The more I swiped, the more my heart hurt. This was much worse than the press I got when they found out I kept Avi from him. These people were cruel, knew nothing about him, but were making all kinds of assumptions.
One of the notifications to Tattle Tales had a video link so I clicked it, assuming it was Omiri’s father from last night. My eyes went wide when it showed flashing lights on a dark street. The police had the area blocked off while the coroners moved toward a body with a gurney. The cops approached and I noticed them arguing with someone then the cops grabbing a man and forcefully dragging him out of the way.
That was when I noticed it was Omiri. They wanted him to leave his brother so the medics could take him but he refused. It took four officers to contain him. Eventually they got him under control but he broke free and dropped to his knees, covering his head with his arms when they closed the doors to the coroner’s vehicle taking his brother away.
My heart broke and I was wiping tears as I blinked at my screen. The worst moment of his life had been streamed for likes and comments. I climbed out of bed and headed to the bathroom to get myself together before I was en route to check on Avi. I stopped just outside her door when I heard Omiri’s voice.
“Hey, pretty girl. I hope you slept good because your old man damn sure didn’t.”
I moved closer and peeked into her room just in time to catch him sitting in the rocking chair with Avi in his arms.
“My life is so fucked up right now. You and your mom are about the only good things I have in my life. I’m exhausted and scared as hell that your mom is going to get tired of my shit and bail. I can’t lose y’all though. I won’t fucking survive.”
You won’t lose us…
I let him have his moment and was on my way to the door when a notification showed up saying someone had just entered the main gate. I checked the access code and headed to the front when I realized it was Vanessa.
I greeted her and Omiri met us in the living room a few minutes later, frowning.
“What’s up, Van? Why you here so early?”
“We need to discuss how you want me to handle this.”
I walked over and took Avi from him. “I’m going to let you guys talk. Can I get you anything?”
“No, I’m good, thank you.” I nodded and headed to the kitchen where I sat Avi in her high chair. I diced a banana for her while I made coffee and listened to them.
“I really don’t give a damn about any of this.” Omiri sounded annoyed.
“I know you don’t but unfortunately you have to. It’s time for training camp and that means this needs to be settled before the season starts. Most of the legitimate news outlets aren’t touching it but it’s still viral.”
“Van, I honestly don’t give a damn.”
“The owners reached out to ask if they should be concerned. You just signed a really big contract.”
Omiri snorted. “They don’t have to worry. Their money is safe.”
“I already confirmed that with them. I spoke with Raaj this morning to deal with the legal aspect of things. I wouldlike you to consider allowing me to put a statement out about what happened. The information out there is vague and can be misinterpreted. We don’t want them creating a negative image of O’Rion.”
“It’s none of their fucking business.”
“No, it’s not but you either give them the truth or they keep twisting a lie.”
“Do whatever you think. I can’t deal with this shit.”
“I’m working on getting the dashcam videos down…”
My eyes shot over to Omiri and his expression was hard. “The fuck you mean?”
“The dashcam video from that night was leaked. It’s everywhere. You didn’t know?”
She took out her phone, tapped the screen, and handed it to him. He watched for a few seconds with his expression hard before he shoved the phone back at her.
“We’re suing the fuck outta whoever leaked that.”
“It’s public access. I’ll make sure we get it down but once it’s out there…”
It’s out there…
