Page 78 of Sniper

One baby is healthy….

I look at the men, and they look down. I squeeze my belly, shaking my head, and instantly deny, "No….”

Both babies have to be okay!

Theo squeezes my hand again to get my attention, and I look his way, tears trailing down my cheeks. Gently, he leans forward, wiping the tears away as he whispers with absolute pain, “We lost our little girl.”

My breathing picks up, and guilt hits me hard.

This is my fault, it’s all my fault.

Pure, heart-wrenching sobs tear from my chest, causing Theo to quickly stand and lean over me, gripping my cheeks. I cry, “No, please no….”

Theo places his forehead against mine, whispering, “I’m so sorry, Rory, so fucking sorry,” over and over. I grip his wrists, crying my heart out, my body shaking.

“T-this is-is my fault; I-I was going to abort them. It-it’s my fault!” I wail.

Theo flinches at my words, shaking his head, but I ignore him and try to remove the cannula. The air becoming too thin in the room.

He grabs my hands, and I scream, “No, let me go! I don’t deserve to be here; it’s my fault….”

Sobs tear out of me, breathing becomes more difficult, pain and grief shoots through my body, and Theo shouts, “Doc!”

I fight against him, needing out of this room, the beeping echoing too much in my head, the pain overtaking me.

I can’t breathe….

I struggle for gasps of air as Doc comes into a blurry focus, and he curses, putting an oxygen mask over my face, but I try to fight him off.

This is my fault; I killed my baby, my little girl….

It’s all my fault.

Black spots fill my vision, and trying to breathe becomes too difficult.

“Aurora!” my father shouts, but everything sounds underwater, my ears ringing.

It’s my fault; I didn’t protect her.

It’s all my fault.

“Rory, please…” Theo begs as blackness takes hold, and I welcome it.

It’s all my fault….

My fault….

My….

27

Sniper – One Week Later

I smile a little, my eyes on Pitbull, who is completely oblivious to what’s about to happen as he focuses on Snake as he explains what went down last week in more detail, including making sure to mention how a clubwhore, yet again, got too fucking big for her breeches. Everyone is here, all the brothers. We have much to go through, and this meeting requires the brotherhood for a full house vote.

There are nearly twenty-five of us in here, so it’s tight, but it’s time to make some changes around here.

“Luckily, we managed to get to the apartment before Axe could rape Aurora. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to her in time to save both babies. She lost one, a little girl,” Snake rasps with pain for his blood niece, and the brothers all flinch at his words, some looking my way. I ignore them, keeping my face stoic as I make eye contact with my dad. He tilts his head to ask if I’m good, and I send him a small smile, making him frown.

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