A Trillion to One

by Chenell Parker

  “What the fuck did you do to my cousin?” Amore yelled as she held her stinging cheek. Dallas was out cold, but Amore knew that it wasn’t just a normal fall. Upon closer inspection, she saw that she was bleeding from some part of her head. She saw her chest rising and falling, so she knew that she wasn’t dead.

  “Be happy that the bitch is still alive. Well, for now she is,” Viper smirked.

  “What do you want Vaughn?” Amore asked, sounding braver than she felt.

  “Shit, at one point, I wanted you.” Viper shrugged as he pulled out his gun and held it to his side.

  He smirked when Amore backed up and rested her back against the wall. Viper loved to prey on the weak and he got off on people fearing him. He hated that Amore was never scared of anything so he used to threaten her with violence to try to keep her in line. Dallas stirred a little and her eyes fluttered until they opened. She looked around in confusion until her eyes landed on Amore.

  “I’m so sorry Amore. I didn’t do it. I swear, I didn’t want you to come over here,” Dallas cried as she hugged her cousin.

  “Nah, that was all me,” Viper said proudly as he held up Dallas’ phone.

  When the phone started ringing, he looked at the picture that popped up with the word ‘sister’ flashing across the screen. He would never forget that face for as long as he lived. It was the same woman who he fought with that last time when he was at Ciara’s house. He remembered Ciara telling him that she was friends with Amore’s cousin and it all made sense now. It also made sense why she reminded him of Amore when they fought.

  “Are you okay cousin?” Amore asked Dallas as they embraced.

  “Yeah.” Dallas nodded.

  “You always did love them more than you loved me,” Viper said.

  “You need to grow the fuck up Viper! You always do shit and try to play the victim. You tried your best to break me but I’m elastic baby. I might get bent out of shape but I can’t be broken,” Amore noted.

  “Tell that to these bullets that you’re about to eat. I guess I can add you to the list with Logan and the crack hoes who gave birth to y’all,” Viper replied as he raised his gun. He’d basically admitting to killing three people but he didn’t care. He didn’t plan to leave them alive to tell anyone else.

  “No, please. Shoot me,” Dallas begged as she tried to shield her cousin. Viper was standing there looking deranged, as Dallas buried her face into Amore’s chest and cried. He was furious when he looked over at Amore and she had a stupid looking smile on her face.

  “I don’t know what’s funny bitch but I’ve wasted enough time playing with you. I got shit to do and money to make,” Viper said as he took the safety off the gun and pointed it at her.

  C hanel was drained after her night of fun. All she wanted was a hot shower and a bed but she was restless. After the Lil Wayne concert, she and AJ went to the after party and had a blast. AJ was sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow and she just knew that she would be too. Chanell had been up for over twenty-four hours but she felt bad for not going to check on her sister. She knew that Amore had her but she wanted to be there too. When she pulled up to the apartment, she frowned when she saw Meadow getting out of her car too. Dallas was so damn dramatic. She called the whole family over because she was having a little back pain. She loved the free massages that Chanell and Amore gave her but they didn’t mind.

  “Hey,” Meadow spoke when Chanell walked over.

  “What’s up? Did Dallas call you too?” Chanell asked.

  “No. I dropped her off not too long ago. I went to the store and the gas station and just realized that she left her purse in my car. I’ve been trying to call her but she didn’t answer,” Meadow replied as they walked up to the house together.

  Chanell used her key to get in but she paused as soon as she did. She heard Amore’s raised voice but that wasn’t what had her pausing. When she called Viper’s name, Chanell already knew that something was wrong. Dallas started crying and begging him to shoot her and Chanell got nervous. Meadow looked at her in shock and Chanell put her finger to her lips, telling her big sister to be quiet. She was sorry that she didn’t have a gun but she would have to just improvise. One thing about it, Viper needed to make sure that he had enough bullets in his gun to kill them all.

