The Baby Bump_Black Knights MC

by Sophia Gray

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Gray stepped back and looked at the men following her. “What are they doing here?”

  “We were in the neighborhood.” The man directly behind Stephanie, the one with a tattoo taking up half of his face, stepped around her.

  Gray looked nervous, but stood his ground. “Aaron, what the fuck is this?”

  “This…” Aaron stepped up to him and slapped his hand on Gray’s back, then loosely hung his arm over his shoulder, “…this is what happens when an asshole like you overreaches. This is what happens when you kill your own fucking president, wound your VP, kidnap his woman and her kid. This is what happens when you go behind your club’s back to take over a fucking drug cartel that the club would never fucking vote in.” His words grew darker with each passing syllable, his hand curled around Gray’s neck and by the time he finished, he shoved Gray to the ground. Aaron pulled out a gun and aimed it at Gray. “You stay the fuck down there.”

  “What are you doing?” Gray demanded, looking up at him. “This isn’t what we planned.”

  “No. What you had planned was bullshit. We saw through your shit, but needed to see how fucking far you’d go. No way we were going to kill our VP.”

  “Wait.” Stephanie ran over to the kneeling Gray, and Rafe moved quickly to get to her before she had a chance to do anything.

  “Steph…”

  “I’m not going to kill him,” she vowed. “I just want to hurt him a little.” And with that, her booted foot swung back then came forward and rammed between Gray’s legs, landing hard against his crotch. Several men winced behind them, and Gray squealed. He gripped his groin and fell to his side on the floor, taking in deep breaths while whimpering.

  “Christ.” Rafe made a face at Stephanie then gave her a little shove. She moved over to me and Maddie. We were both frozen, not knowing what to do. Obviously we weren’t in danger anymore, but I didn’t want to see what happened next. Maddie didn’t need to see any more violence.

  “Get us out of here.” I turned to Stephanie. She looked over at Rafe before she gave me a little nod.

  “Take them home, Steph.” I heard Rafe say, his voice detached. I chanced a look at him, trying to read his thoughts, but he kept his glare fixed on the whimpering man on the floor still rolling around, holding himself.

  “C’mon girls.” Stephanie corralled us. I pulled Madison along, willing myself not to look back at the scene behind us. Not to look at Rafe and wonder what could have been, and wishing I hadn’t fucked up with him.

  I wasn’t stupid. I knew what was going to happen when we left, knew Gray wouldn’t be walking out of that warehouse alive, but I didn’t see it as murder. I understood at that moment what Rafe meant. He wasn’t taking the life of an innocent. He was snuffing out the evil that harmed his club, and hurt his family.

  Maddie and me; we were his family. Until I shoved him out of it.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  RAFE

  Watching Beth walk out of that warehouse with Maddie in tow both ripped out my insides and lifted a ton of weight off my chest. I found breathing to be much easier once the door shut and they were safely outside.

  “This asshole is gonna pay.” Juan, Javier’s brother and first in command, stepped to where Aaron and I hovered over the still groaning Gray.

  I never should have doubted the club. Aaron had my back the whole time, but hadn’t stepped up to me. He wanted to watch what moves I took, to see if I would just act without the club or would I pull them all in. When he heard I reached out through JC, he’d rallied the rest of the men. He’d let Gray continue believing he was gaining support all the while they were waiting on me to make my move.

  Obviously our club needed a few lessons in communication.

  “Yeah, he is.” I nodded to Juan. “But by club rules, not yours.”

  He gave me a glare that would have scared most men, but I wasn’t in the fucking mood to have a pissing contest over who was going to get to kill the fucker. He’d have a chance at his revenge, but it was going down our way, not his.

  “He killed my brother.” The rage shook his voice, and his fists pumped at his sides. As much as I feared what his leadership over his brother’s men would do to the town, what I saw in front of me was a young brother looking to avenge the murder of his older brother.

  “He killed mine, too. And shot me, and kidnapped my girls. This fucker is going to get what’s coming to him, but he’s doing it by the charter rules.” I stepped in front of Gray, blocking Juan’s view.

  “We need some vengeance.” Juan lowered his voice. His men were standing not far off. I knew his dilemma—leaving the situation in in our hands wouldn’t resolve that fact. They’d want more blood, and I wasn’t about to let a single member of my club bleed over Gray.

  “Charter rules say the club takes him out,” Aaron said, kicking Gray in the ribs when he tried to stand back up. Another gasp for air as Gray crumbled back to the ground, his face pressed into the cement trying to breath.

  “Does it say anything about outside participants?” I asked Aaron without taking my eyes off Juan.

  “No. Doesn’t mention it.” Aaron sounded pleased by the idea.

  “There you go.” I waved a hand at Juan.

  “Fine.” He nodded, seeming somewhat satisfied. He pulled out his gun, but I pushed it away.

