Twilight War (6 page)

“Somewhere out
there. Because of my elite status and calling, I made the unselfish
choice in order to protect my daughter. If the enemy ever
discovered her identity, they’d use it against me. I couldn’t bear
the thought of her suffering because of me. All evidence of her
birth was destroyed. She was given a clean start and told that her
parents were covert warriors who never entered the village.”

“But you know
who she is, right?”

Flame shook her
head and forced the sadness aside. “The Lioness asked me to stay on
the road and perfect my warrior skills while they raised the child.
So I complied with her request. During that time, I married Aiden,
my biggest mistake. My marriage to him set me back a little, but
the Lioness extended a lot of patience toward me in light of the
situation. She understands matters of the heart.”

“Your nation of
women is very complex.”

“Yes, we
are.”

“So you have no
idea which of those women could be your daughter? Could it be
Naami?”

“Oh, no way,
thank God,” Flame said with a little laugh. “Naami’s heritage is
well known. She comes from a long line of queens and unless she
births a girl, the line ends with her.”

“Ah, her
desperate actions make a little sense.”

“I guess so.
She keeps popping out boys.”

“You mean I’m
not her first mating?”

“Don’t look so
surprised.” She laughed. “Naami has been breeding since she turned
eighteen. She is highly skilled in the art of seduction.”

“I won’t say
what came to mind out of respect for your race.” He grinned
roguishly.

“Now you know
my dark secret. I can’t tell you about my private meetings with the
Lioness, though. Hopefully, this will help that trust issue. That
is if what I just confessed hasn’t scared you away.”

He touched her
lips with one finger. “I’m not going anywhere. I understand why
you’d keep something like this buried. It must be hell for you to
never have seen your daughter.”

“Sometimes it
gets very hard. I console myself with the fact that she is safely
in the village somewhere and well protected. My life has not
tainted hers, for which I am grateful. We may have crossed paths
but we’d never know it. Nobody knew I was pregnant except the
Lioness. No one knows I had a child except her…and now you.”

“I’m sorry for
doubting your trust in me.”

“Now you know
how much I
do
trust you. If anyone ever found out that I
have a daughter, they would hunt us both down. The question still
remains, do you trust me?”

“Yeah. I’ll
never question your motives again.” He kissed her lips. “I would
love to have a child with you if that is what you want.”

She gazed at
him in adoration. So forgiving and tender hearted, her Raef. “Will
you ask me again after I complete the mission on hand?”

“You bet I
will. I love you, angel.”

“You make
everything seem so easy.”

“It can be if
you let it.” He gave her a sexy wink.

“I’ll work on
that.” She pulled his head down for another kiss. “In the meantime,
we can make practice runs on that baby-making idea.”

“Mm, I love the
sound of that.”

They rolled
about on the oversized sofa rapt in passion. He caressed her hair
and body with a loving touch while kissing her with deep affection.
She returned his love earnestly, basking in the connection between
them. His hand went to her shorts. She was more than ready to
welcome him into her body. Just as he began to slide them down her
legs, the doorbell rang.

“Ignore it,” he
muttered against her neck.

They resumed
their heated exchange but the ringing continued followed by
pounding on the door. Flame stole a glance out a window and noticed
the sun had risen.

“Someone is
really insistent on seeing you.”

He bit
playfully at her neck. “They’ll think I’m sleeping and go
away.”

“Jackson, I
know you’re in there. Get your ass outta bed!” Cooper O’Toole
shouted from outside.

“Were you
expecting him?”

Raef shook his
head. “No.”

“He sounds
upset.”

“Damn. I better
see what he wants.” He untangled his body from hers then tickled
her stomach. “You stay right here. Don’t move. I will be right
back.” He gave her a wink.

She smiled and
watched him pick up the towel, knot it at his waist, then walk to
the door in the foyer.

“What’s up?”
Raef asked after opening the door.

“I wanna talk
about what happened to Ian.” Cooper staggered inside.

“You’re drunk,
man. Maybe you should sleep it off first.”

Flame peeked
over the arm of the couch and watched.

