Murderville 3: The Black Dahlia

by Ashley

  As Po made his way past her, she spoke. “Is everything OK, baby?”

  Po clicked on a light instantly. “You scared the shit out of me. Don’t do that. If I was in a different kind of mood, I could have popped you,” Po said, knowing that he was a shoot-first-and-ask-questions-later kind of guy.

  They stood in front of each other, awkward and silent as she tried to read him and he did the same. Po didn’t understand how he had missed all the signs that she was a snake. She had deceived him with her exotic beauty, her business sense, and her sexual prowess. His dick had gotten him in trouble, and as he stared at her, it took all of his willpower not to snap her neck. She stepped closer to him, and Po looked down at her sternly, with no show of affection in his face.

  “Are you mad at me, Daddy?” she asked sweetly.

  Po smirked as he felt her fingernail tracing over the front of his pants. “Did you do something that I should be mad about?” he replied.

  Dahlia smiled and scoffed. “I’m always a bad girl, Po,” she said sweetly as she massaged his dick. She could feel it hardening beneath her touch. She was like a snake charmer. His dick was under her control. “I can think of a few punishments that I deserve.”

  Po’s reaction to her was purely physical, but his mental self was no longer blind to her acts of betrayal. He grabbed her by her face with one hand, squeezing her cheeks together as he glared at her.

  His aggression slightly startled Dahlia, but she never stopped stroking him. “Punish me, Po,” she whispered.

  Po pushed her back against the wall with so much force that the pictures hanging on it fell to the floor. Dahlia winced slightly as she simultaneously ripped open his shirt. She went in for a kiss, but Po turned his head and gripped her shoulder to push her down to her knees. Dahlia was eager to please. Sex had always been her way to weaken his defenses, and he clearly had his guard way up. She needed him to lower it, and an orgasm was just the way to do it . . . or so she thought. She unzipped his linen pants and took all of him into her mouth. Po fisted his hands through her hair and pumped her with ferocity, causing her to gag slightly from his roughness. He pulled her hair so tightly that it hurt, but she didn’t complain or stop. Po thrust into her without regard for her comfort, making her head bob every time he stroked. He held her in place so that she couldn’t run from him. Her only option was to take all of him in until he finally exploded. Dahlia tried to pull away, but he didn’t loosen his grip until he was ready to let her go. When he was finished, he zipped his pants and walked out of the room without words, leaving her stunned, with tears of fury glistening in her eyes.

  * * *

  “You can put the call in to Zulu. I just got word from Po.”

  Rocko’s voice startled Liberty, bringing her back to the present, where she found herself staring blankly into the bathroom mirror.

  “You all right?” Rocko asked as he noticed her dismal expression. She stood, disheveled inside and out. Yesterday’s clothes sat folded on the sink, still showing traces of the blood that had destroyed them. No washing machine could get those stains out. He walked into the bathroom and stood behind her. He smiled. “Looks like I owe you a new outfit.”

  “Yves Saint Laurent,” she muttered with a chuckle as she lowered her head and gripped the sides of the porcelain sink. She sighed as she tried to release the tension from her body.

  “Hey, hey, what’s wrong? You know everything is going to go smoothly today. Po’s back on our team. Dahlia will get what’s coming to her. Everything’s good,” Rocko said, still looking at her through the mirror.

  She lifted her head. “You know what I was thinking about before you walked in?” she asked rhetorically. “I was thinking of Dahlia, back in Sierra Leone. I used to love her when we were kids, when all along I think she’s always secretly hated me. She has done the unforgivable, and still I’m sick over the fact that I’m about to hand her over to Zulu. He’s gonna kill her. She’s my blood, Rocko. No matter how I justify it, it doesn’t feel right.”

  Rocko could see her torment. Her beautiful face was sad, uncertain, and plagued with burden. Her kind heart was one of the many things that made her so different from all of the females he knew. She was compassionate—in this case, to a fault. “She started this, Liberty, and whether you give her up or not, Zulu will eventually find her. It’s her or you. What you have to ask yourself is this: Would Dahlia hesitate if the shoe was on the other foot?”

  Rocko was standing so close to her that she felt his breath on her neck. She could smell the scent of his Armani cologne. For some reason, their blossoming friendship was so comfortable to her. It was as if she had known Rocko forever. She didn’t know if Po would come through for her today, but she felt a sense of security knowing that at least Rocko would be there no matter what. How quickly things had changed. She looked up at his reflection in the mirror. She could see his concern for her.

  “Rocko, about last night . . .”

  “Nothing needs to be said, ma. You were vulnerable. I was standing where Po should have been. It was easy to get confused,” Rocko said. “It’s dust under the rug.”

  Liberty smiled and turned toward him. “You’re a great guy, Rocko. You deserve a nice girl, someone to take care of you. I hope you find that,” she whispered sincerely.

  Rocko smirked and bit his lower lip. He shook his head as he grinned. He had never smiled so much in his life than when he was in Liberty’s presence. The hard goon had found his kryptonite, and inside he was slightly relieved that she could never be his girl. She would be a weakness if she belonged to him. Liberty had a way of softening even the most seasoned gangster, and she was working her magic on Rocko without even trying. “Not gonna happen.”

