A/N:
I AM SO SORRY GUYS! I haunt been about to write in literally FOREVER, but guess what. I finished the book! This is the final chapter :) HOPE YOU LIKE IT! COMMENT AND VOTE!! :D
And remember, there's gonna be a sequel ;)
*******************************
CHAPTER 46 REVIEW!!
The two pink lines shown brightly, signaling more craziness in my life.
We made an appointment that afternoon, and a couple hours later, our little family sat in the sonogram room, awaiting the doctor.
"Serenity, you're gonna be a big sissy, did you hear that?" I asked her quietly, bouncing her on my leg as she sucked her thumb, looking around the room intently.
We came home to a surprise party for the three, soon to be four, of us.
Amy was home from college, bringing home news of her own.
"I'm engaged!" she squealed to the group of girls that were crowded into the small living room of the guest house.
The party began to die down around ten and the girls were exhausted having had an eventful day.
Hayden put Serenity to bed as I said goodbye to the last few guests and we met in our bedroom, collapsing on the king sized bed.
"We can't have another baby." Hayden said quietly, staring up at the ceiling.
I turned over and looked at her, but she wouldn't look at me.
"Why not?" I whispered back.
She stayed silent, but soon I heard her labored breathing and saw the tears sliding down her cheeks.
"What if this baby dies too?" she looked at me then, grief, despair, and guilt clouded her eyes.
"It's not your fault that Serenity is sick." I said, pushing a few pieces of stray hair behind her ear and wiping a few stray tears away.
"Then who's fault is it?" she whispered harshly.
"Baby, sometimes it isn't anyone's fault. Sometimes things just happen."
As we fell asleep that night, tears fell from both of our eyes as we laid in the darkness, unable to sleep.
*******************************
CHAPTER 47
Hayden's POV
"It's a boy." the doctor said, smiling at the three of us.
Serenity clapped and smiled at us as she sat at her daddy's lap.
She was looking better today.
A good day, for once.
But she had her moments.
She was talking now. She said mommy, and daddy, and gramma, and granpa, and baby.
Today would mark exactly three weeks until her first birthday.
She was strong.
The doctor said that she might be able to fight it, grow to be older than one, but he couldn't promise anything.
The days were tough knowing that my precious baby girl was dying.
Knowing that in just another couple months, I would be bringing another baby into the world.
Our first class reunion was coming up next week.
It'd be a year since we graduated.
Amy was home now. She would spend most of the day on the phone with Zachary, her fiancée, who lived in Seattle.
One day, she stopped by.
"How's my beautiful best friend?" she asked, giving me a hug as she walked into my small living room.
"I'm exhausted." I sighed, sitting down in a stiff leather chair in front of the fireplace.
"Well, would a little shopping trip cheer you up?" she asked, squatting down beside my chair, taking my hand in hers.
I let out a big sigh as I turned to look at her. Her thousand-watt smile seemed to light up the room, and it was contagious.
"I guess," I smiled, "but what about Serenity?"
"Xavier can watch her for a few hours. You need a break sweetie." She stood and walked over to a window overlooking the woods.
"Keeping yourself closed up in this tiny house in not gonna keep her alive." she said quietly.
Sometimes the truth hurts.
All we wanted was to spend all of our time with Serenity, but we had stayed in all the time, other than doctor visits and walking to my parents house.
"What you guys need right now is a vacation." Aims said with her huge smile.
I smiled back at her and awkwardly got out of the chair, walking over to the window and joining her. "I think you're right."
The days flew by and the class reunion came and went.
Many of our friends had left the area, so none of them knew about Serenity's disease.
Amy filled them in.
It seemed like everyone was there, filling the gym, telling their success stories.
All we had to tell about was Serenity and the baby on the way.
But it was our life.
Our perfect, tragic life.
They called the Homecoming King and Queen up and Xavier and I walked the steps to the stage, yet again.
"Another baby on the way?" the principal laughed, smiling at us as he put a crown on each of our heads. "Congratulations."
Insignificant days passed.
Useless doctors visits became weekly things.
Serenity began to walk.
And her first birthday drew near.
"It's tomorrow Hayde." Bailey said as she fed Serenity breakfast.
"I know." I said quietly, working on a drawing of Bails feeding Rene.
"Mom's throwing a huge party, remember?" she looked over at me, pausing Rene's breakfast time.
"Yes, I remember." I nodded, looking at Rene before looking at the paper on my lap again.
She sat there quietly, her hands together in her lap, looking between Bails and I. She reached a tiny finger out suddenly and poked Bailey's shoulder.
