Jail's Bait: Parole's Victim (Book 4)

Marquis stood, struck as dumb as everyone else. His father, who was supposed to be locked up for killing his grandfather, was standing there, awake..! The last time he'd seen him was the day he killed Grandpa Trey, right in front of him..! His world fell away from him in a rush of fear as he became 8 years old again, scared and unaware of what to do- and that's when he saw the butcher's knife his father was holding in one arm as he held grimly onto Jamara with the other.

Meanwhile, Rah-Rah was looking over at DJ Slyyce. “Sup, ‘Dre,” Rah-Rah said, “what you up to..?”

“Uhhh, Rah-Rah, what u doin outta da hospital,” the DJ replied, shock on his face.

“Uhhh, ‘Dre, what U doin playin music fo these mafuckas,” Rah-Rah replied, fury in his face. “Aint you got no loyalty to yo cousin..?”

“I DO,” Slyyce said, chin up- “I'm playin music for my cousin's son- fo his graduation party.”

Marquis had already known that ‘Dre, aka DJ Slyyce- was his father's 2nd cousin, the only member of the Howard family that had anything to do with him anymore. He was still seized up with fear as Rah-Rah went on. “My son, huh..? The one who never came to see me, turned his back on my mother and went to live with the rich relatives..? That who you talking about, cuz..?” and he turned his baleful eyes on Marquis, who began to shake.

“That's not how it was, Robert,” Danny began. “Listen, we need you to put the knife and the baby down- then we can talk.”

“Talk..?” Rah-Rah replied, incredulous as clouds were gathering at a frightening speed, and soon the full moon had disappeared completely behind the roiling mass that stretched across the dark skies. “TALK??? ‘Talkin' shoulda been goin on for da past ten years," Rah-Rah said angrily, brandishing the knife in Danny's direction. “Wassup wit YOU takin my money away, Officer Dan- oh wait, its 'Detective' now, rite?" he sneered.

"I GAVE your inheritance to your SON," Danny replied calmly. "The doctors told us they didn't know if you'd EVER wake up, I wanted to make sure that Marquis was well provided for."

"Yeah- he's so well provided for dat you kept him from my mama," Rah-Rah spat. "Some godfather- I owe you for that, for puttin yo hands on my inheritance!!!"

"Hold on there now," Joe stepped in; "your mother left instructions with all your doctors; she went out of her way to make sure none of us could ever see you, including your son. What were we supposed to do then...?"

"You tellin me dat with all the Hill money and wit 'Super-Lawyer' here, no one thought to even try- fight my moms on that, get a court order, SUMTHIN??" Rah-Rah yelled at Joe. "You coulda done sumthin, don't forget that you're my uncle, nigga."

"I wanted NOTHING to do with the likes of you, to tell the truth; don't forget that YOU KILLED MY BROTHER," Joe said in a low voice, but his words had the effect of a battering ram. The frightened crowd felt the rage ripple from the Congressman.

Rah-Rah blanched. "I ain't forget that, an I ALSO aint forget dat I owe YOU- for my pops. You knew you had a brother an u left him to struggle out in the wide world, never knowin he had money, had a family. He was good enuff ta track you down wit NO money- you coulda easily tracked him down, havin unlimited funds... but u aint want a brother- u wanted ta keep all that money to yourself, rite..?"

Joe glared at his nephew. "I admit I never gave myself a chance to know him like I should have, but we might have been able to patch things up- but when you shot your father to DEATH, you took him away from me, from your son- hell, from YOURSELF, all because you thought you had a right to-" and then he stopped.

Rah-Rah's eyes lit up with fire. "Go on, 'UNCLE' Joe," he said wryly. "Because I thought I had a right to claim what was MINE," he finished, his eyes traveling to Lamar.

Before another word was said, Malik stepped forward, determinedly. "Give me my daughter."

Rah-Rah stared at Malik- and began to laugh. "You-you're kiddin me, rite," he kept laughing, Malik's face getting stonier by the minute. "You took my son from me, cousin; it's only fair I return the favor. Its funny, I grew up mo or less wit ‘Dre over there," he indicated towards DJ Slyyce, "an hated YOU more- but as my first cousin, yo blood is closer to me than his is... ain't it funny how life werks..? An who da fuk are you, anyway, Malik," he added with contempt. "I thought yo name was JOOP. Lemme talk to DAT nicca; dats who I want. I don't know you."

