Wild Ride

by Tiffinie Helmer

  “I know it. Ditto.”

  Dare left, and Gideon gestured for Leia to lay down on the exam table.

  She balked. “Just give me the stick to pee on, and we can all go home.”

  “I don’t have a stick for you to pee on,” Gideon said. “I’m going to perform an ultrasound.”

  “Why?”

  “So we can hear the baby’s heartbeat,” he explained calmly.

  “Oh, well, in that case. I’d like to hear the little Wilde heartbeat myself.” She smiled that sly smile again and laid down.

  “Undo the button and zipper of your pants and inch up your top,” he instructed while fiddling with a machine, holding his hand out to Kennadee who placed a tube of something in it. He then squirted lubricant on the end of a probe-like thing and placed it on Leia’s lower abdomen. A whooshing noise filled the room, and then a fast, fluttering heartbeat.

  “There’s the little fetus,” Gideon said, pointing to a blip on the screen.

  “How can you tell what’s what?” Ryder asked.

  Gideon then proceeded to explain in lengthy detail what he was seeing. It all went over Ryder’s head. The only thing he knew was that he was going to be a father. He didn’t know what to feel. He’d always known that someday he’d be a father, but not like this and not with her.

  “Everything seems in order, and by my calculations, you’re seven weeks along. Congratulations, Leia,” Gideon offered in a dry tone. “Call tomorrow and make an appointment in a month. For now, here is a prescription for prenatal vitamins.” He tore off the piece of paper from the pad he’d been writing on and handed it to her. All the while, Ryder’s mind reeled. Kennadee looked at him with pity.

  “Thanks, Doc,” Leia said, taking the tissue Kennadee offered to wipe away the jelly. She secured her clothing and stood. “Satisfied, Ryder?”

  Not by a long shot.

  Then something clicked. “How far along?” he asked, holding his breath.

  “Due date should be February fourth. Right about seven weeks along.”

  “It isn’t mine,” he said, just above a whisper. Kennadee gasped and covered her beaming smile with her hand.

  “Yes, it is!” Leia was quick to respond.

  “No, we broke up over eight weeks ago, and we hadn’t slept together for at least a week before the breakup. You were on your period.” And raging with PMS. He kept that last bit to himself. “The baby isn’t mine,” he repeated, joy filling his heart. “I need to talk to Gabriella.”

  “Wait!” Leia called after him when he opened the door. “You can’t abandon me.”

  He turned and looked her over. “Go and talk to the other guy you slept with. Let him know he’s going to be a father.”

  “I don’t want to be with him.” She clutched his arm with both of her hands. “I want to be with you.”

  “That’s never going to happen. I’m in love with someone else.” He peeled her hands off him. “Goodbye, Leia.”

  He let himself out of the room, leaving Gideon and Kennadee to deal with Leia’s screaming demands. Dare waited for him in the hallway, his eyes worried.

  “Well? She doesn’t sound happy.” Dare cocked his head, a slow grin spreading across his face. “While you, on the other hand, look on top of the world.”

  “It isn’t mine. She’s only seven weeks along. No way in hell could it be mine.”

  “Thank you, God.” Dare hugged him. “Let’s go celebrate.”

  “Hell, no. I’ve had enough drinking to last a long while. I need to see to Gabriella.”

  Dare fished his keys out of his pocket. “Here, take my truck. I’ll have Kennadee drive me home. Besides, I’m enjoying Leia’s colorful language.” He indicated the closed exam room. “I think I might pick a few new swear words. Girl’s got quite a creative vocabulary.”

  Ryder rushed from the clinic feeling freer than he’d ever felt in his lifetime. Not being shackled to a harpy will do that to a man, he thought, laughing out loud.

  He headed toward Gabriella’s and then turned around. He needed flowers and a ring. He called his sister Catriona to see if she’d meet him at her shop, the Mystic Heart, so he could shop for one.

  She was more than happy to accommodate him.

  Chapter 19

  “I feel like we’re tattling,” Gabi said to Derek as they waited for Todd Ellis in the opulent entry of Heart Springs Eternal Resort and Spa. Why did Todd think she was competition when he could offer his clientele all this?

