Creed 3: Undercover, page 26
“Don’t worry, Mrs. Creed. Dr. Crane is the best. She can perform a cesarean with her eyes closed,” one of the nurses assured.
“You just make sure she keeps her eyes open while she’s cutting on me,” Taylor quipped.
They made a turn which took them into the operating room. The large lights and medical tools and equipment were intimidating. More than anything, she wished Victor was there to hold her hand.
“You made it! Welcome,” Dr. Crane greeted.
She was wearing a surgical mask, but Taylor could tell she was smiling from the crinkle of her eyes. One, of a whole new set of nurses, used an alcohol pad to prepare the skin of her hand for an IV. After a tiny prick, the nurse inserted the tiny hose that would be pumping fluids into her intravenously.
“Hello, Mrs. Creed. I’m Dr. Takashi. I’m your anesthesiologist. Since we need to move quickly, I’m gonna put you to sleep right now.”
Taylor could feel her legs trembling as they transferred her to a bed directly under the lights. She didn’t know what was going to happen, but the idea of sleeping through it all took the notion of control away from her. Dr. Takashi inserted a syringe full of medicine into the injection port of the IV. Within seconds, she was feeling no pain. Her entire body seemed to melt into the bed.
“Mrs. Creed, when your girlish figure returns, what color will your first bikini be?” Dr. Takashi asked.
“Ohhh… yeahhhh, white,” she slurred.
“Any second now,” he said to someone. “Mrs. Creed, can you count backward from ten?”
“Yep.” Her own voice sounded like it was coming from an intercom. She was in a deep, deep haze. “Ten… nine… eiiiiiiiiiiiii…”
LINCOLN
There was very little chatter in the waiting area. Both the Montgomerys were visibly concerned. Everyone in the room appeared anxiously impatient as they waited for news of Taylor and the baby. In order to create some sort of distraction, Lincoln slid a cigar into Victor’s shirt pocket. “Hold on to this, brother.”
Victor smiled and pulled the cigar from his pocket and examined it. “Cuban, huh?”
“Since you’re gonna be the first dad among us, I feel like you’ve earned it.”
“Well, not exactly the first,” their dad chimed.
Lincoln passed his dad a cigar. “There’s always a Cohiba for you, Pop.”
“Thank you, Son.”
Lincoln noticed his dad watching his mom. She was on pacing nervously on the other side of the waiting room.
“Let me go see about your mom. She’s not accustomed to being on this side of waiting.”
When Victor Sr. walked away, Lincoln put his hand on Victor’s shoulder. It wasn’t hard to see that his brother was worried about his wife and child. Even though he was surrounded by family, without being able to lay hands on his wife, he must’ve felt powerless and alone.
For about forty-five minutes, Victor had been standing near the door, waiting for someone to come in and share his wife’s progress. And, for forty-five minutes, Lincoln had been standing right next to him. Since Victor had forbidden them all from speaking to him about anything going on in the outside world, the conversation was kept to a minimum. Under no circumstances was anyone to mention anything about the election, and especially, the leaked sex tape.
“What’s going on with Luc?” Victor asked with a frown.
Lincoln had been so busy watching his oldest brother, he hadn’t noticed Lucas. He was on a phone call, and judging from his stressed expression, the news he was receiving wasn’t good. Since he didn’t want Victor to be bothered by whatever was going on with Lucas, Lincoln excused himself and walked over to his other brother. As soon as he approached him, he ended the call. The look on his face was cause for concern.
“What’s going on? Who was that?”
“That was Donna.”
The mention of her name, and the fact that she was calling Lucas instead of him, gave him a feeling of dread.
“Their family was ambushed outside of her parents’ home,” he said as if he didn’t believe the words that were coming out of his own mouth.
“What?” Lincoln breathed.
“Bella suffered a head injuring from a fall, but Mr. Devereaux was shot four times.”
“What?!”
