Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 97951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
“I have everything I need. This house isn’t really yours. It’s Grandpa’s because it came from blood money. He owns you and everything in it. Blood to him isn’t just family, Daddy. Blood to Grandpa means oppression. Tyranny. Servitude! I don’t bend no knee to nobody but God, and I’d rather be panhandling on the side of the damn highway in 100°F weather with a fur coat on, than end up giving my life to a man who sees me as nothin’ more than a step to climb up on! A back to stand on! An ass to kick when he’s mad or bored. I realize somethin’ right now though. I’m sorry for expecting better of you. That wasn’t fair of me. How could I expect you to be a good daddy when you never really had one?”
Tears streamed down his father’s cheeks. He rarely saw his father cry, and the sight broke him in two. Regardless, the man needed to hear the harsh, ugly truth. All that glittered wasn’t gold, and a soul was to never be sold.
“You are just like your mama… Good God, you’re just like ’er, Lennox.” Daddy covered his face with both hands and wept.
“…And you’re wrong about what you said earlier. I could never hate you. You’re my father. You never beat me. Never talked down to me. Never tried to intentionally hurt me. But you’re not built for what I wanted you to do. You’re not made to move mountains, when you can barely move yourself outta bed, look in the mirror, and face the day…” Lennox took a deep breath and released it. “Now I have to make a quick call and take a piss.”
Standing, he shoved the chair hard against the table. He didn’t bother looking back at his father as he made his way out of the kitchen, down a long corridor. He passed the first bathroom, then a second. He went around the corner, looked both ways to ensure Dad hadn’t followed or one of the maids wasn’t in the hall, and typed in the code to enter Dad’s office. He hoped it was the same one he knew of and that his father hadn’t changed it. The thick wooden door clicked and he stepped inside, closing it softly behind himself. There, on Dad’s big black desk, was his laptop.
The room smelled like leather and bourbon. He made his way to the oversized desk chair and booted up the laptop, cringing when the thing made a loud noise. As soon as it was up and running, he put it on mute. One thing about his father was that he relied on everyone else to keep his technology up to date. Dad was old school. If you needed your taxes done or to accept money under the table without getting busted, he was your man—but if you needed a computer software update, he was the last person you’d call. Lennox hoped and prayed that Dad was still rotating the same old five passwords. He typed in the first password Dad might be using.
ACCESS DENIED. That is the incorrect password.
He sighed, and tried another.
ACCESS DENIED. That is the incorrect password.
He knew that if he kept on getting them wrong, eventually he’d be locked out. And worst of all, found out. He said a quick prayer. Tried again.
ACCESS DENIED. That is the incorrect password.
FUCK! He massaged his head and mulled the different options.
After a while, he typed: Aaliyah0110
The programs began opening, one by one. He sighed with relief, smiling. It was Mama’s name, the month and day she was born, of course. He slipped his USB thumb drive out of his pocket and placed it in his father’s computer, then opened up several folders on the desktop. His fingers beat against the mouse in rapid succession. One after another, he copied the documents onto the thumb drive. They were encrypted, but he’d worry about that later. Some of the files were rather large. His heart thumped as he grew concerned about being found out. Perhaps their heated discussion had left the man stunned enough that he’d stay put. After a few minutes, most of the files were copied and he ejected his thumb drive and shut down the computer.
He paused when he heard a noise. Looking around the room, he dashed to a small closet where his father kept printer paper, a few coats and what not. As soon as he hid inside, he heard the click of the office door, followed by footsteps. He slumped down in the darkest corner of the closet, careful to monitor his breathing and not move a muscle. He heard the computer boot up. Then clicking. And then his father’s voice.
“Hey, Dad. It’s me… Mmm hmm…. Well, yeah, I told you that Lennox was here when I thought I saw him outside through the camera, but it turned out to be just some delivery guy. False alarm. It wasn’t him after all that stopped by today. You know how my frosted front door is.” He laughed nervously. “Afterwards, I did go on and call Lennox since he was on my mind. I asked him about his schedule and what not like you wanted me to, but he was pretty vague. Mmm hmmm… I did… Yeah, that too. I asked casually if he was dating anyone… No… He was vague about that, too. I know you said he’s got a girlfriend ’nd all, but it may just be a friend. You know how Lennox is, a bit of a playboy. Chivalrous, too… I understand that, but… okay… yeah, but listen. I know my son very well. Even if they’re havin’ sex on a regular basis, it may not be as serious as anyone believed.