Soul Ties

by Wjuanae

Genres: Christian Suspense; African American Urban

Synopsis

Soul Ties is a story of love, loyalty, and betrayal. Will Chance and Nina be able to escape this web of deceit unscathed? Will their love be able to withstand yet another trying test, or will they watch everything they built crumble before them?

True love and loyalty are hard to come by. Chance McKnight and Nina Singleton have just that. Nina, a multifaceted beauty, and Chance, an ambitious hustler, are two lovers from Charlotte, North Carolina, whose souls aligned at a young age. Together, the couple amassed $5 million of dirty money over the years and finally set their sights on beginning a new life in Atlanta.

On the day of their move, the couple is ambushed by a foe from their past. Dire circumstances compel Nina to start a new life in Atlanta without Chance by her side. Nina meets a mysteriously handsome stranger, Yasin, who quickly takes an interest in her. A few months later, the same enemy from Nina's past threatens her life, and she is rescued by the person she least expects: Chance. 

Secrets and lies tear Nina and Chance apart yet again. Nina remains in Atlanta and begins a family of her own, while Chance sets up shop in Miami, where a bigger threat lurks. Years later, Nina shows up on Chance's doorstep with a secret that will not only reunite the two lovers but also put a target on their backs.

Release date: September 26, 2023

Publisher: Urban Books

Print pages: 288

Sample

Chance and Nina rode through the streets of Charlotte in their drop top Lamborghini, blasting their favorite Ja Rule song. The heated summer winds kissed their skin. The two were the definition of a hood Bonnie and Clyde. Chance met Nina at the tender age of 15, when she used to stay with her abusive, alcoholic father. Even though he was three years older than Nina, Chance couldn’t help but be infatuated by her innocence and beauty. He was a young hustler at the time, a block boy, but he had bigger dreams: he would run Charlotte one day. And indeed, every one of his dreams came true with Nina by his side.

Nina cherished her relationship with Chance. He rescued her from her father’s abuse and had provided for her since that day, showering her with love and his protection. Not once did he have to question her loyalty because she owed him everything, and vice versa. If Chance was sliding on a nigga, Nina would be right by his side, loading his clip. He was her protector, best friend, and lover all wrapped into one. No other man could claim to have ever possessed Nina in the way that Chance could. Many women wished to lock Chance down, but those bragging rights belonged to Nina, and she would physically defend her position if needed.

“We out the game, shorty. We legit. All these years of hustling finally paid off!” Chance reached over with one hand to caress Nina’s cheek. He could barely keep his eyes on the road as Nina’s natural curls blew in the wind. The sun glistened against her brown skin. He was in love with every part of her, down to the beads of sweat that rolled between her breasts.

Nina smiled and intertwined her fingers with Chance’s free hand. She couldn’t believe the day had finally arrived when Chance lived up to the promise he had made to her ten years ago. “I told you, baby. Stay down until you come up, and now we all the way up!”

They were headed to Atlanta with five million dollars in their trunk, ready to start a new life. She turned and stretched to reach for her lip gloss out of her purse that sat in the back seat. “Baby, are we being followed?” Nina noticed a black Tahoe truck behind them on I-85. The car had been trailing behind them since they got out of Charlotte, but she thought nothing of it until now. Out of instinct, Nina placed her hand in her purse and clutched her gold nine millimeter.

Chance glanced at his rearview mirror. “Fuck.” He was so caught up in being out of the game scot-free that he had let his guard down, breaking his cardinal rule. “I’m about to take this exit. Let’s see.” Chance clenched his teeth as his trigger finger started itching. The black Tahoe still trailed behind. “Niggas think they can try me since I’m leaving town. They got me fucked up!” Pulling into the closest gas station, Chance pulled his gun from his waist. “You rocking, bae?”

She kissed his lips. “Until the wheels fall off,” Nina replied fearlessly.

Seconds passed before the Tahoe turned into the gas station. The tint in the window was so dark that Nina didn’t understand how the police didn’t pull the truck. It circled the parking lot until it slowly crept by the gas pump opposite the Lambo. The passenger-side window rolled down, and an AK-47 greeted Chance and Nina.

