“There’s something broken inside of her. I hate that we didn’t find her,” I rasp.
My eyelids begin to droop as I speak, and Nico rubs the area between my eyebrows slowly and methodically.
“You’re going to make me fall asleep,” I complain.
“I know. There’s more to discuss and your blood pressure is going up.”
“Talking about evil people will do that even when I’m completely healthy,” I grumble.
Nico scrunches his face before he drops his hand. “You’re going to be in bed for a while, baby. Moving too much will be painful, and rest is the only way to make sure you don’t further hurt yourself.”
“When the good drugs are cut off, that’s when I’m going to get too antsy to stay in bed,” I warn him.
“Noted,” he chuckles.
The sound feels like a balm to my soul. As long as someone can smile and laugh, maybe I’ll be able to too.
“Are you ready to be a big girl and see everyone?”
“I think I need to. My brain is an asshole and keeps telling me this can’t possibly be real.”
“I’ll go tell them you’re awake if the doctor hasn’t already,” he says, standing and kissing my forehead. “The man likes to meddle.”
“He’s Irish. That’s what they do,” I murmur.
“I’ll be right back.” Nico looks as if he’s worried I’m going to disappear as he continues to hold my hand.
“I won’t disappear,” I promise.
“We have people watching the house,” he says, eyes shuttering. “My men are patrolling, and they’re looking for Avery too. I want to be able to promise that we’ll find her.”
“Avery is a cockroach, husband. She said a grenade was thrown at her and the bitch still lived. I have a feeling she’ll be just as hard as that cousin of yours.”
“Fucking Emilia,” Nico grumbles.
“Before you leave, tell me something good?”
“Gladly,” he says, returning to squat beside me. It’s too hard to look up at him while I’m lying on my stomach. “Pablo has needed something to do in order to keep from going stir crazy. He has access to your family’s accounts and drained them dry before the charity event. However, it’s been sitting in an account up until yesterday.
“The Rise Up For Savannah Project is now fully funded with your family’s money, along with the money the charity raised. Someone won the silent auction lot to name the charity, and that’s what they decided. It has a nice ring to it. I think it’s going to do a lot of good in this city, and it can expand past a shelter for omegas and other vulnerable people. Due to your family’s wealth, we also anonymously donated money to various art related nonprofits in Savannah as well. Did you know that there’s a children’s musical arts recreational center here?”
“I did not.” I mouth more than speak these words as I focus on breathing in and out. That’s my only job, and I’m having a hard time doing that due to feeling overwhelmed with gratitude.
This terrible, awful thing called the Accetta family is funding so many incredible projects while they’re all dead. I can’t imagine a more magical thing.
“Even with all of the money we gave away, there’s still more money,” Nico confesses.
“Really?” I ask. “I knew my family was very well off, but I was never really sure how much money they had.”
“There is still three million dollars left over. So, the question ultimately becomes, what do we do with it?”
“We use it for people who have suffered from violent abuse,” I say immediately. “I don’t think all of the money needs to stay in Georgia. We should set up a trust for the people who have been affected by your father’s actions.”
“That feels self serving,” Nico says, shaking his head.
“What if we expand it to include other people who have been impacted by sexual abuse?” I ask. “There can be in house therapy, counseling, lawyers, everything needed for a crisis center.”
“Okay…Can we expand further than sexual assault and include a mental health facility?” Nico asks. “I have a duty to be a better person than my father was. This way, we can have doctors and therapists on hand who know how to help people. I’ve been doing some research on mental health, and I’m finding out that too many of them don’t understand the different designations. It’s too easy for them to decide they know best and lock people away. I want more for people.”
