Chapter 9
Addison Present
With each house that I assisted Akira with over the past few months, I could see why she did this as her side hustle. I already cleaned, so the fact that I was getting paid now was an added bonus. I didn’t go to every job with my best friend, but when she had a huge house and minimal time, I came along. Besides, we were finally at the end of the school year, and I was graduating at the end of the week. Helping Akira these past few months was a wonderful distraction from my studies. The beautiful part of it all was that Bruno didn’t suspect a thing. Therefore, he didn’t have a reason to blab to Mr.L.
Not to mention, the money that I brought in was used to help out my nana in any way possible. We were still behind on the mortgage, but at least I was able to pay my nana’s caregiver regularly. I even had enough money for the caregiver to take my grandma out to explore new hobbies. I knew that her dementia wouldn’t allow her to fully participate, but at least she’d be able to get out of the house.
Akira slowed the car as we entered a housing development. When we finally stopped at the second house that was built on the block, my jaw dropped. To say the house was huge was an understatement. I swear Akira and I pulled up to a damn mansion. The home had a circular driveway that could easily fit five to six cars and a small fountain in the middle. It had a soft cream tint with a mahogany trim and a mixture of wide bay windows and sliding windows. The second floor had a balcony that wrapped around to the back of the house and the front entrance had double oak doors. I glanced around the area and realized this was the only home that was built so far. There were tools and supplies around the community, indicating other homes were being built, but this house was done.
“Mr. Adalyn does have some good taste!”
Akira cooed, stepping out of the car.
“Mr. Adalyn?”
She nodded.
“He’s the owner of the entire neighborhood. He builds up homes for those in need and sells them at reasonable prices. According to my boss, he hasn’t been here in months and just decided to sell this house which makes sense. He never stays in one home longer than a year. Well, except for this one. He was here for like almost three years, but he got into some drama and had to travel back home to handle it.”
“How you know that man’s business like that?”
Akira laughed as she waved me off.
“Don’t get no ideas. I have never met the man, but I’ve been working for him for almost two years. My boss, Raheim, has been by Mr. Adalyn’s side for a long time.”
I arched an eyebrow.
“So…Raheim just voluntarily gives up his bosses info like that?”
Akira shifted uneasily before chewing on her bottom lip. She avoided my eyes as she fumbled with her purse, looking for the keys.
“K?”
My friend huffed out a sigh, her shoulders slightly dropping.
“I don’t need you judging me, Addy.”
“Now you know I wouldn’t do that. I don’t know why you would even fix your mouth to say something like that. You know I’m not foul.”
Akira rushed up to me and wrapped her arms around my waist, embracing me.
“I know. I know. I’m sorry, love. You are my best friend, and you’ve always been ten toes down for me.”
“You know you could talk to me about anything,”
I said, holding on to her hands. A swirl of guilt swam through my core, but I ignored it. Here I was getting offended that my bestie was holding on to secrets while I had one tucked away.
Akira nodded, quickly swiping away the few tears from her eyes.
“It’s Raheim. It has always been him. I don’t know how it happened, but one day he stayed behind to help me clean one of the properties and the next thing I know, we’re dating.”
I gave her a playful smile.
“If you’re happy, then I am happy. I don’t want anything but the best for you, boo. You deserve it!”
“How did I get so lucky to get a best friend like you?”
I smirked and shrugged. She pinched my cheeks before she turned to unlock the door with her spare key. My mouth dropped as I stared into the beautiful modern style home. Sleek black and deep gold color schemes decorated the living room to the left. To my right, was a wide staircase that opened up to a loft style upstairs before it branched off into the bedrooms.
“Girl, how many bedrooms are in here?”
“Eight bedrooms, six and a half bathrooms, two living areas, a basement, and a pool in the backyard. All this for one man, too.”
I frowned. How could anyone live in this big house by themselves? As beautiful and impressive as this house was, I’d be too lonely to live here.
“Let’s get to it! We need to get this house ready for a showing next week.”
I nodded and followed Akira to the supply closet. We grabbed every cleaning supply that was in top tier condition and began our work. After an hour, we completed all of the downstairs area, except for the basement. Apparently, Mr. Adalyn had that specially cleaned already.
As Akira took out the trash, I began to make my way upstairs when my foot stepped on something hard. Looking down at my feet, I realized it was a phone.
“What the? Hey, K?”
“What’s up?”
Akira stood at the bottom of the stairs.
“Where do you put Mr. Adalyn’s belongings that he’s left behind?”
