32

I filled the guys in on what was going on. Telling them that Hawthorne was dead had been a relief, but there was still a part of me that wished I had been the one to take him out. It was good at the same time. I was surrounded by death but had yet to kill anyone. Still, we now had one less enemy. We made our way back to the clubhouse. We had the money to pay Corey for the weed now. It was a top priority, and I didn't want to hold on to what we owed him for another second. The pain from losing Todo was still there, but I was going to have to push past that. I would grieve later. For now, I wanted everyone in our way eliminated. ASAP.

Back at the clubhouse, we all stood around the pool table. The same one that I had done surgery on Reese. It had become our unofficial meeting area. Time and time again, I had stood here with these guys. Now we were short one and the space that Todo had claimed as he was now a gap. No one spoke, and the mood was somber. I swallowed past the lump in my throat. I knew I had to speak. I opened my mouth, but no words came out. I leaned against the pool table, my hands supporting me, and closed my eyes.

When a hand covered mine, I opened my eyes to see all eyes on me. The hand on mine was Christians. I looked into his eyes and knew he wanted to know if I was okay. I nodded once and stood straighter. I cleared my throat.

"I know we are all pissed about Todo," I said. My voice got stronger after each word. "Unfortunately, we can't get back at the fucker who killed him. Since he's already dead, we can tie up these loose ends and give him a proper funeral."

There was a murmur of agreement, and everyone seemed to relax. I pulled my hand from Christian's. "I want to pay Cory tonight," I said.

Immediately, there was a protest.

Montel and Joey, though it was too soon after Todo's death. Christian thought we needed more time to plan. Dale said nothing. He just crossed his arms and looked at me. I could feel the disapproval coming from him in waves. Surprisingly, Leo agreed. What none of them seemed to understand was that I didn't really care for any other options. This was happening tonight. I would not sleep another hour knowing I owed the dude money.

"Guys," I yelled. They all stopped and looked at me. You could hear a pin drop. "This was all supposed to go down tonight, anyway. We are late, yes, but we can still do this."

"We can reschedule," Montel said.

"No," I said. "You all can help me or you can sit around here, but I'm doing this tonight." There was a moment of silence as they all tried to gauge how serious I was. I was dead serious.

"If you want to do it tonight," Joey said, coming to my side at the table, "Then we do it tonight."

"Who will take Todo's place?" Dale asked.

That was a good question. Todo was supposed to make the exchange. Reese and Dale were supposed to cover the windows. Joey and Christian were supposed to go in through the front. Leo would go with Todo and Montel was the driver. It was the plan in case something went wrong. In case he wanted to be a dick about us owing him money. The only person who didn't have a place was me.

I took a deep breath and said, "I will."

Then all hell broke loose.

*****

In the end, I sat in the passenger seat beside Montel. In my hand, I held a paper bag with the twelve hundred we owed to Corey, as well as something for the trouble. I would be going in, but Leo would be going too. If everything went smoothly, I would take this off my to-do list and then figure out the best way to kill ace. Hopefully, this nigga Corey was happy to get his bread. Hopefully, he had a soft spot for women and didn't kill me. Hopefully, we wouldn't have to kill him.

If he tried anything, he would more than likely be dead before he touched a hair on my head. Reese and Dale were perched somewhere in the building next to Corey's warehouse. Yeah, we were going to an old abandoned warehouse. Apparently, that was Corey's clubhouse. Luckily, the place was not all bricks, it had huge windows. They assured me they would have a great view inside. Christian had scoped the place out well. He had even been inside. He knew where everything was at, and where this meeting would take place.

That's why he and Joey would be coming into the building from another entrance. Hopefully, getting behind them would catch them off guard. If shit hit the fan, and I needed to protect myself, I had the nine-millimeter in my waste. Little had the revolver. I wasn't a fool, though. I didn't think for a minute that we would walk into the devil's lair with our guns. I was pretty sure we would be checked at the door. If it were my turf, everyone would be checked at the door.

Christian, Dale, Reese, and Joey got out at the corner. Montel, Leo, and I went through an alley to get to the back. You could see lights coming from the second floor of the warehouse. It was now or never. I started to get out, and Leo stopped me.

"Let's give them time to get in position," Leo said. "Christian and Joey need about ten minutes before they get where they need to be."

