The Cartel - Ashley Antoinette Snell [83]
“I’ll never hurt you again, ever. On everything I love, I’m-a make you mine. I love you, Miamor.”
She couldn’t stop herself from responding, “I love you too.”
Ring, ring!
Ring, ring!
The shrill sound of Carter’s cell phone woke him and Miamor out of their peaceful sleep. He looked at her digital alarm clock, which read 3:42 a.m. He groggily reached for his phone. “Hello?” he answered as he sat up in bed.
“Carter! Thank God! It’s Breeze,” Taryn stated in a panic. “She hasn’t come home yet.”
“What?”
Miamor sat up when she heard Carter’s tone of voice. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
Carter held up a finger for her to hold on and returned his attention back to his phone call. “Look, if she was with Zyir, I’m sure she’s fine. I’ll call you when I catch up with them. Give me about an hour,” he said.
Carter knew that Breeze should have been safe with Zyir, but when he called his phone and didn’t receive an answer, he began to worry.
“I got to go, ma,” he said as he jumped up and began slipping into his clothes.
Miamor’s face expressed her disappointment, and under normal circumstances, he would’ve handled her later, but he had just gotten back into her good graces.
“Slip on some clothes. You’re coming with me,” he said.
She jumped up, and in five minutes flat they were out the door.
Carter pulled up to Ace and Zyir’s apartment at 4:15 a.m. and was relieved to see Breeze’s car sitting out front. He still needed to see her face to make sure she was okay. What in the fuck is she doing over here anyway? he thought to himself. He rushed up to apartment 8B and rang the bell.
Ace answered it. “Damn, fam! Whatever it is, it can’t wait until the morning?” he asked sleepily.
“Where’s Zy?”
“Fam is in his room. He’s been in there all night with the door closed. Why? What up?”
Miamor stood silently as she watched anger cross Carter’s face.
“Is Breeze in there with him?”
“I don’t know, fam.”
Carter walked to the back of the apartment and opened Zyir’s room door without knocking. He took a deep breath when he saw his baby sister sleeping soundly in Zyir’s bed, with Zyir sleeping in the chair next to the bed, his feet propped up. They both had Dope Fiend, by Donald Goines, in their hands and had fallen asleep with the book still open.
Carter laughed at himself for thinking the worst. Zyir would never put his sister in danger or disrespect him by hitting and running on her. If Breeze was interested in Zyir, it was a bridge that he would cross when they all got there, but for now, she was safe and he was satisfied.
“Everything good?” Ace asked.
Carter nodded. “Yeah, fam, everything’s good. I’m tripping. We gon’ crash on your couch out here until morning, a’ight.”
“Yeah, bro, make yourself at home. You know where everything at.”
Carter placed a call to Taryn and informed her that Breeze was just fine.
“Are you all right?” Miamor asked.
“Yeah, I’m good. Let’s get some sleep,” he said as he pulled her near and closed his eyes.
Chapter Seventeen
“The coke connect died with my grandson. ... Now get the fuck out.”
—Emilio Estes
“Igot you, young’un. I’m about to go and talk to Estes and try to plug you in. The game is all yours now,” Polo said just before hanging up the phone with Young Carter. He was just about to have a meeting with Estes. He wanted to see if he could set up a meeting with him and Carter, so he could retire and move to LA. He was done with the seesaw game that treated him both good and bad.
He pulled up to the loading dock’s parking lot and smoothly got out, wearing a straw sun hat, and a toothpick sticking from his mouth. He saw that Estes and his henchmen had already arrived before him, just like he expected. He slowly approached the Dominican men, who stood on the boardwalk that led to Estes’ speedboat. He raised both of his arms without them having to instruct him. He knew the drill only too well.
After getting searched, he boarded the boat and saw Estes at the head of the bow, his back turned, smoking a Cuban cigar.