“Don’t mention his name.”
“There it is,” he pointed and started pacing. “That emotion.”
Here I was hoping Whodie didn’t overreact, and it was me letting this nigga control the conversation. Whodie shifted a little but continued to let me control the situation.
“You said you wanted your shit. So let’s talk business. I don’t have all night,” I said.
Rico’s smile faded. “You think this is business?”
“What is it then?”
“It’s personal. Sosa took everything from me. My routes, my money, and my name in these streets.”
“And so you think I’m just going to hand it over because you said it was yours?”
“I think you don’t have a choice,” he replied. “Let me explain something to you. I always knew who you were, but you never knew me. Sosa and I were business partners. I brought him in because I couldn’t move the amount of weight that my plugwanted me to alone. He started making a name for himself and doing business on the side. It was me and his wife that set him up to be killed. It was me all along who wanted you to go down for it so I could politely get my shit back. But no, you are a stubborn little bitch. Just like Zhane. The bitch thought she could go Fed on me and I wouldn’t know,” he laughed. “Y’all Florida bitches got some nerve.”
And just like that, everything exploded. Gunshots ripped through the air before I could react. Whodie yanked me down behind one of the crates as bullets ripped through the building. The sound of metal, concrete, and glass was deafening. My ears rang as I clutched on to Whodie’s pant leg as he shot back. Like my brother said, they ambushed us. I was so glad Whodie had his boys on standby. What I was really wanting to know was why Hollow hadn’t taken the shot.
“Stay here,” Whodie said.
“Hell no,” I snapped. “You said stay close,” I reminded him.
He looked at me like he wanted to argue but didn’t have time. I pulled my gun out, and he nodded.
“Watch my back,” he told me.
“Always!”
We moved together. Just like we always did. Whodie took a shot, I took a shot. There were bodies everywhere. But the one I was looking for was nowhere to be found.
“Adore,” Rico called out over the gunfire. “You really think you’re going to survive this?”
“Shut the fuck up,” I yelled, firing in his direction.
Whodie moved in closer, trying to close the distance. A shot rang out, and all I saw was Whodie’s body jerk.
“Whodie!”
He staggered back, his hand going to his stomach as blood spread through his shirt.
“No…no, no!” I rushed towards him as he dropped to one knee.
“I’m good,” he gritted.
“You’re not,” I cried.
Rico stepped forward, gun raised.
“This is how it ends,” he said.
Then the shot that I was waiting for. The green dots landed right in the middle of Rico’s forehead. Before he could pull the trigger on me, Hollow had sent a bullet flying right through his skull from over a hundred feet away. His body dropped, but I didn’t care at the moment. My focus was on Whodie. The bullet somehow hit right below his bulletproof vest.
“Stay with me, baby,” I cried, pressing my hand against the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. “Please, baby, stay with me.”
“Aye,” he whispered.
“Nah…nah, you said you weren’t going to leave me, remember?” I let the tears drop from my eyes.
