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.....

A couple of days later...

"Would you like to speak to my mom? She asks about you everyday," Robyn spoke up from across the room. Asha shook her head no.

"Well, do you want to walk around instead? It'll be good for you to get out of this room and stretch your legs."

"Why? It's not like I can leave the house," Asha said.

"I know, but—"

"I'm not really in the mood Robyn, maybe later," Asha whispered as she turned on her stomach. Asha wasn't trying to be rude, but her tone probably came off as such. Robyn only nodded in response, the silence thick as she contemplated what else to say. She didn't know if it was wise to keep prodding Asha or if she should just leave her alone for awhile. Choosing the latter, Robyn turned to leave.

"Okay, I'll go but I'm leaving the door open. Briana just got out the shower."

Asha said nothing as Robyn left. She then closed her eyes and tried to get some sleep despite it only being midday. Asha did her best not to trigger any more bad dreams. Instead, she thought of some of her favorite moments with her daughter. For instance, when Imani took her first steps, or when she said her first word. Asha also thought about Imani's birthday when she went skating for the first time earlier this year, and also when they went to the indoor jungle gym. All of these events were the epitome of Asha's happiness. But now that Imani was gone, Asha feared that all of those memories were essentially the only things that she had left of Imani.

"No," she muttered half asleep.

"O-Only happy thoughts," she shook herself awake almost instantly. She then peeled the covers from off her body and sat near the edge of the bed. She couldn't do this anymore. This shit was killing her. Asha got up and threw on some sweatpants, a hoodie, and a pair of tennis shoes. She then stormed downstairs, heading straight for the front door.

"Asha?"

She ignored Robyn. Her only concern was getting the hell out of there.

"Asha!" Briana ran up after her. "What are you doing?"

Asha then stopped, realizing that she had no means of transportation. So, she turned on her heels and headed for the garage. She yanked the door open and turned the lights on. Dashawn's Rolls-Royce sat in the same spot as always. It was supposed to be her car, but she could never bring herself to take it. She scanned the room, ignoring the odd feeling that she got from being so close to it.

"Asha, talk to me," Briana said stepping into the garage for the first time.

"There's nothing to say. I'm leaving."

"But, you're here for a reason. I don't think you should leave," Robyn quickly appeared from around the corner, trying to catch her breath.

"I can't stay here for another second while my baby is out there somewhere. If she's dead or alive I need to find her. She should have a proper burial," Asha mumbled, getting even more upset.

"I understand, but—"

"Understand???? You don't understand a goddamn thing. Neither of you do so don't try to act like you know what the fuck I'm going through or how the fuck I feel."

"I know, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I didn't mean to—"

"Save your apologies," Asha frowned. She then turned her attention back to the task at hand. "I need to find the keys so I can get out of here."

Robyn and Briana watched as Asha then started fumbling around the garage looking for a set of keys. When Asha found none, she got in the Royce and started searching. She looked in the glove compartment, in the armrest, under the seats, in the trunk, and in any other place a key could have been stashed.

"You won't find them. Meech made sure to take all of the keys with him. A safe house is a safe house for a reason. It's not meant for you to leave. Meech said that if we needed anything we were to tell his security," Robyn said from the door. She tried not to let Asha's words get to her, but she couldn't help the tears that rolled down her face as she stared at the woman she thought of as a little sister.

Asha cursed under her breath and got out, slamming the door as hard as she could.

"Please just talk to us Asha," Briana pleaded with her. But, instead of talking, Asha had other plans. If no one wanted to take her seriously, she would make them understand one way or another. Even if she had to do something drastic, she planned on getting everyone's attention.

Asha suddenly bolted for the kitchen and when she got there, she started rummaging through drawers.

"Asha!" Finding what she was looking for, Asha turned to Briana and raised the knife in her hand.

"You think I'm playing?" Asha flipped the knife over and dragged the sharp edge over her wrist, embedding the knife into her flesh and then ripping it out. Blood splattered everywhere within close proximity.

"No! Stop!" Briana tried rushing up to Asha, but she was forced to stop when Asha raised the knife to her neck.

On the outside, Asha couldn't stop shaking, but on the inside, she was dead set on getting out of this house. And she would gladly mutilate her body if it meant that people would listen to her demands. She felt like she had completely hit rock bottom, but she didn't know what else to do to make people listen.

"Oh my god." Robyn couldn't believe her eyes.

"Tell me what I can do to make you feel better, because this isn't you Asha." Briana could tell that Asha was far from okay. Hell, Briana knew that Asha hadn't been okay since Imani was taken, and Briana could usually calm Asha down with no problems, but THIS was completely different.

"Please, tell me what I can do," Briana was now panicking.

"Take me to Meech."

"I-I don't know where he is," Briana said, stumbling over her words.

"Then find me someone that does."

Briana quickly turned to Robyn, but Robyn stood frozen in her spot, clutching her stomach. Not sure what to do, Briana then hurried out the front door and to one of the parked cars. The guys in the car were quick to jump out with their guns drawn.

"Go back in the house Briana," one of them said. For a second, Briana had to hide her shock at the fact that they knew her name, but why wouldn't they? She figured that they probably knew everything about her.

"Do you know where Meech is? Asha needs to speak with him, it's urgent," she rushed out.

"Boss is unavailable right now."