"Is she hurt," Lamar interrupted then; "the blood on the knife- did you hurt Jamara...?"

Rah-Rah's face turned soft for a split second as they regarded each other. "Why would I tell you that, Mar," he replied in a menacing tone- but he shifted her weight on his arm, revealing the part of her pink dress that was stained red. "Why don't you ask me if YOU hurt ME???"

"Boy, answer Lamar- if you've hurt that child," Joan shouted then, afraid for Jamara.

"Well, well, if it ain't Ms. Joan," Rah-Rah smiled; "I hear you traded up. Go on back to your designer clothes and stay out of men's business, hear...?"

"First off, I'm yo Auntie now," she replied coldly; "and if you didn't know, I've whopped every man in this family, and you aint gonna be no exception. I owe you for my son," she said with venom.

"No, Ms. Joan- I owe YOU for lying to my father, keepin him from comin back fo me sooner," Rah-Rah reminded her with a dark look. "That last day, while I was creepin round the back of da house to snatch Mar, I wuz listenin when everyone cornered you in the kitchen, yellin at you bout keepin my father a secret...! You aint paid for that one yet."

"Then take ME on then, and leave that baby alone...!" Joan stepped forward, chest thrust out. "If you got da gutz to deal wit a grown woman, dat is."

"You have no reason to revenge on that child," Claire added; "she's adopted, she's no blood-kin to anyone here at all. It's pointless."

"So iz your MOUTH, Ms. Claire," Rah-Rah spat at her. "I owe YOU for Mar; do you KNOW how many nights you made Lamar cry ‘cause you bounced on him...? When we was little kids, every night he used ta pray an ask God why you aint love him enuff ta stay... I used ta hide in his closet an watch him all nite long- you aint really paid for DAT one either."

"You hid in his CLOSET and watched my son- you sick FREAK," a suddenly incensed Claire shouted recklessly.

"You're not helping, Claire," Danny interjected.

"Neither are YOU, lawyer man," Rah-Rah smiled darkly. A gasp ran through the startled crowd as Rah-Rah, knife in front of him and the struggling Jamara, moved away from the pool- and closer to the edge of the cliff that ridged the property. He got all the way on top of its very edge- if he took one more step east, he would topple over the side... "but ya cant PO-PO or P.O. or ADA yo way outta this one, can ya..?"

“Aint no mufucka gonna be able ta save yo punk pussy-azz from ME if you don’t put my kid down RITE now, BEYYACCH,” came a shout, which stunned everyone- because the shout came from Malik.

Angelina grasped Kap's arm. "Jeezus, I've never heard him talk like that," she said to Kap, who stared at Malik with a growing excitement.

"That's because... that's not MALIK," he responded to his girl. "THAT'S JOOP."

"Oh dear god," Joe said then; "Joop's back..."

"I thought YOU SAID that thug part of him was dead an gone," Claire whirled on Danny.

"Claire- SHUT UP," Danny pleaded with her as he turned back to regard Joop; Malik's razor-edged wild alter ego of whom was shut away once Malik grew up and got responsible- free again, at last.

Rah-Rah saw the change in his cousin's eyes; his smile grew more malicious. "Well, well, WELL- I knew you was in there somewhere, JOOP," Rah-Rah growled with satisfaction. "it's been a minute, 'cuz'; let's play."

Joop stood before Rah-Rah with fists bared. "Put MY KID down,” he growled; "an yo punk ass MAY survive da nite."

"Naw, sunn," Rah-Rah smiled back; "you aint gonna last da nite, yo. I gotz a life ta get back to, an you're in my way-once I snap YO neck like you tried ta do mine, then I'll feel better-"

"Daddy!"

Everyone turned back towards the gifts table. Marquis, his voice finally found, cleared his throat. "Don't do this... I wanna talk to you, alone."

Rah-Rah hesitated, staring at Marquis in astonishment. For a moment it looked like he was going to put the baby down, go to his son...

