The Owner of My Soul Vol 2: Chapter VII and Chapter VIII

CHAPTER VII

TRUTH?

“So after all this time, you finally admit it?” Sydney asked.

“Yes, I do.” I replied.

“How?”

“How what?”

“How did you do it?” Right after that, she let out a beautiful moan.

“I accidentally found out about you when I was in LA.”

“Accidentally? How can you accidentally find out something about me?” She wondered.

“I’mma tell ya, calm down.” I paused as I focused on this one area first. Her moans turned me on, but I didn’t wanna act on that yet. “Will and I were in town for All-Star weekend. After leaving the stadium at the end of the dunk contest, most of us went to Alize for some drinks and whatnot. I was dancing with some hoe and then I noticed you sitting in the booth with your fiancé. It literally stopped me in my tracks.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“To this day, I don’t know. It just wasn’t how I wanted us to see each other after years of nothing.”

“Wait, I think I know what day you’re talkING about!” Yea, that was a good spot.

“You had on this black dress with hoop earrings and a flawless diamond necklace.”

“It was his birthday party. We were in VIP.”

“Yea, y’all were.”

“That was you I saw leave. I tried my hardest to convince myself it wasn’t you, but in the back of my mind and in my heart, I knew it was you.”

“I didn’t want to stand there looking like a fool so I told Will and bounced.”

“I guess. Please, proceed.”

“The next day, by complete chance, I saw you and him at this diner. I can’t remember the name of it….”

“Costa.” She reminded me.

“Word. I mean you two looked really happy together. I knew there was no way I could get you to move back to Cleveland.”

“And that’s when you made your decision?”

“Not really. Everything was merely by accident.”

“You don’t accidentally pay a woman to fuck my fiancé?” She seriously joked.

“You’re right, but I didn’t pay her to fuck him. I just paid her to go out with him. If you were going to marry this man, I wanted….scratch that….I needed to make sure he was right for you.”

“So you’re saying he did that on his own?” She asked.

“If anything, you were only supposed to catch them kissing. When you showed up, I was going to text her so she’d spring a kiss on him at the right moment.”

“So what you’re saying is, after thinking that you set him up to have me for yourself, he actually was the dog I originally thought he was?”

“Yes. That’s what I’m saying.”

“That’s not that big of a deal. Is there something underlying there?”

“Remember when you got shit face that night?”

“Yea.”

“I was the stranger you had sex with.”

My alarm, combined with my cell phone, woke me up. I looked at my phone and answered it. I hit snooze on my alarm clock.

“Dad wants to see us at the office in two hours.” Will told me.

“Word.” I replied.

“Be prepared to give some strong suggestions.”

“Word.” I repeated.

“Who’s driving?”

“I am. You drove last time.”

“It’s on. Be down in 90.”

“Word. Later.” I hung up and stared at the ceiling. I heard a knock on my door. “It’s open.” The door opened. I didn’t look to see who it was.

“Kenny,” Yvonne began, “Latoya called and asked if you can pick her up on the way to the office.”

“And take her where?” I asked.

“For the meeting with your father. We were hoping we could just ride with y’all.”

“Wait, you and her are meeting with them?” I said in confusion.

“Yea. We don’t know what it’s about, but the four of us are the only ones that are going.” I started to realize what this may be about.

“That’s coo, we can all ride together.”

I sat up and went into the bathroom. After a good shit, shower, and shave, I got dressed. Yvonne was in the living room on her cell phone. As she saw me head towards the door, she stood up and followed. I locked up and we headed to my car. Will was waiting on the passenger side, on his cell phone. I started to feel like I should be calling someone or something. I unlocked the doors and got in the car.

After picking up Latoya at her house, we went to the office. We waited in the conference room as Dad and Uncle Tevin were in a meeting. Will and I sat next to each other across from our sisters. Not a single word was spoken. I noticed the pitcher of water in the center of the table. I grabbed a glass that was next to it and poured me some water. I looked at Will and held up the pitcher, offering him some. He nodded and grabbed a glass. I poured him some water and looked at the two girls across the table. I held up the pitcher to them, offering them some. They nodded as well, picking up a glass. I poured them water and placed the pitcher back in the center of the table. Again, not a single word spoken. No idea if it was nervousness, anticipation, or maybe just morning fatigue.

A couple minutes later, Dad and Uncle Tevin walked in.

“Un-fucking-believable is the only thing that comes to mind.” Dad said in continuation to whatever conversation they were having.

“I know, right?” Uncle Tevin agreed. They sat at the ends of the table. “I know one thing, if we don’t get results in 72 hours some heads are going to roll.”

“Fuck rolling, they gonna bounce off the sides of mountains when I throw them off a cliff.” Dad stated.

“Wow, Daddy, is everything ok?” Latoya asked.

“Oh just a few disagreements and such.” Dad replied. “We’ll talk about that at a later point in time.”

“Yes, today is about the futures of Chris Lopez and Andre Thompson.” Uncle Tevin stated.

“What do you mean?” Yvonne asked.

“It seems that several issues have occurred in the past year or so. With the unfaithfulness that both men have showed along with the lack of respect, I’ve been told that a plan to move forward was conjured up.” Uncle Tevin explained. He looked at Will and me, expecting us to explain.

“For the record,” Dad began, “I want to make it known that the Browns organization is highly against personal vendettas.  We like to win and both of these men have given us the best chance to win. So you better have a damn good plan up your sleeves.”

“Well, where should we start?” I rhetorically asked, looking at Will.

“I know, how about the fact that we didn’t win a Super Bowl last year?” Will said.

“Can’t win them all.” Dad said. “Not many are as dominant as you two.”

“True, but, Dad, you have to look at the facts.” Will continued. “Their stats were way down last year.”

“How about we cut the bullshit.” Uncle Tevin stated.

“Ok. Cutting the bullshit, fame has gotten to their heads.” Will declared. “They think they’re untouchable. Dre hit my sister, your daughter. Chris hasn’t treated Latoya with any respect…I mean they believe this city is there’s.”

“This used to be a football town. Keep that in mind.” Dad said.

“That was before us.” I stated.

“So what are you proposing?” Uncle Tevin asked.

“A trade.” Will said.

“And do you really expect to get equal value?” Dad asked.

“Not equal but close.” I replied.

Uncle Tevin and Dad looked at each other like they were telepathically thinking it over with each other. Will slid Uncle Tevin and Dad a folder with our proposed trade in them.

“So draft picks and veterans.” Dad said to mostly himself. He looked at Latoya. “How do you feel about this?”

