The Black Dagger Brotherhood by J. R. Ward Read Free Book Online Page B

was on the verge of blacking out.
    â€œShit, he’s going into shock.”
    Z realized with little interest that Rhage had turned around and was looking at him, not at the civilian.
    â€œAm not,” he mumbled as his eyes rolled back in his head. “Just taking a little break.”
    Rhage’s spectacular Bahama-blue stare narrowed. “Compound. Fracture. Motherfucker. You’re bleeding out as we speak.”
    Z lifted his eyes to Qhuinn’s in the rearview mirror. “Sorry ‘bout the carpet.”
    The male shook his head. “Not to worry. You, I will abso trash my ride for.”
    Rhage put his hand on Z’s neck. “Damn it, you’re white as snow and about as warm. You’re going to have to get treated at the clinic.”
    â€œHome.”
    In a low voice Rhage said, “I texted Mary not to let her go, okay? Bella’s still going to be there no matter how long it takes us to get back to the mansion. She’s not leaving you before you get home.”
    A whole lot of resounding quiet settled in the Hummer, like everyone was busy pretending they didn’t hear any of Rhage’s newsflash.
    Z opened his mouth to argue.
    But fainted dead away before he could marshal any more objections.

SIX
    B ella paced around the PT room in the training center, orbiting the examination table on shaky legs. She stopped regularly to check the clock.
    Where were they? What else had gone wrong? It had been over an hour. . . .
    Oh, God, please let Zsadist be alive. Please let them bring him back alive.
    Pacing, more pacing. Eventually she paused at the head of the gurney and looked down its length. Putting her hand on its padded top, she found herself thinking of when she had been on the thing as a patient. Three months ago. For Nalla’s birth.
    God, what a nightmare that had been.
    And God, what a nightmare this was . . . waiting for her hellren to be rolled in injured, bleeding, in pain. And that was the best-case scenario. The worst case was a body with a sheet over it, something she couldn’t even contemplate.
    To keep herself from going crazy, she thought about the birth, about that moment when both her and Z’s lives had changed forever. Like a lot of dramatic things, the big event had been anticipated, but when it arrived had nonetheless been a shock. She’d been in her ninth month out of the usual eighteen and it had been a Monday night.
    Helluva way to start the workweek.
    She’d had a craving for chili, and Fritz had indulged her, whipping up a batch that was spicy as a blowtorch. When the beloved butler had brought the steaming bowl to her, though, she’d abruptly been unable to stomach the smell or the sight of it. Nauseous and sweaty, she’d gone to take a cool shower, and as she’d lumbered into the bathroom, she’d wondered how in the hell she could fit another seven months of the young getting larger in her belly.
    Nalla, evidently, had taken the random thought to heart. For the first time in weeks she moved strongly—and, with a sharp kick, broke her water.
    Bella had lifted her robe and looked down at the wetness, wondering for a moment whether she’d lost control of her bladder. Then light had dawned. Although she’d followed Doc Jane’s advice and avoided reading the vampire version of What to Expect When You’re Expecting , she had enough background to know that once your water breaks, the bus has left the station.
    Ten minutes later she’d been flat on this gurney, with Doc Jane moving quickly, but thoroughly, through an exam. The conclusion was that Bella’s body didn’t seem ready to get with the program, but Nalla had to be taken out. Pitocin, which was used frequently to induce labor in human women, was administered, and shortly thereafter Bella learned that there was a difference between pain and labor.
    Pain got your attention. Labor got all your attention.
    Zsadist had been out in the