Page 37 of Angel's Forever
“Now, that’s better, Mr. Russo. Any more of that, and I will sedate you. You need to rest. You were nearly dead when Mr. Koslov’s men brought you in here. You're only alive because they got you here in time. Do you want their efforts to be in vain?”
I had wondered how I had gotten here. The memories of the day were starting to flood back to me. The blow to the back of the head and falling to the floor. The constant kicks and punches to my stomach and ribs before I passed out with the taste of blood in my mouth.
I was sure he had said something before I passed out. I had to remember. I knew it was important, but it wasn’t there. I couldn’t remember.
I closed my eyes, desperately trying to recreate the moment in my head. I must have winced in pain, because Nico spoke next to me.
“Gino, are you okay? Do you need something to ease the pain?”
I didn’t answer him, still trying to remember the moments before I passed out. I heard someone walk around the bed and felt a cold liquid start to flow though my veins. The pain started to ebb away very slowly, allowing me to concentrate.
I was lying on the ground. The attack had stopped. I heard someone speaking on the phone.
It’s Nicholas here.
No that wasn’t right. I needed my brain to remember.
Then, like a bolt of lightening, it came to me. Nikolai.
“Nickolai.” I almost shouted the name, causing someone to come running into the room.
I immediately recognized him. It was Ivan, Aleksandr’s younger brother. I had spoken to him many times in the past and considered him a friend.
“What did you say?”
I looked up at Ivan. “Just before I passed out, I heard the man who attacked me speaking on the phone. I didn’t catch who he was speaking to, but he said, ‘It’s Nikolai here.’ That was all I heard before I blacked out. What are you doing here anyway, Ivan?”
“I will let Nico here explain everything. I need to call my brother.”
With that, he quickly left the room. I saw him speaking to someone outside, who from this distance looked like Alexei. I turned to see Nico looking down at me, a relived look on his face. He lifted my hand and pressed his lips against it. I would never get used to feeling his lips against me. I had waited for it for so long that now, I just couldn’t get enough of it.
A tear started to roll down his cheek. “I thought I was going to lose you, Gino. You and Rosa. I wouldn’t have survived without you.”
I suddenly felt a relief. I hoped that speaking in the past tense meant that everything was okay with Gabriella.
“Is Gabriella here? When is she coming to see me?”
His face dropped immediately, which told me she wasn’t here, but also that she wasn’t safe.
“I guess I have to tell you the truth. When Aleksandr found you, Rosa had already been taken by Vincent. Viktor is currently tracing his whereabouts. I’m guessing that Nikolai is the traitor within Viktor’s ranks, which is why Ivan has headed outside so quickly. To call his brother and let him know.”
I lay there for a moment in silence.
Gabriella was gone, and it was all my fault.
I should have stayed with her, and then I might have been able to save her. I could feel my heart rate starting to rise again, and Nico must have noticed it too because he started to rub his finger across my hand again.
“Gino, remember what the nurse said. She will sedate you if that machine goes off again.”
I regulated my breathing again. That was the last thing that I wanted, and Nico was right. The nurse had said in no uncertain terms that she would come back.
“How long have I been here?”
“Two days. We were starting to get worried. The doc said your injuries were bad. They placed you in an induced coma to allow your body to start to heal, but they stopped the medication yesterday. He expected you to wake up yesterday afternoon at the latest and didn’t expect you to be out for this long.”
He paused for a second and looked down at our hands before looking back at me.
“There really wasn’t anything you could have done, Gino. If it had been me or Hudson there, the outcome would have probably been the same.”