  “Yeah, it’s not gonna be that easy.” I looked over my shoulder at the man lying on the floor watching our conversation with terror in his eyes. I knew what needed to happen, knew what it was going to look like and was glad as hell Stephanie had been there to get my girls out of the room. “Our club has sort of a Viking history. The founding brothers were from the Netherlands and they liked to carry some of the old traditions into our chapters. In this situation, Gray’s going to undergo the Blood Eagle.”

  Juan’s usually darker toned skin paled as I explained the process of how it would be done. Gruesome didn’t quite do it justice—it was going to be horrific. After we finished explaining he swallowed and gave a harsh nod. “I want first cut.”

  Gray started begging but things were already in motion, and no one was stopping the ritual from taking place.

  Vengeance was about to be carried out.

  ***

  “She’s fine,” I said into the phone. “She’s at the hospital, but the cops are with her now. “

  “You called the cops?” Stephanie’s voice pierced my eardrum. Brittany had been found half dead in the warehouse Stephanie texted me about. She had gotten the information from Beth and sent it along, assuring me she hadn’t been lied to this time.

  “I don’t kill women, Steph,” I growled at her. Besides the fact that she was a woman, she had been one of Beth’s best friends. I wasn’t doing that to her.

  “Yeah, no, I get that. Beth will be happy to hear that; she was worried about her. Said Gray beat her pretty badly.”

  “Yeah, he did. Her jaw’s broken, both eyes are pretty badly swollen and he almost broke every fucking rib. It’s amazing the woman is even awake.”

  “She tell you anything?”

  “Me? No, she just kept apologizing and begging Aaron not to kill her.” I’d taken Aaron with me to the warehouse along with a small handful of guys, just in case my girl had gotten in her head to forget a few details of what we’d find when we got there.

  “Beth’s worried about her. Maybe I’ll see if she wants to go to the hospital and see her.”

  “No.” I barked my answer. “Fucking no. She stays away from Brittany. I don’t give a fuck what her excuse is, what sort of magical spell or what the fuck ever Gray did to her, she kidnapped Madison and she damn near got both my girls killed. Beth goes near her, even one toe steps into that hospital, and I don’t give a fuck what she or you want or say, I’ll bare both your asses and belt you raw.”

  “Shit, Rafe. I was just suggesting it. Calm down.” I could hear the sarcasm in Stephanie’s voice and knew she didn’t think I’d do it.

  “And I’m just tell
ing you what will happen. I’m not fucking kidding. She goes to that hospital and she’s gonna regret it.”

  “She said she has to go to work tomorrow.” Stephanie sighed. “I can’t get her to take some time off.”

  “Fuck,” I groaned. “She’s got to have plenty of vacation time, I don’t think that woman’s ever taken one.”

  “She had a call this morning with her boss. She missed a few ways of work, but given the situation they aren’t going to fire her.”

  “What the fuck does that mean?”

  “It means she’s getting to keep her job and won’t tempt them further to dump her by taking any time off. Apparently, you’ve made quite an impression on that doctor she works with, and he’s not all that thrilled with her involvement with you.”

  “Oh for fuck’s sake.” I was standing outside the exact hospital we were talking about and I knew which dick head she was referring to. “Don’t worry about any of that. You tell her to take a few days off, she needs to rest.”

  Stephanie sighed. “Why don’t you fucking tell her?”

  “She made it pretty clear what she wants, and it’s not me. I’m giving her space.”

  “Since when do you quit so fucking easy?”

  “Jason should have cured you of that foul mouth a long time ago,” I snapped at her. “I’m not quitting. I’m giving her space.”

  “Right.” Stephanie snorted into the phone. “I wouldn’t give her too much space. She’s gotten herself convinced you’re gone forever.”

  Gone forever? From her? No fucking way. But getting her back wasn’t going to be that easy. What if having her meant I couldn’t have the club, could I walk away? Now with Gray out of the way, the club unanimously put me in the president chair, and Aaron at my side as VP.

  Juan was taking his business back, and we were staying the fuck out of drugs. And as soon as we could get the strip club up and running, we’d be out of the gun runs, too. The club was tired of the bullshit and Gray’s reach in the drug shit only made them all realize exactly how done they were with all that drama.

  We’d be taking a hit financially at first, but by the time the club started turning profits and we put more effort into the body shop, we’d be doing fine again.

  Could I walk away now?

  I noticed the prick doctor stirring all the shit up walk past me and into the hospital. “I’ll take care of it, just keep her fine ass home.” I clicked off before she gave me any more trouble and marched back into the hospital.

  The doctor stood at the nurses’ station dressing down another nurse. She looked both scared and annoyed at the same time. Beth had told me about him and other doctors like him. Even when they were wrong, they couldn’t see it, they only saw that they had MD after their name and the nurses didn’t.

  “Hey, Dr. Wilkins?” I tapped his shoulder. He turned around, looking me over with the same distaste I remembered from the first time I saw the prick in my hospital room.

  “Can I help you?” he asked, glancing over at the main nurses’ station, probably hoping for them to call security.

