The Devil's Kings

Chapter three

Annabelle had given birth to a healthy baby boy. She had wanted to name her son after her late father, however, Brandon was not a fan. He told her that he would be named after him. He wanted to name his son after himself to carry on his legacy. Annabelle tried to explain to Brandon why it was so important to her for them to name their son after her father, Brandon wouldn’t hear any of it. His mind was made up. Their son was officially Brandon jr.

After the standard three days in the hospital it was time to take Brandon jr home. Annabelle knew she should count her blessings, she had a happy and healthy baby boy, but she wasn’t taking him to the home she shared with her husband. No, they had moved back in with his mom, step-father and little sister Ashley. Who now has a boyfriend that no one liked. All she wanted was to go home and have a quiet evening with her son and husband. That was not in the cards however. There were too many people already there when they arrived at the house. Everyone was home and they had invited other people over. She tried to keep her irritation at bay, but she couldn’t help feeling like no one had thought about her wants and needs. This was her first baby and she knew everyone wanted to see him and hold him, but they could give her a day or two to get settled first.

The door opened for Annabelle and she was a bit surprised to see Brandon’s father Derik, holding it open for her. Before opening the door Annabelle took a deep breath and tried telling herself that everything would be ok. The door opened and she wished she could be anywhere but where she was. The house was filled with too many people and it was loud and noisy. As soon as everyone noticed Annabelle with the carseat in her hands they swarmed her. Before the car seat was taken out of her hands, Annabelle set it on the couch and unstrapped her three-day-old son. He was luckily sleeping through everything. Everyone was asking to hold him and she didn’t want to be rude but she also was not ready to part with her son yet. Thankfully Brandon seemed to catch on and told everyone to back off. He was never as polite as she would like, even to his own family.

Annabelle was able to make it to the bedroom that she shared with Brandon and now their son. She breathed a sigh a relief once she had the door closed and she and Brandon jr were hidden from everyone. Thankfully, he had slept through the whole homecoming, Annabelle might have lost it if he had woken up. She was sore and tired and would not be held responsible for her actions if one of the unwanted visitors had woken up her son.

The door opened a crack and Brandon stuck his head through. ‘You coming back out? Everyone wants to see the baby.’

‘I know they do, but I really just want to rest with him. I’m sure he will wake up soon and then I will bring him out, but I’m not going to wake him up. I’m not doing that to myself.’ Annabelle waited for Brandon’s reaction. With him, he usually would not tolerate any back talk from her, recently thought, he seemed to be a little more understanding. The last few times Annabelle had not been able to keep it to herself and spoke out Brandon didn’t seem upset. He didn’t yell at her or make her feel like it was somehow her fault. It was confusing and it had her on her toes at all times. This particular time he merely stared at her before nodding and shutting the door after himself. Annabelle shook her head in amazement. Instead of wondering about the back and forth of her husband’s behavior, she gently lifted her son from his carseat and then laid him on the bed. With a loving smile Annabelle curled up next to her son.

It felt like Annabelle had just fallen asleep when she heard her door open and footsteps approach the bed. She blinked her tired eyes open a few times to find Ashley standing next to her bed.

‘I’m going to take the baby so everyone can meet him.’ Ashley said, bending down to pick up the baby.

‘I would prefer if you waited until he wakes up. He’s only a few days old and needs his rest and so do I.’ Annabelle was wide awake now. She had no idea how long she was actually able to sleep, but this is exactly what she wanted to prevent from happening.