Chapter 18 – Dice
18
DICE
W hen we left the clubhouse, I was exhausted and hoped I’d never have to tell the story of what happened at the diner again. I’d told it to the cops multiple times, and then I had to tell it to Phoenix, twice. He’d been in Devil Springs and didn’t make it back in time to meet us at the diner.
“Is that Walter’s truck?” Ink asked as we pulled into his driveway. He’d volunteered to drive to the clubhouse, and I happily took him up on his offer.
“It is,” I confirmed as Buck walked outside carrying a suitcase.
“What’s going on?” Ink asked, but I didn’t answer him. I got out of his truck and headed for Buck to ask the same question.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Daphne asked us to come get her,” he said simply.
“She what? Why?”
He narrowed his eyes angrily. “You know, and now she does, too.”
“What—” I began, then decided it would be better to go inside and see what in the hell was going on.
Walter was coming down the hallway carrying a small box. “What is happening?” I asked.
Walter shook his head and looked at me like I was dog shit on the bottom of his shoe. “I really want to put you on your ass, but I think Daphne should have a chance to say what she needs to say first.”
“I think you should put him on his ass,” Buck said from behind me. “It’ll make us all feel better.”
“Will one of you please tell me what the hell is going on?” I yelled, causing Diablo to come running into the living room, barking and growling. “Daphne!” I called loudly.
Diablo continued to bark as she appeared at the end of the hall. Her eyes were red and swollen, but the overall look of defeat made my heart sink.
“Daphne?”
“How could you?”
“How could I what ?”
“You’re having a baby with someone else! I’ve been the wife in this same scenario, and I refuse to be the other woman!”
“I’m not—” I started and took two steps toward her before Diablo stopped me with a menacing growl.
“Did you or did you not say you were the father of Tawny’s baby?”
Suddenly, it all made sense.
“It’s not what you think.”
She snorted derisively. “Can you men not come up with something better to say? It’s exactly what I think. Tawny’s pregnant. The baby is yours. And you didn’t bother to tell me about any of it. Am I wrong?”
I grimaced. “Technically, no, but let me explain.”
“No. There’s nothing you can say?—”
“She’s my sister!” I blurted, louder than I meant to.
Daphne’s jaw dropped.
Diablo stopped barking.
The box Walter was carrying fell to the floor.
“Eww,” Buck said, breaking the silence.
“He’s not the biological father,” Ink said, stepping in to explain since words seemed to be failing me. “He’s adopting the baby. So, it is his baby, but also not his baby.”
“What?” Daphne asked, looking confused. “Earlier you said she was Badger and Macy’s daughter.”
“She is. When my parents died, I was given custody of Tawny. I didn’t even know she existed until that phone call. I was twenty-three and didn’t know how to take care of a four-year-old, especially one who’d been traumatized. When Badger and Macy offered to adopt her, I knew that’s what would be best for her. She was only with me for a few days before she went to live with them.”
“Skip to the part about this baby being yours and not yours,” Buck said.
“Tawny is an addict. That day when Ink stayed with you because I didn’t get home until late, I was at the hospital with Badger and Macy. Tawny overdosed and almost died—again. They were able to resuscitate her and discovered she was pregnant. From what Badger and Macy said, she wouldn’t survive another overdose, and she likely wouldn’t survive the pregnancy. She was refusing to see any of us and refusing to go to rehab. I’ll admit that I panicked, but it was the only thing I could think of to buy her some time. I offered to buy the baby if she would stay in rehab for the duration of the pregnancy. When I told her the amount I was willing to pay, she agreed without hesitation. And that’s how the baby is mine and not mine.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Daphne asked, sounding far more understanding than I expected her to.
“I haven’t told anyone except Ink,” I said. “No one knows, not even Badger and Macy. I planned to tell you about Tawny when I told you about my parents, but we were interrupted. I sort of took that as a sign to keep it to myself because Tawny doesn’t like people knowing she is adopted. That’s also the reason I don’t routinely refer to her as my sister. It prompts questions she doesn’t like answering,” I explained. “I’m sorry you found out the way you did. I never meant to keep it from you. I just hadn’t figured out how to tell you or anyone else. Buying a baby isn’t exactly an okay thing to do. And I don’t want anyone to think I’m trying to force her to have a baby she doesn’t want. I’m trying to keep her alive for as long as I can and maybe save another life in the process.”
Daphne stared at me with a look of shock on her face. I couldn’t tell if she believed me or not.
“Show her the contract,” Ink said.
