13. ‘Taz’

THIRTEEN

Lying in bed, not wanting to even get up. I’m dreading today, as it’s my job—well, Vixen’s and mine—to do the intake on Raven’s sister, Bray. I’m not looking forward to it at all. To top it off I didn’t get much sleep last night, this kid is going to be a kicker in the NFL, for sure. I don’t remember Teddy being this crazy active.

Hearing something at the door, I turn and see Travis with a cup in his hand. When he sees me, a huge smile appears on his face. Then he reaches into his sleep pants, pulling out a sleeve of saltines. My hero for sure.

“Que, figured you’d need some herbal tea and crackers before you start your day. I know how much you ain’t looking forward to today so take your time. If you’re late, Vixen can start, don’t make yourself sick.”

I pat the bed down beside me. First he walks to my nightstand and puts down the tea on my coaster and the sleeve of crackers. Then he walks back to the door, closing and locking it, before he makes his way to his side of the bed. He gets in and moves right into my space, which is fine with me.

“Handsome, this baby of yours is kicking my kidneys and bladder to hell. Not sure I’m going to make it through this pregnancy without losing a kidney. Dang, I must have gotten up like three or four times to pee last night, when what I needed was a good night’s sleep so I can get through this day. Not sure why Tink thought it would be a good idea to have me, of all the sisters, do the intake.”

“Maybe, Que, she thought you’d be good for Bray’s sensitive mind right now. Between you and Vixen, both of you will make this uncomfortable interview, or whatever it is, as easy as possible for Bray. That’s what Tink is betting on. I mean, who else should she assign? Shadow, Raven, Squirt, or Heartbreaker to name a few. I mean, I can just see how it would go with Shadow and Raven. My God, Bray wouldn’t last ten minutes. Now lay your head on my chest for five minutes while your tea steeps. Then you can start your day, maybe meditate for a bit to relax yourself. I’ll get Teddy up and taken care of so all you have to worry about is yourself.”

“I love you, Travis, so very much. Thank you for this, means the world to me. I want to do right by not only Bray, but my sister Raven too. She’s getting hit from all sides right now. Where at one time Raven was all jokes and laughs, now I can’t remember the last time she let a good one go. Since this started with her ex, Ash, then to add to it his brother finds Bray. Coincidence, don’t you think?”

“What’re you sayin’, Que? You think the Sterlings were involved with Bray being taken? I find that hard to believe, especially after all they shared at the meeting. Though I never doubt your feelings, so keep an open mind and path, see what comes your way. Now chill for five minutes, I wanna feel my woman up.”

Then he proceeds to run his rough hands up and down my body, which starts to relax me, until I hear the door handle move and Teddy hit the door when it doesn’t open.

“Hey, Momma, I need to come in, whatcha doing?”

Travis looks at me then gets outta bed, walks to the door, unlocks it, and opens it. Teddy looks at him then rushes to the bed. I can tell he’s been crying.

“Honey, what’s wrong? Come on, crawl up. Talk to us, Son, what’s bothering you?”

“It’s Tuna, she’s not feeling good. I tried to stay up all night but fell asleep. Before I did though, made sure her heating pad was on her back legs and the blanket was tucked around her. Also put her head on her pillow. She just woke me up and, oh my gosh, she crapped the room with running poo. It smells so bad and I know she feels bad. So I grabbed some paper towels and was able to clean most of it up, but then she started puking. I need some help.”

Travis gets out of bed, grabs some gym shoes, and heads out of our room but not before telling me to stay put. I look at Teddy, who’s watching where Travis went.

“Do you want to go with your dad?”

“Yeah, I need to check on Tuna. Momma, this cancer treatment stuff doesn’t seem to be working. I don’t want her to be sick then have her, you know…”

My son whispers the end of that and my heart breaks. This poor kid is growing up way too quickly. First the crap with Slick, then the brotherhood and getting in the mess at the grocery store. I mean he shot some guy in his junk that day to protect Olivia. Now even though Paisley, our vet, and the veterinary hospital we are taking Tuna to for her chemotherapy told us it was a long shot, Teddy wanted to try. I think he’s seeing why they said it would be a long shot. Why does this keep happening to us? The first time we get dogs, well three dogs, one has advanced cancer. Well, we will deal with it like we’ve dealt with everything thrown our way.

I sit on the edge of the bed and reach for my tea. Pulling my steeping container out, I place it on the coaster then take a sip. Yummy, Lemon Balm. One of my favorites and since I can’t drink chamomile tea while pregnant, I’ll settle for the Lemon Balm. I take maybe three sips and realize I have to pee. Dang this child. I slowly stand and make my way to our bathroom. First, I pee then I wash my hands and face and brush my teeth. Knowing I won’t have time to fuck with my hair, I grab a scrunchie and put it in a messy knot. Then I close the door slightly, and after getting naked, I walk into our shower and take a quick one. By the time I dry off and grab my robe off the hook, I open the door to find Travis is leaning with his hands on the doorframe. Scaring me to death.

“Jesus, Handsome, give me a heart attack why don’t you? How’s she doing? More importantly, how’s Teddy holding up?”

“Que, she’s not good, I’ll put a call out to Paisley, maybe she can give us something for her upset tummy. Our boy is trying but it’s tearing his heart out. He made me pick her up and put Tuna on his bed after he put a huge towel down for her to lie on. Then he grabbed her heating pad and put it on her hips before he got behind her and covered them both up. If this progresses, it’s gonna kill him, Que. I can’t bear to see him so upset. I want to take the pain from him but I can’t, can I?”

