Ascension

Chapter 8

Ambush

"What do you mean my dog is pregnant?" Mira exclaimed. The teen mom stared at her parents and her Siberian husky sitting between their legs, panting happily.

"Apparently when your father bought her, the 'friend' lied about her being spayed," Audrey said with a nasty glare aimed at her embarrassed husband.

"How was I supposed to know he was lying?" Adam asked.

Mira just stood there in shock, Lucy asleep against her shoulder. "But… but how can she be pregnant? She's never… holy shit!"

"Yeah," Adam and Audrey said simultaneously.

Mira immediately remembered something from a few weeks ago.

"Whoa!" Mira yelped at the sight in her back yard.

"What-?" Seth cut himself when he saw Carrie and Cujo 'together' in the yard. "Woo go Cujo!"

Mira glared at him. "You should just be grateful that they are both fixed." At Seth's guilty look, she said, "he is neutered, right?"

"Um…"

"Seth!"

"What? For a long time, Cujo was the only one I had. And I didn't think it was fair for him to lose his manhood!"

Mira groaned and looked back out the window to the… active dogs.

"Well, at least she's fixed."

"You mean… Cujo is the father?"

"It looks that way; she hasn't had contact with any other dogs."

Mira looked down at her dog, and scoffed out a laugh. "What are we going to do?"

Audrey shrugged, "What else can we do? It looks like we are going to have more babies in this house?"

"What is it with Elsen men getting Pascal women pregnant?" Adam wondered aloud.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So when are you gonna get here?" Jamie asked, phone cradled between her cheek and shoulder as she wiped the kitchen countertops down with a rag. Luke was sleeping in his playpen and Matt was on his way to her apartment to hang out.

The mediation had been two days ago and Jamie was more than satisfied with Leda's work. The woman had torn Ross to pieces. The final mediation would take place in two days, where the mediator would make her decision. Leda had petitioned not only for Jamie to get full custody of Luke, but the Ross also start sending her checks for child support, and pay child support for the last two years.

"I'll be there in a few minutes," Matt replied. "Be patient, woman."

Jamie giggled and set the rag back on the counter. "Well hurry, I got Thai food and it'll get cold."

"You got Thai? What's the occasion?" he asked.

"No occasion, I just know how much you like it and I wanted to do something special for my awesome boyfriend." She could imagine him smiling into the phone.

"You're doing all that for little old me?" He said in an adorable little voice.

"And I got that rocky road ice cream you like. I was thinking we could eat then watch some movies."

"Keep talking like that and I'll have to turn around and change my jeans," He said in a mock-horny voice. Jamie burst out laughing, but quickly covered her mouth with her hand to keep from waking Luke.

"I'll see you when you get here," she said with a smile.

"Bye."

"Bye." Jamie turned off the phone and smiled.

Jamie had never felt this way about a boy before. Ross had been her first real boyfriend when she was fifteen. They were together until she was almost seventeen and got pregnant.

She remembered being absolutely crushed by Ross running away. She thought he loved her. She had terrified about being pregnant and having a baby. She felt betrayed by the man she loved.

After Luke was born and she was on her own, she hadn't had time to even think about dating again. Her son was her first priority.

Jamie started going to the teen mom support group again when the feeling of being overwhelmed had completely taken over. Despite having a small child that needed her constantly, she felt strangely alone and it scared her. She had hoped to make some new friends who knew what she was going through.

Her first impression of Mira was that she was a sweet, innocent girl who had no idea what she was doing. She was just a young girl with a baby in her belly and fear in her heart. She remembered her asking questions about her decision to keep Luke and what it was like to be a teen mother.

Jamie was beyond surprised when Matt left his number on that bill at the restaurant during her shift. She thought he was a very attractive guy, and Mira was her friend, so she figured she could give him a chance.

Now, nearly five months later, she was in love and happy. She was happier than she had been in a long time. She loved Matt Pascal. She knew Luke loved him too.

