A/N: Just a heads up before reading Noah is a character in my story and he's making his appearance in this chapter. This was already planned and not some idea tossed in at the last minute.
Flashback
A tall white guy was running down the sidewalk at full speed screaming at the top of his lungs. "OH MY FUCKING GOD! HE SHOT THEM! HE SHOT THEM! UNIQUE CALL THE POLICE! SOMEBODY CALL THE POLICE!
"I'M ON THE PHONE…POLICE AND EMS TWO BOYS JUST GOT SHOT, THEY WERE ON THEIR WAY HOME HURRY! I DON'T KNOW JUST GET HERE!"
"MALACHI AND ROHAN HOLD ON! HELP IS ON THE WAY! YOU'RE GOING TO MAKE IT! YOU'RE GOING TO MAKE IT! JUST LISTEN TO THE SOUND OF MY VOICE!" Ryder repeated. "LISTEN TO MY VOICE!"
"Help is right there!" an onlooker points to the off-duty policeman, "He's a cop I know. He pulled me over last week for not wearing a seat belt when I was wearing one."
His ears were ringing, his heart was racing fast like a stampede of horses at the Preakness Stakes, a bead of sweat slid down his cheek, he lowered his head down wiping it away with his shoulder. He turned, walked back to his car, got in, grabbed his phone from the cup holder, and scrolled through his contacts until he came across the name wanted.
He tapped the green icon and lifted the phone to his ear he could hear the sirens blaring in the background. "Kolton I need your help. Can you come to-"
"We're responding to shots fired in the 1400 block of Oxford Court. Can't talk bye!" He hung up before he could say anything else.
"That's why I was calling." He tossed his phone into the cup holder then pulled down the visor and flipped open the mirror. He looked pretty much the same despite a small scratch above his eye and a dull red mark on his cheek.
The police cruiser sped down the block from the opposite direction with lights flashing but no sirens blaring or flashing lights coming to a stop in the middle of the street. Within seconds another police cruiser parked behind them. The officers stepped out with their weapons drawn, two of them slowly approached, and put the two motionless bodies lying in the middle of the street in handcuffs. One of the officers came over and whispered to Kolton, pointing towards the car, he turned around and nodded.
Kolton approached the driver's side, he cupped his hands, and peered through the heavily tinted windows. He tapped on the window with his knuckles. "If anyone is in this car I'm going to need to ask you some questions. Would you mind stepping out the car?"
"Kolton it's me!" he said letting down the window.
Kolton relaxed his stance recognizing who it was he motioned for the other officer to come over. "Dalton, it's Puckerman."
Slipping his service weapon back into its holster Dalton walked over to the passenger side, he looked down at the seat then looked over at Kolton locking eyes. "Here is the reason why he called you. So, what are we going to do?"
"Santino and Max cordon off the scene! Start from down there and bring up to to this light pole!" Kolton shouted.
"We were just about to do that!" Santino said.
Max popped the trunk and grabbed the yellow crime scene tape. He and Santino walked down the street and started marking off the scene. "Okay now that they're earshot away what is your plan?"
"The usual, I'm going to put Puck in my cruiser, Eddie and you, 'cause he just pulled up are going to wait at least 10 minutes then start rendering first aid while I get Puck's side of the story if each are vanilla you know what to do. Come on Puck let's go."
Puck pushed opened the car door and stepped out, he put his head down not wanting to make eye contact with the few spectators that began congregating on their neighbors lawns. When they arrived at the cruiser he opened the back passenger door, Kolton reached around and pushed it shut.
"You really want me to sit up front?" Puck quizzed Kolton to make sure he understood correctly.
"Of course get in!" Kolton said as he went around to the driver's side and got in. "How are you feeling?"
"Not okay. Kolton I really think it's a bad idea for me sitting in the front seatand still be on the scene. I prefer to…"
While Puck was talking, Kolton zoned out missing everything he said. He nudged him with his elbow. "You finally finished? Anyway you're going to be fine, I got this. Tell me what the hell happened once we're done, you can take my car I'll get one of the other officers to take you to the hospital."
