“Because you are right. I will do anything to keep her safe,” I said.
There was a silence in the diner now. I could sense Rodeo raging behind me. He was not happy with the deal I was striking with them now. The difference between us and them, was that if we struck a deal—any of us—the Marked Skulls was going to be bound by it. We never went back on a promise, and everyone knew it.
“Good. So we keep her alive, and you get us what we want,” he continued.
“Wrong. You let them both go and then I get you what you want.”
“You trying to be smart with me, motherfucker!?” He raged.
And that was when we heard the sound of more bikes outside. This time, it was a happy sound.
“Looks like we don’t have to strike a deal after all. In a few minutes, this place is going to be stormed by our entire club and you guys will all be dead,” I said. A smile was creeping up on my face. From the looks exchanged between the Dark Legion and the Hell’s Drifters, I could sense they were well aware of it too. They knew they were fucked.
“So, the deal is off, and I’m going to take a step back now and watch you idiots burn,” I added. Behind me, Rodeo and Abe chuckled, too.
Dash, who was still being held at gunpoint had a smile too. We’d won. We’d managed to keep them engaged long enough for the rest of our club to show up. Which was exactly my plan from the start. I knew if I could keep them talking it would buy us more time.
Kaya was still on the ground, putting pressure, with her hands, on Melody’s wound. I looked at her and winked to reassure her and she bit down on her lip. She was hopeful now.
“Fuck this shit,” the guy growled. In a second, he grabbed Dash by the shoulder, and pulled him to the back of the diner near the kitchen.
“Fuck,” I mumbled under my breath. I didn’t see this coming. Just as the front door of the diner burst open and our brothers poured in—the six of them went charging to the back of the diner and out. They had Dash with them. I chased after them. I could see him trying to get free from their grasp, but all six of them were pulling him along.
I ran out to the back, and started shooting, but they had a truck parked in the alleyway. Before I could get to them they’d already pushed Dash into the back and were driving away.
I shot at their tires, but there was no chance. They were fucking getting away.
Chapter 30
Kaya
Everything was chaos. I could barely see straight. Of all the things I’d imagined my life in Orlando to look like, this was not one of them. I was on the ground with Melody, trying to put pressure on her wound so she wouldn’t bleed out.
“A- are they gone?” she asked.
I bit my lip so I wouldn’t start crying. I needed to be brave for her.
“Yes Mel. They are gone.”
“G-good,” she said as her body started to shiver.
“Mel, sweetie, look at me. We are going to get you out of here, okay? And to a hospital. Everything is going to be alright.” I looked around the diner taking in the damage around me.
I thought I was going to die. I was sure I would die. Dash had put up a fight against the Dark Legion and their friends, but ultimately they had us. Oz had turned up, but even then, they were outnumbered. They were going to kill us. They weren’t going to show us any mercy, and my baby was going to die with me.
I had tried to be brave, because I trusted Oz. I knew he would be able to save us, he would find a way. But when I saw how helpless he was feeling, and when he started to strike a deal with them—I wanted to scream at him and tell him to stop. I didn’t want him to make a deal with these monsters. Even if that meant it would cost my life.
I could see now that Oz and his MC had morals, and these men didn’t. They would do whatever they had to in order to get what they wanted. Even if that meant starting a shootout in a diner with innocent people inside.
I blamed myself for everything that was happening. I should have run away after they threatened me once. I shouldn’t have stayed here in this city. If I’d just left town, maybe none of this would have happened—Melody would not be on the floor, bleeding out. And Dash would not have been dragged away by the enemy. But, with Melody bleeding as quickly as she was, I knew it was the only way out.
Tears started to stream down my face. Everything was a blur. I just wanted it to end. I wanted to be back on Oz’s bed, in his arms, falling asleep peacefully like I did that first night. The night I conceived this baby.
Melody hissed and I looked back down at her. Her eyes were rolling back in her head while blood continued to gush from her wound.
“Mel…Mel, please look at me honey,” I pleaded as I sat kneeling beside her. My hands, my dress and apron and everything was covered in her blood. I’d never seen this much blood before.
She licked her dry chapped lips and blinked furiously to get her vision back.
“Are you okay?” she asked in a whisper, and I cried even harder.
“I’m fine, because of you. Why did you do it, Mel? I’m so sorry. I will never be able to forgive myself if anything happens to you.”
She tried to shake her head.
“I had to do something. The baby. You need to be safe,” she whispered and I sobbed uncontrollably. I had no idea what else was going on around me because all I could think of now was that Melody was going to die here in my arms. Because of the poor decisions I made.
“This is all my fault,” I cried.
“No. Those men did this to me. Not you,” Melody hissed weakly.
“None of this would have happened if I’d listened to you. If I stayed away from Oz. I’m so sorry…”
“But you love him.”
I gulped. My throat had gone dry. She was right, I loved him…I fell in love with him from the first moment we spoke. When I looked at him I knew he was the one. I didn’t know how else to describe it, other than that I just knew. And I should have just accepted it then; that fighting this feeling was going to be useless.
I would do anything for Oz. Even if it meant putting my own life at risk.
