My arm sticks out at an awkward angle as blood is being moved from an IV, replacing all that I’ve lost, I can barely feel it. Too wrapped up in my baby. Jozef’s eyes had welled up when he peeked inside the soft towel, a man colder than ice showing a smidgen of emotion had taken me very much by surprise, and my husband is still nowhere to be found.
Edith has remained at the foot of the mattress, a wet cloth prodding and pressing on my legs, my thighs, scrubbing the blood from my flesh. The room is quiet.
The storm is building.
Baby girl grizzles a little, her head shifting from side to side, and I wait to see what she does next. I want to see her eyes, want to know if they’re bright blue, dark blue, or if she’s inherited the dark brown of her father’s. She whines a little, and then stills once more, her small fist finds her mouth, and she sucks until she’s asleep again.
“She’s beautiful, Mrs. Chrobak, a real treasure,” Edith gushes, dumping a wet cloth into a bucket of water beside her. I’m still so dizzy, nauseous, and every muscle is screaming, but I give her a small smile, her words rattling against my fit-to-burst heart.
“Thank you,” I reply.
“Have you chosen a name yet?” she asks, drying her hands on her apron.
I shake my head, and my brain bangs against my skull, making me wince, “No, I think Vladimir would like to choose.”
A small, strange emotion flickers across her face as she looks towards Jozef, who is now changing the empty IV bag. Looking down at the crook of my arm, I wonder, briefly, how the heck he knows what he’s doing, but the loss of fresh blood pumping through my veins has me weakening once more.
My arms feel far too heavy for me to control; my head falls forwards as a gush of warmth flows from me once more. “Edith?” I groan, holding my baby outwards. My eyes close, and the warm body of my baby girl leaving my arms has me bereft and cold before my eyes shut, my body has finally given in to the last nineteen hours, and all it had in store for me.
I’m aware of the door bursting open, but I cannot move.
I’m aware of angry voices, loud and booming, but I cannot ask what’s wrong.
And then I’m wholly aware of Edith begging Vladimir, but I cannot open my eyes to see what’s happening. Baby girl screams.
The door shuts.
And then the world is black and silent.
Chapter One
Jax.
Skinny arms wrapped around my waist from behind, her chest pushing into my bare back as I stood in front of the mirror to get ready, my hands fumbled with my belt buckle. I was to meet Carter in less than an hour, and I just wanted this bitch to leave. I shrugged the naked blonde away, whose name eluded me, and ignored the pout on her face before grabbing my white shirt from the back of the chair.
Dressing quickly, I shoved my hands through my hair and looked into the mirror. As I did up the buttons of my shirt, I saw the blonde in the reflection swipe the small, clear plastic bag of white powder from the dressing table. Turning on my heels to face her, I raised an accusing eyebrow.
“The fuck you think you’re doing?” I asked, enjoying the panic seep over her face.
She rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on, Jax. Like you’re short on the stuff.” She bent down to collect her underwear, wobbling as she hooked her panties over her feet.
I stalked towards her, cracking my neck from side to side. “That’s beside the point. I know you don’t have the cash to pay for that, and you sure as god-damned hell do not steal from the Murdoch’s.” I held out my hand, and she thought better of crossing me, placing the bag into my palm. I grinned, tucking it into my sock. “Good girl.”
“You’re an asshole; you know that?” Taking her dress from the edge of the bed, flinging it over her head, she glared at me. Jesus, would she ever fucking leave?
My cell rang, and my chest puffed out in relief, thankful for the respite from this utter wench.
Seeing Carter’s name, I swiped the screen to answer the call.
“Hey, buddy. Are you ready to go? Amy is here, and we er...” he stammered, and I imagined him scratching his head, “have some news for you!” I walked over to the window and looked down upon Santa Fe. It sure looked pretty tonight.
“Oh shit, you’re not finally making an honest woman of her, are you?” I asked, chuckling.
“Well, if I was you’ve just fucked the surprise, haven’t you?” he laughed back, women’s laughter filtered down the cell, and I smiled. My father was giving us the night off after a shitty week, and it was a welcomed night indeed.
“Nah, hurry up and send whoever you’re with, home, and get your ass here, man.”
“Alright, bud, see you soon.” We hung up the phone, and I slumped on the chair by the window, crouching down to tie my shoes.
The navy suit us Murdoch’s wore fitted me like a god-damned glove, and as soon as I stepped into it, I felt the power of our name smother me like oil.
The Murdoch’s worked for Vladimir Chrobak. We oversaw the delivery of cocaine, weapons and the like, in exchange for a pretty penny and the protection of the Slovaks who ran the underworld of New Mexico. It wasn’t the life I’d imagined to live as a child, and while some days shit got to me, we had it pretty fucking good. We rubbed shoulders we the best of them, spending our nights creating more opportunities to spread Vlad’s top dollar coke across the city. When we weren’t hard at work, we were either partying and fucking at Vixen’s, my buddy Luca’s club, or chilling in a home that would make the least materialistic person jealous.
Life was right at the moment. No, it was fucking great.
Blondie finished gathering her things and stormed towards me, throwing her hands to her hips. “I don’t want to beg, Jax, but can I please just have a line or two to see me on my way? I promise you won’t hear from me again.”
Leaning back on my chair, I drummed my fingers against my chin, “My, how could I resist that offer?” I replied, deadpan, before pulling the bag from my sock and chucking it at her.
The white powder dropped to the floor, and she scrambled to pick it up. She straightened her back and smoothed down her dress, muttering obscenities under her breath as she exited my hotel room.
Once I’d got all my shit from the room, I headed out on to the streets of downtown Santa Fe in search of my truck.
It was Saturday night, and the sidewalks were beginning to bustle with people looking for a place to drink, their voices growing louder with relief at it being the weekend. I smiled, listening to snippets of their conversations. They were so unaware of the dark world the lurked just below their feet, where only the chosen had the pleasure to do business with the Chrobak’s and Murdoch’s. Vlad didn’t just deal with drugs and guns. No.
At his home on the outskirts, a dominating landscape, a house of horrors, was where he ran the other half of his business, the side my father had never wanted to get involved with, which is how he ended up being Chrobak’s number one drug run employee.
He sold girls, too. Some were smuggled from countries all over the planet, and a few others plucked right here off the streets I walked tonight. We didn’t know the ins and outs, but I had always vowed that no matter what, that’s not something I wanted to do with my life. What a stand-up guy I was, huh? I had morals. Even if some of them would be questionable to an outsider, I decided and told myself that the men I supplied drugs to were grown men—more than capable of making decisions for themselves. The girls Vladimir stole, however? It still makes my skin crawl now. The Murdoch’s kept away, kept our noses out, and that worked for us. Vladimir was not a man you’d want to upset. He was this ever dark presence, sneaking around the towns of New Mexico, and he was a guy everyone knew of and had no idea how they did.