Rebellious

Chapter 26

Once realization set in for Brian on what he was actually doing. He quickly pulled the pillow off his daughters face. He looked down and saw that she was silent but turning blue. He looked down at the pillow in his hand and threw it across the room.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh FUCK!" Brian yelled out in a panic. He scooped the baby out of her bassinet and rushed her over to the bed, laying her down and immediately performing infant CPR on her.

His frustrations were growing as each second ticked by that she wasn't breathing on her own.

"Come on baby girl!" He gave her a few more compressions. "Come back to Daddy." He tried again.

Coming up for air he grunted loudly in frustration. "For the love of God and everything that's holy. Come back baby girl." He went on giving her CPR refusing to give up.

Brian finally noticed color starting to come back in his daughters face, he breathed in her mouth to give her more oxygen. Soon her cries once again filled the room, he let out that pent up breath he was holding. He buried his face in his hands.

"What the fuck am I doing? I almost killed my daughter." Brian said aloud to himself. "I am such an asshole."

Brian picked up his daughter, cradling her to his chest as he rocked back and forth sobbing like a baby as Bella was crying and squirming in his arms.

"I love you baby girl, I love you so much. I am so glad your back. Your Mommy would have killed me for sure if you didn't make it. Me and my bonehead move." He kissed her head repeatedly. "Thank God for that babysitting course teaching me CPR or you wouldn't be here with me baby girl." He cried as he rubbed her back.

Brian just couldn't do this alone anymore not after his recent actions – that was enough for him to throw in the towel he felt if he didn't he would actually kill his daughter and he didn't want that on his conscience. One close call was enough for him. Besides no matter how much it hurt to admit defeat, he needed Beth. She would know how to get his sweet Bella to stop crying.

Brian laid Bella in her bassinet and went out onto the porch to call Beth.

Brian paced the length of the porch a good twenty times trying to get up the nerve to call Beth. He was going over all the possible scenarios waiting for him back in Staten Island for kidnapping his daughter and crossing state lines with her. There had to be a way he could talk Beth out of pressing charges on him but so far all his other attempts to talk to her about anything since the whole Cassie ordeal happened were fruitless failures so what would make this time any different.

Brian continued pacing and thinking before he grunted loudly in annoyance, stopped and leaned on the railing. He heard Bella crying inside and sighed while it was music to his ears he couldn't take anymore of being a single Father. He had no idea how Beth handled this on her own for the last two months but it gave him much more respect for her as the Mother of his child. He shook his head finally getting up the nerve as he called Beth.

"She hates me. She won't answer.... Hell, she'll probably have me arrested for kidnapping." He told himself. "Great, another fantastic thing to go down in the Quinn history books". He then thought to himself. Note the sarcasm. He heard the phone ringing and waited.

"It's Brian!" Beth said, recognizing the ringtone on her phone immediately. Jessa looked up from her book, taking off her glasses and waiting for Beth to answer.

"Well.... Answer it!" Sal yelled out from his spot on the couch besides Jessa. He had been mindlessly flipping through channels for the last hour or so, now he set the remote down. He had promised to stay with the girls until Brian brought Bella home.

Beth got up, pacing as she answered the phone. "Where are you?! Is Bella okay?" She asked frantically.

"I gotta know are the cops listening in?" Brian ignored her question asking his own instead.

"No, Brian. Now answer me – is Isabella okay?" Beth reiterated her question.

"She's fine." Brian said tiredly. "Well, not fine..." He started to say before Beth interrupted him.

"What did you do? Is she in a hospital?! Brian! That's my daughter! I should have called the police when Sal wanted me to! Oh God...." Beth started to panic.

Brian decided it wasn't worth it to even tell Beth of their daughter's close call with death. After her freak out just then, Brian didn't need the further aggravation of listening to Beth bitching about him almost killing their daughter. He already felt bad enough and she'd never let him live it down. Just like everything else that had gone on so far.

"No, no! It's nothing like that!" Brian said rushed. "She's not in a hospital and please don't call the police. I just.... I can't get her to stop crying. I've tried everything! I'm just stressed out! She's my daughter too damn it!" Brian rattled off upset. He hated that he couldn't get Beth to see that he was just trying to be in Bella's life.

"Brian, you need to get her home." Beth pleaded. "She's colicky, that's why she won't stop crying. Just get her home please." She started to calm down when he told her Bella wasn't in any harm.

"I haven't done anything wrong. I just wanted to see my little girl and you pushed me to these extremes! I didn't know what else to do. I had no other choice." Brian told her, matter of factly.

"You had a choice!! You chose to take her away from me! I'm her Mother, Brian! She needs me!" Beth hissed, pacing angrily.

"I know, okay? But she needs her Daddy too and not sitting in jail either. Just please, don't call the police. Promise me you won't call them. We can work this out without the law involved." Brian tried to reason with her.

Beth sighed. "I won't call them. I'll promise that - if you get her home safely."

"Okay. Thank you. We're coming home now. See you soon." Brian said, hanging up, without waiting for a further response from Beth.

Brian went around the cabin getting everything packed up. "Come on, Bella boo. We're going home and you're going to see your Mommy." He said as he picked up the fussy girl and carried her to the Jeep, strapping her into the car seat in the backseat behind the driver. Then proceeding to load up the car with everything else he acquired from his stay at the cabin. He yawned as he got in the driver's seat and buckled up. "It's only a two hour drive back to Staten Island. I can do it." He started his car and left the old cabin heading for home.

****Chapter End Notes****- Was this chapter pulling at anyone's heartstrings? If so - I did my job, if not  - I have to get better at my job. Please let me know in the comments what you thought of this chapter and if I pulled at your heartstrings in any way.  Any emotion I may have triggered within you while reading this chapter would cover that as well.  Thank you so much for reading. Upvote the chapter if you liked my work so far. :D More to come stay tuned!