Chapter 9

GABRIEL

“Hey, Indie.” Gabe placed his clipboard on the dashboard before answering his phone. He watched the driver he had pulled over drive away slowly, the eighty-year-old gentleman doing twenty-five miles per hour on the K-10. At least the old man was doing thirty-five after a warning from Gabe.

“Hey, Gabe,” Indie greeted, and Gabriel frowned when he heard her breath hitch.

“Are you okay? Do you want me to radio Seth?”

“No, no, I’m fine. Bump is just hyperactive today and it's killing my back,” she assured him. “I do want something from you though.”

“What do you need?”

“For you to come and see me when you have a minute.”

“Uh…sure?”

“Great. I’ll see you later.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Gabe murmured as the line cut. It seemed he had eventually met the ~don’t argue with me~ Indie that Seth had warned him about.

Two hours and fifty traffic violation fines later, Gabe pulled up in front of Silver Reflections, two chocolate milkshakes, and a box of doughnuts filling his hands as he walked through the door. He placed a cup next to Grace where she was working on a laptop in the shop.

“Hi, Grace.”

“Milkshake will not save you,” she stated, her tone flat, but her eyes flashed with something lethal when she looked up at him as she took a big sip. And he could completely understand Seth’s fear of the woman.

“Okay…” He was too afraid to breathe in case that triggered whatever lurked behind those eyes. “Indie here?”

She pointed at the door with the letter opener and Gabe gulped as he quickly escaped through the door. He found Indie sitting at her bench, her hands massaging her back as she stretched her neck.

“Gabe.” She smiled as she turned to him, and then sucked in a deep breath, placing her hand on her stomach.

“Indie, are you sure you’re okay? I can radio Seth. He’s been out in the field, and they don’t get signal out there—”

“Gabriel, I’m fine.” She waved a hand at the chair beside her, and he sat down. “When was the last time you heard from Sarah?”

He frowned, a sense of guilt filling him as he remembered her last text to him…~I just wanted to check if you’re okay. I guess I’ll see you around~…

He rubbed his sweaty hands on his thighs before he looked at her. “Earlier this week.”

Indie nodded. “When was the last time ~she~ heard from ~you~?”

The soft question was like an RPG against his heart, the guilt tearing the gap further apart. He felt his jaw clench and closed his eyes as he felt the worst feeling fill him at the thought that he had not heard Sarah’s voice in a long time.

“Wow… Why?” The accusation in her voice was more potent than the RPG of earlier. It was a whole shipment of C-4 doused in gasoline.

He got to his feet and walked to the wall where Indie pinned her designs and studied them. How was he going to explain to her the confusion he felt when he thought about Amelia, even though there was nothing ~indecent~ about it? Or the fact that he was so attracted to Sarah but so afraid of his darkness dimming her light? That he wasn’t sure he could protect them from himself?

“Gabe… You haven’t been sitting with us at church either lately? What’s been going on, Gabe?”

His jaws hurt with the pressure of his clenched teeth, the temptation to confess his fears burning in his chest.

“That little girl got used to you being there for her. For her, the only man in her life was Seth, and then you came along and showed her that love could come from all sides. And then you just vanished and left her in confusion.”

“I didn’t vanish, Indie!” He tried to defend himself, turning to face her. “I’ve been on training and—”

“You’ve been busy, yes, so Seth said. But you weren’t too busy to chat with me or Grace. You’ve just avoided all interactions where ~all of us~ are together. Even dinner at ~your~ house!”

The quiet accusations were hitting too hard, and he needed to get out of there. “Indie, I need to go.” He swallowed the tears at the look of disappointment in her eyes.

“Fine. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”

She turned away from him, and that cut deeper than her scolding. She had given him a fair chance to defend himself, and he had not taken it, and that was on him. But her turning from him the way she did made him realize that he was back to where he was when he came home. Alone.

“Gabe!” Indie’s voice stopped him from opening the door.

“Look, Indie, I don’t know what to tell you except I’m sorry—”

“Save it!” He looked at her over his shoulder with a frown. “I think my water broke!”

