by S. L. Walker
“No, I will go alone,” he stopped Raven from getting out. He placed the car in drive and drove as slowly as he could around the back of the cottage. The backyard was big and home to only a shed which was only a little bigger than the Ford Expedition they were in. He parked behind the shed and checked for his guns again.
“Just in case he comes, we can’t let him see us before we see him, feel me?” He basically told all of them, but was looking at Raven. She understood. “If you see him or anybody for that matter, any headlights or anything coming into that driveway, page me 911,” he took out his burner phone and gave it to Raven.
“You sure you wanna go in there alone?” Lila asked him. “There could be a trap,” Lila didn't like the thought of him going alone. Not for his safety but he could very well be playing them right now and her woman intuition would not let her shake that it might be a possibility.
“I’m good. I’m more concerned bout y’all,” he told them. He caressed Raven’s worried face and exited the car, crouching down as he ran towards the back of the cottage.
“I don’t like this,” Lila said as she sat in the back of Raven’s seat, sounding like Raven’s other conscious. “He should have taken you.”
Raven watched as he broke into the back door and closed it behind him. She tried to shake off Lila’s paranoia.
“Lila, can we use your phone? I gotta let my mom know I’m okay,” Eva asked.
“Yes! Yes!” Angel agreed. Raven was also on board with talking to them. She had to know if they knew anything about Deon.
“Of course. Block my number when you dial,” she handed Raven the phone, knowing that her situation was a little more important.
“No, it’s coo,” she pushed the phone away from her. She didn’t want to go first. She was secretly afraid of what was going to be said to her. Lila shrugged and gave the phone to Eva who wasted no time dialing her mother’s phone.
“Hello?” Her mom answered.
“Mommy!” Eva replied, feeling like a little kid again. Her mom wailed with excitement on the other end and relayed the news to the other parents as Eva tried to calm her down.
“Ma! Ma! Yes! We are okay, we are in…” Lila snatched the phone from Eva’s hand before she could snitch.
“Don’t let them know shit yet. Find out where they are and we will come to them,” Lila told them. Eva looked at Raven who nodded in confirmation. They could easily make the spot hot and making the spot hot meant investigating, and investigating meant questions and questions meant answers. To the parents, the girls were just innocent victims of trafficking. But, the girls knew they had more of a role in all of this and Raven and Angel had a body under them. They needed to get rid of Treach and get home and let the police try to figure out what happened and let the case turn cold. By the time they figure out Treach may have fled to Canada or died, they would stop investigating.
Lila handed Eva the phone back.
“Uh, yeah, I don’t know where we are, but we are on our way,”Eva said to her.
“The police are looking for Treach right now. Is everyone else okay?” Her mom asked.
“Yes, Tori wants to speak to her mom. Is she with you?” Eva asked. Victoria turned around her seat eager to speak to her mother. Eva handed her the phone.
“Hey mom,” Victoria chuckled. “It feels good to hear your voice, too. We are close. Wait what? Mom…wait. Lance?” Victoria looked at her girls as Lance got on the phone. He had been there with the parents getting his own answers. Victorias heart dropped and her mouth was dry. She couldn’t say anything.
“You there?” Lance asked her. He wasn’t going to drill her with questions. He was just happy she was alive and wanted her home.
“Lance. I…I’m sorry,” is all that came out.
“Just come home. Someone wants to speak to Angel,” he told her and handed the phone to Sam.
“Lance…” she realized he had given the phone to someone else.
“Angel?” Sam came on the phone.
Victoria sadly gave the phone to Angel. Angel took the phone, curiously.
“Hello” she held the phone to her ear. Tears formed at the sound of Sam’s voice.
“Angel. Oh man,” she could hear the cracking in his voice. She started crying. “I am going to kill whoever did this to you,” he told her, trying not to cry himself. “Your dad is here, too. He is in the waiting room, sleep. You want me to wake him?”
“No, no, just tell him I love him and I will see him soon. I’m so sorry I missed your Christmas party! I bought that damn dress for nothing,” she cried and laughed at the same time.
