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“I appreciate it but since all of this shit has started, I’m never without protection.” I showed him the pistol I had at my back and he nodded, impressed, his lips turned down.
“You need me to follow you to Junior’s?”
“I’m good, Hakim.” When I looked at him, I saw a brief flash of fear in his eyes. I knew my brother well and out of the three of us, he was the one who wanted all the smoke all the time. Maasai wanted to keep everything balanced and I just wanted the ladies. So, I knew he wasn’t shaken by the gunplay. He was scared something would happen to me.
Hakim shook his head and sat down the jar of cashews he’d cracked into. “I know I’m doing too much right now but…we lost Rob, Bakari. Shit doesn’t sit right with me and it never will. I never saw y'all apart when you were younger. I keep thinking about…”
“If it had been me like it was supposed to be?” I asked, knowingly. Hakim responded with a slow nod.
“And I hate that shit because I’m fucked up over losing Rob but I’m so thankful that I still have my baby brother.” He pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a pained sigh. “I just want to find Mrs. Sinclair and let her know she fucked with the wrong family. The Sinclairs might be royalty in Bellmore, but what’s a queen to a God?” A smile inched across my face as I slapped hands with my brother.
“I’m going to make sure this shit gets resolved, Hakim. I have to. For Rob. For the Temple.”
For Sanai…
I didn’t say it out loud but I was thinking it. I knew something inside of her needed this kill, too. She needed to sever the ties she had to her mother. Their entire family was toxic as fuck but I knew it started with her mother.
“I hear you but that doesn’t mean I’m not still on edge about you out here making moves on your own. You’re handling your business, though, Bakari. You know me and Maasai always got your back.”
“I know. That’s why I’m not scared of a motherfucking thing. The Godwin boys run the city.” I flashed him a smile before grabbing my keys and heading out.
…
Junior’s house was probably the safest place I could be out in the open. Even if Mrs. Sinclair was bold enough to track me there, she wasn’t going to get past Junior’s security, which included his brother Daniel.
“So, what’s going on, man? You need to talk about who hit your boy?” Junior asked. His eyes were serious as he watched me like a hawk. It felt like my every move was under scrutiny.
“Something like that. Remember when my brothers and I came to you about the Temple?”
“Yeah.” He dipped his head in a slow nod.
“Well, I think I know who it is that’s actually behind everything and you’re not going to fucking believe this shit.” Since I knew Junior was watching me closely, I did everything to make my story believable in his eyes. I leaned forward, placing my elbows on my knees so that I could look directly into his eyes without hesitation. “You know the Sinclair family?”
“Of course. I pay them heavily to make sure my image remains pristine. You know, church donations always make you look like an upstanding citizen.” He flashed a brief smile then continued. “But it doesn’t hurt that the Sinclairs seem to have no problem looking the other way when shit goes down. Gotta keep your eyes on motherfuckers like that.”
His suspicion of them was perfect timing. I let my expression fall flat then said, “You’re right in ways you don’t even know, Junior.”
“You think the Sinclairs had something to do with the plot on the Temple?” Now his wheels were turning. He stroked his chin and his gaze shifted off in the distance at a point I couldn’t see.
“Not all of them,” I added, holding a finger in the air.
“Let me guess,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “Mrs. Sinclair?” My reaction to his insanely accurate guess wasn’t rehearsed. I blinked, caught off guard for a moment.
“Yeah…how the fuck did you know? Did she say something to you?” I quizzed, getting a little ahead of myself. I reeled my excitement back in and slid back into the buttery leather chair.
“Nah, but if anyone in that family was going to be crooked, it would be that bitch. She was always money-hungry. Now, tell me what you know, Breeze.” He crossed his legs, resting his ankle on his knee.
“Sanai Sinclair came to me,” I explained. “She said she didn’t know who else to go to with the information she had. She felt like she could trust me.” Junior nodded for me to continue. “She told me that she was in her mother’s office and found several bricks of coke.” At that revelation, Junior’s eyes widened and his eyebrows jerked up to his hairline.
“Mrs. Sinclair had coke stashed in her fucking office? How many keys?” I gave him a slight shrug. “Does Sanai know who her mom got that shit from? Because it for goddamn sure wasn’t me and that means you’re not the only one who has to worry. Whoever her supplier is might be trying to get in on my fucking territory. I can’t have that.”
“I don’t know much. Only that Sanai found the coke. It got my mind to thinking and I could see the plot.”
“Sanai told you I was the one who tried to destabilize the Temple, didn’t she?” Junior asked point blank.
“She did. She told me that her mother told her you were responsible. That’s why when I came in here the day after you’d gotten shot and saw Mrs. Sinclair sitting there, I was shook.”
“It makes sense now,” Junior admitted, snapping his fingers. “You were off that day.”
