White Lines III (32 page)

“Anisa, don't talk about him like that. He's a child,” Miss Ingrid said, chastising her.

“Oh, give me a break!” Anisa frowned. “He drowned a damn dog in your bathtub. He took an overdose of prescription pills. The kid is crazy.” She turned back to Born. “And his mother is an ex-crackhead with skeletons coming out of her closet left and right. Now Ethan is with some crazy man who has a vendetta against Jada. A man who is threatening to kill him if you don't pay him what
she
owes him plus a shitload of interest. And I'm just supposed to be okay with not involving the police. I'm supposed to trust you.
You?
The same man who lets Jada toy with him like a damn yo-yo, pulling you into her life one minute and pushing you out the next.” Anisa shook her head again. “You're pathetic. Any love I still had for you is gone now. And if Ethan gets hurt because of you and your bitch, I will never forgive you.”

She stormed out, leaving Born and his mother reeling in her wake.

*   *   *

Jada handed a mug of tea to her sister. Ava hadn't stopped crying since the phone call from Elliot. She felt so bad, knowing that her attempt to help had backfired so terribly. It was late, but none of them could sleep. Sheldon sat on the couch playing Xbox, and Jada didn't even mind since it allowed her to keep an eye on him. Ethan's abduction had put them all on edge.

Jada sat down near her sister and sipped her own tea. “Stop crying,” Jada said, sternly. “It's gonna be okay.”

Ava sniffed. “How do you know?” Ava was devastated. “If anything happens to that little boy, his blood will be on my hands.”

Jada set down her mug. “I know that we're gonna get him back safely. God answers prayers. He won't let anything happen to that innocent little boy. Ethan is going to be fine.” Jada was trying hard to convince herself that it was true. She had spent the past few hours pooling all of her financial resources. She certainly didn't have a million dollars. Neither did Born. But they had some savings, a few assets, and a lot of favors that they could call in. Ava had already offered them every penny that she had to her name. DJ, too, had assured Born that he could have anything he needed without question. Jada was certain that they could get the money together in time. The only question was whether or not Elliot intended to keep his word.

“Ma, is Born coming back?” Sheldon asked. He had set the game controller down, and was sitting with his chin resting on the arm of the sofa.

Jada looked at her son. “Yes,” she said. She tried not to think about the fact that Born was over at Anisa's house comforting her. Especially since they had only recently been intimate again. To add to the problem, it was Jada's own fault that Elliot was terrorizing them. She reminded herself that she and Born were back on track, and she silently reassured herself that he was not reuniting with Anisa in the midst of their grief.

Sheldon could tell that this situation was serious. He had been instructed not to answer the door or the phone under any circumstances. He was not to go outside or log on to the Internet without an adult present. He had been told that Ethan was missing, but he could tell that this was not the type of random disappearance like he saw on television shows. From the way that Aunt Ava was crying and carrying on, it was clear that this situation had several layers.

Born returned with a downtrodden demeanor. He had left Anisa locked inside of her home like a fortress. His mother had agreed to stay in Anisa's spare room until Ethan returned. It served a dual purpose, ensuring that no one in their family was left alone for the night. Born reasoned that there was strength in numbers. Even though Anisa hated his guts right now, he wanted to make sure that she was safe. Ethan's return was enough to worry about.

Jada went to him, unsure whether he was in the mood for her presence right now. She knew that somewhere deep down inside, Born blamed her for this. After all, she was the one who had stolen from Elliot. His beef was with her, not with Born or his family. Still, Born pulled Jada into his arms and held her close for several wordless moments. Jada was grateful for his love, even at a time like this.

Sheldon watched them, a dozen unasked questions languishing below the surface. Born noticed him sitting there, and had to fight back his resentment. Sheldon had singlehandedly wreaked havoc on their family, and yet Ethan was the one being traumatized by some disgruntled associate from Jada's past. It was hard not to wish that the kidnapper had chosen a different kid.

Born pushed down those feelings, and greeted Sheldon and Ava. Then he plopped down on the couch and kicked off his sneakers.