“What’s up, young bull?” a familiar voice asked.

Nina’s breath caught in her throat, and her stomach dropped as horrific memories flashed before her eyes.

“Hey, baby girl.” Nina’s dad, Nino, greeted her with a devilish smile. The scar that ran from his left eye to the side of his mouth made him appear even more menacing than Nina last remembered.

“Chance, I thought you killed him.” Nina’s voice shook as she stared at the only thing she ever feared in her life.

BLAT BLAT BLAT.

Chance didn’t have a chance to answer before bullets rained down on the Lambo.

Nina’s ears rang from the impact, and her legs became as heavy as a bag of bricks. Her hands shook uncontrollably, and her heart thumped so hard that she thought it would come out of her chest. It was as if Nina were paralyzed. She couldn’t bring herself to lift her gun and bust back at her dad, the man who was supposed to want to protect her, not bring harm to her. She never understood why the man who gave her life hated her so much.

Shots rang out like a scene from a war movie. Nino’s goon opened fire onto the Lambo, and Chance returned fire with one hand while the other shielded Nina from the bullets coming their way.

“Nina!” Chance’s voice snapped her out of her daze. “I’m hit, ma.”

She heard an agony in his voice that she never heard before. Those words caused her to raise her gun and fire until her clip was empty. She didn’t know if she had hit anyone, but the Tahoe recklessly pulled off in the midst of her shots. An uneasy feeling settled in Nina’s gut. Something deep down inside of her screamed that this was only the beginning.

“Baby . . . Chance . . . are you good?” Nina panicked when she saw blood pouring profusely from his abdomen and right leg. Tears formed in her eyes as she watched the man she loved weakly slide himself to the passenger seat as she got out of the convertible.

“We have to get the fuck out of here!” She revved the engine, and it purred loudly. “Fuck!” Nina realized she didn’t even put the car in drive. Taking a deep breath, she put the car in drive and sped out of the gas station’s parking lot, leaving traces of their tire marks behind.

“Get us out of Charlotte.” Chance managed to speak through his heavy breathing. “I’m not about to die here, Nina. I worked too hard to die in this bitch.” He spat out a mouthful of blood. “You gotta . . . drive.”

Never had she seen her man so weak and vulnerable. “Baby, you won’t make it if I get on the road. I refuse to let you die. Over my fucking dead body! Nah. We not going out like that. Till death do us part, remember?”

Chance fought against the heavy burning sensation in his chest. He watched the blood slowly seep from the bullet wound in his abdomen, and he placed his hand over it, trying to slow the bleeding. The more blood that left his body, the heavier his eyelids felt. Despite the agonizing pain, Chance was still able to smile at his girl’s gangster. “I love your crazy ass.”

Smiling weakly, Nina headed for the nearest hospital. “I love you more.” She dipped through traffic, bypassing slow cars, and ran a few red lights. “You remember our first date, bae?” She glanced over at Chance. His eyes fluttered as he drifted in and out of consciousness. “Stay with me, Chance!” She clapped her hands together. “Don’t fucking die on me! I can’t lose you now. Our baby needs you.”

Nina had wanted to wait until they were settled in Atlanta to give him the big news. She had found out that morning that she was carrying Chance’s child and wanted the delivery of the news to be special, but she never expected their day would end up like this.

Chance could feel his life slowly coming to an end. Memories flashed through his mind like the behind-the-scenes credits at the end of a movie premiere. Even while unconscious, Nina’s words rang clearly through his head. I’m holding on for you baby, he thought, but Nina could not hear him.

Pulling into the emergency entrance wildly, Nina held the horn down until medics came running out. “Help! He’s been shot!” she screamed. Chance barely appeared to be breathing when Nina looked at him.

“Ma’am, can you give us any information on this man?” the paramedic asked as they lifted Chance’s body onto a stretcher.

Nina leaned over, placing her hands on her knees, and dry heaved. She fisted her natural curls and bit on her bottom lip until she felt the salty specks of blood on her tongue. She wanted to break down and cry. She wanted to jump on the stretcher with Chance. Shit, she wanted to be lying right beside him on a stretcher herself.

