Authors: Crista McHugh
“Before, I knew who the bad guy was, and I had no problem making sure he got what was coming to him. But my brother?” Her eyes stung, and her voice caught. “I think there must be a special level of hell reserved for people who betray their families.”
“If there is, you don’t belong there.” Frank tipped her face up and ran his thumb along her bottom lip. “You’ve done nothing wrong.”
“Then why do I feel so guilty?”
“Because you have a big heart that wants to see the good in everyone. Even fuckups like me.”
“You are not a fuckup, Frank Kelly.”
“Good, because I feel like one every damn day.”
“I don’t think Savannah sees you that way.”
He placed his hand on her ass and pulled her against him. A playful smile crinkled the corners of his eyes. “That’s nice, but I’m far more interested in what her sexy mama thinks.”
“You already know what her mama thinks.” But just to reassure him, she gave him a kiss that she hoped would ease any of his insecurities. She loved him. Loved him for helping out the foundation. Loved him for adoring her daughter. Loved him for being her rock today when most men would have hightailed it out of there once the shit hit the fan. And maybe she wasn’t quite ready to say it in words, but she could definitely say it in her actions.
He ended the kiss as breathless as she was. “Keep that up, and we might end up on the sofa again.”
The notion of a stress-reducing quickie tempted her, but as her pulse slowed, a heavy mantle of fatigue fell on her shoulders. “I’d love to, but I’m beat, and Savannah’s waiting for me to get home.”
“I understand.” He placed a quick peck on her forehead and picked up her briefcase. “Why don’t I give you a ride home?”
She nodded without even attempting to argue with him. She’d seen the news vans parked along the street, hoping to catch a glimpse of her. Thankfully, between the security guard downstairs and Sherita, none of them made it to her office.
The day had left her drained. All she wanted to do right now was curl up around her baby girl and hope the world would be a better place for her tomorrow.
Once they drove past the mob of reporters, the ride to her place was filled with silence. Frank seemed to understand why she wasn’t in a talking mood, and he gave her some space. One question kept replaying through her mind as they drove through the streets of Atlanta.
Why?
Why did Tre do it? Was he that frightened about being let go from the team? Or was there some other reason why he did it? And if he gave her a good reason, would she be able to forgive him?
Frank entered the security code for her parking garage and parked in a visitor slot. “Want me to come up with you?”
She shook her head. “Thank you, Frank, but I just want to be alone right now.”
“If you change your mind, I’m just a phone call away.”
His hopeful grin tugged at her heart, and she squeezed his hand in return. “I know.”
She climbed out of his car and made her way up to her condo with slow, heavy steps. She’d never been much of a drinker, but tonight definitely called for a glass of chardonnay. When she got to her place, she entered the key code, and the door flew open.
A hand grabbed her and yanked her inside.
The world spun in disorienting circles as she stumbled into the foyer. The door slammed shut behind her. Her heart jumped into her throat, only to come to a dead stop when the cold metal barrel of a gun pressed against her temple.
And from the other end of the gun, Tre glared at her, beads of sweat forming along his upper lip. The scent of alcohol hung on this breath, and but his words were anything but slurred. “We need to talk.”
Chapter Seventeen
Frank waited in the car until Kiana entered her building, but even then, he couldn’t make himself pull away. She was trying so hard to be brave, to be strong, and all he wanted to do was cradle her in his arms until she fell asleep. Part of him hoped that she’d change her mind and call him when she got upstairs.
When ten minutes passed without a peep, he decided to cry uncle and started his engine. He circled the parking garage with agonizing slowness, wishing with every turn she’d call.
But it was the glimpse of a red Ferrari with the license plate that read “Wide Out” parked in Kiana’s slot that formed ice in his veins.
Tre’s car.
Frank threw his car in reverse and parked in the nearest open space, not giving a fuck if it was assigned to one of the building’s residents. He ran to the door and tried entering Kiana’s code, but his hand was too big to pass for hers.
Shit!
He was locked out of her building, and her brother was waiting up there to do God only knew what to her. If Tre had any clue the cops were after him, then his presence here wouldn’t be a pleasant family visit.
The cops.
Frank pulled out the card Agent Phillips had given him and dialed the number.
“Special Agent Phillips,” the man answered with the same dry, no-nonsense tone he’d used throughout the entire interrogation this afternoon.
“This is Frank Kelly. You’re looking for Tre? Well, I’ve found him. He’s at Kiana’s.”
“We’ll be right there. Whatever you do, do not engage either of them. For all we know, she could’ve been hiding him there all day.”
The suspicion in the agent’s voice sickened him. Kiana would never be an accomplice to fraud. And yet, based on her birth mother’s criminal history, he understood why the agent would think that was a possibility.
“Did you hear me, Kelly? Stay right where you are.”
Like hell he’d stay down here when Kiana was in danger. “I’ll try.”
As he hung up, he heard the agent urging him to stay out of this, but it made no difference. He needed to know she was safe.
The next number he dialed was hers, and with each ring, he prayed she’d answer.
***
Kiana stood statue still, the only movement of her body coming from the frantic beat of her heart and the frequent glances around the room to look for Savannah. Flashbacks of the night her mother was murdered raced through her mind, each memory adding to the trembling in her hands. She never wanted her daughter to witness the things she had.
“Please, Tre,” she whispered, her voice unsteady, “where’s Savannah?”
“I told Madison to take her to the nursery and stay there until we were done.”
Kiana breathed a small sigh of relief. Whatever Tre had in store for her, at least Savannah wouldn’t have to see it. “Thank you.”
He snapped his attention back to her, but thankfully lowered the gun. “Why did you do it?”
