JAY JAY POV
My heart was drumming a frantic rhythm against my ribs, but I forced my face to stay cold. I couldn't show her I was terrified. Not when she'd used Amy as bait.
"Ella, where the hell is Amy?" I demanded, my hand instinctively protecting my stomach.
I had been so careful. I knew Keifer would be frantic, so I'd been pressing the hidden distress button on my necklace every few seconds. I just needed to stall her long enough for Keifer to find us.
But Ella isn't a fool. She stopped by a black SUV parked in the shadows of the tree line and turned to me with a sickening, triumphant smirk. Before I could react, she reached out and ripped the necklace from my throat, the chain snapping painfully against my skin.
"Don't think that's going to work," Ella barked, her eyes cold as ice behind her sunglasses. She tossed the necklace onto the grass and crushed it under the heel of her boot. "Get in this car, Jay-Jay. Now."
The air felt thick with the smell of exhaust and dead leaves. I looked at the dark tinted windows of the SUV. If I got in that car, I was as good as gone. And so was my baby.
"Never," I said, planting my feet. I squared my shoulders, regaining that Section E grit. "You want to kill me, Ella? Do it here. Because I am not moving an inch."
"Don't test me," she hissed, stepping closer until I could see the sheer madness in her eyes. "You think Keifer is coming to save you? Yuri is making sure he's... occupied. Now, get in, or I won't guarantee Amy's safety. Or yours."
I glanced back toward the park, praying for a flash of Keifer's black hoodie or the sound of his voice. I was four months away from birth—I couldn't fight her physically, not without risking the baby. But I wasn't going to make this easy for her.
"You're pathetic, Ella," I spat, trying to keep her talking. "Working with Yuri? The man who treats everyone like a pawn? You're just a replacement for the power you lost."
Her face contorted with rage, and she reached for her waistband. "I said... IN THE CAR!"
Across the field, I heard a faint, distant roar. It wasn't an animal. It was the sound of a man who was about to tear the world apart.
Keifer. He was close. I just needed ten more seconds.
"GET THE FUCK IN!" Ella screamed at me, her face twisting into something unrecognizable. She lunged forward, grabbing my arm with a grip so tight it felt like her nails were going to draw blood.
I stumbled, my center of gravity completely off because of my stomach. "Let go of me!" I yelled, digging my heels into the dirt. I couldn't fight her like I used to—I had to protect my bump. I twisted my body away from the open car door, using my weight to make it harder for her to shove me in.
"You're coming with me whether you're conscious or not!" she hissed, reaching into the car for a roll of duct tape or a weapon—I didn't wait to find out which.
"KEIFER!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, pouring every ounce of fear and hope I had into that one name.
CRACK!
The sound of a heavy boot hitting the pavement echoed through the trees. Before Ella could react, a black blur came flying from the brush.
"GET AWAY FROM HER!"
It was Keifer. He didn't look like my husband right now. He didn't look like the man who had just been worried about mint chocolate chip ice cream. He looked like a god of war. His eyes were blown wide with a murderous rage that made even me shiver.
Ella tried to scramble into the driver's seat to escape, but Keifer didn't give her the chance. He slammed into her, his shoulder connecting with her chest and pinning her against the frame of the SUV. The sound of the impact was sickening.
"If you touch her again," Keifer rasped, his hand tightening around Ella's throat, "I won't wait for a trial. I'll bury you right under this park."
I collapsed onto the grass, my legs finally giving out. "Keifer..." I gasped, clutching my stomach.
In an instant, his head snapped toward me. The killer look in his eyes vanished, replaced by pure, raw terror. "Jay-Jay!"
He threw Ella aside like she was nothing—leaving her gasping for air on the ground—and sprinted to my side. He dropped to his knees, his hands hovering over me, trembling as he searched for wounds.
"Are you okay? Did she hit you? The baby—Jay-Jay, talk to me!" He was frantic, his breathing ragged as he pulled me into his chest, shielding me from the world.
"I'm okay... we're okay," I sobbed into his neck, the adrenaline finally crashing. "But Amy... Keifer, she said she has Amy."
Keifer's jaw set, his grip on me tightening even as his eyes went cold again, looking toward the SUV where Ella was trying to crawl away. "She's not going anywhere. And she's going to tell us exactly where Amy is, or she's going to find out why my last name is a Watson"
Behind him, the sound of screeching tires filled the air. Three black cars skidded to a halt. Jare, Percy, and Aries jumped out, guns drawn, their faces masks of fury.
The walk in the park was over. The war had officially started.
Keifer grabbed Ella by the collar, hauling her up from the pavement and shoving her toward the SUV. He didn't care about being gentle; he looked like he was barely holding back the urge to snap her neck right then and there.
"Clear out everyone in this park. NOW," Keifer barked at the bodyguards who had swarmed the area.
They didn't hesitate. They moved with military precision, redirecting families and joggers away from the north exit. Within minutes, the laughter of children was replaced by the heavy silence of an impending interrogation. The park was now our territory.