Akira’s eyebrows scrunched up.
“I don’t know. He usually never leaves stuff behind – he must’ve been in a rush. I wonder how the first cleaning crew missed that.”
I furrowed my eyebrows.
“If he already had a cleaning crew here, why are we here?”
Akira shrugged as she typed away at her phone.
“All I know is, Raheim usually doesn’t need me to clean until Mr. Adalyn’s ready to sell a house. Maybe the first crew thought he was coming back.”
I pressed the power button on the side of the phone, but only the battery icon appeared on the screen, indicating the phone was dead. Akira exhaled an exasperated sigh as she stuffed her phone back into her pocket.
“Well, Raheem is no help. All he said was keep it and I know that’s because his ass likes to call dibs on anything left behind in other people’s houses. I done told him about that shit - gives us a bad look, you know?”
I nodded.
“Well, when I get back to the dorm, I’ll charge it. Maybe Mr. Adalyn has something in place to return his lost items. I mean, it’s a long shot, but it doesn’t hurt to try.”
Akira nodded.
“You are so sweet and go above and beyond to help other people. I, personally, wouldn’t do all that, but you’re the nice one.”
We burst out into laughter. She wasn’t wrong. While I was the nicer one and didn’t mind giving people a chance, Akira had zero tolerance for people. Once she got a bad vibe or you did something fucked up, she cut you off. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.
“Well, since this is the newest iPhone, if this bad boy isn’t claimed, oh best believe, I’m keeping it.”
“Aye! Welcome to the bad side, Addy!”
“Girl, I am not about to play with you.”
I laughed out loud.
Akira and I finished cleaning up the house and headed back to school. Both of our final exams were due to start by noon and we had just enough time to shower and change. As promised, Akira sent me my half for helping her clean and I transferred it right to my checking account. I had the account set up for automatic payments and was sure damn near all of the money would be gone by the end of the day due to bills.
When Akira gave me half her money the first time, I tried to pay Mr. L so I could take back my guardianship of my grandmother and the house, but he refused. I thought about going the legal route, but thought against it. Not only could I not prove that I was financially stable to take care of my grandma, but there was no guarantee that I could even still help K with her houses. Hell, she probably wouldn’t be cleaning after we graduated and her boss didn’t know I was coming along to help. So, the rights remained with Mr.L. I had signed a contract giving him these things and wanted to kick myself but then again, I didn’t have many other options.
After finishing up my last exam, I headed back to my dorm. Cindy and Sandy were not answering their phones and Akira was with her boyfriend. So, that left me by myself, but I didn’t mind. Unlike a lot of people I ran into, I actually enjoyed spending time with myself. Nothing like soft music, candles, a box of pizza, and my kindle, reading some hot, messy urban fiction.
I set my belongings down onto the bed and sighed in relief when I finally took off my bra. My phone began to ring causing me to snatch it out of my back pocket.
“Ma?”
I asked, answering the phone.
“Well, yes! Who the hell else would it be, girl?”
I scoffed.
“Well, excuse me. I’m just surprised you actually saved my number this time.”
My mother smacked her lips.
“Anyways, did you get everything situated with your nana?”
I bit my bottom lip. Should I tell her what I did in order to not have the house foreclosed? A part of me wanted to, but then again, did she even really care? My mother didn’t ask about me or her mother unless she wanted something. She for damn sure never called me out of the blue to check in on me.
I cleared my throat.
“Yeah, sort of. I’m working and cleaning houses to keep up with the bills.”
“A damn maid? Girl, you’d make more money stripping. Better yet, that’s why I called you.”
“You want me to strip?”
I asked, looking at the phone.
My mother laughed out loud.
“Girl no! You are your father’s child and probably don’t have any rhythm like me.”
I rolled my eyes, but knew she was probably right. I could do a few dance moves from TikTok, but I was stiff as hell.
“I was going to say,”
my mother continued.
“You can make thousands doing something a bit more…physical.”
“Umm. Like what?”
“Damn, Addison do I have to fucking spell it out for you? Look, I know a few men who would pay a pretty penny to be with Ernest, the Reaper, granddaughter.”
My nose scrunched up.
“What are you talking about? Who is Ernest and what are the Reapers?”
My mother groaned as she huffed out an air of frustration.
“Ernest was my dad, stupid and that’s all you need to know. Anyway, since he died our family has been pushed to the bottom of the crew, but at least we’re still a part of the Reaper family. So, I was thinking, if you at least get pregnant by one of them, they’ll make sure to set you and me up for life.”
