Synclair kept taking steps backward and Travis matched her step to step. She gave Sara a nod to tell her she was leading him away from Logan so that Sara could get him to safety.
“I’ll fucking kill you.” Reece suddenly roared his eyes focused on the bleeding bite mark on Synclair’s neck. Dalton and Matt rushed to hold him back, there were men with guns, one small child and a pregnant woman in the room and the last thing they wanted was their brother setting off a chain reaction where someone got hurt.
“I’m fine Reece, he hits like a girl.” She tried to smile, but her cheek was throbbing. “Oh, wait, I’m sorry, he hits like an angry girl.” She corrected trying to keep Travis’s focus on her and not Sara.
“You shoot me, I kill her Lucas, you know I’ll do it, I got nothing left to lose man,” Travis warned his eyes went from Lucas to Synclair and then back to Lucas.
“Stop fucking moving” He screamed and Synclair froze. She put her hands up in a show of surrender and stood her ground.
“Point the gun at me, Travis, it’s me your mad at right?” Lucas asked trying to get Travis to point the weapon at him and not Synclair. One look at the woman’s face said it all. She’d been through a lot, this couldn’t be good for the baby. He needed to end this and end it quick.
“We were friends once Lucas, but you always had to get everything,” Travis whined still swinging the gun from Lucas to Synclair.
“That’s bullshit Travis, I was always your friend, you were never mine, my parents treated you as a son, whatever is wrong with your life is all you, not me, I worked for that spot on the football team. When I was practicing drills you were getting laid, when I was resting up for the big game you were partying, you had the same opportunities I had, you just wanted it all handed to you.” Lucas shouted.
Travis’s eyes grew wide then narrowed. He shook his head and then smiled, a smile that made Lucas’s spine tingle with dread.
“I win Lucas, Sara’s brat will forever be a reminder that I had her, that I will always be there between you two, now I’m going to shoot this mouthy bitch and then I can say I’ve ruined the lives of two Hudson brothers.”
Lucas ignored the shouts from Reece as his brothers practically sat on him to keep him restrained. He looked at Synclair. He watched her mouth the words, ‘I love you’ to Reece before she took a step toward Travis.
Lucas shook his head, he didn’t know what she was doing but antagonizing the guy with the gun was not a smart plan. Apparently, she wasn’t listening, her eyes were trained on something behind Travis. Without moving his head, Lucas quickly glanced to Travis’s right. There was Sara hold a sleeping Logan in her arms as she backed slowly toward the shadows of the barn.
Dammit, Synclair was giving Sara time to get Logan out of the line of fire. All at once he wanted to kiss and paddle his new sister.
“You don’t have the guts to pull that trigger, Travis, you’re just this weak, whiny rich boy who has to drug women to have sex because no woman who is her right mind wants anything to do with your dysfunctional, drugged out crazy ass.” Synclair sneered.
Lucas watched in horror as Travis trained the gun right at Synclair’s head. Synclair for her part seemed calm. Then all hell broke loose. Reece broke free from his brothers’ grasp and bolted for Syn, a loud crow started squawking, he saw Sara run for the back of the barn, and Dalton sprinted after to her, Matt yelled for Reece, but nothing was going to stop Reece from getting to Syn.
Just as Travis was about to pull the trigger, his arm raised, a whoosh sounded, and Travis’s arm lurched to the side, and he screamed in pain.
Wideyed Lucas watched Reece leap for Synclair, and they both fell to the ground, his larger brother cradling the love of his life.
Shaking off the confusion, Lucas and Matt rushed forward to where Travis was writhing and screaming on the ground. Matt grabbed the gun where Travis had dropped it and then looked at Lucas in confusion. Protruding out of Travis’s wrist was an arrow.
Travis lunged forward, and Matt swung out a first and knocked the man out cold.
Sara came running toward Lucas with Dalton carrying Logan right behind her. Lucas put the safety back on his gun and placed it back in his waistband. He opened his arms as Sara threw herself against him sobbing. He’d never been so happy in his whole life, he kissed her hair, her forehead, and her cheeks, he reached over to Logan, who was nestled in Dalton’s arms and planted a kiss on the sleeping boy’s cheek.
