Page 43 of Read the Room

Sully called Joey and Ethan forward. “I’m sure you know Joey and Ethan. Everything goes through them. AK and I want to be updated on everything, so we know how to move. Right now, we need to make sure our wives and Mama Bee are straight.”

Tiberius cleared his throat. “Shit is hot out here, and I don’t know what these niggas on.”

He reached into his pocket, pulled out a piece of paper, then handed it to me. There was an address, two apartment numbers, and codes.

“I think you should move your family into our condos until this shit is over. The building is heavily secure, the condos are fully furnished, and our wives are having groceries put in there as we speak. We want your family to be safe.”

When you were a genuine, thorough man you attracted genuine, thorough men. They could have just offered up their team to help get these bitches, but they went a step further to ensure our family was safe. It was smart to move them into their territory and building.

“Thank you for that. We should be moved in later tonight if not in the morning. Tell your wives thank you, and we owe them a spa day.”

“Nah, nigga. You not buying my wife shit. A thank you will suffice.” Derrick’s cheek rose before we all tittered.

I appreciated Derrick because he made me comfortable with my craziness. God didn’t even waste time to give this man screws. He was held together by duct tape.

Sully extended his hand to Derrick for a dap. Once it was accepted, he pulled him into his chest. “We got you, man.”

We spoke for a few more minutes before they left. Seneca introduced Joey and Ethan to his top leads, Stitch and Blake, who was a female. She was their secret weapon that you never saw coming.

“Are they going to help get the boys back?” Reya asked in a hushed tone when I sat next to her. Normally, I was evasive when it came to my street shit. This situation was the exception.

I leaned over, took her hand into mine, then kissed her temple. “Yes, they are. What did they say?”

She and Simone went to the nurses’ station while Sully and I spoke to Tiberius and Derrick.

“They said that she’s in surgery. The doctor will be out after a while.”

It took three hours before the surgeon came out. These fuckas shot my ma three damn times. One bullet was close to her heart. The doctor said that she was blessed to still be here. The other two bullets were in her arm and leg. Her other injuries were a broken rib, leg, arm, and wrist. Both of her eyes were black, and there was significant bruising to her face.

As the doctor spoke, Reya wrapped her arms tightly around my waist. I didn’t know I was crying until she wiped tears from my chin. She said nothing as she laid her head on my chest and rubbed my back. Nothing needed to be said because I felt her love, her care, her peace.

The surgeon let us know that the nurse would be out to allow us to go back once she was in a private room. He warned us that she wouldn’t be awake when she got into her room and that itcould be a day or two. Corp texted Sully to let us know that he assigned officers to her room for twenty-four-hour coverage.

It was another hour before the nurse told us that we could go back. I heard the injuries that were listed by the surgeon, but I was not ready for what it looked like. When I walked into the room, I immediately walked out.

“Fuck!”

I started to fight the damn wall—punch after punch after punch as I cussed God, those niggas, and myself. This was on me. I fucked up. I slipped. Arms wrapped around me and a head laid on my back. I knew it was my love.

“I got you, Lo’ak. We’ll get through this, love.” She held me tightly.

We walked back into the room hand in hand after I calmed down. My chest heaved as I took my seat. Sully sat in a chair with his forearms on his knees and his head lowered. Simone stood beside him with her hand rubbing his back as her shoulders trembled with her silent cries. I knew that Sully and I would get it together because we had bodies to drop.

When we told the girls about staying at the condo until all of this was over, they were fine with it. However, they refused to go there until we brought their sons to them.

“You said that we would have our sons by sunup, so we will spend the night here. Tomorrow, Simone and I will go to our houses to get what we need, then go to?—”

Her words were cut off by the door opening. My eyes tightened when the person came into the room. Yeah, God was testing me, and I would willingly fail the test.

“Oh my God, Lo’ak. I came as soon as I heard,” Alexi said. “I know we have our problems, but this is bigger than… aaaahhh!”

Oh, shit!Reya jumped up and punched Alexi dead in the center of her face.

“Bitch, you got me and my husband fucked up. Coming in here like shit is sweet.” She punched her in her shit again. “I should have been went to your ass, ho.”

I grabbed my wife around her waist and pulled her back. “Hold on, slugger. You bopped the Mario coins out of her.”

Simone’s ignorant ass stood next to Sully bent over laughing. Alexi stood there holding her bleeding nose. Because of her skin tone, the bruises on her face were already starting to form.

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