Chapter 17

17

Lila (Nala)

I paced the floor in the living room as I had been doing for at least an hour now. Lance was sitting on the porch keeping watch. My parents and Kari had long since gone to bed, but I couldn't sleep knowing Ahmad was out there risking his life on my behalf. He hadn't texted me in two hours, and in my heart, I knew something was wrong.

I tried calling him once and it just rang before it went to voicemail. The second time I called, it didn't ring at all. My worst fear was Slim and his boys somehow got the drop on him. What if he was captured? What if he was somewhere dying or worse, already dead?

I had to laugh at myself.

I was actively contradicting everything I'd told myself. I said I was going to kill him, yet he was still alive. I said I wasn't going to give him any pussy, yet he'd been beating my walls down for days now. I had to be insane to be getting close to a nigga that kidnapped me in the middle of the night!

As crazy as it was, I could admit, I was starting to like him. The more time I spent with him, the less coldhearted he appeared to be. I actually believed him when he said he'd make sure Kari and I were safe. The fact that he'd left us with a way out if anything happened to him showed me a different side of him. I didn't want to leave the states, though. I couldn't bear being even further away from my family. All I wanted was Slim to be taken care of so I could go back to the life I once knew.

The sound of a car coming down the road had me sprinting to the window, boot and all. I gently pulled the curtains back and parted the blinds. The same black SUV that dropped my parents off came to a stop in front of the house. I watched as the door opened.

As soon as Ahmad stepped out, I took off all the locks and swung the door open. His feet had barely hit the top step before I was running into his arms.

"Thank God!"

He chuckled. "Damn, Bunny. You happy to see me?"

"I was scared something happened to you!" Pulling back, I slapped his arm. "Why didn't you text me!"

"I really wasn't in a position to pull out my phone. Shit started poppin' and we had to handle that."

"Is he… is he dead?"

That last part came out in a hopeful whisper.

"No. But he's with my people. Can we head in the house and talk?"

"Yeah, yeah. Of course."

I started back inside, but he gently gripped my wrist and pulled me back to him. He peered down at me, his eyes searching mine. His hand came to the side of my face and much to my surprise, he leaned in and pressed his lips to mine.

There wasn't any tongue action, but it was sweet and unexpected. Since the night I kissed him, we hadn't shared one like this. His kisses were always rough and aggressive in bed, but to be honest, our sessions didn't require anything soft. He told me he was going to punish my pussy and punish her he did.

But this… This was… nice.

"Come on," he said, grabbing my hand.

The driver of the truck got out and followed us inside along with Lance. Once the door closed, Ahmad introduced us.

"Nala, this is Rico. Rico, this is Nala."

He extended a hand and smiled at me. "Nice to meet you."

"You two can head down to the basement," Ahmad said to him and Lance. "I'll be down in a little bit."

"Bet."

The two of them nodded and headed for the basement stairs. I led him over to the couch and we sat down. That was when I noticed the dried blood on him.

"Oh my God! What happened!"

"I got shot."

"Ahmad!"

"I'm good, Bunny. It's just a flesh wound."

"It's still a fucking bullet wound, Ahmad."

"I mean, you can play doctor and take care of that for me." He said that with a smirk, causing me to punch him in his good arm.

"This is no laughing matter. Where is the first aid kit?"

"I'll get it."

He stood from the couch and went to get the kit. I shook my head as he came back with a whole ass duffle bag.

"I'm not even gonna ask," I said when he placed it on the table in front of me.

"Listen, in this line of work, you gotta be prepared for anything."

He sat down, and I helped him take off his shirt. We sat quietly as I cleaned and disinfected the area before preparing to stitch him up. He didn't even flinch as I stuck him with the needle.

"Have you been shot before?" I asked quietly.

"Nah. I don't know which one of them motherfuckas shot me, but I'm sure I got his ass."

"Were… were there a lot of bodies?"

"There was enough."

I shook my head. "I can't believe I have you doing this."

"You don't have me doing anything. Yo' nigga threatened me and now I'm gonna make him stand on that. I did find out why he was looking for you all of a sudden."

