Page 23 of Breaking the Rules
He grit his teeth, refusing to speak, afraid of what his voice would come out like.
The woman turned and led him through another door. The sound of children playing clashed against his ears. He scanned the area for Areli. Before he found her, she found him. She took off toward him, tears freely falling from her eyes.
“Unc-Unc,” she cried.
Noble dropped his body down to scoop her up. He held her close to him and kissed her face, hoping to soothe whatever she’d witnessed and felt.
“Deucey is here, babygirl. You’re okay. You’re okay.”
Areli held on to him as if she was going to be torn from him, too. “Go home. I want to go home.”
“I’m taking you home, Reli.”
“Mommy too?”
He clamped his mouth closed. He couldn’t lie to her. He turned back to the woman. “Do I need to sign something. What’s next?”
“You’ll sign some paperwork. We’ll let child services know she’s in your care. They’ll reach out to you or a member of your team to arrange a home visit. Once that’s done, she’s yours for the foreseeable future.”
Noble nodded. “Alright.”
The paperwork was signed, and he was crammed in the back seat of Ms. Patty’s car, with Areli refusing to let him go. Ms. Patty offered him a soft, assuring look in the rearview. It opened the floodgates, and Noble quickly wiped his face and nodded. When they arrived back to 80th, Areli was knocked out like she hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep since her world was turned upside down.
Ms. Patty took her from his arms and laid her down in a back room. She returned with her keys and placed them in his hands. “Go see about your sister before they move her. These types of things, they tend to move the women to the desert quickly to try and break them. So they’ll snitch. And no matter how angry you are with her, she needs you. You’re the leader of this family now. You lead like your father did. All that trouble you got in, and he still gave you grace. Your sister, she needs that grace, too. Go on. We’ll be right here when you get back. There will be a hot meal waiting for you.”
“Thanks, Ms. Patty.”
“Don’t thank me. Go Deuce.”
He took his marching orders and maneuvered his way to the county jail. He arrived just in time. Carl had confirmed a lawyer would be arriving for him to sort out the particulars of Kymber’s case. When he arrived, the lawyer was coming out and motioned him over to the side, out of the earshot of eavesdroppers wanting something to gossip about.
“Tell me how bad this is.”
“Bad. Real bad. Trafficking, and she’s dead set on not saying anything,” Yannes Archer spoke. “They found over fifty kilos between the café, her car, and the house. The sitter she had watching your niece was the informant, according to the DA’s office. They’ve been watching since before your father passed.”
“What the fuck you telling me?” Noble’s face tightened in a fury of confusion.
“You need to talk to your sister. Talk some sense into her because right now, she’s looking like a queenpin. And you and I know that’s not the case. I’ll call you tomorrow. Carl gave me your information. Whatever you find out, let me know. If not, she’s going to miss the rest of her daughter’s life.”
Noble separated from Yannes and prepped himself to see his sister. Due to his celebrity status and the lawyer’s request, they gave him a private room to speak to Kymber. The moment she came into view, he jumped up, wanting to hug her.
The correctional officer shook her head and closed the door. When the door closed, he embraced her. Kymber allowed herself to sob for the first time in hours. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”
Noble groaned and let her purge her system before they took a seat. “You got to tell me something. You know you’re getting a drug lord charge? How did this shit happen? Areli’s dad?”
Kymber shook her head and stared at her hands. “Ours.”
Noble’s brows met. “Pop ain’t never-”
“How do you think he paid for everything? Hm? How do you think we went untouched by gang shit? Everything went through him. Everything. He dies of a heart attack, and someone had to keep it going. So Zay helped me, and I kept it going.”
Noble slammed his hand down on the metal table and erupted. “What the fuck was all the money I sent home for? How fuckin’ long were y’all doing this shit?”
“This is why he didn’t want you home,” Kymber cried. “This is why. He didn’t want this shit to touch you.”
“I’m home now, Kymber. The contract is signed. Did you think about Areli at all? For some gang shit, you gon’ spend the rest of your life in prison. Do you understand that? You get that? That she’s going to grow up like we did.”
“She won’t,” Kymber sniffled. “Because she has you. I don’t want a trial. I don’t want you wasting your money to bring me home. I knew what I was doing. I knew the cost.”