  “Information is power. Right now, you have the power. You told me all the crap this guy has put you through. It’s time he got some crap slung his way.”

  “But still. I feel like a gossiping fish wife.”

  “Good afternoon, Ms. Waterman,” Todd greeted, coming up to them, a smarmy smile on his face. “I take it you heard about my blocking your zoning request.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “That little campground and RV park you tried to hide from me. Well, I found out and have put a stop to you being able to do it.”

  “What the hell, man?” Derek sputtered. “You’re an asshole.”

  “I’m a businessman. This is nothing personal.”

  “The hell it isn’t,” Gabi said. “Why do you have it out for me and my little inn?” She raised her arms to include the room. “You have all this. Why do you find me a threat?”

  “A threat?” He laughed. “I’m not threatened by anyone.”

  “What a pompous ass,” Derek said under his breath.

  Gabi agreed. “I’m here to give you some information I thought you would be interested in. You know, doing the neighborly thing.”

  “Oh, really, and what is that?”

  “I heard you and Leia Atwood have been seeing each other?”

  “And how is that any of your business?” He picked lint off his sleeve.

  “Because she told Ryder Wilde last night that she’s pregnant. I figured you might like to know since you’ve apparently been sleeping with her too.”

  “Pregnant?” His face went ashen. “Leia’s pregnant?”

  “She says she is,” Derek butted in. “But then it’s Leia we’re talking about.”

  Todd looked quickly around the room. “I need to talk to her. Do you know where she is? She hasn’t been returning my calls.”

  Everything about him changed at the news. His stance, which had always been cocky, now seemed anxious, hopeful, and a little needy. Could he have feelings for Leia? And was Leia ghosting him like Ryder had her? It was almost laughable.

  “Ryder called, and he was meeting Leia at the clinic,” Gabi said softer now.

  He suddenly rushed for the front doors, and then stopped, and turned around. “Thank you, Gabi.” Then he was gone, running from the building.

  Gabi looked at Derek.

  He shrugged. “That was weird.”

  “I think he loves her,” Gabi said.

  “This is like a soap opera.”

  “A demented one,” she muttered.

  “Those are the best kind.” He flashed her a smile. “I can’t wait to see how this plays out.”

  “I just want it over with.” So her heart could begin to heal.

  They got back in Derek’s car and headed toward her house that she was now referring to as the Forget-Me-Not Inn. She liked the sound of that and of course, the special meaning behind the flowers and the night she’d spent with Ryder.

  Forget-me-nots had always been her favorite wild flower. Even with all the flora and fauna Kauai had to offer, Alaska’s state flower with its delicate caerulean blossoms belying a hardy plant that thrived in the harsh environment always gave her hope that no matter how bad things were beauty found a way to bloom.

  Suddenly a car swerved in front of them and Derek yanked the wheel to avoid hitting the other vehicle. They careened off the embankment, hitting a tree.

  Chapter 20

  Gabi sat there stunned, taking stock. They were in a ditch, and Derek looked pinned by the steering wheel, blood seeping from
a wound on his forehead.

  “Derek! Are you okay?” There was no answer. “Derek, talk to me.”

  He groaned and laid his head back against the headrest. “I think I’m okay,” he said in a husky voice. “What about you?”

  “I’m fine.” The car had taken the impact on Derek’s side, crushing the driver’s door, where it rested against a tree. Another tree had brought the Toyota to a stop at the front, buckling the hood.

  Derek pushed at the steering wheel sitting closer to his chest than it had before the accident. “Where the hell did that other car come from? I can’t move. I’m trapped behind the wheel.”

  “Can you feel your legs?” She undid the seatbelt and reached for him, fear over his condition causing her to shake.

  “Yes. Everything seems to be in working order. I just can’t move because of this damn steering wheel.”

  Her door suddenly swung open, and Leia Atwood grabbed her ponytail, pulling her out of the wrecked Toyota.

  She screamed in pain and surprise. “Let me go! What are you doing?”

  “Let go of her!” Derek yelled, struggling to free himself.

