40. Nico
Nico
40
Dread pools in the pit of my stomach as we arrive at Cossi’s country mansion. It wasn’t hard to find once we figured out what was going on. Their carelessness will cost them their lives.
Every. Last. One.
The first three guards we kill around the perimeter of the building help ease some of my nerves.
Enzo motions me forward and I lower my gun.
I try not to let myself think of what would have happened if Emelia hadn’t warned us, or if we didn’t find her.
But I shove those thoughts down. I can’t afford to be distracted, even by myself.
This is a rescue mission. We have to get to Christina. And our baby.
My heart beats harder. Images flash before me of what lies ahead. Of what we stand to lose. I shake my head clear.
Today needs to serve as a message to our enemies. To everyone. Take what’s ours and you will pay in blood.
Two more guards round the corner and I fire, killing them both.
"Looks like you're a better shot than I give you credit for," Alec remarks, leading the way with a confident stride. "Maybe I'll trust you to have my back after all."
"No one celebrates until we get her back," I snarl.
Christina is not just a person to me, she's an integral part of my existence, a piece of my soul living outside of my body. And without her, I don’t know that I will ever feel whole again.
The distant sound of gunfire alerts us that Father’s men are busy taking out the rest of the guards on the property.
It will be a heavy day of loss for the Cossi family.
Alec opens the front door with a forceful kick and suddenly bullets ring out in every direction. We all instinctively take cover and return fire. The acrid smell of gunpowder mixes with the smoke, burning our noses.
“Left,” Enzo shouts above the noise, nodding his head.
We change direction as gunshots spray above our heads. Alec picks them off, one by one, his expertise as a marksman evident.
It’s chaotic but we move forward, stepping over the dead.
Room after room, we search. The body count grows as we encounter more of Cossi’s men, but no Christina.
Not yet.
It’s a small miracle that none of us have been hit. I wipe the sweat from my forehead.
Strategically, it makes sense to keep her so far inside. Too bad it’s not enough to keep them all from dying.
Alec tries the last door of a corridor and finds it locked. He nudges it with his shoulder. Nothing. He turns to shake his head.
“She’s in there, then,” Enzo says.
I nod.
“I’ll count down from three, shoot the lock off, and we head in,” I say.
The guys nod.
“Three. Two. One.” I shoot the lock and kick open the door, our guys barging in and shouting at the men who remain.
Christina.
I search the room, my fear making my mouth taste like sandpaper, stripping me of the words I’m desperate to shout. I’m here. It’s okay.
She’s huddled on the floor next to a couch. My precious Angel.
A masked man is standing next to her, his gun to her head.
“Step away from her, now,” I shout.
I can feel, rather than see, Alec getting into position. I flick my eyes over to Enzo and know that he’s going to be the distraction.
Sure enough when he takes aim, the masked man focuses on him,
It’s a deadly mistake.
Alec takes the shot, hitting him right between the eyes.
I hear Christina whimper as she’s caught in the blood spray, but she’s alive.
“Room is clear,” Alec calls out.
I rush to her. She’s covered in blood and dirt. I don’t know if any of the blood is hers or not. I just need to touch her – to reassure myself that she’s okay.
“Nico,” she whispers when I drop to my knees beside her. “You came for me.”
Her eyes flicker shut and my heart clenches.
“Princess,” Enzo whispers, coming over to kneel beside her.
Her eyelids flutter but she doesn’t open her eyes. I look at him with concern.
She could be injured. And we still have to get her out.
“We need to go,” I say, firmly.
Carefully, I position my hands underneath her frail body and lift her, cradling her to my chest.
Alec and Enzo take up position around me, one in front, and one in back.
We retrace our steps, picking our way through the debris and bodies we left behind.
We’re almost to the exit when a group of three heavily armed men step out to block our way.
“Going somewhere, boys?” One of them asks, leveling his gun at us.
Alec and Enzo raise theirs too.
“Get out of our way,” Enzo orders.