I nodded my head and sat back. In that ten minutes, I choose to reflect on my life. I thought about all the things that had brought me to this moment. It was a hard life I had lived, for someone only eighteen. That hood life never came easily. It's just the way it was. In my eighteen years, I had had one too many fights. Seen one too many bodies. I had removed a fucking bullet from a friend and I had looked down a few gun barrels. If I made it through this, I could face anything. Everything in me was telling me that good ole Corey would not be cool about the money. It seemed such a small amount now that I had seen thirty thousand. However, people had died for less.

"Ready?" Montel asks, looking over at me.

I nodded my head. Truth be told, I didn't want to go in there at all. I could think of so many better things to do. I did, however, want this over. As we approached a large grey door, I knew there was no turning back now. Little banged on the door a few times and it was opened pretty quickly. I figured this big guy was the doorman. He welcomed us in with a smile and asked that we follow him. He didn't check us for weapons or anything. I was surprised, but then again, this was their place. Maybe they felt secure here. He almost seemed nice, but I knew he wasn't. The guy at the door of any trap house was never nice.

We were led up a wide metal staircase and down a hall. We pass a lot of space. Either he didn't have enough backup to secure this place or they were hiding. I counted four guys on the walk here. Two downstairs and two up. That was not counting the doorman. At the very end of the hall, the big guy stopped in front of a door and proceeded to enter. The room was smoky and the stitch of marijuana clung to the air. We followed, with Leo close behind me. It looked like an office, only there was no desk. There was a bar, along with a few women lounging around here and there. I noticed one girl passed out on the floor, her skirt ridden up so far you could see all her business. There was a little furniture; a coffee table and some chairs. To my relief, there was wall-to-wall windows. To my left, there was a card table occupied by four men. I knew one of them was Corey.

My guess was confirmed when a short, stocky guy stood up. He couldn't have been anywhere over five-three. He was young, maybe twenty. He wore an Adidas sweatsuit and shoes that matched. You could tell he had money. If the outfit didn't say it, then the bling he had on would tell you. He was draped in it. He had a cocky expression as he observed us. His stride was sure as he walked toward us.

"I guess I should introduce myself since we haven't met. I'm Corey, and you are?" His voice was deep and deceiving. When he spoke, he was looking directly at me, though I knew he was addressing us both. He had the eyes of a killer, and I immediately didn't trust him.

Still, I spoke up. "I'm Anna and this is Leo. Here's what we owe you. I appreciate you giving us time to recoup after we were robbed. Thank You." I held out the paper bag and waited for him to take it. Deep down, I knew placating this guy was not the ticket, but I had to try.

Unfortunately, he had other plans. He reared back from the bag as if I had pulled a gun on him. The big guy came forward and took the bag. Corey looked at me like I had done something wrong. His eyes narrowed and his lips tightened in disapproval. It just made me want to leave as soon as possible.

"Well," I said, clapping my hands together. "We're going to just go now. It was nice to meet yall."

"We can find our own way out," Leo added, turning me towards the door. However, the exit was quickly blocked by the big guy. Goddammit. I fucking knew it wouldn't be that simple.

"What's your rush?" Corey asked. "Sit down, have a drink. Let's get to know each other."

"Another time, maybe," I said, turning back to him. I forced a smile, but I didn't feel it. He was trying to keep us here.

"I insist," He said, motioning to the chair he had vacated. "I have a few questions, the main one being where Christian is? When he called me, I just knew he would be coming to handle this himself."

"Something came up," Leo said as he moved closer to me.

Corey smiled another creepy smile, which soon turned into a laugh. "You know why I think he didn't come?" He asked.

"I can't imagine why," I said sarcastically.

"Christian knew I would want to be compensated for the time you all have wasted. I require that compensation. The only reason I could think of him sending a pretty little thing like you as if you were a gift. I accept my gift." He said. As his eyes ran over me, I felt a chill settle in my stomach. Did he mean to keep me? Like a pet?

"There is an additional eight hundred in the bag for your compensation. I am not on the table." I said. I could feel my temper rising. This guy had me fucked up.

"I decline that eight hundred. Now sit, let's get acquainted." Corey said, turning me to look behind me. The big guy had Leo in a sleeper hold. His body had gone slack and his eyes were closed. I knew he was alive because of the steady rise and fall of his chest. Thank God. Now though, I was alone with this crazy bastard, who thought I was on the menu. I closed my eyes and shook my head. This is just the kind of shit that happens to me.

