My Ward My Woman(22)

“I’m the mother of your child.”

“She means more, get use to it.” I walked away before I did something I’d regret. If I were a drinking man I’d find the nearest bar and climb into a bottle. How did my life get this fucked?

Instead, I went home to my woman who was asleep in my bed. Her poor little face was beat to shit. Her lips and both eyes were swollen, but the doc had done the best he could to patch her up. The good news is there were no broken bones and the cuts were too superficial to leave scarring. It was just the swelling I was worried about.

I let mom go from her vigil and she gave me a look before heading out the door. I know that look; that look said fix it. I plan to, but not tonight. Tonight I just want to hold her and be thankful that she’s alive.

“Solomon.” She called for me in her sleep just as I dropped the last piece of clothing on the chair next to the bed. I got into bed and pulled her gently into my chest. “I’m here love; it’s okay.”

I stayed up all night watching over her. Each time she cried out for me, I was there to soothe her. I woke early the next morning with a crick in my neck from sitting up with her in my arms. My eyes flew open as the previous day’s events came flooding back.

Her eyes were open and she was looking up at me. “Morning sweetheart, how do you feel?” She tried moving her jaw beneath the bandage that was holding her face together. The bruises were harsh and ugly in the morning light and made my heart hurt more.

“Don’t try to speak. Do you have much pain?” She nodded her head slightly and I rested her on the bed and got up to get some water and one of the pills the doctor had sent us home with. That reminds me, I have to make a run to the pharmacy to fill the prescription since there were only enough pills for today.

“Here.” I held her up so she could swallow before laying her back down. I needed to make a few calls but didn’t even want to leave her long enough to do that. Whoever had attacked her had done a number on her beautiful face. It smacked of female retribution. Only furthering my belief that Jessica was behind it.

“Did you see who attacked you?” She shook her head and tried to speak but all that came out was a croaking sound. She motioned for something to write with and I got her pen and paper from the nightstand.

She wrote of getting the text to meet. Immediately I felt the blame. Wasn’t I supposed to look into this White Rabbit person? How can I hold her team responsible when I wasn’t doing my part? I read where she wrote about being pulled into the dressing room and was grateful that that’s all she remembered.

She hadn’t seen her face yet and I wasn’t planning on letting her anywhere near a mirror until some of the swelling went down. I felt her head for fever but she was cool to the touch. The pills should be setting in soon and she’d go back to sleep.

I called downstairs for some juice and ordered Connie to make her some broth for later. She hadn’t been able to keep anything down the night before but maybe today she’d do better. I called mom while I was at it since I didn’t want to leave her alone while I went to the pharmacy.

If I’d been thinking I would’ve had the doctor call it in, but I didn’t and I didn’t have the first clue what the fuck he had written on the piece of paper in my pocket.

“Don’t leave me.” She clutched at me as I sat beside her on the bed trying not to jar her.

“I won’t; go to sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up.” I didn’t tell her about the pharmacy because I didn’t want her to worry. I figured I’d be back long before she woke up.

Mom showed up not long after and fussed over our girl the way only a mother could. I waited until she was out before leaving. First I had a talk with her team who had been working on getting the security tapes from the store.

“There’s only one person entering the room before she showed up. Whoever it is never looked at the camera and it’s hard to tell much from the angle. Obviously there’re no cameras in the dressing area since it’s illegal.”

“What about when they were leaving?”

“Same story. They kept their head down, but you can tell they were wearing a wig and the clothes didn’t fit right which means they were padded. Sorry boss.”

I walked away and called my own team to take care of the White Rabbit situation.

I still had the information in my home office so I gave them the IPO. “Find out where this is. If it’s a bouncer, follow it until you have something useful. I want this fucker’s head on my wall by end of day.”

I headed out to the pharmacy with my mind back upstairs in that room. Time to put shit in perspective. If Jessica was indeed responsible, I will make her pay in ways she couldn’t even imagine, but first I had to think about the child. Whatever she was, the child was still a part of me. Though I could wish it different.