“If it gets them out of Cleveland, I’d be more than happy with it.” She replied.

“And you, Yvonne?” Uncle Tevin asked.

“Her sentiments exactly.” She replied.

“Very well.” Uncle Tevin said. “Kevin and I will talk this over and we’ll let you know." We all nodded. “Is there anything else that needs to be discussed?” Silence. “Very good. Yvonne, Latoya; how are the divorces going?”

“Still in the works.” Latoya replied grimly.

“Haven’t even started the process. Didn’t know if I would want to.” Yvonne said.

“No rush.” Dad said. “Take your time and make sure it’s exactly what you want to do.”

“Thanks.” Yvonne said, cracking a tiny smile.

“Kenny, Will; how are y’all holding up?” Uncle Tevin asked.

“Feel like everything is changing.” Will replied. I nodded in agreement.

“Shit happens. Just hold on to each other.” Uncle Tevin suggested. “This business will be yours one day. Bickering with each other wouldn’t be good for anyone.”

“Don’t think that will happen anytime soon.” Will stated.

“We’re hoping for not at all.” Dad said. “Anyhow, if y’all have nothing else, we have business to attend to.” He paused for responses. “Word.”

We all stood up and gave our uncles and fathers a hug. Dad and Uncle Tevin walked out first and then we followed. I was the trailer of the pack.

“Kenny?” Dad called right before we got on the elevator. I turned around and looked at him. “Let me holla at ya real quick.”

I turned around and tossed Will my keys. I then followed Dad back to the conference room. I sat down and he sat right next to me. Serious talk time.

“Let me get some of the bullshit out the way first.” He began. “Are you absolutely sure you want to trade away two of your best friends?”

“They’re no longer my friends.”

“Listen, I know you’re a passionate person when it comes to your family. Don’t you think you’re overreacting just a tad? I mean divorce, adultery, even domestic violence happens sometimes. Do you really wanna end a lifetime friendship over that?”

“It’s not just that, Dad,” I began, “the disrespect has been going on for years. Chris cheated on Latoya with women related to her. He’d start shit with Sydney just out of spite. You don’t see it, but they both are trying to take my pride. I will not tolerate that.” He smiled, slightly chuckling, and shook his head.

“You’re definitely my son. When pride is threatened, you do what you can to protect it.”

“Whatever it takes.” I added.

“True.” A brief moment of silence passed as he sighed. “Before I talk about you, I want to verify if your head is in the right place about Yvonne.”

“It’s really a feeling I’ve had for years. She’s smart, a fast learner, doesn’t wear her emotions on her sleeve, ambitious, driven…..however way you want to describe her. She can handle whatever we give her. I put all my faith in her. In other words, I’m personally vouching for her.” He grinned at the sound of that.

“Just making sure you haven’t lost your touch.”

“Never that.”

“Well, I guess onto the nitty gritty.” He sighed again and looked at me. “Be real wit me. Are you going crazy?”

Didn’t think he’d lay it so thick. I really thought about it before answering. Should I tell him the truth? Should I really tell him that I’m seeing a dead fiancée? Seeing a captive fiancée? Having out of the blue reminiscing moments? Or should I just lie to him and move on? Then again, what if he already knows something and is testing me to see if I’ll admit to it? But how would he know? Since when could he read minds? Unless the bastard put cameras in my house to keep an “eye” on me. That’d just be low. I think my cameras are due maintenance. I should do that.

“Kenny?” He called. I slightly jumped and looked at him. Guess I really did drift there.

“Sorry.” I sighed. “The short answer is yes. I really do believe I’m going crazy at times. Not all the time but as of late it has subsided.”

“Is anything helping?” He asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Have you tried anything to kinda ease it all?”

“I don’t know what to try…”

“You can try using your head.”

“That’s the part going crazy.”

“Your other head.” He clarified. I looked at him strange and then realized what he was saying. I grinned.

“Haven’t really had the desire as of late.”

“You may want to consider that. It should at least ease your mind a lil. A lil is better than nothing.”

“It’d feel wrong though. My wife is missing but I’m out getting some strange. That sounds ill just thinking about it.”

“You’re gonna have to block that shit out, son. You shouldn’t look at it like that. Look at it as an anti-depressant drug.” I thought about it and nodded.

“That seems fair.”

“Besides, it may help you more then you may want to realize.” He added.

“You may be right.”

“Look, last thing before I let you out of here.” He looked down at the ground like he was gathering his thoughts. He then looked up at me. “I try to stay out of your personal life as much as possible. You’re an adult. You act like an adult. You make adult decisions. You’ve been on auto pilot since you were 5. Sometimes I wonder if you grew up too fast. Either way, I raised you as a spitting image of me. That means I know what you’re thinking and what you’re feeling. We don’t have very many iconic father-son moments because they’ve rarely been necessary. I’ve been grooming you to take my place and that’s it. That doesn’t mean I’m not here for you for whatever and whenever. Until the day I die that statement will be true. Do not be afraid, hesitant, or too damn self-conscious to come to me.”

“Thank you, Dad. I appreciate it.” I said. We stood up and hugged.

“I love you, Kenny. From the bottom of my heart, I’m sorry you’re going thru this but you will pull thru.”

“Thanks. I love you too.”

I met up wit Will downstairs in the lobby. He had a grim look on his face like he just had a serious conversation as well. Without really saying a word, we walked to the car. When we got to it, we sat there and kinda thought about what just transpired. Then the silence was broken.

“Wanna go to the club?” Will asked me.

“At noon-30 on a Tuesday?” I asked.

“Yep.” He replied. I paused for a second.

“Let’s get it.”

When we got to the club, we went straight to valet.

“Good Afternoon, Mr. Johnson and Mr. Smith.” The valet guy greeted me.

“Good afternoon, Tim.” I replied.

“Good afternoon, Tim.” Will said.

He handed Will the ticket and we walked into the club. Security let us right through and we were greeted all the way through.

“VIP as usual, gentlemen?” The attendant asked us.

“Yes, please.” I replied.

We followed her to VIP. Two waitresses followed us. As we sat down, one waitress placed our drinks on the table and the other placed hot wings.

“If you need anything, just buzz.”

“Thanks, Karen.” Will said. “How’s your son?”

“He’s doing well, thank you. Thank you again for the Christmas bonus.”

“Not a problem at all, you definitely deserved it. That birthday party in August was fantastic. You worked your ass off on that.” Will said. “I’m very aware of all the work my employees do and you are definitely being noticed.”

“Thank you. I love working here and can’t thank you enough for even giving me the opportunity.” She stated.

