In the back seat of an Uber. We drive down the promenade to a Casino popular to many college kids and vacationing guests. Ray and I rarely spoke during the car ride, but as we got closer my stomach tightened. I put my hand on hers and said, "Ray, promise me something." I said. For the first time, she looked scared, fearful of the outcome, but I knew she was strong, she was ruthless. "Promise me, that we both walk out alive, and go back to California." She laughed, as if this were unbelievable. "And what happens when we get back to California, Bruno?" She asked me with a soft toned voice. "I give you a life that you've been searching for. A life of peace and happiness." Her grip on my hand tightened. "Okay." Was all she said, following with a kiss on my cheek.
The car came to a halt, and we had finally arrived to the casino, brightly lighting up the street facing the beach. When we exited the car, two large men, Dragonboy and Anchorman led us inside taking us a location inside the building where customers were prohibited. We entered a side door with a stair case leading us to the basement of the casino where we were exposed to a completely new world. So much temptation ran through my veins to get revenge on them for what they did to me. I felt like a new man after that event. I felt more powerful walking inside this building than ever before, but I'd be lying if wasn't scared.
"Ray!" From a distance, Manuel called her. He trotted over to her, hugging her, appearing happy to see her, but as he hugged her, his eyes met with mine. The eye contact was not genuine and I didn't trust it. He let go of Ray, and said, "So this parlay? You're really going to do this?" He asked. "Sure, why not?" She shrugged her shoulders.
Manny led us down a short hallway, into an open room, where we saw Xavier. I grabbed Ray's hand, stopping her from anything she may have wanted to do. "Ahhh, our two stars have finally arrived. Come, come sit. Can I offer you some water? Some of our finest liquor?" He asked. "No." I answer, however Ray refused to say anything. We took a seat, where Xavier's body guards surrounded us at a distance. Manny stood off to the side, but the side he chose in this entire scenario, is what confused me. He urged me to come here with Ray, but he never gave any reason why he couldn't come. Now suddenly when Ray finally comes face to face with the killer of her husband and baby, he's here.
"You two look great! But let's leave the compliments to the end." He placed some paper work on the table, and explained what it was. "This is our treaty. Our truce. We are not to fight and we will live our lives, both in peace and harmony, and not in blood. You, Ray, will keep your earnings and will continue to receive 10% of the trade that is earned monthly." Xavier said. "That's a pretty good deal." Ray nodded her head. "But that can't replace the lives you took. The ones you took away from me!" She swiped the paperwork off the table and interlocked her fingers together, leaning forward. "You're going to have to give me more than what you're offering." She said softly
"Repaying you in blood and death, is not apart of the deal, Ray." He leaned back, lounging in his chair. She mocked him and leaned back in her chair. She slowly reached for her weapon in her holster, sitting on her hip. "Well then what's the point of this parlay?"
A gun cocked back and when I followed the sound, Manuel had a gun pointed at the back of Ray's head. "Manuel! What the fuck?" I say to him, standing to my feet. He then pointed the gun to me, sweating from his brow. "I will shoot the fuck out of you, don't try it." He sternly said to me. "Just don't hurt her." I said.
I couldn't possibly comprehend why he was doing this, let alone to his own sister. He pistol whipped her in the head, knocking Ray to the ground. "MANUEL!" I shout. I couldn't tell if Ray had been knocked unconscious, shocked at being hit so hard, or who knows, both. Manny stepped away from her and over to Xavier. I slid to Ray's side, who was bleeding from the side of her head where she was hit. "Ray, baby, are you okay?" I held her hand. Her eyes danced under her eyelids, and I looked up to the two men, who were responsible for this fiasco.
Ray regained consciousness and strength, where she was able to sit up on her own. "Why?" I asked. "Why are you doing this to her? That's your fucking sister!" I shouted at Manny. "Fuck siblings" He said. Manuel put his hand on Xavier's shoulder and rubbed it. He gave off a vibe I didn't want to assume until he admitted, "Love can really fuck up someone's life, but sometimes, love can really bring two broken pieces together and mend them into something spectacular." Xavier kissed Manuel's hand.
Ray stood to her feet, "Manuel...you fell in love with the murderer of your brother in law? Of your niece!?" Manuel shrugged his shoulders as if he had no definite answer. However, Manuel then dropped his head, and slowly walked over to Ray. "When you found out you were pregnant with Penelope and announced that you were going to leave, you promised to give me the role you had. To run this business. Turns out, you promised Xavier the same thing, but you took us for fools, and not only left it up to Brian while you were tending to that rat you call a child, you two decided to give it to Joel." He got close to Ray, where his lip was practically on her ear. "WHERE IS JOEL, RAY?" He screamed. Ray tried not to flinch at his shouting, she shed a tear or two at the thought. "We weren't going to be made fools, not by you, Ray. We are taking back our power." Manny grabbed Ray by the arm, and that's when everything began.
