Committed, p.3
Committed, page 3
“For a person who’s only been married a minute, I think he nailed that advice,” Hamilton said. His lips were twitching as if trying to keep a straight face. “But seriously…are you and Journey all right?”
Laz finished his pizza and wiped his mouth. “I don’t know, man. In some ways, our relationship is amazing,” he said, thinking about their lovemaking that morning. “But I don’t like that she’s obsessed with this job, and everything else, including Arielle and me, comes last. I especially don’t like that she thinks nothing about canceling on me.”
“We both know that it’s not intentional,” Hamilton said, leaning back in his chair. He crossed his arms. “I know that Journey would do anything for you and Arielle. Maybe she’s having a hard time juggling all of her responsibilities. Just give her a little time.”
“Time?” Laz snapped and jerked out of his seat. He ran his hand over his head in frustration. “This shit has been going on for months. I can’t count on her, Ham, and that’s what’s bothering me. I used to always be able to count on my wife for anything.”
Laz snapped his mouth shut when Kenton Bailey and Angelo González walked in. They both pulled up short and looked from him to Hamilton.
“Are we interrupting something?” Kenton asked.
Most of the Supreme personal security specialists had a military background or were former law enforcement, which was why the team was often referred to as Atlanta’s Finest. Hamilton was an ex-cop who Laz used to work with early in his career. Kenton, a former FBI agent, might’ve been the biggest guy on the team, but he was a gentle giant with a great sense of humor. Angelo used to be an undercover agent for the DEA, but he should’ve pursued a singing career like his former superstar wife, Zenobia. The man could give the singer Usher some competition.
“Nah, I was just leaving to go and check on Ari,” Laz said, knowing he wasn’t fooling either of them. Especially if the way the side-eye Kenton was shooting at him was any indication.
Laz didn’t want anyone in his business. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust and respect them, because he did, which was saying a lot because he didn’t trust easily. He was fairly sure they already suspected something was up with him and Journey. All of their families often got together, and Journey had missed plenty of the gatherings lately.
He cringed when he stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him. The noise level was off the charts, even in the eating area. The building was huge with tons of trampoline apparatuses and kids everywhere he looked. That included his daughter, who was running toward him with Dakota, Hamilton’s wife, hot on her heels.
“Daddy!” Arielle screamed, joy showing on her cute face.
Laz’s heart turned over in his chest every time he looked at her.
He might be biased, but their daughter was the most beautiful child he’d ever laid eyes on. She had a little of both of their features and temperament. Her interracial heritage was evident in her skin tone—coffee with a lot of cream. She had his hazel-green eyes, thick wavy hair, and his ability to size a person up within seconds. Even at her age, she could spot bullshit from a mile away. She was a cutie-pie like her mother and had Journey’s nose, mouth, and smile.
Unfortunately, she was stubborn as hell…like the both of them. Her strong will challenged him and Journey on a daily basis. Still, he loved his baby to death.
“Hi, Daddy!” she squealed as if she hadn’t seen him in a long time when it had only been minutes. She slammed into him, and her arms went around one of his legs.
“Hey, baby girl. Are you having fun?” He lifted her into his arms and buried his nose in the crook of her neck, inhaling her fresh baby scent while sending her into a fit of giggles.
God, he loved this kid. She was his heart.
“Stop, Daddy.” Still laughing, she wiggled in his hold.
Laz stopped the torture and placed a kiss on her soft cheek. “Are you having fun?”
She nodded her head, and her two long ponytails bobbed back and forth on each side of her head. “I’m being a good listener.”
“I’m glad to hear that you’re being a good listener for Auntie Dee, Dani, and Zen.”
She’d been pretty proud of herself the last few months since her preschool teacher gave out stickers to good listeners. They chatted for a few minutes before Ashton’s son Caulder ran over with Dylan, Hamilton’s youngest son. He and Arielle were born months apart and were best of friends.
Arielle pushed against Laz’s chest and wiggled against him.
“Down, Daddy. Down,” she said, struggling to get out of his hold.
The moment Laz set her on her feet, the three took off, running back to the trampoline area. He started to follow, wanting to make sure they were supervised, but Dakota waved him off, letting him know that she had them.
Laz huffed out a breath. Looked like he’d be there for a while longer.
An hour later, Laz and Arielle were finally leaving, and he couldn’t have been happier. As he stepped outside the building, his ears were still ringing from the noise inside, but all that mattered was that the kids had a good time. He and Arielle were the first to leave, but the others would probably soon follow.
Laz gripped Arielle’s hand tighter as he slipped on his shades with his other hand. He was hoping the trampoline park would’ve worn her out, but the way she was skipping along beside him said otherwise.
“We go home?” she asked.
“Not yet, sweetie.” He was thinking about taking her to the Humane Society to look at puppies, something she enjoyed doing. He just wished Journey was going with them.
In her last voice message, apologizing for not being there with them, she promised to make it up to him and Arielle tonight. It didn’t matter. It was the fact that she bailed on them in the first place that bothered him.
“I—I wanna go home, Daddy. Grandma’s looking for me. I’m going to see Princess Tiana.”
