28. Nicki
Ilean over Vitorio's body, my hands pressed tightly against the bullet hole in his stomach. I am screaming at him not to give up, to stay and fight. But his eyes are rolling back in his head and no matter how hard I push down the blood is flooding through my hands.
"Marco," I scream. "We need to get him to the hospital."
Marco is already shouting orders to several men who are pushing me out of the way and lifting Vitorio off the ground. I scramble backward on my ass across the floor, trying to get away from the pool of blood that is soaking into me. I stand up, and slip, landing hard on my knee. I push up again in panic. "I'm going with him," I shout to Marco.
Someone grabs my arm and I stare at his face, not recognizing him. "We need you here," he says.
I yank my arm back then bolt after the group of men carrying Vitorio. They don't need me anymore. I have given them the truth. I have given them my time, my energy, my fear, my commitment - and now I refuse to give them the man I love.
I am going with Vitorio.
They are loading him into a car out in the parking lot when I arrive.
One of the men looks me up and down, seeing the state I am in. He opens the other door and tells me to sit with him.
"Vito needs you now." His voice is calm and soothing, but it does not push away the absolute panic and fear I feel eating me alive.
The car screams through the city towards the hospital. I don't even look out the window. My eyes are on Vitorio. His face is peaceful, relaxed, unaware of anything happening around him. One of the men is pressing a jacket against the bullet hole to try and stop the bleeding, but my heart is sinking deeper and deeper into despair as I can't help but notice the amount of blood Vitorio is losing.
The car tires screech against the ground outside the emergency doors of the hospital. The doors fly open, and someone rips me from the car. "Move, we have to get him inside." I stagger backward, in shock, cold, numb - watching as though I am floating above my own body - as they carry him towards the entrance.
Several men and women in scrubs rush out with a gurney and Vitorio is lifted onto it.
I stare after them as the hospital doors swing closed.
I can't move. I can't move my feet.
I don't even know if I am breathing.
"Miss?" A gentle touch on my shoulder. "Miss, I think you should come inside."
I turn towards the voice and see a young woman with a kind face. She is wearing a nurse's uniform, and her arm is wrapped around me. "Come on honey, let's get you inside. I am sure we can find you something to change into."
I don't understand what she means, so I glance down at my clothing, wondering what is wrong with them.
But I don't see clothes, I only see blood.
I let her lead me into the hospital. Someone walks past and asks her if I am hurt.
"I don't think so. I think she is in shock." I hear her reply.
Who are they talking about?
"Take her to room eight. It's empty at the moment. She can wash up in there. I'll bring some scrubs in a second."
"Come on honey. We are going to get you cleaned up and then I will make you some tea. I think you might need some sugar."
I glance around me, wondering who they are making tea for.
I don't know how I came to be standing in a shower with a nurse scrubbing at my arms. The water is flowing off my skin in pink streams and I am staring at the drain as a whirlpool of bright red spins around my feet.
I look up to see the nurse, working slowly and calmly to wash Vitorio's blood off me.
"Where is he?" I ask quickly, not remembering what happened between leaving Cielo e Terra and now. I shake my head, trying to clear my mind but everything is a foggy mess.
"He is in surgery honey. They took him straight there."
"He's alive?" I say filled with hope and relief.
The nurse doesn't answer me. I notice how her face pulls tight.
"He's in surgery, honey." She repeats.
"Will he be ok?" I ask with desperation in my voice, as tears begin to streak down my face, hidden in the flow of water from the shower.
"Let's get you cleaned up, ok. One thing at a time. We can talk after."
I bite my lip, knowing that her not being able to give me an answer can't be a good thing.
"I love him," I whisper, fighting a panic attack.
My breathing becomes more labored, and my heart begins to hammer.
"I love him," I say again.
"We need that Midazolam." The nurse says to someone I didn't know was there.
"Now - hurry."
I look around me, trying to figure out what is going on. All I want to do is get to Vitorio. I have to get away from these people and find him. I have to save him.
Strong hands grip my arm and pull me to the side of the shower. I turn to face them, to tell them to stop hurting me. Then a sharp pain stings into my arm and I watch in slow motion as they pull a syringe needle out of my skin. "It's ok, honey, you are going to rest now." The nurse says softly, as my legs begin to turn to jelly. "We will take good care of you, I promise."
