Love and Law (20 page)

I can’t read anymore. I’m fucking livid now. Fucking Miguel, her best friend, is also her partner? I stand so suddenly that my chair flips backwards behind me and clatters to the floor. My body is shaking so bad with anger and feelings of betrayal.

She is fucking undercover. That is the only thing that makes sense—how she literally came out of nowhere and followed me right to the fucking middle of all of it. From day one, it’s all been a setup. She doesn’t fucking love me. It was a lie to put me, along with Oculus and everyone else, in prison. I let her into my home—brought her to meet my Grammy!

I smash my fist through the drywall in fury. And now, the meeting with Blaze and Oculus was only set up so she could take everyone down in one swoop.
Fucking bitch.

Flying out of my room, I’m not sure what I will do, but I need to understand why she went as far as to sleep with me and tell me she loved me. It didn’t seem fake. I can tell when she lies, and that part of her has always seem real. I’m fucking sick to my stomach.

After bounding down the stairs, I stomp into the kitchen to see Grammy at the stove.

“Where the fuck is she, Grammy?” I growl out.

Grammy turns around and gapes at me in shock. “You need to cool it with the attitude, mister. I will not allow you to talk like that to me in my home.”

“Grammy!” I roar. “Where the fuck is Maya?”

She throws her spatula at me, burning me with hot grease on my arm.

“What the fuck!” I scream, losing my patience by the second.

After storming over to me, she grabs a handful of my shirt and pulls me to her. “I don’t know what that girl’s done to you, but you will never disrespect me in this house. Whatever she’s done doesn’t give you the right to act like this, Benjamin. Your parents would be horrified. I suggest you cool your jets before you talk to her. She’s a good girl, and you’ll lose her this way,” she warns before letting go of me.

“Grammy, she’s about to ruin my fucking life—our life! She’s a fucking detective,” I try to explain, much calmer than before. My body shakes with anger and now fear of what will happen to Grammy when the shit hits the fan.

She narrows her eyes at me once I’ve admitted to Maya being a cop. Grammy is smart as a whip and puts the pieces together. “You’re a gangster. Pooh Bear, I am so disappointed in you.”

My heart is officially broken. “I’m so sorry, Grammy.”

Her wrinkled lips form a line as she regards me and shakes her head. “Where is she?”

“On her way to set me and a whole bunch of other people up. Grammy, I’m looking at prison.”

Her eyes mist over but she hardens them. “Are these ‘people’ bad?”

I nod. “The worst. They’re dangerous, evil, murdering drug dealers. But I promise you, I’ve never murdered anyone.”

She shakes her head again in disproval. “What if it goes badly? Would you be okay with her getting hurt? Much worse, killed?’

The thought of seeing Maya lying in a pool of blood sends daggers right to my heart. As fucking pissed as I am at her, I would never want anything to happen to her. Regardless of how she feels about me, I actually loved her. I still fucking love her and I’m pissed about it.

“You must go protect her and also own up to your mistakes. I’ll be okay, son. Just don’t go getting yourself killed. And protect that girl. Even if that means prison. Because, Pooh Bear, you’re a Cartwright. We’re honest, good people. It’s never too late to do the right thing—to turn things around. Now give me a hug and then get out of my house before I turn you black and blue with my magazine,” she threatens.

I pull her into my arms and hug her tight. Her familiar, comforting scent fills my lungs for what might be the last time.

“Grammy, I’m so sorry. I love you.”

She nods and lifts up her head to kiss my cheek with her wrinkled lips. “I know. I love you too, son. Now get!”

I squeeze her one last time before bolting from the kitchen back upstairs. My heart clenches when I find one gun. At least she left me with the other. I pick up my phone and struggle with warning Oculus. But when I think about how he’ll possibly hurt her, I shake away the thought of helping him. He may have always been like a father to me, but he is
not
my father.

It’s barely nine now, so I’ve still got an hour to maybe change her mind. She seemed so sincere about wanting to run away with me. If I can find her and take her away from here, maybe we will have a shot at a happy ending.

