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Just then Daisy’s body started shaking on the floor like a broken wind- up toy.
“She’s seizing, how close are they?” Jules yelled out.
“They’ll be at the gate in about three minutes.” Prosper looked at the monitor again. Then he depressed the button on the intercom and called out to the prospects on guard duty. “I want both gates opened now so the ambulance that’s coming down the road now won’t have to wait and I want you boys to escort them up.” Then he pressed another button that controlled the speaker system on the grounds. He turned off the music and turned on the mic. Then he tapped it three times and the noise in the yard quieted immediately. He spoke into the microphone. “Law enforcement and EMT on grounds. Keep to the lower five and keep outa the way.”
Then he looked at Riker. “Come with me.”
Once they were in the meet room, Prosper rummaged through a stack of boxes and threw Riker one of the tee shirts the club kept on hand for civilian helpers when they did charity runs. “You’re covered in gore, brother. Take that shirt off and put this one. I’m gonna burn the shirt and put your cut in the safe for now. We’ll worry about cleaning that bone and brain matter off the leather later.” While Riker stripped down, Prosper threw him a key ring.
“Go through the back door and take my sportster. It’s parked right near the old shed. Take the utility road through to the highway and down that back road that winds around the wooded area to the lake house.”
“Drummer offed himself, boss.” Riker looked at him in confusion. “Why the hell am I running?”
“Because the last thing you need is to be caught up in this kind of shit. They’re gonna want a full investigation and you covered with chunks of Drummer’s skull is gonna raise some eyebrows. Now get the fuck outa here.”
Riker had just cleared the utility road when he looked back and saw the ambulance crest the hill to the compound.
Gia was alldressed up and pacing the lawn in the back section of Sacred Heart Church. Father Mike had done his part in Haiti and had returned the week before just in time to baptize Rourke. Gia’s mother, Audrina, and her husband had flown in a few weeks ago to meet their new grandson and help arrange the christening. Because Gia and Riker’s wedding had broken tradition in like a zillion ways, Gia had talked Riker into letting her mom plan a huge baptismal celebration.
God help her.
Audrina was never happier or more in her element than she was when planning a big family event. Gia and Audrina had butted heads over just about everything from menu to flowers until Audrina had broken down in a rare show of tears and confessed to feeling left behind in the most important moments of her daughter’s life.
In a surprising show of sentimentality, Audrina cried ugly over having missed both the wedding of her only daughter and the birth of her only grandchild. Not to mention the guilt of being unreachable during Gia’s fight for life.
In the end, to her mother’s delighted surprise, Gia caved in and gave Audrina her way. It just wasn’t worth the trouble and besides Gia had a lot of other things on her mind. She had recently read in a magazine article that no matter how hard you try, that the overwhelming odds show that a woman is most likely to have the same kind of relationship with her daughter that she had with her own mother.
Gia prayed every night that this next child would be a boy.
She put her hand over her tummy protectively and frowned. Not that she wasn’t pleased. It was just that Rourke was still so small, she couldn’t imagine having another baby so soon. Another unplanned pregnancy. Gia didn’t know how this kept happening!
What? You don’t know how this keeps happening?Well, of course you know how this happened. You learned how it happens in sixth grade health class, you idiot! Do you have any idea how many millions of ways there out there to prevent pregnancy? It’s the 21stcentury for heaven’s sake. Besides you and Riker continue to fuck like hormonal teenagers with no thought to planning or consequences! What the hell did you…Gia’s inner self continued to chide her.
“Oh, shut up!” She muttered back with a frown.
“Gia? Is that you walking all over my new grass seed and muttering?” Father Mike called out with an amused smile. “You’re early. The baptismal isn’t scheduled for another hour yet
Gia looked down to see the obviously freshly seeded loam and the sign that said;Please stay off the grass.
See? Just like I told you…no thought to your actionsthat inner voice had to have the last word.
“I said, shut up!” Gia scolded.
Father Mike raised an eyebrow.
Gia shook her head and blurted out in horror. “No, Father! I didn’t mean you. I was just talking to myself. And I’m sorry for stepping on your grass. I didn’t see the sign.”
Father Mike sat down and patted the wooden bench. “Come sit, and tell me what’s on your mind, Gia.”
“I want Riker to come to confession and he won’t, so I need you to tell him he has to.” Gia blurted out as she plopped down next to the aged priest.
“Oh, I see.” Father Michael nodded. “And why do you think it’s important that Riker come to confession, Gia?”
“Because, I believe his soul may be in mortal danger.” Gia whispered.
“Mortal danger?” Father Michael nodded again. “And what makes you think that?”
“Isn’t that the point of confession, Father Mike?” Gia said with exasperation. “Isn’thesupposed to be the one to tell you that?”
