“Put this around her,” Hamilton said, handing over his jacket.
Laz wrapped it around her. “Journey. Sweetheart, come on, wake up.”
He shook her several times, gently tapping her cheek as he continued calling her name. His mind was a crazy mixture of rage and fear as he cradled her against him.
“Come on. I need you to open those gorgeous eyes.”
She moaned.
Laz hadn’t cried since he lost Gwenn, but damned if his eyes didn’t fill with tears. Blinking rapidly, he quickly swiped them away before they could fall as he got his emotions under control.
It was still a while before her eyes eased open and she blinked several times, as if trying to focus.
“No. Don’t touch me,” she said in a hoarse whisper as she fought him, trying to get away. Her weakness was evident in the way she could barely lift her arms.
“Journey, it’s me. It’s Laz,” he said quietly while she still struggled to wake completely. “Come on, baby, I need you to wake up.”
“Laz,” she rasped and sagged against him, fisting the front of his shirt. She was mumbling something, but he couldn’t understand a word through her sobs.
“I’ve got you,” he said into her hair. He held her close, probably tighter than he should, but he couldn’t help it. It had been a long time since he’d been this scared, and it seemed like forever since he’d held her in his arms. “I love you so damn much. I thought I had lost you.” His voice was rough with emotion as he struggled to keep himself together.
Hamilton gripped his shoulder. “Laz, we need to get out of here and get her checked out.”
He was right, but Laz didn’t know if he would ever be able to let her go again. He eventually loosened his hold and kissed her.
“Are you hurt anywhere?” he asked not sure she’d be able to answer him.
“My head…. It was dark. They…they left me.” Tears poured out of her eyes and it felt as if someone was stabbing him in the heart over and over again.
“I know, baby, and I will make them pay.”
She started shaking her head, but winced and fell into him. “No more,” she pleaded, her voice so weak and raspy, Laz could hardly understand her. “Promise…no fi—fighting. Please…”
“Okay, okay. I promise.” He wiped her face, unable to keep up with the tears flowing freely. So far, his promises to her had been good for shit, and this would be yet another promise he wouldn’t be able to keep. Especially seeing her like this.
“Don’t feel good,” Journey mumbled, her hand going to her stomach and she moaned as she curled deeper into him.
“Are you going to be sick?” Laz asked in a rush. He wasn’t letting her go.
She didn’t say anything, just kept holding her stomach and moaning. What had they done to her?
“Come on. Let’s get out of here,” Hamilton said, grabbing the flashlight Laz had abandoned and shining it toward the floor to guide their way back out of the building.
Laz stood with Journey in his arms, holding her close as they hurried toward the exit. Worry consumed him. She was so light in his arms, much lighter than the last time he’d carried her.
The weight loss wasn’t something that happened overnight. No. Clearly, she hadn’t been eating and taking care of herself.
“Laz,” she moaned.
“I got you, sweetheart.” He kept moving, hoping that nothing was seriously wrong with her as she curled deeper into him, crying softly as she held her stomach.
“Our baby…help…the baby.”
Laz stopped in his tracks. “Wait… What?”
No way had she just said what he thought he’d heard. Yet, one look at Hamilton, who stood less than a foot away with raised eyebrows, and Laz knew he hadn’t heard wrong.
“Journey,” he croaked around the lump in his throat, unable to move and scared to death when she passed out in his arms. “Journey, what are you saying? Talk to me. Come on, sweetheart.” He gently shook her, but she was out.
“We gotta move. Now!” Hamilton said in a rush and took off in a jog with Laz hot on his heels.
A baby?
Chapter Twenty-Six
Laz stood in the doorway of Journey’s bedroom, staring at her as she slept. In the last couple of days, he had experienced every emotion known to mankind. From fear to rage, from panic to relief, from shock to elation, all of them more intense than the next.
And all of them centered around the woman he couldn’t see living without.
I’m going to be a father.
The thought seemed so foreign. Each time the words filtered into his brain, Laz shook his head, struggling to grasp the idea. He had often thought about marriage and having a family, but to have it become a reality was more than he could’ve hoped for. He didn’t have the marriage part of the dream, yet, but one day… One day soon he had every intention of asking Journey to become his wife.
She stirred and Laz moved across the room to the bed. Sitting on the edge of it next to her, he ran the back of his fingers down her soft cheek. He wasn’t trying to wake her, but with what they’d just been through, he needed to touch her. Needed to be close to her.
When she moaned with her eyes still closed and rested her hand on her stomach, Laz immediately went on alert. He didn’t know how he was going to survive seven months of her being pregnant without him freaking out. With every wince, moan, sigh, or move she made, he wanted to know if she was okay, if she was in pain, or if she needed anything.
“Laz.”
“I’m right here.” She’d been sleeping a lot, which was expected with all things considered, and she hadn’t said much, claiming she didn’t feel like talking. But each day, she was growing stronger and more talkative. Soon she’d be back to normal. At least he hoped.
Journey didn’t open her eyes right away, but eventually turned her head slightly and looked at him through half-lifted lids.
