Battlescars: A Rock & Roll Romance

by Sophie Monroe

  “Whatcha thinking?” He asked.

  “Twins.” I joked.

  “I know. It’s so crazy. Hey, it’s your fault. You’re the one that always says I go balls to the wall with everything, this is no exception.” He teased. “I am beyond excited baby. I can’t wait to go on this amazing journey with you. We’re going to be the most kick ass parents a kid could ever have. Plus, we’re still young so we will have the energy to chase after them no problem. You already know I don’t require a lot of sleep, so I’ll be good for night feedings. Though it says here that breastfeeding is the best choice. Maybe you can pump during the day so I can have enough for nighttime feedings. We have a while to figure all of it out. Maybe we can ask Brett. He’s the only dad I know, other than yours, and chances are his skills are rusty.”

  “There’s no one else on the planet that I would want to do this with other than you.” I said honestly. “I hope I still fit in my dress.”

  “Since we just have the Radioactive show left maybe you should just stay here. I know you like to come to the shows, and I love having you there, but I’m worried about you over exerting yourself. It’s not just you anymore.”

  He placed his hand on my stomach and leaned in to kiss me.

  “Maybe you’re right. Now go get me some In-N-Out burger and a giant chocolate shake.”

  “Anything for my baby momma.” He grinned.

  “I’m going to try and take a little nap.” I yawned.

  I strapped Bella to me in her little cocoon, so she wouldn’t run off and poop somewhere while Jake was out. We snuggled up to take a nap. Jake kissed my hair and left the room. I closed my eyes and dreamed about what our little babies were going to look like. I woke up when I was being scooped up. I yelled at Jake to put me down. I had a serious love/hate thing with him constantly picking me up like a ragdoll. I was going to say something when realization hit me. It wasn’t Jake.

  I stayed completely still as I processed the information and placed the voice. I needed to plan an escape. I tried to move my hands, but they were secured with something. How the fuck did my hands get tied? I put my hands on Bella to keep her from falling out of her pouch. I searched my surroundings. Somehow we were already out the back door, and it was dark. I tried to fight him off with my legs, but I was too weak. He tossed me into the back of his car and sped into the night. How did he find me?

  My heart was hammering in my chest. My first thought was about the babies I was now carrying. He slammed on the gas and drove into the night. I tried to open the door, but it was locked from the inside. I told myself to keep calm. We finally came to a stop about twenty minutes away at a Motel 6 right off the main highway. He dragged me roughly into a room around the back of the hotel. I wanted to scream, but nothing would come out. There were no witnesses, no one to help me. He was going to finish what he started six years ago, except this time he was going to kill me.

  When he opened the door the room, I gasped. It looked like a torture chamber. There were candles flickering and the dresser was lined with an assortment of shiny metal knives. I felt my panic start to rise. My mind automatically drifted to Jake. I couldn’t leave him. I was a survivor, not a victim. I decided that I was going to act like a willing participant. I remembered the last time and how the more I fought, the more he liked it. He saw me as weak, and I wasn’t, not anymore. I just needed to find a way to get the upper hand. He came up behind me and touched my neck with his finger. I flinched.

  “How does it feel knowing you’re going to die tonight?” He bit down hard on my shoulder blade. I screamed. He turned me around and backhanded me.

  “Bre-bre, I missed you.” He whispered into my hair.

  “I wish I could say the same. I haven’t missed you at all.” I spat.

  “Awe, don’t be like that. I was going to wait until this weekend but since your fiancé knows that I’m the replacement in Blood to Bleed he would have kept you away. I’ve been dreaming of this for too fucking long.” He licked his lips. “I wasted two years in that hole for you and I didn’t even get anything out of it. That’s going to change tonight.” He growled.

  I couldn’t even be mad at Jake for withholding pertinent information about Jeremy. He knew I would regress if I found out. Hell, I wanted to regress right now for crying out loud. I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath. I needed to hold on to my strength. I rubbed the top of Bella’s furry head and tried to think of a way out of the hand restraints. Jeremy was looking at me with a sinister grin. It completely freaked me the fuck out. He walked over to the dresser and picked up a knife. I felt pain sear my chest. Jake would find me; he had to. I just had to hope that he could get someone here in time.

