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I knew his advice came from a place of love, but I also knew that his understanding concerning my situation was limited. Everyone knew Honesty, and I were close, but no one truly understood how close we actually were. A lot of that was on me, because I didn’t like people in my personal business. What I did in my personal life wasn't anyone's business, so I kept people in the dark about the things that meant the most to me. Honesty was one of those things.

“I appreciate it. I’m getting ready to head out for the day. How long are you staying here?” I questioned. Draike took Jah up on his offer, and he'd been coming to the shop for training. He was young but he was hungry, and I could tell he had something to prove.

“Jah is gonna let me do a piece on one of his regulars tonight, so I’ll be around for a while. I can’t wait to have my own space in here, so I can really do my thing. The piece I drew last night was dope as hell, and since I’ve been using the techniques he taught me, I already know my work is about to be even more crisp than it already was.”

The excitement in his tone made me smile because I could hear how bad he wanted this. Draike was his own worst critic, so I knew he was gonna soak up all of the training and come out a beast.

“I’m proud of you, fam. You deserve this, and I already know you’re about to do your big one. This place has its own buzz, but once you lock in, people are gonna be traveling from all over the country to get tatted by you. Just watch.” I gassed him up because he deserved it. He might have been my nephew by title, but we were more like brothers. He had always been my road dog, and nothing would ever change that.

“Thank you, bro. It means a lot.”

He paused to look down at his phone with a wide grin on his face.

“Who the heck has you smiling like that?”

“It ain’t nothing major. Just this little shorty I met on campus. She seems cool. We’re just talking right now.”

Draike was known as a ladies’ man, so I wasn’t used to seeing him react this way to a girl. If anything, I expected him to collect a few numbers to add to his roster.

“Yeah, alright. I’ll let you rock for now. I’m about to head out, but I’ll be back in the morning.”

“Aight then. I’ll catch up with you.”

We shook hands before I turned to leave. When I got in my car, my phone immediately connected to Bluetooth. Honesty’s call connected, but it immediately dropped. When I pulled out my phone to call her back, I realized that I had missed calls from Messiah as well as my sister, Miyana, which sent me into a panic.

I called Messiah first because if something bad happened, he would be the more level-headed of the two.

“Aye, where are you at?” He asked the moment I picked up the phone.

“I’m just now leaving the shop and was about to head home. What’s going on? I saw you and Yaya called me a little while ago, and I just got a call from Honesty, but it disconnected before I could answer.”

“Listen, I need you to get to Grant Hospital, but you gotta stay calm. I know how you are when it comes to⁠—”

I hung up the phone and sped to the hospital on two wheels. Everyone knew how I felt about my family, and if he was giving me a disclaimer like that, it meant someone I loved was hurt. The ten-minute drive was a blur, and I barely remembered parking before I walked through the hospital doors. I messaged Messiah for the room number, and he sent it within seconds.

My heart pounded through my chest as I tried my best to ward off any negative thoughts. As soon as I stepped off the elevator and walked down the hall, I saw Messiah and his cousins, Justice and Loyal, standing outside of a hospital room. The moment I came into view, they all glanced in my direction.

“What happened?”

“Remember what I said. She doesn’t⁠—”

I cut him off and stepped into the room, not knowing what I was walking into. My eyes landed on Mama Elantra sitting in a chair by the window, with her eyes closed. It was obvious she was praying, so I wasn’t going to bother her. When I turned to face the person in the hospital bed, my fists clenched when I saw the condition she was in.

Her hair was disheveled, her left eye was black, and her lips were busted. Her right arm was in a cast, and her leg was propped up on a pillow with a boot on it.

“Who did this to you?” I asked as calmly as I could.

“Solly, I⁠—”

“Answer the question, Honey. Who did this?”

“I-I don’t know. There were so many of them, I can’t even tell you.”

“What? What do you mean there were so many of them? Somebody jumped you?” I shouted before I remembered where we were.

“Please don’t yell. They’re saying I have a concussion, and my head has been pounding for the last three hours,” she groaned weakly. I stepped closer, scooping her hand into mine.

“Tell me what happened.”