Novel Straight 111_I Ran From My Ex, Straight Into My Best Friend’s Father

111 

 GIANNI 

 Pain.One of the most inescapable emotions in life. It’s an experience you learn from at a young age, when you touch the hot stove or fall down and skin your knee. It’s your body’s way of telling you something isn’t okay, or check this out, or stop what you’re doing a protective mechanism of sorts.

 In my life, I’ve experienced many bouts of pain, physical and emotional, but nothingpares to the pain you feel seeing your child hurt and knowing there is nothing you can do to ease that pa. I’ve never been what anyone would call a helicopter parent, hovering over Tatiana, watching every choice she makes. That is, until now.

 While watching my daughter walk up the front steps of our home while half a dozen guards keep a watchful eye out for threats around the building’s perimeter. I can’t afford to take any chances not with both her and Caterina back under my roof.

 “Take it easy,” I urge. “Slow down.”

 Tatiana rolls her eyes at me over her shoulder, which I take as a good sign. “Dad, I have a concussion. I didn’t forget how to walk.”

 “I know, but you need to take what the doctor said seriously. Too quick movements could cause you to lose your bnce, and hitting your head again will not help you recover any faster.”

 “My bnce is fine.” Pausing inside the doorway, she turns to me, giving me her best re. “I’m begging you. Please, lighten up. You’re the one walking around with a bullet wound in your abdomen. If there’s anyone you should be worried about, it’s yourself.”

 Caterina steps in like a beacon of hope, offering a gentle but firm response. “Come on. I don’t know about you, but I miss sleeping in a regr bed and not having a nursee in every twenty minutes to check on me.” Taking Tatiana by the arm,

 she offers me a look of sympathy. Is there something wrong with me trying to make sure my daughter is okay?

 I wish she would let me help her, but she’s as stubborn as a mule.

 As d as I am to watch her walk down the hall again, with Caterina at her side as they head to her wing, my heart sinks. No matter how much I tighten my grip, she’s like quicksand slipping through my fingers. How can I help someone that doesn’t want my help?

 We continue through the house, and every step I take leaves me feeling relieved. I didn’t know how much I missed being here. It’s good to be home.”

 “That it is,” he agrees, sticking close to my side.

 Too close. “Afraid I can’t make it to my office alone?”

 “Did I say that?”

 “You don’t have to.” I make a point of taking a giant step to the left to ce more distance between us. “I can practically feel your breath on the back of my neck.”

 “Remind meter not to ask if you need any help changing your bandages.” 

 “I wasn’t going to ask for help.”

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 “No, of course not. Why would you ept anyone’s assistance?” Sarcasm drips from his response. It’s only once we’ve reached my office that he exhales loudly, rubbing at the back of his neck, giving off a frustrated energy. “I have to say it because it’s eating me up inside, but I feel like if I was there, you wouldn’t have been shot.”

 “You don’t know that.” It never urred to me that he would see things that way. “The best ce for you was to be at Tatiana’s side.”

 “I understand that, but you could’ve died. Does that not make any bells go off in your head?”

 ‘Of course it does, yet there wasn’t any other option. If it makes you feel better, you can help change my bandages.” I smirk to lighten the mood.

 “Sorry, the window of opportunity is closed.” At least he’s grinning when he looks my way, “I haven’t wanted to bring it up since there were more important things to discuss–Caterina and ana and all that, but what are our next steps?”

 “To find and kill Jack, and his son.” The answer is simple. Jack and his son will pay for fucking with what is mine.

 “He’s gone deep into hiding. I’ve been checking with my contacts around the clock, and nobody’s seen or heard from him. I even checked local hospitals–if she sank that knife as deep into him as you said, I’m sure he needed more assistance than some paid under–the–table doctor.”

 “It’s almost poetic,” I sigh. “Though it would have been better if she’d stabbed him in the balls, that prick. She might’ve spared the world the possibility of there being another Moroni one day.”

 “If we take him out, and I mean soon, we’ll eliminate that possibility as well.”

 “That means we have to flush him out somehow–both of them. Any ideas on how to do that?”

 “Nothing aside from the usual. I haven’t been thinking strategically, let’s put it that way.” That makes two of us. “Set one of his warehouses on fire, burn his house down, find his men, and send him photos of their torture, that kind of thing. I’m not sure that would do it, either. Not if he’s that determined to stay hidden.”

 The temptation to go along with the idea is almost too strong to resist. I would love to bask in the warmth of a fire if it was Jack Moroni’s life burning to cinders. My pulse races, my fists tighten, and I want to find the nearest book of matches.

