Page 49 of Dangerous Games of Trust

He looks me over, and I know he’s wondering the same. “We have to work together. Just like we did tonight. As soon as there was a real threat in front of the five of us, we came together, working toward the same cause. It’s the only way.”

I blink back at him, a little taken back. “But Geovani and Alessandro hate each other.”

“They haven’t always. And you have brought us back together. They can work together again,” he tries to reassure me, but I’m not so convinced. I see the way they interact; it might be more lethal for all of us.

I offer him a half smile, wishing that could be true, but I can’t imagine it. He wraps his arm around me and pulls me toward him, the two of us sitting in comfortable silence for a while. My body is dead tired, but I’m not leaving this room until I know Maddox is okay. I watch him taking shallow breaths as the bag of blood drains into him. He’s so pale. My poor wounded hero, offering his life to save me. If he survives, I’m going to make it up to him for the rest of his life, if he will let me.

The alarm for the IV drip goes off, and Ricky stands, moving over to disconnect the bag and seal off the canular.

“What kind of doctor would you have been if you finished medical school?” I ask, dying to know more about him. In all the time we have shared, I never really got to know him, not his hopes and dreams anyway.

“A surgeon.” He sighs heavily, and I feel the weight of his loss.

“Can you go back and finish?” I ask, more hopeful. “I have money now; I could pay whatever it cost so you can get your degree and be a real doctor,” I suggest, wondering what’s stopping him.

“If only it were that simple, baby girl. There is no going back for me. Enzo made sure of it. I have a criminal record now. No medical school in their right mind would accept me. Enzo knew what he would be losing if I finished my residency and became a surgeon. I’m sure he was the reason I got caught doing one of our jobs in the first place. And instead of him using his connections like he would normally for one of his own to bail me out, I was charged.”

Oh shit. Enzo is fucking unbelievable. The more I hear about that man the more my hate grows for him. “He set you up?”

He shrugs. “I can’t prove anything, but I know how he felt about it. He used to say, sure, get your degree, it will be useful for the family. Dammit, he knew I wanted to help people, use my talents for good, not evil, and when he heard I had the topcardiovascular surgeon in the country requesting me to work with him in New York, he made sure I would never get the chance.”

My skin prickles with fury for him. How dare Enzo take that away from him. His own son. He’s a motherfucking narcissist. “Why did you stay working for the family? You all know Enzo is pure evil. Why not escape, go to New York? Or anywhere.”

“The only way any of us are getting out of Ravens Hollow is in a body bag.” His head drops, sadness filling him. “After what we did tonight, our days are numbered, we all know it.”

“Because you told Enzo you’re not under his rule anymore?”

He nods.

I stand in a rush, sickness overwhelming me. “I’m not worth it. Why would you paint a target on your backs for me?” I cry, unable to help it. This is all too much.

I can feel the bond between us intensify as our eyes meet. There is this undeniable pull I have to all four of them. I don’t understand it or even want it to be true, and something tells me they all feel the same. But it’s there, and I already know they would do anything for me. So, we can spend however little time we have left together. “It’s so much more complicated than you, baby, but you have to know you are worth it. The four of us would do anything for you.”

The four of them. My boys. He’s right, I witnessed it tonight firsthand. They would risk their own lives to save me. All of them did when they could have just handed over the girl who’s been nothing but a pain in their asses since all this madness started. I don’t know what it is with all of us, but there is a connection here that runs deeper than the money and power I know they all crave. I don’t understand it, but all I know is I feel it every time I’m near them. It’s like an invisible chain linking us all together. Even after the fight when I ran because I was scared, I sat in that alleyway feeling sick over the thought of never seeing themagain. Maybe that’s why I let Maddox catch me. I knew there was never really going to be a way to escape them, because my heart is linked to all of theirs.

Even through all the trouble that’s gone down, I have found something I never could have imagined. Unconditional love. My papa never would have protected me the way these men have. My mother only ever cared about him, and she proved it, leaving me to fend for myself when I was just a child. My brother has done all he can to take care of me, and I know we will always have a special bond because of the nightmare our papa forced upon us. With the guys, I know no matter what, they will do everything within their power to protect me. All this time I have been fighting against them thinking they were out to get me. Thinking they would let me down like my papa did. There is no denying the hard evidence right in front of me. From now on, as much as it makes my stomach churn, I have to trust them.

Ricky checks Maddox over again, doing his observations every fifteen minutes. If anything, I think it’s to keep himself busy. I can empathize with him. It’s frustrating to sit here, staring at him, wishing he would wake up, feeling utterly powerless. Maddox hasn’t moved since Ricky operated, and I know it’s normal for someone who’s on such a big dose of sedatives, but still, I need him to open his eyes. I need to know he’s going to be okay.

I squeeze his hand tightly. “I’m so sorry, Maddox,” I mutter. “Please be okay.”

Chapter 25

“Temptress,” comes Maddox’s groggyvoice.

My sleepy eyes snap open in surprise. The room is bathed in a warm glow as the afternoon sun floods in. He’s right there beside me, lying on his side staring directly at me. We’re just inches apart, so close I can feel the heat radiating off his body. My arm is flung over his side. I must have moved in my sleep, needing to be closer to him. Worried about aggravating his injury, I quickly retract my hand and give him some space.

After he stabilized this morning, Ricky moved him upstairs into his bedroom to make him more comfortable. He was still totally out of it, and until now, hasn’t uttered a word. He’s just gone in and out of consciousness all day. When I couldn’t keep my eyes open a second longer, I crawled into bed beside him, and sometime after the sun had already come up, I must have drifted off to sleep.

“What are we doing in my bedroom?” he asks in a haze of confusion.

“You got injured, Ricky had to bring you back here to operate.” I run a hand through his hair, brushing it off his face. “Alex says this place is safe now; there’s a new security system that Enzo can’t watch us through and new guards, ones that are on Alessandro’s payroll, not Enzo’s.” I explain everything the boys told me last night when I was panicked about being back in this house. Geovani backed up the story, so I have to believe them. Since the brawl in the street, it was the only thing he’s said to me.

Maddox rolls away from me and lies on his back; I see him wince in pain as he sucks in a full breath. “Yeah, we were ready to move back in before the fight. But what are you doing here?”

I sit up, pulling my knees into my chest protectively. “Do you need something for the pain? I’ll call Ricky.” I reach for my phone, but he stops me, his large hand reaching out and encircling mine. I meet his eyes, bewildered. I can’t tell if he’s furious with me or not.

“The pain isn’t what I’m concerned with. Why are you here with me?” His eyes bore into me, and I know for sure he’s pissed. He has every right to be.

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