Vidal! (Snakes Henchmen MC 6)

He nods.

I'm floored.

This is Marnie's second set of same-sex twins.

Jesus!

“Identical.” Identical? I have no idea what the fuck to say. “I take it you weren't expecting that?”

I shake my head again. “No one mentioned it at the ultrasounds.”

“It's not unusual. Happens more often than you'd believe. One hides behind the other.”

“Yes, my wife has been through this once before.”

“Yes.” He's looking at Lydia. Everyone knows Marnie, and I have twin daughters. Everyone knows Amber has Down Syndrome and Lydia doesn't. I'm not ashamed of Amber, and I won't hide her away from the damn world because of the problems she faces. Many Don's would hide a child with disabilities away from the world out of shame. That will never be me because Amber is perfect in my eyes, just as Lydia is, and she always will be.

“Will they be okay?” I can't bear the thought of losing them, of losing Marine. I don't know how the hell I'm even holding myself together right now. I will, however, for my wife and children. I have to.

Jesus, I have twin daughters and twin sons. Son's I never believed I'd have! I need them to survive. I need Marnie and the twins to survive. They can't leave the girls and me alone. I feel so very fucking weak right now, and I can't be weak. I have to show the world nothing can break Don Vidal, but the truth is, this is the only thing that could break me.

“They were taken straight to the NICU, where they'll be for a while, I'm afraid. Both babies are extremely small, and cannot breathe unaided.”

Fuck, my heart is fucking breaking! Who the fuck would do this?

“And my wife?”

“She's going to be ill for a while. We're hopeful that she will recover from this, but we can't be sure of the extent of the damage caused to her uterus just yet. As I said, Mrs.Vidal has an infection in her bloodstream, so she's been given a blood transfusion to help. We'll be bringing her out of recovery shortly. You'll be able to see her then.”

“Thank you,” I wave my hand, dismissing him. He scurries off in a hurry.

I hand a now sleeping Lydia to Brooke. I need some air. I have calls to make; I want men outside this damn hospital 24/7 while Marnie is here. I want men outside my sons' room, and my wife's, bikers, mob, I don't give a flying fuck! No one is getting inside this hospital without me knowing about it. Every fucker that comes through is getting checked for weapon's, anyone looking off will be trailed and dealt with.

“Draven,” I turn slightly only to be crushed by my brother. Fuck, he's enormous! I haven't had time to blink, and his arms are around me, crushing me to his big body.

He's younger than me by a couple years, and I'm not a man to show my emotions, but right now, I need this. I need my brother’s strength because I finally understand how he must've felt when his wife was almost killed. It fucking hurts too much, so much that it's hard to breathe.

“It's all right, brother, I'm here. Lean on me. Everything's gonna be all right.”

I clutch the back of his cut, my lips to his ear. “I want who did this found, Sam. Help me find them. Then help me end them.”

“Always.”

* * *

A nurse leads my brother and me to the NICU where my sons are. I have a sick churning in my stomach that just won't end. It's been that way since I was told Marnie was here.

There are but a few things in this life that could reduce me to tears. This moment right here, seeing my son's in, side by side incubators, lines, and tubes in their tiny little bodies, small breathing masks over their faces, this is where I cry. This is a moment I just can't stop the tears and sobs.

Hammer clasps my shoulder, showing me that he's here for me, that he won't be going anywhere right now. I draw comfort from that. I'm not a weak man, but I challenge the hardest bastard out there not to crumble at a sight like this: two tiny boys, the smallest I have ever seen, struggling to stay alive.

Only someone with a complete emotional detachment disorder would feel nothing right now. Even then I challenge them to stand here and not feel their heart break a little.

The nurse explains what all the machinery is for and how it's helping keep my son's alive. She then leads me over to them and explains who's who.

“The one on the left,” She points to the bigger of the two. Not that he's much bigger, but I can tell he's the one I've seen on the screen at Marnie's appointments. He's the one I've been talking to each night before I fall asleep, and I wonder if he'll recognize my voice. “He was born first. 3Lb 7oz, which is a little small for his gestation, but not drastically.”

