Victoria

Out of instinct, I smacked Theodore upside the head when he said Milan was having my grandchild. I don't give a damn if Milan is pregnant, she's not having my grandchild or any of Teddy's children. Shit. After what Teddy and I did to her, there's no telling if a baby was even able to survive but I hope it didn't. I don't want Milan hanging on to my family any longer than she already has.

Theodore laughed as he rubbed his head. "Man, chill Mama. I was just kidding. She's not even pregnant."

I frowned. "So, why'd you say it then?"

"I just wanted to see what you would say," he smirked. "I haven't touched Milan since you told me to stop on the yacht trip. I knew you'd be pissed, so I just wanted to see you get your panties in a bunch."

I rolled my eyes. "I think you're a lying ass nigga."

He scrunched up my face. "Wow, what a great choice of words for your favorite son," he sarcastically replied.

"No, don't try to play the victim. Who's ultrasound is that in the nightstand in your room on the left hand side next to the box of condoms?"

"Damn Mama. Why you going through my stuff? I know you was tryna sit in my room and wait on me to get back but you didn't have to start going through my stuff. Can't I have some privacy?"

"No. Who's ultrasound is that? And don't lie to me. Who did you get pregnant?" I asked.

"Nobody," he smiled, making me frown.

"Stop playing with me boy. Who the hell did you get pregnant?"

"I'm not playing with you Mama! I didn't get nobody pregnant. That ain't even my ultrasound...yet."

My eyes widened. "Excuse me?"

"I mean, I wanna have another kid 'cause Princess needs some siblings to play with and keep her occupied but that's not my ultrasound. I do know who's ultrasound it is though."

"Who?"

"I promised the person I wouldn't tell, plus, it's none of your business no ways."

"Tell me."

"Do I have to?"

"Yes," I replied. "Stop playing around and just tell me. Is it Mya's?"

"Of course not. Since you wanna know so badly, we use condoms and she's on birth control. She doesn't want to get pregnant until she's married and I can respect that. She takes her birth control regularly. I make sure of it 'cause I don't want no kids right now."

I scrunched up my face. Is he crazy? I knew he was unconscious for several hours but I didn't know he was losing his mind. He was just saying he wanted more kids so Princess can have siblings, but now he's saying he doesn't want any. "Are you okay? Do you need me to call the doctor over here because you aren't making any sense."

He sucked his teeth. "Mama, I'm not crazy. Alright? I want more kids but that doesn't mean I want them now and the family don't even fuck with the women I wanna have my kids with. I wanted kids with Milan because she's beautiful and I love her and I love how she is with Princess but you don't like her an--"

"And she's your father's wife," I added.

"That too. But once me and her fell out, I moved on to Mya. I love Mya too, but I think I love Milan more because me and her got so much history and she just gets me. But Mya understands me too, but after all that shit with her family, I don't see anything happening with us anymore. I mean, I really was feeling Mya though. She was the realest girl I was ever with but I guess it just wasn't meant to be," he sighed. "But the ultrasound is Milan's, well it's old, I guess. Well, I know it's old. She showed it to me a few months back when we were still good."

"Who's kid is it?"

"Not mine, and I know that for a fact," he replied. "I always used condoms with her so it had to be Dad's."

"Where's the baby at then?"

Theodore shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea. After she showed me, that's when we decided to give each other some space. I never bought it up again because she told me not to. I really haven't seen her in the past five or six months. I've been trying to call her but her phone always goes straight to voicemail and I don't know why. I know you don't like her but I hope nothing happened to her and her baby."

"I do," I told him, "not the baby, but her."

"You're horrible," he shook his head.

"No, she's horrible. She's not pregnant. Either she lied to you about being pregnant but I just saw her a few nights ago and she's not pregnant. Clearly, she had an abortion."

"Shit. I don't blame her. I wouldn't wanna be walking around with your baby daddy's children either. Milan don't even like him like that because he treats her like shit. He treats you better than he treats anybody else and she feels neglected. I don't agree with her killing an innocent life, but she didn't wanna have sex with him. She was just doing it to keep our relationship under wraps."

"So, who's to say that wasn't your child? She could've aborted your kid to keep it under wraps from Teddy."

"That's a lie because she'd keep my baby. You just don't understand what me and Milan have."

"I do and it's not real. Plus, I beat her ass and she fell down the steps at Teddy's house, so even if she was pregnant, that baby is gone but I highly doubt she's pregnant," I told him. Milan can't be pregnant but she probably did get an abortion. She's been moping around Teddy's house for months and barely getting out of bed everyday. I just assumed she was upset about me living there, but she wasn't upset about anything. She was laying low because she was recuperating from her abortion. I knew she wasn't shit and I'm gonna expose her as soon as I get back to Teddy's house.

Theodore scrunched up his face. "See, that's what I can't stand about you and your baby daddy. Any time somebody get's in y'all's way, you beat their ass or do anything you can to break them down. Milan's not a bad person and you didn't even give her a chance. You automatically hated her because of your baby daddy. You probably killed that baby off just like how you did to that Shyla girl when you were in high school and it's pathetic. You're doing all of this because you're jealous that your baby daddy is having more children and moving on from you. You know what, that's all right. I got some heat coming for you anyways."

