by LeAnn Ashers
Logan has already dug out gauze from the first aid kit that I keep in the truck. “Did she hit you in the head?” He tilts her head side to side, and I have to hide my grin.
Logan fusses over her the whole way home, and she is smiling the whole time. She’s completely smitten with him if I have any say in it.
She is the polar opposite of him. She is tiny with long blond hair, blue eyes, and a pale complexion. Logan has dark hair and dark brown eyes and is really tan.
I drop them off at his house, and he practically carries her inside, as if her legs were damaged rather than her head.
I laugh and call Grace. “Let me in, angel.”
She raises the metal door, and I walk inside to find them all cuddled up on the couch. I was gone longer than I thought, and now it’s almost time for them to go to bed.
Gracelyn scoots over and makes room for me on the arm of the chair. Leah is leaning against her side, and Reid is sitting in her lap, content with playing with his toys.
“I missed my babies.” I touch Reid’s and Leah’s heads, and Leah looks up at me, flashing that beautiful smile of hers. We have gotten close. It took a couple of days for her to warm up to me, because she has never had a strong male figure in her life. If we're really being honest, she never had a mother figure either. She told me that her mom was high every single day. She would sober up for like a week, but then she turned back to drugs and needed boyfriends to help her get by. Leah and her mother were often homeless. They spent nights under bridges. Her mother would shoot up or smoke as she slept.
We put Leah in intensive therapy, and it’s helped her tremendously. Leah is a strong little girl, and I am so proud of the progress she has made.
My mother is dating Walker, and I am fucking thrilled. Yeah, right, it’s strange seeing my mother dating, because I can’t honestly remember her doing that until now.
I sit on the couch, safe in our house, while the outside world has completely gone to shit. I have a huge feeling this is going to get worse before it gets better. It’s spreading from one town to the next.
Grace
A couple of days later
I am in the pick-up line with Aiden, waiting for Leah to get out of school. I know one thing: I was incredibly nervous about letting her go.
The drug epidemic has gotten worse. The downtown area is practically a ghost town, because that’s where it runs rampant. The police department has done a lot to keep it isolated, but when they close one dealer down, three more pop up.
I am scared.
I’ve seen people rolling around on the side of the road. Our gated community is safe, and Lane has left the prospects at the women’s disposal so we can have protection if we have to go out and our men are busy. But I worry for others who don’t have that much security.
We have practice after school, and we are picking up Tiffany while we're at it because Lane is so busy with the drug problem.
Raleigh, Texas, the Devils Souls town, has been hit just as hard, and the surrounding towns are slowly getting hit. I feel like all of Texas is going to be covered in this before the end.
Leah and Tiffany walk out of school together. I hop out of the car and hold the back door open for them as Aiden keeps watch.
The MC hired security for the school, but I didn’t feel that Leah was safe there. So we’ve had it locked down, with guards at every entrance.
I get back in my seat. We have to drive a mile down the road to the softball field. I hand the girls their snacks. “Here girls.”
I love this. I’ve always wanted to be a mom and take care of others the way I should have been take care of. I love Reid; it feels like he is my son. Leah is my daughter. Before my eyes my life has changed so much, but for the better. I see so much of myself in Leah; she truly is my daughter. She smiles a little more every day, and laughs a little more, and that just makes everything in life so worth it.
Aiden kisses the back of my hand. “You’re beautiful. Have I told you that today?”
I smile. He is so incredibly cheesy sometimes, but I love that about him. I love every part of him, if I’m being honest. It feels like a dream, but it’s one I never want to wake up from.
I was healed in so many ways before I met Aiden, but he healed the rest of me and I am happy. It’s a deep-in-my-soul kind of happy that I’d only dreamed of having.
But I’m living it.
Aiden parks at the softball field. I climb out, and Leah hands me Reid from his car seat. “Your bags are in the back,” Aiden tells them as he pulls out the stroller for Reid to relax in.
Leah and Tiffany get straight to work setting up for practice today. We’ll be practicing our batting and offense. We have another game later this week, so the best thing for them is to play against each other. It’ll be a tough game because they’re all good. I split Tiffany and Leah up because—let’s be honest—they are, hands down, the top two on the team.
I snuggle Reid against my chest. He is sucking on his hand, sleepy. It’s kind of chilly today—in the sixties—and it will get colder as the sun goes down.
When the bus shows up with the rest of the girls, I take a blanket out of Reid’s diaper bag and bundle him up like a little burrito. Aiden chuckles and rubs Reid’s chubby cheek. “He likes to snuggle.” The stroller will be relatively useless—I want to hold him all the time because I know there will come a day when he won’t want me to.
Aiden kisses the side of my head. “I love you,” I tell him and he smiles so beautifully.
“I love you, sweet girl.” He looks around before he smacks me on the ass.
I laugh and walk closer to the field. “Okay girls, two teams. Tiffany has first choice, and then Leah chooses.”
I move away and let them make the decisions. We have practiced so much they practically handle it all themselves.