“Nah, I’ll take you some place nice soon as you get back,” she could tell he was smiling on the other end.
“Where are you guys?” She asked him.
“Um, we are at the Mt. Sinai Hospital,” he told her. “When will you guys be here?”
“Here comes DJ,” Lila put her hand out for her phone back. Angel looked up to see DJ jogging back to the car.
“Gotta go, See ya soon,” Angel handed the phone back to Lila.
“Who’s phone did you use-” Sam asked right before the phone clicked. “Ugh,” he let out a frustrated grunt as the parents all looked at him for more answers. He shook his head. Why were they being so secretive?
“Raven?” Lila began to ask Raven who didn’t even get a chance to talk to anyone.
“It’s okay,” she shook her head as DJ opened the driver door, letting in the cold air.
“Good news and bad news,” he told them, hopping in the car and closing the door.
“Okay?” Raven looked at him with anticipation.
“The same money is stashed away that has been there. Nothing new has arrived. Soooo, I took that,” he showed the black backpack he grabbed. “Either Treach hasn’t made it yet, hid his new money somewhere else, or dumped it. I highly doubt he’d dump it,” DJ said. They all sighed in their own ways.
“So what you thinking? We just go home?” Lila asked.
“We could take this stash and cut or we could wait it out. I mean, he still maybe on his way here,” DJ shrugged. He honestly didn’t know what was the best plan anymore. Treach could be anywhere, shit Cash may had even killed him by now for losing the girls. There was just too much up in the air right now.
He looked at Raven. “What you wanna do?”
CHAPTER 48
Raven’s dad had been dissecting Raven’s pager and missed the call from the girls. There were only a few phone numbers he dialed and no-one had answered; until this time.
“Hello?” Zara called the number back, expecting it to be Treach. Manuel and Professor Heart were chatting in the kitchen and stopped when they saw her call someone. They both walked over to her as she stood in the kitchen on the cordless house phone.
“Who is this?” Raven’s dad asked.
He didn’t sound like Treach at all.
“Um, Zara. And you?” She immediately regretted telling her name.
“Raven’s friend?” He let out a sigh of relief. He hadn’t noticed he had been holding in his breath with anticipation. “This is her dad.”
Zara eased up, but then tensed back up with wonder. What was wrong? Did he know about Deon, yet? Did they find Raven? Is she okay?
All of these questions never left her mouth. “Mr. Johnson. Oh my God. Hey,” she said.
“I got your number out of Raven’s pager, hoping that it would lead me to who really did this,” he said calmly.
“Mr. Johnson, Treach did this,” she said confidently. “Have you talked to Raven?” She was afraid to speak on anything and she could feel her dad’s eyes glued to the back of her head. She looked behind her to confirm just that.
“Some of the other moms talked to them, said they were okay but we lost contact. Is there anything you can tell me?” He sounded mellow, sad, and exhausted. Zara didn’t want to be the one to tell him, but she had to.
“Mr. Johnson. I don’t know how to say this. My dad tracked down Treach’s old wareho
use-” She began.
“How? Who’s your dad?” He started to get upset, knowing now that there was definitely more he didn’t know.
“Mr Johnson…please…listen….we found Deon and some other guy beat badly. We took them to the hospital. Deon didn’t make it,” she said as softly as she could. Manuel could see the angst in his daughter and knew immediately who she was talking to. He walked up to her and put his hand on her shoulders to tell her to hang up and this wasn’t her story to tell.
“What do you mean, Zara? What are you talking about? What happened to Deon? Where is he?” With every question he asked, he fought back every tear until Zara confirmed his worst nightmare.
“He’s at Westminster Hospital. I am so sorry,” she sobbed. Manuel held her tight as she broke the news to her good friends dad.
He hung up the phone with more questions than he had ever had before. He darted into the hospital room to grab his car keys.
“Hey! We heard from the girls,” Victoria’s mom told him as he walked in with his face full of tears and frustration.
“What?” He asked them.
“What’s wrong?” She asked. All of the parents had the same look on their face.