 “That will be what he expects,” I point out, not dly. “Nobody wants to destroy his existence more than I do, but we have to y it smart. We can’t rush out, guns zing. We could end up walking into a trap or miss our chance, and who knows if we’ll get another. We’ve got one opportunity.” I watch as he absorbs my words, and I notice his shoulders rising, the tension in every muscle. “Roger. I need you with me on this. I can’t have you going rogue.”

 “I have no intention of going rogue. I’ll do whatever you think is best. You’re the boss.”

 “I don’t like it any more than you do,” I assure him. “I probably hate it a hell of a lot more. I want him to pay more than anything, but acting without thought isn’t going to get us what we want. The snake has to poke his head out eventually. We’ll get him the moment he does.”

 “Right.” He turns away from the window, and if I didn’t know better, I would think the snarl he wears was directed at me. The sky behind him grows darker by the moment. It’s been several long days, and we all need a minute to catch our breath and get our shit together.

 “I was thinking of reaching out to Costello,” he suggests. “But I wanted to check with you first. Since the rtionship is still somewhat new, I wasn’t sure if that would be the right move.”

 “I think it’s a great idea. He won’t be looking for anything from Sebastian.” As far as I know, Costello is unaware of our dealings. “Yes, we’ll reach out to him. He seemed eager enough to be of help when Caterina was missing.”

 “Not that he was amodating in the end,” he retorts, a little sour.

 “As it turns out, we didn’t need him to be. We had everything we needed. It was only a matter of time before we put the pieces together.” Too much time. Time Caterina should have been with me, not trapped in some stinking hellhole. Yes, it could have been worse, but she didn’t deserve to experience a moment of what she did.

 “I’ll reach out to him and set up a time for a meeting.” I don’t bother trying to hide the way I look him up and down. “As for you, why don’t you go home, get some rest in your own bed, and get your head on straight. We’ll dive back into this tomorrow.”

 “But-”

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 Ultimately, there’s no option but to let him see my frustration. I’ve been trying to hide it, reminding myself how difficult it’s been for him, how little sleep he’s gotten, and how he’s beaten hir self up more than once. First, it was ming himself for leaving Tatiana unprotected, and now he mes himself for my getting shot. I can’t have him falling apart, not when I rely so heavily on him.

 “Nobuts,” I snarl. “That was a fucking order. Go to bed. Get some sleep. You’ll be able to think better in the morning. You’re no use to me as you are now.”

 His jaw clenches, though he’s smart enough to keep his thoughts to himself before stalking from the room, jamming his fists into his pockets. His footsteps echo like gunshots down the hall until they fade to silence with the closing of the front door.

 Slowly, I rise from my chair, groaning as I do. I consider going upstairs to the bedroom, but instead, my feet lead me to the door separating the main house from Tatiana’s wing. It’s closed–not usual–but I have to ask myself whether or not to open it. I can’t shake the feeling that somewhere deep down inside, Tatiana mes me for all of this. It could very well be my guilt manifesting itself in projection, and at the end of the day, it was her mother who set this up, not me, but we don’t think rationally when we are in a crisis, and what she’s going through qualifies as that. I grip the door handle and twist the knob opening the door, only to find Caterina on her way out of Tatiana’s bedroom. The way she moves–tiptoeing, holding a finger to her lips when she spots me–tells me Tatiana must be asleep.

 She confirms this in a whisper once she draws closer. “She went straight to bed. I know how she feels. It’s impossible to get a good night’s sleep in a hospital.”

 “Then let’s get you to bed, too.” I have tough at the raised brow of suspicion she gives me. “I’m grateful for your confidence in my abilities, but that’s thest thing on my mind for once.”

 She frowns, “You must really be in bad shape, then.”

 “Not in bad shape. Just extremely sore and not in the mood to tear my stitches.‘

 ”

 “I don’t want that, either.” She slides an arm around my waist, her touch gentle, careful, and I drape an arm across her shoulders. There is something incredibly right about this, the two of us ambling toward the stairs, together. When I think of how close I came to never having this again… It’s a pain intense enough to eclipse anything I’ve experienced until now.

 As we walk, Caterina speaks again, “Would it be rude of me to offer an opinion on Tatiana?”

 “You know her better than I do,” I point out with no small amount of anger that I try hard to cover. It isn’t her fault my daughter

 doesn’t want to talk to me.

 “I think it might be a good idea to bring a therapist here, to the house. This way, she can’t shut down the idea. Tatiana’s in a dark ce.” She sighs heavily, almost despairing, her head touching my shoulder. “I hate seeing her like this. It’s such a helpless feeling knowing the only person who can bring her out of this is herself.”

