Fast Life (25 page)

“Don't you dare bring my dad into this,” Kyra warned. Her voice was harsh.

“And what do I have? A mom who works as an underpaid nurse and a dad who's locked up.”

“So you did this shit out of jealousy? I thought you were better than that. And damn, I really thought I was worth more than five grand to you.”

“You act like I did something horrible! I mean, he came to me and asked me for a favor one night and I said I would help him out. It was just to get you up here, and since he asked I assumed that must've been what you wanted. What the fuck is so bad about that?”

“What's bad about it is you been keepin' secrets from me! Especially on some shit like that! Then you tried to play it off like you didn't know I was here in the first place! Like me bein' with Kai was a surprise to you!”

“What did you want me to tell you? I mean, it's not even that big of a deal….”

“Tell me one thing.”

“What?”

“Did you know how things would be once I got here?” she asked.

“Yeah, of course I did—shopping sprees galore.”

“Did you know things would be like this?” She wiped the remaining bit of makeup from her face. Natasha didn't move a muscle. “Look at me! See how it is. See how good I'm livin'. Look!” she screamed as she grabbed her friend by the shoulder, forcing her to see the bruises from a bad night at home.

Natasha's eyes welled up at the sight of Kyra's face. It was bare of makeup, and all scars and bruises were revealed. Kyra stood there, for the first time not ashamed for someone to see what Makai had done to her.

“Oh my God…” Natasha quietly gasped, reaching her hand out to touch her face, but Kyra smacked it away.

I
t was storming heavily outside, the rainy season reminding island inhabitants of their vulnerability. Justin packed his things away in suitcases. He had to make his move and the time was now. With his parents out of town on a business trip in Mexico, it was all too perfect. Being the only person left in the house, he sent the household staff home, leaving him free of watchful eyes.

Being alone in the mansion was eerie. He was paranoid listening to the creaks and other odd noises he heard that he never used to when the mansion was full and bustling with workers or family. He shook off any strange feeling and continued to cram clothes into his bag, as a sudden flash of lightning and clap of thunder occurred.

“Going somewhere?” Veronica startled him from where she stood in the doorway of his bedroom.

“How did you get in here?”

“The door was open. I just came by to talk and see what you were up to,” she said. Justin had been unhappy lately, and Veronica thought she knew why.

“Oh…” Justin awkwardly replied. He gripped the bag tighter, remembering that it was there and that he had somewhere he needed to be. His eyes told his story.

He noticed her eyes filling with tears and tried to explain or offer some kind of apology or comfort.

“Veronica…”

“It's okay, Justin. You love her, so go to her.
Go
to her.” Her words were soft as she caressed his cheek. Her legs shook with anxiety and she bit her lip.

He placed his hand on hers, moving it from where it rested on his face. A tear dropped from her eye as she managed to squeeze out the words “I understand.”

Their tender moment was cut short when it was interrupted by the ringing of his phone.

“I'm here,” Michael said.

“I'll be out in a minute.”

“One.”

Justin turned around to say goodbye to Veronica, but by then she was gone. She was out of his life without a goodbye, and he felt that things were best that way for her as well as for him.

 

Michael drove through the ferocious storm to a private hangar on the far side of Prince Paul. They made their way to the only open hangar to meet the pilot Michael had somehow rustled up. Justin took notice of the bags in Michael's hand but didn't get a chance to say anything before the pilot appeared from inside the plane.

“Taye, mi man,” Michael greeted him, switching on his accent. It was clear that he and the pilot were on friendly terms.

“Good ta si ya, mi bredda. Dis is ya frind, ey?” Taye returned the greeting in a thick accent, his attention eventually focusing on the new face.

“Yah, dis him.” Michael nodded toward his friend, who was quiet in anticipation.

“Wi betta git going if ya wan go tanight. Di storm is ongle gon' ta git worse, truss mi.” Taye peered out at the pounding rain and strong winds with his hand on his white hat to keep it on his head.

Taye took his seat in the cockpit and started clicking the necessary switches to control the aircraft, while Michael and Justin took their seats in the cabin of the small private airplane. As the engines roared to life, Justin began to speak. “So I take it you're coming with me?” he asked, looking over at his friend as he fastened his seat belt.

