Chapter 13

13

Olivia

The music from the overhead speakers pours over me as I sink to my knees in front of the Beast. He's hurt so badly, and I'm sure he's going to die. I beg him not to leave me because I've found a home with him. I assure him he's going to live. I reach out to him, but his body is already still. No, it's not possible. The tears I've been trying to hold back slide down my cheeks. No, don't leave me. Please. I throw myself on his body and sob. He can't leave me because I love him. Silence descends. The hair on the back of my neck rises. A current of electricity swirls around me. A part of me is aware this is a musical, and I'm acting. Or am I?

I hold him tighter. My chest hurts, my limbs are numb, and every part of me is ready to die with him, when rose petals float down from above. The Beast stirs. The thick, scaly exterior which has covered his body fades away in front of my eyes. In front of me is a man. A handsome man. A man who is almost as large as the Beast in size. A broad chest, massive shoulders, a square jaw, and those pouty lips I'd recognize anywhere. I raise my gaze past that hooked nose to those gorgeous gray eyes, through which he regards me. There's a spark deep inside that hooks me and doesn't let go.

" Stellina ," he reaches for me.

I jump back from him. "No. No, no, no. What are you doing here?"

"Don't you recognize me? I'm the one you fell in love with," he murmurs. That dark, rich voice sends shivers of need coursing up my spine.

It can't be. I stumble back and turn to leave, when something slams into me. The reverberations ricochet through my bones. I glance down to find blood spurting from my side. Blood? My blood?

I lurch forward, not sure what happened. Someone screams. I smell something burning, like charred flesh. A wisp of smoke arises from the wound. I touch the stain of black near it, and a burst of pain radiates from the contact. My head spins. My stomach churns. A numbness grips me. I stagger, then bump into the heavy dressing table with the mirror in which Belle had seen the image of her sick father and begged the Beast to release her. I stare at my reflection. My face is so pale. I reach out my palm to touch my reflection in the mirror, leaving a stain of red in my wake. Huh? Do I have blood on my fingers?

I glance at my palm, which fades in and out in front of me. Footsteps sound behind me. I half turn, lose my balance, and my knees give out from under me. I hurtle forward and my face smashes into the edge of the dressing table. Sparks explode behind my eyes, only to fade away, and darkness closes in on me. My last thought is, I shouldn't have lied to Massimo.

I float on a bed of white, light as a feather, tossed this way, then that. It's not unpleasant, just a bit confusing. I try to move my arms and legs, but they don't seem to obey me. I look down at myself and find the light pouring through me. How weird. I glance around, taking in the nothingness. It's not uncomfortable, just eerie. Not bad eerie; not a good eerie, either. It's just empty. A golden light comes into view. I glance at it, and my body moves toward it. Hey, this is cool. Apparently, I can use my thoughts to move my body. I glide toward it when something pushes me to glance over my shoulder. There's something… Someone's there. Someone's presence calls to me. I stay there, suspended, then turn back toward the light.

" Stellina ," his voice echoes around the space. "Come back, Via."

I hesitate.

"I can't live without you. You're not leaving me, you hear me?"

I try to push toward the light, but this time, my body doesn't obey. I am sliding back, unable to stop myself. Fine, okay. If that's what you want. With a last glance at the light, I turn toward the voice.

"Via. Open your eyes."

My eyelids flutter open, and the harsh glare seems to burn my retinas. I moan and close my eyes again. Draw in a breath and my lungs hurt. Come to think of it, every part of me hurts.

"Via." There's an urgent tone to this voice now. Something warm squeezes my fingers. I crack my eyelids open again and glance down to where his fingers are wrapped around mine.

"Via!" His tone is more urgent. I raise my gaze to his, and it's almost not a shock when his gray eyes capture mine. "You're awake."

He places his other palm over mine, cradling my hand between both of his. "Thank Santa Maria , you are okay."

"Massimo?" I cough. " What are you doing here?"

He reaches for a bottle of water, then helps me up and supports me as I sip from the straw.

"Better?"

I nod, and he places the bottle back on the bed-stand.

"What happened? Why am I in the hospital?"

He lowers me back to the pillows and takes my hand in his again. "What do you remember last?" he asks softly.

"I was on stage for the opening night of the musical." I wrinkle my forehead, but even that gesture hurts. My entire face feels numb. I also have a bandage on my cheek. I bring my fingers up to feel its shape.

"Did I hurt myself?"

