Kingston Hines

                I sat in my parked car watching as they cleaned up the debris from the accident. It was the only thing I was able to do being as the police had threatened to arrest me if I tried to step within inches of the crime scene. No matter how hard I begged and pleaded, they weren't having it; the only compromise available was me shutting my mouth and sitting off to the side and waiting.

During the time, I spoke to a few people from forensics, a man from the coroner's office and another man from the clean up crew. I had offered them money, asked them to look out for things that could verify whether it was Shai or not, I did everything. The result however was having them tell me the same thing, "We are unable to speak much on the situation that transpired. But what we will say is to keep in touch with your local morgue that way once the investigation is completed; you'll be able to identify the body." It was brutal, I hated hearing the words, but worst of all; I hated seeing the look in their eyes when I explained who she was. Nonetheless, I still held on... I couldn't let go of Shai. Especially, not like this.

When I heard about the accident, I thought maybe just maybe I'd be able to come and perform a miracle. It was something all Doctors believed they could do, especially when it involved someone they cared deeply about. I thought maybe my mom was lying, maybe Oshane didn't know what it was talking about... maybe, it wasn't her after all. But above all maybes laid the reality, something I wasn't ready to accept.

With the amount of oil and fuel alongside the heat from the car, what I expected to be a normal accident was nothing close. I could still smell the smoke in my nostrils from the moment I arrived on scene. First responders had already been there alongside many bystanders and Oshane of course. Aside from the obvious debris of a fire, there were three plastic tarps covering what I knew were bodies. Oshane and a few of the bystanders from the homes nearby, explained to me that both cars were found on fire. Some of them described horrid screams, some of them stated that they tried to help even but the fire was too much.

The first responders made it clear that when they got there, they were able to swiftly tackle the fire, they proceeded with getting whatever was left of each victim out of both vehicles but despite their many attempts; it was far too late. Three out of the four were pronounced dead at the scene and they were so adamant that Shai was one of them.

I heard what they were saying and I knew if anyone was to have very secure information, it would be Oshane alongside the witnesses. But, I just... couldn't take their word for it. Instead of listening and going home to weep like others, I stayed and I watched even when it hurt... I still couldn't find it in me to leave.

The entire road had been closed off and with the amount of damage before me; I wasn't surprised. I sat out here until the sun came up and now even as they were well into the afternoon; clean up was no where close to being finished. The coroners alongside investigators came, took notes, took pictures, got the bodies into trucks and drove off before giving the crew the go-ahead to clean up the scene.

I assessed that from what was left of the vehicles and made up many strategies in my head. I knew there more than likely was no chance she would've gotten out in time. If she did, she wouldn't have even been able to get far. There was far too much damage done to even have an ounce of hope. Yet... I still did.

I watched every moment as close as I possibly could and waited until the last drop off dust was swept up before I finally started my car. Marley who had fallen asleep in the passenger seat next to me stirred a bit from the sudden movement after hours of us being idle. My phone rang as if on cue and I looked down to see my mother's number on the phone, my jaw clenched and I took a moment to process the call before finally picking it up.

"What's up?"

"Hey baby, your father and I are on our way back over to you. We just made sure the others were taken care of. Zuri is finally asleep, Jade and Omari have volunteered to go down to the morgue once the investigation is completed." I knew my mom so well that I could hear the obvious exhaustion in her tone.

"I should be making my way back now, so no need. I can meet you at the house."

"This one or ours?"

"Ours..." I sighed into the phone, "her stuff is still there."

"Alright, sounds good. We can meet you there, hun."

"Did you get any news?" I inquired, while staring out at the now cleaned up area before me. The crew had now started to remove the caution tape.

"News about?"

"The accident... Shai, what's the update."

"The same as before baby boy. I know it's hard to accept but she's go-."

"And how are they so sure?" I asked.

"Well, I did speak with some of the investigators while on scene this morning. Just like you, as determined by first glance, Shai was one of the four victims. The only survivor was male and from his build; it's clear that it isn't Jaxon."

"Yeah, but how? I sat here all day and watched every moment of the clean-up. Yes, they had bodies but how do they know it's her? It could've been anyone. How could they be so quick to tell you that she's dead. Wouldn't it make more sense to assume and hope that she maybe will show up some way, some how?"

"Kingston, sweetie... they know it's Shai."

"They said one female, two males. What if there was a female in the pickup truck?"

"They removed a female and male from one of the vehicles, two males from the other. Not to mention the fact that the company which owns the pick-up truck involved identified the passengers as employees."

"That's just words ma, we won't know until we see her."

"I know you are in denial right now, but... It was Shai, son."

"Mom. How are you so sure?! You were here for an hour this morning and the investigators told you the same shit they've been telling me all day. I was expecting you to have something more substantial, more believable, something I could understand."

"Kingston, honey. You saw the cars, you saw the after math, you saw the body bags."