"What is it sweetie?" she asked, propping her head in her hands on Ren's highchair tray.
The baby looked down at the food and then back up at Bails before putting a finger on her lips.
Bailey looked at me questioningly. "She does sign language?"
I nodded, "Xavier's been trying to teach her."
"Speaking of him, I think the beast has woken!" Bailey laughed as Xavier came clomping down the stairs, shirtless with his hair mussed.
He yawned a huge yawn and squinted through his closed eyes.
Seeing Bailey, he ran behind the island.
"Babe, you need to tell me when we have guests over so I don't come down in just boxers!" he complained.
If anyone could ever make me smile, it was him.
Bailey laughed and continued to feed her niece as I got up and walked over to Xavier.
He pulled me into a tight hug, his body pressed up against my side and he whispered in my ear, "I love you."
"I love you too." I reach up on my tip-toes and kissed his cheek gently.
He laid his hands on my belly and kissed my head. "It's tomorrow." he whispered, rubbing my bulging stomach.
"I know. But she's fine, she's got her father's determination."
"And her mother's beautiful face." I smiled up at him and he leaned down and kissed me softly.
"And her daddy's gorgeous emerald eyes." I said, kissing him again.
Bailey cleared her throat and I jumped, realizing she was still in the room.
"Sorry Bails." I laughed and turned away from Xavier and looked at Ren.
"Mommy." she said, reaching across the island to me.
"All done?" I asked, walking over to her. "Thank you Bailey." I kissed my sister's cheek and she smiled.
"Let me grab a wash cloth and I'll clean her off." she wiped her hands and face clean of the orange baby food and kissed her forehead. "I love you baby girl."
"Thank you." I pulled her out of the baby seat and rested her on my hip.
Her eyes stayed focused on my belly and she reached out her tiny palm, setting it gently on her baby brother. "Baby?" she asked, looking up and examining my face and she rubbed my stomach.
"Yes, that's the baby, honey." I smiled at her and she turned her attention to Xavier.
"Daddy." she reached out her thin arms to her daddy and I set her down, letting her waddle over to him.
He scooped her up and she curled up in his toned arms, laying her head on his shoulder and yawning.
"I'm gonna head back over to the house. I'll see you guys later. Bye Ren!" she waved and Serenity smiled back at her.
She opened the door and the humid June air flowed through the door.
My phone vibrated on the coffee table next to the rocking chair and I grabbed it before it could fall to the floor.
"Hello?" I said, not bothering to check the caller I.D.
"Hayden Bottichelli." a gruff voice said, sounding somewhat amused. The familiar voice sent shivers through my body.
"That's me." I said, my throat closing up.
"I know. Do you know who this is?" the smile in his voice evident over the phone.
"Yes." I croaked.
The memories flooded back. Homecoming night, Xavier and I won Homecoming King and Queen and were being escorted into an area to have pictures taken.
The camera guy looked eerily familiar.
I hadn't met him before, but Xavier had told me about him.
He was his father's second in command, until his father died from a heart attack.
Robert had expected to be made president of the company, but for some reason, Xavier was in the will to overtake the company.
When Robert realized this, he came after Xavier. And me.
After homecoming, and after he'd shot both me and Xavier, he was arrested.
But now, somehow, he had gotten my number.
His grizzly voice pulled me from the past and gave me goosebumps.
"Good. Well Hayden, I just wanted to let you know, the charges were dropped. I'm a free man again. So I suggest that you and your boyfriend and your baby get a move on. It would be much too easy to go to your little house in the woods and kill you, I'd rather it be more like, a game of cat and mice. Four mice and one cat." He laughed, sounding like a man that's been smoking his whole life. "Goodbye Hayden. And good luck."
He knows where we live. He knows i'm having another baby. The thoughts made me dizzy and I found the rocking chair behind me and collapsed into it. The line went dead and the phone dropped from my hand.
I hadn't noticed Xavier had walked over until his face fluttered in front of mine, my head spinning and my eyes blurry.
"Hayden, what is it. Who was on the phone?"
His voice sounded like it was a hundred miles away, but I could feel his hand on my forehead, wiping my tears away, cupping my cheek.
I heard him talking, yelling at something, felt a tiny hand on my knee and looked down and saw a skinny, pale little girl looking at me worriedly, her hand rubbing my knee as the world faded to black.
His terrifying, grizzly voice lingered in my head.
Robert is on the hunt, and we are his targets.
END OF BOOK ONE