The Family Business 3 (23 page)

Two guards on either side lowered me, blindfolded, from the van and brought me into a building. Immediately I noticed that the temperature was much colder than the last place. They led me through the building, down some stairs, and then I heard a door opening. One of the guards pushed me inside a room and then ripped the black sack off of my head. The other guard left.

Nobody was saying anything, but I could tell something was going down. I hadn't seen or heard from Elijah since our conversation about H.E.A.T., and the few times I'd seen X, he looked tired and stressed. The fact that he hadn't killed me told a story of its own. My hopes were that my family was putting pressure on them from all directions.

The guard who stayed with me crossed to the center of the room, where he sat me down in a chair.

“Where is Elijah?” I asked. It sounds strange, but I was missing him. I felt like he had made it his job to take care of me, and if I had to be held captive, at least that had been some small comfort.

This guy looked right through me as if I hadn't spoken a word. Of course, being a woman I should have expected that. These Black Muslims weren't exactly known for their progressive ideas about women. Maybe that was why I was feeling a closeness to Elijah. He at least spoke to me like he thought I had a brain. The rest of them treated me like less than a second-class citizen.

“Hey, I'm talking to you. Where are we, and why did you bring me here?” Again he ignored me. “Tell me!” I screamed at him. He responded by walking out the door, leaving me alone.

I wanted to kick myself for actually admiring his rock-hard ass as he left. My body parts might be female, but my insatiable sexual appetite was all male. Even in this fucked-up situation, I couldn't help but think about sex. Still, I thought, those fantasies were the only thing keeping me sane as I waited for the Duncans to get their asses in gear and free me.

“Miss me?” The door opened and there stood Brother X, smiling like a freak in heat. Now, that was a damn good way to get me to stop thinking about sex.

He closed the door behind him and came over to me. His smile had transformed into a lecherous stare. This motherfucker was planning to undress me again, and I didn't hold out any hope that Elijah would rescue me this time. Maybe Brother X had sent him somewhere and then relocated me to get me away from Elijah. Had he sensed that there were feelings developing between us?

“Where is Elijah?” I asked in a demanding tone. “Does he even know you brought me here?”

He reached down and began to fondle my breasts through my blouse, grabbing handfuls and massaging.

“Where is he?”

“Busy. Your hero Elijah is indisposed, so I hope you know what that means. We are all alone. Just the two of us.” He ran one hand between my legs. Luckily, this time my body and my mind were in complete agreement. Instead of being turned on, I was creeped out. He began to rub his dick through the fabric in his pants, and I could see it hardening.

“Stop touching me,” I snarled, refusing to give him the satisfaction of my fear.

“Wanna know why I'm so turned on? So excited?” He leaned down and bit my left nipple before rising to meet me eye to eye. “Because I get to kill someone today. You have no idea how intoxicating it is to kill a person.”

He had no idea how much I did know about it.

“Yep. I'm going to kill somebody, and his name is Vegas Duncan.” He started laughing.

“Fuck you. Vegas will wipe the floor with you, and then each and every one of us will give you such a beat down that you'll be begging to return to the safety of a prison cell.”

Instead of striking me, he began to sing like some kind of lunatic. “I'm going to kill a Duncan today. I'm going to kill a Duncan today, and nobody can stop me.”

“You are one sick dude,” I replied.

“Yes, I am.” He straddled me, still singing in my ear. “I'm going to kill Vegas. I'm going to kill Vegas today.”

“Get the fuck off of me!” I screamed as loud as I could, hoping someone would hear me. I wondered if any of these other Muslims would care enough to rescue me from this crazy asshole.

“But first I am going to fuck you good,” he continued, ignoring my struggle. “I bet you like it in the ass.” He yanked me from my seat, then leaned in and whispered to me, “Well, today is your lucky day.” His hot breath against my face made me want to vomit.

I felt such relief when he suddenly stepped back and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He had received a text. I wiped his saliva off my face as he read it.