“The fuck, ma! Why don’t you do it since all you care about is how much money you could spend while being laid up?”
“Don’t back talk me! Besides, don’t you think I tried? My father made sure that I was off limits since I was kicked out. You, on the other hand, still has his blood. If only your senile ass grandma could stay focused for one minute to vouch for you.”
“Don’t talk about nana Henrietta like that!”
“Oh, grow up, Addison! She’s old, senile, and needs to just kick the bucket already.”
My mouth hung opened as I stared at the phone.
“What the fuck is your problem? Nana hasn’t done anything to you, but love you. She gave you her last and wanted nothing, but for you to spend time with us. Why the hell do you hate her?”
“Fuck her! Mama never stood up for me when I needed her the most. My dad kicked me out and disowned me all because I wanted to live my life. I minded my business and made sure not to go over my credit limit. The moment my dad gave me an ultimatum to either join him or marry within the group, I gave him my ass to kiss. He couldn’t tell me how to live my damn life!”
“You have got to be kidding me. You are treating grandma like shit because you couldn’t be a spoiled brat anymore?”
My mother scoffed.
“Fuck you.”
Three beeping noises echoed in my ear indicating that she had hung up. I paced the floor with my hands on my hips. After all these years, my mother chose to be a selfish evil bitch all because her dad wanted her to pull her weight. Sadly, I wasn’t even surprised, but I couldn’t help but wonder why these so called reapers never checked in on grandma. I mean, if she was my grandfather’s wife, I would’ve thought they kept her living comfortably until someone else took over. I shrugged. I guess there wasn’t any use thinking about that. None of them were around and I was already trapped into one engagement.
A loud chime echoed throughout the room, causing me to slightly jump. I looked down at my phone, but realized I didn’t have any notifications. Scrunching my eyebrows for a brief second, I chuckled when I realized it was the phone I found at Mr. Adalyn’s house. I forgot I hooked it up to the charger when we got back earlier this morning.
I picked up the phone and to my surprise, the passcode was turned off. An uneasy feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. I mean, who walked around without a security code or face ID set up? I shook my head and tapped the screen to bring the phone to life.
My love: Where are you?
I frowned. Now I felt terrible. Mr. Adalyn didn’t have his phone, and he was probably going to be in huge trouble for not talking to his girlfriend or wife. A wave of jealousy rushed through me; I didn’t have anyone who worried about me like this. All I had was a creepy man who bought me. I would probably never experience love. I shook my head. There was no point in pouting over my own decisions. Besides, at the end of the day, as long as my nana was good, then I’d be fine. I exhaled and decided to text ‘my love’ back. Hopefully, they won’t accuse me of being some mistress and just provide me instructions on how to get the phone back to Mr. Adalyn.
Opening the messages apps, I noticed one other text message that caught my eye. I didn’t want to pry, but maybe it was someone who knew how to get ahold of Mr. Adalyn without getting him in trouble with his wife or girlfriend. Opening the message, I noticed there was only one item in the thread, and it was a video. My thumb hovered over the play icon before I closed my eyes. What was I doing? I couldn’t be invading this man’s privacy like that! Then again, the battle to do the right thing was losing against my curiosity.
As soon as I hit the play button, my eyes bulged in horror. Dash’s face took over the screen. I hadn’t seen or heard from Dash in over five months and just assumed he was assigned somewhere else. I mean, he was a big flirt and always told me how beautiful I was and that probably irritated Bruno. It’s not like I ever paid him any mind because he literally gave the same line to all of the women he ran across, but even still, he was a sweetheart. On the outside, he tried his hardest to be this mean killer, but deep down, he was a softy.
The same gentle brown eyes that sparkled with excitement every time he saw me was now staring back at me and was full of terror. The kindness was replaced with fear and anger. I watched as he sat on stairs that looked like the one’s at Mr. Adalyn’s house while holding on to his neck. Tears formed in my eyes as I watched the blood seeping through his fingers.
“Any last words?”
a deep male voice asked through the video.
I listened as the man holding the camera identified himself as Seojun. I scrunched up my eyebrows. Who was Seojun? I had never heard of him before, well, I haven’t run across him before if he worked for Mr. L. I’ve had a few personal guards following me over the past year, like Dash, but I was good about remembering names. His was unfamiliar. Maybe he worked for Mr. Adalyn?
