by Erin Osborne
“Okay. I’ll call you when I leave,” I say, stopping just before the interior door. “I’ll make sure she prints pictures off without the sex being shown.”
“You know you can find out, right?” he asks, starting the debate we’ve been having for days again.
“Nope. Not happening big guy. Get over it!” I respond, knowing that he’s not going to get his way. I’ve already talked to the doctor about not giving into him either. He can call and beg all he wants, she’s not going to give in.
“Okay. I love you and I’ll see you soon,” he says, as I hear faint knocking on his end of the line.
“Love you too,” I respond before hanging up and making my way in the office.
After checking in, I sit down and look at the magazines on the table in front of me. They don’t look like they’ll hold my attention as I’ve read most of them while waiting here. So, I pull my phone back out and play a game while I wait. It doesn’t take long before I’m called back though. The nurse leads me through the routine things at the beginning of every appointment; weight, sample, and other vitals. Once I’m in the exam room, I’m told the doctor will be in shortly.
This appointment, she’ll ask me questions about how I’m feeling and see if I have any for her. Then a tech will come in for the ultrasound. But, as with life, nothing ever goes as planned. You get surprised when you least expect it. Such as life planned for us today. Man, I really wish Shadow was able to be here with me!
Doctor Sanchez walks in and goes through the normal questions. Am I still nauseous? Do I get enough rest? Am I feeling okay in general? How’s work going? Things like that. Next, she listens to the heartbeat. I love hearing the sound of our baby’s heart. Today, though, a weird look comes over her face as the heartbeat steadily thrums throughout the exam room. I’m so focused on her facial expressions that I miss the reason for her questioning look.
“Let’s get the ultrasound tech in here, okay?” she asks, standing up and walking toward the door. “Do you mind if I stay in here this time?”
“Not at all. Is something wrong?” I ask, feeling the panic start to settle in.
“No. Nothing’s wrong, I just want to have a look,” she says, being evasive as hell.
Before I can ask any more questions, she’s out the door. So, I’m stuck lying on the damn gurney all alone with my thoughts all over the place. I don’t like this feeling at all. But, before I can rush out the door and chase after my doctor demanding answers, there’s a knock on the door and Doctor Sanchez reappears with the ultrasound tech in tow.
There’s absolute quiet in the room as the tech gets everything set up. You could hear a pin drop and I’m sitting here trying not to freak out with the thought that something is wrong. I should’ve taken Harley up on her offer to come with me today. But I was stubborn and said I was fine going alone. Hell, right now I’m ready to call her and Shadow to get here in case there truly is bad news.
“Lift your shirt up for me?” the tech asks, turning toward me with the wand and gel in her hands.
I do as she asks before turning my head to the screen. There’s no way in hell I’m going to wait to find out what’s wrong. I’ll see it immediately if I’m looking at the screen. Instead, I’m shocked beyond belief by what appears. No one could have prepared me for seeing two babies appear on the screen. Laughter from the relief I feel bubbles up and explodes. Doctor Sanchez and the tech just look at me as they continue to take measurements and make sure that everything is the way it should be.
“Do you want to know the sex of them?” the tech asks me, getting ready to see if they’re being cooperative.
“No thank you. My man isn’t here with me and that’s something I won’t do without him,” I tell her, wanting her to understand that this isn’t negotiable for me.
“Are you okay?” the doctor finally asks me.
“I’m more than okay. When you left the room, I got lost in my head thinking that something was wrong. No way did I think you heard two hearts beating through the doppler,” I explain my outburst as my doctor breaks out in a nervous smile.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. The only thought I had was making sure that I wasn’t hearing things,” she responds, placing a hand on my shoulder as the tech tells us that she’s done and will print some pictures out.
I thank them both as I wipe the gel off my stomach and get ready to leave. When the pictures are in my hand, I make my way out to schedule the next appointment. There’s a smile on my face that I don’t think anything could wipe away right now. The only thing left to do is figure out how I’m going to tell Shadow that we’re having twins.
