Niamh got dressed as fast as she could. There was something that she needed to do before Jakobe came looking for her. Glancing over her shoulder, she walked out onto her balcony, and closed the door before she dialed the number. She had been waiting for the right time to place the call. She had been given the number days ago, but now, she was happy that she had resisted the urge to call the person that picked up on the other line. It made the call much sweeter this way.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Lass.”
Niamh knew that that was all it took for the person to know who she was.
“I’m surprised you had time to call me with all the bullets flying at your head.”
“I’ll pretend that the reason that you know what’s going on is that word travels fast,” grunted Niamh.
“Bitch, my life is much too fabulous to worry about your pale ass. What do you want?”
“I’m just calling you to give you the courtesy that you didn’t show me years ago, when you were fucking my husband, to let you know that your daughter is here with me.”
Ah, there it was. The shocked silence that Niamh had imagined all of those days since finding out who Jakobe was involved with. Her two-faced, ex-friend was fucking speechless. She could hear the cracking of emotion in the woman’s voice when she spoke.
“Laila is there? How? Is she alright? Put her on the phone.”
“Hold up, sister. You need to call her yourself. I’m just letting you know that she’s here. That’s all.”
“Why the fuck is she there?”
“Because she came with my son, Jakobe. It seems they’ve been dating for some time, and from the looks of things, it’s real serious. I thought you would be happy.”
“Don’t play with me, bitch. I don’t care what you need to do, but I want my daughter out of there before—”
“Before what?” snapped Niamh. “What do you know, Latecia? Don’t tell me you’re still letting other men dip their dicks into that crater that you call a pussy. I would have thought you would be smarter than that. Your husband don’t play those games.”
“Fuck you, bitch. You don’t want me to come after your ass.”
Niamh laughed. “You almost had me fooled that you were someone I should be afraid of. I’ve graduated from the ranks of fucking my way into money, unlike you. No. Lass. I make money. Like I said, I was just calling out of courtesy. I mean, if you hadn’t done what you had, Jakobe and I wouldn't be where we are today. Although that little plan of yours didn’t turn out as you had hoped, it did work out for us. So, think of it as me returning the favor. Oh, and we’ll see to your little girl and my future grandbaby.”
Niamh had to hold the phone away from her ears at the loud coughing sounds that Latecia began to make due to the shock of that discovery.
“No.” Latecia gasped. “Lies! Laila can’t have any—”
“There you go again, ignoring our potential. She was fucking my boy, Lass. You should know by now that we will defy all the odds.”
“Please, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything. You have to—”
Niamh disconnected the phone call. She had accomplished what she wanted to do and a lot more. Not only did she stick it to the bitch that had been the cause of all her troubles and the broken nose and ribs, all those years ago, but she also got the insight on who was behind the attacks. Of course, she needed to make sure. She still held on to the hope that she was wrong. In fact, she prayed to God Almighty that she was wrong because if she wasn’t, she knew she might not make it out alive. If it cost her her life, she was going to keep Jakobe safe.
Shaking herself, she placed her cell into her back pocket.
“All roads will lead you back home.” She smiled.
“Are you going to tell me what you know?”
Jakobe turned, in the driver’s seat, to stare at his mother. The others that had met them outside, under the hot LA sun, might not have picked up on the change in her, but she wasn’t able to hide behind a blinding smile. There was something that was weighing heavily on her. It didn’t take her head being buried in her cell phone as she texted while they made their way in the Dodge Charger, through the morning traffic, to clue him in. Although he was sure she would try to shrug his question away, he had to ask. Even though he was in his thirties, in her eyes, she still saw him as her little boy. He rolled his blue orbs at the fake smile she gave him when she glanced up from her cell. He wished she hadn’t installed a dark, privacy screen on the cell. At the angle that he was sitting, he would have had no problem reading her text messages without the damned thing.
“I know the same thing you do. Isn’t that why we’re going over to the asshole’s club—to get the rest out of him?”
“Hum.” Jakobe frowned as he peeked up at the traffic light. “I think you want to go to that damned place. I’m happy with skipping it, and you telling me what you know.”
“Why do you claim I know something?”
He waved his hand in the air before he took off from the light. “You can act stupid if you want to, but if it has anything to do with Nakida, I’ll be after your ass, Ma.”