And in a way, that scared her. The fact that her son was so attached to him made her worried about their future. If things between her and Matt didn't work out, Luke would be crushed.

Strangely enough, she wasn't that worried about that. Whenever she was around Matt, she felt like a young schoolgirl again. Her palms got sweaty, everything he said made her laugh, and his smile would make her insides melt.

Unable to help herself, she set the rag on the counter and spun around on her toes, arms in a circle above her head. She stopped spinning before doing a clumsy grand jeté across the room. Her feet landed silently on the carpeted floor. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so happy she did crazy ballet moves around the apartment.

The sharp knock at the door made her face light up. She ballet leapt her way to the door and spun around twice before answering it.

"Hey, you're here earl-" she stopped mid-word.

It wasn't Matt at the door.

It was Ross.

Holding a gun.

"Hello, Jamie."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ava sat cross-legged on her bed. The picture of Bridgett was sitting in the crook of her legs. She had spent many hours just sitting and staring at that picture.

A million questions ran through her mind. What was her last name? Where did she live? Was she still alive? Who was her father?

She fell back against the pillows with a loud sigh. God this was irritating. Where was her courage when she needed it?

Ava picked up the picture and looked at it again. She had spent the last several days just studying the photo. She didn't get a clear view of the woman's face, seeing as she was wearing sunglasses, but from what she could tell; Bridgett looked to be in her mid-twenties. They had the same thick, black hair. She wished she could see the woman's eyes.

Ava took a deep breath, stood up off the bed, and walked out of the room and down the stairs.

Her dads were sitting on the sofa watching TV. She cleared her throat and they both turned around.

"Finally come out of your room, I see." Danny said, his eyes twinkling as he stared at his daughter.

"I…" she trailed off to think of what to say. She was Ava White, she never got scared or nervous around people. She was stronger than that. "I need to talk to you."

"What is it, baby?" Mason asked in concern. Ava pulled the framed picture from behind her back.

Her parents looked at it for a moment before they realized what it was.

"Where-where did you get that?" Mason asked.

"I found it. And don't act so surprised. I heard you talking on the forth of July about me finding out 'the truth about Bridgett'. Well now I want to know who Bridgett is."

The two men exchanged fearful looks. They had been afraid of this for years. And in the last couple months, they knew she had been looking for information about her biological parents.

"Sweetie, we told you a long time ago…" Danny began.

"Yeah, yeah, my mom couldn't handle a baby so she gave me away. End of story. Did it ever occur to you that eventually I would want to know more than that?"

Almost a full minute passed before Danny spoke, "Mason, I think she's old enough to hear the truth." Mason nodded in agreement.

"Sit down, Ava. There is something we need to tell you."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mira swished the mouthwash around the insides of her cheeks to get rid of the regurgitation. She spit in the sink and stuck her tongue out to see the damage in her mouth. Her teeth, usually so pearly white, looked… off. The color didn't look right. Her throat appeared to be red and sore.

Her seventeenth birthday had been yesterday, July twenty-second. Her parents had thrown a party at the house. All her friends and Leda had been there.

Adam and Audrey had spent a fortune on a special birthday cake for her. It was her favorite, chocolate with strawberries in between layers. They claimed after all she had gone through, she deserved a special treat.

Surprisingly, Mira hadn't gotten mad at the gesture. With her new diet plan f using the ipecac, she could eat whatever she wanted. She ate two generous pieces of the cake with a real smile on her face.

But as soon as she swallowed the deliciousness, a fear had struck in her. She had forgotten how good it felt to let herself eat again. She forgot what it felt like to have something in her stomach.

As soon as the party was over and everyone was gone, Mira had locked herself in the bathroom and quietly disposed of the cake.

Now as she stared at herself in the mirror, she felt her stomach clinch. She had gotten partially used to vomiting after each meal, but it was still hard. It hurt to talk too loud because it irritated her throat. Her cheeks were a little swollen. She felt thirsty all the time. And she was very irritable.

