for his daughter in his entire life. Don’t ruin that now.”
She set the glass down, grabbed the bottle of tequila, and filled that sucker back up. She took another drink, then passed it back to me.
“Gotta do something, boo.” Her lips pressed together but her eyes filled with tears. She was feeling this as deep as we all were.
Blessing Jones-Kerrighan was a hard ass, beautiful, take-no-shit, Black businesswoman. She did not let anyone mess with her or any of us. She’d watched her mother get murdered right in front of her eyes at a young age. Her father had been and still was big in the gang scene in Chicago. After her mother’s murder, the Child Protective Services got involved. They needed to ensure Blessing’s safety. Which is when Mama Kerri took her on. It wasn’t easy at first. She was a street kid who had lived a hard life by the time she was ten. She got in all kinds of trouble until Mama Kerri showed her another way to live. Mama’s way was love, kindness, and sisterhood. Eventually Blessing grew into the successful fashionista she was today. But seeing that hollow look in her eye, I knew she was not going to let this sit.
I took her hand. “Promise me you’ll give the FBI a full day before you do anything.”
She frowned, stole the tequila back, and sipped it. Her coal-black gaze came to me and she pointed an accusing finger around the tumbler. “They have twenty-four hours.”
I closed my eyes. “Thank you, Blessing.”
She tilted her head. “Don’t thank me yet. Twenty-four hours goes by and no Addison, I call Tyrell. Ain’t nothing any of you can do to stop me.” She handed me the glass and went back into the living room.
I looked down at my bare feet and painted toes and prayed. “God, I’ll do anything it takes. Anything to get Addison back. I just need a sign. Please send me a sign.” I closed my eyes. “At the very least, please keep Addison safe until help can arrive.”
Mama Kerri, Genesis, Liliana, and Charlie were all in the king-sized bed huddled around a sleeping Rory. I’m not sure any of them were sleeping, but it had been a full night with no news.
I glanced at the clock. Five sharp.
Sonia was curled up in one corner of the couch, typing on her phone. I imagined doing Senator-type things. Or maybe she was playing a game on her phone. Blessing was stretched out, her head in Sonia’s lap, her eyes glued to the news.
Sixteen hours.
A madman had had Addison for sixteen hours.
Jonah was out on the balcony, phone glued to his ear, which was how he’d been much of the night.
Me, I was numb.
My anger, gone.
Pain, gone.
Sadness, gone.
I was empty.
Moving my body into the kitchen was the most amount of effort I could commit to. I found the cupboard that held the coffee and filters and set them out before grabbing the pot. I filled the pot and was just about finished pouring it into the coffee container when I felt my phone buzz my ass with a text.
I pulled it out as fast as I could. Everyone I loved besides Tabby and Addison were here.
It was from Tabby. I covered my mouth with my hand and read what it said.
I’m fine. Don’t worry. Got eyes on the lookout. More later. Love you all.
I shook my head and read her words at least five more times. She had eyes on the lookout? What in the world did that mean? My shoulders sank and I sighed, trying to focus on the one thing I did understand. She was fine and she loved us. I wished she’d be here with us, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. Simply knowing she was not in the hands of the Backseat Strangler was a small win and I’d take whatever win I could get.
Quickly, I fired off a text in return.
Thank you, Tab. Be safe. I love you. We all do. Always. Come home soon.
I started the coffee and checked the fridge. There was cut-up fruit, eggs, bacon, and all the standard fixings. Even if I wasn’t hungry, I thought maybe I could pull something together for everyone else.
As I was rummaging through the cabinets to see if there was pancake mix, because Mama Kerri always had pancake mix, my phone buzzed again.
I hoped it was Tabby saying she had changed her mind and was heading over now when I noticed it was from