RedBone 2 Read Free Page A

going to the morgue to identify Ma’s body.”
    As Farah replayed in her mind the tapes of what Mia just said, a frightful expression covered her face. Immediately she hopped off the bed and dropped to her knees. Shadow stood up straight and looked at his frantic sister in motion. Removing the box from under the bed with her stories, she was desperately seeking two things: her journal for the month, and Knox’s phone.
    When Mia saw her fling the books out of the box, she finally understood her horror. “Please tell me you didn’t. Tell me you didn’t write about what you did to Knox in your book.” Farah looked at her without a response and Mia had her answer. “How could you be so fucking stupid?”
    “I been writing in these books all my life! What am I supposed to do? Just stop?”
    Shadow walked over to them. “Farah, after all these fucking years? What the fuck is in them books anyway?”
    She held her head down. “Everything.”
    He leaned in. “ Everything? Including the stuff we did that you knew about?”
    “Yes.”
    He put his hands over his face and paced in place. “Get the fuck out of here! Who does that kind of shit anyway? Just call the police and make a fucking recording!”
    The moment he said that, the front door slammed. Farah hopped off the floor, and they all walked into the living room to see who was there. Standing side by side in the middle of the living room were Slade, Killa, and Major.
    Della Baker was sitting on the recliner. When Farah walked out, she said, “So this is Farah Cotton? The girl who stole my son’s heart.” Della looked at Slade and, using her cane, pulled herself up.
    Mia and Shadow stood next to Farah.
    “Yeah . . . that’s her.” It was obvious that he was avoiding eye contact with Farah.
    She searched his eyes to see how he felt about her, but saw nothing.
    “Earlier today, Farah, my son found something on the way to the bathroom,” Della told her. “In your house.”
    Mia looked at Killa and rolled her eyes. When she was home earlier, he kept saying how he had to go to the bathroom. Now it all made sense. He made no fewer than ten trips within an hour, but she didn’t think anything of it because Chloe was gone. “So you were snooping around?” she asked him. “In my house?”
    Killa remained silent.
    “I think we’re asking the wrong questions, young lady,” Della said. “How about we start by telling me how you got this?” She raised Knox’s phone in the air. “Let’s start there.”
    Farah rocked in place and her heart skipped beats. There she was, gazing at Knox’s BlackBerry, the same phone she took from him after she sucked the blood out of his body and told him how sweet it was. Suddenly, she felt hot. She felt itchy, and she was certain a fresh bout of hives were coming along, which happened every time she stressed out. But she knew this would make her look guiltier. Breathe, Farah. You can do this. Take your time. Breathe.
    “My nephew, Markee, told me that when he last saw Knox, he asked about a cute redbone at the end of the hall.”
    Farah shrugged. “There are plenty of cute redbones in this building. One of them used to live here.”
    “He led him to believe that he came to see you,” she told her. “He seemed very interested when he told him that Slade dealt with you.”
    Farah felt dizzy. “I don’t know . . . I don’t know nothing about that. I never saw no Knox.”
    “You okay, young lady?” Della asked, taking two steps closer with the use of her cane. Della was a strong woman, and Farah got the impression that the wooden cane wasn’t needed. If anything, judging by the way she clutched the handle, it would be used as a weapon. “Because you look like you seen a ghost.”
    “My sister is sick!” Mia jumped to the rescue. Her hefty body matched her disposition: angry. She would rip the woman apart if she had to, and she stood between them like a personal guard to express her intentions. “She not used to all of