“It’s about time!” Synclair shouted to the rafters.
Sara looked at Reece, her concern mirrored in his face. Reece dusted off Synclair and roamed his hands over her body checking for injuries. He growled when he came to her face and neck but other than that she seemed unhurt.
“Are you serious, you know how hard it is to fit an ass my size through the window the size of an easy bake oven? I totally saved your ass Gringa.” Came a laughing voice from the back of the barn.
Synclair broke free of Reece and ran to Taylor’s embrace. She knew Taylor would take a shot at Travis, as soon as she heard the crow call, the one they used when they would go hiking, in case they got separated.
“Thank God it was you, for a minute I thought it was a real fucking crow.” Synclair hiccupped as tears began to stream down her face.
Taylor smiled and patted her friend’s rounded belly. “Honey, I would have taken the shot sooner, but there were too many people in the line of fire and I wasn’t about to risk that baby in there.” She told her as she let Synclair lead her to a group of people who seemed to all be watching them with interest.
“This is my friend Taylor Duke, she’s the one that loves Archery, Reece, remember I said she was coming to visit,” Synclair explained.
Everyone stood there, looking at the arrow in Travis’s wrist and the short, feisty woman with the bow slung across her back.
Reece recovered first, “Wow, yeah she did, it’s great to… Oh hell...” Reece laughed at grabbed Taylor up in a hug. She saw Synclair move in to tell Reece that she didn’t like to be touched, but he seemed to need the physical contact so Taylor closed her eyes and willed herself not throw up.
“I don’t think thanks covers it.” He said putting Taylor gently back on her feet and moving to wrap his arms around Synclair.
“She would do it for me, besides I love to hunt.” She told the group.
As introductions were made around the room, they heard the sound of police sirens approaching.
“Who called the cops?” Dalton asked looking around.
“I did.” Came a voice from behind the open doorway.
In one fluid motion, Mayor Michael Hudson leaped over the farm equipment and sauntered up to the group, a smirk on his face as he nodded toward Taylor.
“Ms. Duke insisted that I go for help while and I quote, “she shows this raping, child stealing, pregnant woman slapping asshole, some manners,” seeing as she had the only weapon, I crawled out the window, jumped down the building and drove till I got a cell signal. I think it was just as you guys were pulling off the doors, excellent job by the way.” He nodded to Dalton and Matt knowing full well who had the know how to remove those doors quickly.
The next few hours were filled with police statements and the paramedics taking Logan and Sara together in an ambulance to the hospital to be checked out, which of course Lucas insisted ongoing along in. When the paramedics recommended that Synclair be checked out, she immediately balked at the idea.
Reece, being Reece, threw her up in his arms and climbed into the back of the ambulance with her in his lap, her arms folded across her chest like a petulant child.
The EMT’s were about to close the door when Synclair suddenly lurched forward.
“Shit, wait, my car.” She tried to scramble off Reece’s lap, but he only held on tighter, there was no way he was letting her out of his sight again, ever, hell maybe longer than that.
“Don’t worry sis, I’ll take it to the garage in town, we’ll get it fixed,” Matt said soothingly.<
br />
Synclair shook her head and again tried to extract herself from Reece’s grasp. Exhausted, she finally stopped struggling and laid her head back against Reece’s chest.
“You don’t get it, I left something in the trunk.” She whined.
“If it’s your bat you don’t need it.” Dalton joked leaning up against the open door to the ambulance.
“I have to get something.” She groaned.
“What’s did you leave in the trunk that’s so important?” Reece asked giving the frowning paramedic his signature ‘fuck off’ look.
“You’ll be mad.”
“Syn!” He shouted. He wasn’t sure he could take any more surprises today. “What’s in the trunk?”
Synclair buried her head in his shirt and sighed, “Amber.” She whispered.
Reece pulled back enough to put one hand under chin and force her to look at him.
“Amber? Amber’s in the… MATT!” Reece shouted.
“Already on it,” Matt yelled back as he raced to Synclair’s car.
