“I haven’t been comfortable with the runaway angle either, especially since she was getting me evidence against the Cartier cartel.”
“She was what?!”
“She was willing to get us evidence to take them down, in exchange for us dropping her charges.”
“Why would you put her in that type of position?! That wasn’t safe! Of course, they had something to do with her disappearance! They probably found out!”
“Aldermen Langford—”
“So, you believe they had something to do with this.”
“I believe…” she paused as if she was choosing her words wisely. “I believe that the Cartiers are sophisticated enough to distort a situation if it serves them.”
That was as close to direct confirmation as she was going to give me over the phone.
I stood and went to the window, looking out into the dark yard behind my house. “I knew it. I knew something about this didn’t sit right.”
Though Mallory was keeping her cool, I could hear the coldness in her voice. “I can’t make claims I can’t prove yet. But I’m working hard to find out if my suspicions are correct.”
“Good. Because I’m not accepting this. Sienna may have hidden things from me. She may have been in trouble I didn’tknow about. But she would not simply disappear without reaching out to me, unless something stopped her.”
“And if something did, I’ll find it,” Mallory guaranteed. “I’m not going to rest until I find out the truth.”
AVA REYNOLDS
A few days before my baby shower, Zahra, Rhythm, and Tempo came over to help me get my life together. My living room and nursery still looked like a baby boutique had exploded in them. Christmas had been good to my son. The amount of stuff Reek, my sister, and the rest of the crew bought him was ridiculous. I had little designer outfits, tiny gym shoes, stacks of onesies, blankets, baby monitors, rattles, bottles, pampers, bath sets, hooded towels, bassinets, swings, and enough baby lotion to moisturize him through kindergarten.
Zahra sat on the floor in the nursery folding little sleepers while Czar slept in the portable bassinet beside her. Rhythm was by the dresser organizing baby toiletries into acrylic bins she brought from Container Store because, according to her, my child deserved “aesthetic” storage. Tempo was hanging tiny outfits by size in the closet and roasting me every time she picked up another pair of baby Jordans.
“Your baby has more gym shoes than most grown men,” she said, holding up a tiny pair of black-and-red ones. “This is actually sick. He does realize that if you have a girl, she can’t be wearing all these gym shoes. She will have to be a lady.”
I was on the floor by the glider, cutting tags off wash and burp cloths. “He sees baby gym shoes and blacks out.”
Rhythm set another pack of wipes in a bin and said, “At least the baby will be coming into the world fly.”
“It’s coming into the world spoiled,” I muttered.
“That too,” Tempo added.
I looked around the nursery and smiled. The room was finally starting to look how I wanted it to. The cream walls felt softer with the cute animal decals on the walls. The crib was made up with the most adorable linen. The little bookshelf was filled with books I couldn’t wait to read my baby. The rocker sat in the corner with a throw draped over it. Everything still felt surreal, but in a better way than before.
Zahra looked over at me. “So, are you sure you don’t need help with the baby shower this weekend?”
“No,” I answered. “The event planner has it all covered.”
There was a knock at the door. So, I struggled to get on my feet. The further along I got, the bigger my stomach protruded. I was almost eight months by now, and I was feeling every bit of it.
“Who is that at the door?” Tempo asked.
I blew a heavy breath as I thought of the answer. “Probably one of my baby’s daddy’s minions. Those are the only people that come over unannounced.”
On my way to the door, I hoped it was Kam. I hadn’t heard from him in a few days, and he hadn’t been at the gym either. I figured the shootout at my pop-up had probably been a lot, even for somebody who moved how he moved. Still, he was a street nigga. I knew enough by now to know he had seen his share of violence before. So I wasn’t exactly worried. Me and him barely knew each other. But I still wanted to know he was okay.
But when I opened the door, it wasn’t Kam. It was Jamir standing there with a backpack and a black case in one hand.
He answered the questions in my eyes. “I’m here to install cameras.”
“Excuse me?” I asked, tilting my head dramatically.
