DEADLY DECISIONS III: The End (24 page)

“
My son
!
” Keisha panicked. “Did they mention anything about a baby being in the car?”

“
No
,
he was riding solo,” Poo Baby replied. “Cameron Jr
.
is probably with Cam’s mother or wife. I’m sure he’s fine.”

Keisha breathed a sigh of relief
,
thanked Poo Baby
,
and then told her that she’d call her back.
Li’l
Boo asked Keisha what was going on. Keisha told him everything that Poo Baby
had just
told her. 

“
Where the baby at?”
Li’l
Boo respon
ded, concerned
. Cameron going down for murder didn’t
a
ffect
Li’l
Boo one bit
. I
n fact
,
it would be doing
Li’l
Boo a favor. He didn’t want Cameron around his girl
anyway.

Flustered
,
Keisha
answered, “I don’t
know.
”

C
K
asked if they needed him to pull over or change his destination. Before Keisha could respond
,
she received a call from Big Pope Dog with news that could shake her world back up and possibly send her back into hiding.

“
Some murders took place at Carter’s home earlier today. His daughter Saige, some other nigga
,
and a mailman was murdered. Carter survived
,
but seeing the recent news
,
it appears that baby daddy number two has witnesses and surveillance footage placing him at the murder scene. Shit
’
s about to get real ugly, Keys
,
and we’re gonna have to get you out of here.”

“
No,” Keisha replied
,
trying to comprehend what Big Pope Dog had actually said to her. “I’m not running this time
-
”

“
Keys,” Big Pope Dog cut her off. “Do you understand that your life can possibly be at risk?”

“
If that’s the price
I
have to pay
,
then so be it, Piru
!
” Keisha shot
.
“It wasn’t my hit nor was
I
behind it
. T
herefore I will not be running
.
”
S
he paused
.
“
G
et my family back into hiding… ASAP
,
” Keisha told Big Pope Dog before disconnecting the call. She was tired of running and hiding and living her life in constant fea
r. She
didn’t plan to ever live that way again
,
and that was final.

When they got to the hotel, Keisha bathed and then climbed into the cozy king-sized bed in the lavish penthouse suite they occupied, trying to rest her head and make sense out of everything. Cameron’s earlier words replayed in her head. “
Girl, if only you knew what I pulled off for you and our son
.
”
Keisha’s eyes watered up. She hated that Cameron would ultimately be doing hard time trying to avenge her and the trouble that her lifestyle brought upon Cameron’s precious son.

Li’l Boo tried to cheer Keisha up, but she asked to be left alone. “Baby, I feel so fucked up right now. I just want to sleep until I receive some good news,” she told him.

Li’l Boo knew what would put a smile on Keisha’s face. After making a call to get his people in contact with Cameron’s mother Teresa, Li’l Boo was happy to give the number to Keisha later that evening when she woke up and rolled a blunt.

“Here, baby, call and check on your son. This is all of Cameron’s mother’s contact information.” He passed Keisha a pad of paper with her home address, home phone, and cell phone number on it. “I sent someone to her house, but she wasn’t there.”

“Aw, baby, thank you!” Keisha smiled at him through her eyes and hurriedly went for her Smartphone.

Li’l Boo winked. “Anything for my bitch.”

Keisha called Teresa’s cell phone number, and after the first ring, she answered.

“Hello, Teresa. This is Keisha. How you doing?”

Teresa immediately recognized Keisha’s voice. “Keisha?” she expressed her displeasure. “Aren’t you supposed to be dead?”

Keisha’s facial expression soured, “No, I’m very much alive, Teresa!” Keisha shot. “I’m just calling to get my son.”

“Your son? Listen to me clearly. If my son goes down for this Keisha Cones bullshit, I’m going to see to it that you neverrrrrrr get this boy back. Do you understand me, bitch?”

Keisha’s face screwed up. “No, Teresa, I don’t think you understand me!” Keisha ended the phone call fuming. She immediately went into gangster mode. “They not gon’ play fair,” Keisha turned and told Li’l Boo. “So I’ma have to take my son
from them.”

“Just say the word. I can have it done tonight,” Li’l Boo replied seriously. He already had Teresa’s house being watched.

Keisha shook her head no. “I don’t want anybody taking my son without me being there, Li’l Boo. But I’m ready whenever your people are.”

Li’l Boo didn’t want Keisha involved, but he understood her position. “
Fuck it we can get on some G shit.” Li’l Boo made the call. “Let me know when the lights come on in the house. We going up in there.”

“Li’l Boo,” Keisha called him after he got off the phone. “I know you love me, but your mom is right. I don’t deserve you. Trouble seems to always find me and it’s always the people around that end up paying the cost. I’m not gon’ run or hide again, but if Carter sends for me for Cameron murdering his daughter…”

Li’l Boo cut Keisha off. “We ride or die, Li’l Mama, and right now we’re fighting to be together… end of story.” Li’l Boo dismissed the conversation, knowing exactly where Keisha was going with it.

Keisha smiled from the inside out. She loved her gangsta and truly
felt
what it meant to be loved to death.

Cameron was in the hospital
on high security watch, g
etting his gunshot wound cared for. After emergency surgery
,
Cameron pretended to be in more pain then he was actually in, to extend his hospital stay. He would stop breathing for moments at a time to
throw h
is vitals
off
and
he
would pretend to be incoherent when he was questioned
by
medical staff and the investigative detective on his case.