“No, Travis, all we can do is support him and be by his side. If the treatments are making her worse, maybe we stop them now. Talk to Paisley, get her thoughts. I’m going to be tied up most of the day, can you maybe hang with Teddy here with Tuna and the other two pups at home, or do you have stuff to take care of?”

“Yeah, my kid, that’s what I gotta take care of. I’ll call Yoggie, tell him what’s going on; he’ll understand. And Tank’s starting to get involved again, so should be no problem. You want some breakfast?”

“Maybe some toast and really hard scrambled eggs, if you don’t mind? I’m going to get dressed and check on Tuna and Teddy. Where are the other two pups?”

“With Tuna and Teddy. They know something’s wrong with her so they are sticking close. I’ll get breakfast started, come down whenever.”

I watch him walk out, thanking my lucky stars for bringing him into our lives. Everything can’t always go wrong.

My God, how do they do this whenever we break up a human trafficking circuit? We just started going over the intake form and I feel horrible asking Bray these invasive questions, though she doesn’t seem to mind. She’s being brutally honest, which I think is easier since we forbade Raven from coming into the interview. She’s pissed, I mean it took Glory and Shadow to keep her out. When I heard her call those two sisters ‘bitches,’ knew it was time to come in and lock the door. Before we even started, Bray apologized for her younger sister, stating she was always a bit hot-blooded.

Feeling the need to pee, I ask Bray if she could use a break and I’m grateful she says yes. Vixen offers to stay with her so I can go potty. Making my way out of the room, I see Raven sitting on the floor, knees bent, elbows to them, head held by her hands. Fuck.

“Raven, sister, come on, get up. I gotta pee so get up and go check on your sister, we’re taking a break. Vixen is with her but remember this isn’t about you, but her. Bray is doing remarkably well, but this isn’t easy. I had no idea what an intake was and now that I do, man, these survivors are truly strong beyond words. Now I’m going to hit the bathroom.”

I don’t look back because I’ve wasted too much time and don’t want to pee in my pants. By the time I take care of business, wash my hands, throw water on my face, and start to head back, I realize we’ve been at it for hours. I pull my phone out and see I have a few texts. When I look at them my heart shatters. I hit dial and not even a full ring sounds before Travis picks up.

“Que, you okay?”

“No, how long did Paisley say she’d have?”

“Well, she wants to try something first. We have to wait five days then she’s going to put her on steroids. She said sometimes it helps with lymphoma in animals. If it doesn’t work, it won’t hurt her. The side effects are eating and drinking a lot and restlessness. I already talked to Teddy and he wants to try the roids, his words. I’m going to pack up the tribe and we’re going to drive over to Blue Sky Sanctuary to see Paisley. She’s in the clinic today. How’s shit there?”

I tell him about what we’ve covered so far and that this is a long-ass process. He told me he’ll drop some food and drinks off on his way to the Sanctuary. Then we say our goodbyes and I head back to the meeting room. When I enter, I see Bray but no Raven or Vixen. What the hell?

“Bray, you okay? Where are Vixen and Raven?”

She lifts her head then looks around. Oh crap, she was sleeping. Damn, I’m an idiot.

“I’m sorry, sweetie, go ahead and put your head down, get a few more minutes of sleep. I’ll be right back.”

She nods then puts her head on her forearms and I hear a sigh. I turn and as soon as I hit the hallway, I see both of my club sisters making their way back to the room, arms full of stuff.

“Thought you could use a sugar-free lemon lime, Taz. And we brought some crackers, bread, cheese cubes, and fruit, not sure what you’d want.”

I can see Raven is trying really hard, so I smile her way and we walk back into the room. Bray is up and asks to use the bathroom. Vixen goes with her, saying she needs to go too, but I know it’s to keep an eye on Bray. She’s in a very sensitive way right now and the more we hear about her captivity, my worries for her escalate. While I have a minute, I send a quick text to Tink, letting her know where we are and my initial thoughts. Bray shouldn’t be left alone. She’s going to need guidance and companionship during these first few weeks. We talked and I think Tink is right, she should stay at the ranch house. There is always someone there and she won’t be alone. Also, we can keep her on track with all of her therapies.

By the time I’m done, Bray and Vixen are back. We sit and snack on all the goodies that Raven and Vixen brought back. When we are ready to start up again, I look to Raven who stands up, kissed Bray’s cheek, and starts to walk out.

“Brenna, you can stay if you want, just don’t scream at me, please. If you don’t think you can handle it, that’s okay too.”

Raven stops and I see it first. Her shoulders are shaking. Oh no, I get up and rush to her, grabbing her around the waist, trying to get as close as my pregnant tummy will allow me. She puts her hands on top of mine and we stay like this for a few, until both Vixen and Bray join us, wrapping Raven up. Well, until she starts laughing like a loon.

“What is so frigging funny, Raven?”

“You, Taz, your maniac kid just kicked me in my back three times, hard. Damn, that one will either be in football or soccer, for sure.”

That helps break the mood and Vixen and I head back to the table. Raven turns to her sister, pulling her into her arms.

“Bray, I’m so sorry I yelled at you before. I’m so mad at all of us for not even looking for you. Just thought you were on your next adventure. It’s not you I’m yelling at, well it is, but it’s because I can’t scream at myself or our family. If it’s okay, I’ll stay and be by your side and won’t say anything. I promise. This is about you not me, so time for me to act like the Devil’s Handmaidens sister I am. I’ve got your back.”

Watching them together helps me to realize that this baby will be good for Teddy. He needs a sibling, even though he’s going to be so much older. When I hear the chairs moving, I look and see both Bray and Raven sitting down, so I reach over, hit record, and we start back in. This time though with Bray having family to lean on. And man does it make a difference.