Chapter Twelve

Lorentzian Chaos

Willow

Regina is wailing like a banshee in the back seat and Diego has lost all the color from his skin leaving only a sheen of sweat behind. Speeding away from my home once more, I thought it was only a shoulder wound but that can't be all. I can see the blood pooling around him in the seat and dripping to the floorboard.

My phone rings loudly and I answer it before putting it between my shoulder and chin. With my other hand I grab the steering wheel as Diego starts to veer off the road. I have no idea if anyone is following us but I do know we can't stop driving.

"What the fuck?" Konnor roars down the line.

"Don't scream at me, you prick," I snap. "I have enough problems without having to put up with your shit."

"What just happened, Willow? Whose toes have you been stepping on?" He acts like I didn't even say a word.

My eyes drift to the back seat where Regina has finally stopped screaming and is now quietly sobbing instead. Fuck.

"Kon…" my voice cracks.

"Fuck, Willow," he says hoarsely. "I didn't mean to yell at you."

A sob breaks free at his words and I end the call, dropping my phone between the seats. My heart is racing as I stare back into the vacant gaze of Devon Hennie. He must have caught a stray bullet. Double fuck. Taking a deep breath I center myself. I don't have the luxury of mourning Devon right now so I tucked it away for later, when I will sit crying in the bath.

Pulling the car off the road, I wait a minute to make sure we aren't going to be ambushed before jumping out. Rounding the car I keep my eyes and ears peeled for anything out of the ordinary. Luckily we aren't in a heavily trafficked area or I would have a lot of explaining to do.

Diego groans when I shove at his shoulder.

"Slide over. I need to get us the fuck out of here," I explain when he grips the steering wheel.

Glossy eyes stare at me before he does as he is told. Fuck my life. Everything is falling to shit and I don't know which way to turn. I can't call Konnor because he is going to blame me for Devon's death. I can't call Rafe because he will lord this over me forever.

Gunning the engine, I head in the direction of the docks. I know that only a handful of my people will be there at this time on a Sunday, and I should be able to slip past them or send them on their way. But I am still going to need help.

"Regina," I call out. When she doesn't reply, I do it again. Louder.

"Yes," she whimpers.

"I need you to find my phone. I dropped it."

"I can't," she mumbles.

"If you don't, whoever shot at us is going to find us and finish what they started. I need to call someone to help us. And Diego is hurt." I know my tone is harsher than she needs right now but I don't have the time or inclination to baby her at the moment.

I hear her moving around and a moment later she holds out the mobile device for me.

"Pull up Luca's number and then hand it to me."

She doesn't speak as she does what I tell her. I listen to the ringing as I wait for him to answer. Just as I am about to give up hope that he will answer, his voice fills my ear.

"Willow?"

"I need your help," I say without preamble.

"Okay. Where are you and what do I need to bring with me?" He doesn't hesitate at all and I am more grateful than words can express.

"I'm almost at the docks so I'll meet you there. If you know a doctor that would be great." I know he wants to ask me questions but he holds back. "And don't tell Rafe."

I end the phone call and concentrate on the road. The last thing we need is to get into a damn accident as well. Wouldn't that just be perfect?

The universe must finally be on my side. When we finally make it to the warehouse on the docks there are only two men there, keeping guard, and both are handpicked by Diego so they know better than to cross either of us. The moment the vehicle comes to a standstill inside the cavernous building I am out and moving around to the passenger side door.

"Ma'am," the larger of the two men calls out. "Are you okay?"

"Fine. Help me lift Diego out," I reply, cursing beneath my breath.

The men gently push me aside and lift Diego out. His body is limp and for a moment I fear that he is dead before a groan slips from between his lips. We may not be best friends like Dom and my husband but I have an appreciation for his skill and the blunt honesty with which he handles me. He is slowly becoming one of my favorite people and I would hate for anything to happen to him.

"Over there." I point to a large table that I assume will be used to cut the drugs we are shipping in even though the warehouse is currently empty. "I have someone coming."

"He is going to be pissed," the other man says. "He hates being taken care of almost as much as he hates being told what to do."

I can't help but laugh at the other man's assessment. Diego is a difficult man but as long as he is alive I couldn't give two shits about his sour mood.

Once Diego is settled I make my way back to the car to see to Regina. This is a fuckup of epic proportions and I have no idea how the fuck I am going to get ahead of the fallout but I need to make sure she is okay. I still need to get her to a doctor as well but it has shifted down a little on my ever-growing list of priorities and all the shit I still need to do.

Opening the back door, my gaze connects with her. I see the overwhelming sadness and grief in her gaze and must swallow back my own feelings at the situation. I briefly wonder if she is in danger of having a miscarriage with all the stress that continues to get heaped onto her. And whether she has even considered that?

"Come on." I hold out a hand to her and help her slide out from beneath the body of her dead lover.

Once she is out of the car she wraps her arms around my body as sobs wrack her frame once more. I allow her a moment for grief to overwhelm her before pushing her away. Holding her shoulders I wait until she is fully focused on me.

"I'm sorry," I say, a weak-ass apology for everything that has gone wrong in her life today.

"I want to be angry with you but I know this wasn't what you wanted," she replies, taking a deep breath. "Devon told me about you."

I nod, appreciating the fact that at least she isn't holding this against me. I can't say the same for the Hennie clan when they find out what has happened. I watch her square her shoulders and gather herself. She is a Gallo, after all, and the weakness that has been at the forefront today isn't normal for her. Perhaps it's the pregnancy hormones?

"What now? Is Luca on his way?" she asks, stepping around me and walking toward Diego and the other men. "He needs a doctor."

A horn honks outside the closed door of the warehouse before I can reply. Both men turn toward me with a questioning look and I nod for them to let the person outside in, hoping it will be Luca and not Konnor.

From inside the car my phone rings but I ignore it. Relief swamps me when I see Luca and Thalia quickly get out of the midnight-blue Jeep.

"What the fuck happened?" Thalia asks while touching me, taking in my bloodstained legs, and assessing me for wounds.

"I'm fine and so is Regina, but Diego is bleeding out," I say in reply instead of trying to explain what I don't understand.

Thalia moves quickly, grabbing her black medical bag from the car and directing the two men to help her lift Diego so she can cut his shirt away and assess the damage.

"Willow," Luca says, drawing my attention to him. He assesses me carefully before speaking. "I know why you're doing this. I know you need your independence, that you need to get your family ready for Roman, but this isn't the way to do it."

Both our gazes travel to Devon Hennie's corpse in the back seat of my car.

"Give him a chance to help you," Luca says softly, taking my hand in his. "One or both of you are going to end up dead if this continues."

"I think it has already gone too far," I choke out. "There are things that I can't undo."

Fuck. I want to stay strong but God knows I wasn't planning for everything to go to shit. All I wanted to do was get the Hernandez Empire operational again and prove to my husband that I am more than some piece of arm candy or a little fuck toy he can use and abuse at his discretion. Now…

"He wants to help, Willow," Thalia says from beside Diego, her hands stained with his blood. "I know he's an asshole but he's your asshole."

A broken laugh falls from my lips as Luca slides a cell phone into my palm with a soft smile. Looking down, I see that Rafe has already answered. Putting the device to my ear I listen to his breathing.

"Are you okay?" he asks softly, nowhere near the demanding tone I am used to.

"No, I'm not."

"Willow," my name is a broken sound torn from his chest.

"I need your help."