10. Rakim
TEN
rakim
SOMETIME LATER . . .
“And where the hell have you been?” Shardaya, Talid’s wife, inquired skeptically via speakerphone as I sat in my whip outside the lounge my brothers were in.
I had the homie Mylo back at the crib guarding Daylin. He and my brothers were the only muthafuckas I trusted to do the job.
“I’ve been busy.”
Though I didn’t give a fuck about concealing my identity from Dr. Conrad and his staff or whomever knew of our arrangement, I didn’t wanna chance a muthafucka trailing me to where I was holding Daylin. It was unlikely, but stranger shit had happened.
“Too busy to come see your cousin? You were usually here every other day whenever he would go to the hospital or be in the woods. Now, you haven’t been once. He hasn’t seen you since before his coma!” she spat.
“I know. I know, Shar. I’m handling some shit right now, and once it’s handled, I will be by.” I ran a hand down my face, stroking my beard in thought while keeping my lids peeled toward the streets. A nigga could never be too careful.
“He could die any day now, Rah.” She whimpered, pulling my attention away from the curb, even though she wasn’t standing before me.
“I’ll be by soon. Aight? Trust me.”
“Fine.” She hung up without even saying ‘bye’ to a nigga, so I knew she was hot.
Pulling out the burner for the day, I dialed Dr. Conrad’s bitch ass.
“Hell—”
“I need an update, nigga.”
“Mr. Miles looks good. Nevertheless, I do have my staff watching him around the clock and told them I am on call twenty-four hours in case something goes wrong. I also have a surgeon on the floor at all hours in case I am too far.”
“Nigga, you better never be too far. You the muthafucka I want working on Talid, not some random nigga who is almost as good as you.”
“I understand.”
“I hope so. I pray you understand enough to not jeopardize the life of ya youngest daughter and, shit, probably the older one too. Sometimes I have to collect a few bodies to feel better. You feel me?”
“Y-yes, sir. I will always be close. It’s just a precaution.”
“You the muthafuckin’ precaution.”
“My family and I understand the situation, but I cannot be sure about Daylin’s… boyfriend continuing to go along. Maybe I can get him over so he can speak to her.”
“Nah. I took care of that. Not worried about that shit.”
“I hope so because he could become an issue if he gets antsy. He just wants—”
“I don’t give a fuck. This ain’t muthafuckin’ Love After Lockup, nigga. He ain’t gon’ be chopping it up with his boo on my fucking time! Is you crazy?” I wanted to reach through the phone and choke cuz out for even asking that shit.
I hated I even knew what Love After Lockup was, but a woman I’d kicked it with used to stay watching the shit.
I wasn’t too worried about Shaun making noise since Zaire had pressed his ass about the consequences if he did just that.
“Make sure you update his wife because she’s under the impression that Talid could die any day now.” I changed the subject since that conversation was over.
“Yes. I will update Mrs. Miles in a few hours when I get to the hospital. She is usually there around the clock.”
“Cool.” I slammed the flip phone closed, quickly disassembled it, and then climbed out of the car, scattering the pieces in the alley behind the lounge.
I sighed dejectedly, not even in the fucking mood to be out, but my little brothers begged a nigga, and I didn’t always wanna be the muthafucka that didn’t do shit.
I was still their brother. Every interaction or conversation we had didn’t have to be about business or family issues.
I had to remind myself of shit like that and to have fun, enjoy my life while I was still on this earth. Shit was harder than it sounded though.
“Aye! I was telling this nigga you flaked!” Josias bellowed excitedly as soon as he saw me at the entrance of his and Zaire’s section.
“I got Mylo on the job, so y’all should’ve known I was coming,” I said, slapping hands with Josias.
Seeing the twins light up at the sight of me only validated my choice to come out tonight. I wouldn’t stay long, though, because I didn’t want Mylo babysitting all fucking night. I had no real reason to relieve him of his duties other than the fact that I wanted to kick it with Daylin.
I shook my head at my thoughts once I sat beside Zaire, slapping hands with him.
The more I realized I enjoyed conversing with her even about nothing, the more I attempted to distance myself, but it only made shit worse.
The more distance I created, the more I longed to be around her.
And the more I was around her, the feeling of yearning only heightened.
It was a lose-lose type situation for a nigga.
