Page 70 of Lau Ahi
He waved me off deflecting the unspoken praise I’d given him. “A blind man could see that, Ori.”
I sighed and looked around the room with all the different thoughts racing through my mind. “So what do I do now?”
“You're asking me for advice?” He put his hand to his chest in light-hearted surprise and I was going to happily burst his bubble.
“More like musing out loud.”
“Well, you spoke out loud that means I’ll give you my two cents. What you do is figure out who your enemies are what their plans are and how you can squash them. Because you’re about to have a wife. Which means you’re about to have a responsibility.And the last thing you want is for them to go after her to get to you.”
“You act like it’s that type of time.” He was over here speaking with too many absolutes as though he had some foresight on my attachment to Asha that I didn’t even have.
“Can I say something without overstepping my bounds?”
My brow quirked cause even though he was being respectful he knew what he was doing. “You asking that is you already overstepping them.”
“Fair enough. Fuck it then. You being willing to take a wife already lets people know how much you give a fuck about her. Keep that in mind. Because whoever is your enemy is hers.”
The idea of someone going after Asha should’ve had me on edge but instead I smiled. I already had people on her so I wasn’t afraid. The smile clearly threw my cousin off because his eyes widened at the gesture. It felt awkward to do and I was sure it was even more alarming to see, since I rarely did it. Especially not in front of people I wasn’t too sure about. I knew he probably assumed that I was leaving my fiancée out to slaughter so I wanted to clarify my smile. I normally didn’t care what people thought about me but having a reputation as a piece of shit wasn’t something I was willing to curate. Especially not since it was false.
“People should really think twice before they do something so rash as to come after something that’s mine.”
“You don’t think that they’ll try to get to you through her?” The look on his face was clear: he thought I was underestimating my enemy, when that was the furthest thing from the truth.
“They could try. I wouldn’t advise it.” My smile deepened and apparently so did Hakeem’s concern. He stood up fully as though he was going to offer to personally protect my future wife since I seemed unwilling to. Again, unnecessary and mildly insulting, but appreciated all the same.
“You can’t be with her all the time, Ori. Don’t be arrogant.”
“It’s not arrogance. It’s the simple knowledge that my wife isn’t a pushover. She might be as deadly as I am, given the situation. I knew my mother was weak, not because it’s a bad thing. A man is supposed to fill in whatever his woman lacks. Not everyone is going to want to tote guns like Safi Merrick. But my father should’ve been there to protect her and he failed. I wanted a woman who could handle her own with or without me.”
Realization dawned over his face and I could tell that he was either impressed or now concerned about the woman who was being invited into our organization. “And that’s why she’s here.”
“Precisely.”
It was his turn to grin and he did it so easily I knew it was natural for him. “You’re a smart man.”
“I wouldn’t have survived this long if I wasn’t.”
He nodded his head in approval and then glanced down at the watch that graced his wrist. “Indeed. Since the meeting has long since been over I’m getting out of here. Thanks for the drink, though.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Nothing that I told you today is going to get back to them.” I appreciated him letting me know that he wasn’t a snitch but it was reassurance I didn’t need. If he were playing both sides I would find out one way or the other.
“To be frank, I could give a fuck less if it was. You think I care if my enemy knows that I’m coming for them? That’s part of the thrill. Them watching and waiting. Getting more stressed and determined. Worrying and never knowing what’s coming or what I might be doing. Moving up plans that aren’t fully formed so that they can strike me before I strike them. The psychological unrest that takes them off their game. A well-coordinated effort of silent terror where they do my work for me.I’m government andConsortiumtrained. The best of the worst worlds. Somebody who tries to test the skills that I’ve honed through both would quickly meet their demise.
“Then I leave you to it. Just so you know my family’s loyalty never failed. If you need my arm, it’s here.”
“Thank you.”
He seemed as surprised as I was at my gratitude but I meant every word of what I’d said. “Did we just bond?”
“No.”
Hakeem laughed sarcastically and shook his head, “Ori, bruh.”
“We’re just two people with a common goal and a common enemy. That’s it. That’s all.”
His face fell slightly but I couldn’t give him promises that could too easily be broken. There wasn’t a bond, that was far too strong a word to describe what existed between us. “If you see it that way. Maybe one day you’ll see it differently.”
