Page 34 of A Don & His Doll

Monroe didn’t respond. He couldn’t because he was afraid of the next words that would proceed out of his mouth. Instead he moved back, looking at her once more before making his exit. He needed air because the type of pain Sienna's presence brought up in him made it hard to breathe.

Nodding his head as he rapped along with Jay-Z's Never Change, Mitch cruised down the expressway with Monroe heavy on his mental. One hand rested on the wheel, and the other he used to bring the kush-filled blunt to his lips. Smoke filled his car as the city lights blurred past him, but his focus stayed locked on the road ahead. The more he thought about how foul Macie had moved, the more it infuriated him. Macie had crossed a line that couldn’t be uncrossed. He'd been sitting with the secret his father had passed on to him for a few days, waiting for the right time to tell Monroe. However, there was nothing stopping him from lighting Macie's ass up. He knew the timing would never be right to drop the type of bomb that would permanently alter Monroe’s life.

Mitch knew that when all this shit hit the fan, Monroe would need answers, but at the moment, Macie needed consequences. And tonight Mitch was in no mood to keep giving grace. Keeping business secrets was one thing. Sacrifices came with the life they lived, but orchestrating the disappearance of Sienna and hiding his daughter from him for years–that shit was unforgivable. By the time he’d pulled up to Macie's home, he was on one. He'd noticed Able's personal car in her driveway when he got out of his car, and that alone irritated him. He wasn't putting the talk he needed to have with Macie off for another day. He rang the doorbell, then stepped back and waited.

"What's good, Mitch?" Able greeted nonchalantly as soon as he opened the door.

Mitch flicked the rest of the blunt he was smoking in the bushes before looking past Abel. "Where Macie at?" He dismissed, not one for small talk with peasants.

Instead of answering, Abel stepped back, giving Mitch space to come in.

"Abel. Who was that at the door? I-" Macie's words were cut short when her eyes locked with Mitch, standing in the foyer.

Mitch realized at this moment that she and Abel had been fucking for a while. They'd been able to disguise it with business for years, and they had everyone fooled. Mitch saw it all over her face before either of them could deny it.

The guilt.

The panic.

The humiliation.

Macie stood frozen in the hallway with nothing but a towel wrapped around her. Clearly she’d just stepped out of the shower. Mitch shook his head in disgust, while Macie stood in her shame. She knew she'd been caught like a kid with his hand in the cookie jar, and she had no defense. There was nothing she could say to clear it up.

"Get dressed and meet me in the conference room,” Mitch demanded coldly.

Abel scoffed."Nigga just got out and already tryna call fuckin' shots," he mumbled.

Mitch stopped mid-stride and turned around. "The fuck you just say nigga?" he sneered.

The energy in the room shifted instantly. Abel straightened up, pride and ego clouding his judgment.

"Man, I ain't got no rap. Only mu'fucka I answer to is Mac-"

Pop... Pop...

Mitch grabbed his tool so fast Abel didn't see it coming. If it was one thing Mitch never played about, it was his respect. No one ever got out of pocket with him and lived to tell the story. He didn't give passes. Abel’s body slammed into the floor, and Mitch slowly placed his heat back into his waistband.

"What the fuck did you just do?!" Macie exclaimed, running out of her room, and down the stairs wearing tights and a tank top.

Mitch didn't respond, just stood there with a blank expression as the scene played out in front of him. Macie scrambled to Abel's side with tears streaming down her face.

"No, no, no... Abel, you're okay," she spoke with a shaky voice. "Stay with me," She coached as Abel struggled to breathe. "You're okay. Just breathe," Macie said as blood quickly spread beneath him.

She grabbed his face with trembling hands until Abel took his last breath in her arms. Macie wept as she closed his eyes with two fingers. "What have you done? Why did you have to kill him?" Macie questioned, struggling to gain her composure.

"Nah, fuck that, and them fake ass tears falling from your eyes," Mitch spat. "The real question here is why the fuck you been lyin' to Monroe about Sienna and his daughter for the last twelve fuckin' years?" Mitch shot with venom dripping from his tone. "You up here putting on a gotdamn show like you really give a damn about any mu'fucka besides your fuckin' self."

Macie used the back of her hand to wipe her face, but didn't say a word.

"How many tears did you cry when your son almost lost his mind because you were too fuckin' selfish and jealous to let him love another woman besides you?" Mich snapped.

Macie looked up slowly but still didn't speak. She couldn't speak because once again she'd been caught in her bullshit and couldn't wiggle out of it. She’d been exposed.

"How the hell do you know that?" Macie managed to ask.

Mitch laughed dauntingly. "Oh, you thought yo' little secret was safe 'cause I just shot the only mu'fucka who knew?" Mitch shook his head. "Pops may have been old, but he kept ya little secret for the sake of our empire.” He paused, stepping closer. “That shit is dead. I'm home now. All the control you once had is now revoked," Mitch scalded. "Me and Monroe got it from here. So don't try drawing this shit out yo'. I promise you won't come out on top this time," Mitch said, walking past her. "Trifflin' ass lady. Clean this shit up," he said, walking out the door, leaving Macie in the pool of Abel's blood.

Macie never thought the day would come when her world would shift the way it had. She broke down because she no longer held the winning hand. It wasn’t until the wetness of Abel’s blood registered with her heart that she realized she’d fallin’ in love with him. He’d served under her for years. They’d made love more times than she could count, but no matter how many times he’d begged her for more, she never allowed herself to commit. She’d tricked herself into believing it was because of her loyalty to her late husband, when the real truth was her soul had been tied to Abel for the last nine years.