by Kate Stacy
I’ve been holed up in this apartment since the day Holden and Jax brought me here.
I’ve never been more thankful that David never wanted to spend much time with my family. It’s because of this that he doesn’t know where my brother lives. I haven’t left the apartment for fear of him catching me out in public. I feel a sense of safety within these four walls, but the fear of my husband is still very real. I don’t take his threats lightly, so I haven’t tempted fate.
I scrounge through the fridge looking for something to eat, but nothing looks remotely appetizing. Morning sickness severely limits my food choices. Not finding anything that doesn’t make my stomach churn, I decide to order Chinese food. I’ve eaten it several times this week, but it’s one of the few things that I can manage to keep down.
I call and place my order, then head to the bathroom to wash my face and tame my wild hair while I wait. Fifteen minutes later, there’s a knock on the door.
Grabbing my wallet, I head to the door, doing a little shimmy shake along the way. What can I say? I’m pregnant and excited about getting some Bourbon chicken and fried rice in my belly. I check the peephole. Seeing the guy with restaurant’s red logo hat and a bag of food in his hand, I open the door as I dig for the cash in my wallet.
“Twenty-seven, thirty-five, right?” I ask, counting out the bills.
“Oh, it’s going to cost you much, much more than that, sweetheart.”
His voice sends a shiver of dread down my spine and I stand frozen in terror.
He found me.
David stands before me, a smirk on his face, black eyes full of violence.
Gasping, I move to slam the door, but my shock cost me precious time. It’s too late.
With a menacing snarl, he pushes me backwards, sending my body crashing to the floor. He steps forward and closes the door behind him, locking us both inside. I scramble backwards across the floor, but he’s faster than I am and grabs a fistful of my hair, using it to yank me to my feet.
Crying out from the pain, I struggle to free myself from his grip. David slams my head against the wall, splitting open my eyebrow on the corner of a picture frame. Blood gushes from the wound, dripping down my face and into my eye. He unceremoniously releases me, and I hit the floor again with a yelp.
Before I can move, his boot connects with my hip. A flash of pain radiates through me and I fight the urge to cry out, biting down on my lip so hard I taste the coppery tang of blood. He enjoys it more when I cry, and I don’t want to give him that. He kicks me again, this time hitting my ribs. The sound of my bones snapping fills the air in the apartment.
Instinctively, I curl into myself, wrapping my arms around my stomach.
Big mistake.
When no more hits come, I turn my head only to see David staring at me, watching me with a curious gaze. Crouching down, he brushes my blood-soaked hair from my forehead.
“Tsk, tsk, Madalyn.” Shaking his head, he grabs my chin and forces me to look at him. “You’ve broken all the rules, haven’t you, my love?”
A whimper is my only response.
“You weren’t supposed to leave me, Madalyn. I told you what would happen if you tried.”
Standing, he grabs my bicep and yanks me to a sitting position. I scream at the pain radiating from my broken ribs. I pull my knees to my chest, trying to protect the baby as much as possible. I’ll do whatever I can to protect the life inside of me. I’ll fight for both of us.
When David crouches down again, I kick both feet out, hitting him square in the chest. He goes down, giving me the opportunity to get away from him. Pushing through the pain, I stand and try to make it to the bedroom. If I can get to my phone, I can call for help.
I can hear him shuffling behind me, but I don’t look back.
A clicking sound catches my attention, and David’s words stop me in my tracks.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
Turning my head to glance behind me, I gasp when I see David standing with a gun pointed at me. Eyes wide, my body trembles with fear. He has a gun. Where did he get a fucking gun? I can’t protect myself from that. I need to try a different tactic.
“David, please. Please don’t do this.”
He throws his head back in maniacal laughter, shaking it back and forth as he brings his attention back to me.
“It’s much too late for pleas, dear wife.” He takes a measured step forward. “I came here to bring you home, to give you another chance, but it seems we have a bit of a problem,” he says, waving the gun toward my stomach.
“I can’t have my fucking wife pregnant with another man’s baby...even if she is a whore.”
I take a step back as he takes another forward.
“I’ve never cheated on you, David. I haven’t touched another man. The baby is yours!” I cry.
Another step back.
“You’re a liar!” he screams, coming completely unhinged. “Don’t you fucking lie to me!”
One hand waves the gun wildly, the other tugs at his hair.
“That’s not my baby, Madalyn. I don’t want any fucking babies!”
I move to take another step away from him, but it doesn’t matter.
A loud bang—like a car backfiring—pierces the air as a searing pain rips through my abdomen. A second bang follows the first, this time, the pain tearing through my shoulder. My body drops to the floor with a thud.
I manage to move my hands to cover my belly again, but it ends there.
I can’t move.
I can’t speak.
As I lie here bleeding out on the floor, I struggle to take a breath.
Breathe in. Breathe out.
My vision goes dim at the edges, and I fight to keep my eyes open.
I watch David pace back and forth across the floor in front of me, both hands—one still holding the gun—pulling frantically at his hair.
I see his lips moving, but I can’t understand what he’s saying through the buzzing in my ears.
