DeSean entered the living room where Nick and Gary stood. They were both dressed formally in suits and Gary held a briefcase. He frowned as he saw the young male in his mother's living room.
"What's he doing here?" He questioned with a deep frown etched on his handsome face. The two men who were staring at a painting on the wall turned and faced DeSean.
Nick smiled. "We came to see you, DeSean." He walked to DeSean and gave him a manly hug which the latter didn't reciprocate.
"You know I don't do hugs." DeSean said with a frown.
Nick chuckled."I know. I know. How are you doing?" He asked.
"I'm good. Any news on the culprit?" DeSean went straight to the point.
"Not yet. All the CCTV cameras were broken." Nick said.
"The fuck? How's that possible?" DeSean was surprised.
"Whoever did this must've planned it for a long time." Gary spoke for the first time.
"No one asked you." DeSean said coldly to the young man.
"But you don't remember anything? Not even the culprit's voice? He must've said something right?" Nick asked.
DeSean shook his head negatively. "I can't remember, Nick."
"That's fine." Nick said softly.
"Would you like anything to drink?" DeSean asked as he suddenly remembered his manners. He mentally facepalmed himself for being so rude.
Nick chuckled and shook his head. "I'm good."
"Water would be fine, please." Gary spoke again making DeSean glare at him.
"It's not distilled water." DeSean said as he still remembered the younger man's preference.
"Oh, okay." Gary said in a low voice.
"Alright, we'll be leaving now. It's good to see you in good shape, DeSean." Nick said with a smile.
"I'll be back to work in no time." DeSean spoke with enthusiasm and a small smile.
"Uh uh, take your time to heal. Last thing I need is you messing up on this case. I've briefed Gary about the case and he's helping to prepare. He'll be meeting Miss Lexington today." Nick said and DeSean's smile faltered.
"What?" He frowned and glared at Gary who had a slight smirk on his face. He was ready to lash out at him any second.
Sensing DeSean's emotions, Nick spoke. "There's no need for an argument, DeSean. Gary is your associate, so he has every right to work with you on this case. And since you're not stable-"
DeSean cut in aggressively. "I get it."
"Good." Nick smiled.
"You better not flop, Baldwin." DeSean warned the younger man who only nodded.
"Alright, so we'll be heading back to the office now." Nick said.
"A'ight." DeSean said and walked them to the door.
"Take care of yourself, DeSean." Nick smiled at him.
"Yeah." DeSean said and watched as the men walked to Nick's SUV that was parked in the driveway. Nick unlocked the car and waved at DeSean one last time and entered the car while Gary just smirked and entered the passenger seat. DeSean watched as the engine roared to life and the car drove out of his mother's compound.
He sighed and closed the door and went upstairs to his room. He was the only one at home; his mother left for work, Kentrell went to school, his grandma went to see her best friend, Ms Sheila and Melvin was wherever he was.
He walked to the bed and laid down on it and stared at the ceiling. Different thoughts filled his head as he wondered why someone would try to have him killed. His phone ringing interrupted his thoughts. He sighed and brought the phone out of the pocket and the caller was Elsa.
He sighed and answered the phone.
"Wow, look who decided to call me." He spoke sarcastically. He was upset at Elsa. He never heard from her since he got stabbed and he was told she didn't visit at the hospital.
"How have you been?" She asked. Her voice sounded low and sad unlike her usual happy and bubbly tone.
'Maybe she's sick.' He thought to himself and ignored the sound of his assistant's voice.
"I've been waiting for your call, Elsa. You didn't even visit me at the hospital." He said
"I've been busy." She muttered which got him angry.
"Oh yeah? Too busy to check up on your boss? In case you didn't know, I got stabbed, Elsa!" He raised his voice.
"I know you got stabbed." She said calmly and he could imagine her rolling her eyes which got him more annoyed.
"And you didn't bother to call or check up on me?". He questioned with annoyance.
"My mom died, DeSean. Same day you got stabbed." She said without emotion. DeSean couldn't believe his ears. He immediately felt bad for how he reacted when she called.
He was silent for a while, trying to process the news he just heard.
"Hello?" She called, breaking his train of thoughts, bringing him back to reality.
"Fuck, are you okay? Where are you now?" He asked.
"I'm not okay, DeSean." She sniffled.
"Where are you?" He asked.
"Home." She mumbled.
"I'm on my way." He said and ended the call.
