AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks to Julia for helping me with ideas for Lamar's and Watty's storylines and for inspiration on the final line of this chapter.
Two weeks later, there was a loud banging on the door. "Rayna? Rayna? I know you're in there! Open up!"
"What on earth," Rayna mumbled as she opened her eyes. She stood up, put on her robe, and headed towards the living room. That's when she realized who it was. She opened the door to find Lamar staring at her with pure hatred in his eyes.
"Rayna, what the hell? Kicking me out of my own house? Who died and left your selfish, immature ass in charge?" He was furious.
"You insensitive asshole," she interrupted him. "You knew about those papers. You knew I wasn't your daughter. Momma was protecting me and Tandy and you tried to take it all for yourself. You deserve everything you get!" She had never yelled at him but enough was enough. She was tired of never being able to defend herself. Now she had power over him. He was no longer in charge. He was now homeless and powerless.
"Oh, you always were a bitch, just like your mother," Lamar shouted.
At that moment, Deacon came out of the bathroom. His hair was still damp from the shower he was taking when chaos ensued. He ran over to Rayna who was still in a shouting match with Lamar. "What did you just say to her," Deacon snapped at him. "You will never talk to her like that again! Do ya hear me?" Deacon was pissed.
Lamar started to come closer towards Deacon when lights and sirens blared as two patrol cars came flying around the corner.
Two officers hopped out and came towards Lamar with handcuffs. "Lamar Wyatt, you are under arrest for the murder of Virginia Jaymes. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney…"
Rayna started bawling and felt dizzy as everything seemed to go in slow motion. She didn't want to believe it was true that Lamar killed her mother. She wanted this all to be a nightmare she'd soon wake up from. She couldn't breathe. Deacon grabbed her as she started to fall. As he helped her to the ground, she vomited right onto Lamar's shoes.
"Okay, Ray, let's get you inside," Deacon suggested as the police hauled off a disgruntled Lamar. He picked her up and carried her to the couch. "Don't move. I'll be right back," he promised as he ran to get a large bowl.
Rayna lay on the couch, still trying to make the room stop spinning and trying to calm her breathing.
"Here ya go," he offered the bowl to her.
"Thanks," she replied as she sat up. Another wave of nausea came over her body and she quickly filled the bowl. Deacon held her hair back for her.
"I think you need to go to the hospital," he pointed out. "This isn't normal for you." He rubbed her back as she dry heaved over the bowl.
"No, there are people with actual emergencies who need to be there. I'm not taking resources away from them," she argued. "Besides, I'm fine." She tried to stand up to go empty her bowl and fell over onto Deacon instead.
"Okay, Ray," Deacon sighed. "You're not fine, and you're going to the hospital." He went to empty her bowl for her and grabbed some bags from the kitchen in case she got sick again. He carried her to his truck, buckled her in, and drove her to the emergency room.
Lying on a gurney, Rayna waited for the doctor as Deacon sat in a chair by her side.
The doctor came in, examined her, and checked her vital signs. She asked her about her sleeping habits, eating habits, and recent medical history. She took some blood. She then left the couple alone again.
"What is wrong with me," Rayna asked out loud to no one in particular, exasperated.
"That's what we're here to find out, Ray." He rubbed her shoulder and looked off into the distance, a worried expression on his face.
A short while later, the doctor returned. "Ms. Jaymes," the doctor began. "You may want Mr. Claybourne to leave the room while I talk with you."
"No," she shook her head frantically. "You can tell me anything in front of him," she assured the doctor. She wasn't about to be left alone.
"Alright then," the doctor replied, still unsure of whether she should say what she was about to in front of Deacon. "We believe you had a panic attack. Did something shocking or upsetting happen to you recently?"
"Yes," Rayna answered. "I woke up to a loud banging on the door and got into an argument with someone. Then I received some disturbing news." She tried not to give too much away since she and her family were well known in the city.
"Well that explains a few things then. You were dizzy and falling around due to low blood sugar. Skipping breakfast will do that to you. The disturbing news is what brought on the panic attack. There is one more thing you need to know though," the doctor announced.
The thoughts going through Rayna's head after that last sentence almost sent her into another panic attack. Did she have a terrible disease? Did she have cancer? What could possibly be wrong? The last thing she needed today was more bad news. Fear ran through her body.
"Congratulations! You're pregnant!" The doctor beamed at her.
"What?" Rayna gasped in shock. "How?" She looked over at Deacon who was white as a ghost. He chuckled at her last question though.
"Well, are you sexually active?" The doctor already knew the answer to this question but asked anyway.
"Well, yes, but we've only done it twice," Rayna replied.
"Once is all it takes," the doctor assured her. "Now, I'm going to suggest you take it easy and try to relax to get these panic attacks under control. If they continue, see your general practitioner about going on some medication. I'm going to put you on an IV before you leave to raise your blood sugar and get some fluids in you. We'll also get you an ultrasound. Is there anything else you need?"