“Well, well, well,” he said. “Your boy Elijah's on his way back, and he's brought us a present.”

The thought of Elijah being there soon was like a heavy weight being lifted from my shoulders. X led me to the door and opened it so I could see what Elijah had brought. A minute later, Elijah appeared.

“Vegas!” I gasped, relieved to see my cousin—until I realized that he was in handcuffs. I looked from him to Elijah, not understanding how Vegas could have possibly been captured.

He sensed my panic and said, “Don't worry about it, baby girl. It's going to be all right. Trust me.” I just didn't see how that would happen, and I started to say as much, but Vegas stopped me. “Just go with him and do as you're told. You'll be home in an hour.”

That's when the reality hit me so hard that I felt my knees nearly give out. He'd exchanged himself for me.

“No!” I screamed. This was not what I wanted, but all I could do was watch helplessly as Elijah brought Vegas close enough to make the exchange.

Elijah attempted to pull me away, but I resisted, kicking and squirming. “You bastard. I thought you were a good guy. I trusted you!”

“I'm gonna be all right, cuz.” Vegas was still attempting to reassure me. “Just go with him.”

“She's not going anywhere,” X sneered as he wrenched me away from a shocked Elijah.

“What are you doing? We agreed to an exchange, her for him.” Elijah attempted to pull me back.

“I changed my mind. I've decided to take this one as a second wife.” He leered at me, not bothering to disguise his lust.

“Let her go!” Vegas growled. God, I wished there was some way for him to get out of those handcuffs, because those assholes wouldn't stand a chance against my cousin.

“Xavier, I gave my word, and my word is my bond. Let her go!” Elijah's voice had a warning tone that I hadn't heard before. “I'm taking her home.”

“No, you're not taking her anywhere,” X growled at Elijah. He was clearly unaccustomed to having his orders questioned.

Brother X pushed Vegas into the room I'd just come from and shut the door, locking it from the outside. Then he turned to Elijah with anger in his eyes. “Have you forgotten who I am?”

“No, I think you've forgotten who you are. Now, I'm taking this girl.” Elijah reached for me—and X reached for his gun.

“You just had to challenge me, didn't you? You couldn't just follow orders.” He pointed the gun at me, but Elijah stepped in the way.

Xavier looked disgusted. “It was her, wasn't it?” he said. “It was her who changed you. You let this bitch come between us, Elijah.”

“I didn't let anyone come between us, Xavier. It was you who strayed from the teachings. You who got in bed with that Jew, Bernie Goldman.”

X pulled the trigger and shot Elijah three times in the chest. Elijah crumpled to the ground, staring at X in disbelief. I felt paralyzed as X shouted to his men. This dude was out of fuckin' control.

Three men ran into the room. When they caught sight of Elijah lying bloody on the floor, they looked even more upset than I felt.

“Unless you three want to be next, get him out of here. And put her in the other room. When I am done with Mr. Duncan, I will deal with her myself.”

The next thing I knew, they were pulling me away, leaving Elijah's body on the ground and Vegas alone to deal with X.

The second Brother X threw me into that room, I hit the floor and the door slammed behind me. I scrambled to my feet, which wasn't the easiest thing to do with my hands cuffed behind my back, and started kicking the door in frustration. At this point things were out of my control, and I could only pray that Brother Elijah was truly a man of his word and would get Sasha back home safely.

All faith went out the window a few moments later when I heard gunshots coming from the other side of the door and then I heard Brother X shouting orders.

“Fuck!” I cried out, stomping my foot. I leaned against a wall, slowly coming to terms with the reality that I'd probably lost my little cousin.

I took a deep breath, trying to get my shit together. If he killed Sasha, it was only a matter of time before he came for me.

As expected, the door opened a minute later, and X walked in, grinning. “Miss me, bitch?”

My first instinct was to rush at him, but I had to temper that and try to stick to the plan. “Did you kill my cousin, motherfucker?”

