Page 46 of Love & Vendettas

When we stop, Riley scoots to the top of the bed, grabs some tissues from the nightstand, and wipes her face.

“What did Zaire say?” she asks.

“He’s looking into things. I won’t lie. I thought that Kenny ceased to exist, but that’s apparently not what happened. Zaire’s on top of it, and he’s sending men to protect us until we return, like I said before.”

Riley nods and breathes slowly. She reaches out and grabs mine and Trina’s hands. “Thanks for being here with me, ladies. All three of you. I couldn’t ask for a better group of ladies to spend the weekend with.”

“That’s fine. But I want to spend my day getting my body touched.”

At Alicia’s words, Trina and I look at Riley and then back to Alicia before we throw our hands in the air and exclaim excitedly together, “Spa day!”

We fall back on the bed, giggling as we make plans for the rest of our indoor day.

An hour later, after I’ve finished showering and am preparing to meet the girls again, my phone rings.

“Hey, baby,” I greet Zaire.

“Hey. So, the men are already there. They’ll be posted up close to your rooms. There are five of them, and they’ve been asked to stay as low-key as possible.”

“That’s not what Alicia’s going to want.”

He laughs derisively and then confesses, “They’ve been warned not to fuck with Alicia.”

“And if she finds out that you gave that warning, you’ll be on her shit list.”

Laughing full-on this time, he asks, “When am I not?”

“Either way. So, what’s going on with the other situation?”

“I’ve got a mole in my operations.”

“Zaire!”

“Yeah. Someone has been by there. Someone who knew where we kept the place and who knew that he must have been there, as well. When we returned, he was gone, and my shit was burned to the ground.”

“Oh, my God! Who do you think it was?”

“I have no idea. I don’t trust shit at this point.”

“So, what are you going to do?”

“Figure out who’s behind it and make them pay. Before that, though, I have to find Kenny.”

“Why did you spare him?” I groan.

“I didn’t. I planned to make him suffer the way that he’s made her suffer before calling it.”

I know by “calling it,” he means killing Kenny.

“Please be safe, baby. I’m worried about you.”

“I’m good. Don’t worry about me. Worry about the fucker who would dare cross me.”

“Yeah, I know,” I reply softly.

“Listen, you go and enjoy your time with the ladies. Don’t worry about me or the operations. Just have fun, and I’ll take care of the rest.”

“Okay,” I say.

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