“You can by continuing to do exactly what you’re doing.”

“I promise I will.”

“Give your mother our love as well. Tell her she’s extremely missed behind the bar.”

“I will. She should be back from Hawaii next week.”

“Good deal.”

“I’ll send Lilly over with today’s roster.”

“Thanks, Karen.” Will replied. As she walked away, we started drinking.

“I put some thought into what you suggested and I want to do it.” I proclaimed.

“Really?” Will asked.

“Yea, really. I’m all for it.”

“Wow, I was only semi-serious, mostly joking.”

“Why not? It’s way too perfect.”

“Can we actually do it?”

“With the right training, we can do anything.” I stated.

“That’s what’s up. Let’s do it.” Will agreed.

At that moment, the line of women walked into VIP. By line, I mean about 15. Lilly stepped forward.

“Mr. Johnson, Mr. Smith, I present our finest selections this evening for your entertainment.” She stated.

We looked at them, took a sip of our drinks, and had the look of indecisiveness. The entire ordeal looked like it was choreographed each step of the way, but I swear we’re just alike like that.

“The three at the end,” I began, looking at the right end. “I never seen them three before, when did they begin?”

“Today is their first official night.” Lilly replied. “As well as the four directly behind me. The girl at the left end started two days ago.”

“In that case,” Will began, the eight newcomers shall stay. The rest of you, have a drink on us. Lilly, compensate them.”

“My pleasure, sir.” She said.

She led the 7 ladies that weren’t selected to the bar. By compensation, they get a drink and $500 each.  Basically, it’s our way of showing that just because they weren’t picked, doesn’t mean they weren’t worthy. The ladies that remained walked up to us. We both held our arms out to welcome them. Two on the lap and one on each side of us.

“KJ and Terrell are on the way along with the Zos.”

“That’s like fraternizing with the enemy.” I joked. We both let out a subtle chuckle.

A few minutes later, our brothers and brother-in-laws arrived. We ordered a few bottles and enjoyed the company. This was one of those rare occurrences that we didn’t stay down from our situation.

“Whoa, back up.” Sydney said. She sat up, turned around, and looked at me. “You have my undivided attention now. I think I blacked out for a second there cuz I could have swore you said….”

“That I’m the stranger you had sex with. Yes, I did say that.” I interrupted her. “I saw you at the bar and approached you. After getting all the small talk out the way, we got to the root of your problems. So we started drinking heavily.”

“Why the hell can’t I remember that?”

“I drugged one of your drinks.”

“Why would you do that?”

“I couldn’t have our reunion tainted with alcohol and scandal.”

“So you drug me? With what?”

“Trianomal.”

“Meaning I just had sex with you cuz I was drunk?”

“Yea. I’d never use any type of “date rape” drug on you. I just needed to wipe your memory of us. Remember the very first time we had sex here in Cleveland?”

“Of course.”

“You said it felt so familiar to you like we’ve done it before. Now you know why.” I took her hand into mine. “I’m so sorry for deceiving you.”

“Yet I’m not mad.” She said. “Why am I not mad?”

“Maybe it’s because of the next bit of information I have for you.”

“What do you mean? What more could there possibly be?” She wondered.

“Kendal.”

“What about him?” I looked at her with shame. “No way! You’re not seriously saying….”

“Yes, I am. Kendal is my son.”

My cell phone started blaring, waking me up from a mid-day nap. Well, it was actually about 1930. Without even opening my eyes, I answered the call.

“What’s happenin, cuz?” I said to Will.

“What you bout to get into, Kilo?”

“Prolly go see the kids. What’s on yo mind, Dub?”

“Not sure yet.” He said. We sat in silent for a brief moment. “So when you gonna break out of this?”

My eyes opened.

CHAPTER VIII

CLOSURE

TWO MONTHS AFTER ANDREW’S FUNERAL:

Will and I stood in the house we had built for our future wives. Future wives that we can’t even find. We’ve tried everything possible, but couldn’t find them. Will and I sat on the steps leading to the front door.

“I don’t know what to do.” Will said. “It’s like nothing works. I’ve tried everything and still can’t get anything.”

“I agree. Maybe they are dead.” I stated. Will looked at me and I at him. “They just might be.”

“And that shit you experienced two weeks ago?” He asked.

“I don’t know. Insanity maybe?” I replied.

“No, they’re not dead. I refuse to believe that.” I looked at my watch.

“Monique is bout to get off. She’s goin to meet me at my place. I’ll see you later.” I stood up and started walking to my car.

“From the way it looks, you want them to be dead.” Will stated.

“What!?” I paused and turned around.

“Ever since you seen Monique you’ve done nothing but chilled with her and forgetting about Sydney. You don’t give a damn if she’s alive or not.” I started walking towards Will and socked him right in the jaw.

“If you ever in your life doubt my feelings towards my fiancée I will kill you!” I turned around and walked to my car. I never hit Will so hard and with such animosity before. I think he knows he crossed the line.

“Are you sure about that?” A woman’s voice emitted from the passenger side. I looked and saw Alisa. “Are you sure you’re not overreacting again?”

At that second, another one came….

FLASHBACK:

Will and I have been tight since birth. We do just about everything together and usually feel the same way about every single thing. We’re like twin brothers, but we are best friends and cousins. On so many occasions, he’s saved my life and I’ve saved his. Neither one of us has backed down from anyone. No matter the situation we always have each other’s backs. With that said……nothing is perfect.

There’s a rule among us. Every woman is fair game. No matter the history, if you want her, you can have her. There are times when a woman is hands off. That is determined by either word of mouth or if she’s carrying. Nothing else matters. If a woman is pregnant by someone in the crew, that woman is hands off for life. If someone in the crew is messin wit a chick on and off, he can say hands off. Of course all of that is within reason on a case by case basis.

When it comes to Will and I, we don’t use the “hands off” rule very often. When we do, it’s known quite well. Monique and Beyonce would be the perfect example. The twins would be another example. Alisa is mine, Alessa is his. They are hands off to everyone else. Besides that, we don’t use the rule. What happens when all of a sudden you do? Simple. A little misunderstanding.

Before actually divorcing Monique and Beyonce, Will and I had a few setbacks. We had a goomah so to speak. Actually, we had several. There was one that we shared. We didn’t know about it for a while, but it ended up coming in conversation. Anyway, that’s neither here or there. Like I said, when it happens, it’s a little surprising. So one day, that little misunderstanding occurred.

Will and I were on our way to a party on this particular Saturday night. We had to make a stop to pick up our dates. Our dates were in town for this weekend alone. You guessed it; the twins. When we picked them up, we went straight to the party.