Puck leaned forward to watch Eddie and Dalton rummaging through the two boys pockets. Dalton gave the sign, Kolton nodded; he reached over and popped open the glove compartment taking out a plastic grocery bag sitting it in Puck's' lap. Putting on latex gloves he started searching through the bag.
"Decisions, decisions, decisions you like this Puck one or this one?" He asked holding up the both items. "This one? Okay, put this bag back in the glove compartment."
Kolton let down his window and Eddie came over to get the item. "Both are vanilla the one in white before before he died said, 'why did he shoot me I was on my way home', the other one is still alive."
"He just died." He nodded. "Damn maybe we could have saved him if we acted sooner. That's the one he won't know and neither will the other guy."
"Alright, Puck don't look so nervous everything is going to be fine."
"I'm not nervous man," he said with a forced smile. "I'm straight you and you're right everything will be fine 'cause I got the best friends on the force."
Eddie reached over to give him a high-five. "Damn straight!"
He backed away from the car and they watched him closely as he knelt beside the body Puck turned away instead of watching. "Alright so tell me how it happened so I can get you way from here."
He laid his head back against the headrest replaying the events over in his mind and began sharing the details of what happened. "I turned on to the block and I see these two guys running. So I speed down the block to get in front of them as they walked by the one in white turned around and made direct eye contact with me, words were exchanged one thing led to the next, and I'm pulling out my weapon. I don't know how many shots I fired."
"Puck you did the right thing and don't ever question yourself, okay. You are free to leave I suggest you go to the hospital first and then go to the station."
"Yeah, my face hurts some okay I'll see you there. Dalton come with me!" Puck ran to his car, jumped in, and started it. Dalton ran over and jumped into the passenger side, slammed the car in gear and drove away from the scene.
Erica bolted off down the street just as two ambulances turned on to the block. The crowd had tripled in size. She weaved her way through the onlookers some of them were talking among themselves or on their phones, taking pictures, videos, others were yelling out to the police.
"That's straight bullshit man! Them boys weren't doing anything wrong! I know I was on my porch I seen it all go down!"
"I was watching from my window! He just killed him period there was no trying to protect himself or nothing. I called the news so they can bring the ass on down here!"
When she got to the front of the barrier the EMTs had loaded the body into the ambulance and tore away as the sirens wailed. She turned her head, right in front of her laid Malachi's motionless body with the bag of food he was carrying beside him.
"It's Kai." she whispered tears brimming in her eyes. "Cover up his body! Sam and Mercedes are going to be so heartbroken!"
An officer walking by stopped dead in his tracks, he looked over at curiously at the crowd, he walked up to the barrier scanning the people around him, he pointed at a young lady and motioned her to come forward. She glared at him and rolled her eyes angrily. "What do you want?"
"I didn't ask for all of that all attitude so you can put that to the side, I couldn't help from overhearing something. Did someone say that, 'Sam and Mercedes are going to be so devastated'?"
She waited awhile before answering. "Yeah, I think I heard someone say that."
"Are they talking about the Hall of Famer and the recording artist who just got her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?" The people in that area were turning their heads between them like they were watching a ping pong match.
"They're the only Sam and Mercedes I know who has those accolades under their names. Unless there is another power couple that I don't know of."
"Help me understand the Sam and Mercedes connection. Why would the care about that thug?" he said with smug smile plastered across his face.
"Because the boy whose body is uncovered, whose blood is slithering down the street, and seeping into the concrete he is the son of Sam and Mercedes, y'all fucked up before but y'all really fucked up now."
Present...
Puck sat there in a daze flipping through channel after channel. Nothing could hold his attention. He flipped back to 3N news they were talking about Malachi Evans and the officer that killed him. His son hamster bumped into his foot he turned, Klaue around in the right direction he rolled out the room. The doorbell rang, he heard his wife greet someone and invite that person in.