I feel a towel wrapping around my body and they lower me down into a chair of some sort as my eyes become too heavy to keep open. Their voices drift above me, as my head becomes too heavy to hold up anymore.
Everything feels peaceful. Everything feels like it is going to be ok. I can't remember what I was so worried about.
So, I stop fighting the panic, and let my eyes close, and my body relaxes, and everything becomes warm and dark.
My eyes drift open, feeling dry and heavy. I blink against the blinding light of the window next to me and try desperately to remember where I am. Is this one of the safe houses?
A flash of blood seers in my memory.
"Vitorio." I cry out, sitting up in the hospital bed with anxiety pumping through me.
Marco reaches out and takes my hand. "Nicki, it's me, it's Marco."
My eyes lock onto him. "Where is he?" I demand.
"He came out of surgery. He is in a coma. He lost a lot of blood."
"But is he - is he…" my throat closes around the words.
"We don't know yet. It is up to him to fight this now." Marco says with heavy sadness.
I throw the blanket off me, ignoring the fact that I am wearing scrubs, and move to get off the bed. "Take me to him," I say.
"You should rest, Nicki. You really need to rest."
"No, take me to him right now." I snap.
Marco pulls his mouth tight, and then stands up, holding his hand out so that I can take it to steady myself. My legs still feel like jelly from whatever they gave me.
"How long was I asleep?" I ask as we walk through the hospital.
"Almost a full twenty-four hours. I imagine your body needed the rest."
"He was alone for twenty-four hours?" I say as guilt tugs my heart.
"No, he was in surgery for eight hours, then they moved him to ICU for a few hours while we had a private room set up for him. He has his own room and a full-time doctor here just for him."
I nod, realizing that Marco is doing everything he can to help Vitorio.
"Is Luca dead?" I ask, with bitter hatred on my tongue.
"He got what he deserved." Marco nods.
"What happened after I left?"
"It didn't take long for us to round up the remaining people who were still hell-bent on supporting Luca. They will all be dealt with in due time. Most of the family sees him for who he really is now, and all of his lies and treachery have been uncovered. This morning, we raided his warehouse, and over twenty-five girls were rescued from the container rooms he had set up there. It was disgusting. But Nicki, they were saved because you didn't give up. You should be proud of yourself. His business is shut down. You saved those girls and all of the girls he would have taken in the future."
"Were they sent back to their families?"
"Most of them were homeless, or prostitutes. He did his best to take girls no one would come looking for. We have placed them in safe houses and will take care of them until they are strong enough to work. Then we will help them get a job and build a better life for themselves."
"Thank you, Marco."
We round the corner into Vitorio's private room and my heart stops in my chest at the sight of him.
He looks so peaceful. I let go of Marco's arm and ran to the side of his bed. "Vito," I say softly, gently stroking my hand across his face as the continuous beeping of the monitor next to his bed spills out the rhythm of his heart.
"The doctor says he can hear us, and that we should talk to him," Marco says, standing at my side.
"Can I ask you a favor, Marco?"
"Of course."
"Please will you have some clothes brought here for me, and some toiletries? I am staying here. I am not going to leave his side."
Marco nods, knowing better than to argue or tell me I should rest or take care of myself.
"I'll have anything you need brought to you."
I move around to the other side of Vitorio's bed and pull the chair close to it. Sitting down, I reach out and take his hand.
"Hey, you." I smile softly. "I think you should wake up now because I really miss you."
A tear falls down my cheek.
I hear Marco's sad sigh, as he turns away, leaving me alone with Vito.
"Everything worked out perfectly. We solved the mystery. We were a really good team." I chat away. "So, now you need to wake up so that we can celebrate. You weren't supposed to go getting yourself shot you know. That was not part of the plan." I laugh softly.
"I never had a chance to tell you something…" I take a deep breath. "You see, you kind of have to wake up because I am in love with you."
I talk to him for hours, telling him how I feel, and that I want a future with him.
I chat about my dreams, my hopes, and my fears. I tell him about the pets I had when I was growing up and funny things that happened to me as a child. I tell him about my sister and about my mom and how he has to meet them one day.
