Love UnCharted (Love's Improbable Possibility) (45 page)

This could actually work
.

The next two days in Tahiti were a huge contrast to the first. Rayna and I indulged in parasailing, jet-skiing, canoeing, and horseback riding. We ate great food and made love everyday, several times a day. We shared in laughter and playful moments. Rayna was back. I did everything I could think of to help her shake whatever insecurities she had about my commitment to her. The last thing I needed was a weak link in my strong chain. I needed her confidence in what I was proposing. I had only wished that her girl, Michelle, could have been around to celebrate this next step with her.

Our return home was bitter-sweet. I hated leaving paradise and being in our bubble as she termed it, waking up to Rayna in open air and lying down in the same. But it was nice to know that we were on the track to a new life together.

As we were seated on the plane, waiting to take off, Rayna looked over to me with a half a  smile and a slight moue.

I lifted her chin with my index finger to engage her eyes. “Hey...what’s that all about?” I asked.

“We’re leaving our Eden,” she puckers her lips and sniffles to gesture a desire to cry.

“We’ll always have Tahiti,” I sang.

She reaches over and rubs my cheek in adoration. It’s consolatory.
 

“I freaking love this!” she exclaimed, referring to the wildly grown stubble that had taken over my face since we’d arrived.
 It gave me an idea immediately.

“Good. Because I’m not cutting it until you give me a date.”

“A date?”

“Yes. A wedding date.”
 

“Oh.” Rayna smiled and ducked her head embarrassingly.

“Well, what date do you have in mind?”

“Oh, no, Ms. Brimm. It’s obvious that you weren’t expecting my proposal and therefore I am not strong-arming you to the altar. You’ll have to do it on your own volition.”

Her eyes opened wide, giving me an affronted expression. I know Rayna. She needs to be given a push to make a decision that involves trusting another individual. In this case, I was asking her to enter into a lifetime institution, the biggest trust and commitment proposal of them all. I believe she’s agreeable to it, but needs a little motivation to take the next step.

“I’ll just wait miserably until you come around,” I continued to taunt her.

“You don’t think I want to marry you?” she’d become argumentative instantly. I didn’t want to fight about it, but egged her on.

“I hope so, but...time will tell,” I murmured as I adjusted my pillow in my seat to get comfortable. She sat erect in her chair, at a loss for words when I turned my back to her.

You can lead a horse...

Azmir

The sound of my Blackberry ringing snapped me frantically out of my sleep, ejecting me from my pillow. Veered between torpor and alarm, I glanced around the room. Rayna stirred in the sheets, but appeared still very much asleep. I reached for the alerting phone.

“Peace...Peace.”

“Errrr...my name is Detective Timothy Ames and I’m looking for a Azmir Jacobs.” Why is
One Time
calling my cell at this hour? 

“I’m sorry, what is this in reference to?” I asked as I picked up my iPhone prepared to dial my attorney.

“Mr. Jacobs, I’m sorry to have to call you at this hour to inform you that there has been an act of arson at your residence.”

I regard the bedroom around me.
There’s no fire. Is this some kind of joke?
I questioned.

“Mr. Jacobs? Are you away on vacation? How soon can you get down to the Pasadena PD so that we can discuss this?”

“A fire at my home on Farmingdale Drive?” My senses had begun returning. I felt Rayna sit up in the bed. 

“Yes, sir. How soon can you be here? Or I can meet you there.”
 

“Give me under an hour. I’ll meet you at the house,” I disconnected with the detective and swung my legs out of bed, still somewhat languished.
 

“What’s going on?” Rayna groggily asked, grabbing my lower back. I paused, trying to process what just happened.

“Supposedly a fire at one of my properties. I’m going to check it out.”

She gasped, “What? Oh, my god!”

I turned to her, patting her leg, “Go back to sleep, I’ll be back as soon as I get a handle on it.”

Rayna starts making her way out of the bed, causing Azna to jump from the edge to the center of the mattress. “No, this is awful. I’ll go with you!”

“Rayna, baby, it’s nearly three thirty in the morning. There’s no way I’ll have you out this late. If I need you, I’ll call. Rest,” I demanded.

She recoiled her legs back in the bed, making it clear that she caught on to my adamancy. I kissed her on the head and left for the john. From the bathroom, I called Petey who, in turn, called Kid. They both agreed to reporting there. I was dazed, still adjusting from our return from Tahiti the evening before.

When I pulled up, the firefighters were still out there, hosing down the rear of the house and a couple were walking through the front area, I guess making sure nothing was ignitable or combustible and possibly confirming there were no bodies in there. 