He nods, a gentle yet wary look in his eyes. Is he hiding something from me?

"Something hit me," I burst out. "I saw the blood on my chest, then I lost my balance and fell."

"You were shot, Via," he says in a soothing voice.

"Shot?" I blink rapidly. "What do you mean, shot?"

"A bullet—it grazed the side of your chest. Luckily, it was just a flesh wound, so you should heal soon."

"Thank God." A breath I hadn't been aware I was holding whooshes out of me. "So, I should be back on my feet very soon."

"That's right."

"So, I should be able to reprise my role again." Just my luck, considering I was the lead and Jeanne was my understudy. "I guess Jeanne will have to play the lead until I'm recovered."

Some of the tension leaves my muscles. I yawn suddenly, and my cheek throbs. I wince. "Is my face going to be okay?"

"You're beautiful, my Via."

Tears prick the backs of my eyes. A ball of something heavy clogs my throat. "I look terrible, don't I? That's the only reason you're showering me with compliments."

"You look perfect." He holds my gaze. "To me, you'll always be the most gorgeous woman in the world." He leans forward and rubs his thumb in circles over my wrist. A shiver trembles out from the point of contact. Damn, I am injured, and my body still can't help but respond to him.

"Massimo," I clear my throat. "How bad is it? You can tell me."

His lips firm, but his eyes are so soft, so tender. I instantly know he's trying to shield me. And I appreciate it. I do. But I also need to know the truth.

"Via—"

I shake my head. "Don't sugar coat it, Massimo, please. I need to know."

He nods, then twines his fingers through mine. "When you went down, you caught the edge of the dresser and hurt your cheek."

I frown. "I remember hitting it before I blacked out." I try to tug my hand from his, but he doesn't release it. "But it's going to be okay, right? It'll heal, and then I'll be able to get back on stage..."

"I'm not going to lie to you, Stellina. The doctor had to call in a plastic surgeon to consult on it."

"A plastic surgeon?" My stomach churns. Sweat beads my brow. "Wh-what do you mean, a plastic surgeon?"

"He tried to minimize the damage."

"Damage?" I gulp, "Minimize?" I tug my hand from his, and this time, he releases it. I bring it to the bandage again. "When… When does this thing come off?"

"In a few days. He told us you were lucky; the bullet didn't hit anything major, and you narrowly missed hitting your eye. All in all, you escaped without much harm."

"How can you say that? I hurt my face," I cry out.

"It'll heal," he says in a soft voice that sets my teeth on edge.

"It's going to scar, probably for life."

"It won't take away from your beauty."

"That's what you think. You're not a director. You don't know how tough the camera is on the face. The slightest imperfections are magnified."

"There have been lots of actors with less than perfect faces who went on to big things."

"Oh yeah? Name one."

"Tina Fey has a faint scar on her cheek. Joaquin Phoenix has a harelip. Seal has deep scars on his face due to lupus. I can go on."

I stare at him. "Have you been reading up on this?"

Color smears his cheeks.

"You have been reading up on this. So, you're convinced I'm going to scar, and this is your way of trying to tell me that it doesn't matter."

"That's not what I said."

"Then what is it you're trying to tell me?"

"That you were lucky to escape with your life, and this doesn't change anything."

"This changes everything." I squeeze my eyes shut. "You'll never understand. You haven't struggled the last few years to get to where I have. And I was there, on stage, in my first leading role, and this had to happen. I knew it was too good to be true when the director gave me the role in place of Jeanne..." I snap my eyelids open. "Oh, my god, was the bullet intended for her? Is that why I was shot at?"

He doesn't say anything, but the look on his face gives him away.

"I was right? The bullet was meant for her?"

"We think the same people who kidnapped her and Luca came after her again, but mistook you for her."

"But Jeanne's safe, right?" He nods and I sink back into the pillows and sigh.

"She is, and she and Penny want to see you, but I told them I'd take care of you and let them know when you're awake."

"How did you get in here, anyway?" The tiredness washes over me. The effects of whatever painkiller they gave me must also be receding because the wound in my side begins to hurt. My limbs feel too heavy, and my cheek throbs. A fuzzy sensation invades my brain, and I struggle to keep my eyes open.

"I told them I'm your fiancé."

My eyes pop open. "Wait, what? Why?"

"As soon as I heard what happened, I rushed to the hospital."

"Yeah, but why did you come?"

"Because I want to marry you, Via."