…and then the moment was over, and his anger flared red once again. "You had plenty of chances to talk to me alone," Rah-Rah replied bitterly. "You coulda tried to go to Ma, you coulda tried to ask her to let you see me... but you never tried."

"If you wanna punish somebody for that," Marquette said then, stepping closer to Rah-Rah, "then punish ME. You hurt our son enough. This is not helping him to even wanna look at you after this, much less make peace." Her eyes flashed. "You want to blame someone else ta blame; blame yo mama too. She turned her back on him the minnit you weren't in the fukkin picture; its like she never really cared for him at all."

"Like YOU, Marquette," Rah-Rah spat at her. "You five-minute mother, ya left Marquis with Joop an let him raise our son while you obviously went shoppin, do you even know what he looks like now...? I owe YOU for treachery."

"WHAT," Marquette shot back, incensed. "You da treacherous rat-bastard; you're lucky I ever let you know you HAD a kid, wit your stalkin ass!!!"

"Bitch- you wanted child support, that's only why I found out about the boy AT ALL," he shot right back. "You went for the money, you saw how to get mo and you sold my son away from my mother for 30 pieces of silver. I owe you for THAT."

"Daddy- I was a child!!!" Marquis's eyes filled with tears as he raged at his father. "Grandma said I wasn't her grandson anymore- and then hung up the phone on me!! I was only 8 years old... who was supposed to act like the adult then, huh?" he choked. "I was angry, confused, you had protected me all my life but then you just killed a man right in front of me; someone who I had heard was my real grandpa seconds before you shot him!!! How was I supposed to deal with that so young, huh? And grandma jus- just bounced a little kid like that!!! You should OWE her too if you're gonna owe everyone ELSE..." and tears slid down his face as he stubbornly faced down his father from across the grounds.

Rah-Rah scowled. "How do you know I haven't," he said then with another dark look. "This is how Joop raised you...? You whine too much- shut up and be a man," he said then dismissively.

"He's a better man than YOU'LL ever be," Carmen shot out; "he wouldn't kidnap a child to get back at someone, like a punk!!"

"Ohh-HOO," Rah-Rah looked at Carmen then, smiling- "you're my son's girl, aint u?" Carmen looked at him defiantly, and said nothing else. His smile widened. "Well, miss, if my son's anything like his ol' man, you're jus a piece of pussy for the moment."

"SHUT YOUR FILTHY MOUTH," Marquis spat, running towards Rah-Rah. Danny grabbed him in passing and pulled him back; Marquis still struggled as he spat to his father; "MY GIRL WILL GET FROM US WHAT YOU WILL NEVER HAVE- THE RESPECT OF THE HILL FAMILY!!!"

"Respect...? That's what you think I want from you?" Rah-Rah said quietly, shaking his head insanely. "I don't want your respect, I WANT revenge on all of them for taking YOU away from me- awww shyt," Rah-Rah said then, looking at him and then at Joop- "da nigga got you even dressin like him!!! Fuck this," he said, and swung the arm holding Jamara wide, dangling her over the side of the jagged cliff.

A few girls fainted as the whole crowd screamed in fright. Jamara took one look down- and THAT's when her silence broke; she started to cry, wails of fright echoing down to the canyon-like grounds thousands of feet below. Rah-Rah turned back to the crowd, hate registering in every line of his face- and then he whirled behind him- and stopped, his eyes widening in growing shock.

Evidently Ray, unbeknownst to everyone, had been attempting to sneak up behind Rah-Rah the whole time he was yelling back and forth with everyone; the chagrin on his face displayed his failure at not reaching the vantage point he'd wanted. Ray and Rah-Rah stared at each other, inches apart- but Rah-Rah suddenly began to tremble.

"D-daddy...?" Rah-Rah asked then, horror-stricken.

Ray started for a second; then he seemed to catch on. He reached out for Jamara. "Give me the baby," he said sternly, in a low voice.

Rah-Rah was so scared he could barely move- the knife in his hand started jerking violently. "I-I- I didn't mean to... I wanted ta- to kn-n-n-know you, Daddy," Rah-Rah sobbed then, tears springing to his eyes and spilling forth. "Daddy...! Please- please forgive me..."

