“Listen Cass, I need you to come with us for a little bit. Pack a bag and tell Jake you need to come help Brielle out because Max and I need to leave town for a little while and she needs your help with the babies. Brielle is on her way with Dani to get you.”
“But why do you need me?”
“We will fill you in on everything when you get here. I will see you soon. Love you.” He hung up.
“Ok, I will be happy to help! See you in a few minutes.” She set her phone down and went into her room to pack a bag.
She had already picked out all her clothes and was in the process of folding them and putting them in her luggage case when Jake appeared in the doorway.
“What in the hell do you think you are doing?” He growled as he stormed into the room and made his way to her suitcase, pulling out all of her clothing and throwing it to the floor.
“Brielle called when you were in the bathroom. Max and Cole need to leave on business for a few days and she needs help with the babies. Since Dani is supposed to be on a honeymoon of sorts I figured I would help her out. You don’t mind?” She smiled nervously at him trying to placate him. It was 50/50 whether or not it would work.
“I sure as hell do mind! I had plans for us tonight and you will not be leaving me.”
“I’m sorry Jake. I will make it up to you when I get back.”
“No you won’t because you will not be going anywhere.”
She could tell his temper was high and there was nothing she could do to settle him. “Sweetheart, you have had me to yourself since I got back. Brielle is family and she needs me. I promise that when I get back I will turn my phone off and you will have me all to yourself for as long as you want.” She was beginning to get a little scared. She knew trouble was coming and she needed to act fast to defuse his temper.
“You aren’t going so you can help Brielle. You are going because you want to be with those guys. Don’t lie to me you little slut!” He was yelling at her now, screaming in her face. She hoped that it was only the voice she would have to live with this time.
“No! That’s wrong! I swear to you. Brielle just called and asked for my help. I wouldn’t lie to you about that.” She started backing away from him as he stalked toward her. She flinched when her back hit the wall. His hand wrapped around her throat and held her captive there.
“You will not be going anywhere except for my bed tonight. Do you hear me Cassie? You are not leaving here until I am ready for you to leave.” He whispered menacingly into her ear before crushing her mouth in a ferocious kiss.
She couldn’t breathe. He was crushing her windpipe and blocking what little oxygen she could get with the kiss. Her head began to swim and felt ready to explode from the pressure and her vision began to blur as blackness closed in on her. “Jake….you’re….choking….me. I….can’t….breathe.” She was able to manage the two short sentences before he dropped her to the ground and planted a kick to her skull.
“Do. Not. Move!” He screamed when she tried to get up.
She stayed on the floor, gasping for breath and clutching her throat and stomach. She looked up at him and nodded.
“Not good enough Cassie.” He left the room and was back within a minute with a knife. He paced the room, mumbling to himself before he knelt in front of her. He held the knife to her neck as he said, “You were leaving me, weren’t you?”
“No! I wasn’t leaving you Jake!” She sobbed.
“Yes you were. You were leaving me for another man. Maybe it’s that Luc or even Wes? Well guess what? If aren’t happy with me then I will guarantee you sure as hell will not be happy with them either.”
He plunged the knife into her stomach and stormed out.
She wrapped her hand around the knife and pulled it from her stomach, covering the wound with her other hand to stop some of the bleeding. She crawled to her bed and pulled herself to her feet and stumbled to the front door. She watched Jake’s car speed away and fell to her knees on the porch. She was struggling to breathe through the pain. It hurt so much! Her head, throat and stomach were in more pain than she had ever felt before. She was getting weak from the blood loss and from the choking so she lay down on the porch to wait for Brielle and Dani to show up.
She wasn’t sure how long she laid there trying to stay awake but as soon as she saw two sets of headlights pull up she felt safe enough to fall asleep. So she closed her eyes and let the darkness take her.
Chapter 5: Wes
Wes and Luc were following Brielle and Dani to Cassie’s for back up. The other men were at Luc’s waiting for them to bring Cassie there. When they pulled into her driveway, behind Brielle, they saw a lump of something on the porch. He and Luc carefully exited the car and made their way toward the porch while Brielle and Dani waited for them in their own car. As they got closer the lump on the moved and that is when he realized it wasn’t a lump…it was Cassie!
“Cassie! My God!” he and Luc ran the rest of the way and he lifted her into his arms, shaking her to keep her awake. “What happened sweetheart?”
She was struggling to open her eyes, he knew. She was weak; he could sense that just by touching her. He could tell that her energy was draining. She was moving her lips but only air escaped. He bent his head down toward her to better hear her and all that came out was, “Jake…” before she passed out again.
“That son-of-a…!” Luc hissed.
“Hurry man, you drive and I’ll hold her. We need to get her to the hospital.” He held her close to his chest as he ran to the car. He barely heard Brielle and Dani scream on his way. He didn’t care about anything other than making it to the hospital in time. So help him…if anything happened to her that bastard would pay with his life!
He slid into the backseat and Luc closed the door behind him before getting into the front seat and driving away.
*******************
They finally arrived at the hospital. The drive felt like it took hours when in reality it was only a matter of minutes the way Luc had driven.
They got out in front of the Emergency entrance and ran through the doors.
