Page 48 of Quasim II: King Inferno

Who was forcing liquor down this baby’s throat?

I could see his grip tighten around the glass as he looked at him. “When did you have liquor, Eli?”

He laid back on my chest. “Mom forces me to drink a bunch of it beforehecomes.”

My hand covered my mouth, and Sim gave me a soothing look that told me to breathe and relax. I had to remain calm because if we overreacted, then he would, too.

I could see my baby pacing himself and trying to remain calm. “Eli, remember when I told you that I can’t help you if you don’t tell me the truth?”

Elijah shot up. “I haven’t lied to you, Sim… I swear. Please don’t take me back, I’m not lying,” He started crying.

Sim motioned for him to come to him, and he quickly moved over toward him. “I know you didn’t lie to me. You’re always honest… but you didn’t tell me something, Eli.”

He stared up at Quasim with tears in his eyes. “My iPad.”

My face was wet with tears as I listened to how broken this baby was. How defeated he was that we knew about something he wanted to hide from us. “Can you tell me about it?”

He looked back over at me. “It’s okay, Elijah.”

Quasim held his face. “I told you I would always come for you, right?”

He nodded yes.

“Then I need you to know that I am going to fix everything and take care of the bad people, too, okay?”

“And come back for me?”

“Always going to come back for you and Anjo.” He stared at me in the eyes as I held his hand while Elijah leaned on him.

He squeezed my hand as Elijah told us everything that happened to him. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried hard not to cover my ears. My heart was broken, vomit tickled my throat, and the tears wouldn’t stop.

Sim never let go of my hand or Elijah as he told us everything. He was our sense of strength, although I knew this was breaking him down, too. Elijah cried into Sim’s chest while he squeezed my hand and held him tightly with the other.

A child holding onto all of that was too much. It was so much for me to hear, and he had actually experienced the horrible things he said. All I knew is that Thea had to die, and I wanted to see her go down.

“Eli, look at me.” he pulled himself from being buried into his chest and looked at him. “I lost one child… remember when I told you about her.”

“Yes.”

“I’m not going to lose another… you are mine and I am yours, okay? It would be a cold day in hell before they ever came to take you from me, okay?”

“Promise?”

I moved closer to Quasim. “We promise.” Simmy kissed me as I leaned my head on his shoulder and we both held Elijah. I looked into his eyes, and I knew this was the calm before the storm. “You have to do what you have to do. We love you for it, Simmy.”

He kissed my head, as I closed my eyes and squeezed his hand.

Elijah was chattingabout anything that came to his mind as we drove to the private airport. I told Quasim that it wasn’t necessary to put me on a jet. My employer was paying for myflight. He was set on making sure that he chartered a jet for us to head down to Miami.

I rubbed his neck as he drove, and he kept his hand on my thigh. “Two weeks, you gonna miss me?”

“Damn right… how much she paid you? I’ll pay you double to back out.”

I snorted. “Simmy, you more than anyone know business don’t work like that.”

He smirked. “I’m wrong for asking?”

“Not you wanting to pay me to call out of work.” I continued to rub his neck, something that he loved that I did whenever he was driving.

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