by KJ Dahlen
Looking over at the bay window, he noted the sun was just coming up over the Lake. He had a pretty good view of Lake Ontario from his bedroom and the lake always seemed to calm his soul.
Looking down at the top of her head again, he remembered something Sarah had told him once, she told him that he’d always had feelings, they might not be the same as other people felt, but he had feelings all the same. He hadn’t believed her then but now, he was beginning to.
He felt movement and peered down to find her looking back at him...Staring at him with a curious look in her eyes. He smiled and whispered, “Good morning.”
“Morning,” Sarah whispered back. The curious look in her eyes changing to uncertainty.
“What’s on your mind sweetheart?” he asked.
Sarah tried to move away from him but he wouldn’t let her go. His arm tightened on her body, holding her close.
Sarah closed her eyes.
He frowned. “What?”
“I have something to tell you but I don’t know how to say it.”
“Just say it.” He growled.
She stared at him and bit her lip for a moment.
“Say it,” he urged.
“I’m having your baby,” Sarah finally whispered.
Bane’s mind went blank for a moment then he stared at her briefly before his gaze went down to her belly. His eyes went back to her face and he just stared at her.
“Will you say something?” She whispered worriedly.
“You’re having my baby?” he repeated her statement.
Sarah nodded and bit her lip again. She was worried about how he would take the news but she wanted this baby. She only hoped he would too. She knew he already had two grown children but they were gone now. She also knew he was a lot older than she was but that never mattered to her. She thought he might not want another baby with her. And right now he didn’t look as if he did. She moved away from him or at least she tried, but again, he wouldn’t let her go very far.
“You’re having my baby,” he whispered again, but at least it didn’t sound like a question this time.
Now his voice had something else in it. She couldn’t tell whether it was awe or regret.
Bane dropped his hand down to her belly and covered it gently. “You’re having my baby.”
She looked up at him and saw the awe in his eyes. “Is that okay with you? I wasn’t sure you would want to start all over again.”
He swiftly raised his head to look into her eyes. “You. Are Having. My. Baby.” Then he leaned over and crushed her mouth under his. His kiss was urgent and intense.
When she began kissing him back, it went to mind-blowing in a nanosecond.
Bane moved over her and settled in her cradle seeking out her heat. He pushed himself into her gently, the whole while staring into her eyes.
She caught his rhythm and went to close her eyes.
“Look at me,” he whispered in a deep tone.
He made love to her slowly but meaningfully. Each stroke was a building block to the next one and each stroke built her higher and higher. Then when they were both on the edge of the abyss, he slammed into her and they both soared over the edge together.
When he would have moved off her, she wrapped her legs around his waist and held him in place. Still looking into his eyes she had to ask, “Are you happy about the baby?”
Bane smiled down at her. “Although it is unexpected, yes I think I am. With Grace, I didn’t want a child but she ended up giving me two. I didn’t know about either one of them until they were grown and while I claimed them, I never really knew either of them. I didn’t know my own children and when they were gone, I never thought about them again. All I felt toward them was regret.”
“And this child?” she asked nervously. “What do you feel for this child?”
“This child?” He shook his head. “I’m not really sure. This do over is like starting my life completely over. I’m still the same man I was before but now, my life has so much more meaning.”
“What does that mean?” She felt confused.
Bane slid off of her and settled down next to her. “When I walked away from Stark’s compound and I felt the pain of the bullet he shot me with. I was surprised because I never felt pain like that before. Each step I took, I felt myself getting weaker and weaker and I fully expected to die alone in those woods. I was finally about to forgive Orrin and Grace for betraying me then I realized they really didn’t betray me. For thirty years, I held on to the bitterness of what I thought they had done to me. Then just moments before Bastian rescued me and offered me a new life, I realized I had betrayed them. As soon as I let go of the hatred in my heart, I found a certain level of peace in my soul.”
Sarah reached out and smoothed his hair tenderly.
He went silent for a minute or two, then went on, “I took my steps forward into a new world, really. One, where I had to figure out how I felt about different things. When before, I never felt anything at all. Then when we went to Troy last year and I got sucked back into my old life, I’d thought I failed my do over.” He shook his head. “But I was surprised to find I could walk away from it again. I never wanted you to see that side of me. I thought I would lose you if it ever came up.” He smiled at her. “But you didn’t run away, you stayed.”
Sarah smiled back. “I stayed because you didn’t scare me. We all have a certain side of ourselves that we only bring out when it’s necessary. You were protecting your family. You had to do awful things but if you didn’t, they would have wiped out the people you loved. But that isn’t really you anymore, is it?”
Bane shook his head.
Sarah cocked her head at him. “But I think we both know if there was a threat to the ones you love, that man Bane will come back out and he will do whatever he has to do to protect his family...” She paused then said, “I killed a man to protect my mother. Would I do it again? You bet your ass I would, but would I do it for a living? I don’t think so. You and the others here do what you have to do to help those who can’t help themselves. That’s a good thing, not a bad thing. You guys have taken down some seriously bad people and you will again, and again. But only because they need taking down. There is a big difference between this and what you used to do.”