"Yeah but I didn't see her! I need to be able to see her!"

"And we can make that happen. Once the investigation is complete, we will be able to go down to the morgue with Jade and Omari to identify her."

"She's not going to be in the morgue because it wasn't her." I shook my head, "I just know in my soul that it wasn't her. Shai can't die, not before she gets her peace, not before she rises above this. It isn't fair."

"I'm sorry Kingston... I know this is really hard for you. We're all having a hard time understanding it too, it's a lot. However, we won't know much until everything is complete. For now, I think it's best that you understand she is gone... seeing her is only going to make it worse once the time comes."

"Why didn't you know, right away?" I said aloud, the thought that had been circulating in my head all throughout the day. "You're usually so quick to do things, so quick to know things, so quick to make sure things are handled. How did you not know that Jaxon was in on it?"

"I... I... I missed a step," she answered, "I was rusty being as I hadn't been in the game for a while."

"And how did you find out?"

"Ray... his phone along with his laptop is tapped. That's how we knew he was looking for a flight, that's the only way we'll be able to know his next move. He received a phone call... from Jaxon."

"What did the call entail?"

"Kingston, I think it's better you come home and we discuss logistics. You and I know how I feel about phones..."

"I need to know mom, what did the call entail."

"Uh, it was something about the money... Jaxon being in need of it or something. He notified Ray to take another route and land in Kingston in order to get here, they had planned to meet up elsewhere; so that it would throw us off of our original plan for him. Once I got the news, that's when I came out to tell you."

"Do you know where they planned to meet?"

"No, not yet... I'm assuming he never sent the message yet."

I ran my hand down the side of my face and sighed, "I know you don't want me getting involved but I need you to understand. Until I find Shai, I gotta be apart of this. It's only right."

"Kingston... we have got it handled on all sides."

"I can't manage to lose this opportunity. What happens if you miss a step again?"

"I will not miss a step! Like I said, I have made sure that it's handled on all sides, from the plane ride up until his landing. I've called in a resource or t-."

"Mom, I'm not asking you at this point. I'm telling you... I need to do this and I need to know how you plan on working around it. Isn't he set to be here today?"

"Yes... yes he is."

"Alright, when I come home, we will discuss everything. Regardless of how you feel about it, I need you to know that I am doing this."

"Your dad doesn't want you guys to g-."

"My dad should've known better when he married a woman who worked for the secret service." I spat out, "this is your life! We've accepted it, come to terms with it. I'm not a little kid anymore, you don't have to hide who you are or what you do from me. I get it, I know the drill, I've always kept it within the family. I'm not planning on letting it out anytime soon... I just need, to be apart of this mom. Please."

"... Fine." She sighed, "When you get home, we will discuss the plan."

"Alright ma, see you soon." I hung up and placed my phone back down. Just as I was set to check my mirror so I could drive off, I heard a loud knock on my window which caused both Marley and I to jump.

"What the h-." Marley groaned, squinting as the sun hit his eyes.

I looked out the window to see one of the men from the clean up crew. It wasn't the main one I had spoken to before, I glanced down at his name tag before slowly lowering my window.

"Didn't mean to startle you or anything, but you've been here all day. Eh?"

"Yeah... I have." I looked around and noticed the other workers getting into their vehicles.

"I caught wind from one of the other guys that you guys are Serena and Nasir's kids."

"Yeah." My brow lowered, "We are."

"Serena and Nasir have done a lot for our community, so out here you guys are truly respected. We're grateful for everything you do."

"As my mom would say, 'to God be the Glory'."

"My daughter, she won one of your family's scholarships. It sent her all the way through medical school."

"Oh wow, well congratulations to her." I tried my best to keep it cordial but truth be told, I was not in the mood to have no small conversation. I'm sure he knew that, so I was unsure as to why he continued.

I watched as the man peered over his shoulder for a moment before leaning in, "they're saying this death may have been intentional. Ruling it as either a homicide or suicide causing harm to others. They sent the body off to a pathologist in order to get a better view on whether alcohol was apart of the cause. Meaning it might take a while before actually getting to the morgue. Now, I don't usually do this but I can sense that you're going through a lot trying to hold on. I've been in your position before, so I want to help."

"Wow... I'd really appreciate that."

"It's the least I could do. I was there on that scene and I figured I may be able to identify whoever it is you're out here waiting for... the bodies are in pretty bad condition due to the fire but the first responders got here in good enough time to salvage a good amount of their identity."

"It's the female, that they're claiming was in the car. The facts point to her but I'm having a hard time actually accepting it. I know it looks like it was impossible but apart of me wants to believe that she made it out in time."

"Of course, well I'll give you a description based on what I saw and you tell me if it was her."

"Yes please.

"My apologies if my recount is a bit troubling, I can only go off of what I saw."

"Anything helps at this point."