Ray swallowed. "Gimme the baby, an I'll forgive ya," he said low, reaching out his arms, staying within eye contact of the knife.

Rah-Rah stared at him, and hesitated. The crowd held its collective breath, silent as a tomb…

...BUT, AS FATE WOULD HAVE IT...

...Just then the forerunner of the impending storm struck, as a sizzling bolt of lightning split the skies, immediately followed by a large BOOM- a clap of thunder that shook the ground with its fury; Rah-Rah, stumbling from the sudden shock, lost his grip- and baby Jamara began to drop, screaming, into the yawning darkness. Rah-Rah dropped the knife, spun about and tried to grab at her, but she was already out of his reach.

The crowd shrieked with terror- and then, as if in slow motion, they saw Ray heedlessly dive like a slow-motion rocket, past Rah-Rah, hands stretched out after Jamara- and baby and homeless man both tumbled into the darkness. Her screams still echoed upwards to them...

Before the crowd could even react from the stunning horror of what just happened, a loud growl was heard then- as if the crowd were spellbound, they spun around to see Joop rush headlong at Rah-Rah, crying out his rage; they collided, the force of Joop's assault carrying them both over the edge of the cliff as well, to everyone's further shock... struggling together, they fell into the yawning black chasm hundreds of feet below, and was lost beneath the roar of the waterfall and the sudden first drops of the rain- which chose then to start coming down in a deluge; the full force of the thunderstorm come at last.

Pandemonium ensued then. The frightened, horrified teenagers scrambled for shelter; some stayed behind to peer down into the darkness, DJ Slyyce was hurriedly trying to save his equipment as the winds of the vicious thunderstorm howled and thrashed about, destroying the silks and velveted furnishings that blanked the party, reducing the birthday cake to soup. Servants and caterers rushed about trying to pull the party decorations in, or throw canvas over what could not be manually carried, the guards frantically calling for assistance on two-way radios that were shorting out from exposure to the terrible storm.

Lamar stood still, rain-lashed and wind-pounded, staring at the place where Joop and Rah-Rah had fallen over the cliff. Security lights were already beginning to sweep the black chasm for signs of life, but it was virtually impossible for anyone to see anything in the torrential downpour. Claire and Joan were fighting through the desperate crowd to reach Lamar, who just... stood there- and just before they got to him, he suddenly collapsed to the ground, hitting his head- and moved no more.

"Sweet JEEZUS!" Claire cried, reaching Lamar first, dropping down to the ground and pulling his face into her lap. Unbelievingly, Lamar's eyes were wide open, staring into nothing, unblinking against the rain that splattered against his face. Claire pulled a dropped tablecloth from a nearby overturned table, gathering it over her son's face to protect his eyes against the rain. "Lamar, come on," Claire was moaning, "move, MOVE, damn it! Blink!!" But try as she might, Lamar stayed as immobile as a stone.

Joan kept going- over to the edge of the cliff where Danny and Joe stood against the winds, trying to see if they could catch a glimpse of... anything. "Maliiiiiiik," Joan cried to the winds; "Maliiiiikkkk!!!!"

To one side, Marquis stood as if frozen, like Lamar before his collapse- total shock running his blood cold. Kap, Carmen and Angelina, fighting the rains and winds, finally reached him. "Key!!!" Kap shouted over the rain and wind, trying to get Marquis to respond.

Carmen pushed Kap out of the way. "Let me try," she said- and hauled off and smacked the shyt out of him.

Kap and Angelina stared at her incredulously... then Marquis blinked, automatically rubbing the side of his face.

Kap looked at Carmen gratefully- "Whatever did the job..." he said, turning back to his lover. "Marquis, we need you to think- Marquis, listen to me," Kap said, grasping his arms. "Didn't you tell me that Malik- well, Joop- was good at the daredevil shyt..?"

Marquis stared at him- and then it was as if a lightbulb switched on in his mind. "We gotta get down there," he said to Kap hurriedly- "I have to know if they... if they..."

"The road off Mt. Rainier goes down the other way," Carmen loudly reminded her boyfriend, "and there isn't much trail we can see now in this storm."

