Precious Stones

by Darrien Lee

  Ramsey’s phone rang again just as he was checking to make sure the hitch attached to the back of his truck was secure before hitting the road.

  “Hello?”

  “Ramsey, it’s T.K. Rockwell—”

  Ramsey cut him off, saying, “Mr. Rockwell, now is not a good time for me. What happened between Andria and my wife at the police station was unfortunate but warranted. If you ask me, she deserves everything that’s happened to her.”

  “I know you’re upset, and you have a right to be, but she’s my daughter and at one point I thought you loved her,” T.K. replied.

  “Mr. Rockwell, I did care about Andria until she started acting erratically. She has a hard time accepting the word no, and she vandalized my car, not to mention that I’m aware she’s a primary suspect in my daughter’s kidnapping. Now, if you and Andria would do me a favor and leave me and my family alone, I would appreciate it.”

  “Too late,” he replied. “She’s already been arrested, and she’s asking to see you.”

  Ramsey walked down their long driveway as he continued to talk to a man he honestly admired. At the end of the driveway he checked his mailbox and found a small brown package inside, as well as some other mail.

  “T.K., I want you to listen to me and listen good. I understand how you feel about Andria. She’s your daughter, and like most fathers, you do what you have to do to save her, just like I’m going to do what I have to do to save mine. If Andria’s been arrested, I say it’s about time. She took my daughter, goddamn it! What about that don’t you understand?”

  “That hasn’t been proven yet,” T.K. replied. “Please, Ramsey. I promised my daughter I would call you.”

  “And you have. Andria has some issues that I can’t help her with. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t call me again,” he urged.

  Don’t you think you deserve to hear Andria’s side of the story before you pass judgment on her?”

  “I could care less what her side is. I’m sure everything will come out at her trial. Good-bye, T.K.,” Ramsey said before hanging up the telephone.

  “Are you ready to hit the road, babe?” Keilah asked as she brought Neariah out into the driveway with her favorite doll.

  Ramsey leaned against the truck without answering.

  “Babe? What’s wrong? You don’t look so good.”

  He handed his wife the mail and leaned down and picked up his daughter. “The police arrested Andria.”

  “Don’t tell me you’re surprised.”

  “I’m not. I’m pissed. T.K. just called me, trying to get me to go see her to hear her side of the story. He sounded like he doesn’t believe she had anything to do with the kidnapping.”

  Keilah opened the back door to the truck and put Neariah’s doll and the mail on the seat. “He’s her father. What is he supposed to do? I hope you’re not thinking about going.”

  “No,” he answered as he handed Neariah over to his wife. “It’s cold out here. Put Neariah in her car seat while I check the house one more time and set the alarm.”

  “Do you want me to go ahead and put Target in too?” she asked.

  “No, I’ll take him with me.”

  Keilah securely buckled Neariah in her seat and climbed in the front seat to wait for her husband. She couldn’t wait to get to Florida to relax and visit with her sister-in-law and brother- in-law. Once they settled in, after a few weeks, she hoped that Kyle and Tori would come down for a visit. It would be a great for Tori in terms of rehab, and it would do Kyle some good to unwind as well. He hardly ever took a vacation, and this might be the perfect situation to make him take one.

  “We’re all set,” Ramsey said as he opened the hatch so Target could climb inside the truck. Once Ramsey climbed in the driver’s seat, he leaned over to his wife and gave her a firm kiss on the lips. “This is going to be great. I love you, woman.”

  She giggled and said, “I love you too, man.”

  He put the vehicle in drive and pulled down the driveway, out of their gate, and onto the road.

  “Did you call the security company and let them know Malachi and Genesis were going to be living here for a while?” she asked as she checked her lipstick in the mirror.

  “Yeah, I told them they should be here sometime between five and six this evening.”

  “Daddy!” Neariah called out to him.

  He looked in the rearview mirror, and with a smile on his face, he answered, “Hey, baby. Daddy sees you back there.”

  Keilah glanced back at her daughter and then over at her husband and said, “You have her spoiled rotten.”