I scrunched up my face. "Some heat coming for me?" I repeated. "I'm trying to protect you!"

"No, you're trying to protect yourself but it's all right. I know you pretending not to know where Milan is but I'm gonna find her and I'm gonna fuck up the perfect little world you and your baby daddy think y'all got."

"Don't do no stupid shit."

"Oh, I am," he smirked. "You do the crazy shit Victoria does because you love your baby daddy but I love Milan too and I guess I'm gonna have to start doing some crazy shit too. So don't be surprised when I start making moves and hit you with some off the wall shit in about nine months."

I rolled my eyes as I stood up. "You know what, I'm not even gonna play with you little boy. Do something stupid if you want to but I'm not going to be around to have your back and protect you from people like Milan. She's a bad person and she's just using what's in between her legs to seduce you, and you're so gullible, you're falling for her shit. But I'm not going to stick around to watch you self destruct like your father; I'll watch from a distance. So with that being said, I'm leaving."

"So, you just gon' leave me laying up here all day? What am I supposed to do?"

"I don't know. You can whatever crazy shit it is Theodore does," I mocked him. "I'll be back tomorrow but for now, I need a break from you and your nonsense. But be expecting to see one of my friends later on today. Her name is Dr. Reynolds. She's a therapist."

I sucked my teeth. Leave it to Mama to get me a therapist when there's nothing wrong with me. I'm fine and I don't need some doctor trying to pull out my feelings and force me to talk about shit I don't want to talk about. I had a bad past couple of weeks. That doesn't mean anything. I don't need a therapist because I'm not crazy. "Okay, goodbye mother."

"Goodbye son."

I snatched up my purse from the couch and walked out of his office with a frown on my face. I don't know what's wrong with him, nor do I know what he sees in Milan. At first, I figured maybe it was her body he was interested in but now that she's all fucked up, all he has to depend on is her personality and he's still stayed. I just don't understand what he sees in her. She's not a likable person and she's a cheater. She's with his father for Christ sake! I know Teddy isn't the best person in the world but this is low, even for Theodore, and I feel guilty everyday keeping this a secret from him.

I decided to leave Theodore's house without telling anybody because I had some things to discuss at home, in private. I don't know if Theodore is lying to me about Milan being pregnant or what because he just lies so damn much, so I'm going to get answers for myself. I need to know if she's truly pregnant, because if she is there's no way she's pregnant now after how she took that nasty fall down the steps. But most importantly, I need to know who's baby it is if she's actually pregnant.

I drove back to Teddy's house in silence. My thoughts were clouding my head and the only thing on my mind at this point was getting some answers about this Milan situation. I just can't seem to wrap my mind around how Teddy and Theodore let this trick weasel her way into our lives and cause so much hell and strife between the two of them. She's keeping the shit going between them and she's the reason why they've never been able to make up. It's her.

I was angry by the time I made it to Teddy's house, so I quickly hopped out of my car and stormed into the house I hadn't been in,in days. Things were exactly like how we left them: blood, hair and shards of clothing all over the steps, turned over furniture and Milan still laying in the bathroom floor crying like a little girl. "Damn," I sucked my teeth. I was really hoping she'd be dead by now.

She slightly lifted her head up when I stepped into the bathroom. "W-Where's Teddy at?" she cried, shaking with each word she spoke, but I didn't give a damn. Milan deserves this. "I n-ned to sp-speak to him."

"No you don't, bitch."

"Look Victoria, I-I'm tired of your games. You've done enough to me. Just let me go! I don't want Teddy anymore and I don't want to be in this house anymore. You can have him, the house and everything in it. I just want to be uncuffed so I can get the hell out of here because at this point, I really don't care about what you or Teddy have to say. You two are perfect for each other because you're crazy as hell and I want no parts in anything you two are doing. I just want to go."

"So you can run into the arms of my son and tell him how much of a horrible person I am? No thanks. I think I'll keep you here."

She scrunched up her face. "What? I never spoke badly of you to Theodore. If we're keeping it real, you've never had a conversation with me unless you were downing me, and even then, it was a one sided conversation. You dominated the conversation. I never disrespected you until you disrespected me because I don't know you, and I don't care to know you either. You're a sad, miserable person and I don't want anything to do with you. You can have Teddy and be miserable with him. Take my rings, pawn them, do whatever you want to them! I don't care anymore."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, shut up Milan. You're a sad, miserable, nymphomaniac to be sleeping with your husband's son."

"Teddy never showed me any love or attention, and you know that! Just being in this house with the two of us all of these months, you've experienced first hand just how badly he treats me. I know I shouldn't have ran to his son, of all people, but Theodore loves me and has shown me a lot more love and respect than Teddy ever has."

"You're a whore," I spat.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I might be...but so are you and I'm in love with your son. You need to get over it and move on with your life."