"Why?"

"He had to find a new connect. Those Columbians he was getting his product from discontinued service with him a year ago and the nigga he was getting work from was trash. He was losing all types of money. The only way he could get back in with the Columbians was if he paid the half million dollars he owed to them… the money you took. Did he really think you'd still have half a million dollars after six years?"

"I have a good bit of it left, Ahmad."

"You serious?"

I sighed and gave him the rundown of what I'd done with the money. Other than the rent payments on my house and my car purchase, I hadn't been spending the money recklessly. Of course, I had to take care of myself and Kari until I found a decent paying job in Cali, but other than that, every dime went into her account when I made those monthly small deposits. What hadn't been deposited was sitting in a safe in my home.

"How long did you think you were gonna get away with this, Bunny?" Ahmad asked. "You couldn't be someone else forever."

"You have no idea what I went through to become Lila Peterson. I had to legally change my name and then I went through hell having my social security number changed too. I had to assume a whole new identity. I've lied about who I am, where I come from, and who my family is. I lived in fear many days since I left. I more than deserve a little peace right now. Fuck Slim."

I took a moment to compose myself. Talking about all this was fucking with my mental. The last thing I wanted was to take myself back into that victim mindset.

"What are you gonna do with him?" I asked, finally focusing back on his arm.

He gave a devilish grin. "Well, after I make sure his crew is handled, I'm gonna have a little fun at his expense. In this case, I'm his judge, jury, and executioner. He won't go unpunished. I did wanna run something by you though."

"What?"

"Did you want to see him?"

I paused in my stitching.

I hadn't laid eyes on that man in going on seven years. Even though he was being held captive, part of me was afraid if I saw him, I'd be dead. Somehow, someway, he'd find a way to kill me, even in death.

The other part of me needed to see him. I needed to look him in the eyes and get some shit off my chest. I wanted to say everything I'd kept in all those years. He didn't get to die thinking he'd gotten the better of me.

I nodded. "I want to see him… I need to."

"A'ight. I'll set it up."

He was quiet for a moment before a small chuckle left his lip.

"What's funny?"

"Your baby daddy. I can tell that nigga fell off 'cause he was looking like a whole ass bum in that club. I'm talking matted locs, knock off Gucci attire, and some dusty ass Air Max. You must have broken that nigga, Bunny. The man I met tonight wasn't the man in the pictures. That's the type of niggas you like?"

"Avery was never like that. He was however you saw him in those pictures."

"Yeah, well, that nigga let himself go."

I shrugged. "Well, he wasn't exactly frugal. I can see how he'd go broke."

"I can imagine he thought you were out here living lavishly on his dime. I know he gets mad at you every time he looks at his dusty ass reflection."

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up, Ahmad."

"That nigga had the nerve to tell me your pussy ain't mine."

"My pussy isn't yours. It belongs to me."

"The way I've been in that shit the last couple days, I'm part owner of the motherfucka."

I giggled. "Whatever. I can show you better than I can tell you."

"Don't even play with me like that, Bunny. I can make a liar out of you. You want your parents to know how you're getting fucked by your kidnapper?"

"All that moaning you do, I'd say I was doing the fucking. It's not like it's gonna last anyway. Once you take care of Slim, you'll be off waiting on your next victim, and I get to go back to normal living… whatever that is. We'll probably never see each other again."

I finished up the last stitch, then cleaned and wrapped his wound. When I looked up, I found him staring at me again.

"What?"

He shook his head as he stood from the couch. "Nothing. I appreciate this. You should go get some sleep."

He started walking toward the basement stairs.

"Don't you need sleep?" I asked.

"I'm good."

He didn't bother turning back to me as he said that. I frowned as he disappeared. I hated his mood changes.

"This is why you need to let him handle this shit so you can be gone," I said aloud to myself. "One toxic ass criminal is enough."

Morning rolled around and it was time for my parents to leave. I was sad to see them go, but happy that we were one step closer to this shit being over. I woke up early and cooked breakfast for everyone with a huge spread of pancakes, bacon, eggs, sausage, and grits.

