The Baby Shift- Tennessee

by Becca Fanning

  Lea felt a tear roll down her cheek. "Michael isn't really my father. He adopted me when I was eight. Took me in and took care of me. Then I turned eighteen, and everything changed. He began to make me do despicable things to influential people in the city to gain their favor. I've lost count of the number of mayors, council members, government agents, and cops I've had to sleep within the last four years. The last one was Russell Wayland. He's the Chief of Police, and he accidentally got me pregnant. My father doesn't want Russell to find out to avoid upsetting him, and he doesn't want me to keep it either. That's why I had to do something before it was too late."

  Lea had seen anger before, but that which emanated from Angel was like a wildfire. He seemed ready to explode any second. He said, "how can a man do this to another human being, much less one he calls his daughter."

  Lea sighed. “I’ve asked myself that a billion times. There’s no answer to it.”

  He reached out and placed a hand on her cheek, wiping the tears off. Even in the darkness, Lea could see his gold eyes fixed on hers. He brought his face towards hers; she felt her on face move to meet his.

  Their lips touched. She tasted him with the tip of her tongue, and an electric sensation shot through every nerve in her body. She felt his mouth press down harder on hers and her arms slowly wrapped around his broad torso. The kiss must have lasted for quite a few minutes when he pulled away. To Lea, it was only seconds, and a moan of disappointment and need escaped her throat.

  Lea looked at him, wondering why he’d end the kiss so abruptly. The look on his face was one she had never seen before -- on him or anybody else.

  “What’s wrong?” She asked.

  Angel did not reply. Instead, he rose to his feet. She stood up with him, and in the next instant, he lifted her cleanly off the floor and swung her over his shoulder. She beat her fists uselessly against his hard back.

  “What the fuck are you doing!” She screamed as he carried her to the stairs leading to the ground floor.

  “Taking you back to your father,” he said.

  Chapter 4

  “You really are heaven sent!” Michael said as his men dragged a subdued Lea to her room upstairs. They were in the living room at the Hendricks’ mansion.

  “Just doing my job, sir,” Angel said.

  "Well. I can't thank you enough. I think it's high time I brought you under my wing. Tomorrow, at 7:000 PM, I want you with me when I close one of my mega deals. Let me show you a world that would change your life forever."

  Angel wished he could have smiled, but the sick feeling he had in his stomach when he remembered the look of betrayal Lea had given him in the taxi ride back home would not let him. He managed to curl his lips slightly. “I will be honored,” he said.

  Angel met with Gale in a limousine later that night. He was shocked to see that the millionaire drug lord wasn't alone. There was a beautiful young woman dressed in black sitting beside him.

  Angel hesitated as he took a seat beside the window, wondering whether or not to speak about something so sensitive in the presence of a stranger.

  “Don’t be wary,” Gale said. “This is my niece, Willow, and she’ll be my personal assistant from now on.”

  “Alright,” Angel said, glancing at the woman who stared like a temptress in a porn flick.

  “You called for this meeting. I will assume you have something for me?”

  “Yes. Michael has decided to take me a part of his gang. There’s going to be an exchange tomorrow, and he gave me the impression that it’s something big.”

  Gale nearly rose from his seat. “How big?”

  “Big enough for him to attend to himself. With five of his men, including me, of course.”

  Gale smacked his palms together in the excitement. Angel had never seen him so happy. “This is spectacular news. What the time and location?”

  “At 7:00 PM. I’ll turn on the GPS beacon you gave me once we have him where we want him. Just get your FBI friends on standby. We cannot afford to lose this.”

  “We won’t,” Gale said. “And how did you manage to pull this off so soon?”

  Angel paused. Lea’s hurt expression registered in his mind once more. He did not enjoy taking her back to her father, but that was the only opportunity to secure a place in Michael’s gang. She was the perfect offering. Yet, he did what he did to save her from being on the run all her life. The best way to set her free was to take Michael down, and he was going to do that tomorrow.