  I smiled at the young woman he had just been tearing apart. “Honey, I need to have word with Dr. Wilkins, do you mind giving us a second. It won’t take long, I promise.”

  Her throat convulsed when she swallowed and gave the doctor a quick look before she nodded. “Sure thing. I’ll just be over there.”

  “Thanks. Just a second, I promise.” I gave her my best grin. The little blush that covered her cheeks made me smile even wider as I turned my stare on him. “Now.”

  “I don’t know what you could want with me, but those nurses over there can call security at any second.” His thin little lips curled at the edges, as though his puny ass could actually do anything to me at all.

  “They could.” I nodded, folding my arms over my chest and glancing over my shoulder at them with another grin. Three nurses watched us, but not one of them looked overly concerned for the doctor’s safety. They looked more like they wanted him to get a beating, and held some hope that I would give it to him. “But I don’t think they will.”

  “What do you want?” the man demanded, as though he had any control over the situation at all, but I suspected he knew he didn’t and was overcompensating for his fear. His gray, pinpoint eyes were trained on me, while his fingers began curl around a chart he had in his hands.

  “Beth Jamison, you’re gonna leave her alone. Who she’s friends with or associates with are none of your business. You don’t like me. I don’t give a shit. But you give her trouble, and I care. Do you get me?”

  His eyes widened. I hadn’t moved toward him, hadn’t even moved my hands from being tucked under my arms. “It’s men like you who make this town dangerous to live in. Gunshot wounds, knife fights, all because—”

  “I’m talking to you about Beth. You leave her be. She needs a week off to recover from the past few days.”

  “Yes, I heard about what happened.” His eyebrows knitted together. “Because of her association with you.” His snarl didn’t bother me; it was the truth of what he said that struck a nerve.

  “She has the rest of the week off, got me? And when she’s back, you won’t be giving her any shit or I’ll hear about it.” The implications of what would happen should that take place I assumed were implied, and the slight blanching of his face confirmed it. “Got me?”

  “Yes.” He gave a nod.

  “Good boy.” I patted him on the shoulder and smiled. His face tensed and his nostrils flared. I laughed. “Just make sure you don’t forget.”

  “Her supervisor will need to approve her time off.” His clipped voice stopped me as I turned to go.

  I looked over at the nurse’s station. “Is one of you Beth’s supervisor?” The older-looking one, with brown curly hair raised her hand slowly. “Beth’s off for a week.”

  “Okay. Uh…thanks.” She gave a little wave and dropped her hand.

  “Great.” I winked at the good doctor and stalked out the door. If that asshole gave Beth any trouble at all, I’d be back, and he seemed to know it.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  “I think we are done here.” The social worker assigned to Maddie’s kidnapping case closed her file folder and smiled warmly across the play school table at her. “Would you like to go play with the doll house while I talk with your mommy?”

  Maddie’s eyes lit up at the prospect. “Yeah! I mean, yes, please.” She waited for my nod then scooted off the chair and ran off to play.

  “Overall, I think she’s handling things pretty well.” The social worker spoke low enough to keep Maddie from over hearing. “She remembers a lot, but what she remembers most is when you arrived. She remembers you telling her stories, and washing her face with cold air?”

  I gave a little laugh. Not that it was funny at the time. “The room we were in was really hot, no open windows or anything. When the air turned on, I had my face pressed up against the vent, when she woke up she did the same thing, too.”

  “Ah, that explains it.” Cheryl patted my hand. “You handled it all very well, and I think that’s what she’ll remember most. Her abductor didn’t harm her.” Her abductor, that was how Brittany was being referred to now. “Other than being scared about where she was and why you weren’t with them, she wasn’t scared of who she was with.”

  “Well, I suppose that’s a good thing.” My lips scrunched up in concern. Maddie would probably need therapy, someone to help get her through what she remembered.

  “Thankfully, her abductor has made a full confession and won’t be heading to trial.”

  “What?” I sat up straighter. I hadn’t heard anything about that.

  “I’m sorry, I thought you knew. Yes, she did plea out for a deal. She’ll be placed in a mental health facility for three years, but she won’t be forcing Maddie here to testify against her in court.”

  My shoulders sagged with the relief. I had been fearing taking her to court for that. In the three days since we both returned h
ome, I focused all of myself on Maddie. I had to. Not just because she needed me, but because if I didn’t, my mind would drift over to Rafe. And he was off limits now. I had seen to that.

  “Can you give me a recommendation for a therapist that I can take Maddie to? I’m sure she’ll need something for a little while.”

  “Yes, of course.” Cheryl dug through her other files and pulled out a sheet of paper, sliding it to me. “Here is a list of practices I recommend.”

  “Thanks.” I folded the list and stuffed it into my purse. “Really, thank you. You’ve really been great with Maddie these past few days.”

  “I’m just glad she’s doing so well. With a little help, I think she’ll come out of this just fine. But what about you?”