Motown Breakdown (Motown Down #4) (17 page)

“No,” I say holding my head up.

“My wife repaid her favor to you,” Shade says taking my hand. “Yet you come to our home and disrespect me?” Looking down at me I felt the menace pouring off of him and knew he wanted to know my role in it. “You wish to be free of me, Luna?”

“No,” I say firmly while locking eyes with Crews. Tightening my grip, I speak one last time because it’s all I had in me. Right now I was seriously close to passing out. “I don’t, I’m happy here, with
you
.”

Like a switch, the menace was gone from Shade. Not so from Crews, he was a live wire. As for me, I was seconds away from hyperventilating.

She’d lost weight.

She had no weight to lose yet her stomach was swollen. Stitches covered her brow and forehead; you could see the green of the bruising covering the right side of her face. She moved slowly as if in pain. No emotion was to be found; she was gone; Shade had finally broken her down. Hell, it could have been Marco that’d done it, I didn’t know for sure but the woman I know disappeared.

And she held his hand.

He called her wife and she said she was happy here. She was also fucking lying. With her, it’s always what she doesn’t say.  I could take this guy, if he kept weapons out of it, I would win. She’s done so much for me, I wanted to do this for her. She found Evie, gave herself to me, for her I could beat this guy. But I felt the shift when the room filled with men behind me. Luna’s eyes gave her away, she was scared for me. She already knew what I just figured out.

Win or lose, Shade wasn’t letting me leave here alive, shit.

“May I?” she asks looking up at him. To his credit, it was easy to see he did care for her but it was even clearer she cared for him too. Kissing the top of her hand he nods. “Thank you for what you’ve done for me, Mr. Crews,” she was struggling, I could see it and she kept moving closer to me while I struggle not to take her and run. “I admit I needed saving more than once, but I repaid my debt to you. Evie is well?”

“Yeah,” I tell her. “She’s happy.”

“Then we’re even,” she says hoping I’ll turn around and leave. “As you can see, I’m happy and don’t need saving anymore. This is a one-time deal, never attempt to come here again.”

“Luna,” Shade says pulling her back to his side. He noticed her moving forward as she spoke to me and he didn’t like it. “His offense is punishable by death, you know that. Go back to bed and rest. I’ll come and find you after.”

“No more death,” she whispers. “He didn’t understand the difference between Marco and you. That’s my fault, please let him leave, Shade. He’s just a construction worker. I can’t handle anymore – ”

“Shh,” he says hugging her never taking his eyes from me. Nodding to the men behind me, I was grabbed and hauled backwards. Just before they tossed me out she looked up at me in total devastation and I knew she had just saved my life.

At the expense of her own.

It killed me to leave but I made my way out to my truck planning to do just that until he stopped me. “Crews,” he says catching up with me. “What makes you think my wife needs saving?”

Lying would serve me best so that’s what I decided to do. “Her old man would show up threatening her, I could hear him telling her she’d never be free. That no one would throw out a challenge for her, that she wasn’t worth it. She did me a favor with Evie, I figured I do one for her. I was way off, so if I disrespected you, I apologize.”

“Why don’t I believe you?”

“Do or don’t means shit to me. Nine months ago Evie was seen walking through those doors,” I point. “When Marco fucked her up and she said she owed me, I thought I’d see what happened to her.”

“You could have called the police,” he says narrowing his eyes.

“And they’d do what? Help me? At best, I figured it would get Evie killed, maybe even Luna. I have no money, no resources, I’m not a threat to you.”

“Letting you leave isn’t my way, surely you know that. It’s because of my wife I’m going to let you go. But understand it comes with a warning, talk about what we do or, her, and I’ll kill you myself. Believe me, Luna will become accustomed to things in time. She would get over your death.”

“Noted,” I tell him reaching for the door. “Later, Shade.” Driving away, leaving her behind, was the worst kind of death.

Close to passing out, I ran back to my room and crawled into bed. Shade followed Crews out and would leave him with a warning. At least that’s what he promised me. I prayed he didn’t break that promise to me and if he did it would be the first and one I’d never forgive.

“How are you feeling?” he asks sitting next to me.

“I’ve been better,” I figured why lie on this one.

