“That ain’t his name. Kole, stay there,” Kole said in a low, menacing tone that stopped MJ in his tracks. Kole brought the official name change document out of his back pocket and threw it at Terror. I could see Terror’s head about to explode as the paper hit his chest and landed on the ground.
“MJ, leave now,” Terror spoke again as I saw him reaching now, too, and I felt like I was about to shit a brick. I grabbed MJ and tried to take him away to safety because I knew this shit was about to be all bad.
“Crystal put my fucking son down now and tell that nigga what it is!” Kole snapped.
“You need to start talking now!” Terror barked, and my head was ping ponging back and forth, but I didn’t say a word.
“TELL HIM!” Kole’s voice made me jump, and I looked at Terror, and tears sprang to my eyes.
“Fuck that crying shit! You trying to tell me that MJ ain’t mine? After all these years, you mean to tell me that ain’t MY FUCKING SON CRYSTAL?????” Terror asked.
“I don’t know,” I said in barely above a whisper.
“What the fuck you mean you don’t know?” Terror stepped towards me.
“Stop trying to save face. You know he’s mine! That boy belongs to me! Look at his eyes.” Kole said. Terror looked at me to dispute it. I looked at Kole’s eyes, then Terror’s, then MJ’s. They all mirrored each other. I didn’t know what the fuck was going on or what to say. This didn’t need to go further. The secret was out. I would deal with the consequences of the test, but MJ could only get harmed if they went at it.
“I’M SORRY!!! I’m so sorry, Terror.” I sobbed
“Fuck yo’ sorry!” Terror shouted.
“Aye, now that’s my bitch watch yo’ tone!” Kole shot.
“Nigga fuck you! Where the fuck were you while I was taking care of him? You need to stop fucking talking to me.”
“Or what?” Kole upped his gun, and Terror did the same, and MJ started to cry hysterically.
“Y’all please don’t do this in front of him. Please, he is only a child,” I cried, trying to reason with them both.
“Shut the fuck up, Crystal! My son needs to see this shit. He gone have to lay plenty niggas out in his day.” Kole said.
“If he yo’ son think about him. Crystal, take him away NOW!” Terror spoke, trying to be the bigger man. No doubt he still loved MJ and didn’t want anything to happen to him. I knew he only said those words on the strength of his love for this boy because he never backed down from a fight. I eased my way back, trying to get out of the line of sight for the guns.
“Don’t move, Crystal. I don’t miss,” Kole said again.
Before I could make another move, gunshots rang through the house. I couldn’t see anything as fragments and smoke clung through the air. All I could do was scream and duck to try to get my son and myself to safety. I clung to him tightly asI crouched down behind the island. I couldn’t believe they would do this with MJ present.
The fire went on for a few more minutes until I heard the door open and close, and more gunfire for a moment, and then nothing. I walked around the island and saw so many damn holes everywhere. I didn’t know what to do. There was blood everywhere, and I looked to see who was still there. I saw a blood trail leading out the door, and when I looked out, Kole’s viper was gone. I looked frantically around for Terror, and I saw him in the hallway with his shirt bloody.
“FUCK!” he screamed as he fought to get up. He propped himself on his left arm and slowly got to his feet. He was fighting to catch his breath. He looked at me with wide eyes while he winced in pain.
“Daddy!” MJ squealed as he saw Terror collapse back to the ground with a blood-soaked shirt.
Chapter 22
Terror
The monitors' beeping caused me to stir in my sleep. I noticed a pain in my midsection. I pulled up the blankets and uncovered a bandage on the right part of my torso. I threw my head against the bed to gather my thoughts. It took a few moments to realize where I was and what the hell had happened. Hell nah, this nigga was going to pay for this shit immediately. Once the sequence of events floated through my head, I was charged up. I sat up too quickly, and a piercing pain knocked me back down to the bed. My teeth chattered so hard, I felt blood gather in my mouth.
“Ahh fuck!” I winced and collapsed. The pain was unbearable and made my movements considerably slower. I reached for the hospital bed rail and lifted myself slowly. I looked around the room and saw my mother in a chair in the corner, sleeping. The monitors continuing to sound off were the only things cutting through the deafening silence. I didn’t want to come to terms with what I had just been through. I did not want to think. I only wanted to feel anger about the situation. I didn’t want to marry the other emotion that was bursting through so vibrantly and aggressively. I couldn’t accept it. Ididn’t even want to speak the words aloud. There was no way I could stomach the fact that my son wasn’t mine.
The son I've invested everything in for the last four years. The boy who only knew me as his father. I had trust accounts and his whole future set up. It wasn’t about the money. It was the principle. The way I thought about not only his present but also his future. Now I had to face the fact that this whole thing was a lie? How do you walk away from a child who made an imprint on your heart? I would lay my life down for him at any time. I damn near did already.
Kole didn’t care that MJ was there when he started shooting. I jumped in front of MJ so that Crystal could take him away. That’s when Kole hit me on my side. It was so much adrenaline flowing through me that I didn’t feel it at the time. That was the only shot that hit me. No matter what happened, I was going to protect MJ from any harm, even before my own safety. I tackled him and we struggled for a minute. I was able to get his gun from him, and that’s when he broke and made a run for it. I hit him a few times. I know I did. I couldn’t see where. He was moving so fast. Rightfully so because I was damn sure gone kill his ass.
So, what’s next? Do I test MJ to be sure? The thought alone was enough to send a burning sensation through my chest. There was no way I wasn’t his father. I loved that boy more than I loved myself. I couldn’t take this shit. Tears slipped from my eyes at the thought of never seeing him again. That wasn’t going to happen. Fuck what any test had to say. I wasn’t going to leave him fatherless or allow Kole to turn him into a monster.
He was my son, and I would be completely okay with raising him by myself after I killed Kole and Crystal’s ass. That bitch was not about to get off light with me. She was one of the lowest muthafuckas I ever met. Just a money-hungry, snake assbitch. Thinking about her put a bad taste in my mouth. She sat there like a damn deer in headlights instead of thinking of her own son and taking him to safety. It never should have gotten to that point. As soon as she would have gotten MJ out of the way, I would’ve killed Kole, and that could’ve been the end of all that shit. Instead, I was laid up here with a damn bullet wound, and I didn’t even know where the fuck my son was.
