Page 121 of 4 Corinthians

Dr. O’neal chuckled then let his hand go. He turned his attention back to his daughter. “You ready to go? I know Ms. C looked at your side but let Daddy do it too, okay?”

“Okay,” GiGi agreed. She wrapped her arms around her daddy’s neck and laid her head on his shoulder.

“Yo wife said that you handled that nigga, but I got a few questions I need answered. Can that be arranged?” he asked me.

“Y-y-y-y-yeah,” I answered.

“Bet, she has my contact info,” he said, then dapped me up. Dr. O’Neal left carrying Glory out of the back instead of the front.

“C-c-c-c-come on, Judah,” I said, guiding him through the hallway.

“Ex walked Corinthians to the car; go through the back,” Nine said, blocking us from going through the front. We dapped each other up, and I walked Judah through the back door that Dr. O’Neal went through. By the time we got to my car, his truck was pulling out of the parking lot. I opened the door for Judah; he got in, then I closed it and rounded the car.

We decided not to get anything to eat; none of us were hungry. Instead, we headed to Corinthians’ house. The entire car ride, she sat quietly in the passenger seat. Her left hand tapped against her thigh. I was giving her space, but that shit was driving me crazy. I needed to hear her voice and know where she was mentally before I reached out to Trey.

I parked my car in the garage next to Cori’s Jeep, shut off the car, and waited for the garage to close. Once it did, I opened my door. “Stay here till I come back,” I told them.

Corinthians looked at me with a confused expression. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Nothing, I’m just checking the house,” I told her. I leaned across the center console and kissed her before looking back at Judah. He was watching me with a smile on his face.

Corinthians handed me her keys, then I got out. The first thing I noticed was that her door wasn’t locked. Cori wasn’t one to play with her safety. She always locked her doors, no matter what. I walked back to my car, popped the trunk, got my gun, and tucked it into the back of my pants. I went to Cori’s door, tapped the window, and waited for her to roll it down.

“Lock the doors,” I told her. Her hand went to the handle, and I shook my head. “Stay here with Judah.” She let go of the handle, picked up her purse, and put it in her lap. I knew she kept a knife in there. “I’ll be right back.”

Cori rolled up the window, and I went back to the door. I looked at the door one final time, then took out my gun. I walked through the first floor, looking for anything that looked out of place. Nothing did, but when I got to her bedroom, I knew a nigga had been in here. There was a faint smell of a woodsy cologne lingering in the air. I checked Judah’s room then grabbed his backpack from his closet. I packed enough clothes to last him a few days, plus his school bag, and then did the same for Cori. They were going to stay with me.

I went through the house one more time. I turned off every light on my way out. The track lights ran the length of the hallway as I moved. I tucked my gun into my pants, put their bags in the trunk, then got in the car.

“J-J-J-J-J-Judah?” I said, looking at him through the rear-view mirror. “You want t-t-t-t-to g-g-g-g-go look at the s-s-s-s-stars?”

“Yeah!” he excitedly answered. “Where we goin’?”

“I-I-I-I-I know a-a-a-a-a-a place,” I told him.

I could feel Cori’s eyes on me as I drove. I knew she expected me to go back to my house, but that wasn’t happening either. My shit was too close. It wasn’t no doubt in my mind that if somebody went into her house, they’d do the same to mine.

Me: I need the presidential suite, the entire floor.

Citrine Stone: Which location?

Me: Downtown.

….

….

My phone buzzed with an alert for an electronic key.

Me: Send one to Corinthians, too.

…

Citrine: Done.

I looked over to see Cori’s watch light up. She checked it then looked over at me with a confused expression. I drove through the city, not rushing to get to the hotel. Every few minutes, I checked the rearview mirror to make sure nobody was following us. Once I was sure we weren’t, I drove to the hotel, went to the garage, and showed the parking attendant my ID. He opened the gate and directed me to the right. I drove to the private-level gate; the attendant there opened the doors, and I drove through.

I parked in my designated spot, turned off the car, and looked back to see Judah looking around.