“I’m so sorry, Mel…I’m sorry…” that was all I could say to her.
“Kaya!”
It was Oz’s voice that broke through the jumbled blur. He was running towards me.
“Where is Dash?” I asked. He crouched down beside me and shook his head.
“They’ve got him, the others have gone after the truck. We’ll get him back,” he said, and quickly looked over Melody’s wound. I stared at his profile. At his handsome chiseled face, at that sharp nose and his thin red lips. His blue eyes were narrowed and focused intently on Melody.
“We need to get her to the hospital, now,” he grunted and I could feel myself shaking. Before another word, he lifted Melody up in his arms. She cried out in pain. I grabbed her hand tightly. There were people still running and panicking around us, but none of that mattered. All that mattered was getting Melody to the hospital.
Melody remained limp and weak in his arms as we crossed the street. There was a muscle car parked outside the bar and Oz gently laid her down in the back and I got in with her. I wrapped my arms around Melody, supporting her head on my lap.
Oz got in the front and banged the door shut.
“She’ll be fine,” he said, looking at me in the rearview mirror.
***
Melody needed surgery on her shoulder because some of her shoulder bone was shattered. But thankfully, the doctors had been able to stop the bleeding and save her life. The bullet had gone straight through and hadn’t hit any major arteries. Ultimately, she was going to be okay, and for that, I was going to be eternally grateful to Oz for bringing her to the hospital in the nick of time.
Once they wheeled Melody away into surgery, I excused myself from Oz to go to the bathroom. I was still covered in blood and I was desperate to look at myself in the mirror and also to make sure I was okay. To see if the baby was okay.
I wasn’t bleeding, and I didn’t feel sick—which
were all good signs. I knew the right thing to do would be to get looked at by a doctor so I could be doubly sure, but right now all I could think about was Melody’s wellbeing. Besides, Oz had no idea about the pregnancy.
In the bathrooms, I washed myself as best as I could. My clothes were still caked in blood, which was beginning to dry and turn a dark rusty color. But I’d managed to get most of it out of my hair and off my hands and neck. It was Melody’s blood and now it was swirling around in the sink as I washed it off.
The relief I felt now, knowing that she was going to live and she was going to be fine—was huge. I didn’t know how I would have lived with myself if anything had happened to her. It made me sick just to think of it. Once again, I couldn’t help but blame myself.
If only I could have controlled my feelings for Oz, maybe then nothing would have happened. Maybe then the Dark Legion wouldn’t have sniffed me out. Melody wouldn’t be in surgery.
I stared at myself in the small stained bathroom mirror. I looked drained and pale. There were dark circles around my eyes. My hair was a complete mess and my clothes looked horrific. This was the rawest I had ever seen myself, and probably the rawest that Oz would ever see me.
Did he blame himself for all this too?
It wasn’t his fault. He had done everything in his power to save me, to keep me safe. My hand lifted up to my belly and I stroked it lovingly. I was carrying his child now and he had no idea.
I thought about what Melody had told me, that Oz had every right to know. Even if we weren’t going to be in a relationship, he had the right to make his own decision. And we had all come so close to death—it made me realize how short life was and there was no need to keep secrets.
I washed my face again and wiped it dry with a paper towel, and then I stepped out again.
Oz was waiting for me on a chair where I’d left him. When he saw me, he stood up. I walked towards him slowly and he looked into my eyes.
“Kaya, are you okay?” he asked and I nodded. He didn’t need to worry about me anymore. I was fine.
“Do you want to sit down?” he asked, and ushered me towards one of the empty chairs in the corner of the waiting room. He sat down beside me and I smiled weakly at him.
“Thank you for looking after Melody and rushing us to the hospital.”
“Please don’t thank me for this, Kaya. None of this would have happened, your friend wouldn’t have gotten hurt, if you didn’t know me. This is all my fault and I should have stayed away from you,” he replied.
I tucked some of the curls behind my ears and shook my head.
“I have been blaming myself for all this too…but really, there is no point in blaming ourselves. I feel like all this was meant to happen, and we can’t change the past.”
Oz was searching my eyes as I spoke, like he was looking for some sort of clue. A clue to what?
“I’m still sorry. I should have known better. I shouldn’t have made you my weakness,” he added.
Hearing him say that tugged a cord in my soul. Was I really his weakness? Could it be possible that he had feelings for me too? It seemed far-fetched, but it was now or never.
“There is something I need to tell you, Oz,” I began and he furrowed his brows with curiosity. I took a deep breath.
“I found out today that I am pregnant,” I blurted.
For a few moments, there was complete silence between us. Oz hadn’t made a move, he hadn’t said anything—all he did was just stare at me.
“The baby is yours, Oz. I haven’t been with anyone else in several months. Not since my ex, and we broke up nearly six months ago and…”
He interrupted me.
“You don’t need to convince me, Kaya, I know the child is mine,” he said. His voice was gruff and deep and I had no idea where to look. I couldn’t keep looking into his eyes because I felt like I would just burst into another volley of tears. My hormones were killing me!
Oz didn’t add anything to that. I didn’t know what was going on. Was he thinking? Was he deciding? Was he going to leave? Was he horrified?
