7. Milan Rivers
MILAN RIVERS
Iwoke up confused about where I was.
For a few seconds, I stared at the unfamiliar ceiling before everything from the day before came rushing back.
The bullet. The note. Vice coming as soon as I called him.
The police. The cameras being shut off. It only took a second for everything to come back to me.
I was in a hotel suite that was probably bigger than my first apartment, and I was suddenly wide awake.
I reached for my phone and checked the time, seeing it was almost two in the afternoon.
Considering I’d worked all night and hadn’t gotten to the hotel until hours after my shift ended, I should’ve still been asleep. Instead, my mind immediately went back to my apartment and the fact that somebody had been inside it.
That was the part I couldn’t get past.
The bullet scared me. The note scared me even more, but knowing somebody had walked through my home without me knowing bothered me in a completely different way.
I kept wondering what they’d touched, how long they’d been there and whether they’d gone through my things.
Nothing was missing, but that didn’t make me feel any better.
My phone showed several missed calls and text messages.
Most were from my sister and Nia. I wasn’t ready to explain everything to everybody yet.
The police had told me not to post anything on social media or discuss details with people who didn’t need to know, which wasn’t a problem because the last thing I wanted was my entire family panicking—or Nia.
I texted my sister first to let her know I was okay and promised to call later. Then I opened Nia’s messages.
Nia: You home?
Nia: Milan?
Nia: Girl, if you don’t answer this phone.
Nia: I’m calling you one more time before I start looking for you.
I called her before she had a chance to make good on that threat.
“Where the hell have you been?” she answered.
“Good afternoon to you too.”
“Don’t good afternoon me. I told you to text when you got home.”
“I know.”
“So why didn’t you?”
I sat up against the headboard and rubbed a hand over my face. “Because I never made it to bed.”
There was a pause. “What happened?”
I didn’t know how to say it without making it sound as bad as it was.
“Somebody broke into my apartment.” The line went silent. “Nia?”
“I’m here.” Her voice had changed completely. “What do you mean somebody broke into your apartment? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Where are you?”
“At a hotel.”
“What hotel?”
I looked around the bedroom before answering. “The Blackwell.”
Another silence followed, but this one felt different.
“The Blackwell?”
“Yes.”
“As in Vice Blackwell?”
“Apparently.”
“Apparently?”
“Girl, yes… I didn’t even know he owned it until we got here.”
“We?”
I closed my eyes and shook my head, because… here we go.
“Vice brought me after I called and told him what happened.
“Hold on. Back up. Somebody broke into your apartment, and you called Vice?”
“I called the police too.”
“That wasn’t what I asked.”
I got out of bed and headed toward the bathroom. “I don’t know why I called him, Nia. I found a bullet and a note on my kitchen counter, I got scared, and his number was there.”
“A bullet? What?” I stopped walking and cursed under my breath. I didn’t mean to tell her that part yet. It just flew out my mouth without my consent. “What did the note say?”
“Basically to mind my business.”
“Basically?”
“Nia.”
“No, don’t Nia me. Somebody broke into your apartment and left a damn bullet, and you’re talking about basically?”
“I don’t want you panicking.”
“I know I’ve only known you but for two seconds, but too late…”
“I’m okay, girl.”
“You keep saying that like it’s supposed to make me feel better.”
I walked into the bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked exactly how I felt. Tired, stressed and nowhere near as okay as I kept telling everybody I was.
“The police came. Vice came. They checked everything, and I’m somewhere safe now.”
“So, how fast did Vice come?”
I frowned. “What?”
“How fast did he get there?”
“I don’t know. Fast enough.”
“Mmm-hmm.”
“Don’t start.”
“I’m not starting anything. I’m trying to understand why Vice Blackwell is personally putting you in one of his hotels and making sure you’re safe.”
“Because this happened after I witnessed his cousin getting shot.”
“Right.”
“That is why.”
“I said right.”
“You said it like you don’t believe me.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
I stared at the phone before saying, “I can see your face through the phone.”
She laughed, and for the first time since waking up, some of the tension left me.
“Look, whatever the reason is, I’m glad you’re okay,” she said. “You need me to come over there?”
“No. I’m about to shower and figure out what I’m doing.”
“You’re not going back to that apartment, are you?”
“I have to eventually.”
“Milan…”
“My stuff is there.”
“Your stuff can be replaced. You can’t.”
“Not all of it.”
She sighed. “Just don’t go by yourself.”
