AllFreeNovel
Share Us
And that was when the world went black.
--
When I opened my eyes again, it was to find Bash leaning over me, his eyes wet with tears as he cradled my head in his huge hands. “Baby,” he sobbed. “Thank fuck.”
“Lexa!” I cried, sitting up so fast, the world began to spin.
Bash eased me back, carefully holding me. “She’s in recovery. The doctor said we can see her as soon as she starts coming out from under the anesthesia,” he reminded me. “You scared the hell out of me.”
The shaking was starting to take hold of me again, but it was worse now. My teeth began to chatter together, my entire body feeling as if it was encased in ice. “Why can’t I stop shaking?” I demanded, irritated.
“Reaction. Shock. You’re coming down off some pretty high adrenaline, baby.” He moved back then stood before lifting me to my feet.
He pulled off his coat and wrapped it around my shoulders, carefully pulling my hair out from under it and then folding his arms around me.
That was when I broke. When the lump filled my throat and the tears burned my eyes. I buried my face in his chest, and he gave me his strength as I let the stress and pain and agony of the last six-plus hours go.
It wasn’t until Jet and the others arrived at the hospital that I was finally able to get some semblance of control over myself and wipe away my tears. By then, Bash’s shirt was soaked in my tears and snot, but he didn’t seem to care as we moved into the corner of the OR waiting room and the guys filled us in on what had happened after we’d left.
They had cleaned up the mess I’d created when I blew the man’s face off.
I wasn’t sorry. I knew I was supposed to feel some kind of remorse for taking a life, but all I felt was this overpowering sense of relief. Fontana couldn’t hurt us anymore. Bates wouldn’t get in our way again.
That wouldn’t have mattered, though, if Lexa hadn’t made it out of there alive. I would have wanted to follow them to hell and spend eternity tormenting the fuck out of them.
A nurse appeared in the doorway, glancing around. There were two other families waiting on their loved ones to get out of surgery, but somehow, I knew she was looking for us.
I moved forward and she frowned, probably wondering if I could possibly be the mother of the little girl who was under her care. Lexa and I looked nothing alike, but even though we didn’t share a single drop of blood, she was mine just as much as Max was. Legally, I was her mother, but it was more than that. In my soul, she belonged to me.
Then she saw Bash behind me and understanding cleared her eyes. Lexa and Max both looked so much like their father, there was no denying who they belonged to.
“Mr. and Mrs. Reid?” I nodded. “Your daughter is starting to come around, and she keeps crying for her mommy. Would you like to follow me, and I’ll take you back to her?”
I was already on her heels before she could clear the door.
Lexa was in the ICU, where the doctor told us she would be for the next day or so just as a precaution. She wasn’t the most critical patient in the ward, but she was definitely the youngest.
When I saw her again, my heart stopped at just how badly Fontana had beaten her. There wasn’t a single inch of skin that wasn’t covered in bruises. Her face was stitched, the jagged cut going from her temple down to the corner of her mouth, disfiguring the entire right side of her face.
Rage filled me anew, and I wanted to kill the monster who did this to my baby all over again.
She was whimpering as the doors opened, and I rushed forward. Her blue eyes opened, and she started to cry as soon as she saw me. “Mommy!” But when she tried to sit up to hug me, she cried out in pain, and I bent so I could hug her, hold her.
I kissed her forehead carefully, brushing her hair back from her face, and just soaked up the fact that my daughter was alive.
Chapter 26
Gracie
I closed down my computer and was about to get to my feet when my office door was pushed inward and Jenkins came in, a bottle of champagne in his hands.
With everything that had happened over the weekend, then rushing to clean up all the legal loose ends that went along with it, I was exhausted. Monday had passed in a blur at the neighboring county’s police station and then the courthouse to make sure Hawk and the others hadn’t faced any backlash after rescuing little Lexa.
Today, Tuesday, had been just another day to my exhausted brain and the constant morning sickness that was my new companion. But upon seeing my boss and mentor’s grin and the gleam in his eyes, the realization of what this day really was hit me.
“Are the election results in?” I asked. As busy as things were, I was glad I’d voted absentee since there was no way I could have made it to the polls today.
“How about treating your new mayor to a steak dinner?” he asked, popping the top on his champagne.