I just keep talking, because I know he can hear me - and the more I talk the more chance he has of following my voice and coming back to me.
When it gets dark out, I drift off to sleep in the chair and wake up with a fright when the doctor walks in to check on him.
"You must be Nicki." He smiles. "How is our man doing?"
I run my hands against my eyes. "Um - nobody seems to be able to answer me - is he going to be ok?"
"Nicki, you have to understand that this is a very difficult situation. Vitorio's wounds were extensive. He is definitely a fighter, but we have done all that we can for him. It's up to him now."
"Please, don't give me the gentle version. I need to know the truth."
The doctor takes a heavy breath and pulls his mouth tight. His jaw muscles feather.
He nods as he looks at me. "The truth is that his chances of survival are low. The next twenty-four hours are crucial. If he pulls through the next twenty-four hours his chances will increase somewhat, but still be below fifty percent. Honestly, it is going to take a miracle."
I nod silently as tears run freely down my face.
"Thank you, Doctor. I really appreciate you being so honest with me. I can tell you now though, that Vitorio is the strongest man I know - and he will pull through."
"You keep giving him your strength, Nicki. He needs it now."
The doctor checks his vitals and his stomach wound while I stand aside to give him space.
As soon as he is done, I move back to Vitorio's side.
"Marco asked me to bring an extra bed in here for you, it will be arranged tonight. And your dinner is on its way too. But Nicki, as much as he needs you, you must also take a walk every now and then. Get some fresh air, and stay strong yourself so that you can be strong for him."
I nod.
"Thank you."
After dinner, which I eat at his bedside, I get comfy on the chair next to him. They did bring a bed in, but I can't bring myself to move that far away from Vitorio.
I pull the blanket up around my body and my legs up against my chest as I reach out and take his hand again.
Staring at him my thoughts run over the massive sacrifices he made for me.
When he went on the run with me, he left his entire family behind. He left the safety of his home, his support system. He walked away from his businesses - all to protect me and help me find out the truth.
"I have never met anyone like you," I say, leaning forward to kiss his lips softly.
I would never have gotten so far without him. I would never have been able to find out the truth about who killed my father. And through it all Vitorio also found a truth - a truth he didn't know he was chasing, and one he probably didn't want to accept. But now he knows what happened to his father as well.
Luca's choices, violence, and heartless actions have left a path of destruction in their wake. Luca did get what he deserved. Marco was right about that. Or perhaps he deserved more pain - more suffering.
From what I heard though I think his entire life has been wrought with suffering. Except it is suffering he inflicted on himself through his own selfish choices. People choose who they become. No matter what they try to tell you - there is always a choice. He can blame his life on his father, or his mother's death - but he chose to become the monster he was.
Twenty-four hours later there has been no change in Vitorio's condition. Despite how down Marco looks when he hears this, I can't help but feel excited. His chances have gone up now. He is going to pull through. I just know it.
For a week I stay by his side. His hospital room is so luxurious that it has its own ensuite, and there is literally no reason for me to leave the room.
Members of Vitorio's family come and go, some trying to convince me to join them for a walk or a coffee, but I politely decline. When he wakes up, I will be here. I won't risk being somewhere else.
Every day that rolls past us gives me more hope, even through the fear, because I know that every day he is still with me, he is getting stronger.
Marco drops off books for me, and I read out loud to Vitorio while he rests.
Some of the stories are sad, some are adventurous, some are funny, and some are so scary that I feel the impact of them when night comes, and I am sitting here by myself.
Then, on one particularly misty, grey evening, as the autumn air bites against my skin, I hear him whisper my name.
I drop the book I was reading to him and sit straight up. "Vito?"
"Nicki." His voice sounds dry, scratchy, and soft.
In a second, I am standing and leaning over him.
"Vito it's me. I'm here." I touch his face and his eyes flicker, trying to open.
"Doctor," I shout loudly, pressing the call button over and over again in my excitement.
My heart is screaming in my chest, doing summersaults and backflips, and rolling and leaping and flying wildly.
I start giggling because I cannot contain myself.
He's awake. Vitorio is awake.