“Hudson doesn’t just have the respect of his men, he has the respect of the majority of players in this fucking country. Hudson is the boss, not because of who I am but because of who he is. He is a fucking gentleman, he’d never betray anyone, and he certainly wouldn’t rape anyone.” Harrison yells at him and I shrink even further into the desk. “You aren’t mad at Hudson, you’re jealous. You’re fucking angry with me because I didn’t want you. Had Hudson known who you were, things could have been different between you. You would never have been boss, you would never have been given the respect.”
“Why?” Martin questions and I’m scared, as I have no idea what the answer is going to be.
“You are my illegitimate child. A bastard if you will. My men would have never accepted you.”
I shake my head. That is an awful thing to say, tonight I have heard the ugly side to Harrison and I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to not hear what he’s said.
A gunshot rings out and I squeak, fear rises through me. Who fired the shot? Is Harrison okay? My hand tightens on the gun as I focus my breathing so that I can hear. It’s silent, I have no idea what has happened.
“Oh Mia….” Martin taunts.
Tears slide down my face, he’s going to find me.
“I know you’re here. Too many men for you not to be. I’m going to find you.” He sings and I bite back another whimper. “That asshole is bleeding like the pig he is.” He lets out a maniacal laugh. “It’s just a matter of time before he bleeds out. You have a choice Mia, you either come out and save him, or you stay hidden and have his death on your conscious.”
“No Mia. don't do it!” Harrison calls out. He's in pain, I can tell by his strained voice.
Martin laughs again. I hate that sound, it sends chills throughout my entire body. “Well look at him playing step-daddy dearest. We all know where his loyalties lie.”
I bite back the scream not wanting him to know where I am, when another gunshot rings out. God, why is he doing this? He’s already caused enough pain, this is just overkill.
“Oh, Mia, Mia, Mia you're hiding away like a scared jackrabbit. What am I going to do with you?” He’s taunting me, he’s not going to stop, not until he has me.
I hear Harrison groaning and every instinct inside of me tells me to leave this hiding place and go out and face Martin so that Harrison can get help. I also know that Martin has killed people for doing less than what Harrison’s done to him. There’s a chance that even if I were to go out there, Martin would still kill him.
“Leave her alone.” Harrison’s voice isn’t as strong as it was.
I need to get out there, I have to try and save him. Crawling out from under the desk, I look down at the gun and knife in my hands. If I go out there and he sees them, he’ll be even angrier. I quickly put the gun into the band of my sweatpants and the knife into my pocket. I take a couple of deep breaths before I even turn to go to the door. I’m not ready for this, I’m not ready to face him, not again. But for Harrison, I have to. He’d do anything to protect me and right now, it’s my turn to do the same for him.
The office door splinters open and I turn in shock. Martin’s standing there with a sinister smile on his face. “You’ve gotten bigger since the last time I saw you.” His eyes rake over my body, lust burning brightly in those green eyes of his.
I shudder in repulsion. “Martin.” I whisper horrified as I’m staring face to face with the monster who haunts my dreams.
He takes a step into the office and I take two backward. “I’ve missed you,” he tells me, that stupid smile on his face.
I bite back a whimper as he takes another step into the room. “What do you want?” I’m surprised at how strong my voice is, I’m a mess on the inside but at least he can’t see that.
He tilts his head as if he’s studying me. “That’s not what I expected.”
“What?”
He licks his lips. “I was told that you were broken.”
I don’t know why but hearing him say those words pisses me off. “Well whoever told you that got it wrong. You never broke me, you never had the power.” It’s true, he never did have the power to do that to me. He hurt me, in ways I don’t think he’ll ever comprehend. But he didn’t break me and he never will. The only person who has the power is Hudson, looking at Martin now just proves that he has no hold over me.
He smiles wider. “You’re making things much more tempting.” His eyes once again rake over my body. “What we did before, we’re going to do again. I don't give a fuck what Harrison says, that baby is mine, you know it and I know it. What I don’t understand is why are you pretending otherwise?”
