Page 64 of Taming the Bear
Both Slice and Mack Truck are walking him out of the house and then I’m alone with Big Sir. Part of me wishes that I didn’t kill him yet because I wanted to talk to him. I wanted to know why he would sell drugs to a pregnant woman. I wanted to know why he targeted me and then attacked Chantal like he did. These are all answers that I’m not going to get.
The drive to the hospital doesn’t take long but it feels like forever. I’m sitting in the back of the police car and all I can think about is everything that could go wrong. I knew it was only a matter of time before Dana overdosed but I didn’t think she would have done it when she was pregnant.
She knew how much this baby meant to me. I’m planning on naming him J.J. for Joe Junior. I get that it’s not original or anything but he’s going to be the one good thing that I do in this world and I want to make sure he gets the best of me.
“We’re here. She’s in room two-oh-four and they haven’t started anything yet. Just walk in.”
I don’t wait for him to say anything else and I bolt from the car into the hospital. I take the stairs two at a time until I’m on the floor that is holding Dana. There’s a bunch of nurses that are milling around the hallways and they are looking at me strangely as I dash past them.
My feet skid to a stop in front of Dana’s door. She looks tiny and innocent lying in the hospital bed. There are wires that are hooked up to her body every which way and a monitor that keeps buzzing.
“Joe, you made it,” she whispers.
I walk over to the side of the bed and try not to yell at her for being so careless. “What happened?” I ask instead.
She sobs as she answers me. “I’m so sorry. I tried. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t let another one of those men fuck me. I just couldn’t!”
“Who gave you the drugs?” I ask her calmly.
“Big Sir.”
I know that she doesn’t have any money because I’m the one that holds onto the money that she gets in a lame attempt at making sure that she’s not buying drugs. “How did you pay for it?”
The silence that she gave me told me everything.
I have risked my whole life for this woman and ensuring her safety. Everything that I have done was for her up until this point and now it’s meaningless. All of the time I spent trying to work my way up in the club and become a prospect was a waste.
My plan to prospect has been in the works since I knew what it was, but due to Dana being pregnant, my plans got jumped up.
“You fucked him, didn’t you?” I question her. I make a fist and then I let go of the fist. I do that several times in order to calm myself. Being calm is the last thing that I am.
“I’m so sorry. I’m so so so sorry. J.J…”
“What about J.J.? What about him?”
Dana’s eyes roll into the back of her head and her body starts shaking uncontrollably. “Help! Help!” I yell out as loud as I can. “Help!”
The nurses and a doctor come running into the room and push me off to the side so they could do some work. Their medical jargon is something that I don’t understand until I hear the words that I did.
Overdose. Seizure. Fetal heartbeat gone.
“We are losing the heartbeat!” The nurse yells out and the doctor brings in a shot full of something. He injects the shot into her I.V. but the beeping just got louder.
Chantal
My head hurts. Not hurts in the way a headache hurts. No, this is the type of hurt that is caused by a truck running over your head. I’m in that much pain.
I jolt awake and look around the bright room trying to figure out where I am. The bright light doesn’t help my headache and then I feel two hands that have found their way to my arms.
“Chantal,” my mother’s voice says softly. “You’re okay.”
“Where am I?” I ask while looking from both my mom’s face to my dad’s. I know I’m not in their house anymore because their lights aren’t as bright as this.
My dad kisses my forehead and replies: “We are at the clubhouse. Your friend sent us here. He said that he will be coming to tell us what the fuck happened.”
My head flies back a little and I stare at my father. “Did you just curse?” I ask him. My father has repeatedly said that he didn’t like swear words and said that unintelligent people swear to make them look better. Or some shit like that.
I hiss as my head hits the pillow harder from my shock. My mother leans over me and starts fussing over me and it’s frustrating more than comforting. “Where is Joe?” I ask and look to see if he’s lurking in the corner.