Ray, wrapped her leg around Manny's, taking him off balance, and pulling him to the ground. The other guards around prepared to tackle Ray, but Xavier stopped them. "Let the children play."
Manny was punching Ray terribly, and I know she didn't want me to interject in this, especially since it was her brother. However, I promised that I would give her a life she'd been wanting. A life she needed to live. She deserved better than this. I only had one shot at this. I had to make this count.
Under my shirt, tucked under my pants, I kept one of the handguns that belonged to Ray. I wasn't sure if she realized I took it, but I was fearful it would get to this point. I pulled the gun out, and opened fire. My hand shook terribly, but I had hit my target.
Manuel fell off of Ray, who looked at me in shock. She remained speechless at the sight we all just witnessed. I shot someone, and now they were dying. Xavier, calmly stood up, and walked over to Manuel and squatted beside him. Manuel laid on the floor, sweating and bleeding profusely. "Xave..." He said out of breath. "You rode one hell of a ride, Manuel. I guess it stops here." Xavier stood up and cleared his throat and then shot and killed Manuel. Ray had no emotion on her face, nor did anyone in the room. I was still in awe that I opened fire on someone. Evil or not.
"Is this the parlay you wanted?!" Xavier shouted. "This is MY business now! You don't get to make the rules, anymore Ray! Kill them both!" He waved his hand in the air, and about five security came at Ray and I.
I had to fight for my life, and Ray had to fight for hers, but we knew, mentally we were fighting for each other. Ray pulled out two guns and without hesitation, and began firing. I had to be just as quick, or quicker, and I opened fire as well, I shot about two of them to the ground, before hiding behind a pillar to take cover. Ray came behind the same pillar and reloaded. She gave me another case and refilled my gun as well. As the men were shooting towards the pillar, I looked her in the eyes and knew we were going to walk out of here alive. Ray kisses me on the lip, which were salty from the sweat and tears that fell from her face.
"Let's finish this." She said. "Let's do it." Once the men stopped firing, at which we assumed they were reloading, we blasted through them, killing them, and finishing off the ones who weren't dead. The only one left was Xavier, but I left that duty to Ray. Killing Xavier would take a toll on me heavily. We go back so far and to kill a friend who was definitely not a friend now, is still hard.
"Okay, okay! Let's make a deal." Xavier put his hands up. Ray walked heavily towards Xavier. "Fuck your deal." She drew her gun and just as she was going to pull the trigger, I noticed Xavier reaching for his weapon. "NO!" I shout.
Two gun shots went off. I know my gun went off, because that feeling of pulling the trigger is cumbersome. I looked over at Xavier and he was bleeding from the chest. He fell to the ground, and he died. I went over to Ray and hugged her, "We did it babe. We did it. We can go home." My belly felt warm, perhaps it was from the butterflies that fluttered in my stomach, knowing what my life would be like after this, but that warmth was wet, and instantly became cold. I looked down, my shirt was bloodied. The second shot came from Xavier.
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Ray's body became limp, and her weight drug me down to the ground. She was mute, but she was conscious. I lifted up her shirt and she was shot in the abdomen.
"Ray, no, no, no, no." I panicked. "Don't worry, I'm going to get you out of here." I said. "No." She held her abdomen in pain. "Thank you, for everything." She said breathy. "Ray, you're not going anywhere, I'm going to take you home, and you're going to live a life you deserve. I'm going to give you that, remember?" The tears fell from my eyes. I held onto her so tight, and nothing could convince me to let her go. "I am going home." She said. "I'm going home to Brian and Penelope. We're going to be together again." A tear was rolling down her eye.
"You are a great man." She added. "And I know you would have loved me, just as much as I would have love you." She grunted again to the pain. "But my life was not meant for you. You deserve better." Her eyes were becoming heavy, and she was departing. "Ray, please don't leave. Don't leave me." She gave me that little smile she'd give me once and a while. "Raylene." She said. "...is my name. Raylene Marcia Barnes."
With the little strength she had left, she put her bloodied hand on my cheek. "I love you, Raylene Marcia Barnes." Her eyes closed, but before her soul left her body, she formed the words "I love you." And she was gone.
I curled her body in my arms and carried her out of this death chamber we walked into. When I walked outside, the sun had already set behind the horizon, and all I could see was it's glow. Endless tears, fell from my eyes, blaming myself that she could have lived. She could have lived to see another day. She died a with broken heart, a broken soul, but a strong mind. Her cold dead body, limped in my arms and I refused to let her go, until help arrived.
Everyone in that room was dead but me, but I felt dead because I lost her.
I lost Raylene Marcia Barnes.