  I could hold on that long, right?

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Time Won’t Let Me Go

  Jake

  I was literally on cloud nine when I pulled back into the garage. I got Aubrey a bacon cheeseburger with extra pickles and the biggest chocolate shake that I could get. I had a feeling I was going to be making lots of trips like this over the next several months. Call me a masochist, but I was actually looking forward to it. I grabbed the bag and headed up to the bedroom. The bed was empty. I checked the bathroom and prayed she wasn’t sick again. She wasn’t in there either. It wasn’t a huge place, so it didn’t take me long to realize that she wasn’t there. Neither was the dog. Her sneakers and flip-flops were both sitting by the door. I pulled out my phone to call her. She never went anywhere without her phone. I heard it ringing upstairs. That’s when I just knew something bad happened.

  I frantically called the police and then Brett. He had the brilliant idea of checking Bella’s microchip to get a GPS location. That’s why I pay him six-figures a year to babysit my ass. I knew deep down that it had to be Jeremy. I had no idea how he could have found her, let alone gotten inside. Then it dawned on me… I forget to set the fucking alarm on my way out before. A million thoughts were racing through my head as I waited for Brett to call me back with the location. Was she okay? Were the babies okay? Was she hurt? I was deliriously worried. I was worried about how this would set her progress back, and the stress it would cause down the road.

  I checked my security cameras, which of course were down because I didn’t set the fucking alarm! I ran my hands through my hair and paced the floor. I was busy tormenting myself until the phone finally rang. Brett said as soon as the police had the microchip information they got a hit. He gave me the address and said he was already on his way there.

  “If you get there first wait for me. Don’t do anything stupid Jake.” He said sternly.

  Fat fucking chance. Stupid was my middle name right now. I hung up on him.

  If that asshole touched even one hair on her fucking head, I was going to kill him. I decided the quickest way to get there was if I took my bike. I threw my helmet on without even bothering to secure the strap. I revved the engine and sped out of the driveway. Traffic was still kind of thick and I didn’t have time for that shit right now. I started weaving in and out of cars, riding on the shoulder and running red lights. I just needed to get to the address that Brett gave me. It was to a Motel 6 that bordered the city. I knew the roundabout location since I did some volunteering down there not too long ago. I made the twenty-minute trip in ten and undoubtedly broke every traffic law, at least twice. This place was in a really bad section of town, but I grew up in a ghetto.

  A couple shady looking folks stared at me as I approached the office. I glared at them menacingly, and they quickly looked away. I knew the chance of my bike being chopped for parts was stellar. I didn’t give a shit right now. They could have it for all I care. All I needed was for Aubrey to be safe. I waltzed into the office like I owned the place. We didn’t have a room number yet, so that was priority one. I looked at the greasy slob eating Cheetos behind the desk. He was typing away on his computer and laughing about something. He looked up at me with a pair of thick, black-framed glasses and started choking. I noticed that he was wearing a two
sizes too small Battlescars t-shirt.

  Great, a fan-man…

  “Jake Parker.” He stuttered.

  “I need a room number, and I need it now!” I barked.

  “Su-sure.” He mumbled.

  “It may be under Jeremy Roberts. He’s in his mid to late twenties, dark hair, and crazy eyes. I’m sure you know who I’m talking about.” I growled. He was nervously clutching a key ring with his disgusting orange fingers. What kind of place didn’t have electronic key cards nowadays? He was so jittery that he was having a hard time trying to get the right one. “Sometime today!” I snapped.

  I felt bad for acting like such an asshole, especially since it wasn’t my normal MO. I made a mental note to send him a proper sized t-shirt when this was over with.

  “Room 212, it’s around back.” He stuttered and handed me the key.

  I pushed out the door and took off in a sprint.