  Chanell went behind the sofa and grabbed the aluminum baseball bat that her sister always kept there. She and Meadow crept down the hall silently until they got to the bedroom. Viper had his back to the door as Amore and Dallas sat on the floor hugging. Viper was talking mad shit as he trained his gun on them. Amore smiled when she saw her cousins standing there but Dallas was too busy crying. The smile on her face angered Viper but he didn’t get a chance to do anything about it. Chanell swung the bat with all her might and hit him in the head. The gun fell from Viper’s hand as his unconscious body hit the floor.

  “Oh shit! Is he dead?” Chanell asked as she dropped the bat in fear.

  “Are y’all okay?” Meadow asked as she rushed over to her sister and cousin. Dallas was bleeding but she was happy to be alive.

  “My head is banging but I’m okay,” Dallas replied as her sister helped her up. Amore just sat there, staring off into space.

  “The fuck happened Dallas. How did he get in here?” Chanell asked.

  “He must have been watching me. As soon as I walked inside, he came up behind me and hit me with something. He wanted me to get Amore over here but I said no,” Dallas cried.

  “Aww, don’t cry boo,” Meadow said as she hugged her. Dallas was shaking and she had every reason to be scared.

  “I thought I was going to die,” Dallas sniffled.

  “Are you okay Amore?” Chanell asked her. She was still sitting on the floor and she hadn’t said anything since they got there.

  “Trillion was right,” Amore said as she stared off into space.

  “Right about what?” Chanell asked.

  “Niggas like Viper don’t just go away. I’ll never be happy or worry free as long as he’s around. I can’t live like this,” Amore said as tears fell from her eyes.

  “Don’t worry about nothing cousin. He broke in here and attacked Dallas. He’s going right back to jail,” Chanell assured her.

  “Yeah, but for how long? That’s not good enough,” Amore said as she jumped up from the floor and grabbed the gun that Viper had dropped.

  “What are you doing Amore? Put that shit down. Ain’t no telling how many bodies are on that gun,” Chanell fussed.

  Amore was there physically but, mentally, she was somewhere else. Viper was still lying flat on the floor, face down. Amore turned him over and her cousins started to panic.

  “Amore no! We need to call the police before he wakes up,” Dallas panicked.

  “Fuck him. He’s never waking up. Come help me stand him up,” Amore requested.

  “What!?” her cousins asked in shock.

  “Come on! Help me stand him up against the wall. Hurry up,” Amore demanded impatiently.

  Her cousins didn’t know what she was doing but they did as she told them to. Viper was dead weight but the four of them picked him up and stood him against the wall. Amore backed up a little and aimed the gun at him.

  “What are you doing Amore?” Dallas asked.

  “Just hold him right there,” Amore replied as she fired four shots into Viper’s chest. Her cousins screamed and dropped his body to the floor. Viper was face down once again and he fell in the perfect position.

  “The fuck! Are you crazy Amore? Put that damn gun down,” Chanell yelled.

  “Check his pulse,” Amore ordered.

  “Fuck no! I’m not touching him,” Dallas said as she backed away.

  “Listen, this nigga was not going away on his own. It was me that he wanted but don’t think for a second that he wouldn’t have killed all of us if he had to. Vaughn doesn’t give a fuck about nothing and nobody. Trust me, I just did all of us a favor,” Amore replied.

  “I’ll check it,” Chanell said
as she slowly walked over to him. Her hands were shaking as she picked up Viper’s hand to check his pulse.

  “Is he dead?” Dallas questioned.

  “I don’t know. I don’t feel anything but I’m not sure,” Chanell replied.

  “Let me see. I took CPR classes when I was locked up,” Dallas said as she made her way over to him.

  “What’s the verdict?” Amore said as she watched them check his wrist and neck for a pulse.

  “Shit! We’re touching a dead man. He doesn’t have a pulse,” Dallas said as she jumped up from the floor.

  “Are you sure?” Amore asked.

  “He’s gone cousin,” Chanell confirmed as Amore visibly relaxed.

  “Shit, this is all bad. We’re convicted criminals. The police probably won’t even let us tell them what happened. Once they run our names, we’re going right back to jail,” Dallas panicked as she began to pace the floor.