“Someone please help!” He yelled when entered the receiving area. Suddenly there was a flurry of activity as doctors and nurses surrounded them after seeing her soaked in blood. They brought a gurney and he gently laid her down. Her skin was pale and void of color. She was breathing shallowly. Please let her make it!
“Sir,” a nurse said to get his attention, “do you know when this happened?”
“No, she was lying on her front porch when we got to her house. Please tell me you can help her.” He was sick to his stomach. He felt her pain and could barely tolerate it. They couldn’t lose her before they had a chance to start a life to her. He needed her as much as he needed his next breath.
“Can you tell me her name?”
“Cassandra Irons.” Luc answered for him.
“How old is she?”
“She is 22.” Luc stated calmly. How could he be so calm when Cassie was dying?
“Do you know who could have done this?” The nurse finally asked.
“Jake,” he and Luc answered at the same time. He glanced at Luc who nodded for him to answer. “Her boyfriend, Jake. I don’t know his last name.”
“Ok, thank you. If you will just take a seat in the waiting room, someone will be out soon to update you.” He stood, frozen, as he watched the nurse walk through the double doors toward the area where Cassie was. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Luc standing at his side. At least he wasn’t alone in the feeling; he could read Luc’s expression and knew he felt as lost and defeated as he felt. They both stood to risk the loss of the one woman who would complete them. It was too soon. “She will be ok, I can feel it. In the meantime we need to stay strong for Brielle and Dani, Cole too. They will need us to be there for them.” Luc said as they walked toward the waiting room where the rest of the gang was waiting.
As soon as they appeared they were rushed by the women, �
��How is she?” “Is she going to be ok?” Both of them were firing off questions that he didn’t have the answers to.
“The nurse said that someone will be out soon to let us know how she is. We have to be patient and wait until they come out.”
“Why would he do this to her?” Brielle whispered to herself but he heard her.
“You know who did this?” He asked her.
“Ok, come on. We all know it was Jake. No one else had any reason to hurt her. Not that he had one but we all know he never needed a reason to put a mark on her. He would just help himself and poor Cassie would apologize to him for it. God, what a jerk!” Brielle was pacing as she talked. She was voicing the opinion they all shared about Jake. He just hoped that they made it to her in time to save her and then they could get her into hiding at Luc’s place. He would give up everything to stand guard over her.
Max walked over to join the group after he was finished with his phone call. “I’ve contacted the police who have put out an APB to find him. Hopefully they apprehend him soon and Cassie can testify and put him behind bars.”
“Good thinking Max.” Cole nodded his agreement and then added, “I don’t want her left alone while she is here.”
“Wes and I will take shifts here, even if I have to sleep on this floor, I will not leave her alone.” Luc promised.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“I will take Brielle home to the babies,” Dani said before looking to her mates who were standing behind her, ‘’you two don’t mind that I stay with Brielle, do you?” She asked.
Ryan and Adrian both kissed her cheek and Ryan said, “We wouldn’t expect anything less from you sweetheart.”
“We will go as soon as we hear from a doctor or nurse.” Brielle said, “I don’t want to leave our sister until we know she is going to be ok. I really thought we had all seen the last of this torture and injury. I guess I was wrong.” Brielle told the group. They all somberly agreed with her.
“I am going to get us all some coffee. I will be right back.” Luc said and Wes watched him walk away and knew that Luc was in pain.
Chapter 6: Luc
Luc seethed on his way to the vending area where the hospital kept coffee and other beverages for those in the waiting rooms. If they would have just gotten there a little sooner Cassie wouldn’t be in there fighting for her life right now. He could kick himself for not listening to his instincts sooner. Why in the hell didn’t he sense it sooner when they would’ve had time to prevent this from happening? If anything happened and she didn’t make it he would never forgive himself. He might as well die as well since there would be no reason for him to live anymore. Every time he saw her the past few months allowed for his feelings to deepen. With each smile she captured more of his heart. Every time he detected fear in her eyes she stole part of his soul. He met his destiny when he met her. He was supposed to protect her and keep her safe and he failed. This was entirely his fault, just like with his brother and Jax.
He placed packets of creamer and sugar into his pockets and used one of the provided trays to carry the coffee and waters to the gang. When he got closer he noticed that Wes had walked over to the windows and was staring absently into the dark night.
Luc set the tray down and nodded to everyone who thanked him and walked over to stand beside Wes. He could sense the fear and sadness coming from Wes so he placed his hand on his shoulder for comfort. Wes turned to him, “Why would he do that? What goes through a man’s mind that would make him think it is ok to abuse and misuse another person?” he asked in a brittle voice filled with emotion.
“I wish I knew. In my opinion there is nothing in this world that would make a good enough excuse to explain why, or how, a person could do that to another. It takes one sick individual to think that it is in any way ok to do that.”
“If she doesn’t make it I don’t know what I am going to do Luc. Since I have been reacquainted with her as adults she has become important to my very being. Losing her would mean losing part of my soul.”
“She will be ok, she has to be. But God, I wish I would’ve listened to my instincts sooner. I could’ve prevented this…”
“No,” Wes interrupted him, “You cannot control other people. You had no way of knowing that he would do something like this tonight. You are not responsible for his actions. Stop blaming yourself Luc.”
