Free Most Wanted by Nikki Turner, Kiki Swinson

regret for what I had done. Swallowing hard, I finally peered into the bag at the four remaining raw diamonds inside. The medium-sized gems twinkled even in the dimmest light. They were still beautiful. I had saved the remaining four as financial security in case shit with Sidney and I didn’t work out, but those four diamonds were all that was left of the twenty I had stolen. Warren and Ace wouldn’t be looking for just four diamonds . . . they’d be looking for twenty flawless raw uncut diamonds that were probably worth way more than the $250,000 I’d gotten rid of them for. I was so fucking stupid! I had certainly acted like a hood rat the way I ran through that money. Buying shoes, clothes, handbags, and paying to stay in high-priced hotels. I hadn’t even been smart enough at the time to buy a piece of property for myself. Now I had nothing to show for it. I was living off of my husband, whom I cared about but didn’t love. Again, depending on a man for everything. I had my mother depending on me and once again I was in deep shit with no way out but to throw someone under the fucking bus. But who would it be? Sidney? Stealing from him wasn’t an option. He kept his shit under strict lock and key. I lay on the floor of a grand house that I lived in with my husband thinking about how shit had gone so wrong and what I was going to do to get myself out of this mess. I had learned after the dustup with Warren and the feds that I had to put myself first always. Somebody wasn’t going to make it out of this shit alive. My mission was to make sure it wasn’t me.
     
    I heard Sidney calling my name from downstairs. I didn’t even realize I had fallen asleep on the floor of the closet while daydreaming of my checkered past. I bolted upright at the sound of Sidney’s voice.
    “Fuck!” I whispered. I couldn’t afford for him to come up there and find me with the safe moved away and my hiding spot for the diamonds exposed. I didn’t want to put the diamonds back in the same place, but I had no time to think of another place.
    “I’m coming down, Sidney!” I yelled back to stave him off for a few minutes. I knew how much his old ass hated coming up those stairs unless he was ready to go to bed, so I figured that would buy me some time. I raced around the closet, placing the diamonds back into the floor. I struggled to get the safe back over the spot. Just as I finished and stood up, I heard Sidney behind me.
    “Gigi? Are you all right?” His voice was accusatory. Or maybe I was just so paranoid I heard it as being accusatory.
    I almost jumped out of my fucking skin. He had definitely snuck up on me. I was panting after moving the safe back. My eyes were stretched wide with surprise. I had to place my hand over my chest to keep my heart from jumping loose of my chest bone.
    “Sidney! Don’t sneak up on me like that!” I boomed, still holding my chest in a clutch-the-pearl manner. Sidney’s brows furrowed with confusion.
    “What were you doing in the closet? You’ve been a little weird all day,” Sidney made me aware of his observation. He also ignored my outbursts. He eyed me suspiciously and looked around the closet the same way. I immediately felt like a child being chastised. Anger welled up inside of me like a pot about to boil over.
    “What are you talking about?! Why are you acting like I’m some child to be questioned? I tried to do something nice for you today! But excuse me for trying to be spontaneous in this boring-ass marriage of ours! I keep forgetting all you like is missionary sex and the same routine! You’d rather be with a fucking client than have lunch with me, and now you want to come in here accusing me of being weird!!” I exploded, pushing past him until I was out of the closet. I needed to get him to stop focusing on the inside of that damn closet. Sidney seemed dumbfounded by my sudden outburst. He whirled around on his heels and followed me with his eyes. I had even surprised