“Deal.” Niamh smirked. She bit her lip at the, I knew it, look that he shot her after she let it slip that she was holding back on him. Her mind worked like quicksilver, to distract him, before he went back to pressuring her to tell him what she thought was really going on. With a shrug, she decided to sacrifice herself in a much lesser way. She was determined to keep tight-lipped until she was sure.
“I called her mother.”
Her blue eyes fastened on Kobe’s white, knuckled fist as his grip tightened on the leather stirring wheel.
“Why the hell did you do that?” he asked with a growl.
“‘Cause I’m petty. You know that.”
“You mean you were being a bitch,” he spat.
“What’s in a label? Anyway, I can say, now, that I can put that to rest,” she promised.
“You better have.”
“What have you told her?”
“Nothing. She and I have nothing to do with the past. It fucked up our friendship as kids, and I’ll be damned if that old shit fucks me now. I will not hesitate to make her mother disappear,” he warned.
He watched a cold smirk form on his mother’s lips. It was no secret that she hated that woman. In fact, the way things had played out made it bittersweet. If he didn’t know better, he would have thought that she had planned it all to happen this way. He had always had an unexplainable attraction for Nakida that, obviously, didn’t go away as an adult. He narrowed his eyes while the thought took root. Pulling into the parking lot, he could see that his men had already gone inside to announce his impending visit.
“Ma,” he spoke in a deep voice.
He kept his gaze hidden while he tugged on his leather gloves. Despite that fact, Niamh could almost feel the chill in his tone. It caused her hand to freeze on the latch of the door.
“Yes?”
“Were you just as surprised as I was to find out Nakida’s identity?”
She turned away from the door to give him her full attention.
“Explain.”
“Did you know before I approached her? I know you and Major—”
She tossed back her head in laughter. She reached over to tug at his chiseled cheeks.
“You must really think I’m the shit. No,” she said, seriously. “I haven’t seen her in years, and never as a woman, until now. I stay out of his business. Now, he hinted off that you were fucking a lass from his office, but I didn’t care to know who she was until he said you were getting in too deep… Pun intended.” She winked.
Jakobe chuckled and kissed her on the forehead. Getting out, he leaned down to glare at his mother, who was still sitting in the car.
“Do I need to carry you?”
“No, I’ll come in a few seconds after you. You know I enjoy that scared look on their faces when they see that it’s both of us coming to visit.” She laughed.
“You enjoy this shit too much, but try not to kill anybody,” he pleaded.
“I thought that’s why we brought the others—to clean up my mess when I’m done,” she said with a growl.
For the first time, Jakobe saw the anger that his mother had been hiding so well. She was going to make this fucker pay for coming after him. She was going to send a message to let everyone know why she was referred to as The Banshee, and why they all feared him, The Reaper. Without a word, he reached into his pocket. He tossed her a small, velvet pouch. He chuckled at the silly, toothy grin she had when she glanced inside.
She immediately began to cry. “I thought I lost these,” she said.
“I picked them up from the last time you used them. I even cleaned all of the blood off and polished them for you,” he pointed out before he shut the car door to walk inside the club.
He couldn’t help but shake his head. The dumb fucker that owned the club had been crazy enough to think that he would have been better off moving against him instead of disobeying an order that had been given by someone. His steady whistling echoed off the walls of the dark hallway as he walked deeper into the building. With every step, he fought back the urge to pull out his gun and pistol-whip the damn man. Nakida—shit, even the baby—could have died. The thought of her going through another miscarriage because of him caused him to stumble in his steps. He tilted his head.
Maybe I’ll kill the fool, after all, he considered.
The man stood so fast that the chair that he had been shaking in fell back onto the floor.
“No, no, no!” he whispered at the people that had crowded the room.
When the sound of the club doors being broken into reached his and the other’s, ears, he had almost pissed his pants. Now, with the sound of the blasting whistling vibrating off the walls within the still area, he was sure to piss and shit himself. His brown eyes settled on the six men that had entered the club before they moved to the four people that belonged to him. He danced on his sneakered feet while he did his best to remember what he had been told—or more like warned—to say and do. He was good at playing the fool, so he had that part down, but for some reason, he felt like it wasn’t going to do him any good.
