The Dark Prince (The Dark Prince Trilogy #1)

by Autumn Winchester

  There was too much of a risk. The thing that was inside of her, could be either Nick’s or Chase’s. There was no way of knowing. She could never accept having Nick’s baby, that was a given. She couldn't do that to Chase after he had been so good to them. Summer was at a loss on what to do. The stakes were too high, that if she was, in fact, pregnant, it could be either man’s.

  Taking a deep breath, Summer shut the computer off before making her way to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. She turned on the shower before stripping her clothes off and getting in, not caring that the temperature of the water was on the colder side. Nothing mattered to her anymore. She was numb. Numb to everything.

  There was no way of telling whose thing was growing inside of her. But it did make sense on why she was so tired. She remembered her last period being the week before Nick had his way at the compound, so the odds were in his favor. It wasn’t much, but there was that little percentage the morning after pill didn't work.

  Summer let the sobs wrack her body as she sat on the floor of the shower, the water soaking her. She was already cold to the bone, so the water didn’t do anything for her. The only reason she even turned the shower on was to mask her sobs. There was no way she was going to let this little thing that was growing inside of her be forced to have the same sort of life as she had. She hated this life, and she wasn't going to make someone else go through it too. But if this child was Chase’s then maybe, just maybe, he'd let her keep it, help raise it even.

  But at what cost? What would it take for Summer to have such a gift of life? Did Chase even want kids? Did she even want kids herself? As Summer’s sobs began to lesson, Chase leaned his head against the closed bathroom door. He was at a loss on how to help his wife. His mom didn't say anything other than her needing to rest and gain back strength.

  He wanted to go to her, to comfort her, but whatever she was going through, she seemed to want to be left alone. He knew the door was unlocked, but maybe it was just a girl thing.

  Inside the shower with tears streaming down her face, Summer drew up a plan. There wasn't a way she was going to let this little one suffer the same fate as her. It wasn't worth it. She would happily give her life up to save the unborn baby the same consequences. Summer knew that either way, no matter whose baby was inside of her, she couldn’t keep it. Chase was the Prince, and obviously, if he wanted a child, he would have used her body more than that one time. He would have stated that was what he wanted.

  Summer knew that it only took one time to get pregnant, but the dates didn’t add up in her mind. The demon spawn Nick was closer to being the father than Chase could be.

  Before Summer knew what she was doing, she broke her razor that she had sitting on the ledge of the shower. The silver blade glistened with water droplets as she brought the little metal piece to her arm, pushing against her weak skin. She watched the blood drip, before running, to the tiled shower floor as she cut the first arm along the vein.

  Of course, nothing ever went to plan for Summer. She forgot that her body was already weakened due to lack of food and sleep. Her body thunked against the wall, alerting Chase, who still had his head against the door in the hallway, that something had happened.

  Chapter 16

  He was frantic. Chase couldn’t remember anything from the moment he found his wife passed out in the shower with a bleeding arm, to the moment he was pacing the hospital hallway in front of the room that his wife was sound asleep in. The scene was glued to the back of his eyes. The silver razor blade lay next to her bent legs, stained with blood. The dark red blood ran in a steady stream from the wound on her left arm. Summer’s brown hair was more like black as the shower water muddied it, washing her tears and pain down the drain. And possibly her life right along with it.

  Chase was able to turn off the shower and press one of the white towels against his wife’s cut, hoping to clot the blood. He had rushed in as fast as he could, thanking the heavens that he was right on the other side of the door. If he had been just minutes later, she would have bled to death. She had cut along her vein, knowing exactly how to cause the most damage, and how to end her life.

  Now, he prayed to God to keep his wife alive; he wasn’t the type to pray, but God did he pray now. But what worried him more than her trying to kill herself, was the reasoning behind doing so. He would have never believed someone as small as Summer could bring him to his knees. He killed men in cold blood. But this slight girl held him in the palm of her hand.

  Chase knew that if he hadn’t had been on that other side of the door to hear Summer’s body fall against the wall, he would have lost her. Was her reasoning to do with the way he had treated her? Was she thinking that she was better off without living? But what was worse, was that he couldn’t get his mind wrapped around the news his mother had told him just minutes ago, as Chase would only allow his mother to take care of his Princess in such a state. His wife had been pregnant.

  ~oOo~

  “Chase, according to Summer’s test results, she was pregnant. But due to the blood loss, and lack of nutrients, she lost the fetus. It could have happened today, or even in a week from now,” Kayla spoke as Chase sat in the hospital chair next to his pale wife who was being hooked up to an IV. Her arm was stitched and wrapped in white gauze.

  “Pregnant?” Chase repeated with a blink, not sure what to feel. His emotions jumped from happiness to dread. It wasn’t possible. His voice was detached, almost like his thoughts.