"Nice of you to come by, he's been glued to the television since the shooting." She turns her head to speak louder, "Puck baby Kolton came to visit you." He stared at her for a few seconds then turned his attention back to the television. "Well I'm going to leave you two alone yell if you need anything."
"Thanks I got him Quinn." He reached for her hand giving it a reassuring squeeze.
She left the room and closed the door behind her. Kolton walked around the NFL themed man cave looking at the pictures that lined the walls to the memorabilia on the mantle. Everything was Sam Evans signed footballs, photographs, jerseys, helmets, and cleats he even had a few pictures taken with him.
"Puck you need to remove all this Sam Evans shit either sell it or donate it to goodwill including the jersey you're wearing. And stop watching the news!"
When the segment ended it went to commercial he muted the TV and said, "I can't! I can't believe I shot and killed my favorite player son! He was an honor student, was in glee club, played football, volunteered at the homeless shelter every other weekend. He was a good kid."
"See that's what they want you to believe got you feeling sorry for the him." He snatched the remote out his hand. "Listen to what Real News has to say and you'll be talking a different tune."
"These people are out here marching holding up signs saying,'Justice for Malachi', they don't know who he was. They should be marching for the officer who made Reedsview safer…"
He placed his hand on the back of the chair and leaned down with his face uncomfortably close to Puck's face. "You heard that, he was a thug not some clean cut teen they are portraying him to be. Stop feeling sorry for him Noah and get your shit together! Tomorrow they're going to get your statement so we need to go over it. "
"I don't care who his parents are they did a terrible job of raising that boy. They didn't raise him to respect authority! If they had he'd be alive today! All he had to do was comply. Let's face it Malachi was a thug! Look at this picture of him with other thugs throwing up gang signs."
"It's not a gang sign!" Ace hollered at the TV. "Stevie you know Kai has been throwing up my fraternity since the age of two."
"And mine too these people on RNC are so ill informed it would make them sick to be informed." Stevie glanced over his shoulder and watched Sam rip out a piece of paper from his spiral notebook balling it up and tossing it in the trash.
"Facts. They just want to hear themselves talking don't have to make no sense. You know what bothers me Stevie?
Stevie shook his head. "No, care to tell me."
"How they always blame the victim. You heard old man Jeff. Said, 'all he had to do was comply', maybe Kai did we don't know which pisses me the fuck off!"
"Ace calm down man relax we don't need a repeat of last night." Stevie said calmly.
"I CAN'T! THERE IS NO BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE AND NO ONE HAS VIDEO FROM A DAMN CELLPHONE!" Ace yelled. "SO BASICALLY THESE PEOPLE HAVE A PLAYGROUND TO SPEW THEIR IDIOTIC SHIT ABOUT KAI AND NO ONE KNOWS THE FUCKING TRUTH!"
"Ace!" Gregory said his eyebrows knitted into a frown. "Didn't your mother tell you last night to stop watching RNC because you were throwing items at the TV."
He sighed. "Dad you know I'm hard-headed, just…yeah I know they do this with every black person who is a victim of police brutality. Their story makes it to the national news, but it's different when you're now wearing the shoe that was on the other foot."
"Ace is right when it's your nephew who they are blaming for his own death the sting from their words linger. I know it's not supposed to bother you, how can it not? You want to do everything in your power to defend his image."
Gregory took in a long deep breath and let it out slowly before speaking. "I know I'm right there with the both of you fighting this internal of battle of not lashing out."
"So am I," Dwight expressed. "To them it's just another person who has become a hashtag but that's my grandson."
Dwight made himself cup of coffee and took it over to the window and opened the blinds slightly every major and local network satellite truck lined both sides of their street.
"I'm going for walk to calm down. Sorry Sam for the outburst you're trying to work."
"Ace it's fine when your job is to throw a football with thousands of fans screaming at the top of their lungs you learn to block it out." Sam teased.
They got up and left the room Gregory closed the door behind them. "I pray he doesn't go outside for a walk. "
"Since we got here these people have not moved! GIT!" He banged on the window.