 “And what about you?” We reach thending and turn toward the bedroom.

 “Honestly, I’m okay. I really am.” Caterina does her best to assure me. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if she was lying to save making me feel guilty. As we enter the bedroom, I spot the bag of supplies the hospital provided: gauze, tape, and alcohol wipes. One of the men must’ve brought it up here.

 “Do you need help with this?” she asks, lifting the bag from the nightstand.

 “You wouldn’t be changing the subject, would you?” With a smirk, I take the bag, shaking my head. “It’ll be a cold day in hell when I ept help to change my bandages.” 

 “Whatever you say.” She purses her lips, and to my surprise, she trails along behind me as I walk toward the bathroom. ” What?” she questions, noticing my curious expression.

 “You don’t want to watch this, do you?”

 “I thought I would hang around and talk with you.” When she bites her lip, those familiar worry lines appear between her

 +15 BONUS 

 brows, and I realize this is what she needs. This is our first time being truly alone since before she was taken–the hospital doesn’t count, especially with the ever–present threat of a nurse of administrator strolling in at any time. I can’t pretend I don’t crave her nearness with every fiber of my being.

 “Be my guest.” I set everything up on the vanity while she closes the lid to the toilet and takes a seat.

 “Does it hurt?” she asks once I’ve removed my button–down and revealed the bandaged wound on my side.

 “As much as you would expect a bullet wound to hurt.”

 “I’m sorry.” She frowns.

 “Caterina.” Setting everything down, I stare at her in the mirror.Let’s get one thing straight:you are not to me yourself for this. I would think it’s obvious by now, but I have no problem reminding you that I would take a hundred bullets for you if it meant sparing your life?”

 “Don’t say that, please. I almost lost you once before. I don’t want to think about you taking any more bullets, least of all for me.”

 “It’s the truth, Caterina. Your life is much more valuable than mine, and I will do anything to ensure you’re safe and taken care of.”

 “That’s your opinion.” Her lips set into a firm line, and she lowers her gaze to the floor. I get the feeling there’s something on her mind, something she might not have beenfortable sharing before now. She’s had days to think things over, and it’s taken every scrap of self–control to give her the time and space she needs to work through it. I can’t revert to demanding things from her when she isn’t ready to share. I can’t scare her off. “That was the worst part, honestly. When I knew you would find out I was missing, that Tatiana was missing, and there was nothing I could do to help you. That was easily the worst part.”

 I know the feeling, since the ugly scenarios my imagination insisted on spinning up were enough to test my sanity. “What else? I mean, what else did you go through? You can tell me. It’s important for you to talk these things out, too, just like it is for Tatiana.”

 “I don’t know. I knew in my heart you woulde for me. I knew you were doing your best. But he…” The hair on the back of my neck rises, and it isn’t easy to be gentle and give her time to find the words. Instinct makes me want to demand, to grill her, and get everyst detail out of her in hopes of pulling together a way to punish that bastard.

 “What did he do?” I have to ask after several teeth–grinding moments of silence.

 “He said he would take me somewhere else and hide me. He said… Her voice catches, and I don’t even realize I’m holding my breath, waiting for her to speak till my lungs start to burn. “He told me he would keep me until the baby was born, then sell the baby, and me, if he didn’t get what he wanted from you.”

 Calm. Be calm. She needs you to keep it together.

 “He said that to you?” Not that I’m surprised. I’d expect a man like that to terrorize an innocent woman with the threat of selling her child. I’m just angry that she was spoken to like that. I can only imagine the way that made her feel.

 Her head bobs up and down. “Is it wrong that I wish he was dead?‘

 “Absolutely not.” And now I very much wish I’d stuck around and blown that fucker’s head off. He was going to sell my child. My heir. He would’ve trafficked my little bird, and then he would have held it over her head for months, making her dread the arrival of what was supposed to be a gift.

 My blood pressure is nearly through the roof, and everything around me bes hazy while my mind is flooded with rage and my body with adrenaline. Jack needs to die.

 What am I doing, going to bed? I need to be working, finding him, making him pay.

 Rational thoughts rece the rage. I need to be with Caterina just as much, if not more. I need her touch, her presence, to remind me that she’s safe.Mine.She is what matters, her, and Tatiana, and the baby. But will I ever have another opportunity like the one I had in that apartment basement? There’s no way of knowing, but I can’t let the need for revenge make me lose sight of the most important things.

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 Good.” She raises her head and meets my gaze in the mirror. “Bause I really hope you find him and kill him.” That’s exactly what I intend to do. I’m going to find him. I’m going to make him hurt for what he’s done. I’m going to make him beg for death.

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