“From the top,” he said, inhaling from the stuffed cigar once again. “Which means… we don’t have a choice.” He blew the smoke from his lips and shook his head.
As if I didn’t have enough shit to deal with. I studied the photo in front of me, and my blood went from cold to hotter than fish grease.
“Noel Dames,” I recited the name, and Ledge kept his eyes on me. “What he do?”
“I’m guessing he crossed the wrong mothafucka if his name is on our list,” Ledge said playfully. “I’m already tracking his moves and got a team in place.”
I lifted my eyes to meet his. “Let me know when you’ve got him lined up. I’ll be in position.” I slammed the folder shut andsighed. “I gotta go. There’s a charity dinner tomorrow night. Black tie. Bring a date. One that can speak complete sentences and doesn’t dress like an extra in a Yo Gotti video.”
Ledge snickered and flipped me off as I stuck my hands in my pockets and turned to go.
“Free… I hear you… about getting out. But this is all we know. What are we going to do without it though?”
“That’s something we can take the time to figure out,” I replied, stepping toward the door.
* * *
By the timeI got home, I noticed that there was another car parked in the driveway. It was a rental, and when I shut off my whip, I stared on in concern. Hopping out, I started toward the path to the front door. It opened before I even set foot on the porch. Celine stood there, hand on her hip, wearing an odd expression.
“What’s going on? Who’s car is here?” I asked, stepping past her into the house.
“That would be us,” my sister, Kara, sang as she stepped into the hallway.
Her Louboutins clicked with each step she took toward me. My sister was a woman that women envied and men lost themselves over. Her skin was smooth and bright yellow. Big brown eyes donned her face, and her hair was long, dark, and flowing down her back. She had style and always set her own trends. Opening her arms, she pulled me into them once she was close enough.
She held me tight during our embrace. Looking past her shoulder, my brother, Karmine, stumbled from the living room,. In his hand, he carried a bowl and slurped pasta from it as he walked.Fucking heathen.If he wasn’t talking shit, he wasstuffing his face. With his suit jacket open, I could see his pistol tucked as he grinned stupidly at me.
“’Sup, bro!” he greeted me with his mouth full.
Kara and I parted, and she looked me over. “Damn, you look good, big brother. How are you?” she asked.
“What are y’all doing here?” I asked.
“Oh, well, Mama thought you might need a visit or some help. I heard Ivy was here, and I did see her. She’s up in her room,” Kara informed me.
“Celine—”
“Your houseguest is secure in her room,” she answered before I could even ask the question.
I gave her a nod, thankful that she knew how to speak in front of my siblings. Celine had pretty much raised us all. Our relationship was just a lot tighter than Kara’s and Karmine’s. They were always on the go, as was I. I also kept crazy hours.
While most people were at home tucked in their beds, I was on the fucking prowl. There were times that I came home and Celine would whip me up something because she, too, was a night owl. Once the rest of the family was gone, it became our thing. We hung out on weekends and watched movies.
It was cool vibes. She was like my auntie and fairy Godmother rolled into one. I’d probably never have some conversations we did with anyone else. Celine listened without judgment. In her eyes, a nigga could do no wrong. She was on my side, whether I was right or wrong. That kind of loyalty couldn’t be fucking taught. The shit was either in a person, or it wasn’t.
“Houseguest?” Kara asked, face screwed up. “What houseguest?” She looked to Celine and then back to me.
Celine dipped her head and walked away without another word. Kara’s brows went up with interest. It was more so my sister being nosy as fuck. She always had to know what the fuck was going on since we were kids. We were four years apart, butthat never stopped her from trying to tell me what to do. We were close, always had been. Out of all of my immediate family, Kara and I spoke the most.
“Just a new business associate. Y’all staying for dinner?” I moved along, and I could feel her hawking me like a damn spy.
“Um… what was that?” Kara traipsed behind me, throwing her arms up.
Karmine and I dapped each other up and embraced. Even though he was the baby of the bunch, bro was thorough and about as big as me. We shared our father’s eyes and skin color, but Karmine had features that my mother called ‘part of the family’, since he didn’t particularly look like her side.
“What you talking about?” I asked, walking to make myself a drink at the bar.
“You are letting someone live here with you that isn’t family?” Kara demanded, watching me pour D’Ussé into a glass. “Who is this… business associate?” she asked.