The fire was pretty bad, all that seemed to have been left was the frame and my fireproof safes. My breathing hiked and I grabbed my head.
 

Petey walked up on me, “Shiiiiiiiieet! What the fuck is this?” He wore gray flannels, a hoodie, and his bedroom slippers. His face was still wrinkled from recent sleep.

“Yeah,” I sighed. “This is some bullshit,” I muttered, watching strangers walking all over and through my property. 

“Tell Kid and them to get the tools needed to unbolt the safes and take them over to my warehouse down in the Watts. There’s storage space there for them.”

“Mr. Jacobs?” I heard my name being called and turned to find Detective Ames. I recognized his timid voice. 

I turned to him and watched as he approached us. He looked at Petey, but we don’t do introductions, so I didn’t even acknowledge him and Ames quickly got the message.

“Errrr...is this your primary residence?”

“No.” I was interested in seeing where his question was leading.

“Do you rent this out to anyone or have someone living here?”

“No.”

He scratched his head contemplatively. Petey and I just watched, giving nothing away. “Errrrr...that was the fire chief that I was just talking to over there and he’s saying that he’ll need a couple of days to come to a full investigation, but he can say with little revelation that this was an act of arson. Some sort of explosive bottles were thrown into the front and rear of the house through the windows. This being said, do you have any idea who would want to harm you or your property?”

“I’ve no clue.”

“Well, here’s the plan. I’m going to let them conclude their investigation before I come in and do mine. In the meantime, I’ll need you to come by the station to answer a few preliminary questions that would help me discover the person or persons responsible for this. Here’s my card. I’ll look forward to your call.”

He handed me his business card. “How long do you think it took for this place to crumble? I’m curious about the level of malevolence here. Could they have been unoccupied kids who knew the house was vacant or do I need to hire a security team?” I asked in jest, but slightly sincere about wanting to know how badly someone wanted me dead.

“Considering the methods taken to burn it down, this is seriously malicious.”

“Indeed,” I nodded. “We’ll be in touch, detective.” He took my pro-offered hand and gave me a brief, but firm shake.

By this time Kid had walked up. Ames took off toward the back of the house and I turned to Petey and Kid. “What’s the streets saying?”

“It’s ya’ rapper boy,” Kid murmured. I knew right away he was referring to D-Struct.

“How sure are we?”

“‘Bout seventy five percent. My cousin going over to his old baby mutha’s later on. They friends. She told her that he came through there a couple of hours ago smelling like gasoline, asking to shower and shit. I’ll have more on that in a minute. Yo, D, man. If it’s that dude, he need to close his eyes tonight. He can’t live no more.”

“If it’s son, he might get sniped by one of ‘dem youngin’s that’s trying catch Divine’s attention. It’s gonna be a bounty on his fuckin’ head,” Petey muttered.

Petey was right. This shit wasn’t looking good for ol’ boy.
 

“Kid, y’all good on those safes in there?”

“Yeah, he pulling them up from the floor now. Let me go check up on him.” Kid headed back inside the house despite the firefighters urging them not to. It was my shit and I damn sure wasn’t about to let such personal items stay there in an opened charred house. 

“You want me to call Kip?” Petey asked.

“Yeah, but see if he can lay low until this place is empty. I don’t want the officials to know about the surveillance out here unless it’s necessary.”

“You got it, Duke.”

Petey walked off to make the call to Kip, a surveillance specialist that I’d contracted years ago to protect my properties. You almost forget about him until an incident like this when you need him. Footage of the property should be stored and that should pinpoint the perpetrator, if not, point us in the right direction. My gut told me that Big D was behind this in some way. He didn’t like my cutting him off and therefore wringing him dry. You mess with a man’s money, he’ll eventually get desperate and make risky moves. I stayed there for about a half an hour before I decided to head out. The ride back to the marina gave me time to think and plan.

She lay there with the house phone and her cell laying on my pillow, I guess for easy access if I had called. I looked over to the time on the nightstand to see that it was six forty-two.

Taking her by the shoulders, I nudged her, trying to ease her back into a conscious state. “Brimm. Brimm, baby,” I muttered. From her shoulders I shoved her body several times before she had actually awakened. Her tired eyes were red as she tried to focus them. 

“Azmir! I’m so glad that you’re back. I must have dozed off…what time is it?” she asked, rubbing her eyes.

It’s nearly seven. Get up…I have your favorite old-fashion oatmeal from the deli around the corner. I don’t want it to get cold.

She took a few moments
 to collect herself and strode into the shower.

