“Are you workin’ with Ox?”
“Hell nah. I ain’t seen Ox since he retired.” Cannon could tell he had offended Mace, but it was a question he had to ask. He also heard the sincerity in Mace’s tone, and it relieved him.
“He retired?” Cannon asked, his tone a lot more relaxed.
“Yeah, man. He was granted early retirement a year ago. I’on really know what he’s been up to since, though.”
Cannon ran a hand across his face. Although he was 80 percent sure Mace could be trusted, it was still proving difficult for him to give all the details. He would never forgive himself if something happened to Nahla because he let the wrong person in.
This is your brother, Cane. You can trust him, man.
He paused a little longer, then just went for it.
He told Mace what was going on with Nahla, from the moment he was hired to last night’s stakeout and today’s press conference.
“So, basically, Ox done turned into a snake?” Mace said once Cannon was done talking.
Cannon kissed his teeth. “I’on really feel like gettin’ into the details, but that nigga been a snake, Mace.”
“Well, like I told you yesterday, I’m rockin’ wit’ you over everybody. Just tell me what you need.”
“I’ma send you the address to Ox’s new hustle. I just want you to go by there and ask for him. Just be on some cool shit. Let him know you’re back in town and that you looked him up. At some point, I want you to let it drop that you just started workin’ with me. Let me know how he reacts to that.”
“Easy. I’ll hit you when I leave his spot.”
“I appreciate you, homie.”
They hung up, and Cannon went to find Nahla and Capri. They were about to get through the rest of these files, and then he was going to do something nice for his lady.
Cap:
Everything is set up in the backyard. Except the food. That’s in the oven.
Cannon:
Preciate you, sis.
“How you feelin’?” Cannon asked as they walked into the safe house.
Nahla sighed. “We confirmed that Darius Laston is who sent both emails, so that’s a good thing. But the fact that he skipped town and isn’t willing to actually talk to us is frustrating, I just think?—”
“Nahla,” Cannon said. “We’ve been talkin’ ’bout work for hours. I asked howyou’refeelin’. Tell me about you.”
She smiled softly. “I’m okay. Just ready to take a shower and lie up under you.”
They walked into the kitchen, and he kissed her neck.
“We can make that happen. Go ahead and take your shower.”
“Kay,” she replied in a singsong voice. Once she was out of sight, Cannon hurried to his bedroom for a shower of his own. When he decided he wanted to do something special for Nahla, he had to enlist his sister’s help to make it happen. While they were all working in the office, he sent her a detailed message about what he’d like her to do before he and Nahla got home. Cannon had to be discreet because Nahla was hella observant. Surprising someone like her wasn’t a small feat, so the fact that she wasn’t suspicious meant that he and Capri did a good job of keeping things low-key all day.
It was just a simple back-door movie night, but he felt like she would enjoy it because she loved storytelling. Whether it was in a newspaper, a book, or a film, that was her vibe. The movies he had in mind were some of his favorites, and because Nahla kept saying she wanted to know more about him, he felt like this would be a good way to let her into his head a little.
He kept his shower short so that he would be out before Nahla. Once he got back into the kitchen, he checked inside the oven and realized Capri had ordered from both Nahla’s and Cannon’s favorite restaurant:The Rose Garden.
He grabbed the tins from the oven, got plates and utensils, then headed outside to set them up. Once he stepped out the patio door, he shook his head as he looked around.
All he asked Cap to do was pick them up some dinner, put out a blanket and pillows, and set up the projector.
