Chapter 27: Garvin's Po Man Dream.

  “Smoke good, eat good, life good… till the party dies out, cause the kid's just ain't alright.”

  August 29th, 1991.

  The clock read 5 PM.

  Garvin arrived back at his shop with a brand new car.

  Glistening with new parts in the air of drugs and lust.

  There, Garvin sat by DB.

  Enjoying the music played inside the new car.

  Playing Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin while bobbing their heads in the car.

  The bass blaring into their ears.

  Enjoying the lackluster moment of father and son.

  Abruptly, they both saw Dave walk back into the store.

  Remembering that Link II was passed out on the couch.

  And his deed of giving them the money for a new car.

  Leaving them stinky rich with at least $50,000 dollars left from the payment.

  As they both exited the car, continuing to bob their heads to the song.

  Even if the music stopped.

  Their footsteps light on the concrete.

  Soon entering the shop, they saw Dave lying on the couch.

  Chilling as usual.

  Dave wouldn’t usually do the work properly, even if it meant he was involved in gang activity.

  So seeing Dave lie on the couch was a casual sight for them to see.

  Turning to their right, the store was squeaky clean.

  Floors mopped.

  Counters wiped.

  Clothes hung correctly in numbers.

  Unlike when they left it messy from previously.

  DB asked suddenly.

  “Hey, where's Link?

  Dave scrambled to get up.

  Eyes wide with paranoia like a boy caught between a lie.

  Stammering loudly.

  “H-He went home!

  Sorry…

  I meant he went home.”

  But Garvin eyed him down.

  Knowing his nature to act careless about something small.

  Asking again, walking closer.

  “Oh really? Then how did he get home if there's no car by the sidewalk?”

  While Dave responded.

  “I-I walked him home.

  Wasn't that far anyways.”

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  Just then, the TV turned on.

  A news reporter came on, saying.

  “Hello, I am local news reporter Keisha Lovelace reporting on the recent murders around E Palmer St.

  The men themselves were decapitated and left out in the open.

  We now cut to a witness-”

  Immediately, the TV cut out.

  Dave's hand on the remote with a shy smile.

  Remarking to them.

  “Uhh… lucky guess?”

  Garvin's eyes filled with anger at his own child.

  Hating to learn if Link II died or not.

  His hand rose, slapping Dave with the strength of disappointed fathers.

  Moments later, he grabbed Dave by his collar.

  Asking with loud authority.

  “What the fuck did you do, Dave?!

  Don't you dare lie to my face again, or I'll kick you out of this god damn place!”

  During this, Dave's face lit up with tears, not used to his own father slapping him.

  Admitting with a muddy voice.

  “I went back to the gang lifestyle…

  I wanted to feel like that n***a in the streets.

  And why can't I do that-”

  Before again, slapped in the face by Garvin.

  “Because you aren't that, Dave.

  I gave you every option to be better.

  Get an education.

  Get a life better than a gangster in the streets.

  Hell, you try and act like you are a real one.

  I've seen real gangsters act faker than you can, Dave.

  So shut the fuck up about your gang life, and get in the car.

  Now.”

  So without hesitation, Garvin grabbed his keys.

  Slamming the shop door open with a loud thud.

  Rushing them all to the car, driving like there was no tomorrow.

  His sons sat in the back.

  Dave felt the guilt of sending a child to his possible death.

  DB worried about Link II and if he survived or not.

  During the short drive; Dave tried to dismiss the feelings of care for Link II.

  Hating the idea that they all saw him as family in the few moments they shared with him.

  Driving past the other cars that flew towards the news of a civilian stumbling into an alleyway and seeing the massacre of blood and decapitation.

  Garvin could see every journalist in Compton rushing in their own lackluster cars also.

  Wanting to record every piece of information from the incident, due to recent developments of other cases like the Rodney King incident.

  Eventually, they all arrived, ecstatic about what they would find or what drama could've happened.

  Instead, they found…

  Nothing but blood and horror on the floor.

  Bodies with dried blood nearby with their heads decapitated.

  Left on the floor like a trophy.

  Staining the brick walls, onto the concrete's dusty floor, and the trashcan nearby it.

  Altogether while a teddy bear sat in a dirty puddle of water.

  Soaked with the dirt from thousands.

  Reporters and journalists got sick to their stomachs from the scene.

  Nobody wanted to look at a decapitated head.

  Nor could bear to look at it without vomiting their guts out on the other side of the wall.

  Garvin and his two boys arrived late to the party, peering into the scene.

  Barely able to hold their stomachs back, imagining what Link II's corpse looked like displayed by the brutal scene in front of them.

  DB tearing up at what he assumed to be his friend's corpse.

  While Dave held back his emotions of guilt.

  Knowing that what he did was wrong, acknowledging that it could've been done better.

  Garvin mourned for him, saying a whispering prayer to the lord under his breath.

  Yet during their moment of grief, everyone else started to rush back to their cars.

  As the trio looked at all of them confused, asking themselves why the people were leaving so soon.

  Quickly rushing to their cars, but before Garvin could get in, he saw a cameraman.

  Deciding to rationalize what people were leaving for, he asked the cameraman.

  “Excuse me, sir?

  Why are all these reporters leaving so soon instead of waiting for an official police response?”

  The man responded back, saying.

  “Reporters are leaving cause police just got a call from some Chevron gas station a few miles away from here.

  And people believe it's the same person that caused both incidents.

  Also because the descriptions of the gas station match this brutal scene too.”

  Soon after, getting in his team's van and leaving without a care in the world.

  The trio looked concerned as to what it meant by having the same descriptions of brutality.

  Like if it could've been connected to Link II.

  Now believing there is more to the story than Dave's sociopathic way of killing a boy.

  Knowing the information they gained access to, they dashed towards the car.

  Garvin bolting at the gas foot pedal.

  On the road again like a cycle of adventure turned bloodshed.

  The radio clock read 5:30 PM.

  Car tires rubbing against concrete as they sped towards the gas station.

  Within moments, they arrived at the scene.

  Without breaking the speed limit in front of others who were also dashing over.

  Streets were flooded with cars like a flood of gasoline and fire.

  Desperate to see what the hell happened at the gas station like a game show.

  At around 5:40, everyone arrived at the scene.

  Cops, Emergency services, and reporters were all at the scene.

  All terrorized by the amount of blood around.

  Guts and bodies hung like acrobatics in a circus.

  Reporters that were inside rushed out to vomit in the nearest garbage can.

  The entire area smelled of rats, trash, and blood.

  Twined with what felt like tears in the rain.

  Each cameraman turned their cameras off to respect the deceased and stayed by the vans.

  Perplexed by the scene.

  Garvin could only hope that Link II was alive or not.

  Leaning on the gas station wall while his kids sat in the car.

  Waiting.

  Waiting.

  Waiting for a prayer.

  …

  As he heard the faint sound of water run by the back.

  His footsteps crunching against the blood stained grass.

  Peering into the back to find truth burnt like a funeral pyre.