When we arrived at the party, we were greeted by everyone. I held Alisa’s hand the entire time as we squeezed through the crowd to our VIP section. When we managed to get through, we saw the click waiting on us with a few bottles of alcohol. We gave them dap and took a seat. I had my arm around Alisa and she had her hand on my leg. I looked at Will as he whispered something in Alessa’s ear, making her smile and giggle. Alisa started pouring a shot for her and me. We tapped glasses and took it straight to the head. Will and Alessa joined us for each shot after that.

After killing a bottle of patron, we headed to the dance floor. We danced for a good minute. I never wanted her so bad in my life. Hell, I never wanted any woman as bad as I wanted her at that moment. She turned around and we danced facing each other. We started kissing and were tempted to rip each other’s clothes off. At that moment, the music stopped and the lights came on. We looked around and saw security getting rid of a few people that were fighting. Alisa grabbed onto me as people were pushing and shoving to either see or get away. I held onto her to ensure her she was safe. I led her out of the crowd to get back to the VIP section. Will and Alessa were right behind us doing the same thing. We sat down and got another round of shots ready.

“What was that all about?” I asked Will. “Did you actually see?”

“A few guys got their shoes stepped on or something like that. Nothing worth getting into a fight over.” He replied. “I recognized one of them, but I can’t remember his name.”

“Teddy.” Chris reminded him. “Teddy Bear they call him.”

“Oh yea. Teddy Bear.” Will said.

“Teddy Bear got in a fight? The world must be coming to an end.” I stated.

“Why they call him Teddy Bear?” Alisa asked me.

“Cuz he’s a nice guy and everyone loves him. Also a little on the hefty side and hugging him is like hugging a teddy bear… He usually doesn’t fight. Trust me, he’s had chances.” I explained. We tapped glasses and drank. We all nodded to do another one. Chris, Latoya, Andre and Yvonne decided to join us on this one.

“At this moment, I realize that being married to Monique is the most boring shit I’ve ever done.” I admitted.

“I second that emotion.” Will said. “See, y’all are lucky.” He pointed to Andre and Chris. “Y’all are married to fun people.”

“I thought that’s why we were here?” Alessa asked.

“Exactly why, baby.” Will said to her, sticking his tongue in her mouth. Alisa and I chuckled and shook our heads.

“Is this the only party we going to tonight?” Alisa asked. “It’s only midnight and it looks like things are dying down.”

“Nah, the real party we’re going to is at 2. We came here to get started.” I told her. “Andre’s friend put this together, so we said we’d come and show our support.”

“Who’s running the other party?”

“Blaze. He’s throwing an album release party right now and then an after party.”

“Why aren’t you supporting that?”

“It’s his moment. We go there and it’s like taking away his thunder. So we’ll meet up wit him at the after party. That is going to be huge too.” We all tapped glasses and drank. Each couple started kissing afterwards.

“I wanna do something crazy.” Alisa said in my ear.

“Like what?” I asked her, kissing her neck.

“Like fucking you right here, right now.” She got on top of me and pulled up her skirt. I looked around and looked at her.

“Are you serious?” She took my hand and made me do an underwear check. Well, lack thereof.

“You said I’m not freaky enough sometimes. How about now?” She said, grinding on me.

“I actually don’t remember ever saying such a thing… I wonder where you got this from being down there in Houston.” I told her.

“I swear I didn’t mess wit anyone in Houston. I couldn’t stop thinking of you. I saved myself for you for each time you came in town.” I looked at her and smiled.

“You’re something else, baby girl.” I said to her.

“Are you denying me?”

“Not one bit.” I looked at Latoya.

She was looking at me. I motioned to her what was about to happen. She turned away. Alisa helped herself to what she wanted. I put my hands on her ass and squeezed as she did her thing. I looked at Will. He had a look like he was upstaged. I shrugged my shoulders and smiled. Alisa did her best to keep her noise down as she stayed close to my ear. I couldn’t help but think how amazing this woman is. I couldn’t understand why I didn’t establish a relationship with her instead of Monique. It bothered me up until my climax. Her breathing was deep, as was mine. I was in shock more than anything that she even did that. Maybe that’s why I came so quickly. She grabbed some napkins and handed them to me. She got up and pulled her skirt down. I couldn’t take my eyes off her as I cleaned myself. She got another round of shots ready.

“You ok?” She asked me.

“I’m good. Never felt better.” I replied. I took her hand and pulled her to me. She kissed me and smiled.

“Did I surprise you that much?”

“You have no idea.” I kissed her again. She touched my lips with her finger and handed me my drink.

“No matter where I am or how old I am; I’m yours and only yours. Body, heart and soul.” She told me. She tapped my glass and we drank.

A few hours later, we arrived at Blaze’s after party. We saw Blaze and congratulated him. He directed us to a private area that we reserved. The eight of us sat down in that area and got ready to take more shots. By now, we’re all fucked up. We haven’t been this drunk in a long time. We started telling stories and laughing hard. The conversations ranged from a G rating to XXX rating. Alisa and Alessa knew us for so long that they knew most of the things that we did. They knew about most of the girls we were with and didn’t care. Things started to take a turn for the worse when this particular individual was brought up.

“Aye, Will,” Chris began, “didn’t you have a girl named Janice?” Will started to smile.

“Janice. Now that was a piece.” He commented.

“What happened to her?” Chris asked.

“That is a good question. I broke contact wit her about 3 years ago.”

“Man, I was thinking about her brother the other day. Dude got killed last week in a drive by.”

“Yea, I heard about that.” I said. “I called his mother and offered my condolences.”

“Yea me too.” Will said.

“Oh man, how about Naomi?” Andre asked. “You just had to lock that up.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” I intervened, “you locked up Naomi?” I asked Will.

“Yea. Don’t you remember? I said Naomi is wet paint.”

“Hills Naomi or Bellevue Naomi?”

“Both. That’s the same chick.” I started to think about that. “Wait a minute; you didn’t touch her, did you?” I sat there and thought about it. “Kenny?”

“I thought they were different.” I admitted.

“Dog, she was carrying my child.” Will stated. “That’s why she was hands off.”

“She wasn’t pregnant when I was messin wit her.” I paused. “At least I don’t think she was.” I was too fucked up to really remember.

“Is that why she miscarried?” Will stood up. “Did she miscarry because you were fuckin wit her?”

He started walking towards me. Alessa tried grabbing his arm, but he snatched it away. I stood up in preparation to defend myself. I wasn’t helping de-escalate the situation.

