Page 57 of Wifey
“Would that be enough?” I ask. I know nothing about guns, murder, or whatever the hell this is going on.
“It will be.” Cameron promises.
“Yo, ‘Nesse, when is all of this about to go down, man? I’m bored with these silly little kids with their guns and shit.” Amil drinks from Mountain Dew and loudly burps.
“Whenever Tay goes back. It’ll be quiet for a while but they’ll get bored with everything. They’ll make their move soon enough.” Cameron promises. “I expect it sooner than later now that they know everyone is gone.”
The emotion of everything overtakes me and I find a trashcan to empty what was left of my lunch. I’m risking my life and my unborn baby’s life and I don’t know if we’ll make it out alive despite everyone’s promises.
If I don’t do it, we’ll be dead anyway. I have nothing to lose at this point.
We returned home a short time after seeing Amil. I went straight to bed again while Cameron met with the Administration. Tesh had the butler send up some peppermint tea and crackers while I laid in bed.
An hour later, Cameron joined me in bed with a tray of food and some water. We kept our conversation light and not heavy despite everything that happened. We knew it was the elephant in the room, but we also didn’t want to keep bringing it up.
“You think the moment I’ll go back is the moment she’ll strike?” I ask and Cameron shrugs.
“Either immediately or within a few weeks. She won’t wait months, though.” Cameron replies. “She’s way too impatient for that. She feels she’s waited long enough already.”
“How would I know? She knows I don’t drive the Beemer anymore.” I take a sip of water. “Unless she has cameras or someone in the businesses surrounding the shop?”
“She has someone on the inside.” Cameron states and my jaw drops. “That’s the person who’ll tell her you’re back.”
I turn to Cameron and he looks back at me. There could only be one person who would turn on me and it’s the person I least expected. “It’s Gabe, isn’t it?” Cameron is silent before he confirms with a brief nod. “Alicia warned me about him. She said he wasn’t all that he seemed. I thought it was Alicia who was suspicious. She kept asking questions about you and our involvement. It was the wrong person all along.”
“Alicia cared about you, baby girl, that’s why she was asking questions. She even came to me and we had a private meeting. I reassured her I had no intention of taking over the shops and I was doing whatever I could to protect you. I offered to have security look after Alicia and she declined, stating she didn’t want to be associated with what I do. “ Cameron’s eyes take on remorse and regret. “I should’ve had security on her, anyway.”
“I just don’t understand!” I shake my head. “Why would Gabe do this? What would he gain from it? He has a wife, a young daughter, and another baby on the way! I don’t get it!”
“We’ll find out soon enough,” Cameron’s voice is calm and collected. It only means he’s angrier than he’s willing to reveal. “I have my suspicions, but I need to hear it from Gabe himself.”
I push the food aside and stand up. My legs naturally pace the floor and my mind is struggling to keep up. I finally stop at the window. “If Gabe works for Jackie, he might have had a hand in Daddy’s murder.”
Cameron joins me and wraps his arms around me. “It’s a strong possibility.”
Gabe was smart enough to know he would never attack me if I’m with someone, he would only attack me in a place where I’m alone. “If he’s going to come after me, Cam, I have to be alone. No security. No follows.” I let out a breath. “If he’s going to come after me, I have to be at my dad’s house.”
My mind goes haywire as I start to put the pieces together. “He knew my schedule. He knew who I hung out with. He knew about you from Alicia and Daddy. He knew how tight I am with Hayley.” I shake my head as a tear falls down my cheek. “He knew I knew nothing about running the shops.”
“He knew everything, angel. I don’t know when he turned on your father, but the moment he did, it was game over. While the betrayal seems sudden, it didn’t just start. It didn’t start when Lamont died. Gabe betrayed your father well before that.”
Tears stream down my face. It’s so unbelievable yet everything is totally true. “Why did he have to kill Laurie, though?” I cried. “She had nothing to do with any of this! He knew how much I needed her in my life!”
Cameron strokes my hair as I cried into his chest. My body shudders and I can’t breathe as emotion takes over me. Gabe killed both of my parents all within a year and I’m his next target. Did he really need the shops that bad?
“I suspect his real target was Alicia since she was closest to you. Laurie was probably an afterthought.” Cameron comforts me. “He didn’t dare to go after Hayley because all hell would’ve broken loose. Meadow was too boring of a target, if you can believe it. He chose Alicia because of your connection.”
I pull away from Cameron and look into his eyes. “He hates me.”
“No, he doesn’t hate you,” He thumbs my tears away. “But he definitely loves money more. And we’re about to show him his allegiance to Jackie was a very stupid thing to do.”
Twenty-Four
The calm before the storm.
Winter was steadying approaching the South and the days became chillier. Shops closed earlier. People tried to get home before it became too darker and too unsafe to be out. Children were excited at the prospect of Christmas and Santa Claus.
I was ready for the year to be over.