I hope we win the nationals. They have worked so hard, and they want it so badly. I have seen them with broken fingers, and they come back the next day, slip off the splint, and have at it. Tiffany and Leah shake hands before running off, grinning.
“Those girls are trouble.” Aiden chuckles. I have to agree, but the competition is totally healthy.
For the next hour we practice, and since it’s getting really cold I allow them to go home early. Reid is asleep on my shoulder; he was out minutes after the girls started practicing. From the corner of my eye, I notice someone walking through the parking lot as the girls file onto the bus.
Tiffany is picking up the balls and storing them in the dugout while Leah puts away the bats. One second Leah is laughing with Tiffany—the next she is screaming. Her stepfather is flat-out sprinting toward her.
I cover my mouth so I don’t scream. Aiden is next to her in a split second, catching her stepfather before he can reach her.
“Come here,” I tell the girls, and Leah wraps her arms around my waist. “It’s okay, sweetheart,” I tell her soothingly. I can feel her shaking hard.
I want to fucking hurt him. How dare he do this to her?
He starts to scream and roll around on the ground. Fuck, he is on the drugs that are turning everyone insane, and he was already crazy.
“Let’s get inside the truck.” I take Leah’s hand and lead her past Aiden, who is holding her stepfather down on the ground. He claws the ground as if he wants to get closer to us. “Leah!!” he screams in a weird high-pitched voice. It’s like he is possessed.
Leah gets inside the truck, and she takes Reid from me and sets him in his seat. I look at her, concerned. Her hands are shaking, and her eyes are filled with tears as she stares at the back of the seat.
“Baby, he is nothing to you. He is not going to hurt you, and he is not going to take you away from me,” I tell her softly, rubbing her back.
Tiffany takes her hand and holds it. “That’s right, Leah. You’re my sister and nobody hurts my sister.”
How fucking amazing was that? I mouth “thank you” to Tiffany.
Leah sniffs and rubs her eyes, ridding herself
of her tears. “It just scared me because he came out of nowhere.”
“I know, honey. It’s a scary thing.”
I hear a very loud scream, and I turn around to see another crazy person running down the road toward us. I look at Aiden, who is tying Leah’s stepdad up, and I slam the door shut and run over to him. I click the clicker to make sure nobody gets inside the vehicle. “Aiden, there’s another one!”
It’s another guy and he looks rough, like he has been running for days and days. He is emaciated, and I don’t think he is going to make it long.
Aiden jumps up, takes my hand, and leads me back toward the truck. The guy is still a softball field away from us, but I want to be miles away. Aiden opens his door, and I climb over to the passenger seat, hitting the lock button on my door. I lean over the seat and buckle Reid in. Aiden shuts his door just as the crazy runs headfirst into our window. Blood splatters across the window as he does it over and over again. He grins, and his teeth are completely bloody.
“Aiden, something is not right,” I whisper.
He puts the vehicle in reverse, and it bumps as we run over the crazy’s foot. Aiden speeds back toward the main highway, and I look back to see the crazy trying his best to run after us.
We sit in silence as we try to wrap our heads around what happened. I look at Aiden. He is beyond pissed off. His hands are gripping the steering wheel so hard I can hear it cracking.
“Gracelyn, I’m not sure what just happened,” Leah says from the back seat.
I’m not sure what to say because I’m clueless myself. This drug epidemic is getting out of hand, and I’m just confused as to how it got to this point.
Aiden takes out his phone and talks to Lane, explaining everything that happened. Tiffany is silent in the back seat.
I just don’t know what to think.
From outside the car, so many people are going about their normal lives, but then we see someone who is blown out of their mind. People are going to get hurt—people are going to die—if something is not done about all of this.
But how do we do it? I know the MC is investigating it, but it's weird how it just came from absolutely nowhere.
Aiden pulls to a stop outside the gate, puts the code in, and drives in, the gates slamming shut behind us. Lane is sitting in our driveway with Amelia.
Lane opens the door and pulls his daughter out, hugging her. Tiffany closes her eyes, and I know she has been wanting her family. I want to take Leah inside, hold her, and make sure she is okay. I worry that this is going to be a setback for her. She doesn’t need any of that.
I open her door, and she already has Reid out of his seat. I take him and help her out. Aiden is explaining what happened to Lane and Amelia. I take her inside the house and set Reid in his playpen.
Leah runs upstairs and into the shower. What do I do? I sit on the couch and cover my face, as the stress is overwhelming. It’s really fucking scary out there right now, and I’m not sure when it’s going to get better.
A few minutes later Aiden walks into the house and sits down next to me. I curl into his side, immediately feeling safe.
“How is she?” he asks, rubbing my arm.
“I think it really shook her up to see him acting like a complete savage. It’s like her nightmare came true,” I whisper.
Aiden tightens his grip on me. “I should have killed him before, and none of this would have happened.”
I sit up and look at him. “Do not blame yourself! It’s all his fault.” How dare he blame himself for something like that. Leah’s stepfather did this to himself. No one forced them to take the drug, and no one forced him to be abusive.
