Murderville (27 page)

Baron had been taken by surprise, and he asked the masked man what was going on, but he got no answer. The truck sped into an empty parking lot and Baron was swiftly forced out after which they jumped into another tinted vehicle. Everyone, even the driver, hopped into the new car. One of the masked men then grabbed a can of gasoline from the back of the Hummer and began to pour it all on the car they had just exited.

“Hurry up!” one of the men yelled as he left the door open for the man to jump in when he finished. The masked man threw the can on the ground and jumped into the truck with the others. The truck pulled off and the man reached out of the window and fired the assault rifle at the old getaway car. The sound of a loud explosion erupted and the Hummer went up in flames. They sped off, jumping on the freeway and escaping smoothly.

Baron remained silent as he was taken a few miles down the road and the truck pulled into a empty parking ramp. A limo awaited them. Baron had already figured out who was behind the current fiasco.
Samad,
he thought to himself as he grinded his teeth and sat in between the two gunmen.

The truck pulled about thirty feet from the limo, and the masked man opened the door.

“Get out,” the masked man said to Baron. Baron slid out of the car and saw that someone was stepping out the back of the limo. He saw the fancy shoe step onto the concrete and just as he thought . . . it was Samad.

“I never meant to harm your wife,” Samad said first as he slowly began to walk towards Baron. His goons got out of the cars and began to circle Baron, all with guns out.

“Why did you do this?” Baron asked, not wanting to talk about his wife. He only wanted to figure out Samad’s angle.
Why did he bust him out? What was his motive?
Baron wanted to know.

“I want to know where the girl is. Enough bloodshed has been spilled. I just want to get the girl back. Give A’shai up,” Samad said as he opened his arms and shook his head as if the problem was simple and without conflict.

“Fuck outta here,” Baron said after he sucked his teeth, blowing Samad’s request off. Although he was at odds with A’shai, he would not break the code.

“I can’t understand how you are so loyal to a hoodlum that had plans to kill you. He was plotting against you since day one,” he lied. Samad was trying to turn Baron against A’shai and get the information that he needed to find Liberty. Samad’s jealous streak was a mile long and he was determined to find Liberty and kill her for crossing him. His ego, on top of his bitterness, made him a heat seeking missile hell-bent on revenge.

“That’s a lie!” Baron yelled as he scowled and spit flew out of his mouth.

“No! That is the truth. He told me where you lived, and how to get you set up. How do you think I got the address? Huh? He wanted you out of the picture so he could take over. He was impatient. He didn’t want to wait for you to retire. Now I’m giving you a chance to double-cross him because he stole something from me. I want revenge,” Samad lied, leaving out the fact that Nico was his inside source. Baron took in Samad’s words, and they were like daggers to his heart as he tried not to believe what Samad was saying.

“You’re full of shit. You killed my wife and if you let me live . . . ,” Baron began to shoot his threats as he stared at the man that stood before him.

“Am I? Think about it. How did I get your address? How did I know about your secret cabin up north? He planned on taking you out of the picture. That was before he laid eyes on Liberty. That’s when the plans changed,” Samad said trying to mind-fuck Baron . . . and it was working. Under different circumstances, Baron wouldn’t be as susceptible to manipulation. But with Baron’s mind in disarray and sorrow clouding his judgment, Samad’s story began to seem like it made sense.

“Fuck you!” Baron said as he dropped his head and hoped that what Samad was saying wasn’t true.

“Fuck me? No fuck that rat who betrayed you. Look where he is. He is lying up with a woman while you are on trial for your life. You can’t blame me . . . I didn’t break the rules, your boy did!” Samad yelled as he pointed his finger at Baron. “If he cared so much, why didn’t he break you out? I did this for you! I got a deal for you. You help me set him up, and I will send you on a helicopter anywhere you want to go. It’s all up to you,” Samad said as he placed the deal of a lifetime on Baron’s plate. There was no doubt in Baron’s mind that Samad’s offer was more of a demand than a question. Baron knew that if he denied Samad that he would be shot down right then and there. He then began to feel the grief and hatred towards A’shai for putting Willow in harm’s way. Baron dropped his head and thought about his decision.

