Juliet Must Survive | 𝒂𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒚𝒂𝒉.

Chapter 17

Usually, Maurice never drove without turning the radio on. It could be two white women talking about their kittens on air but he wouldn't care, as long as there was something playing, it would immediately put him at ease. However, that day, his car remained radio silent.

After dropping off the group at the airport, the only thing that stayed on his mind was to make his way back into his boss' estate and good graces. Pondering in his own silence, he clutched the steering wheel a little tighter than usual.

He'd never got caught up in the whole glamorization of this so-called "thug life"; this was his job, a mean for survival, an opportunity he was given and couldn't pass up. The thought of losing it all had never bothered him more than now.

Sure, being part of a gang was never the ideal dream, but working for Isaak offered protection, funds and most importantly, a community. Before all of this, Maurice had just been the chubby kid everybody made fun of. All of his heroes had gang affiliations anyway, Biggie Smalls being one of his favorites; that sort of stuff gave you prestige and a name for yourself in the streets.

Of course, everybody knew the dangers that inevitably came with being part of a gang, especially one as notorious as Isaak's. Mr. O' Day's "organization" was closer to an Italian mob than anything, with him as the self-proclaimed don.

He completely dominated the streets, nothing went passed him and everybody knew who he was and, more importantly, how much power he had. A seemingly cold-blooded leader on the outside, Isaak never seemed satisfied with his work, which had always confused Maurice until recently.

At first, there had been an uproar against Mr. O' Day's wishes to leave his life of crime and become a lawful citizen again. After his stunt with the NFL and the whole debacle with Mac, a lot of Isaak's men threatened to turn on him just like his right-hand man, so there was no choice but to stick to crime for survival. Mac had wanted to take Isaak's place, so what's to say that the others wouldn't try the same?

Loyalty could go a long way in their world, but so did pride. In the end, it was Mac's pride that was his ultimate downfall. Maurice had seen the way he went all about, acting as if he owned every room he stepped in, his energy was intense and commanding. Mac used to hate Colin for being Isaak's heir, so he did everything he could to get that position, even trying to get into Trish's pants. When nothing worked, he'd settled on taking Isaak out himself.

Mac now served as a cautionary tale, an example of what not to be. A real-life Icarus that came crashing and burning down for his deeds. Karma wishes.

"Dammit," Maurice cursed himself under his breath, sighing deeply as he arrived at the O' Day estate's gates. He willed his hands to stop trembling as he stopped his car next to the outside intercom.

Rolling his window down, he leaned towards the microphone area and pressed the buzzer before talking. "Yo, it's Mo! I got news on Trish!"

All he got were a few crackling sounds as an answer before the gates opened for him. Not surprised by this cold greeting, Maurice drove into the estate's territory, seeing his boss' house come into full view. The driveway strangely looked deserted, which was rarely the case since Isaak usually had security at all times.

However, maybe since he was under investigation, his staff were forced to take a step back, but even that would be suspicious. Worst case scenario would be that Mr. O' Day was on house arrest, but then that would mean no visitors allowed...

When Maurice stopped in front of the house, the uneasy feeling in his gut increased. Slowly getting out of his car, he scanned around the area, still not spotting anyone. Walking up to the front door, he tried looking through the windows, but curtains all blocked any way to see the inside of the house. Quickly breathing in, he knocked on the door a couple of times.