I look at him in disgust. “My baby isn't yours!” I shout, annoyed that he’s still saying that. “What Harrison says is true. I was pregnant before you kidnapped me. There is no way this baby is yours. But let me make one thing extremely clear, even if this baby was yours, there is no way on God’s green earth that I would let you anywhere near him. Finding out that Hudson was my baby's dad was the happiest day of my life. Knowing that you had no part in this child's life is a blessing.”
His eyes flash with anger. “You're a bitch. I should have killed you when I had the chance. Maybe Lacey would be more pliable? Hell maybe your mum would have been better?” His mouth twists into a grin. “That has to be the sweetest killing of them all.”
Pain stings my heart at his words. I want to bring my hand up and rub it away but I won’t give him the satisfaction of knowing his words hurt. “Why did you kill my mom?” It’s something I wanted to know, it's been on my mind since it's happened
He shrugs, not caring one bit about what he’s done. “Your mom meant the most to Harrison, beside Hudson obviously. It was the most obvious choice to deal the most pain.”
He’s evil. “You wanted to hurt Harrison so much that you don't think of anyone else. You killed the only family I had left. You murdered my mom for what? Revenge?” Tears sting my eyes, I will them with all my might not to fall. Not to let him know that he’s getting to me. “You wanted to cause Harrison the most pain. You didn't, you hurt me the most. Hell, you killing my mom hurt me more than you did when you raped me.”
His eyes narrow, and I swear I see a tiny bit of remorse, but as quick as it comes, it disappears. “You were caught in the crossfire. Nothing personal, Mia.”
Rage hits me. “Nothing personal? You couldn’t have made this any more personal if you had tried. You see, Martin, there is something you don't understand. You just see that your family left you, abandoned you. You don't see the fact that you were brought into Hudson's family, he had no idea who you truly were and yet he brought you into the fold. He trusted you, and you betrayed him. Who is the bad guy now?”
He takes another step toward me and pushes me into the wall, I wince in pain.
He begins to pace, I’m relieved that he’s walked away from me. “I should have been the boss!” It's the same thing with him over and over again he doesn't quite grasp the fact that while Hudson’s father is part of the reason he became the boss. It’s not the entire reason, he became the boss due to the depth of him. His character is what makes him the boss.
“You're mad at Harrison and you have taken it out on everyone else. You have lost every friend you have ever made.
He shrugs he doesn't give a fuck. He’s so lost in revenge, he doesn’t care.
I sigh and move on. “Did you shoot Marline?”
He smirks. “She was getting too close. I couldn’t let her find out what I was doing.”
“You didn't mean to kill her though, you only shot her in her arm. Unlike my mom where you shot her multiple times you only fired the gun once at Marline. You really love her.” It's a statement, I don't need him to answer because I already know the truth. “You would have killed her if you didn’t.”
“Shut up!” He screams at me, I’m getting too close to the truth.
“She’s been the one to tell you everything about us and our lives. How did you manag
e to get her to do that?” The way Hudson talks about her and from the little that I know about her, she’s extremely loyal to Hudson.
He looks pleased with himself. “It was easy, she had no idea I was playing her. Tell me something Mia, when you and Hudson are lying in bed together do you tell him everything he wants to know?”
Pillow talk. I knew Marline didn't mean it. Where the hell is Hudson? I haven’t heard Harrison make a sound since Martin broke the office door down, is he okay?
“She’d hate you knowing that you twisted everything she told you and used it against those she cares about.” I tell him and I instantly know it’s the wrong thing to say.
His eyes darken and he lifts his gun, pointing it at me. “You have no idea. You’re naive, haven’t you learned yet, Mia? Everyone has an agenda and Marline is no different.” My eyes close, and time seems to slow down as I wait for him to shoot me.
Bang
The sound reverberates around the room.
