Page 62 of Omar

He got out of the car and went inside. I stayed parked, watching his building, making sure he made it upstairs. Then I pulled out my phone and texted Devon.

I need you to find two men who were at a bar on Franklin tonight. Nets cap, heavyset. Skinny friend, gold chain, gap teeth. They've got a cousin who saw Pops after the disappearance. Alive. In chains. Find them.

Devon replied in under a minute: On it.

I put the phone down and drove home. The image Rashid had described was sitting in my head and I couldn't make it leave. Pops on his knees. A chain around his neck. Being dragged into a building.

My father. The man who'd raised us, built an empire, loved Ma with everything he had. On his knees. In chains.

I gripped the steering wheel until my knuckles went white. Then I loosened my grip, one finger at a time, and drove.

There was work to do.

Chapter 24

Asha

Supreme brought it up over breakfast like it was nothing. He was eating eggs and scrolling through his phone, one hand on his coffee, when he said it.

"I been thinking about the Cee situation."

I kept my face neutral and took a sip of my own coffee. "What about it?"

"He says you been out of his sight a lot lately. New clients, home visits, walking to the store." Supreme set his phone down and looked at me. "Baby, I ain't questioning you. But there's people out there who would use you to get to me. You understand that?"

"Of course."

"So from now on, Cee's gonna come inside wherever you at. He'll sit in the waiting area, stay out your way, but he'll be there." Supreme picked up his fork again. "Just so I know you're safe."

"Okay, Premie." I gave him a small smile, the kind I could do without thinking. Inside I wanted to scream. Every time I got close to breathing, he tightened the leash another inch.

I squeezed back, finished my coffee, and went to the bathroom to get ready. I locked the door, sat on the toilet lid, and stared at the wall for a full minute.

The forty-minute window was gone. Cee inside the salon meant eyes on me the entire day. No walking to the building on Kingston Ave, no getting in Omar's car, no driving to Bed-Stuy. The one gap I'd found in Supreme's cage had just been sealed shut and he'd done it with a kiss on the forehead and a squeeze of my hand. But it had to be about more than just his enemies. Cee must have been feeding shit back to him, suspecting I was up to no good, and Supreme knew how to assert his position without scaring me. The nice act, the kisses, the loving... all of that could fall away at any moment. The man was a cold hard killer.

I texted Omar from the bathroom: We have a problem. Cee's coming inside now. I can't get out.

His reply came fast: We'll figure it out.

I deleted both messages, flushed the toilet for show, and went to finish my makeup.

Cee drove me to the salon and for the first time, he got out of the car and came inside with me. I found him a chair in the waiting area near the door where he pulled out his phone, and settled in like he was planning to stay all day. And that was exactly what the hell he was planning on doing.

"You need anything, Miss Asha?" he asked.

"I'm good, Cee. Thank you."

My first client came in at ten. Mrs. Patterson, a regular, silk press and trim. I put the cape on her, sectioned her hair, and got to work. Cee sat fifteen feet away scrolling through his phone. He didn't look up, didn't watch me, didn't interfere. He was just there. Present. A pair of eyes that would report back to Supreme at the end of the day.

I got through four clients. Each time someone came in, Cee glanced up, clocked them, went back to his phone. Each time someone left, he did the same thing. He went to the bathroom once and only once did he step outside to take a call, but he was back in under two minutes. He accepted the coffee I offered him and thanked me politely.

He was doing his job, nothing more and nothing less but his job was my prison.

Nene came by around noon. She walked in with her bag over her shoulder, saw Cee in the waiting area, and didn't miss a step. She came straight to me at the station, kissed my cheek, and sat down in the empty chair next to mine.

"Hey girl." She pulled out her phone. "You got a minute?"

"For you? Always."