“I love you too, with everything that I am and everything I have. Take those assholes down and come back to me. Please come back to me.” I kiss him again, pouring all of my soul into it, then step away and walk towards Mike to give him a hug. “Bring him back, and yourself too.” I then walk away to my room. I can’t stand to see him leave.
Within a few minutes, Kat comes running into my room and wraps her arms around me, holding me tight. My mom and her mom follow. We sit together in silence, because no one has anything to say. There is nothing that can be said. It is what it is, and we have to hope that the results are in our favor.
It feels like an eternity goes by before the phone rings. It isn’t my phone, and that has me worried. It was James’s phone that was ringing. I rush to the living room and reach James just as he answers the call.
“Jackson, what’s up?”
I don’t hear what’s being said on the other side, but by the look on James’s face it isn’t good.
“Yeah, yeah, okay. Got it. See you soon.”
“What the fuck is going on?” All my emotions have switched to anger, and I’m letting them out at James.
Everyone is in the family room now, surrounding James and me wondering what the hell is going on. By now it's almost one in the morning, and no one could sleep anyway.
“That was Jackson. Max is at the hospital. He was shot tonight, and we need to go, now.”
Shock. I’m rooted to the floor. I hear myself yell, “No!” then slide to the floor. James is there to pick me up, hold me, and lead me to the car. Kat stays behind because Steph is sleeping. Kat’s stepfather stays with her, just to be safe, as we all make our way to the hospital in silence.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Max
Jackson calls me with an update. The brothers are making their way to the apartment in the Old Port. Thank fuck, they have no idea that everyone is here and not there. I grab Mike and we get suited up with whatever we have in the house. We’ll add even more weapons once we get out to the car. This could go badly—very badly—but I want to end it. No—I have to end this, once and for all. I need to make sure everyone I love is safe, even if I have to put myself on the line to do it.
Mike and I look like we’re ready for combat, and I’m mentally ready to go until I walk out and look at Bren. She has tears running down her face, because she knew what the call was about. She knew I was going to do whatever I needed to do to protect her. She asked me to promise to come back to her. I couldn’t lie and tell her that I would be back, but I could tell her that I would do my best to get back to her. I wipe her tears, kiss her with everything I have, and then watch her walk away after she makes Mike promise to bring me back.
It gutted me to see her with that much fear and worry in her eyes, but I must make this right. I have to end it with the Calluci brothers.
James walks up to me and gives me a hug. He knows what I’m about to go do, and he knows it may be the last time we see each other. Kat is next in line; she hugs me as tight as she can and makes me a promise she’ll look after Bren and reminds me to come back in one piece.
“I love you, Kat. Thank you for taking care of Bren. I’ll do my best to come back in one piece.”
“I love you too, Max.” With tears starting to form in her eyes, she walks away to find where Bren has hidden herself.
Everyone gives Mike and me a hug and wishes us good luck as we make our way to the door.
I take a second to look back at the house, full of all the people I love, and vow to end this feud tonight.
Mike and I gear up with the rest of the weapons I have hidden in my SUV and make our way to the apartments.
The ride goes by quickly, and as we approach, I notice another dark SUV down the block, hidden around the corner. Connor, another one of Jackson’s guys, sees us and exits, making his way to the back and grabbing the last of what he needs to make the approach on the apartments.
We meet up at the back door in the alley and make our way to the third floor. The hallway is brightly lit, so there is no hiding in the shadows. Mike and I flank the door to my new apartment and I check the handle. It’s unlocked, so I slowly turn the knob and enter quietly. What the fuck? No one is in here. I hear a noise coming from the direction of the door, and I realize I fucked up big time. They had too much time in the building, and knew she wasn’t here, so they went looking in my old apartment. They heard us pass the door and knew they had us. Both brothers stand in the entrance, with guns pulled on me, and I knew I didn’t have a chance. They step in, close the door, their guns cocked and ready to shoot before I even have time to draw mine in their direction. I feel the shot enter my flesh, a perfect shot near my neck, above the vest I’m wearing. As I fall to the ground, I whisper, “I love you, Bren. I’m sorry.”
