Chapter 24
Stone
I pace the waiting room as Doc’s phone vibrates for the fifth time, but I ignore him and keep looking at the double doors, wondering when Dr. Chambers is going to come out and give me some news, any fucking news.
Fuck, it’s been two hours and I haven’t heard anything.
I wanted Doc in there with her, but they refused, conflict of interest or something shitty like that, but I don’t fucking trust anyone but him.
“Dr. Chambers is a really good fucking doctor, brother, I promise, he has more qualifications in this area than I do,” Doc tries to calm me, but I shake my head.
The knife was near her heart, the crazy fucking bitch tried to stab my wife in the heart.
I link my fingers behind my head as I breathe heavily.
Doc didn’t stop CPR, not once, all while Carter drove the van.
I left my bike at the store. Vincent brought Doc’s to the hospital before going back for mine, and the room is half full with brothers who woke to the emergency alarm. Vincent explained to them what had happened. Even Ashley is here for me, for my wife.
She swore never to be around the club again, yet here she is, showing us her good heart though she’s staying far away from her husband who won’t take his eyes off her.
Doc’s phone buzzes again, and Trigger snaps, “Just fucking answer it, Doc!”
“No,” he denies, “it’s Smith wanting to know if I’ve made my mind up about marrying his daughter for an alliance.”
“Don’t do it,” I instantly say, not looking at anyone, my sole focus on the door.
I mutter, “You will regret it. Take it from someone who knows, you will regret it, so don’t do it.
The club is fine without his influence, worse comes to worst, Dirty can look up some shit on him.
There is probably plenty, but don’t fucking do it. ”
Doc sighs but doesn’t say anything, and I begin to pace again.
I can’t help him if he isn’t willing to help himself. He’s the president, yet he still feels like he needs to prove something to his dad.
I squeeze my eyes shut as the blood hits me again, the feel of it still on my hands despite Ashley wiping them.
Blood, there was so fucking much blood, and it’s all my fault.
I caused this by not getting rid of Elsie to begin with.
I didn’t put my wife fucking first, instead I put my dad and whatever shit James has on him first. Fuck, he’s a brother, he could have killed him with the help of the club if he’d just explained why and that he was being blackmailed but no, instead he chose to ruin my life knowing I felt like I needed his approval, just like Doc with his dad, only Doc has yet to meet his one.
The door to the hall opens, and I quickly look but sag as my dad rushes in, shock all over his face.
Fuck! Where is the doctor?!
Dad stops before me and demands, “What happened? Your mama couldn’t really explain it, only that she broke her hand.”
Shit, Mama broke her hand?
I look at Doc with wide eyes, and he winces and admits, “She had her thumb tucked into her fist when she hit the bitch. A prospect brought her to the emergency room.”
I flinch because ouch, before looking at Dad, and all my anger, all my fear, I latch it onto him, and he tenses seeing my reaction to him before he braces himself.
Without giving a shit, I lift my arm before swinging my fist, hitting his jaw.
He stumbles back with a grunt as a few hands grab me from behind but I shove them away as I point at my stoic father and growl, “Your best friend’s daughter, who you forced me to stay married to for eleven fucking miserable years and tried to ruin the love I finally found with my one, stabbed my wife in the chest then tried to claim Rose attacked her! ”
“What the fuck…” Dad whispers, and his face pales.
Dirty chimes in, “I found the footage, Elsie already had a gash on her arm when she shoved an unsuspecting Rose and stabbed her, not that it would have mattered, I would have praised Rose if she did hurt Elsie, but the woman is all heart and wants to save people not hurt them, and, the crazy bitch Elsie was laughing when she walked away.”
“She still doesn’t know she isn’t married to Stone,” Alfie says as he walks over gripping his prospect cut, “I went to verify she was tied up tightly and even with a split lip she kept cackling that we can’t kill her because she’s the VP’s wife, that she got the role and man she wanted and no one will be his mistress. ”
Dad’s eyes widen before pure guilt shows, and he whispers, “I’m so sorry, son,” but I shake my head and turn away from him before I tackle him to the ground and beat him bloody.
Father or not, my wife is fighting for her life, and he’s one of the reasons why. I can’t exactly beat myself up any more than I already am.
I should have just divorced the bitch when I had the chance at nineteen instead of listening to a selfish piece of shit.
“James drugged me,” Dad admits out of the blue, causing everyone to look his way, and I frown as we lock eyes.
Dad swallows hard as he places his hands on his hips and chokes, “He drugged me, not enough to knock me out but enough to make me want-want…” he pauses before taking a deep breath then admits, “We had sex, it was after your mama cheated but there I said it, I fucked James in the ass and he recorded it.”
Holy shit.
My mouth drops in shock while the room is so quiet, you can hear a pin drop.
“He mentioned once that he wanted to set you and Elsie up, that you two were sleeping together, and she wanted you. I told him I wouldn’t do that to you, that you both were making decisions teenagers make and it wasn’t a high school romance, that you weren’t ready for marriage, especially not at that age.
” He admits and I see Ashley flinch in corner, the words hitting her hard, and Trigger goes to walk towards her, but she quickly moves, stopping him in his tracks.
That is how she sees her relationship with Trigger now, not the high school romance she thought they had.
Dad continues after giving her a soft smile and says, “Two weeks later, you tell me Elsie is apparently pregnant which shocked me and yes I was suspicious but she had proof,” Dad admits, “I admit, I thought marriage was the best option, for the club, for you and your reputation, especially with you taking over as VP. When you told me that she lied, that Dirty had proof of her faking a miscarriage then further lied, claiming she couldn’t have kids because of the fake miscarriage to gain the sympathy vote from the brothers, I spoke to James which is when he showed me the footage,” he swallows, “When I woke up the morning after, I had little flashbacks but I didn’t believe it, thought I was hallucinating but I guess I was wrong. ”
“Dad,” I whisper.
