The man who’d hurt her repeatedly for two years and eleven months finally got what he deserved. Marcelin’s evil ass is dead and she would have never gotten the opportunity if it wasn’t for Akeem. Marcelin unknowingly hired the very man who would make this possible for her. Akeem taking her that day in Crescent Falls was not part of the plan at all. The unexpected kidnapper saved her in so many ways and having him in this moment has her emotions all over the place. As Akeem holds her, he glances at Marcelin’s slumped body.
“What happened?” he asks calmly although he’s far from it.This isn’t how this shit was supposed to play out. Fuck!
“He killed her,” she cries. “He killed Tanjaya. That bastard killed her and won’t tell me where her body is. He wouldn’t. God! He wouldn’t. I had to kill him. I had to,” she says frantically.
“Damn,” Akeem utters. “I’m so sorry.”He was too late. He couldn’t save her and failed Sunjiya,he thinks disappointedly as he continues to hold her. He wants to hold her all night, but right now, they need to get out of her. Reluctantly, he grabs the sides of her arms and looks into her tear-stricken face. “We have to go right now, okay?” he says calmly but sternly and she nodsin understanding. Her sadness causes his chest to constrict but he remains steady. “Let’s go,” he says.
After releasing her, he grabs his gun from the floor then leads her out of the house. Before heading back to the car, he grabs a branch from the shrubbery by the door, lights it, and tosses the flaming branch into the house. Briskly, and in total silence, they journey back to the car and drive away from Marina Bay. As they leave, the man, her horrible memories, and the house that held them and her hostage goes up in flames. All traces of her life as Tanjaya burn as well. She’s finally free to truly be Sunjiya.
Chapter
Fourteen
I’m finally free.
My life as Tanjaya is gone.
I killed him.
Marcelin is dead and I hope he rots in hell.
Not one word has fallen from Sunjiya’s lips since they left the Benoit Estate but a million have sprinted across her mind. The hell she’s been living in is finally over, for good. This time, Marcelin won’t be coming to get her. No goons to drag her out of Aunt Pri’s home. She’s free and can now go anywhere and do whatever the hell she wants. She’s a free woman.
As she stares at the city lights gracing the sky, Akeem focuses on the highway but periodically glances her way every few minutes. She just found out her twin sister is dead and he can’t even imagine or process that. If he lost Axton, his world would be shattered and whoever was responsible would be dead in seconds.
At least she has that satisfaction. Killing her sister’s killer should give her some peace. Just some. I’ll provide the rest.
Whatever Sunjiya needs, he’s going to make sure she has it. He’s here for her. Although he has a million questions, he won’task until she’s ready. She’s grieving and needs time to deal with that. He heads toward his usual hotel when he’s in south Florida, the Conrad off Sunrise in Fort Lauderdale. No need for them to be in Miami anymore. When he pulls up to the exquisite hotel, he parks and leaves the car running.
“I’m going to make sure they have rooms,” he tells her before getting out and she merely nods.
While Akeem handles their stay for the night, Sunjiya quickly gathers her thoughts. Marcelin’s death thankfully came quicker than she planned. She always knew she would kill him, she just didn’t know when or how. Getting away from him, stashing her money, and figuring out her next steps were the initial plan. Crescent Falls was where she had been doing her figuring out until Akeem snatched her.
He found her in the random city she’d heard about one night in Lazy’s when a few Crescent Falls basketball players rolled in. He was definitely not part of the plan but turned out to be the best part. Fast and hard, she fell, and luckily for her, so did he. She fell even harder when he vowed to kill Marcelin after seeing her medical records. He wanted to do that for her and that shit was everything. No, he didn’t pull the trigger tonight. She had the honor because of Akeem. He made it possible and cleared the way by taking out Marcelin’s bitch ass guards.
Tonight marks the beginning of her newfound freedom and she owes it all to him.
Two taps on the driver’s window pulls Sunjiya from her thoughts and she turns to see Akeem. When their eyes meet, he opens the door, slides in, and kills the engine.
“We’re staying here?” she asks and he smiles internally at finally hearing her voice again. Because of the news of her sister, he’s empathetic and doesn’t show his smile.
“Yeah. I got it for three nights. Quise is here, and if we have time, I’ll go see him,” he says, hopeful.
“You’ll have time to see him. I’m gonna be okay,” she assures him.
“But you don’t have to be if you’re not. And if you need more than three nights, we can stay. It’s whatever you need.”
“Thank you. Relax for a minute. When we go upstairs, I don’t want to think about tonight anymore,” she says. He merely listens because he knows grief isn’t that easy. “I need to tell you what happened.”
“And why you were in the house,” he adds, unable to keep that in.
“And why I was there,” she says, then shifts to face him. She inhales and exhales loudly before starting the story she’d rehearsed in her head as she waited for him back on Marina Bay. “I was scared. It felt like you had been gone forever and I didn’t like being alone. I was also worried he had killed you. So I got out. When I made it to the house, I didn’t see you but I heard him. I found him in that room. Because he appeared to be the only one still breathing in the house, I figured he was Marcelin.”
“He killed her and laughed when he told me that shit. He killed my sister and buried her on the property somewhere,” she utters while shaking her head. “He needed to die; he deserved it. I just closed my eyes and pulled the trigger.” She sighs then drops her head.
Akeem has no words. He doesn’t know what to say but he wants to comfort her somehow. After just holding her for a few minutes, he finally says, “What you need from me?”
“This. I just want this tonight. After a long hot shower, I want to crawl into bed and fall asleep in your arms,” she admits.