Chapter Fourteen
Shadow
SINCE RENEE HAD HER LAST DOCTOR appointment a few days ago, she’s been acting weird. I’m not sure if she’s mad because I couldn’t go, or if something is wrong. Surely, she’d tell me if they found something out though. Wouldn’t she? I’m very lost right now and want to know what’s going on. But, if I know anything about my girl, it’s that she won’t say a single word before she’s ready to. So, I have to believe that if she hasn’t said anything, there’s nothing wrong with the baby.
I left this morning before she was awake. We’re starting two new houses today and I want to be able to spend time at both sites before making it home at a decent time. I’m tired of spending more time at work than I do with Renee and Dylan. But I have to provide for my growing family and it won’t be like this for long.
Everything is going really good until my phone rings just before lunch. Seeing that it’s Mike calling, I immediately get a bad feeling in my gut. He’s supposed to be helping Renee out today as she goes shopping for Christmas. It’s still about a month away but, she wants to get it done with the amount of time we’ve both been working. So, I made her promise to take Mike with her while Sally is watching Dylan at the clubhouse with Killian staying with him. I still don’t trust that something won’t happen to them.
“What’s goin’ on?” I ask, not bothering to say hello when I know something is wrong.
“We were shoppin’ and the next thing I know, someone is bashin’ in the back of my head. I got knocked out and Renee’s gone. I don’t know who took her,” he says, knowing that I’m not gonna let him beat around the bush.
“Are you fuckin’ kiddin’ me? Where the fuck are you right now?” I yell into the phone gaining attention from Steel and the rest of the crew.
“I’m over at the shoppin’ center at the south end of town,” he says as pain laces his voice.
“On my way,” I respond, trying to get ahold of my emotions before quickly explaining to Steel what just happened. I knew the last three months had been too quiet and it was just a matter of time before something major happened.
I see him on his phone before he runs to follow me. I’m already off the site and heading toward Mike, driving like a bat out of hell when he catches up to me. Before we make it there, the rest of my brothers pull in behind us from a side street. Gage should be at the front while I’m at the back, but no one is gonna say anything when it’s my girl and baby that are now gone. Someone took my girl!
Thoughts of Kim’s dad immediately run through my head. I know without a doubt that he’s behind this fucking kidnapping. Now, it’s a matter of getting Tech and Fox into figuring out where he’s got Renee. As soon as we pull in, I see Mike sitting at the end of the line of stores. There’s blood running down his back that we can see from here and I know that whoever hit him, wasn’t necessarily just trying to knock him out. They were trying to make sure that he didn’t wake up again. Fuck!
We all park our bikes close to the prospect. He looks up and I can see the regret flashing in his eyes. I really want to go off on him, but I know that this isn’t his fault. There’s no way he could protect her if someone got the jump on him and bashed his head in from behind. So, I’m trying to reign in my shit before I go off on him. It won’t help finding my girl before something happens to her.
Gage starts questioning Mi
ke, so he can find out as much information as possible. While I listen to his story, the same one he told me, I look around the parking lot to see if there’s any clues. Not only do I find my girl’s phone lying on the ground a few feet away, but I notice the cameras placed around the parking lot. I walk over to Tech and nod my head in the direction of them before I walk over and pick her phone up. It’s so smashed that I won’t be able to turn it on and see if she tried to get a message out or anything. But that doesn’t mean that Tech can’t get anything off it.
“Call Melissa,” Gage says, walking over to me. “Gonna need her here to keep an eye on Dylan. I know you’re not gonna rest until we find her. That means that he needs someone to be with him every day.”
Nodding my head, I pull my phone out and place the call I never wanted to make. Melissa is trying not to freak out as I explain what happened. Hell, it’s almost more than I can handle to not lose my shit right now. The only reason I’m calm is because I’ve watched the guys in the past and I know that there’s nothing worse than losing your shit and getting your head out of the game.
“I’m fuckin’ callin’ Fox. He needs to get Kim here. Today,” I say, knowing that she might be a key person in helping us find my girl.
