Page 28 of Behind the Mask

If he were telling the truth, well, I couldn't lose another child. A deep ache filled me as I remembered the pain of losing my first child. It was so unbearable that I almost took my life. My eyes shot open, and my brows furrowed, how didheknow that I was pregnant?

"I see the wheels in your head turning, and must I remind you I have more than enough money to get the right doctors in here to check. Honestly, I'm quite offended that you think your mayor doesn't have the proper resources."

He placed the scalpel down on the tray next to the bed and waved someone over. A man in scrubs came over to stand next to him and looked down at me with something I didn't think I would see. His green eyes showed guilt, regret, and remorse. Something that shouldn't be there if he was going to do the mayor's evil deeds.

The mayor's eyes returned to mine. "Need I remind you, that if you don't listen this time, I won't be so nice. Break things off with that boy of yours and move as far from here as possible. If I find out you're still causing my son pain when he's supposed to be focused on his upcoming duties, there will be hell to pay."

He turned around and was about to leave. But he suddenly stopped and turned towards me. He punched the side of my face, sending me into a dark oblivion unable to wake up and feel anything that came next.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Axel

On a Saturday night, the waiting room was surprisingly empty. There was no one here except for a few sniffling families, a few crying kids, and a few older people who looked like they would have rather been anywhere else than the hospital waiting room. Hell, I would have loved to be anywhere else. But here I was, waiting and hoping Oliva would make it out of surgery alive.

"Axel!" I looked up to see Olivia's mother running towards me, tears streaming down her cheeks, Olivia’s dad following quickly behind. I stood up immediately and wrapped my arms around her. Olivia's parents were like my own. They cared for me when I grew up in the house across from them. They were best friends with my parents, and I knew that they had always hoped Olivia and I would end up together. Even her dad told me I was the only one he wanted to give her away too.

She dropped her arms from around my neck and went back to her husband who looked a little queasy being in the hospital. I didn't blame him though, hospitals made me nervous. "Do you know what happened?"

My gaze returned to June, her mother, and I sighed as I saw the hope in her blue eyes. "I found her on her bed bleeding out, and I haven't heard anything else yet. They wheeled her into surgery two hours ago. Did Lindsey get a hold of you?"

She nodded and wiped a few stray tears. "Yeah, she called us when we were on our way back to town. You said you found her lying in her own blood?"

I grabbed the back of my neck and paused, knowing this would only bring them more harm than good, then nodded. She lifted a hand to her mouth as she choked back a sob. Her husband Stan took her in his arms and held her while she cried. It broke my heart to see her so upset, but it broke me even more knowing the woman I loved was hanging on by a thread.

I stiffened when I noticed a man in scrubs walking towards us. The man looked to be in his late forties, with glasses securely fastened over his face, and his hazel eyes hesitant. He walked up to us and removed the cap from his head. "Are you Olivia Banks's family?"

I noticed Stan's grip tighten on June as they nodded and took a step closer. I stayed behind them, fearing the worst.

"How is she, Doctor?" June's voice came out as a whisper, as she tried to contain her emotions.

"She's going to be fine. Weak for a while, but fine. We managed to save her and the baby, but she will be confined to a bed for a couple of days..."

I held a hand up to stop him as I took a step forward standing right alongside her parents. "Baby?"

Olivia was pregnant? How was that even possible? My heart was beating so fast I couldn't get a grip on what was going on. If the baby was mine, then I got two women pregnant and would have two children from two different women.

"Yes. She's still quite early in the pregnancy, and I'm rather surprised with everything she's been through that she didn't lose the baby. That only means that she and the child growing inside of her is strong. Strong enough to survive this."

Her parents asked a few other questions, but I tuned them out. I backed up until the backs of my knees hit a chair and took a seat, grabbing my head into my hands. I not only almost lost Olivia for a second time tonight, but I almost lost another child. Olivia's child. Our child.

My stomach churned. I took deep breaths, but it only seemed to make my stomach twist even more. I faintly heard my phone ringing in the background and grabbed it out of my pocket, reaching to answer it not looking at who it was.

"Yeah?" I answered roughly.

"Axel, are you still at the hospital?" It was Lindsey, and from the sound of her voice, she seemed hesitant and almost scared.

"Yeah, why?"

"I'm on my way to you. I found out something, and I think… I think you need to hear it."

I leaned back in the chair and watched Olivia's parents as they interacted with the doctor, getting all of the information we needed. "You found what, exactly?"

"I'll tell you when I get there. But Axel?"

I ran a hand through my hair in frustration and growled. "What, Lindsey?"

"I need you to promise that you'll stay calm when I tell you. The last thing Olivia needs or her parents need, is to worry about this."

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