“You’ll have to kill us to get her free,” the man standing between us and the exit spits. "Unless you wish to offer your life for hers?”
The glint of his knife is the only thing that gives him away. It pierces my thigh with calculated precision, extinguishing any hope of escape without incident as the searing pain burns through my skin.
But it doesn’t matter.
“You think we'll let her walk away after everything you've done?”
Enzo swiftly fires twice.
His body crumples to the ground with a heavy thud, the echo of gunshots ringing in my ears.
“Kill the other two,” I mutter to Alec, stepping over the body of the man who attacked me. I wipe the blood from my wound on my pants and continue carrying Christina.
Enzo and Alec make quick work of the others, and we carefully carry her to the car, gently placing her in the backseat as Alec takes the wheel. Enzo and I sit close by her side, not wanting to be even an inch away from her after all she's been through. Tommy rides shotgun, his eyes scanning the surroundings for any potential danger.
As we speed away to safety, I hold Christina's hand tightly in mine, grateful that she's alive and vowing to never let anyone harm her again.
“I love you,” I say. “I love you.”
Enzo takes one of her hands in his and rubs her palm. He leans over to kiss her forehead.
“She’ll be all right,” I say with more confidence than I feel. “The doctor is at the house already.” Thank God.
“We’ve got you, princess,” Enzo says into my hair. I try not to let myself think what would have happened if we didn’t find her.
We could have lost her.
I swallow the guilt down like acid. It burns through my body.
There will be time to learn what happened and why. Right now, all that matters is her. And our child.
Our doctor and on call medic rush to meet the car as soon as we pull into the driveway. They have a small gurney already prepped and I help them transfer Christina onto it. She’s mumbled a few things since we rescued her, but she still hasn’t opened her eyes again.
It’s starting to freak me out.
“We’ve got it from here, boys,” the doctor says, wheeling her into our medical room.
Enzo, Alec and I follow quickly. Meredith meets us at the door, giving us each huge hugs, even though we’re covered in blood.
“Whatever you do, don’t pressure her to talk about the baby,” Meredith says, her slender hand resting against my shoulder.
“Why not?” I grind my teeth together. After everything that’s happened, I hate being told what to do. Christina no longer belongs to her. She’s my future wife, and that’s my child.
“She’s scared. It’s not far enough along yet for people to know, she’s worried. Let her tell you when she’s ready, please,” she adds. “After all that she’s been through.” She swallows. “She needs this little bit of control.”
I nod my head and follow the staff to the medical room.
Seeing her hooked up to all the tubes and wires makes me feel anxious, but I refuse to give up watching over her.
After what feels like hours, the doctor finally motions to me. “You can hold her, if you want,” he says, quietly.
I carefully climb into her hospital bed, my size crowding her. My arms go around her, awkwardly hugging her to me.
Half asleep, she nuzzles into my hold, wrapping my hands in hers as I bury my face into the crook of her neck.
“I won’t ever let you go.” I assure her. Hatred for the men who have hurt her burns in my chest. I mean every word that I say. No one, no one, will ever get between us ever again.
Christina nods against me, her head falling back into my chest as a small yawn escapes her lips.
I know without a doubt, I’d give my life to keep her safe.
We fall asleep like that because the next thing I know, it’s morning and sunlight is shining in through the blinds. Enzo yawns from the chair in the corner and I give him a small smile.
Christina stirs in my arms, and I look down at her and press a kiss to her cheek. Her eyes are open, thank God.
“Are you all right, Angel?” I ask.
“No,” she says, quietly.
I watch her little throat bob as she swallows. Her lips trembling. “It’s okay, Angel. It’s all going to be okay.”
She buries her face in my chest, tears spilling over.
“Oh, Angel.” She sobs as both Enzo and I stroke her gently, trying to soothe her with the depth of our love.
“Never again,” I whisper, meeting Enzo’s eyes.
Guilt plagues both of us. We should have seen this coming. We should have sent more guards with her or investigated her friends better.
In my mind, I failed her.
Christina was never supposed to be targeted.