The world starts to dim. I barely register what’s going on around me as I lie in a pool of my own blood. I hear a few more shots ring out. As I start to lose consciousness I realize I didn’t even have a fighting chance, because I was stupid. I let my guard down when I needed it to be at its highest.
I hear sirens, see bright lights, and then I’m out again.
I wake again and am being moved, being rolled around somewhere. I hear the doctors and nurses around me, their tone tense, words terse. I don't have time to figure out what’s going on. A few moments later, I'm out again. This time, I don't wake.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Bren
I feel numb as James drives to the hospital. I know nothing about how bad the situation is with Max is right now. We don’t know if we’re safe from the threat, but right now no one cares. Jackson called to let us know Max was shot, but nothing else, so we’re rushing to the hospital to find out. When we pass the Old Port, we notice the police cars surrounding the ground level of our building, and we all choose to ignore it. I’m with my mom in the back seat of James’s car, while my dad sits next to him in the passenger seat. No one says anything. My mom holds my hand as tears stream down my cheeks. When we arrive at the emergency entrance, James finds a place to park. I just sit there, staring at the door for what feels like hours, when it was only a few moments.
James pulls me out of the back seat, stands in front of me, and looks straight into my eyes. “Bren, you’ve got this. I’m here for you, and we will do this together. You walk in there and find out what happened to Max. I will be right by your side every step of the way. You are not alone in this.”
With his words, I quickly snap out of the daze I’m in and take his hand as he leads me inside the doors and to the reception desk. I stand there for a second, trying to find my voice, and then I don’t need it. James is right there to speak for me.
“We’re the family of Max Esposito. He was brought in not too long ago with a gunshot wound.”
“Yes, sir. Let me find out if there is any information, and I’ll be right back.”
As the time goes by, and we stand there waiting, with no news, I start to panic. I’m having a hard time breathing. James pulls me off to the side and gets me to look in his eyes. “Look at me, Bren. Take a deep breath and breathe slowly. Concentrate on me, nothing else. I’ve got you.”
He’s able to help calm me down by the time the nurse arrives back with Max’s status.
“There isn’t much information right now. They have him in surgery, so right now all I can do is ask you all to wait until the doctor can come out and speak with you. I’m sorry I don’t have anything more to tell you.”
“Thank you, we’ll be right over here if anyone needs to find us,” James says before we make our way to the quiet corner of the room and wait. We wait and wait, and we wait some more. Dad offers to go get us all some coffee, though we know it won’t taste good; I know he’s trying to do something for me.
“That would be great. Thanks, Dad.”
Jackson must have already been on his way to Portland when he called James about Max, because he enters the emergency room doors no more than thirty minutes after we arrive. As he ent
ers, he looks around for us, and heads directly our way.
“What do we know?”
“Nothing really, except he’s in surgery. Any idea where Mike is?” James talks first.
“Mike's still stuck at the scene. You're all safe, by the way. Mike and Connor were able to attack the brothers after they snuck up on Max. Mike fired off a shot and killed one, while Connor caused some damage to the other one. But, you're all safe, and there is no longer a threat against any of you.”
Jackson walks away from James and over to me and pulls me into his arms. I can’t help but start sobbing against his chest. I eventually calm down as we all continue to sit in silence. What more is there to say?
After what seems like forever, a doctor comes out to speak with us.
“Are you the family of Max Esposito?”
“Yes, that’s us. What can you tell us?”