“Do you need something?” he asked.
“Only you.”
That brought a smile to his face. Every nerve in his body had been on high alert from the moment she had mentioned the baby at the warehouse. A small part of him thought that maybe she’d been delusional, while the other part of him had been scared to death that she might’ve been pregnant and those assholes had endangered her and his child.
Stripping down to his boxer briefs, Laz climbed into the bed and pulled her against the side of his body, loving how she curled into him. “Do you feel okay?”
“Still a little tired, but I feel better than I have in a while.” She snuggled closer. “I’m just glad to be home…with you.”
“Me too, baby.”
If Laz thought he’d been scared crazy when he first received the call from the kidnapper, it was nothing compared to what he experienced on the ride to the hospital. He could honestly say he had never been that afraid in all of his life.
That fear had multiplied when he waited for the hospital staff to run tests on Journey, including a pregnancy test. The toxicology report had come back stating she’d had a low amount of temazepam, a sleep aid, in her system. It was too early in the pregnancy to know if it had any effect on the baby, but the doctor was optimistic.
The handful of people who knew about the abduction had agreed to keep it quiet, including Geneva, who Laz had called once he got to the hospital. Geneva had taken the news better than expected, and agreed to notify her parents, who had been scheduled to return from an overseas trip the next day.
So far, neither the media or the DA’s office had gotten wind of anything. Wiz had worked his magic and somehow erased the footage of Journey’s abduction outside of the courthouse, while Laz had told the hospital staff that he had found Journey unresponsive at her apartment.
Once she was coherent, he’d had a chance to fill her in on the story they’d decided to go with.
“Hopefully my parents didn’t drive you crazy. I would’ve preferred you meet them under different circumstances.”
Laz smiled. “Yeah, me
too. I thought for sure when your father found out you were pregnant that he was going to shoot me. I’m ninety-nine percent sure he was packing.”
Laz felt Journey smile against his chest. “My dad wouldn’t have shot you, but you’re probably right about him carrying a weapon. Like you, he doesn’t go too many places without one. Also like you, as a former cop, he’s still very intimidating. He used to be the master at scaring away boyfriends.”
Laz laughed, thinking he would be the same way with his daughters. “Do you think you’ll ever tell them about the kidnapping?” he asked. The subject was still touchy for her and she hadn’t wanted to talk about the incident any more than necessary.
“No.”
“Well, just so you know, I think your father suspects we were holding something back from them.”
Journey lifted her head, her troubled eyes meeting his. “Why do you say that?”
“When he and I went to the living room after leaving you and your mother in here, he bombarded me with questions. Despite your long-sleeved shirt, he saw the bruises on your wrists. He also said that you wouldn’t put your unborn child at risk by taking any type of medication. And then he asked me point blank—What aren’t you and Journey telling us?”
“Oh no.” She brought her hand to her mouth. “What did you tell him?”
“I told him that there was an incident with a few bad guys, but the situation had been handled and was being kept quiet.”
“You two are a lot alike. It’s almost scary. I’m sure that response wasn’t enough for him.”
“Nope, it wasn’t.” Laz recalled the stare-down and the lethal glare brewing in her father’s eyes. “He had more questions, but when he realized that I wasn’t going to share more, he told me that my reputation precedes me. And he hoped I had handled anyone that had hurt you.”
“Oh, Lord.”
Laz laughed. “Yeah, it seems when your father found out we were dating, he did some digging into my background.”
Journey shook her head and sighed. “Yeah, I bet he did. Me and Geneva could never get away with anything, though my sister tried.”
Laz had no doubt about that. Geneva was a sneaky one.
“Your dad still has some connections at Atlanta PD from when he was a cop, and he told me that some of what he heard about me was disturbing. He also said a lot of other things,” Laz shrugged, “but I’ll keep that between him and I. But I reiterated that the situation had been dealt with and assured him that he didn’t have to worry about you. I made it clear that going forward, I would do whatever necessary to make sure you and our baby are well taken care of and safe.”
Searching his eyes, Journey studied him for the longest time without speaking. It was only a matter of time before she asked if he did anything to the people responsible for the kidnapping. But she knew him well enough to know that he wouldn’t be volunteering any information, and even if she did question him, his answers would be vague.
Laz had a feeling she either didn’t want to know or wasn’t ready to talk about the events leading up to her kidnapping or those that followed. Except for when she had talked to the DA the day before, acknowledging that she had heard about Monsuli’s suicide, she hadn’t mentioned the case or anything related to it to Laz.
She laid her head back down on his chest. “I know I’ve said this before, but thanks for coming for me,” she said quietly.
“I would walk through fire for you. You have to know that. Whether you’re pissed at me and giving me the silent treatment or not, Journey, there is nothing I wouldn’t do for you…and our baby.” And he meant what he told her father. He would ensure Journey and the baby’s safety, but revenge dominated his thoughts.
Laz hadn’t been able to pull himself away from Journey’s side while at the hospital, but that didn’t stop him from calling in a couple of more favors to the underworld. He had even offered a reward for anyone who found Moreno. It was only a matter of time.