  “She was, yes. I’d say about six weeks, maybe less, as she wasn’t pregnant at the last blood test I had taken.. But of course, after she recovers, you can try again,” Kayla said, not knowing that her son wasn’t thrilled with the idea of having children of his own. He never made it a point to tell her about his feelings on that certain subject. If he had, Kayle would have pressed the issue as much as the rest of the family.

  Now, Chase didn’t know what to do. The idea of Summer having his child was appealing. He’d have loved to see her glow with happiness, watching as her stomach rounded as a baby grew within. He knew that the baby would have been his, no questions asked.

  But then, he remembered what he did; who he was. Chase was the Prince and he couldn’t let a child grow up in his footsteps. He didn’t want a child that would be forced to take over the Marcel family or the Meads family once Chase’s plans were completed. It wasn’t in the cards; Chase was going to make sure that there would be no repeats.

  The ringing of Chase’s cell phone echoed down the empty hallway, as he demanded

  the utmost privacy for his family, but he still winced at the unexpected sound.

  “What?” he growled out as an answer, not in the mood to deal with this family crap. He wanted to be there holding Summer’s hand when she woke up, but at the same time did want something to get his mind off of everything.

  “Is that how you talk to your uncle?” the smoky voice asked on the other line.

  “Sorry, John,” Chase answered as he pinched his nose, trying to calm his raging emotions down. It wouldn’t do well to be angry while talking to this man. Not if the Prince had any desire to not have a war on his hand before the night was over.

  Chase could picture the man sitting in his lovable high back dark leather chair in his office as he stared out of the window in his condo, watching the busy people walk below him as they went on with their lives. His dark as coal eyes and bleached hair would make his pale skin ever whiter.

  John was not a blood uncle, but an uncle all the same to Chase. He was nice, for the most part, but was stuck in his ways, and demanded the utmost respect by everyone. He believed in arranged marriages, respect, and togetherness. One tear shed, and he’d jump at the chance to make anyone’s life more hellish. Only reason John was considered an Uncle was because he was in and out of the house while Chase grew up, working closely with his father throughout the years. But he wasn’t as active in the household as he once had been.

  “How is your wife doing, Son?” John asked
out.

  “Fine, sir,” Chase responded, not giving away any more information.

  “Is she to your standards still?” John spoke before coughing.

  “She is perfect,” Chase said, walking slowly back to the room his wife was in. “More than I expected, actually.” She really was. Every day he thought of her.

  “Wonderful,” he rasped out.

  Chase opened the door and entered the sterile room. Clare sat on the white plastic chair, watching her sister for any sign of awareness. Clare knew she wouldn’t be allowed to stay here much longer, but she hoped that Chase would change his mind. He had already called one of his men to come pick her up.

  Summer’s eyes were closed, her mouth opened slightly as she slept, none the wiser that she would live to see another day. Her hair was still a mess as it air dried, and she was now dressed in a dark blue gown with the cream colored blankets covering most of her body.

  “Anyway, the reason I called,” John went on after clearing his throat. “There is an issue up in Vegas; you will need to check up on it for me in the next week. I’m don’t feel up to traveling at the moment.”

  “I can,” Chase said. Not that he wanted to, but he would.

  “Perfect!” John said happily. “I would like to get this taken care of as soon as possible.”

  “I can go towards the end of the week,” Chase said, as today was Sunday. That hopefully would give Summer enough time to heal and get back on her feet.

  "Perfect, Chase. I’ll let you get back to what you were doing,” John said before hanging up the phone.

  Chase wasn’t sure that Summer would be up to going on a trip, and he wouldn’t make her either. It would be for only a night or two, but for now, he’d wait.

  Of course, Chase couldn’t stay still, pacing the small room. He stood at the window overlooking the parking lot for a few minutes before he resumed the pacing once more. He had never worried over the health of his family like this before.

  His thoughts turned back to how he got here, and why. He still wasn’t sure how to handle this once Summer woke up. Chase didn’t know if he should be upset at her, or let it go. Forgive and forget. He could see both sides, as he himself was torn.

  He could never see himself as a father, just because of who he was. That didn’t mean he didn’t like children. He adored children, but he didn’t see himself as someone that could raise them.

  Chase wondered what Summer was thinking when she tried to commit suicide. Was she scared that Chase didn’t want her? Did she know she was pregnant and that had caused her to try and end her life? Or was she just tired of living, tired of fighting for something that she didn’t ever think would happen?

  There was a knock on the door from one of his men letting him know Clare’s ride was here. Once he made sure someone would accompany her to the car, he sat down in the chair she had just vacated, waiting for his wife to wake up. His head was in his hands, elbows on the edge of the bed as he waited.

  ~oOo~

  Summer felt like she was in a dream like state. Her body was heavy with sleep and she could hear the beeping of a machine close by, but other than that she had no idea what was going on. She was tired and her body refused to let her really wake up.