I scrunched up my face. This crazy ass bitch must be smoking dick if she thinks she's going to be able to have a real relationship with my son. "Are you crazy or insane? Do you really think you and Theodore will be able to go public with your affair without receiving backlash from Teddy and the rest of our family?"

"Of course we can't go public with our relationship because you wouldn't allow it to happen. I know you really aren't listening to anything I'm saying because you don't care bu--"

"You're right," I agreed with her.

"As I was saying, you don't see it but I make Theodore happy. Nobody else has given a damn about him once we all moved down here, expect for me. I was the one keeping him out of trouble. I was protecting him."

"He doesn't need a mother. He has one," I told her.

"I wasn't trying to be his mother, but if you think I was, then so be it. I'd be a better Mom than you anyways. You've always treated him horribly and he doesn't deserve what you've put him through."

"Yeah, whatever," I rolled my eyes. Who is she to be telling me about my parenting? She's never been around to see how I treat my children and she has no room to judge me when she doesn't even have kids of her own. She needs to be worried about herself and her failing marriage, instead of my relationship with my son because it's none of her business. "Speaking of Mothers, are you pregnant?"

"No," she quickly responded.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I think I'd know if I was pregnant or not and I'm not."

"Have you been pregnant."

She looked up at me with a frown on her face. "And if I was, why the hell would you care? Would it ruin this perfect family image you think you have? Newsflash Victoria, nobody gives a damn about what you think. If I was pregnant, it was because of your ex. Lucky for you, Theodore and I always used condoms so I never got pregnant with him."

"So, you were pregnant with Teddy's child? I didn't think his soldiers were still moving," I scoffed.

"Well they still are and yes I was pregnant a few months ago."

"Was? Where the hell is the baby at?"

"Not in me!"

"Why? Did you have an abortion?"

"No."

"So, where's the baby at then?"

"I don't know, maybe you should use your head to do some deductive reasoning," she snapped. "I didn't have an abortion, so either I had the baby or I miscarried. Did you see me walking around with a big stomach? No. Did you see me go into labor? No. Have you seen a fucking baby? No, I don't think so. You're a teacher who thinks she's so smart, I'll let you come to a conclusion about what happened to my baby since you're the reason I miscarried."

My eyes widened. "Me? I never made you miscarry. I didn't even know you were pregnant."

"Teddy and I were constantly fighting because of you. How do you think I felt when he moved his ex into the house with us? I was pissed off and you'd be too if you were in the same situation I was in. You were always picking at me and getting me worked up. You and Teddy put me under so much stress that I lost my baby before I could even get a chance to tell Teddy I was pregnant. So, there you have it. That's the truth."

I sighed. "I'm sorry Mi--"

"No, you're not," she cut me off. "I don't need you or Teddy's sympathy, because even after I've told you what happened, I see no sincerity in your eyes. You're an evil, heartless bitch and you don't care about anybody but yourself. You don't care about me and you don't care about what I'm going through. The only thing you care about is making sure your perfect family is intact."

"No, I'm really sorry Milan."

"Yeah? Well, if you're so sorry then uncuff me."

I sighed. "I can't do that Milan. You know I can't."

She chuckled. "Exactly. You're a heartless bitch. Fuck you Victoria."

I frowned. See, I was trying to be nice to this broad because I know how hard it can be losing a child. I understand where she's coming from but she's still acting delusional. After everything we've done to her, there's no way we'll be able to let her go free. She's gonna have to stay here until Teddy gives her the money to disappear.

"No, fuck you Milan. You're just trying to get sympathy but I don't give a damn. Lay here and die for all I care."

"Maybe then I'll be with my baby you killed off."

"Hopefully, if I'm lucky, you will be," I said as I walked out of the bathroom, thoroughly pissed off.

Theodore III



I nodded my head as I positioned myself to lay back on the bed since I'll be laying here for the next few hours with nothing to do but bask in my own thoughts. Part of me understands where Mama is coming from with wanting me to stay down here but I can't hide out forever and I need to see Princess. I don't give a damn about everybody else. I just wanna see my baby girl because I know she's probably looking for me.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes as soon as I heard Mama close the door. She's got some nerve getting mad at me for being stuck on Milan when she's stuck on my Dad and his whorish ways. I'm not stupid, so I listen when the two of them are down here talking and Pops thinks I'm asleep. I'm gonna have to blow my bedroom off the side of the house since they thought it was all right to have sex on my bed as if I was never going back to it. They're disgusting and I don't know how I'll ever be able to go back into that room and lay on my sheets when I know my parents were having sex there. Just the thought of the two of them naked on my bed makes me want to throw up.

Mama's trippin' though, always trying to find a way to down Milan. I used to understand why she was pissed off with Milan, but now that Milan is in a failing marriage like she was, I don't understand why she still hates her so much. Mama needs to stop picking at Milan all the time because she doesn't know what Milan is going through and she doesn't know what's she's gone through dealing with my Dad. I might have been joking around when I told her Milan is pregnant, but what's so bad about her having my kids anyways?

