Bratva Boss’s Secret Triplets by Bella King
Chapter 29
April
“So, you’re sure it’s triplets?”
I nod frantically.
“Do you know who the father is? That’s a hell of a lot of child support, poor guy,” he says, shaking his head.
I could tear his head off with my bare hands for making this crisis about a hypothetical man whose life I’ve ruined. They always defer to sympathizing with the other man.
“No, I don’t. It was a mistake, a one-time thing,” I lie partially. I figure only lying about half of the facts will spare me some karma, hopefully. I feel like being associated with Rebel at all has gotten me a one-way ticket to purgatory the way things have been going.
“Damn, April. That’s rough. I can’t do much for you here, as you’ve probably figured out, Rebel doesn’t have a vagina and therefore doesn’t let me keep around ultrasound equipment. All I can do is give you a test, but it seems like you’ve already done that step,” he replies, deep in thought.
“There is someone I know who can probably help you. Can I bring you there? It’s not too far from here and he specializes in pregnancy. I’m just a general practitioner with some emergency room experience, which makes me perfect for Rebel and his clown-ass behavior but not the best at handling pregnancies,” he says, smiling at me warmly.
I feel like he’s trying very hard to put me at ease, which is a welcome change from all the shouting and passive-aggressive comments I’ve had thrown at me lately.
I nod, and Dr. Paul leads me out the door into the hallway, taking me down a series of staircases leading to a door I didn’t know existed.
On the way down, we run into a man that I’ve seen around the compound but never was introduced to. He stares at Dr. Paul with hard eyes. “Where are you taking her? Everyone’s been told to keep her inside,” he says, his voice smokey and dark.
“She’s sick beyond my capabilities of helping her. I’m taking her to one of my doctor friends who can do more for her than I can. I’ll deal with Rebel when we get back, don’t worry about it,” he assures the man, who quickly gives up his responsibility to me and walks away casually.
“That was easy,” I say as we exit the building through the super-secret door.
Dr. Paul laughs. “Everyone thinks that Eric and Luke are Rebel’s right and left hand, but what they don’t know is that Rebel would die without me. He’s so clumsy and impulsive that he should have gotten killed five times over. He’s an ingenious businessman and top-tier criminal, but his reasoning skills are abysmal. He’ll resort to fighting every time,” he says as we approach an understated but sporty black car in the back parking lot.
It almost feels like Dr. Paul is trying to play up Rebel’s flaws instead of being supportive of him. I know he’s just a doctor, but there’s something about him that makes me feel like he’s not exactly Rebel’s loyal servant.
I want to defend Rebel, but I keep my mouth shut. It’s not wise to continue talking about him. I might let something slip that would cause Dr. Paul to realize that the triplets belong to Rebel.
Dr. Paul opens the door for me, and I climb into the car, settling into the firm leather interior and glancing around at how immaculately clean the inside is. My expectations for men and their cleanliness are so low that any male who can wash himself and doesn’t have rotting food lying around seems like a pretty decent guy.
He starts the car, and the sound of the engine is like a low bass note instead of a shrill, mechanical screech like mine or Dean’s cars.
There is so much about how rich people live that I wasn’t aware of until I experienced it: clothes that fit, delicious food for every meal, and cars that run well instead of tempting fate every time you turn them on.
Could a life like this be mine if I stay with Rebel? Would I be able to justify being with a criminal in order to care for my babies? He doesn’t need to know that they’re his, anyway.
As we begin to drive away, I try to pay attention to the streets that we’re taking to see if I recognize a possible location where he’d be taking me. I’ve been to a lot of the hospitals and clinics around here since I moved here at eighteen, so I’m pretty familiar with the layout of the city in relation to emergency rooms and urgent care centers.
The longer we drive, I realize that I have no idea where we’re going at all. I’ve tried for a few minutes to rack my brain for another location I had forgotten, but even looking up our location on my phone is giving me nothing. Could this other doctor belong to a different mafia warlord? Is there a union for displaced mafia doctors?
“Hey, I’m not super familiar with this part of town. Where are we going?” I ask softly. I hate to seem distrusting, but the events of the past few weeks have me so jumpy that I’ve nearly fainted at the sound of a door closing down the hallway. As a woman, you can never be too careful. Even one wrong move can get you killed, easily.
“You’ll see, just relax,” he replies. I don’t like that he’s suddenly being dodgy. His demeanor has shifted from a warm, offbeat guardian to secretive and untrustworthy. My stomach begins to turn.
“I’d really prefer that I know where we’re going,“ I reply quietly, trying not to provoke him while stating my reservations at the very least. He’s kept his eyes straight the entire time, not shifting his gaze at all.
He's intent on not telling me.
“Please just drop me off somewhere if you’re not going to answer me,” I say, now with more conviction. I’m starting to panic now, but I can’t let him know that I’m afraid. I need to maintain some semblance of opposition so he doesn’t think I’ll just fold and give into him.
Is he going to hurt me?
Without missing a beat, Dr. Paul withdraws a gun from his jacket and points it at my belly as he continues driving. “Say another fucking word and I’ll blow you and your bastard children into the seat where nobody can scrape you up,” he growls.
I put my hands up automatically. What the fuck is going on?! How did he trick me so easily? I’m furious with myself for trusting him, but also with the world for giving men the impression that women are free to be toyed with and abused for their amusement and personal gain.
Is he going to kill me? Is he going to torture me with all his medical knowledge, cutting and rearranging and shooting me up within an inch of my life? I’m growing pale and nauseated as the possibilities run freely in my head.
I refuse to say another word. Speaking has only gotten a gun pointed at me and my babies. I clearly don’t know anything about Dr. Paul like I thought I did, and I can’t risk setting him off.
We continue through an endless network of side streets and frontage roads until we’re out of the city and in the outer neighborhoods that sprawl out like a series of roots from a tree. This neighborhood in particular looks like the kind of place where famous people go to hide; it’s like an oasis for celebrities and hedge fund managers.
Dr. Paul hastily pulls into the driveway of one of the houses lining a dead-end road, nearly cracking his front bumper in half on the curb. I could scoff at him and his lack of respect for his unreasonably expensive vehicle, but I know that this is no time for me to express any criticism of him whatsoever. I need to remain completely silent.
He exits the car and practically jumps over the hood to my side, nearly dragging me from my seat as I’m still belted in.
“Jesus, at least let me get out on my own,” I say completely without thinking.
Dr. Paul scoffs at me and strikes me across the face. My vision greys out for a moment, and I consider falling to the ground and playing dead before I remember that he’s a doctor and he would absolutely not fall for it.
Grabbing my upper arm with an iron grip, he pulls me up to a huge, grey craftsman-style house at the end of the road.
My thoughts have gone blank now. I can’t let myself think, I can’t let my mind race or I will lose the ability to reason my way out of this if ever there was a chance for me to do so.
Dr. Paul shoves me through the front door, which was left open to my surprise and confusion. What kind of person leaves their house unlocked when it’s so nice? Someone with nothing to lose, nothing to fear.
When he shoves me to the ground, I look up.
My eyes lock with a familiar face, and my blood runs cold.
It’s Dr. Ryan.
