Her face was blotchy as she looked up at me. “Here take it.” She thrust her phone at me. “The password is Hayden’s due date,” she sobbed.
I stilled, starting to question my accusations.
Maybe she’s not cheating. Maybe I’m just overreacting.
Don’t be weak.
“It’s too late for that now.” I paused and took a deep breath before forcing myself to say the next sentence, even though it tore me up inside. “We’re through.”
The look of devastation that took over Kaiya’s face constricted my heart, making me start to regret my words.
“Ryker, please. Let me explain,” Kaiya pleaded desperately as she got up off the couch and grabbed my hands.
So she is hiding something. What else would there be to explain?
The coldness snaked back in as I steeled myself, preparing to do the hardest thing I’d ever done. I wasn’t going to let her hurt me more than she already had. I was done letting my love for her blind me.
Forcing my steps, I made my way to the door. “Save it!” I yelled as I grabbed my keys from the hook. “I don’t want to hear your lies.”
My chest tightened as I forcefully opened the door.
Don’t go.
“Ryker, wait!” Kaiya started to beg. “Please don’t g—”
I almost stopped, my love for her screaming for me to stay, to forget everything and take her in my arms, stop both of us from hurting. But I didn’t. I walked out the door, slamming it behind me and cutting off Kaiya’s sobs.
I had to get some air, and make sense of everything, make sure I was making the right decision.
You are.
As I got to my truck, I stopped. Every part of me, except my stubborn pride, told me to go back upstairs and quit being such a paranoid asshole.
Kaiya is eight months pregnant with your son. Don’t leave her.
I almost went back, but what happened with Molly and me kept replaying in my mind. The way Kaiya had been acting over the past several months was similar to how Molly had acted before I’d found out about her and my brother.
I clenched my fists before punching the window of my driver’s side door. Pain immediately shot up my arm, but I ignored it and got in my truck.
I should’ve never trusted her. I knew all women were the same.
I put the keys in the ignition, then stopped and gripped the steering wheel. Resting my head against it, I exhaled a heavy breath and closed my eyes.
Kaiya loves you. Go back up there and quit being a jackass.
Tightening my grip on the steering wheel, I started banging my forehead against it. “Fuck!”
You’re letting your love for her blind you, just like you did with Molly. Don’t be made a fool twice.
After starting my truck, I reversed and peeled out of the parking lot, ignoring pain in my chest and the knot forming in my gut.
Ryker’s words held so much venom that I felt like my heart had been stung, injected with a lethal poison that was slowly corroding deep into my body and adding more irreparable scars to my broken soul.
How could he think that I cheated on him? I love him more than anything.
“Ryker, wait!” I cried out in despair. “Please don’t g—”
I didn’t get to finish my plea. The door slammed with his exit, and I felt like my heart had been smashed by it. All the pieces he had mended slowly fell apart again, shattering with every passing second that he was gone. Sinking to my knees on the floor, I sobbed into my hands as my world crumbled around me.
Why didn’t I just tell him a long time ago? I’m so stupid.
I don’t know how long I cried on the floor; it could’ve been minutes or it could’ve been hours, but when my tears finally ran dry, I was no longer upset. I was downright furious.
He wants to leave? Well, fine, I’m not going to sit around and wait for him.
Hefting myself off the floor, I stormed to the door, snatched my keys off the hook, and left.
How dare he accuse me of cheating? I’m pregnant with his son, for fuck’s sake!
Tears resurfaced, streaming down my face as I went down the stairs to my car. As I was about to open the door, a hand clamped down on my mouth and another came around my huge, bulging waist.
“I’ve been waiting for that meathead to leave you alone.”
Bryce? What is he doing here?
I tried to pry his hands off of me but he tightened his grip. A feeling of dread permeated my stomach as I started to put two and two together.
Oh, God, no.
My words were muffled through Bryce’s hand as he began to pull me away from my car. “What are you doing, Bryce?” My eyes darted around the empty parking lot, searching for anyone to help me.
“All those years, I was there for you. Every time you needed me, I was there. Then, you met him and threw everything we had away!”
His breath was hot against the side of my face, and it reeked of alcohol. “Bryce, please don’t do this,” I pleaded, even though I wasn’t sure if he could make out my words since his hand was drowning them out. “I’m pregnant. I—”
He put more pressure on my stomach with his hand. “I see that! You barely know him, Ky. What were you thinking?” he spat.
More tears spilled from my eyes. I didn’t know if they had even stopped from earlier. I struggled against Bryce as panic began to set in. He held me tighter to him and pressed me up against a car. His car.
I can’t let him get me in the car.
I tried to scream, but with his hand over my mouth, I barely made a sound. I threw some back elbows into his ribs, but there wasn’t much force in them because of how I was positioned. I managed to get a good hit in, forcing him to let me go briefly, but he pushed me by my chest against the car and held me there.
Bryce reared his fist back to punch me, but I turned and blocked it with both arms. Then, I gripped his forearm with my hands before throwing a back elbow into his chest. I used the momentum of the strike to force him to twist into the car, then pinned him there with my forearm on his throat.
