Chasing Bliss by Sabrina A. Eubanks

didn’t believe him. “That’s your problem with him? He didn’t jump when you said so? You gotta present your case a lot stronger than that.”
    “Look, Smoke, this guy is tryina creep in where I do my business. I told him to fall back, and he didn’t. Now he’s tryin’ to intimidate some of my people, and I’m losin’ customers. I need him removed from the picture.”
    Chase gave him a skeptical look. “That’s not enough. What else did he do?”
    Cyrus stared at Chase. He knew not to embellish his story too much because Chase still had his ear to the ground enough to separate fact from fiction. He shifted in his seat. “Look, Chase—” he started and was surprised when Chase cut him off.
    “No, you look, Cyrus. It’s bad enough you come in here wanting what you want, but you got the nerve to sit there and lie to me about it. What? You think I’m stupid? Did you think I wouldn’t throw a few questions out there when you started lookin’ for me so hard? I want you to tell me the whole story, Cyrus, and don’t leave out the part about you and Khalid goin’ back into business together. How long has that shit been goin’ on? Who’s been greased because Khalid said so?”
    Cyrus was a little shocked that Chase had found out that Khalid and he were still business partners, and he wondered who leaked the information. He looked over at Corey with a shark- black tint in his eye.
    Chase held up a finger. “Uh-uh, Cyrus. Don’t you dare look at Corey. Corey ain’t tell me nothin’ . That’s my word.”
    Cyrus frowned. “Then who’s been runnin’ their damn mouth to you about me?”
    “That ain’t important, and it really doesn’t matter anyway. Hey, maybe I got a crystal ball. You been lyin’ to me, haven’t you, Cyrus?”
    Cyrus laughed and shook his head. The jig was up about Khalid and him. Cyrus had promised Chase a long time ago that he would sever ties with Khalid, because Chase believed Khalid had sent Herc Mercer to kill him and Corey—not to ask about Cyrus’s whereabouts on the day he died. Chase had never trusted either one of them, especially Khalid, and he hadn’t trusted him and Rome when they split everything three ways while Cyrus was doing his bid for the gun charge. Maybe he was right, because Cyrus and Khalid had never stopped doing business, and with Herc and Rome out of the way, the money was easier to divide. Fuck this asshole and his screwed up sense of right and wrong. He’ll do what the fuck I tell him to and like it.
    Cyrus looked at Chase. There was no use trying to play the I-don’t-know-what-you’re-talking- about card with him. His best bet was to own up and let it go, then maybe hope to strong-arm him in a couple of days. He thought he might even be able to twist his arm by threatening to use Corey. Yeah, that’s the ticket. Cyrus leaned forward and hoped he looked apologetic enough. “You know what? You’re right, Smoke. I’ve been lyin’ to you—well, not really lyin ’…it was an omission. I’m sorry. I should have told you, but I know how you feel about Khalid.”
    Chase looked over at Corey, whose eyes were staring out the window. “Corey, why don’t you go check on that liquor license? You ain’t in this.”
    Corey looked away from the window with troubled eyes. “Yeah. I ain’t ever in this. Y’all gotta figure out a way to see eye to eye. Shit is always hard between y’all. Work it out, please, ‘cause I don’t know how much more of this I can take.” He left the room without another word, leaving Cyrus and Chase staring at each other.
    “Can’t you see what you’re doin’ to Corey, Cyrus? He’s always in the middle of me and you. Don’t you care?” Chase sat back down in his chair behind the desk. “If you’re not gonna tell me the whole story, Cyrus, then I got somethin’ to tell you . After I finish helpin’ you get your club off the ground, I’m gonna step outta your life for a minute and give you some time to decide