As she went to the back to get Fischer, I took a curious glance around the store. It looked like any other electronic store you saw in the neighborhood, but I knew there were bloodstains on the office floors in the back of the building.
It wasn’t even a full minute later, and the blonde was back, saying, “He said to go on back. You…You know where it is.”
Keith gave her a thankful nod. “Thanks, Erin.” I didn’t acknowledge her at all as I followed Keith behind the counter and through the store’s back hallway.
When we came upon the second door on the left, Keith murmured quietly, “This is it.” I didn’t comment as he knocked on the door.
“Come in,” came a voice from behind the door.
Keith put his hand on the knob and pushed the door open. Even though I was following behind him, I was taller than Keith by a couple of inches, so I was immediately greeted with the sight of Alvin Fischer leaning back in his desk chair, his feet kicked up on the desk. However, the second Alvin Fischer noticed me, he was quick to stand.
Sparing me only a quick glance, he faced Keith. “What’s this?”
Keith walked over to Alvin’s desk, pulled the envelope of money from his back pocket, and set it on top of some scattered papers that were covering the surface. “This is the thirty-thousand I owe you, Alvin.” Keith took a step back from the desk, while I stayed where I was, halfway between the desk and office door. “All of it.”
And because Alvin Fischer hadn’t made a name for himself by being stupid, he lifted his chin and looked over at me. “What’s your role in all this? His bank?”
I wanted to kill him.
I really did.
And for all the shit I’ve done in my life, I didn’t kill indiscriminately. I didn’t have a thirst for blood the way Atticus did. I’ve only killed when I’ve had no other choice. Whether to set a precedent or in self-defense, my kills have always come with a solidified reason.
Until now.
Now, I wanted to kill Alvin Fischer simply because he set his sights on Devi. And when I thought of how she’d been in this very room, alone, with him, I wanted to kick my own ass for allowing it to happen. Sure, Sergio had been parked outside, timing the transaction, but anything could have happened to her before he could have had the chance to get to her.
And that was my error.
One that won’t ever happen again.
“I’m here to make sure this little transaction goes off like it’s supposed to,” I informed him, my voice hard and sure. “I’m also here as a courtesy.”
“Oh, really?” he replied, trying to sound tougher than he was.
“It’s not public knowledge, so I understand how someone might overstep without realizing it, but I’m here to tell you to stay the fuck away from Devi Westland, Fischer.” I made sure I stared into those cold-blue eyes of his as I staked my claim. “She’s mine.”
His eyes shot over towards Keith, then back my way. He was probably trying to gauge if I was lying or not. “Since when?” He shrugged a shoulder as if his plan hadn’t just been dealt a hard blow. “I mean, everyone with their ear to the streets knows you don’t date, Sire.”
“Ididn’t,”I admitted. “That changed with Devi. So, I’m here to tell you, the only reason I’m going to walk out of this room, leaving you alive, is because I understand you didn’t know. Even if I don’t like it, I understand it.”
Alvin’s back went up at that. “Can’t say I take kindly to being threatened, Cassius.”
I reached behind my back and pulled out the gun from my waistband. In three strides, I was standing by his desk, my gun in his face.
Keith immediately back away. “Whoa…”
“Then you prefer I kill you now?” I asked. “Because whatIdon’t take kindly to is someone fucking with what’s mine. And, whether you were aware of it or not, Devi Westland is mine.”
I watched pride war with self-preservation in those cold eyes of his. He wanted to call my bluff. He wanted me to flinch long enough to give him time to pull out his gun. He wanted to save face in front of Keith, a customer he’s been able to intimidate for years.
After what seemed like forever, Alvin’s common sense finally prevailed. “Why don’t we just call it an unfortunate misunderstanding, and part amicably?” He gestured towards the envelope on his desk. “The debts paid, and that’s all that really matters, right?”
I lowered my gun and tucked it back into my waistband. I wasn’t worried about him shooting me because, if he knew that I didn’t date, then he knew about Atticus and Xavier. They would torture him, until his soul left his body, if he tried to kill me.
Leaning in a bit, I made sure to make my position clear before we left. “Go near her again, and I will be back, Fischer. We clear?” There was a tick in his jaw, but he didn’t say anything. He just gave me a tight nod. Without another word, I turned to walk out, and I could hear Keith’s footsteps following.
Once in the car, I took Keith straight home and dropped him off at his apartment. However, I didn’t let him out of the car right away.