TWENTY-ONE

A’SHAI RUSHED OUT OF THE COURTROOM AND
held the phone to his ear tightly as Baron spoke to him on the other end. Liberty hurriedly trailed behind him as she exited the courtroom. She wore oversized shades and a conservative black dress as she eavesdropped trying to figure out what was wrong. She knew it was an important call because of A’shai’s instant change in behavior before he rushed to leave.

“I need you to come and get me quick. I’m at the old trap spot off Woodward Ave. I just escaped, and I need your help,” Baron said.

“Don’t move. I’m on my way,” A’shai answered as he flipped the phone down. He was waiting at the courthouse for Baron’s trial to start and got a call from him while in the pews. Baron had informed him about the breakout and failed to mention that Samad was behind the escape. A’shai quickly flipped down the phone and whispered back to Liberty, “We have to go now. I don’t have time to drop you off so you are going to have to go with me,” he said as they headed out. Liberty tried to keep up with him as they made their way to their car. She didn’t want to ask any questions, so she followed A’shai, trusting that he would take care of her.

A’shai sped down the freeway trying to get to his father on Woodward Avenue. He pushed his car 100 miles per hour down the highway trying to cut his travel time in half. Word was already on the street that the infamous Baron Montgomery had escaped from custody. Baron had the streets on fire, and every cop in the city was now looking for the drug pin escapee.

The radio blasted through A’shai’s speakers and the news alert came over the airwaves. A’shai and Liberty listened as the reporter called Baron armed and dangerous and a threat. The authorities encouraged civilians to not approach him and call authorities if seen. The entire city was up in arms and they were painting the picture of a villain on Baron’s name.

“Fuck that,” A’shai mumbled as he pushed the button on his radio, turning the newscast off. He was focused on getting his father out of the city and eventually out of the country. He sped off the exit towards the trap spot where Baron was hiding out.

A’shai pulled up to the house and threw the car in park.

“Come on,” he said to Liberty as he hopped out. He wanted to keep her by his side while he figured out the plan. A’shai went to the back door and saw that it was kicked in, obviously by Baron. He walked in and saw his father sitting on the couch. “Pops, are you okay?” A’shai asked as he motioned towards him. A’shai never saw it coming. Goons were waiting for him and before he knew it, he heard Liberty scream. Before he could even react he felt a blow to the head, and then everything went black.

Baron sat in a beach house in Costa Maya, Mexico. He had taken Willow to the expensive paradise many times before. He had made love to her on that very beach, and it pained him that he would never share that experience with her again. He would never be able to kiss her forehead or slow dance with her to a smooth jazz tune. Baron looked out of the window of the small beach house and watched as the sun began to rise. He retrieved funds out of his offshore accounts and then fled to the beach house that was under an assumed name. He was glad that his wife had convinced him to buy the home before her passing. Now it had become his greatest asset. He would reside there in peace under an assumed name.

It had been a week since he had given A’shai up and the guilt was eating away at him. He sipped cognac and contemplated suicide daily. He was at rock bottom. It was as if he was losing his mind. He looked at a picture of Willow, A’shai, and himself that was taken a year after they had taken him in and they all were as happy as could be. They had taken it while vacationing on that same island. There was a time when Baron could have made different choices which would have changed the outcome of what had happened, but he chose to grind harder instead. Getting deeper and deeper and eventually leading A’shai into the same lifestyle. Baron wished he could rewind the time. He would have quit the drug game a long time ago. He would have put his family first and thought about how his profession could and eventually would put them in harm’s way. He understood that A’shai could have been molded to be anything other than what he was. A’shai, under the right direction, should have been a Wall Street banker. Baron had created a monster, and it eventually came back to haunt him.

Why didn’t I show him another way? I failed my family,
Baron thought as he downed the ninth glass of liquor. The thought of betraying A’shai ate at his soul and he knew that he had made the wrong choice. Baron walked over to his untraceable cell phone and quickly dialed up an old friend. He had to try to right his wrongs because the guilt was going to eventually kill him. He knew that he had to call in some professionals to do the job, he called the most efficient and ruthless crew he knew . . . he called the Murder Mamas.