  “We didn’t do anything wrong,” Chanell said.

  “As if they give a fuck. All they’ll see is three black women with a record sitting up in the house with a dead body. We’re fucked,” Dallas said as she wrung her hands nervously.

  “Shit! I never even thought about it like that,” Chanell replied.

  “Fuck! I can’t have my baby from behind bars,” Amore said.

  “What baby?” Chanell asked.

  “Bitch, you’re pregnant and didn’t tell us,” Dallas argued.

  “I just found out today,” Amore replied.

  “This bitch is on baby number two. AJ better step his game up,” Chanell said.

  “Are you serious right now Chanell? We’re sitting in the house with a fucking dead body and you’re worried about getting pregnant,” Dallas fussed.

  “Shit! What the hell was I thinking? Trillion is gonna kill me,” Amore panicked.

  “Calm down cousin. Listen, since this is technically my house, I’ll take the charge. Since he forced me in here, I have a better chance of claiming self-defense,” Dallas said.

  “This entire scene is staged. Damn it Amore. Why did you have us stand him up and shit? Why didn’t you just shoot his ass in the back?” Chanell questioned.

  “We had to. You can’t shoot somebody in the back and claim self-defense. That means that they were leaving and were no longer a threat. We would be going to jail for sure. Fuck! I really didn’t think this shit through,” Amore stressed.

  “We have to do something. The longer we wait, the worse off we’ll be,” Chanell pointed out.

  “I’ll do it,” Meadow said, speaking up for the first time since the shots were fired.

  “Bitch please.” Amore frowned and rolled her eyes.

  “I’m serious Amore. Give me the gun,” Meadow said as she held her hand out.

  “You wouldn’t even acknowledge me as your cousin a while ago. Now you want me to believe that you’ll take a murder charge for me. Do I look stupid to you, Meadow?” Amore asked.

  “I fucked up Amore and I can admit that. But, whether you believe it or not, I never stopped loving you and my sisters. For as long as I can remember, we were all that each other had. I used to always look out for y’all before I left. Let me show you that I still got your back,” Meadow said.

  “On God, sister or not, if you do us dirty, I’m fucking over you,” Chanell threatened.

  “I would never,” Meadow assured her.

  “It makes sense though y’all. She’s the only one of us without a record,” Dallas pointed out.

  “Just tell me what to do and I got y’all,” Meadow swore.

  “Okay, listen up because we only get one chance to get this shit right. We have to stick to this story, no matter who we’re taking to,” Amore said as they all gave her their undivided attention.

  Amore instructed Dallas to call the police and she deserved an award for the performance that she gave. When the police got there, they all told the story exactly as Amore told them to. They already knew that they would be asked to go to the police station and they were prepared. Amore called Trillion and he was by her side through it all. Meadow was acting like she was distraught and had all the detectives feeling sorry for her. They told her that Viper was a low life drug dealer and she had no reason to feel bad for saving her sister’s life.

  “Here’s my card Ms. Walters. Don’t hesitate to call me if you need anything or if you have any questions,” one of the detectives said as he walked Meadow out of the interrogation room. Amore, Trillion, Dallas and Chanell were sitting in the open area of the police station waiting on her to come out.

  “Will I have to go to trial or something like that?” Meadow asked, playing dumb.

  “Not at all. This is an open and shut case. This was a clear case of self-defense,” he assured her.

  “Thank you so much.” Meadow smiled.

  “Take care of yourself,” the detective replied as Meadow walked away. Her family got up and walked outside with her. As soon as they were out of the station, Meadow let out the nervous breath that she had been holding on to.

  “I was scared as fuck,” she whispered while holding her chest.

  “I know but you did good,” Amore replied as they walked to their cars.

  Once they said their goodbyes, they all went their separate ways, promising to talk again later. Amore and Trillion were in separate cars but he let her go first and followed right behind her. His parents were there with the girls but they left as soon as they got home. Amore and Trillion showered together and got in bed right after.

  “You good Love?” Trillion asked as he held her close.