“Already on it,” Crash says, motioning to the phone he’s been talking into.
My mind is racing a million miles an hour trying to figure out what I have to do and how to go about finding my girl. Yeah, there’s the cameras and shit that Tech can get into to see if he can get an idea of what happened. But that doesn’t always work out the way we hope it will. Kim can also try to get a hold of her dad and see what he knows about my girl. That doesn’t mean that he’ll tell her anything. Or even tell her the truth. She’s already told us that she has nothing to do with the family. Our only hope is that the guy that gives her information every now and then will help us out now. If not, we’re fucked, and I don’t know what we’ll do to get Renee back.
Then my thoughts turn to Dylan. What the fuck is he going to do knowing that his mom should be home and isn’t? How are we gonna tell him that I don’t know where she is or when she’s coming home? Fuck! How am I gonna face that little boy?
“I can see your mind workin’ overtime right now,” Gage says, walking up to me and leading me away from everyone else. “Don’t let the thoughts get you down. We’re gonna find her and bring Renee home.”
“How do I tell Dylan? What’s he goin’ to do when he realizes that his mom isn’t comin’ home? Fuck!” I yell out, not bothering to care who’s around me right now.
“Go to the clubhouse and wait for Fox and Kim to get there,” Gage says, sensing that I’m about to lose control and go off.
“Not happenin’. I’m goin’ out lookin’. Call me when they get here,” I say, walking toward my bike. I don’t listen to anyone calling out my name or trying to get me to stop. Not even Gage. I don’t care at this point what my Prez does to me. Finding Renee is the only thing that matters to me right now.
I peel out of the parking lot, almost running into a car driving down the road. The driver honks the horn at me and flips me the bird. Instead, I ignore them and continue on down the road. There’s no destination or direction in my head. I’m just out looking for anything sketchy looking like the vans that we use when we’re out on a mission.
After wandering aimlessly around town for hours, I finally decide to make my way back to the clubhouse. When I pull in, I can see that the parking lot is full. Must be that all the Phantom Bastards came with Fox. As I walk in the clubhouse, intending to go to see Tech and find out what he’s found, I come to a dead stop when I see not only the Phantom Bastards filling the common room, but the guys from Clifton Falls too. I would be surprised, but in all honestly, I’m not.
Unfortunately, I’m not in the mood to talk or be around anyone. Before I can make a move though, Dylan comes running in from the hallway and jumps into my arms. I can see that he’s been crying. Looking over the top of his head, I see Melissa standing there, her eyes are red-rimmed and puffy from crying. Dylan wraps his arms around me and hides his head in my neck.
“Mama?” he asks, as I feel tears dripping down onto my neck.
“She’s not here yet buddy,” I tell him, my heart shattering into a million pieces that I can’t tell him when him mom is coming home.
Melissa walks up to me and I know that she’s going to try to get out of me any information I have right now. There’s nothing I can say to comfort her. I can’t even comfort the little boy in my arms. It hurts to know that I can’t be there for him right now the way I want to. But, I know that in the end, I need to be there to find Renee so that I can be here for my family. If I don’t find out anything soon, heads are gonna roll and no one is gonna be able to stop me.
I kiss the top of Dylan’s head before handing him back over to his aunt. She looks at me before turning around and walking back to the room that she’s going to stay in until Renee comes home. With my arms free, I know that I need to do something to expel the energy I’m feeling right now. That’s when I see Tank walking toward me. There’s a glint in his eye that I’m familiar with; we’re gonna spar. He’s going to help me the only way he can right now.
“Let’s go,” he says, knowing he doesn’t need to say anything else to me.
Renee
Talk about a day turning to shit real quick. One second, I’m out shopping and then the next I find myself handcuffed and thrown in the back of a van. There’s two men up front and a third man in the back with me. They haven’t really hurt me, which I’m happy about. But I did land a little hard on my arm when I was thrown in. I didn’t want to land on my stomach and hurt our babies.
