Page 25 of 4 Corinthians

“No!” Uri said, still fighting against Logan’s hold. “Please stop!” When he realized that Robert wasn’t going to stop, he looked at me. “Focus on me, Cori. Nothing else. Just me.” He jerked against Logan, who hadn’t let him go. “P-p-p-please j-j-j-jus-t-t-t-t m-m-m-m-me. Not-t-t-t-t-hin-g-g-g-g-g el-s-s-s-s-s-se.”

I continued lying there, and Robert continued to hurt me. I focused on Uri. Our eyes filled with tears, but neither of us let them fall.

Robert had succeeded in breaking both of us.

Uri

“Get up,” Robert said, kicking my feet. I looked down at his foot, then up at him. I wasn’t asleep, hadn’t been asleep for hours. I was lying here, listening, thinking, trying to get a plan figured out to get Corinthians away from him. She’d been locked in his home office for two days; every night, he went in there and came out when the sun was coming up. Fixing his pants, always fixing his pants, and whistling. I hated the sound of his whistle. I hated seeing him coming. I hated hearing his heavy footsteps. I hated him. “Get up, Uri.”

I sat up, wiped my hands over my face, then looked at him. My voice was gone from screaming. I didn’t have any words left anyway.

“We are going to the office,” he announced. I don’t know if he thought I would be happy or excited, but I was neither. “You know how to act, and you know what will happen if you don’t.” He pointed at the door and chuckled. “Go get ready.”

He walked out of my cage, leaving the door open, and left the room. Slowly, I got up from the floor, looked around to see if anyone was around, and my eyes locked on Logan.

“Don’t even think about it,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “The door is locked, and I’m here as a precaution.” He lifted his shirt to show me the butt of his gun. “I’m not playing with your little ass anymore.”

I licked my lips, then left my cage. After I showered, brushed my teeth, and got dressed, I went down to the living room. My mama sat on the couch, her head down. When she heard me stop walking, she looked up. A ghost of a smile pulled at her lips, and her eyes watered.

“Uri,” she whispered and stood. She approached me, and I took a step back. “Oh, honey, what has he done to you?” She was asking as if she didn’t know. Like she didn’t hear my screams or know what happened in that basement; she knew; I knew she did because I heard her crying when I was locked down there. Robert tortured everyone in this house. Her hands went to my face. “I’m so sorry.” Her face twisted, and she moved one of her hands from my cheek to my forehead. “You’re warm.”

“He’s fine,” Robert said, coming into the living room. He wore a black suit, a white shirt, and shiny black dress shoes. He adjusted his jacket, then shook his head. “Stop touching him; he’s fine.” Her hands dropped to her side, and she took a step back. “Let’s go.” Robert snapped his fingers and left the room. I glared at Mama then followed behind Robert.

The entire car ride to the office, Robert talked on the phone. He was in full business mode, making plans, setting up meetings, and preparing for them. I’d seen him this way my entire life, able to turn on and off the monster that he was. But then again, I don’t think he ever turned it off, just shifted to a different form. The monster he was at home was slightly different than the one I was looking at now. He craved power, control, and dominance.

We parked in the garage. The driver got out, opened the door for us, and we walked through the employee garage to the side entrance. Strong Pharmaceuticals was the largest black-owned company in the world. From the outside looking in, people thought we were lucky; we claimed to be a business built on love and an understanding of the community's needs. That was a lie.

“Sir,” Mona, Robert’s secretary, jumped from her desk when we got off the elevator. Mona had been around for as long as I could remember. She worked for Robert, and her sister worked for Logan.

“What is it, Mona?” Robert asked as we walked to his office. “I have a meeting shortly, so make it quick.”

“It’s about your meeting,” she said, following behind us. She patted me on the shoulder and gave me a small smile as she passed me. “I know you said that it was closed, but…”

Robert opened his office door, walked to his desk, and picked up a small folder. “But what?” he replied as he read whatever was in the folder. His face twisted, then he looked up at Mona. She hesitated again, and Robert shook his head. “I don’t have time for this. I need to get to my meeting.” He rounded his desk and walked out of the office. “Uri, come on.”

I followed him, not caring that I had to sit in on a meeting for a company I didn’t want anything to do with. Because it was a family business, I had to be here even though I was a kid. Robert opened the conference room doors and walked in. He wasn’t three steps into the room before he stopped, then looked over his shoulder at Mona and me.

“That’s what I was trying to tell you,” Mona softly said. I moved around her to look into the room and saw my Uncle Bradon.

“Robert, bring your ass in here,” Uncle Bradon said with a chuckle. “I told her not to tell you I was here. Don’t get your panties in a fuckin’ bunch.”

Robert walked to his seat at the table and sat. I took my empty seat next to him, leaned back, and waited.

Uncle Bradon lived across the country, running the West Coast office. I knew him, and Robert didn’t get along with him. Honestly, Uncle Bradon didn’t get along with any of his siblings. His daughter, Brieghton, sat next to him; she was younger than I was. She sat next to Uncle Bradon, coloring and eating a snack. She looked happy.

“What are you doing here?” Robert asked Bradon. Logan sat in his chair across from me. His face was twisted in anger.

“I called this meeting to let you know I’m back,” Uncle Bradon announced.

Robert’s leg started to bounce. “Why?”

“The California office is on track; I’ve been there for over a year. It’s time.”

“When is this move happening?” Logan asked. “And who will be taking over the Cali office since you are here?”

“Tulane Forrester,” Uncle Bradon answered with a shrug.

“He’s not family!” Robert objected.