“It is,” Xander replied, studying her through narrowed lids. “I can take you to your mom’s place. It’s not a problem.”
Niyah shook her head, but before she could speak, Xander added, “It’s not safe. I know you got the news about what happened to Donna last night.”
“I did, but--”
“But, what?” he asked with an elevated voice.
Niyah took a step back and glared at him. “But,” she repeatedly firmly. “I’m a grown-ass woman! And I need to stop by my mother’s housealone!”
Xander’s gaze softened. “Niyah, I’m not trying to be a creep. I just wanna keep you safe.”
“I know,” she whispered on a sigh. “But, I’ll be fine. I’m not the main target.”
“Tell that to the dead body that we found in your bathroom,” Xander quipped with frustration.
Niyah threw her hands in the air. “Well, what is that big-ass man always following me around for?”
Anger flashed in Xander’s eyes as he moved within a breath of her. “Donna had her own big-ass man following her around, and she still got shot!”
Niyah dropped her head. The back and forth between them was getting her nowhere but late. “Okay,” she relented. “Let’s go. But don’t worry about stopping by my mom’s. I can go after work.”
When Xander nodded with a smile, Niyah could see relief in his eyes. But it was awkward between them. They finished their coffee in silence and headed out. Within twenty minutes, he pulled up to Cook County Hospital. Niyah grabbed her bag from the back seat and placed it on her lap. She reachedover the gearshift and covered Xander’s hand with hers. “Thank you,” she whispered softly. “I really do appreciate what you’re doing.”
Xander gifted her with a radiantly white, incredibly sexy smile. “Thank me by having a wonderful day.”
Niyah giggled. “I can try.”
Out of nowhere, she pictured him standing over her caressing his big dick. It took a few seconds, but she managed to tear her eyes from the lips that had owned her pussy the night before.
“Have a good day. I’ll see you later.” Niyah climbed out of the car and hustled toward the hospital, willing herself not to look back. With just about thirty minutes before her staff was due to arrive, she pushed through the doors and jogged to her office. She shoved her hand in her bag and fished around for her keys. Once she found them, she opened the door, hurried inside, and locked it behind her.
Niyah dropped her bag by the door and hurried over to her desk. After pressing the power button, she tapped her desk impatiently and waited for her desktop to come alive. It took a minute that seemed like forever, but she was finally able to pull up the file she was looking for, the DNA results for the serial murders she and Bella had been investigating. Thankfully, they hadn’t come back yet.
Niyah closed the file and used her access to log into the State Police Crime Lab Request Database and deleted all of her requests for DNA testing on the semen found on the victims. After logging out of the database, she sighed and dropped her head in her hands. “What am I doing?” the thought came aloud in a nervous whisper.
Oh, fuck!
Oh, fuck!
Oh, fuck!
While contemplating her life decisions, it suddenly dawned on Niyah that she still had DNA samples in her lab. “Shit!”
She logged out of her computer and ran out of her office. Within seconds, she entered her lab. After an extensive search, Niyah realized that they weren’t where they were supposed to be. She walked over to the handwritten log, which was on a clipboard hanging from the wall. After flipping several pages, she found what she was looking for. The samples were deemed too small for further testing and destroyed. The order was handwritten and signed by Katima Leer, her new intern. Niyah exhaled with relief. Though, however thankful she was that the samples had been destroyed, she deemed it rather high-handed of an intern to make that decision without clearing it with her first.
With some relief, Niyah went back to her office. She grabbed her purse, pulled out her phone, and requested an Uber.
Thirty-five minutes later, they drove past white women, pushing strollers and walking dogs, a staple of Mount Greenwood. When the driver pulled up to the curb in front of her mother’s house, Niyah thanked her and hopped out. She rushed to the door and rang the bell. When no one answered, she rang it again. She rang the bell four times before her mother yanked the door open and yelled, “What the hell?”
Niyah pushed past her mother. “Where’s Naomi?”
“Well, good morning to you too! What are you doing here so early?”
“Good morning, Mom. Where is Naomi?”
“You know she’s been working nights at Amazon. She’ll be up around noon.” Her mother’s expression turned suspicious. “What did she do now? It’s the drugs again, isn’t it?”
Niyah rolled her eyes. It was like her mother had been waiting for Naomi to fail. It was almost as if she wanted her tojust so she could prove that she’d been right when she’d said Naomi was no good.