An hour later Aiden’s phone rings, and as he listens to the person on the other end, he grins.
“We have them,” he tells me and runs out of the house. I go to key pad on the wall and lock down the house.
Aiden
We sit outside a huge warehouse thirty minutes outside of town. Lane found out that a cartel wants to use our town as their prime base. There are vehicles outside, and I can see people standing in front of the windows cooking the shit.
Logan and Wilder are at the back to make sure no one escapes.
We walk down to the fucking warehouse like we own it. I open the door, and we run inside with our guns raised.
“I want every one of you fuckers outside in ten seconds, or I will blow your fucking faces off,” Lane roars and everyone takes off running.
The smell inside is one that I can’t describe. It’s like they’re taking every single drug known to man and combining them.
The back door opens, and Logan comes in and sets down the bomb. We are about to fucking blow this place to bits.
We all walk outside to our vehicles, which are far enough away that we won’t be affected by the blast. The workers from inside are running down the dirt road, trying to get away, and I hope that they tell their boss. I want them to know we’re coming for them and we will find them.
Logan runs up the hill and hands Lane the remote. He clicks the button and the warehouse explodes. I can feel the heat across my skin as the flames reach far into the sky. We all watch in silence as this one is taken down. It was filled with drugs.
This will cripple them.
We will find the next and the next until we find the person who caused this. Then they will have a bullet in their head.
14
Grace
A few weeks later
I sit on the edge of the tub, staring at the small stick in my hand that’s going to change my life. I’ve been feeling really bad in the mornings, and the food cravings have been wild.
For the heck of it I decided to take a pregnancy test, but not for one second did I think it would be positive.
But here I am staring at the word pregnant on the digital screen. Aiden is in our bedroom because its eight o’clock in the morning and the kids will be up any minute. I set the test on the tub and splash cold water on my face, trying to focus my mind.
Will Aiden be upset? Will he think it’s too much? Reid is still a baby, and we have Leah.
“Are you okay in there?” he calls through the door, and I dry my face, trying to think of what to say. I open the door and he looks at me. “Are you okay?” he asks again.
I smile reassuringly. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
He gives me a look that lets me know he doesn’t believe me, and he walks into the bathroom. As he turns on the shower he pauses, looking at the bathtub. I forgot the pregnancy test was sitting on the edge of the tub. He picks it up for a closer look.
My heart is in my throat. I should have had some cute way to tell him or something.
Not like this.
I lick my lips, twisting my hands together nervously, just waiting for him to say something.
He finally turns around after what seems like hours. “You’re…?” he starts and then stops. Tears stream down my face; he is smiling so beautifully. “You’re pregnant.” He picks me up and sets me on the edge of the sink, hugging me. “I am so fucking happy, baby,” he says softly, resting his face on my shoulder.
“I need to make sure. We need to go to the doctor.” I run my fingers down his face.
He pulls back smiling and kisses my forehead. “Okay, I will call a doctor right now.”
I smile and we cuddle for a few more moments. I feel dumb for worrying for even a split second. I can’t wait to tell Leah. She absolutely loves Reid, and she is always ready to hold him.
“You’re pregnant with one hundred percent certainty,” the doctor says as we all look at the small bean on the screen. The sound of the heartbeat fills me with relief and happiness beyond imagining.
Aiden is holding my hand, stroking my fingers. He hasn’t stopped smiling since he found out, and neither have I.
“The babies look fine.”
Wait, did she just say…? I look at Aiden, wide eyed. “Did you just say?” I ask her and she laughs.
“Yes, I said babies. You have two.” She point
s to the screen, and that’s when I see the other little bean.
I have been so blessed, with not just one baby but two.
Aiden kisses my forehead before resting his head against mine. Together, in this moment, we let it sink in that we are going to be parents to two kids.
“Four,” I whisper, my stomach filled with butterflies.
He laughs. “Four,” he repeats. “Damn, I have got some super swimmers,” he jokes and I gently smack his chest. That is such a guy thing to say.
The doctor laughs and hands me some papers along with a prescription for prenatal vitamins. Aiden holds the door open for me, and we walk out into the parking lot.
Everything has completely died down with the drugs. Whatever Aiden and the guys did, it put a stop to it. There have been a few more incidents, but not like it was a couple of weeks ago.
“I could really go for a juicy burger right now and some fries.” My mouth is watering at the thought of the burger.
Aiden laughs. “Why do I have a feeling that I will be making a lot of late-night snack runs?”
Before I can answer, I see my father standing outside a store staring at us. My hands are shaking as I grip Aiden’s hand. I look up to tell him, but he is already eyeing my father. Why is he here? It can’t be a coincidence that he’s outside the place we just left.
Aiden opens the door and helps me inside the vehicle, slamming the door shut, and he charges across the parking lot. My father runs away from Aiden, who stops and watches him leave. My heart is racing, and vomit is ready to crawl up my throat.
I am not going to let him ruin my high; that’s for sure. I am pregnant with twins. I touch my belly. It’s hard to imagine that they’re growing inside me.