Always (Next Generation The Skulls 1)

If she wasn’t careful, Daisy would turn on her. Remembering the one and only time this had happened, their little secret, she rushed to her friend, and wrapped her arms around Daisy, trapping her arms at her sides.

“Let me fucking go. That slut needs to die,” Daisy said.

“I’ve got you.”

“I mean it, Tabs. Let me the fuck go.”

“Not happening.” She held on even as pain exploded in her body. “If you don’t stop, you’re going to hurt me,” she said. “Please, Daisy, stop. You don’t need to fight. You shouldn’t fight.”

Daniella whimpered and moved as far away from Daisy as she could get.

Daisy laughed. “You fucking coward. How many of you were there?” she asked. “I know it wasn’t just you.”

Tabitha looked past Daisy’s shoulder and saw Luke staring back at her. He didn’t know. She saw that in the way he looked at her.

Daisy took several deep breaths.

“You shouldn’t be in the ring,” Ryan said, climbing on in.

One by one, Anthony, Miles, Simon, her crew climbed into the ring. She still held on to Daisy, not letting her go.

The Dogs joined him, Luke staring at her.

“You should look for a better crew,” she said. “This one likes to hit a woman when she’s down. Did you feel like a big tough man, huh? Is that it? You feel all hot.”

“I’m fine,” Daisy said.

Tabitha felt the change in her friend and slowly let her go.

The crowd was getting nervous, but she didn’t care. Staring at their enemies, she did something she thought she would never do.

“Is this what the Dogs are capable of?” she asked, lifting her shirt up over her head, letting them see the bruises, the cuts. Her ribs had been bound up. “I don’t even know all the damage but this is what your people do. You’re nothing but weak and as for you”—she looked at Ryan—“you shouldn’t wear a leather cut, you piece of shit.”

Simon charged forward, landing a blow to Ryan.

“Stop,” Tabitha said, moving forward. Simon went crazy, hitting, punching, and this time, Anthony intervened, dragging Simon off him.

She looked toward Luke. “Happy?”

“I had no idea.”

“Yeah, and that proves you have no fucking control,” she yelled at him.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ryan. He flicked open a knife and went for Simon. She couldn’t allow anything bad to happen to her man.

She acted on instinct, stepping in the way, and as she did, the knife slid right into her stomach.

Everything went slow.

Ryan let go of the knife as he was tackled to the ground and Tabitha stepped back. The noise seemed to be silent. The knife stuck out of her stomach.

She grabbed the handle and pulled it out. Blood covered her hands. Her blood. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. Simon caught her before she went down.

****

Dried blood covered his hands.

Devil was there beside him.

Lash, Tiny, Nash, Stink, and Whizz sat, waiting for news. Daisy’s face had broken out in the bruises. She looked a mess.

Simon couldn’t believe what had happened. Tabby had passed out in the car. Blood soaking through her clothes, dripping onto the seat.

She’d been in so much pain.

Sandy, Stink’s old lady who was a doctor, had arrived and gone to work on Tabby.

Tiny stood and Eva let out a gasp. Miles hadn’t spoken since they arrived at the hospital.

“What the fuck? She was supposed to be in her room.” Tiny moved toward him. Devil stood.

“Be careful.”

“Be careful? My daughter is in surgery. You think I don’t know what this all means? Sandy’s in there and she hasn’t come back out. I know it means my little girl could be dying on the table.”

“Tiny, please, no one needs this,” Eva said, moving to his side.

“It’s my fault,” Daisy said. Tears streamed down her face. “She didn’t want me to do something I’d regret.”

“Shut the fuck up,” Tiny said.

Daisy tensed up and this time, Anthony got up. “You don’t get to talk to her that way.”

“Son, sit down.”

“Of all the stupid fucking things you kids could do—”

“No!” Anthony’s yell was clear and carried across the entire hospital.

“Who the fuck do you think you’re speaking to?”

“Someone who doesn’t know all the facts.”

“The facts I know is that my daughter got stabbed tonight.”

“She stopped Daisy from killing the girl who beat her up. Tabitha stopped Simon from getting stabbed. One of the Dogs had a knife. She saw it, so did I. I was further away. I should be the one in the operating room.”

Angel sobbed. “What your daughter did was protect the man she loves. That’s all.”

“I suggest you sit down.”

“Actually, Tiny, I suggest you do. We don’t know enough, and I’m not willing to start a war right now in our hospital.”

“If she dies, I will kill your son,” Tiny said, looking Devil in the eye.

“You think you’ll get a chance?” Simon asked, standing up. He was broken inside. He didn’t know if his wife was dead or not.