Sheldon stared at him for a while before he found the nerve to speak up. “Born, is Ethan gonna be okay?”

Born let out a long sigh. He nodded. “Yeah. I'm gonna make sure he's okay.” Born looked at Sheldon and forced a smile. “I'm gonna make sure you're okay, too.”

Sheldon was happy to hear that. He was too tough to admit that he was scared. But he was. Ethan's disappearance had unsettled him, and for the first time he was happy that Born was there with them. Having him around, even with his arm in a sling, made him feel more at ease. He picked up the Xbox controller and resumed his game.

Ava glanced sheepishly at Born. “I'm sorry, Born. I know you probably hate me right now—”

“I don't hate you.”

“I just wanted to try and help catch this bastard. I never expected anything like this to happen.” Ava's eyes misted at the thought of Ethan suffering at the hands of a crazy stranger.

Born shook his head. “I know. It's gonna be okay.” He laid back his head against the sofa, a headache creeping up on him.

Jada watched him. “How is Anisa?” As much as she despised Anisa, her heart went out to her. No mother should have to go through what Anisa was dealing with.

Born shook his head. “Not good.”

Silence lingered. Ava decided to be the one to cut the tension. “I'm going to bed,” she said. “Sheldon, why don't you come upstairs with me? Let's give these two some time to themselves. It's been a long day.”

Sheldon didn't argue. He placed the controller on the coffee table and stood up to follow his aunt upstairs. “Good night.”

Born and Jada watched them go, and Jada sat beside Born on the couch. She didn't know how to approach him. There was no manual for dealing with things like this. She wasn't sure whether to hug him, or hold his hand, or leave him alone.

Sensing her hesitation, Born looked at her. Despite everything they had been through, he loved Jada so much. “Come here,” he said.

Jada scooted closer to him, and laid her head on his shoulder. Born scooped her into the crook of his arm and kissed her forehead.

“It's gonna be alright,” he said.

Jada exhaled deeply. “Baby, I'm sorry.”

“It's not your fault. Not Ava's fault either. The only person to blame is the muthafucka who did this.” Born couldn't bring himself to say Elliot's name. It filled him with an unhealthy rage.

“But this keeps happening. There's always some reminder from my past of who I used to be. It doesn't stop. Charlie, Shante, now Elliot. Plus Sheldon and his nonsense.” Jada looked up at Born. “I know you're having second thoughts about being with me.”

Born frowned. “Who said that?”

“You don't have to say it. Anyone in your shoes would feel that way.”

Born thought about it. “I knew all about your history when I fell in love with you. I might not like it, but I accept it. You made some mistakes, Jada. That don't give nobody the right to do this to you and your family.” He looked at her seriously. “I'm gonna kill this dude,” he said. “I'm gonna play this little game with him, and I'm gonna get my son back. Then I'm gonna blow his fucking brains out.”

Jada watched him closely. She knew that he meant every word.

Born pulled her closer to him and kissed her lips. “I'm gonna handle this. And if somebody else pops up, I'll handle them, too.”

Jada felt her heart overflowing. She was a lucky woman. “I love you.”

Born looked her in the eyes. “I love you, too, baby. Nothing from your past is gonna change that.”

They sat together on the sofa, wrapped in each other's arms, until they both drifted off to sleep.

*   *   *

Elliot watched Ethan closely. The kid was scared, that much was clear. He had cried himself to sleep, and if Elliot wasn't so evil, it might have tugged at his heartstrings. But his rage toward Jada superseded his pity for the kid.

Elliot was furious with Jada. Ever since he'd returned to the U.S. and reconnected with what remained of his old crew, he'd been obsessed with recouping his losses. Truth be told, Jada had made a fool out of him and Elliot had never gotten over it.

Back when he was Jamari's distributor, Elliot had truly liked Jada. She reminded him of his baby sister, a hustler at heart. When Jada had come to him with her plea for five bricks of cocaine, he had allowed himself to be swayed by his sympathy for her. He had always known that Jamari wasn't cut out for the life he was living. Jada seemed like a woman who had gotten caught up with a lame and found herself in an unfortunate predicament. Elliot had given her those five bricks mostly out of compassion. So when he returned to New York and found out that it had been Jada herself who robbed him, he felt particularly naïve. It had been one of the few times he allowed his heart to overrule his mind. He was determined that it would never happen again.

