Page 119 of Star Crossed
Chapter Twenty-Four
“We have more information on the deadly shootings from last night in West Virginia. Live from The Green Roof Inn is Tim Parton. What can you tell us about the new information coming out about an eighth assailant?”
“The body of another man was found in the parking lot, and police have reason to believe he was part of the gang that attacked Romeo and Juliet Wellings on their wedding night. Ginovelli Moretti, the son of Alberto Moretti, who was also killed in the deadly shoot out last night, was found with a gunshot wound to the head. There were several witnesses to the shooting, and police arrested Casanova Moretti in connection with the crime, but he was later released.”
“Casanova is the half brother of Romeo Wellings, and his involvement was ruled self-defense. We have learned that Casanova is the son of Frankie Moretti, who was also killed last night. That makes him the grandson of Aldo Moretti—the suspected head of a large organized crime family in New York City. There is a federal investigation underway in regard to the shoot out and the circumstances that led up to it. There could be more charges pending.”
“But no arrests yet?”
“Seven of the eight suspects were killed during the shoot out with Deputy Wellings and her husband, famous UFC fighter Romeo Wellings. Carlo Greco, the seventh suspect, is currently in stable condition at East River Hospital and under police supervision.”
“Is there a reason he was taken to a different hospital than Romeo and Juliet Wellings? Does it have anything to do with the national media buzz surrounding the attack on the newlyweds?”
“Police say it’s a common practice to take victims to different hospitals than their attackers when possible. It had nothing to do with the uniqueness of this situation.”
“For more news on the Romeo and Juliet shootings, we go to St. Francis, where Romeo and Juliet Wellings were airlifted late last night. Do we have any new information on their condition, Fred?”
“There is a small bit of good news, Carmen. We just received word that Juliet Wellings’s condition has been downgraded to critical but stable, and my sources say doctors seem extremely optimistic about her recovery. There is still no word from Juliet’s camp, but we’re told her family is at her bedside.”
Jules blinked, the glare of the fluorescent lights making her head throb worse than the constant buzz in the room. The television was all white noise to her, and she wondered for a minute if she’d fallen asleep on the couch with it on.
Her neck hurt something fierce, and she wanted to rub it, but moving was almost impossible. Her arms felt like lead. Something was stuck to her hand, and she reached over to pull it off impatiently.
“We don’t want you pulling on that, sweetheart.”
“Neck hurts,” she mumbled, fighting against the heavy weight of exhaustion.
“Ju Ju Bean.”
Jules shoved Wyatt’s big hand off her shoulder, still struggling with whatever was holding her hand back. “Get it off.”
“I’m buzzing the doctor. Looks like she’s really waking up this time.”
“Who is that?” Jules asked in confusion, blinking against the lights to look up at Wyatt.
Wyatt winced. “You’re in the hospital, darlin’.”
“What?” Jules frowned, her eyes still fluttering to keep away the light while trying to focus on Wyatt’s face. His eyes were bloodshot, with dark circles beneath them. He had at least three days’ beard growth and looked worse than she’d seen him since Tabitha left. “What happened to you?”
“Why don’t we focus on you instead,” Wyatt suggested in a soft, soothing voice. Which in itself would have freaked Jules out. “How you feeling tonight?”
“My neck hurts.” She reached up to touch it, but Wyatt caught her hand. A pained sob of frustration burst out of her. “Why are you picking on me?”
“I’m not picking on you. Come on, Ju Ju Bean, I want you to work on really waking up.”
“I’m really awake,” Jules mumbled, though her eyes were closed against the glare. “Dang light’s too bright.”
“You got a nasty concussion.” Wyatt flipped a light switch somewhere, and the room got considerably darker. “Better?”
“Mmm,” she hummed as she reached up to scratch her neck.
Wyatt caught her hand once more. “Come on, they’re gonna have to tie your hands down if you keep trying to pull at it. They wanted to do it when you tried to wake up the last time, but I stopped ’em. I knew you’d hate that.”
Something about that had Jules fighting harder. If she was in a situation where people could tie down her hands, she needed to be more alert than she felt. She wanted to rub her eyes and wipe away the last bit of sleep, but Wyatt was holding both her hands like a big bully.
“Mrs. Wellings?”
Jules looked to the side, wondering who Mrs. Wellings was. All she found was a nurse with white hair and a friendly face. She was round and looked like she should be baking cookies for her grandkids instead of standing there watching Jules get bullied by her twin brother.
