Page 45 of Gang of Roses: Rebel

I chuckled.

“You ain’t never know how to stay outta trouble.”

Another picture showed us standing beside our very first motorcycles, grinning from ear to ear. We’d spent years saving every dollar we could just to buy those raggedy bikes, and to us they might as well have been brand new.

“You always did keep everything.”

As I reached for the last few keepsakes, a folded white envelope tucked beneath one of the photographs caught my attention.

I frowned. “I don’t remember seeing this.”

Curiosity got the better of me. I carefully slid whatever was inside into my hand.

A grainy black-and-white image stared back at me.

“What the...”

I lifted it closer, and my breathing stopped. It was a sonogram.

My eyes searched every inch of the blurry image before the truth crashed into me. Rose had been pregnant.

My fingers trembled around the edges of the picture as tears filled my eyes. She’d never gotten the chance to tell me. Never gotten the chance to become a mother. Then another memory came rushing back, and why she hesitated.

She hadn’t been looking at a security guard that day. She’d been looking at another woman carrying a baby... just like she was. That’s why she couldn’t bring herself to pull the trigger. She knew exactly what that woman was trying to protect because she was protecting the same thing growing inside of her.

It hurt even more knowing my sister never got the chance to hold her unborn baby. And I never got the chance to hold my niece or nephew.

In the end, they both got shot.

Both mothers.

Both carrying babies.

And neither one of them made it home.

Chapter 11

Cario “Crow” Domingo

Loyalty meant everything to me, so when Rebel called saying she needed some fresh air, I didn’t hesitate to take her to the mall. The second she got in the truck, I could tell something was bothering her, but she didn’t want to tell me what it was. I knew Rebel, though. When she was ready, she’d tell me. Until then, all I could do was be there for her. I quickly parked my truck, and together we headed inside the mall. The second, we walked inside, I noticed people staring. Truth be told, it wasn’t anything new. Rebel dressed like a tomboy most days, baggy jeans, oversized hoodies, Timbs, and fitted caps, but that didn’t stop heads from turning. If anything, it made people look twice. She had one of those faces people noticed immediately. I couldn’t even front, Rebel was beautiful. I’ve known that for years. The difference was, lately I wasn’t looking at her like my best friend anymore. My eyes lingered a little longer than they used to, and I was starting to catch myself wondering what the hell had changed. And when she showed up to the wedding in that dress, I was blown away. I’d seen her a hundred times before, but never like that.

“This is exactly why I order everything online,” she grumbled, taking another bite of her pretzel. “Too many damn people.”

“You say that every time you come here.”

“Because every time I come here, there be too many damn people.”

I shook my head and watched her ramble with a half-eaten pretzel in one hand while her free hand moved a mile a minute as she talked. I found myself smiling.

Being around Rebel had become dangerous. Somewhere along the way she’d become the only person who could shut my mind off, and I was starting to realize that might be a problem. Watching her laugh, hearing her talk shit, seeing that smile... it all hit different lately, and I was running out of excuses for why. We’d just stepped out of one of the stores when a familiar voice stopped me in my tracks.

“Crow?”

I turned around and immediately spotted Jade making her way toward us. Out of all the people in Magnolia, this was the last person I wanted to see.

“There you are.” She smiled. “I’ve been calling you.”

“Yeah,” I said carefully.