Inked Killer (A Tattoo Crimes Novel Book 2)

by A. J. Norris

  “Ahh…oh God what?”

  Dr. Bastin glanced at Grace then returned her attention to Natalie. “Is it okay for me to speak in front of your friend?”

  After rising from her chair, Grace held Natalie’s hand.

  Natalie sniffled. “Y-Yeah.”

  “Okay.” The doctor smiled. “You’re pregnant.”

  Natalie’s eyes went wide. “What? Are you sure you didn’t get my pee mixed up with someone else’s?”

  “Positive. The cup was marked with your name.”

  “How is this possible? I can’t be pregnant.”

  “Are you sexually active?”

  Natalie wasn’t the only one shocked. All Grace could do was blink with her mouth hanging open. She was going to have a brother or sister? Assuming the baby belonged to her father. Duh. Of course the baby was her dad’s. What the hell was she thinking?

  “Um…yes, but I—” Natalie clamped her mouth shut abruptly and jumped off the table. She paced around the cramped room. “Oh, I think I’m going to be sick.”

  Rushing toward the cabinet, the doctor snagged a bedpan from the counter. “Here, use this if you need to the throw up.”

  Natalie heaved a few times, but nothing came up. With defeat, she resumed putting a rut in the floor tile. Eventually, she stopped, placed her palms on the table, and leaned into them. “What are my options?”

  “What type of options are you referring to?” Grace asked. Options meant nothing good as far as she was concerned. Sure, what Natalie did with her own body was her choice and she’d never interfere with that, except the baby was her sibling.

  The doctor ignored Grace’s question. “That depends, I’ll need you to be more specific, however, I’m going to encourage you to speak with your OB/GYN.”

  “What are my options?” Natalie repeated.

  “We would need to determine how far along you are, but again you’ll want to speak with—”

  “Yeah, yeah, I got it, my gynecologist. Aren’t I too old to have a baby?”

  “No. It’s not that common, but certainly not unheard of for someone to conceive at your age. By options, do you mean terminating the pregnancy?”

  “No! Talk to my dad first.” Grace held a hand over her mouth. “Sorry, it’s none of my business.” Like hell, it wasn’t. Tears welled in her eyes. She never thought about wanting a sibling, always enjoyed being an only child, even now at thirty-three years old. Yet she wanted this baby born.

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-TWO

  Harry

  When Harry came home from work, Natalie was sitting on the couch with her legs tucked beneath her. Her eyes stared straight ahead, unblinking. Harry followed her line of vision. The TV wasn’t on, even though she looked at it. “Uh, you okay, Nat?” he asked.

  “Went to the doctor today.”

  “Oh?” Harry stopped at the chair, the one that always gave him trouble. He walked around, catching his shin on the damn thing anyway. Wincing, he took a seat without swearing. “What did he say?” he croaked. If it was cancer…

  She glanced at him. “You should know I’m not dying.”

  “That’s good news.” The weight on the center of his chest lifted somewhat, although he heard a ‘but’ coming.

  “That might be the bad news. I dunno. It’s not terrible news. I’ve been doing some thinking and I have another appointment in a couple of days.”

  “What kind of appointment?” Harry rubbed the back of his neck. What was she not telling him?

  “I’m fifty and I’ve grown comfortable with the way my life is now. Or maybe I’d just come to accept my fate.”

  “I feel like you’re speaking in riddles. What’s going on?”

  “I mean, I like my life the way it—”

  “What are you telling me? You’re not dying but you have a disease? What?” Harry searched her face then looked at the Time magazine on the coffee table. “Natalie, whatever it is, tell me.”

  “I’m pregnant.”

  His head snapped up. Pregnant? “Um, huh?” He grinned. Of all the things she could have said at the moment, this wasn’t one he imagined. Guess he still had it after all. He puffed his chest a little bit, although he wondered how Grace would take the news. Would she be happy for them? Harry knew having a child at their ages wasn’t ideal, but that didn’t matter to him. He’d always wanted another child.