  “She’s a daddy’s girl, and I love every minute of it.”

  Keilah took a sip of coffee and said, “I can’t wait until we get to Florida. We’ll have to go grocery shopping as soon as we get there.”

  “That’s already been taken care of,” he revealed. “We have a caretaker for the property, and I sent a grocery list, as well as a list of other things we need to make that home feel like the one here.”

  She caressed his arm and said, “I see you have taken care of everything.”

  “You got that right. All we have to do is unpack.”

  “I love it when you take charge, Stone.”

  He chuckled and said, “You’re a trip.”

  “We’re spending the night in Charleston, right?” she asked.

  “Yeah, it’s the Palm Paradise Hotel on the coast so you can start enjoying the sound of the ocean. I sent the family our itinerary so they can keep track of us while we’re traveling.”

  “Good. I’ll check in with them from time to time so they won’t blow up our phone.”

  Ramsey pulled out onto I-95 and headed south toward the coast. Four hours into the trip, he stopped so he could walk Target and Keilah could change Neariah’s diaper. They also took this time to check in with family members and stretch their legs. After the brief stop they continued their journey, arriving in Isle of Palms, South Carolina, a little after dark. After quickly checking in and following the bellhop to the room th they were looking forward to a nice dinner and a warm bath. The view of the Atlantic Ocean from their hotel balcony was breathtaking, and it made Keilah long for the sandy beaches of Florida. She couldn’t wait to get there.

  After dinner in the hotel’s restaurant the family returned to their room, where the couple unwound by playing with their daughter for a while before getting her ready for bed. While Keilah ran Neariah’s bath, Ramsey put his jacket on and prepared to go downstairs get Neariah’s playpen, which would act as her bed for the night.

  Keilah laid Neariah’s pajamas, lotion, and other baby items on the bed. She turned to her husband and asked, “Are you going to go ahead and walk Target while you’re out?”

  Target stood upon hearing his name and started wagging his tail. Ramsey patted him on the head and said, “No, I’ll take him after I bring the playpen up.”

  “Okay. Make sure you have your key, because we’ll be in the bathroom.”

  He kissed Neariah on her bare stomach, causing her to giggle. “Be back in a second, baby girl.”

  Neariah’s eyes followed her dad across the room until he disappeared out the door.

  Downstairs Ramsey opened the hatch and slid the baby’s playpen from in between a couple of suitcases. He closed the hatch and made sure their belongings were securely locked. He returned to the room just as Keilah was bringing his wet daughter out of the bathroom.

  “Daddy!” she called out to him.

  He tickled her foot before setting up the playpen, padding it with blankets so his daughter would be as comfortable as possible.

  Keilah laid the baby on the bed and started drying her off. Target started whining at the door.

  “I don’t think Target can wait any longer,” Keilah observed.

  Ramsey picked up his leash and said, “Come on, Target. Babe, do you need anything else while I’m out?”

  She yawned and said, “Just you.”

  He chuc
kled and said, “You’ll probably be asleep by the time I get back.”

  “No, I won’t,” she said as she removed a pile of mail from her purse, which she had no time to open at home and started going through it. “I’ll wait until you get back before I take my shower. Hurry back.”

  He opened the door and said, “I will.”

  It was a cold night, and being on the water made it feel even colder. He hoped Target would take care of business quickly so he could get back to their warm room. They walked along the property line of the hotel and enjoyed the sound of the ocean waves. The air smelled so clean and felt so crisp. Once his loyal pet was finished doing his business, he continued to sniff around as if he was tracking. He allowed Target to sniff around a little more, until a big gust of cold ocean air blew in his face.

  “Target, it’s cold out here. Let’s go.”

  Upon hearing his name, he dog started barking and jumping to try to get his owner to play.

  “It’s too cold out here to play,” he said as he began to walk back toward the hotel. They returned to the truck so he could get Neariah’s doll off the backseat.

  Seconds later Target stood still and began to growl.

  “What’s wrong, boy?”

