Page 41 of Disrespectfully, Relic
“You just stare through people, and I can’t tell if you’re listening or don’t give a damn.”
“I’m listening, and I don’t give a damn. Fucking Logan got us that meeting.”
“Relic, that girl is in love with you! If I saw it, Tolli did. What are you going to do when she finds out she’s nothing more than a pawn and you’ll never choose her? Logan is going to lose her shit.”
“And she’ll lose her life. It’s as simple as that.”
“So, the no women and children rule doesn’t apply to you, huh?”
Relic chuckled. “Kennedy, I don’t give a single damn about a bitch or the kid she pushed out if she crosses me. They can be together in heaven.”
“You are one twisted ass nigga.”
“Tell me something I don’t know. At the end of the day, it’s me or them, and I’ll always choose me. Logan is good as long as she plays her position, which she’s done for months. This plan didn’t happen overnight.”
“So, you trust her?”
“Stop asking stupid questions,” he clipped with his face screwing up. “I trust her to be a woman. My father told me once that women are conniving and the best liars on earth. They know how to get in your heart and head, then fuck with both until you feel like you’re crazy. You and Logan proved that tonight.”
She jutted a finger at her chest and confirmed, “Me? How the hell did I prove it?”
“Because you did everything but what I asked you to do tonight, Kennedy, and I fucking let you even though I knew better.”
“You let me because it benefited you! I told you before, you don’t know how to talk to people. I’m not big on chatting either, but I know how to drive home a point. I’m sugar and you’re shit, so I stepped in before you ruined it with your rude, disrespectful ass!”
“Which brings me to the next part of his lesson. Joseph warned me to use women before they use me. Find out what they’re good at and then use it to my advantage until they’re no longer useful. Nothing more.”
Kennedy’s face contorted in a mixture of disgust and utter disbelief. She’d done what Relic required of her, but he’d turned that into a negative because his father had conned him into believing women holding even an ounce of power or strategy was a negative.
“Is this the future advice Jahleel is looking forward to? If so, I understand why Shabu told him not to come to you about girls. You sound dumb.”
“I sound logical. Whatever you can do to the next nigga, you can do to me.”
“See, that’s where you’re mistaken, Relic. I wasn’t doing shit to you, I was doing itfor you. That man didn’t care to hear a word out of your mouth, but I made iteasierfor you because that’s what a real woman does. We simplify your fucking life. I know, it’ll kill you to admit that, but it’s the reason you sought me out.”
“That’s what you believe?”
“It’s what I know. If I’m wrong, tell me why I’m here?”
Relic spit out a sadistic laugh, knowing if he confessed the real reason he even entertained pulling her into his world; Kennedy would shit fucking bricks. She’d fold and finally see the true monster in him that she overlooked because she was used to the boogeyman. Her brother had desensitized her from spotting danger. Koda had instilled Kennedy with the best and worst traits that convinced Relic to keep her around when she should’ve been pictured on the front of Savvy’s shirt or a rest in peace banner. She’d been gifted with attributes similar to his, and he wouldn’t confess it aloud, but he liked being seen as normal by her when he was the furthest thing from it.
“Why are you here?” Relic found himself asking a question he didn’t give a fuck about when he’d recruited her. “You keep pointing out why you think I need you, but why are you willing to help me? You’ve heard about me and know what I’m capable of. You know, you’re not safe with me if you fuck up, Kennedy, but you’re here. Why?”
“Because of the money—”
“Bullshit!” Relic snapped, slapping a palm against the steering wheel before he clenched it with both hands. He didn’t trust himself not to explode because Kennedy was playing on his intelligence. “I know for a fact you don’t need the cash. Now, I feel like you have a motive.”
“Are you serious?! You bothered me, Relic. I didn’t come looking for you!”
Kennedy gawked at him like he’d sprouted a second head right before her eyes. A switch had flipped, but she couldn’t pinpoint the trigger that made him react as if she was suddenly his number one opposition. Fear nestled in the pit of her stomach like a grenade about to explode when his seedy eyes darted around the dark street while his sharp jawline twitched, exposing his efforts to remain calm. Her throat muscles shrunk after realizing she’d left her cash and weapon at home since he’d convinced her to latch onto his every word.
Relic had turned her into an easy lick, and she’d missed the fucking signs.
“Relic.”
“You ever been on a boat before, Kennedy?” A calm mask settled over his face while his crisp voice lacked emotion. Her tongue grew thick and heavy in her mouth.
“Once. My brother threw my eighteenth birthday on a yacht.”
