"I crave you as if I've already had you before, that scares and excites me all at once"
« In which Adriana Narvaez, a mother
of two, finds herself falling deep
into the world of crime after an
innocent robbery turns into a money-laundering bus...
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"Mama! Tell Sebby to leave me alone!"
Adriana glanced up at her eldest as she darted down the hall, a smile gracing her lips. Despite the sour mood her daughter exuded, she was glad to finally spend time at home with her kids. Between Rio, finding ways to fund the charter school, and trying to ignore Marco; Adriana had no time to spend time with her kids.
"what's wrong, what'd he do, Princessa."
The pout didn't leave her daughter's lips, even with the warm small that graced Adriana's lips. "He keeps trying to touch my dolls!" Adriana let out a light laugh, placing the last of the leftovers into the stained Tupperware.
"Maybe he just wants to play with his big sister." Adriana shrugged a bit, offering Ana the rest of her apple juice. Noticing the unwavering frown on her eldest daughter's face, Adrianaonly sighed, propping her arm on the marble island. Before she could say much more, the trill of her phone interrupted the conversation.
"Lemme take this really quick, darling."
"Hello?"
€€€€€
"You volunteered us."
Ruby screeched, wary of the man possibly dead on the bed. "It's not drugs. It's paper. I mean, it's literally paper."
"You can't sign people up for criminal activity like it's a bake sale."
"Noted, but can you just help me get this person out of my house right now?" Adriana glanced at the man on the bed, her lips pressed into a thin line. No matter how much she wanted to say no, she couldn't leave her friend to deal with this alone.
"Oh, you want some help now?"
"I'm sorry, why don't you call your BFF, the other gangbanger?"
"He's not my BFF. I don't even know that guy's name." Adriana almost let the words slip from her mouth, feeling Ruby's piercing gaze drilled into her head. She was almost 99% sure that Rio wasn't his real name, not that it mattered. She knew his alias, it didn't make them friends though. Meeting Ruby's eyes with a shrug of her shoulder, her fingers reached up to grip her necklace between her fingers.
"No, but I bet he does. Right? Maybe I can-- Okay, I guess I'll do it." Adriana's raised her brows as Annie turned to Ruby then Adriana, her eyes pleading. "Well, I'm not."
"Just watch my back, Okay? Please."
"Just be careful."
Adriana watched with wary eyes as Annie approached the man, muttering apologies as she got closer and closer. Feeling Ruby cowering behind her, she tensed as Annie pulled out a gun from his jeans, holding it between her two fingers.
"Just take it." She hissed, holding it before Beth who shook her head in denial. "Oh my god." Pulling her sleeves over her hands, Adriana grabbed the gun which hung between the two sisters, doing her best to clean Annie's fingerprints with her other sleeve.
Annie let out a breath, preparing herself for what was probably the most nerve-wracking moment of the day. Lifting him slightly by his jeans, she recovered his phone before hurriedly rushing back to the rest of the women who stood by the door.
"Okay. I have it. I have it."
"What's the last number he called?" Adriana inquired, peeking over Annie's shoulder, staring down at the number of her favorite pizza place.
"Papa John's." Adriana sucked her teeth in annoyance, reaching over to press the anonymous person icon. "The last person, Annie." She hissed, only to find the endless 'mom's listed on his phone.
"Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom-"
"Oh, my God, why didn't he just go to his mom's?"
"Mom, Mom, Mom-"
"Shit, Annie!' Adriana reached over Annie's shoulder once again, this time grabbing the phone from her grasp as she scrolled to search for the familiar three-letter name.
"Rio."
$$$
"That is not what I meant when I said we'd do another job. Who is that guy?'
"He works for me."
Adriana rolled her eyes at his vague answer, her arms crossed against her chest partially because it was cold and partially because she was annoyed. She met his gaze from the corner of her eye, her lips downturned into a vicious scowl. She knew he understood what she was communicating through her fiery gaze, his lips tugging into a slight smirk.
"Does he wash the money?"
His eyes landed on Annie at her question, his gaze only saying one thing. 'none of your business'. Annie got the message, averting her eyes at his intimidating gaze. "Regardless, there's been a miscommunication."
"Oh, so you think you can pick and choose what you wanna do and when you wanna do it."
"She thought it would be like driving for Uber." Ruby deadpanned, clearly over the bullshit conversation. Adriana scoffed at that, ignoring Beth's pointed gaze.
"Who's at fault is not important, We are not qualified to take care of a gunshot victim. I mean, your friend needs professional medical attention."
Rio only shook his head, probably feeling the same way Adriana did. Total and utter disbelief. "You're shaking your head. Why are you shaking your head?"
"Cause that kid ain't going to no hospital."
"Why not?"
"Cause people are looking for him." Rio retorted. Adriana noticed his answers getting snappier and snappier, her eyes shooting to Annie in a warning. "Cool it with the questions." She hissed.
"What if those people show up here?"
"Trust me, ain't nobody gonna shoot up Beaver Cleaver's house."
Rio reached into his pocket, pulling out a stack of money. Placing the stack on the steps where he sat, he turned to meet Beth's gaze, no doubt trying to persuade her with the cash. "No, I'm sorry. That is not gonna work."
Pulling out another stack, his eyes darted between the other three ladies, his gaze landing on Adriana. "No?"
"I-" Beth let out a sigh, her resolve slipping as Annie and Ruby began to fidget. Adriana didn't waver, knowing that they could shake a lot more from him. "I have children."
He placed down another stack, as Beth looked to everyone else for answers. She turned back to Rio, her words coming out desperate. "He's up there in my daughter's bed. I'm never gonna get that blood out."
What started as a plead to get out of the situation became a way for him to add more stacks to the cash. He wasn't stupid, he knew what she was doing, but he wasn't quite sure she was aware of what she was doing. Instead of looking for a way out, she was looking for reasons to get more money.
"I mean, she could sleep on the floor. Kids love that stuff."
"I'm pretty sure it'll cover a new mattress."
"It's a lot of damage as a kid to find a bleeding man on her bed. She could use some new toys." Beth's eyes snapped to Adriana with a pointed glare. Adriana only shrugged, her eyes darting to Rio's pocket once again. He only smirked, pulling out another wad of cash, his gaze glued on Adriana
"Cool. So, would we get that money now or-"
"When I pick him up." "When's that?"
"When I pick him up." Ruby immediately shut her mouth at Rio's slightly raised voice, averting her gaze to the floor.