“I had no idea you was even wit her. She did tell me I was the best she ever had, so that’s telling me how good you aren’t.” I said to him, walking towards him. “If you wanna start something ova a broad then make your move.”

Saying that, I didn’t really think he’d do anything. How wrong I was. He swung at me, causing me to fall back onto the couch. He got on top of me and repeatedly swung at me. I did my best to block my face. I could hear Alessa and Alisa screaming for us to stop. Chris and Andre watched.... not sure if they should get involved. Latoya and Yvonne were screaming for them to stop us. I was getting pummeled. I had to get up. I brought my leg up and kicked him in the chest. He stumbled back enough for me to get on my feet. He came at me again. I dodged his first swing and caught him in the jaw. It stunned him long enough for me to get a few good hits in. With one good hook, he fell onto the couch.

As I was about to get on top of him to give him the same treatment he gave me, he rolled out the way. He charged into me and rammed me into a wall. Not once, but three times. I rammed my elbows into his back and my knee into his stomach. When he backed up some, I punched him again and again. I grabbed him and threw him into the wall he was ramming me into. I rammed my shoulder repeatedly into his back. I then turned him around and punched him in the jaw twice. He blocked my next swing and twisted my arm. He rammed his shoulder into my back several times and into the wall again. Using my legs, I hooked his leg and brought him to his knees. I got my arm free and he got back on his feet.

We stared at each other, breathing deeply. It looked like it was going to be the end of it, but we both charged each other. It was like something out of a kung fu movie. Blocking punches and kicks and all types of tricky shit. We ended up interlocking into a position that no one had the upper hand in. We stared each other down and both had the same idea. We started head butting each other. Blood dripped down from our foreheads when we stopped. We started swinging each other around until we went flying through the window separating the private room from the rest of the party. Everyone backed away as we hit the floor. Dazed, tired and in pain, we both struggled to get up. Alisa ran to me and Alessa ran to Will. They tried to help us up and weren’t succeeding very well. Chris and Latoya assisted me as Andre and Yvonne assisted Will. We departed our separate ways.

Alisa got a hotel room for us far away from Will and Alessa. I woke up in her arms as she tried cleaning the blood off my face. I felt like I fell out of a plane onto concrete. I’ve never taken a beaten like that.

“How badly did I lose?” I asked her.

“You didn’t lose. It was a draw.” She said.

“Doesn’t feel that way.”

“That’s your pride. Trust me, he’s not feeling any better.” I looked around.

“Where are we?” I asked.

“Marriott.” She stopped cleaning my face. “You need to do whatever it takes to patch things up with him tomorrow.”

“Fuck that. He owes me an apology.” I told her.

“You were wrong. You should have never allowed things to go that far.”

“I don’t back down from anything. He stepped up to me and I responded.” I told her. She shook her head.

“He wouldn’t have stepped up to you if you clarified things.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Naomi Claris is his. Yours was Naomi Gibson.” She reminded me. I thought about it and started shaking my head.

“Son of a bitch. You’re right.”

“Naomi Claris lived in the Hills and then Bellevue. Naomi Gibson lived in Akron.”

“Damn, how did I mess that up?”

“Alcohol.” She finished cleaning my face. “This may burn.”

She started putting alcohol on all my cuts. I was so upset at myself that it didn’t bother me. She topped the cuts off with Neosporin and Band-Aids. She kissed each one.

“Thank you, Alisa.” I told her. I sat up and lied down on the pillow, grunting the entire time. She lied down on my chest ever so gently.

“Am I hurting you?” She asked.

“Not anymore.” I joked, referring to the alcohol.

We lied there in silence for a little while. I thought about what I was going to say to Will. I put my arm around Alisa and ran my fingers through her hair. I knew her eyes were closed, but she wasn’t going to sleep. I knew what I wanted to do.

“Kenny?” She called.

“Yea.” I said softly.

“If I was to move back here, could I work for you?”

“If you want.”

“I mean could I be guaranteed a job?”

“Yes. I can guarantee you a job. Why you ask?”

“I don’t want to be away from you anymore.” She sat up and looked at me. I looked at her. “I’ve hated Houston because I was away from you.”

“Why were you there?”

“To be with my family, but they don’t make me feel the way you do.”

“Which is how?”

“Happy and loved. I feel important when I’m with you.” I reached up and touched her face. I smiled as she touched my hand with her own.

“I’d be more than happy if you moved back.” I pulled her to me and kissed her. She stopped and looked into my eyes.

“I love you, Kenny. Always have.” She said to me. I could see it in her eyes. She was not only serious, but willing to do whatever it took to not be away from me. I told her what I truly felt.

“And I’ve always loved you.” We kissed again.

The next day, I called Will and told him to meet me at IHOP. I looked at Alisa as she still slept. I kissed her cheek and left the room. When I got to IHOP, Will was already waiting at a table. We looked at each other and came to the realization that it was indeed a draw. I sat down and looked at the menu. We said nothing to each other. When the waitress arrived, we both ordered. When she left, we looked at each other. I started to smile.

“We really fucked each other up.” I stated, laughing a little bit. He did as well. “Look, man, I’m sorry things went the way they did.”

“Yea, I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have approached you. No reason to fight over a broad.” He said.

“Nah, you did the right thing. I should have corrected it. I never touched your Naomi.”

“What?”

“I got confused. I was with Naomi of Akron.” He shook his head and laughed.

“I knew that too. We joked about it when you first told me.” He said.

“Damn, we sure did.” I agreed. “We should cut back on the patron.”

“Agreed.” We stood up and hugged, kissing each other’s cheek. “I think that fight was recorded.”

“Don’t know about you, but I don’t wanna see it.” I started rubbing my sides. “I don’t need a reminder of how brutal it was.”

“I’m wit you. I thought my spine was broke when I woke up this morning.” We laughed at our pain. “But hey, Alessa and Alisa are one of a kind.”

“One of a kind indeed.” I took a sip of my tea. “I told her I love her.” I admitted.

“I did that at the party.” He stated. He leaned forward and put his hands on the table. “I’m really considering leaving Beyonce for her.”

“I was thinking that too. The fact is; we should have stayed with them to begin with.”

“Yea.” Our food arrived. “Let’s do it. Let’s leave our wives for them.”

“Yes. Let’s.” I agreed.

PRESENT:

“I probably should have warned you about that one.” Alisa chuckled.

“Why are you doing this? Why are you bringing up so many memories of you?” I asked her.

“Does that really matter? I figured seeing me every once in a while would be a good thing for you.”