The family already knows Milan and I know she's a good person and can raise some kids. Plus, her relationship with my father has failed, and by the looks of Mama and Pops fucking on my bed, I'm assuming Milan and my Dad's marriage is completely through. If Dad can move on from Milan, how come I can't move on to her? Milan is a good woman, too good for my Dad, but she's perfect for me. I just wish I hadn't shut her down a few months ago when she came to my house trying to mend things with me. I wish I had given her a chance and allowed her to change her ways before we jumped back into anything.

Only when Milan changes her ways and fully devotes herself to me, then I'll be able to drop all of my hoes and get with her. But until then, I'll be waiting on Milan so I can get her pregnant just to get back at my parents for the shit they've done to us. I'm completely ready for her, I'm just ready for her to come to her senses and drop my Dad because he ain't shit and neither is my Mama.

I froze when I heard the door knob rattling. Damn. I wonder who's coming in here. Mama and Pops were already here, Grandpa was here and so was Isaiah, Daniel and Adonis. Jaz and Aubrey came to see me yesterday so it has to be Lindsey since she hasn't been down here to see me that much. The door opened up and I was caught off guard. I was too scared to open my eyes because I'd ruin me and Mama's plan but it didn't sound like an adult down here. I can normally here people walking across the floor but I couldn't.

I heard a big bag of stuff drop down beside me before I heard the person run across the room. The door closed and locked and part of me wanted to open my eyes. The room I'm in isn't big enough for any adult to run across the room. It's pretty small, but the room is big for somebody that's small. Maybe it's Princess. I could feel the person standing over me but they weren't saying anything, just breathing hard as hell. I could feel the person bending down and that's when I got a whiff of their breath. It smelled like cookies, more so oreos. It has to be Princess. I could feel her warm tears dripping on my chest the more she cried. That's why she wasn't talking. She was crying. Damn. Now I really wish I could open up my eyes and just hold her in my arms. I hate to see Princess cry.

"Daddy. I missed you so much. It's not the same without you," she cried as she placed her hand on my face. Her warm tears were still dripping on me. "I know you can't talk but Grandma said you could hear me. I know I'm not supposed to be down here too but I had to see you, so I locked the door so nobody else could come down here. I had to see you Daddy." I took a deep breath as I felt Princess climb on top of me and sit on my lap. She laid on her side so her head was on my chest. "I start my summer camp tomorrow," she began, catching me off guard. I didn't know she was going to a summer camp. "Well, it's not really a camp. I'm gonna be learning math and science in the morning because Grandma said it'll make me smarter and then in the afternoon I'm gonna sell cookies! Grandma bought me a green and white uniform for my program. Oh! I need you to buy cookies from me Daddy because the more cookies I sell, the more buttons I get on my uniform and I have to beat the other girls."

Princess was silent for a moment, so I took that as my opportunity to open my eyes just a bit. I wanted to see her face since I haven't seen her in days. I slightly opened my eyes and saw Princess laying on to of me with her eyes tightly closed and her girl scouts uniform on her body. She didn't have any buttons on her uniform yet but I was gonna buy as many boxes of Samoas as I can to make sure she got more buttons on her uniform.

Princess grabbed my arm and pulled it over her body. "I wish you weren't down here. I want everything to go back to normal because I get scared at night without you and I like when you give me my shots in the morning and I like it when we eat our cereal together in the morning. It's just not the same without you Daddy because I miss talking to you. You're my best friend," she said as she began crying harder. She used the end of my shirt to wipe her tears away and I felt myself about to break.

I wanted to say something to Princess, something to show her that I was all right, but I didn't want my cover blown. There's only so many secrets Princess can keep within herself before she slips up and tells one of them. I don't want everybody knowing I'm awake but fuck it. I need to talk to my daughter. I don't want her crying over me when I'm all right.

My eyes popped open and as soon as they did, I tightened my grip around Princess and kissed her forehead. "I miss you too baby girl."

Princess popped up in my arms with a smile on her face but she was still crying. "Have you been up this whole time?"

I nodded my head. "Mhmm, but you gotta keep it a secret. You're the only person who knows I'm up. Can you do that for me?"

Her eyes widened. "Of course. Your secret is safe with me. Do you feel okay?"

"Yeah, I mean, I didn't feel good at first but then when you came down here, I started feeling a whole lot better. Did you miss me?"

"Yes, a whole, whole lot."

"I missed you more. I was down here thinking about you every day. Lemme ask you something, how was it when you were with Jaz and Aubrey?"

"It was so much fun," she smiled. "We went to McDonalds and I got a Happy Meal. Aunty Jaz made sure I got something healthy too. Me and Uncle Aubrey stayed up all night playing with my toys, coloring and watching TV. And then the next morning, we all made breakfast together. I made the pancakes Daddy!"

I smirked. "How were they?"

"They were amazing since I made them. And then after that, we went to the park and I was playing on the playground for a really long time and then we went to Toys R Us. Uncle Aubrey bought me a new Barbie and then we came back here. I had a whole lotta fun with them. I wanna go back over their house soon and I want you to come with me too. Are you and Uncle Aubrey best friends?"