  “You’ve ruined everything and I want you out of my way,” Leia snarled, continuing to pull her along by her ponytail. Gabi clawed at her hand, her feet sliding in the gravel, trying to find purchase. And then she saw the gun Leia held in her other hand.

  “How am I in your way?” Gabi asked as Leia dragged her to her waiting car.

  “Ryder is confused about you. I’m here to remedy that.”

  “Remedy it how?” The woman was Fatal Attraction insane.

  “Get in the car.” Leia pushed her into the passenger side, keeping the gun trained on her. She wanted to balk and fight back, but the gun had her doing what Leia said.

  “Slide over. You’re driving.” Leia motioned with the gun.

  Gabi swallowed hard but slid over the console and got behind the wheel. The keys were still in the ignition. Leia got in, slamming the door and putting her seatbelt on.

  “What about Derek? We need to call for help.”

  “That’s not my concern.” She pointed the pistol at Gabi again. “Now, shut up and drive.”

  Gabi shut up and started the vehicle, her hands shaking, hoping that Derek could find his phone.

  “That’s better. Take the next right up ahead.”

  “Where are we going?” Gabi finally asked, after they’d driven a few miles knowing, Leia was directing her out of town.

  “None of your business.”

  Gabi drove, her mind reeling with how to get out of this mess. First, she needed to get the gun away from Leia. She had no idea how proficient Leia was with a firearm, but this was Alaska where everyone owned guns and knew how to use them. So, she had to assume Leia knew how to handle the weapon.

  “Take that dirt road on the left,” Leia said.

  They pulled into what looked like an abandoned job site in the middle of construction. Gabi parked and waited, looking around for a way out. Maybe she could make a run for the trees surrounding the log cabin.

  Leia unbuckled her seatbelt and waved the gun back and forth. “You’re going to get out of the car the same way you got in. Don’t make any sudden moves, or you’ll regret it.”

  Gabi slowly climbed back over the console, her muscles aching from the accident. She’d be sore tomorrow—if she had a tomorrow. With the wild look in Leia’s eyes, she wouldn’t put money down on that happening.

  Once she was out of the car, Leia pushed her. “Head toward the house.” They entered the partially constructed log home.

  “You know,” Leia said, “I told Ryder that this could be our home, and then he dumped me. I know he was confused, needed more time. But I know he’ll come around. The Wilde men are nothing if not loyal and dependable.”

  “Is that why you told Ryder you were pregnant?”

  “I am pregnant. Didn’t you hear? It was all confirmed at the clinic this afternoon,” she said in a harsh voice, causing Gabi to wonder what actually happened at the clinic. Leia didn’t seem too happy about the results of her visit.

  “What about Todd Ellis? I heard you were seeing him too.”

  “Todd was more of a distraction than anything. I was killing time with him. Besides, he’s no Wilde man. You know what I mean?”

  She did. There was no comparison between Todd and Ryder.

  If she could keep Leia talking, it would give Derek more time to find help. But how would they know where she was? They hadn’t passed a car on the way out here, and the cabin was nestled in the woods, away from civilization and other prying neighbors.

  Covertly, Gabi glanced around the house looking for something she could use against Leia. There was nothing. It had to be the cleanest job site she’d ever seen. Where were the leftover two by fours and random tools lying around? What she wouldn’t give to find a forgotten hammer, but there was nothing. Not even sawdust.

  “Derek needs help, and you don’t really want to do this,” she tried to reason.

  “He’s fine. Or not fine. I really don’t care.” Leia shrugged.

  “You’re willing to let an innocent man suffer, or worse, for your cause?”

  “Oh course, wouldn’t you?”

  “No, I would not.”

  “That’s what they all say. Yet it has nothing to do with why I have you.”

  “Then explain it to me.”

  “Ryder seems to think he’s in love with you. The man is clearly mistaken because he loves me. So, you and I need to show him the error of his ways. With you out of the picture, he’ll soon return to me, and we’ll raise this child together.”

