by Kathi Barton
Just as the judge stood up to leave the courtroom, a gun fired in North’s direction. Not at all sure who had shot the gun, he saw it between the police officer’s legs. Grabbing it before it went off again, he just missed being shot in the hand when it fired the second time. Wrestling it away from the hand, he heard bones break, and it was apparent to him that it was a woman’s hand. Other than that, he knew very little.
It took another ten minutes to get Fran out of the courtroom. She was still screaming about her rights and her things when the officer went to get Phoenix up from the floor. North had broken her wrist, perhaps even a couple of fingers by the look of it. When a medic was called, no one moved from their position when more police arrived.
“Are you all right?” North said he thought so, but did circle around so that Amy could make sure. “Where the hell did she get that fucking gun? I thought they checked people out when they got in here. They sure gave me the once over.”
Just as North was explaining that she’d gotten it from one of the officers, a scream went up. Turning to protect Amy at all costs, the bailiff told everyone to stay back. Lorinda had been shot.
“I’m a doctor.” Wats came from the visitor’s seats. “Mars has gone to get my bag. Everyone, please give me some room to work.”
North helped by talking to Lorinda and telling her how good Wats was, and that he’d have her up and around in no time. She was lying on her belly, but to him, it looked as if she were bleeding from the front. As he wasn’t a doctor, North kept his thoughts to himself. He had a feeling, however, that Lorinda wasn’t going to make it. There was a great deal of blood surrounding her, and Wats was covered in it. Wats never stopped working to save the woman until the ambulance arrived.
Wats was barking orders to the EMTs as they hooked her up with an IV and a heart monitor. It was, surprisingly, a slow but steady beat sounding from the machine. When they were ready to get her out of the room. Lorinda grabbed North before they put her in the ambulance.
“Call Charlie.” He said he would. “My cell. On my desk. Tell her, I love her.” North told her she could tell her when she was out of surgery. “Don’t shit me. I know better. Call my Charlie.”
North stood there with a heavy heart. He, too, knew better. Lorinda wasn’t going to make it. And having to call her daughter and tell her what had happened was going to break a lot of people’s hearts.
~*~
Amy was ready to call it a night when North finally called her from the hospital. She’d had him go to the hospital with his friend instead of worrying about her. Hank had taken her to get some dinner and had brought her home. The others had joined them, and she spent an enjoyable night with her new uncles and her dad.
“She’s holding her own right now. Wats said the next twenty-four hours will tell. I hadn’t realized she’d been shot in the back until we got to the hospital.” Amy asked him if he’d called her daughter. “Yes. She is renting a car to use while she’s here as soon as her plane lands. When I told her what had happened, she said her mom would make it. She was tough as nails.”
“I spoke to your dad about what went down tonight. Phoenix is being charged with the attempted murder of a federal judge. I didn’t know she was federal, did you?” North told her he’d read about her title a few months ago. “I don’t think we’re going to have to worry about her for a while. Your dad told me she’ll get the big-time sentence for this. Attempted murder is bad enough, but nearly killing a sitting judge is triple that.”
“I did manage to break her wrist, and three of her fingers, one of the emergency doctors told me.” Amy told him she wished it had been her that had done it. “I’m glad she didn’t get near you. She would have hurt you worse with you unable to get up and around. Listen, I’m going to head home here in about ten minutes. I want to check on Charlie once more.” She told him to be careful driving and that she’d see him soon. “Not much of a wedding night, is it, love?”
“We’re together, and that is really all I wanted. It’s not been the best of beginnings, but it’ll be better after this. I’m sure of it.” North told her again how much he loved her. “I love you forever. And a day.” When he told her again that he was leaving soon, they hung up.
Amy thought about what her mother had told her when she’d called her this evening. It had taken her a few rings to know if she wanted to answer a call from the jail but figured there was no way she could physically hurt her over the phone.
“You’re to tell your father I’m not going to put up with this. You tell him it’s going to cost him for giving away all my things.” Amy told her mother she doubted he’d care. “He will care when he realizes just how much I’ve been doing for him over the years. Who do you think made sure he was presentable when he went out? It certainly wasn’t him. He couldn’t match a shirt to a tie to save his life. You’ll see. Mark my words, he’ll be begging me to return home.”
“If I were you, I’d not hold my breath on that happening. Or you could. That would suit us both if you were to keep holding your breath.” Mother called her ungrateful. “Perhaps in your mind. But you’ll be surprised to learn that I don’t care what you think about me at all. Not that you’ve ever cared for me. But as for your feelings for me, I’ve not cared for a very long time.”
“You see, right there. That’s the very reason I’ve always hated you, Amy. You go on about how much you don’t care, yet I’ve seen how you suck up to your father when you don’t think anyone is looking.” Even though she’d known her mother didn’t like her, it hurt Amy to her very core to hear her say the words. “For once in your life, do what I tell you, or so help me, Amy, you’ll regret it.”