“The girls are okay. They are on their way home,” Angel’s mom told him, assuming that maybe he was having a hard time with her missing still.
“Raven?” is all he could mutter out.
“We didn’t talk to her, but she was with them,” Victoria’s mom reassured him. “What’s wrong, Deon?”
“My son…Deon Jr. , uh, he’s in the hospital. Um, if they get here before I come back, please have her meet me at the hospital. Westminister,” he could barely talk as he walked out, leaving all of them in wonder. He felt as if he was going to faint as he made his way to the elevators and parking lot.
He was so relieved to hear Raven was okay, but torn at the thought of Zara’s words being true. He dialed Zara’s number as he headed towards his car in the parking lot.
“Hello?” She picked up quickly, almost knowing that it was going to be him again.
“They are okay. They are on their way home,” he told her and hung up. She didn’t even get a chance to express any kind of emotion, instead stood there with the phone in her hand, stuck.
“Who was that?” Manuel asked. He had sat back down at the dining table to have another drink with Professor Heart.
“The girls are okay,” she slightly smiled. “They’re coming home,” she said again, this time happier. “They’re okay!” She laughed running and hugging her father. He laughed and smiled with her. “Those bitches!” She laughed, looking at Professor Heart. He tried his hardest not to be as happy as her, but hearing that Eva was okay put more than joy in his heart. He realized right then and there that he loved her.
“Well, then, I guess I better get going,” he brought himself back down to reality.
“You are more than welcome to stay here until they get back. I am sure she will be happy to see you. And her parents to know you care like this,” Manuel smirked. He still wasn’t sure what the real deal was with Professor Heart. but he was sure he’d find out eventually. At this point, he knew Professor Heart had to have cared to actually go out his way to be this concerned.
“Oh, no no. I will see her at school. Just tell her I was worried and I am glad she’s okay and I will see her in class,” he stood up, taking his last shot of brown tequila. He flipped his sweater hoodie over his head and headed for the door. “Thanks a lot for having me.”
“I’ll walk em,” Zara told her dad as he began to get up and let Professor Heart out. He nodded and headed for the refrigerator instead. Zara and Professor Heart got to the door. Zara could tell he was a bit overwhelmed by everything and the news of Eva being okay almost took more of a negative toll on him than positive.
“She’s good,” she reminded him, opening the front door for him.
He shook his head understanding. “I know, it’s…can you just tell her,” he started to say.
“As soon as I see her,” she smiled. He smiled back at her, grateful that she understood. He walked out into the cold night back to where he came from. She closed the door behind her, tears of happiness flowing down her face.
$$$$
Raven jerked awake to the sound of DJ’s lighter flicking up to his blunt he had just rolled.
“Sorry,” he told her as she rubbed her neck from laying on the window. He rolled his window down, some, as he took a puff of his blunt to let the smoke escape. Raven looked around to everyone else asleep, besides Lila and Victoria.
“Dude, I am starving,” Victoria said. He pointed his blunt towards her to share. “That’s gonna just make me more hungry,” she smacked her teeth and brushed it away.
“I’ll take it, shit,” Lila took it and puffed a good one.
“We been sitting here for hours, man, let’s just go,” Raven gave up. She was tired, her girls were tired, it was cold and she was just as hungry.
“We could hold out one more hour if you want,” he told her. Lila handed Raven the blunt, she took it from her and took a puff, blowing out the smoke as if it would help her make a decision.
“It’s almost 9. We still are so far from home,” she took another puff.
“Yo, I gotta take a piss, by the time, I get back, if you still wanna go, we will go,” he smirked and got out of the car. Raven handed Lila the blunt.
“Some people are tryna sleep back here,” Eva groaned as she awoke from her nap. “Can you let me out, I have to go use the bathroom, too,” she tapped on Lila who had the only access to in and out on her side.
“Yeah,” she stepped outside unlatching the back seat and helped Eva climb over the sleep Angel. “Stay close,” Lila told her, eerie of the darkness that surrounded them. She didn’t even get a good look at where DJ went and she was slowly getting higher and higher from the weed.
