Most Wanted (7 page)

I
walked downstairs with the bag of money clutched tightly in my hand. This was supposed to be a foolproof plan. We’d get as much money from Sidney as possible to get the Africans off our backs; then Warren would leave me the fuck alone forever. I could only pray it would go that smoothly.

“Ricco, I need a ride to the lot,” I told Sidney’s bodyguard who’d been outside of my house. He eyed me up and down, his eyes finally landing on the duffel bag. I shot him a look that said, “Don’t even fucking ask.” We rode in silence all the way there. I knew we had a tail and I think Ricco knew too.

When Ricco and I arrived at the dealership, I turned to him and told him, “Sidney said you can leave without coming inside.” Ricco had that same suspicious look on his face. I guess that’s what made him a good bodyguard, but I wasn’t up for that shit today. Whether it was guilt written all over me or not, I didn’t feel like having his beady-ass disapproving eye on me.

“Mrs. Costner, are you sure everything is all right?” Ricco asked. I was taken aback by his question. Couldn’t believe he had the balls to come out with it.

“Everything is fine. I told you this already,” I snapped at him. “Oh, and I won’t tell Sidney anything about you leaving me to go get food earlier if you don’t,” I followed up. I knew that would chill him and make him back off. Ricco knew he wasn’t supposed to leave me under any circumstances. I was sure he didn’t want Sidney to know that shit. Ricco nodded. Of course, he called Sidney to verify that he was no longer needed before he pulled away from the dealership. Yes, he was that loyal.

I rushed inside where I found Sidney in the entire place alone. He was in his office pacing like a mad man. He wore the pain and stress on his face like a mask. I tried my best to look just as stressed so he would think I was feeling his pain. He turned around and stopped for a minute when I walked in. His face softened just a bit. I guess my presence made him feel somewhat better. It made me feel worse. I was wrestling between self-satisfaction and guilt. I had done the most fucked-up thing to a man who had been nothing but good to me from day one. On the other hand, it was a means to an end.

“Gigi . . . I can’t believe someone would do this to me. To my family. My fucking kid? I help everyone in the community. . . . I am nothing but good to these thugs that come in here flaunting their drug money.... I can’t believe this is happening to me,” he said sadly, grabbing me in a tight embrace.

I tried not to feel bad, but I was actually dying inside. I held on to Sidney just as tightly as he held me. I prayed silently that this shit would be over very soon. Arianna would be returned to Sidney, Warren would have his money, and I could sneak away in the thick of the night with the remaining diamonds and some of Sidney’s cash. That’s how I envisioned everything going.

“I’m so sorry, Sidney. I’m so sorry,” I said softly. I meant that in more than one way. “So what did they say?” I asked as I eyed all of the cash Sidney had stacked on his desk.

Sidney pulled away from me. He rushed over to the desk and picked something up. “Look at this,” Sidney instructed as he turned his laptop around so I could see the screen. More fucking videos! I stared at the screen, unable to look away, but wishing I could.

“Daddy!!!! Daddy!!! Please come get me!! Help me, Daddy!” Arianna screamed at the top of her lungs. Her hands and feet were bound with silver duct tape and there was a black bag over her head. Her screams were slightly muffled by the bag, but her words seemed to be amplified and crystal clear. There were guns pointed at either side of her head. Her captors didn’t say anything; I guess the scene spoke volumes. Just as abruptly as it had started, it had ended. The screen went black, but I kept staring at it. Although it was black now, the image of Arianna was still showing clearly in my eyes. I didn’t even realize that I had placed my hand over my mouth. I guess planning something like that and actually seeing it live and in living color was totally different. I can’t front, that video had taken my breath away. Only a really coldhearted person wouldn’t have been chilled by that shit. I knew I was a lot of things, but a person devoid of feelings I was not. Sidney’s kids had treated me like shit the handful of times I’d seen them, especially Arianna, but seeing her all bound up, screaming for her life, and scared to death like that sent chills down my spine. Knowing that it was all my doing made me want to fucking faint. What if Warren kills her anyway? What if he takes the money, then kills her, me, and Sidney just to send a message? What if he’s already killed my mother? My mind raced crazy. Maybe this wasn’t the most well-thought-out fucking plan after all. I had left Warren in the prime position to be the one calling the shots.

“So what do we do now?” I asked. Shit, now I had taken Sidney’s place at pacing the floor. I knew Warren and Ace couldn’t give a fuck about Sidney or his daughter. They wanted that money and that was it.