He laughed. “And what if I did?”

Wham!
He hit me, his fist landing against my face. I couldn't worry about Sasha right now. I had to deal with this asshole in front of me. “I can't wait to do this to your brother.”

“You wouldn't be doing this at all if I wasn't handcuffed,” I challenged, staring angrily at him like the piece of shit he was.

“Yes, I would. It wouldn't be as easy, but I've made it my mission in life to destroy punks like you. Even without you handcuffed, I would still be more than capable of kicking your ass. This way is just more fun.”

“No, fun is what my brother is doing to your wife. Did you know they're having a baby?” I knew my words would destroy him, so when the expression on his face darkened with rage, I knew I'd accomplished exactly what I needed to. Emotions made most people reactive and threw them off their game, and X was no different. I just had to keep pushing his buttons to distract him from what I was doing, all while making sure I didn't push so hard that he reached for his gun.

He swung his fist around, and it landed with force against my abdomen. I ain't gonna lie—that shit hurt like hell. I didn't plan on sitting here like his victim for long, though.

“You probably used to those pussies in prison you been fucking,” I taunted, knowing that my words were making him even more angry. “Makes sense that your wife would go after Junior. He's a real man's man. Not like you. You're like the ultimate girly-boy.”

He turned to me with eyes full of hostility. “She loved me!” he roared, and I swear the guy was close to tears. “Me and only me, until your brother came along with his swine-eating big promises. She was committed to me and to my movement.” He kicked forward, aiming for my dick, but I raised my leg in time to block the impact. “And all of you Duncans will die for his arrogance.”

My leg was throbbing, but I forced myself to stay standing. “I guess it's easy to be all brave when you got a man handcuffed and an entire army out there that can run in and help you.” I shook my head from side to side like I was expressing pity for his sorry state. This was all to distract him from my hands, which were working behind my back with the key.

The sound of automatic gunfire was like music to my ears.

“What the—?” He pushed me backward then went to investigate, reaching for his gun. He didn't like whatever he saw, because he slammed the door and locked it. “Time to die, Vegas.”

“I doubt that,” I said. I was now two feet behind him, and when he turned back toward me, I knocked the gun out of his hand, pummeling him. His expression of undisguised shock almost made me break out laughing, but I had work to do first.

I had to give him credit. This guy could take it as well as he dished it out. I had hit him with about fifteen punches and he was still standing.

“H–how the fuck did you get your handcuffs off?” he stuttered, backing away as he struggled to get his bearings. I showed him the key I'd used to free myself, hoping to throw him off.

“Elijah?” he said hoarsely. I could tell that the reality of this betrayal hurt him more than any of my punches had.

“I guess your men are only as loyal to you as you are to them. Or maybe it's because you're a real asshole. Your boy Elijah seemed to think so.”

“That's why I just killed him.” He rose up. Now that he had come to terms with my freedom, the fighter reemerged, ready to take me down.

I was not going to make it easy for him by any means. Whether he realized it or not, I wasn't just fighting for myself. I was taking him down for what he had done to my father, and what he kept threatening to do to the rest of my family.

X did a roundhouse kick and almost knocked me to the floor, but years of martial arts training had prepared me to respond with a back kick that made him drop with a thud. Like a jackrabbit, he jumped straight back up into a fighter's stance. The two of us were evenly matched and ready to do battle.

Unfortunately, X had other ideas that tipped the scale in his favor. He dove to the floor. It confused me for a second, until I saw that he was going after the gun he'd dropped. Now I was staring down the barrel as he aimed at my face.

Rio and I stepped off the elevator on the top floor of 26 Court Street in Brooklyn with a purpose. If ever there was a need for desperate measures to save one of our own, this was it—and I was throwing that Hail Mary pass right to Bernie Goldman. I'd called Bernie, asking him to meet with me right after the decision had been made that Vegas would be exchanged for Sasha. I just hoped this meeting would be in time to save my brother's life.

