“I had two of my men explain that harassment violates her son’s plea agreement. If she contacts you again, his sentence gets longer. She understood.”
I sat down on the couch, overwhelmed. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Yes,” he said quietly. “I did.”
That night, I realized something that scared me more than DeAndre ever had. I was starting to depend on Young Chul, and I didn’t know if that was dangerous… or the safest thing I’d ever done.
Sunday dinner at my mother’s house used to be peaceful. Not anymore. The moment I walked in with Nikia, I knew something was wrong. Janelle was already there along with my younger brother and my uncle Raymond. They were all sitting in the living room, waiting for me.
“Sit down, Adrien,” my mother said. Her voice had that tone—the one that meant I was about to get lectured.
“What’s going on?”
“We need to talk about this man you’ve been seeing,” Janelle said, pulling out her phone.
“Young Chul Yu… I’m not seeing him. He’s just been helping.”
“Helping?” My uncle Raymond leaned forward. “Adrien, do you know who this man is?”
Janelle turned her phone around, showing me article after article—photos of Young Chul at high-end charity events, standing next to politicians, business executives, people whose names I recognized from the news. Other articles had darker headlines: suspected organized crime ties, alleged involvement in underground networks, associates questioned but never charged.
“He owns a chain of luxury hotels,” Janelle said. “Restaurants in three different states. And according to people I know, he’s connected to some very dangerous operations.”
My uncle, who’d worked in law enforcement for thirty years before retiring, nodded grimly. “Men like Young Chul operate in a different world. Adrien, they don’t follow the same rules we do. They trade in favors, influence, and loyalty. And when those things don’t work, they trade in violence.”
“He saved my life,” I said quietly. “He saved Nikia.”
“We know that,” my mother said, her voice softer now, “and we’re grateful. But getting involved with someone like that… it could put you and Nikia in more danger than DeAndre ever did.”
“He’s not dangerous to us,” I insisted.
“How do you know?” Janelle said. “You barely know him.”
“I know enough.”
Janelle grabbed my hand. “I’m not trying to scare you. I just want you to understand what you’re getting into. This isn’t some regular guy who helped you out. This is a man with serious power, and power like that always comes with a price.”
After dinner, Janelle pulled me aside while Nikia played with our cousin in the backyard.
“Can I ask you something?” she said.
