Page 59 of A Kingpin's Weakness
“Yo, what happened?” the other asked, eyes stuck on the blood down my front.
I ain’t answer. Didn’t even look their way. Just kept walkin’, eyes locked on the front door. Every step felt like a countdown.
Seth’s crib was quiet, too quiet. I could hear S3’s game upstairs, little man talkin’ trash into his headset. Oblivious.
Good. Me and Seth had made a promise the day my godson was born he wouldnever see this side of us. Never see the weight we carried. Never see what the streets really cost. That promise was damn near broken right now.
I stepped inside. Door clicked shut behind me. I was halfway up the stairs when I heard her voice.
“Rich?” Stormi.
She’d just stepped out of the bedroom, towel still in hand, her hair damp like she’d just washed the day off.
Then she saw the blood. Her eyes snapped wide, and when they dropped to what I held in my arms, her breath left her in a choke. One hand flew up to cover her mouth, like that could hold in the scream building inside her.
“Oh my God. What…what happened? Are you okay?”
I didn’t say a word. Because no, I wasn’t okay. And I wasn’t sure I ever would be again.
Then her voice cracked open the silence.
“SETH!” It hit the walls like thunder. Seconds later, he was in the doorway, shirtless, eyes wild.
He moved to her fast, placing a steady hand on her arm, easing her out of the way. “Watch out, bae.”
Then his eyes hit what I was holding. His whole body went still. “Rich…” His voice dropped, almost like he didn’t want to say it. “What happened to Lia?”
My throat clenched. I couldn’t speak. Couldn’t even look at her face again. Not like this. Not broken, not still. Not cold. I didn’t have it in me to say Ronnie’s name. Not like it wasn’t killing me every second it echoed in my skull.
Seth didn’t ask again. Just nodded once, jaw tight, and guided me into the room behind him. Stormi followed, silent now, sitting on the edge of the bed like her legs didn’t belong to her anymore. Her gaze stayed locked onLia. On what used to be her. Her lips moved. No sound.
Seth closed the door behind us, then turned to me. Quiet. Waiting. Finally, I looked up, voice cracked, hollow. “He killed her.” My eyes burned. My whole body trembled around the weight in my arms. “That fuck nigga killed my baby.” Then I dropped. Knees hit the floor, body folding around her. I held her tighter, like I could still warm her up. Like maybe if I didn’t let go, she’d come back. But she didn’t. She wouldn’t.
I had lost the love of my life. My peace. My person. And the man who took her was walking around like he hadn’t just ripped out the core of me. Like he wasn’t supposed to already be six feet under, rotting with the rest of the cowards.
Seth crouched beside me, his voice low, steady. “I’ll call and have them come pick up her body.”
“I got her, bruh.” My voice cracked.
He reached out, and I flinched. Instinct. Pain. Something twisted. I held her tighter. “I just I just had to get her here so she could be safe right?”
He nodded. Swallowed hard. “Okay. Let’s just lay her down, a’ight?”
“Where?”
“My office,” he said gently. “Come on. I’ll make sure it’s clear.”
He cracked the door, glanced both ways down the hall, looking for S3. Coast clear. We moved. I carried her across the hall like she was still breathing. Like maybe if I moved fast enough, the night would rewind.
I laid her down on the black leather couch, slow, like I didn’t want to wake her. Seth pulled the throw blanket from the chair and draped it over her, careful. Like she could still feel it.
Then he gripped the back of my neck and pulled me in, locking me in a hug so deep and tight it almost shattered me. “Nigga,” he whispered, voice thick. “I’m sorry. He gon’ pay for everything.”
I didn’t blink. Didn’t move. “I want him now, Seth.”
He stepped back. “I’ll go to the meeting. Talk to the crew. King’ll be there.”
“Bruh, I’m ridin’ on this one.”
