Gangster's Gem: The Devious Dance

32

I was fumin' the whole ride to Mack's house. Malik had told me what went down, but hearin' it and seein' it was two different things. Layla was supposed to be my best friend. My sister. And now? She was the reason I almost died, the reason all of us were wrapped up in this mess.

As soon as I walked in the door, I saw her. She was sittin' on the couch, lookin' small and broken, her hands in her lap like she didn't even know what to do with herself. And the second our eyes met, all that rage bubbled up and spilled over.

"You bitch!" I screamed, marchin' straight up to her.

Before anybody could stop me, my hands were on her. I grabbed her by the hair and yanked her up off that couch, throwin' her to the ground. My fists flew before I even realized what I was doin'.

"You fake-ass, lyin'-ass, snake-ass bitch! You tried to kill me!" I shouted, my voice crackin'.

Layla didn't fight back. Not a slap, not a shove. She just laid there, takin' it.

"Fight back!" I screamed, tears blurrin' my vision. "Come on! You was so bold when you pulled that trigger, right? You don't wanna talk now, Layla!?"

She whimpered, but still didn't lift a hand. That only made me angrier.

"You shot me! You left me to die! You tried to take all of us down!" My voice broke, my fists hittin' her wherever they landed—her arms, her shoulders, her face. "Do you even know how many times I fought for you? Shot for you? Risked my freedom- my damn life for you? I was always there for you, and you did this to me?"

Layla tried to sit up, her voice barely a whisper. "My brother—"

"Your brother?!" I screamed, pushin' her back down. "What about my brother? What about Jamal? He just got outta prison, you was gon send him back! What about me? I would've never done this to you! I would've died for you, Layla!"

She started sobbin', her body shakin' on the floor. "I'm not you!" she cried out, her voice crackin' like glass.

That hit different, but I didn't stop. I couldn't. The betrayal was too raw, too deep.

"Diamond, chill!" Mack's voice cut through the chaos as he grabbed me from behind, yankin' me off her. "Relax, ma! You gon' kill her!"

"I should kill her!" I shouted, strugglin' against his grip. "Let me go, Mack! She deserves worse than this!"

"She do," Khalil said coldly, standin' over Layla. "But you gon' hurt yourself more than you hurt her like this. Look at her—she ain't even worth it."

Layla stayed on the floor, curled up like she was tryna disappear. Her sobs were loud, but nobody in the room cared. Not one person.

"You got no reason to cry," Marquis said, his voice sharp. "You brought this on yourself. All this? This is your fault."

"Exactly," Trey muttered, leanin' against the wall. "You should be glad Diamond ain't doin' worse."

Malik stepped forward, his eyes cold as ice as he stared down at her. "We need her alive. For now."

Layla looked up at him, her face swollen and streaked with tears. "I'll do whatever y'all want," she whispered, her voice crackin'. "Please... just don't hurt my brother."

Malik crouched down, gettin' right in her face. "You gon' admit to everything," he said, his voice low but deadly. "Every lie you told. Every false statement. You gon' tell the court how Reynolds pressured you, blackmailed you, made you do this."