“Do you know where the ICU is located?” Dr. Reddy asks.
“We can find our way,” I tell him. “You don’t have to wait on us, Doctor. Thank you so much for everything.”
“It’s just down this hallway, and then left at the junction.” Dr. Reddy points it out to us anyway. “If you need anything or have any questions, just let the nurses know and they’ll get in touch with me. Have a good night,” he adds before leaving us alone.
“Come on,” Trenton urges me. “You’ll feel better once you actually see him.”
We walk together down to the intensive care unit, where Trenton presses the call button set into the wall.
“Can I help you?” a woman answers after a few rings.
“I’m here to see Maximo Luciani,” I tell the speaker.
“Just a moment, we’re getting him settled into his room. You can come on in,” the voice replies before the door swings open with a warning buzz.
“I’ll be out here when you’re ready to leave,” Trenton tells me. “I doubt he’ll be awake, but if he is, let him know I’m here, and that I told him to keep his damn head down.”
“I will.” I give him a wan smile. “Thanks Trenton.”
He waves me off and I walk through the pneumatic double doors just as they begin to close.
Once I’m inside, I see a large, open square observatory station in the middle of the room where several nurses are sitting. The actual patient rooms are spread out all around the central desk. One of the nurses stands and waves to me and says, “Mr. Luciani is in room four, right there at the corner.”
When I walk into the room, a nurse is just settling a blanket over Maximo who is lying slightly propped up in the bed. He’s unconscious, and there are numerous tubes running from his body to different bags and receptacles attached to the frame.
“Hello, ma’am,” the nurse greets me. “I was just checking his catheter and the drainage tube in his abdomen,” she explains as she points them out to me. “I’m almost done. He seems to be resting comfortably right now, so I’ll leave you alone with him for a few minutes. Just hit the button to call us if he seems to be waking up or if he’s in any distress, okay?”
“Of course. Thank you.” I try to force a smile at her, even though my heart is breaking seeing Maximo’s pale, unconscious face. “Before you go, did they bring his belongings with him when they brought him up to the room? I would like to get his keys and his phone.”
“There’s a bag with his belongings in the closet there.” The nurse points it out to me. “He’ll need new clothes brought in. Most of what he was wearing was cut off and thrown out.” She goes to a computer near the door and types in some notes, then leaves the room. I stare at the monitor showing Maximo’s vital signs, which appear to be steady, then look around and locate a chair which I drag over to the bed.
I pick up his hand that’s lying limply by his side and cradle it to my face. “You look terrible,” I whisper as the hot tears once again race down my face to drip onto his arm. “Why did you jump out like that? Just to protect me? I suppose I get it. You were taking charge. Or maybe you felt the way I did after my father died, so full of rage that someone you loved had been hurt that you would do anything to get back at them.”
Now that I’m finally alone, the sobs I’ve been holding in are ripped violently from me. I cry until my chest hurts and I’m struggling to breathe. I have to stop myself from climbing into the bed and hugging Maximo. “I thought I was done after we got revenge for my father. I thought I would never feel hate like that again. I was wrong, Maximo. I’m going to finish this. I’m going to kill Irina Volkov and make sure no one can hurt us ever again. You just rest and focus on getting better. I’ll take care of everything else.”
The monitor displaying his vitals catches my attention as his blood pressure and pulse show a sudden increase before dropping back down to their prior levels. I squeeze his hand and kiss his knuckles. “Can you hear me, Maximo? I hope you can. You don’t have to be afraid for me. I know exactly what I have to do. And you…you just have to live. You have to. I need you. I’m pregnant, Max. We’re going to have a baby together.”
I study the monitor again, hoping that some fluctuation in the numbers will tell me that he’s listening. When they remain steady, I sigh and bring his hand to my lips again. “I’ve been thinking what our lives together could be like ever since you proposed, Maximo. I wasn’t sure before, but I am now. My answer is yes. Can you hear me? My answer is yes. I’ll marry you. The only thing that would make me happier than being your wife is if you open your eyes and smile at me. It doesn’t have to be right now, but please, please open your eyes and smile at me again. I love you so much. Rest now and recover your strength.I’m going to need you. Your baby is going to need you in the months and years to come. But right now, let me take care of you. Let me take care of everything,” I tell him as I lay his hand down and walk over to the closet the nurse had pointed out to me.
Inside I find the plastic bag with his wallet, keys, and his phone. There’s also some loose change and the holster he was wearing under his suit coat, though his pistol is obviously absent. I take his keys even though there’s always someone at the estate. I don’t know what all of them are for, and I might need them. Then, I punch in the pass code to his phone and pull up his messages.
It only takes me a moment to find the recent message from Sergei Ivankov with the picture of Irina and the phone number he had given Maximo. I debate calling immediately, but I think better of it. I need to make sure I have a few more things in place before I confront her.
I walk back over to the bed and bend over to kiss Maximo’s forehead. His face was ashen when I first entered the room, but I swear his color looks better already. I pull back the sheets and try to assess the damage to his body. I can see the bulky bandages covering his abdomen and hip peeking out from under his gown, along with where the drainage tubes have been placed around his wounds. I cover him back up as I feel the tears threatening to overwhelm me again, then give him another kiss.
“I have to go take care of some things. I’ll be back as soon as I’m done. I love you, Maximo Luciani. Do you hear me? I love you. Get better, and when you wake up, this will all be over.” I promise as I slip his phone and keys into my purse, then leave the room.
I stop by the nurse’s station on the way out and leave my name and phone number so that they can call me with anyupdates. Then, I head back out to the hallway where Trenton is leaning against the far wall.
“You ready to go back to the estate?” He winces as he meets my gaze, and I know after all the crying I must look awful. “We could both use something to eat and some rest.”
“Let’s go,” I reply curtly as I begin walking towards the hospital exit.
Trenton falls in behind me, my silent guardian on the way to the parking deck. Once we’re outside near the SUV, I stop and turn to him. “Before we head back to the estate, I need you to make a phone call.”
“All right,” Trenton cautiously agrees. “Who am I calling?”
“I want you to get back in touch with the Savage Kings. I want to know how much they’ll charge me for bricks of that…what did they call it? M-112? The explosives they used on the Gargoyles’ clubhouse? I want to know how much they’ll charge me for enough of it to blow up a car.”
