[Chresanto]
After Dahlia and I make it safely to my car and get in, I turn to face her.
"Are you sure you want to face him?" I question.
She begins to gnaw on her bottom lip, her signature trait that lets everyone around know she's contemplating an answer; I know she's in deep contemplation because she runs a hand through her curls and sighs before looking at me. "I'm sure."
"At least take me-"
"No," she interrupts. "If Zay knows I have backup, he won't release Chandler, and I can't have another dead body weighing down my conscious."
"No one blames you for that, Lia," I remind her for the umpteenth time, knowing all too well what she's talking about.
"Then explain to me why my three month old son was pronounced dead exactly one fucking month after Zay was released from prison, Chres!" she yells. "He killed him to keep me from being happy. He killed his own fucking son to make me go crawling back to him. Do you not understand that he doesn't have a problem blasting a hole through Chandler's skull, too!?"
"Lia, that's not going to happen," I assure her. "One, we will get Chan back; and, two, the only person getting a bullet blasted through their skull is going to be Isaiah."
"I can do this, Chres! I'm not fucking weak, so stop treating me like I am!" she snaps.
I don't say anything else after that. Instead, I start the car and begin the drive to my house. I take little glances at Dahlia every now and again just to make sure she's okay, but each time I do, she's blankly staring out the window. As I pull up to a stop sign, I think I see a tear fall from her eye, but I could be mistaken, so I say nothing about it.
Once I pull up to my gate, I put in the four digit password to open my gates and drive through, opening the garage and pulling in.
"Santo?" Dahlia questions, and I turn my body in her direction. "Can you keep this between us and not tell Alyssa?" I wasn't going to tell her that Alyssa already knew more than necessary.
"What am I supposed to tell her when you and Shiloh take her back to Ace?" I question, raising an eyebrow.
"Come up with something creative? Please," she practically begs, her voice cracking.
I sigh before nodding and getting out of the car, Dahlia following behind me with her bags. Once we enter the house, I notice that the pantry door is open, and I can see what looks like the hem of one of my shirts.
I walk over to the pantry and stand behind Alyssa, watching as she struggles to grab the box of granola bars I keep.
"Do you need help?" I question; she jumps then turns around and nods. I grab the box and hold it out to her.
She smiles then takes a granola bar out and closes the box; I take it from her and put it back where it belongs. "Thanks. Who got kidnapped?"
"The neighbor's dog," I lie. "Lia was dog sitting, but I honestly think the dog just ran off."
Alyssa shrugs her shoulders and begins to eat on her granola bar. "Not to be rude, but why is she staying here then?" Yeah, she knows something is up, so I might as well tell her the truth.
Before I can say anything, Dahlia walks into the kitchen. "I'm staying here because I don't want to be around Chandler at the moment."
"What'd he do?" Alyssa inquires.
"I don't want to talk about it," Dahlia answers. "I'm sorry I interrupted you guys' afternoon."
"No apology needed," I counter. "I'm going to make a quick phone call, but I'll be back." I walk up the stairs and stop at one of the closed doors that I always keep locked; I grab the key from the top of the doorframe and unlock the door, walking in. I make sure to lock the door behind me.
The room is my safe room, but it doubles over as an office; it's also soundproof to anyone on the outside. I pick up the black phone on my desk and dial Shiloh's number, waiting patiently for him to answer; I only use this phone for important business, and yes, it has a different number.
"Wassup, boss?" he questions.
"We have a problem." I don't like to beat around the bush, so I'm not going to sugarcoat anything that comes out of my mouth next. "Chandler has been kidnapped."
"By who!?" Shiloh shouts into the receiver. "Was it that fuck nigga Isaiah?!"
"Yes."
"Oh, hell no! Baby, load my gun with-"
I interrupt him. "Shiloh, Lia wans to do this alone. That's the real problem."
"Like hell she does! She not finna go no muthafuckin' where without me or you as backup, Chres. That nigga ain't what she used to dealin' with, and I'm not gone let my lil sister-in-law put herself in danger like that," he argues.
"Neither am I, which is why I plan to find out where Isaiah is keeping Chandler and get him back." I rub my goatee and stare out the floor-to-ceiling window into my back yard; to the outside world, it looks like a big wall of glass, but it's really a window.
"How you gone do that, though?" he questions, a door shutting in the background.
"I know how to work this business, too, Shi. I'm not the boss for nothing," I remind him.
"Speaking of bosses and all that good stuff, I got more on Ace." A sinister smile spreads across my face as he continues. "I think I found one of the girls who could possibly be Keeleigh, but I'm not entirely sure. She fits the description you gave me, but she doesn't look the age."
"Well, then, that can't be her," I retort, then add, "and if you dare say I should ask Alyssa which one is Keeleigh, I will make it a mission to drive to your house and slap the everlasting shit out of you."
"Well, damn, boss. I won't say it," he rebuttals.
"Good," I bite out. "Until we get this whole Chandler situation under control, I'ma need you to take Alyssa back with Lia."
"Got it," he answers. "I can't believe the nigga really kidnapped my brother, though. He too much of a pussy to face Dahlia himself?" He kisses his teeth before answering his own question. "Of course not."
[Alyssa]
Dahlia and I are currently sitting in my room, talking more in depth about the night before while snacking on some popcorn glazed with caramel; Dahlia calls it her comfort food, which leads me to believe that Chresanto's statement about the neighbor's dog being abducted is false. Of course, I'm not going to press the issue any further, if thy want me to know what's going on, they'll tell me.
"So, wait, you drank for the first time last night?" Dahlia quizzes, flabbergasted.
I toss a piece of the caramel snack into my mouth and nod. "At first, everything was blurry but once it got clear, I was okay... and giggling."
Dahlia places a comforting hand on my knee. "Oh, sweetheart, just wait until you're able to walk a straight line drunk."
"You can do that?" She nods, a smile of satisfaction plastered on her face. "How is that even possible?"
"When you drink for as long as I have, you'll know," she replies. "I only drink when I'm stressed or anxious, though, and I only drink wine."
"I don't know if champagne counts as wine, but it's good," I smile. Dahlia laughs and tosses a piece of popcorn in her mouth. I look over to the closed door and lean in to Dahlia before whispering, "You don't think I'm really pregnant, do you?"
A look of hurt washes over her face before being replaced by the usual smile she has as she whispers back, "If he didn't use protection, then there's a possibility, but I have a ton of pregnancy tests at the house if you're willing to take one in two weeks."
In two weeks, it won't matter if I am... especially if Ace finds out, I think to myself as I look down and begin to play with my fingers. For my sake, and possibly the baby's, I hope I'm not.
- - - - - - -
ik this update is hella late, and I apologize. between writer's block & practically slicing my finger open, I just couldn't find the encouragement needed to write, but with my notifications being blown up with votes, comments, followers, etc. I was encouraged. thank you all
the search for Keeleigh is still on, I haven't forgotten about that, but now the search for Chandler is on, too.
° do you think Shiloh & Chresanto are going to respect Dahlia's wishes and let her go alone?
• what do you think is going to happen once they do find Chandler and his kidnapper?
° is Alyssa pregnant? if so, what do you predict is gonna happen once/if Ace finds out? (yes, I like seeing your predictions bc believe it or not, some of your comments help me thru my stages of writer's block)
leave your comments, suggestions, etc. in the comment below & don't forget to vote, follow, and check out my other stories and be on the lookout for another update bc one is coming your way soon!
xoxo, Mo.