“I didn’t tell you this right now because I want anything from you, Oz. But I just thought you should know, you have the right to know. That’s all,” I said.
Oz drew in a deep breath and shook his head. I watched as he ran a hand through his hair.
“How could you think, Kaya, that I wouldn’t have anything to say to that? You’ve just told me I’m going to be a father. And you think I don’t want to do anything about it?”
I looked away from him. I still didn’t know what exactly he wanted to say to the news.
“Kaya, look at me, please,” he said. There was a weakness in Oz’ voice now and I looked at him, like he wanted me to.
“This is the happiest news of my life. I never realized how much I wanted to be a father until this moment. I want you to know, Kaya, that you will never have to raise this baby alone.”
My mouth nearly dropped open. I was expecting either anger or disinterest, but I definitely wasn’t expecting this. A man like Oz…wants to be a father?
I gulped, I was at a loss for words. What was I even supposed to say to that?
“I’m not trying to say that you need to agree to a relationship with me. After everything that has happened, I will completely understand if you want me to stay the hell away from you and the baby. All I’m saying is that I will always be here to help you in any way that I can—if and when you need me.”
“You want to be a part of this baby’s life?” I blurted out. I was literally choking on my own words.
“Is that so hard to believe?” Oz asked, and there was a smile creasing his lips now. I nearly smiled too.
“I didn’t think there was any place for a baby in your life.”
“I didn’t know there was either, but now that I know I’m going to be a father—I can’t imagine it any other way. I want to take care of you and the baby, Kaya, but only if you want it that way.”
My heart was racing fast in my chest. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. How was this even possible?
“Of course, I want you to be a part of our lives!” I exclaimed.
Oz smiled at me wide and I smiled at him too. When he reached for my hand, I let him hold me.
“This is the best thing you could have told me today, Kaya. You’ve made me the happiest man alive,” he said and I laughed.
“I really wasn’t expecting this reaction from you!”
“Why not?”
“With the life that you lead, the kind of work you do—your responsibilities. I didn’t think you would want a child. Another weakness.”
Oz drew in a deep breath and nodded.
“I can see why you would think that way, but the truth is Kaya, that I love you.”
The world seemed to stand still now when he said those words.
“I am in love with you. I think it was love at first sight for me and I’ve been trying to fight it ever since, but there’s no point in that. I’m a goner.”
Shock after shock.
I wasn’t expecting a man like Oz to say those exact words either.
“I love you, Oz…”
He pulled me into his arms and kissed me then. When I felt his lips on mine, I felt like I was melting. Like there was nothing in the world more important to me in that moment than being in Oz’ arms. We kissed like long lost lovers, and neither of us cared that we were in a hospital waiting room or that there were people around us.
When he finally pulled away from me, my lips felt swollen and my breath was heavy.
“I’m always going to keep you safe, Kaya. You and the baby, forever,” he said and I nodded. There were tears pooling in my eyes again, but this time it was purely from happiness. I was overjoyed that he was here, that he’d kissed me, that Oz actually loved me!
“I can’t imagine spending my life anywhere else, or with anybody else,” I said and he held my hands tightly, bringing them up to his chest.
“Aren’t you af
raid? After everything that’s happened?” he asked, and I shook my head.
“It’s a small price to pay for being with you. For the kind of happiness I feel when I’m with you,” I said, and he leaned in and kissed my lips again.
“Are you okay with having a weakness in your life now? Aren’t we going to be liabilities?”
Oz shrugged his shoulders.
“Small price to pay for the joy you and the baby will bring. And I’m not going to trade you two for anything in the world. My life was never about peace and quiet to begin with,” he said, and we both laughed.
“Your family is going to hate this!” he exclaimed and I rolled my eyes.
“If they truly love me, they’ll accept these new changes in my life once they see how happy I am.”
He kissed my forehead and I laid my head on his chest. It was amazing how calm I felt right now, despite the chaos from just an hour ago. It wasn’t until several minutes later that Oz’ phone rang. He took the call and I could hear the anger and panic in his voice.
When the call ended, he ran a hand through his hair in frustration.
“It’s Dash. They still haven’t found him. Abe called to tell me they need my help.”
I was nodding my head already.
“You should go. You should go and find him. I’ll stay here at the hospital, until I hear news about Melody’s surgery,” I said.
Oz kissed my lips again and stroked my cheek as he stood up.
“I’ll see you soon,” he said and I nodded.
Then, I watched him running down the hospital corridor. I couldn’t drag my eyes away from him. He was my man. The father of my child. The man I was looking forward to spending the rest of my life with.
And the funny thing was that I wasn’t afraid. I was excited. I had butterflies in my stomach. My life was going to be a real adventure.
Chapter 31
Oz
Abe called me at the hospital before they were about to raid the warehouse where they thought the Dark Legion were holding Dash. I drove the car over to the spot just as the other bikes started to arrive.
Everything was quiet and there were a few Hell’s Drifters bikes parked outside. We charged in before any of those fuckers had the time to react. But, even going in, I knew this wasn’t where they were holding Dash. I just had a feeling about it.
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