Serena
I crack my eyes open, and I am instantly blinded by the fluorescent lights above me. I have a slight headache, and my arm is killing me. I blink a few times, trying to get my eyes to focus properly. A heart monitor is beeping in the background. The smell of cleaners and disinfectants permeates the air. I slowly turn my head to the left and see a massive window that is definitely not mine. I turn to the right and see my mom sitting in a chair with her head on my bed, asleep.
There is a knock at the door, and before I can say anything, a nurse walks into the room. She looks to be in her forties. Her light brown hair is pulled back into a messy bun, and she has the most comforting smile on her face. She is wearing a pair of light blue scrubs.
I watch her as she quickly squirts some hand sanitizer on her hands and rubs it in as she walks over to me.
“Glad to see you're awake. My name is Nora. How are you feeling?” Her soft voice instantly makes me feel a little better.
“A bit of a headache. My arm hurts, but I guess that’s normal for being shot.” I try at a joke, but it falls flat.
Nora looks at me like I am a little crazy, but I can see the humor in her eyes. She stands next to my bed, taking my vitals and making sure that I have some pain medication.
Mom is still asleep beside me. I can imagine she hasn’t slept since I have been here. I want to wake her up, but I know she needs some sleep.
After a few more minutes of Nora fussing over me, she let me know that I should be able to leave later today as long as everything stays good. I thanked her and she left the room.
I take a deep breath and try to piece together everything that happened. My stalker broke in. Chased me through the house. Spoke to me. Lastly, he shot me. Then there was pain. After that, it went blank for a while until I woke the first time. Cops came and asked a bunch of questions. Questions I couldn’t answer.
I try to wrap my head around everything, but something isn’t adding up to me. Why would someone who has made it clear that he wants me try to shoot me? Did he change his mind, or was this a way to take me more easily?
As much as I wish I had the answers to those questions, I know I will never get them. Trying to wrap my head around the thought process of a maniac is only making my headache worse.
Mom starts to stir beside me and slowly raises her head. She blinks a few times before she realizes I am awake. I smile at her, wanting her to know that I am alright, but the tears start before I can even attempt to stop them. Seeing Mom here makes everything feel like it is a million times better.
Mom launches herself at me and hugs me close while tears fall from her eyes. I wrap my arms around her and squeeze her as tight as I can, completely ignoring the pains shooting up my arm. The tears started flowing from my eyes, remembering how scared I was last night that I would never see her again. My worst fear was my mom finding my dead body on the floor in the kitchen without any answers. I hated the thought of leaving her like that.
I also hated the thought of the four men who had taken up my thoughts constantly finding me dead. They were all I could think about when the barrel of the gun was pointed at me. Midas, Odin, Zeus, and Dante.
When the guys came storming in, I let out a sigh of relief, knowing I would be fine. I watched as the bullet left Odin’s gun and hit the stalker in his shoulder. A sense of pride and love filled me, knowing that they would kill him if they had the chance. They were willing to put their lives on the line for me. I have never had that before. Except for Mom. But to have not one but three men willing to do anything to protect me was a completely new sensation for me.
The world kind of blurred after I fell to the ground, but I could feel the three of them surrounding me. I could feel the desperation seeping from them as they looked down on me.
I can still feel Midas’s arms wrapped around me, holding me close to his chest as he spoke softly to me.
“Don’t worry, Angel, we will find him. I’ve got you. Nothing else will happen to you again, I promise. You are going to be fine. Just keep breathing. I won’t let you go.”
He said those words with such certainty that they couldn’t be anything but true. I saw the fear in Zeus’s eyes when he came back to me. I wanted to reach out and comfort him, but everything hurt too much. Odin kept watch, making sure he didn’t come back. I had never felt so safe in my life. I only wish that Dante were there too.
I still don’t know what the Kings want with me. Last I heard, Midas was still with Valerie. Odin and Zeus left when Midas told them to. I know I shared a moment and had the most amazing kiss with Odin last night, but I still feel cautious. Zeus protected me last night when that guy wouldn’t leave me alone. They showed up when I needed them. My heart feels full but confused.
Mom pulls away and gives me the biggest smile. She tries to wipe the tears away from her eyes, but I stop her. They are tears of happiness, and seeing them reminds me that everything is better. I am still here and wasn’t seriously hurt. Last night could have been a lot different from what it was.
This may be one of the worst moments of my life, but I feel so joyful being with her. My mom has always been there for me, no matter what. The last time I was in the hospital, she never left until I did. She stayed by my side until I was well again.
I can’t remember a time when my mom was as worried about me as she was at that time. I purposely hurt myself, and on some level, I think she blamed herself for that. I never blamed her for my stupidity. I didn’t even blame Evan at the time, but hindsight makes everything clearer.
“I love you, Mom,” I whisper to her. My throat felt a little scratchy, but I needed her to hear those words.
“I love you more than you will ever know,” Mom says back while pushing my hair behind my ear. I lean my head into her touch, savoring the love from her.
I move over on the bed so Mom can crawl into bed next to me. She doesn’t hesitate and lies down beside me. We don’t say anything for a few minutes, just hold each other. It makes me think of times when I was a little girl, and I would cuddle with my mom in her bed. She always let me sleep in her bed whenever I wanted, even as I got older, that never changed.
Eventually, Mom asks me what happened. I give her a sort of truth. I don’t want her to know about the letters, texts, and pictures I have received. I told her that someone had broken in. I guessed it was to rob the house. I was there by myself, and he pulled a gun on me. I tried to defend myself, but he shot. I also told her that the guys came over after I was shot.
