Page 104 of Rebound

“Boss!” Bruce says from the back of the house. Layla starts to moan, but Bruce yells my name again. “Get in here. Now!”

“Dada!” Jasmine screams, and my heart drops.

Layla starts to stir, and her eyes fly open. I see the relief in them when she realizes it’s me, but then they turn fearful again.

“Jasmine,” she moans. She touches the back of her head and winces. “Go. She’s here.” I know who she means when she says ‘she.’ I nod and reluctantly leave Layla. Archie, her bodyguard, finally walks through the door with a brown paper bag. He quickly reads the room, drops the bag, and pulls out his gun.

“Let me—” he begins, but I ignore him and run down the hall.

I come up short when I get to Jasmine’s room. My daughter is in the arms of that psychotic bitch, screaming louder than I’ve ever heard. She’s stripped down to a diaper, and there’s a dress on the bed that’s not hers. I look at Jasmine and notice that her hair is shorter and is pulled into a ponytail so tight, it’s got to be painful. This bitch cut my daughter’s hair, and I make a note that I’m going to shave her head before she leaves here today.

“The fuck?” I say. Jasmine sees me and her crying stops for a moment. Long enough for her to take a breath and extend her arms to me.

“Dada!” she says. “Come. Come.” She pushes against the woman’s chest and says, “No.” Her little voice cracks, but she pushes against her chest again. Jasmine even grabs a handful of the woman's hair and pulls. Barbara pulls away and grabs Jasmine’s shoulders.

“You have the devil in you, child. Stop that.” She shakes her shoulders, and I see red.

I take a step closer and she says, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” She points to the nightstand and I notice a gun on it. “Your wife tried to fight me, and it didn’t work out too good for her. She’s going to have a killer headache when she wakes up. It was only by His grace that I didn’t end her. Amen.” She says the last word while she looks up at the ceiling.

Uncaring about her words, I dive across the room and land on the bed. Bruce goes to the other side and grabs the gun. Barbara stands, and I snatch Jasmine out of her arms. I do it so fast, she stumbles back but catches her balance. That’s when I shove her with my free hand, and she falls on her ass.

I run to the door with Jasmine in my arms, and say, “Go to Mama.” I put her down, and she takes off. I can still hear her screams when I turn to the lunatic in the room. I slam the door shut and slowly approach her. She backs away until her back hits the wall.

“Boss,” Archie says, holding his gun in her direction.

“I’ve got this,” is all I say.

I don’t say another word when I reach her. She’s crying silently as she looks around the room. I wrap my hand around her scrawny neck and press her against the wall. She makes a gasping noise, and I add pressure. More of her tears fall, and some land on my hand, but I don’t care. In my rage, I lift her off her feet and let them dangle.

“Don’t,” she moans, but I squeeze her neck so tight, that her eyes bulge out.

“You break into my house, assault my wife, and torture my kid; I have every right to defend my family. I can take Archie’s gun and shoot you, and I’d be within my rights, you bitch.”

She starts to scratch my hand. She also tries to pull my fingers from around her neck but can’t. I loosen my grip just enough to allow her to breathe. She inhales a big gulp of air.

“The devil’s taken everything from me. First my daughter and now my granddaughter,” she says through more tears.

“Wrong thing to say.” I add more pressure again. She starts to kick, but I don’t let her go.

“Boss,” Bruce says. “Let her go. The cops just got here. Can you hear them?” I hear heavy footsteps and voices, but I still don’t let go.

“Drop your hand,” Archie says this time. “Your wife and daughter need you.”

“My family needs this bitch out of the way.” She starts to open her mouth like a fish, but I know no air is getting through.

“Seth!” Layla yells. “Let her go. Right now.” I turn my head, and she’s at the door holding a calm Jasmine. I drop my hand, and Barbara falls to my feet. She coughs and gasps for air. When I step away from her, Jasmine sees her and starts to scream. Layla walks away with our daughter. I follow after them and when I reach my girls, Jasmine is still crying but not as loudly as before. I take her and sit next to Layla.

“Are you okay?” She nods but rubs the back of her head. I touch it, and she winces. There’s a noticeable bump there, and I curse under my breath. I pull her into my arms and she rests her head on my chest. “What happened?”

“I don’t know how she got in the building, but she knocked on the door when Archie left for lunch. I opened it, and she pushed me before I could react. She must have hit me over the head with something. When I came to, it was when you were here.”

Chapter 66

Layla

Just as the words leave my mouth, the cops walk into the living room with Barbara in handcuffs. Her head hangs down, and she refuses to look at anyone.

“I’m pressing charges,” Seth says. “She broke into my house, assaulted my wife, and traumatized my daughter. She cut my daughter’s hair without our consent.” He stands in front of her and points his finger at her, but she won’t look up. “You’re going to regret this.”

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