Were we best friends? I mean, we were in the past but once all that shit went down, we drifted away from each other but Aubrey has really proved himself to me. I know he won't hurt my family and I know he won't hurt my daughter. Aubrey and I don't spend as much time together as we used to but I guess I'm gonna have to change that. I'm glad he stepped up and took care of my daughter since my family just left her sitting at the dinning room table by herself. I don't agree with the way he and Jaz took her and didn't say shit but I'm glad they took her and I'm gonna have to change my relationship with the both of them in the future.

"Yeah, we're best friends," I told her, making her smile.

"Good. I like him a lot. He's really funny and cute," she giggled, making me frown.

"Cute?"

"Mhmm. His voice is really deep and I like his beard. But he's really nice too."

"You too young to be having crushes on grown men Princess."

"It's not a crush," she corrected me. "I just think he's cute but I can't have a crush on him if he's my uncle and he's with Aunty Jaz. It wouldn't be right since I'm gonna be a big cousin to their babies. They're gonna have triplets and Aunty Jaz said I could be their big cousin. I can watch them, feed them bottles and play with them too."

I scrunched up my face. "What babies?"

Her eyes widened. "Oops! I wasn't supposed to say anything. Forget I even said anything."

"Nah, nah, nah. You already started running your mouth. I need the rest of the tea," I told her. I sat up on the couch with her still in my arms. "Since when was Jaz pregnant?"

"I don't know how long but I know she's pregnant with all of Uncle Aubrey's babies. She has three in her right now! Do you think you're gonna have more babies?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't even know Princess. You want more?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer to it.

"Yeah. I want you to get married to Mya and have babies with her. You might be upset with her, but are you guys still together?"

"No Princess."

"Oh," she mumbled. "I really liked Mya a lot."

"I did too. I wish things wouldn't have ended the way they did with us but I really did love Mya a lot and I wanted to marry her and have some babies with her but I don't think we're gonna work out anymore. Princess, sometimes you gotta let people go, no matter how much you care about them."

"Is Mya a bad person then?"

I shook my head. "Nah," I replied. In all honesty, Mya wasn't a bad person. Her family are people bad people. It's the company she keeps. I'd still talk to Mya and spend time with her if it weren't for what happened the other night at dinner. Her family is dangerous and I can't run the risk of putting my family in harms way because of my feelings. So, since I don't want anything to do with Mya's family, I can't be bothered with her either. I just wish things didn't end so badly between the two of us because I genuinely cared for her. She was real. "Her family is bad and dangerous. I know she won't hurt you but I don't know about her family so I want you to stay away from her from now on. Okay?"

She nodded her head. "Okay. Daddy, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what's up?"

"What happened to you? Did you get in a fight?"

"Something like that," I mumbled. "But I don't wanna talk about that. I wanna talk about what you've been up to."

"But I wanna talk about you. Where's Milan at? Did you break up with her too?"

I scrunched up my face. "What? Princess, you know Milan is my Step Mom. She's with your Grandpa. How could me and her be together?"

"Because you guys used to do the same stuff you and Mya do. Like, you guys would go in your room for a long time like you and Mya do and you guys are always smiling at each other. And as soon as you got with Mya, Milan stopped coming around so did you break up with her too?"

I sighed. Damn. Was it that obvious that I was messing around with Milan? "Look Princess, Milan is my Step Mom. She used to come around a lot because the two of us are close, not because we're in a relationship. The only girl I've been with is Mya, and you know that. I don't know what's going on between Milan and Grandpa but that's why she isn't around. It's not because of me. Don't go around saying me and her had something going on either. I'mma get in trouble with Grandma and Grandpa, 'cause it's not true Princess."

"Okay, I'm sorry," she mumbled, laying back down on my chest.

Princess and I just laid on the couch for what seemed like forever. I don't know how long we were down here but I needed her company. I enjoyed her company, even though we were doing much besides talking, laying on the couch and playing with her toys. I tilted my head to the side and watched as Princess dressed her dolls. Maybe Mama was right about me staying down here. I don't like hiding out but I need to heel so I can be fully prepared for what's to come so I can be able to protect my daughter.

Mya



I felt even worse now after what Banga did to me. I couldn't even fight him back, so I had to let him take advantage of me but I'm tired of being weak. I'm tired of letting people take advantage of me. Not just Banga, but my family too. I'm tired of all of these people taking advantage of me and disrespecting me. All my life, people have taken advantage of me and I've let them but not anymore. I can't do this anymore.

I looked to my side at Banga, who had passed out last night after taking advantage of me. He was already weak, from what looked like a good ass beating, but he just had to get his way and try to take from what's in between my legs even though he could barely stand up to do it. That's all right though. He has something else coming once I get from down here. He's going to see a totally different side of me and he's gonna wish he never took advantage of me.