"Fuck!" He groaned and threw his phone on the bed. He sat on the bed and placed his hands on his head.
"Fuck!" He groaned again and scratched his head. It was supposed to be like this. None of this was supposed to happen. He had only met the woman once at Elsa's home and she was just lovely. Elsa's mom was the reason he increased Elsa's paycheck because Elsa always talked about taking her mom on a vacation to The Maldives. But now it's never going to happen.
"Fuck!" He cussed and got up from the bed. He walked to the full length mirror and stared at his reflection. He was in black shorts and black T-shirt. He sighed and walked to the bed and picked up his phone and called an Uber. He wore his slides and took his wallet and left the room when he bumped into Melvin on the stairway.
"Woah, young blood. Where you going?" Melvin asked.
"Out." DeSean simply said.
"You ain't supposed to go out. You need rest." Melvin said.
"I know that but I have to leave now." He said and started walking away.
"Your Mama's gon kill me if she found out I let you leave the house." Melvin said which made DeSean stop walking.
He turned and looked at Melvin. "Hold up. Ma made you watch me?" He questioned.
Melvin nodded.
He got angry. "I'm 28 for fuck's sake." He yelled. "I ain't no kid. Do I look like a kid to you?" He asked his stepfather.
Melvin shook his head. "No you don't."
DeSean sighed. "I'm outta here." He continued walking down the stairs.
"DeSean wait." Melvin called.
"What?" DeSean snapped without turning to look at Melvin.
"You should at least tell me where you're going." Melvin said.
"I'm going to see someone and I won't be back anytime soon." DeSean said and walked away. He was angry. He was going to have a talk with his mother when he gets back. He left the compound and saw his ride. He entered the car which took him to Elsa's residence.
Elsa lived in a nice neighborhood. He paid the driver and came out of the car. Elsa's car was in the driveway which meant she was home. He walked to the front door and pressed the doorbell. The door opened and revealed Elsa. Her face was all red and eyes were puffy, her hair was all over the place. A contrast to the Elsa he knew.
"Hey." He said and pulled her in for a hug. She held his shirt and cried.
He patter her back softly and spoke in a soft tone. "It's gon be alright."
***
DeSean sat on the floor, staring at Elsa who sat across from him. Elsa's house was a mess. Boxes and clothes were all over the couch, leaving the floor the only place to sit. She was looking slightly better as she had stopped crying. He watched as she ate her ice cream and munched on her donut.
"I'm sorry I was mad at you." He broke the silence making her look at him.
"You were mad?" She asked.
"Of course I was mad. I mean you're my person so I obviously got mad when you didn't call." He said and took a spoon of his ice cream.
"I'm your person, huh?" She slightly smirked.
"Yeah." He nodded.
She let out a deep, shaky breath. "When I heard you'd been stabbed, I was at the club. I wanted to rush down to the hospital where you were but then I got another call from my neighbor. They said my mom had just been rushed to the hospital. I was confused, DeSean." She sniffled.
"Were you alone?" He asked in concern.
She shook her head. "Deborah was with me. She took me to the hospital where my mom was because I was too confused and too drunk to drive. When we got there, I met my neighbors, Mr and Mrs Smith and they told me someone stabbed her."
He was surprised. "What? How?"
"Mrs Smith said she had gone to give my mom brownies she made when she heard her scream. The front door was opened so she entered inside and found my mom on the floor with not just one knife but two in her chest and her left leg and a gunshot in her shoulder. She got scared and called 911." She explained with tears streaming down her cheeks.
"The fuck?"
"I was surprised when I heard it too." She said and wiped her eyes.
"That's crazy. Whoever did that must be a psychopath."
"And I won't rest until I find who did that to my mother." She said with determination and anger in her eyes.
"Did Mrs Smith see anyone in the house?" He asked.
She shook her head. "No, she didn't."
"That's suspicious." He muttered.
"You think Mrs Smith killed my mom?" She questioned, suspecting his thoughts.
"It's possible. She was the only one at the crime scene so she's a suspect." He said.
"That's absurd." She disagreed.
"Elsa-" He started.
She cut in. "Uh uh, I don't wanna hear it. Please."
"Fine." He said and made a mental note to investigate the murder of Elsa's mom. The room was quiet as they were both thinking.
"Let's go out, DeSean." Elsa spoke, breaking the silence.
"Now?" He questioned.
"Yeah." She nodded with a small smile.