Laz smiled. He loved that she was excited about her trip to Florida with Journey’s parents, even if he didn’t want to let her go. He gently tugged on one of her ponytails and smiled again when she started giggling.
“You’re not going with them until tomorrow. Today you’re all mine.” Laz still wasn’t comfortable with her being away from him for a whole week, but he knew she would have a blast at Disney World.
“I was a good listener today,” Arielle announced cheerfully.
Laz chuckled. He wondered how long he and Journey would have to hear how good of a listener she was.
Laz strolled through the small parking lot before moving to the sidewalk. Since the lot had been full, he’d had to park on the street earlier.
His grip on Arielle’s small hand tightened when his SUV came into sight, but that wasn’t what gave him pause.
It was the shady-looking guys, four of them, hanging near the truck that suddenly had his pulse pounding loudly in his ears.
Shit. What the hell are they up to?
Chapter Four
As a detective, Laz had witnessed the scene many times Immediately, he went on alert. The punks were getting ready to make an exchange if the way they kept glancing around was any indication. As soon as the thought filtered into his mind, two of them went on watch while the other two exchanged money and a couple of small packets.
A wave of unease crept through Laz, and he maintained a firm grip on Arielle’s hand as he discreetly glanced around.
The punks did it smoothly enough, but it bothered him that they were doing this in broad daylight. That meant they didn’t care much if anyone saw them. Only a few cars were driving by periodically, and Laz noticed a handful of people going in and out of some of the businesses across the street. No one appeared to be paying them any mind.
Except for him.
“I wanna go, Daddy,” Arielle said, looking up at him with innocent eyes.
“Okay, one second.”
Laz picked her up into his arms, despite her protests. He debated taking her back into the building because he’d seen enough of these exchanges to know they could quickly turn violent. All it would take was for one of the guys to get mad at not receiving enough money or one to find something wrong with the product.
Laz had seen it all. Too many times, the situation didn’t end well.
Before he could return to the building, the guys dispersed. Two walked in the opposite direction, away from him, and the other two started across the street, talking it up as if nothing had happened. One of them glanced his way, but it was quick as the man continued laughing with his buddy.
“Daddy?” Arielle’s questioning tone snagged Laz’s attention.
“Okay, let’s get going,” he said and started for his SUV again.
“Laz! Hey, Laz, wait up.” Someone called out from behind him just before he reached the truck.
Laz glanced over his shoulder and saw a man in his mid-twenties jogging toward him. He slid his sunglasses down his nose and peeked over the top of them. It wasn’t until the guy got closer that Laz recognized him.
“Nazir? Dude, it’s been a long time,” Laz greeted. He shifted Arielle in his arms and gave the man a fist bump.
The former drug addict appeared to have finally gotten his act together. His tawny brown complexion gleamed under the sunlight, and his dark eyes held a bit of humor. So used to seeing the guy with red-rimmed eyes, Laz was a little taken back.
Today, Nazir looked like a new man with his hair cut low and tight on the sides, and he was clean-shaven, giving him a boyish look. Gone were the ratty clothes that he used to walk around in for days at a time. Clearly, that was no longer the case. He was neatly dressed in a long-sleeve T-shirt with a local restaurant logo in the upper left-hand corner. The name-brand jeans and a pair of the latest Nikes told Laz that the kid had cleaned up well.
“What do you think?” Nazir lifted his arms and turned back and forth. “I’ve been clean for forty-eight months, two weeks, and three days,” he said with a laugh. “Basically, over four years, and that’s all thanks to you.”
They had first met about five years ago when Laz busted him for disorderly conduct. After a few more encounters and arrests, Laz had helped him get into a drug treatment center.
Laz slipped his sunglasses on top of his head. “Nah, man. Don’t give me the credit. You’re the one who did the work, and it looks like it paid off.”
“It did, and I ain’t gonna lie, it was hard,” he said with a chuckle and smiled at Arielle. “Hey, cutie.”
Arielle gave a little wave, then laid her head on Laz’s shoulder. She was shy at first meeting people, but she usually warmed up quickly.
“Is she yours?” Nazir asked, and Laz nodded. “She’s beautiful. She must take after her mother.” He burst out laughing, and Laz joined in.
“Yeah, you’re making jokes, but it’s actually true,” Laz said and smiled down at Arielle. The February temperature was warmer than usual, but there was a strong breeze, and he pulled her lightweight jacket closed.
“Walk with me to my truck and tell me what’s been going on,” Laz said. “I have to get out of here, but I have a few minutes to talk.”
As they strolled to the SUV, Laz listened as Nazir told him that after going to rehab the first time, he fell back into bad habits. Getting clean from any addiction wasn’t easy, and listening to the kid proved that. His family had given up on him, and his mother, a single parent, regrettably had to kick him out of the house.
“Things got worse before they got better,” Nazir said. “It took me three stints in rehab to get to this point.”
“I’m glad to hear you didn’t give up,” Laz said.
When they reached his truck, he used the keyless entry to disarm it. He had purchased the vehicle the day after Arielle was born, wanting to ensure he had something safe and dependable to drive her around in.