“It’s hard not to. It seems that no good has come to you guys since my family has been around.”
“You cannot do this to yourself Luc. You are not your brother and you are not Jax. What they did was terrible and was devastating but we all came through it ok. You are better than that. We wouldn’t be here right now if it weren’t for you. Cassie would still be lying on that porch, bleeding to death, if you hadn’t followed through on your instincts and forced us to get her tonight. Yeah, she will be in the hospital, but she is getting help. I hope to God that they save her, but if she pulls through it is because of you. Thank you.”
“It just doesn’t seem to be enough.”
Nothing else needed to be said. Luc knew how Wes was feeling and Wes knew what was going through Luc’s mind. Since he joined their group after leaving his pack, he and Wes had formed an instant bond. Most likely due to the fact that they were both Cassie’s destined mates. It is said that when you meet your destined mate that you will instantly know and have the connection with them and if a woman has more than one mate then you are destined Celestial mates. There is no stronger bond than that, which would explain Brielle, Cole and Max; as well as Dani, Adrian and Ryan. Hopefully soon he, Wes and Cassie will join the ranks of Celestial mates. First, they needed to get Cassie safely away from Jake and find a way to stop him from hurting her in the future. The second thing; they needed to prove to Cassie that not all men were like Jake.
********************
Forty-five minutes later everyone was on edge waiting to hear from the doctor, nurse, or anyone to come out and let them know how Cassie was doing.
Just as Cole stood up to go to the nurse’s station a doctor came through the doors followed by a nurse. “I’m looking for the family of Miss Cassie Irons.” He stated.
“That is us. How is she?” Cole answered. The rest of them all stood up and walked to stand with Cole and listened as the doctor spoke.
“Miss Irons sustained some serious damage recently. We found poorly healed fractures along the ribs and her right wrist. There is dark bruising along her neck which is recent. The stab wound to her abdomen went deep and caused some internal bleeding that we were able to stop. She received a blow to the head that resulted in a concussion. Due to the extent of the damage, and to allow her body adequate time to heal, we have placed her in a medically induced coma for the next 48 hours. I am sorry to report, however, that we were unable to save the pregnancy. She received too many injuries and those, along with the stress, caused her to miscarry. We have performed a D & C to remove the remains and to prevent infection from occurring. She is receiving antibiotics through an I.V. which will aid in her recovery. Do you have any questions that I can answer for you at this time?”
Cassie was pregnant? That would explain why she looked sickly lately. Poor Cassie. Did Jake find out and suspect it wasn’t his? Is that why he did this?
“You said she was pregnant doc. She hadn’t told any of us yet. Do you know how far along she was?” Brielle asked the doctor.
“From the tests we performed it looked as if she were 10-12 weeks along.”
“Thank you doc. Can we see her yet?” Wes asked.
“Yes, you can visit her but please try not to say anything that can cause her to become upset. She may not be awake and able to speak but she can hear. And I must request that you limit her visitors to no more than 2 at a time.”
“Thank you, doctor.” Cole said.
“You are welcome. I am sorry to be the bearer of such terrible news but if there is anything you need please let me know.” The doctor handed his card to Max and walked back through
the doors.
“Cole, why don’t you and Max go back first, then Dani and I will go back. Since Wes and Luc will be staying through the night we can let them go back when Dani and I are finished visiting.” Brielle took charge, which was great because the rest of them were all in a daze with the news that Cassie not only had been injured before and had not sought medical attention, but she had also been pregnant.
“Thank you, sweetheart. We will only take a few minutes. I know you need to get back home and I am sure Ryan, Adrian and Dani would all like to get home for the night.” Max said as he and Cole both placed a kiss on her cheek.
Luc, Wes and the rest of the group took a seat to await their turn to visit Cassie.
Ten minutes later the guys came out and Luc could detect the presence of tears in their eyes. They took their seats and allowed Brielle and Dani to take their turn seeing Cassie. Luc was getting impatient. He needed to see Cassie now and he knew Wes felt the same way.
It wasn’t much longer before the women walked back out holding one another and failing miserably to control their flowing tears.
Luc and Wes stood to say their good-byes to everyone before heading to Cassie’s room. The closer they got the more sadness and sorrow he felt. Cassie was hurting and there was nothing he could to stop it.
They got to her room and took deep breaths before Wes opened the door. They walked in and froze, staring helplessly at the still form of Cassie in the bed.
Chapter 7: Cassie (5 days later)
“She looks so drained.” That sounded like Brielle, crying. Cassie tried her best to open her eyes but they were too heavy.
“Cassie, we are here for you. I know you are probably too tired to wake up but we are here for you.” That was her brother, Cole. She felt him wrap his large, strong hand around hers. She could feel the love he had for her pass through his grasp.
“Cassie, sweetheart, we miss you and hope you are giving your mind and body a chance to rest. We all have so much to talk about when you wake up.” That was Wes. God she wished she could just wake up and talk to him but something was holding her back; trying to pull her into the darkness again.
Conquering Cassie: The Celestial Mating Series Book 3 Page 2