I screamed when I saw a bullet lodge into Dash’s forehead, causing blood to splatter across the floor and onto the lens of the camera. Just before the video ended, I saw the profile of a deep honey-butter complected man end the video. Bile began to rise in my throat as I rushed into my private bathroom and heaved. Tears stung my eyes as the image replayed over and over again. Why did that man kill Dash? Better yet, who the hell was he? Was he one of Mr. Adalyn’s cleaning crew members? I shook my head as I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.
I couldn’t wrap my head around what the hell was happening. Why would one of Mr. Adalyn’s cleaning team kill Dash? This happened months ago, so what did they do with his body? Did Mr. L know about this? I wanted answers but I needed to tell Mr. L what I just saw just in case he wasn’t aware. I may not have liked the man, but one of his followers was killed in cold blood.
My phone began to ring, causing me to slightly jump. Relief washed over me when I saw Mr. L’s name highlighting my screen and I’m never excited to hear from him.
“Mr. L, I’m glad you called I found this –”
“Bitch, I don’t give a fuck what you found! Why are you running out that damn apartment so early in the morning without telling Bruno?”
I briefly looked at my phone in disbelief as anger coursed through me. Yes, I was sneaking out with K to earn some money, but how the hell did he find out? I made sure to be discreet and the only people who knew I was leaving were my friends and they didn’t know about Bruno.
“I am a grown ass woman. I don’t even understand why I have to tell Bruno every damn thing. You know I’m not out here doing anything.”
I snapped, placing my hand on my hip.
“Don’t back talk me! I’ve allowed you to stay on campus and hang out with your little hoe ass friends, but I think you getting a little too comfortable. How I know you not sneaking off to give away my pussy?”
I gritted my teeth as I gripped the phone tighter. I hated when he took claim over me. I wasn’t a piece of property. Rolling my eyes, I dragged my tongue across my teeth.
“I am not having sex. All I was doing was helping Akira at her job. Hell, I’ve been doing that for the past few months, and -”
“Is that right? So, Bruno needs to get fucked up, too, for not keeping a better eye on you? I swear it’s hard to find competent muthafuckas to do their damn job.”
Mr. L continued to rant on the phone. I wanted to yell at him to shut the fuck up so that I could tell him what I saw, but a nagging feeling was telling me to keep my mouth shut. I didn’t know why, but I listened.
Mr. L exhaled a heavy sigh, causing me to listen.
“Look, your ass graduates in a few more days and then we don’t have to deal with each other anymore. Well, I mean once I get paid after shipping your stupid ass off to your new husband, but then that’s it. No more contract and you can even take your old ass granny with you. But if you fuck this up, Addy, I swear that I will break your fucking neck. Do you hear me?”
My stomach rolled with more nausea as sweat began to coat the insides of my palms.
“Mr. L, please. I haven’t been doing anything I’m not supposed to be.”
“Yeah okay. If I find out you lying to me, bitch, I’ll put you some place where you can freely whore yourself out.”
“I said I wasn’t fucking!”
“We’ll see. Get your ass downstairs within the next hour so Bruno can take you to the clinic.”
With that, he hung up. I screamed out in frustration as I threw my phone down onto the bed and began to pace the room. Why the hell did I get myself caught up with this nigga? I needed a way out, but how? Maybe I could take nana and run away? I shook my head – no I couldn’t do that. She needs to be resting, and I don’t want to put my burdens onto her and stress her out. It’s not her fault that she has dementia. She only had one other living family member, her daughter a.k.a. my mother, but that money hungry wench wasn’t about to take care of anybody. Hell, she didn’t even bother to take care of me when I was growing up and left me with my nana so much that I just moved in with her. My mom didn’t even bother to stop me or beg me to go back home with her.
I plopped down on the bed and placed my head into my hands. I was trapped. I tried to do the right thing by helping my nana and now I was in debt to a fucking monster who didn’t give a damn about anybody but himself and money. I knew for a fact that the only reason he wouldn’t let me buy myself out of this contract was that I opened my big mouth and told him I was untouched. I didn’t think it was a big deal before, but the fact that an old muthafucka was ready to pay huge money so he could marry and deflower me made my insides churn.
No! I refuse to just give up and accept this fate. Yeah, I may have dug myself into this hole, but I was going to get myself out. One way or another. I walked over to my desk and opened my laptop. I shook my head at what I was about to do, but I was desperate. Then again, being desperate is what put me in my current situation. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I couldn’t think about that right now. Besides, maybe this was going to actually help me instead of hurting me.
“Please Lord, let this work.”
I said out loud before typing in Mr. Adalyn’s name in the search bar.