watched the car peel out of the driveway.
âWhite bastard . . . donât fucking trust you,â Sean grumbled as if Meyer would somehow hear what he was saying. Sean grabbed the boxed wine set containing the remainder of Foxâs money. He took a deep breath and told himself he would not look at Adina if Fox was around. Sean promised to just hand Fox the box with the money in it, give Fox a pound and rush back out of the house. He knew saying anything to Adina would be too risky because he was still fantasizing about her in his mindâs eye. He couldnât risk Fox figuring him out.
Sean walked up the front steps of the mansion and once he was at the top of the steps he immediately noticed that the door was cracked open.
âNah . . . Fox wouldnât leave his shit open,â Sean whispered, instinctively grabbing his gun from his waistband. He pushed the door slowly with sweat forming on his hairline. âFox? Ms. Adina?â Sean called out as he moved slowly and cautiously into the house.
âYo, Fox . . . itâs me, Sean. I forgot to give you the wine,â Sean called out, his voice rising and falling with nervousness. Suddenly that eerie feeling from earlier became more like an ominous foreboding that shrouded Sean like a black veil. His stomach began doing flips, which made him grip his gun even tighter. The silence of the scene took him back to the day heâd found his mother slaughtered.
âYo, Fox, man! Answer me if youâre here!â Sean yelled, more frantic this time.
Sean walked slowly through Foxâs grand foyer until he came to the study. He could see someone sitting behind Foxâs huge desk in the high-backed leather office chair. Seanâs shoulders slumped with relief when he saw Fox sitting at his desk although Fox was slightly turned away from Seanâs full vision.
âAye, Fox, man, I came back because . . .â Sean was saying as he stepped closer to where Fox sat.
âOh shit! No! No!â Sean barked throwing his hands up, sending the boxed wine set went crashing to the floor. âNah! Nah, man!â
Sean pushed the office chair all the way around so he could get a full view of what he hoped was all a bad dream.
âFox, man! Nah! You canât go! Fox!â Sean screamed, shaking the chair as he stared at the two perfect bullet holes in his mentorâs head. Foxâs eyes were opened like heâd seen the shots coming and like heâd taken them like a man.
âFox! Fox!!â Sean screamed, falling to his knees. He sobbed for a few minutes, but then, as if a bolt of lightning hit him, Sean jerked around and scanned the room. It had suddenly struck him that he didnât see Adina or hear her screaming for Fox. Sean scrambled up off the floor, gun in hand; he ran out of the study and bolted toward the kitchen.
âAdina? Adina!â Sean shouted as he busted through the kitchen door.
âOh shit! Adina!â he huffed as he found her slumped on the floor, her hand over her chest, blood covering and seeping through her fingers.
âHel . . . hel . . . help mmm . . . me,â Adina gasped, blood bubbling from her mouth, too.
âIâm going to help you! I wonât let you die!â Sean called out as he grabbed her up into his arms. âI promise,â Sean said with feeling as he rushed toward the front door with Adina in his arms.
Chapter Five
Sean sat vigil at the hospital while the doctors worked to save Adinaâs life. He had slept in a small chair in the waiting room until his legs and neck were cramped and painful. Each time he closed his eyes, Sean envisioned the gunshot wounds in Foxâs head and the shocked look on his face. Sean surmised that whoever shot Fox had definitely caught him slipping with his guard down, but when Fox saw it coming he had taken death like a man. The first person to pop into Seanâs mind was that white Jew Meyer. Sean promised himself he would