"Maybe we should wait, until we see her in the morgue." Marley touched my shoulder to say. I snapped around giving him a look so dirty that he had no choice but to remove it. "I'm just saying, it would be a wise decision."

"She isn't going to be in the morgue because it isn't her." I said through gritted teeth before turning around to face the man, "My apologies, please continue."

"Alright well the description is; young female, assumed to be in her mid twenties, small build, short in stature... Uh... the burns were pretty bad, but I'd did see fragments of denim not sure if it was jeans or pants. There was a slipper found not too far from the scene, sandals." My eye twitched, "definitely African American, I know that for sure. Ummm..." he scratched his head, "sorry burn victims are always hard to determine. There just was a lot of damage done." He held his head down, "I'm sorry, I think that's all I got. Not sure if it's much, but it's all I can really remember."

"That's fine. I appreciate you for trying to help in the first place it really means a lot."

"Does it sound like your girl?"

"Kind of, but then again it's so broad that it could be anyone."

"You're right. Well, I do hope it works out fo-. WAIT!" his eyes widened and he pointed at me, "my co-worker mentioned something about a tattoo." He placed his hand on his shoulder, "around this area, parts of it were burnt off but he said he swears he saw the head of a snake."

"A snake?"

"Yeah, a snake! I'm sure of it."

"Oh... uh... wow." I cleared my throat, and gave him a nod. "Well, once again. Thank you."

"Hope that helped!"

"Yeah... it isn't my girl but still... I appreciate it."

"Wow, well then there is hope. My prayers are with you and the family, I wish you all the best."

"You as well boss, thanks a lot." I reached out and dapped him up before raising my window back up.

I waited for him to walk away and get back into his car before I turned to look at Marley who had tears running down his face. "I'm sorry bro." he said while placing his hand back on my shoulder and giving it a squeeze. "I'm so sorry."

My hands tightened around the steering wheel as I looked out through the windshield. The roads were now open and cars now drove along it like it was nothing. The spot that once held fragments of the crash was cleared and back to normal. If it weren't for the fact that I had been here the entire time, I wouldn't have even known that anything had taken place.

The thought that what everyone was saying was true, the fact that she was laying under one of those body bags, the fact that she died... here alone; it all started to hit me. My chest began to tighten and I couldn't hold back the tears any longer. There was nothing left to hold onto, the facts were right before me... she was indeed gone.

"I told her not to leave!" I sobbed as my brother pulled me into his arms. "I don't understand, why did she have to leave!"

Ray Wentz

"Why did she have to leave!" I groaned to myself while taking up my bag from where I sat, after finally hearing my gate number after an hour delay. "I should've just made her ass stay in Texas."

One thing I realized was how much I hated travelling. The process was a headache, I hated all the unnecessary checks, the intimidating security along with their disgusting looking search dogs, everything! I just hated it all. I was proud of the fact that I had downloaded just enough movies because the waiting game was something I wasn't used to. Especially in a case like this, after the week I had; I was so impatient and just wanted to get to Jamaica where I could fix things with Shai. I wanted to be able to end this whole ordeal the way it was meant to be ended. I wanted to set my sister free, I wanted us to be able to get out of this country together, where I could give her the life that I owed her all along. I wanted to get this thing over with but the fact of the matter was that I had no choice but to be patient. It wasn't a car drive away, but a plane ride that I could not avoid.

                Thankfully, I took a page out of my girlfriend's book. Shai was known for her advice on travelling effectively. She always told me that it was about having a great playlist, great movie downloads, snacks and most importantly wearing something comfortable. So, I did just that and for the most part; it was keeping my anxiety at bay. I was able to rock one of the many sweatsuits she had purchased for me over time, I downloaded her travel playlist from spotify and as mentioned; I had movies downloaded. The process of getting ready surprisingly, made me miss her more than I had expected.

Anyways, I followed the group and took the boarding pass out from my pocket. Once I got up to the hostess, they scanned it and wished me safe travels.

I boarded the plane and found my window seat with ease meanwhile the rest of travels buzzed around me trying to find theirs. I quickly loaded my things into the overhead compartment before sliding over into my seat. I made sure to take out my phone along with my headphone in order to make myself comfortable for the ride. It wasn't like I would be able to focus, but I needed to look as normal as possible; with a world so sensitive, seeming tense would give the attention that I definitely did not need.

                I adjusted my seat and watched and waited as the flight began to fill slowly but surely. I hadn't been on a flight in a while so it was amazing to see such variety. There were families, honeymooners, single people, groups of teenagers, elderly and so much more. The seats next to me and around me had remained empty for some reason which was strange but I didn't complain. I liked my space and figured I had lucked up... that was all the way up until the flight was pretty much filled, an older black man strolled on in; he placed his things where mine were before greeting me with a smile as he took the aisle seat next to me.

I looked down at my phone to see a brand-new text; sitting on the screen. Just the person I was dying to hear from after the silence that followed his phone call earlier this morning.

Jaxon: