Sincere Bellamy
The lights in Voss were dimmer than usual, and the space had an after-hours vibe instead of the light, airy feel it normally had.
Candles sat on high-top tables in glass holders, and soft R&B came through the speakers.
Staff hurried around, straightening name cards, wiping glass, and setting up the bar for the rush that was coming.
The statement pieces were spaced out so people could take them in.
The spotlighting hit every canvas the right way.
The center wall featured the night’s headline pieces, and Rhythm’s work was placed where nobody could miss it.
Aria had low-key centered Rhythm in the promo too.
Her face was on the flyer. Her name was at the top of the posts.
The teaser videos had Rhythm’s brushwork front and center, and the RSVP link had a direct line to her print list. She wanted Rhythm’s sales to go crazy tonight, and she was using her platform to make sure it happened.
I kept checking the door. Rhythm told me she was coming thirty minutes early so she would not be rushing in the way she did last time.
She wanted time to settle in, greet people, and get her nerves under control before the room filled up.
But the event was starting, and she still wasn’t here yet.
The last time I’d checked her location, she was on the move, so I was wondering what was taking her so long to get here.
I was about to call her when Legend walked up beside me.
“Rhythm didn’t come through the back, did she?” I asked him.
Legend followed my line of sight toward the entrance. “I haven’t seen her.”
I nodded once, trying not to let the worry show on my face. “She said she would be here early.”
Legend shrugged with a chuckle. “That means nothing when you have kids. Ain’t no telling what’s holding her up.” Legend shifted his stance and lowered his voice. “How bad is it?”
“The moratorium?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
“The moratorium is holding for now, but it didn’t stop us completely. It just slowed the timeline.”
Legend cursed under his breath. “So, it’s still a problem.”
“It’s a problem that can be managed. Kai wanted it to be a hard stop. He wanted to freeze the whole zone and make it sound righteous. Langford pushed Kai’s amendment back, though.”
Legend’s eyes narrowed. “Remind me what that does again.”
“Kai tried to strengthen the moratorium. He wanted to widen it and add new requirements. He wanted to make it harder for us to move in any direction without running into another wall. Langford delayed that item and kept it from riding the momentum of the meeting.”
Legend nodded slowly. “So, Kai doesn’t get to stack more bullshit on top of the bullshit.”
“Exactly, and Langford moved our development vote up.”
Legend’s brow rose. “He pushed it up?”
“He did. It has a friendlier lineup too, so votes will go in our favor.”
Legend looked toward the bar, then back at me. “Break it down.”
“The vote is the official approval that lets the project proceed the way we designed it. Once it passes, it becomes harder for Kai to keep playing games.”
Legend exhaled. “That’s the first good news I heard all week.”
“It is good news,” I agreed.
“I’m ready for this war to be over with.”
The Cartiers had been trading shots with the Crown all month. A few of the Cartier soldiers had taken hits, but luckily there were no fatalities on our end.
“Is this project worth losing members over?” I asked him. “We are not talking about money anymore. We are talking about lives.”
Legend didn’t hesitate. “Yes. I refuse to let some greedy motherfuckers keep us from changing our lives and our kids’ futures.
I refuse to let them set the rules and scare us back into the same corners we came from.
We are already in it. If we fold now, it gets worse.
They will smell it. They will keep coming. We gotta finish what we started.”
I nodded. “I hear you.”
Just then, Tempo walked up. Her floor length dress flowed behind her as she stepped into our circle.
She glanced at Legend first. “Aria’s looking for you.”
Legend walked away, and that familiar tension showed itself for a moment. It always did at first.
Tempo looked at me and gave me a small nod. “You good?”
“I’m good. How you been?”
“I’ve been good.”
Tempo’s eyes glanced over the gallery. “You’re doing a great job managing the development project.”
I nodded once. “Thank you.”
Tempo paused, then looked at me longer than usual. “I wanted to tell you something. I’m glad you found Rhythm. You deserve happiness. You deserve a woman who can be better than I was to you.”
I swallowed, surprised by how much I appreciated those words. “Thank you. I mean that.”
Tempo lifted her brows. “So, wedding bells soon?”
I felt heat rise in my face before I could stop it.
Tempo’s eyes widened and she laughed. “Nigga, are you blushing?”
I shook my head, annoyed at myself and amused with her at the same time. “Stop.”
She laughed harder. “Oh, your head is so gone.”
“It’s a bit soon for wedding bells. But I do think I found the one.”
Tempo’s smile softened. “Good. Don’t fumble her.”
I was about to respond, but my phone rang. Rhythm’s name lit up my screen.
Tempo saw it and stepped back. “I’m gonna let you take that,” she said, already turning away.
I answered on the first ring. “Hey, baby.”
But I got no response.
All I heard was movement and the sounds of a car on the road. Then I heard shaky breathing.
“Rhythm?” I called.
Still nothing.
I figured she’d butt-dialed me. I was about to hang up and call her back, until I heard her say, “Kodi, please put the gun away,” she whispered. “What if the kids see it?”
My whole body went cold.
Then she said, “Where are you taking me?”
I took off for the exit fast enough that people stared. Someone called my name, but I didn’t stop. I ran through the gallery, weaving around tables and staff with my phone pressed to my ear. All I heard was road noise and breathing.
Then I heard a man say, “You thought you was just gone walk away from me?”
My vision blurred. I hit the doors and stepped outside into the cold without feeling it. I ran toward my car as my fingers flew over the screen to pull up her location. The dot was moving.
Behind me, I heard Legend. “Sin!”
Then Aria. “Sincere!”
Their voices were right there as if they were following me, but I kept moving until I reached my car, then I turned around.
Legend, Aria, and Tempo were coming toward me with worried faces. Reek and Saint were right behind them, as if they saw us running and took off to find out what was going on.
“What’s wrong?” Legend demanded.
I tried to speak, but nothing came out. My throat closed. My tongue felt heavy. My hands shook so bad I almost dropped my phone. I stared at them, then looked back at the screen where Rhythm’s location kept moving.
Aria stepped closer. “Sincere, what happened?”
I swallowed hard and forced air into my lungs. “She called me. She didn’t mean to. It sounds like Kodi is with her.”
Tempo’s face changed instantly. “Kodi? Who is that?”
“Her ex. It sounds like he has a gun on her. I heard her telling him to put it down. I heard her asking where he’s taking her.”
Immediately, Legend, Saint, and Reek’s faces hardened. Their eyes went cold and focused, and in that moment, they looked exactly like the killers I knew them to be.
Aria’s hands flew to her mouth. “Oh my God.”
Legend took one step toward me. “Where she at?”
“I share location with her,” I said, holding up my phone. “It’s live. She’s moving. I’m going to her right now.”
Legend turned into that other version of himself. His eyes went cold as he told me, “C’mon. I’ll drive you.”