My palms turned cold as footsteps finally approached on the other side of the door. When Stephanie opened the door, her appearance took my breath away. Her eyes were swollen. The whites of them were bloodshot from endless tears. She looked fragile and broken, as if a gentle breeze might even cause her to collapse.
“I’m so sorry, Stephanie,” I choked out as tears pooled quickly in my eyes.
Before I could finish, Stephanie broke down completely, burying her face in her hands. Instinctively, I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her, pulling her against me. Her body shook as she sobbed.
We stood there for a moment, crying in each other’s arms.
“Come inside, Avi,” she finally whispered between shaky breaths, pulling away slightly.
She closed the door softly behind me and led me toward the living room. My eyes immediately fell on the couch. It was scattered with used tissues and crumpled blankets. There was a noticeable indentation where Stephanie had obviously spent days curled up on it. The sight made my heart ache even more.
“Have you been alone all day?” I asked quietly. “Someone should be here with you.”
Stephanie sounded exhausted as she exhaled slowly. “I sent everyone away. I wanted to be alone.”
I nodded in understanding. “Then I won’t stay long. I just had to come check on you.”
She sank down heavily onto the couch. Fresh tears slipped silently down her cheeks. “The detectives told me everything. They played the recording for me.” Anguish carved deep lines into her face. “The gunshots…God, those gunshots just keep playing in my head over and over again. I can’t even imagine how Jeremy must have felt.” She cringed and shuddered. “The fear, the betrayal… It was his own father.”
Her words came out so broken. My chest tightened painfully. Nausea swirled in my stomach. I sat down beside her, gripping her trembling hand.
“I feel like I don’t even know who Damar is anymore,” I admitted shakily. “I’m sick to my stomach thinking I’ve been married to someone capable of this. Jeremy was only my stepson, but the pain—I can’t even imagine yours.”
Stephanie’s shoulders shook violently as her sobs deepened. “I don’t know how I’ll get through this. Only God can help me now.” Pain and fury battled openly across her face.
“I don’t know what to do with all this rage inside me. It’s eating me alive. I can’t sleep. I can’t breathe without thinking about what Damar did to my baby. And I know exactly what he was thinking—he thought nobody would care. Because of our neighborhood and Jeremy getting caught up with those boys, Damar thought the police would just sweep my son’s murder under the rug.” She paused, taking a shaky breath. “But Jeremy was smart. He knew to record that conversation, even though…” As her voice cracked, my heart broke even further. “Even though he didn’t know he was recording his own murder.”
“Honestly, I can’t believe Damar didn’t take Jeremy’s phone.”
Stephanie scoffed bitterly. “He probably never even considered Jeremy would be smart enough to record him. But my baby proved him wrong.” Fresh tears spilled down her face, but I could still see the pride in her eyes. “I’m so proud of Jeremy. Even now, even after everything, my son is the reason the truth came out.”
I nodded softly as tears ran unchecked down my face. We sat there in shared grief, helpless in these dark shadows of everything we’d lost.
DAMAR SCOTT
Standing in line for the shower at Cook County Jail, I felt like I was losing my shit. It was only a few days since they’d denied my bail, and already, I could feel the walls closing in. I wasn’t built for this, and deep down, I knew I wouldn’t survive long in here.
My lawyer had come by earlier. The state’s attorney had offered me a plea deal of twenty years—the minimum for first-degree murder. I couldn’t wrap my head around it. Twenty years was still a lifetime, but it was better than the alternative. If I turned it down, I’d be looking at sixty years, and I knew I couldn’t handle that. I couldn’t imagine spending one more day in this hellhole, let alone decades.
The thought of being locked up for twenty years felt suffocating. I’d be missing out on everything I had killed to maintain. I wasn’t willing to do twenty years—or sixty.
As I shuffled forward, my eyes met those of a few 111 Boyz. They’d been whispering and glaring at me since I got here. I assumed that they’d heard that I had been charged with Jeremy’s murder. They shared the same loyalty and bond of the 111 Boyz that Jeremy hung with.
“This bitch-ass nigga.” One of them sneered. He had that dangerous glint in his eye, the kind that told you he was itching for a fight.
I tried to ignore them, focusing on the ground and shuffling my feet. I knew better than to give them any reason to come after me, but they were intent on fucking with me.
“You think you can just walk around like you didn’t kill one of our homies?” another voice cut in, louder this time. The group started closing in as their taunts grew more hostile by the second.
Before I could react, one of them pushed me hard in the back. I stumbled forward, trying to catch my balance, but it was too late. They were on me. Fists and boots flew, each hit landing with bone-jarring force. I barely had time to raise my arms to protect myself before the first punch connected with my ribs, sending a jolt of pain through my body.
“This for Jeremy, nigga,” one of them spat as another kick landed on my side. I could feel the sharp sting of every blow. My vision blurred from the pain. I was gasping for air, trying to curl up into a ball to protect myself, but the hits kept coming.
It felt like the world was collapsing around me with each punch and kick. I wanted to scream, to fight back, but the relentless and merciless hits just kept coming. The sounds of their taunts mixed with the pounding of my heart, and I couldn’t keep track of how many times they struck me.
The pain was so intense that I hoped and prayed that I would pass out. It felt like they were trying to beat the life out of me, and I was powerless to stop them.
All I could think was that this was how it was going to end for me. The realization hit me hard, leaving me gasping for breath as the assault continued.