  I sent a quick text to Brett with the room number. He was going to kill me, but there was no way in hell that I was waiting for him, or the cops to get here. I was rounding the corner when I heard sirens off in the distance. At least I knew they were getting close. I slowed to a jog when I finally reached the back part of the hotel. I needed to stealthily maneuver my way along the wall toward the room without attracting any unwanted attention. I looked at the room number closest to me. It was 259. Their room was on the complete other side from where I was.

  I was trying to be as quick as possible, but it was like everything was happening in slow motion. It was like seeing a mirage in a desert, so close yet so far. I was only four-doors away when police finally pulled up. They turned their sirens off before pulling into the parking lot. Brett careened into the parking lot right behind them. He was out of the car and on top of me before I could even register what happened. The big lug knocked the wind right out of me. Undoubtedly on purpose to render me useless, hence keeping me safe. My brain just wouldn’t fucking work. I said the first thing that popped into my head.

  “She’s pregnant.” I cried.

  Brett’s face contorted. As a dad himself I knew he understood what I was feeling. He jumped off of me and kicked the door clear off its hinges. I heard wood and metal splinter. The next thing I heard was Aubrey’s blood curdling scream. My heart was beating out of my chest. It was a horrifyingly beautiful sound. At least I knew she was still breathing. A storm of officers followed in behind with guns drawn. I stumbled to get back on my feet. I watched Brett come running out of the room carrying Aubrey. Her trembling hands were bound together. She was hysterically crying and clutching Bella who was still in her pouch. She was going into shock. Brett moved us away from the door and closer to safety. He placed her on her feet and pulled a knife from his pocket to cut the cable ties. Her wrists were bleeding from the deep lacerations she must have got from try to free herself.

  Everything happened so quickly. I heard the police yelling at Jeremy to drop his weapon. Then I heard gunshots being fired. Aubrey flinched at the sound and Bella yelped. I started looking her over. I looked down and noticed that her shirt had been ripped at the shoulder. Parts of her skin were red, and I noticed a bite mark near her neck. My heart dropped when I saw blood was starting to seep through the pouch. Her stomach was bleeding. She started looking pale. She looked like she was about to fall over. I put my arms around her and moved so that she was sitting on the ground.

  “Aubrey. It’s going to be okay. Everything is going to be okay.” I tried to sound strong, but I knew my voice gave me away.

  I ran my hand through her hair and kissed the top of her head. She was staring ahead blankly. She was in ‘robot mode.’ I was so worried about her. It was really difficult to watch her during her episodes knowing there wasn’t anything that I could do. The paramedics rushed over and started assessing her. They pulled her pouch off and inspected at the stab wound on her abdomen. I wanted to cry, the babies... I took Bella from them and hugged her. She licked my face and yelped. I was never more grateful for her unhealthy obsession with the fucking dog. That microchip saved Aubrey’s life. That’s when I realized that Bella was bleeding too. I looked her over and saw that there was a lot of blood coming from right above her hind leg. I handed her over to Brett and told him to get her to a vet right away. If something happened to that dog Aubrey, okay me included, would be devastated. He nodded and took off towards his truck. The paramedics loaded Aubrey onto a stretcher and ran toward the ambulance.

  “Jake!” She cried.

  “I’m right here baby. I’m not going anywhere.” I tried to reassure her while running to keep up with them.

  I climbed in behind them and took Aubrey’s hand in mine. I was clutching to her for dear life. They closed the door and started an IV. One of the medics was wrapping her wrists in gauze. She moved her hand to her abdomen and started sobbing.

  “She’s pregnant.” I told the woman medic who was assessing her.

  She nodded in understanding. I felt sick to my stomach with the thought of losing even one of our babies. Her bottom lip was trembling, and I felt so helpless. I wanted nothing more than for her and our babies to be safe. I wished that I was on the damn stretcher for once. When we arrived at the hospital, they ushered us in through the emergency entrance. A team of doctors were already there waiting. I was fucking livid when they told me that I needed to stay outside the room. They closed the curtain so that I couldn’t even see what was going on. I anxiously paced the floor as I waited for news. Twenty minutes later a nurse came out and told me that it was okay for me to go in the room.