“I’m waiting for them to call back,” Sidney said, flopping down on the leather couch in his office. He held his head in his hands. “I don’t have all of the money. All I could come up with on such short notice was one point five million,” Sidney said, worry lacing his words. That wasn’t good fucking news. The hairs on my arms stood straight up.

“Do you think you can buy some time?” I asked, trying to stay calm. “Do you have the rest someplace else that you can get to if you ask for more time?” I continued, my voice rising a few octaves. I had assured Warren that Sidney would get the money with ease, hand it over, and it would all be over. Now shit seemed like it wasn’t going to go so easily.

Sidney looked at me through squinted eyes. The look on his face kind of scared me. “This is all so strange, Gigi. No one knows where my kids live. None of my partners or the guys I do business with have ever seen my kids. I don’t have enemies. I don’t advertise my wealth to attract anyone. So how would anyone know I could even try to get that much money? Someone had to follow me to see the kids, but Arianna wasn’t home, so even if they did . . . how would someone know her movements? I don’t ever put them on display for the world to see. Something about this isn’t right,” Sidney speculated.

I swallowed hard before I even tried to speak. He was right. It was something I didn’t think about. Sidney was a very private guy aside from his business dealings.

“Now is not the time to come up with some conspiracy theory, Sidney. Arianna is a very flashy girl. You know she loves to flaunt her car and her expensive clothes, bags, and shoes. This might be some thug she met trying to shake you down for money. Look, maybe we should just call the cops,” I said, walking toward the telephone on his desk. If he wanted to speculate, I could play that game too. I had to be convincing.

Sidney jumped up and was on me faster than a flash. I don’t think I’d ever seen his old ass move that fast. He grabbed me by my neck. My eyes popped open as I gagged. Sidney squeezed tightly. He was like a possessed demon. I had never seen him like that at all.

“I said you will not call the cops! I want to get my daughter back in one piece. Now don’t fucking try to pick up that phone again,” Sidney said through clenched teeth. I swore I could see pure fire flashing in Sidney’s eyes. When he let go of my neck I had no choice but to cough uncontrollably to try and catch my breath.

Just as I got my lungs to fill back up with air, Sidney’s phone rang. We both almost jumped out of our skin. Sidney answered it. I was all ears. I knew it had to be Warren. I also knew Sidney didn’t have all of the money, so I was wondering what Warren would do when Sidney told him.

“Arianna! Baby!” I heard Sidney cry out. I closed my eyes and listened to the girl’s cries filter through the phone. My stomach churned. I was biting my nails down to the quick at that point.

“I’m trying my best, baby! I’m going to get you out of there! I don’t care what I have to do. I’m not going to let them hurt you,” Sidney was saying. Suddenly his tone of voice changed. Warren and his goons must’ve taken the phone away from Arianna because I could tell right away Sidney was no longer talking to her. He turned his back to me and was silent for a few minutes as he listened to whatever they were saying. Just when I couldn’t take the suspense any longer, he said, “Just tell me where you want to meet! I have all of the money! Just don’t hurt her!” Sidney pleaded. He had just fucking lied to dangerous-ass Warren and Ace. My jaw went slack and I looked at Sidney like he was crazy. Sidney was about to play with niggas who were not to be fucked with. I couldn’t even warn him, but damn if I didn’t want to scream at his ass. I was shaking my head. Sidney was bugging the fuck out for sure. He just didn’t know what the fuck he was doing.

“Sidney?! How can you lie to them?! What the hell are you going to do showing up to meet them without the whole four million dollars!” I gasped after he hung up the phone. I was gnawing on my bottom lip so hard I eventually tasted my own blood.

“Don’t worry about that. I know what I’m doing and I’m not going to let anything happen to my daughter. I would die first before I let these hood motherfuckers hurt my kid,” Sidney said with conviction. He seemed much calmer, yet much more ruthless than he had been. Something about his sudden change in behavior made me feel uneasy inside. I couldn’t place it, but it seemed to me like Sidney knew more than he was letting on. I shook my head quickly, shaking off my paranoia. I ignored that nagging feeling inside of me. My mother had always said, trust your first instinct, it will never steer you wrong. Well, I ignored mine . . . which would end up being my worst mistake.

“L
et’s go, Gigi!” Sidney huffed as he stuffed the stacks of money he had taken from the dealership into the bag of money I had brought from the house. I just followed his lead at that point. If he thought he could take less than a million dollars and fool his daughter’s kidnappers, then who was I to argue. I couldn’t keep convincing him to get more money because I was afraid he would get too suspicious of me. “You ready?” he asked me. My eyebrows went high into arches.

“You want me to go with you?” I asked, my voice going higher.