  She held up her hand. “Before you say anything, it’s yours.”

  Harry chuckled. “I know. We aren’t kids. I’d never question—”

  “I haven’t decided what I’m doing yet.”

  Harry’s brows knitted together. “Not sure what you mean you ‘haven’t decided’.” Man, he considered himself pro-choice, though not with his own child apparently.

  “I’m fifty years old, Harry.”

  “So?”

  “I’m high-risk, it could kill me, or worse.”

  “What would be worse than that?”

  She swiped at the tears on her cheeks. “Our baby could have birth defects or—”

  “So what, you want to have an abortion?”

  “I didn’t say that!”

  “It sure as hell sounded like it.”

  With puffy eyes, she sniffled. A sob escaped her throat.

  Harry sighed, “Look, I’m sorry…and whatever you decide, please let me know. You owe me that courtesy as the father.”

  “I haven’t made up my mind about anything.”

  “You sure? It sounds like you have. I can’t tell you what to do and I won’t.” And that sucks.

  “I need some time to think. We’ll talk about this after my doctor’s—”

  “Whatever, I…” he waved himself off.

  “What do you want? I’m scared.” Natalie crossed her arms over her stomach.

  My baby’s in there, he thought. Maybe he secretly wished this. He’d wasted so many years pinning for Annie in the arms of women he didn’t even like all that much. Natalie had been there from the start, waiting for him to figure his shit out. They could have had a child years ago. Now she was questioning whether to have his kid or not. Telling her not to be scared seemed patronizing.

  Harry ignored his chirping phone. She cast her eyes downward. His cell signaled the incoming text message again. He set his lips into a thin line. “There’s no reason to be scared.” Crap, why did he say that?

  She glared at him for a moment. “Easy for you to say, it’s not your body. Or old eggs.”

  “Who said you have old eggs?” Harry got up and strode into the kitchen. The cupboards made a lot of noise as he banged them open and shut. He nearly broke a mug on the counter when he slammed it down.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, appearing in the doorway.

  “Making coffee.” Harry searched for the filters and bag of grounds.

  “The coffee is in the fridge.” Natalie went to the cabinet in the corner and pulled out the filters.

  After she put a filter into the coffee maker, Harry dumped the grounds in straight from the bag. “You act like if our child has something wrong it’d be all your fault. Who knows, I might have shoddy sperm.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with your sperm,” she said.

  He filled the pot with water and switched the machine on. “Then what makes you think something’s the matter with your eggs?”

  “I’m fifty!”

  He threw his hands out from his sides and slapped his thighs. “So? That doesn’t mean the baby won’t be all right. That you just give up before the baby even has a chance to prove you wrong.” His voice cracked.

  “I haven’t made up my mind about anything.”

  “Sure about that?”

  “Why are you being like this?”

  “Like what? Upset?”

  “I don’t know what to do. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. I’m not interested in being a single parent.”

  “You’re not!”

  She held her left hand up and waggled her fingers at him. “Do you see a ring on th
is finger?”

  “I’ll marry you, if that’s what you want.”

  “Oh, that’s straight from the heart. I felt it here.” She patted her chest. Another text had been sent to Harry’s phone. “Who keeps texting you?”

  Harry glanced at the screen of his phone. He hesitated before answering. “Fucking work.”

  She took out a travel mug and poured the brewed coffee for him. “Here. Because I know you’re leaving now.”

  Harry’s chest tightened. “Nat…”

  “It’s always work.” She turned away from his gaze and sat the coffee on the counter.

  “Hey…” Harry went to place a hand on her shoulder, then stopped himself. He needed to get out of there. His heart had grown larger when she’d told him the news, now he’d been sucker punched in the gut. He left the stainless steel travel mug on the counter and walked out.

