The Broken Pieces of Us (The Devil's Dust #2.1)

Just when you think it can’t get any worse, life comes slamming into your ass, reminding you how unpredictable it is.

The last few days have been a fucking nightmare. The club has been targeted. Dani was chased by a car the other night and beaten with a bat. I thought I was going to have a heart attack when Shadow got the call that Dani was in the hospital. Thankfully, Dani’s are mere scratches, bumps, and bruises compared to Babs. She’s lucky to be alive, and I’m on high alert. Someone is targeting my fucking club, and I am going to find out who very quickly.

A smirk crosses my face. Unpredictable. During Dani’s visit to the hospital, they discovered I’m going to be a grandfather. The smirk crossing my face quickly fades. We have been targeted, and my daughter is pregnant with my grandbaby. I am responsible for every member of this club, their safety is in my hands. I have to figure out who has targeted us, and why, before someone else is hurt.

***

I wake up to a loud pounding. I didn’t drink a drop last night. Since I brought Dani back here, and knowing her and her baby’s life depends on me, I have stayed away.

“Bull!”

I pop my head up from the pillow and realize someone is knocking on my door like the fucking police.

“What the fuck?” I yell, opening my door to find Shadow. His face is red and he looks angry as shit.

“Get dressed; we need to see Babs, now!” he spits, turning to leave without giving me a chance to ask why.

“Shit!” I curse, turning to grab some damn clothes. A million things are crossing my mind right now. Is Dani hurt? Has something happened to Babs?

I walk outside to find Shadow leaning up against his car, parking where I have told him a dozen times not to park.

“You want to explain what the hell is going on?” I question, digging in my pocket for my smokes. A day starting out like this, cigs won’t be enough.

“Jump in the car. I’ll explain on the way there,” Shadow says, exasperated, climbing into the car.

“Don’t fucking park up here like this again. How many times I gotta tell you, boy?” I question him seriously as I get into the car. The sun shining brightly in my damn face, I pull the visor down.

I look over to see if Shadow is going to answer me, but he just drives out of the courtyard.

“You going to tell me why you woke me up, Shadow?” I interrogate.

“Dani and Babs’ attacks are related. They have gotten themselves into some shit and Dani won’t tell me,” Shadow grits out, his hands strangling the steering wheel. My head whips in his direction. So our girls have gotten themselves in this mess. I wonder who they pissed off and who I’m going to have to kill or pay off because of it.

“That one’s stubborn like her momma,” I inform. Dani’s mom was always pulling shit like that on me, feeding bits of important situations, not giving me all the details.

“What did Dani say?” I ask, wondering what all she told Shadow.

“That I should ask Babs,” Shadow nearly yells, his voice in disbelief. Shadow and Dani getting together has been the biggest pain in my ass. If they would have stayed away from each other, my life would be so much easier.

“Shit,” I mumble. “You two figure out your shit?” I ask, referring to Dani’s pregnancy. When he found out she was pregnant the night of her attack, he was a fucking mess. I tried to give him some good advice that would steer him in the right direction. I am good at giving advice, just terrible at following it myself. Hopefully he uses it.

“Yeah. I stopped at some pregnancy store to pick up books and shit for her.”

I laugh. At least he is figuring out how to suck up quicker than I did when I was his age. “You’re learning.”

We drive in silence to the hospital for the rest of the ride. I am curious to hear what Babs has to say about what she and Dani got into. I wonder if she is talking better than the last time she tried to speak to me. Last few times I have seen her, she was only awake briefly. Everything she said was slurred and stuttered.

“There’s a spot.” I point to an empty parking spot when we pull into the hospital. Shadow drives right past it. I look over at Shadow, glaring. Does he ever listen to a fucking thing I say? He pulls right up and parks in the ‘no parking zone.’ We walk into Babs’ room and I see a bunch of doctors and staff standing around her bed. My eyes widen and my hands sweat nervously.

“I’m calling time of death: four forty-five,” the doctor says, eying the clock on the wall.

“What the fuck?” I roar, pushing past the staff to get to Babs. My face tenses to the point blood vessels pop in my neck and my heart stops with sudden panic.