Page 54

That was the best possible news I could’ve heard right now. Especially while dealing with this shit with my brother.

“Damn, that's good! Alright, I’ll get you up there asap.”

I cranked the car and pulled away from the curb.

RJ had just come out of a coma, which was the best news I'd heard in days, but I couldn't celebrate it yet.

Khalil was still out there somewhere, and if I didn't come up with that money fast, he wasn't coming home.

The whole ride to the hospital Jasmine sat quietly in the passenger seat rubbing the prayer beads she got from my cup holder in between her fingers while staring out the window. Every now and then she would lift them to her lips and kiss them softly like they carried some kind of comfort she had been searching for. Seeing her cling to them like that made me realize how desperate both of us had become for peace lately. We were holding onto anything that made life feel less cruel, even if it was only temporary.

Once I pulled up in front of the emergency entrance, she turned toward me before I could even finish putting the car in park.

“Can I keep these tonight?” she asked softly while lifting the beads slightly.

“I know it probably sound crazy, but I really feel like they helped me.”

I glanced down at the beads for a second before nodding my head.

“Of course, keep them.”

Relief instantly spread across her face, and she leaned over and kissed me on the cheek before grabbing the door handle.

“Thank you for everything. I have to go.”

Before I could respond, she was already hurrying toward the sliding hospital doors almost running to get to her son. I sat there for a few seconds watching her disappear inside before finally pulling away from the curb, and the moment she was gone, all the pressure I had pushed to the back of my mind came crashing down onto me again.

Khalil was still somewhere tied up waiting on somebody to save him, and now that somebody was me.

The drive home felt longer than usual because my mind wouldn’t stop moving. Every thought led into another one until my head felt crowded with problems I couldn’t escape. By the time I made it back to my building, my jaw was clenched so tight it hurt. I climbed the stairs toward my apartment before unlocking the different locks across the door and punching the security code into the keypad.

The second I stepped inside, silence wrapped around me completely. No television playing in the background. No conversation. Just me standing alone with thoughts heavy enough to make the apartment feel smaller than it was.

I headed toward the closet and moved the clothes hanging in front of the wall safe before entering the code. The heavy metal door unlocked with a loud click, revealing stacks of money vacuum sealed and lined up neatly inside. I stood there staring at it for a second thinking about how insane life had become. Niggas spent their whole lives trying to touch this kind of money, risking prison and death for it, and here I was about to hand over four hundred thousand dollars just so my little brother could make it home alive.

I started pulling the money out, stack by stack before stuffing it into a black duffel bag. The longer I packed it, the heavier my chest started feeling because the shit was becoming more real by the second. This wasn’t some threat anymore. This wasn’t some argument or niggas trying to scare us. Khalil’s life had literally been reduced down to a dollar amount, and if that money didn’t make it where it needed to go, he probably wasn’t coming home.

Once the bag was zipped shut, I grabbed my phone and called my mother. She answered almost immediately like she had been sitting there staring at the phone waiting for me to call.

“I got the money,” I told her while resting the bag beside my foot.

For a few seconds she didn’t say anything. All I could hear was her breathing on the other end before she finally let out a shaky exhale.

“Thank you,” she whispered, and the way her voice cracked made me picture her crying all over again.

“Where do they want me to bring it?”

“They are going to give me an address when I confirm that I have the money. They insisted on me bringing it.”

“Yeah, I bet. They want someone who is not going to try any shit with them that’s why.” I was trying to make sense of this shit.

“But I’m going to still be there. I’m coming with you.”

“No,” she replied quickly.

“They specifically said for me to only bring Rami with me, so they know I won’t try anything. I can’t risk making them angry right now, Amir. So, let’s just do everything how they asked.”

I dragged my hand over my mouth while walking slowly through my apartment trying to think clearly.