The Hearts We Burn by Briana Cole

Author:Briana Cole [Cole, Briana]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington Books
Published: 2020-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Kimera

“Leo’s father, my brother, is very powerful in Côte d’Ivoire,” Kareem explained. “He’s involved in some heavy-duty shit. And I don’t mean just drugs. I mean drugs, firearms, human trafficking, you name it and Obi has his hands in it. Being this kind of man, this kingpin, he has also gained a lot of enemies. However, with his alliances and the law enforcement on his side, he is basically untouchable.”

I tried to steady my breathing as I listened intently. I felt like I was tumbling deeper down the Alice in Wonderland rabbit hole and I was nearly salivating in anxiety to hear it all. I had always wondered more about Leo’s father. I sure as hell didn’t expect any of this.

“There are a lot of people Obi has fucked over to build his empire,” Kareem went on. “But for every one enemy, he has four allies. So no one would dare touch him.”

Kareem paused for a moment too long and my eagerness got the best of me. “So how did you get mixed up in all of this?”

Kareem returned to his seat on the lounge chair, almost as if what he was about to reveal required too much strength. “I was greedy,” he admitted. “I let money cloud my judgment. Make me turn my back on my family. I got involved with some people who wanted to take down my brother. So, I became an . . . informant.”

Nice way to say a snitch but I didn’t voice that. Just let him keep talking. “I began filtering information to them and helped them to rob Obi. Also, some sabotaging to make sure we were destroying his whole operation. Of course, shit went south. Obi found out about all them niggas that was in on it and had everyone killed. And,” he added, looking me in the eye. “Just to show you how ruthless he is. Not only had them killed, but one immediate member of their family.”

I gasped. “So, children too?”

Kareem shrugged. “Children, grandparents, mothers, he doesn’t care about that. That’s what I’m telling you.”

I was still in shock so all I could do was acknowledge I was listening with a nod. “But you . . .”

“Yeah,” he knew exactly what I meant. Why was he still alive? “Obi didn’t know I was involved. I had kept my shit clean and nothing could be traced back to me. Plus, everyone that knew was dead so . . .” Kareem shrugged and looked again to the house. “At least I thought so until ole’ boy.”

I frowned in confusion as my eyes followed him to the house. “Tyree?” I asked. “But how?”

“I didn’t know it at the time, but his brother was one of the ones killed during the takedown. They probably talked, so Tyree knew shit I didn’t even know. He one-upped me. He approached me with evidence proving I was involved. So now, I’m basically being blackmailed.”

“Yeah,” I mumbled. “I know that feeling.” I was floored by the information. Not only was Kareem actually a nice guy but he was in the same predicament as me.

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