“No.”

“Yes,” he snarls, biting my neck so hard I wouldn’t be surprised if he broke the skin.”

“Please don’t,” I whisper as my legs give out underneath me and his hands wrap around my breasts, squeezing painfully tight.

“Your virginity was supposed to be mine, but you gave it away,” he growls, moving his hands from my breasts to my neck, squeezing so hard the oxygen in my lungs gets trapped as stars and tears blind me.

Trying once more to free myself, I only manage to claw skin off his arm with my nails, but it does nothing. His grip never lessens, and I feel myself become weaker as I attempt to breathe. “I may not be able to take your virginity, but your womb is mine. You’ll give me a baby before I’m done with you.”

“No!” I shake my head in denial as darkness clouds my vision.

“Who are you? Where’s Jax?” I hear a woman’s voice ask, but it sounds like I’m under water, and then I’m released, falling to the floor and gasping for air. Feeling a sharp pain across the side of my face, it takes a moment to realize he’s smacked me.

“You’ll do as I say or you’ll die,” he threatens, pulling out a gun and pressing it to my forehead. Nodding, I agree as he yanks me roughly up to stand then drags me stumbling behind him out of the room, still trying to catch my breath.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, a woman I have never seen before is standing in the doorway with her chest heaving as she blocks the man with Hope in his arms from going outside.

“Where is Jax?” she yells then her eyes fly to me as I dizzily stumble down the last step and hit the wall with my shoulder.

“Get into the house now, or I’ll put a bullet in her,” the man next to me says, roughly pulling me against his chest and placing the barrel of the gun against my temple. Watching her step into the house, tears fill my eyes and drop silently down my cheeks.

“Put her down and go check to see if we have drawn attention to ourselves,” the one holding the gun to my head says, and the man holding Hope nods, setting her on the ground then walking back towards the kitchen as she runs to me.

“It’s okay,” I tell her, picking her up and tucking her against my chest as she sobs into the crook of my neck.

“You guys can go. We won’t say anything,” the woman offers, coming toward Hope and me. “I won’t let them say anything; just please leave and we’ll put this all behind us,” she pleads.

“Shut the fuck up before I shoot you,” he says, and Hope whimpers, tucking her small body tighter against me.

“No one’s outside. We can go,” the guy who left moments ago says, coming back into the hallway near the front door.

“She’s coming,” he says, pointing to the unknown woman.

“Let her and Hope stay. I’ll do whatever you want,” I whisper, trying to get Hope to let me go so I can hand her to the woman.

“She’s coming!” he roars, and the front door swings open.

“Jax,” I whisper, seeing his eyes pull down in confusion, as he takes in the scene then fly to the woman in the room.

“What the fuck are you doing here, Jules?” he asks, and my mind registers Jules is his mom, the one he went to see.

“No!” Jules shrieks, running toward Jax when the man near the door pulls out his gun. Swinging Hope in the direction of the kitchen, a loud bang fills the room.

“Run,” I tell her, unwrapping her from me and putting her on the ground, pushing her toward the kitchen. “Now!” I scream, watching her look at me with tears soaking her face before running off.

Looking around frantically for anything I can use as a weapon, I run to the stand near the front door and rip out one of the drawers, causing papers to flutter down around me as I bring it up over my head and down hard, hitting one of the men over the head. Jax wrestles with the other one, trying to get his gun away from him. Hitting the guy on the floor again and again, a shot goes off and my body jerks from the sound, and then another goes off and wetness splatters across my face. My eyes start to go to the man at my feet, but Jax’s hand tilts up my chin.

“He’s dead, baby. Go find Hope.”

Swallowing, I look around, feeling like I’m outside of my body.

“Ellie, be strong for just a little longer and go get our baby girl.”

Dropping the drawer still clutched in my hand, I nod, and his eyes search my face for a brief moment before his body turns away from me as he goes over to Jules. He bends over her, pressing his fingers to her neck and a hand to her chest, where red has soaked through her shirt. Stumbling down the hall into the kitchen, I see Pancake hiding in the kitchen under the counter, so I pick her up and hold her to my chest as I make my way through the open backdoor just as three cop cars pull into the driveway, their sirens and lights blaring.

Looking around frantically for Hope, I run past the police cars, ignoring them telling me to stop, and then I see Hope next door, standing in the yard with an old woman and man.

“Hope!” I scream, and her head turns toward me.

“Mama!” she cries, running to me as I drop to my knees, letting Pancake fall from my grasp to the grass as Hope hits my chest hard, rocking me backwards.

“Oh, God, Angel! Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?” I ask, pushing her away so I can check her over.

“Ma’am, who’s in the house?” an officer asks, crouching down next to Hope and me.

“Jax. His mom was shot; she needs an ambulance,” I say, and he yells over his shoulder at someone.

“Are the assailants still inside?” he inquires.

“They’re both dead,” I tell him, watching his face soften before he looks away and gives instructions to the men behind him. He then picks Pancake up from the ground and nods toward one of the cars.

“Come with me and get cleaned up then you can wait in the cruiser while we get everything worked out,” he says gently.

Helping me stand with Hope in my arms, he leads me over to one of the cruisers and gives me some wipes that smell like alcohol. It burns as I wipe down my face and hands. Then he opens the backdoor, assisting me inside before dropping Pancake onto the seat next to us and shutting the door.

“Where’s Chocolate Chip?” Hope sobs, gathering Pancake between us.

“I don’t know, Angel,” I murmur, holding her against me, watching the front door of the house as policemen and paramedics go inside. Then I see Jax walk out the front door, holding Chip in his hands as he scans the yard. I bang on the glass of the door and his eyes come to me, and he jumps down the steps and runs toward us.

As soon as he reaches the car, he swings the door open and gathers Hope and me in his arms. “I’m so fucking sorry…so fucking sorry,” he repeats over and over, while he rocks us against him.

“It’s okay. We’re all okay,” I cry, leaning back to see his eyes. “We’re okay,” I echo as his eyes close and his forehead touches mine.

“She’s dead,” he whispers, squeezing us tightly, and my heart breaks.

*

“Do you need anything else?” Lilly asks, standing in the open doorway of Jax’s old room with Cash’s arm around her waist.

Placing Hope on the bed, I tuck her in under the covers and press a kiss to the top of her head. After answering a few questions from the police and getting things settled, I knew there was no way I would be able to stay at the house. Not tonight, and probably not for a long time. I couldn’t even force myself to go into the house to get the clothes and stuff we would need to hold us over for a few days, and I don’t know what Jax packed.

“We’re okay, Mom,” Jax tells her, wrapping his arms around her, and his dad gives them another hug, one of the many he’s given them since they found out what happened. I think Lilly and Cash are still in shock. No one besides me knew Jax had recently been in contact with Jules, and I don’t believe anyone would have guessed she would’ve given her life for his, knowing their past history.