“No.” Her mother told her it wasn’t any time for her to be smart assed. “I’m not. Also, I’m not going to be taking your demands to Dad or anyone else. In fact, I’m going to make you aware of something right now, Mother. I’m finished with you and Phoenix. As far as I’m concerned, you’re both dead. Also, today Phoenix shot a judge. She’s going to go to federal prison for that, for a minimum of fifty years. I hope they give her the maximum. You? Well, it matters little to me, but you’re going to go away for a long time as well. You have a nice life, the two of you.”
Hanging up on her mother had been empowering. Not only did she feel good about that, but she was going to have her number changed. She’d have her dad do the same thing. Tomorrow was going to be a day of getting things going her way.
Closing her eyes, she thought about relaxing each part of her body, her toes first, then her ankles and up her legs. The more she moved up her body, the more she realized this was working much better than it had in the past. When she felt all the tension around her neck and shoulders let go, Amy let sleep take her under. She barely remembered North coming in and kissing her. Sleep was much too strong to pass up when her body felt this good.
Waking up, a warm body touching hers, Amy rolled onto her back and moaned when strong hands massaged her waist. It was a wonderful feeling when North’s hand, that was all it could be, moved up from around her waist to her breasts.
“Who would have believed a woman’s breast would feel so tense? Thank you for helping me out with that.” He told her he could work on them closely for her. “Oh, yes. You do that for me.”
His sexy laughter made her body warm. When his tongue touched her tight nipple, she moaned again, this time feeling his warm sigh when it blew over her wet nipple.
“You’re very responsive. I love that about you.” Amy told North if he made her scream, she’d make it worth his time. “Oh, I think I can do that for you. How many times would you like to release for me, Amy? I have all day.” Instead of answering him, she moaned again. Amy was too relaxed, too everything, to come up with an answer that would have made sense to anyone. “I love you. I am in love with you so very much.”
Amy wasn’t prepared for him touching her clit with his mouth. It sent a wave of something
powerful though her entire body, from one heartbeat to the next. Screaming wasn’t even possible. Her breath, her heart, not one thing on her worked when he commanded her to come a second, more powerful time.
The world spun off its axis. Time seemed to have stilled, so there was no sound, not even a slight breeze blowing over the bed. When North told her to come for the third time, she bowed up off the bed, this time screaming the pleasure, the very soul of herself out her mouth into the room, shattering all ability to think past the pleasure North was giving her. Amy begged him to stop.
“Oh, no. I don’t think so. We’re just getting started, and this was your idea.” When he suckled at her clit again, she had no strength to beg him to stop. Even if there had been even a little, she wouldn’t have been able to use it. “Come for me, Amy mine. Come now.”
There was no reprieve, nothing to stop him from giving her everything she had asked him for, needed, or even had inside of her. They’d been teasing each other for days, tantalizing, flirting, and touching since they’d met. Their first kiss had been leading up to this. The first time they’d touched had been a precursor to their life together.
His body crawling up her body, touching her with his hands and mouth, Amy sobbed at how overwhelmed she was with the emotions. Too many nerve endings were firing at once. Each time his breath touched her skin, it was like a flame was set to her. Not just a fire, but love too.
“I want you.” Nodding, she received him with her mouth and her body. His cock filled not just her body, but some unknown need that she knew only he’d ever fill. “Take me, Amy. Let us be one, now and forever.”
Not holding anything back, Amy held him to her, took everything his body was offering up to her, and gave all she was back in return. Screaming out her love for him, he did the same. Amy felt her world dip and twist. As soon as he came again, Amy let go of herself and simply slipped away on a wave of complete bliss.
There was movement beside her. The sound of soft male laughter made her smile. Then Amy found herself wrapped tightly in his big arms, snuggled into his warm chest. Just before she fell asleep again, the kiss to her shoulder had her turning to him for more.
“Christ, I love you.”
Amy told North how much she loved him before she fell back to sleep in the arms of the only man she’d ever love.
Chapter 8
North felt like he was walking on sunshine. That song, from long ago, came to his mind with every thought he had of his wife. Even to think that he was a married man would give him tingles all the way down his spine.
“You’re in a good mood.” North told his dad he was in love. “Any fool can see that, son. But today you seem to be brighter. More of…I was going to say like your old self, but I just realized I don’t know what that would be. More than likely, I’d say you were like you would have been when you were staying with my sister.”
“This is better. But I did like staying with Aunt Holly. She could and did make me feel like a person. I didn’t feel that at home. Mother, she would take good news, good feelings, and tear them to shreds. She would also beat me. As I got older, she would have someone do it, but she made it perfectly clear she was the one that would order it. Mom watched and cheered them on.” North realized he was bringing them both down. “Aunt Holly could cook like a chef. I’m not kidding, Dad, she made these homemade noodles that were so buttery and tender, I swear to you, it put me off of store-bought ones forever. And her Alfredo sauce? Christ, it was heaven in a saucepan.”
“Yeah? Your grandma was a good cook. I bet Holly learned it from her. You should have tasted Grandma’s chocolate chip cookies, son. You’d swear she put something magical in them that would have you craving more.” Dad smiled at him, his memories evident on his face. “Once, when we were all at my grandma’s—I think I was about thirteen then—we had this wonderful dish. Oh my, son, if I could have one meal that I had when I was a kid, that would be it. She would take a steak and pound it into these big steak-like meats, bread it, and then fry it in bacon grease. She’d serve it up with mashed potatoes with the skins still on some of them. And this thing—I swear to you, it was made from the gods—that she simply called white gravy. It was a meal fit for a king.”