I looked around, my heart still racing as my eyes landed on another car that had just pulled up.
"Where is Mia?" I asked, looking at Jare.
"Jay-Jay! Are you okay?"
I didn't even have time to answer before Mia was rushing toward me. She looked just as shaken as I was, her own baby bump making her movements a bit frantic. She grabbed my shoulders, her eyes scanning my face and stomach for any sign of a struggle.
"I'm okay, Mia. Really," I said, nodding slowly to convince both her and myself. "She didn't get to do anything. Keifer got here in time."
Mia let out a breath of relief that sounded more like a sob, but then her face hardened. She looked over at where Keifer had Ella pinned against the car. "That bitch. She really thought she could pull this off?"
"She says she has Amy," I whispered.
The air around us turned even colder. Jare, who was standing right behind Mia, clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white. Percy and Aries were already flanking Keifer, their faces devoid of their usual jokes.
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ARIES POV
My vision was tunneling into a dark, red haze. Seeing Jay-Jay on the ground and then hearing that Amy—my Amy—was in the hands of these psychos... something snapped inside me
Keifer stepped aside, sensing the sheer murder radiating off me. I stepped into Ella's personal space, looming over her until she was pressed flat against the metal of the SUV. I leaned into her ear, my voice trembling with suppressed rage.
"You have exactly ten seconds to tell me where the hell Amy is, or else you're going to see the monster, Ella," I hissed. "And I promise you, I won't stop until there's nothing left."
Ella looked at me, her eyes welling up with tears that didn't move me one bit. She looked pathetic. "Aries..." she sobbed, reaching out as if she could still touch me like she used to. "Why don't you get it? I'm doing all of this for us. We were supposed to be the ones on top! Not that... that girl!"
Hearing her talk about Amy like she was just some obstacle made me lose it. I slammed my hand against the car right next to her head, the loud BANG of metal making her jump.
"Fuck, Ella! I already told you I was done with you!" I roared into her face, my spit landing on her cheek. "Amy is my wife now! Do you understand that? She's carrying my world!"
I grabbed her jaw, forcing her to look me in the eye so she could see the absolute lack of mercy there.
"Just tell me where the fuck she is before I forget you're a woman," I growled. "Because right now, I don't see an ex-girlfriend. I don't see a woman. I see a target. Start talking. ONE."
"Aries, please—"
"TWO."
"Yuri... he has her at the old warehouse by the docks!" she blurted out, the fear finally overriding her obsession. "He's waiting for Keifer to show up! He only told me to get Jay-Jay"
I let go of her jaw like she was something poisonous. I turned to Keifer and the guys. The air in the park was electric.
"The docks," I said, my voice cold and hollow. "The old warehouse."
Keifer looked at the bodyguards. "Take Ella to the basement. Don't let her see the sun until I get back." He then looked at me, a silent understanding passing between us. "Aries, let's go get your wife."
I didn't wait for a second invitation. I headed for the car, my heart hammering. Hold on, Amy. I'm coming.
The world seemed to stop for a split second. I was halfway to the driver's side door when Jay-Jay's voice pulled me back.
"Aries, Amy is pregnant?" Jay-Jay asked, her eyes wide as she looked between me and the SUV.
I froze, my hand on the door handle. A wave of confusion hit me. "How do you know that?" I asked, my voice cracking slightly. We had literally just found out yesterday. We hadn't even told the guys yet. We were waiting for the right moment—for a moment of peace.
"'She is carrying my world,'" Mia quoted back to me, her voice soft but urgent. "You just said it, Aries. A man doesn't say that unless there's a baby involved."
I didn't have time to process how she'd caught on so fast. Every second I stood here talking was a second Amy was alone with a sociopath.
"We will explain later," I snapped, my adrenaline red-lining. I looked at Keifer, my eyes pleading and commanding all at once. "Keifer, I'm going to go get Yuri. Take Jay from here. She's too exposed."
"We're coming," Keifer and Jare said in unison. Their voices were like iron. There was no way they were letting me go into a nest of Yuri's men alone. Not when the stakes were this high.
Jare turned to Percy, who was already checking the magazines in his sidearm. "Percy, take Mia and Jay to the house. Lock it down. Call in the secondary perimeter guards. Once they are inside and secure, follow us to the docks."
Percy nodded, his face grim. "On it. Let's go, girls."
I hopped into the driver's seat of the lead car, the engine roaring to life like a beast. Through the rearview mirror, I saw Keifer give Jay-Jay one last, fierce kiss before jumping into the passenger seat next to me.
"If he touched her, Keifer..." I muttered, my knuckles white as I gripped the steering wheel.
"He won't live to regret it," Keifer promised, his voice low and deadly.
I slammed the car into gear and floored it, the tires screeching against the park pavement. The docks were twenty minutes away. I planned to get there in ten.
Hang on, Amy, I prayed silently, the image of her smile flashing in my mind. Hang on for me. Hang on for the baby. I'm coming to burn his world down.
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