“What’s wrong?”
“Jackie—” Syxe’s voice cracked immediately. “I think—” She sucked in a breath. “My water just broke.” Jackie went still, and for half a second, she allowed herself to breathe. Then everything inside her shifted. “Okay,” she said quickly, her tone locking into place. “Where’s Montana?”
“He—and Cal took the kids to Urban Air…in Jersey.” Syxe’s voice shook.
“Jackie, I’m alone.”
“You’re fine,” Jackie cut in immediately. “I’m coming right now.” She didn’t even think. She just moved. Fast. She grabbed her clothes from the day before and started pulling them on, her hands working faster than her thoughts as she gathered her and Max’s things. “Are you having contractions?”
“Yes,” Syxe whispered shakily. “Jackie, I’m scared. Monty still not answering.”
“Stay where you are,” Jackie said steadily. “Don’t move around too much.”
She grabbed Fat Daddy’s beat-up iPhone from the pillow, pinning her own phone between her ear and shoulder long enough to text Kormia.
Jackie:Mia go to Syxe’s house now. Her water just broke and she alone.
Kormia responded less than ten seconds later.
Kormia:Bet. I’m leaving the shop now.
Jackie lifted the phone back to her ear. “Kormia’s already on the way. She’ll be there in less than fifteen minutes, okay? You won’t be by yourself for long. I promise.”
“Please don’t hang up,” Syxe whispered. “Baby, I’m not.” Jackie’s tone softened automatically while she scanned the room to make sure, she had everything. Her mind was racing, but her voice stayed calm because Syxe was terrified, and Jackie could hear it clearly.
This was her first baby. And although Syxe had read all the books on motherhood and childbirth and even taken classes, fear still found its way in. Especially because her mother wasn’t there. Syxe had been no-contact with her mother for almost two years, so the space where motherly guidance should’ve been, remained vacant. Outside of Montana and Cal, Jackie was her village. And she wasn’t about to let her down now. “Did you call your doula?” Jackie asked. “No,” Syxe sobbed.
“I can’t think of her number.”
“That’s alright. When Kormia gets there, have her call and tell her to meet y’all at the hospital.” Jackie grabbed her hoodie and headed for the door. “I’m on my way.” She pulled up the Lyft app while walking, but the second she looked up, she stopped. Cash stood there holding his keys.
“Take the Range.” Jackie hesitated as the implication hit her. “Cash—”
“I’ll meet you at the hospital,” he said, already pulling out his phone.
“I’m calling Monty now. Don’t worry about Max. He can ride with me.”
Jackie paused for half a second before nodding. Then she turned toward the living room and found Max standing there in a VR headset with a bowl of cereal in his hand like the worldaround him wasn’t actively collapsing. Jackie shook her head. “Max,” she called. “Auntie Syxe having the baby. I gotta go right now.” He barely looked up. She tapped the side of his headset. “Mr. Cash is going to bring you to the hospital, so grab your stuff, behave, and listen. I’ll see you in a little bit.”
Max nodded once before drifting straight back into the game. Jackie exhaled and glanced toward Cash. No words. Just understanding. Then she left. The elevator ride downstairs felt longer than it should’ve. Jackie stood there staring at her reflection in the mirrored wall, the keys clenched tightly in her hand. Her hair looked a mess, and her hoodie was wrinkled from the night before, but somehow, she still felt…rested.That goddamn bed. Jackie pushed the thought away immediately. Syxe was in labor and panicking. That needed to be her sole focus. Her phone buzzed again.
This time, it was Kormia. “Where you at?” Kormia asked.
“I’m on my way,” Jackie said, shifting her bag higher on her shoulder. “Girl, well, you need to hurry up because she freaking the fuck out. Monty still hasn’t picked up.”
“I just texted him and Cal, and the messages aren’t even delivering,” Jackie said as she stepped off the elevator into the garage. “You there already?”
“I just pulled up,” Kormia said, lowering her voice to a whisper.
“Girl, she pissing, crying, and pacing—” Her voice dropped even lower. “Jackie, I’m scared.” Jackie rolled her eyes. “Kormia, that’s not piss. And you have no reason to be scared.”
“Girl—”
“Just stay with her,” Jackie cut in.
“I’m fifteen, twenty minutes out. Don’t let her move around too much, alright?”
“Aight. Hurry up.” The call disconnected just as Jackie spotted the Range Rover waiting near the back wall of thegarage. When she unlocked the door, the interior was warm, clean, and untouched in that expensive way luxury cars always were. Everything about it felt far removed from the kind of life Jackie was used to navigating every day. And for one dangerous second, she caught herself thinking she could get used to this. The thought disappeared just as quickly as it came. Jackie tightened her grip on the steering wheel, started the engine, and willed herself to focus. Syxe was the only thing on her mind right now. Everything else would have to take the back seat.