by Penelope Sky
Liam lowered the gun altogether. “That’s what I wanted from the beginning.”
I considered rushing him and knocking him to the ground, but I couldn’t risk accidental casualties. There was only one life in the room that mattered, and I couldn’t risk it for anything. So I’d have to keep being patient and wait for a better opportunity.
“Then, let’s go.” Once Annabella successfully calmed Liam, the tears stopped altogether and her shoulders weren’t so tight. She stood in just her underwear and my t-shirt, but she didn’t seem uncomfortable in a provocative outfit, even though it implied we’d just been screwing.
“Sure.” Liam raised the barrel and pointed the gun at me again. “I’ll just kill him first.”
“Liam, no! I said I would come with you.”
“I already gave you the opportunity to spare his life, and you refused.” He placed his forefinger over the trigger. “My generosity has expired.”
My heart started to race once I reached death’s doorstep. There was nothing I could do to stop the bullet when it left the barrel. I was cornered near the back wall, so there was nowhere to run. I’d have to take death like a man and accept it.
He pulled the trigger.
My eyes immediately closed as I prepared for the pain. I’d been shot before, but the adrenaline usually masked the immediate agony. I didn’t feel it now because my body was in survival mode. I kept my pulse slow so I wouldn’t lose all my blood too soon.
“Anna!”
I opened my eyes and grabbed at my chest. There was no drop of blood, no sign of red. My fingers felt my perfectly healthy body, and I didn’t feel the intrusion of a bullet. My eyes moved over to the floor, and that was when I saw my white shirt covered in red blood.
Now, I panicked.
Now, the pain hit me hard.
Now, something worse than death had happened.
She was still, her eyes open as she stared at the floor beside her. She breathed hard as she processed the bullet that had just hit her in the gut, and she was clearly in shock based on the emptiness in her gaze.
I didn’t have the luxury of getting upset. I couldn’t fall to my knees and sob at the sight before me. I couldn’t pull out my gun and shoot Liam for what he’d just done. There was still time to save her, and I needed it to haul ass to make that happen. Vengeance would come later.
I moved to the floor beside her and pressed my hand over the bleeding wound. My fingers and palm were soaked in her blood, and I realized how much of it she had already lost. That could only mean several organs were pierced…that was very bad news. “Annabella, you’re going to be fine. I just need you to stay with me, okay?” I lied to keep her calm, to make her remain positive so she was more likely to live. I scooped my hands underneath her body and lifted her as I rose to my feet.
Liam was a mess. He sobbed uncontrollably and was so upset he couldn’t do anything at all. Filled with self-loathing, he just stood there and watched me take her away. “Anna…I’m so sorry.”
I headed to the door, prepared to run down three flights of stairs to get her into the car. But I stilled when I heard Liam’s words.
“That bullet was meant for you…” He stood near my bed and didn’t know what to do with himself. He was overwhelmed by the grave mistake he’d just made.
I faced him, so livid I could barely breathe. “Then you should’ve aimed better.”
I got her to the hospital in record time and handed her over to the trauma team. Letting her go was so damn difficult because I was giving her to strangers, but they were the only people who could help her right now.
There was nothing I could do.
All I’d been focused on was getting there as soon as possible, and once that mission was complete, I had no other purpose.
Other than to wait.
The adrenaline never disappeared. It was still fresh in my veins. Sometimes I sat on the couch, sometimes I paced just to move, and I even read the newspaper without understanding a single word…all in an effort to pass the time. I was in a state of panic, waiting for news that I wouldn’t receive for a long time.
Unless she didn’t make it.
They took her to surgery right away without giving me much detail about their plan to help her. They had no idea the extent of the injury until they got their scans and opened her up, and they didn’t have time to waste telling me all those things. Their only option was to move as quickly as possible to fix the damage right then and there.
So I waited…and waited.
A lot of bad things had happened to me.
I’d lost my mom too soon. I’d lost my best friend over my stupidity. I’d killed people who were innocent, and I’d gotten my hands dirty more than I wished.
But this was definitely worse than all of those occasions.
Worst day of my fucking life.
I sat in the waiting room, and my heart continued to pound violently in my chest. At some point, I called Hades and told him what happened, but I couldn’t recall exactly what I said.
Just a blur.
Now, he was beside me, Sofia on the other side of me. They’d brought me a change of clothes since my sweatpants had been wet with Annabella’s blood. At first, they asked questions, and I answered in a dreamlike state. But then I turned quiet because my body couldn’t respond anymore.
Hades was silent for hours, but when the waiting room started to empty, he said something. “No news is good news.”
I stared at the linoleum beneath my feet. “Not sure if I agree with that.”
“It means she’s still alive. Otherwise, they would come out here and deliver the bad news. That means her heart is still beating, she’s still fighting, that she’ll pull through this.” He rested his arms on his knees with his hands together in front of him. He was in jeans and a t-shirt, probably throwing on whatever he could find after I called. It was late at night, eleven when I finally reached out to him.