I took that seat, knowing it had a better view of the window than where Leo and the big guy were by the door. When I sat down, I looked at the other men at the table. I was shocked to see I knew one of them. It was Terrance from Stacey's party. He recognized me as well. I kept quiet about that since he said nothing. The other two guys were unknown to me, but they eyed me like a rare steak.

"We can send the eight hundred back with your buddy over there. I'm keeping you." Corey was saying.

"I'm sorry," I said, as I discreetly pulled my gun from the waist of my pants under the table. "That's not going to work for me. I'm not a girl to be kept. You should ask Christian. You are not the first badass I have sat before. You will be amazed at my skills when I have to get out of a jam." He laughed again. This time, the guys at the table joined in. Except for Terrance, he was focused on my moving arms as I quietly cocked the nine-millimeter. I laughed as well and met his amused eyes.

"You're in my house, baby," Corey said. "Here I run shit and if I say you're staying, then that's what will happen."

My gun was ready to go. Christian and Joey should be here any minute now. When Corey's finger ran down the length of my neck, I knew I needed to act fast. I raised my gun and aimed it at the guy to my right. His smile died right before I pulled the trigger and shot him in the face. The other guy on my right flipped the table over just as a bullet came through the window. He fell with a wound to the chest.

The women started scrambling and when they opened the door, Christian and Joey came barreling in. Corey grabbed me from behind and, by the feel of the cold metal at my temple, he had a gun to my head. Joey made quick work of the doorman shooting him twice where he lay beside Leo. Then he started trying to wake Leo up. Christian had his gun aimed at Corey. I could tell he didn't want to shoot because I was being used as a shield, but I wanted him to.

"Christian," I said. "Shoot this motherfucker."

"And shoot his boo by mistake," Corey said, laughing. "I don't think so."

"Let her go," Christian said, "and we can all walk away from this."

"Leave my house and I will make sure she keeps breathing." Corey said, smacking a kiss on my neck. "No matter how much I torture her."

Christian's hand clenched on the gun, but he didn't pull the trigger. He continued to try to bargain with Corey. I then noticed Terrance was still standing. He had his gun pointed at Joey, but he was walking around the room. If he was going to kill Joey, he could have by now. Instead, I watched him disappear from my viewpoint.

"Let her go bruh, this is between you and me, anyway. You wanted me here. Here I am." Christian yelled. Joey had stood again and was pointing his gun at Terrance, who was now behind Corey. Leo was sitting on the floor, still waking up. The tension in the room could be cut with a knife. There was a brief pause, and then Corey tightened his grip around my waist. It was painful, but I didn't make a sound. I was sure he was about to shoot, but he didn't.

Instead, he said, "Get out of the way or I'm going to reduce this pretty face to taco meat. I'm going to count to ten, and then she dies. Unless you move."

"Let her go," Christian yelled again.

"One," Corey said, starting his count.

"Let her go, please," Christian begged.

"Two."

"Christian, shoot him," I yelled. I rather he accidentally shoot me than to have this dick head do it. Christian was not a bad shot. I believed he could do this.

"Three."

Then there was a gunshot. For a moment, I was confused. I knew Christian had not let off a shot. I was looking right at him. Neither had Joey. I felt the arms around me go slack, and the gun to my head dropped to the ground. All attention was focused on the man behind me. I looked back to see Terrance still pointing a gun at the now-dead Corey. Blood was leaking from a hole in his head.

Terrance looked at me and smiled. "I never liked that guy, anyway. I rather like your face the way it is. You owe me one, Ann."

I was speechless. He didn't even know me and he had just shot a guy in the head to save me. A guy he had just been playing cards with. Something was up with that. Christian felt the same way because he stepped forward, the gun now aimed at Terrance.

"Who the fuck are you?" Christian growled.

"Looks like I'm the one who just saved your girl. Relax. I'm a friend." Terrance said.

"We danced at one party," I said, still not trusting him.

"It was a hell of a dance," Terrance said, smiling. "I suggest we all leave. Those shots could have been heard. The Po-Po could be here any minute." As if to prove his point, we heard sirens in the distance and everyone sprang into action.

I was walking out of the warehouse, through the same door I came in. Christian and I were hand in hand. I was visibly shaken, but I would think about that later. We needed to get gone. I was just about to get in the car when I heard Terrance call me. I stopped, looking over my shoulder. He was hopping onto a motorcycle.

"I'll be contacting you about that favor." Then he rode away.