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“Oh my… wow.”
“It happened so fast, I couldn’t get anyone on it. And I don’t regret that because Cade did what he needed to do to stay safe, but the gun he used… I had to find a way to connect it to others to avoid him ever being fingered for the murder.”
“How did you do that?”
“I gave it to the head of my security, who used it and the remaining bullets for hits. Turns out, he gave the gun to three men, one of which was Londen. He used that same gun to kill Hamilton.”
Her chest tightened and mind raced.
Finally, the pieces were starting to connect, but Lei still wasn’t sure where her father was going with this.
“I remember Londen saying he was serving time for a crime he didn’t commit. Is this what he was referring to?”
Ace nodded. “Yes. Apparently, the last time that gun was used, it was discarded of by a man who had little experience. It was found, and mostly all the bullets were connected to previous murders with no suspects.”
“What changed?”
“There was a young man who had just gotten picked up with several possession charges. In order to lighten his sentence, he gave names of other dealers and murders that he knew for sure could be proven in court. One of the names he gave was Londen’s. I’m not sure why or what he said, but that’s what shifted the district attorney’s attention to Londen. Now they couldn’t prove Londen was tied to any murders because he was very clean, but they could prove that he was connected to me. They put two and two together about Cade killing my supplier’s son and suggested I was involved. Hamilton was in that lineup as well. When he was murdered, he had a warrant for kidnapping you. Before Hamilton could be found and picked up…”
“Londen had killed him,” Lei muttered. “So that would have been three murders attached to you and possibly Cade too. They weren’t going to go after Londen because they had no real proof. They were going to try to get him to snitch on you.”
“Exactly, but that’s not the kind of man Londen is. He would do the time before he snitched, and that’s what he did. He felt as if it was more important that I be free than him. Plus, he had several bodies that he could potentially be charged with, and the prosecutor over the case made that clear. Their case with Luis was weak, which is why he was able to get the small amount of time he did. Had he not confessed or turned on me, there would have been a target on his back. If they found any evidence against him, they’d want to give him life or death. So it was self-preservation but it was also his way of looking out for me. In exchange, I looked out for him while he was locked up. Every year, January first, I had half a million dollars deposited into a bank account for him. We didn’t speak after he started serving his time. I did, however, reach out when you mentioned the bet. I told him I didn’t want you connecting with a man in there who would bring you more harm than good, and he agreed. I just… I want you to see how interconnected things can get doing what I, what we, do. And regardless of what happens between us, I never want you to think Londen didn’t have good intentions when it came down to you.”
Ace leaned forward and wiped the tears from her eyes.
“He’s been looking out for our family for years. I trust him with you, and that doesn’t come cheap. Please… don’t let my choice end your relationship.”
“I won’t,” she promised. “I already felt like I wanted to get over this so we could be together, but now I really do. There was always something special about Londen to me. He’s always seemed…” Her head shook as she tried to find a word that was worthy of him. “Irresistible to my being. Like… something that I simply could not avoid. I’ve closed myself off to love because I didn’t think I’d ever feel safe and secure with a man after what Marcus and Steven did, but Londen has been looking out for us before we even met.”
Sniffling, she released a shaky breath.
“I hope you can one day forgive me.”
“I already have, Daddy. I know you didn’t do that to intentionally hurt me, and I don’t blame you for it. I wanted Marcus to be punished, and I wish he could have just served jail time, but I’m emotionally intelligent enough to know how you handled that betrayal toward you and Ma had nothing to do with me. So yes, it hurt, but how you handled it… that was your right. I don’t have to accept it or respect it, but I accept and respect you, so we’ll be fine.”
Ace stood and pulled her into his arms. “Thank you, Princess.”
He held her close, causing Lei to smile. When he released her, Lei asked, “Hey, do you happen to know the name of the person that gave Londen’s name? I know it’s a long shot, but…”
“Yeah, I know. It was some lower-level dealer named Tussi…”
forty-two
The Present
Groggily,Lei shifted in her seat. With a groan, she jerked in the seat. Panic filled her when she realized her hands were tied behind her back, and her ankles were tied to the legs of the chair. As she released a squeaky yelp, Lei continued to try to loosen whatever was binding her wrists unsuccessfully. The last thing she remembered was leaving the restaurant after talking to Yandi. She touched her door handle, and by the time she sat inside of the car, she was drifting off to sleep.
“Stop fighting. You’re not going to get out.”
At the sound of a deep voice, Lei’s movements stopped.
Since there was something in her mouth, she couldn’t speak clearly. Her words came out like muffled hums that forced him to pull whatever was stuffed inside of her mouth out.
“Who are you and why did you take me?”
He lowered the covering from her eyes. Lei looked his face over intently. He was vaguely familiar, but she couldn’t place why. There was no doubt in her mind that she’d never seen him before, but his features were familiar. From his tall, lanky frame that was covered in medium brown skin to his almond-shaped eyes and long nose.
“I’m not going to tell you my name, but I will tell you that you’re going to stay here until your father gets Tussi out of prison.”
