Page 41

Keyani

I woke up to people talking. Their voices all sounded like we were under water, and I frowned my face up.

I tried unsuccessfully to open my eyes, but my lids felt like they weighed a ton and wouldn’t budge no matter how hard I tried.

Even my mouth didn’t seem to be cooperating with me.

It took multiple tries to do either, but after a while, I was finally able to open my eyes, and I snapped them back shut, pained from the brightness of the room.

“There! Look, she’s up!” I was able to immediately make out Avery’s voice despite my hearing being fucked up just a second ago.

Someone’s hand wrapped around mine, squeezing, and I gave them a squeeze back because I wasn’t about to try opening my eyes again.

Excited chatter filled the room from the action, and I realized there were way more people in there than I originally thought.

Who the hell are all these people? I couldn’t help wondering.

“Go get the doctor!” This time when Avery spoke, I forced my eyes open, and they immediately watered as I squinted against the light.

“Oh my god! Hey boo! I’m right here.” She blinked rapidly, already on the verge of tears as my eyes swept the room.

No wonder it sounded like so many people.

Along with Avery was Maasai, Maagic, and surprisingly, Cruz’s parents.

Seeing them had everything flooding back as I realized they were probably there for him.

“Crauuu-? Twaaa?” I tried to ask for him and the kids, but my voice came out in a whispered croak. They all shared a look just as the doctor came strolling in, so I didn’t get a chance to ask about it.

“It’s good to see you finally awake, Keyani.

” He moved to the side of my bed with a small flashlight in hand.

“I’m Dr. Rossi, and I’ve been taking care of you for the last few days.

” My eyes widened and shot over to Avery in surprise.

I didn’t feel like it had been that many days, but there was no reason for the doctor to lie.

“You were in a pretty bad car accident and were knocked unconscious?—”

“Ma-ahem! My baby?” I cut him off, panicked, and my hands flew to my stomach. His expression warmed, and he touched my shoulder soothingly.

“Your baby’s fine. The seatbelt protected you from quite a bit of damage, and EMTs were dispatched quickly enough that I don’t believe the baby suffered any issues, but we will continue to monitor. Now can I just give you a quick once over?”

Overwhelmed, I nodded and allowed him to perform a series of simple tests while I tried to wrap my head around what I’d been told.

It wasn’t lost on me that everyone was standing around looking sad and hadn’t made a mention of Cruz since I’d opened my eyes, but I was certainly going to ask once Dr. Rossi left the room.

“Where’s the kids and where is Cruz?” I barely let the door shut behind the man before I was trying to interrogate them.

The doctor had cleared me to have water, and after drinking two glasses, my words were coming out much more clearly but still not at a hundred percent.

Still, I knew they all understood me, but no one made a move to speak.

“The twins are with Eva, and Cruz… he’s…here but?—”

“Take me to him!” I sat up straight and instantly regretted it. A dizzy spell hit me hard enough that I fell back against my pillow, and Avery was right at my side.

“Key, be careful.” She worriedly looked me over. “You need to stay in bed and get yourself some rest. The doctor didn’t say anything about you being able to go anywhere. Let’s wait until he clears you to move around.

“No! I’ve been resting for three days according to him! I wanna make sure Cruz is okay with my own eyes because y’all are acting like something’s wrong but you won’t tell me what!” I cried, filled with frustration.

“Dear, I know you’re upset, but do you think Cruz would want you to stress yourself out worrying about him?

” I was surprised when Serena stepped up, speaking to me as if the last time we saw each other it wasn’t on good terms. Now she was trying to tell me what Cruz would want in a way that ran my blood cold.

“What do you mean would want? Where is Cruz!” I started tearing at all the shit attached to me, ready to jump out of bed and run out the room.

One of them must have gone to tell because while Avery and Serena attempted to restrain me, Dr. Rossi re-entered the room.

He already had a syringe primed and ready when he appeared at my side, and I continued screaming as he inserted whatever was into my IV.

“W-what’s that?” I didn’t even recognize my voice as I lost consciousness once again.

