Page 3 of Consequences
Now it's just me and Ten, I take a moment to look down into the face of the man who became the family I never had before but always wanted.
“You better not die, you bastard,” I whisper. “You can't leave me and Cris.”
Setting my hands on the table next to him, I hang my head and just…breathe.
Keegan’s Camaro is being pushed to the limits as we race toward the hospital. Not the best idea when we have cops already on our ass, but we both need to get there quickly. From the chaotic shouts and pissed off voices that came from the medical room as they moved Lio out, it's clear things were not going well. Finding out Dr. Ranlen needed to whisk Lio off to the hospital? Not. A. Fun. Time.
Our choices were to leave and watch over Lio, or stay and try to force Allesandro to remain behind once he learned about Lio’s predicament.Good luck to Ignacio and Antonio on that one.
I don’t give a shit if the Amatos have a fully functional medical suite, I know better than to not listen to Dr. Ranlen. I don’t even want to think about what’s going to happen between her and Doc when this is all finished. The whispers between the medical team did not bode well.
Still, we make it to the hospital easily, and without being pulled over. Maybe it means the cops are too focused on protecting their own asses than getting in our way. I have my seatbelt unbuckled and the door open before the car is even fully parked. I ignore Keegan’s cursing as I rush forward, even though I know I’ll pay for it later.
Rushing through the doors, I give the security guard a once over, and he immediately steps back. Thank fuck the hospital still recognizes the Martelli name. I don’t even have to ask where to go, which is fucking sad at this point. The amount of violence we see in this life is enough to turn most people’s stomach, but fuck, we at least keep a lot of surgeons in their flashy cars.
Seeing Lio down though? Fuck, he’s been shot before, but nothing this dangerous.
Checking in with the desk, both Keegan and I end up in the family waiting room, but we don’t last long there. The nurses don’t put up with bullshit here, and my level of pacing and cursing under my breath gets us kicked out. Thankfully, the Martelli name means we’re led to a private waiting area.
“Sit down. Now.” Keegan’s tone leaves no room for argument. Still, I whirl around at him, ready to attack, but he refuses to back down. I take a step toward him, not even sure what I’d do, but he’s suddenly in my face. “If you don’t sit down right now, I will put you over my knees. I don’t care that we’re in the fucking hospital. Youwilllisten to me.”
Biting back another curse word, I march over to a chair and sit down carefully, not wanting to push him. “Yes, Sir. I apologize. I’m worried about Lio. Not only for his sake, but all of ours. Il Padrone…”
I shake my head and close my eyes. We’re so fucked if something happens to Lio. I’ve seen Il Padrone in the face of danger many times, with the possibility of losing everything, but I’ve never seen the look of complete and utter devastation on hisface before. I’ve always been his War. His strategist. But what the fuck can I do in this instance?How do you fight against death?
I’m not sure how long we wait, but finally, Dr. Ranlen comes in. Her hair is wet, and she’s wearing clean scrubs. For a moment, I don’t think she even sees us, as she sits down with a cup of coffee, draining it quickly. Blinking, she finally takes us in and grimaces.
“News?” Keegan asks quietly.
She shakes her head and my heart falls. “It’s not good. I got him the best trauma surgeon we have on staff. He was able to stabilize him, but it was a fucking fight. We’ve got a cardiothoracic surgeon in there because he had a collapsed lung, plus his heart stopped beating.
“Since we almost lost him, we called in a neurological surgeon, wanting to watch for brain activity, as he took a hard fall as well. There’s some swelling that the surgeon is a little concerned about. Right now, we’re in a wait pattern until they finish up. It’ll be a long surgery. Possibly surgeries.”
“And you’re not in there because…?” I try to modulate my voice, but given Keegan’s sharp glare, it didn’t happen. Thankfully, Dr. Ranlen is too exhausted to notice.
“Not enough room. We needed all hands on deck, and I would have just gotten in the way once the others came in. I’m a damn good trauma surgeon, but we needed someone familiar with the others. I haven’t worked collaboratively with them in a while. When you have multiple surgeons in an operating room…it’s a dance. And when they all have the same tempo? It’s beautiful. That’s what Lio needed, not a surgeon/hospital administrator who has too close of a relationship with the patient.”
Keegan reaches over and grabs her hand, squeezing it tightly. “You did the very best. He wouldn’t have made it to the hospital without you.”
“And yet Doc thought I should have been able to treat him there.” Dr. Ranlen shakes her head, several emotions flashing across her face—disbelief, anger, outrage, and…guilt?
“There’s no way. You already said how many people had to be brought in.”
“He thought a ventilator would be enough!” she growls, her hands tightening as she forcefully takes a breath before blowing it out.
Keegan and I exchange a glance, and I shrug. I’ve got nothing in this instance. I don’t know shit about this type of work. Ignacio may have, but not me. “It was a high stakes situation. I’m sure Doc realizes you’re a great doctor. He was focused on his patient. It wasn’t an insult to you, I’m sure.”
Keegan gathers her up and she sighs against him, muttering something I can’t understand. From his cringe, I’m lucky not to have heard it. We don’t need more issues with the Amatos.
Having gotten the Bosses back, I already know we’re going to be dealing with shit. We’ve not only got to figure out how this happened, and who's behind it all—because I highly doubt it was Agent Court—but there are way too many relationship dynamics that need to be sorted out.Good luck with that, Il Padrone…
“Come on. Let me get you another coffee.” I stand up and head toward the door, intent on finding us coffee, because if Dr. Ranlen is right, we’re going to be here for a long time.
I send out a text to everyone while I wait, though I leave it up to Antonio and Ignacio to give Il Padrone a detailed update. There’s no way in hell they’ll allow him to come right now, and that’s what he would insist on if he knew Lio had been taken to the hospital—I am not going to be the bearer of bad news.
Besides, it’s far too dangerous for any of them to leave the Amatos’ with cops on the loose and not being sure who's behind this fuckery. After sending my updates, I don’t engage with any more questions from any of them. It’s far safer if I focus on Lio.
My gut is churning at everything Dr. Ranlen laid out. It’s a relief to have him here, getting the help he needs, but fuck. Knowing it’s that close? I don’t know what we’ll do if he doesn’t make it—or hell, what if he’s permanently injured?
