She Loves Me

5.

"How come I've never seen you around here?" She asks while I pour myself another shot.

"Nah you probably seen me around here. I'm always home." I say.

I was talking to one of Robyn's friends. Her name was Beyoncé and she was Robyn's boss. Her friend's had come over to see her and I was sitting outside drinking when Beyoncé decided to join me.

"If I come to Robyn's it's because I'm faded and she never runs out of liquor. She's like a little sister to me and if I don't check on her god knows what she could be up to." Bey slurs.

We were sipping on Hennessy and had almost finished our second bottle.

"Bey!" Someone yells from inside the house. A handsome light-skinned man with tattoos comes outside.

"Who are you?" I ask drunkenly as he takes a seat on one the pool chairs beside us.

"I'm Chris," He chuckles looking between us suspiciously then he sees the two bottles of Henny.

"Aight we gotta get the two of you inside." He says and we both laugh.

"Don't worry bout that. Hennessy is like water for me. There won't be no trouble." I tell him.

"You a wild one. How come I never seen you around?" He asks. I shake my head with a smile on my face as I pour him a shot.

"I been around but whenever ya'll here everybody too heated to even notice." I say handing him a shot.

I raise my glass in a toast Chris and Bey do the same. The three of us neck our shots and Chris cringes but pours himself another.

"Long week?" I ask laying on my back. Bey and Chris share a knowing look.

"One of the worst since 07'. But we'll make it." Bey answers.

"Yeah imma head back inside they takin body shots off Nicki." Chris locks his phone and salutes us.

I sip on my drink and look at Beyoncé. "You married? Have any kids?"

Bey shakes her head. "No I'm too focused on work. A lot of money is coming in this year and people threatening to take over. The business is putting a ton of stress on everybody." She says.

"What is it that you and Robyn do?" I ask curiously. Since she's drunk she might let it slip and there's no telling that Robyn would ever.

"We sell drugs." Bey puts simply. My eyes widen and she nods with a smirk on her face.

"Robyn has told me a lot about you Simone." She says.

I'm taken aback.

"About your situation and it interests me."

I stare at her and wait for her to explain. How could she possibly know anything about my situation? I'm not even close with Robyn like that. She sits up and puts her glass down.

"We're two men down in the business. I keep a circle of trusted people around me and people who know to deliver. I want to know you Simone. See what you can offer us." She says.

I look at her as if she's grown two heads.

"You want me to sell drugs?" I ask her. She stares at me for a moment and nods.

"Think about it. I can make you richer than you'd ever imagine. You'll travel the world and occasionally closing deals but otherwise you'll be safe. We're a family and we've grown together. You'll get the chance to be apart of something bigger than yourself. If you accept this I promise you that you will never depend on anybody ever again. The system won't control you. You'll get the revenge you want." Bey says.

I look at her funny putting down my glass.

"What do you mean I'll get the revenge that I want? What do you know about me?" I was starting to grow weary of her.

If she knew more than she let on then I could be in trouble.

"I've researched you and it took a long damn time to find out who you truly were." Beyoncé says.

I frown.

"Your family was killed in 1991. A man named Viktor 'Xander' King hunted each one of them down and killed them except for one. I searched for you, I did."

"Our father's worked together and they got him too. When I got older I took over the business. All this time I've been working to take him down. Then I heard about you from Rih and I delved into your files."

"You hid yourself well. I didn't see no flaws in your backstory. Simone Gabriela Brown, grew up in New York City, an orphan, graduated from Columbia with a degree in Literature and a bachelors in Science. Not one flaw until I called some contacts and found out who you really are."

We stared at each other. I knew she knew. Even an idiot would. I closed my eyes holding my breath.

"Maryam Eve Smith. Daughter of Richard 'El Riçard' Smith, the deadliest drug cartel in Miami."

I was waiting for her to pull a gun out and shoot me then and there. She knew who I was. It was the only outcome in the case of this scenario.

"You know who I was. But I'm Simone. I left that girl behind when my father was persecuted for laundering drugs, weapons and murder. I'm past that. I'm better off now." I say.

"So what are you waiting for? You work for them don't you? You work for Xander and he sent you here to kill me." My hands were trembling.

Bey shakes her head and gets up. I watch as she comes and takes a seat beside me. I stare at her waiting for her next move.

"I want you to run the business with me. We'll take down Xander together and you can choose to leave or stay after that. It's your decision but I trust you to make the right one."

She finishes her shot.

"When you're ready, you know what to do."

———

A/n: Hey! Vote & Comment if you like where the story's going.

-Naiora