Page 62 of Love's Free Will

My stomach twisted. “Don’t do that.”

“Where were you, Royal?”

“I was?—”

“Don’t lie.”

“I left with my girl.”

There was a pause… then a scoff. “You left your brother for some random bitch.”

My vision blurred in red. “Watch yo fuckin’’ mouth.”

“She ain’t family. He was.”

“You don’t know a damn thing about her or what she is to me.”

“I know she ain’t worth leavin’ your blood for.”

“Oh, but you know somethin’ about loyalty now?” I laughed bitterly. “You, the same man who left us to fend for ourselves. The same man who been locked in a cage for the last two decades? Naw, Pops, don’t sit up there hollerin’ ‘bout what I should’ve done when you ain’t done shit yourself.”

“I did what I had to?—”

“Nah! You did what you wanted. And you left us to clean up the pieces. I’m the one who got us out the fuckin’’ hood. I’m the one who made sure Princess never had to worry about nothin’. I’m the one makin’ moves for this family, and you? You sittin’ on your ass in prison, throwin’ stones while living in a big ass glass house.”

“You don’t know?—"

I wasn’t finished.

“You really mad ‘cause Mama left you right? Please. What’d you expect when she found out you had other bitches comin’ to visit you? Or when she found out you got another son out here the same age as Princess?!” I heard him suck in a breath. “Yeah, I know all about it. So don’t come at me like you holier than thou. You couldn’t keep your dick in your pants, couldn’t stay outta trouble, and you damn sure couldn’t keep your family together. So don’t come at me talkin’ ‘bout what I lost. You the reason we all broken.”

His voice was quiet now. Smaller.

“You don’t know what the fuck?—”

“Don’t sling mud if yo shit ain’t clean,” I snapped. “And don’t call my fuckin’ phone talkin’ crazy when you ain't got the right to say shit.”

Then I hung up and threw my phone across the dashboard, chest heaving. And for the first time in days, I realized I wasn’t just mad at him. I was mad at the world. I was mad at myself, and I was mad at God. Because no matter how much I yelled… King wasn’t coming back.

I hadn’t even made it out of the car before my phone rang again. I exhaled, trying to figure out what the fuck else. I grabbed my phone from where I threw it on the seat and saw Logan’s name flashing.

I knew that name was coming eventually. Hell, I’d been dodging his calls too. But he was persistent, and after the day I’d had—with my pops coming for my throat from his prison cot—I was already running on fumes.

I answered, teeth clenched. “What.”

“Royal.” That was it. My whole damn name. Not yo, not aye yo, not even bro. He was serious. “I been tryin’ to get at you for two weeks. What the hell is goin’ on, man?” I didn’t answer. “You in the blogs for fightin’ a nigga at Lennox Mall, you got kicked out the back of Magic City two nights ago, and then I hear yougot banned from two studio spaces for trashin’ the equipment?” He didn’t pause. “And now, Tea And Honey postin’ you drunk in a club booth with a chick in your lap like you ain't got an album droppin’ in a minute. What the fuck is you doin’, Royal?”

I let out a dry laugh, hand running over my beard. “What you think I’m doin’, Logan? Grieving. Minding my fuckin’ business. Drownin’ in henny and pussy. Pick one.”

“You think this shit funny?”

“I think I don’t feel like hearin’ yo fuckin’ mouth right now.”

“Well too fuckin’’ bad,” he snapped, and I swore I heard the NI syllable before he stopped himself. “Because this is my business, Royal. Everything you do—every headline, every dumbass decision—has consequences. You got a team. You got an album. You got money on the line. And right now? You fuckin’’ it all up.”

“I lost my brother, man.” My voice cracked just a little. “What the fuck you want me to do? Smile for the camera and act like shit ain’t fallin’ apart?”

“I want you to act like a man who worked his whole life for this and ain’t about to throw it away behind a bottle and a bunch of bad decisions,” Logan barked. “You think King would want you out here wildin’ like this?” That was a low blow. I didn’t respond. “And let’s talk about Averi.”

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