𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐲, 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞 ¹

three.

CHAPTER THREE
damn it

Andre

Andre was at Empire, talking to Becky about business, but his gaze kept wandering all over the place. He promised Lucious he'd keep an eye out for Cookie, and he was doing just that. He was aware that she hadn't been freed from prison, but what if she found a way to leave early? That was typical Cookie behavior.

Andre didn't hate his mother the way Hakeem did. He'd never be able to. He did, however, work his ass off over the last few years to gain his father's respect. Lucious regarded him as an excellent businessman, and Andre didn't want Cookie to return and take his place, so he kept moving his head in every direction while Becky patted his shoulder. "Uh, are you okay?"

Andre returned his attention to her. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"Because you keep looking around, like you're looking for someone."

Andre took another look around. "I'm just checking to make sure she's not here. Lucious will kill me."

Becky was lost. "Who?"

"Cookie."

Becky knitted her brows with puzzlement. "Cookie? She's in jail."

"Of course, but it's been seventeen years. Her sentence is complete, and she'll be released any day now."

"That's great. She's your mother."

"It's good from a family standpoint, but not from a business standpoint," Andre argued. "You know how hard I worked to get to where I am, Becky. I can't afford for Cookie to return and change everything."

Becky burst out laughing. "Okay, I doubt Cookie will visit the company. Lucious hate her guts. You have nothing to worry about."

Andre took in what was stated, nodding his head as he processed it. He forced himself to relax. "Yeah. Maybe I'm trippin' for nothing."

"You are." Becky stroked his shoulder and offered him words of comfort. "No one can do your job better than you, Andre. Believe me."

Andre grinned. "Same to you, Becky." When his phone began to ring in his pocket, his smile faded. He took it out and discovered that it was his wife Rhonda who was calling, which was odd because she knew not to phone him at work. It must be serious. "Excuse me for a second, Becky."

Andre stepped back and picked up the phone. "Honey, I'm at work."

"I know, but someone wanted to speak with you."

"Who?"

"Your mother."

Andre stood firmly upright, his phone almost slipping from his hands. C-Cookie wanted to talk to him? So the rumors were true. She was truly coming home. "My mother? Is Cookie there?"

"No, she's in jail, but she called to speak with you. I'm not sure how she got our house number," Rhonda explained.

"What did you tell her?"

"First, I had to announce myself as your wife since she wasn't present when we got married. Then I told her you work at Empire, and she seemed pleased."

Andre's face bore an anxious expression. "You told her about Empire?"

"Yes?"

A worried grimace flashed across his attractive features. He paced rapidly, one hand on the top of his head, saying, "No. No. No. This isn't good, Rhonda."

"How come it isn't good? Wasn't I supposed to say that?"

"You weren't! She doesn't need to know about Empire!"

"I'm pretty sure she already knew."

"Well, did you tell her about what I do here?" he insisted on knowing.

"No? Was I supposed to?"

"No!" screamed Andre. "Never, ever tell her! In fact, don't answer the phone anymore!"

"She's your mother, Andre."

"Don't answer the phone, Rhonda!" Andre roared at the top of his lungs, his tone the most venomous he'd ever used on her. He knew Rhonda was scared, and he didn't want that. He didn't want to terrify her, but she had to pay attention to him. She was jeopardizing his career.

He could hear her voice trembling with each word she spoke, which verified her fear. "O-Okay! Just please stop yelling at me! It frightens me!"

Andre's voice returned to its normal level of intensity. "I apologize. All of this talk about my mother gets to me. She's about to be freed from prison, and I'm not ready to see her."

"You need to see her, Andre. It's been seventeen years."

"Yeah..." He let out a sigh. "I need to get back to work. We'll talk about it at home."

"Okay, bye."

Andre hung up the phone and returned to Becky, who had been watching the exchange unfold the entire time. Her wariness was palpable. "What was that about?"

"Cookie's really coming back," he replied, swallowing forcefully. "And I don't think I can put a stop to her."

Hakeem

Hakeem was in the studio rapping some words that had been on his mind for a while. He was about to get to the hook when Lucious entered the studio, forcing him to stop. Hakeem took off his headphones and greeted his father. "Hey, Pop."

Lucious entered the studio, his hands in his pockets. "You didn't have to stop. I liked where that was going."

Hakeem walked out of the booth. "I'm still trying to figure out where it's going."

"You got time."

"I don't think I do. The competition is heating up, especially with Royalty joining Empire."

Lucious laughed. "Are you saying you're afraid of your sister?"

"She's hella talented," stated Hakeem. "We all know that. She'll be another Tiana, and I don't need another Tiana here. I'm already struggling."

Lucious disagreed. "You're not struggling. Tiana is on top, but you are too. Jamal is the one who's struggling, and he's lucky I can't drop his ass." Hakeem watched as Lucious' light complexion turned redder in shade. He was enraged by the thought of Jamal. "He snuck Mateo into my house behind my back! Can you believe that?"

"I really don't wanna talk about what Jamal does with Mateo."

"You're right. We need to concentrate on you right now. So, since you're stuck, let me help you." Hakeem trailed Lucious as he made his way towards the booth. Lucious nearly collapsed, prompting Hakeem to act fast and grasp him. He sat Lucious in the chair after holding him up with all of his strength.

As he looked down at his father, his heart was racing in his chest. "Are you okay?!"

Lucious inhaled deeply. "I'm okay, son. That's been happening for the past few days, and I'm not sure why."

"What do you feel when you're about to fall?"

"Muscle weakness," he explained. "I'm going to see a doctor soon."

That didn't sit well with Hakeem. "What if it's a serious illness, Pop? Like, life threatening?"

"I don't want you to be concerned about that. You need to get your head in the game and focus on your song. So, get in there and let me hear it from the top." Hakeem had no choice but to listen to him. He turned to walk to the booth when Lucious added, "And, Keem. If something happens to me, I want you to know that you were always my favorite."

No. Lucious wasn't about to make Hakeem all emotional and crap. "No, don't talk like that. You're gonna be straight."

Lucious simply nodded as Hakeem returned to the booth. He rapped strongly because he was enraged. Lucious might have a serious illness, and it made him mad because he was the only parent Hakeem had. The only parent he'd ever had. So, Hakeem didn't know what he'd do if something happened to Lucious. He didn't know at all...