“You didn't think I was about to let you go alone, did you? And miss an opportunity to see Tasha again? I don't think so.”

Justin chuckled at his friend and shook his head. Michael had been slipping back into his old player lifestyle, but it was clear that even after a year, he had still it bad for Natasha.

Justin felt the plane creep forward and head toward the runway for takeoff. His senses were going wild. This was it. He was on his way. Nothing was going to stop him from getting to Kyra. Nothing would keep them apart anymore—nothing and no one.

 

Justin dialed Natasha's number and anxiously held the phone as it rang. He could hardly breathe as he hunched over the hotel desk. Someone answered on the other end, but he failed to recognize the voice.

“Hello, may I speak to Natasha, please?”

“Who?”

“Natasha?”

“Boy, don't cop no attitude with me! You little thugs these days think…” The woman started going off on a tangent. It didn't take long to figure out that it must be her mother.

“Ma…who is it? Give me the phone.” Natasha's voice could be heard in the background as she retrieved the phone. “Who's this?”

“Tasha it's Justin.”

“Oh hi…. Look, if you want me to tell Kyra anything else, then—”

“Actually, I'm in town, and I wanted to know where I could reach her. Do you know where she is?”

“No. I don't know,” she lied, not wanting to help because of her own bitterness.

“Oh…” he sadly responded, with a moment of silence following.

Natasha was guilt ridden as she leaned her body against the kitchen counter. She tried to be stubborn to the best of her abilities, but she was unsuccessful in her efforts.

“Look, there's a party tonight at Club Pandemonium. It's down on South Michigan Ave. They hold it every year and it's real hype, so she should be there. That's the best I can do.” She avoided giving Kyra's real address. Leading Justin to the Grand Plaza would be leading him into a death trap.

“Thanks,” he said, jotting down the helpful information on a handy notepad.

“Listen, J, you gotta be careful if you find her. The nigga she's running with these days is no good. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about,” she warned.

“A'ight I will. Here, I got somebody who wants to talk to you.” Justin threw the phone in his friend's lap as he went to dress for the party.

“Hello?”

“Mike!” Natasha shrieked in delight at the sound of the voice on the other end.

 

Kyra sighed as she sat alone on one of the couches in the VIP section of the popular club. She sipped a glass of Raspberry Bacardi with Sprite as she nodded to the music. She was there physically, but mentally, she wasn't part of the scene. Not even the famous faces she spotted floating around the area could bring her back to life.

On the other hand, Makai seemed to be thoroughly enjoying himself. He was sitting on a couch across from her, seated next to the girl she had spotted the last time they went out clubbing.

Kyra was in the middle of sipping her cocktail when suddenly and without warning Makai tried to pull her into the party atmosphere.

“Come on, baby girl, dance for me,” he tipsily requested.

“I don't feel like it.”

“Come on…come on…”

She downed the rest of her drink in one swallow and looked him the eye with a hard look that told him she was getting tired of him bossing her around.

“Yeah…get up there.” He was unsure how to interpret her look as he motioned her toward a wide platform that stretched across and above the dance floor.

Kyra looked at the other girls who were on the platform and how provocatively dressed they were. One girl even had on a see-through dress that between the length and sheerness, might as well have left her naked. By the way they moved and danced, combined with the way they looked, Kyra took them to be exotic dancers.

That was when she first discovered that her value had decreased in Makai's eyes. She glanced at the breathtaking girl whose name she didn't know and saw how she had a hawk's eye on her and Makai. She tried to put a name to the face out of the list she'd heard back when she'd listened to Makai's cell messages.

Makai held out his hand to help Kyra onto the platform, diverting her attention from the nameless girl. She gave him an ice-cold stare and took his hand, stepping onto the platform with the rest of the dancers. She wanted to prove that she wasn't scared of him and that his tricky actions wouldn't embarrass her the way she assumed he wanted. She was going to flip the script and put it down.

Kyra started to dance. She danced harder and with more sexuality than any other girl up there. Any male around had to take notice of her movements, and many of them did, but slyly, so as to not offend their boss. Kyra moved her hips and shook her butt so fast and with such a passion that even she was shocked. Makai appeared pleased and watched her rhythm from his seat on the couch next to one of his many mistresses with a look of lust. All eyes were on her.