  “What? Why not?” she asked.

  Rocko leaned in and whispered in her ear, “Because all of the good girls are taken.”

  Rocko turned to leave, and Liberty suddenly felt desperate for him to stay. Their encounter had ended too quickly. Their conversation flowed so easily. Everything about the two of them felt natural. Why is he walking away from me? she thought in a slight panic. The familiar spark that she felt in Rocko’s presence was never felt with Po, but she knew what it was, because she had only felt it with one other person in her life, A’shai. Rocko gave her butterflies.

  “Rocko!” she belted, his name coming out with urgency and louder than she had intended. He turned around, and on a whim, she rushed him, pressing her lips against his as her body melted into him. The fullness of his lips . . . the way his strong arms wrapped around her slim waist, pulling her protectively close . . . the electricity she felt as they kissed passionately. It was all so raw and unfiltered that it just felt . . . good. He pulled away from her, but she wouldn’t let go. Rocko gave her that A’shai feeling. How could she let go? She rubbed the sides of his face as he rested his forehead against hers, eyes closed in anguish.

  “Liberty . . .”

  “I know it’s wrong,” she whispered hurriedly. Their internal struggle was clear. What was the purpose of all of this if she didn’t want to be with Po?

  “You’re not mine, Liberty,” he whispered. He wiped her lips with his thumb and index finger gently, but he never removed his forehead from hers. “We can’t do this.”

  “Then why are we both still standing here?” she replied.

  Liberty’s sudden interest in him had Rocko’s head spinning. She was intoxicating, and standing so close to her made it hard for him to gather his thoughts. His body and his heart were pulling him toward her, but his mind knew that this was a direct violation of the G code. He was going against everything that he stood for. Even if Po didn’t deserve Liberty, it wasn’t Rocko’s job to say so. Walk away, he told himself, but her delicate hands were rubbing his face so lovingly that she had him in a trance. As he looked into Liberty’s eyes, he was certain that he had just discovered the eighth wonder of the world. Rocko had never loved any woman, not even his own mother. He was a motherless child, a lost soul, and the feelings that L
iberty was stirring up within him were foreign. The weight of his own heart scared him. It was as if in twenty-four short hours, Liberty had melted the ice around a heart that had been frozen for twenty-seven years.

  “We could run,” Liberty whispered. “Run away from L.A. . . .” She paused nervously as she looked at him. So much fear rested in her gaze. “We could run . . . together.” She said the last part so low that he almost missed it.

  “I don’t run,” he whispered. “And this is fear, ma. That’s all it is. You’re afraid of Zulu, of Dahlia, and now you’re afraid that Po might hurt you again. The only person you don’t fear is me. I’m comfort, that’s all.” Rocko removed her hands from his face. Even he didn’t believe his own words. The hold that Liberty had on him was too strong to be something as superficial as fear, but he would never call it what it really was. It was too inappropriate to speak into existence. He couldn’t care for Po’s girl. For the first time, Rocko understood why Po had gone back to save Liberty from Samad. There was just something about her. Once she put her spell on you, it was hard to break.

  “You belong to Po,” Rocko said. He saw her face fall in disappointment and felt a stab on the left side of his chest. “Make the call to Zulu, and do me a favor, Liberty. Stay here while Po and I handle it. I don’t want anything to happen to you. I would never forgive myself.”

  “You can’t say no to me and then make me your responsibility. Don’t do that. Don’t confuse things. If you want it to be the way that it was, then go back to being invisible, but don’t act like you care and expect me not to do anything about it. I belong to Po,” she reminded him. “So I’m coming.”

  Rocko sighed. He wasn’t up for an argument. He didn’t have time for the back-and-forth. Liberty was protesting to be difficult when it was in the best interest for everyone if she stayed behind. “Put in the call, then get dressed,” he said. He stepped out. He heard the shower begin to run, and he waited a few minutes outside the door. When he was sure that she was in the shower, he opened the door and quietly snatched her phone. He looked at the screen and saw the text from Zulu that disclosed the meeting place. Rocko grabbed his keys and left, leaving Liberty behind.

  FIVE

  THE SILENCE THAT FILLED THE ROOM WAS deafening as Dahlia sat at the vanity applying black lipstick to her full lips. She eyed Po through the mirror as he dressed behind her. He meticulously loaded two pistols and checked the clips before placing them carefully in his shoulder holster. The stern and focused look on his face caused her great concern.

  “You act as if you’re preparing for a shootout,” she commented without turning to look at him as she continued to apply her makeup.

  Po came up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “I’d rather be caught with them than without,” he commented. “Hurry. I need you to ride with me today. I have a meeting, and I need you to be my second set of eyes. That was Rocko’s job, but I can’t trust him, right?” Po asked.

  Dahlia looked up at him. “If Rocko would sleep with Liberty, what other lines would he cross?” she asked rhetorically.

  Po nodded. “You’re right. Then it’s me and you. I just hope I can trust you.”

  “Have I given you reason not to?” she replied.

