“We will.”
“You keep fucking saying that, but he’s nowhere! How does he just drop off the planet?” She clenched her fists. Anger was raging through her like a momma lion about to attack her prey. And damn if I didn’t find that sexy as shit, wish the timing was better, though.
“We’re working on it.” She glared at me. I knew she was sick as shit of hearing those words, but it was all I could give her; I didn’t have anything to share.
“Working on it. How?”
“We will find him.”
“Dammit! I just want to know how you’re finding my boy. I don’t want to know club business. I just want my son found!” She swung her legs over the bed, standing up. She moved into the bathroom slamming the door behind her.
Fuck. I couldn’t tell her everything we found. Her state of mind was making it hard for her to trust me. I knew deep down she did. Once she got off all these fucking meds she would come back to her damn senses. I just had to wait it out.
Diamond came in the room as I sat there trying to figure out what I was gonna do. “You all right, son?”
“Not really.” I said shaking my head.
“We’ll find him. Got every brother in the country looking for him. It’s only a matter of time.” I wasn’t giving up hope, but the more time that passed, the worse things looked.
Princess stormed out of the bathroom. “You here to tell me how you’re not finding my boy, too?” she accused him.
“Princess,” Diamond warned.
“What? Seems everyone can go find him but me. Then, the ones I trust to find him won’t tell me shit!” she barked.
Diamond’s eyes grew furious, and I knew that he was going to blow. “Princess. Enough! You hear me? Enough!” he growled. Princess’s eyes widened and lowered as she fell hard on her knees to the floor, the machine at her side falling within a crash.
She was sobbing uncontrollably as I rushed over to her. My strong woman was breaking before my eyes, and at this point, I didn’t know how to fix it. Sitting on the floor, I pulled her onto my lap wrapping my arms around her, held her tight. “I’m so sorry.” She cried in my shirt.
When the nurses came in and took sight of the scene, they quickly picked up the machine that fell, but said that Princess didn’t need it anymore and took it away.
“Come on, Baby. Let me put you in bed.” She nodded her head as I scooped her up in my arms, laying her on the bed. I crawled up with her holding her tight until she fell into a deep sleep.
Chapter 14—Harlow
My insides were numb; my heart only beating to pump blood throughout my body. It had no other function. The bullet wound and head have healed, but that wasn’t what hurt. My boy had been missing for two weeks. Two weeks and nothing. Not a word from Mel, and not a trace of the fucking car.
I laid in bed curled up in a ball. It’s where I’ve been since I got out of the hospital. I didn’t look at anyone or talk. The only time I did was to ask Cruz about our boy. I totally closed him out. His comfort no longer working. At this point, he could be fucking every whore in this place, and I wouldn’t give two shits. My heart was hollow. Empty.
My shoulder hurt like a bitch. Doc came in the other day and said I needed to keep moving it around, or it would lock, but I didn’t listen. The throbbing actually helped me feel something. The pain was just a reminder that I should have saved Cooper, that it was all my fault.
When I first started this mothering gig, I never expected the pain to cut so deep. I never thought that something could hurt this much. I was dead inside, and I might as well have been in reality. I didn’t want anything to do with food, and I only took a shower when Cruz forced me. I didn’t want anything to do with anything, except my boy.
When my cell rang, I groaned reaching for it on the night stand. I’ve only answered when it says Cruz or Pops. When a number popped up with a different area code, I tossed it to the side of the bed burrowing my head in the pillows. The phone rang again, and seeing the same number, I reluctantly picked up.
“Yeah,” I said not wanting to talk to whoever was on the other end of the line.
“Well, well, well. She lives.” The voice on the other end was one I didn’t think I’d ever hear again.
“Mel?”
“Ding… ding… we have a winner.” Her sarcasm was not lost to me.
Sitting up quickly, “Where’s Cooper?” Fury mixed with panic flushed my body intently.
“Listen to you, pretending to be all protective of my son.” Anger won as it boiled uncontrollably. I tried to hold my shit together. She wanted something, and I needed to find out what it was.
“Is he hurt?” I asked not beating around the bush.
“I’d never hurt my boy,” she clipped, but I knew that was a lie since I saw her grab him right before my eyes. My stomach dropped; she’d better not have laid a fucking hand on him.
“Can I talk to him?” I heard the pleading in my voice even though I wasn’t trying to show it, but damn if I didn’t want to hear the little guy’s voice.
“I tell you what. Give me what I want, and I’ll give the little shit to you.” I’m gonna rip this fucking bitch to pieces one limb at a fucking time. Once my hands got on her, she was fucking dead.
“I want a hundred thousand cash, small bills. You get on that little bike of yours and head north on I-95. In two hours, I’ll call you back. Don’t bring the guys, or I’ll kill Cooper.” Mel recited her demands as if she practiced them over and over again, but I didn’t give a shit.
“Don’t you fucking hurt him,” I growled.
“Oh, there you go again. Look I just want the cash, then you can have him back. Done. Talk to you in two hours.” Mel hung up the phone sharply.
Throwing on my jeans, t-shirt, boots, and rag, I ran out into the clubhouse to find Cruz. I knew by the loud music there was a party going on, but fuck if I cared. Seeing the blonde whore trying to straddle Cruz’s legs while he was talking to the guys, set me off. I knew I said I wouldn’t give two shits who he fucked, but I lied. Grabbing the bitch by her stringy hair, I yanked her further away from my man. “Get the fuck away.” Cruz stared at my rags.
“Back to the living.” As the anger flooded through me, I needed to release it. Grabbing the blonde bitch on the floor, I gave her a few punches to the face. Making me feel a little better, but not much. “I take that as a yes.”
“Mel called,” I barked at him as everyone in the clubhouse froze.
“Out! Everyone who’s not patched in, get out, fucking now!” Cruz growled as he stood up barreling towards me. The brothers proceeded to get everyone out of the clubhouse and locked it up tight. “What’d she say?”
“I’ve got two hours to get a 100k. Need to start riding north on I-95, and she’s gonna call me for the drop off. Said no brothers.”
“Fuck her if she thinks I’m staying away.”
“I know Cruz, but she said she’d kill him.” The color drained from his face at my words. “We need to play this smart.” I needed the brother’s help, and there was no way that I’d go coldcocked doing this shit on my own. Too much was at stake.
“That fucking bitch. I will end her.”
“Not if I get to her first. Can we get that much cash in small bills?” I questioned him.
“Got it. Diamond?” He looked over at Diamond, who nodded snapping his finger at Becs, who ran off.
“I know you don’t want me in this, but I have to be. I’m the one she wants to come. If you guys go, it has to be inconspicuous.” Ol’ lady or not, I was the one she wanted.
“I know Baby. Let’s go get our boy.” Cruz pulled me tight to his chest as I breathed for the first time in weeks.
“If you fucked someone while I was down and out, and I find out, I’ll cut your dick off,” I whispered.