Pretty sure he was asleep by nine.
So domesticated.
Sofia locked our fingers together, and she held me with a soft touch. “She’s going to be okay. I can feel it.”
“But if she’s not…” I had no idea what I would do if Annabella didn’t pull through. First things first, I would execute Liam. I wouldn’t honor her last wish to spare his life. But after my need for vengeance was satisfied, what would I do then? I’d finally found a woman I loved, and then she was gone. There wouldn’t be somebody else. Time wouldn’t heal that kind of pain.
Hades turned his gaze on me, watching the side of my face. He didn’t give me false promises or try to make me feel better with unrealistic hope. “Whatever happens, it wasn’t your fault.”
I pulled my hand away from Sofia’s. “None of this would’ve happened if I’d just killed him…” I didn’t have a lot of regrets in life, but now that was at the top on my list. Even if Annabella came out of this relatively unscathed, she shouldn’t have been forced to endure it in the first place. I should’ve done my job and protected her. I shouldn’t have allowed her feelings to complicate the situation. Liam had always been an enemy, and I should’ve killed him like all my other enemies.
Hades kept his voice low because people were still around. “You’ll get your chance, Damien. And you know I’ll be there if you need help.”
I released a sarcastic chuckle even though it was completely inappropriate. “I won’t need help. Trust me.”
Sofia refused to accept my coldness, so she rested her hand on my forearm, lightly touching me because she wanted me to know that she was there. “Everything is going to be okay. We just need to get through this first…and then take care of everything else.”
I couldn’t imagine my life without Annabella. I’d been alone for so long, but now that I’d shared my soul with another person, I didn’t know what to do without her. I’d never been so scared. “But what if she—”
“That won’t happen.” She squeezed my arm. “She’ll get through this. I know she will.”
/> Due to the complications of the bullet, the surgery took twelve hours. It included a team of three surgeons, assisted by a staff of nurses and medical personnel. The bullet had pierced her stomach, liver, and kidney, so they had to fix all the damage and remove the bullet, while keeping her alive.
But she would live.
That was all that mattered. We could sort everything else out later.
When the doctor told me the news, I stood still and just stared at his face. It was difficult to process the information he’d just delivered, but I wasn’t going to lose her, and that was what I focused on. It seemed too good to be true. “When can I see her?”
“In just a bit. We need to transfer her to a room.” He shook my hand before he walked away.
Hades and Sofia were standing off to the side, in earshot so they could hear whatever was about to happen. Hades came to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “Thank god.”
Sofia hugged me and squeezed me tight. “Oh…I’m so relieved.” She rubbed the back of my neck before she pulled away, tears in her eyes. “She didn’t deserve this, and I’m so glad it’s not going to claim her life.”
I was still in a dream, still hollow and empty. Of course, I was thrilled she would be okay, but I was traumatized this had happened to her in the first place. There was a lot of rage, a lot of guilt.
Hades patted me on the back. “What is it, Damien?”
“I don’t know,” I answered. “I’m still in shock, I guess.” I placed my hands against my face and cupped my nose as I closed my eyes. I couldn’t get the image of her on the floor out of my mind, the feeling of her blood on my hands. I almost lost the person I cared the most about.
What would I have done if I had lost her?
Even if Annabella asked me not to kill Liam, I would anyway.
I fucking would.
I dropped my hands and sucked in a deep breath through my teeth. I didn’t realize my eyes were wet until a tear streaked down my cheek.
Hades didn’t react to my emotion. He’d cried in front of me before, when his wife was taken away from him. He wouldn’t judge me for feeling this way now, for being so relieved and so emotional at the same time. “She’s going to be okay. The worst part is over.” He pulled me in for a hug, his hand on the back of my neck.
I hugged him back, this time holding him tight and giving in to my tears. I let myself explode, let all the pent-up tension and sorrow escape. He became my crutch, my friend, my brother. “I know…”
She was unconscious for thirty-six hours.
I sat at her bedside and watched her breathe with a ventilator, looking so small in a bed that was already small. I got used to the sound of the machines, the hourly hum of her blood pressure cuff, the beep of her pulse, and everything else that made up the background of a hospital room.
Hades joined me and set a white Styrofoam box on the table in the sitting area. He also put down a coffee. “Thought you might be hungry.”
I kept my eyes on Annabella as I shook my head.
Hades sat in the chair next to her bedside. “You haven’t slept in days. How about you go home and at least shower?”
“I’m not leaving her.” It was only a matter of time before Liam showed his face. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was still listed as her emergency contact. How often do people change those? I wasn’t letting him anywhere near her, and if he did show up here, at least he would have immediate medical attention once I was done with him.
“I’ll stay.”
Hades had been there with me the whole time. Sofia came and went, because she was pregnant and had a little boy at home. But Hades was there…always there. “I can’t do it. Liam will show his face at some point.”
“And I’ll kill him.”
“That’s my job.” I pulled my eyes away from her pale face and looked at him instead. She’d lost so much blood and had required a blood transfusion, but somehow, she still looked pale as a ghost. “I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.”