  “I helped him find his missing daughter,” Angel replied.

  He flipped the small coin-like device in his hand for the fourth time that night. Ever since he had made plans with Gale the previous night, Angel steadily became restless as he counted the seconds leading up to 6:00 PM when he was to meet the other members of the gang at Hendricks’ before they all left for the exchange point at God-knows-where.

  He glanced at the clock on the wall. It was ten minutes past 5:00. He still had to wait a further twenty minutes before he could leave. Hopefully, Gale would have everything set, and all he’d need was to activate the little device he had been playing with, and Gale would be able to track him anywhere in the city. There was a sudden knock at the front door.

  Wondering who could possibly be knocking on his door at this time, he rose from his seat and walked briskly to the door. He opened the door, saw who it was, and nearly staggered back into the living room.

  “Lea! What the hell are you...?

  "There's no time to explain now," Lea looked dazed, unkept, and in some level of pain as she kept wincing as she spoke.

  “Are you okay?” Angel asked.

  "What part of ‘there's no time’ don't you understand? My father found you out. He knows you're working with Gale. As we speak, he's ordered Tim and Hansen to take you out, and they are on their way. I only got here fast enough because I know a shortcut."

  Angel stiffened. How was that even possible? How could he have found him out at such a crucial time? "C’mon in," he said.

  She walked in, and he locked the door behind her. Angel could not help but notice that she walked with a limp. As soon as she was inside, she said, “do you have a back door or something?”

  Before he could tell her he had nothing of the sort, there was a loud knock on the door. They both paused.

  “That’s them,” Lea whispered. “We have to get out now before they riddle this place with bullets.”

  Angel looked around. There was no way out of his bungalow apartment except through the front door...or the windows. The knock on the door had transformed into the noise of someone trying to kick it open.

  “Stand back,” he said. She must have traced his gaze to the window because she stepped away from it almost immediately. He took two steps forward and crashed his right foot into the glass, and the window exploded outward. The sound must have alerted the intruders outside because the kicking came louder and with more urgency.

  Now that the window was open, he helped her climb out. A second later, he jumped out of the building and into the open lawn where his car was parked a few yards away. Just then, he heard a loud crash from inside as his drop gave way.

  Angel and Lea ran to his car. He took out his car keys and started the vehicle. A second before the car sped off into the street, he caught a glimpse of two men inspecting the broken window. And sure enough, the men were Tim and Hansen, Michael's henchmen.

  “Now can you tell me what the fuck just happened?” Angel said as he drove the car through the streets of Blue Lake City. He was heading towards the bus station as fast as he could, occasionally turning around to see if they were being followed. So far, there appeared to be no tail on them.

  Lea said, “I overheard my father screaming orders at his men minutes ago. He said something about you and Gale Santino working together to destroy him. It made no sense to me because Gale Santino is just an actor, isn’t he?”

  “No. That’s more or less a front. Call it a lucrative hobby, if you will. Gale’s neck d
eep in the narcotics underworld. He’s your father’s rival. And yes, I have been working with him.”

  “Why?” She asked.

  “I lied about who I really am. My real name is Angel Hamilton, and I lied about how my mother died. She died of a cocaine overdose when I was ten. The truth is Michael killed her. She picked up the addiction while slinging dope for him, and when she tried to shake it, he forced her to use again right in front of me. She relapsed so bad and went too far.”

  “That’s so awful. I’m sorry, Angel. My father is a monster.”

  “I know damn well he is.”

  “Then why did you take me back to him?” she said, staring at him.

  “I had no choice. I was too close to taking him down to cause any upset. Taking you back would have earned me his trust, and it did. But now, it turns out it was all for nothing.”

  She said, “it doesn’t matter now. Once we get to the bus station, we can both escape this nightmare forever,”

  Angel made a conscious effort to change the subject. “What happened to your leg?”