Kneeing him in the groin, I caused him to clutch himself and drop to his knees. I screamed for help and turned to run away, but Bryce grabbed my ankle, sending me to smash my face on the hard asphalt.
Spots dotted my vision as the world spun around me. I felt Bryce pulling me into his arms as everything went black.
My eyes fluttered open to a ceiling. I was no longer outside. I was being carried inside somewhere.
Where am I? What is going on?
My head and nose throbbed with pain as I struggled to shake the disorientation clouding me. Then, I registered Bryce’s face and everything came rushing back.
Oh my God!
“Help! Somebody help me!” I screamed as I squirmed in his arms.
Bryce clamped his hand over my mouth, muffling my cries. I bit down on his hand as hard as I could, causing him to pull his hand back and drop me. “You bitch!”
I fell to the floor and winced from the resulting pain. I glanced around, trying to take in my surroundings.
Shit.
I was in Bryce’s apartment.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Bryce lunging toward me, so I turned on my side and kicked out, narrowly missing his knee and hitting his shin instead.
Get up. You can’t let him pin you on the ground.
I rolled to the side and awkwardly stumbled to get up. I definitely wasn’t as graceful as I used to be before I was pregnant. I got in my defensive stance as Bryce came at me again.
My techniques were limited since I was so large, and it was difficult for me to move fluidly like I needed to. I couldn’t kick as well anymore, so I had to rely on my punching and hand techniques, which weren’t my strong suit. I was at a huge disadvantage, but I wasn’t going to give up. I had to protect my son.
Bryce threw punches as he advanced toward me. I backed up and blocked with my forearms, forgetting every thought except one:
Don’t let him hit your stomac
h.
I kept retreating down the hallway as he advanced, blocking most of his punches, but not all. I was used to taking hits from all the sparring I had done, but each time he connected, the impact weakened me.
I backed through a doorway, then looked around to see where I was—Bryce had forced me into his bedroom.
Fuck, this isn’t good.
I threw a palm strike toward his face, but he grabbed my wrist and jerked me forward. Wrenching my arm from his grasp, I stumbled backwards onto the bed.
I immediately sprung off and put my guard up. My eyes danced over Bryce as I tried to anticipate his movements.
In the brief time I had spent fighting him, I could already tell he preferred using his hands than kicking. Most men were like that, including Ryker, so I had experience against that style of fighting.
When I sparred Ryker, there was always one move that I got him with—a low high roundhouse attack. Unfortunately, I couldn’t do the high kick anymore because of how big and off-balance I was, but I could still throw the low one.
Snapping my leg out, I caught Bryce in the thigh, but the hit didn’t seem to faze him. He came in closer to me, causing panic to set in from his proximity. All I could think about was shielding my stomach from his hits.
I should’ve focused more on watching him and protecting my face. His hook caught me right on the jaw, causing fireworks to burst behind my eyelids before I crashed to the ground and darkness smothered me.
I threw back another shot as I sat at the bar with Drew. Slamming the glass on the counter, I loudly ordered, “Another!”
Drew shook his head at the bartender, then looked at me. “Are you all right, bro? Shouldn’t you be at home with Kaiya? The baby is due soon, right?”
Kaiya.
Hayden.
Home.
“Yeah. But I don’t even know if he’s mine,” I lied. Deep down, I knew Hayden was mine. I was letting my stupid insecurities get the best of me.
“What are you talking about?” Drew looked at me skeptically, raising an eyebrow in question.
A glass of water was pushed in front of me, but I didn’t take it. “They all cheat, you know. All of them.”
Drew scoffed. “Are you serious? You really think Kaiya would cheat on you? Haven’t you seen the way she looks at you? That girl has got it bad for you.”
I didn’t say anything for several seconds, trying to think of something to prove him wrong. My drunken mind came up with nothing. “I’m such an asshole.”
Standing up, I wobbled slightly as I pulled out my wallet. I threw forty bucks down on the bar and rushed toward the door.
Drew quickly followed behind me. “What are you doing, bro?”
“Something I should have done hours ago. I need to get home to Kaiya.” I pushed the door open before heading out into the warm summer night.
Drew stopped me by grabbing my arm. “You can’t drive. You’ve had too much to drink.”
I pulled my arm out of his grasp, and stumbled backwards. “I need to get home,” I repeated more forcefully.
Drew tried to snatch my keys away, but I pushed him away. “Don’t fuck with me, bro.”
Drew put his hands up and took a step back. “All right, man. Be careful.”
I walked away to my truck without a backwards glance, hoping I could fix the mistake I’d made.
I sped back to my complex, then sprinted up the stairs to our apartment. I fumbled to get the key in the lock as my eyes tried to focus on the knob.
Once I unlocked the door, I stumbled through and almost fell. “Kaiya,” I called out into the dark room.
No response.
It’s almost two in the morning. She’s probably in bed by now, jackass.
“Warrior, I’m sorry,” I apologized as I walked down the hall toward our bedroom.
The door was wide open. “Ky?”
Once I entered, I looked around the empty room, perplexed. Only Brownie lay sleeping in her bed in the corner.
Where is she?
I went into our bathroom and found the same thing. No Kaiya.