"I know... but I may have a way to go straight down the way they did," Marquis yelled back, looking over at the Duchati Cliff-Climber.

Carmen looked towards the direction he looked- and whirled back furiously. "Marquis, NO!!! You're not trained to climb cliffs yet on that thing; and even in the best conditions you have to know what you're doing, in this hurricane you'll kill yourself..!"

Marquis bent over and kissed her on the lips. "Thanks for defending me- I love you," he said, turning his back on her and running over to the bike as Carmen watched after him helplessly.

Kap looked at Angelina. "Go on," she said resignedly; "I already know I can't stop you."

Kap kissed her; then in a flash he was next to Marquis, jumping on back of the bike. There was a sudden gunning of the motor, a growl from the clutch and then Marquis shouted to Kap- "HOLD ON!!!"

Kap wrapped his hands around his best friend's waist as Marquis suddenly wheelied the bike right up to the edge of the cliff, and with a scream from his mother Marquette, Marquis raced the bike into the air- right over the cliff's edge, going down, down- and he and Kap disappeared into the dark, to Joan's, Joe's and Danny's combined horror.

*******

The girls watching from the game room screamed in excitement as the boys in the senior class rushed to the edge of the cliff, joining Joan, Danny and Joe as the three adults scanned the darkness for the sounds of the Cliff-Climber- but even that was lost in the screams of the battering winds which pounded them all. Joan wandered back to where Claire held Lamar's mute form under the tablecloth in her lap, and dropped down beside her.

Over by the cliff, the boys and two men were still trying to see downwards. "Can you make anything out- anything???" Joe yelled to Danny, who strained to penetrate the blackness that filled the gaping valley.

"No- WAITTTT!!!!" he cried, staring along the rim of the mountain. They all got quiet, and the roar of the winds and rain's lash was all that could be heard for a second- which turned out to be all they needed to catch the echo of a tiny cry.

"SECURITY!!!" Joe cried. In seconds the guards appeared. "Over here, we need a searchlight and a rope!"

The security team assembled a rope, a rope ladder and a giant portable searchlight in seconds. They began the sweep of the canyon straight down as an ambulance drove through the front gates.

*******

Almost three-quarters of a mile below the cliff HT rested near, rain was lashing heavily on the sands near the waterfall's lake- when the sound of a motorbike suddenly roared out of the darkness, its heavy flashlight beam stabbing back the night. The Duchati ground to a halt on the lake's edge, Marquis and Kap jumping off its back, both men breathing heavily as Marquis killed the motor. Had this not been an emergency, that ride down the steep mountainside would have been the most exhilarating experience both boys would have ever known, being athletes- the feeling twice enhanced from their being in love with each other. But the boys hardly noticed the path of rugged terrain sliding down beneath them as Marquis navigated his way in that terrible storm to reach the bottom- the journey still winded them both, however.

Marquis, on impulse, leaned in and kissed Kap passionately for a quick second. "I love you," he said then fiercely, over the rain and winds.

"I love you too," Kap replied back, dripping yet determined, eyes on fire. "Let's do this."

Marquis took a deep breath, steeling himself. "Okay- you go that way," he said to Kap then, "and I'll go this way."

The two split off in different directions, beginning the search for any survivors. Down under the trees, even though it was closer to midnight than to sunset, it was a bit easier to see; the treetops were slowing down the driving rains dramatically, and the winds were also muted down here. Now and then a searchlight from above cast a glowing arc through the night gloom, and that's how Kap saw the glint of light in the gravel near the water's edge.

He went over to see sparkled in the gloom- and he bent down, picking the object up. His eyes widened. "YO, KEY!!!" he shouted into the trees.

Marquis appeared seconds later. "Did you find them...?" he asked hesitantly.

Kap wordlessly cupped his hand, letting Marquis see what he was holding. Marquis started- and then his eyes suddenly reddened again. "Where did you get this," he asked somberly.

"By the water's edge," Kap said; “in the mud.”

Marquis stared for the longest time into the dark lake, which rippled and stirred under the attack of the thunderstorm. Then he looked over at Kap, his eyes lifeless. "Let's go back up," Marquis said in a dormant tone; "and let 'em know that both my fathers... are dead."