“Get behind us!” Dagger yells to Diamond, but he doesn’t fucking listen, the damn stubborn ol’ man. Instead, he starts moving with the rest of us guns still blazing.

“Pops behind me!” I yell, but he is just as bullheaded as Diamond and continues to move with us.

Diamond barks, “Get to the cage! Now!”

Shot after shot hit the dirt and our bikes ringing off into the distance. Trying to keep an accurate account on where all the shots are coming from is getting fucking difficult. We move quickly and keep pace with each other. Diamond is moving right in front of me as I try to position my body in front of him.

Loud grunts. Fuck. Diamond. Blood pours out of his body. Using every bit of strength I have, I push him hard to the cage and watch him fall to the ground. Rushing to him, a sharp, searing pain flows through my body. Instantly, my legs give out, crashing me to the ground.

Fuck! I clutch my gun tightly in my hand continuously shooting even though the pain is raging. Cruz grabs underneath my arms, dragging me towards the cage. Reaching it, my arms fall to the side, my body no longer having the energy to hold them up. I can hear words, but everything is so fucking muffled it’s as if I’m underwater floating. More noises and some movement, but I am useless, nothing wants to work on my body. I try, but everything is still. I feel my eyes slowly begin to shut. I will them to stay open, but it’s too much and I give in. The last thing I see is Casey’s beautiful face before everything goes dark.

“Wake up you dick!” Princess’ voice is so fucking loud, like she’s got one of those bull horns up against my ear. My head is fucking pounding and my body almost completely numb. Trying to roll over, my body is instantly halted by something big and strong. My body is too weak and numb to fight it off. I can’t do anything but lay there.

“G.T. wake your fucking ass up now!” Princess barks louder this time. I want to answer her and tell her to shut the fuck up, but my mouth is dry and I’m finding it difficult to open it. Trying to open my eyes, I fight to get just one lid open, but nothing. Then darkness finds me again and Princess’ voice fades in the distance.

“Doc, I gave him the meds like you said, but he isn’t waking up. Ma’s been here non-stop and hasn’t seen anything. And I only saw him move that first day and then pass out. What the fuck is going on?” Princess’ voice is coming in much clearer than before and I’m actually able to process the words she is saying.

I try opening my eyes again, but the fuckers feel like they have duct tape keeping them shut to my face. Searing pain is moving through my chest and shoulder and when I try moving it, again, nothing happens. Panic hits me. What the fuck is wrong with me?

“Calm your ass down young lady.” Doc scolds Princess. “He lost a lot of blood. I pumped him full, but it’ll take some time to get him back on track. And the morphine knocks him out. Let’s cut back half on the morphine and see if he wakes up.”

Morphine. Meds. That’s why I can’t move my fucking body. That answer I can handle. At least I’m not fucking dead.

“Fine.” Princess clips. I can feel a presence at my side. “Come on asshole. Wake up so I can be pissed at you.”

“Princess!” Ma yells out. “Don’t!” Fucking great, they’re both here.

“Come on Ma. You know he’s not gonna respond to me breathing sweet nothings in his damn ear. I need to get Casey’s ass here. She’d be able to wake him up.” Her name. Casey. God I want to see her, smell her, and feel her.

“Yeah, she would alright.” Ma mutters. “You two need to knock this shit off now. He wakes up, you fix whatever this is.”

“Me fix it? He’s the one that got pissed at me Ma. How the hell can I?”

“Figure it out!” Ma said, as I feel her squeeze my hand.

“He’ll get through this Ma.” Princess says.

“He’d damn well better.”

I tune them out and thoughts of my beautiful girl drift me back off to sleep.

Her blonde hair whips in the wind as I see her sitting on a picnic table. I’ve seen her there so many damn times and she’s always wearing barely anything. If I didn’t know better I’d think she was trying to fit in with the momma’s, but she would never. This is just her.

I walk slowly up to her, her eyes widen in surprise as I grip her in my arms slamming my lips to hers. It only takes her a moment and she is there with me, kissing every inch of me back.

The entire world disappears and there is only the two of us in the middle of the courtyard, nothing else exists. I kiss down her neck, licking as I go, tasting the sun and sweat on her skin. Her moans and whimpers push my drive.

I pull the small scrap of fabric she calls a shirt over hear head, pull her tits out of her bra and suck hard. Her body arches off of the table and she screams my name.

“Please” she begs. I rip her shorts off along with my jeans, sliding into her in one thrust. In and out, I set the rhythm and she meets me move for move…

I startle to the sound of Pop’s voice. “What’s the latest?” He bellows a distance away from me, pulling me out of my dream.

“He’s been moving a bit more and moaning something, but hasn’t opened his eyes.” Princess replies her voice sounding tired.

My eyes feel laced with sand, scratchy gritty sand, dry as a desert. But I so badly want to open them, but my fucking body will not listen. If I’m not dead, I sure as hell don’t want to lay here listening to Princess bellow day in and day out for the rest of my life. Trying with everything I have, I slowly pry one eye open, the grittiness from the sand making it difficult to see.

“Shit.” Pops voice says coming closer to me. “Boy… Boy can you hear me?”

My throat is raw and stuck. Trying to clear it, I make some unusual sounds and grunts. Finally, I open both my eyes and blink repeatedly trying to focus them on the blurry figures in front of me. I know who they are by their voices, but they are one big grainy blob. As they slowly come into focus, Pops stands next to me, arms crossed over his chest, his breathing heavy. Looking into his eyes, pain is ripping through them. “Diamond,” I croak out my voice nothing like its normal self.

“He’s gone brother.” The pain in Pops voice is deep.

“Shit.” I groan. The weight of what happened begins to crush me. I didn’t push him out of the way quick enough. I didn’t fucking save him. It’s my fucking fault.

“How are you feeling?” Ma asks standing on the other side of me, knocking me out of my thoughts. Her hand sweeps the hair away from my eyes.

“Like shit.” I croak out like a damn frog.

“You scared the shit out of us!” Princess yells from the end of the bed, but I’m unable to lift my head to see her.

“Nice to see you too sis.” Fighting with her is not on the top of my to-do list at the moment, but knowing her, she won’t give me much of a choice.

Glancing over at Pops and ignoring Princess, “What’s the plan?”

“You get better then we’ll talk.” He dismisses.

“You Prez?” Pops nods his head but doesn’t say a word. I grunt turning away mumbling to whoever would listen and answer. “How long am I down?”

Princess cuts in. “Don’t know yet you stubborn asshole. But you mark my fucking words, while you’re lying here; we talk and get this shit taken care of.” I close my eyes silently wishing for Princess to disappear. “No getting out of talking this time.” The finality in her words is annoying as hell because there is no fucking way I’m telling her shit, especially while I’m lying here and can’t get the fuck away from her.

“I’m proud of you.” Bella’s stormy eyes focus on mine and I stare blankly back wondering what the hell she’s talking about. Since my baby died, I’ve been a walking zombie. “You are an amazing woman.”