I can't take my eyes off him, he's beautiful, even if he is wrinkled up like a little prune. He's my boy, mine and Marnie's, our little Luka. That's the name we decided on for our son.

“Luka,” I tell her. “His name is Luka.”

“Suits him.” My brother tells me while squeezing my shoulder.

“And this little man,” We turn and follow the nurses hand. “He weighs a little less than his big brother, just 2Lb 8oz.” Shit, that's small. “Do you have a name for him too?”

“Not yet.” Marnie and I didn't pick any other names that we liked. We agreed on Luka, the only child we were expecting. I won't choose a name without my wife. I'll just have to wait until she's awake for that. “Once his mother is awake, we'll choose.”

The nurse nods with a kind smile. “Dr. Ramone would like to place both boys in the same larger incubator in a few days. He'd just like to stabilize them.”

“Put them together?”

“Yes,” She nods. “You'd be surprised how much it helps premature twins. They've been together inside their mother’s womb for over seven months. As they haven't grown as most babies would by that stage in pregnancy, they're going to be here for a while. Being together will help them bond, make them stronger.”

That's all I need to hear. Whatever makes them stronger so that they can come home, I'm on board with.

I press a kiss to the fingers on each of my hands and then press them against the plastic of their incubators, “Daddy loves you.” I tell them before walking out of there and making my way to Marnie's room. I haven't seen her yet. I need to see her.

I tell Hammer to wait outside with everyone else who seems to have congregated while I walk into Marnie's room. She looks peaceful like she's simply sleeping, yet she's so pale, she looks almost dead. If it weren't for the heart monitor beeping away, I'd think she was.

I take a seat in the high back chair beside her bed. I take Marnie’s hand in mine and bring it to my lips, pressing a hard kiss to her knuckles. “We have two boys, Marnie. Can you believe that? You're the mother of four. Two sets of twins. No one can ever say you do things by halves.” I chuckle. “Twin boys, Marnie, and they're so beautiful. Luka and, I don't know.” I chuckle. “We didn't plan on a second child. I don't want to name him without you. It wouldn't be right.”

She doesn't even flinch. She just lies there as still as a dead body.

“You have to come back to me, Marnie. I need to know w

ho did this to you. I swear to God, I'm gonna kill them. They won't get away with what they've done to you; believe me.” I lay my head on her hand.

God, what if she doesn't wake up? She can't leave me here alone without her. I waited all my life to find her. Marnie has brought so much love into my life, so much light to my darkness. She's given me four beautiful children to share my life with, and if I lose Marnie, I don't know how I'll go on.

“Don't leave me, baby. Please. I need you.” A hand on my shoulder tells me that I'm not alone. I don't need to look up to see who it is; I can sense it. I'd know her delicate little hand anywhere.

With my free hand, I reach back and take Maria's. I hate showing weakness in front of her, but only a man with a stone heart would be able to do anything but right now. The truth is, if she were anyone else, I'd put on the hard face and show them all how strong I am, just as I always have. With my brother and sister, I don't need to be that man.

“She will wake up, Dray. Marnie is not leaving you; she's just resting.”

“What if she doesn't, Maria? What the hell do I do then?”

“She will, Draven, she just needs a little time to rest. While she's resting her tired body, you're going to find the piece of shit that did this, and you're going to end them. Do you hear me?” There's so much venom in her voice that I can't help but look at her. She sounded so much like our mother right then. I've never heard Maria like this. “Make them pay, Draven. Make them pay in the worst way.”

Oh, I will, little sister. There is no doubt about that.

Chapter Thirty

Draven

It's been a hellish three weeks. My wife still hasn't woken up, and the doctors are worried. Marnie should have woken a few short hours after the operation. She didn't. They told me that she'd slipped into a deep coma due to what she'd been through. Her body went into shock, and the doctors are fighting hard to keep her alive.

How did it come to this?

One injection could cost Marnie her life. I've been a bad man in the past, I've done terrible things, but do I really deserve to lose the only woman I have ever loved?