“I never touched your daughter,” I said. “I never would have, Fiore. You know that.”
“That’s why I needed Antonio. I brought him to cure the problem. But he fucked me too.”
“How so?”
Fiore shook his head. “I want Mara to have your child, Finn. My gift to her. Something she’s always wanted. That’s why I need this to happen now. I get to Zander. I kill him. I give Mara the baby she wants. I get my grandchild back.”
“Think about what you’re saying. It’s crazy talk, Fiore. You’re…”
The bathroom door slowly opened. I took a risk and smacked Fiore’s hand away. The man looked ready to breakdown and cry. Something was not right inside his head.
“Sweetie,” I said to Shayna. “Tell me.”
She swallowed hard. “Not pregnant.”
I wasn’t sure how to feel. Relieved? Disappointed? My stomach was in a knot. I hurried to Shayna and grabbed her, hugging her tight. I felt her start to sob as she tried to hide it. Was she upset? Was she relieved?
“This is not good,” Fiore said. “Not good at all.”
I let Shayna go and turned around. Fiore was right there, the gun still in his hand. I wanted to hit Fiore. I wanted to fucking kill him.
“You have to try harder,” Fiore said. “Fuck her twice as many times as you did already.”
His eyes were wide.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” I asked, putting myself way too close to Fiore.
He swung at me, cracking the gun off my jaw. It hurt a lot and I moved left, trying to catch my balance. I stood and was ready to throw a left that would send Fiore back in time.
Shayna jumped between us. “Wait!”
“What?” Fiore asked.
“It’s not time yet,” she said. “Wait… from my last cycle… it’s not enough time. I mean, it’s there, okay? I feel it. I feel it, Fiore. Like these feelings inside.”
“What are you saying?” he asked.
“If you look at the box. It says weeks, Fiore. I need to be further along.”
“What?” I asked.
Shayna nodded. “I don’t know how to explain it. I feel it though.”
“You feel it,” Fiore said. He reached for Shayna’s stomach and smiled. “You feel it.”
“Just give it time,” Shayna whispered. “Not to be gross but I felt sick this morning.”
“Morning sickness?” Fiore asked, eyes wide. “I’ll have Marie make you her famous soup. Best Italian soup you’ll ever have. Eases your stomach and it’ll keep the baby happy.”
Holy. Shit.
I stood there in shock, watching as Shayna worked Fiore over. A minute ago we were going to go at it. Now we were as happy as a family again.
“Okay,” Fiore said. “You have two tests, Shayna. Give it a few days and try again, right?”
“Of course,” Shayna said. “Yes. I just… I don’t like using the bathroom in front of other people.”
Fiore burst into laughter. He grabbed Shayna’s cheeks and pinched them. “You are something.”
“Fiore, can you leave now?” I asked.
“No,” Fiore said. His eyes were back on me. “You, Finn, have something to do for me.”
“What?”
“That nice truck out there. You think that was free?”
I hung my head.
Nothing was free. Ever.
“It’s a tough one,” Fiore said. “Two on one.”
“What?” Shayna yelled. “No.”
“Yes,” Fiore said. “You could take them, Finn. It’s drawing tons of interest. It’s your… it’s your last fight for a while, Finn.”
“What the fuck does that mean?” I asked.
“I’m putting you into semi-retirement.”
“I’m a fighter. I fight.”
“You win tonight and it cements you forever, Finn. Simple as that. Then you take care of this situation. Together. Celebrate back in the cabin and don’t come out until there’s a baby.”
Fiore’s phone started to beep. He backed up and pointed at me. He made a gun with his fingers and shot.
“Details?” I asked.
“You’ll get them. Don’t worry, Finn. Don’t worry at all.”
I watched Fiore rush out of the cabin. I still stood there, my hand cupping a towel over my dick. Shayna was still in a damn towel.
I turned and looked at her. “What did you do?”
“I bought us time,” she said.
“Sweetie, let me…”
“No, Finn. Someone is going to get hurt.”
Shayna stormed away, through the bathroom toward the bedroom. She stopped to look at the pregnancy test again.
Not pregnant.
I shook my head, still unsure what to feel. We were beyond walking on thin ice. Nothing had worked out. I had no real plan. All I knew was to fight. To fight my way in and out of situations in life.
What I wanted was to tell Shayna I loved her. That she had gotten inside me… just like I’d gotten inside her. That I’d do anything to protect her, help her, and find a way through all of this.
Before that, I needed to square up with Fiore. He was grieving and he needed to realize what he was doing.
I turned, wanting to wrap the towel around me and then chase after Fiore.
When I turned, there was a man standing there in a black suit. He wore black gloves. Before I could make a sound, something smashed against the side of my head.
34.
(Shayna)