Basement Level 5: Never Scared (28 page)

She let out of humorless snicker. “But we’re the ones you asked to do this job. You couldn’t tell us? You couldn’t even tell me that I was saving my aunt?”

“
Ladybug, you know there are things that have to remain a secret.”

“
This is not one of them,” she shouted. “You know what? I’m tired of this life. I’m tired of this ‘need to know’ shit. At some point, you thought it wise to train us to work with you. You asked us to help you. I have killed people for you, Daddy. I’ve slaughtered people because you gave me the word. And for some strange reason, you felt you couldn’t even trust me enough to tell me I was saving my own aunt. I’m tired of this life and all these unwritten rules of conduct. You owed me the truth, Daddy. And whether you want to believe that or not, it doesn’t change how I feel about this.”

Pop’s eyes flashed to her. “Alexa, I’m still your father.” His voice was low and controlled. “You will respect me.”

“
The question is do you respect me, Daddy?” she cried. “Do you respect me as a woman and a part of this team?”

Dro gripped her hand and tried to pull her back on his lap. “Alexa, calm down.”

She ripped her hand from his and backed away from the table. “I’m fine.” She crossed her arms. “So, Daddy, tell me what we’re going to do now? The sooner we do it, the sooner this is over.”

Dro cleared his throat. “Pop, why did you send her to the island? It’s not safe.”

“
It is for her,” Pop insisted. “No one knows who she is. She doesn’t even look the same anymore. She’s a different person. And she’s protected.”

Alexa turned her back on Pop when he tried to meet her gaze. It was the first time she had ever done that to him and her heart ached.

“
We need to figure out the next move,” Lei said, standing by Alexa. “I want this over too.”

Alexa was happy that Lei had chosen her side. She couldn’t help but resent her father.

It felt like some sort of betrayal to be finding out about this now, after so many years. Everything happening now stemmed from that one event. Now all of their lives were in upheaval.

“
I agree,” Pop stated firmly.

“
We left Melissa at the old safe house,” Kendrick said to Pop. He glanced at Dro. “Do you want me to make the call?”

“
There’s no need to keep her around,” Dro ordered.

“
Don’t get rid of her body,” Pop interjected, drawing all of their attention. “I want it found out in the open.”

“
That’s not how we do things,” Alexa argued. “We don’t want anything traced back to us.”

“
Would I tell you to do something that traces back to you?” Pop asked. “I do have a plan, ladybug. Melissa’s body will send the right message to Owens.”

“
You want her found in the park?” Kendrick asked. “Just like Owens’ wife. I mean, your sister?”

“
Exactly. This time Melissa will be dead, and Owens will know that I’m on to him.”

Alexa rolled her eyes. She still couldn’t believe her father had kept so much hidden from them. She scowled at the man she had admired above all else. “I spoke to her. I helped her. Did she know who I was?”

“
We talked about you and Lei,” Pop said softly. “She knows you’re married to Dro and that you have two children. That’s really all that she knows. We’re not close. I saved her, yes, but some things are never forgotten.”

She snorted. That was just like her father. He was old school. He never forgot betrayal. His sister would probably feel the effects of betraying him for the rest of her life.

“
I want to meet her formally,” she said to Pop.

“
You can meet her once we take care of Owens.”

“
Why didn’t you take care of this back then?” Alexa asked, feeling her anger rising. “It’s not like you to leave stuff open.”

Pop rose from his seat and approached her.

At this point, Alexa didn’t want to have anything to do with him. She was angry and she wanted him to know that he hurt her.

“
Ladybug, I’m not a perfect man.” He placed his hands on her shoulders. “You know this. I had my reasons for leaving Clive alive. I’m not going to explain them now.

“
The only thing you need to know is that now I want him dead. He’s caused me and my family too much trouble. He came after my children and my grandchildren. Now, he’ll pay with his life.”

***

October 10, 1999

Pop was waiting in the kitchen, when Alexa and Dro walked through the side door. The lights were dimmed, and he was sipping on a cup of coffee.

Alexa gave him a slight smile. “Daddy, you didn’t have to wait up.”

Pop noted her red, glassy red eyes. She’d been crying. “I wanted to see how things went.”

“
She did a good job,” Dro said. “It was a clean kill. The cleanup crew went in right after we left.”

Pop reached out to rub her face. “You’ve been crying.”

She sniffed and bobbed her head.

“
Why?” Pop asked.

She sucked in a deep breath and met his gaze, lifting her chin. “It was hard. I cried for his life—his family. But the job is done.”

He kissed her forehead. “Sometimes we have to put aside our emotions to get the job done. And you have done a great job of that. That’s why I trust you to be a part of this, ladybug.”

“
Thank you for trusting me,” she said. “I just want to make you proud, Daddy.”

He cradled his daughter’s face in his hands. “You never have to worry about whether I’m proud of you, ladybug. I’ve always been proud of you, even when you were drooling on all my ties.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and embraced him. He glanced at Dro. “Can you leave us alone for a minute, son?”

When Dro left the kitchen, Alexa dropped her bag on the floor and sat down on a barstool. Pop opened the freezer, and pulled out a bowl of ice cream. He set the bowl in front of her. “This is for us to share,” he said, pointing to two spoons on the counter.

“
Daddy, you hate peanut butter and chocolate ice cream.” She dipped her spoon into the treat.

He watched her take a few bites then dipped his spoon into the bowl. “I love you. And if you love peanut butter and chocolate ice cream I guess I can love it too. I wanted to talk to you, and I figured we could eat and talk?”

“
What do you want to talk about?” she asked, spooning up another bite.

He hesitated and then cleared his throat. “Some people would wonder why I raised you to be a killer.” She stilled and her eyes flew to his. “Sometimes I wonder the same thing. I feel like I should at least share with you my thought process.”

