Chapter 5
Raven was trying to think of a way to tell Xander’s mother that she was leaving.
The woman was upset. And rightfully so. Her son had taken six bullets and was hooked up to a ventilator.
He had undergone major surgery, and it was touch and go.
Raven was scared for him. She had prayed that God would heal him, but she still wasn’t going to sit by his cheating ass bedside.
This didn’t erase what he had done. She would look like the bad guy if she told his mother she was leaving because they were no longer together.
Just as Raven had thought of an excuse, in walked a pregnant woman.
Not just any pregnant woman but the pregnant woman from the gender reveal video.
Her eyes were red and puffy, and she looked absolutely distraught. Her eyes fell on his mother first, then they landed on Raven. She looked unsure, but fear for her child’s father’s life made her bold. “Is he okay?” she croaked before looking over at Xander.
Raven stood up and left the room. It would take too much self-restraint not to punch that pregnant hoe in her face.
“Raven wait.” She heard Xander’s mother calling her name, and she whirled around no longer in the mood to pretend.
Hell, maybe they’d done her a favor because her speech was going to be that much easier to give.
“Everybody knew about that pregnant bitch but me. My last miscarriage was only seven months ago, and that bitch looks to be at least five months!” Raven didn’t care about the hospital staff that was giving her the side eye.
“You can nurse your lying ass son back to health, or she can do it. Flip a coin. Oh, and if he dies, you have my condolences.”
Xander’s mother gasped as Raven stormed off.
She didn’t appreciate being the laughing stock of the group.
His family knew. Her family and friends knew.
Raven was over it. She didn’t wish death on him but if he lived, he still had to get the shit she packed and go.
She walked as fast as her legs would carry her out to her car, then the entire way home, tears ran down her cheeks.
Life just wasn’t fair. She had two miscarriages, and he got to just go on with his life and make a baby with someone else.
That shit hurt. It hurt bad. Raven whipped up in the driveway and wiped her face with the back of her hand.
No more crying over that loser. She wasn’t the first person to get cheated on, and she wouldn’t be the last. Life had to go on.
Raven spent enough nights crying over her lost babies.
She wondered why it just wasn’t in the cards for her to have a baby.
Trying to compose herself, Raven emerged from the car and entered the house.
When she walked into her living room and saw two niggas sitting on her couch, she almost pissed herself.
Raven placed one hand on her chest and stood in the doorway frozen.
Terrified. Were these the men that shot Xander?
Since he was unconscious, no one knew who shot him or why.
All Raven could do was pray that these men didn’t kill her.
“Come in and have a seat, shawty. We not gon’ hurt you.” The one that spoke had gold teeth and dark skin. His hair was tapered on the side and mass of jet-black curls on the top. He had a thin mustache and a little hair on his chin but not much. If he wasn’t so damn scary, he would be fine as hell.
Despite his reassurance, Raven’s breathing was still labored. Her palms were sweaty, and her teeth were damn near chattering together out of fear.
She wasn’t sure she could believe him, but she didn’t want to make him mad. On wobbly legs, Raven inched inside the house and closed the door behind her, but she stayed with her back pressed up against the door. “Xander. He dead?” The one with the gold teeth glared at her with cold dark eyes.
“N-n-no. He’s on a ventilator. Just came out of surgery.
I left the hospital because his baby mama showed up.
” Raven pointed at the trash bags that were lined up by the door.
“I was in the process of putting him out when he got shot. Technically, he’s no longer my man.
I didn’t see shit, and I don’t know shit.
I didn’t tell the police anything,” her voice quaked with each word that she spoke.
Diric licked his lips and sized her pretty thick ass up.
Even from the front, he could tell she probably had a fat ass because she had hips and thick thighs.
“I don’t know nothing ‘bout none of that. But you were his lady, and he’s in the hole $3,500 plus interest with my mans.
You gon’ have to work that off,” he stated with a no-nonsense expression on his face.
Raven’s eyes bucked out of her head from the shock she felt. “Excuse me? Work it off doing what?” she wore a slight scowl forgetting all about how terrified she was.
The one with the locs finally spoke up. “You’re going to transport some heroin for my man, and you’re also going to cut and bag some of our shit up. Shit we would normally pay people to do. Once he’s gotten $4,500 worth of work out your ass, you’re free.”
Raven narrowed her eyes. These niggas had to be kidding her.
They were fine as hell, dressed nice, and even smelled good, but they shot her ex, broke into her house, and were telling her that they were going to force her to do illegal shit.
They had a lot of nerve. Xander wasn’t even her man anymore.
“I own a business. I can’t be out here transporting drugs and bagging shit up,” she spat angrily.
Then, if she got caught, they’d have a reason to kill her because she wasn’t going to prison for anybody.
Xander and his bullshit was coming at her from every angle.
The men stood up and gold teeth spoke again.
“I don’t give a fuck about none of that, and Canyon doesn’t either.
You gon’ work the shit off, or you gon’ be laid up in ICU with him.
My mans isn’t paying anyone to do what you can do for free since that fuck nigga already shorted him and never paid him.
