When It Works

Murdock Files

The family sat around for a minute continuing regular conversation like another bomb wasn't just released upon them once again. In all honesty these type of revelations had just become a regular occurrence amongst the group that quickly became a family. Zac and Keisha sat next to their father catching up while trying not to think about all the time they'd lost. A sense of euphoria filled the room as Jeff was introduced to each of his grandchildren and extended grandchildren. He jumped right in the Grandpa role.

"Hey Tima, you don't mind me calling you Tima do you?" Jeff asked respectfully

"No that's fine! Whatever you're comfortable with is ok with me" Fatime responded with a slight smile.

"Ok... Jeff chuckled. Do you mind if I take the kids out for ice cream and to buy a few toys?

Before he could fully answer Fatima was tying Kam's left shoe.

"Nope! Bye" Fatima said placing the twins on his lap.

The room erupted in laughter knowing that Fatima was serious. Even with just meeting him she knew they would be safe and have fun her children always let her know if they were warm to a person or not with the way they responded to being held by them. Not to often did she allow them out of her sight anyway.

"Dang girl. Riah T.. you mind? Meech? I'll take them all" He said

Jeff was the kind of man that never left a kid out even on the block. If he took Zac he took his friends and cousins as well. He was just that type of man. The rest of them followed suit and got the kids ready.

"I'll go with you , it's going to take an extra set of hands to handle all of them" Chris volunteered

"Ah thanks man I may have bit off more than I can chew anyway" He joked making Chris laugh.

"Aye pop don't bring them back all hyper and shit because they'll be sleeping with you tonight!" Zac said laughing walking into his study

"Yea unc these kids bad as hell and you wanna go get them ice cream" Troy said

"Bad? Not my grand kids watch yo mouth boy you were bad. Did you ever tell riah about the time you took pants off and......."

"Aye man she don't need to know all that relax my bad these are little angels all of them" Troy said cutting his uncle off before telling an embarrassing childhood story.

"That's what I thought"

"No I think I want to hear the rest of this what he do uncle Jeff" Mariah said trying to get closer to hear.

In a whisper Jeff leaned in "I'll tell you later"

"Ok y'all let's head out" Jeff and Chris got all the kids loaded up into two different vehicles due to having multiple car seats.

The house was calm and Mel was in The kitchen cooking.

"Dang it smell good in here ma what you making?" Andi asked

"Just a few of Jeff's favorites I haven't seen him in such a long time." Mel spoke remembering all the times her and Jeff had.

"That's sweet ma, has daddy ever been jealous of the love you two seem to have for one another?" Fatima asked inquisitively.

"Mind the business that pays you little girl. I see the wheels turning. However no I've always been open and honest with your father. And Jeff has always been my brother I never looked at him that way and he has never looked at me that way. He has always been respectful to your father and our relationship. Chris has always and will forever be the only man for me!" Mel spoke with conviction

"Well excuse me. I was just making sure"

"Making sure what? Fatima you're not too old to get yo ass whooped. Don't piss me off. What your generation lacks mine is full of. And that's respect and loyalty. I can both respect and be loyal to both without causing any confusion. While they can both have a strong and protective love for me without stepping on any toes. And if you plan on having a lasting relationship with Zac I advise you to recognize that, that man possesses the same qualities and attributes as his father. He's a good man Savannah" Mel ended her spill with a light joke.

"She told you" Andi joked

"Yea I watch TikTok's I'm hip" Mel said In regard to her last statement

Upstairs Troy sat in the window of his room that he still had at Zac and Fatima's with his thoughts. He wondered why his brother never revealed his true identity. These were questions that needed to be answered for his peace of mind and things he planned on asking him when the time was right. He got in the shower to clear his head and once he returned to his bedroom he heard a knock at his door,

"Yo bro you mind if I come in?" He heard murdocks voice.

"Yea come on" Troy said stepping back into the bathroom to get dressed once he returned Murdock was sitting on the edge of the bed

"Calling you bro now seems more real than ever. I want you to know that I never wanted to hide who I was from you but I never got the chance. So much has happened since I found y'all we haven't had time to sit and decompress it's been one thing after the other."

Troy nodded and listened he didn't want to speak until he had fully comprehended and heard everything Murdock had to say.

" I don't even know where to start but I'll start with I'm happy to have found my little brother"  Murdock spoke truthfully

"Yea I'm glad too I just wish I would've known from the start. I don't like the bombshells ima have a talk with uncle Jeff about the way he did that shit" Troy said with a little annoyance.

"Don't blame him blame me. This is my fault I should've come clean. I found you guys in New York and had the opportunity then but I froze. My old job required too much and by the time I decided to circle back around you and Zac were off the grid."

Troy listened expecting some sort of Ill intent from Murdock, that seemed to be the narrative in he and Zacs life for so long. It was quite the opposite.

"I can tell you're wanting the full story so here it is. Our dad had me and put me and my mom
Upstate away from the drug game and violence. Only to have you a few years later and raise you and stay with your mom. As a child I didn't see it then for what it really was because my mother filled my head with so many things. She made me hate you and him. Your mom was from the streets so she knew how to navigate it and keep you safe where mine didn't. Instead of her understanding why he put us up she became hateful. I spent most of my twenties looking for y'all until I found out he was dead. It became nearly impossible to find you. I decided while studying for the bar to take a side job as a P.I. Only to be hired by a guy named Bricks."

Murdock was cut off by the sound of story smacking his lips and taking a deep breath.

"I knew it" Troy said thinking the worst.

"Let me finish. ...Troy waved his hand gesturing him to finish. When he sent the photo I recognized you and the resemblance. I sent him on a wild goose chase for as long as I could. Making him believe you guys were always one step ahead. Which you two are some pretty slick niggas. I dropped the case and had to finish my studies I figured the Feds would eventually catch up and the only way I could help my family was by becoming the best criminal defense attorney in NYC. After I passed the BAR. Zac was already in prison and you were gone. So I had to pick up and follow the trail all over again."

"So you weren't....."

Both Troy and Murdock were cut off by their phones constantly buzzing. Once they read the notification they looked at eachother knowing they had to pause the conversation and deal with a tougher task.

"Wtf are we gonna do about this? Zac is about to flip".......