  She wasn’t sure where she was at, let alone why. She remembered being in the shower, upset for some reason, but that feeling was gone. She was . . . . strangely calm. She had been in a panic attack last she could remember.

  Her thoughts swirled around the how’s and why's. How had she got here; where was she? Why was she here, instead of the shower she had been in? And where was Chase?

  That last thought jump started her memory, causing flashes of her holding the razor, his green concerned eyes and blood draining down the drain with the water from the shower. Chase had come, of course he did. It seemed that when Summer wanted to be truly left alone, he always showed up when she truly did actually need him.

  Summer didn’t know she needed him, but now, she knew she was alive. At least for the time being. How upset was her husband now? Would he yell at her? Or maybe he would send her back to the compound.

  Summer knew nothing of how Chase took charge of things, or what he did. As her thoughts jumped from question to question, Summer was happy to find out that she wasn’t panicking. Normally, she would be in a full out panic, so wherever she was, she had been given some sort of anxiety medication. Summer wasn’t sure if it was a blessing or a curse.

  Slowly, Summer let her hearing help her figure out where she was. She could hear beeping next to her head, and something that sounded like a drip in the same area. But other than that, the room she was laying in was quiet.

  A scratchy blanket covered her legs and up to her armpits and her arms were cold. One arm was sore, and she gathered that was from her attempt at cutting it. Apparently not good enough to do the job. Next time, if there was a next time, she’d just take a handful of pills. At least it sounded easier with a clear mind. That was if she could even get her hand on any. Knowing Chase somewhat, he probably already made sure anything and everything was locked up tight.

  Her other arm gave a tug at the small movement, indicating that a needle was taped into her vein. What the needle was giving her, Summer wasn’t sure she wanted to know. She had never been in a hospital before, but from what she was able to gather off of TV shows she got glimpses of, it smelled and felt like a hospital room.

  “Chase, sweetie,” Kayla’s soft voice floated around the room from the other side. The room was small, but Summer knew she wasn’t alone here now. The thought helped keep her calm. “Here, eat.”

  The knowledge that she wasn’t alone was refreshing. She was sure no one would want anything to do with her now. There was movement between the two as Summer kept her eyes closed, not wanting to face the world quite yet. She wondered how Chase had found her. Or even knew to come check on her in the bathroom when he did.

  “When will she wake up?” Chase’s tired voice sounded from near Summer, causing her heart to beat a couple beats faster.

  “Anytime. With how weak she was before, then the blood loss would have taken the rest of her energy. Even with the blood transfusion . . . .” Kayla trailed off. It was hard to tell. Each body was different, and as the mind had control over wakefulness after such health issues, it could be minutes or hours.

  Summer briefly wondered if the baby survived. Thinking about it now, her thoughts and emotions calmer, made her re-think her actions. She never should have taken the path that she did, killing an innocent child before it could decide on its own. Although, she felt like her thoughts and actions before made sense, and they still did. Summer still didn’t want to force a child in the life she had been forced to live.

  “But she’s still so pale,” Chase mumbled around a mouth full of food.

  “No talking with food in your mouth,” Kayla said sternly. “But yes, she will for another day or two. I do want to keep her for another night, just to make sure she is stable and the blood transfusions help her low iron level. Right now, I would say she may be released on Wednesday.”

  “Would she be up to going on a trip Friday? I have business to attend to out of town,” Chase said, crumpling paper up.

  “She should be. Once her iron levels rise, she will be back to her normal self, for the most part. But I want her to stay t at its lowest dose of Xanax. I think it will help her in the long run,” Kayla answered.

  Summer was confused. Why would Chase want to take her on a business trip? Was this a way of saying that he was getting rid of her? And being on Xanax explained why her emotions and thoughts weren’t out of control. It was nice for a change. So maybe Kayla was right about that.

  "But with everything, I would advise her to stay home and rest,” Kayla went on in a motherly voice. “It would do her some good.”

  “But it could also be a good time for my wife and I to get to know one another better,” Chase said, his voice low and commanding. “I have failed in that department, and I choose to have b
etter communication between us.”

  “Okay, Chase. Maybe you need Xanax too,” Kayla said, jokingly at the end of her statement.

  "I’m fine,” he grumbled out.

  After a long pause, Kayla excused herself to go check on a few of her other patients. Chase made himself comfortable as much as he could in the uncomfortable chair, and dug out his phone to tend to some emails that needed taking care of.

  Summer took that time to open her eyes and look around the room she was in. The first thing she noticed was the dimmed light above her on the tiled ceiling. There were no pictures, just a white speckled ugly ceiling. Slowly, she turned her head, spotting Chase sitting next to her bed that she lay upon. His hair was wild and crazy, his eyes dark with worry and tiredness. Had he even been home to rest? She highly doubted it just by the hair on his face. And how long had she been here in the hospital?