DJ had crept over on the side of the cottage where he felt he could keep an eye out and pee at the same time. He was only able to let out a small amount before, CLICK.
Only one object made that kind of click to DJ’s ears. He was afraid to turn around to see the girl of his dreams about to handle business. He knew she didn’t really forgive him and he knew she had to be waiting for the right time. I guess if she felt that she couldn’t get Treach, might as well get the next best thing.
He tucked his manhood in his pants and put his hands above his head, shivering in fear and cold.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” West asked him, making sure the tip of the gun touched the back of DJ’s head. DJ winced. He would have rather it been Raven. At least he could try and talk some sense into her. West would show no mercy, now.
DJ remained silent afraid that anything he said would be his last.
“You hear me nigga?! How you get here?!” West pressed the gun harder to his head.
“I could ask you the same thing. Where’s Treach?” DJ asked, still with his back to West and his hands up.
West laughed. “Oh shit, you didn’t know about the little unda shed in the woods, huh?” West laughed again. “Treach sent me here to cop the rest of the money, and I done found you. What you was finna take it or what?” West pushed him with his gun. “Huh, nigga? Who you hear with? You alone?” West looked around him but the truck was out his line of sight.
“I’m alone, man,” DJ rolled his eyes.
“Good,” West told him.
BAM!
DJ dropped down to the ground, thinking he had been hit.
“Agh!” West cried out holding onto his right ear. His hands shook as he looked at the immense amount of blood that covered his hand. “Aghhhhhhh!” He screamed louder as the pain set in after the initial shock. He quickly looked behind him to see Eva holding the Beretta Lila had given her. West eyes widened. He never in a million years thought he’d see Eva’s face again. He laughed harder. “You missed, bitch!” He continued to laugh holding his ear. He stopped once he realized his gun wasn’t in his hand anymore. Once DJ
was finally able to get past his high and shock, he went for West gun. West dove for his gun on the ground as well. Eva frighteningly stepped back as to get a better shot at West, but everything was happening too fast. Eva wasn’t a shooter so her aim was off again as she took another shot at West, causing the bullet to ricochet off the ground next to him and missing.
“Fuck!” he jumped back and went for his gun again, this time grabbing it in time to shoot back at Eva.
“POW!” DJ’s nine let off nicely, clean through the same ear Eva shot him in, but this time straight through his head. Eva threw up as the brains began to spill out of West’s head as he dropped to the leaves on the ground. DJ wiped the sweaty fear off his forehead and upper lip as he ran over to West’s gun and picked it up. He then checked for West’s’ pulse, it was gone.
“You aight?” He asked her. She nodded, trembling.
Nine had heard the gun shot and had hightailed it to see what was going on, only to run into DJ and Eva over West’s body. They both drew their guns on him, causing him to slowly put his away.
“Put your fucking gun down, Nine,” DJ breathed heavily. He was so pissed at Nine for leaving him there to die while he went on with Treach.
“Aye, DJ, it’s me. Don’t do anything crazy, now,” Nine put his gun down slowly and put his hands up.
“Kick it away from you,” he told Nine and he kicked the gun towards a pile of leaves.
“Where’s Treach?” DJ demanded to know.
“He’s back in the woods, stashing the stuff,” Nine told him looking down at West’s body. He wasn’t sure what DJ was going to do, but he knew he was more than capable and had every right to end his life, too. “Listen, DJ, I told Treach I wasn’t wit all that wit you,” he tried to explain. DJ let off a shot in the air shutting Nine up.
“I thought we was boys!” DJ yelled at him. Lila, Raven, Angel and Victoria came sprinting around the corner and all stopped hard when they saw the scene in front of them. Angel covered her mouth from screaming at West’s body. Raven looked at Nine, West, then DJ, and then back at West. She saw the bullet hole in West head and smirked at the irony. That was the same place she said she’d kill him when she got the chance. She then scouted the area with her eyes looking for Treach. Lila did the same thing.