“I wasn’t gon’ hurt the kids. I just wanted to scare her. I just—”
I kicked him in the ribs before he could finish. He screamed and rolled, clutching his side. Saint let out a short laugh under his breath and leaned back against a wall, watching with this sick satisfaction on his face, like he was eating the best cut of steak. Reek stood off to the side, arms folded, eyes on me.
Kodi coughed and tried to crawl again. I grabbed the back of his hoodie and dragged him onto his knees. He fought me weakly. He was panicked as one hand grabbed at my wrist, but his body was already too damaged to do anything that would matter.
“You should’ve let her go,” I seethed.
He cried then. “I swear, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I was mad. I wasn’t thinking. Please.”
I wrapped my forearm around his throat from behind and planted my hand against the back of his head. He thrashed hard at first, kicking, clawing, trying to pry my arm loose. I locked in and held on. He made choking sounds and bucked against me.
I kept squeezing. My burns screamed under the bandages. My arms shook from the strain. But I didn’t let go.
Kodi’s movements got weaker. His heels scraped the concrete. His fingers lost strength and slipped off my arm.
I still held on longer. I thought about Rhythm screaming for her babies. I thought about Kinsley trapped in that seat while the flames climbed. And I held on until Kodi stopped moving. I held on until I knew he was dead. Then I let him drop.
His body hit the floor, and the room was quiet except for my heavy breathing. I stared down at him and felt no guilt or second thoughts. That’s when I understood how the Cartiers could bekillers. They didn’t kill recklessly, but when they did, it was to defend their family. Now, I understood that.
I had never felt the urge to kill before that day. Not once. I had handled conflict with money, attorneys, leverage, and strategy. But when it came to Rhythm and her kids, something in me shifted so fast it scared me. The thought of anybody making her feel unsafe, touching what belonged to her, or putting fear in those babies did not register as a “problem” to solve. It registered as a threat to remove. And I understood, clear as day, that if it ever came down to it, I would do whatever I had to do for them, and I would not lose one second of sleep over it.
Reek nodded once with his eyes on me, smiling with approval.
Saint pushed off the wall slowly wearing a grin, looking impressed. “Damn…Okay.” He looked from me to Kodi’s lifeless body and back again with this shit-eating grin on his face, like he was a proud father. “I mean, I woulda made the nigga suffer for a day or two, but this’ll do.”
When I walked back into Rhythm’s hospital room, she looked up so weary it almost broke me.
She looked relieved at first. Then fear came right behind it.
She started talking before I even made it all the way into the room. “Your mother was right. Maybe I’m dragging you into too much. You deserve somebody with less baggage.”
I just looked at her. As I took in every bruise and bandage, I wanted to kill that nigga all over again. She looked hurt, exhausted, and still more worried about what she was costing me than what she had just survived.
“You almost got killed tonight,” she said tearfully. “You almost died because of me. You have a great life, aperfectlife, and I can’t be the reason why that changes. I know that you’re mad at me for hiding it from you. I feel like shit. I’m so sorry. You didn’t deserve any of this. I know you’re mad at me. I appreciate you coming back, but you can go.”
Blowing a heavy breath, I shoved my bandaged hands into the hoodie that I changed into after showering at home. “I’m pissed that you hid how he was acting from me. I could’ve moved different if I had known. I could have protected you. I’m pissed because you decided for me what I could handle. This never had to happen.”
She started crying harder. “I know.”
Her mouth trembled as I slowly walked towards the edge of the bed and reached for her. She flinched at first from her injuries, then I moved slower and helped her shift toward me. I pulled her against me carefully, with one arm around her back, and the other hand coming up to her face. I held her jaw gently and turned her head so she had to look at me.
Her eyes were wet and scared. Mine were still burning with anger. But I wasn’t angry at her. I was angry at what happened. I was angry that Kodi got close enough to almost ruin her.
“I’m mad at you, but I’m not doing this halfway, Rhythm,” I told her. “I’m not here out of pity. I’m not here because I feel sorry for you.”
She stared at me, tears spilling over.
I leaned in closer. “You’re not a project. You’re my partner. Stop acting like I volunteered at a charity. I chose you. I chose you knowing you have kids. I chose you knowing your life comes with real things, not fantasy shit. I chose all of it because I chose you.”
Her face folded, and she broke all the way down. She cried into me, breathing out in relief. I wrapped both arms around her and held her as close as I could without hurting her burns.
“I’m sorry,” she kept saying into my hoodie. “I’m so sorry.”
I kissed the side of her head and held her tighter. “Stop apologizing for surviving.”
She gripped me like she needed proof I was still there. “I thought I lost you,” she whispered.
She cried again, softer this time, and I kept my hand in her hair, working my fingers through it carefully.
