Page 83 of The Shadow King's Brother

I press my forehead to hers, whispering broken curses, desperate promises, memories bleeding out of me like open wounds.

Her laugh.

The heat of her body beside mine.

The fire in her eyes when she looked at me like I was worth saving.

“Don’t leave me,” I whisper. “Please. Please, Nica. Don’t. The De Lucas and the Gallis always stay… remember?”

A twitch.

Her fingers, barely moving—just enough to make the world spin sideways.

I squeeze her closer, shaking. “I swear to God, if you die, I’ll follow you to whatever place comes next. I’ll find you, even if it’s hell. That’s a promise you don’t want me to make.”

Gio’s hand comes down firm on my shoulder.

But it only makes me shake harder.

“Elio. The medics are here. They need to get to her.”

I lift my head slowly. My jaw is tight. My voice grinds out like gravel.

“If she dies, Gio—”

But the rest sticks in my throat.

Because I can’t say it.

Because it might make it real.

Vinny kneels beside me, his face unreadable.

“She’s not dying today,” he mutters, voice low and oddly gentle. “Not if I have anything to say about it.”

Who the fuck is this Vinny?

The paramedics rush in. I don’t let go. Not until they pry her from my arms.

My hands are soaked in her blood. Her warmth still clings to my skin like a haunting.

The moment they load her onto the stretcher, I stagger forward, ready to follow.

Vinny blocks me, grabbing my arm. “You’re bleeding like a stuck pig, Elio. You’ll be next if you don’t sit the fuck down.”

“I don’t care,” I grit out.

The world tilts sideways.

My vision goes fuzzy at the edges.

I’ve lost too much blood. But I push forward anyway—because I need to be wherever she is.

Vinny shoves me down, hard. His hand clamps between my shoulder blades like steel.

“Sit the fuck down,” he hisses. “I can’t lose you.”

Gio motions to the medics. I catch a blur of white and red as they close in. The ambulance doors slam shut, the sound sharp and final. Like a coffin lid sealing.

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