Sixteen
Hudson
I couldn't let anyone else drive, I needed to get to Mia. My foot was pedal to the metal for the entire drive. My rage is taking over me and I’m ready to kill. This bloodthirstiness is something I haven’t felt in a long ass time. It’s back in full force and I’m going to let it consume me, just as soon as I have Martin in my grasp.
David had my phone on while I was driving, we were watching everything unfold in the house. We watched as he shot my dad, heard him baiting Mia to come out of the office or my dad would die. I've never been so proud of my girl. She kept her cool and stayed hidden. She did exactly as I had asked. When that fucker splintered my office door I knew that there wasn't much time left. I was three minutes out and I needed to get there sooner rather than later.
I listened to every word he said to her. God my fucking woman is amazing, she kept him talking, I watched as she backed herself into the wall but she still kept talking to him as though she wasn’t afraid. She found out everything I wanted to know from my mom. Mia was right, mom had no idea that he was using her. I get that she's pissed that we are going after the man she has feelings for, but she has to realize that he has killed people close to us. There’s no way he’s ever getting away with his life.
David, Aaron, and I are quiet walking into the house, not wanting to alert him that we are here. Rory is outside checking on Coby, Dylan, Ronald, and Cormac. Thankfully as I passed them I did a glancing sweep of them all, each one of them have shots to their arms, none are life threatening.
As we enter the house, I see Jagger on the floor, a gunshot to his arm, he’s losing blood but he’s going to be okay. He’s sitting up and alert. As soon as he spots us, he gets to his feet. As we sweep through the house he follows us. Aaron stops and checks on dad, he's got a gunshot wound to his right thigh and one in his gut. He’s pale and sweaty, it’s not a good sign.
Mia tells Martin that mom’s going to hate him when she finds out that he used her. I watch in slow motion as he lifts his gun and points it at her, telling her that she’s wrong, that my mom knows a lot more than Mia thinks. I don’t even hesitate, I lift my gun and raise it at the back of his head.
Bang
I fire a shot, watch as Martin goes down, crashing to the floor with a loud thud. My eyes are on Mia, her face etched in pain. I'm moving toward her as she slides down the wall.
“Mia talk to me!” I demand, I can’t get to her quick enough.
“Hudson something is wrong,” she cries, her hands rubbing her bump. “Pain in my stomach.” She's finding it hard to talk, like the breath has been taken from her.
“Is it the baby?” I question as I reach her.
She nods. “He's not moving, and I’m in so much pain,” she whimpers.
I clench my jaw as I see the blood on her pants. “Where have you been shot?” I ask her just seeing the blood is making make me lose my mind.
She frowns, deep lines form in his forehead. “I haven't been shot.”
What the hell? “Mia, you’re bleeding. Where are you bleeding?” I search over her body, trying to find where the hell the blood is coming from.
She glances down between her legs, a blood curdling scream erupts from her lips. “Hudson, our baby!”
“Get a fucking ambulance!” I yell, I thought I knew what fear was when Mia was taken, but nothing compares to this right now, knowing that our baby is in trouble is unlike anything I've ever felt before.
“Hudson!” Mia cries, tears rolling down her face. “Is the baby okay?”
I need to tamp down my fear, it’s not helping anyone. I swallow it back and wipe away Mia’s tears with my thumb. “Hey, Princess everything is going to be okay. We're going to get you to the hospital. Don't worry.” Even though I say the words to calm her down, I don’t believe them. She’s almost seven months pregnant, it's not good, it's too early.
“We never said what you wanted to call him.” She’s talking in the past tense, that sounds like he's gone.
I shake my head, never wanting to hear her say that ever again. “Mia, he's going to be okay. You are going to be okay. We are going to get you to the hospital, and get you checked out. This is probably stress don't worry, just take deep breaths.” Fucking hell, everything is not okay but there’s nothing else that I can say right now.
She gives me a tired smile. “I love you so much.” She’s panting, sweat coating her brows.
I pull her into my arms. “Princess, I love you too.”
