His Emancipator🖤 [His Duet #1]

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

"None of that happened. Let's not dwell on the what ifs but rather on the what now?"

Darelle drags in a slow breath. "Sometime soon you'll have to realize some people would mind losing you. And fuck if I don't top that list."

"Careful, saying such words to a woman who's not your soon to be fiancée might be considered pernicious. You know what they say about a woman scorned." I say in a bid to ease the mood.

"My what?" He asks genuinely surprised.

"I read it somewhere." I say sheepishly.

"You know better than to believe the tabloids, Zuri."

"Right." I can't help but feel reassured. And yeah I know it's wrong but in a war between the brain and the heart, the heart always wins. Sue me.

After typing in his password, he passes the phone back to me. I don't know what I was expecting to see but it definitely wasn't what I'm looking at. Texts and Emails from the same party. One that I never could've suspected.

"Taking down the Mayor is not gonna be an easy task." I comment.

Darelle doesn't seem shocked that I figured it out because everything kinda falls into place when every threat he's sent has a 'leaving my daughter' in it.

I download the pictures attached to the unknown emails. The first one is of an older woman and a teenager leaving the grocery. The second is of the teenager alighting from the school bus and at the mall with her friends. And also one of the woman leaving what I can only assume is her place of work.

But there's something about the woman I can't quite shake off. I've seen the younger version of this face somewhere. The outline of her eyes, face and just the way she's...her.

"This is your mom?"

"Yes." Darelle answers. "Why?"

"Has your mom ever mentioned a Celine Faye?"

"Yeah a lot actually. But I think she died because when we'd just moved back-" Darelle stops mid-sentence when realization dawns on his face. "Your mom?"

"Was your mom's high school best friend. Well, best friend before yours moved away." I piece the details together. Now that I think about it, the insatiable pull to help Darelle must've come from her. I don't know, maybe I'm being delusional but I know she would've wanted me to help him.

"Wow." Is all he manages to say.

"Tell that to fate." I chuckle awkwardly.

He sighs happily. "It's not the worst thing after all."

I get back to reading the texts. Most of which are Crapper threatening to harm his family should Darelle talk or leave Madison. For what reason is exactly what I'm yet to figure out.

I'm inclined to ask. "Are things with Madison okay?"

He crosses his arms over his chest in a defensive manner. "Of course they are. Why wouldn't they be?"

"What is this he's warning you not to talk about?" I reroute the conversation, hoping he can at least answer that.

"I don't want talk about it." He says pointblank. But not before I catch the slight sadness on his face before he swiftly masks it behind the calm demeanor. Damn he's good.

"You know you have to help me help you." I try to persuade.

"Zuri," This is not the time to be getting jitters from him calling my name but leave it to my body to have a mind of its own. "Let's just focus on getting the irrefutable evidence." He urges, his face now blank. I guess that's the end of that conversation.

I want to ask him so many things but I refrain. He might insist that his relationship with Madison is okay but even a blind person would sense that it is in fact in shambles.

"You're overthinking. It's not good for your cute face, Princess." He lifts his finger to rub my cheek gently. And then like he knows what he's doing, he drops his hand, a playful smile stretching on his lips.

"Anyway, thank you for doing this Zuri. I owe you a lot." He gets on his feet. "It's getting late though; I have to go now." And just like that he's gone, leaving me hot and bothered

Someone call the fire department.

A/N

Hey guys❤

Happy new year🎉 hope 2023 treats you better

My new year gift from me to you is KIRA WILL HAVE HER OWN BOOK!!

Thanks Gia_PJ for pioneering for that.

Also did you guess that the mayor was the one sending the texts?