Dispatch: 'I thought if I fell asleep, I'd wake up and realize this nightmare was just a dream'

The phone call came in the middle of dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe in Biloxi, Miss., on Aug. 21, 2009.

Natascha Jones' former husband, the father of her 7-year-old son, had been shot. Paramedics said he'd be OK, her ex-sister-in-law told her.

"She said she'd call me back with more information," Jones said, "but she didn't."

Despite their split three years earlier, Jones had stayed close to Otis Williams, 32. That summer already had been one of the most difficult times of Jones' life. The Air Force master sergeant, a 21-year veteran, had been on leave to help her father battle brain cancer. Despite the efforts to save his life, he had died in July of 2009.

After her father's death, when Jones needed a person to talk to, she turned to Williams for support. They spoke to each other almost every day and shared custody of their son, who'd spend the school year with Jones and summers with Williams in California.

"Otis was shy, but a very loyal friend and a great father. He had a demanding presence because he was 6-4 and handsome. He had the prettiest teeth and nicest smile. People would just look at him."

"My father and Otis. Those were the two main men in my life," Jones said. "Otis was my best friend."

On the night of the shooting, Jones grew impatient for news. She called Williams' sister back.

"She said, 'Tascha, Otis didn't make it.' I asked her, 'What do you mean? You said he would be fine!"

In shock, she hung up the phone. Disbelieving the news, she called Williams' cellphone several times -- no answer.

"I thought if I fell asleep, I’d wake up and realize this nightmare was just a dream," she said.

Jones called one another of Williams' sisters to find out more. She was told family members found Williams sitting on his mother’s front porch in Inglewood, slumped over and his fist clenched. They called 911, and Williams was taken to the hospital, where he died in surgery.

"They said the bullet hit a main artery in his stomach," Jones said, "and they couldn't stop the internal bleeding."

Still unable to accept Williams’ death, Jones contacted the police and the coroner’s office to make sure he was dead.

"I needed them to verify it was him," she said.

Now she had to tell their only child.

"When I told my son, I was waiting for a response, but I never got one. I turned off the TV before we talked, and after we spoke he turned the TV back on. He never said anything, he never cried. But I could see in his face he was hurt."

It wasn’t until a moment in the car that Jones' son finally broke down. "The song 'Best I Ever Had' by Drake came on, and he just burst into tears. He said that was the song his father listened to repeatedly when he visited him last summer," she said.

Through regular counseling, the boy has been able to get through the grieving process and this unexpected transition in his life.

"He knows his father is gone, but he talks about his dad every day and speaks to him in his prayers every night," Jones said.

Jones said she has struggled to accept the killing. From Mississippi, she calls police detectives regularly for updates and has even set up a Facebook page for family, friends and acquaintances to provide memories of Williams or offer information about his death.

Inglewood police Det. Mark Campbell, who is handling the investigation, said Williams was sitting on the front porch of his mother's house about 2 p.m. on Friday, August 21, when he was approached by an assailant and shot.

There were some witnesses to the shooting that have come forward with information but authorities have not made an arrest.

"We have someone we are looking at. We believe Otis was acquainted with the shooter. There was a motive," Campbell said, "but we still need more information."

Detectives do not believe Williams was involved in any illegal activity at the time of his death.

In the time since the shooting, Jones has switched jobs twice. She now works in an Air Force medical readiness office, helping officers to get ready overseas deployments.

"At first I lost all my energy. I wasn’t able to give 150% like I used to, but through counseling it's getting better. I read a book called 'A Grief Like No Other' and it helped me realize no matter how Otis died, he doesn’t belong to me."

Jones said she has been finally able to let accept that Williams’ is gone, but she hasn't given up honoring his memory or looking for his killer.

At home, Jones set up a makeshift memorial and recently celebrated his birthday with a homemade cake.

"Whoever did this took my very best friend. I’m not angry at the individual. It must’ve been the way they were raised for them to do something like this. But my son has to forever not have his dad. I just want him to know I tried my best to seek justice for his father."

Anyone with information about the death of Otis Williams is asked to contact Inglewood police Det. Campbell at (310) 412-5246.

-- Sarah Ardalani

Photo: Otis Williams and his son at Disneyland. Credit: Natascha Jones