"Dwight get away from the window before we see our pictures on Celeb News Zone dot com. This is big news, it's happened before but not to a celebrity child." He looks over to Sam and says "How is that statement coming along son?"
"Rough." Sam pushed away from his desk and went to make himself a cup of coffee. He raised his cup and took a sip of the hot brew. "Dad I know what I want to say but when it comes to expressing them I draw a blank."
"Son you should have let Olivia handle that. She's a fixer and she's good at what she does. Remember how she handled that DC mistress."
"Yeah, she got that nice lady no jail time she was able to spend it with her grand-kids."
"Olivia is good at what she does but this is my son I want my words to be read not a pre written message that don't know the pain my family is going through." He walked over to his desk and plopped down in his office chair. "Also I want to keep just a little bit busy."
"I understand son, keeping busy is good but not too, too busy okay we'll leave you be. Gregory, let's join Stevie and Ace for that walk."
Sam flipped open his black spiral notebook and grabbed a pen, he stared at the blank sheet of paper for awhile until writing down the following: The Evans Family thanks you for your thoughts, prayers, and condolences during this difficult time. We ask that you continue to pray for us and respect our privacy."
"That looks good." He jumped, startled by the sound of her voice knocking over his coffee. "I didn't mean to startle you baby."
"It's okay baby I'll clean it up I thought you were helping your mother and my mother work on Kai's obituary." he asked pulling tissues out the tissue box to soak up the spill.
Mercedes went into the bathroom grabbed some paper towels, she poured some soap on it and held it in the sink under some warm water. Sam grabbed the swiffer wet jet, and returned to the office mopping the floor.
"I was watching you for a few minutes." She went back into the bathroom and grabbed more paper towels. "Babe how did that spot get over there by the window."
"Oh Dad spilled some while he was looking out the window. So um, how far are you all with Kai's obituary?"
"'Good Afternoon', are you done with the Evans Family statement? Mind if I read over it. Okay." She reached over and grabbed the notebook, pulling down her glasses and began reading. "Looks good."
"It's pretty basic Olivia that's all I could think of. Thanks."
"Basic is good we'll get this out there as you know everyone is vying to be the first to interview you that some have sent their questions over. I know we're not accepting requests at the moment but when we are I'll send them to you."
"Thanks Liv." Mercedes said, and she went over to the couch and sat down Sam came over and sat beside her.
"One more thing then I'll be out your way I think you and Mercedes should record a message for the protesters it's getting out of hand out there. A number of them are being arrested, tear gassed, and tazed. There's also been looting, which we think started by an agitator."
Sam groaned and dropped his head into his hands. "Oh my goodness."
"I saw on the news earlier that they looted a 24Seven." Mercedes uttered. "It was a mob of them and more people were coming in."
"You can't tell people how to react but for damn sure they're going to know how we want them to conduct themselves. The people on the news are already dragging our son's name through the mud. Olivia how soon can you get a crew here?"
"In the next half hour we can go live if you want?" She looked between them for approval. "Alright I'll get that set up."
"Thanks Liv you are the best! Honey I thought we said we weren't going to watch the news."
"I was helping our moms with Kai's obituary and I needed a moment to myself, so I turned on the TV that's the first thing I saw." She pulled a tissue from her bra dabbing at her eyes.
"I know I had to step away yesterday when my mother asked me, 'who do you want to be a pallbearer', I'm still coming to grips with my son being killed she's asking me about pallbearers." Sam leaned his head against Mercedes crying silently.
"How could this be happening to us. I want to wake up from this nightmare and everything be normal. I'm waiting for Kai to walk through the door and say, 'Mom I'm home,' 'Mom what's for dinner', 'Mom I love you'", and-and stoop down to my height give me the best hug."
There was a faint knock heard at the door and Sam yelled out. "Who is it?"
"Me! Is it okay if I come in? I have a question to ask." Damaris asked peaking around the door.
Mercedes sadly laughs and said, "Come on in Demi. What's this question you have for your Daddy and me?"
"Why are they calling Kai a thug Daddy?"