Back out in the kitchen at the table, she took a seat next to me and I opened up her steaming oatmeal. Her yogurt and fresh fruit sat adjacent to it. I rose to put on the kettle for tea. As I filled it Rayna asked, “Well?”

I knew it was coming. We needed to talk, which is why I didn’t serve this to her in bed like I typically did on a weekend morning if I didn’t want her to cook. I took my seat next to her and opened my
to go
container that held my vegetable omelet.

“Well, it’s bad.”

“How bad?” her eyes were glued go my profile as she licked the smudge of yogurt that had gotten on her thumb. Rayna looked adorable in her boy shorts and matching thin camisole.

“Pretty bad. Nothing salvageable besides a few safes I had there.”

“Where is the house? I know you said you’d just bought this apartment recently, but did you stay at that house before living here?”

I cut into my omelet, prepared to dig in. “Pasadena. Yes, it’s where I lived prior to moving in here. I had lots of things there that I’d been meaning to have packed up, but never got around to it.” In all honesty, I’d been so wrapped up in Rayna that nothing from my past seemed important to rush into here, not even clothes.

“How did the fire start?”

On the way home, I prepared for this disclosure. Although the detective had given me a preliminary cause and the investigation was not conclusive, I had to take this seriously.
 

“I’ll know for sure once they get the investigation underway, but they’re smelling foul play.”

She stilled and I grabbed the small of her back.

“Before you ask, I’m not sure if these were errant kids who knew the property was vacant or something more serious. But I want us to be aware of all of the possibilities.”

“Azmir, you don’t think someone would try to hurt you, do you?” Her eyes were drifted afar as she conjured horrid thoughts.

“I’d like to hope not, but I have to be honest with myself and know that I’ve made a few foes along the way in my journey. I have a lot at stake and much to protect, and that includes you, so I need to make you aware a few changes that will be implemented until this issue has been resolved.” Rayna’s eyes diverted back to me and I knew I’d had her full attention.

“First, this is our home and we’re fully protected here. The security features of this property are stellar. There are three guards on the grounds at all times and the building is equipped with monitored surveillance. We have a security alarm system that can be accessed here at the front door and in our bedroom. I don’t think it’s necessary at all, but should you need to take an extra measure, feel free to use them. The concierge has been instructed to call before bringing guests up. We don’t have visitors, but in the event that we do, if they do not get approval from us when they call up, no one will be allowed up here.” I took a break to make sure I wasn’t going too fast for her. I was growing angrier by the second having to explain this to my lady.

“Are you getting this, Brimm?”

Still a little dazed, staring off into the distance, she nodded her head. 

“Okay. Those things are virtually in practice now or, like the in-house security system, can be employed when needed.” I turned to take her hands, “The biggest change would be muscle. I know that’s not been something you’ve been very keen on with me, but you’ve tolerated it. Right now, until all of this shit has been sorted out, I have to assign detail to you—”

Her eyes enlarged. “What!” she barked.

“I know,” I ducked my head in sympathy. I understood that this was a lot to take in, but it had to be done. “I know it sounds foreign for you to need your personal security, but it’s non-negotiable and I swear it will be an accessory that you’ll easily forget in no time at all—trust me. But between Darryl Harrison popping up on you a couple of weeks back, Spin and her antics, the Thompson fiasco, this fire, and the announcement of our engagement, you’re exposed to people who meant nothing to you just a few short months ago. I need you safe and with peace of mind.”

She shook her head in disbelief.

“Right now, I need cooperation. Rayna, all I could think while standing there watching my burnt home being hosed down was
what if I’d had Rayna with me here?
How close to that being my reality  had I not happened upon this place some time ago.” Rayna remained steeled in her seat. “Baby, when you  presented in my boardroom, I was living in that house. Yes, I had this place, but it had only been an escape haven for the period of my breakup with Tara. I’d only had a bed here. You were my motivation for having the place furnished. Shit, I hadn’t even made love to you when this place was being filled.”

I interrupted my rant, at a loss for words. I was losing my breath, trying to explain to her how close a call this was.
 

“But Azmir—”

With resolve in my voice I said, “It’s final. You’ll have assigned muscle at all times when you’re not with me. While you’re working they’ll keep their distance, but get it in your head that their presence will be felt at your job. They’ll blend in with the wallpaper. As this investigation progresses, so may the details of your security.” I stood from the table, feeling the loss of my appetite and I wasn’t about to argue about what had been decreed in my mind. “I have some calls to make. I’ll be in my office.”

I left my love there processing my words.