“Excuse me, miss?”

“I—I don’t know him. I picked him up like that.” Nina backed up slowly and opened the door to the Lamborghini. “Just make sure he makes it.” Nina knew she couldn’t give them her identity because they would ask too many questions. Situations like this brought cops, and Nina and Chance didn’t fuck with the Feds. “I love you, Chance.”

“He’s flatlining!” the nurse screamed as they rushed his body into the hospital.

Banging on the steering wheel, Nina finally let her tears fall. In a matter of an hour, her entire life had been turned upside down. The man she imagined spending the rest of her life with risked his life to save hers once again. Just when she thought of putting her past behind her, Nino had ripped the carpet from under her feet, leaving Nina alone and confused about her next move.

“I’m going to kill him, if that’s the last thing I do. Hang on, Chance baby. I’ll be back for you.” Nina made up her mind that Nino was dead. There wouldn’t be any hits on his head. No drive-by to put him down. Nina would put a bullet through his head herself this time. For Chance.

“Atlanta, here I come.”

Notorious B.I.G.’s lyrics blared from the system. Nina couldn’t stop the tears from falling as she cruised down the highway. Drops of Chance’s blood still stained her Prada T-shirt. She thanked herself for talking Chance into purchasing this particular vehicle with the matte leather interior. The blood dried onto the seats rather than staining it.

“God, it’s Nina. I know it’s been a while, and I’m not even sure if you’ll hear me, but I really need you to wrap your arms around Chance. I love that man more than life itself. I don’t know if I can go on without him. Please heal him.” Nina knew she had reached a low point. Praying and going to church wasn’t a part of her lifestyle. To be honest, she couldn’t even remember the last time she prayed. Or could she?

2008

“Nina, where the fuck you at?” Her dad’s voice raged from the front door. Nino was in another one of his moods, and Nina wasn’t trying to be around to see it.

Sitting on the sidewalk with Chance, she wanted to be as far away from her dad as possible. “Do you have somewhere we can go? I hate when he gets like this.” Nina asked while biting at her nail beds.

Chance had been coming to see Nina every day for a few months straight now. Even though she was younger than him, he saw something different in her.

“Yeah, Nina. Let’s go.” Chance knew Nino had a drinking problem, but he never pushed Nina to talk about him. Not until she was ready. “Let me call my man Quan and tell him to watch the block for me.” He pulled out his cellphone and texted Quan.

“You hungry?” Chance asked as they walked to his 2005 Honda Accord.

Nina shrugged. Her mind seemed to be somewhere else. “I could eat.”

“Cool. Let me take you to Red Lobster. I’ve been wanting that for a good minute.” Chance opened the passenger door for Nina and shut it. As he jogged to the driver’s side, he noticed the worry in Nina’s eyes. “What’s wrong, shorty?”

“Look at me. I’m not dressed for Red Lobster, Chance.” Nina frowned. “We can get takeout or something.”

“Takeout?” Chance chuckled and shook his head. “A nigga trying to take you on a first date, and you worried about how you look? You look beautiful without even trying.”

Nina’s cheeks warmed, and she blushed. Chance knew all the right things to do to make Nina feel like she mattered. Like she was valued. “Well, let’s go then, nigga.”

Being with Chance was exactly what Nina needed to take her mind off her life at home. Little did Chance know that Nino was so verbally and physically abusive sometimes that she had no self-esteem. She didn’t think she was pretty, even though people would tell her she was all the time. In the words of her father, Nina was “an ugly little bitch just like her mother.”

Nina’s mother, Jaslynn, was murdered when Nina was just 12 years old. The Philadelphia Police Department never solved the murder case, but Nina had a feeling Nino knew something about it. Jaslynn was the most beautiful woman ever. Her smooth caramel skin, curly jet-black hair, and slender body with all the right dips and curves left many men heartbroken. Nino had her heart, until his drinking and anger problems pushed her away.