“I could ask you the same thing.” She took care to keep her words calm and soothing without breaking eye contact with him. It was better than letting him know how terrified she really was.
He curled his lip and narrowed his eyes. “I was going to pay it back.”
At least he wasn’t denying that he took the money. With any luck, she might be able to discover the reason he felt the need to steal from their father’s foundation. “I’m listening.”
No judgment.
No questions.
Just a simple phrase to let him know that she cared to hear his side of the story.
It seemed to work. He wiped his hand over his face. “I was in trouble, Kiki,” he started, using the nickname he’d given her when they were kids.
She kept her arms at her sides, scared that if she reached out to hug him like she wanted to do, he’d misinterpret it as an attack and shoot. “Why didn’t you just tell me that?”
“Because…” He sucked in a breath and looked up at the ceiling, his eyes blinking fast as though he was trying to hold back tears. “My luck ran out, and if I didn’t pay Malcolm back, he was going to come after you and Savannah. That is, after he took care of me.”
“You borrowed money from Malcolm?”
“Yeah, a long time ago, before I knew what he was doing to you.” He sniffed and finally met her gaze again. “He’d come to the club that night to find me. I’ve been trying to find a way to get the money. I’d have a run of good luck, only to lose everything on the next card. Then, when I was let go from the team, I ran out of options.
“The night of the gala, I came home to find him waiting for me. Said he needed the money for his medical and legal bills. But he would let it go if I told him where to find you and Savannah.”
Her stomach knotted. Her lawyer, Tasha, had made sure Malcolm’s bail was set so high that he wouldn’t be able to post it. And yet, he had. And he was out there, somewhere, still trying to exact revenge.
“I didn’t know what else to do.” Tre ran his hand over his face again. “I wasn’t going to let him hurt you again. Not after what he did to you before. And if I told him where you and Savannah were, who knows what he would’ve done to y’all.”
Probably no different than what Tre was doing now. She bit back the bitter remark and nodded.
“So I showed him the checks and asked him to wait until today. I paid him the hundred grand I owed him, and the rest, I was going to take to Vegas to see if I could win some of the money back before you realized it was missing.” He turned to her, his expression earnest like he believed his actions were justifiable. “I was going to pay it back, Kiana. All of it. And then some.”
“Why didn’t you just ask Mama for a loan?”
“I was too embarrassed. You know how she feels about gambling, and I was already too deep in the hole.”
“But you know she would’ve helped you out. A mother’s love is unconditional.” Denise had shown that to her more times than she could count, and she wasn’t even the woman’s flesh and blood.
“No. I had a plan. And it was going to work.” His voice rose in anger, and he aimed the gun at her again. “Until you decided to call the cops on me.”
Her mouth grew dry, and she fought to keep her voice calm. “What makes you think it was me?”
“It had to be you. No one else would’ve noticed the money was missing. I was checking into my flight to Las Vegas, and they wouldn’t give me my boarding pass. Oh, they tried to be discreet, but I overheard one of them calling the cops. And that’s when I knew you’d turned me in. You betrayed me.”
No, Tre,
you
betrayed
me. How she wanted to say those words, but judging by how close his finger was to the trigger, it would only earn her a bullet.
The ringing of her phone shattered the silence, and both of them jumped. The first few chords of “Bad to the Bone” echoed through the condo.
Frank’s ringtone. He told her that it was the ringtone his eldest brother had assigned to him, and she did the same as a joke.
Only now, it wasn’t a laughing matter.
By some small miracle, Tre didn’t fire the gun, but he did lower the barrel to her purse. “Don’t answer.”
“But it’s Frank.” Slowly, she pulled out the phone and showed him the screen with the caller ID. “If I don’t answer, he’ll know something’s wrong.”
Tre’s body rippled like a toddler in the middle of a temper tantrum, complete with the single stomp of his foot. “Shit! Fine. Answer him, but don’t tell him about me. Everything is all right here. Understood?”
He leveled the gun at her, and the consequences to her disobeying him became very clear.
She pressed the answer button and put the phone up to her ear.
“Kiana, is Tre with you?”
The urgency in his voice almost proved to be her undoing. Tears gathered in the corners of her eyes, and she covered her mouth to stifle the sob that wanted to break free. A second later, she’d gathered enough composure to say, “Yes, Frank?”
She made her voice rise at the end so Tre would think she was answering the call rather than Frank’s question.
Frank swore. “Are you safe?”
“I’m sorry, Frank, but no.” She glanced over at Tre to see if he was falling for her act. “Tonight’s not a good night.”
More swearing. “I’m coming up.”
“No, please, don’t. I’m exhausted.”
A gap of silence followed, and she pictured Frank putting the pieces together. “Holy shit, Kiana, does he have a gun?”
“Absolutely.” She stared at the barrel and added, “Maybe we can get together for dinner later this week.”
Tre rolled his eyes and gestured for her to hurry up.
Some of the dread choking her throat eased up. At least her brother had no clue what was really being said.
“Agent Phillips is on his way. Get some place safe if you can. Savannah, too.”
“Of course.” She glanced one more time at Tre. “I have to go. Savannah needs me, but—” Her voice caught, and a new fear surfaced. There was a chance she might not talk to Frank ever again, and she needed to tell him how she felt while she still could. “I love you.”
She hung up before an awkward pause followed. She wanted to believe he loved her, too. It was better to cling to that hope than to be handed the contrary truth.
“What did Frank want?” Tre asked.
“He wanted to take me and Savannah out to dinner.” A lie, but one Tre had to believe if she wanted to get out of this alive. “I convinced him that tonight wasn’t going to work.”