“Hard not to. That’s my job.”
“Well, you’re fired.”
He chuckled. “Think about it. She’s going to wake up and see you looking like hell. You haven’t showered in days, you haven’t shaved, and you look like shit. At least go home and shower and change your clothes. I can watch her for a couple hours.”
It was like asking a parent to leave their child. It was the hardest thing to do. I knew Annabella didn’t have any family, so I was her family. There was no one else to sit by her side other than me.
Hades saw my hesitation. “It’s fine.”
“I’m afraid I won’t be here when she wakes up.”
He pulled back his sleeve and looked at the time on his watch. “Doctor said you still have twelve hours. You’ll be back long before then.”
I wasn’t comfortable in these old clothes, and I hadn’t brushed my teeth in days. I didn’t need to sleep, but the lack of hygiene was making me uncomfortable. And I definitely didn’t want her to see me at my worst. “Alright. I won’t be gone for long.” I rose to my feet and patted him on the shoulder. “Thanks, man.”
“No problem.”
I leaned down and kissed her on the forehead before I headed to the door.
“Damien?”
I turned back to Hades.
He nodded to the meal he’d just brought. “Are you going to eat that?”
I gave a slight smile. “It’s all yours.”
When I returned, I was much more comfortable in a new set of clothes and a shaved chin. Annabella was exactly as I left her, sleeping soundly. Hades stuck around for a bit and we talked, but eventually, he went home to his family.
And I stayed with mine.
She slept longer than the doctors anticipated, and it was nearly a day later before she woke up. I slept on and off in the uncomfortable armchair, and when I heard her shift in the bed, I opened my eyes and immediately scooted forward.
She started to move, her hand reaching for the ventilator that breathed on her behalf. The nurses warned me she would be agitated when she woke up because the tubing was extremely painful. I grabbed her hand so she won’t pull on it and hit the button to call for the nurse.
She opened her eyes and looked at me, and when she recognized my features, she stopped fighting. She was unable to speak, but her eyes conveyed so much. She was so happy to see me, so emotional, and she grabbed my hand and gave it a tight squeeze. Now, she stopped fighting the discomfort in her throat and focused on me.
She made my heart grow a million times in size.
The nurses removed her from the breathing tube and situated her in bed before they checked her vitals and left.
The second she was mine again, I grabbed both of her hands with mine. I looked into her hollow face because she’d been eating through a feeding tube and had already lost weight she’d never needed to lose in the first place. Her hair was oily because all she received were sponge baths, and she didn’t look her best. But to me, she was perfect.
She was always perfect.
Now that she was there with me, I was at a loss for words. I had no idea what to say because I was caught off guard by the look in her eyes. Without any warning, tears sprung to my eyes, and I finally allowed myself to celebrate the victory. She survived. She was still here. And soon enough, she would come home with me.
Even when the doctor told me she would be okay, I couldn’t bring myself to accept it. It was too good to be true. It had to be a sure thing before I dropped my guard.
Now it was.
When she saw my tears, hers started to form too. She squeezed my hands back with limited strength and breathed through the emotion in her veins.
She took that bullet for me. I never would’ve wanted that…but it meant the world to me that she had.
No one else would’ve done that. Not even Hades. What had I done to deserve a love like this? I’d hurt her so many times. I wasn’t the man she deserved.
But now, I would be.
After
evaluating her, the doctors said she needed to stay in the hospital for a few days before she could be discharged. She stayed in bed the entire time, had meals when they were brought, and spent most of her time conversing with me.
For the amount of pain she was in, she was oddly delightful, even when the pain meds wore off. She was just happy to be with me, just to be alive.
“I got you this.” I opened the lid and revealed a slice of chocolate cake. “Thought you might be tired of hospital food.”
Her eyes open wide. “Ooh…getting shot isn’t so bad when you get a fat piece of cake.”
I smiled slightly even though I didn’t feel that same joy in my heart. I set the dessert off to the side before scooting closer to her bed so we could hold hands. It was the most affection we could have because I couldn’t hug her or get her out of bed. It was important for her incision to heal, for the rest of her body to begin working normally again.
Her eyes turned apologetic as she realized the pain her words caused. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll bring you anything you want.”
“Anything?” she asked playfully.
“Yes.” I squeezed her hand. “Anything at all.”
She stared at me for a while with a slight smile on her lips. Her eyes were full of endless love, and she looked at me in a way no one else ever had. Because it was love, not infatuation, not lust. And I could honestly say no one except her had ever loved me.
I wanted to take her home and take care of her myself, but I had to keep waiting for the permission of the doctors. I tried to make the best of it by bringing her different foods and games to keep her mind busy.
“Damien?”
“Yes, Annabella?”
“Why don’t you go home and get some rest? You look exhausted, like you haven’t slept since the very first night when all this happened.”
My gaze fell down to our joined hands, and I stared at her small fingernails. “I won’t leave you.”
“I’ll be fine, Damien.”