“Let’s move. Everything is set up and ready for surgery. I just need to FaceTime my friend.” We load Niccolo onto the ATV, and we move to the stables.
“Stay awake, baby. Please. I need you,” she begs, placing his head on her lap. Niccolo bats his eyelashes open and close.
“Hi,amorina. I love you, too,” he whispers as he closes his eyes again, his body limp.
“No, no, no. Niccolo, please. Don’t leave us,” Willow cries, tears freely releasing. We approach the stables, the reinforced hatch open and ready to enter.
I quickly grab Niccolo’s body and say, “Baby, let’s go. We’re here. Call your doctor friend.”
Treading down the stairs, I lay his body on the operating table. “Amorcito, please. Come back to us. We need you. Don’t you dare let go,” I whisper, kissing his forehead.
He smiles. “I’ll try, baby,” he mumbles before going unconscious.
“Willow, he’s out again. Come now.”
“Okay, you need to leave, Dario. I promise to do my very best. I will.” She nods. I exit the surgical suite and go to one of the bunker’s bedrooms. Walking to the bathroom, I look into the mirror and see the blood, sweat, and tears all over my face. Breathing in and out, the man in the mirror is holding on for dear life. I can’t do this without him. He needs to be okay. I need for him to be okay.
“Get it together. They need you, Dario. Be there for them. Snap out of it,” I whisper to myself. I need to talk to Isabella and Sonny; they need to know. Shaking my head out of my daze, I turn the water on and splash it on my face. I rinse all the blood and wipe my face with the black towel hanging nearby. Taking my dress shirt off, I grab an extra shirt from the dresser near the door. I put on the new black shirt and take a few moments to collect my thoughts.
Relaxing, I exit the bedroom and find Isabella and Sonny waiting outside the surgical suite. They both turn, and Isabella comes barreling towards me with Sonny following behind.Isabella wraps her hands around my neck, her face resting on my chest as she starts to cry, her body violently shaking.
“Shhh, it’s okay. He’s going to be fine, Isabella. He’s in good hands with Willow,” I say, comforting her as I rub her back up and down.
“What happened?” Sonny interjects.
“He took a shot to the stomach,” I whisper. Sonny’s face blanches, but he instantly recovers, masking his anxiousness.
Maeve, Catalina, Alessio, October, Alejandro, Camila, and Chiara come down the stairs. They follow me as I walk Isabella and Sonny to the sitting area. I sit on the couch and Isabella clings to me, laying her head on my shoulder.
Alessio is the first to talk and asks, “How is he?”
“I don’t know. Willow is still operating on him. It might be a while,” I exclaim, facing Maeve. “Did you send it?” I ask.
She nods, taking out her phone and showing me the text message she sent to him. There are two pictures of his Akim and Vadim dead and a message below that reads, “You sent your sons to fight your battles. Well, it looks like we called your bluff. Ilya’s not shown, but don’t worry, he’ll be dead by midnight. He’s receiving an extra special treatmentand you won’t receive the remains. We’ll meet again soon.”
“Good. And Ilya’s here?” I inquire, causing Isabella to shift, collecting herself, her gaze on Catalina and Maeve.
“Yes, he’s in the carnage room, ready and waiting for you,princesa,” Catalina answers.
“Ready for my sister? And why is that?” Alessio interrupts, shifting his gaze at his sister.
“He um…He did something to me in college, and that’s all I’m saying, Alessio. I just can’t talk about it. Please, let it go. But I have to be the one to kill him,” Isabella answers.
“As you should. I just wish I could’ve done it for you sooner,” he replies.
“Alright, you get ready with Catalina, baby. I’ll wait here with Sonny and everyone else for Niccolo,” I say, kissing her forehead as she gets up from her place.
Isabella and Catalina exit the sitting area while Maeve looks at October and nods. “We better get going. We can’t all be together at once. He might’ve sent a backup team and one of us needs to be alive to end him,” Maeve teases.
“Oh, gee, thanks for having faith in us. Go ahead, and thanks for everything.” I chuckle, giving her the finger as she leaves with October following behind.
“Thank you, October. For everything.”
“Of course, boss. I’ll keep Niccolo in my thoughts,” she replies, closing the door behind her.
“We’re going to go check out some of the guards. Three died and a couple more were injured. I’ll have a status report soon and let you know. Please, message me when Niccolo wakes up,” Alessio remarks.
“Yes, of course. Thank you for everything, Alessio; my mind is all over the place,” I reply, shaking his hand. Alejandro, Chiara, and Camila nod towards me and follow closely after him.