Damn it, where could she be?
I took my cell out and dialed her number. Her phone rang a couple of times, then went straight to voicemail.
Fuck.
Worry started to sink in. I tried to think of where Kaiya would go, especially since she was eight months pregnant. Then, the drunken fog lifted and the light bulb in my head went off.
I ran out of my apartment and didn’t stop until I was banging on Kamden’s door. “Hurry the fuck up, Kam! Open the goddamn door!”
The door abruptly opened, and I walked in, not waiting for an invitation. “Is Kaiya here?” I asked as I went down the hall toward her room.
I could hear Kamden’s footsteps behind me. “No. I thought she was with you.”
Shit.
Even though he just told me she wasn’t there, I still went into her room. “What the fuck is going on, Ryker? Where’s Kaiya?”
I turned around to face him and roughly ran my hands through my hair. “I don’t know.” I blew out a frustrated breath. “We got in an argument, and I left. She isn’t answering her phone, and I have no clue where she is. I thought she’d be here.”
Fuck.
Kamden’s lip curled up angrily as he spat his words. “So, you’re telling me that you got in a fight with my pregnant sister, then left her by herself, this late at night?”
“Look, I know I fucked up, but arguing about it isn’t going to help us find her.” I pushed past him to go back to the living room.
Where would she go?
Then, it hit me—Nori. “Maybe she went to Nori’s,” I said as I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my contacts.
Shit, I don’t have her number.
I looked at Kam and asked, “Do you have her number?”
Kamden grabbed his phone from his back pocket and swiped the screen. He pressed it a few times before putting the phone to his ear.
I stuck my hand out. “Let me talk to her.”
Kamden stared at me but didn’t reply.
God, he’s such an asshole,
I narrowed my eyes as anger simmered my blood. “Damn it, Kamden, give me the fucking phone!” I growled.
That motherfucker smirked at me, actually fucking smirked. He turned around as he greeted, “Hey, Nori. It’s Kam. Is Kai—”
I ripped the phone from his hand, cutting off the rest of his sentence. He whirled around angrily as I put the phone to my ear. I gave him a warning glare as I spoke, “Nori, it’s Ryker. Is Kaiya there?”
“No. Why would she be here?” She sounded confused.
“Fuck!” I yelled.
Where are you, Warrior?
“Ryker, what’s going on? You’re scaring me,” Nori urgently replied.
I rubbed my hand over my face. “Kaiya and I got in a fight. I left the apartment, and when I came home she wasn’t there. She’s not with Kamden either. She isn’t answering her phone.”
I heard Nori gasp. “Oh my God, you don’t think…”
“What?” I had no clue what she was talking about, but the fear and concern in her voice intensified mine.
When she didn’t answer, I demanded, “Damn it, Nori, tell me!”
“You don’t think the person who’s been sending her those texts did something, do you?”
Now I was confused on top of being worried. “Wait, what?” I tried to make sense of what Nori was saying. “No, that was months ago, before Kaiya even found out she was pregnant. The texts stopped.”
Nori sighed into the phone. “No, they didn’t, Ryker. Kaiya just didn’t want you to freak out and get yourself arrested over them, so she didn’t tell you.”
I slumped to the couch in shock. Those texts had been going on for over nine months and Kaiya had kept it to herself. No wonder she seemed so distant and off sometimes—she wasn’t cheating, she was hiding the texts from me.
I wasn’t sure if that revelation hurt more or less. I didn’t fu
lly believe that she’d been cheating on me, but keeping the texts from me was real. She didn’t trust me enough to tell me what was going on.
Well, look how crazy you act.
I could hear Nori rambling through the phone, but I didn’t care. All I cared about was finding Kaiya, and I had no idea where to start. And now I was terrified that whoever had been sending Kaiya the texts was somehow involved.
The phone fell from my hand to the couch. I bolted up and ran out the door, ignoring Kamden’s shouts from behind me.
My apartment was still open since I’d left in such a hurry. I went inside and started looking around for anything that might tell me where Kaiya was. It was a long shot, but I was desperate.
I looked through our room first, but found nothing to help me so I went to the living room. I searched high and low, over every inch of the space, and still nothing.
Fuck.
Then, out of the corner of my eye, I could’ve sworn I saw a light flash. I jerked my head in the direction it came from, and then the small light flashed again from the couch.
Walking over to it, I found the source. There, barely sticking up out of the cushions, was Kaiya’s phone.
I picked it and keyed in her passcode—Hayden’s due date.
Why didn’t you tell me what was going on, Warrior?
I went to her messages, hoping I could get some clues from the texts, and found the conversation with the unknown number.
The last text was sent at 10:33 PM, right after I had left.
Unknown: You’re finally gonna be mine
My heart pounded with fear as my stomach clenched.
This is all my fault! Why did I act so stupid? Now Kaiya and our son are in danger, and I have no fucking clue where to find them.
I stared at the text, unable to take my eyes off it. Then, clutching the phone tightly in my hand, I reared back to chunk it across the room. As I was about to let it fly, I stopped. I didn’t want to destroy what little bit of a lead that I had.
Mending Scars Page 19
