Page 1 of The Rescuer

CHAPTER 1

“What is it, librarian? What happened? Who did this?” Speaking in a worried voice, Luca took Brian in his arms.

“I think our friend Ottavio found out Brian Knight and Brian Cavallieri are one and the same.” The man breathed heavily, his lids half-closed “They were after Blaise. I killed two of them. Well, one is dead for sure. I don’t know about the other one.”

“Bastards!” Tanner exclaimed, balling his hands into fists. “How can they do that to a child?”

“It’s because of me and who we are.” Brian opened his eyes and examined his firstborn worriedly. “Are you all right, Blaise?” He sighed in relief when the little boy nodded. “I'll have to get to the clinic. Spitfire is just going to love this.”

A tentative grin brightened Luca’s face a bit. “Sure, he'll unleash hell on our sorry asses for not guarding your skinny butt.”

“I’m not sure how bad it is, but knowing my stubborn ass, I’ll live.” Brian waved his hand dismissively. “The third bastard got away, but I'm sure I hit him.”

“I'll take Andrea and go search for the son of the bitch.” Tanner’s eyes darkened and narrowed dangerously. “Sorry,” he muttered apologetically, looking in Blaise’s direction.

“No, you better take Lawrence and some of his brothers from the Steel Raiders. Andrea and Dominic have to guard the children.” Luca frowned. “What’s taking Bart so long to get here? I messaged him ten minutes ago.” He turned to Tanner. “Help me to get the librarian into my car. Blaise is going with us, too.”

“It sounds like a plan.” Brian pressed his palm against the injured side. “Now, can we go to the clinic before I bleed out?”

“Luca, what in the mother of fuck…” Bart started as soon as he climbed out of his car, but then he abruptly stopped. “Babe, what’s wrong? Who—”

“Damn! He’s losing blood!” Luca exclaimed, casting a worried look in the librarian’s direction. “Get into the car. We’ll talk later.” He started to drive like a demon had possessed him.

“Is Papa going to be all right? Why isn’t he talking to us anymore?” Blaise asked in a small voice, his eyes brimming with tears.

“Please, sweetheart, don't cry. Everything will be fine. Uncle Luca is going to get your dear Papa to the hospital in time. Then, I'll take you to Martino to play with the huge teddy bears.” Luca talked in a soft voice, trying to soothe the child.

“Fuck, he's not looking good. Can you please drive a little faster?” Bart started to freak out in spite of making colossal efforts to keep himself together. “Babe, you have to stay awake.” He planted a kiss on the librarian’s sweaty forehead.

“Here we are, my friend.” Luca stopped in front of the hospital. “Brace yourself for all the yelling Doc Alasdair is going to give you.”

Brian opened his eyes and studied his surroundings. It wasn’t a dream — the chasing and shooting at the track field — and all that happened afterwards, really happened. The librarian passed out right after the car stopped in front of the hospital, and when he woke up, he didn’t remember how he got there. Shortly after, the man was taken to surgery, and darkness descended upon him again.

The days that followed were surrounded by a blur of confusion as Brian slipped in and out of consciousness. During one of the rare moments he was wide awake and alert, he heard Doctor Alasdair telling Bart and Luca that he’d lost a lot of blood and they’d sutured his nicked artery, among other things. Also, he was experiencing intense pain, and the doctor decided to keep him heavily sedated.

Brian wanted to communicate to his husband and best friend, tell them he was there, aware of what was happening, but he was too exhausted to open his eyes or articulate a word. It was like the librarian’s body had a mind of its own and decided it was time for it to have a break and not listen to the commands of the brain anymore.

That situation irritated Brian to no end, especially when he heard his husband saying how empty and meaningless his life would be in the absence of his soulmate. Another instance when the librarian wanted to force his body to cooperate was when Martino spent a night at his bedside reading to him. In a short moment of lucidity, he heard the boy saying between tears that he didn’t want to lose another Papa.

There were some less sad moments, but they happened far less often than the ones that broke Brian’s heart. Once, Bart looked more hopeless than usual, and Luca tried to comfort him saying that Don Giovanni would not allow his husband to stay in the realm of the dead. He would remind him of his duty as temporary Judge and Gabriele’s father and would kick his ass all the way to the world of the living.

That made Brian decide to claw his way back for good. My body has to learn to cooperate with my mind again, whether it likes it or not, he thought, slowly opening his eyes and looking around. It was quiet and dark in the room, and Bart was sitting on the chair next to his bed, head lulled on the side while holding his hand.

Bart opened his eyes and stared incredulously at his husband, then placed a hand on his heart. “Babe, you’re awake.” He placed a tender kiss on the librarian’s lips, then speed-dialed a number. “Guys, the love of my life has finally come back to us.” His vision clouded with tears, Bart pushed the call button. “Nurse, please tell Doctor MacNamara-Stark that Brian Cavallieri is wide awake.”

“Librarian, you’re finally back!” Luca walked into the room and went straight next to the bed. “I'll kick your ass big time for how much you’ve made us worry.” He knelt and kissed Brian's hand. “Thank you for staying alive, Wisdom Keeper.”

“Mmmph.” Brian tried to answer his husband and friend, but the tube in his mouth made it impossible, so he gestured to his face.

“Doctor Stark will see you in a bit,” A nurse came in and said in a professional voice while removing some of the tubes and wires. “Welcome back, Mister Cavallieri. I mean, fully back,” she continued in a softer tone.

“Was it that bad?” Brian hoarsely asked, but the nurse just shook her head, so he turned to the two men. “Babe, I love you.” He squeezed Bart’s hand again. “And Luca, you’re not getting rid of me that easy.”

“I don't want to get rid of you.” The man’s voice was thick and solemn when he said the words. “Ever.”

A wide grin stretched Brian’s mouth from ear to ear. Although it felt painful and uncomfortable, he didn’t want to let the others see that. “It’s good to know. Now, back to the main question: how bad was it?”

Bart cleared his throat and cast a look in Luca’s direction before answering. “Bad enough, babe. You’ll find out more in a couple of minutes.”

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