“Max is stabilized and in recovery. He had a lot of bleeding, because the bullet grazed his subclavian artery and shattered his clavicle bone. He also had another bullet enter his side that punctured his lung. However, we have him stable. He hasn’t regained consciousness yet. We’ll be moving him up to the ICU unit shortly so we can keep a close eye on him and monitor his breathing with the ventilator. As of right now, we’ve got him in a medically-induced coma to control his pain and help him heal. We’ll notify you as soon as he’s moved and then only two people can visit him at a time. But, remember he isn’t awake, and the next twenty-four hours will be crucial to his progress.”
The doctor walks away as we all stand there in silence. No one knows what to say. I drop back into my chair to wait, because it seems that’s all I’m able to do lately. Now I’m sitting here waiting for the other part of my heart to wake up and tell me I can breathe again.
Another twenty minutes go by, and a nurse comes back over to let us know Max’s room number. She leads all of us to the ICU waiting area and reminds us that only two people can visit at a time, and only for ten-minute intervals. Jackson and I go first. He takes my hand and leads me to the room number the nurse gave us. The glass doors are shut and the curtain is pulled. He reaches for the handle and I place my hand over his.
“Wait, I need a second.”
“Take your time,” he replies softly.
I stand there, not sure how he’ll look, preparing myself for the worst-case scenario.
“Okay, I’m ready.”
He opens the door, and we walk in slowly and quietly. The lights are dim, as he just lies there, in the bed, sleeping. Like the doctor said, he has a ventilator tube in his mouth and looks so weak, so unlike my Max. I take a seat next to him and reach for his hand. Gone is the warmth that is normally there, and now it’s cold. I kiss his fingers and sit, saying nothing as I let the tears roll down my face.
“I love you, Max. Please hurry back to me.”
I feel Jackson’s hand on my shoulder and then he quietly speaks. “He’ll be good as new in no time. Just have faith in him.”
I nod my head, but I can’t get any words out. I hear Jackson leave, and then a few minutes later I hear the door open again.
“Hey, Bren, you doing okay?” James says.
“Not really, but what can I do?”
“He’ll be back to you soon. Talk to him, hold his hand, and love him. He’ll feel it all from you. He did the same thing when you were in the hospital, before he left. It wasn’t that he couldn’t handle seeing you in a bed like this, but he felt that he had to fight for you. He loves you so much, but you scared him. How you made him feel scared him, but now he just loves you hard. Take good care of him, and we will take good care of you. I know you won’t leave, so I’ll have Kat get a bag together for you and bring it back later this morning.”
“Thank you, James. I can’t believe how different we all are from a year ago. How we’ve all grown up and become so close. Please tell Kat thank you. I’ll see you later. And, James, thank you for being here for Max.”
He kisses me on the top of my head and walks away. Everyone else makes a trip into the room, leaving me with words of encouragement, knowing that I won’t be going anywhere. Jackson hangs around the floor for security reasons, so he says, as I sit and watch the machine breathe for Max. Still holding his hand, I rest my head down on the side of his bed and fall asleep until the nurse comes in to check on him an hour later.
A few days go by, and I’ve only left his side to take a quick shower in the bathroom attached to his room. Kat, Jackson, Mike, and my mom all make sure I have coffee and food, so I’m well taken care of, but the sleep just isn’t coming easily for me. Today I have no choice but to leave his side, because I need to go to my doctor’s appointment. I have already arranged to have Max’s nurse on duty take my blood, so I don’t have to be gone longer than I have to. Dr. Gerrard was fine with the arrangement and ordered the bloodwork yesterday, and today I have my appointment.
Mom comes up to the room to get me, and Jackson is ready to take my spot and stay with Max.
Reluctantly, I leave, because I want to be there when he wakes up. They’ve been able to remove the ventilator and he’s breathing on his own. They started to decrease his sedation medicine yesterday. We’re just waiting for him to wake up.
Within minutes we’re entering Dr. Gerrard’s office, which is thankfully located in a different wing of the hospital, so I don’t have to go far. I check in and wait. Once my name is called, I’m escorted to the back and handed a specimen cup to pee in. “What is this for?”
