shit?” Shakur asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.
I narrowed my eyes at Havoc, knowing his ass had been straight snitching on me.
“I haven’t,” I snapped and folded my arms across my chest. Shakur laughed while Makari’s mouth dropped.
My daddy was too busy watching our interaction like this was funny.
I’d only just promised Ocean that I was going to stay away from Makari, and here he was in my kitchen, lying to my dad and brother.
“We ain’t seen each other lately?” Makari probed. I looked at him, wishing I could slap the hell out of him.
“No, you turning up at my job doesn’t count,” I said, putting him on blast.
Daddy laughed while Shakur feigned surprise.
“You stalking and shit now, Havoc?”
Why were they taking this thing for a joke!
“What is going on?” I asked. The three of them went silent as they sat there looking at me. I noticed they all shared a look, like they knew something I didn’t, and then my dad spoke.
“I think you two need to talk,” he said, standing to his feet. Shakur followed. They both shook hands with Havoc and then walked out of the kitchen, leaving us alone.
“Are you trying to get me killed?” I questioned Havoc in a harsh whisper. He frowned like he was confused. He then stood to his feet and walked over to me. My head snapped back to see if my dad or brother was watching.
When I felt Havoc touch my arm, I jumped and looked back at him.
“Are you crazy? What are you doing here?” I asked. He chuckled.
“Damn, you scared?”
“Yes! As you should be!”
I wasn’t buying my family’s sudden acceptance of this. I knew it was a damn setup even if Havoc was acting oblivious. I kept looking behind me just waiting for one of them or both to rush back inside and act a fool.
My body suddenly shuddered when I let Havoc’s warm hand touch my arm. It had been a long time since he last touched me. I thought I was over that feeling, but I wasn’t. However, I wasn’t about to tell him that.
“You need to leave,” I said, stepping back from him. Again, that damn smirk was on his face.
I shifted my weight to one leg, feeling anxiety crawl up my spine. I was uncomfortable.
“But I came here to see you.”
“Why?” I asked.
Immediately, my mind ran on Ocean and her threat about me staying away from Havoc.
Her tone changed that night. She meant it. Either I stay away from him, or she uses her dad to kill my family.
There was no gray area in what she said. Ocean meant it.
“Why didn’t you tell me about Sony?” Havoc asked. My mouth dropped, but I quickly recovered.
“Tell you what?”
Havoc sighed and said, “You know what I’m talking about, Kairi. I know that nigga put his hands on you.”
I opened my mouth to ask him how he knew that, but then wondered if that was why I hadn’t seen Sony again until I quit my job.
Still, I didn’t say anything because I just didn’t know what to say.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
I hunched my shoulders.
“I just didn’t want anyone else getting hurt because of me. If you know what happened, then I’m guessing you know that I went to the cops,” I said. When he nodded, I wasn’t even surprised.
“Does my brother know?”
Maybe that was the reason why they seemed cool all of a sudden.
Again, Havoc bounced his head to agree, and I sighed heavily. If my brother knew, why hadn’t he said anything?
“I can see you’re looking worried—”
“Because you don’t know what they’re capable of, Havoc. I know they will kill them without hesitating,” I panicked.
He stepped closer to me and wrapped me in his arms.
“I won’t let that happen.”
I felt my eyes close, feeling his body close to mine after so long, but then I remembered Ocean’s words, and I pulled back from him. He wasn’t there that day; he didn’t hear her words or her father’s voice. I did!
Looking down at the floor, I hugged my arms.
“Why are you here?” I asked lowly.
“I want to talk to you.”
I lifted my head to look at him.
“About what?”
“Kairi, I’m not interested in Ocean.”
I simpered.
“You might not be interested in her, but she damn sure is interested in you.”
He gave me a questionable look, as if he was waiting for me to elaborate, but there was nothing more I needed to say. She had made it very clear that Havoc was her man and that she was willing to kill my family just to keep him.
As I stood there looking at him, it pained me that I couldn’t be with him as much as I wanted to. Havoc was everything I ever wanted in a man that I just couldn’t have. It wasn’t worth risking my family’s life, though, no matter how much I yearned for him.
“Kairi, I have no plans on marrying Ocean because I wanna marry you.”
My jaw fell.
“What?”
Oh, he was really signing my death certificate with that!
“Did you miss the part about Ocean not willing to give you up? I’m not going to risk her coming for my family!”
“That won’t happen,” Havoc said, and I scoffed.
“You’re kidding me, right? We gonna act like we both don’t know how this thing works.”
We were at the bottom of the totem pole, and so it was nothing to get us killed. Even Havoc being Orlando’s son meant nothing to a man who didn’t even recognize him as his son.
“What if I told you that I’m going to take Sincere’s place?” He said something I wasn’t expecting.
“Wait. What are you talking about?”
“Sincere wants me to take over, and I’ve accepted. It’s the only way I can protect you.”
My head was shaking in disagreement before he even finished saying the words. I wanted nothing to do with The Society because of Sony and Ocean, and here he was offering for us to get in deeper!
I backed up from him, putting some much-needed distance between us.
“No, Havoc,” I said. His brows knitted.
“Kairi, I need you to trust me.”
I turned to look behind me, my mind on my father and brother.
What if something went wrong or Sincere changed his mind?
How did I stand and watch as they lost their lives because of me?
I could see it in Ocean’s eyes that she meant the threat, and the only way I knew how to protect myself was staying far away from Havoc.
He stood there looking at me as I took another step away from him. The look on his face told me that he wasn’t happy about me stepping away from him but I had no choice in the matter. No matter what, my family came first.
“There’s going to be an official meeting next month where Sincere officially hands everything over to me,” Havoc explained. “If you trust me, meet me there as my wife-to-be.”
He said it as if it was that simple when it wasn’t. Any mistake and we didn’t get a second chance.
The easiest thing for both of us was for him to marry Ocean and I keep myself away from him. That was the only way we were gonna survive. There were just too many against us than for us—it just wasn’t worth it.
“One month, Kairi, and if you don’t show up, I won’t bother you again.”
I just stood there silently staring at him, my heart and mind warring against each other, and I didn’t know which one to follow.
He gave me one final look and walked out of the kitchen. I didn’t turn to look at him because I was ashamed that I couldn’t give him what he wanted.