by T. O. Smith
"Your cervix still seems to be closed, Reina." Dr. Howard said as he took his gloves off. "I'm going to have an ultrasound done to see what's going on, alright? Just try to keep calm. We’ll get results for you as quickly as we can.”
I tiredly looked up at the doctor as he stepped into the room with my folder in his hands. They had given me a shot to stop my contractions while they waited to get my results from the ultrasound. Ink was in the chair beside my bed, and Sabotage was in the room with us for extra protection for me. Ink hadn’t let go of my hand yet, and he had continued talking to me, even drawing Sabotage into our conversation to keep my mind distracted.
"Is it alright if I speak with the other gentleman in the room?" Dr. Howard asked as he looked up from my folder.
Even if I had a problem with Ink and Sabotage being in the room, I knew nothing short of being dragged out in handcuffs would make either of them leave, including Sabotage. A member of his club was in danger, and his duty as president was to make sure everyone was protected. And I didn’t want Ink to leave at all. I needed him with me.
Besides, I knew all of the men were going to want to know what was wrong with me, so there wasn't any use in trying to hide it.
"It's okay." I assured him.
Dr. Howard nodded. "It looks like there's been a slight breakage in your amniotic sac." She informed me. My breath hitched in my throat as I tightened my hand around Ink’s. He lifted my hand up to his lips, pressing soft kisses to my hand.
"In laymen's terms, this means that technically your water has broken." I squeezed Ink's hand even tighter as a lump formed in my throat. "Even though the breakage seems very small, I don't want to take any chances. Therefore, you are on strict bed rest until you have the baby, meaning that the only time you need to be up and about is if you are using the bathroom or bathing. I'm going to prescribe you an antenatal corticosteroid to speed up your baby's development so that if this doesn't heal by itself and you give birth early, your baby will have a higher possibility of survival."
Ink was on his feet by this point, rubbing my hand with this thumb soothingly. "I'm also going to prescribe you some antibiotics to keep infection from setting in. Right now, your main priority is to keep yourself healthy so that your baby stays healthy."
My heart was hurting. There was a possibility I could lose my little one, and that knowledge tore at the very fiber of my being. "I could lose my baby?" I choked out, tears streaming down my face.
"Don't focus on that, Reina." Ink commanded gently. I looked up at him through my tears. He reached forward and gently wiped some of my tears away with his other hand. "Focus on the positives. You're not losing your baby. Everything is going to be okay."
Once the doctor left the room, Sabotage walked over to my bed. "Reina." He spoke up gruffly, bringing my attention over to him and out of my thoughts.
"Men like Ink don't fall for just any woman." He told me. I swallowed thickly. "And I'll tell you now that no man in my club falls for women who are weak. You're strong, and your body is just as strong. I need you to focus on that and bring this baby into the world when it is time. All of us are waiting to meet your little one, and we will. When we do meet it, it'll be strong and healthy, just like its mother."
I nodded, tears tracking down my face. He reached down and gently squeezed my hand. "Sabotage?" Ink spoke up.
Sabotage looked over at him. "The baby's name is Elijah." He informed him. Ink looked over at me. "You were crying too much while they were doing the ultrasound, and you've been out of it for the past couple of hours, too lost in your head, but you're having a boy, Reina."
My bottom lip trembled as I began to cry harder. Ink leaned over and pressed his lips to mine, his fingers moving to wipe more tears off my face.
Sabotage had stepped out of the room, giving us some privacy. Ink pressed his lips to my belly. "Elijah, I can't wait to meet you." He whispered.
"Ink?" I asked softly, my voice breaking. Today had been a long, emotional day.
He looked up at me, arching an eyebrow. "I love you." I whispered.
His blue eyes lit up as a grin stretched across his lips. "Say it again." He whispered.
"I love you, Ink." I told him, meaning every single word. The last man I’d thought I’d loved had let me down, but I knew what I had with Ink was real. And I knew that it wouldn’t always be perfect. He was a domineering, controlling asshole ninety-nine percent of the time, but I knew at the end of every day, Ink would be by my side, and he wouldn’t let me down.
He kissed me again, his kiss hard, demanding, and possessive. I moaned into the kiss, my fingers lacing into the hair at the nape of his neck.
"I've been dying to hear those words from your lips." He whispered. "I fucking love you, Reina.” I sobbed. “I've been in love with you for seven fucking years." He admitted.
Sabotage strode up to me when I stepped outside for a smoke break, not wanting to smoke inside the clubhouse since Reina was pregnant. His face was twisted into a scowl, his muscles bunched with tension. I silently arched an eyebrow at him as I waited on him to tell me what was going on. "We need to talk." He grumbled, nodding his head towards the club house, a silent demand for me to follow him.
I put my cigarette out and followed him back into the clubhouse. He closed the chapel doors behind us, locking us away from everyone else. I instantly put my guard up, feeling on edge as I crossed my arms over my chest. The only time Sabotage talked to anyone alone was when he had some news we weren’t going to fucking like.