The next time I woke up, it was only Avery in the room, and I tried to sit up quickly, but whatever he’d injected me with had me feeling like I was moving in slow motion. “Girl, where you think you going?” Avery was up and trying to get me to lay back down like she had an alarm on me.

“I wanna see Cruz.” My words slurred, and I felt groggy as hell, but that didn’t stop me from pushing her hands away weakly.

“Keyani! Now, I know you don’t think I’m gone let yo’ injured ass up off this bed?” She gave me the type of look that a mother would an unruly toddler. “If I gotta hold you down, that’s what I’m gone do, but I’d feel bad about doing it.”

Overcome with emotion, my eyes flooded with tears.

I was frustrated, scared, and worst of all, something may have been seriously wrong with Cruz all because I wanted some damn chicken.

Burying my face in my hands, I allowed everything I was feeling to take over as she pulled me into a hug.

“I know baby, I know, but I promise you it will be okay.” I knew she had no way of knowing that for sure, but it still made me feel a little better.

“Please just tell me he’s okay, Avery. I-I won’t be able to—I gotta know he’s okay!” I held her tightly, unable to stop myself from getting worked up. I could barely get the words out as I my breathing picked up.

“I can’t say he’s okay, but he is alive.

He got the brunt of the accident, and he was shot twice, but God must have his arms around that man.

The doctors said he should have died, but he’s strong and he’s hanging on for you and those kids.

Just get back to one hundred percent so that you can be there for him,” she begged, but that only made me feel worse.

Cruz really was in a messed-up position, and it was all my fault!

Everybody worked hard to keep me from taking my ass down to see Cruz, but the minute I was discharged a couple of days later, I didn’t even leave the hospital before going in search of him.

I had to threaten to call security on Avery just to get her to stop trying to block me, and she ended up trailing behind me.

The way she was moving at a snail’s pace only made me more frantic to see him, and when I finally got to his room, I damn near collapsed.

He was bruised and cut up from head to toe with a cast on his right arm and right leg.

His face wasn’t even recognizable, and I timidly moved to his side.

I was scared to even touch him out of fear that it would somehow hurt him, even though he was clearly unconscious.

My tears landed on his blanket, and when they flooded my face, I didn’t even bother to wipe them.

“You know this is all my fault, right?” I sniffled, finally feeling brave enough to touch the fuzzy braids on top of his head. His cocky ass would’ve hated to know that his braids looked so old and raggedy. The thought made me choke on a laugh as emotion filled my throat.

“Don’t say that, Key. It’s not?—”

I snapped my head in her direction, cutting her off.

“But it is though! He sent our other security to get me some fuckin’ Church’s!

” I shook my head bitterly and turned back to Cruz’s lifeless body.

“If they would’ve been there, this shit probably wouldn’t even have happened.

” My heart broke with guilt at how ridiculous it was.

He’d told me it was dangerous, and I still insisted on taking my ass up to the school, so technically, I’d risked his life twice.

“Stop talking like that. He sent them away because he cares about you and the baby and just wanted to get you what you wanted. It’s not your fault that bitch out her mind.

Shit, it’s not even his fault as much as I hate to admit it.

” She grumbled the last part lowly, but I heard her loud and clear.

Avery had felt some type of way about the Raya situation since she’d found out about her shooting up my house.

To hear that Avery was no longer holding a grudge against him made me feel good, but I hated that it came after he was laid up in the hospital.

“Well, he’d be glad to hear you say that. I think he’s low-key scared of you.” I laughed through my tears, and she joined me, finally crossing the room to where I stood and holding my free hand.

“As he should be,” she said, twisting her lips with a smirk.

We were still there some time later when his father walked in and seemed surprised to see us.

He’d been much nicer since I’d been in the hospital, but I was sure that was only because of the baby.

Since I’d been in Cruz’s world, I’d learned that men like Juan only cared about money and legacy.

Hell, probably his wife too, but they weren’t going to use me to get to their grandchild, not unless they showed me they could treat me with respect.

How would I look taking my kid to see them and having to worry that they were badmouthing me the whole time? I definitely wasn’t having any of that.

“Ladies,” he greeted once his initial shock wore off and stepped further into the room.