Insolent (Crimson Elite 4)

“You can’t say that. Why would you speak of that?” Olympia doesn’t look at me as she steps up to him. Her hands begin to hit his chest hard, and he lets her. When she stops, he pulls her to him, cradling her head as she cries in his arms.

“As you can see, your timing’s off, please leave.”

They have their own demons, and I have many of my demons to deal with that I really don’t want to take on any more. So, I do as he says and don’t turn back around as I reach the elevator.

“Darby…” She doesn’t usually say my name. She calls me everything else but my name, so when it leaves her lips I pay attention and turn to her tear-streaked face as she makes her way toward me.

“I quit. Thank you for the job.”

My hand reaches out to touch her then I quickly pull it back. “You don’t have to quit. Take some time.”

Her head starts shaking. “No. I don’t want this. I need to… thank you, Darby.” She turns and walks to the guy who’s watching us and falls back into his arms as the elevator dings.

I get into it, not having a clue what just happened and why she’s up and quit on me that easily.

She had a baby?

That’s a big thing. And with him. Who is he to her? A past lover? Or maybe a current one? Did she cheat on him, or was he allowed to? He looked at her as if he still loves her and he told me as much. Yet, the way she used to touch me was as if there was no other in her life.

“D,” Creed says into the phone as I drive away.

“She had a baby,” I tell him.

He goes silent, we both do for a few moments.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know, a guy was there. She didn’t tell me.”

“Fuck.”

“She quit, too. That’s what I was ringing to tell you.”

“Did you fire her, or did she actually quit?”

“She quit,” I tell him, speaking the truth.

“Well, I guess you got what you wanted.”

The words aren’t true now, but they are true in some ways, I guess.

“I didn’t—”

“I know. That’s why I never let you fire her.”

He hangs up without a word more, and I stew all the way home.

She had a baby.

And she was in love.

There’s many things about her I don’t know, or was it that I didn’t care to know.22OlympiaThen

“I’m going to marry you someday, make you my wife.”

I laugh into the phone as I drive. It’s dark. So damn dark. And usually that doesn’t bother me, but for some reason, tonight I need to make sure someone’s there, so I rang Slate so he can talk to me while I drive home.

“Oh, you are, are you? Are you sure of that?”

He laughs at me through the phone. “I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life.”

“I’m jealous.” And I am, I’m so jealous that he knows what he wants out of this life. I love him, but I feel his love for me trumps my love for him. And I’ve always loved that about him, his ability to love so easily no matter what. I, on the other hand, had to warm up to that fact. It took a while for me to fall in love with Slate the way he loves me. Even now, though, I don’t think it’s enough.

“No need to be jealous, I have enough for both of us.” He laughs and my belly groans loudly.

“I need to get something to eat.”

“I’m cooking for you right now, my girls have to eat.”

“Gosh, I love you,” I whisper as a sharp pain hits my belly, and I groan loudly.

“Olympia, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” I lie. He’s always so worried, so overprotective of me.

“I can hear it in your voice, what’s wrong?”

Oh fuck! Another sharp pain hits me, and I grip the steering wheel tighter.

“My stomach.”

“Oh God, Olympia, pull over right now.”

“But I’m close, I’m almost—” The pain hits me hard, and my hands pull the steering wheel sharp in one direction toward the ditch. The ditch contains something large and my car hits it with the loudest bang. It all happens in slow motion, and I can account for almost every action that happens.

My hands pull the steering wheel.

My hand reaches for the seat belt to relieve my belly from some of the pressure.

The car hits a tree. Hard.

My hands go to my belly, thinking they can protect me as I’m pushed hard into the steering wheel.

I lose sight and everything goes black.

When I wake, I can feel the drips of blood running down my face.

The rain has gotten heavier, and the sharp pains that were in my belly are no longer there.

And it’s dark, so dark that I can’t see anything beyond the rain as I clutch my belly.