Ajani leaned forward, eyes sharp, questioning. “The question is why now is he surfacing? Why target Farrah and you?”
That last part hit harder than I liked.
I exhaled slow. “After my pops was… after he died, I think my brain did some funny shit. I forgot my uncle had a son. I honestly did not remember ’til I was down there at Pollock. And now that son wanna tear my life apart? What kinda logic that make?”
Prime shrugged. “Trauma fucks with humans bad. It’s protective. How our psychology keeps us somewhat sane and functioning. As for the logic, all I can say is that family logic is the worst logic.”
“Speak for yourself,” Seth muttered.
Prime shot him a look. “I did. Loudly.”
“We need to understand Trell’s motive,” Braeden continued, ignoring them. “The disappearance makes sense—grandpops wanted to protect his mama from his foul ass daddy. But the aggression? The obsession? The way he moves? That shit not random.”
“Nah,” Ajani agreed. “Nigga got a reason. And the reason is probably the same reasonRamónBlack’s been helping him.”
That name had us all paying attention.
Seth sat forward. “Yeah. AboutRamón…”
He reached into his jacket, pulled out his phone, and placed it face-down on the table like it held a bomb.
“I put out feelers. I got a tip.”
I didn’t breathe for a second. “From who?”
Seth shrugged. “Somebody who likes me. Don’t ask.”
I stared him down until he held up his hands.
“Alright, alright. You really gotta lighten up, man. Ain’t nothing messy. Just somebody who owes me a favor.”
Ajani leaned in. “What was the tip?”
Seth flipped the phone, tapped a message open, and turned the screen toward us. Text message, no number, and words that taunted me.
Ramóndidn’t help Trell outta loyalty. Trell got leverage. Strong leverage. Something big.
I frowned. “Ramóndon’t scare easy.”
“Exactly why the leverage gotta be real serious,” Braeden said.
Seth nodded. “Whole time, y’all knowRamónain’t have beef with you or Farrah. Man always neutral. So, why let Trell use his organization like its his own?” He lifted the phone again. “Because Trell holding something over him.”
Prime tilted his head. “But what? Money? Family? Secrets?”
Ajani shook his head. “Not money.Ramóngot money. I ain’t convinced Trell does. His grandfather’s money is gone. And not just family,Ramón’s had to protect his people before and done it with no problem. That leaves secrets.” His gaze flicked to me. “And if Trell’s willing to come after you, Farrah, our people, andRamón? That means he thinks he invincible. Means he thinks whatever he’s holding is enough to survive this.”
Braeden stepped forward. “So, we identify the leverage, and we break it.”
Simple words for a hard-ass job.
“Okay,” I said. “How we find out what Trell got?”
Seth smirked. “Already working on that. My source said they could dig deeper if we give ‘em time.”
“Time we don’t have,” I muttered.
Ajani set his pen down. “Then we create pressure. People like Trell? They make mistakes when the walls close in.”
