“Has anyone talked to Benjamin or Allesandro?” I ask, breaking the tense silence.
There’s a range of responses, all overlapping one another. Fury at Allesandro, which comes from the Amato side. Anda mistrust toward Benjamin…which I did not expect. My eyes cut toward Tennant, expecting him to speak up for his lover, but he doesn’t say anything. His jaw is clenched tight, and the chaotic emotions emanating from him may well scorch those surrounding him. Fuck. Alright, he’s probably not the best option at this point.
“I’ll notify Allesandro,” Marcus responds, his expression haunted.
Grunting, I wave an acknowledgment.
Antonio wavers before stepping toward Marcus and whispering something in his ear. It’s too low for me to hear, but I glance at Jude, whose normally blank expression is creased with worry. Great, yet another thing to add to the list.
“Alright, I’ll update Benjamin. The rest of you…you heard Doc. You need to go rest. Nobody is going to be visiting Lio, and right now, Carter is with Roman. He’s the only one allowed at the moment. His decision will stand.” I glare at Roman’s lovers, refusing to give in. “You’ll be notified when that changes.”
“But Doc didn’t say we couldn’t see Roman,” Ignacio presses, and I cross my arms, staring him down.
“It doesn’t matter. His father has priority.” I eye Cristian carefully, ready to put him in his place, but he keeps his mouth shut. That’s a situation Carter will need to deal with, and Marcus and I will support him however he needs. Right now, Roman doesn’t need to be agitated further. “Again, we’ll notify you when the situation changes.”
Ignacio goes to argue, but Jayden steps in with a sharp, “Princess,” and deftly leads Ignacio away. I’m impressed. If only I could do that to the others…
“The slightest change,” Tennant growls.
“Of course,” I respond softly as Tennant stalks off with Hollis following.
Antonio hesitates, but whatever silent communication passes between him and Marcus eventually convinces him to leave as well. I stop Jude before he can follow, taking a gamble that the other Dom may need a word or two.
Marcus presses a kiss to my jaw before disappearing down the hallway. I mentally wish him luck with Allesandro, because fuck, that is not going to go well. While I may worry about their relationship, there’s no doubting the love Allesandro has for Lio.
“Did you need something?” Jude asks stiffly.
Sighing, I struggle over how to word this, but eventually, I just go for it. “Antonio. I’m worried about him. He needs to get out of his head for a while. I know this is devastating for everyone, but Antonio has a very difficult history with these types of matters. I don’t know the full story, as Marcus would never betray him like that. I just know enough to be worried, and I wanted you to be prepared as his Dom.”
Jude rubs his chin, and I wish I could offer him some reassurance—or even some help. This type of situation is going to require more out of the box thinking for my friend and fellow Dom. I have my own suspicions about what may work for Antonio, but without being asked, I keep my own counsel.
Jude sighs, and signs a thank you, which I actually recognize now. He doesn’t bother to say anything else to me, just takes off after Antonio.
And then there were two.
I have no words to give Cristian. From his defensive posture, he has none for me either. I wave dismissively at him, but don’t waste my breath. Until the man takes responsibility for his actions, and comes with an apology to those he’s hurt…well, I have nothing to say to him.
For now, I need to go see Benjamin, which…fuck. How the hell did I get put on Benjamin duty—again? Hopefully, it can be wrapped up quickly, because I want to check on my Love soon.He needs all the support he can get. Whether that's keeping others out of his path, or giving him the space to be there for his son, I’ll do whatever I can to help.
Standing in front of the door to Benjamin’s room, I’m relieved to see it’s still closed. It gives me a moment to breathe. Knocking, I wait for acknowledgement. When it comes, I draw in a deep breath before opening the door.
“What’s been going on?” Benjamin demands the moment I walk in. “There was shouting and people running. Someone closed the door to my room, so I couldn’t even see what was going on! For fuck’s sake, I’m one of the Seconds.”
Biting back a caustic reply, I remind myself that he’s one of Lio’s friends, and this won’t be easy on him. But hell, he’s changed. I thought the training to become a Second would be good for him. I sincerely question whether it was the best option, or if the position has gone to his head. That level of emotional volatility is not good.
“There was…an incident. Lio was not in a good place after he was rescued.” I pause, unsure how to word this. Benjamin winces as he sits up straighter, and the tension rolling off him is worrying. As quickly as possible, I say, “I’m sorry, but he tried to commit suicide. He’s…alright. I mean, they’ve saved his life, but he’s on suicide watch.”
I brace for an eruption, but Benjamin goes utterly still, his face void of all emotion. It’s…terrifying. I’m not sure what to say, so I wait him out, and just hope I can survive whatever is coming. But then he shocks me by laughing.
What. The. Fuck?
“You’ve got to be kidding me. Lio wouldn’t do that. Not with the pact we made about not leaving each other, and the shit he gave me after Tennant almost killed me. He’s too strong to do that.” Benjamin waves his hand dismissively and my jaw drops. Again…What. The. Fuck?
“Uh…” I cock my head, not sure which part of his statement to respond to. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I take a few deep breaths to control my own anger that’s beating at me. “Look. Yes, Lio is strong, but strong people break down too. It doesn’t make him weak, and fuck you if you think it does. Now, I don’t know what is going on with you, but I will keep you far away from him if that’s your attitude.”
“You can’t be serious. Lio would never be so selfish as to try to kill himself. You guys must be misunderstanding it.”
Growling, I cross the room and get up in Benjamin’s face. To his credit, or utter stupidity, he doesn’t recoil. “Look, asshole, I watched them bring Lio out. I’m not even sure they can save his ability to use his hands. The amount of pain he must have been in, and still he continued to cut away at his veins with a broken piece of glass. So no, this is not a joke. This is not a prank. It’s fucking serious.”