It was the morning time, and as usual, Marquis walked down the basement steps with my breakfast. He always came down here feeding me some dry ass, thick ass, cold ass, plain ass oatmeal every morning before Daddy's bitches would come down here and kick my ass. This would be my only meal during the day, unless Precious was able to sneak some food down here for me, but even then it was only crackers or something small that she could hide in her pocket.

"Good morning," Marquis mumbled as he walked up to me. "Why are your pants down?"

I frowned. "Why do you think? Y'all locked me down here with him and didn't even tie him up like y'all did to me, so I was an easy target."

"And the victim, per usual," he sucked his teeth as he placed the bowl of oatmeal on the floor.

He made his way over to Banga, who was only a few feet away from me, before picking him up by his feet and dragging him to the other side of the basement. Instead of strapping his ankles to the cuffs closest to the ground, he strapped his wrists there instead. I watched Marquis pick up one of Banga's legs and pull it all the way up so he could strap it to the cuffs that were supposed to be for hie wrists. It didn't shock me that he was able to easily tie Banga up since I've seen him take on niggas twice or even three times his size. Marquis is a hot head, so it didn't surprise me the other night when he got into it with Theodore. I just wish he hadn't though because he ruined something good.

"You know, you oughta be a woman about some shit and take some initiative in your life," he said as he began feeding me the nasty oatmeal. "Ain't no reason you're still down here Goldie, except you just being stubborn and not wanting to conform. I know how you feeling, but sometimes you just gotta give Pops his way and he'll get off of your back. I don't like seeing you like this everyday. Shit. I don't think anybody is getting any enjoyment out of this, except for your stubborn ass."

I scrunched up my face as I pushed the thick oatmeal down my hoarse throat. "So, now I'm stubborn because I don't want to be apart of the family business. I don't want to be apart of it because if you aren't riding with Daddy, he's gonna fuck you over. Look at what he's doing to his own daughter. If he can't respect me, he damn sure won't respect anybody else. The same goes for you too."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. I know you're only doing this to please Matthew," I said, referring to our father. He doesn't deserve to be called my father or any name of that nature. He's a terrible excuse for a Dad, and I've come to realize that just being down here in the dark all alone. "I lost a lot of respect for you too because you're allowing him to control you too. What ever happened to having a mind of your own and making your own decisions? Since your father wants you to be such a big time king pin like him, why can't he stop meddling in your shit and giving you orders? Huh? Because I know you wouldn't have put me down here."

Marquis sighed. "You're right, but what the hell am I supposed to do about it? You really think I want that nigga constantly breathing down my back? I don't. If I speak out against him then I'll be trapped down here with you and you know I'm going to get it twice as bad since I'm the only son. So I just avoid the nigga, take his orders and keep my mouth shut because he doesn't care about what anybody has to say. After all these years, I thought you woulda learned that by now."

"I have but that still doesn't make it right. What he's doing to me is wrong and you know it."

"Hell yeah it's wrong. I told him not to do it. Shit. I begged the nigga not to do it but he socked my ass in the face for trying to protect you. Goldie, you know I'm not gon' let nobody hurt you but I just can't protect you against him. I'm sorry...for all of this. If I could help you, I would, but I don't know how to."

"Maybe you can help me."

"How?"

I've been doing some thinking down here about helping myself grow as an individual. I knew Marquis could keep a secret because he might actually go along with this. Precious might even be able to keep this a secret but Imani is like Daddy's little girl. She's always kissing his ass so she can't know about this. Shit. She might even get taken down too if it comes down to it. "What if I join the business? You know, work with you."

"Shit. That was supposed to be the plan in the first place."

"And I know this is gonna sound crazy but what if we killed off Matthew?" I whispered, making his eyes widen.

"Goldie, what the fuck? That's our Dad."

"But look at what he's done to us. He's controlling all of us, mainly you. Look at what he's done to me. I've been r*ped, starved and beaten down here because I'm not on his side. You know Precious really doesn't want to be doing this either. She isn't cut for this life."

"What about Mama and Imani?"

"Mama can stay but she's in on this too, so I don't know. You already know she's backing Matthew on whatever he's doing, so she knows about all of this he's doing to us," I replied. Never in a million years would I think about killing my own Mom but she's just as guilty as Matthew. I know she's in the background advising him on what to do since he always goes to her for advice. Mama pretends to stay out of the family business but she's heavily involved in it; she just stays low key but I peep shit. "Shit. Imani's ass-kicking self might have to get popped like Matthew too."

"Wait, hol' up. Goldie, I can understand your hatred for Dad, even Imani because she's an evil bitch, but Mama? She didn't do shit."

"And that's exactly the problem. She never does shit about anything going on around here and it's about time she speaks up instead of hiding behind Matthew. But she's not definite. She's on the list though because she doesn't stand her ground around Matthew."

"Maybe she's afraid just like the rest of us. Ever think about that?"

"Yes but it's not true. She knew what she was getting herself into when she married him and had kids with him. Clearly, he's always been this way and she just goes along with his shit, even though he's wrong majority of the time. So, what do you say? Are you in?"