“Yes, I’m not going to take a chance with you being here or home alone and something happening to you too,” Sidney replied. Something about his voice was eerie . . . fake even, but what choice did I have now given the circumstances. I let out a long sigh. This also wasn’t part of what I had envisioned for what was supposed to be a very simple ransom demand. I guess when it came to crime and money nothing was fucking simple.

I followed Sidney to the first level of the dealership. He didn’t go toward the front door. “We are leaving through the repair shop. Can’t take a chance with anyone following us,” Sidney told me. We were leaving through the back, which faced nothing but highway and trees. Sidney was a little more street smart than I’d pegged him to be.

My jaw fell open when we walked outside. There were two darkly tinted cars filled with niggas sitting outside. The driver of each car stepped out to speak with Sidney. They surely looked like hardened thugs.

“We got everything we need,” one very dark-skinned dude told Sidney. The other guy who looked like he ate, slept, and shit weights nodded at Sidney. I crinkled my eyebrows and looked at Sidney.

“What are you doing, Sidney?” My stomach churned so hard I felt like my sphincter muscle would give out on the spot.

“I’m going to get my fucking daughter back. Those pieces of shit said not to call the police, but I have people just like they do. I do good for these guys. They didn’t even fucking blink when I told them I needed them,” Sidney retorted.

He had transformed into someone I didn’t even recognize. He was like a mafia goon all of a sudden. Certainly not the refined gentleman I had met and married.

“Let’s go!” he said to me, pushing me toward his car. My nerves were completely exposed. My hands were no good. They shook so badly I could barely open the car door to get in. Things were not going to be cut and dry, that much I could see. I wanted to warn Warren, but Sidney was watching me like a hawk. There was no way I could’ve pulled out my cell phone at that point. I closed my eyes, prayed for mercy, and prepared for the worst.

 

The drive to the meeting spot seemed like it took an eternity. I couldn’t keep my legs from rocking in and out. When we arrived, I looked around and took in the nightmarish scene. It was another dark, desolate place that I didn’t recognize, but it was near the water. From the scent in the air and the heavy breeze I was guessing we were somewhere close to the beach. When Sidney and I drove down the small, winding road, I didn’t see the cars with his people in them behind us.

“What is the plan, Sidney?” I asked tentatively. He was being pin-drop quiet.

“To get Arianna back,” Sidney replied dryly. I looked out of the window and noticed the same SUV from the night of my assault sitting in the distance. I knew it was Warren and Ace. I also knew they wouldn’t be alone. They’d have their people hiding somewhere just like Sidney did. My heartbeat quickened and I suddenly felt like my bladder would release involuntarily.

“C’mon,” Sidney instructed as he shut the car off. I looked at him like he was crazy. My heart jerked in my chest. Is he fucking crazy?!

“Me? Why do I need to get out? You said you didn’t want to put me in harm’s way. Just give them the money, get Arianna, and get back in the car,” I exclaimed, looking at him like he was crazy. Things were spiraling downward fast. I didn’t know how I would react being face-to-face with Warren and Sidney. There was no way I was getting out of the fucking car!

“They said they want everybody in the car to get out. I guess they don’t want to take a chance on you calling the cops or doing anything funny,” Sidney explained. Still, something about his behavior was off; he didn’t seem nervous enough to be a father going to pay ransom for his child. He kept saying everything was going to be all right. I guess at that time it all sounded logical enough. It also sounded like something Warren would’ve demanded, since I knew Warren to trust no one.

Sidney reached into the back seat and grabbed the bag of money. I knew there was a little less than one million in the bag . . . not enough. I shook my head side to side. Sidney and I stepped out of his car. My legs felt like butter against the sun. I saw the doors of the SUV swing open. Ace and another dude stepped out, but I didn’t see Warren or Arianna. I looked over at Sidney. He had a mean mug on his face. He was definitely a man I didn’t recognize at that point. He never looked at me, nor did he say a word to me. In fact, it was like I was no longer there. He started walking toward Ace with the bag and I moved slowly behind him. I felt like throwing up. The anticipation of what was to come was killing me inside.

“Where’s my daughter?!” Sidney called out. Ace started laughing.

“Where’s the money?!” Ace called back.

Sidney lifted the bag up as if to say “right here.”

Ace nodded.

Sidney kept walking toward the SUV. The other dude went around the back of the vehicle. I squeezed my eyes shut when I saw them bring Arianna from the back of the vehicle. She was dressed nicely. There was no bag over her head nor were her hands bound.