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-THREE

  Grace

  After dropping Natalie off, Grace drove home in tears. She was supposed to stop at the grocery store, but couldn’t cut the tears off long enough to get the shopping done. Instead, she went to the Wendy’s drive thru. Brayden loved their chicken sandwich and Mikey would eat anything from there.

  She grabbed the bags of food and the drink carrier from the passenger seat. Mikey opened the door to the garage off the kitchen. “I heard you pull in. Oh, you got food. Cool.” His smile usually brought one to her face. Not this evening. She perked one corner of her mouth for a split second and brushed past him. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

  Grace didn’t answer Mikey. “Bray, dinner,” she called from the kitchen. He came sliding across the tiled floor in his socks.

  “Oooh, Wendy’s!” Brayden sat down at the table.

  “Take your food and eat in front of the TV, kid,” Mikey said.

  Suspicion washed over his son’s face. “O-kay. Are you feeling all right?”

  “I want to talk to your mo—to Grace alone.”

  Brayden snatched his bag and drink and scooted out of the room. He seemed unfazed by Mikey almost calling her his mom, which was a good thing. Grace’s heart had fluttered though. She didn’t think of herself as a mother, even though she was the closest thing he had to one after his own mother’s death.

  Mikey came up behind her and massaged her shoulders. “Why does it look like you’ve been crying?”

  “I went to Natalie’s doctor appointment with her.”

  “Oh, shit, I forgot you mentioned that was today. How bad is it? Should I be sitting down for this?”

  Grace faced him. More tears leaked down her face. “She’s not sick, thank God, I don’t think my dad could handle that.”

  “Well, that’s goo—”

  “She’s pregnant.”

  Mikey chuckled in a short burst. “I wasn’t expecting that. Man, they’ve been busy, haven’t they?”

  She made a face. “Ew. I don’t wanna think about that.”

  “It’s just sex.”

  Frantically, she waved her hands. “Stop it. I don’t care how old I am, I can’t, just can’t.”

  Now he laughed full on and she joined him for a minute.

  “How far along is she?” he asked.

  “I don’t know, she has another appointment with her gyno in a few days.” Her expression became somber. “She asked the doctor about options. I know it’s none of my business.”

  “Options, as in she might not have the baby?”

  “Yes.”

  He rubbed his jawline. “Wow. It is her body.”

  “I know. It’s just that the baby is my little brother or sister. Why can’t I have a say?”

  “Because you don’t. Did you tell her how you feel?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And?”

  “And nothing.”

  He smiled tightly. “Whatever she decides she’ll need your support.”

  “I know, and she’ll get it.” Grace pulled the chair out and sat down at the table.

  Mikey rubbed his palms together. “All right, what did you bring me?” He tore one of the bags open and dug into the food. After munching on some fries, he asked, “How do you think Harry took the news?”

  Sighing into her burger, she shrugged. “Hard to say. I know he had wanted another kid with my mom. She had a hysterectomy in her mid-twenties so that wasn’t going to happen.”

  “Fifty-five really isn’t that old to have one.”

  “She’s fifty though. So I guess I don’t blame her for asking about alternatives.”

  “I think she was shocked because this wasn’t planned. Freaked her out. It’ll be all right.” Mikey leaned over and kissed her forehead.

  “What’s going to be all right?” Brayden asked from the doorway.

  “Natalie’s pregnant,” Mikey blurted. Grace wanted to kick him for it, and gave him a dirty look instead.

  “What? It’s not a secret, is it?”

  “No, but what if you know happens?”

  “It won’t.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “I do know.”

  Grace rolled her eyes.

  “You do too,” he said.

  “Can people still have babies that old?” Brayden asked, sliding into the kitchen and sidling up to the table. Mikey mussed his hair. “I think we should get a dog.”

  “No, that’s a huge commitment.” Mikey said.

  “So was having me.”

