The Demise Read Free Page B

words were like knives stabbing him as he thought of his brother’s fate. Monroe was the only blood brother he had left. It had taken a lot for them to put their differences aside and band together as family. If anyone was supposed to sacrifice himself for the other, it was supposed to be Carter. He was the oldest. He was the strongest. It was his wife who had started this war. Monroe wasn’t supposed to succumb to it. He didn’t deserve to. Carter wanted to place blame, but it wouldn’t help. They both knew the deaths to come in the days ahead were on Miamor’s conscience.
    Suddenly a rapid knock at the door interrupted them. Silence fell over them as they shot each other a paranoid glance. Carter put his fingers to his lips and then used his fingers like a gun, telling her to strap up. Baraka owned half the casino. Surely he knew where to find them. They would have to lock down the entire property in order to keep Baraka and his goons out. It would be damn near impossible to do that, so they needed to gather everyone, take what they needed, and find somewhere inconspicuous to gather their thoughts. Miamor grabbed her gun and headed toward the door.
    â€œMia, put down de’ fucking gun and open de’ door!” Aries hissed. She already knew the routine. Miamor was on edge, which meant she had an itchy trigger finger. It was only a matter of time before she popped off. It was what she did when her back was against the wall.
    Miamor breathed a sigh of relief and snatched open the door. When she saw Monroe standing next to Aries, she couldn’t stop the tears from welling in her eyes. They weren’t necessarily the closest, but she had never been so happy to see him. She placed a hand over her heart in relief. If Money had been killed, Carter would have never forgiven her.
    â€œLook who popped up,” Aries said as Monroe walked inside.
    â€œGood to see you, Money,” Miamor stated.
    â€œGood to be seen. There are fucking Arabs all over the place. I barely got out of that hospital. We’ve got to disappear for a while. Regroup,” he stated as he rushed over to Carter.
    Carter was hanging on by a thread as pain doubled him over in his chair. “Get Zyir on the line. I want to make sure he and Breeze are safe,” he managed.
    He was sweating profusely and grimacing in excruciation.
    â€œIs he okay?” Aries asked.
    Carter couldn’t breathe, not deeply, not enough for him to think clearly. The room began to spin as a burning sensation seared through him, and he fell from the wheelchair.
    â€œCarter!” Miamor whispered desperately as she knelt in front of him, holding his face in her hands. She looked up at Monroe, feeling empty as if she were watching the love of her life slip away. “Money, this is bad. We need a doctor here now!” She sat on the floor and laid Carter’s head in her lap.
    They had never seen Carter so incapacitated. They were in the middle of a war, and if they were going to survive, they needed their general. He had to pull through—not only for his sake, but for Miamor’s as well.

 
    C HAPTER 3
    It was quiet; so quiet that thoughts of fear, of chaos, and of destruction thundered loudly inside her head. Ever since the men had disappeared to Saudi Arabia, Leena had questioned her loyalty to the street life. When they had returned, she had pushed her fears to the back of her mind, but she knew one day she would have to address them. Today was that day. Leena wasn’t built for the warfare that came with the game. There was an uncertainty of survival every day that she woke up. She never knew what could happen, and the imminent danger that lurked in the shadows of her life terrified her. Although their hands were in the casino business now, she knew The Cartel would never truly be legit. They lived by the rules of the underworld, and Monroe would always be a part of the life. He had been born into it, and the moment