His eyes bulged from his head, at the sight of Jakobe. The man seemed to be birthed out of the shadows of the dark hallway behind him. His gaze went to the leather gloves on the man’s hands.
Why he got those on? the voice in his mind questioned.
It was chilly, but it wasn’t freezing.
Clearing his throat, he shouted, “K-dog! How’s it going?” as he closed the distance to shake his hand.
“Good! When are you going to tone down that fire bush?” Jakobe joked, causing everyone to laugh.
He watched the scared man before him sigh while he ran his head through his red locs.
“And be walking around like a fuckin’ fag.” The man scoffed.
“Oh, come on. We all know you like it in the arse. Shit, you be dripping ass juice for days.” Jakobe laughed, tapping the man on the shoulder.
His gaze followed the man’s gaze to the woman standing by the bar. He could tell that the asshole didn’t like his line of teasing. By the way that the full-figured woman was throwing shade at him, she didn’t like the laughing that was going on either. He draped his arm over the man’s shoulders, forcing him to walk with him until the man froze. He felt the red head go weak at the knees at the sound of the voice behind them.
“Why you want to clown him like that in front of his woman?”
Colm’s body shook under the weight of Jakobe’s muscular arm. He gripped his neck due to the sharp pain that snapping his head around had caused. They always say that death rang three times, but with Jakobe and his Ma, it rang only twice. He stepped back, sliding out of Jakobe’s embrace.
“Your fuckin’ ma. She’s here, too,” he whined. “I… Oh, God,” he began before he bit down on his trembling fist to stop his cries.
Kobe glanced over his shoulder, wide-eyed as if he didn’t know the reason why the man had become as pale as a sheet. He rolled his eyes at the wicked gleam in his mother’s eyes. She was eating this shit up.
“Yeah, she wanted a drink. Is there a problem?” questioned Jakobe.
She frowned. “Hell, I was the one defending you, boy.” She examined the woman that was standing by the bar with a confused look on her face. “Is this sweet lass yours?” At Colm’s jerky nod, she continued. “Shit, you better marry her and plant a wee baby in those fertile hips.”
“See, that’s the same thing I’ve been telling him, but he keeps—”
“Shut the fuck up,” Colm spat in the woman’s direction.
No one moved; the sound of Colm’s labored breathing was the only proof of life. The entire mood had shifted in the club from awkward to alert. He could see that his idea of playing dumb was a no go. He was sweating too much to be innocent.
Jakobe sighed. “I don’t give a damn what you do behind closed doors. If your girl is down with you talking to her like that, then that’s her stupid ass, but in front of me and out of respect of my ma, I won’t allow that,” he explained. Not giving Colm a chance to respond, he added, “Where’s the rest of your crew?” he asked, finally getting down to business.
“We had a rough night. Many of them left right after we closed.”
He knows I’m lying. Look at the way he’s looking at me. I’m fucked. Why the hell did I let—
“Is that a fact? Tell you what… Can you make drinks?” Jakobe paused to ask Colm’s girlfriend. “Good! Can you please make one for my ma, then bring us a couple in the office?”
Kobe made a big show of taking off his black, leather jacket to show that he wasn’t packing any heat. He immediately saw Colm’s few men in the club physically relax, while Colm danced on his feet. He wasn’t a damn fool. He knew that Jakobe didn’t need a gun to kill him.
By the time they’d reached the back office, Colm had collected himself to a degree where he was sure he wasn’t going to lose control of his bowels. He was even able to crack a witty joke that made Jakobe spit with laughter. Unfortunately, the vibe changed in a heartbeat. In a flash, the sparkle that was in Kobe’s blue eyes had vanished. His jaw became hardened, and the vein in his forehead began to throb.
“I’m really happy for you, Colm. You know, I found myself a special lady.”
“Really,” the man said. Even to his own ears, Colm’s voice was dry and high.
“Yeah. Shit, I should be winded from all the chasing I had to do to get her to let me into her circle, but it was worth it.” Kobe smiled, making his handsome face brighten. “I love that woman,” he mumbled as he lowered his gaze to focus on some lint that was on his dark denim jeans.