  “Michael kept me locked up in my room since last night. The only way I could warn you was to tie my bed sheet to the bed and climb down from my window. The linen was a few yards short, and I landed awkwardly and must have twisted my ankle.”

  “You went through all that trouble to save me?”

  “It seemed like the right thing to do.”

  Angel looked at Lea. Despite her ruffled hair, she still looked beautiful. For the first time since he met her, he admitted to himself that he had feelings for her. It was sad that things had to end the way it would.

  “We’re there,” Angel said as he slowly brought the car to a stop in front of the bus station.

  Lea got out of the car and seemed to linger outside, waiting for him to do the same. “Well, come on,” she said.

  He shook his head. “You have to go without me. You and your unborn baby deserve to be free of Michael forever. I promised my mother on her grave that I’d take Michael down by any means possible. And that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”

  She opened her mouth to protest, but Angel had his mind made up. He shot off into the night with the car, leaving her gaping at the taillights.

  Having worked there for over a week, sneaking into the mansion wasn’t as hard as he had imagined. His pureborn abilities came in handy when it came to scaling the gates and decapacitating the guards in the compound.

  He entered into the living room through the front door. There was no one in sight, but he could hear voices coming from the top of the stairs. Crouching low, Angel hid behind one of the many couches in the living room. From there, he watched Michael walk down the stairs with Rick and Jamal behind him.

  "...shouldn't be so hard to find. I want both of them here in the next few hours," Michael was saying.

  “Tim and Hansen are leading over half of our men in combing the city for them. They’ll be found soon enough,” Rick said.

  “Have you spoken with the Kings?” Michael asked.

  "Yes. They have decided not to punish us for killing Gale since he tried to snitch. They also agreed to allow Willow to take control of his business."

  “Finally, some good news. I knew she was special when I hired her to spy on her uncle for me. She would be easy to control too. A lot like that bitch, Maggie, whose bastard has come back to make himself a pain in my ass.”

  Angel was not expecting his mother’s name to come up in the conversation. But the second he heard what Michael said, he lost it. Rising from his hiding place, he let himself go. The wolf took over -- feral and vicious in his thirst for blood.

  Before the men could come to terms with what was going on, Angel’s skin was already covered in fur, and his teeth were replaced by larger, sharper fangs. Seconds later he was a full-blown giant wolf, crouched at five feet and staring at his prey with large golden eyes.

  "Shoot it, goddamnit!" Michael screamed and ran to hide behind his men.

  Rick and Jamal pulled out their weapons. But they did not have enough time to do so much as taking aim. Angel leaped over the couch and landed in front of them in a millisecond. All it took was one slash with his sharp claws, and he slit Jamal's throat open, causing blood to gush out. Rick managed to get one shot away. The bullet went amiss and only grazed the wolf's thick fur. Angel grabbed his arm with his teeth and flung him like he was a ragged doll. The head of security crashed through the window and out of the house.

  The wolf now turned his attention to Michael who was crawling towards the exit as fast as he could. Placing one large paw on his shoulder was all Angel needed to hold Michael in place. The man struggled to get free to no avail.

  “Please. Please don’t hurt me. I’ll give you anything you want. Please!” cried Michael. But Angel would not listen to pleas. He raised his paw, ready to claw him to death and end it all.

  “Don’t do it!” a familiar voice said from the doorway.

  Angel looked up to see Lea standing at the doorway. He looked back down at Michael and raised his paw even higher. One slash across the torso could slice his spinal cord into two. But why was he hesitating?

  “Look at him, Angel. He’s helpless. I know what you’re thinking right now. You’re thinking your mother was helpless, too. But you’re better than that. I know you are. You won’t kill a man in cold blood.”

  “Listen to her,” Michael whimpered. “I’m helpless.”

  “Shut up, dad. You deserve to die. But not like this. I made a call. The police will be here any minute, and I can assure you, I will be willing to testify against you in court. It’s over. Now let him go, Angel. Please. He will pay for what he’s done, but not like this.” She gestured to the blood splattered on the floor of the living room.

