The Ordeal

Answers.

Nina jiggles the bathroom door knob as it's still locked.
"Jade, what is going on? You've been locked in the bathroom with the shower on hell for hours. Why won't you talk to me?"
Jade stood in the bathroom reading newspaper clippings of her mother's death, looking at pictures of her, and trying to piece together why she'd fake her death. She couldn't be in denial about the one woman whose shadow haunts her entire existence.
"JADE!" Nina yells banging on the door. Jade deep sighs before turning the water off and unlocking the door. Nina mouthed thank you before opening the door and stepping into a sauna. Jade's hair was in a frizzed mess surrounded by images and papers about her mother.
"Is this a mom day?"
"I think I've gone completely insane."
"Why do you say that?"
"Nina, I was on the phone with a business partner, they put me on hold as I heard a voice similar to my dad's on the phone and then a woman joined him in the stairwell, it.. it looked like and sounded just like my mom."
Nina stuck not knowing what to say next made Jade suck her teeth.
"See, you think I'm crazy now."
"Jade we went to her funeral"
"Closed casket."
"Your dad said the damage was too much for y'all to bear."
"Oh please my grandfather was shot to shit and we still had an open casket. Stop trying to make excuses, I know what I saw!"
"Okay. okay. I believe you. Why would she fake her death? Who's out for her?"
"Who isn't out for this entire family, it makes me sick. I just need to know instead of just secretly sending her into hiding why would you traumatize my brothers and me by saying she died? She was gone live for however long and just never come and tell us? Just abandon her damn kids?"
"You might need to speak to your father about this." Jade searched through her papers looking for the picture she took. She showed Nina side by side and Nina herself ended up convinced.
"I'm not crazy."
"Wow, that is her. Jade, what are you going to do?"
"I'm telling Jax first, I gotta call Jr. They've always trusted the boys with more information than me and one of them knew she was alive. Whichever one it is I'm gutting him like a damn fish."

Jr walks into Amber's hospital room just as they're pulling the tube from her throat.
"Hey Jr, I didn't think you'd be here."
"Dad told me what happened and the condition Amber was in, a baby?"
"A baby."
"You're going to be a dad. Who would've thought we just needed Amber"
"I just hope she wakes up."
"She will." Catching Jr up on everything, Jade walks in happy to see both of the men she needed to see.
"Is she awake?"
"Not yet, they just took the tube out."
"Good, well can you both step outside real fast? Like now." Without questioning her they walked out of the room with her.
"Have you slept Jade?" She rolls her eyes at Jax before taking the picture out of her pocket. She opened it showing them both the picture. Jr's eyes nearly fell out of his face and Jax looked closer to the picture. Jade looking at both their facial expressions she figured out which one knew.
"You son of a bitch! Jr, you knew!"
"Look y'all.." Jax still trying to process that his mother was alive lunged at Jr but Jade stepped between them.
"No damn time for that, she's been alive this entire time why? Why did she fake her death?"
"That's not my story to tell"
"Obviously it is you idiot you're the only child who knows, what she's overseas with you?" Jade asks.
"She is.. but there's more to the story."
"That bitch." Jade says.
"What do you both want me to do?"
"Get her ass to the estate to explain her fucking self, she left 2 kids distraught and confused yet you and Dad have been lying to our faces! Get your phone out and call her. Now."

Amber coming to felt like she was hit with a ton of bricks. She looks around the room with her vision improving with every movement of her pupils. Her brain was fuzzy, her memory short but she could recognize she was in a hospital room. Her throat felt horrible as she tried to swallow and it felt like she was swallowing rocks. She looks down over herself seeing the bandages, her leg is propped up in a cast and the chair pulled up to her bed has Jax's jacket hanging off the back. She clears her throat pressing a button on her nearby remote for the nurse. Completely frazzled. Seeing the nurse come down the hallway Jax peeks into her room seeing Amber awake moving her hands around her body. He leaves Jade and Jr there to bicker silently with overwhelming happiness seeing her awake. When their eyes met the relief in him showed in his body language.
"You're awake"
"How long I've been sleeping?" she says with a hoarse voice.
"You've been under for 3 days and off the ventilator for 24 hours. They wanted your body to heal properly after what happened." The nurse comes in.
"Ms. Bryant, hello. How are you feeling?" "Like I got hit with a trash truck" She starts checking Amber's vitals. "Do you remember anything of what happened?" She asks her. "I was shot im assuming?" "You were, anything else?" Amber thought for a minute until she looked down at her stomach. She quickly placed her hand over it "My baby? MY BABY- what happened to" "Your baby is healthy and strong. It survived the incident." She sighs of relief dropping her shoulders before realizing Jax is standing in the room.
"I know you're pregnant. That was the first thing they told me." The nurse peeped the moment, she wrapped up checking Amber and reiterating she was good and the doctor will be in soon. The silence took over the room as the elephant in the room could now be spoken about.
"How long did you know?"
"A few days before this happened."
"Amber if you would've told me I would've never let you go into this situation."
"I needed to do this or Silas' dad isn't going to stop"
"He's never going to stop Amb, he just tried to kill you."
"I know."
"You're done with this."
"Jax-"
"No! you're done with this. I'll handle it, you're carrying my child. You both could've died and then what?"
"What do you want to do about said child?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, do you want me to have it?" "Of course I want you to have the baby." "I didn't know how you'd respond, it's so soon and we just started dating and now we're flying into parenthood. I can handle it, it was just you I was worried about." "I would never tell you to get rid of our child. I want this baby Amber." He holds her hand in his and she gives him a slight smile. He kisses her forehead and rubs her stomach while doing it.
"You're done with this okay?" "Okay, whatever you say."