Chapter 31

A s soon as I open the door, the sun shines brightly down on me. I raise my hand to cover my eyes from the glare, taking a few moments to my eyes to adjust. When I finally don't have to squint anymore, I'm able to make out Rocco standing next to a dark car.

"Lina! Where's Enzo?" He calls out from a distance, his furrowed brow betraying his concern. He's worried. Am I the only one who has walked out since they've arrived? Where's Sierra?

"He was shot," I yell, running quickly to close the distance between us. Dried up tears stain my cheeks and my bloodshot eyes burn from both the tears and the sun's heat.

"Fuck," he responds. "Get in the car, I'll go get him." He helps me into the passenger seat, placing the car keys in my trembling hand. As he disappears through the metallic door, gun drawn, an eerie silence falls over the warehouse - a stillness like the dead have become ghosts where they drew their last breath.

Rubbing my hands down my face in anger, I pull at the strands of hair on the back of my neck. It's my fault he was shot. My fault that he is on the brink of death. A death that's taking him from me before I had the chance to tell him how I felt. My hands run through my hair as I rock back and forth in the seat. My legs shake, my hands tremble, and my teeth practically clash together as if I were in the north pole. I just want him to live, to survive and be with me.

Sierra is still nowhere to be found. I'm not sure how far she got or if they saw her on their way here. I didn't get a chance to ask. Fuck. What if she went back to look for me?

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

The front door opens once more, with Rocco carrying a bloody Enzo with the help of a masked man. Is that Julian? I quickly get out of the car and open the doors to help them in some way. I'm hoping that he hasn't lost too much blood. Enzo's eyes are closed, his shirt is still dripping from his bullet wound. Rocco gets inside with him, and I shove the skull-faced man aside to stay by his side. Julian or not, my focus is on Enzo.

I can't seem to breathe. All the emotions that I've bottled up inside overflow through all my defenses. A tidal wave of every fear, insecurity, and every little emotion I desperately tried to control to not show weakness or vulnerability so that I can't be made a target. Seeing his wounded body, the tattoos that I love to trace, covered in blood, makes me wish he hadn't tried to save me. His shallow breaths draw my gaze to the slight rise and fall of his chest.

Mr. Masked Man gets in the driver's seat and removes the bloodied ski mask, looking at me with concern as I struggle to breathe along with Enzo. Julian grips the steering wheel with one hand and messes with his hair with the other. "Rocco, call Ry!" He barks. Rocco already has his phone out, connecting it to the car's Bluetooth speaker.

"Ry, call the nearest hospital. We don't have time to drive fucking hours back to the casino. The closest one should be ten minutes north from where we are." Julian yells, and curses under his breath.

"Already done. They're expecting you. They won't ask questions" Ry exhales loudly, "how… How is he?" he asks.

"It's not looking good man," Julian replies softly. I struggle to keep myself in check, the tears flowing just as fast as my body trembles. I'm holding on to his hands, whimpering at his lack of response. Julian maneuvers the car as swiftly as possible, speeding through the traffic to get to the hospital, cutting the time from ten minutes down to five. We keep flinging from one side of the road to the next until he pulls the car to a stop.

We all get out of the car quickly. Julian and Rocco bring out Enzo while I stand there feeling worthless once more. I open up the hospital doors, when a man in a doctor's robe is already at the front with a gurney and two nurses assisting him.

Once Enzo is safely placed on the gurney, we are told to wait in the waiting area as they push him through the halls and through double doors. I watch the doors close from a distance, but I desperately want to see him and be there holding his hand while they figure out what's going on.

Julian speaks to the receptionist for what feels like hours. He smirks as he walks back over to me like he just saved the fucking day.

"Let's go," He ushers quickly as we follow the nurse to the OR. I watch in horror as they finish hooking up Enzo to some machines. I watch as they stop the bleeding, and check to be sure that the bullet didn't hit any important artery. He's still breathing , I tell myself. He's still alive.

My mindless pacing begins while I move back and forth in the room. I turn to Rocco, "Where is Sierra?"

"She's safe. Kai took her to the casino to be examined by the Italian's doctor. She's okay."

The sound of a long beep brings my attention back to my unconscious man. The nurses and doctor calmly perform CPR, the doctor presses his palms down on Enzo's chest, counting, and repeating the process. I break down. I thought I had cried all the tears out of my body already, but evidentially I didn't. They flow down my face harder than before.

Enzo's heart stopped. They couldn't save the man I love. The realization crushes me, breaking not just my heart but every part of my soul. Today, I've killed with my own two hands, more than I ever expected to in one lifetime, and yet I've never felt more at peace, as if my body needed an outlet to rid itself of these feelings that plagued me. The one person that held me together now lies dead in the next room.

The doctor takes a defibrillator, bringing the two ends together allowing a charge of electricity to surge between the pads before placing it on his chest, the shock has Enzo's back arch, before they attempt it again and again.

I close my eyes, and pray to a God that I'm not even sure exists.

Don't leave me.

"Don't leave me," I plead, my voice cracks as I drop to my knees, my body gives out with each passing second. I can hear the shattering of my own heart, as the doctor's attempt everything they can in reviving Enzo.

My body shakes. I'm not sure how much time goes by, every second seems to blend together and go slowly at the same time .

Beep, beep, beep. The heart monitor comes back to life, the spikes on the machine increase slowly, going up and down, creating a music that I am beyond grateful for.

"He's losing fluids, get him on a saline drip," the doctor says to the nurses, exhaling loudly as he continues checking every machine, and making sure everything is in order.

The man strides back to where Rocco is standing over me, "He's alive. It's up to him to open his eyes. We just need to add stitches on the wound now that we've stopped the bleeding," he says to both of us.

My legs tremble as Rocco places his arm out for me to grab and pulls me up next to him, then walks with me to Enzo's side. With unsteady hands I reach out, grabbing Enzo.

The doctors and nurses that surround him allow me to stay by his side while they add the stitching to his shoulder. With each pierce of the needle, my tears fall harder. He looks so vulnerable laying here in this hospital bed.

Once they finish the stitching, the medical staff speaks softly to Rocco, I only hear small pieces of the conversation, but it all is regarding physical therapy and the recovery process.

The teardrops that fall from my eyes land on Enzo's skin, I slowly bring his hands to my lips and kiss away the salty tears .

"Can I have a moment alone with him," I ask, my eyes never leaving Enzo. I'm not sure if they nod or respond, but they simply walk out the door.

"Come back to me, Enzo. I love you with every fiber of my being, with every fucked-up part of my damaged soul, with every sheltered piece of me. You freed me in ways I'd only dreamt of. You saw me, and wanted me anyway. You saw me as a strength, and not a burden. I need you, Enzo. So, please, come back to me. Dammit, Enzo. Please…You promised me eternity," my voice cracks. "Please, wake up."

I continue crying, pouring out my love I have for this man with every tear and pleading word, hoping he can hear me. But the exhaustion from the day slowly creeps up on me. The memories of the kidnapping and other traumatic experience I went through starts to take over. I rest my head on my arm, never letting go of his hand, slowly closing my eyes as I fade in and out of sleep until it surpasses me the way a tide would submerge the shoreline.

Blackness takes over, and what's left now is to wait.