  The hair on Target’s neck was up, and he continued to growl and bark viciously.

  Ramsey closed the door to the truck and looked around the parking lot to see what could have Target in defensive mode. He pulled his Glock handgun out of his pocket and unhooked Target’s leash. The dog was trained to attack on command, and if there was someone lurking around the parked vehicles, he wanted to make sure Target wasn’t restrained if the need arose. Ramsey peeped around the side of his truck; he didn’t see anyone, but Target did, so he had to move with caution. He turned to check the other side of the vehicle, and that was when Target lunged at someone in the shadows. It was hard for Ramsey to make out who it was, and he didn’t want to shoot his own dog. He saw a flash of light, and then he heard Target whimper and fall to the pavement.

  “Target!” he yelled as he aimed his gun at the dark figure and fired causing him or her to fall to the ground. As Ramsey knelt down to check on Target, the figure on the ground rose out of nowhere. Ramsey was hit by the strong electrical charge of a Taser. Ramsey fought to get up on his feet, but the Taser was too much for him and he fell to the ground. The figure walked over to him and kicked the gun out of arm’s reach and then leaned down into his face.

  “Good shot, Stone, but I was expecting you to use deadly force.”

  Ramsey couldn’t believe his eyes when he looked up into Trenton’s eyes.

  “You son of a bitch,” Ramsey mumbled.

  Trenton laughed. “It doesn’t feel so good when someone blindsides you, huh?” He opened his jacket and showed Ramsey the bulletproof vest he was wearing.

  Ramsey was paralyzed and knew that he was in extreme danger as Trenton rifled through his pockets and stole his hotel key. When he stood, he kicked Ramsey hard in the ribs and then said, “Now, this is what is going to happen. I’m going to take this doll up to your daughter, and once that fine-ass wife of yours puts the baby to bed, I’m going to make love to her whether she wants to or not. Oh, and speaking of your daughter, she’s really sweet and was a good girl when we spent our little time together, even though she did cry a lot.”

  Ramsey’s eyes widened upon hearing that revelation. He was sure Andria was behind the kidnapping. Now to find out Trenton was the kidnapper enraged him even more, but there was nothing he could do about it at the moment.

  “Yeah, it was me. I had your daughter, and I set your old girl up for it,” he said before laughing. “It doesn’t look good for Andria, either. I heard on the news that she’s been arrested, so it looks like she’s going to be locked up for a while because of it too. That bougie bitch never liked me, and I didn’t like her fake ass, either. She deserves to have her ass broke down a level or two. Jail is just what she needs. Besides, I had to let you know that you couldn’t get away with jumping me.” He picked up Ramsey’s gun and aimed it at him.

  “Too bad you’re going to commit suicide tonight and make Keilah a widow. She’s going to need consoling, and I’ll be there for her, just like I used to be. After tonight you won’t be jacking anybody else in the bathroom and that little girl of yours will be calling me Daddy for the rest of her life.”

  Ramsey fought with all his might to regain feeling in his body, but he was unsuccessful. Trenton placed his hand on the trigger, and the sound of the gunshot was deafening, causing Target to whine.

  “You son of a bitch! Get away from my husband!” Keilah yelled as she pulled the trigger again, this time hitting Trenton in the head. He was dead before his body hit the pavement.

  Keilah ran over to make sure the assailant was disabled, and when she looked down, she gasped when she saw that Trenton was the person who had been standing over her husband. She immediately dropped to the ground and tended to Ramsey, assuming that he had been shot.

  “Baby, are you hit?” she asked as she caressed his face. She pulled out her cell and called 911 just as an employee at the hotel ran out after hearing the gunshots.

  “Ma’am, are you injured?” he asked frantically.

  “No, but my husband is, and so is my dog. Please, have someone check on my daughter. She’s one year old, and she’s upstairs sleeping in room four-twenty-four.”

  The employee called someone in the hotel on his two-way radio, alerted them to what was going on, and requested that they send someone to the Stones’ room to check on their baby.