“I’m glad you’re excited about the baby,” Journey whispered. “I just wish I would’ve told you the moment I suspected I was pregnant.”
“All that matters is that I know now.” It was probably good he hadn’t known. He had already been a wreck with her missing. Knowing she was pregnant and missing would’ve probably sent him over the edge.
During her short stay in the hospital, Geneva had filled Laz in on the day Journey had officially found out she was pregnant. He was a little surprised to hear about her insecurities regarding becoming a mother, but tried to understand where she was coming from. He had already known that she had no intention of getting married and having kids, although he had hoped to one day change her mind. Up until now, building her career had been her sole focus.
After the doctor had ran a series of tests, she had broken down in tears, fearing the baby wouldn’t be okay. She faulted herself for everything, including getting pregnant in the first place. Laz had tried reassuring her that even if she had missed a few days from taking the pill, both of them were responsible for birth control. No way was he letting her take the blame.
Once she started feeling better physically, it seemed to help her emotionally. Now she seemed excited about their new addition, especially knowing that he was thrilled about becoming a father. Sure, the prospect of parenthood was scary as hell, but Laz looked forward to the challenge. Even more so knowing they’d be raising the baby together.
“I understand why you didn’t tell me right away,” Laz said. “But going forward, let’s agree that we do a better job communicating. If something or someone is bothering you, I want to know. If you’re unhappy or hurting or anything else, I want to know.”
After a slight hesitation, she said, “I’ll only agree if that works both ways.”
Laz knew he wasn’t the best communicator, but if he wanted this relationship to work, there were a number of changes he had to make.
“Agreed.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Three days later
No more fighting. No more breaking the law. No more hanging out in jail, Laz. Promise me.
Journey’s plea from the day before taunted Laz as he added the chopped vegetables to the egg mixture for her omelet. They’d spent the day before binge-watching a law enforcement show on television and Journey had compared him to one of the main characters. A character who took shit from no one and bent the rules in half during most episodes.
Laz found the show entertaining and actually liked the guy. He didn’t see any problem with the way the man operated, getting the job done no matter what. But Journey, on the other hand, had cringed during most of his scenes. And of course Laz had to hear about it.
Then she made him promise her that he was done with that life. A life that skated on the edge of justice.
I hate making promises.
All night, her words and the pleading in her eyes had clogged his mind. When he wasn’t thinking about that, he was reliving the moment he found her in the warehouse. The rope burns. Her lifeless body. The needle. He didn’t know if he would ever be able to let go of those images.
“Yeah, I’ll keep my promise. Right after this one last job,” he whispered and slid the omelet onto a plate. Alonso Moreno would regret the day he ever laid a hand on her.
It was only a matter of time.
Laz organized the omelet, sausage, hash browns, and orange juice onto the breakfast tray. He put the waffles on a different plate and set it near the tray while he made Journey a cup of tea.
“All right. I think that’s it,” he said to himself, double-checking to make sure he had everything.
His cell phone, sitting on the breakfast bar, rang right after he added the tea cup to the tray. Laz snatched up the phone, hoping it was the call he’d been waiting days for.
“Yeah.”
“It’s done,” the caller said. Laz recognized the voice immediately. Before the other day, he hadn’t spoken to this contact since the night he called him about roughing up Gabe.
“Are you sur
e?” Laz questioned. The boulder-like weight that had been sitting on his chest since finding out Journey had been kidnapped was finally crumbling away.
“Positive. You’ll never have another problem out of Alonso Moreno. May he rest in peace.”
Or not.
After being filled in on the details, Laz said, “I’ll take care of tipping off Atlanta PD.” He disconnected and set the phone back on the counter, glad that he had taken care of all of the loose ends.
It is done. Finally.
*
Journey awaken slowly, stretching her arms up and out as she released a noisy yawn. Though still a little achy, for the most part, she was starting to feel like herself. No doubt the way Laz and Geneva had been practically pouring water down her throat and force-feeding her had helped.
She glanced to her right, not surprised to find the space on the other side of the bed empty. Laz was one of those irritating morning people. It didn’t matter what time he went to bed, he was usually up before dawn.
Journey headed to the bathroom, freshened up, and then pulled one of Laz’s T-shirts from the closet, but stopped in front of the full-length mirror. With the shirt thrown over one shoulder, she placed her hands on her stomach, still in awe that a baby was growing inside of her. It would be a couple of months before she really started showing, and a part of her was looking forward to seeing the transformation of her body.
No longer afraid, she couldn’t wait to meet their baby.
A wistful sigh slipped through her lips as she put on the T-shirt. Laz hadn’t officially moved in with her, but hadn’t left her side for any long period of time since their ordeal. The kidnapping had definitely brought them closer, but she didn’t know if she would ever fully recover mentally. She had never been through anything that scary in all of her life.
Journey moved back into the bedroom and had started making the bed when the door swung open.
“Oh, good. You’re awake.” Laz walked into the room with a tray loaded with food.
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