A’shai groggily began to wake up. He had a pounding headache, blood dripped from his mouth and his body was full of purple and black bruises. His entire body ached as he had been beaten within inches of death. His hands were tied above him, and his body slowly twisted in the air. He saw that Liberty was tied to a chair and turned facing him. Samad circled him with a crowbar in hand. A’shai had been beaten by Samad for days, and Liberty watched as they both were tied up. A’shai was the closest to death than he had ever been.

“You are finally up. I have been waiting on you,” Samad said as he began to roll up his sleeves so that Liberty could watch him beat A’shai once again. Over the past few days A’shai had been tied up and beaten badly out of pure revenge. He never thought that Baron would be the one to set him up. He walked right into a trap and he never saw it coming. Samad wanted to give A’shai a slow death while Liberty watched. He also planned on murdering Liberty after he killed A’shai. Samad just wanted the lovers to hurt a bit longer before he ended their lives. Samad began to walk around the beaten warrior, and he called him every nasty name in the book as he spit on A’shai and totally disrespected him.

Just as he was about to strike A’shai again, he heard the sound of the glass shattering and two girls burst through the door with their guns drawn. Before Samad could even react bullets were sent through his chest, dropping him instantly. Liberty squirmed as the bullets whizzed by her and she saw two slender figures get into gunplay with Samad and his goons. By the end of the gunfight, when the flying bullets finally stopped, the two masked shooters stood alive. One of the masked men walked over to A’shai and pointed the gun near the top of his heart. They shot and the bullets pierced the rope holding A’shai and he fell to the floor. The gunmen then pulled off their masks, exposing silky long hair and two very different but equally beautiful faces. A’shai realized they were a part of the Murder Mamas, a special hit team that Baron occasionally told stories about. A’shai had always dismissed the tales as myths, but as they stood before him he realized that these women were legends in the street game. That’s when A’shai knew that Baron had sent the Murder Mamas to his and Liberty’s rescue. She handed A’shai the gun and looked over at Samad. “Me saved de honors for you,” one of the women said in a heavy island accent. A’shai struggled to get to his feet and hobbled. However, he managed to stand straight up and grab the gun from the lady. He then put a bullet through Samad’s left eye, rocking him to sleep. He dropped the gun and collapsed after he asserted all of his energy to hold himself up. He breathed heavily as he grimaced from his wounds. He hobbled over to Liberty and unleashed her from the tight ropes. She collapsed into his arms. The war with Samad was finally over. A’shai and Liberty could now finally have each other without any hurdles or complaints. Their lives had come full circle, and their fate brought them back together. Despite all of the odds that had worked against them, their love had seen them through.

As A’shai and Liberty were escorted to an awaiting vehicle they clung to one another. “You know that house I told you about,” he whispered as he held her body up, even though he felt as if he would collapse at any moment.

She nodded weakly.

“It’s time . . . we’re going to live there for the rest of our lives . . . happy. Only now we don’t have to hide. I love you, Liberty, and wherever you go, I’ll follow. Nothing will keep me from you ever again. I’m sorry for everything,” he whispered.

“Don’t be sorry, A’shai Montgomery. You saved my life.”

TWENTY-TWO

BACK TO PRESENT DAY

LIBERTY SMILED AS SHE LISTENED TO A’SHAI
tell her the end of their journey. It was supposed to be a happy ending. Neither of them expected her health to fade before their very eyes. They had heard the doctor’s diagnosis but in the short time of two years she had lost a little bit of energy every day. Now she had none left and there was nothing left to do. Her time was coming to an end. The passionate few years she had spent with A’shai felt like a lifetime, and she was grateful to feel that type of love before dying. She remembered the day she found out that she had a failing heart. All of the signs had been there long before any doctor had confirmed the condition. She had lived a harsh life, and it took a toll on her heart. The doctors said that it was a genetic glitch, but A’shai somehow believed that if he would have protected her better she wouldn’t have had a shortened life. She had experienced so much heartbreak in her time, and it had weakened her. Since the day they met, their time together had been on a constant countdown. A’shai saw that she didn’t have much longer. It was evident in her eyes. They were not the same and he could tell that Liberty wouldn’t make it through the night. A’shai leaned down to kiss his love and ran his fingers through her hair gently while grief flowed down his face. He had spent the last seven hours telling her their life’s story. He had nursed his drink and let his words flow, all the while knowing what the ultimate unchanging end would be. His heart ached because he knew that it would be his last time telling her that story.