In Las Vegas
,
once Cameron’s mother Teresa got wind of her son
’s
activity she immediately packed up her grandson
,
and then she and her daughter Tonya took the next forty-five minute flight out to Los Angeles. While Cameron was in surgery
,
the entire family piled up in the waiting room for an update on his status. Cameron’s room was on
high security watch
,
and besides medical person
nel
and law enforcement
,
Cameron’s mother and wife were the only family members that were permitted in his room.

When Teresa walked inside the room to visit her son
, the
nursing staff cleared out
to
allow them privacy. Broken
,
Teresa sobbed at her son’s bedside
,
knowing that if her son was convicted he’d be looking at a life sentence. In the middle of sobbing
,
Teresa nearly jumped out of her skin when Cameron opened his eyes and asked her to help him get out of the hospital.

“
I can’t do that
,
Cameron
. T
hose police are ruthless and will find you and kill you.”

“
I might as well be dead if I have to spend the rest of my life in prison,” Cameron pleaded seriously.

After much convincing
,
Teresa finally agreed. On her way out to gather Cameron’s requested items to leave the country
,
she kissed her son on the forehead
.
“You just make sure you find a way to contact me when it’s safe, you hear me?”

“
Always
,
Mama,” Cameron replied. “Make sure you leave the car by the back entrance where I told you, and don’t forget the gun. I’ma sneak out when the officers switch shifts in an hour.” Cameron had overheard the officer discussing his shift change hours earlier.

It would be her son’s last and only shot at having his freedom
,
and
Teresa
felt it was worth the risk
-
even if it jeopardized her own freedom.

_________

The
officer made his last round to check on Cameron before leaving his post
. W
hen he walked out of
the
room
,
Cameron removed the IV’s from his arms
and then quickly and quietly slid out
of
the bed clothed in nothing but a hospital gown.
H
e peeked his head out
the
door. The reporting officer was standing at the nurse
’
s station talking to one of the nurses, sipping on coffee. After the orderly pushing a laundry cart disappeared
down the hallway,
Cameron hightailed it off the floor and safely to the
fire escape. They had made their biggest mistake
by
not handcuffing Cameron to the bed. Sprinting dow
n the stairs
,
Cameron didn’t stop until he made it down the last flight of stairs. There he
hastily s
earched under the staircase where he told his mother to tuck a
n
overall
-type
work
uniform a
nd baseball cap.
Right on time!
Cameron found the uniform and hat
. He
hurriedly slid into them and then pulled the hat low on his head.
Cameron’s heart was racing out of control. After a deep breath
,
he coolly strolled out of the
stairwell,
mixing casually into the hospital
’
s small flow of medical personnel and visitors until he reached the back exit of the hospital.

Outside
,
Cameron spotted the car and then briskly started toward it.
Yes
!
This shit was way t
o
o easy, cuh!
A devilish grin crept upon his face.
Now it
’
s time to kill that nigga
Li’l
Boo before I make a run for it.
Cameron couldn’t fathom the idea of
Li’l
Boo living happily ever after with Keisha. He wasn’t going to let him succeed in fucking his marriage
up
and winning Keisha’s heart.

Cameron looked at the time on the dashboard. It was close to midnight.
This is right around the time cuh be getting in
. H
e started to the townhouse
Li’l
Boo
had been occupying.

In the candlelit penthouse suite overlooking a romantic view of the city, the spring night air drifted through the slightly ajar patio door, keeping Keisha’s plump nipples nice and hard for Li’l Boo to devour. Starting off on top, Keisha sat on top of Li’l Boo in bed and began to make love to him with her eyes. “Who would have ever thought we’d be together in the end?” Keisha straddled Li’l Boo’s erection.

“Me.” Li’l Boo rubbed his manly hands along the
length of Keisha’s body.

“Yeah right, Li’l Boo, seriously.” Keisha traced her index fingers down the sides of his face. “Who would have ever known?”

“I did,” Li’l Boo stated seriously. “I knew you would eventually see things for what they really were and that one day you’d finally give us the chance. Yo’ first nigga and first piece of Mandingo,” he teased. “We got history, Li’l Mama, and a lifetime more to make.”

Li’l Boo’s words sent chills up Keisha’s spine. Looking back, Keisha realized that Cameron was never mentally strong enough to hold her. The storm of their relationship broke him down and he was never fully able to recover, rebuild, and move forward with her. Instead, Cameron was always lingering in the past and holding on to past pain. Cameron wanted all of Keisha, but only in the dark. His image and pride trampled their love until it eventually ripped them completely apart. Afterwards, Keisha was left hanging on to their memory, trying to pick up the pieces and understand where she went wrong, until one day it all made perfect sense to her.

Li’l Boo, on the other hand, continued to be persistent and patient. He fought for her against all odds, and even after taking a bullet for her that left him near death, Li’l Boo continued to step on the front line. He was the true ride or die gangsta that she longed for in her life and she was his gangsta bitch.

When Li’l Boo saw a twinkle of doubt in Keisha’s eyes, he felt the need to assure her that she could trust him with her heart. “I haven’t always gave you a reason to trust me with your heart in the past. Besides me doing me, I wasn’t keen on settling down with a gangsta girl either. But I always enjoyed spending time with you and making love to you. After you had Kessia, things changed; you changed. It wasn’t all about dope dealing and gangbanging with you no more. I watched you put your life in perspective and make a change. You started not one but two successful businesses, put the block days behind you, and put our daughter first. I got a chance to see your domestic side.” Li’l Boo moved her hair from her eye and smiled. “When I used to drop my daughter off after school, she always came home to a clean house, a home-cooked meal, and a mother that always made time to sit down and listen to her tell about her long, drawn out day,” he smirked. “And my baby had some stories!” They both fell into laughter.