“Hold up,” Rio said, grabbing my wrist in order to stop me from knocking on the door. “You sure you want to do this, bruh?”

“I'm not sure about anything”—I looked down at my briefcase and squeezed the handle tightly—“I don't think I have a choice. Do you?”

Rio released my wrist, and I knocked on the door to Bernie's office.

I heard latches being moved, and then the door opened and we were greeted by one of Bernie's huge bodyguards. Another equally large and imposing guard was standing behind him in the distance. I had to give it to Bernie: He sure knew how to pick 'em. These dudes were bigger than Junior. One of them looked like he could be a relative of Andre the Giant.

“Orlando.” I heard Bernie's voice, but I couldn't see him with King Kong standing in the way.

I eyeballed the giant, and he stepped aside, allowing us to enter. I looked around the oversized suite, which had some very expensive-looking paintings on the walls. Bernie was sitting behind a huge, cluttered desk that only emphasized his diminutive stature. I heard the door close behind us. The jumbo-sized guard slid the locks back into position.

“Gentlemen, please sit,” Bernie said, nodding to two chairs in front of his desk.

“I'll stand, thank you. You go ahead and handle business.” Rio looked to Bernie. “By the way, I love how you decorated the place.” He picked up a vase from the table by the door and began to examine it, making it clear to everyone that he would rather be anywhere but at this meeting.

Bernie ignored Rio's dramatic show and spoke to me as I sat down. “Your call seemed rather urgent. How can I help you?” Bernie was always one to get straight to the point. He valued time as much as he did money. Truth is, I think he could sense some weakness on my part too.

“I—the Duncans need your help.”

“What do you need?” He opened his arms as if to say, “I'm here for you.”

“My cousin Sasha has been held captive by Brother X for almost two weeks. As we speak, my brother Vegas is in the process of exchanging himself for her. I need you to help insure that Vegas is not killed by X.”

Bernie sat back in his chair with a distinct lack of surprise in his expression, which led me to believe that he had already heard about Sasha's kidnapping. We had been trying to keep the details of our situation with Brother X under wraps, but from Bernie's lackluster reaction, it appeared that some of our associates had been talking about it amongst themselves. Just because they were talking about it, though, didn't mean they gave a shit about us or our problems—or at least Bernie didn't seem to.

“You're asking a lot, Orlando. At this point you're asking me to put my nose where it doesn't belong. To do something like that would take pulling a lot of strings and using up a lot of political clout.” This was exactly how I'd expected him to respond. Bernie didn't do anything unless there was something for him to gain. Well, I'd come prepared.

“I know that, Bernie, and that's why I'm willing to make it worth your while.” I reached down into my briefcase and pulled out a folder. Bernie and I made eye contact as I slid the folder to him. “To save my brother's life, I'm willing to give you this. Of course, there is the matter of the half billion dollars to be paid, but we can work that out.”

Snatching it up like a shark coming upon a school of fish, he opened the folder and his greedy eyes devoured the content. “Is this everything?” he asked me, not taking his eyes from the pages. “All that I need is right here?” This time he looked up at me. I imagine he wanted to gauge whether I was telling him the truth.

“Absolutely everything. Of course, I will have to sit down with your team of chemists and clarify a few details, but for the most part, that's all you need to make the miracle drug of the century.”

Convinced, a huge smile lit up his face. “Yes,” he hissed in victory, closing the folder and giving it two hard knocks. “I will go make a call.” He stood and extended his hand to shake mine.

I looked down at his hand then back up at him. “Like I said, everything you need is in that folder. However, you do realize H.E.A.T. causes liver cancer?”

“Everything causes cancer these days, young man. People have to learn to use moderation.” I gave him a disapproving look and he laughed. “I'm just kidding. Don't worry. We'll fix it. I have a team of scientists who can do just about anything.”

