Later that night, I was on the couch, trying to focus on game film. My mind kept drifting back to Halo, but this was a normal occurrence for me.
My phone buzzed. Unknown number.
I almost didn’t answer. But something made me pick up.
“DaVinci.” The voice was syrup-sweet, familiar in a way that made my skin crawl. “Baby, I’ve been trying to reach you.”
Cassie.
My whole body went rigid. “How did you get this number?”
“Oh, don’t be like that. You know I’m resourceful.” She laughed, light and airy, as if we were two old friends catching up. As if she hadn’t set my shit on fire a week ago. “Besides, I just wanted to check on you. Make sure you’re okay. That fire was so tragic.”
“Cassie, there’s a warrant out for your arrest. Turn yourself in and stop playing on my line.”
“A warrant? That’s so dramatic. It was an accident, baby—”
“Stop calling me that shit.” My voice dropped low. I was done playing with her ass. “We were never together. And we were never going to be together. You worked for me. I rejected you. You need to seek help.”
Up until a month ago, this whole situation was annoying, not dangerous. Cassie showing up, sending messages, acting delusional about a relationship that never existed was typical groupie shit… until the day it wasn’t. I dealt with it the way I handled everything, lawyers and security. It was a problem to be managed, not a war to fight.
But not anymore.
Her voice changed. She’d dropped the sweetness. “You want to talk about rejection? Let’s talk about your new little friend. The firefighter.”
Everything in me went cold, then hot. My hand tightened around the phone until I heard the case crack.
“Yeah, I’ve seen her,” Cassie continued. “Pretty thing. Feisty. I can see why—”
“Say her fuckin’ name.” My voice came out quiet. Deadly. “Go ahead and give me a reason to hunt you down and end this pitiful ass life you clearly don’t value. I dare you.”
She hesitated. Good. She should.
“I’m just saying—”
“Don’t say shit about her. Don’t look at her. Don’t think about her. You understand me?”
“DaVinci—”
“I’ve been patient with you because I thought you were just confused. Hurt. Whatever. But you just crossed a line you can’t come back from.” I stood up to look out the window at the city lights, that old energy rising up, and I needed to bring it down before I did something stupid. The energy my pops taught me to control, to channel into basketball instead of fighting in the streets, was creeping up and threatening to take over. “You want to come at me, that’s fine. Burn my house. Blow up my phone. Follow me around. But you bring her into this, and we’re talking about slow singing and flower bringing.”
Cassie laughed, nervous now. “You’re being dramatic as usual. If I wanted to touch Miss Grant at Station 19, I could. I know she lives in a cute little condo in Maple Park. Drives a black Stinger. Has a cute little dog. I told you, I’m resourceful.”
Everything in me stilled. I was back in that hospital. Devyn’s name on a toe tag. The doctor saying “I’m sorry” like that changed anything.
Not again. Never fucking again.
For a split second, Halo’s face flashed in my mind. Not scared—just her. Smirking, talking shit, walking through fire. That was the part that scared me the most. She wasn’t fragile. She wasn’t Devyn. She wasn’t someone who needed saving. But losing her before I even got the chance to know her would break me in a way I wasn’t built to recover from.
“Cool, check it out, I’m done being nice about this shit. I’m not who you think I am, Cassie. I’ve been playing by the rules because that’s what I do now. But if you threaten what I’m protecting, I’ll show you exactly who I am. And trust me, you don’t want to meet that version of DaVinci Bryns. Because while you may be resourceful, you can be resourceful six feet deep as well.”
“Don’t threaten me, like I—”
“That wasn’t a threat. That was a promise. Stay the fuck away from her and me, or it’s closed curtains and dirt naps for you.”
I hung up, pissed that I’d been treating Cassie like a nuisance when I should’ve been treating her like the threat she was. She knew about Halo. Knew where she lived. And I’d led her right there just by paying attention, by sending gifts, by leaving a trail. When I knew Cassie was crazy but not mentally ill. This was next-level obsession. So, I called my security team.
“I need eyes on someone. Now. Halima Grant, I’ll send what I know in the app. Twenty-four-seven coverage until I say otherwise.”
