Page 34 of Dima
“Yes.”
It’d crossed my mind briefly, but I didn’t fully allow myself to think of Dima harming me. I swallowed when I realized it truly was a possibility. Dima could have killed me.
“Exactly. You feel safe with him. Even when you’re putting his life in jeopardy. If he wanted you dead and me to not know, he could have killed you, walked right out of the front door, and probably made it a couple of miles before my men caught him.”
“Why would you let a man like this into our lives, Daddy?”
“Because now is the time that Dima shows us what kind of man he is. Is he the type of man that obeys authority, even when that authority is wrong, or does he stand up for what’s right?”
My father looked at Dima before he continued, and Dima finally looked at him. They were having a private conversation with their eyes before he spoke again.
“Dima, I’m sure you’re at least suspicious about your people. You’re a smart man, so I know you can feel that there are plays being made behind the scenes. I need to know what those movesare and who’s responsible. That’s why I invited you in. Now that you have this information, what are you going to do with it?”
“I can admit, there is a lot I don’t understand, but I still have a job to do. I couldn’t keep lying to Maeve. I care about her too much. You have shown me nothing but love since I met you, and I got mad respect for you, but when I came into this thing, Bishop, I was a man doing his job.”
“I respect a man doing his job. We all have to put food on the table for the people we love. But can you answer me this: Are you doing your job or someone else’s?”
My father got up from his seat and walked around the desk. He walked over to me first, kissed me on the forehead, then led me toward the door of his office. Dima still hadn’t moved, but he let his hands fall as we got closer to him. My father stopped right in front of where Dima stood.
“You don’t have to answer right now. Right now, I want us all to go back into the dining room and eat some good food. You can decide who you want to be tomorrow.”
My father stuck his hand out, and Dima shook it. They may have called a truce for the night, but I hadn’t. I wasn’t skipping any meals, but I would definitely eat in silence.
I’d been played, and I didn’t even know why I was surprised. I shouldn’t have expected anything more. I went over my uncle Atlas’s head to get put on this case, and it might cost me my job and my life. I was stuck in the middle of a war, and I had enemies on both sides.
I paced back and forth in my living room, trying to get my thoughts together. I had made it out of Maeve’s house, but not before Bishop made me sit through the rest of dinner. It was torture to sit across from Maeve knowing she didn’t want shit to do with me anymore.
Bishop told me I had to make up my mind about the type of man I wanted to be. I understood what he meant, but what I didn’t understand was why he let me go. I was an undercoveragent who had infiltrated the Durty Boyz, and he saw me coming from a mile away.
I shook my head at the thought of how many times he could have taken my life, and I wouldn’t have been none the wiser. I lived on his grace alone. I couldn’t help but want to know who had put me in this situation to begin with. It was clear the play had been made long before I was assigned to the case.
I grabbed my cell phone off the kitchen counter and dialed Atlas’s number. If it was anybody that could give me advice, it was him. I knew he’d know which way I should go from here.
He told me not to come back in, and I did so against his wishes. I knew I had to see Maeve again, and now I had to make this right. My presence here was what started this war. I was just a pawn in someone else’s game, but that didn’t absolve me of the part I’d played.
“Yo, Unc.”
“Dima. So good to hear from you, son.”
I could hear the relief in my uncle’s voice. Relief that I was still alive and able to call his phone. Sadly, I couldn’t let him hold on to that peacefulness for long.
“It’s good to hear from you too, Unc.”
“How are things looking out there?”
“Not good. Bishop knows I’m a Fed. He knows we are on to him.”
“How do you know that?”
I could hear the panic in my uncle’s voice. He almost sounded defeated. This was exactly what he tried to protect me from, but it was too late.
“His daughter told him right in front of me. I fucked up, Uncle Atlas. I fell in love with her and couldn’t lie to her anymore. I couldn’t have her caught up in a war. I already hurt her enough.”
It was quiet on his end. I fully expected him to say I told you so, but I knew he wouldn’t. He would never be the person to kick me while I was already down.
“Damn,” was all he managed to get out. My uncle wasn’t one to be lost for words. He always had a plan, and the fact that he wasn’t giving me one right now further let me know that I had fucked up. This was something I was going to have to do on my own.
“Do you know what’s going on with this case?”