She bowed her head again and continued eating.

He followed suit, grimacing after he swallowed the ice cream. He really didn’t like this shit. He set his spoon down on a napkin. “When you were born, I realized I loved you more than my own life. I had already felt that type of love for your mother, but this was different. A father’s love for his children knows no bounds, just like a mother’s love for her children. You were my princess—the cutest little piece of happiness I’d ever known. You and your brother are the reason why I strive to be better.”

A tear fell from her eyes and onto the counter.

He handed her a Kleenex, grateful Veronica always kept a box in every room. “When I realized that, I also realized my choices in life would ultimately affect your safety. You and your brother were my greatest vulnerability. I figured the best way to ensure your protection would be to train you to defend yourself, by any means necessary. It was pretty unheard of for girls to be trained as equals to men. I took the risk and it paid off. You have exceeded all of my expectations, ladybug. Don’t tell your brother, but you’re the best of them all. And if or when one of my enemies chooses to exact revenge against me by using my children, I know you can take care of yourself. The truth is it might have been the most cowardly act I’ve ever committed.”

“
You’re not a coward, Daddy.”

“
I am. I couldn’t bear the thought of you or your brother being hurt because of my line of work. That’s why I trained you and Lei to be able to kill, legally. You know the old saying, ‘kill or be killed?’ That’s what I was thinking. And that—that makes me a coward. You may not understand now, but I hope you will one day.”

“
Daddy, you’re not a coward. You’re the bravest man I know. You had to make choices for me and Lei. I don’t fault you for that. You did what you thought was right for your circumstances. I know that when I’m a mother, I’ll do the same thing.”

He tilted his head and studied his marvelous daughter. She never ceased to amaze him. “You’re very profound for your young age, ladybug.” He picked up his spoon again.

She touched her spoon to his and he chuckled. She grinned at him. “I love you, Daddy.” She stood up and held out her arms. They embraced each other tightly. When she finally backed away and went back to her ice cream, he watched her eat.

“
So, you and Dro?” he asked.

A blush crept up her face. “Why do you ask?” she said, avoiding eye contact.

“
Well, I noticed something different between you after your birthday party at the hotel. Are you two an item?”

She swirled her spoon around in the bowl. He wondered if she was trying to come up with a suitable explanation for the condom he found in the training room after she worked out with Dro a few days earlier. As much as he loved Dro, he still had the overwhelming urge to throttle him.

“
Well, we’re not officially an item. But well, you know...”

Pop decided not to push her. His heart wouldn’t be able to handle any real details. He was tempted to demand she stay celibate forever. “Ladybug, you know you can tell me anything?” But he secretly hoped she wouldn’t tell him anything about her sex life.

“
Daddy, there really isn’t much to tell. I know you would like us to get married, so we decided to see each other casually. There’s no commitment or anything. I’m too young for that.”

He was impressed with her level of maturity about the whole marriage issue. His fear for her safety had prompted him to agree to Enrique’s request that their two children marry and join their families together. “That’s true. I do want you to experience life, ladybug. I just don’t want you to be doing things that will prevent that from happening.”

“
Things like what?” she asked.

Now it was his turn avoid eye contact. “You know, sex and things like that. I don’t want any grandkids now.”

She giggled. “No grandbabies here, Daddy. You definitely don’t have to worry about that.”

He sighed with relief. He didn’t want to have to maim Dro. “Good. And I want you to date other men before you settle down.”

“
I do date other boys, Daddy.”

“
Good.” He stood up and kissed her forehead. “I’m going to head up to bed. Your mother is probably wondering where I am.”

She peered up at him with big, doe eyes. “Don’t worry, Daddy. I’ll be okay.”

Pop instantly pictured her at four, calling his name over and over. He smiled at the memory. “Well, you should know I always worry. But I have a feeling you will be just fine, ladybug. When you see Dro, tell him I need to talk to him in the morning. And...” He paused. “No sex in the house.”

She choked on the bite of ice cream she’d just placed in her mouth, spraying the cold concoction on the clean countertop.

***

November 6, 2011, B5
:

“
I need a minute.” Alexa ran toward her bedroom.

Lei placed a hand on Dro’s arm. “I got this, Dro. Give us a minute.” Lei glared at Pop and followed Alexa.

Deciding it was time to speak to his children alone, Pop went after them. He caught up to Lei in the hallway. Lei pushed the door open and stepped in first.

Alexa was sitting on her bed, running her feet over the carpet. Lei placed a hand on her shoulder. “Alexa, it’s okay. It could’ve been worse. He could’ve been cheating on Mom.”

“
I would never do that,” Pop said. He sucked in a breath when Alexa’s bloodshot eyes flew to his. He hated to hurt her, but it was plain to see that he had. His heart ached at the sadness and anger in her eyes. He never wanted her to look at him like that.

“
I feel like you didn’t trust us with this information and it hurts,” she said. “It makes me question my trust in you.

“
It’s not that I didn’t trust you.”

“
Then, what was it?” Lei demanded, sitting next to Alexa. “You can’t tell me that you don’t understand why we’re upset.”

“
I do understand. The only thing I can say is that I thought it was best at that time to keep it quiet. I don’t regret many things, but I do regret that. Her name is Alexi Lei Richardson.” Alexa gasped. “She’s my younger sister by three years. When our parents died, I took it upon myself to take care of her even though I was only nineteen years old. When she started dating Clive, I forbade it. I thought he was too old for her. Not to mention, he was studying to be a cop. She rebelled. She continued to see him behind my back. When he left, she ran away with him. She believed Clive when he told her that Enrique and I were nothing but trouble, even though I gave up so much for her. Clive moved to D.C. and they married. I didn’t talk to her again until you kidnapped her.”