Page 62 of Omega's Vengeance

I meet his curious gaze. “We were ordering a cake for the wedding.”

He tenses. “Oh.”

“Now that wedding might never happen because I’m so stupid I let my omega get killed.”

“Dario?” He squeezes my arm. “Don’t do this to yourself.”

“Why not? It’s the truth. I was distracted. I wasn’t a good alpha. It’s my job to protect my omega.” I turn to Valentino. “Carlo needs to paytenfoldfor this. Why is it taking so long to find him?”

“He’s more slippery than expected. But we will find him.” Valentino’s voice is hard. “The men are combing the area for him as we speak. Someone will talk. Someone will turn on him. He won’t escape this time. He was a fool to come out of hiding. His arrogance and need for revenge will cost him his life.”

I grit my teeth. “Promise me that when you do find him, you’ll make him suffer horribly.”

Valentino’s smile is cold, and there’s a malicious twinkle in his eye. “Oh, he’ll suffer, Dario. He’ll wish he was never born.”

Chapter Fourteen

Alessio

Dario is dead in my dream.

The pain and agony of that has me waking up in a cold sweat. I feel frantic to know where Dario is. I’m terrified at the thought Dario truly is dead.DidDario die in the accident? I thought he was alive, but so much of what happened is a blur.

I seem to remember a moment after the accident with Dario. In this memory, Dario stroked my hair and promised to keep me safe. I trusted him wholly in that instant. The feel of his hand on my flesh comforted me. His gentle voice and assurances resonated with me.

But is that a memory or a dream?

The scent of antiseptic fills my nose. The room I’m in is dark. Cool. It’s not Dario’s room at Valentino’s home. Is this a hospital? I remember the pain I had immediately following the accident. I touch my stomach, wincing as my fingers glide over a small incision. I’ve had surgery? Why?

Movement near the door to the room catches my eye. A young nurse comes closer, looking distracted. When she sees I’m awake she looks pleased. “How are you feeling?” she asks, fiddling with an IV bag next to my bed.

“I don’t know,” I admit. “Am I in the hospital?” A dumb question seeing as she’s wearing a nurses uniform.

“Yes. Your alpha brought you in. You were in a car accident.” She smiles and pours me a small glass of water.

With a trembling hand, I take the plastic cup from her. I gulp the water down, sighing at how cool and delicious it is. I hold the empty cup out to her and she hesitates.

“You had surgery. You shouldn’t have too much liquid just yet.” She sighs at my dejected expression. “Okay, just a little bit more.”

I guzzle the rest of the water she pours and then lie back against the pillows. She said my alpha brought me in. That must mean Dario is alive. Unless someone else brought me in and she just thought he was my alpha?

“What did my alpha look like?”

She frowns. “I don’t know. I was in the surgery. That’s just what the admitting nurse told me. She said your alpha brought you in, and that he was distraught.” She smiles. “Isn’t that sweet?”

Sweet isn’t the word I’d use to describe Dario. But I’m comforted by her words. I can’t think of any other alpha who would be upset if I died. That must mean Dario is okay. It’s surprising to me that it matters. I only met Dario because I planned on killing him to get to Valentino. Now, everything has changed. I wear his bite on my neck, and my feelings for him are completely flipped.

I actually care about him.

Even now, there’s a dull ache in my gut because he’s not here with me. I’ve fought the feelings I have for him as hard as I can, but there still there. Growing stronger every day. I don’t want to run from him anymore. I want to run to him. I don’t understand what has happened to me, but I’m sick of fighting it. I don’t think I can anymore.

“I was injured?” I ask.

She tucks the blankets around my legs. “During the car accident the seatbelt caused blunt abdominal trauma. The force of the crash caused the seatbelt to put significant force on the abdominal organs and tissues. The exploratory laparotomy discovered a hematoma.”

“I don’t know what that is.”

Her voice is patient as she says, “The abdomen is a large cavity that can hold multiple liters of blood. If blood starts to leak out from the blood vessels into an abdominal organ or wall of the abdomen itself, it can form a pocket. The pocket is termed an abdominal hematoma. It has to be diagnosed and treated quickly before a patient loses too much blood.”

---