The sound of Lucy crying from the other room caught her attention. She screwed the cap back on the ipecac bottle and walked back to her room.

Mira stuffed the bottle back into the sock then shoved it to the very back of her sock drawer.

"What's the matter, baby?" Mira cooed, picking up her daughter and placing her head on her shoulder. Lucy garbled unhappily against Mira's neck.

Mira went to place her in she little swing, but was surprised when a sudden dizzy spell hit her. She quickly sat on her bed and brought one hand up to rub her forehead. Another side effect of her diet was that she was often dizzy.

Lucy let out a sound at the small jolt of Mira sitting on the bed. Mira turned her head and kissed the baby's cheek.

"It's okay, Sunshine. Mommy's just tired."

She took a moment to gather her strength, then stood and placed her baby in the swing, flipping the switch to the right setting.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jamie stood, frozen, at the sight of her ex-boyfriend standing there with a gun. After a second, however, instincts took over and she grabbed the door and tried to slam it.

Ross threw himself against the door and flung it open, sending Jamie back a few steps. He kicked it closed behind him, gun still raised.

"W-what are you-you doing?" Jamie asked. She took in his red, glassy eyes and immediately knew he had been drinking.

Ross Wagner didn't think of himself as a bad person. He was someone who had made a lot of mistakes in his life, but he wasn't a bad person. In his younger years, he really had loved Jamie. But the thought of being a father terrified him, so he fled. And when he gave her the chance to get back with him and let him be with his son, she rejected him. He hadn't taken that too well.

He hated that punk boyfriend, Matt. That stupid boy had intervened where he shouldn't have.

All he wanted was to be a father. He wanted to see his son. He wanted Luke to look at him and call him 'dada'.

After the mediation a few days ago, Ross had snapped. Leda Pascal had ripped him a new one. He knew he had no case against Jamie. He would never get his son. This would only end up costing him. So he got out his fake ID and bought as much booze as he could carry. Then he got his gun and decided to pay Jamie a little visit.

"I'm here to get what's mine," Ross answered calmly. Jamie's eyes darted left and right as she backed up against the nearest wall.

Keeping the gun pointed at her, he walked over to the playpen where his son was peacefully sleeping. He turned his face to look at the boy. His thumb was planted firmly in his mouth, and his other hand was resting on his little belly. For just a moment a small smile graced Ross's face.

He brought a hand down to rouse the boy when Jamie tackled him around the middle. She threw him back against the arm of the sofa, which his back hit hard.

Jamie partially covered his body as she desperately tried to get the gun out of his hand.

"You fucking bitch!" Ross yelled.

The two former lovers played a forceful game of tug-of-war with the gun. Jamie tried to bring her knee up and hit him in the crotch, but his hand shot out and grabbed her by the throat. He shoved her hard by her throat, sending her crashing back.

Ross stood and raised the gun at her. "You think you can stop me, bitch?" he spat. Jamie whimpered and scrambled back away from him. "You think you stand a chance against me?"

By this time, Luke had stood up, gripping the bars of his playpen and stared at his mother and biological father.

"Mama mama!" He yelled, bouncing from one foot to the other.

Ross ignored the screams of his son, still advancing on Jamie. "You're not worth the bullet it would take to put you out of your misery," He snarled. Jamie was shaking. Up until now, the thought of being killed had not occurred to her. But she knew he was serious.

'Oh god' her mind screamed, 'he's going to kill me! He's going to kill me and he's going to take Luke!'

"You-you wont be able to shoot me and-and not be h-heard by someone in the building!" she said, hoping to shake him from this. Ross Wagner was a lot of things, but not a murderer.

He paused for a moment, then shrugged, "if I can get out of here fast enough, it won't matter."

Luke, who didn't like being ignored, or the angry man yelling at his mama, began screaming louder.