Mom instantly started blaming herself. Saying if we never moved here, this never would have happened. I had to remind her that this could have happened anywhere. People get robbed all the time. It was a fluke, and no one is to blame but the man who did this.
I don’t think my words reassured her as much as I hoped they would. Since moving to Fallingbrook, my mom has changed a lot. She is still the easy-going, chill person she always has been, but I have seen the shadows that seem to haunt her. I don’t know why here, of all places, would haunt her, but there is something in her past that this place brings up for her.
As much as I want to ask, to know what those things are, I am aware that she won’t divulge her secrets. Mom doesn’t talk about her life before she met my dad. It’s like those years don’t exist to her.
I don’t know how much time has passed before another knock at the door. Mom gets up and opens it, and gives whoever is behind the door a big smile. Midas, Odin, and Zeus step into the room after Mom hugs them. Odin and Zeus warmly hug my mom back, while Midas looks slightly uncomfortable at the contact. I can’t help but chuckle at their interactions.
Mom says she is going to go get some coffee to give us some privacy. I say goodbye to her, and she closes the door, leaving me with the three guys who saved me. Odin rushes over to my side and grabs my hand, holding it tightly. He kisses my forehead, sending electricity through my whole body. I never thought an innocent kiss like that could turn me on, but with him it totally can.
His eyes are bloodshot, like he didn’t get any sleep last night. His normally perfect blonde hair is pulled back into a messy bun, like he couldn’t be bothered to attempt to brush it too. I reach over and pull the elastic from his hair and comb my fingers through it to tame his wild locks. He leans into my touch, and I can practically hear him purring like a cat.
Odin’s blue eyes look me over, making sure I am all right. His jaw tightens when he sees my arm in a sling and the bandages covering the bullet wound. He lightly traces his fingers around the bandage.
Zeus is standing at the end of the bed. He gives me a big smile that warms me from the inside out. I gently tap the bed beside me. He stares at the vacant space. Worry lining his face. I tap it again, wanting him to know I need him too. He walks over and gently sits down beside me, trying not to move me too much. He takes my hand in his and holds it tight, squeezing it three times. I don’t know what that means, but I feel the need to do it back. His eyes light up, and he looks beyond happy.
Midas is still standing by the door, his arm crossed over his broad chest. Giving me a look like he wants to be close, but he is scared. He doesn’t look like the man he normally does. Gone is the cocky asshole who isn’t afraid of anything. In his place is a man who looks so unsure about everything.
His usual slicked-back hair is standing up, and his clothes look like he grabbed the first thing he could find. He is wearing grey sweatpants and a long-sleeved matching shirt. My eyes can’t help but wander to the very visible outline in the front of his pants.
No wonder grey sweatpants are like catnip to girls.
Midas doesn’t say anything. He barely looks like he is registering everything that is going on around him as he just continues to lurk by the door.
“Thank you,” I say to Midas.
He looks almost shocked that I am thanking him, but I don’t understand why. He saved me last night. He took care of me until the ambulance arrived. He was my knight in shining armor. All three of them were.
“You don’t need to thank me, angel.” His dark voice is quiet.
I looked over to Zeus, leaned over, and kissed his cheek. I turned to Odin and kissed him too.
“How are you feeling?” Zeus asks me.
“Like I’ve been shot.” I chuckle, and once again that joke falls flat. “I’m all right. I just can’t wait to get out of here. They only kept me overnight because I went into shock. Besides that, everything else is fine. Just a few stitches.”
They all look relieved at that. Midas steps closer but still doesn’t come near the bed. His penetrating gaze examines every inch of my body, mentally calculating every injury on me. I can see guilt in his eyes that doesn’t belong there.
This is no one’s fault but the man who did this. No one should feel guilty for what happened last night, least of all him. Midas and I didn’t have the greatest start, but this proved to me the man he can be. He is still young, we all are, and he made a mistake, but he has made amends with me. Last night was the amends that I needed to move past everything.
Another knock sounds at the door before it opens, revealing the doctor. Dr. Kendell has such a warm aura around her. It makes sense she went into medicine. Her pale blonde hair is pulled back into a bun, but a few pieces frame her slim face. She looks like she is in her thirties. Ignoring the guys that look like they are ready to attack if they need to, she walks over to my right side and examines the bandages on my arm and foot. Her smile never left her face.
“Good morning, Ms. Gold. Everything looks great. How is your pain level?”
“I would say like a three or four right now,” I replied. Midas, Odin, and Zeus looked instantly concerned at my pain levels.
Thank God they weren’t here last night then. I may or may not have screamed a few times because the pain became unbearable. After they dug the bullet out, stitched me up, and gave me a hefty dose of medication, I couldn’t feel it anymore. But my body went into shock, and the convulsions I had would have freaked everyone out. After that, I don’t remember much.
“That’s normal. I am prescribing pain medication for you to take home. I have already got your discharge papers ready, so whenever you are ready, you can leave.” Dr. Kendell types something up on her iPad before tucking it under her arm.
“Thank you,”
Dr. Kendell pushed Odin and Zeus out of the way so she could have a better look at the bandage on my arm. She pulls it back slightly, checking the wound before retightening it. After a few routine questions, she says goodbye and exits the room.
The second the door closed, the Odin and Zeus descended. Fluffing my pillows, asking if I needed anything, trying to do anything to make me feel better. I tried batting them away, but they wouldn’t stop, so I just sat back and enjoyed the pampering.
My eyes never leave Midas through it all. Watching as he battles with himself to come closer or not. As much as I want to make the first step with him, it needs to be him. If he is going to fight with himself over this, then nothing can happen until he is ready.