  “Hey baby, are you doing okay?” I asked her.

  She nodded solemnly.

  “She’s going to be just fine. We had to give her three stitches in the abdomen. She told us that she had the dog in a sling. I can tell you from my standpoint that the dog saved her life. Otherwise, the knife would have gone straight through. It would have undoubtedly terminated the pregnancy and possibly killed her. You’re a very lucky girl, Aubrey Thompson.” The doctor said. “We’re going to admit you for observation as a precaution. Get some rest and we’ll move you up to your room shortly.”

  “Thank you.” I said earnestly and shaking his hand.

  He nodded and left the room.

  “Aubrey, he said that you and the babies are going to be fine. Why do you look so sad?”

  “Bella.” She wept.

  “Brett’s at the vet with her right now. They’re going to do everything they can to make sure she’s fine. Baby, she saved your life.”

  “I know, but she’s my baby too.” I watched tears slide down her pale cheeks.

  I used my fingertips to wipe her tears away. I placed her hand in mine and waited for news. I knew that I should call Tim and let him know what happened, but I wanted to get the rest of the details first. We waited for over an hour before they came to move Aubrey to another room. Once she was situated the nurse gave her a mild sedative to help her sleep. I started to protest until she said that it was safe for the babies. It didn’t take her long to fall asleep. I sat with my phone clutched in my hand and waited for it to ring. Forty minutes later there was a knock at the door. I looked up and saw a detective standing there with another officer.

  “Can we come in?” He asked.

  “Actually I’d prefer to talk in the hallway? I don’t want to disturb her.” I motioned to Aubrey.

  “That’s fine.”

  I stood up and walked out into the hallway. We stood right outside the door so I could keep an eye on her.

  “Mr. Parker, as you are already aware, Ms. Thompson had a restraining order against Mr. Roberts. This evening he kidnapped her with the intent of doing something extremely sinister. Luckily, with your quick thinking about the microchip we were able to avoid this being a homicide investigation.” I felt bile rise in my throat at the thought. “Unfortunately, well not really, our officers had to use deadly force to take Mr. Roberts down to prevent further incident. I want you to rest assure that our department will do everything in its
power to wrap up this investigation quickly so that you can put it behind you. We were aware of this case when you brought it to our attention last month, but we weren’t aware that you and you’re fiancée were back in town.”

  “We actually weren’t due back for a couple more days. Aubrey hasn’t been feeling well lately, so we ended up cutting our trip short so that she could come home and rest. We just found out earlier today that we’re going to be parents, to twins.”

  “Congratulations. Please let us know if we can be of any further assistance. We will need a statement from Ms. Thompson, when she’s feeling up to it as well. Oh, and your bike is gone…”

  He handed me a card with his contact information.

  “Yeah, I figured as much. I’ll be in touch.” I told him shaking my head. I knew that was going to happen.

  I went back into the room and sat next to Aubrey again. She was mumbling peacefully in her sleep with her hand on her stomach. I put my hand on top of hers and was beyond grateful that both of our babies were okay. I was still trying to work through what happened tonight. It felt like an eternity while I waited for my phone to ring. Finally, it did. It was Brett.

  “Hello.” I answered quietly.

  “Bella’s going to be fine.” He said in a rush. “I don’t really understand vet lingo, but from what I did understand the knife didn’t penetrate anything vital. She’s one lucky dog, especially since it went completely through. They just finished the surgery, and she’s in recovery now.”

  “Thank God!” I yelled.

  Aubrey stirred and I told myself to calm the fuck down.

  “Brett, thank you for everything. Seriously.” I said sincerely.

  “I was just doing my job.” He stated.

  “Brett you put your life in danger to protect Aubrey tonight. You put your ass on the line every time you go anywhere with me. I just want you to know that I appreciate it, and you.”

  “I love you like a brother, Jake. Over the past few months, Aubrey’s become like a sister to me. The change I see in both of you is nothing short of a miracle. I’m serious.” He started laughing.