He opened the back passenger door and placed Arielle in the car seat.
“No, Daddy. I do it,” Arielle insisted when Laz started to buckle her up. She could do it herself, but it usually took longer than he had time for. “I do it,” she said again with authority, pushing his hand away.
“Okay, but if you don’t have it fastened by the time I get in the truck, I’m going to fasten it. So, hurry up.” Laz kept her door open to keep an eye on her while he and Nazir talked for a few more minutes.
The kid sounded proud of himself, as he should. Kicking a bad habit with the support of family and friends was hard, but it was even harder when you had to rely mostly on yourself.
“Daddy, almost,” Arielle said, still fiddling with the buckle.
Shaking his head, Laz smiled, and Nazir chuckled.
“Little Miss Independent is not giving up,” Nazir cracked.
“No, and she won’t. She’s a determined kid.” Laz moved to the door opening to see Arielle’s progress. She must’ve thought he was going to take over because she quickly told him she could do it. “Okay, but remember, if you’re not done by the time I get in, I will do it.”
“’kay,” she said, still struggling to latch the buckle.
Laz closed the door, and he and Nazir continued talking as they moved around the back of the vehicle to the driver’s side.
“Do you need a ride?” Laz asked as an afterthought as he pulled open the front door of the truck.
“No, but thanks. I work at the Greek restaurant across the street.” Nazir nodded toward the large building at the other end of the corner. “My shift starts in a little while, so I should probably get going, but I’m glad I ran into you. It gives me a chance to say thanks. If it weren’t for you, I probably would still be living on the street or worse.”
“I’m glad I could help, and I….” Laz’s words trailed off when he spotted a dark sedan with tinted windows pull out of a parking spot down the street. It wouldn’t have been a big deal if the car wasn’t creeping along at a snail’s pace.
Nazir turned to see what he was looking at, then turned back to Laz. “Same ol’ Laz. Some things never change. You’re always on guard,” the kid was saying, but Laz’s focus was on the vehicle.
The car hadn’t sped up. Maybe the driver was looking for an address, but Laz’s intuition had never failed him, and right now, his gut was starting to swirl. He suddenly wanted to get the hell out of there.
His gaze took in every nearby person, which wasn’t many. The two-lane road wasn’t that busy, but there were a few people out and about, coming and going from some of the storefront businesses across the street.
Still, something felt off.
“Nazir, it was great seeing you,” Laz said but kept his attention on the car. “You probably should get going so you don’t be late.”
“Oh, yeah, that’s right.” Nazir glanced at the watch on his left wrist. “I better get going.”
Tires squealed, and Laz whipped his head to the right, just in time to see the same car flying up the street. Then it slowed down a few yards away, and unease clawed through him.
His body moved without thought. He bent down and pulled his pistol from his ankle holster before taking a couple of cautious steps back to where he had left his car door open.
This could be nothing, but….
“Arielle, get on the floor!”
“Daddy….”
“Fall on the floor, now, Ari! Hurry! Nazir, get out of here. No, get down!”
“Laz, man….”
The sedan’s tinted windows rolled down, and the moment Laz spotted a gun barrel, he dove to the ground. Before he could form his next thought, gunshots blasted through the air, hitting nearby vehicles and his truck.
Shit!
Screams rang out, and he heard feet pounding the pavement, but there was only one voice that penetrated Laz’s brain.
Arielle.
“Daddy!” she screamed over and over. “Daddy!”
“Stay down, Ari!” he yelled from the ground and turned slightly, able to get off a couple of shots, hitting the side of the car. “Stay down, baby!”
Nazir gasped and crumbled to the asphalt holding his chest. Blood spilled through his fingers, and fear like nothing Laz had ever experienced gripped him.
He had to get to his kid. She was screaming for him.
Everything was happening so fast. Laz returned fire while trying to take cover, but cursed when a bullet whizzed by and pinged off his truck.
One of the windows shattered. Then another.
Arielle.
Laz had to get to her.
Needing to get to the other side of the truck, he fired off several rounds while he lifted himself up, planning to make a run for it. A bullet slammed into his shoulder, knocking him against the truck.
He cried out as hot, searing pain stabbed him in the shoulder and traveled down his arm.
His gun slipped from his grip when he crashed to the ground.
More bullets flew, and he flinched when one kicked up rocks near his head. He had to move and under the truck was his only option.
He dragged himself beneath the vehicle with his good arm, but each move he made brought with it a stabbing pain that stole his breath.
Don’t stop.
Don’t stop.
Keep moving.
Arielle needed him.
Yelling and people running could be heard in the distance. Bullets were still whizzing by, but Laz blocked out everything except the need to get to his child. He couldn’t move fast. Not only was his wound fighting against him, but the truck’s undercarriage wasn’t as high as he needed. He kept getting snagged but eventually made it to the other side.
Dammit.
He was parked too close to the curb. He couldn’t get on the sidewalk and had to belly-crawl with one arm to the rear of the vehicle. Just as he started to pull up on the sidewalk, the car peeled away, but Arielle was still screaming.
Laz didn’t know what was worse, the searing pain that left his arm immobile or the fear that his daughter was hurt.