“You told me you let it slip,” he says twirling my hair. “When Mr. Crews presented his challenge you said,
I let that one slip
. But he just said he overheard Marco threatening you, that no man would ever throw out a challenge for you. Tell me who I should believe, because right now I’m going with the man who just drove away.” Well, at least he was safe; that was good news.

“Thanks for the trust,” I mumble. “Both of us told the truth, Shade. He overheard then asked me what it meant. To keep him from asking more questions, I told him in a very vague way what a challenge meant.”

“He challenged me for my wife’s freedom,” he says sitting me up. “Not Marco, he challenged me. Why is that?”

“Fifty bucks and a foot rub says Evie told him,” Oh yeah, I threw that bitch under the bus. “Considering I was on the phone with her when it happened.”

“That makes sense,” he says kissing my nose. “I’m sorry I doubted you, Luna.”

“You’re under a lot of stress,” I tell him honestly.

“I have to give the guy credit, he has balls,” he laughs pulling me into his arms. “Shoots Frank, saves you, and challenges me. All because he wanted to know what happened to his little sister.”

If I hadn’t already been sitting, I would have crumbled. Shade was in his own world as he kept talking. As for me it was all I could do not to run outside and directly into traffic. Sister. His fucking
sister
. “She’s the same age as you,” he muses. “I guess I can see why the guy has a hero complex. She told Drew he was so strict she couldn’t breathe. I guess the guy makes no money or at least not enough for her. Probably would have done him a favor by killing him.”

I wanted to punch Shade in the face and tell him Crews was a hero. That if he was strict it was because he worried and that money means shit to guys like him. That money isn’t everything but I didn’t bother because Shade wouldn’t get it. Instead, I fake yawned and lie down curling into myself. “My Luna’s had a rough day,” he says cuddling in next to me. “I don’t know what I’d do if I ever lost you.” Don’t cry, I tell myself. Not now, fall apart later.

“I’m right here,” I tell him rubbing his back. “I’ll always be here.”

While Shade continues to speak, I stared at the ceiling.

His fucking sister…

How did I not pick up on that?

Since turning twenty, responsibility for Evie took priority. There were no parties, no sewing of any oats. I became a parent to a snotty kid who somehow turned into a selfish young woman. In the weeks since speaking to her on the phone, I still can’t figure out where I went wrong with her. She had my number but I was positive I’d never hear from her again and figured it was for the best. She said she was happy, she wasn’t a kid and it was time to let go.

Until meeting Luna, I considered myself a pretty decent guy. Never one for picking fights or running head first into danger, I always kept to myself and played it safe.

Since meeting her, it seems as if I’ve acquired a death wish.

Shade’s warning was there and I knew if I got caught I’d be dead. Hearing her describe the parlor was one thing but seeing her
in
the parlor still fucks with my head. According to her, that was where girls came to be sold and many times she was forced to bear witness. Here I was out in the world alone while she was locked away with Shade, her fucking husband.

The building was big, at least ten thousand square feet but she told me the living area was in back. I hadn’t seen it, can’t see it from where I’m parked either. Every morning before work, every evening after work I sit across the street hoping to see her. Fuck, it’s not like I expected her to come out running but I needed to know she was okay. Christ, I could feel her in there dying to get out and was helpless to do shit except sit here like a stalker.

I’ve done this for three months.

One last time, I tell myself every day while pulling away. Tomorrow morning will be the last time.

But that all changed the day when I saw her outside.

Alone.

A week after Crews left, my stomach was cramping and it led to spotting. Not exactly sure what that meant since I’d had a light period two weeks before, I ignored it. Until the following day, I could no longer deny something was wrong. Turns out, I had been pregnant. The doctor said about three months, (give or take a few days).

Shade was devastated.  I was too.

Because I wasn’t sure which man it belonged to and never would. I was certain that if Shade ever got me pregnant, I wouldn’t keep it. Then I find this shit out and the odds were very good the baby could have belonged to Crews. The second I realized that I lost a baby I knew nothing about, was the same second I wanted that baby with everything I had.  But the effects of Marco’s attack combined with stress and depression caused the miscarriage. Now Shade was even more protective than he was before. I know there are women who would stab me for a shot at a guy like him but I’m not them. I want the man who for the last three months sits inside his truck across the street as if waiting for me. If Shade ever caught him, he’d kill him but luckily he doesn’t pay attention to the old truck that sits at the underpass. Only I do and it haunts me when every moment it isn’t there.