  Grace giggled under her breath, Brayden’s random thoughts always cheered her up even if it wasn’t on purpose. Her phone rang in her purse. “Hand me my phone, will you?” Mikey fished it out and handed it to her. “Hello?”

  “It’s me,” Natalie said grimly.

  “Hi, is everything all right?”

  Her father’s girlfriend sighed heavily into the phone. “Your dad just left.”

  Grace worried about how her father took the news. Would he be as happy as she wanted him to? “Did you tell him?”

  “Yes. And he left.”

  “Did he say anything or just—”

  “Work called. Do you think you can go with me to the gynecologist Friday afternoon?”

  “Don’t you think my dad should go with you, not me?”

  “I’m afraid he’s not being objective.”

  “And you think I am?” Grace wasn’t capable of an objective opinion, at least right now.

  “I’m scared, Grace. What if something’s wrong with the fetus?”

  “What makes you think anything bad is going to happen?”

  Natalie stayed mute for a full minute. “My age makes me think that.” She sniffled, which made Grace tear up again.

  “I don’t think it’s a good idea—”

  “You’re right it’s not a good idea to put us and a baby through such uncertainty.”

  “That’s not what I was going to say. It’s not a good idea to make this decision on your own or with me. My dad has the right—”

  “So you’re not going with me then?”

  “No.” Grace nearly screamed, Take my dad! “You should take my dad with you.”

  “Let me know if you change your mind…”

  “I won’t.”

  * * *

  Harry

  The Starbucks’ Drive-thru line wrapped almost completely around the building when Harry had arrived. His knee bounced up and down and his hands shook. He pulled up to the speaker and ordered plain black coffee.

  “What size?” the perky sounding woman asked. The speaker crackled.

  “The largest you got, and two please.”

  “Venti or trenta?”

  “Whichever is biggest?” Harry already knew the answer.

  “Trenta.”

  “That then.”

  “Uh, trenta is only available for cold drinks.”

  Then why did you mention it? He groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Give me two venti coffees.”

  “What kind of coffee?” She rattled off a few of their specialty drinks.

  “Black
coffee.” Hadn’t they already been through this?

  “Just plain?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Pull up to the window, please.”

  “Thank you,” he grumbled. Ordering a cup of coffee shouldn’t take ten minutes, should it? Harry paid and collected his large cups without further hassle.

  Fifteen minutes later, he was sitting on Cedric’s plastic covered couch in the man’s living room.

  His best friend stared at him. “How’s the case coming?”

  “That’s not why I’m here.”

  “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that later.”

  Harry took alternating swigs of coffee.

  “Thanks for bringing coffee. One day you might actually let me have some.”

  “Sorry, I need it.”

  “How’s Grace and Mikey’s wedding planning coming? They call it off yet?” Cedric chuckled, thinking he was being funny.

  “She’s pregnant.”

  “Wow. You’re finally going to be a grandfather. Couldn’t wait until they got married, huh? They ain’t kids no more.”

  “Not Grace. Natalie’s pregnant.”

  His friend’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry, I’m not sure I heard you right.”

  “You did.”

  “Yours?”

  “You’re hilarious.”

  Cedric laughed. He stabbed his cane on the hardwood floor then sat back in his recliner and popped the footrest. “Does Grace know?”

  “Yeah. She went to the appointment with her.”

  “Have you spoken to your daughter?”

  Harry looked away. “Nat’s not sure what she wants to do. She’s talking crazy like she might not have the baby.” He swigged some coffee.

  “It’s her body.”

  “Shut it. That’s not what I want to hear right now. So why did you text me anyway?”

  Cedric eyed him for moment. “All right, we’ll change the subject. I’ve been doing some thinking.”

  “Uh oh. Should I be scared?”

  Cedric winked. “Probably, but I was thinking about the night of Brayden’s party.”

  “What about it? Wait, never mind. I think I know where you’re going with this.”

  “You remember how Cam and that ponytailed guy were chatting up Heidi Merlow?”