Page 110 of Unfinished

The first was when my mother walked out on my dad and me. The second was when I fell in love with Liam Teresi and learned how much I could love someone. The third was when Chad took what was never his to take. The fourth was when Salvatore Agosti put a bullet in Liam as I put one in Salvatore’s head.

That was the moment that I would never come back from. The moment that no one would be able to bring me back from.

I stared out the hospital window at the dark city, unable to see or hear anything around me, not knowing how I even got here. He closed his eyes and I didn’t know if he heard me confess my love for him.

I kept imagining our summer, my twenty-first birthday, and the last weeks we'd spent together. All the times that I should have told him I loved him, but my own stubbornness refused to give in. I never stopped loving Liam and even in death I'd never stop.

I wasted so much time I could have had with him. An eternity was not enough time to love Liam. A love like ours didn’t go away with death, it continued on. It was stronger than death, but how did the survivor live on after? When the greatest love you had ever known was taken from you, how did you move on? I spent years trying to move on from the greatest love I knew and was never able to.

Now what? What do I do now? Turning, I collapsed into a chair and dropped my head into my hands. His family arrived at some point, but I hadn’t said a word. I think the police tried to question me, but Bas ushered them away from me when I didn’t say anything. I was still soaking from the sprinklers, but I was numb as the cold settled in my bones.

I didn’t even know when I stopped screaming, even though it was all I heard in my brain as the scene replayed in my head over and over again. I was half a second too late to save him. I played it too cautiously. I should have run to Liam instead. Ashley had put pressure on his chest but I couldn't see him breathing. His cousins arrived and Bas pulled me away from Liam. I fought against his hold as Rion knelt down where I had been. He tore off his shirt and bunched it together to put more pressure on Liam's chest. I watched as the owner of my heart bled out and there was not a damn thing I could do.

My skin grew cold, the edges of my vision started going dark, and my breathing became labored. As the world tipped and everything went black, the only thought I had was that I wanted to be wherever he was.

I heard the beeps of nearby machines as consciousness pulled me from the darkness. Everything came rushing back to me and I wanted to go back to where I didn’t remember it all. Squeezing my eyes, I couldn’t stop the tears burning in them.

“Hannah?” I heard Ashley and I shook my head.

“Hannah, he’s alive.” Ashley whispered in my ear, but I didn’t understand and the beeping grew faster.

“Hannah!” Ashley yelled, “Hannah, breathe and listen!”

I opened my eyes and looked at her to my right, “He’s alive. He survived the surgery.”

If this was a dream I never wanted to wake from it because it was the only outcome I wanted to be true. I saw him collapse, I saw the bullet wound in his chest, I saw his eyes close. If I was dreaming, please let me dream forever.

“Hannah,” My left hand was squeezed and I turned my head to see Bas, “Liam’s alive.”

Liam was alive? How could that be? There was so much blood. He was alive. I bolted upright in the hospital bed. Light was filtering in through the windows. How long was I out for? My dad stood at the end of my bed and he looked at me with an expression telling me I was not dreaming, that Liam did live.

“Take me to him now.” I swung my legs over the bed and stood.

Bas took my arm and walked with me out of the hospital room shaking his head at a nurse that started to object. He walked to the elevators and the entire ride up was silent. When we finally reached the room Liam was in he was unconscious but the heart monitor beeped and he was breathing.

I staggered into the room and then up to the side of his bed. I gripped his hand and Bas put a chair behind me. Sitting, I kept my eyes on Liam’s face, listening and watching for him to move, to wake up.

I didn’t know how long I sat there but Ashley forced me to eat and drink. My eyes never left Liam. Until I saw those glacier eyes open and look at me, I wouldn’t believe he was anywhere near out of the woods. The doctor explained the surgery and how we were lucky Ashley was with us to control the bleeding as much as possible until they got him to the hospital.

Evidently, it was touch and go but the surgeons were able to repair the damage and it looked like he’d make a full recovery. All I wanted was for him to wake up and call me beautiful. Regardless of hospital rules, John, Liam's father, and Liam's cousins were also in the room with me. There was mention of Leonidas and Michael in the waiting room with my father and Ashley. The hospital was probably granting us these exceptions, to afraid to go against some of the most influential men in the city.

I felt my hand being squeezed and I lifted my head and looked at Liam. Whispering, “Liam?”

He groaned slightly and then his eyes opened and they immediately met with mine. A rush of emotion came over me as tears flowed out of my eyes while the men in the room gathered around.

“Beautiful,” Liam said to me and I stood carefully leaning over him and kissing him gently on the mouth.

“I love you, Liam. I’ve always loved you.” Saying the words he needed to know first, he grinned at me.

“It’s about damn time.”

There was laughter, and I kissed him again before letting him sip on some water that Archer had brought. We pressed the button for a nurse and let them check on him, but the entire time he never let go of my hand. My Liam survived this and I wouldn’t waste time any more on being stubborn. I’d do everything in my power to love Liam for as long as possible, and I’d make sure he knew it.

It had been a couple of weeks since the shooting. We had to give statements to the police. Liam's cousins and I weren't charged with anything, thankfully, as it was deemed self defense. We were heroes, but I didn’t care about that.

Officially, Salvatore tried to take revenge on Liam for the fraud investigation, and unofficially for framing Derek's death on him. His plan was to try to rob the company and then kill Liam.

Liam was on the mend, he still felt some pain when he twisted or moved in certain ways. I spent most days hovering over him, which he didn't seem to mind so much, and our nights were spent next to each other. I asked Bas to make sure there were men watching Salvatore's oldest son, to make sure we were prepared in case of any retaliation.

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