It’s not long before my face is being cleaned off and blankets are placed over my body. I’m still shaking and I don’t see it stopping any time soon. Not when I’m in labor and my son isn’t with me. He’s been taken away from me in another ambulance and I have no clue what’s going on.
“Are you allergic to anything?” a paramedic asks me.
“Not that I know of. Why is there so much pain in my stomach? This is more than contractions,” I ask, trying to find out the answers I’m desperate for since I still can’t see much of anything.
“Ma’am, you need to lay back and calm down. You’re going into shock and it’s the last thing your baby needs. Can you take some deep, calming breaths for me?” a woman medic asks me, leaning over me to help me focus on my breathing.
Together we breathe and I forget about my questions as another contraction hits. Someone takes my hand and holds it while I pant away. It’s so hard to focus on anything with so much going on around me. I’m being poked and prodded while the pain intensifies. I’m not about to ask again what’s going on because I have a feeling no one will answer me.
It doesn’t seem to take very long to get to the hospital. I’m rushed from the ambulance into the emergency room. Doctors and nurses surround me as I hear Talon talking to someone. He’s still in my room and not leaving me as he said. I don’t honestly care about me right now. Brent is who I need to know about. Asking Talon to check on him, I let the staff do their work. At least until Kathy comes in.
From there, I’m rushed into an operating room. Our boy still has a heartbeat but something is going on. Death and Brent. That’s the only thing running through my mind as I try to remain calm. Every other thought flies away as I realize I didn’t live up to my end of the deal. I didn’t protect our son. Death is going to hate me so much. I’ve once again put his son at risk. All so I could cook him dinner. I’m such a fucking dumbass!
Chapter Twenty-Three
WHY DOES IT always seem to take longer to get where you want to go than it does on the way there? I’ve been on the road for hours and time is moving slow as fuck. I feel as if days have passed by instead of a few hours. While I might almost be home, it’s not fast enough for me. I’ve got a feeling in my gut that’s telling me something is about to happen or has happened. Not with the club or one of the guys. Something has happened to my ol’ lady and son. Both of my sons. Brent isn’t Vince’s son. That piece of shit doesn’t deserve to be called a dad when he’s threatening to sell him off to the highest bidder. Brent is my son and he’ll know what it means to be a real man because of how I raise him with Kelsey. He’ll have a club full of men willing to step up and show him how a real man acts, treats a woman, and handles his responsibilities. Everything that bitch will never be able to teach another person because it’s not anything he knows how to do himself. Rage always fills me when I think of the fucker and how my ol’ lady suffered at his hands.
I’m about a half hour from home when my phone goes off. Pressing the button to answer the phone, I wait for someone to speak.
“Death,” Lash’s voice fills my ear and I immediately know something’s wrong.
“What the fuck happened?” I bark out, my voice cold as I try to brace myself for whatever I’m about to hear.
“I don’t even know how the fuck to say this shit,” he says, releasing a deep breath before continuing on. “Kelsey was in an accident. She was on her way to the store when she was hit on the side of the SUV. It rolled and tipped over before slidin’ into a guardrail. They’ve both been rushed to the hospital. Fuck. Kelsey was rushed into surgery. Where the fuck are you Death?”
“Where. Is. He?” I grit out, knowing in my gut Vince is responsible for this.
“Shank got him to the clubhouse. He’s in a cell. We’re on our way to you. Where are you?”
“Half hour out.”
Hanging up, I twist the throttle and push my bike as hard as I fucking can. My ol’ lady is in surgery and pregnant with our boy. I don’t even know how Brent is or where the fuck he is while his mom is in the operating room. Fear like I’ve never felt before fills me and it’s all I can do to stay on the road and keep my bike up on the wheels.
I lose all track of time as my thoughts center on the three most important people in my world. Kelsey, Brent, and our unborn son. It’s not long before I’m surrounded by my brothers and we all race to the hospital. They make sure I don’t crash and end up in a hospital bed with my woman and son. Still, I can’t focus on anything but the thoughts racing through my mind. If I were fucking here, this wouldn’t have happened. I would have made sure Kels had everything she needed without leaving the compound.
It's not like I’m even mad or blaming any of the guys either. I know it’s not their fault. They were doing what they said and protecting my ol’ lady while letting her have a few minutes outside the gates of the compound. We’ve been on lockdown before and know how stir crazy it makes us all when we can’t get outside the gates for even a quick trip to the store. I’m sure that’s how Kelsey was feeling since it’s been a while since she left. Everything she’s done has been at the clubhouse or our home. Add in missing me and knowing I wanted to be home with her wasn’t helping the situation at all. There’s no doubt in my mind they thought they were doing the right thing. It just doesn’t change what happened. Now my family are the ones suffering for a decision made by multiple people.
Pulling into the hospital parking lot, I don’t bother searching for a parking space. I park right in front of the doors and race inside. Not too many guys are in the waiting room of the emergency room. Talon immediately steps in my path. The sorrow and guilt he’s feeling right now is written all over my brother’s face. He’s blaming himself and is waiting for me to beat the shit out of him. I’m not going to. Especially when I don’t know what the fuck is going on with my family.
“Where are they, Talon?” I question him, every emotion filling me coming out in those four words.
“Brent is still here. They’re puttin’ a cast on his arm right now. He’s got some cuts and bruises on his body from the glass when it shattered. I’m not sure how he broke his arm. Kathy is in with him,” Talon says, guilt lacing his voice. “They’ve rushed Kels to surgery. Bronwan and Jae are up in the surgical waitin’ area now with some guys. We’re split between the two waitin’ rooms so Brent and Kels have someone there for them. Nolan, it’s bad. She went into labor and I don’t know what the fuck cut her, but she had a large laceration across her side and abdomen.”
“Is, um, is the baby,” I trail off, not even able to voice the thoughts racing through my head right now.
“When she was first brought in, he still had a strong heartbeat. I don’t know about now. I know they wouldn’t do surgery if it wasn’t a medical necessity though.”
Before I can respond, Kathy comes out and stares straight at me.
“Death. Brent is in a room down the hall. I can take you to him now. We’ve had to put a cast on his arm. It’s not a bad break, but it’s definitely broken. Other than the cuts and bruises, he’s going to be fine. Kelsey is another story. I’m on my way up to the operating room now,” she tells me, her eyes filled with the emotion she’s trying not to express.
“What happened to my ol’ lady? Why is she in surgery?” I question, anguish clogging my voice.
“She had a piece of metal sticking out of her abdomen. It’s off the side and the baby had a strong heartbeat when they arrived here. They’re going to take the baby so they can better assess the damage that’s been done to her body. At this point, I don’t know what kind of damage has been done. I will make sure you know where your son is as soon as I get up there. Are you going to come with me or remain here with Brent?”
“I’m going with you. Talon, can you go in with Brent. He needs to see a familiar face and know he’s not alone. Tell him I love him and I’ll be there as soon as I can,” I tell my brother as he places a hand on my shoulder and lets me know he’ll be there for him.
Following Kathy, we head to the elevator. I don’t say a word as I try to blank out my mind. There’s nothing I can do to help my ol’ lady. I can’t go perform the surgery and make everything better for her. If I could, I’d be in there right the fuck now. Instead, I’m going to the waiting room to see where my son is and wait for any word on my girl. Kathy drops me off and tries to reassure me the best she can. There’s nothing she can say to make this better. Nothing will be better until I know my son and ol’ lady are alive and will be okay.