Moments later the shrill voice of one very pissed off Amber Donaldson-Potter filled the silence.
“You left me in that trunk, I could have died,” Amber screamed clutching her chest.
“You crashed your car through a barn door while I was in the there!” Amber shouted looking from the broken barn door and then back at Synclair.
Synclair glared at her and shrugged. Despite looking sweaty and her makeup melting down her face, the wicked witch of the west, seemed fine to her. “Oh stop you could have gotten out anytime you wanted,” Synclair told her, hating the way Amber dramatically clinged to Matt’s arm.
“I couldn’t I was trapped, and it was dark, and you left me there!” She squealed grabbing for Matt’s arm again as soon as he got it loose from her needy grasp.
Dalton smothered a laugh. Amber turned and gave him a death stare.
“Amber you know all cars made after 1992 come with an emergency pull in the trunk, right? It was to make sure if you were kidnapped or trapped in a trunk you could get out, you pull it, and it opens the trunk.” Dalton explained while Matt silently laughed behind her.
Amber looked ready to explode again when her brother put an arm around her and led her toward Taylor’s car. Reece gave him a grateful look and leaned back bringing Synclair with him.
“Are you mad?” She asked.
“You risked your life and our son’s life today Syn, when I saw that mark on your neck and Travis point a gun at you I lost my mind. One of my favorite things about you is how you love with your whole heart, I just need you to clue me in, let me help, I promise I won’t try to clip your wings, just give me a chance to be there for you.” Reece whispered as the Ambulance began to move.
“I can’t say I’m sorry Reece, he was hurting her, she was screaming, I couldn’t let him…”
“Shhh.” Reece kissed the top of her head and rocked her back and forth.
“It’s who you are, and I can accept that, but just meet me half way or even one-quarter, let me show you I can love you without taking away who you are.”
“Deal.” She whispered as she fell asleep, too tired to keep her eyes open, safe in the arms of the man who loved her.
“Taylor, did you want to follow us to the hospital or would you like to head back to the house?” Dalton asked giving the cute woman his panty-dropping smile.
Taylor smiled back, “Damn dude you need to keep that on lock down, you are too sweet.” She told him slapping his cheeks just a little too hard.
Signing Dalton looked over at Matt, who seemed to be enjoying the whole scene. “Well, it seems our work here is done little brother, how about you drive Reece’s truck and meet me at Jake’s for a well-deserved beer?” Dalton asked as the ambulance that held Travis, chained to a gurney, pulled away.
“Sounds good, I’ll call Rachel on the way and fill her in, she’ll want to go to the hospital.”
“Taylor you’re welcome to join us.” Matt offered as he walked toward Reece’s truck, pausing to unwrap the chain from the hitch on the back, the last thing he needed was to drag a barn door behind him.
Taylor smiled and shook her head, “Thanks, I’m going to get rid of my spare parts here and head to the hospital.”
Michael, who had been leaning against her car, looked suddenly offended. “Spare parts, doll, I’m all the parts.” He drawled.
Taylor rolled her eyes and climbed into the driver’s seat. She ignored the sniffling woman in the backseat, she’d already heard all about Amber Donaldson, and now that she knew Michael was her brother, he was definitely on the hands-off list.
“Like I said, I’ll drop you off.” She told him in an icy polite tone, the sooner she was away from him the better.
“Naw, I think we’ll tag along doll, you never know when you need parts,” He answered smiling so big she swore she was blinded by his white teeth.
Rolling her eyes, she put the car in gear and began to drive.
“I don’t need to go to the hospital, I..”
“Shut up Amber.” Taylor and Michael shouted in unison.
Taylor turned her head to look out the window so that Michael wouldn’t see her smile, she swore she saw him make the same move she did. Yeah, she definitely needed to shake this guy.
**********
Sara smiled as she sat up in the hospital bed, she watched as Lucas carried Logan, who’s little hands, were wrapped around his neck in a vice grip, to her outstretched arms.
She sighed as his arms wrapped around her neck and grinned when he gave her cheek a small kiss.