“The what?” she asked.
“When she agreed to sell her baby, I made her sign a contract saying she would stay in rehab for the entire pregnancy. It’s packaged as a pre-adoption agreement, but the outcome is the same. She stays in rehab, delivers the baby and gives it to me, and she gets twenty-five thousand dollars.”
“Twenty-five thousand?” Buck blurted.
I shrugged. “Like I said, I panicked. It was the first number that came to mind that I thought she’d agree to.”
I turned my attention back to Daphne. “I’m really sorry. I never meant for any of this to hurt you.”
“I don’t know what to say. This is a lot to process.”
“I understand,” I said, and I did. “Regardless of what’s going on between us, you’re still in danger, and I hope you’ll let the Blackwings continue to help you. I don’t have to be involved, if that’s what you want.”
Walter walked over to Daphne and said something I couldn’t hear. She nodded her head when he finished speaking and hugged him. “We’re going to clear out and give you two some time to talk. Ink, do you have time to show us around the farm? I want to see this greenhouse Daphne keeps talking about.”
“Sure, man. Follow me.”
Walter stopped beside me on his way out the door. “That is one hell of a story, son. I’ve always thought you were one of the good ones. Glad to see I wasn’t wrong.”
“I hope your daughter shares your opinion.”
“I think she does,” he said and continued on his way out the door.
I glanced at Diablo, who was watching my every move. “Is he going to eat me if I move?”
“Diablo,” she said. “Relax.”
If the situation hadn’t been so tense, I probably would have laughed when Diablo looked at her and cocked his head to the side as if to say, “Are you serious?”
“Diablo,” she repeated.
He huffed and made a noise that sounded like a grumble before he walked over to his blanket beside the couch and laid down, all while keeping his eyes on me. He obviously knew I was the reason Daphne was upset, and he was not happy about it.
“I’m really sorry, Daphne,” I said again.
She shrugged. “Maybe I overreacted.”
“No, you didn’t. You thought I was having a baby with another woman and keeping it from you. I’m just glad you called your dad instead of leaving on your own.”
“I’m not an idiot,” she said defensively.
“I know you’re not. But people don’t always make the best decisions when emotions are heightened.”
“Like secretly deciding to buy a baby for twenty-five grand.”
“Yes, exactly like that.”
“So, that guy at the diner—how did he know you were connected to Tawny?”
“Because I introduced myself to him the last time she overdosed and told him I’d kill him if he continued selling drugs to her. Then I beat the piss out of him to prove my point.”
“You thought that would work?”
“It worked with the four dealers before him. Apparently, this one is a special kind of stupid, as we saw today.”
“Do you think he is the biological father?”
“I have no idea. It won’t matter if he is. He’s in no position to fight me for custody, and I’d bet he could easily be persuaded to sign over his rights.”
“You’ve really thought about this,” she said.
“Yes, and no. I’ve thought about problems that could arise, like the biological father contesting the adoption, but I’ve tried not to think about the actual adoption too much. There’s a lot that could happen between now and then.”
“You mean her losing the baby?” she asked gently.
“That, or her dying. She was in really bad shape at the hospital, and she hadn’t even gone through withdrawals yet. There’s also nothing stopping her from leaving rehab. She can walk out the door, and there’s nothing I can do about it. I just have to hope the promise of twenty-five thousand dollars will be enough to keep her there.”
“Have you talked to her since she was admitted to rehab?”
I shook my head. “No, she wanted it added to the contract that there would be no contact between the two of us. I have full access to anything regarding the baby, which isn’t much this early in the pregnancy, but I can only get minimal information about her. They’ll tell me if she’s having a good day or a bad day, but that’s about it,” I said and changed the subject to what I really wanted to talk about. “Look, I understand why you came to the conclusion you did, but I want you to know I’m not a cheater. It’s been a while since I’ve been in a serious relationship, but I’ve never cheated on anyone.”
“I should’ve just asked you about her.”
“No, I should’ve told you about her, especially when I knew things were changing between us. You have a right to know that the person you’re getting involved with is going to be a parent.”
“I guess we both could have handled things differently,” she said and took a seat on the couch. She’d slowly been making her way into the living room as we’d been talking.
I probably should have waited, but I had to know. “Do you still want to leave?”
“I didn’t ever want to leave.”
“Let me try again. Will you stay?”
“On one condition.”
“Name it.”
“Can we get in the bed and pretend like today never happened?”
“That sounds perfect to me,” I said and extended my hand. “Let’s go.”