Suddenly, he stops and stares at me.
His eyes are black. Empty. Void of all emotion.
It’s the most frightening thing I’ve ever seen.
I hear the faint sound of sirens in the distance.
Blood clouds my vision and I try to blink it away, but it doesn’t work.
I hear another bang, then nothing.
Blackwood Brewhouse is a madhouse tonight.
The bar is at capacity, there’s a line around the building, and every member of our staff is on the clock, Holden and I included. We’ve got several large groups tonight. A few here for birthdays, at least two bachelorette parties, and a bachelor party. It’s gonna be a wild night and a damn good one for sales.
There’s a steady flow of people to and from the bar, but we’re keeping up. Nobody has to wait long. A few girls from one of the bachelorette parties get to the bar and ask for a round of Blow Jobs. I check IDs and start lining up the shots with a wink and a smile.
One girl hands me cash when I finish making their shots and the three of them line up, lean forward, and tip 'em back like pros. One of the girls—a pretty little redhead—licks the whipped cream from her lips with her eyes locked on me and finished with a wink.
The wink was overkill. I get it. A pretty girl takes a shot using only her mouth and a guy's dick should react. I'm supposed to be impressed. Turned on. Hot and bothered. Interested.
Maybe I would be...if this same thing didn't happen practically every night I work. And maybe...if my head, my heart, and my dick weren't singularly focused on one girl. The girl that finally left her douchebag of a husband.
I'm not a fool to think things will go back to the way they used to be between me and Madalyn. It's not that easy.
We've both dealt with a lot of things in our time apart, her more so than me. But we both need time. She needs time to heal—physically and emotionally—but I plan on being there for her every step of the way. I won't pretend that I'm not going to try to get her back.
<
br /> Now more than ever, I believe that the two of us are meant to be together. I hate that it took something so fucking terrible to bring her back to me, but I've no intention of letting her go again.
I'm drug from my thoughts when the redhead leans as far as she can across the bar, tits pressing again the polished wooden surface, and places her hand on my forearm. She's got that lustful gleam in her eye and I know what she's going to say before she opens her pouty lips.
"Lookin' for some fun tonight, handsome?"
I smile, not wanting to hurt her feelings even though I'm not the slightest bit interested. Leaning forward, I try to let her down easy. "Sorry, Sugar. Busy night."
"Oh," she says, batting her eyelashes. "I don't mind waiting."
I fight the urge to roll my eyes. Do guys really go for that shit? The pouting lips, puppy dog eyes, and fluttering eyelashes. Hard pass.
"I'm spoken for, Sugar, but I'm sure you won't have a hard time finding what you're lookin' for," I say, nodding to the crowd behind her.
She pouts again before turning away with a huff.
From the corner of my eye, I see Holden shaking his head at me as he pulls his phone from his pocket.
I'm sure it looked like I was flirting, but he wasn't close enough to hear what was said. He should know me better. As soon as there was any little chance, even the tiniest sliver of hope for me to get Madalyn back...other females ceased to exist to me.
Planning to ignore him, I turn to the next customer in line, but something makes me look back. Holden has his phone to his ear and his face has drained of all color, a look of complete terror marring his expression. Before I can even move to ask what’s wrong, he vaults over the top of the bar, slapping the surface with his hand when he lands on the other side.
“Jax, we gotta fucking go man!” he yells over the crowd. “Now!”
I don’t ask questions, but I quickly turn to Noah, who obviously saw the same thing I did.
“We’ve got this man, GO!”
Following Holden’s lead, I jump over the bar and race outside. I wrench the truck door open, barely getting my ass on the seat before he peels out of the parking lot. He doesn’t even give me time to close the damn door.
“What the fuck happened, Holden?” I ask, slamming the door shut and buckling up.
“Mads. She...fuck!”
He isn’t making any fucking sense, but a sense of dread washes over me and my stomach sinks.
“Holden. Get it together, brother. Tell me what the fuck is going on.”
He sucks in a deep, stuttered breath. “Fuck! The call was my neighbor in the apartment across from mine. He heard arguing, loud banging noises, and a female crying out coming from my apartment. Called the police, but before they could get there, he heard gunshots. Three gunshots, he said. Then silence.”
I have no time to react because Holden whips into the parking lot in front of his apartment building as he finishes explaining.
Emergency vehicles are everywhere. Flashes of red and blue color the buildings and the sounds of sirens drown all other sound.
We both bolt from the truck, calling out her name.
Nothing matters more than getting to Madalyn.
Holden and I don’t get very far.
We’re stopped by police officers and forced to stand behind an invisible line while our thoughts run wild imagining the worst.
No one is allowed to enter the building. It doesn’t matter that it’s Holden’s apartment, or his baby sister. The officers won’t budge. We’ve tried everything to get into the building, everything short of bribing them, which I’d do if I wasn’t worried about being arrested. I can’t do shit for Mads if I’m behind bars.
We know exactly nothing, aside from what Holden’s neighbor told him on the phone. The parking lot is full of people who live in the building, but no one has seen Madalyn. No one can tell us what’s going on, or if she’s okay.