“Everything but create H.E.A.T. or duplicate it,” said Rio from across the room. Bernie looked over at Rio, who was still studying the décor as if he was trying to get decorating ideas. “This drug has been my brother's life work. What makes you think your people can do what he couldn't?”

“Fresh eyes,” Bernie answered.

Rio shook his head. “Fresh eyes my ass. You don't plan on changing that drug. And the truth is, I don't really care right now, as long as my brother Vegas gets to sleep in his own bed tonight, so stop talking and start calling.” He finally stopped looking around the room and turned to face Bernie, staring him down as he spoke. “And leave that file on your desk. This ain't a deal until my brother is home.” Rio's tone had a commanding bass to it that I'd never heard coming from him. I was shocked by it, and Bernie was visibly annoyed.

“Very well. I'll be right back.” Bernie placed the file on his desk then quickly glanced at his bodyguards before heading to a side room.

Rio didn't say anything while we waited for Bernie to come back, but the way he paced around the room I could tell he was agitated. He hadn't liked the idea of coming here to offer up the formula for H.E.A.T. in the first place, and was only doing it to save Vegas.

His phone chirped with a text just as Bernie came back into the room, all smiles.

Bernie picked up the folder from his desk. “It's all taken care of,” he said. “Your brother is being released as we speak.”

I looked over toward Rio, hoping that news would put a smile on his face, but he was busy typing a text, looking just as mad as before.

Bernie had walked over to the bar to prepare himself a drink. “Scotch?” he asked me, raising his own glass.

I shook my head to decline. I wasn't ready to celebrate yet. “What about the transfer?” I asked.

“Michael is going to take care of that right now.” Bernie took a quick sip of his Scotch then set down the glass so he could write something on a piece of paper. “Michael, take these instructions and make the money transfer for Mr. Duncan,” he said as he handed the paper to one of the guards.

Michael looked down to read the instructions then nodded his understanding to Bernie. He opened his jacket and started to reach for something, but then two shots rang out.

“What the hell—?” The blood drained from Bernie's face as he realized that both of his bodyguards were laid out on the floor.

I looked at Rio. A minute ago he was holding his phone, but now he had a gun in his hands, and he was aiming at Bernie.

“What is going on here?” Bernie asked in a shaky voice. “I said I would transfer the money within a few minutes. Hell, I'll do it now.” He made a move.

“Don't even think about it.” Rio stepped forward, pointing his gun directly at Bernie's face. I stared at my brother, unable to understand where this was coming from—especially since Rio was usually the least aggressive of all the Duncans.

Rio must have sensed my confusion, because as he kept his eyes on Bernie, he explained to me, “Those texts were from Paris. After we left the house, Elijah told them some shit you're not gonna believe. This motherfucker here has been playing us, O. He's been in cahoots with X from the beginning.”

Bernie began waving his hands in protest. “It's not like that!” he shouted, sounding scared.

I reached for my gun. Those bodyguards might have been big, but they sure were stupid, I thought thankfully. They hadn't even attempted to search me or Rio for weapons when we got there. Probably didn't think we were a threat. This was one time I was glad that someone had underestimated me. “Oh, no? Then exactly how is it, Bernie? Did you or did you not make a call to free my brother?” Bernie didn't answer. “Hell, you weren't even going to wire the money, were you?” I bent over and picked up the paper Bernie had handed to Michael, expecting to see nothing but scribbles on it. Instead, it was something much worse.

“What's it say?” Rio asked when he saw me shaking my head.

“It says
Kill them
,” I replied. “But thanks to you, that's not going to happen, little brother.”

“You fucked up, Bernie,” Rio said. “No offense.”

In spite of his fear, Bernie tried to play tough with us. “Do you know who you are messing with?”

“Yes, I do. I mean
we
do.” I looked to Rio, who cocked his weapon.

“Obviously you didn't know who you were dealing with,” Rio spat. “This is for LC Duncan.”

I got out of my chair and turned to my brother to ask the million-dollar question: “So, is Vegas still alive, or what?”