“I wanna know
h-how you got my-my b-best buddy killed. You said s-something about
Cass-Cassie taking him down with h-her,” Cooper slurred. His eyes
looked heavy and his face was unshaven.

“Yeah.” Raef
nodded. “Cassie had given herself to the Satellite then went after
Ian. She seduced him and they both went up in flames.”

“Flames,”
Cooper repeated. “It was that sisterhood bitch, wasn’t it? You’re
covering for her. Sh-she killed them!”

“No, man. Ian
and Cassie were in way over their heads. Flame had nothing to do
with their mistake. Don’t you remember? You and Ian lured her out
here to kill the Satellite.”

“But she failed
and now my friends are dead. And you’re in love with the slut.”

“Hey! Flame is
on our side. I think you better leave now.”

Cooper shook
his head vehemently then reached behind his back. Flame saw a flash
of light bounce off the wall.

“No!” she
screamed and made a mad dash toward them. Before she could stop
him, the brawny man plunged a long knife into Raef’s gut. “Nooo!”
She lunged at Cooper, reaching for his arm but he brought it down
again and drove the blade straight into Raef’s heart. He gasped and
fell to the floor.

She dropped to
her knees and pulled him into her arms. “What the hell is wrong
with you? He was your friend!”

He stared at
her, bushy brows furrowed over cold eyes. “Ian was my friend. You
killed him. I can’t kill you but I can kill this asshole for lying
to me. And I just did.” He turned abruptly and marched down the
walk.

Flame panted
for breath. Every nerve in her body wanted to chase Cooper down and
drive both daggers through his black heart, but Raef was fading
fast. He needed help and he needed it now.

“Oh my god,
baby, hang on,” she cried, then gently laid his head on the floor
before racing up the stairs for her cell phone. By the time she
returned to Raef she’d dialed 911 for help. “Raef, Raef…don’t you
leave me. Not now, not like this.” She knelt on the floor, eased
his upper body onto her lap, and cradled his head while applying
pressure to the wounds.

Blood pooled on
the floor and oozed from under his body. “No, no, no…stay with me.
I need you. Please…stay with me.” She rocked back and forth gently
while sobbing. “Raef…open your eyes…please.”

And for a
moment, he forced his eyes open and stared up at her.

“I do love you.
I didn’t say it, but I love you, Raef, I really do. I’ve loved you
since the day we met, too.”

A strained
smile touched his lips before his eyes closed again.

“No!” she
wailed.

Flashing lights
appeared at the curb. Paramedics rushed into the house with a
gurney. “Miss, you have to let us help, let go of him, please,” one
of the medics coaxed.

“You have to
save him.” She backed off and watched, horrorstricken, as they
worked frantically to save Raef.

“Stab wounds to
chest and stomach. BP is ninety over forty and dropping. Pulse
thready,” one man spoke into his radio. “ETA ten minutes.”

She stared in
what felt like a surreal haze as they hooked him up to IV lines and
monitors at impressive speed then lifted his body onto the
stretcher and wheeled him to the waiting ambulance.

“I’m coming
with him.”

“Are you
family?”

“Yes,” she
replied without a thought.

They permitted
her access. She sat on a hard bench inside the back as the medics
tended to Raef, who was now fully unconscious. Panic seized her,
making her throat dry and her muscles ache. The ten-minute ride to
the county hospital was the longest ride of her life. Once inside,
a team of doctors rushed to his side and took over. From there Raef
was taken from her sight into an operating room. She tried to
follow but nurses pulled her back.

“You can’t go
in there,” one nurse said. “They’re doing everything they can. Come
to the waiting room.”

Flame slunk
into a padded chair. She had nobody to call and nothing to do but
wait. His life was out of her hands. The feeling of helplessness
settled over her as an icy chill. Raef had no family. His parents
were gone and he was an only child. She didn’t know if he had aunts
or uncles. They’d never really talked about extended family.

Minutes dragged
into hours as she waited in agony for any news from the medical
staff. Nobody was talking and it scared the hell out of her.
Why
did Coop do this?
His actions were insane. He led a respectable
biker group and never once showed signs of rage toward his pack
members. She simply could not grasp why their senior leader
attacked without provocation. It was almost as if he’d come looking
for a fight.
But why?
A flood of questions deluged her
bleary mind.