"I received a call from fucking prison." Sabotage informed me. I bristled. "You didn't inform me you gave your father my cell number when he got arrested."
I clenched my jaw. "No fuckin' reason for him to have mine." I snapped. Sabotage knew where I stood with my dad. "He's fucking dead to me as far as I'm concerned."
"He's out." Sabotage informed me. My blood ran cold. "And he's coming back to town to serve out his parole for the next ten years."
"Mother fuck!" I roared, thrusting my hands through my hair. "He should have gotten fucking life, Sabotage!"
"I know, but good behavior rewards even the shittiest of us." He reminded me.
I knew that all too well. I had done my time inside. I knew what good behavior could reward people.
But I felt ready to explode. I had to get the fuck out of here.
I took my bike keys out of my pocket, throwing open the chapel doors. "Ink, don't fucking leave these grounds." Sabotage barked at me, knowing how I could get when I was this pissed.
"Shove it, Sabotage." I snarled. "I'm fucking leaving and not a goddamn soul is stopping me."
"Brother, come on. Let's just go have some drinks and chill for a while." Sabotage said, gripping my shoulder to bring me to a halt.
Sabotage knew how destructive I got, especially when it came to my past. But right now, I didn't want to fucking be around anyone. And the one woman I wanted to be around, I refused to burden with my problems while she was currently dealing with so much shit.
I turned around and punched Sabotage in his jaw. Blink gripped Sabotage's arm and pulled him back from me before he could retaliate. "Let him go." Blink told Sabotage.
Sabotage stared at me with furious eyes before shaking his head and storming back into the chapel, slamming the doors behind him with a loud bang.
"Be careful, brother." Blink told me.
I stormed out of the club house, knowing my brothers would keep an eye on Reina without me even having to ask.
I stared at the headstone in front of me, a half empty bottle of whiskey dangling my from my fingers. Ten years. Only ten fucking years.
How do you murder your fucking wife - beat your kids until they're both on life support - and only serve ten fucking years?
I released a bitter laugh as I shook my head, bringing my bottle back up to my lips for another drink. He had always been an angry, destructive drunk. And he was even angrier and more destructive when he was sober.
"Figured I'd find you he
re."
I looked over my shoulder to see a much older, skinnier version of me standing behind me, staring at my mother's grave with sadness ringing in his eyes. His hair had thinned out and turned completely grey, his face sort of sunken in through his wrinkles. Coming off the bottle and spending ten years in prison had turned him into a downright fucking disgusting mess.
I snorted and with a roll of my eyes, got up from the ground, taking another drink from the bottle. "If I'd known you were going to be fuckin' looking for me, I would've kept my ass at the fuckin' clubhouse." I retorted, my southern accent more prominent now that I was piss drunk.
"I didn't come here to start trouble with you, Drew." My dad said, holding his hands up in a surrendering gesture.
I sneered at him. "The name's fuckin' Ink." I snarled at him.
My dad twisted his lips into a disgusted frown. "What kind of fuckin' name is Ink?" He demanded.
I stepped towards him threateningly, desperate to deliver the same fucking beating he'd given me the night he got fucking arrested and thrown into the state prison. "My goddamn club name, pops." I sneered, calling him by the name he always hated so much growing up.
His eyes flashed with anger. "That club is only going to land you in a heap of trouble, son."
"I'm not your mother fucking son!" I shouted at him, throwing my bottle to the side. I heard it shatter as it connected with a random headstone, but I was beyond the point of giving a fuck. I was ready to deal him the same hand he’d dealt me – the same hand he’d dealt my defenseless mother when she had been trying to protect us from him.
My dad clenched his jaw. "I see that temper hasn't fucking chilled at all."
I wanted a fucking reason to beat his ass, and I was pushing all of his fucking buttons. I was determined to have him swing first – to prove that he would never fucking change.
"Maybe you should ask your fucking other kid that." I snarled at him. "I'm sure you guys shared some great fucking stories while you were both locked up." I barked out a careless laugh. "Wait, I forgot. He's fucking dead." I snarled at him, knowing Jordan had always been his favorite.
All of the blood drained from my father’s face, leaving him a pale, sickly mess. "What?" He whispered in horror.
I smirked at him. "Wish it had been me that'd gotten the chance to put the bullet through his fucking skull, but it was enough for me to be in the same room to see it fucking happen."
My dad's fist swung out, but I dodged it, quickly sending a punch of my own into his abdomen and another right after to his jaw, sending him sprawling on his ass. Two sets of hands wrapped around each of my biceps, yanking me back before I could finish the fucking job.
"Leave it be, Ink!" Ghost roared at me as I fought against him and Thor.
"Let me the fuck go." I snarled.
Sabotage walked up in front of me, a rag in his hand. I narrowed my eyes at him, knowing exactly what would be on that fucking cloth. "Don't you fucking dare." I snarled at him.
"Sorry, brother." Sabotage said with a shrug, not seeming sorry at all.