“I hope to get an invite to the wedding.” Colm chuckled.
“I will.” Jakobe nodded. “If you’re still alive,” he added as he raised his gaze to stare across the desk at Colm.
Jakobe was in no mood to laugh at the way Colm’s mouth had fallen unhinged to form a gaping whole. He tilted his head at the loud music that invaded the room when the door opened. He shook his head at the sounds of Led Zeppelin. His mom was in full swing.
“Your mother is a trip.” Colm’s girlfriend chuckled, entering the room and closing the door.
“She’s many things,” Kobe grumbled with a deep eye roll. He picked up his drink from the tray that she held before him.
“You didn’t look like the fruity type, so straight scotch.”
“Thank you.” He nodded.
“Just leave the drinks,” ordered Colm. At the mean expression that Kobe shot him, he added a forced, “Please.”
“Please, have a seat,” offered Kobe as he gestured to the chair next to him. He waited until she settled in before he spoke.
“Maybe you can get your boyfriend to tell me what I want to know.”
The woman’s eyes darted back and forth between the two men. If she had held the hope that Colm was in control of the situation, the cold expression on the handsome man’s face clued her in on otherwise.
“I’ll be no help to you, sir. He doesn’t listen to me,” she stuttered, getting to her feet.
Jakobe’s hand seized her by the wrist to force her back to her seat. The silence stretched out as he sipped his drink.
“Let me tell you how I know you’re spoofing to me. You see, while that woman—the one I told you about that I’m in love with. While we were dodging bullets to get away, I noticed somebody. You would think that with so much going on, I would have been too fuckin’ busy to make out a face. But my girl; she’s one hell of a shooter, so she took some of the pressure off which is why I noticed him. It was your little cousin that got a face like a wrinkled barase. I had to do a double-take, but yeah, it was that soft motherfucker.”
“Bullshit.” Colm scoffed. If that was all that Kobe was going on, then he was safe.
Jakobe’s eyebrow shot up. “Then call him,” he demanded.
“I ain’t calling him to have to listen to him and his damn ma for calling him over some rumor. I told you it wasn’t him,” responded Colm. He prided himself at the confident way that he spoke when he knew that his cousin was bleeding out somewhere on one of his boy’s floors. He made a mental note to put the word out on the street that he had sent his cousin on a job, for a few days, to explain why he was missing. He continued to stare unblinkingly under Jakobe’s glare. He almost let out a sigh of relief when Kobe shrugged his shoulder before he drained his glass.
Jakobe shook his head. “Whoever you’re covering for must have scared you shitless, for you to sit there, and not only lie to me but have you to send your boys over to try to kill me.
Getting to his feet, Jakobe brought the glass down hard on the glass table top. “I might have gone easy on you, but now, when I come back your way, I’m going to fuck you up,” he said with a growl before he walked toward the door.
Colm ran after him with his girlfriend in step.
“Jakobe, I promise on my ma’s life! I—”
Jakobe paused to glance over his shoulder. “We both know you can’t stand her delph, Mr. Ed looking ass.” He frowned. “No, when I get you, I’m coming for something you hold dear,” he stated, slowly. His gaze landed on the frightened woman standing behind Colm.
Jakobe began to laugh when she took a step back. “Not you,” he whispered with a wink.
This time, it was Colm that took a step back when Jakobe’s meaning hit home. Confused, the girl watched as her man took off running down the narrow hallway towards the inner club. Quietly, Jakobe fell into step behind her.
“What the fuck is this?” shouted the woman at the sight before her.
Kobe leaned against the wall as he shook his head in pity. He tilted his head as he took in the comical antics of Colm at the sight of his lover tied to the metal chair while his mother danced behind the gagged individual. He chuckled under his breath as she began to twerk to the rock and roll beat that was coming through the large, woofer speakers that lined the walls of the club.
“Woo, I gotta pace myself,” she panted as she came to a stop. She waved her hand, and the man in the DJ booth turned it down. “This!” She pointed. “Is what’s going to make him tell us what we came here to find out,” Niamh explained, tapping the scared person on the shoulder.
“You’re fucking kidding me. This is a goddamn joke, right?” the young woman questioned.
