His nephew stiffened and lifted a brow.
“I know I’m not your favorite person but tell me what happened.”
“You’re in good fucking company, because Uncle Digger and Uncle Cash are right there with you in my fucking book.”
“Hey, little bruh! I’m suffering.”
“Good,” CJ responded, then pinned Johnnie with a resentful gaze. “Because ofyourfuckery at the school toward my brothers and me, Mattie thought we were taking too long and she wanted to check on Harley, whom Ryan had already left with and headed to Turn Creek. We thought Nardo had attacked Harley. It took forever for her to say it was that motherfucker’s father.”
“Wait. A grown motherfucker attacked my niece?” Digger demanded.
“He was waiting for her in the auditorium.” CJ rubbed the back of his neck, reminding Johnnie of Christopher in that moment. “I thought Uncle Mort said he was going to have guards or Marvey was going to stop Nardo—”
Guilt hit Johnnie. Apparently, CJ hadn’t realized that Johnnie told Marvey to cancel the extra precautions Mortician demanded, because he’d been eaten up with anger and jealousy. Marvey reported to him every morning. Mortician ordering Marvey to do anything rubbed Johnnie the wrong fucking way.
“Wally, Jr. grabbed Mattie, but she fought him and made it to the edge of the pathway, where the street started again. If not, Grant might not have heard her when she screamedand that motherfucker might’ve dragged Mattie into the bushes and finished…” CJ shook his head and swallowed. “Finished strangling her,” he pushed out.
“Thank you, Grant,” Johnnie said in a choked voice just as Mattie and Harley walked out of the bathroom.
“I didn’t mean to wear my slip-on Oxfords, Daddy,” Mattie said, pausing next to Grant.
At first, Johnnie didn’t know what she meant. Until he recalled telling her what ladies wore.
His nostrils flared and shame like he’d never felt swirled in his gut. More than that, fury. Bash had set them up. He’d pretended to want peace and brought Wally, Jr. to target their daughters.
Johnnie got to his feet. “Go with Roxanne,” he snarled to Mattie. “I have an errand to run.” He stormed away.
Twenty minutes later, he pounded on Celia’s door. She’d know where the fuck to find Bash. That motherfucker sent his fucking dogs to do his dirty work while he got high or planned his next fuckery behind the safety of whatever hellscape he’d slunk to after toying with Kendall.
“Open this fucking door, Celia,” Johnnie snarled, the memory of Bash and Kendall together enraging him.
He kicked the door.
Celia swung it open. “What’s–”
Uninterested in anything she said and not waiting for an invitation, he barged inside.
“Where’s Bash?” he demanded.
“What do you want?” Celia folded her arms. “I was upstairs unpacking. Easton’s in the hospital. I can’t leave as I planned—”
“Fuck Easton. Fuck your plans. Fuckyou. Where the fuck is Bash?”
“About to shoot your fucking ass off, fuckhead,” Bash barked, looming in the doorway of the kitchen in his bare feet, gun aimed at Johnnie’s head.
“Put that gun away, Sebastian!” Celia ordered as Johnnie roared in anger and charged toward Bash.
The motherfucker pulled the trigger. Somehow, the bullet missed Johnnie, but it also halted him. Bash was ready and willing to kill him, unlike Christopher who hesitated most of the time.
If Johnnie knew Bash was still in town, he would’ve gone in with guns blazing.
“You sent that motherfucker to rape and murder my daughter. Now, you—”
Bash barreled to Johnnie. “Whatthe fuck did you say?”
So fucking over Bash, Johnnie shoved him, not caring about his gun, only wanting to avenge Mattie. “You fucking heard me. Don’t play fucking dumb. Wally, Jr. attacked Matilda!”
“That little fuckhead!” Bash shoved his gun in his waistband and screamed at the top of his lungs. Normally, the behavior frightened Johnnie. Now, he just didn’t give a fuck. “I haven’t fucking seen that motherfucker since the night we got here. He fucking left. He…he tried to hurtKendall’sdaughter? My almost stepdaughter?”
