Chapter 8 #7
“I did you a favor, capturing Kutlass and bringing him to you, did I not?” He mocked, pausing to lean near the hood of the car.
“I heard that there were some… unresolved issues between the two of you, and I thought I would aid you in working it out.” His casual shrug made me tighten the grip on my gun.
“Yeah, I’m sure you did this shit for my benefit.”
“I’ve gotten your messages. You didn’t have to do my man like that. And I am sorry to hear about your shell company. There are casualties in every war though, am I right?” Arrow questioned.
“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t end you just like I did him?” I waved my gun toward Kutlass on the ground leaking and Arrow followed my gaze, amused.
“How is life treating you, Free? I hear a lot, but I never hear it from you.” Arrow nodded his head toward me.
“A little birdie told me you had a new woman in your life, and you had your daughter at home living with you. You just turning into a domesticated ass family man overnight, right? That white picket fence, American dream life, is that working out okay for you?” Arrow was so manipulative that he actually sounded concerned when he spoke to me.
“Harbor Lawson.” Her name on his lips set me off.
I rushed him, pinning him against the side of the car and snatching him up by the collar. Bringing the cold steel to his chin, I grit my teeth and got in his face. He barely flinched, and the whole time, laughter danced around his shady ass eyes.
“Damn, I guess the love of a good woman can change a nigga.” Arrow continued to taunt me.
“Nothing is ever what it seems, Free. I taught you that, right? Always go deeper than what’s on the surface.
That’s when you scratch the real shit. Take Kut here, for instance.
I know that you were told that I was the reason that Ivana’s plane went down, and I’m sure it wasn’t too hard to believe that.
But what if I told you, I’m the one that actually saved her? ”
My grip tightened on his collar and I got closer to his face so that he felt every word I was about to tell him.
“You don’t talk about her, and you keep Harbor’s name out your fucking mouth.” I growled menacingly.
“Sounds like you got some conflicting feelings there. Still in love with one woman while building a life with another. Does Harbor know that the torch you carried for your first child’s mother is still being carried? I wonder how Ivana would feel knowing how you’ve moved on.”
“She’s fucking dead. So stop bringing her up like it’s going to change shit! You’re the reason that fucking plane went down.”
“I’m the reason that she’s still alive!” Arrow proclaimed, eyes widening, wearing a satisfied grin.
“Your father wanted her dead. I tried to talk him out of it. I know you believed what he told you about it being me, but that was a lie to save himself in front of you. He called the order, and he went through with it. She never would have been on that plane if it wasn’t for Kutlass. ”
Jerking away from him, I studied his serious and cool expression.
He didn’t flinch or anything breaking that shit down for me.
So I knew he was telling the truth. He pushed himself off the car and my chest heaved.
Adjusting his suit, he brushed off the wrinkles.
“The fuck you mean she’s alive? That plane went down seven fucking years ago. Ain’t no way—”
“Garvey, let her out.” Arrow didn’t bother turning when he gave his guard the order.
He kept his dark retinas glued to me and I listened as the back door to his car opened.
Taking a few steps away from Arrow, I watched a woman’s figure emerge from the back seat.
She was average height, and very familiar, even from the way she stood.
My eyes lowered into slits trying to make out her face.
The guard closed the car door and she moved through the shadows toward me.
Finally, her face was revealed from an overhead light illuminating the area.
Frozen, my heart damn near pumped out of my chest. Feet cemented in place, there was no way I was seeing what I was seeing.
This shit couldn’t be real. My imagination worked into overdrive and I couldn’t grab one thought from the other.
“Ivana.” It wasn’t a question, more of a statement or an observation.
She didn’t counter it with a response. Instead, her bright eyes watered, and her mouth turned up into a small simper.
She was happy to see me, and I was confused as fuck.
A nigga had to be hallucinating or something because there was no fucking way that after all this time she was standing here in front of me in one piece.
Suddenly, my cell buzzed in my pocket. Without thinking about it, I reached for it.
“Free!” Harbor’s unhinged voice came through the phone before I could even bring it to my ear, shocking me back to the present.
I couldn’t take my eyes from the lookalike in front of me, but Harbor’s panic filled voice tugged at me. I was caught between a rock and a hard place, the past and the present, and I didn’t know what to do or how to move.
“Free, something’s wrong!” Harbor sobbed.
Glued under the fixated stare of the mother of my firstborn, I held the phone to my ear. “Free!”
To Be Continued…