“Boss, ambulances are on their way. They’re two minutes out. Coby called them when we arrived,” Aaron says, I have no idea where the hell he is, nor do I give a fuck. My focus is right where it should be, on Mia.
“Is your dad okay?” She pants, her gaze going to the door.
“Look at me, Princess,” I tell her, not wanting her to see my dad right now, he’s not in good shape and seeing him could make her worse. She looks at me, worry clouding those gorgeous eyes of hers. “He’s doing okay, you two will probably be next to each other in the hospital.”
“They’ll need to make a wing for everyone here,” David laughs at his own joke.
Mia’s eyes widen. “Did he just make a joke?”
I shake my head. “Yeah, it's very rare but he does make them. Although they’re not that great.” I’m glad that she’s focused on something else than her pain right now.
“Is he dead?” she questions, her face is no longer etched in pain as it was when she was going down the wall. Her breathing is no longer labored, I want to see if she's bleeding but I don't want to move her. Waiting for EMT’s is like waiting for an eternity.
“I don't know, and honestly I don't care. After everything that asshole has done he deserves to die.” I tell her, glancing back and seeing that fucker lying flat on the floor. He hasn’t moved since I shot him, then again, I’m not surprised. My aim is fucking true, I never miss my target.
She hums. “Is your mom doing okay?”
There is something about this woman, she always manages to catch me off guard, she always says something I wouldn't expect her to in a time where most would panic.
“She's angry,” I bite out. She shouldn’t be fucking angry with me.
She grins. “Let me guess, you're pissed that she’s angry at you and you think she should be angry that she was played.”
I ignore her smug smile. “Right now I’m focusing on you. The quicker the EMT’s get here the better.”
She narrows her eyes at me, her lips pursing into a thin line. “Hudson, you better not be rude to the EMT’s. They're going to try and help us, they don't need you making the job harder.
“As if I would.” They just need to hurry up.
“They’re here, as are the cops,” Aaron shouts and relief washes through me, and of course the fucking cops are here.
“Deal with the cops, if they want to talk to me, they can follow us to the hospital,” I say loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Hudson.” Mia glares at me. “Please be nice,” she asks and I
nod just as the EMT’s rush into the bedroom.
“She’s bleeding and she’s twenty three weeks pregnant,” I tell them, and watch helplessly as they assess her and load her onto a gurney. Blood rushes to my head as I watch them wheel her past me.
“Hudson?” Mia calls out in a panic, her hand in the air as she tries to find me.
“I’m here,” I tell her, my hand gripping hers.
“Don’t let go,” she pleads with me, “Please.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Princess,” I promise her, I turn to look at David and Aaron. “Sort this shit out, then meet me at the hospital.” They nod in unison as I leave the office still clasping onto Mia’s hand.
“Boss?” The deep voice pulls me from my thoughts. I turn to find David standing in the doorway. “The cops want to talk to you.”
I nod, I knew it would be only a matter of time. I’m surprised they waited this long. Thankfully Mia’s sleeping and the doctor has been by to check on her. They’re monitoring her tonight and tomorrow and see if the bleeding has stopped. If it has, we should be okay, but if it continues, then there’s a high probability that Mia will go into labor.
I place a kiss against Mia’s head and walk out of her room. “Who is it?” I ask as David walks beside me.
“Spinelli.”
Good, it’s someone on my payroll. Not that there’s much they can do. Yes, I shot someone, but that person had shot five people beforehand and had a gun pointed at my wife.
“How is everyone?” This is the first time that I’ve left Mia’s side since we arrived in the hospital.
“None were hit anywhere fatal. Your dad’s probably going to have to stay in a couple of days, maybe longer. He lost a lot of blood, but he’ll be fine. How’s Mia?”
“She’s okay, she’s not getting pains anymore nor is she bleeding. The doctor says she had a placental abruption. We’re going to have to see how tonight and tomorrow goes before we can say for definite, but at the moment things look okay.” She needs no stress and bed rest. That’s exactly what she’s going to get.
Forever Love (Kingpin Book 3) Page 14