Page 163 of Matteo
“It’s the main reason they didn’t harvest all her organs right away. They started detoxing her, which is the only reason she’s alive.” I stared at him, bewildered, unsure what to think. “Listen, baby. Right now, she is safe. We’ll help her get better. And then we’ll go from there. Okay?”
“And Simón King?” I asked, a thirst for vengeance flickering inside me. “Is he alive?”
Matteo smiled cruelly. “He’s wishing he’s dead. Death will come, but first, he’ll regret ever being born.”
“Good.”
I still struggled to understand how I could have missed the signs. My sister had been using drugs and I was too self-absorbed to see it. How did I not know? Her behavior had been erratic lately, but I attributed it to her engagement.
“It’s my fault,” I murmured.
“We all should have seen the signs, but it’s not anyone’s fault,” he placated. “The main thing is that Hannah is recovering, getting the help she needs. She’s strong, probably stronger than both of us together, and I know she’ll get better.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “When was she brought in?”
“Early this morning, and she’ll remain here for a bit.”
“She should be home with us. With her family,” I said, shaking my head. “This place is for victims of human trafficking.”
Cupping my face, his eyes bored into mine. “That’s true, but she just lost a kidney. She’s getting care from the top doctors in the world here.”
“But—”
“You want what’s best for Hannah,” he said carefully. “We all do, and staying here will make sure of it.”
“Was she—” The lump in my throat grew, suffocating me to the point where it hurt to talk. “Was she assaulted?”
“I don’t know, baby,” he answered. “She’s not talking to anyone.”
“She needs us,” I murmured. “We have to stay here.”
He nodded. “We will. She’ll have our support, and we’ll be here for her for as long as necessary.”
The moment we stepped into the room, the first thing I saw was my twin’s deathly pale face. The second, the bruises that marred her exposed pasty-white skin, and suddenly, it felt as if my life shattered around me.
I stood, surrounded by the scent of copper and bleach and the constant beeping of a machine that monitored the immobile body. I felt like my heart, my soul, and my sanity all took a plunge to the pristine, bleached hospital floor.
“Ari, are you okay?” Matteo’s voice finally filtered through the suffocating silence and smell of death. It was the scent I woke up to after my car accident with Gianna. “Want to step out for a bit?”
I shook my head. I couldn’t leave. Not now, not when my sister and family needed me.
Please, God, save her. I’ll do anything to have my sister back.
It was only then that my mom’s cries registered. Gianna was hugging her and crying. They both looked exhausted, black circles under their eyes, their faces tearstained and pale. My brothers stood beside them, fatigue evident on their faces too, but they kept themselves somewhat together.
But Dad… He almost looked terrifying, like a devil with the purpose of leveling the earth with his enemies’ ashes. I’d never seen him so upset. So angry. So hopeless.
“Mom?” I croaked, my throat so tight I could barely push that single word out.
Five sets of eyes shifted to me, and with Matteo’s hand firm around my waist, I took unsteady steps, closing the distance between us. I practically fell into my parents’ embrace, their arms tightening around me. Gianna continued to sob somewhere in the background, our brothers soothing her with their whispers.
“How is she?” I finally rasped in a voice that sounded far away even to my ears. My gaze locked on the bed where my twin rested, the only reassuring sound that of my sister’s heartbeat on the monitor. “Where are the doctors?”
A pained expression crossed my dad’s face. “They did all they could. Now we… wait.”
“Wait for what?” My voice choked. “They don’t think she’ll?—”
No, I couldn’t utter those words. Hannah would wake up and wreak more havoc. She had to.
