Page 56 of Quadruplets for the Vipers

Stammering, she explains. “The doctor implanted four embryos, Donna and Zeus wanted to be sure they’d get a grandchild. And no, Leah doesn’t know, or at least she didn’t when I told you all the other day.”

This changes everything. Whatever Leah’s involvement is, I don’t care, I’m going to move heaven and earth to get her back, to get those babies back.

Chapter 28

Leah

My stomach growls audibly as I hunch over in bed, trying not to focus on the gnawing pangs of hunger. Tony’s strict, calorie-controlled diet is barely enough to keep me away from the brink of starvation, let alone the four fragile lives growing inside of me. No matter how much I beg and plead, he doesn’t give me anything more. I may have convinced him that their lives are worth keeping, for now, but that doesn’t mean he wants to risk me getting fat. It’s sickening. Just when I think I can’t hate him anymore he reaches a new level of sadism that makes me despise him all the more.

I’ve lost track of time. I have no idea how long I’ve been shut away in this room. Tony is the only other soul I see, and his visits are becoming fewer and farther between. My food is shoved through a slot in the door like in a prison. Which just reinforces my initial thoughts that this place will be my jail. With every passing day, my situation feels even more hopeless. No one is coming to save me.

Tony was right. The guys aren’t coming to save me, not when they think I’m no longer pregnant. They didn’t really care about me, it was always the baby. The sex was probably just a bit of fun for them. Did I actually believe four guys would simultaneously fall for me? Sure, I thought I heard Axel say he loved me, but I must have been mistaken. Either that or he was delirious or saying things on the spur of the moment since he came so close to death. The only thing keeping me going now is these babies. They’re all I have to live for.

I’m so scared that even if the nurse in the hospital was lying, the stress and near starvation is harming them. I try to stay as calm as I can, singing songs to them, my voice echoing in the empty room. I wish I was further along in my pregnancy, then they’d be kicking and I’d have a sure sign that they were alright. All I have now is hope.

I don’t even bother to move when I hear the door open. I know who it is, after all.

A tentative cough followed by a female voice. “Sorry to disturb you…”

Surprised, I turn around to face the door. Standing there is the nurse from the hospital, the one who told me I’d miscarried. I narrow my eyes at her, clutching my stomach protectively as if she means to harm the babies.

“Why are you here?”

I’m so exhausted I can’t even summon the malice I want to express.

“Tony sent me to give you another ultrasound,” she says tentatively, hovering in the doorway, using her medical trolley as a barrier.

She’s dressed in the same blue scrubs as last time, though now she isn’t wearing a long sleeved, high-necked top underneath, revealing her tattoos. It dawns on me that she must be affiliated with the Hellhounds.

“You’re not fucking touching me. Tell him to send someone else. Anyone else,” I snarl, ready to bite like a beaten dog, protecting her puppies.

She looks pained, as though I’ve actually struck her. Even so, she doesn’t back down. Instead, she comes into the room, shutting the door behind her softly. She speaks in a soft, sad voice. “I don’t expect you to forgive me for lying to you. And I don’t expect you to believe me, but I was told that I needed to lie to save you. I was told you were being held against your will by the Steel Vipers and that the only way you could escape was if the men who were holding you believed you were no longer pregnant. I know now this wasn’t the case and I am so sorry for the pain I caused you.”

“Tony told you that?”

She shakes her head. “No. I mean he did, but I heard it through Lucifer.”

I stare at her like she’s insane.

Is she telling me the devil told her to lie to me about my babies?

She must realize how it sounds as she clarifies. “Lucifer’s the Hellhounds’ Prez, he’s my old man. It’s all my fault. I told him I saw members of the Steel Demons at the prenatal clinic. He’s been wanting a way to destroy the club, and I gave him an opening. I wish I’d kept my mouth shut. I’m going to end things with him soon, after what he made me do to you.” She comes close to whisper this and I recoil away from her.

“Why haven’t you already?”

While she seems genuine, I’m not ready to forgive and forget that easily. Nor am I going to risk letting my guard down and falling for a trap.

Her eyes dart nervously to the door, as if worried someone might burst in at any moment. “Because I want to help you.”

I huff, thinking that she could have helped me sooner by simply doing nothing. “Why?”

Again, she seems nervous to speak, and it dawns on me why. The room must be bugged. Tony probably has the whole place kitted out with cameras and mics. My skin crawls at the intrusion, and I curse myself for not realizing it sooner.

I nod, trying to convey my understanding. “Never mind, it’s not like you can tell the truth. Let’s get on with this.” I hope that to anyone listening it sounds like I’m simply calling her a liar but that to her, she’ll understand my meaning.

A palpable look of relief crosses her face as she nods and comes closer, pulling the ultrasound machine behind her. My heart hammers in my chest. I don’t think I could handle more bad news. If I have to hear those words again, it will kill me. She seems to understand how scared I am as she gently goes about her task, her eyes trying to convey her remorse.

For a moment, it’s quiet and I think I might break. But then there’s the unmistakable distorted, fluttering sound of heartbeats.

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