"Shut up, kid!" Ross yelled, kicking the bars of the playpen, narrowly missing Luke's tiny fingers. The force of the kick sent Luke falling back on his rear. He cried louder.

Ross raised the gun a little higher at Jamie, index finger curled around the trigger. "So long, Jamie."

Jamie squeezed her eyes closed and instinctively curled her body up into a ball to make a smaller target.

Click.

Jamie opened her eyes to see Ross looking at the gun. "Wouldn't you know it?" he said conversationally, "I had the safety on." He clicked it off and raised it again.

The girl let out a small cry as she closed her eyes again. She could see her whole life pass before her eyes. She saw her childhood. She saw her teen years. She saw the first time she held Luke. She saw the last two years of holding him, loving him, and raising him.

The sound of a yell made her look up. What she saw made her scream.

Matt was on top of Ross, raining blow after blow to his face.

"What the fuck is your problem, huh?" Matt asked in between delivering punches. "You think you can mess with her and not have to deal with me."

Jamie stared, shocked, before getting to her feet and rushing to the playpen where her son sat screaming. She picked him up and crushed him to her chest.

Matt pulled the gun out of Ross's hand and stood up over him.

"Are you alright?" he asked, eyes not leaving Ross and his bleeding and bruised face.

"Yeah-yeah I'm alright," Jamie stuttered.

"Good." He pointed to gun at Ross when he saw him move. "Don't move!"

"Is everything okay in there?" A voice called from the hallway. A moment later, a head poked in to reveal Jamie's neighbor from across the hall, Mr. Pinkerton.

"No," Jamie called back. Luke's screams had settled, but Jamie was still on the verge of hysterics. "Mr. Pinkerton, call the police! Tell them this man tried to kill us!"

The man stepped back into the hall and dialed 911.

"Did he hurt you?" Matt asked his girlfriend.

"No, I'm-I'm okay."

"The cops are on their way!" Mr. Pinkerton said, walking into the room with his cell phone in hand.

"You hear that?" Matt said to Ross. "The police are coming and you are going to be put away for a long time!"

Ross moaned in pain, but narrowed his eyes angrily at Matt.

"It's over, Wagner. You can't hurt Jamie and you can't have Luke!"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"What do you mean your dog is pregnant?" Seth exclaimed.

"Yep, you're gonna be an uncle," Mira deadpanned. Seth's eyes moved from Mira to Cujo, who sat on the floor beside him.

"Holy shit," He breathed. Mira scowled and nodded toward Lucy, who was asleep in the car seat on the kitchen counter. Seth grinned sheepishly; he knew how much she hated curse words around the baby.

"In about six weeks, Carrie will be having puppies. As if we didn't have enough babies around here."

Both teens' heads turned when the phone rang. Mira walked past him to pick it up. Seth knelt beside the two dogs and began petting their heads.

"You little rascals," He said playfully. "Didn't you learn anything from me and Mira?"

"Oh my god!" Mira exclaimed into the phone. Seth looked up. "Are they alright?"

He was by her side almost immediately.

"Okay, I'll tell mom and dad. We'll be there as soon as we can." She hung up the phone in a hurry and rushed out of the room.

"What's going on?" Seth asked.

Mira slipped her feet into her pink ballet flats that were lying on the floor before answering him.

"Ross attacked Jamie with a gun," she replied quickly. "Matt showed up and saved her. Matt and Jamie are at the hospital right now."

"Shit," he said in shock. He reached for his car keys sitting on the small table in the hall. "Grab Lucy, I'll drive."

It took a couple minutes for Mira to get their daughter's diaper bag and get the car seat in the car, but once it was done, they were speeding to the hospital.

"Do you know if Matt's okay?" Seth asked. Mira bit her lip and drummed her nails against the door.

"No, Jamie's neighbor called and told me what had happened, I don't know the details." She squinted against the sun shining in through the windshield, so she pulled down the visor. She gasped.