Marquis sighed. "Man, Ion know. What if we can't kill him? He'll have every nigga in Atlanta on our head if he finds out what we're doing. He'd kill us himself."

"Not if he doesn't know. This can just stay between the two of us. We'll make it clean so we don't have to get anybody else involved."

"What'chu thinking about doing?"

"Well, I was thinking, we can't do it in the house because it's too many witnesses and it'll be obvious. We gotta do some shit that anybody can do like putting a bomb inside of his car and letting it explode with him inside of it. Something that'll take the blame off of us."

"I mean, that ain't no issue. That can be arranged right now. What about Imani? 'Cause I'm tired of her. It's time for her to go."

"Agreed. She's not really a liability like Matthew, so how she dies is completely up to you. Nobody really cares about her like that, but I want her to suffer for all the shit she's done to me."

"I completely agree wit'chu on that one. So, who's first? Pops or Imani?"

"Imani," I replied. "See, that way, he'll be distraught from her death and caught off guard, which will be an excuse to him getting into the car with the explosives in it."

"Shit. I got an even better idea, one where we won't even have to cause a scene. Let's have a family dinner."

"So it can end like the last one? No thanks."

"No, just listen to me Goldie. It'll be a hell of a lot to clean up and the police can possibly get involved if we light that nigga Matthew up, so how about we just poison them instead? I know it'll be giving them the easy way out, but that way, it'll be a clean death and nobody will suspect it's us. They'll suspect it's the cook. We can put potassium chloride in their drinks and in their food, they'll slowly lose control over their bodies until they start choking on their own vomit and before you know it, they'll be dead."

That actually doesn't sound bad. I just want them two to suffer, but if poisoning them is what it takes to get them off of our backs easily, then so be it. "What about Mama? You know she's going to try to save them."

"Then it's gonna be an unfortunate day for her," he told me. "Nobody is gonna get in the way of me running this business."

"Us," I corrected him, making him smack his lips. I knew I had to watch out for Marquis too. Once Daddy isn't around, he'll have no one to check him or give him orders, and with him being such a hot head, I know he'll try to get revenge on Prince. It'll be the first thing he does, not if I'm involved though. "You told me yourself, I should be running the business since that's what I'm in school doing. I'm the only one with the most knowledge. I should be running it alone, but based on your prior knowledge, we'll run it together."

"A'ight, I can get with that," he sighed. "What about Precious?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't know. I'm sure we can find a place for her."

"So what are we doing in the mean time?"

"You're going to untie me because I'm going to fake join the family business," I replied.

"So, I'm thinking we should have the dinner tonight in honor of you fake joining the business then. You cool with that?"

"How fast do you think you can get the potassium chloride?"

"I can call up some niggas right now and get it. It's no issue. I can have it for dinner tonight."

"Alright, then it's settled. Our last family dinner will be tonight," I told him as he began uncuffing me.

Aubrey



I scrolled through the text messages on my phone, fighting the urge to text Lindsey back. She's been texting me lately, and old Aubrey would've responded and would've been bouncing back and forth between Lindsey and Jaz, but the new Aubrey learned better than to do that. I can't have the best of both worlds so I had to choose. I was leaning towards Lindsey int he beginning but ultimately chose Jazmine because we have history.

I would've chosen Jaz if I hadn't seen her auditioning to be a dancer in Theodore's strip club that afternoon. Just seeing her, had old memories resurfacing and I could see the hurt in her eyes. She wasn't the same Jazmine, so I had to go talk to her. Something just felt right when I kissed her, even when I was talking to her. I didn't feel that way with Lindsey though. I felt like I was trying to get with Lindsey because of some old, childhood crush I had on her but I doubt she was even interested in me since she was just getting over Cashmere. But everything felt right when I was with Jaz. I fully committed myself to her when I found out she was pregnant though, and it's no going back now.

I looked at the new message I got from Lindsey and frowned:

Lindsey: How can you just take me out then ignore me afterwards like I'm some cheap hoe?

I wanted to respond but I knew it would set some shit off, so I didn't respond. I stuffed my phone in my pocket before walking into Jared's. I'm serious about Jaz. Shit. Everything got serious when we found out she was pregnant. I can't be playing around anymore because I'm about to be somebody's father. I have to mature, and the first step in doing that is getting married. I want to be married to Jazmine before she pops out any of my babies.

"How can I help you today, sir?" the sales associate approached me as soon as I walked into the store.

"I was looking for some engagement and wedding rings today."

The man smiled. "Perfect, you can follow me."

I don't have many friends, and neither does Jazmine, so I knew a big wedding was off the table. We don't really fuck with too many people besides each other, so we were going to have something small or we were going to the court house to get it done. Either way, I want to be married to Jazmine before she has my babies.

"What kind of engagement rings are you looking for today sir?"

I chuckled. "Uh, actually, I don't know much about rings. What's the general prices for engagement rings?"