She stayed on the platform and let her body sway slowly to the music. She didn't want to look out of place while she was trying to solve the mystery of who this person was. Then she saw his face. She was sure her heart stopped when they made eye contact. She could have sworn she had died and gone to heaven. There beneath her on the club's dance floor stood the person she had ached for, for so long. Chills ran through her body. It had been too long since she had been in his presence.

Justin and Kyra locked eyes for mere seconds as she mouthed his name and stopped moving. Everything felt like it was moving in slow motion. She was fixated on his face when she felt another pair of eyes on her. She forced herself to tear her eyes from his and look at Makai. His eyes were on her with a look of curiosity as she hustled off the dance platform to offer him an explanation before he had the opportunity to question her abnormal actions.

“Baby, I don't feel so good,” she lied. Her talent for deception was improving.

“What's wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost.”

“I dunno. I'm about to go to the bathroom, okay?” she said, fixing up her voice so that she would sound ill.

Kyra made her way down the curved flight of stairs and past the specially decorated white and black velvet ropes onto the crowded dance floor. As she nudged her way through the crowd, she spotted Justin near the DJ booth and quickly nodded for him to follow her. She couldn't risk anyone seeing them talking.

She pushed and shoved through ocean of sweating bodies on the dance floor and made her way down a short corridor to the women's bathroom. Justin kept his distance while tracking her movements and eventually caught up to her. Kyra pulled him into the bathroom and occupied a stall just in time, before anyone had a chance to catch a glimpse of them.

As soon as the lock on the door clicked, assuring their privacy, her lips instantly found his with a renewed passion. As they stood in the cramped stall, their lips reacquainting themselves with each other, Kyra even felt a warm tear drop from her eye and glide down her cheek. She was overwhelmed with happiness.

Justin broke their kiss to admire her bright smile he had missed so much. Whenever Kyra smiled, her entire face lit up with happiness and her eyes sparkled. However, a small bruise under her eye also caught his attention, and he was automatically concerned.

“I missed you so much,” she breathed.

“I missed you, too…. What happened right there?”

“Nothin'…. I, uh, fell….” Kyra lied, realizing that her fading black eye must have been showing. The hot show she'd put on had caused some of her makeup to sweat off.

“Who did that to you?”

She wasn't as good at telling lies as she thought.

Kyra put her hand on the spot Justin had caressed feeling his touch again for the first time in what seemed like forever. She shut her eyes to savor the moment and then let them slowly reopen. She knew that as worried as he was for her, he was powerless against Makai and his people.

“Listen to me. You have to lay low. I can't tell you why right now, but I'll get in touch with you, okay? Just watch what you do in public. If you see me, act like you don't know me…” she whispered. He opened his mouth to speak but her protest interrupted him. “Trust me. Whatever you do, be careful.”

“I'm staying at the Sutton Place Hotel, suite seven.”

“I wish I could stay here with you, but I know Bryce and Rick are probably gonna come lookin' for me at any moment….”

“Who are—”

“My bodyguards.”

“Bodyguards? If you got
bodyguards,
how do you expect to come see me?”

“Shh, don't worry. I'll find a way to get to you. I promise you. I'll find a way.” She gently pressed her forehead against his and he held her in his arms as she weakly sobbed. She was in over her head and she knew it.

 

A few days later Kyra managed to carry out the plan she conjured up to see Justin at his hotel. Her bodyguards were around less and less so she figured the task would be an easy one. They were more than likely Asiah's watchmen now, and for that she was appreciative. She didn't like having eyes on her day in and day out. They were nothing but a nuisance that she was sick and tired of dealing with on a daily basis.

Kyra's first glimpse of him had a smile wider than the Grand Canyon spreading across her face. He immediately pulled her to him and greeted her with a kiss, picking up where they had left off.

“Hello to you, too,” She let out a giggle as she slipped off her sunglasses and dropped them on the table in the living area of the suite. She wrapped her arms around his neck and reintroduced her lips and tongue to his, the kiss quickly getting emotionally deeper. “I missed you so much, you just dunno.”