“Where are you taking me?” I ask the man in back with me as I struggle to get comfortable.
“You’ll see soon enough. Now shut the fuck up!” he yells, getting in my face for no good reason.
Since I don’t want to get this big ape pissed off anymore at me, I do as he says and sit back against the van and wait for the ride to end. The entire time I’m getting glared at by the ape. It’s an uncomfortable experience to say the least. But the ride doesn’t last very long and the ape disappears. I’m left with the two men that were up front talking amongst themselves.
The younger looking of the two helps me out so that I don’t fall on my face. He doesn’t wrench my arms up behind my back or anything else. If I weren’t in the situation that I currently find myself, I’d almost say he’s a gentleman. Oh well! Something to think about for another time when I’m more than likely locked in a room alone.
They walk me into a house. It’s older but you can tell that it’s been very well taken care of over the years. Once we’re inside, I look to see that someone with money obviously lives here. The place is immaculate, and I catch a glimpse of a maid or other type of servant. Well, maybe I’ll be comfortable then.
“Right this way, Renee,” the older man says, leading me up a staircase as the other man disappears.
He leads me up to the second floor. There’s a long hallway that’s lined with doors. The guy leads me to the first door and uses a key to open it up. Looking in, I see there’s a huge bed, a bathroom attached to the room and one other door. Both of the windows are lined with bars, so I know that I won’t be able to get out of here that way.
“Turn around,” he says, his voice coming out gruff.
I do as he says and wait while he takes the handcuffs off of me. Bringing my hands around to my front, I begin to rub some feeling back into them. When I don’t hear the door shut with his exit, I turn around to face him. He’s standing there looking at me with a look of regret in his eyes. I almost wonder if Kim’s dad is the person behind this and this man is the one, she told us about.
“Do you know Kim?” I ask, taking a chance even though I don’t know this man at all.
There’s a brief flair of recognition before he carefully blanks his emotions again. He doesn’t say a word before turning to leave the room. Well, maybe he’ll he
lp me and maybe he won’t. I guess at some point we’ll find out. For now, I think its time to lay down and relax for a little bit. Who knows when I’m going to see another person?
I don’t know how long it’s been since I was taken, but when I open my eyes again, it’s getting dark outside. Before I can even move, my stomach grumbles in hunger. We hadn’t had lunch before I was taken and I’m sure I missed dinner. Right now, I need to take care of other business. So, I make my way into the bathroom. It’s fully stocked with plush looking towels, shampoo, conditioner, and different bottles of body wash. Everything looks brand new.
As I walk out into the bedroom, I see a man sitting in the chair on the far wall. He’s dressed immaculately and there’s not a hair out of place on his head. For an older man, he looks good. I won’t tell him that though. Walking further into the room, I sit down on the bed and wait for him to say what he has to say. Because just from one look, I know that this is Kim’s dad.
“Well, you’re the woman that Trenton has been making a fool of himself over. No disrespect, but I just don’t see it,” he says, picking an imaginary piece of lint off his suit. “I’m sorry that he went after you the way he did. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been in my employment for a while now. He fell off the grid and I’m currently looking for him.”
I can feel my face pale as I realize that the person behind the threats all along is Dylan’s dad. Why the fuck is he coming after me now? “So, why do you now have me if Trenton doesn’t even work for you?” I ask, wanting to get as much information out of him as possible.
“A few reasons actually. The first one is your man is responsible for killing someone I knew. A man that I had a very financially beneficial relationship with. The second one is that your club is responsible for the death of a man that was helping me out. Now, I have to hire a third man. Trenton was his replacement, but he’s proven that he can’t be trusted. So, that’s why I have you. You’ve already been sold to a man overseas. He’s paid a real high price for you. Unfortunately, you’ll have to stay here until you have the baby. He doesn’t want a child there. But we’ll take care of that. I won’t be here, but you’ll have a lot of guys watching over you,” he says, standing up and making his way over to the door to leave. “Someone will be up in a few minutes with your dinner. I hope you enjoy it.”