"No," Rayna said quietly, still in shock.
"Alright, the nurse will be in shortly. Please remove your pants and underwear. You can leave your socks on and cover over with this." She handed Rayna a cover for her lower half.
Almost as quickly as Rayna was able to change, the nurse came in. Rayna closed her eyes tightly and squeezed Deacon's hand as the nurse got the IV set up. Deacon stroked her hair and ran his thumb in little circles over the top of her hand. She released a big breath when it was over.
"What are we gonna do," she asked him. She'd never been more terrified in her life. She looked up into his eyes.
"We're gonna get through this, baby. That's what we're gonna do," he reassured her. "It's gonna be alright."
"Please put your legs in the stirrups, Ms. Jaymes," the nurse requested as she removed the paper cover. "Now this may be a little uncomfortable, but it shouldn't be painful," the nurse warned Rayna as she inserted the wand for the ultrasound.
Rayna gripped Deacon's hand.
"Just a little pressure now," the nurse told Rayna as she maneuvered the wand around.
Rayna sucked in a deep breath of air and gritted her teeth as she felt the wand push hard against her insides. Deacon watched on, trying his hardest to stay strong and not try to whip the device out of the nurse's hand.
Rayna looked at the screen and up at Deacon. She was concerned she didn't see anything. He had both hands wrapped around hers and was looking up at the screen with tears in his eyes.
"Shouldn't we be hearing a heartbeat or seeing something," she asked the nurse.
"Not yet," she replied. "You're only a couple weeks along so it's still very early. The heartbeat won't develop until 5-6 weeks along. By medical standards, you're not even considered pregnant at this point. The egg is just fertilizing."
"Wait," Deacon asked, clearly confused. "Is she pregnant or not?"
"Yes, she is, but the development hasn't started yet," the nurse explained. "If she hadn't come in today, she wouldn't have known this early."
"That makes sense," he added, kissing Rayna's hand that he was still tightly holding onto.
"Everything looks good," the nurse said as she started to remove the wand. "You'll need to start taking prenatal vitamins, avoid all alcohol and stressful activities, and follow up with your OBGYN." She removed the IV, took off her gloves, and left the room to allow Rayna to change back into her clothes.
"Oh my gosh," Rayna gasped. "There's a baby in there." She looked down at her stomach. She couldn't believe there would soon be a bump there.
"That's our baby in there," Deacon looked in amazement. He was putting on a brave face for Rayna even though he was scared out of his mind.
No one spoke on the ride home. The shock still hadn't worn off.
"How can I be pregnant," Rayna asked as they walked in the door. "I mean it was only twice." She shook her head. "Deacon, I don't know what to do. I'm not ready to have a baby, you're definitely not ready to be a father, and…"
"Hush," Deacon said, interrupting her by putting his mouth over hers and passionately kissing her. "It will be alright, Ray," he said as he pulled back and looked her in the eyes. "We're going to figure this out as we go along. I will stay by your side every step of the way and we're going to do this together."
She wrapped her arms around his neck as he held her. Tears began to run down her face. She didn't know if she was happy, sad, or mad, but she was comforted by his words.
"Let's get you settled, now," he suggested. "You've had a lot happen today."
"Deacon, I'm fine. I need to talk to Tandy and Watty. I need to find out more about the night my mother died." She plopped down on the couch.
"I understand," he said quietly. "Are you going to tell them…" His words trailed off.
"No, not about the baby. Not yet, anyways. I still haven't wrapped my head around it."
He nodded. "I'm going to leave and give you some time alone then. I'll be back later, darlin'."
As he walked back outside, she got on the phone and called Tandy and Watty to come over. A short while later, they were sitting in the living room with Rayna.
"Okay, the reason I called you two over is I need to know what happened the night Momma died. I also need to know everything you know about Lamar," Rayna began. "I'm going to start by saying I know the truth, Watty. I know you're my biological father and you and Momma we're together."
Watty's eyes got big. "What? How did you find out?"
"That's not important right now," Rayna replied, figuring they would not take the apparition story seriously. "What's important is that I now know."
"Well I knew Momma was having an affair and Daddy was pissed," Tandy announced. "I didn't know you were my half sister, Ray. I also didn't know anything about the house or the accident, but I heard rumors there was more to the accident than we knew."
Watty nodded. "I knew about it all," he confessed. I don't know how Lamar pulled it off but I knew he was the one responsible. Your mother was about to divorce him and told me she thought he might try to pull something. She never expected that, though."
They sat for the next several hours talking and Rayna explained the morning's events leading up until she had the panic attack.
"Virginia would be happy about today. It makes me wonder if she had anything to do with all of it. Just too much of a coincidence that her prenuptial arrangement papers kicked him out of the house around the same time he's arrested on charges for her death." He wiped a tear from the corner of his eye, thinking about the love of his life. "It took a long time, but the great and terrible Lamar Wyatt's luck finally ran out."