  BUZZZ.

  The sound of Po’s vibrating phone saved him from a reply. He checked it.

  Po smirked and put his phone away, then gave her shoulders a squeeze before he walked out of the room. Just before he disappeared from sight, he said, “Be ready to leave within the hour.”

  * * *

  Liberty exited the shower and wrapped a towel around her body. She went to reach for her clothes and frowned when she noticed that her phone was no longer sitting next to them. She lifted the clothes and searched the floor around her, but her efforts were useless. In her heart, she knew that Rocko had taken it. She shot out of the bathroom.

  “Rocko!” she shouted as she stormed to his room. It was empty. “Damn it, Rocko!” She made her way to the first floor. “Rocko!”

  She realized that he had left her there when she went into the garage only to find that his car was gone. “What the fuck!” she exclaimed. She ran to Rocko’s house phone and snatched it off of the base. She quickly dialed her own cell number. When it went to voice mail, she felt a slight panic settle into her bones. “Grrr!” she screamed in frustration. She rushed back up the stairs to dress. Liberty could not let the meeting with Zulu go down without her. She didn’t care if it wasn’t safe, she just wanted to be there to see Dahlia’s face the moment she realized she had been betrayed. If Dahlia didn’t know that Liberty was behind the setup, then it defeated the purpose. Dahlia had to know that this time, she had lost to the cousin she had underestimated. She quickly put on her bloodstained clothes and rushed down the steps. She swung open the door and ran face-first into the devil.

  * * *

  “Where are we going?” Dahlia asked, looking out the window as Po silently brooded while he drove through the city streets, one hand gripping the steering wheel.

  He didn’t answer, but his vibe was throwing her off. She had never been one to ignore her intuition, and it was throwing up red flags. Ever since they had stepped foot off the yacht, his demeanor had changed. The way that he had handled her the night before when they had sex was uncharacteristic of Po, who was usually such a gentle lover, yet he had fucked her harshly, disrespecting her in the process. Dahlia was no fool. She felt that Po had abandoned her team and wherever he was driving her wasn’t for her own good. Dahlia reached into her bag, knowing that once she made her next move, the jig would be up. She palmed the small pistol inside her purse and looked over at Po. The icy expression on his face gave him away, and without further thought, Dahlia drew her gun and dug it into Po’s side.

  “Pull the car over, Po,” she said calmly.

  “What the fuck are you doing?” he shouted as he glanced at the gun in alarm.

  “I won’t repeat myself. You have ten seconds before I put holes in your stomach,” Dahlia threatened.

  Po lifted his fingers off the steering wheel while keeping his palm in place to guide the car. “A’ight, a’ight,” he said as he pulled over to the side of the road.

  “Give me your fucking phone,” Dahlia said through gritted teeth as she jabbed him deep in the side with the gun. “Hurry up!”

  Po clenched his jaw and reached to his waist, but Dahlia stopped him. “Don’t play with me, Po. I will blow your head off. Put your hands on the steering wheel.” She reached over and snatched both pistols out of his shoulder holster. Po exhaled sharply, and his nostrils flared in anger.

  She then pulled his phone from his jacket pocket and slid the unlock button across the screen. It opened to the text message that Rocko had sent. Her brow furrowed.

  “Rocko, huh?” Dahlia said. “You were driving me into a setup. And if you’re back in cahoots with Rocko, that means you’ve made up with Liberty.” She laughed cockily. “Was my dear cousin plotting revenge? You should know better than to think that simple ass Liberty can beat me.”

  “I don’t fuck with Liberty. I’m meeting Rocko because he got a diamond buyer with him. I wanted you with me to be my backup,” Po lied, coming up with a cover story quickly. “Fuck a bitch, Dahlia, you know the game. It’s about the money. Rocko is good money.”

  Before Dahlia could respond, her own phone rang. An unfamiliar number popped up on her screen. A select few people knew her number, and she immediately answered. She moved the gun from Po’s gut to his head to keep him in check as she said, “Who is this?”

  “Hello, cousin.”

  “Liberty, Liberty, you are full of surprises.” She chuckled. “What did you do to get Po back under your thumb? I told you what would happen if you got in my way.”

  BOOM!

  Dahlia barely moved the gun as she fired it next to Po’s head.

  “Agghh!” The blast was so loud that it deafened Po. His ears began to ring, and the world around him went temporarily mute.

&
nbsp; “Dahlia! If you hurt him!” Liberty screamed.

  “What? Liberty? Huh? What will you do? You’re pathetic. You’re weak! You always have been!” Dahlia hollered into the phone.

  “Yeah, well, not this time,” Liberty said. “This time, you fucked up. I have the security tapes from the house the day you killed Trixie. And unless you bring your black ass to me with Po unharmed, I’m sending them to the police.” Liberty was bluffing. There were no tapes. There was no evidence, but Dahlia didn’t know that. Liberty knew that Dahlia wouldn’t leave such a crucial string untied. It was the perfect bait to lure her in.

  “You wouldn’t dare,” Dahlia scoffed.

  “I’ve lost everything, bitch,” Liberty said. “Try me.”