“I feel like I’m going crazy. “

“You are….”

My phone started vibrating. I picked it up and acknowledged I had a text message. I looked back at Alisa, but she was already gone.

When I got home, I lied down on my bed. Tears streamed down the sides of my face. I didn’t know why I was crying, but I had no shame in it. I ended up falling asleep moments later. It didn’t last long cuz I heard a knock on the door. I got up and opened the door. I had a stunned look on my face.

“Sydney!?” I said softly as I stared at what seemed to be my lost fiancée.

“Are you okay, Kenny?” She asked. I blinked a few times and clearly saw Monique.

“Yea, I’m fine. Please, come in.” I closed and locked the door.

“I’ve really missed you baby. I told you I’d come back to you.” I heard her say, sounding like Sydney.

“What!?” I asked.

“I said I made up with my boyfriend last week. The one you suggested I go back to.” She repeated.

“That’s good. I’m happy for you.” I replied. I went into the kitchen and got a glass of water. I was losing my mind.

“Have your kids been away the entire time?” Monique asked.

“Yea. Ma said they can stay there for as long as it takes. She knows I wouldn’t be able to handle the four of them by myself. I see them everyday though.”

“How about you and I make another baby?” She suggested, sounding like Sydney.

“Excuse me!?” I blurted.

“Wow, I just wanted to know what you told your kids about their mother.” She repeated in defense.

“I’m sorry.” I said, shaking my head. “I told them that she’s on a business trip and should be back soon.”

“I remember the last time we were alone. We made love all night.” I heard Sydney’s voice again.

“Yea, I remember that too.” I replied with a smile, not consciously realizing what was really said.

“You remember what?” Monique asked.

“I’m sorry, what did you say?”

“I said did you want me to stay with you tonight?”

“Honestly, that’s up to you. With your boyfriend, I would never ask you to do that.”

“He’ll be ok.” She sat down and took out her laptop. “Would you be able to hook my laptop up to your wireless connection? I know it’s faster then my mobile broadband.”

“Yea.” I sat down next to her. She handed me the laptop. I typed in my network key.

“Damn you smell good. New fragrance?” She asked.

“Actually it is.” I replied.

“I just wanna jump on you and make love to you right now!” I thought I heard her say. I could have sworn I actually felt her lips against my neck. I quickly moved to the side in fear I’ve done something wrong.

“What’s wrong wit you, Kenny?” She really asked.

“I don’t know.” I handed her the laptop. “You’re good to go though.”

I got up and splashed some water on my face. I had no idea what the hell was goin on, but it really felt like I was losing my mind. I took a big deep breath and started heading back to the living room. On my way, I came across a picture sitting on Sydney’s vanity. It was a picture of me and her during this past Valentine’s Day. I reached to pick it up, but the second I touched it something happened:

“Where am I?” I said aloud. I looked around and it was the hotel in Aruba that we went to during Valentine’s Day.

“I started to think you wouldn’t show.” I turned around and saw Sydney lying on the bed.

“Sydney, is it really you?” I asked.

“You still haven’t found me. Have you given up on me?”

“NEVER!!”! I yelled. “I’ve tried everything and nothing is working.”

“You haven’t tried everything. Kenny, I have faith in you even though you don’t have faith in yourself.”

“Baby, I’ve done all I can. Please give me some type of sign.” I pleaded.

“I’m sorry, my love, but I can’t help you. As much as you’re trying to find me, I’m not able to aid you.”

“How do I know this isn’t a crazy side of my mind?”

“The truth is; you don’t. It’s in your own heart if you want to believe if I’m really communicating with you.”

“I really want to believe you’re alive, but it’s hard.”

“You are capable of anything, Kenny. You’ll find me by any means necessary. I love you with all my heart.” She came towards me and kissed me. It felt like the real thing. “I have faith in you. I believe in you. I love you.”

I dropped the picture and stumbled back, confused with reality. I went back into the bathroom and splashed more water on my face. I dried my face and went back into the living room.

“Are you hungry?” I asked Monique.

“Yea, what do you have a taste for?”

“Pizza Hut.”

“Sounds good to me.”

I grabbed a phone and called the Pizza Hut in the basement. Upon ordering, a thought came to me. There was one more thing that I could do to find Sydney. How was I goin to be able to do it though?

“Kenny, when you finish, could you help me out with something?” She asked.

“Yea, hol up.” Maybe this will be easier then I think. I finished ordering our food and sat next to Monique. “What’s up?”

“I have this take over proposal to do and was wondering if you’d be able to help me. I know you’ve taken over a few companies and would know what to do.”

“I may have conquered a few.” I gloated. “What company is it?”

“Baby Phat.”

“Goin for the big shark, I see.” I read her proposal. “Well, I think you should offer a few million more.” I read some more. “You should prolly decrease your percentage. 15% is good for now.” I read the remaining. “Other then that, it’s good.”

“Only two problems? I guess I’m better then I thought.” She made the changes I suggested. I then heard a knock on the door.

“Pizza time.” I got up and answered the door.

We finished eating and started watching the news, talking about the issues goin on in the world. A report about Sydney came up and ruined the moment.

“The investigation into the murder of Sydney Connor is still going on. The fiancée of Kenny Johnson died two months ago when her vehicle exploded after the funeral of Andrew Williams. Sydney Connor’s sister, Candace, was also killed in the explosion. Their bodies were found days later and the autopsy confirmed the identity of both Sydney and Candace. Even after many reports of their deaths, the Johnson and Smith families still haven’t made funeral arrangements. Scott Underwood was able to score an interview with Tevin Smith.”

“Mr. Smith, I know this is a hard time for your family, so I want to start by saying I really appreciate the interview.”

“My pleasure.”

“I want to ask the questions that most of our viewers want to know. First, why hasn’t your family or the Johnson family made funeral arrangements?”

“Sydney and Candace mean the world to me and Kevin. We both looked upon them as our daughters. As much as a say he and I have in the matter, this is completely up to the discretion of Kenny and Will. They have personally told us they will not make funeral preparations and have no intentions on it until they’re absolutely 100% sure they’re dead.”

“Reports all across the media has confirmed the two bodies are indeed Miss Sydney and Miss Candace. The DNA found in both bodies confirmed it.”

“That may be, but the heart is more accurate then any man made technology. If my son comes to me and tells me he knows in his heart that Candace is still alive, then I’m not goin to question that. If my nephew comes to me and tells me that Sydney is still alive cuz she tells him in her dreams not to give up on her, then who am I to tell him otherwise.”

