Crowed (Team Zero #2) by Rina Kent

Good.

“Congratulations, Eloise. You’re pregnant.”

I bolt up in a sitting position so fast, dizziness assaults my aching head.

“Hey, take it easy.” Céline is by my side. She helps me sit and caresses my arm.

I gape at Dr Barnard, not able to believe my ears. “A-are you sure?”

My mind crowds with numbers. My ovulation period. The time we had sex. At least ten days ago.

“Yes. We found 30 mIU/ml HCG in your blood. It’s not even a grey area. It’s positive.” Dr Bernard hands me the results. “See for yourself.”

With trembling hands and a booming heartbeat, I stare at the chart. There it is. A peak in HCG. Human Chorionic Gonadotropin – aka the pregnancy hormone – is well above the grey 6 to 24 mIU/ml and straight into the positive above 25 mIU/ml.

Oh. Mon. Dieu.

I’m... pregnant.

The realisation brings tears to my eyes. Only now, they’re happy tears. I’m smiling and crying and being a complete mess, but I can’t help the glimmer of excitement running through me.

I’m pregnant.

In nine months, I’ll give life to someone and I’ll be a mother like Maman was for me.

I place a palm on my flat stomach, and even though it’s very unlikely at this early stage, I can feel life beneath my fingers.

More tears soak my cheeks, knowing that Crow will never see his child. However, I choose to cling to the positive side.

Even though Crow is gone, he still left me a precious gift to live for.





Crow


Three months later,

My head throbs and my muscles scream in pain.

Cold air prickles my skin as I stagger into the streets of London. The Rhodes medical team tried to patch me up after all that extensive torture, but I’m still a walking mess. I move my jaw, trying to make out whether or not it’s dislocated.

Those Rhodes bastards.

They were even bent on killing me. If Aaron didn’t come up with the idea of a collaboration to eliminate Hades, I would’ve been dead by now.

I run a hand across my face and wince when pain explodes in my injured arm. Whatever the Rhodes did, all that torture and pain, are nothing compared to my end goal. I would do it all over again. I’ll be beaten and tortured to the brink of my life if it means protecting the one life that matters the most to me.

I zip up my jacket and stop a taxi. The injuries are far worse on their own. Add cold, and it’s a fucking bitch.

With infinite care to not trigger my injured side, I slide inside the taxi and tell the driver the address of the hotel. As we move from the pretentious upper-class neighbourhood and into working class areas, the smell of Indian and exotic spices fill the streets. I miss my bike at times like these. But I wouldn’t be able to drive it even if I wanted to.

I lay my head on the fake leather and stare out the window at the overcast sky. So different from that bright blue sky in Marseille.

I should’ve died with Storm that day. When we fell from the cliff, I was ready to go to hell, but then Ghost showed up. He literally pulled me from the crashing waves while Celeste took care of Eloise.

Sometime later, I woke up to find out that I wasn’t dead. But it would be a lot better if Hades continued thinking that I had perished. For one, he’ll kill me for killing Storm. For two, if he finds out that I was protecting Eloise, he’ll send the rest of his assassins to kill us both.

So I decided to help Ghost as long as he keeps Eloise protected. I’ll only be able to go back to her after Hades is taken care of. I heave a long sigh. That is, if she still wants me after all this time.

Or if I remain alive.

Taking care of business on behalf of Ghost means confronting the Rhodes, and while those bastards were our disciples, they’ve become tenacious as fuck. They gave me a run for my money in torture. However, I managed a deal with them. In exchange for all the information I know about Hades and the reason they’ve been kidnapped, they will send their personal guards to tighten the security around Eloise.

The Rhodes shouldn’t be in contradiction with Ghost. After all, we’re all working towards the same goal. Instead of being at each other’s fucking throats, it’s about time Team Zero and the Rhodes get together to demolish Hades’ hell.

And hopefully, it won’t take long for me to get back to Eloise. I run another hand over my face, blocking the clouds condensing in the horizon. Pain, a lot different and more intense than the physical one, grips my chest.

I know Ghost is protecting her – he sends me regular reports – but I can’t help the hollowness lodged deep inside me ever since I left her. Ever since I made her go through the pain of believing I was dead. I don’t regret it. It’s the only way to keep her safe. But that doesn’t mean it hurts any fucking less.

In such a short time, she became everything. Air. Sunshine. Life. She’s my reason to live now. And I would do anything, fucking everything, to keep that life breathing.

Even if that means disappearing for good.

The taxi stops in front of a shabby hotel in an unknown alley near the slums of London. I give the driver an extra tip and step out.

Once in my room, I throw my weight on the bed that creaks in protest. I close my eyes and pretend I’m in that old mansion with Eloise. Her body is wrapped around mine and her beautiful face is a few breaths from mine.

A bitter smile escapes me. I miss her so fucking much, just picturing her brings back that unbearable pain of losing her.