That John wouldn't be able to hurt anyone else ever again.
“I love you,” he whispered, and I pressed myself deeper into him.
“I love you too.”
All the pain was worth it, as long as he was by my side.
Alex’s loud voice snapped us back to reality. “The fucker shot me!”
What the hell was he doing here?
Vivian
Folding my arms, I exhaled loudly in the empty hallway as my eyes studied my sister from the ICU room window. Various wires were attached to her, her head bandaged in white, while the machines beeped loudly, indicating a normal pulse according to her doctors.
Tina got lucky.
The minute the nightmare with John had ended, the ambulance took us to the nearest hospital, and thank God, it had the best surgeons in the country or she might not have made it. All the way there, the paramedics kept injecting something in her so her heart would keep beating. They lost her once for a minute as I sat quietly, too stunned to react. Once we had reached the hospital, they immediately rushed her into the operating room.
While she had some minor injuries like cuts here and there, the blow he delivered to her with the metal hockey stick could have been fatal, because it caused bleeding in the head. The neurosurgeon operated on her for seven hours, while a nurse updated us regularly on the progress. Finally, the surgeon came out himself, greeting us with a tired smile and assuring us she’d make a speedy recovery in a month or so.
I still couldn't accept the fact that her fiancé, the man we had trusted so much and who it seemed loved her like crazy, turned my and Radmir’s life to hell, just because he was obsessed with me from a simple glance all those years ago.
How could none of us see the madness in John? He caused so much unhappiness and pain to the people around him, and he felt no remorse about it, because, in his sick mind, it got him closer to me. I rubbed my arms as revulsion ran through me at the idea of his hands on me, or what his sick mind made of our meeting at the ball so long ago.
The fresh smell of coffee tickled my nostrils as Michael brought the cup up to my mouth. “Here,krasotka. Drink up.”
Flinching, I wrapped my hands around the steaming cup and said, “I hate coffee.” But it didn't stop me from taking a long sip, welcoming the warmth spreading through me.
Michael snorted. “Coffee works best in these situations.” Then he hugged me close, wrapping his arm around my waist. Resting my head on his shoulder, I sighed heavily. He would know this. Lately, all of us girls ended up in the hospital so often we should get a discount from the world medical association. Honey should research it to see if it was even a thing, then we definitely needed to apply.
At the moment, Rosa was recovering in the same hospital, and Dominic went to check on her once he made sure we were all right.
“Your sister is going to be okay, darling,” Michael whispered and then kissed my hair. “Especially with that one looking after her,” he pointed at Alex, who occupied the only single chair in the room, as he stared at my sister, his bandaged hand resting on the armrest. Thankfully, the bullet brushed past his arm and only grazed him. He refused to stay at the hospital, and Michael promised, God knows why, to take care of him during the night. Otherwise, the doctor wouldn’t have prescribed painkillers for him.
The minute he was done, he rushed to wait for her and then ended up in her room before I could even blink.
He refused to leave Tina’s side until she opened her eyes, and even though the nurses begged him to go home since it might take a lot of time, he just gave them the death glare, and they left quickly.
His actions tonight surprised me so much as the truth was revealed. I had no clue how to even react to all this stuff. It’s not every day you learn your ex-husband, who you couldn't stand, had a crush on your sister all this time and couldn't care less about you.
“Yeah, I never saw it coming.” Michael rubbed his chin on my head.
“I don’t think anyone did. Poor guy.” Well, he had some explaining to do, considering his secret life, but my mind shifted to something else.
“Where is Vitya?” They showed up here shortly after us. Radmir probably called them on the way. Those two were like mother hens of the brotherhood, I swear.
“Handling shit with your man. Melissa is up their asses regarding this case, since John is a US citizen. She even requested Interpol to give the guy to her. FSB just laughed it off, although they are thinking about it.” His chest vibrated with laughter. “Which is quite hilarious, considering Yuri is right there with them shouting at her for even being in the operation in her condition.”
Radmir didn’t intend to leave my side, but he needed to speak with them, so they could all decide what to do with John. As long as he got his punishment, I didn’t care what happened to him. He could die for all I cared.
Michael assured him I’d be safe, and I almost rolled my eyes at this. Who would try to kill me? John couldn’t harm us anymore.
“I have something that will cheer you up.” He flipped open his screen and then pressed on the caller ID, which said Kostya.
In a second, his face appeared through FaceTime. He waved at us with a grumpy expression, and Konstanciya, who was behind him, gave me a thumbs-up.
“Hey,kukolka!” she shouted, and despite the mood, I laughed. God, what was with them and all those nicknames for me? She called me doll, while Michael chose word beauty. I’d have preferred them to settle on one, but apparently that wouldn't be the case.
