Cash crouched down with a bored look on his face, while Bruno sobbed through clenched teeth.
“Consider that your last warning,” he said coolly. “Three days, Bruno. I want names and my fucking money. You stall or try and run?” he patted Bruno’s tear-streaked face. “You’ll wish I just put a bullet in your head.”
Bruno whimpered and stared down at the mangled mess of his arm.
Cash stood. “Tick tock, bitch.”
Cash had Slim dump Bruno at Peachtree Memorial and told one of the young boys to keep eyes on him for the time being.
We were too wired to go home, so we headed to the Emerald Lounge.
“How worried I need to be?” he asked as his foot tapped.
“These folks different, bruh,” I said. “This is bigger than anything we’ve ever dealt with.”
We’d been doing this street shit for almost twenty years. We’ve handled the petty street wars, even some cartel shit, but the Order was a different beast entirely. Thiswas an organization with international reach. As much as I had confidence in BC, this wasn’t some shit we could face on our own.
He let out a breath. “I can’t keep Jas locked in the crib. She already hates having a security detail. I gotta protect her, but how the fuck you fight a ghost?”
“I don’t even think it’s like that. Not yet at least. My gut says this is about control—they’re just using us as leverage to make sure she cooperates.”
“I was tryna do this shit the right way,” he muttered. “Got my wife, bowed out, handed the reins to Jelani. Finally got the family I wanted with baby girl on the way, and now your woman shows up with a pile of bullshit.”
I took a long sip of my drink and didn’t say anything at first. I understood where he was coming from. You try to find peace, and something always crawls out from the shadows to test you.
“She didn't ask for this,” I said finally. “Her weak-ass father threw her to the wolves instead of having his shit in order. That’s not her fault.”
Cash shook his head and swirled the ice in his glass. “Really can’t stand a nigga who leaves a woman to clean up the mess he made.”
“And you know Nai gon’ try and carry all this shit on her back, even if it breaks her.” I ran a hand over my head. “I’m not gonna let her stubborn ass do it alone.”
“So how you finna handle it?”
“I’ma start with what Bruno gives me. If it’s legit, I’m gonna follow the money and see how deep the rabbit hole goes. There’s gotta be some shit in there they don’t want getting out.”
“You tryna blackmail them niggas?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
I gave him a wry smile. “I’m tryna find their weakness. Something that’ll either make ‘em ease up or let her work for them on her own terms.”
He stared at me. “You think you can pull that off?”
“You forgot I hacked the DoD in undergrad for fun. It’s been a minute since I had a real challenge.” I rolled my neck and cracked my knuckles.
Cash chuckled dryly. “Ol’ hacker-ass nigga.”
12 /NAIROBI CRAWFORD
Jasmine
Hey girl! It’s Monica’s birthday and we’re going out tonight. We got a section at Palladium, wanna come?
You sure you should be going out in your…condition?
Jasmine
Girl, I’m pregnant. Not on the sick and shut-in list.
Cash know you going out?