She was hunched over the bench, her hands fisted tightly, her skirt soaking wet. He pulled the door open and called for Grace before turning back to Indie. “Dispatch, this is Unit two-two-one. I need an ambulance at seven-seven-three Main Street. And I need an urgent dispatch to Sergeant Marshall. His fiancée just went into labor.”

“Roger, Unit two-two-one. That’s a negative on the ambulance. All of them are currently on call. I will contact Sergeant Marshall in the meantime and let you know about that RA.”

Gabe gulped as he stared at Indie in genuine fear. Grace appeared at his shoulder, her eyes as wide and concerned as his own. “Shit, Gabe, it looks like you’re delivering Bump.”

***

Gabe fell back on his ass to allow the paramedics access to a beaming Indie and a wailing Bump—~Connor~—on her chest. He wiped the sweat from his brow with his wrist and watched as Seth rushed in to kneel beside his family. Swallowing back tears, Gabe pulled the gloves from his hands and packed up his gear and the tools he had used for the birth.

Four years as a marine medic and nearly twenty years on deployment, Gabe had never been so relieved for three classes in midwifery he had attended on a dare a few years ago. He was aware of Indie and Connor being lifted onto the gurney, Seth by her side and Grace crying as she hugged her friend. The workshop was silent after the last half-hour’s commotion.

~When Indie told him that her water had broken, Gabe had helped her to the floor by the time Grace appeared. He had tossed his vehicle’s keys to her and told her where to find the trauma response kit in the trunk. With a deep breath, he had set aside the thought that it was his best friend’s woman and went about doing what he remembered the steps were at that stage of labor.~

~When Grace arrived, he had instructed her to support Indie while he washed his hands and donned the latex gloves before spreading the survival blanket under Indie. He had done what he could to keep her calm, confident that most first births take forever, and that the ambulance would get there before the baby. Indie had moaned, then wailed and grabbed his hand, twisting the life out of it as a contraction gripped her. With another peek, Gabe had sucked in a sharp breath to stem the panic he felt at seeing the baby's crown. Baby Connor had entered the world as the paramedics came through the front door; Seth, a few seconds later.~

Now Gabe was sitting on his ass, exhilarated at the healthy bundle of joy he had helped to deliver safely, yet envying his friend for the peace he had found. He could almost see himself leaning over a flushed and tired Sarah, with an excited Amelia greeting a baby brother or sister—

The vision was cut short by Seth’s hand coming into view. “Come on, Jiminy, we can’t have Connor’s hero sitting on his ass.”

With a guilty sigh, he took Seth’s hand and allowed him to help him to his feet. But instead of releasing him, Seth pulled Gabe into a tight hug. After hesitating a moment, Gabe hugged him back. “Congratulations, man. I’m happy for you both.”

“I need to thank you, Gabriel.” Seth pulled away to look at Gabe. “I won’t even think about what could have happened if you hadn’t been here.”

Gabe shook his head as he bent down to pick up his bag. “She would probably not have gone into labor.”

“What do you mean?” Seth frowned.

“She was pissed at me and that possibly set off her labor.”

“Gabe,” Seth scoffed as they made their way out of the shop. “Indie being mad at you won’t set off her labor. There have been signs of her labor for a couple of days now, we just didn’t want to believe it would happen so early.”

“Sure,” Gabe said, not convinced. He stood at the foot of the gurney and watched Seth tenderly kiss Indie before kissing his son. “Congratulations, Indie.”

“Connor, that’s Uncle Gabe. We won’t be seeing him for a while because he isn’t the man I thought him to be. Hopefully, he will get his shit together before your christening,” Indie said without looking at Gabe. With a silent nod, he turned to his patrol car.

“Seems like you’ve picked up a new talent, Jiminy,” Seth called from behind him.

“What might that be, Seth?” Gabe glanced at him over his shoulder.

Seth laughed as he slapped Gabe on his shoulder. “Pissing off the women in my family.”