Sara didn’t know why she was in a hospital bed, aside from some bumps and bruises she hadn’t sustained any injuries. However, as soon as Doc Williams saw her, he ordered a thorough check up and a battery of tests for her, Logan and Synclair. Synclair had shocked everyone by not arguing. All she asked was that Reece be allowed to stay with her the whole time, the man’s grin was so wide she was surprised his face hadn’t cracked in half. Still it was good to seem them so happy.
Logan was the ultimate trooper, he had woken up shortly after arriving at the hospital and was asking for pancakes. Which Synclair promised to make for him if he sat through all the tests the staff was doing on him. Other than wondering who Travis was, Logan seemed oblivious to the danger he had been in.
Now hours later, Sara was sitting in a borrowed pair of scrubs, waiting for her discharge papers. She had spoken to her father who they were keeping overnight just to be sure he had no after effects of the tranquilizer that Travis had injected him with. Now, she was ready to go back to Lucas’s cottage and sleep for a million years with Logan wrapped in her arms.
“What’s the holdup chick?” Synclair asked as she opened the door to Sara’s room. She walked up to Sara and threw her arms around her. Sara grabbed her and held on, tears streaming down her face.
“I don’t know what to say, I just…” Synclair cut her off with one raised hand, she stood up, and Reece put his arms around her hands resting on her belly.
“We’re not just partners in business, we’re family, you’d do it for me.” She told her wiping her own tears with the back of her hand.
“I take it the baby is fine?” Lucas asked Reece.
“Oh yes, the baby is right as rain, in fact, he or she has a strong heartbeat should be due somewhere in Winter.” Doc Williams announced from the door. He moved aside as the room filled with Taylor, Rachel and Michael Donaldson, Amber was thankfully not with them.
Sara looked at Synclair in confusion.
“Wait, I thought you were due late fall?” Sara asked.
Synclair looked at Reece, who mirrored her confusion.
“Not her baby, your child Sara, you’re baby is due this winter.” Doc Williams explained as if he were talking about the weather.
Lucas’s eyes shot to Sara’s. Suddenly she burst out crying. Lucas gathered her and Logan both into his arms murmuring comforting words and rocking her gently.
“Sara? I k
now this is a lot to process, but I love you, and Logan and I know it’s sudden, but I want this baby. You, Logan and this little Hudson here are my family, I’ll take things as slow as you want Sara, but don’t ask me to walk away or give up, I won’t do it.” He whispered.
Sara lifted her head and looked from Lucas’s green eyes to Logan’s blue ones, they both were staring at her, waiting for her to say something, Logan knew something was happening but at his age couldn’t comprehend what it was and Lucas was waiting expectantly for her to accept his love or shoot him down.
“You both have the same smile.” She said aloud. Looking at both of their faces she realized they had dimples in exactly the same place.
“Um, I can answer that.” Rachel broke in. She handed a letter to Lucas and stepped back.
“Sorry, Dalton said to give this to you, to make sure you looked at it, even if you didn’t want to, but I’m not going to lie, I read it, Lucas, so should you.” She told them, a guilty look on her face.
“Lucas?” Sara asked wiping her tears from her face.
Lucas sat back and looked at Sara, he glanced down at the page and confirmed what he already knew, Logan was his son, not just of his heart, but his biological son.
“He’s mine, Sara, Logan is my son, he doesn’t belong to Travis.”
Sara’s hand flew up to her mouth, and Lucas quickly handed Logan off to Rachel. His sister didn’t miss a beat and coaxed Logan outside with promises of Legos in the waiting room.
“It’s not possible, we didn’t, the timing isn’t right.”
“Yeah, he’s mine, the picnic we had right before that big fight, I didn’t use a condom, Sara, it was only days before Travis.” He didn’t want to bring up that time or cause her more pain, but she needed to know, she had nothing to fear from Travis, not anymore.
He watched her work it out in her head, then her eyes narrowed on him. “How long have you known?” She asked her voice heavy with suspicion.
Baby Mine: A Hudson Family Series- Book Two- Lucas and Sara Page 19