Whatever small amount of chatter that was going on in the room ceased with Lincoln’s outburst.
“He shoved Bella to the ground and used his body as a shield. He just got out of surgery and is expected to make a full recovery. Bella has a concussion, but she’ll be fine.”
“Donna?” Every single nerve in his body had awakened.
He held his breath and waited for his brother to respond.
“Donna was unharmed.”
His somber tone provided no comfort. Lincoln was sure there was more to tell. Since he was too nervous to speak, he gave his brother a look that urged him to continue.
“She’s physically okay, but she didn’t sound too good.”
Lincoln exhaled. “That’s expected. Her dad was shot, and her sister was hurt.”
“Those bullets were meant for her,” Lucas revealed sympathetically. “The shooting was retaliatory.”
“Retaliatory from whom?”
“The BOC.”
Lincoln’s mouth flew open. He knew the Blood of the Chosen was easily capable of committing unthinkable crimes, but he had to admit, he didn’t see murder as one of them. But why not murder? They were capable of human trafficking, horrible child labor practices, and physical abuse. How very naive he’d been to have not been more concerned for Donatella’s safety.
“Where is she? What hospital?”
“The family is at Christ Hospital on the southside, but Donna left. She said she couldn’t stay anymore. I think the guilt is getting to her.”
Lincoln nodded. The guilt might have been getting to her, but that definitely wasn’t why she left.
“I’m headed out,” Lucas told him. “Call me when we have news.”
Lincoln shook his head. “Can’t, I gotta make a run. Do me a favor… speak to dad. Ask him to call us when there’s news.”
“Why can’t you—”
The door opened, cutting off Lucas’ protest. A woman, presumably the doctor, entered. The smile on her face elicited sighs of relief throughout the room.
“Mom and baby are doing well,” she happily announced.
Victor exhaled a heavy breath. He seemed to breathe freely for the first time since he’d arrived at the hospital. They all did their best to provide comfort, but comfort would not have come until he was assured that his wife and child were doing okay.
The doctor was beaming with pleasure. “Governor, how would you like to meet your daughter?”
Victor’s smile grew wide. “I’d like that very much,” he responded with a relieved chuckle.
“Alright, then. Please allow us to get your women all cleaned up. I’ll come back and get you in about ten minutes.”
“Ten minutes. Yes, Doctor,” Victor happily agreed.
When the doctor left the waiting room, Victor turned to their family, happier than Lincoln had ever seen him.
“It’s a girl!” he celebrated.
As Lincoln and the rest of his family hugged and congratulated Victor, a familiar female voice shouted, “Congratulations!”
Everyone in the room turned to the voice.
“Naomi?” Victor questioned with furrowed brows. He looked to Gregor, who was dressed in jeans and appeared to be off duty. “How did you get past security?”
“I have my ways, Governor,” she bragged with a cheeky grin.
Lincoln took long strides to get to the CIA agent. He’d warned her to stay away from his family. Had she listened, she wouldn’t have had to worry about being dragged into one of the empty hospital rooms to have him snap her thin neck.
Tahira took a quick step back and held her hands up in surrender.
“Ah… ah… ah! Wait a minute, Colonel. I come bearing gifts.”
Lincoln continued to charge until his fingers were wrapped tightly around her neck.
“Lincoln Creed!” his father bellowed, probably at the sight of him manhandling a woman, but Tahira Raji was no ordinary woman. She was a weapon. More specifically, a weapon that seemed to be trained on his family.
Lincoln’s brother pried his fingers from her neck and pulled him away. When Tahira clutched her neck and gasped for air, she was actually smiling.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Victor asked him. “Was there something between you and Naomi?”
Lincoln shook his brothers off of him and turned to Victor. “Her name is not Naomi!”
“What? Then, what is her name?”
“I can’t tell you that,” Lincoln growled.
Tahira cleared her throat and stood up straight. “I can help you understand. That is if the Colonel here will give me a chance.”