Her eyes darted to everyone in the room. When no one spoke up, she ran over to Colm to tug on his shoulder. Frustrated, he jerked out of her hold. He refused to give her any attention. His tear-filled, green eyes were trained on the person that was silently crying out to be recused from the fate that was soon to come. With a shout, Colm ran forward to be the knight in shining armor. He didn’t get very far before one of Jakobe’s men shoved him to the ground.
“I must admit, you got a real good eye.” Niamh smirked as she glanced down at her prisoner.
She knew that she was going to have to remove the tape, in a few seconds, to keep the man from choking on the massive amount of spit that he was creating, due to his fear. She wasn’t joking about the good looks of the man, either. His shirt bulged under the flexing of his massive muscles. She almost felt bad about marking up his blemish-free face. She was sure he took great pride and had worked overtime to keep his closely chopped beard looking just right. With a shrug, she swayed her hips while she danced in front of the man.
“It sucks. Not him. Shit, we all know he sucks.” She laughed.
The men busted out in laughter at her joke.
“But really, baby. Nowadays, you have to be careful about those ‘down-low’ men. Now you know why Colm treated you like shit. It was because he was fucking the DJ,” Niamh explained.
“Is this true?” the girl shouted although, from the way that he was groveling on the ground as he pleaded for his lover to be released, she knew that it was.
Kobe shook his head at the man that had attempted to block the kick she delivered to Colm’s ribs. She was on it from being in a chokehold by the man. He watched her closely while he strolled over to a nearby table to sit down.
“Hold up,” he shouted, at last. He didn’t mind her getting a few shots in, but he couldn’t have her stomping the man into a coma before he told them what they needed to hear.
“You’re more than welcome to stay, but that’s enough,” he mumbled.
The girl danced on her feet before she turned and walked out of the club, leaving a stream of curses in her wake.
“Get up,” Niamh grunted, no longer amused.
She stared at Colm with her cold gaze as he crawled on all fours to take the seat at the table in front of her; his lover, next to Jakobe.
“Please, don’t do this to him. I... I’ll tell you. It was—”
“Shut the fuck up. Close your goddamn mouth,” thundered Jakobe. For the first time, he let the extent of his anger come to the surface. He leaned over to bore into Colm’s wide eyes. The lack of emotion in Kobe’s blue orbs sent a chill down Colm’s spine.
“You remember when I warned you to talk, but for some reason, you thought you had the upper hand? It amazes me that whoever told you to fuck with me had you believing that I was going to let this shit go. You’re a fuckin’ fool,” he finished in awe. “Shit, I can’t disappoint my ma. She’s ready to put on a show.” He nodded, and a cold smile pulled onto his handsome mouth.
Colm turned his shaking head to regard the woman. He swallowed hard at the sight of her twirling a small, black, velvet pouch in her hand. From the twisted expression on her face, he knew it held something horrifying inside. He swallowed hard when her hand disappeared into the bag’s gaping hole to produce two sets of golden brass knuckles. He sighed in relief, but he realized that it was short-lived. Both his and his lover’s eyes widened when they got a clear look at the second set of brass knuckles. Unlike the other—more traditional—weapon, the second had spikes attached to them.
“Shit, no. Please. I’m sorry. Have mercy. Don’t—”
“Oh, this is mercy, Colm. Believe me, if my lady would have been hurt behind this shit, my ma and I would be gutting your fuck boy before I impaled you with whatever I could find,” he said with a growl.
Slipping on the traditional set, she ripped the tape from the man’s mouth. Right on cue, the man in the DJ booth turned the music up to mask the loud screams.
“Not that music, please,” grumbled Jakobe with a deep frown.
“Why? You all like my music, right?” questioned Niamh. “Fuck all of you!” She laughed at the overwhelming no’s and hell no’s that echoed throughout the room.
“Fine…” she paused in thought. “Heart,” she suggested.
“Deal,” replied Kobe with a wave of his hand.
The hard guitar riffs of “Barracuda” vibrated throughout the open space. Getting into position, Niamh brought her hands down hard. She hadn’t taken six years of kickboxing for nothing. She could fuck a person up. The abuse in her life had given her the reason to train her body to take a hit and not fall on her ass. She was like a freight train that just kept coming until she was the last one standing. People in their circle had come to know that, if you flipped her switch, you better be ready to fight for your life or have a gun to put her crazy ass down. In just the few perfectly placed hits that she had delivered to his face, she had broken his nose, cracked his eye socket, and she was sure that if she kept hitting the sweet spot on the corner of his face, she was going to break his jaw.