  “Ramsey, paramedics are on the way. Stay with me, babe,” Keilah said in a soothing voice as she checked his body for a bullet wound.

  Another hotel employee came outside with blankets for Ramsey, his dog, and Trenton. He covered Ramsey with the blanket and asked the other hotel employee, “What happened?”

  “I don’t know. It looks like a possible robbery, but I’m not sure,” he answered.

  Seconds later, three police cars and a couple of medical vans pulled into the parking lot with lights and sirens blasting. The paramedics examined Trenton and determined that he was deceased, so they covered his body completely with the blanket. Keilah stood as the paramedics examined her husband.

  She turned to one of the hotel employees and asked, “Did someone check on my baby?”

  “Yes, our female desk clerk is with her now.”

  “Could you get her to wrap her in a blanket and bring her down? I’ll also need my purse so I can go to the hospital with my husband.”

  “Don’t worry. We’ll take care of it.”

  A police officer approached Keilah, who was shivering in the elements, dressed only in sweatpants and a T-shirt. The officer asked her the usual questions, and then he began to ask her about the events that led up the shooting. She explained to the officer that Ramsey had gone out to walk their dog but hadn’t returned. She had gotten an uneasy feeling and decided to come down to check on him and found the man, who she now realized was Trenton, standing over him with a gun. Had she been a moment longer, it would’ve been Ramsey’s dead body lying on the cold pavement instead of Trenton’s.

  The coroner examined Trenton’s body and relayed to the police that he had on a bulletproof vest and had a stun gun and a nine-millimeter in his jacket pocket.

  “Ma’am, do you know this man?” the officer asked.

  With tears in her eyes she admitted that Trenton was her ex-fiancé and that she’d had a couple of altercations with him in recent months. The paramedics put Ramsey on a stretcher, while one of the police officers put Target in the backseat of his car.

  “Mrs. Stone, we’re going to take your husband to the hospital to have him checked out. It appears that he was hit with the stun gun and not shot. He should be fine in a little while, but we want to make sure.”

  The hotel clerk brought a wide-eyed Neariah to her mother. She also brought Keilah her purse and her warm jacket.

  “What about my dog?” she asked
the police officer.

  “It looks like he was hit with the stun gun too. I’m going to take him by the vet’s office to make sure he’s okay. What’s his name?”

  “His name is Target.”

  Before climbing into the back of the medical van, she walked over to the police car and stroked Target’s thick fur to calm him.

  “I’ll be back to get you, boy. I have to go see about Daddy first.”

  The police officer closed the door to the police car and said, “I’ll make sure he’s taken care. Homicide detectives will go over to the hospital with you to further question you about everything that led up to tonight.”

  “Contact this detective in D.C. He can tell you everything,” she said as she handed the detectives the business card belonging to one of the D.C. detectives before they all climbed in the back of the medical van.

  Chapter Thirty

  By the time the medical van carrying Ramsey arrived at the hospital, he had regained control of his body and mind. Keilah held his hand as the paramedic checked his vital signs.

  “Mr. Stone, can you tell me what happened in the parking lot?” one of the detectives asked.

  “It happened so fast. My dog started growling, so I knew he sensed somebody close, but I couldn’t see anything. Target, my dog, is highly trained. He attacked the person, and that’s when he was shot,” Ramsey reported.

  Keilah rubbed Ramsey’s arm and said, “Target’s going to be okay, babe. It was a stun gun, not a gun.”

  Ramsey closed his eyes, totally relieved that his loyal pet was not severely injured.

  “Go on, Mr. Stone,” the detective urged him as he jotted down the information.

  Ramsey took a breath and said, “After my dog fell to the ground, I shot the attacker and he fell. When I leaned down to check on my dog, I guess that’s when I got hit. I remember him telling me he had set up my ex-girlfriend for my daughter’s kidnapping and he was the one who had taken her. After that, I remember staring down the barrel of the gun and not being able to do anything to defend myself. He said he was going to kill me and rape my wife. When I heard a gunshot, I thought I was dead.”