Page 30 of Bread in The Oven

“You said me for her. Are you too much of a fucking coward to hold to your own deal?”

“Fuck you. You don’t make the rules here, I do. And she doesn’t deserve to live.”

“I think you have that backwards, you’re the one who shouldn’t be alive.”

Her father laughs. “You think you’re going to kill me? I have all these witnesses that will say that you are the one who deserves to die with this bitch.”

Okay, I’ve had enough of this bullshit. He hasn’t lowered his gun so I pull mine out. Before I can point it at him, he takes a shot at me. On top of being a total assfuck, he can’t hit what’s right in front of him. And I’m a big fucking target. I point my gun at him. I hear the police cocking their guns behind me. It’s Salvatore and his partner Mac. Salvatore understands why this has to be me. And I know that since her father has taken a shot at me, this becomes self-defense.

“Don’t take another step closer!” he yells at me as he points the gun at Simone.

I can’t wait any longer, I aim at her father and pull the trigger. The first hits him in the shoulder, I’m hoping that will make him back up and stop. I step towards them and he raises his gun at me again. This time he clips my arm and I hear Simone scream. Before I can raise my gun again, a shot rings out from behind me. I watch Simone’s father fall, the gun in his hand slides over to her mother. She picks it up and looks at me.

“Fine. You win. You and this whore,” she says as she raises the gun and shoots herself in the head.

I rush over to Simone and help her up, while Salvatore and Mac check her father and mother just to be sure. I pick her up and carry her to the cage where Raziel is waiting. Everyone is silent as we head to Lucciola Memorial Hospital. I’m so worried about her and our Peanut. And Simone is sobbing in my arms while she holds onto her tiny belly.

Simone

I keep repeating in my head over and over.Please let peanut be okay.

When we get to the hospital, they get me on a gurney and whisk me away. I hear myself screaming for Romano and finally they allow him to come with me.

“I’m here, mia farfalla. It’s okay.”

I feel my nerves start to calm down when I hear his voice. But then, there’s a cramping sensation in my belly and I wince.

“We need to get an ultrasound and figure out what’s going on,” the doctor says. “I think the stress and trauma is putting her into early labor.”

“Can you stop it?” Romano asks. “It’s way too early for the baby.”

“We’re going to do everything we can. Let’s get her the ultrasound first.”

I look at Romano and for the first time since I met him, he looks scared. And if he’s scared? This has to be worse than I’m thinking it is.

“Peanut has to be okay,” I say to him.

“Don’t worry, Simone. We’re going to get through this. It’s just a bump in the road of our life,” he says as he kisses me.

I hope he’s right. I don’t know if I could survive losing Peanut. And I don’t know if Romano could go through it again.

The next sound we hear is a fast thumping sound.

“Is that Peanut?” I look at the doctor.

He nods at me. “That’s your baby. The heartbeat is strong. Now we need to stop the contractions you’re having.”

We spend the next few hours waiting to see if the medicine they’re giving me works.

“What if they can’t stop it?” I whisper to Romano.

“They will. Our Peanut is strong and we’re going to meet him or her in six months.”

A nurse comes in to check on me. “Do you want to find out the sex of your baby?”

Romano and I look at each other and say ‘no thank you’ at the same time. I love him so much.

Epilogue

---