He let out a long breath. “Maybe but this baby is my child and my other two children were born missing something that made me who I was back then. What if this child is born with the same missing part? I was a monster back then. I don’t want this child born with the same missing part of his or her soul.”
“Maybe the difference will be the children you had with Grace weren’t born of love but rather obsession,” Sarah offered her explanation. “This child will be born from love.”
He paused to think about what she said then nodded. “That might make a difference.”
“So you’re happy about the baby?” she asked timidly.
Bane smiled. “Yeah, I’m happy about the baby. I just never expected this you know? I thought I was too old to have another chance at raising a kid.” He snorted. “I’m a grandfather for Christ’s sake.”
Just then, his phone pinged. Bane reached over and grabbed it off the night stand. Gazing down at it, he frowned. Why would Sebastian text him at this hour? He’d sent a photo and a short text.
This came to my phone early am. The text read: Does he belong to you?’
When he opened it to look at the photo, he growled and sat straight up in bed. “Fuckin’ hell.” He growled. “What the fuck is this?” He looked down at Sarah and snapped, “Get dressed. We need to speak to James right fucking now.”
Grabbing his pants, he pulled them up over his bare ass.
He then picked up his shirt and was on his way out the bedroom door as he pulled it on. He dialed a number and shouted, “I need you right now, not ten minutes from now, right now.”
Sarah dressed quickly and ran after him. “What the hell is going on?” She met up with him in the dining room the VIM team all
shared.
He ignored her questions as he paced back and forth.
She could tell he was agitated, so she didn’t try to touch him.
Just then, James and Bastian showed up along with Damon.
“So that was a threat to you, personally,” Bastian stated.
“Yes, it was.” Bane held his phone out and showed them the photo.
James looked at the photo and frowned. “What the hell?”
Sarah moved forward and found a way to see it as well. She gasped and raised her hands to her mouth. “No,” she whispered as she stared at him. “No, no, no.” She shook her head and backed away.
“What are you going to do?” Bastian asked him.
“Stop it from happening, then I’m going to hunt down the bastard that sent that photo and kill him.” Bane growled.
Bastian looked over at James and handed him his own phone. “Hunt down where the photo came from. Find a starting point.”
James took it as he nodded then headed down the hall to his command center.
Bastian looked back over at Bane. “So what are you going to do?” he asked him again.
“I’m going to protect my grandson.” Bane snarled. “Come hell or high water, he will not be harmed.” He then turned to go back to his quarters to pack. He was on his way to Troy.
Chapter Two
Bath, New York
The day before....
As had been the usual for the last week, Kisa got on the net and she surfed far and wide. Then she happened to stumble on something promising. Hospital records from two years ago. Just around the same time as the claim of Jessin’s death. She then hit a trail of the name that had paid for surgery on a man that had the same description as Bane Jessin himself. Yes, she had already dug that obit up for Grigori. But then again, she had hoped that it would put a stop to his hunt. Grigori never believed it, so it didn’t stop him.
Kisa closed the cover of her laptop and looked over at her younger brother Maksim.
“What did you find?” he asked her.
“I don’t know if I want him to know,” she replied.
“You know you have to tell him something,” Maksim insisted.
“Why?” She looked over at him. “Poppi begged him before he died to let go of the hatred he had in his heart. He promised he would. He made a promise to a dying man that he would try to let it go.”
Maksim snorted. “That he would try, the only problem is he isn’t trying very hard is he?”
Kisa shook her head. “He’s going to get us all killed, you know that right?”
“Da, I know that.” Maksim sighed heavily. “But Grigori is a stubborn bastard isn’t he? He was the only one of us there the day Jessin got to our Poppi. He was the only witness to the attack that left him almost dead in the street. He just can’t let it go.”
Kisa shook her head. “He keeps saying we don’t know what he saw and heard that day, we weren’t there, but Poppi told him he had to stop the hate. That Jessin could have killed him that day but he didn’t. Jessin walked away and Poppi was still breathing.”
“But now, Poppi is gone and we have to deal with Grigori on our own.” Maksim shook his head.
Kisa stared at her younger brother. “You know the truth about the attack don’t you? I mean why Jessin came after him?”
Maksim nodded. “Da, Poppi told me. He said he’d deserved the beating Jessin gave him. He tried to cheat the brotherhood. What the hell did he expect would happen?”
Just then, the door opened and Grigori walked in. He wore a scowl and at the sight of Kisa, his scowl deepened. “Did you find him yet?”
“Da, I found him,” she admitted. “I found a death notice from two years ago, at least.”
Grigori sneered. “That bastard isn’t dead. He’s still out there somewhere. You just need to find him.”
Kisa moved her chair over to the desk. She had found something significant but she sure as hell was not going to tell him.
Staring at her, Grigori growled and pushed her chair all the way back a few feet.
Maksim rushed up and stopped her chair from tumbling over.