“I don’t mean this in any disrespect at all, but is there a chance that both Will and Kenny have mentally become unstable do to the trauma of losing the women they love more then life itself?”

“Yes, it’s always a possibility. But you have to understand something. There’s always a thin line between mentally unstable and gifted. My son and nephew have always been gifted and I refuse to think that trauma would make them cross that line into the mentally unstable. I’m also not a fool and won’t be blinded by my own ignorance. If they ever were to cross that line into the mentally unstable, no one would know that better then Kevin or myself.”

“Switching gears, East Cleveland 1^st National was hit two months ago. The pending lawsuit against your company from the families of the individuals that died that day is said to be dropped. Are you goin to do an out of court settlement?”

“The out of court settlement isn’t necessary do to the life insurance that all employees that work there receive. Their families had no knowledge of this insurance which brought along the lawsuit.”

“It is believed that Kenny and Will received most of the blame for this. What’s your response to that?”

“Well, it’s bullshit. Things happen and you have to look at the positive over the negative. Our security plans were goin to counteract any type of hit. Our security advisor is at fault and he’s been taken care of.”

“Mr. Smith, one last question and we’ll get you out of here. It’s been two months since the “death” of Sydney and Candace. When would you find it necessary to tell Kenny and Will that it’s time to give in?”

“Never. Kenny and Will know when the time is right. As a father, you have to trust your son’s judgment.”

“Thank you for your time Mr. Smith and hope to speak with you again on better circumstances.”

“As well as I.”

Kathy Quills was on. “Thank you, Scott. That was the first interview with anyone from the Johnson or Smith family and you saw it only on CNN. With the investigation still underway, the only thing that can be said is our hearts go out to both families and hope that both Kenny and Will are correct.”

I buried my hands in my face. I was starting to feel that maybe now was the time to admit it.

“Kenny, are you ok?” Monique asked. She could tell I was crying. She hugged me. “I’m so sorry. I know this is the last thing you really wanted to see.”

“Ya think.” I said.

“Don’t you still think they’re still alive?”

“I don’t know what to think.” I said softly. I looked up. “I don’t know what to think.” I repeated.

“Hey,” she turned my face to her, “you know better then anyone. You shouldn’t give up hope without completely knowing. One thing I will always cherish when it came to us is how strongly you loved me. It’s the way you love her. Well, maybe a few billion times stronger, but nonetheless, you still love hard. That’s what makes you so capable of finding out things.”

“You’re right.” I said. I hugged her. “Thank you.”

“It’s the least I can do.” She replied. I stopped hugging her and looked in her eyes. She looked into mine. I could tell we were thinking the same thing. We met right in the middle. Her lips felt nice, but nothing like Sydney’s. We then got more passionate, but the second I touched her tongue, it finally happened. I jumped up.

“Holy shit!” I said.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to…” She tried to explain, assuming she made a mistake.

“I know where Sydney is.” I told her.

“What?” I came up to her and hugged her.

“Thank you.” I kissed her cheek and ran out. I went down to Will’s floor and banged on his door. I kept banging and banging until he opened it.

“What the hell you bangin on my door for?” He was still a lil sour about the punch.

“Listen, I’m sorry about hitting you. It was out of line but so were you. I want us to put that aside. If you want to hit me back then so be it, but I have something bigger.”

“What?”

“I know where they are.”

“What!?”

“You heard me. Get your shit, let’s go.” I rushed him. He grabbed a shirt and put his shoes on.  He came out and locked the door. We began walking to my car.

“Where are they?” He asked.

“It’s actually a lil strange. They’re in some type of shelter at the cemetery.”

“What do you mean at the cemetery?”

“It’s underground believe it or not. Not too far from where the funeral was held.” We got to my car and got in. I started it and began speeding to the cemetery.

“Did you actually see them?” He asked.

“Yea. They were lying on concrete slabs.”

“How did this come to you?”

“I kissed Monique.” I confessed. “I figured I tried everything else except what I’m not supposed to do. I did what I wasn’t supposed to do and now we’re doing what we really wanted to do and when we find them we’re goin to do what it do, all because I did what I wasn’t supposed to do, nah mean?” He stared at me.

“Issues.” He replied.

I grinned and proceeded to head to the cemetery. When we got there, I immediately found the area Andrew’s funeral was held. I parked and turned the car off. We got out, grabbed some flashlights from the trunk, and started looking.

“We’ll do what we did last time. Start from there and work our way out.” I suggested.

“Since you had a connection once already, shouldn’t you be able to connect again a lil more easily?”

“Yea, but we at least have to be in the ballpark.” I stated. We started walking and looking. Nothing.

“Are you sure it’s underground?” Will asked.

“Positive.” I replied. We continued looking.

Two hours passed by and still found nothing. I noticed an object protruding from the ground. It was part of the car they were in. Seeing it brought the images of the explosion into my head. I picked up the object and threw it.

“Look, Kenny, I’m not doubting your ability or anything, but we don’t see anything.” Will said.

“Yea, I know. I agree.” I turned my flashlight off and started heading to the car. “I guess I was wrong.” Then out of nowhere, a vision came to me. It was the same as when I kissed Monique, but a lil more extended. I looked down and noticed the ground was disturbed. Will noticed it too.

“Maybe you weren’t.” He said. I knelt down and started digging. About a half-foot was a metal door. Will and I looked at each other and nodded. I pulled the door handle, but it didn’t budge. “Get a lil weak?” He joked.

“I haven’t worked out in a while, so that’s no surprise.” I tried again to no avail. “This bitch is on there. It may be locked from the inside.” I stated.

“Move.” Will tried but also failed. “Damn.”

“Let’s both try.” He scooted over and we both pulled. Nothing. “Fuck this.”

I went to the car and popped the trunk. I pulled out a chain and hooked it to the door knob. I hooked the other end to the front of my car. I started the car and put it in reverse. With little effort, the door popped off. Will started heading down. I rushed to keep up with him.

When we got to the bottom, it was a tunnel that led in only one direction. We took out our flashlights and started walking. After about 50 yards, we came to a big room and another door. I put my ear to the door to try and hear. Couldn’t hear a damn thang. Being this door wasn’t metal; we decided to just kick it open. When we looked in there, we saw two beautiful women that made us stand in awe. After two months of separation, we finally found them. We regained our composure and immediately ran to them. They both were alive, but not conscious. I checked Sydney up and down to see if she was harmed. That’s when I heard the sound of three guns locking and loading. Will and I stopped what we were doing.

“Put your hands up and turn around, slowly.” One of them said. Slowly, we put our hands up and turned around. We didn’t recognize any of them.