Many hours
later, a doctor approached. He looked exhausted. His surgical gown
was stained with blood and his mask hung at his neck. His
expression indicated the news was not good. Flame tried to brace
herself but failed to find the strength. She stood on shaky legs as
the surgeon drew near. He quietly motioned for her to follow. They
walked down a corridor and into a small room. He closed the door
behind them.

“Tell me he is
okay,” she demanded. “Tell me you saved Raef.”

“His injuries
were extensive. The artery to his heart was severed. We performed
an arterial graft and stopped the bleeding in his stomach, but
there was so much damage to the heart that we could not get the
hemorrhaging under control.”

“So what are
you saying? Is he on life support? Are they still working on
him?”

The doctor gave
a slow shake of his head. “I’m sorry. We did everything in our
power but it just wasn’t enough. He didn’t make it.”

His words hit
her like ice. She blinked in shock then shook her head. “No, that
can’t be. He had a future…with me. We shared a destiny. He isn’t
gone. You have to keep trying.”

“Please, I know
this is impossible to bear, but your husband is gone.”

“Husband?”

“Raef had a
brief moment of consciousness when he was calling out for his wife.
You are Flame, aren’t you?”

“Y-yes,” she
sobbed. “What did he say?”

“He asked to
see his wife Flame before we put him under. We had no time to
waste. Again, I am very sorry.”

She watched the
surgeon walk away. Her feet felt like concrete. She couldn’t
move.

A nurse entered
the room. “Would you like a few moments alone with your
husband?”

Flame managed a
nod. They walked slowly down a long hallway then into a cold room.
Raef was lying on a metal table, covered to his neck by a white
sheet.

“Take all the
time you need.” The nurse placed a gentle hand on her shoulder
before leaving.

Flame stood
over him at his head, staring down in utter despair. Tears streamed
down her face. “Raef…why did this happen? You can’t be gone, you
just can’t be.” She leaned over and cradled his head in her arms.
“You weren’t supposed to leave me.” Her sobbing took control and
her body shook. “You wanted to marry me. How can I go on without
you? I have no one else. I needed you to help me through this.
Please…come back.” She wept uncontrollably, hugging him to her
body, rocking back and forth.

Time inched by
as she held his lifeless body and cried the hardest tears she’d
ever known. She’d never lost anyone close to her. Her parents were
gone before she passed infanthood. No siblings, cousins, only a
daughter she’d never seen—she felt suddenly and unbearably alone.
The pain was unreal.

She kept
thinking if she focused hard enough that life would return to his
body, but as the minutes merged into hours and his skin grew
colder, she realized that he had left her. Emptiness filled her
heart where only this morning Raef had filled it with his genuine
love—something she’d never known before him.

Unable to hold
it together anymore, she just lost it.

A nurse must’ve
heard her uncontrollable wailing. She entered the room. “The
coroner is here, hon’, you’ll need to let him go now.”

Flame had no
idea how long she’d been there. “No…I can’t.”

“Please, he’s
in a better place now.” Her voice was kind and soft. “I need to
prepare his body.”

Two orderlies
walked quietly to her side. “Come with us, miss.”

“No! I can’t
leave him! No, no, no! He’s all I have!” she screamed through her
sobs. They began firmly leading her away. “No! Raef…no, you have to
come back! No, no, no. Let go of me! I can help him. I have to save
him.” Flame crumpled to a quivering mess on the floor. When she
glanced up, everyone around her had tears in their eyes.

“Let us walk
you out,” one of the orderlies coaxed and lifted her off the floor
with gentle hands.

“Please,” she
begged. “Let me kiss him goodbye.”

They nodded and
released her.

Now all she had
left was heartache and rage. She placed a soft lingering kiss on
his chilled lips. Her tears fell upon his face. Her body shuddered
from sobs as she drew a ragged breath and lifted her head just a
little. She couldn’t bear the thought of leaving because it meant
letting go. She didn’t know how to move forward but deep inside
realized that somehow she must find the strength to do so.