I’ll be by here tomorrow around noon. Don’t try no slick shit, and don’t try no dumb shit.
I know you own that recovery house, and I know where your mother lives.
Have a good day, beautiful.” His grimy ass had the nerve to compliment her.
The men left her house, and Raven stood there frozen from the shock.
What in the hell had just happened? How in the hell did they get in her house?
She was beyond stressed. Raven checked her door to make sure it hadn’t been damaged.
It hadn’t. She went into the kitchen and saw that glass had been broken out of her back door.
“Agggghhhhhhhhh,” she screamed at the top of her lungs. “Why the fuck is this happening to me?” she sobbed.
Raven allowed herself to cry for all of two minutes.
After she stopped crying abruptly, she went over to the counter and grabbed a bottle of vodka.
She needed a drink or three. Raven forced herself to find the silver lining in the situation.
They didn’t kill her. Thank God she was still alive, and they didn’t rob her to pay off Xander’s debt.
Her bank account had way more than $4,500 in it, but that didn’t mean she wanted to give her money to them.
That amount of money was a lot to the average person but not a drug king pin.
Raven knew that it was more about the principle.
Hopefully, Canyon wouldn’t work her like a slave to pay off the debt.
Maybe one or two runs and a day in the trap would be enough.
She wished like hell she would be indebted to these men for a long period of time behind Xander’s shit.
She just had to hope and pray that this wouldn’t ruin her life.
Heiress got up from her sewing machine wondering who in the hell was ringing her doorbell.
She had just sat down to work. For the past few days, she’d been working on a custom dress that had been ordered for a baby shower.
Heiress was shocked to see Amar standing at her door with a vase full of roses in one hand and a box of chocolate covered strawberries in the other.
Her eyebrows hiked up, and a wide smile stretched across his face.
“What’s this?”
“It’s your birthday, right?”
Her mouth fell open in shock. “How did you know it was my birthday?” Heiress’ eyebrows furrowed as she tried to recall if she had mentioned it.
“Last month you told me that you thought about the beach for your birthday, but changed your mind, and I asked when it was. You told me. Who in the hell doesn’t celebrate their birthday?”
Heiress really couldn’t believe that he remembered.
Not only did Kevin traumatize her and put her through a great deal of physical pain, but he altered her mental state in some ways.
Heiress was grateful to be alive, but some days, she would get sad out of nowhere.
Even after she healed physically, for months, she didn’t care about anything.
She didn’t get her hair or nails done. She didn’t care how she dressed or how she looked.
Heiress rarely went out, and she often isolated herself.
Slowly, she came out of it, but her depression returned at the craziest times.
This time when it came back, it had her deciding not to celebrate her twenty-fifth birthday.
Heiress shrugged passively. “It’s just another day to me.”
“Nah, it’s not just another day.” He passed her the gifts, and Heiress eyed his handsome face.
Amar’s locs were up in a man bun, and he had a fresh edge-up.
He looked divine. “I have to handle some business, but I’m coming back to pick you up at 7.
I have reservations at Brio. Also, here.
Go buy yourself something nice.” Amar pulled a thick wad of money from his pocket and handed it to her.
Slowly her gaze drifted toward the bankroll in her hand. Heiress didn’t know how much it was, but it had to be a lot. “Thank you,” she replied in a low tone.
Amar took a few steps erasing the distance between them and invading her personal space.
His closeness made Heiress’s breath hitch.
“Happy birthday love.” He kissed her on the lips, and her vagina throbbed.
Or at least that’s what it felt like. “Tonight, is all about you,” he promised before pecking her on the lips and leaving.
Looking over at the flowers, Heiress blew out a shaky breath.
She wasn’t trying to be difficult at all, but this was too much for her.
The last thing she wanted was to hurt Amar.
As long as she kept dealing with him, he would keep doing shit like this, and it was what she didn’t want.
The PTSD from trying to leave a relationship she no longer wanted to be a part of was real.
No one could pay her to believe that Amar would hurt her, but she still found herself trying to be calculating and nice when it came to rejection.
Heiress had to make him feel like it wasn’t his fault at all, and she was the one with the problem.
That in fact was true but most men needed their ego stroked no matter the reason.
It literally felt as if the walls were closing in on her like she was about to have a panic attack.
People took it figuratively when she said she was scared for a man to love her.
Her greatest fear was another man literally loving her to death.
She took a seat at her sewing machine. Too much time passed before Heiress realized that she was just staring at the fabric in front of her.
People loved giving her unsolicited advice.
It absolutely disgusted her when people suggested that her fear of love was going to cause her to miss out on something great.
None of those people had been beaten within an inch of their lives.
Kevin told Heiress he loved her almost daily.
Every time he stroked her walls, he professed his love to her.
The cute declarations of love soon turned into jealous rants and threats.
Threats that she foolishly never took too seriously until it was too late.
Amar was handsome, paid, charming, and sweet.
For a healed woman, he was the perfect man.
But not even his good attributes could ease the anxiety that plagued Heiress’ life.
She hated it with everything in her but getting over her fear wasn’t as easy as people tried to tell her it was.
In fact, it was the hardest thing she ever had to do.