“Is that them?” One of them asked the other.

“Yep.” He replied.

“Who are you?” Will asked.

“The name’s Crook. This is Jake and Plunk.” That was easy.

“Look, we don’t mean any trouble; we just want to take these two home.” I stated.

“That’s a no go. Those two belong to us.” Crook stated.

“Excuse me?” I said.

“We found them and have been taking care of them. They belong to us and we’re goin to get married.” Will and I looked at each other and then back at them.

“Dog, I don’t kno what drugs you are on, but I suggest you leave it alone.” Will suggested. “They happen to be our fiancées and we’re not leaving with out them.” They cocked their guns again.

“I think you are.” He said.

“Ok, ok,” I began, “but before we go, I just want to know one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“Have they been conscious at any time since you found them?”

“No.” He replied. “Now leave.” I looked at Will.

“Okay, we’re going.” Will replied.

We kept our hands up and started walking the way we came. They made room for us to pass by. When we got close to them, we made our move. I grabbed Plunk’s gun and hit him with it as he was still holding on to it. Will grabbed Jake’s gun, turned, and elbowed him in the back then ran him into the wall. With Jake’s gun in hand, he held it to his back. With Plunk’s gun in my hand, I held it to Plunk’s head. We looked at Crook.

“This can go one way or the other. Either let us go free with our fiancées, or we’ll kill your boys.” I told him. He looked like he was contemplating my proposition. With my free hand, I began grabbing on to a knife behind my back.

“You know what... do it. I’ll kill you both.” He said.

“Wrong answer.” I pulled the knife out and threw it into Crook’s eye. At the same time, Will and I pulled the trigger and killed the other two. With that said and done, we dropped the guns and aided to our fiancées. We picked them up and got them out of there.

When we got in the car, I started speeding to the hospital. I pulled my phone out and called Ma. No answer. I then called the hospital. The receptionist picked up.

“Diana, this is Kenny Johnson, is my mother in?” I asked.

“Hello, sweetie, yea, your mother is in. She’s in surgery right now; do you want to leave a message?” She asked.

“No, ma’am, it’s an emergency!”

“Oh ok. I’ll try to patch you thru.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, hold on.” I waited. One of the nurses answered.

“This is Kenny Johnson, is my mother there?” I asked.

“Yes she is, but she’s busy at the moment.” She replied.

“It’s an emergency.” I stated.

“I’m sorry, but she’s doing a heart transplant.”

“I don’t give a fuck if she was in the middle of CPR; put her on the damn phone!!!” I yelled, losing my patience.

“I’m not risking the life of our patient. This is the most delicate and dangerous part of the surgery. She’ll have to call you back, sir!” She said, getting impatient with me. She hung up the phone before I could say anything.

I looked at my phone, “no she fuckin didn’t.” I said mostly to myself. I called the receptionist again. “Diana, this is Kenny again, I need my mother.”

“Did no one answer?” She asked.

“Some bitch answered and wouldn’t let me speak to her.”

“Oh dear, I’m sorry. Hold the line; I’ll get her for you.”

“Thank you.” I waited.

At the hospital, Diana threw on a sterile suit and gloves. She walked into the operating room.

“Natasha?” She called.

“What’s up, Diana?”

“You have a call on line 5.”

“Take a message, please.”

“It’s Kenny.” Ma looked up. “He said it’s an emergency and he sounds panicky too.”

“Trista, take over.” She said. She put down her tools. “Why didn’t you patch him through?” She asked Diana.

“I did, but he said someone in here didn’t allow him to speak to you.” Diana replied.

“Pam, did you answer the phone?” Ma asked before leaving.

“Yes, I told him you’ll call him back.” She replied.

“You’re fired!” Ma said.

“What!? Over a phone call?”

“Exactly. I want you gone before the night is over. When my son calls, you get me. I don’t give two shits about what I’m doing.” Ma left the operating room and went to her office. “Kenny, is that you?” She asked upon picking up the call.

“Yea.”

“I’m so sorry about that. It’ll never happen again.”

“Okay, but that’s not important right now. We found Candace and Sydney.”

“What!?”

“They’re unconscious, possibly in a coma.”

“Okay. Get here and I’ll have rooms prepped for them. Give me an ETA!”

“About 10 mins.”

“Okay. I’ll have stretchers outside waiting.”

“Thanks, Ma.”

“You’re welcome, sweetie.” I hung up wit her and put my hand on Sydney’s forehead.

“I hope you’re ok, baby.” I said. I looked in my rear view mirror to check on Will. “How she doin, man?” I asked him.

“No change.” He replied. “Is this the fastest you can go?” I raised my eyebrow then floored it.

When we got to the hospital, stretchers were waiting on us as Ma promised. I stopped the car and quickly got Sydney on the stretcher. The doctors did their thing and swiftly got them into an emergency room. Will and I followed them, keeping an eye on our wives-to-be. After a few hours, they placed them in a room together. Will and I were pretty much back to back with our eyes on the wives.  I looked at the engagement ring on Sydney’s left hand.

“We still haven’t decided a date.” I said softly to Will.

“Yea.” He replied. We then heard a knock on the door and in came Ma. We looked at her.

“Boys, how y’all doin?” She asked, hugging us. We both nodded. “I’ve been completely briefed on the results of the tests performed, and I’m glad to say that everything came out perfectly. They are in a coma, mainly due to slight head trauma, but they should wake up soon.”

“Thanks Ma.” I said, graciously.

“Do you want to schedule a conference to let the public know?” She asked. Will and I looked at each other.

“No. We’re goin to wait.” I decided. I looked at Sydney. “I just want to know what happened. That’s all I care about.” I sat down next to Sydney and held her hand. Ma came up to me and put her hand on my shoulder.

“Are you goin to be ok?” She asked. I nodded. “If you need anything, you know what to do.” I nodded again. She kissed my cheek, kissed Will’s cheek and headed out. Will sat behind me and held Candace’s hand. We had an understandable silence. Most likely thinking the same thing.

“The only thing good to come out of this is they weren’t raped.” Will stated.

“Yea.” I agreed. “I’m quite curious about who tried to do this.”

“Was it really aimed for them or was it designed for us?”

“Could have been just for me alone.” I started to really think about it. “I did buy the car and I did have maintenance done to it.”

“Could it really be that easy?” Will asked.

“Yea, it could. I should have investigated it a long time ago.” I looked down at the ring on Sydney’s finger. A tear fell from each eye and down my face. “Come back to me, baby.” I lied down on her chest and listened to her heart beat.