Nina remembered her mother bringing around Mike, a new boyfriend, and Nino hated that. His jealousy caused him to beat Mike to death with his bare hands. A few weeks later, Jaslynn was found dead also.

“You want to stop by the mall before I take you home?” Chance asked, snapping her out of her daze.

“Nah, Chance, you’ve spent enough money on me today. I’m good. Anyway, I need to get home before it gets too late.” As much as she hated to go, she knew Nino would fuck her up if she came in after her curfew.

“Bet.” Chance had never met a chick like Nina. Most girls he dealt with wanted him to spend money on them just to chill or smash. Not Nina, though. Matter of fact, she never asked him for anything. His company was enough to keep her satisfied. The fact that Nina never asked for anything made Chance want to give her everything.

“Look, I want you to take this phone and call me if you need me. My number to my second cellphone is the only number programmed in it. I’m just a call away, a’ight?”

Smiling lightly, Nina leaned in to place a soft kiss on Chance’s lips. They were so soft and full. “Thank you, Chance. I’ll see you later.” She blushed as she opened the door to the Honda and ran to her front door. Looking over her shoulder, she saw Chance was still there, waiting for her to enter the house safely, just like she suspected.

Nina unlocked the door and entered the home. She leaned on the door, closed her eyes, and smiled brightly.

SMACK!

“You think I didn’t see that li’l nigga drop you off?” Nino yelled in Nina’s face so close she could smell the alcohol on his breath. “I’m not raising you to be a whore like your mother!”

Nina grabbed her face as tears slipped down it. Nino had never hit her face before. “I’m nobody’s whore!” she boldly yelled in his face. “And neither was my mama! You’re just mad because she left you, you fucking drunk!” Nina spat.

Her words must have struck a nerve because Nino punched Nina in the stomach like she was another nigga off the streets. Doubling over in pain, Nina stumbled and cried out in agony. “You don’t know shit, little girl! Keep talking like that, and I’m going to leave you stanking, just like ya moms!” He kicked her one time for good measure and stormed out of the house.

God please don’t let him come back, she prayed as she lay on the floor, crying out in pain. She hated Nino.

It took all her strength to pull the phone Chance had given her out of her pocket and dial his number. “Chance, he hit me!” She sobbed into the phone.

Enraged, Chance sped to Nina’s house without a second thought. He didn’t have a whole army with him, just his right-hand man, Quan. His heart broke as he saw Nina lying in the same spot she had been in since Nino left.

“Shit, I got you.” Chance scooped Nina up in his arms and carried her to his car. “You’re coming with me. I’m never letting that bitch nigga get close to you again. He’s fucking dead, Nina!” He rubbed her black eye gently. “Let me holler at Quan real quick.”

“What type of father puts his hands on his daughter?” Quan asked, his trigger finger itching. Quan didn’t respect a man who put his hands on a woman, especially a man who abused his own child. Although this was none of his business, Quan wanted to help Chance make an example out of Nino. Niggas feared him in the streets too much to try him, and it’d been weeks since he got active. Thoughts of handling Nino excited him.

Chance pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to gather his thoughts. In that moment, he knew he was in love with Nina. He was ready to commit the ultimate sin for her. He knew how to shoot and wouldn’t hesitate to defend himself, but Chance had never killed anyone. He made the rules but rarely enforced them on his own. Chance was the brains of the operation, and Quan was the muscle. The lines had never blurred between the two until this day; however, Chance decided he would catch a body that night.

“I’ma dead that nigga!” he vowed.

“I know where that pussy be at. We can pull up on his ass right now, nigga!”

“Tonight, nigga. Let me get Nina to my apartment and settled. I’ma hit you up.” Chance dapped Quan up and got into his car and sped off. “I’m never going to let anyone else hurt you again, shorty. That’s my word.” Chance held Nina’s left hand in his right and kissed it softly. He wiped the tears that ran down her face and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. From that day forward, they were inseparable.

The ringing of Nina’s iPhone brought her back to reality. She remembered that night clearly. It was the day that she realized how much she loved Chance. For the first time in her life, she slept without fear that night.

Looking down at her caller ID, she saw Quan’s name flash across the screen.