Getting up swiftly, Kisa tried to get to her keyboard.
“Net!” Grigori yelled. “You get back or I will have to hurt you!”
Fisting her hands, she stomped her foot.
Grigori stared at the screen. “A niece? And I see that you also found out where she is. Hmm... she’s involved with an MC, over in Troy.”
She grew fidgety and nervous now. “It’s just speculation, Grigori.”
He seemed to notice her anxiety. “What else did you find, sister?” he stared at her.
Kisa shook her head.
Grigori tuned and then opened up her other window on her server.
Biting her lip, Kisa held her breath.
Reading for a moment, Grigori began to smile. “So the beast has a grandson, eh? That could bring him out of hiding, if he has any feelings left at all.”
“What are you going to do if you do find him?” Maksim asked.
Grigori glared at him. “I’m going to leave him like he left our Poppi. Broken and bleeding in the dirt, barely breathing and only half alive.” He tapped some keys on her keyboard. Then some more. Then he tapped print.
A photo came out on the printed paper.
Grigori tore it off then grabbed a pen. He smirked as he drew something over the image, then turned to Kisa. He handed her the paper. “Make sure the man you tracked down gets this on his phone. Then pack our things, we’re going to Troy to check out this kid.”
Kisa took the paper and peered down at it. Then she sucked in a frightened breath. “What are you going to do to him?” she asked as fear settled in her stomach. She had messed up. She should have closed out those windows when he came in.
Grigori just stared at her with no expression on his face, then he turned and walked away.
Kisa looked over at Maksim and shook her head. “I won’t let him hurt that kid.”
“What can you do to stop him?” Maksim asked her.
“I don’t know but he isn’t gonna hurt a kid.”
Redemption House, Troy New York
Joey Conant frowned as he searched. He was looking for someone in particular. Any key he could find to solving the event that had nearly ruined his life. He had found some evidence but it wasn’t enough. He couldn’t find any further trail after he’d found just that one shipment of weapons. Then he stumbled onto something remarkable.
An intense search on the net for a man by the name of Bane Jessin.
That was a name often whispered in back alleys and in the black market areas. A legendary assassin that simply disappeared from the face of the earth. Or so the rumors reported. Some said he was dead and some claimed no one could have killed a man like him.
The puzzle was that Joey couldn’t help but wonder why the sudden interest in a man who may no longer exist.
Someone knocked on his door.
He glanced up and called out, “Come in.”
Amos opened the door and walked inside.
Joey had been living here at Redemption House since his good friend Maggie referred him to here. Joey was glad he came because he’d met Amos, Frankie and the rest of the guys. He’d been suffering from PTSD from his last tour in Iraq and it did help to find someone who’d been there, done that.
Now he had a place to stay and a job he could do. But Joey had been working on something he could do better. He’d been searching for the source of the intel that got his friends killed in the sandbox. “Hey Amos,” he called out softly. “Have you ever heard of a man named Bane Jessin?”
Amos froze and scowled. “What the hell you been doing in here all this time, kid?”
Joey shrugged. “Not much.”
“Then why ask about Bane?”
Joey shook his head. “I was searching the dark web for something else yesterday when his name popped up. Someone is looking for the man and I just thought it was weird. I mean I’ve heard of hi
m in the past but he’s been gone for a couple of years.” He shrugged. “I thought the man might be dead or something. But now, all of a sudden, he’s being hunted. I was just curious as to why.”
Amos shook his head. “It’s probably best you don’t wonder about that man. From what I’ve heard about him, he doesn’t like the attention and he’d just as soon kill you as look at you.”
“Heard another rumor about that man, though,” Joey said. “I heard he’s got ties to the Sin’s Bastards. You know them right?”
Amos gave him a short nod. “I should. Ms. Cassie is married to it.” He shook his head. “Well, not to it, but to the prez of it. So, almost the same thing.”
“Well, she is a special person. I know that firsthand, so that MC has to be one of the good ones.”
“It is, believe me,” Amos assured him.
“So is it true? That he’s got ties to the MC?”
Amos shook his head. “You don’t want to mess with that subject at all, kid. Best to just leave it alone.”
Joey shook his head. “I know. I just got this feeling. Call it my gut.”
“You got a hunch?” Amos cocked his head at him.
Joey nodded. “Yeah something like that. It’s kind of like walking into a minefield. You know the bombs are there but you walk in anyway. I feel like I’m taking the first step into that minefield. For some reason, I have to make it to the middle in order to collect the prize and its close... yet, so far away all at the same time. You know?”
Amos stared at him. “I get it. Has happened to me a time or two. You just keep your eyes open. If there’s trouble coming, you’d best let someone know as soon as you find it.”
“I will.” Joey watched as he closed the door behind him, then he went back to the internet and began searching again.
Bath, New York
By daybreak, they were on the road for the four hour trip to Troy.
The scowl on Grigori’s face hadn’t cleared for days since they buried their Poppi but now, he had a look in his eyes that scared her. A fevered look, one of determined glee, but not the happy kind of glee.