“Dr. Gerrard wanted me to collect a sample from you; he didn’t say why. It’s pretty common practice here to have everyone do it. Just leave it in the window when you’re finished, and I’ll be along to collect it shortly.”
Once I’m finished, the nurse then takes us to the exam room, where we wait and wait. I’m starting to get nervous because it’s taking so long. I want to get back to Max. Eventually, Dr. Gerrard enters the room with an unreadable look on his face.
“Good afternoon, Bren and Tina. How are you today?”
“Honestly, I could be a bit better. Health wise I feel great. I’m just stressed out because of Max. We’re waiting for him to wake up.”.
“I’ll try to make this quick so you can get back up there. All of your bloodwork looks amazing, and I don’t see a trace of cancer in any of the test results. I want to say we got it all with just the surgery, but I also want to check again in another four weeks to make sure we are still in the clear. Now, I’m sure you’re wondering why I had requested the urine sample. That is because in your bloodwork I noticed something that I wasn’t expecting to see, and I wanted to double check that I was correct. Bren, it looks like you’re pregnant.”
Silence falls over the room. I don’t think anyone is breathing, even.
“Whoa, wait a second. Did you just say pregnant? How did that happen?”
He smirks, then begins, “Well, Bren, when a boy and girl really, really love each other…” He stops when he sees my eyes narrow and chuckles. “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. It’s rare, but it can happen, especially when you’ve been sexually active around the time that we took the eggs for freezing, because of all the additional hormones we gave you to boost the production of eggs. So, with your blood counts looking good and the lab results showing clean margins, I don’t want to do chemo treatments. But, I want you to go see Dr. Tracey as soon as you can set up an appointment. I’ll be giving her a call to let her know what’s going on and forward the pregnancy test results to her. You’ll just need to make the appointment. We need to make sure all is well, especially after the surgery we just did.”
“I will, thank you. I can't believe this. I'm pregnant.” I look at my mom, who has a wide grin on her face, and throw my arms around her. “Mom, I'm pregnant!”
I’m so excited I want to shout it to the world, but the one person I want to share it with isn’t here. He needs to wake up first. “Mom, we need to get back. I want to share the good news with everyone, but don’t mention I’m pregnant.”<
br />
“Okay, I won’t say anything. I’m just so happy! The cancer seems to be gone, and now we’ve had a happy surprise for the first time in a long time. Everything seems to be going in the right direction for you.” We hustle out the door, both brimming with the good news.
“Bye, Doc. I promise I’ll call and get that appointment.”
“Bye, Bren. Congratulations! Don’t forget to follow up with me in a month. I want to check your bloodwork again then.”
Mom and I leave Dr. Gerrard’s office, and I feel lighter today than I’ve felt in a long time. When we get back to Max’s room, a huge smile lights up my face. I rush over to his side, and even though he isn’t awake yet, I grab his hand and whisper in his ear. “Babe, you need to wake up. I’m cancer free, and I’m pregnant with your baby.” I feel a squeeze around my hand, and when I lean back, I notice his eyes are starting to flutter. He’s starting to wake up.
“Get the nurse in here, I think he’s waking up,” I yell to whoever is listening. I keep encouraging him to wake up, “Come on, baby, I’m here waiting. Just open your eyes. Wake up.”
I repeat it over and over again, until the nurse steps inside his room. “He squeezed my hand, and his eyes started to flutter. I think he’s trying to wake up.”
She takes a look at his vitals, noting them on his chart, then waits a few minutes to see if his eyes flutter again or shows any sign of waking up. “What did you say to him to cause him to react?”
“I had just gotten back from my doctor’s appointment and told him I was cancer free.” He squeezes my hand again, and his eyes flutter once more. “Did you see that?”
“I sure did. Apparently, he likes hearing that you're cancer free. Keep trying to encourage him to wake up, and if anything changes, let me know as soon as possible. I'll be right out here at the desk.”
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