  Angel let out a loud howl. He slowly let his paw drop and lifted the other from where it held Michael down. The drug lord did not move after that. All he did was lie face down on the floor and sob like a child.

  Lea ran fearlessly to the wolf and threw her arms around him. A police siren could be heard from a distance as she said, “It’s over now. We’re going to be fine - you and I.”

  Chapter 5

  He drove through the gates of the Hendricks' mansion. Ever since that fateful night, he had never returned to the compound again. Even when Lea asked him to come pick her up and take her to court; he still felt reluctant to set foot on the grounds. Now he was here, and he was wondering how he could care about her so much to return to this cursed place.

  “I was afraid you wouldn’t show up,” Lea said when he met her in the living room. She wore a long flowing indoor gown that covered her from her neck downward but still hinted at the curves that lay hidden underneath.

  He laughed. “Trust me, I didn’t think I’d show up either.”

  “Well you did, and that’s all that matters.”

  "You need someone with you today, and I'm here. It can't be easy, testifying against your own father."

  She smiled. “I’ll be fine. The trial doesn’t start until another five hours. Let me show you some of what I call my happy pictures.”

  Angel followed her to her room which turned out to be just as tidy and decorated as the rest of the house. Once there, they sat side by side on her king-sized bed, and they both scrolled through pictures of seven-year-old Lea at the orphanage.

  “You look so cute back then,” Angel said.

  She chuckled. “Are you saying I’m not cute now?”

  “No,” he said. “You’re beautiful.”

  Perhaps it was the words, or maybe it was the look of genuine admiration in his eyes when he said it, but she lost hold of herself completely and wrapped her arms around him and pressed her lips against his. He did not withdraw, neither did he stay still. Instead, he kissed her back with such urgency that she lost all senses of every other thing but the taste of him.

  She felt his fingers run down the small of her back as his lips slide from her mouth to her throat. He alternated between licking and nibb
ling on the skin below her jaw; she let out a soft moan.

  His fingers were everywhere, even as his mouth tasted her skin. They were on her back, they were sliding down to cup her round buttocks. They soon found the fullness of her breasts, and he squeezed each of them while sticking his hot tongue in and out of her mouth.

  He helped her pull her gown over her head, and soon she was left with nothing on but her bra and panties. Lea fiddled with her bra straps while he helped her pull off her panties already soaked in the moisture from her arousal.

  “I’m so wet for you right now,” she whispered under her breath as she felt his fingers brush against the entrance to her pussy. Lea reached forward and helped him pull off his shirt, baring his chest to the onslaught of her fingers.

  Angel did not give her a chance to really explore his rippling muscles; he held her once more and kissed her hard on the lips. Her hardened nipples pressed against his chest and nearly driving her mad with desire. His kisses, too, were getting more urgent, and his tongue kept digging deepened and deeper as it stroked the inside of her mouth.

  She could take it no longer. Angel’s chest and lips pressed against hers causing a desperate need to be a part of him. She was completely naked now, and the only thing separating their bodies was his pants. Her fingers trembled as she fiddled with it and managed to unbutton the fly.

  His pants finally fall to the floor, and a gasp escaped Lea's lips. Indeed, he was a beauty to behold. She was still sitting on the edge of the bed when he kicked away his pants and bared himself to her. Lea reached, forward and took Angel's cock in her hands. It throbbed with life as she ran her fingers up and down its length.

  "Feel how hard I am for you, Lea. Feel how much I want you," Angel said.

  She did not reply. Instead, she leaned down and took the tip of his cock in her mouth. He ran his fingers through her hair as she sucked on the head. She tasted a bit of his precum, and it intoxicated her all the more. She swallowed more and more of him until his hardness occupied every inch of space in her mouth and throat. She didn’t bother to catch her breath; Lea sucked on him hard until he was thrusting his hips forward and filling her throat with more and more of him.