He left the room and went into the kitchen. Retrieving a beer from the fridge, he sat down at the table across from his nephew, Cheo.

Cheo had mixed feelings about his uncle's return. More than ten years had passed since the DEA raid that forced Elliot to go on the run. A lot had changed since then, namely the way they handled things. The eighties and nineties had been a wild time on the streets of NYC. Their crime family had boldly violated anyone who dared to challenge them. They had shot it out in broad daylight with the police and rival crews alike. What Elliot couldn't seem to get through his head was that situations like this were no longer acceptable. The goal was to stay off the police's radar. Kidnapping was not the way to achieve that.

“When are you gonna bring him home?” Cheo asked, gesturing with his chin toward the room where Ethan lay sleeping.

Elliot ignored the question. He didn't like this new version of his nephew. The kid he'd left behind years ago when he'd gone on the run had developed into a young man who didn't seem to respect Elliot's position any longer. Back in the day, Cheo never would have dreamed of questioning Elliot. Clearly, he'd forgotten the established hierarchy.

“I'm thinking about staying in New York after all,” Elliot said.

Cheo frowned. That wasn't part of the plan. Elliot's visit was supposed to be just that—a visit. He was supposed to stay for a few weeks at most. Cheo had been counting on the fact that his uncle would be returning to Guyana soon.

“I don't think that's a good idea,” Cheo said.

“I didn't ask you what you thought.” Elliot guzzled his beer, then tossed the empty can in the trash.

Cheo noted that his uncle didn't use the recyclables trash can, but decided against commenting on it. “I'm just saying that it's not safe for you here, Uncle Elliot. I don't want the cops to find out that you're back. You know they got it in for you.”

After Elliot's escape, the heat had been turned up on their crew big-time. Cheo's father had borne a striking resemblance to his brother, Elliot. After the gory bloodbath between the DEA and their crew, the cops had prematurely declared that they had taken down one of NYC's most notorious and ruthless drug czars. By the time lab tests determined that the dead guy was not Elliot after all, the story had been too widely circulated to retract. The police commissioner was worried about being labeled an imbecile. Helped by the fact that the real Elliot had disappeared, the police kept mum about the dead man's real identity and turned their attention to taking down what remained of the crew. It had been years before they were able to operate effectively again. And now, over a decade later, here was Uncle Elliot, back from the dead with a kidnapped minor and an extortion plot, and now it seemed he had plans to stick around.

Elliot let out a loud belch and shrugged. “I'm dead, remember?”

Cheo shook his head. “You know you can only stay underground for so long. These streets talk.” Cheo felt like Elliot had forgotten what it was like to run a criminal enterprise on the streets of New York City. Word traveled fast, and it wouldn't be long before Elliot's return was heralded widely. In fact, Cheo felt that his uncle had already overstayed his welcome.

Elliot leaned forward and stared Cheo down. “All these years that I spent back home, I had nothing but time to think. I left a lot of money out here in these streets.”

Cheo nodded. “Which is why there's a lot of people who won't be too happy to see that you're back.”

Elliot sneered. “Good.” He noticed Cheo roll his eyes in frustration. “Listen,” Elliot said. “I'm gonna get what's mine. Starting with my little insurance policy in there. Once I get rid of him and Jada and that nigga Born, everyone will know that I'm not the one to fuck with. After that, I'm going to check them all off my list, one by one, until I have everything that's owed to me. I'm taking back my spot at the head of this crew.” He smirked at Cheo. “You'd be smart not to get in my way.”

Cheo eyed Elliot, but dared not respond. Elliot stood up from the table and pulled his gun from his waistband. “I'm gonna off this kid. Then, when I get the money from Jada tomorrow, I'm gonna put one in her head, too.”

Cheo grimaced. He didn't believe that Elliot meant what he said. Not until he watched him march toward the bedroom where the kid was sleeping. Elliot cocked the gun as he walked.