“Please tell me you have some good news, Quan. I can’t take anything but that.”

“Where you at, sis?” Quan asked.

“I’m almost in Atlanta. How is he?” The last few hours of worrying whether Chance survived had been agonizing. There wasn’t any time to mince words. Nina needed to hear that Chance had made it out of the hospital and would be following her to Atlanta shortly. She needed to hear that she was the first person he’d asked for after the surgery. She needed something to hold onto.

The silence on the line was deafening. Nothing could be heard for seconds but Quan’s heavy breathing on the other end. “Nina . . . I don’t even know how to put this to you.”

“Don’t say it, Quan. Please. Don’t say it.”

“He put up a fight,” Quan replied quietly. “He tried for you, sis.”

Nina dropped the phone and released her hands from the wheel, covering her sobs with her trembling hands. It felt like someone had pulled a carpet from underneath her feet. She’d been confident that Chance would survive his injuries.

Images of Chance flashed in her mind. She never expected today to be the last day she saw the love of her life. Before she knew it, the Lamborghini slammed into the back of a black Toyota, causing her to spin wildly off the road.

“Nina!!” She heard Quan yelling into the phone from a distance before everything went black.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Nina’s eyes fluttered open, and she shielded her face with her hands, attempting to block the bright lights in the room. The smell of peroxide and disinfectants invaded her nostrils. The hairs on her forearms rose from the cool air blowing above Nina’s head.

“Hmmm,” she moaned, trying to sit up. Her hands reached for the IV coming from her right arm. Just as she started to pull the IV from her arm, a sharp pain shot through her entire upper body. What the fuck? The recollection of events that had occurred over the last day of her life came flooding back like water from a broken dam. Tears slid down her face as she realized this was not just a bad dream she was waking up from. The man she loved had died. Chance was gone. Her menace of a father mysteriously rose from the dead and attacked them. How had he survived? That night over ten years ago, Chance had come home and assured Nina that he sent Nino to meet his maker. She saw all the blood on his clothes the night he came home, so how did Nino make it out alive?

Does the nigga have nine lives or something?

“You’re woke.” A stranger’s voice greeted Nina.

She looked up to find a tall, dark-skinned man sitting by the end of the hospital bed. Confused, Nina placed her hands on her hip out of instinct. “Fuck,” she mumbled as she realized her nine wasn’t there. “Who the fuck are you?” she barked. She didn’t know this nigga from Adam. For all she knew, he could have been someone Nino sent to finish off the job. Nina’s eyes darted to the room door, which was slightly ajar. The hallway was bustling with doctors, nurses, and visitors passing by. She sighed in relief.

He sensed Nina’s apprehension and remembered that he was a strange face to her. “No need for the hostility, ma. I found you on the side of the highway all fucked up. The ambulance was twenty minutes out, so I brought you here myself,” he informed Nina.

Nina twisted her face up and eyed the man suspiciously. She didn’t know if she quite trusted the good Samaritan story this guy gave. She felt naked without her gun on her, and the unfamiliar setting made her feel nauseous. Calculating her next response, Nina asked, “Where is my car?” There was still five million dollars in the trunk that she and Chance had stacked over the years. She had so many questions, but her priority was to get out of this hospital.

“I had it towed to my spot. I can take you there once they release you and let you be on your way. What’s your name, ma?”

“It’s definitely not ma.” Nina recognized his northern accent and hoped he didn’t think his lingo flattered her. “I’m the one asking the questions right now. What is your name, and why did you help me?”

He laughed at her straightforwardness. He could tell that she wasn’t an average chick. “I’m Yasin.” He placed his hand on his chest and surveyed Nina. “Honestly, I don’t know why I helped you. Would you have rather I left you to die on the side of that highway?”

That wouldn’t have been so bad, Nina thought sadly. “I appreciate it, but you didn’t have to save me. I’m Nina by the way,” she mumbled.