Once it was done, I woke everybody up to come eat. It was a little awkward, especially with Ahmad. He was back to acting weird. Thankfully Kari eased the tension in the room. She was so happy to have my parents here.

My baby was a literal light in the darkness. No matter what was going on, she found a way to make me smile. She made conversation with everyone at the table, even Rico and Lance. Both of them were big, muscular men who didn't look friendly at all, yet they smiled and laughed with her.

She even hugged them when it was time for them to leave.

"I'm gonna miss you," my mother said, squeezing me.

"I'm gonna miss you too, Ma. I promise, I'll call you tomorrow."

I turned to my father who stood off to the side getting some love from his grandbaby. He finally handed her off to my mother and pulled me out of earshot. He peered down at me with both sadness and anger etched into his handsome features.

"I promise I'm fine, Daddy," I said.

"I don't like this. I don't feel right leaving you here with that man."

"I know, but this still isn't over."

"Why didn't he handle it last night? He was gone for hours, and they caught him. What if this is all a ploy, Nala? What if all of this was just a way to gain your trust and get you back to Slim?"

"Daddy—"

"Did you see evidence of him being captured?"

"No, but he asked if I wanted to see him before they… well, you know."

"Do you? You trust that?"

"I need to see him, Daddy. There is so much I need to say to that man. I need the closure so I can be done with this."

"I just want you safe and alive. It would kill me and your mother if something happened to you. We hurt for you, baby. It's been six years, and we hurt for you every single day you're away from us."

I remained quiet. He'd expressed this before, but this time, it hit different. I could tell he feared for my life. Before I could say anything, he called Ahmad over. I could feel the tension as he approached. His energy had been off since last night and it was annoying me.

"Mr. Stanton."

"Mr. Pryor, I still don't know if I fully trust you, but this is my baby. That's my grandbaby. If anything happens to them, I'm holding you responsible. There will be nowhere you can go and no amount of money you can pay that will get me off your ass if they don't come out of this unscathed. Again, that isn't a threat, that's a promise."

Ahmad chuckled. "Again, I hear you, Mr. Stanton. This will be over soon, and Nala will be free to come home. Like she said, I'm sure we'll never see each other again after this."

Is that shade?

My father nodded. "Honestly, I'd prefer it that way. I'm sure this whole thing has been traumatizing for both her and Kari. They deserve peace."

Ahmad looked over at me. "Yeah… they do." He turned back to my father. "Take care, Mr. Stanton."

He walked away and headed back into the house. I watched him until he disappeared. The window of the SUV rolled down and Lance stuck his head out.

"I hate to break this up, but we gotta get going."

My father nodded. He cupped my face and kissed my forehead before pulling me into a hug.

"I love you, Nala."

"I love you, too."

I took Kari from my mother and stepped back as they climbed into the SUV. With a heavy heart and tears streaming down my face, I watched as they pulled out of the driveway and headed down the road.

"I don't want them to go," Kari whined.

"I know, baby. Me either. But we'll see them again soon. I promise." I kissed her cheek. "How about you go get your clothes ready for a bath and we'll do something fun today? Will that make you feel better?"

She nodded. "Okay."

I placed her on her feet, and she ran into the house. With a deep breath, I started up the steps. As I made it to the front door, Ahmad was coming downstairs with his keys.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"Out."

He brushed past me, but I grabbed his hand to stop him.

"Ahmad, why are you being cold?"

"I'm not being anything."

"You've been acting weird since last night."

"Look, Bunny. I don't know what to tell you. I have a busy day. You and Rabbit take care. I'll be back tonight."

He snatched away from me and headed for the door.

"Ahmad!" I yelled.

"What!" he snapped.

He looked at me with furrowed brows and a frown on his face. He was back to being the asshole he was. I shook my head.

"Nothing. Forget it."

I hobbled off to the stairs and made my way up. I could feel his eyes on me as I ascended. He kissed his teeth and mumbled something incoherently under his breath before I heard the front door slam. I stopped on the fifth step. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath.

Fuck him.

Maybe I just needed to keep my distance for the remainder of my time here.