  “Better than ever,” Amore replied.

  “So, are you gonna tell me what really happened?” Trillion inquired.

  “What do you mean?” Amore countered.

  “Come on now Love, this is me that you’re talking to. I know you better than you think I do. You and your cousins were nervous as hell and I saw the way y’all kept looking at each other. I already know that shit didn’t go down like y’all told the police it did. What really happened?” Trillion questioned.

  Amore sighed, “It was him that sent the text to get me over there.”

  “Okay, and?” he asked, encouraging her to go on.

  He listened as Amore told him the entire truth. Viper was a different kind of crazy and he got exactly what he deserved. The thought of losing his wife had Trillion’s heart beating rapidly in his chest. They’d just found out that they were having another baby and he just couldn’t fathom that. He wanted to scold Amore for what she had done but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. It was a clear case of premediated murder but he was happy that she was okay.

  “I’m sorry. Don’t be mad at me. I felt like I had no other choice than to do what I did,” Amore said.

  “I’m not mad at you, Love. Fuck Viper. It was either him or you. The right person is in the morgue,” Trillion replied.

  “I just feel like we can finally breathe without him and Leah in the picture. They were both toxic,” Amore said.

  “I agree. Fuck her too,” Trillion replied.

  “I can’t even lie though, Meadow came through,” Amore acknowledged.

  “Yeah, she did. I owe her for that. Does she still have her store?” Trillion asked.

  “I don’t know but I’ll find out.” Amore yawned.

  “Get you some rest Love. Besides taking care of two kids and your sick husband, you cooked a hot meal and put your murder game down. You had a busy day today,” Trillion joked.

  “Stop playing Trillion. I hope I can get to sleep tonight after what I did,” Amore said.

  “I’m the only man that you better be losing sleep over and I’ll never give you a reason to,” Trillion replied.

  “Did you finish the book?” Amore asked him.

  “The best one ever,” Trillion said as he kissed her shoulder.

  “I knew you would say that,” Amore laughed. She put her all into the story and she was happy that he enjoyed it.

  “It’s true though,” Tril
lion replied.

  “I want us to take a nice picture to put on the cover,” she noted as he nodded in agreement.

  When Amore told him that she was writing her first standalone, Trillion didn’t think that she was writing a book about him and their relationship. She started from the first day they met, up until they got married. The drama with their exes made the book pop but their developing love affair was the focal point of the story. If he never knew how Amore felt about him before, it was all right there in black and white. He had never been put on a pedestal by anyone before and he was overjoyed to be loved and appreciated like that by his own wife. Trillion felt like a proud husband and he knew that the book would do just as good as all the others.

  “What’s the title?” Trillion asked her.

  “Trillion Dollar Love,” Amore replied.

  “That’s perfect.” Trillion smiled, loving the title just as much as he loved the story.

  “You really like it?” Amore asked excitedly.

  “I love it,” Trillion assured her.

  “I can’t wait for everybody to read it.” Amore yawned as her eyes watered a little.

  “Me too but you need to get some rest Love. Good night,” Trillion said.

  “Good night boo. I love you,” Amore said as she yawned again.

  “I love you too baby,” Trillion replied as he kissed the back of her neck.

  Amore was worried about getting to sleep but that wasn’t an issue. She was snoring lightly a short time later but Trillion just laid there deep in thought. He and Amore had gone through a lot over the past few months at the hands of their exes and he was praying that all the drama was behind them. Above all else, he wanted his wife to be happy. If that meant pumping a few bullets into her abusive ex, then so be it.

  “C ome on baby, stop stalling,” Amore whined as she looked at Trillion.

  She was now in her sixth month of pregnancy and they were about to find out the sex of the baby. Originally, Trillion wanted to wait until she had the baby but he changed his mind once again. Jordon and Erica were the only two who knew the sex and they were tired of Trillion and his indecisive attitude. One day he wanted to know and then he changed his mind the next. So now, they were all seated under the patio at Trillion and Amore’s house, waiting for him to pop the huge balloon that was filled with confetti.