“He said he had copies, and if anything were to happen to him, they’d automatically send it to everyone and when I called his bluff, he sent it to your mother as proof,” he admits, “I-I, fuck, son, I was so ashamed. I didn’t want the brothers to know that I-I, fuck, that I was sexually assaulted by a man, and your mama didn’t want anyone to know either.
She barely fucking looked at me for months. ”
“Why did you stay with Hayley?” Anchor asks, coming up beside us with his arms crossed, “She cheated on you all because she didn’t get enough attention but was soon around for your money.
Then fucking abandoned you in your time of need, then proceeded to encourage you not to tell your story, allowing her own son to stay with a crazy, lying bitch. Why did you stay?”
“Because I love my wife, Anchor,” Dad whispers, and Anchor looks away.
He met someone who was already in a relationship, and even knowing that, he fought for her, but apparently, she cheated on him, fucked her ex-boyfriend, and the man is crushed.
We haven’t met her, fuck, we don’t even know her name, but what we do know is that she used him.
“And what about your son?” Canine asks, and even Doc snorts.
The fucker should not be chiming in right now when he’s trying to force his son into a marriage.
“You don’t have a leg to stand on, brother,” my dad reminds him, but Canine shakes his head and admits, “I do actually. While yeah I want my son to marry Smith’s daughter for the sake of our club and to piss the fucker off, he hasn’t found the one, he never believed in the one,” Doc flinches confusing me, “Your son found his one and you still tried to guilt trip him and force him to stay with Elsie and now his wife, his love is fighting for her life.”
“And what exactly was I supposed to say, huh, Brian?” Dad snaps, “Was I supposed to come to you with my wife hanging our marriage over my head like a fucking carrot if I said anything and admit I was basically raped?!”
My jaw ticks, and Canine looks down.
Mama had no right hanging their marriage like that, using it so he didn’t say anything, not when she fucking cheated.
“Yes,” Doc says firmly, shocking everyone.
He points at Dad and states, “If your wife was using your marriage as a way for you to have to live with your trauma then she is no fucking wife. She’s a patch chaser wanting a good life and don’t get me wrong, I love Hayley, she’s family, she’s my aunt, but she was a bitch to do that especially when she fucked someone else before she got pregnant with Selena. ”
The door opens, and I quickly look with my heart in my throat, but instead, I growl.
Mama.
Her hand is in a small cast, and she is completely oblivious to what she’s just walked in on.
“Any news?” she asks as she looks around the room, but then frowns seeing how tense it is. “What happened?” she demands, and my jaw ticks yet again.
“What happened, Mama”, I say, gaining her attention, “Is that you would have rather Dad suffer in pain with his trauma every fucking day and see me with a lunatic patch chasing bitch than to be embarrassed that your husband was basically sexually assaulted by another man.”
Mama's eyes widen in shock as her whole body locks, and I tell her, “You are a hypocrite. You fucking cheated on Dad who treated you like a queen, and he stayed with you because he loved you, and yet you couldn’t be there for him in his time of need?” I curl my lip at the woman I once promised to always protect and admit, “I’m fucking ashamed to call you my mother! ”
Mamas tears fall but I turn away from her, linking my fingers behind my head as I lock eyes with Doc and demand, “You need to go back there before I begin tearing this hospital apart.”
Just as I say the words, the door opens again, and I swing around and have all the air sucked out of me as Dr. Chambers comes into the room, covered in blood, my wife’s blood.
Fuck.
Doc quickly grabs my arm before I can fall to my knees while Rose’s family rushes over to the doctor, whose eyes are on me.
“My daughter, how is my daughter?” William begs as he wraps his inconsolable wife and daughter under each arm.
They’ve been sitting in the corner, quietly listening to everything, not chiming in.
They blame me, and I don’t fucking blame them because I blame me too, and after this, I’m going to make the right decision for my wife even if it breaks me.
Dr. Chambers looks my way, and I give a subtle nod before he addresses Rose’s family.
“The knife just missed her heart,” is the first thing Dr. Chambers says, and I swallow hard, my body trembling. He continues, “I’m talking not even an inch. Rose was very lucky, and we managed to stop the bleeding.”
Her mama lets out a sob while Kimmy looks at me with tears trailing her cheeks. I tilt my head as she leaves her dad's embrace and comes into mine.
I wrap my arm tightly around her, and she grips my cut as the doctor admits, “She’s in a medically induced coma at the moment.
She lost a lot of blood and required a blood transfusion, and now we’re giving her body a chance to heal and hopefully, when we wean her off the medication, she’ll wake up . ”
“You think she won’t wake up?” Karen gasps with shock, and I tense.
“She lost a lot of blood and was deprived of oxygen for a while. There is a chance she may not wake up, but if she does, we don’t know what state she will be in, so you need to prepare yourself.”
Karen screams, causing William to catch her as she falls, and I hold Kimmy tighter to me as she sobs, all while I try not to fucking sob myself.
“Mr. Garcia?” Dr. Chambers says, and we lock eyes, “only you can go in to see your wife at the moment.”
Kimmy sobs harder, and instead of letting her leave my arms, I hold her tighter, and I state, “Her parents and sister need to go in,” and he nods while William looks at me with respect, but I look away and kiss Kimmy’s head before pushing her gently towards her parents and I murmur, “Go see your sister, Kimmy.”
William takes his wife and daughter, both inconsolable, and leaves the waiting room, and Doc rasps, “Brother...” but I ignore him and walk out of the room, instead of going with my in-laws, I go to the exit, knowing what I need to do.
I never should have lied to her, I never should have brought her into this life.
I need to set my wife free of me, of the club.