  “That doesn’t make any sense. Knowing Ryder, he’ll do the right thing by you, that is if you are carrying his child.” Then realization dawned. Something happened today at the clinic to set Leia off, but if she was really pregnant… “The baby you’re carrying isn’t his, is it? It’s Todd’s.”

  “Shut up.” Leia slapped her hard. Gabi’s head spun from the force of the blow, and she hit her knees, her hand covering her stinging cheek.

  Leia grabbed her by her ponytail again and dragged her to the center log post. “Don’t move.” She backed up, the gun not wavering, and bent for a spool of electrical wire, sliding it over to Gabi.

  This had gone on long enough. No way was she going to allow this bitch to tie her up. It was now or never. Scrambling to her feet, she ran for Leia, taking them both to the floor. The gun flew out of Leia’s hand, skidding across the floor, and Gabi crawled for it.

  Leia grabbed her, her nails raking down Gabi’s arm. Gabi kicked out at her, missing, and Leia seized her ponytail again.

  So help her God, she’d never wear her hair like this again. She was finished with the damn ponytails.

  Leia slammed her head into the plywood floor, and Gabi saw stars.

  And then she saw nothing.

  Chapter 21

  Gabi woke, her head pounding, and found herself tied to the log post with the electrical wire. She was alone with no sign of Leia, but Gabi knew she couldn’t be far.

  Sure enough, Leia entered the house carrying a gas can.

  “I see you’re awake. You shouldn’t have attacked me.”

  Gabi kept quiet, since fear had a hold of her vocal cords at seeing the five-gallon gas can Leia struggled with. The gun had been secured in the waistband of her slacks.

  She opened the gas can and started pouring the stringent liquid around the corners and over the plywood floor.

  Fumes rose, assaulting Gabi’s nose, and panic had her struggling with her bonds, the plastic-coated wire cutting into her wrists. Leia knew her knots. She wasn’t going anywhere.

  “You can’t burn me alive.”

  Leia paused and smiled an evil grin that sent chills down Gabi’s spine. “Yes, I can. Who’s going to stop me? You? I don’t think so. You know, I tried burning this place down before. I had no idea that Ryder would rush in and try to put out the fire. I felt really bad about his broken leg, but
I won’t feel bad about you.”

  “Leia, this isn’t right. I think Todd loves you. You should talk to him.”

  “Todd?” She laughed, the sound grating on Gabi’s nerves. “He might have money, but that’s about all that redeems him. The man is a snake.”

  And what did that make her?

  “You don’t have to do this. You can have Ryder. I won’t get in your way.”

  “You’re right about that. You won’t be here to get in my way. Besides, Ryder thinks he’s in love with you. With you gone, I’ll be here to console him, and he’ll finally realize how much he loves me.”

  She tossed the empty gas can aside and stood before Gabi, grabbing the gun from her waistband, pointing it at her, while producing a lighter, holding it in her other hand. “Any last words? Not that it matters since I won’t be repeating them to anyone. I’ve never killed anyone before, not intentionally anyway. This will be a new experience for me. I thought I would be put off by it, but interesting enough, I’m not.”

  That’s because you don’t have a soul.

  “Don’t worry. I won’t burn you alive. That would be cruel. I’ll put a bullet in your head first.”

  Ryder suddenly rushed into the building. “Leia, stop!”

  Oh, thank God!

  Gabi had never been so happy to see anyone in her life, the relief making her dizzy.

  “You don’t want to do this,” Ryder said, his arms out-stretched, creating a nonthreatening demeaner.

  “Yes, I do!” Leia screamed, her voice shrill. “She’s a distraction. We need to get rid of her.”

  “Leia?” Todd said, entering behind Ryder. “Please don’t do this. Put the lighter down, honey. I want to be with you. Raise our child together.”

  “No! It’s supposed to be Ryder’s child, not yours.” She backed up, getting nearer to Gabi.

  Just a few more steps, Gabi thought.

  Ryder inched closer. “Come on, Leia. Let’s talk. I was too hasty before. I see that now.”

  “Really?” Leia said, hope entering her voice. Her hand holding the gun lowered, though she still held the lighter tightly in the other. All it would take would be one flick of her thumb and the place would go up in flames.