"What the hell is that?" she asked. Attached to the visor flap above the mirror was a picture of her and Lucy. She recognized it as one from her birthday party. She was standing talking to someone, Lucy sleeping in her arms. It was a perfect shot of her profile.

"What?" he asked, glancing at it then back at the road. Mira untaped the photo and looked more closely at it.

Oh god, how could Seth stand to let such a hideous picture in his car? Her enormous thighs were visible through her jeans, her flabby arms supporting the baby against her body, but what angered her the most was her stomach. She could practically see all the rolls and stretch marks under her shirt.

"This picture is hideous, why do you have it?" She asked. He frowned and flicked his turn signal on with his left pinkie finger.

"There's nothing wrong with that picture," he said. Mira scoffed.

"I look terrible." She pressed her finger on the window button, but nothing happened.

"What are you doing?"

"Unlock the windows. This photo needs to be destroyed," she declared. Seth chuckled and shook his head.

"You look fine in that picture, Mira," he said.

Mira drew her lips into her mouth in annoyance, but let the subject drop. If he thought she looked 'fine' in that picture, just wait until she was perfect.

As it turns out, racing into the hospital from the parking lot after not eating was a bad idea. Mira threw her arms around her brother because she was worried about him and because if she didn't she was sure she would fall over from dizziness.

"Oh thank God you're okay," Mira mumbled against Matt's chest. He hugged her back tightly. Over her shoulder, he saw Seth come walking up with Lucy sleeping in the car seat.

Mira broke out of the hug and sat beside Jamie. The older teen mother had her arms wrapped around herself tightly and appeared to be shaking a little. Mira reached a hand out and placed it on her shoulder. She jumped at the contact.

"Where's Luke?" Mira asked gently.

"He's… the doctor is checking him out. They-they wouldn't let me go back there because I had to get checked out too."

Matt took the car seat from Seth and set it on a chair. Mira wrapped Jamie in a comforting one-armed hug.

The four sat in silence for a few minutes before a small voice rang out in the waiting room.

"Mama! Mama!" Jamie looked up in time to see Luke come toddling toward her, arms out, a big smile on his face. She stood and picked him up, clutching him tightly to her chest.

"Oh, there's my little boy!" she said happily. Matt reached a hand out and rubbed the boy's back.

The pediatrician came up behind him.

"How is he, doctor?" Jamie asked the man.

"Little Luke is quite a trooper. He had a small bump on the back of his head from hitting the playpen bars. But he will make a full recovery."

Jamie smiled and kissed Luke's head.

"Holy shit!" Everyone's heads turned at Seth's exclamation.

Mira had been feeling dizzy for a while, and black spots had been dancing in her vision.

She wasn't exactly sure what happened, one minute she was standing, and then she found herself on her hands and knees on the floor, gasping for breath.

Seth dropped down beside her. Two nurses came running from the nurses' station and knelt down beside the teen mother. Matt rushed over to his sister's side.

Mira's right hand rubbed her forehead as she groaned. Everyone was bombarding her with questions of 'are you alright?'.

"I'm alright!" she snapped in annoyance. "It was just a dizzy spell."

Seth cupped her cheek in his palm and looked at her in concern. "Are you sure? Maybe you should get checked out, you look pale."

"I'm fine," she insisted, "Just help me up."

Matt and Seth each took one of her hands and hauled her to her feet.

"Really, I'm okay. I'm just tired today," she insisted.

Mira was saved from more questions when Lucy starting fussing. She broke away from Seth and Matt's grip and walked over to her daughter.

Seth frowned while he watched her pick up the baby and rock her in her arms. He looked down at the hand that had helped Mira up.

Her hands had been so… cold. Despite the warm weather, her fingers were freezing in his. And her arm… he could clearly feel the bone through the sleeve.

Maybe…

She couldn't… no, she would never do something as stupid as go on a crash diet. It was impossible. Mira was smarter than that.

What the hell was going on?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------