"Well, our engagement rings run somewhere between $600-$10,000," he informed me. Damn. Who knew rings could be so expensive? "But the $600 is on the cheapest side, you know, it's not the best quality. You'd be better off buying a more expensive ring because the quality is better, the cut of the diamonds are better and it'll last longer than something cheap."

I sighed. "What about the wedding bands?"

"They're actually around the same price. What's your budget?"

"I don't have one," I smiled, making his eyes light up because he knew he was about to get a hell of a lot of commission, or so he thought. I didn't need these people looking down at me. I was definitely on a budget. I only have about seven grand saved up from just being down here working for Theodore. Most of that money is about to go to paying for stuff for the baby, but we still have bills to pay for too. The most I'm willing to put out right now is $3,000 for the engagement ring and wedding band.

"Great! Let me open up our bays to show you what we have to offer." He began unlocking the bags before he laid out a piece of suede cloth. He placed several large, expensive looking rings and bands in front of me. "Now, this first one you're looking at is a little on the expensive side. This is our Love Forever triangular cut ring with diamonds embedded on the band of the ring. This ring comes with a set of wedding bands that look similar to it."

Damn. This ring was nice as hell. Jazmine wouldn't care much for all of this gaudy shit but she deserves it for putting up with my ass and for the shit she's about to go through with putting up with my offspring. "How much is all of this?"

"About six grand, which isn't a lot because you're making a major investment into something that's going to pay off in the end."

Fuck. I can't imagine dropping that much on some rings, that really don't mean shit to begin with. Shouldn't love be what's most important, and not jewelry? "I don't think I'm looking to spend that kind of money today. I mean, I got it. I can buy everything in this store but I'm not putting out that kind of money today. Um, what else do you have that's on the cheaper side?"

I saw the sales associate frown a little when I said that. He reached into the bay and pulled out some more reasonable looking rings. "Well, these are kind of knew and the cheapest we have at the moment," he replied, making me smile. Shit. This is what he should've been showing me in the first place instead of that expensive shit. "This is our Truest Love set. Now, the engagement ring has a small circular diamond in the middle, with two smaller diamonds surrounding it with a sterling silver band with our finest cut diamonds coating the band. This will run you about $600 and the wedding band set, with the similar finely cut diamonds on the band will run you about $1200. How are you feeling about this set?"

"I'll take it," I smiled.

This was right up my price range. This will make Jazmine happy. The only issue with marrying Jazmine, is that I'm about to marry into her crazy ass family is she's about to marry into mine. I want to be married to her before she has the baby, but that means, we're gonna have to come to common grounds with each other's families. I'm going to have to talk to her Mom and Dad and reason with them and she's going to have to do the same with my Mom. Trust and believe, her parents are the last people I want to sit down and talk with but I have to be mature and do this for the sake of my future child because I don't want my child being born into turmoil that Jaz and I created.

It wouldn't be fair to the child.

I followed the sales associate up to the counter so he could begin getting the minor details fixed about the ring like the sizing and me paying, just as my phone rang again in my pocket. I pulled it out of my pocket and sucked my teeth when I saw it was Lindsey again.

Lindsey: So you're going to leave me on read?

This time, I responded. I don't need Jazmine getting a hold of my phone and thinking I'm cheating when Lindsey won't leave me alone. I mean, damn. I know I'm hard to resist but I didn't think she'd be on my balls like this. She's never been this aggressive, normally I have to be aggressive towards her.

Aubrey: I'm in a relationship now.

Lindsey: With that bitch Jazmine? Do you know what she was doing while you were locked up?

Aubrey: It's none of my business.

Lindsey: Well, I think it is your business. She was doing Adonis for years, she was trying to sleep with Theodore well before we all even left California and she's still trying to get with him, she was messing around with my boyfriend and she was just messing around with Isaiah a few months ago. I wouldn't fuck with her if I were you. There's no telling what she's got or given you at this point.

Fuck. I knew I shouldn't have trusted Jazmine. Everything I thought she was out doing when I was locked up, was true. I knew she was hoing around. I frowned as I watched the sales associate swipe my card through the machine, paying for the rings. Damn. What the fuck did I just pay for?

~~~

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How do you guys feel about this chapter? How do you guys feel about Victoria wanting Theodore to stay locked away? Should he be laying low in order to heel himself? Or is hiding out not going to help him in the long run? How do you guys feel about Milan losing her baby? How will Teddy react when he finds out? Was Victoria truly sorry for Milan losing her baby? How do you guys feel about Theodore trying to get Milan pregnant just to get back at his parents? Is that a smart decision, considering all the consequences they're going to face? How do you guys feel about Mya? Is she wrong to be working with Marquis? Are they wrong to plot against their family? What will happen if their plan doesn't work out? What will happen if the plan works and they take over the business? How do you guys feel about Aubrey and Jazmine's relationship? Is Aubrey taking the necessary steps to prepare for the baby like marrying Jaz? How do you think the conversation will go between the parents? Was Lindsey wrong to tell Aubrey all of Jazmine's business? What will Aubrey do now that he knows Jazmine's business?

Marquis is in the MM.