“Arianna baby! Are you all right?! Did they hurt you?!” Sidney called out.

“Daddy!!” Arianna responded. Sidney and Arianna were smiling as they ran into each other to embrace.

“Police!! Nobody move!!” I heard loud screams. Next, it was like a herd of wild elephants moving toward me. I whirled around on the balls of my feet and my eyes widened as far as they could go. Here I was again. I was surrounded by gun-toting law enforcement in black raid jackets.

“Gianna Costner, you are under arrest for the attempted kidnapping and attempted murder of Arianna Costner!” I heard one of the police call out.

My body felt hot all over. I felt like I could just faint.

“What is going on?! I didn’t kidnap anyone! You want him!” I screeched, turning toward Warren.

Warren had a smirk on his face. His arms were folded over his chest in a smug display of satisfaction.

“Sidney! Tell them! Tell them, honey! Tell them what happened!” I screamed, turning toward my husband. Sidney looked at me through squinted eyes, his nostrils flared feverishly.

“What’s going on is the tables have turned on you. I can’t believe how low you would stoop. You really believed that you could have my daughter kidnapped for ransom money to repay your debt? I wish I could fucking blow your head off right here . . . right now!” Sidney said angrily.

At that point, I saw movement from my peripheral vision. I looked over. Arianna moved closer to her father. She was scowling at me, but something in her eyes seemed to say, “Ha-ha, bitch.” Even she had been a part of the setup.

“Good work, Warren,” one of the police said to Warren, clapping him on the shoulder like a proud father would his son. My jaw almost dropped. I looked from Warren over to Sidney, then to the police. I didn’t know how to react. I felt rage boiling up inside me as two officers began grabbing me to handcuff me.

“What the fuck is this?!” I snapped angrily. It was all I could do to keep myself from dying on the spot. “Why are you all doing this to me?! Warren is a fucking criminal! Sidney! He made me do it! He threatened to kill you and my mother! You have to believe me! I wasn’t going to let anything happen to Arianna!” I screamed as I began flailing my arms to prevent them from putting me in handcuffs. “I didn’t do anything! It’s not me! He is the kidnapper!” I screamed as I pointed at Warren accusingly. It was like he was happy to see me like this. My arms were grabbed roughly and forced behind my back. “Ouch!” I cried out. Tears started streaming down my face. I was confused and I felt like my chest would explode. The cops started pushing me toward a squad car. “Warren! Tell them the truth!!”

Warren followed behind me. The officers turned me around to face him. I stared at his evil face as he spoke.

“See, G-money . . . two can play that snitching game, baby girl. You think I got out early for good behavior? They don’t let niggas like me back in the world unless we got something to offer them. At first, it was all about taking down your man for his shady dealings.... I thought that would hurt him and then in turn it would hurt you. But I realized real fast that you was the same ol’ G-money . . . you ain’t give a shit about that man. You don’t love him . . . never did . . . never will.

“I tested the waters on you and it worked. You got tripped up in there and I couldn’t resist the fucking revenge. They got it all on tape, ma. When we told Sidney what you did to his kid and about this plan to take your ass down, he was down for it. He knew about what you did all along. He just didn’t know how low you’d stoop to save yourself . . . how selfish you really are. I guess I always knew firsthand . . . them four years in the joint told it all,” Warren said, his words hitting me like hard slaps to the face.

It was all a setup, starting with Ace showing up at the dealership that day. Things started ringing bells in my head, but it was too late now. With them having me on tape pointing out Arianna the day of the kidnapping, there was probably nothing a defense attorney could do for me. I was speechless. Then I heard more screams.

“I can’t believe you, Gigi! I can’t believe I ever loved you! I feel like shooting you right here!” Sidney shouted, moving toward me. The police converged on him to keep him away from me. I could see the hurt in his eyes. He really had loved me when no one else did. I felt like shit inside for what I’d done. He was right . . . all to save myself. I truly was wishing one of them would just go ahead and shoot me already. The cops were getting a kick out of the fucking soap opera taking place, too, because they just kept me there dying slowly.

“Please . . . Please! I didn’t know it would go this far! You have to believe me! You have to understand!” I pleaded. I could see my pleas didn’t do a thing to sway any of them. Sidney’s face turned dark. Then he let out a high-pitched, evil, maniacal laugh that sent cold chills straight down my spine. He stepped closer to me. So close I could smell his breath.

“I hope you like it in hell,” Sidney whispered in my face. Next I felt my head being forced down as I was roughly placed into the waiting squad car. My life was over and I’d no longer be calling the shots. Once again, Warren was a fucking bad omen in my life.