“I can make that. With fresh green beans that have simmered all day with ham bits in them. And a cake-like cornbread on the side.” Dad stared at him with his mouth open. “Aunt Holly told each of us that someday it might become necessary for us to impress someone. Be it a woman or anyone, we should at least know how to care for ourselves. I can cook several meals like that one. Bake a loaf or two of bread, and make any kind of sweet cookie you’d want to sink your teeth into. She also made sure we could do our own laundry and make a bed.”
“We’re having it as soon as it can be arranged.” North laughed. “No. You have no idea how serious I am right now. I’ll go into town and pick up everything you need. You invite the others over, all right? From what I heard yesterday, your house is all finished up. You go ahead and take that girl of yours to the store and order what furniture you need to have company. I’ll pay for the extra delivery to have it in there by today.”
“Dad, slow down.” His dad was giddy, a word he’d never thought to associate with him. “I’ll go and pick up Amy, and we’ll go shopping. Are you still going to stay with us for a little while, or are you going to keep living in the condo? These are things that need to be taken care of one at a time.”
“Yes. I love living in the condo. To be honest with you, son, I’m enjoying the alone time. I love that it’s just the right size for me too. An added bonus is that all my brothers are close enough to walk over and see. Did I tell you I’m going with Josiah to see Christa tomorrow?” North asked him if he thought that was a good idea. “No. Neither one of us thinks it is, but he said he needs some closure. I think, with the way things were going at the end there between your mother and me, I got to have something they didn’t. I got to see firsthand what she was really like. I know I should have seen it all along, but I had a clear view of what I should have been taking care of from the very first time you came to me.”
North didn’t even bother telling his father he was sorry, because frankly, he wasn’t. His mother had made her bed and had been murdered for her ways. Not on purpose. Mom had been killed by one of the other wives. However it happened, his mother was no longer a threat to any of them, especially to Mars. But the other wives, wives of his uncles, were making threats of their own.
“Tina called my cell phone the other day. She left a message telling me I’d better be getting my ducks in a row, that she was going to be in charge, and all my slacking off, she called it, was coming to an end. She also mentioned she was moving into the big house as soon as you gathered your stuff up. Being the second oldest, Uncle Wesley should be moved into it. For some reason, she has this idea that since you’re no longer married, you have to move out. I’ve told her Mars is now living in it, but she doesn’t want to hear that, so it’s not registering to her, I guess.” Dad asked him how she thought she was going to be moving anywhere but to a larger prison. “I don’t know, to be honest with you. I think each of them are under the assumption they’re getting out of jail soon. I’ve heard that Penelope called and left a message for Shawn to have him bring her some of her clothing and jewelry. When she got home, she told him, she was going to look good.”
“Perhaps we should have a talk with all of them. I know there have been other calls to you boys.” North told him there were several calls a week to one or more of them. “Yes, they only get phone time once a week. I suppose they could be calling their sons and leaving the same sort of message for them. I’m going to talk to my attorney about this. We need to, I guess, for lack of a better term, set them straight. I know we’ve all done this individually, but it’s not sticking. There has to be an end to this nonsense right now.”
When he pulled up in front of the house, North asked his dad if he w
anted to go with him and Amy to shop. He thought for sure he was going to turn him down, but after a few minutes, he nodded and said he wanted to go. He wanted to make his own statement.
Not having any idea what he meant, Dad went to his condo to pick up a few things, and North went into his home. Amy was just being fitted for crutches with Wats. She was doing a good job of it, and Wats was clearly happy with her healing. North told them both what they were going to do.
“Take the wheelchair with you, Amy. I don’t want you to get exhausted too soon and hurt yourself again.” She said she was thinking that as well. “Good. You’ll heal better, as you are now because you’re not rushing things. I wish I had more patients doing that.”
North told his cousin what he and his dad had talked about. “You need to let Abby and me go down there and have a meeting with them. I’m sure we can knock some sense into their heads.” North laughed and asked Amy if she’d be actually knocking them around. “If they need to be. I think you guys are still slightly afraid of them. I know I would be if that were me. I’m still afraid of my mom, even though I know there isn’t really a good reason for me to be anymore. Not with them both in jail.”
“You can talk to my dad while we go shopping. I think he’s just fed up with all of them. I know my mom is gone, but as the oldest, I think he still feels like he should be in charge of the family. Not that I can find fault with that. But I don’t want him to be too stressed out either. He can’t die on me, guys. I’m having too much fun just getting to know him.” Wats said he and his dad were having dinner twice a week now, and that was something he’d been enjoying too. “I think we’re all having fun. I know Dad is enjoying his time with Mars. I think Mars has been pulling out some of the pictures Aunt Holly was forever taking and showing them to him. He shares a story too. I’ve been doing that with my dad as well.”