Victor pulled the back of Lincoln’s shirt until he was facing them.
“I don’t have time for this shit. Tell me what the hell is going on.”
“As I said, Governor,” she interjected. “I come bearing gifts. But I must speak to you in private. Well, he can come.” She pointed at Lincoln. “And Gregor can wait just outside the door.”
Lincoln could feel his brother’s eyes burning into him. He felt that he had no other choice but to divulge a small portion of classified information. He leaned close to Victor and whispered, “CIA.”
The short acronym immediately got his attention. With an angry scowl, he barked, “Let’s go!”
Victor stormed out of the waiting room. Lincoln held the door open for Tahira so they could follow. After locating an empty hospital room, they entered. As soon as Lincoln closed the door, Tahira began to speak.
“I can’t tell you my name, but I can tell you that it’s not Naomi. The information that I am about to give you is classified. It must not be shared.”
Victor folded his arms and waited for her to continue. However, his expression read anything but patient.
“I’m behind the investigation into your PAC funds. And, I’m also the one who killed the investigation once I got what I needed.”
Victor frowned and shook his head. “What do have to gain by getting me indicted?”
“I can’t tell you that. I’m sorry.”
“Then what the fuck can you tell me? Why are you here?” Victor was visibly irritated.
“I told you, I’m here to apologize in the form of gift giving.”
“Get on with it!” Lincoln snapped.
Victor pushed past them to leave. Lincoln would imagine he was anxious to see his wife and daughter.
She sighed and rolled her eyes. “I found the man, or men, behind your very impressive sex tape.”
Victor’s steps halted. When he turned his angry glare on Tahira, Lincoln could see the fire in his eyes.
She threw a hand on her hip and narrowed her eyes. “I said I found the guy. I’m not responsible for the video. This time…I’m not the bad guy.”
“Go on,” Victor pressed.
“I tracked the IP address where the video was uploaded to a house in Chicago Heights. Turns out, this wasn’t just any ole house. It was a whore house. And, this was not just any ole whore house. This whore house is known to accommodate those with special proclivities.”
“Special proclivities?” Victor repeated with frown.
“Yeah. You know like… choking, whipping, pissing, shitting. Stuff like that.”
Victor grimaced and looked over at Lincoln. “How does this help me?”
Since he didn’t have an answer, Lincoln could only shrug.
“Governor, after a brief interview with Michelle Young, the owner, and operator, I learned the identity of the men responsible for uploading the video.”
Lincoln knew exactly what Tahira meant by brief interview. He’d bet a finger that some form of torture involved.
“Who?” Victor inquired impatiently.
Tahira crossed her arms. “Why, your opponent, of course,” she responded with a raised eyebrow.
Victor stuffed his hands in his pockets, something he’d been doing since he was a boy to control his rage.
“You’re telling me that Bill Thornton put that video out?”
“Yep.”
Although Lincoln didn’t doubt her story, it just wasn’t adding up.
“How did he get the video?” he asked.
“Now, here’s the kicker…” She shook her head with a faint chuckle. “There’s a traitor amongst you.”
She must’ve noticed that each pause for effect was getting on Lincoln’s last nerve when she blurted, “Jeffrey Morgan!”
“What?!” Victor raged.
“He used his City Hall credentials and familial connection to get into your office so he could plant the cameras.”
“That motherfucker,” Lincoln muttered under his breath.
“It turns out…the Councilman found out about your soon to be brother-in-law’s voyeuristic proclivities and capitalized on it. It seems that Jeffrey Morgan is a very ambitious man, and Thornton promised him a position in the Governor’s office once he was elected.”
Victor shook his head with disgust. “And… how do you know this?” he asked.
“I conducted a brief interview,” she responded with a wicked grin.
“Mmm…I see. Alright, I gotta go.” Victor moved to leave.
“Wait! There’s more!” Tahira blurted.
Victor blew out a frustrated breath. “More?”