And here I thought a nigga would kidnap her ass and have something nice to look at and chop it up with. But I could sense feelings becoming involved in the near fucking future.
“What you drinking?” Zaire quizzed as “A+” by Key Glock soared over the club.
“Shit, whatever, but no mixes.”
He bobbed his head, pouring some dark liquor into a cup as I smiled, watching. These niggas were serving me like it was my birthday all due to the rush they got from me coming to kick it. I felt bad knowing I needed to do this shit more.
For the next half hour, I sipped on what I realized was Hennessy, enjoying the deejay while my brothers invited several females into the area.
“You look like you need some company.” A pretty girl sat beside me, smelling like flowers and something you’d eat for dessert.
I turned my attention from the exits of the club I’d been keeping an eye on and took her in, smiling back since she was cheesing all hard.
“I don’t right now. I’m just chilling,” I answered.
“So I can’t chill with you? You too fine to be by yourself.” She got comfortable, crossing her legs enticingly slow.
“Give me ya number. I might see what you talking about another time. Just not tonight.”
“Okay.” She lit up, adjusting her posture and fixing her clothes as if I’d just told her ass to pose for a picture. “I’m Courtney by the way.”
I handed over my phone with the contact sheet open for her to fill out, and she did, her long nails clacking against my screen as she beamed the entire time.
I loved women. They were soft, usually smelled good, were intelligent, and the obvious was what they carried between their legs.
But I noticed as I took baby girl in, I didn’t have the urge to smash like normal.
I kept thinking about Daylin. Her smile, her laugh, her pretty feet even with the big ass mermaid tatted on the right one, her silky honeyed skin, thick shape, and that serious ass face she wore when she was reading a particularly interesting chapter of her fucking book, flipping the page all fast as if she needed to read it as soon as possible.
“My bad,” I said to ole girl as she waved my phone up and down to snap me out of the thoughts I was having of Daylin.
“No worries so—”
“Aye!” A man shouting as he stepped into the section cut her off.
“Nigga, who is you?” I pressed him, though his glower was trained on Zaire.
“Her boyfriend,” Zaire let me know, and initially, I was confused, but then it all hit me. This was Shaun. No wonder he had smoke for Zaire.
“I’ll call you,” I told the woman whose name I’d already forgotten, and it took her a minute, but after darting her eyes back and forth between me, Zaire, Josias, and Shaun, she got up and went to join her homegirls on the other side of our section.
“Calm down, nigga. All that anger and shit you on gon’ get you smoked.
” I warned Shaun, polishing off my drink before setting the glass down on the table and relaxing back into my seat.
His brows dipped then relaxed as he seemingly caught onto the fact that Zaire wasn’t the kidnapper but a proxy sent to him in my place.
“Y’all have fun, I got it.” I bobbed my head toward the awaiting women, speaking to my brothers.
Zaire and Josias hesitated some, watching Shaun closely before turning to leave us.
When I gave Shaun eye contact, letting him know he had the floor, he said, “We need to talk man to man. I guess you the one who got my girl, and I want her back safely. I don’t know what her people doing to rectify this shit but I’m not gon’ sit by. Name a price.”
Chuckling some as I refilled my glass, I said, “I’m impressed. For a minute, I thought you was one hundred percent bitch, but now I see you just half. Mixed breed ass nigga.”
“Look, I ain’t trying to go there with you, whoever the fuck you are. Tell me a fucking price.”
“Watch ya tone.” I took another sip and looked off as if I were pondering on a price. “Market price says forty million.”
“Come on, man! I know you know I ain’t got that type of fucking money! Be serious! I—”
“Tone,” I reiterated.
Expelling a heavy breath and allowing his shoulders to rise then sag, he said, “I don’t make that kind of money. Work with me. Whatever the reason is that you have my girl, I’m sure it’s a mistake or some shit she has nothing to do with. And you don’t appear to be hurting for cash.”
At first, I was surprised Dr. Conrad hadn’t told him why, but then again, the doctor seemed like the type to wanna keep this shit under wraps to keep from staining his character. Plus, I doubted he wanted his people knowing his baby girl had been snatched because of his antics.
Nodding, I asked Shaun, “What if I took her ’cause I want her?”
I drank down some more alcohol, ears open for his reply. However, he was too shocked by my question.
“Huh? You kidnapped her ’cause you want her?”