“I won’t.”
That wasn’t a promise I particularly wanted to make, but after what happened, I knew better than to walk back into that apartment alone.
“I’ll call you later.”
“You better.”
“I will.”
There was a brief paused before she spoke up again, her voice full of sincerity. “And if you need me—”
I smiled to myself. It was crazy how it felt like me and Nia had known each other for years instead of weeks. “I know.”
“I’m serious, Milan.”
“So am I… I know.”
Neither one of us said anything for a second before she finally let out a heavy sigh. “Okay… Call me later.”
“I will.” With that, we hung up, and I set my phone on the counter before getting in the shower. I stayed under the water, trying to clear my head and figure out what came next.
I couldn’t stay in a hotel forever.
I also couldn’t pretend I was comfortable going back to my apartment.
The thought irritated me more than anything.
I’d just moved back to Atlanta. I was supposed to be starting over, getting settled into my new job and figuring out what my life looked like without the man I’d spent ten years planning a future with.
Instead, somebody I didn’t know had managed to make me uncomfortable in my own home.
I hated that.
By the time I finished showering and got dressed, I had already decided I was going back to the apartment. Not to stay, but I needed more clothes and a few things I hadn’t thought to grab.
I walked into the living room and stopped when I saw a cart sitting near the dining table.
It was food… a lot of it.
I frowned and walked closer. There were eggs, potatoes, fruit, toast and enough food to feed at least three people. A folded card sat beside one of the plates and I wasted no time I picked it up.
It read:
Eat. I’ll be there later. —Vice
I stared at the note for a few seconds.
Not Are you hungry?
Not Do you want something to eat?
Just… Eat.
Then he had the nerve to inform me he’d be there later like I had invited him.
I shook my head and set the card back down.
“Bossy ass.”
My stomach growled before I could stay mad.
I hadn’t eaten since sometime during my shift, so I fixed a plate and sat near the windows overlooking downtown. The food was good enough to make me temporarily forgive the way it had arrived.
I was halfway finished when my sister called again.
I considered ignoring it, but Mariah would only keep calling until I answered.
“Hey.”
“Why you sound like you just woke up?” She asked.
“Because I did.”
“At two in the afternoon?”
“I worked last night.”
“Oh, yeah.” There was a pause before she added, “You sound tired.”
“I am.”
“How’s everything going with the job?”
“It’s good.”
“You sure?”
“Yes, Mariah.”
I hated lying to her, but I knew my sister. If I told her somebody had broken into my apartment, she would be fighting traffic to get to me or trying to convince me to come to her house.
We talked for a while about everything except what was really going on in my life.
We talked about work, laughed as she complained about motherhood before admitting she’d do it all over again for her kids, and for a few minutes, I almost forgot about the bullet sitting in an evidence bag.
Then she brought up the one subject I wasn’t ready to face.
“Has he called you?”
I knew exactly who she meant, so I didn’t bother playing dumb like I didn’t.
“No,” I answered.
That wasn’t completely true. Evan had called twice since I moved, but I hadn’t answered.
“Good, with his no-good ass. I still can’t believe that fool… Fucking son of a bitch. You were with that man for ten years, and he go out and marry another bitch.”
“I don’t want to talk about him.” I knew if I didn’t speak up, she would go on and on.
“Okay.”
The fact that she gave in that easily told me she wanted to say more, but thankfully, she let it go.
We talked for another few minutes before hanging up. I cleaned up what was left of my food, then grabbed my bag and started getting ready to leave.
I had just slipped on my shoes when someone knocked on the door.
I froze. It was automatic. My entire body went still as I stared toward the entrance, and for one embarrassing second, I forgot where I was.
Then they knocked again.
“Milan…”
It was Vice. I recognized his damn voice.
I let out the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding and walked toward the door. Before I could reach it, my phone rang.
I answered cautiously. “Hello?”
“Open the door…”
I frowned. “How did you get my number?”
“You called me last night.”
I closed my eyes and cursed to myself. Yeah, I was really losing it. Between not getting any sleep lately to someone breaking into my apartment, I was losing my damn mind.
I just ended the call before he could say anything else and opened it.
Vice stood on the other side wearing jeans, a black T-shirt and the same calm expression that irritated me without him even trying.
His eyes moved over me before he stepped inside.
“You get any sleep?” He asked.
“Some.”
“Did you eat?”
I pointed toward the cart. “Considering you sent enough food for a family reunion, yes.”
“You needed to eat.”