“If I knock out his front teeth, it will make sucking your dick easier,” she teased.
She glanced over her shoulder in Colm’s direction and sighed.
“What’s this?” Jakobe smirked.
“I’m a sucker for love.” She winked.
He shook his head when she ripped open the man’s bloody shirt and started to punch him in the chest and side. He tapped Colm on the arm.
“See what she’s doing? She going to break a few of his ribs instead of crushing your boy’s face,” he explained.
Colm’s entire body shook with sadness. He covered his ears with his hands, but the cries of the man that he had been secretly in love with for years still managed to reach him. It had taken everything within him to finally get the courage to reveal his true feelings to his friend that had become his lover over a year ago. Since that time, his life had been perfect. The fact that they had to hide their love was no worry to either of them. Just finally having each other was more than enough for them. Now, what would happen to their love affair? He was sure that all of his men that were watching the beat down with disdain would be giving a full account as to what had gone down. He wasn’t surprised that they hadn’t made a move to put a stop to the attack. Many of them had spoken against hitting Jakobe, and many of them hated Rico, too. He was sure that his closeness to Rico all made sense to them now, although it was always rumored that he was gay.
He reached out a timid hand to touch Jakobe, only to snatch it away at the look Kobe gave him.
“How much longer? Please, I…” His words trailed off.
“Ma.” Jakobe sighed.
Niamh straightened up. She walked over and took a seat in the chair at the table. She took note of the man’s eyes that stared at her bloody, brass knuckles and leather gloves.
Colm leaned forward. His eyes darted back to Rico, who was now slumped over in the chair. He was sure that the ripped flesh on his chest, from the spikes of the brass knuckles, were going to leave marks after the stitches were removed.
“It was your ex,” he whispered, at last.
“A woman ordered a—” Jakobe started doubtfully.
“No!” yelled Colm. He took a second to get his breathing under control. “You’re ex-husband…” He pointed at Niamh. “… and your dad; he was the one that made me do it. I swear on a stack of bibles that I didn’t want to. But my ma; he had been meeting with her. Shit, I don’t even think my dad even knew what she was up to, but for some reason, she can’t stand you two, so she forced me, well, us to—”
“I don’t give two shits about your family dynamics,” Jakobe said with a growl. “Are you sure it was him?”
“I ain’t gonna lie. I saw him. I heard him. He said he was going to teach you fuckers a lesson in obedience. I know he’s crazy. I was small, but I found out from Uncle Ale what really happened, but some people… Some people still treat him like he’s Jesus walking. Listen,” he begged, shifting in his chair. “I know I’m dead, but... but can you—”
“Shut up,” snapped Jakobe. He ran his hands through his hair. “You pissed me off, but you aren’t going to die.”
“You might not, but my family will. As soon as you guys walk out of here, I’m sure one of my men is going to shoot me like a fuckin’ dog in the streets. Just don’t let them kill Rico,” he pleaded as fresh tears streamed down his eyes.
Jakobe froze. “We’ve known each other from the crib, Colm. I don’t care who you love. I’m here because you overstepped. I also know you’re a weak punk that does what he has to do because of your family. I know you. I’m fucking mad, but I’m not cruel. My rage hasn’t gotten to that level yet, thank God. Ma and I got you. And him,” he added as an afterthought.
Colm’s body went limp as he collapsed to the floor. Liquid escaped from the man’s bottom to create a puddle around him as he pissed himself, out of relief. Jakobe had acknowledged the stone look on his Ma’s face before he called his men over to instruct them on where to take Colm and his battered boyfriend. Even though she was quiet, he knew her mind was working like quicksilver. He also knew that she might look unfazed by the revelation they had been given, but he knew there was still a gut-wrenching fear that was just below the surface. What she didn’t know was that he had been watching the bastard the entire time, and this time, it was going to be him that handled things. When he was done with his father, there wasn’t going to be a piece left of the motherfucker to be identified.