Hot tears began to prick her eyes as she let her brother's words wash over her.

"Yo ass been running around thinking shit chicken-chicken. Lookin' at how you hog tied in this mug, you can tell shit ain't gon' be good no more." Devon laughed at his metaphor. His voice was void of humor though.

A tear began to make its descent down Milan's face. It felt like it left fire in its wake.

Her brother smacked his lips when it registered that she was crying. He waved her off with the gun in his hand.

"Don't start that crying shit, Lani. You did this to yourself!" Devon told her, adamant.

Milan did nothing but shake her head, this caused her hair to fall on her face. Long black strands stuck to her now tear streaked face. She couldn't even plead for her life for God's sake.

The fact that her life was being threatened by her own brother was null and void.

She would beg him if she had to.

As she began to cry harder, Devon grabbed her by her robe and held her steady. He then ripped the duct tape off of her mouth. The scream that left Milan's lips as the adhesive tore across her skin was blood curdling.

Her face burned. Her lips were split. When she ran her tongue across them, the taste of blood soon followed.

"Use your fucking words. What the hell else am I to do with you?" Devon continued to berate her. Standing up from his seat and beginning to pace back and forth. The grip on the gun in his hands not giving an inch.

Milan stayed silent as she regained her bearings. Her mouth was dry and her throat was raw from the scream.

She cleared her throat, but just by the sound of that she knew that she'd be hoarse.

"I... am your sister." She told him finitely.

"I am your blood, the only blood you have left on this God forsaken earth. And you say you have no choice, but to kill me for some n*ggas that'll kill you for a stack."

Her voice was soft, gravely from the amount of time she'd been bound and unable to speak. However, when she glanced up at Devon through the tendrils of hair that blocked her vision she knew he'd heard every word.

"Say that shit again."

Devon ordered, the gun now pointed directly at Milan's forehead.

She saw his finger wasn't on the trigger, but having the barrel of a fire arm pointed towards your forehead would have anyone a little more than nervous.

Taking a deep, sobering breath. A breath so deep that it caused the skin of her forehead to brush against the gun; Milan looked her brother dead in the eye.

The two siblings stared each other down. The energy in the room may as well have set it on fire. It was not hot. It was not burning. It was complete chaos. The fire threatened to engulf them both. Neither of them would leave this room the same.

"I am your sister, Devon. And you gon' let some n*ggas off the street tell you, you need to kill me to keep your spot. It might as well have never been yours to begin with."

Milan found herself gritting out the words. Finding it much harder to talk shit and bargain for her life when she felt her life could end any second.

The gun fired.

And in that second, Milan felt her soul leave her body. The kickback from the gun hitting her temple and with her hands not being free to stop her motion, she fell to the side.

She began to tremble as she finally got the courage to open her eyes, her teeth chattering.

Adrenaline let down.

She could hear the nurse from Ramses' hospital visit reminder her.

Her brother was still in the same position, his hand on the trigger of the gun, facing forward where she was just sitting. A bullet hole now in the wall directly behind where her head would've been.

"Devon, what--"

Milan's sentence was cut short by Devon whipping out a pocket knife and cutting the restraints off of her wrists and ankles. The feeling of blood rushing back to her appendages made them itch.

"Get out." Devon commanded. His eyes refusing to meet hers again. His fists, filled with the rope he'd just cut off of her, shaking. "Don't let me ever have to see you again, Lani."

His words hurt. He'd sworn her off before, but this felt different. This time it felt finished.

Not daring to have him change his mind. Milan got up as fast as she could and ran to the door, leaving her brother in the dingy basement by himself.

She soon realized she was in the basement of the same hair salon that Chrisanto had ordered her to bring Ramses to. Arriving upstairs, she saw the carnage Ramses' visit had left behind.

Overturned chair after overturned chair. Glass from the mirrors on the walls was now just glittering confetti.

Only when she reached the front desk of the salon did she see the blood.

It was almost like she could see the body of Chrisanto etched out in the massive stain on the black and white tiled floors.

She knew this was his final resting place.

And, like the spirit of her mother took over her in that second, Milan began to pray for mercy on their souls. Her's, her brother's, and even Ramses. The soul of the hood, because she knew Chrisanto's blood being on the ground meant there was at least a hundred pools of blood just like his around Chicago.

As soon as she opened her eyes from her short prayer, she saw a car's lights coming up the street. It had its brights on, which was also uncommon in the city. There were street lights everywhere. There was no need for high beam lights.

That meant they were looking for somebody.

Immediately, Milan ran behind the front desk. She crouched low enough to where she felt she couldn't be seen.

The lights of the car completely illuminated the front part of the hair salon. From the intensity of them, Milan knew they had to just be sitting in front of the establishment.

If she had any tears left to cry, she would've been bawling her eyes out behind the desk.

Milan sat down on the ground and huddled into the inner part of the desk. She put her head on her knees and hoped whoever they were looking for suddenly appeared 10 blocks away from the area.

There was no way she could leave her unnoticed and she couldn't go back downstairs where her brother would surely kill her this time.

All she could think about was becoming another blood puddle on the ground, and how whenever Ramses did get out, it was all his fault.

If he only knew what his show of rage almost cost her tonight.

The sound of a car door slamming brought her from her bitter haze.

Now, her blood ran ice cold in her veins. Footsteps slowly approached the scene.

Milan began taking deep breaths and blowing them out slowly to keep herself from sobbing. She had, had enough excitement for tonight to last her a lifetime.

The person stepped on some glass, its sharp crackling under their weight made the hair on Milan's neck stand at attention.

"C'mon now, Mi. If your ass is in here, get the fuck up." Ramses's voice washed over the room.

The way Milan darted up from under the desk, she almost scalped herself.

"Ramses?!" She exclaimed, tears now freely falling down her face as she crashed into him with open arms.

His arms immediately wrapped around her frame, hugging her just as tightly. Milan felt him press a firm kiss on the top of head.

Ramses released her quickly, looking around and beginning to push her back to the vehicle he got out of.

Once he opened the backseat of the car, he pushed her in and barreled in after her. In a split second, the car had taken off down the street again.

Brights off.

Milan righted herself in her seat and looked to see Malcolm driving the get away car. He smirked at her through the rear view mirror.

"Oh, Ramses!" He mocked in a high pitched voice as he sped down the expressway.

Ramses laughed and hit the back of the Malcom's headrest with a hard slap.

Turning to Ramses, Milan just couldn't believe her eyes. After she heard of Chrisanto's death and him being taken into custody right after, she definitely thought she'd never see him again.

His eyes ran over her face like he was trying to commit every detail to memory.

The two were leaning in for a very much deserved reunion kiss, but the bright flashing lights of police cars barricading the lanes of the highway made them separate.

"Uh... yo?" Malcolm could be heard grumbling to himself as a couple of the officers noticed the car approaching the barrier.

Two officers began walking up to car. They were dressed in full SWAT uniform.

Milan glanced at Ramses as she tried to keep her face forward and move as little as possible.

His face was already straight and void of emotion. He looked like he was ready to end in Set It Off fashion, and Lord knows Milan was not Cleo material.

"Ramses, just what the fuck did you do?"