The officer keeping an eye on us at least seems sympathetic. He’s just doing his job and I understand that, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t be pissed off that we can’t get to her.
I need to get to her. I need to know she’s okay.
I’m going out of my fucking mind waiting.
I know it’s only been a few minutes, but the minutes drag on when a loved one hangs in the balance.
Finally, after what feels like a lifetime, there’s a flurry of activity at the building entrance.
Police exit, clearing a path for the EMTs following closely behind, rolling a stretcher toward the ambulance in a hurry.
It takes a second for my brain to process what I’m seeing.
Madalyn is on that stretcher and an EMT is straddling her motionless body performing CPR.
With that realization, I move.
I don’t think about the officer tasked with holding us behind that invisible line.
I don’t think about Holden, and whether or not he saw them bring her out.
I don’t give a fuck about anything except getting to Madalyn.
There’s not a force on this fucking earth that could stop me.
I reach the ambulance as they’re lifting her into the back. I’m right behind them, moving to climb in, but I’m stopped when someone tugs on my arm.
“Stop, I can’t let you in.”
“It’s okay. He’s family.” My friend’s voice says from over my shoulder.
A pang of guilt hits me when I realize that Holden wants to be with his sister. When I meet his eyes, there’s a clipped shake of his head and he tells me, “Go. I’ll follow. Stay with her, Jax. Please.”
His voice is cracked, broken, so damn hollow.
I climb into the back of the ambulance, following the EMTs instructions to the letter.
I can’t bring myself to look at Madalyn yet, so I look out the back and Holden is standing there with tears streaming down his face. The other emergency responders shuffle in and those doors slam shut, effectively closing us off from my friend.
Slowly turning my gaze, I allow myself to take in what’s happening around me.
Amidst a flurry of activity, Madalyn lays there completely motionless.
I see red. Everything is fucking red.
Blood covers the majority of her body from head to toe. There’s so much of it, I can’t even tell where it’s coming from.
The EMT in front of me swiftly moves to the side sending a rush of air passed my face. I’m immediately overwhelmed with the sickeningly sweet, metallic scent of her blood mixed with overpowering scent of antiseptic. I choke down the bile that rises in my throat.
My mind wars between devastation, disbelief, and anger.
I watch the EMTs work on Madalyn with a sort of numb detachment.
Tears fall from my eyes in steady streams, but I don’t notice.
Shivers and chills take over my body, but I don’t feel a thing.
My entire focus is on the love of my life lying practically lifeless before my eyes.
If I lose her. I won’t survive.
Madalyn’s heart stops beating three times on the way to the hospital.
Three times, I feel her life slipping away.
Three times, I feel my heart shatter.
Three times, I’m forced to imagine this world without her.
By the time we pull up in the ambulance bay at the hospital, my calm composure is nonexistent.
I’m fucking falling apart.
I sat in the back of the ambulance and watched Madalyn die.
They were able to revive her each time, but my heart doesn’t give a fuck about that detail. She died. Three goddamn times.
But she’s still fighting.
Madalyn is a fighter.
That’s what I need to focus on.
They rush her back to an operating room while a nurse guides me to a waiting room. I’m told to wait there for news— a doctor will be out whenever possible to talk to me about her condition.
Wait.
Like it’s normal for the woman I love
to be fighting for her life.
I drop into a chair, hang my head in my hands, and lose myself to broken, angry sobs.
I’ve never felt more helpless and afraid in my life.
Holden shows up only minutes later. He makes his presence known and gives me a minute to compose myself.
He wants to ask. Desperate for any shred of information. But he can’t bring himself to say the words. Can’t bring himself to ask.
Summoning every single tiny sliver of strength I have left, I tell him what he wants to hear.
“She’s alive.”
He releases the breath he was holding and drops his head back against the wall.
“It’s bad, Holden. It’s really fucking bad.”
He turns to me with bloodshot eyes. “Tell me.”
“I-I—” I drag a shaking hand down my face.
I compose myself and try again. I know I should give it to him gently, but once I start, I can’t stop the words flowing from between my lips.
“There was so much fucking blood. There was barely an inch of her not covered. I don’t even know where she was bleeding from, man. I couldn’t focus enough to hear what the EMTs were saying. I’m so damn sorry. Her heart stopped beating three times, Holden. I watched—” I choke on a sob. “I watched helplessly as they fought to revive her three fucking times!”
I hear his sharp intake of breath, but I can’t bear to look at him. I can’t even speak anymore.
The rest of the family shows up, filling the small waiting room.
The nurse comes over and quietly explains that Madalyn has been taken back for emergency surgery. She can’t say anything about her condition, but she’s in good hands. They’re doing everything they can for her.
For hours, the waiting room is filled with deafening silence.
No one speaks. No one leaves. We sit. And we wait.
Holden sits woodenly beside me, eyes locked on the door leading to the operating rooms.
Camille and Presley sit on the floor in the far corner, arms wrapped around each other for comfort.
Mr. and Mrs. Sterling are next to Grams, all three of them holding hands and uttering silent prayers.
