The nigga drove in silence for the next hour until we ended up in the hills of Lake Hills. My eyes widened when we pulled up to a house that seemed twice the size of Bop’s and Morgan’s. “Goddamn! Who lives here?” I asked.
He scoffed as he turned the car off. “My parents, get out,” he grumbled.
I followed behind him as I took in the scenery. I would never have imagined him coming from this type of environment. However, it now made sense how he was able to send me that money. When the door opened, my mouth opened. Maids were walking around, gold chandeliers hung, and marble flooring. I could see my reflection; the shit was crazy. He turned to me. “Stay right here, do not leave this fucking spot.”
“Nigga, I’m not a kid. Watch how you talk to me,” I snapped at him.
He wandered off, and so did I. I glanced at the few pictures they had on the wall, and that’s when I noticed Fiona. “The fuck?” I whispered.
This nigga’s momma was the bitch who was working with Clark and Naheem?There was something else I noticed that I found weird. There were barely any photos of him. The ones he was in, he never smiled. The grip Fiona had on his shoulder in each picture was scary. “Bitch,” I mumbled.
That’s when I saw something that stood out. It was an award. “Braylen Laureaux Best ga—”
“What are you doing in my fucking house!” I heard her voice making the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
I turned around, and there she stood. Wicked bitch of Toussaint. The fear that struck her that I was there let me know she didn’t want anyone to know she knew me. “I was invited,” I smirked.
“Naheem said you—”
I leaned in. “Fuck Naheem. You muhfuckas are going down, and now that I know you’re Beans’ mother, what better way to take it to the next level than to tell him.” I winked.
She pointed at me. “You say one word to him, and your brother’s black ass will be out of school before you can get your ass out of my house. Besides, if you try it, that little bitch you like, she’s—”
“Fiona!”Beans called out to her.
She peered at me before turning around. “Braylen, I’m surprised to see you here, and you brought a guest.”
“We were leaving. Come on, Scooter.”
I walked past her, not sure what to think. She threatened Morgan. I knew what they were capable of, and as bad as I needed to tell Beans, a nigga couldn’t.
FIONA
When my driver pulled up, I was surprised to see Braylen’s car. However, being greeted by someone, to my knowledge, with no access to this side of town, left me speechless. I watched him admire all the luxurious items as if he were in a museum. For a split second, I felt a twinge of sadness. That all went away when he opened his mouth with a threat that I knew he couldn’t deliver on. It was laughable that he thought he held some form of authority and could tell me that I wasn’t capable of doing anything. When, in fact, I could put his Black ass back in jail.
Once Braylen and Kareem left, I called Naheem and told him to get here as soon as possible. I wasn’t sure what was happening, but we needed to tie up all loose ends. If we were going to handle June Calloway, it needed to happen. If we were going to send Kareem back to where he came from, that also needed to happen. As for Braylen, I needed to talk to Bobbie about how we would handle him.
As I made my way toward the kitchen, one of my maids called out to me from the stairs. “Mrs. Fiona, it’s Mr. Laureaux,” she said nervously.
I placed my hand on my hip. “What do you mean, it’s Mr. Laureaux? What’s wrong?”
I moved quickly as I climbed the steps. When I reached the top, I stared down the hall at a bedroom I hadn’t slept in for years. Bobbie and I had grown apart, yet somehow managed a decent living situation. I ran my hand down my satin dress as I made my way toward the room. I gently pushed the door open to see Bobbie sitting on the bed with his head down.
“Bobbie,” I muttered.
He still hadn’t moved, so I moved toward him. “Bobbie!” I shouted this time.
His head slowly turned my way. The way he looked at me sent a chill through my body. The look in his eyes said that something had changed. I didn’t know if it had come from the conversation he and I had at the restaurant, or if Braylen being here was the reason. I began to get the feeling that Bobbie was becoming exactly like Cynthia, and if my suspicions were true, this would become a problem.
He undid his tie as he began to speak, “I’ve worked my ass off for years to get where I am today,” he started. “A little Black boy who came from the ghettos of the Cove and made his way to becoming a judge. The very same ghetto I came from is the very same place I sentenced young Black men who have been trying to find a way just as I did,” he paused.
I rolled my eyes and let out an exasperated breath. “What the hell are you talking about?” I spat.
“I’m talking about how karma has a way of finding you, no matter how much you try to run from it, Fiona. When Braylen was born, that was God’s way of giving me something to stop me from doing what he saw happening in my future. Instead, I choseyou. I chose to put you first, and now my son doesn’t give a shit about me.”
I had never seen Bobbie so affected by what his son thought of him. It started to make me wonder how long he has been feeling this way. “Bobbie, he will at some point get over it, and whatever relationship you want with him, you will get.”
He scoffed. “You have no heart at all under there, do you? I’ve been waiting years for you to care, but it’s clear now you never will. Did you ever love me?” he paused. “Or him?”
