Breeze eyes lit up, and she gave him the biggest smile ever. “Yes! Thank you, Poppa,” she said as she leapt into her arms.
Carter had promised himself that he wouldn’t let outsiders enter his new home, but he had a weak spot for Breeze. She was his only daughter, and he spoiled her more than he did his twin boys.
“What about boys?” Breeze looked at her father. “Can I invite them too?”
His smile quickly turned into a frown as he looked at Breeze like she was insane.
“Gotcha!” she said as she broke out into laughter.
“Baby, don’t do that,” he said, joining her in laughter. “You almost gave this old man a heart attack.” Although Breeze was joking around, he knew that the day when she would be serious was soon to come. A day that he would dread.
Chapter Two
“There is strength in numbers, and we will get through this as a family.”
– Polo
Polo took a deep breath as he pulled into the South Beach, one of the many suburbs of Miami. As he looked around at the perfectly landscaped lawns and the children playing carelessly in the streets, he realized why Carter had moved his family so far away from the hood. With its gated community and million-dollar structures, it seemed as if it were a million miles away from the grit of the ghetto. Carter, positive that the upscale environment of South Beach would protect his household from the harsh reality that the street life had to offer, had told him that the move would be good for his family, but he was wrong. Now Polo was forced to bury his man.
Polo and Carter had known each other since they were young and hardheaded coming up in the trenches of Dade County. They quickly formed a brotherly bond as they took over the streets and inevitably entered the drug game. The Cartel was what they were labeled, a notorious, criminal-minded organization that was willing to stay on top by any means necessary. Carter and Polo had put in work for many years and worked hard to surround themselves with thoroughbreds that respected the hustle of the streets as much as they did. They earned money, power, and respect.
That is, until the Haitians from Little Haiti discovered the money that was being made and tried to muscle them out of town.
Carter’s demise proved to Polo that the Haitians weren’t to be taken lightly. He just hated that it took the death of their leader to figure that out. Nobody was untouchable. Now he had a nagging pain in his heart, and the stress of retaliation on his brain, but he knew that his hurt didn’t compare to that of Carter’s family.
When he pulled into the driveway to the ten-room, 7,000-square-foot home, he prepared himself for the heartache that he was about to encounter. Polo personally made sure that Carter’s wife and children were taken care of. He knew that they would be okay financially, but he was determined to ensure their safety. No expense was spared when it came to the security of their family. There were about ten armed henchmen stationed outside of the house, and he acknowledged them with a nod as he passed by and walked into the Diamond home.
“Unc Po.” Mecca slapped hands with his father’s best friend.
Polo could tell that Carter’s death was weighing heavily on his heart by the sad look in Mecca’s eyes. Polo then turned to Monroe and pulled him near as well. He held them close, his arms wrapped around their shoulders. All three men had their heads down.
Polo told them, “I know it doesn’t feel like it right now, but it’s gon’ be all right, you hear me?”
Tears formed in Money’s eyes. He nodded his head, praying that his Uncle Polo was right.
Polo whispered in their ears, “You both have to be strong for your mother and Breeze. This is gon’ hit them the hardest. You know how protective your father was of them. It’s time to step up to the plate, twins. You got to pull your family back together.”
Both boys nodded in agreement as they quickly wiped the tears from the eyes. Having been trained by their father to never show emotion, they knew that to cry was to show weakness,
“Where are your mother and sister?”
“They’re still upstairs,” Money stated.
Polo ascended the steps two at a time. He approached the bodyguard that he had hired to stand by Taryn’s side. “Fuck you doing?” he whispered harshly.
The bodyguard quickly snapped his cell phone shut, but before he could put it safely in his pocket, Polo slapped it out of his hands.
“Do I fucking pay you to talk on your cell phone?” Polo pointed his finger in the man’s face. It didn’t matter that he was only 5-8, and that the bodyguard was 270 lbs of pure muscle. “How the fuck you supposed to protect anybody when you’re focused on your fuckin’ phone? As a matter of fact, get your ass out of here. Put somebody on this job that want to make this money, you pussy!”
The man didn’t even protest as Polo lifted his Steve Madden and kicked him in the ass toward the staircase. He looked over the landing and yelled, “Mecca, show that mu’fucka the door and bring one of them niggas up that take this shit seriously.” Polo fixed his clothes and wiped himself down before he knocked lightly on Taryn’s door.
“Come in,” she called out. “It’s open.”
Taryn looked as beautiful as ever standing in front of the full-length mirror in her white-on-white Dolce suit that fit nicely around her slim frame, the skirt stopping directly below her knee and hugging her womanly shape. Her neck was framed with rare black pearls that matched the pearl set that clung to her ears. Her long, layered hair was pulled back into a sophisticated bun. She spared herself of applying makeup because she knew that eventually her tears would ruin it anyway. Her natural beauty was enough to take Ms. America’s crown, and her Dominican features made her look more like a mature model than a mother of three.
“Taryn, it’s time to go,” Polo stated as he stood in her doorway.
She nodded her head and closed her eyes as she said a silent prayer to God. Please give me the strength to get through this for my children. They are all that I have left. Take my husband into grace and take care of him until we meet again. “Okay, let’s go,” she said, trying to hide the shakiness in her voice.
She walked out of the room and down the hallway to her daughter’s room. “Breeze,” she said as she opened the door. “It’s time.”
“I don’t think that I can do this,” Breeze stated, tears running down her cheeks. It was obvious that she had been crying for hours, because her eyes were red and swollen. The distress from her father’s murder was written all over her young face. It was almost as if her legs gave out from underneath her, because she fell onto the bed and put her head in her hands.
Taryn and Polo rushed to her side. Polo knew that Breeze would take her father’s death the hardest. His only daughter, she was his pride and joy, and he had treated her like a princess since the day she was born. Breeze could do no wrong in his eyes, and they had shared a special connection all her life.
“I can’t believe he’s gone,” Breeze stated. She felt as if the life was being squeezed out of her. “I can’t do this, Uncle Po.” She dreaded putting her father to rest. Never in her nineteen years had she felt a pain so great.
Taryn embraced her daughter as they sat side by side, cheek to cheek. “I know that you can’t do this, but we can,” she stated. “There is strength in numbers, and we will get through this as a family.”
Polo was speechless as Taryn’s words moved him. It was then that he realized that Carter was truly a lucky man to have a woman such as her by his side. He left the room and descended the steps. He waited in the foyer with Mecca and Monroe, and when the two women came down the steps, they all walked out of the house together.