I see a text from Oculus and pull it up. My heart sinks.

Oculus: Nine works even better than ten. Your bitch better not be playing us.

His text is in response to one “I” sent earlier, changing the time. Now I realize she fucking changed the meeting time and left me in bed so that I wouldn’t get brought down too. So maybe she does love me if she was willing to put her job on the line to keep me out of it. God, she does love me—she has to.

But unlucky for the both of us, I can’t allow her to go in there alone. Oculus will demand to know where I’m at and probably shoot her just for the fucking fun of it. I stuff the gun into my waistband and run out of the room in an effort to stop things before they blow up with Maya in the middle of it.

The drive to the office is normally a short one, but today, it feels like forever. When I turn down the alleyway, my heart thumps wildly in fear of what’s about to go down. How am I going to get her out of here? Is it too late?

I get out of the car and jog inside, making a beeline straight for the office. When I burst inside, I startle everyone. My eyes search the room to see what I’m contending with. Oculus is seated at the desk with Blaze on the other side. CJ, Maya, Oculus’s mouthy idiot minion, and some tall Mexican are standing along the wall. He looks familiar. Even though he’s wearing a bandana, I recognize him as the cop who tried to arrest me that day. It’s fucking Detective Lopez. And now I know he’s her fucking best friend. I don’t even have time to be jealous when Oculus’s voice draws my attention.

“So glad you could join us, Pac,” Oculus snips out. He’s pissed that I’ve arrived late.

“I’ve got your money. I want my drugs,” Blaze growls, interrupting our exchange.

The room is tense, and I steal another glance at Maya. She won’t look at me, and even though it hurts, I still want to throw her over my shoulder and drag her out of this mess.

“Cool your shit, asshole. I want to make sure this ends today,” Oculus snaps back. “Once I give you the two kilos for a fucking steal of sixty G’s, I need your word you won’t start this shit again. Although I’m not sure I can trust you. I asked you to come alone and you brought that asshole with you.” He points to Lopez, the man who he has no idea is an undercover cop.

“Insurance. I had to make sure you didn’t just fucking kill me right on the spot. Now here’s your money. Give me my drugs and we’ll be done here,” Blaze orders, heaving a backpack onto the desk.

Big mistake. Oculus hates to be ordered around.

I feel like I’m missing something, and as soon as Oculus briefly flicks his gaze in CJ’s direction, I realize the shit is about to hit the fan. Quick as lightning, CJ cracks Lopez over the top of the head with his gun and he drops like a sack of potatoes. Maya jerks her head to me with eyes wide. Her hand slightly moves to her waist, where I know she probably has her gun tucked in. I try to convey to her with my eyes not to do it.

CJ storms over to the desk, and I know he’s about to kill Blaze. It surprises me, though, when he points his gun at Oculus. Maya and I are frozen in shock.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Oculus hisses at CJ.

“Stupid old man. Things are changing. When the other team comes to you with a better offer than third-in-command, you take it. Who do you think’s been funneling drugs to my man Blaze here?” CJ laughs without humor. “My girl Tameka and I were doing just fine until that bitch over there fucked that up too.”

No fucking way.

“You traitorous bastard!” Oculus screams and stands from his desk.

Maya and I don’t move from our spots. Oculus’s minion flinches from beside her. He makes me nervous as fuck since now I don’t know what the fuck is going on.

“Talk time is over,” CJ mutters and raises his gun to Oculus’s face.

Oculus’s minion yanks out his gun and fires at CJ, hitting him in the throat. Blood sprays the wall behind him and he goes down in a heap. I’m already tackling Blaze in his chair when another shot rings out.

My head snaps in the direction of the sound and I see that stupid asshole fighting Maya for her gun. Another shot squeezes out of her gun and hits the ceiling. I abandon Blaze to yank that asshole off of her.

Another shot deafens us and I see that Oculus has shot Blaze in the head. I manage to get the stupid minion fuck in a headlock and choke off his air supply until he passes out and crumples to the floor. When I look up, Oculus and Maya have their weapons trained on one another.

