That was funny to me considering I wasn’t looking for it.
“I spoke to my brother too. He said he got a visit from your dude and his cousin. Apparently, they’re Sullivans. Good people from what I hear. The type of people that I would entrust my kid with. You know, Koric ain’t feeling niggas pulling up on his block, but I told him we’d do the same thing if the shoe was on the other foot, so he had to respect it. Plus, that nigga, Aura, holds the keys up there, and well… you know what that means.”
“Mmhmm,”I replied, ready to end the call.
“I ain’t gon’ tie ya line up too long though. Just wanted to call and say that.”
“Okay. Thanks. Love you, KJ. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Love you too, Ma.”
I ended the call and held the phone up to my mouth.
“Everything aight?” Enzo asked.
“I guess so. That was KJ calling with his father on three-way.” I told him the truth.
“Word? What he talkin’ ‘bout?”
“Called to apologize and give his blessing for us to date because KJ said you cool and he’s good with it.”
“I wasn’t aware that you needed his blessing.”
“I know. That shocked me too cause I never asked for it. But he also mentioned that you and Aura popped up on Koric.”
He glanced over at me then focused back on the road. “We did. Had to get an understanding.”
“I heard. Did y’all get into it?”
He snickered. “I don’t get into it wit’ people, Ma.”
“Have you killed anyone, Enzo?” I came right out and asked.
“This week, no.” He pulled into his driveway and turned off the ignition. Turning to me, he continued. “I own Sullivan & Co., but I’m also a contract killer. I’ve been doing it for years. I don’t just go around killing people off impulse. I get hired to do a job, and I complete it. Do I like it? For the most part, yes. Now that you know that, you also need to know that no part of that world touches my personal life. I make sure of it.”
“What happens to EJ if something happens to you?” I asked the first thing that came to mind.
“EJ has Sullivan blood running through his veins. He’ll be straight for a lifetime. And now that we’re together, that coverage extends to you and KJ.”
“Okay,” I said in a low tone, taking it all in.
“Do you have anything you wanna ask me?”
I shook my head.
“Can I show you something?”
“Yeah.”
He reached into his pocket and handed me a folded paper. “Open it.”
I did and smiled at the drawing. “A masterpiece.” I giggled, giving EJ his props. “You gonna hang it up, or he drew this for me?”
“Nah. He drew it with you in mind.”
I squinted, confused. “I’m not following.”
“He said this is him. This is me. And this is Mommy. He said Mommy is you.”
