Page 96 of Love & Vendettas

“Aris and Noble, did you get that information out?” I ask, looking around the table.

“Yes, sir. Aris tied up the final strings, and the information should be on the twelve o’clock news right . . . ” Noble glances at his watch and finishes his comment. “About now.”

“Good,” I reply as Marisa flicks the remote and the large-screen TV turns on to the midday news.

She turns the volume down a little while they do their intro, and I look around the table at each of my team members.

“We took a major blow, but we’re rebuilding and coming back stronger than ever.”

“I’m still fucked up about the part Parker played in this game,” Malik professes, shaking his head.

“Yeah, he was your day-one homie. If you can’t trust them, who the fuck can you trust?” Kim mumbles.

“Y’all. I trust y’all. I trust the eight of y’all to keep it real with me, to have my back, to hold it down when I’m not able to, and to always be true and loyal to me and this organization. If you can’t do that you walk your asses out the door now,” I demand, jabbing a finger into the marble table as I glance around at Kim, Aris, Hakeem, Jamal, Janel, Malik, Noble and Marisa standing by the TV.

No one budges, and Marisa smiles at me.

“It’s still hard to overlook that sort of betrayal, sir. Hard to heal from that, so make sure you take time out for yourself,” Marisa suggests softly.

“Yeah, well . . . it’s a new day,” I declare, clearing my throat and looking at the TV screen.

I spin my chair around and stand from my seat. Shoving my hands into my pockets, I walk toward the seating area as Marisa increases the volume on the TV.

“. . . investigation into the funding of her campaign. Financial documents leaked to the mayor’s office, KGTV, and Chief David Haralson’s office late last night show that mayoral candidate Essence Hamilton has been accepting money to fund her campaign from Bryson Gregory, CEO of Duke Holdings.

“Gregory was indicted on charges of racketeering, prostitution, and drug trafficking eight years ago, but was only found guilty on the drug trafficking charges, of which he served four years before being released on parole. He founded the company Duke Holdings two years ago, which is the parent company for two telecommunications companies and a capital funding company.

“The mayor’s office will be holding a press conference at one o’clock this afternoon. KGTV tried reaching out to Ms. Hamilton’s office for comment, but she was unreachable at the time. Nate, turning it over to you . . . ”

Marisa turns the TV down and leaves the room, as I return to the table, but I don’t take my seat.

“Frances and Marc have gotten all the charges against me dropped, thanks to the assistance from Detective Malone and Noble. My businesses have been cleared, and we’re working behind the scenes to rebuild the reputation of my gentlemen’s clubs and the car company in those communities. Whenever a company takes a hit the way that mine did, even if only to its reputation, there will be a financial blowback to follow.

“As a result, we’re pumping more funds into marketing the companies, funding promotions that benefit the communities each company serves, and on PR campaigns tohelp rebuild our image. As it relates to what happened with Parker, you all know that shit will never fly with me. If you cross me up, you may as well be prepared to pay with nothing less than your life. I don’t give a fuck who you are,” I snarl.

Everyone around the table nods eagerly.

“With that being said, there are a few changes or additions I’d like to announce. But first, here’s a little appreciation for your dedication and loyalty to me. Treat yourself to something nice,” I state, handing each of them an envelope with their name scrawled on it, holding ten grand in cash and a check for fifty grand each.

Shouts, whistles, and applause go up around the room, including Malik, who’s normally the reserved one of the crew. Kim jumps up and starts twerking, and Janel smacks her on the ass, to which Aris blushes. I shake my head at their shenanigans and wait for a few seconds. Eventually, all eyes turn in my direction.

“The next announcement is that Noble will be your new VP of Security.”

“Damn, what type of increase does that come with?” Hakeem asks, causing everyone else to laugh and Noble to shake his head.

I smirk. “You ready to forfeit your job, Hakeem?”

“Nah, Bossman. I’m good on all that. I don’t even want to know what type of shit Noble’s gotta be responsible for.”

“Good. Now these next two changes are near to my heart, so don’t fuck shit up where this is concerned.”

Everyone scowls and looks around at each other before glancing back at me.

Nodding toward the other end of the table, I blow out a heavy breath. “I know y’all have been wondering why Zechariah is at the meeting when he’s never here.”

They all murmur their agreement.

“As you know, he just graduated from Morris Brown last year and started his first year of law school at Emory this year. With that being said, he’ll be working closely with Frances Kay and Marc Silver to learn the inner workings of the business, as well as with me, while attending school. He’ll be our future Chief Legal Counsel.”