"Please, Asha needs to talk to him. If you don't believe me just come see. Please, I don't know what to do, she's hurting herself." Briana then ran back into the house.

Asha felt lightheaded as she stood with her back to the sink. She kept her eye on Robyn just in case she tried something.

"Asha, you're losing a lot of blood," Robyn said taking a step towards her.

"I don't care. I'm not backing down on this."

"Can you at least put the knife down?"

"No, not until Meech comes and agrees to let me out of this prison." Asha saw movement from out the corner of her eye and then snapped her gaze to the entrance of the kitchen. Briana stood with someone close behind her.

"Put the knife down," he said.

"I want to talk to Meech."

"He's busy."

"Then take me to him!" Ignoring her attempts at trying to make demands, he maneuvered around the kitchen, making his way to her.

"No! You're not listening to me."

"I don't answer to you," he said stalking up to her. And despite the gash on her wrist, he didn't believe that she would go any further than that and actually slit her own throat. So, he called her bluff.

"I'll do it," Asha said raising the knife until it was flush against her neck.

"No you won't," he said back. And that was where he made his first mistake—not taking Asha seriously. Just like everyone else, he expected her to sit down and follow the rules. But, Asha was drowning and no one would listen, or at least open their eyes and attempt to save her. And if anyone truly understood how she was feeling, they wouldn't have locked her away and practically isolated her. They wouldn't have left her alone with her thoughts for so long. They damn sure wouldn't have made her sit and do nothing even after she begged and pleaded to be allowed to help look for Imani. And even though Briana and Robyn were around, they weren't enough of a distraction for Asha.

Overall, Asha hated how useless they all made her feel, and she couldn't believe how long she had let them dictate her every move.

"Put it down!" He yelled at her. She ignored him, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She then gripped the handle tightly and guided the blade over her skin.

"No!" Everyone seemed to yell at the same time. Just as fast as she could feel her skin ripping open, Asha was grabbed and shoved up against a hard surface. She then started fighting back, causing the knife to slip out of her hand in the process.

"Get off of me!" She yelled as she was then wrestled to the ground.

"Help me hold her down!" Asha was trying her best to get free. She couldn't let them restrain her, because then they really wouldn't let her out. They would tie her down and keep her held hostage for the rest of her life. And of course, that was just all in her head—they wouldn't actually do that to her. But, Asha couldn't think past the blood loss and sheer panic she was feeling.

.....

Meanwhile...

"Is this the Kennedy you was looking for?" The store clerk asked.

"Fuck!" Dashawn started pacing the floor.

"How long ago did this happen?" Meech asked.

"She came into the store about an hour ago looking suspicious. She walked around the entire store but didn't pick anything up. After awhile, she went into one of the refrigerators and pulled out a beer. She gave me her ID first and then started looking for some money. She said she didn't have any so I took the beer. When she tried to get loud with me, I told her to get out of my store. She gave me a half-assed apology and asked if she could use the restroom. I let her. When she didn't come back out, I went in after her thinking that she stole something. And that's when I found her like this and called you."

"Fuck! I wanted to kill that bitch myself."

Meech ignored Dashawn's outbursts and bent down from his position by the door to take a closer look at Kennedy. She was sprawled out on the dirty floor, eyes wide open, and foaming at the mouth with a needle not too far away. It looked like she had overdosed and had a seizure.

"Call the police and treat this as just another incident," Meech said, slipping a wad of cash into the Clerk's hand.

"Is there anything else I can do?" He said stuffing the money in his pocket.

"We were never here, so keep this shit under wraps. If the cops start asking too many questions just say you don't know shit." Meech then left the building, keeping his head down. He looked around for D, and spotted him by the car smoking a blunt.

"Bro, get in the car," Meech said getting in on the drivers side. They pulled out shortly after. Dashawn was pissed off—he felt like he had let Asha down yet again. Kennedy was the missing piece to all of this shit, and they could've really benefited from the information she had, but now her ass was dead. This was just another setback that they didn't need.

"This shit got me sick to my stomach. It's been way too long Meech. What if they did something to her?" Dashawn questioned.

"I don't wanna hear that shit," Meech shook his head, gripping the steering wheel tight. He didn't like that Dashawn was starting to have doubts.

"I'm just being realistic, because what are the odds that she is still alive? For real...tell me nigga, what are the odds? Cuz right now they are looking pretty slim, and I need to prepare myself just in case," Dashawn acknowledged his concerns.

And he couldn't help but think that he was now being punished for choosing the kind of lifestyle that he was living. Dashawn knew that he had already secured his one-way ticket straight to hell—no deviations or pit stops. But, he just couldn't understand why his family had to suffer in the process. He also knew that he wasn't the prime example of what a father should be, but Imani meant everything to him. And he would forever be grateful to Asha for even giving him a kid in the first place.

"We'll find her," Meech spoke up. Dashawn said nothing in return. Even if Imani was still alive, Dashawn was afraid of the kind of state she would be in when they did find her.

The rest of the ride to the warehouse was silent until Meech's phone started ringing. He quickly answered it.

"You know I wouldn't call unless it was urgent."

"What happened?" Meech was quick to pick up on his tone.

"Asha cut herself up pretty bad."

"She what!" Dashawn yelled.

"Bring London. I'm sure Asha needs stitches too."

"Fuck, we're on the way." Meech hung up and stepped on the gas, flying down the street.

.....