“What’s your angle, little girl?” Oculus demands.

I can’t breathe and my heart stops. I’m afraid to move in fear he’ll kill her on the spot.

“You killed my father. Leroy Lopez. Seventeen years ago,” she sobs out. Her arms are shaking as she confronts the man who ruined her life at nine years old.

My heart is breaking for her. I’m also scared as shit that he’s about to blow her away. She’s not thinking clearly, and with the way her arms shake, there’s no way she’d get a good shot off at him. This is so bad.

“I can’t remember everyone I kill, but now that I think of it, I remember that asshole. Sucker thought he could steal from me and get away with it. I enjoyed taking his life. Now, I get the pleasure of taking yours.”

I’m frozen as everything happens in a blur before my eyes. A shot. One single shot and my girl falls to the floor. I’m snapped from my daze and scream.

“Noooooooooooooooo!”

“Pac, she was a traitor—” he starts, but I’m already yanking my gun from my pants.

“You were like a father to me,” I tell him bitterly before squeezing off all of the rounds in my gun.

He collapses to the floor and my eyes follow him to where he lies.

I killed him.

I fucking killed a man—a man I saw as a father figure.

And he deserved it.

I fall to my knees beside my girl as tears blur my vision. Blood pools quickly around her and I don’t know how to stop it.

“No, Maya! Please, this can’t be happening!”

She’s been shot in the stomach and blood is bubbling out of the hole. I rip off my shirt and press it against her wound. Her blood quickly soaks my shirt. Motherfucker! This can’t be good.

“Baby girl, he’s dead. Stay with me, dammit!”

Her eyes peek open. “Ben,” she rasps out.

“Don’t talk. Just stay with me. I love you, Maya. It doesn’t matter that you’re a cop. I don’t care. Just don’t fucking die on me!”

A single tear rolls out of her eye. “I’m so sorry.”

I’m startled when I hear a groan from behind me. “What the fuck! Maya!” the voice booms out.
Lopez.

“She’s bleeding out. Call for help, Miguel!” I order.

He scrambles over to her and takes her hand in his. “Maya, don’t die on me!”

In any other circumstance, I would hate that this fucker was touching her, but not now. Now, all I can think about is keeping her alive.

He yanks out his phone and calls someone. “Get in here now, boys. Officer down. Simpson has been shot. Send an ambulance!”

Still pressing the shirt to her belly, I lean in and brush my lips against hers. “I love you. Please stay with me,” I beg in a whisper against her mouth.

Her eyes once again crack open. “I—love—you,” she chokes out. Her voice—it sounds bad. So fucking bad.

“Don’t talk, baby girl. Just lie there and stay strong. Help is on the way.”

Another tear falls out as she closes her eyes.

“You did this to her!” Miguel growls at me.

I lift my head and glare at him. “Me? You fucking sent her in here alone—right into the den of one of the most dangerous motherfuckers in this city! You did this to her! Not me! I fucking love her and would die to protect her. You’re her fucking partner and best friend. You were supposed to protect her too!”

He has the sense to look shamefully away. His hand slides to her neck and I want to jerk it away.

“Her pulse is there but very faint.”

I want to throw up. Dipping down to her face, I nuzzle her nose. “Please don’t fucking die on me. I’ll go to prison forever if that meant you would live.”

She doesn’t respond, and I don’t think she’s breathing.

No.

Please, God, no.

“Maya! Wake up!” I scream in an effort to startle her awake.

She remains motionless and I begin to sob uncontrollably.

The stupid minion rustles awake from behind me, and as he fumbles for his gun, Miguel abandons his post beside Maya and charges for him. They scuffle behind me, but all I care about is helping her. She’s definitely not breathing now.

Keeping my hand pressed against her wound, I tilt her head back and attempt to perform CPR the best one can do with one hand. Thankfully, seconds later, Miguel is back and takes over holding her wound while I try to breathe life back into my Maya.