I felt someone grab my head from behind me, holding it still as Sabotage covered my mouth and nose with the chloroform rag. "I fucking hate you." I snarled as everything began to get fuzzy and the fight left my body.
"You'll thank me later." Sabotage grunted.
I woke up on my bed in the clubhouse beside Reina. She was reading a book on her new Kindle that Ghost had gotten her to keep her occupied. My head was resting on her lap, and she was absentmindedly running her fingers through my hair.
I glanced around the room, noticing Ghost standing by the door, blocking anyone from entering and leaving. Sabotage was in the computer chair at the desk, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand.
I pushed myself up into a sitting position, leaning over to press my lips to Reina's. She reached up and caressed my jaw when I pulled back. "Ink, what you did yesterday was really fucking stupid." She whispered.
I clenched my jaw. She sighed softly. "If cops had gotten called, or even worse if something had happened to you, how do you think that would have affected me or our baby?" She asked me quietly as she kept her wide, dark brown eyes locked on my blue ones. I felt some of my anger leave me at her words. "I know you've got bad history – hell we all fucking do – but I need you to talk to me instead of going on a self-destructing ride." She said softly.
"You're dealing with enough, sweet girl." I quietly reminded her as I rested my hand on her belly, feeling Elijah kick my hand a couple of times.
She rested her hand on mine. "I know that being your old lady doesn't give me some privileges, and I understand that. But when it comes to how you're feeling and what you're going through, you can talk to me, Ink. I'd rather be your shoulder and help you share the burden than to potentially lose you."
I leaned in and kissed her again. "Promise me that you won't ever do that again, Ink.” She begged me. I sighed. “It terrified me when Sabotage and Grim carried you in unconscious."
I blew out a soft breath. "Fine." I grunted. "I promise."
She smiled at me before nodding once at Sabotage. "Your turn." She told him. "But first, let Ghost get me downstairs."
I narrowed my eyes at her brother. "Not a fucking thing better happen to her." I warned him.
He rolled his eyes. "She's just going to get some food and sit with Izzy." He grumbled.
Once they left the room, Sabotage leaned forward in the chair, linking his fingers together in front of him. "As men of this club, we don't really get in our fucking feelings." He said. "But as your president and one of your brothers, I know when one of my men needs someone to lean on."
"I'm fine." I grunted, not wanting to have this conversation with him.
"Your far from fucking fine, Ink. You haven't truly ever been fine. When you came to Blink asking to prospect for the club, I could already see how unsettled and angry you were, but whenever Reina came around, she settled down that angry kid. But when she left, you self-destructed, and you became a fucking emotionless killing machine."
"Me being who I am has helped this club become as strong as it is." I snapped. "So, I don't really see the fucking issue."
"You were doing great for the most part when Reina came back." He told me. "Everyone can see how good she is for you, but when it comes to Darren," he said, mentioning my father, "not a goddamn thing seems to keep you from ruining everything."
"He pushes all of my buttons, Sabotage." I gritted.
"Look, Ink, I get it." Sabotage said, making me drag my eyes over to him. "Blink and Lily pretty much raised me after my mom lost custody of me when I was ten. I know what it's like to have shitty parents, but what you do isn't the way to cope with it. You've got a good woman beside you who's ready to help you. Stop worrying about hurting her so much. She's a hell of a lot stronger than you give her credit for."
"I won't -" I started, not wanting to burden Reina with my issues. This was my shit to carry – not hers. Darren was the monkey on my back, and I intended to keep him there.
"You will." Sabotage snapped at me as he narrowed his eyes in my direction. "Because if you continue going against my fucking orders as your president, I'll strip you of your cut and put you out of my club – brother or not, you got me? You doing this shit puts the entire club and your woman and unborn kid at risk. Fucking remember that."
With that, he got to his feet and stepped out of the room. He shut the door quietly behind him when he walked out.
I felt like it would have made more sense if he had just slammed it behind him.
Things were tense between Ink and Sabotage - it was blatantly clear to everyone who ended up being around them when they were in the same room. Ink was closing off from everyone - even me. Sure, he was loving and caring, but he wasn't Ink - not the Ink that he normally was when he was with me.
"I'm worried about him." I quietly said to my brother as he sat down on the couch beside me.
Johnny sighed. "We all are, sis. This isn't Ink. He's not quie
t and withdrawn." He snorted. "I mean, yeah, sure he's a moody mother fucker, but Ink's not one for biting his tongue. He hasn't even said some snarky remark to Scab or Volt since Sabotage talked to him a few days ago."
I watched Ink from across the room as he came in from outside, Grim following close behind him. He looked over at me almost instantly, his blue eyes meeting my brown ones. "Why aren't you upstairs resting?" He asked me as he strode over.
I sighed. "Ink, I'm fine." I assured him. "I'm just sitting here." I tried to soothe him.
His eyes flashed with anger for a moment. I could see him itching for a fight, and I braced myself. I didn't know what was going on with him lately. I knew his dad was out of prison, but that's all I knew. He refused to talk to me – instead he had just drawn into himself.