“I told you, I came bearing gifts. I pulled the video. Now, I can’t erase the memories of everyone who’s already seen it. But, within fifteen minutes of it being up, I managed to plant a virus. So now, if someone tries to open or share the link, it will disintegrate their entire hard drive.”
Victor’s eyes narrowed as if he was trying to decide whether or not to believe what Tahira was telling him. It was clear that he didn’t trust her, and Lincoln couldn’t blame him. He didn’t trust her either. She’d stepped in and turned Victor’s life upside down. Then she showed up and presented herself as some sort of savior.
“You’ve just admitted to fabricating false accusations against me. So why, all of a sudden, are you being so helpful?”
“I owed you one,” she admitted with a shrug. “Look, believe it or not, Governor, I’m a great admirer of you, your dad, and even your angry violent brother.” She glanced over at Lincoln. “I have a job to do. Sometimes, it’s not pretty. But it’s never personal.” She walked toward the door and opened it. With a smile, she turned around. “I’m sorry for any inconveniences I may have caused. Congratulations on your baby girl.”
She pulled the black hijab from her coat pocket, covered her head, and walked out of the room. Victor turned to him for an explanation of the tornado that had just swept through his life. But, before he could utter a word, the door flew open. Tahira peered inside with a grim.
“Ohhhh, I almost forgot. Congratulations on your election victory. You won by a landslide. I, personally, think the sex tape won it for you.”
She winked and dipped out of sight. Victor stood frozen. He hadn't even inquired about the election the whole time they were at the hospital. And if he had, Lincoln wouldn’t have had answers. He hadn't had a chance to check. With everything that was going on, it just seemed insignificant.
“Good job, bro. Congratulations!”
“Wow,” Victor gasped. “It’s been a helluva day.”
“Yeah, it has. Go see your kid. I gotta take care of something.”
Lincoln hurried out of the room in search of Tahira. He needed to take advantage of her repentant mood by asking for a huge favor.
38
Belladonna
Since she’d lost the battle with her nurse, Bella was being wheeled by chair into her father’s room. As a precaution, he’d been transferred from a recovery room to a room in the Intensive Care Unit. In order to aid in his healing, he was kept heavily sedated. But that didn’t stop her mom from carrying on a full-fledged conversation with him.
Bella’s excitement over seeing her dad deflated as soon as she saw his big, strong body, lying helpless in a hospital bed with a tube in his mouth. The nurse must’ve noticed the change in her disposition. She placed a hand on Bella’s shoulder and leaned to whisper in her ear.
“Your dad is breathing on his own. His heart is strong, and his blood pressure is on point. The tube is there simply as a precaution. He’s doing well.”
The nurse’s assurance brought relief.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
The nurse wheeled her close enough to hold her dad’s hand. The warmth radiating from his skin was encouraging. She placed his hand to her cheek and thanked God that she still had a dad. Now that she was able to see that he was alive with her own eyes, her fears were focused solely on her sister.
Donatella hadn’t returned and she knew, as well as she knew her own name, her sister was plotting revenge. It wasn’t as if she didn’t understand why she wanted to make someone pay for what happened to them. However, she would’ve preferred that she exercised a little patience and included her in the plan. Bella wanted in on the revenge. And had she known where her sister was going, she would have abandoned the hospital bed to join her.
Bella placed her dad’s hand back on the bed and rested her face against it. She didn’t know if sedation meant that he couldn’t see or hear, but she convinced herself that he could feel touch. When she felt hands gripping her shoulders, she didn’t need to look back to know that it was her man. Not only could she recognize the clean, masculine aroma of pheromones that had allured her to him since the moment they met, but she had gotten to a point where she could actually sense his presence.
She sat upright and placed her hand over his. “I’m fine, babe. Just a headache,” she softly assured.
Lucas leaned over and kiss the top of her head, then each temple. “All better now?”
“I think so,” Bella lied with light laughter.
TAYLOR