“Wait here, I’ll be right out.” I headed into the pharmacy, something I had never done a day in my life and followed the signs to the back. There was a line of people and I had to remind myself that the world did not revolve around me as I waited with a tight leash on my impatience.

I felt a hand on my arm and turned to see Melissa, one of Jessica’s friends. “Fancy seeing you here.” She hasn’t done anything to you Solomon don’t bite her head off. “How are you Melissa?” I forced a smile and looked at the line ahead of me willing it to move. I was in no mood for chitchat.

“We missed you at the club last night.”

“I was busy.”

“Oh well, we could’ve used someone to take Jess home, that girl sure doesn’t know when to quit.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean she was shit faced drunk. Tasha had to take her home since she couldn’t see straight to drive. Why so surprised? You do know Jess likes to drink.”

“Yes, but I thought with the baby…” How dare she.

“Baby, what baby?”

“Jess didn’t tell you? She’s pregnant.” It struck me as odd that she hadn’t shared the news with her best friend. I didn’t understand the laughter.

“Where did you get that? You must’ve heard wrong, Jess can’t have children.”

“What are you talking about?” My body tensed up and I willed myself to stay calm.

“It’s true. It happened when we were travelling one year as kids. She caught one of those third world diseases, measles, smallpox; I don’t remember which one now, but it left scarring inside. I do remember her mom was freaking out about never having grandkids since, as you know Jess is an only child.”

I excused myself and left. I didn’t feel anger, didn’t feel anything. I was numb all over. How had she played me for a fool? How the fuck had I let this happen? It would be too easy to go to her place now and throw her out the window. No, this called for planning and execution.

But wait a minute. Maybe Melissa’s wrong. Didn’t Jessica say in one of her million calls that she’d seen a doctor and he’d confirmed it? I need to find out who he is. There was only one way to do that and I was sure Jessica wasn’t going to tell me.

I turned around and went back inside. I’d forgotten the damn pills anyway. I saw Melissa still in line and walked over to her. “Sorry about that I just remembered something I’d left in the car. So listen, this quack doctor that told her she’s pregnant. I would hate to think there’s something seriously wrong. I mean why would a doctor make such a gross misdiagnosis?”

“You mean Dr. Bartholomew? Quack is right if he’s the one who told her that. But I don’t see how. The way she was drinking last night I don’t think she’s pregnant. Maybe he told her different after the first diagnosis. Maybe that’s why she was celebrating. Jess is not exactly the mothering type.” She gave me a look that said she was, and she knew just who she wanted to give them to her. Like hell.

My mind was working as the line moved. I said goodbye to her when she was done, filled the prescription and headed out to the car. It’s a good thing I wasn’t driving because my mind was working overtime. First I had to see this doctor that she said confirmed her pregnancy. Maybe that was another lie.





23





Solomon





I rushed home to be there when she awakened. Everything else will have to wait. I didn’t want Melissa talking to Jessica though before I had a chance to make my move, so I had my team do some digging for me. They were still working on the White Rabbit situation.

She was just about to wake up when I got back to the room where mom was sitting reading a magazine. “Did she wake up while I was gone?”

“No. She fretted a little and called out to you, but she never opened her eyes.” I sat on the bed and touched her hand. She sighed and sunk deeper into the pillow.

“I’m here sweetheart.” I kissed her forehead and sent mom downstairs to see about her broth. She moved too sudden in her sleep and rolled over on her face. Her cry of pain made my gut hurt and I imagined this is what parents felt when their kids were hurt or sick. If I could change places with her I would in a heartbeat.

“It’s okay baby, okay, okay.” She was running a slight fever now but I was afraid to give her another pill this soon. The bottle said every four hours and she had a ways to go still. Tears rolled down her face and tore the heart right out of me. “Solomon?”