Yasin wouldn’t admit it out loud, but he was floored by Nina’s beauty. Even with minor scratches on her face and her hair in complete disarray, Nina’s beauty could not be concealed. The mysterious allure she exuded piqued his interests. Yasin had been in Atlanta for a few months, and no female moved him enough to want to pursue anything serious. He dated to satisfy his needs as a man. But there was something about this girl that he couldn’t put his hands on. If his homies were around, they would tell him he was acting like a straight sucker for a chick he didn’t even know. Since he’d picked Nina up, Yasin had not checked one message or answered any calls. He never put his business on hold for anything or anyone, but he had to make sure Nina was safe.

“It’s nice to officially meet you, Nina.”

Before she could respond, the doctor and a nurse entered the room. Nina could not read their faces or expressions. “What’s going on?” she asked.

“It’s great to see you up and responsive, Miss Doe.” The doctor referred to Nina by the alias Jane Doe. “Do you know where you are or recall anything that happened?”

Nina rolled her eyes impatiently. “My name is Nina Singleton. I’m from Charlotte, North Carolina, and I was driving to Atlanta from there. So, I’m assuming that’s where I am. I can’t move my damn shoulder. Why?”

The doctor took a deep breath before responding. “Well, Ms. Singleton, you dislocated your shoulder in the crash. Also, after running some tests, we became aware that you were four weeks pregnant.” The doctor paused to give Nina some time to process information. “I’m sorry, but we couldn’t detect a fetal heartbeat. I’m sorry for your loss.”

Her lips trembled as the doctor delivered the news. She had thought her day couldn’t get any worse after losing Chance. The baby she carried was the last piece of Chance she had. Knowing that she would hold a child they had made in eight months had eased her devastation. She questioned why God would take what she loved most from her. Had she not suffered enough in her life?

“Get out,” she whispered. No one made a move. “Get the fuck out!” she yelled before bursting into tears.

“Fam, I think Nina hung up on me.” Quan said as he sat in the chair next to Chance’s bed. When he got a call from his right hand saying that he’d been shot up, he wasted no time getting to the hospital. Per Chance’s request, Quan discharged Chance after the surgeons successfully removed all four bullets from Chance’s body and stopped the bleeding. Quan called up a private doctor he had on payroll who was treating Chance from his secret spot right outside of Charlotte. The setup of the room looked like a scene out of Grey’s Anatomy. Quan spared no cost on medical equipment or supplies. He wanted to make sure Chance was as comfortable as possible as he healed.

“She didn’t take it well, man.”

Chance hated the fact that he couldn’t speak to his woman, but it was in her best interest. If she knew he’d survived, she wouldn’t hesitate to be by his side. “Nina’s strong. She’ll be a’ight, man. I need her to be out of the loop and just raise my seed away from all this chaos. I need them safe and out of harm’s way. They’re all I have left.”

Quan nodded in agreement.

“I want the streets to think I’m dead so that bitch nigga Nino can sleep peacefully at night.” Chance gritted his teeth. The thought of Nino’s violation made his blood boil. Chance risked losing everything he had worked hard for behind Nino, and he couldn’t let it slide. “He had to know we were leaving town and took that as an opportunity to catch us off guard. But on my unborn child, it’s war. And this time, I’m going to make sure I put him six feet under,” Chance vowed.

The silence tortured Yasin as he and Nina headed to his place to retrieve her belongings. Nina hadn’t spoken a word since she got the unfortunate news of her loss. He didn’t know what say to console her. He wanted to give her space because he knew she was grieving, but he couldn’t help but be curious. Where was the father of the child? What was she doing in Atlanta if she was from Charlotte? What type of work did she do to be pushing a Lamborghini? This mysterious beauty had Yasin’s mental wheels turning.

“I need to find a spot.” Nina finally spoke. She thumbed away a tear and sat up in the seat. “A nice condo maybe. Could you help me with that?”

Instead of asking the questions that were on his mind, Yasin simply responded, “I can link you with my realtor.”

“Thanks,” Nina mumbled and stared out of the window. She aimlessly watched the buildings pass by. She had no willpower left to say anything. Her intention wasn’t to be rude to Yasin, but she couldn’t fake the small talk.

No more words were spoken until the two pulled into Yasin’s two-car garage attac. . .