Santos turned, looking around in a frenzy. The other three men were pointing their guns at random directions. None of them were trained gunmen, else, they would have easily traced where that shot came from. “Were you really so stupid to have your men surround mine?” He asked with a roar as he pointed a gun at me.I cocked my head. “I wouldn't do that if I were you. In fact, I should be asking you the same question.”Just as he opened his mouth to respond, gunfire shattered through the air. My men and Santos’ men exchanged bullets outside. Some of it whizzed past my head and entered into the already crumbling walls of the lighthouse. I dove behind a weathered pillar, pulling out my gun. My heart was thundering in my chest as I tapped the earpiece in my ear to start the transmission.“Marco. What's the situation there? Have you found my wife?” I asked in a whisper when I heard his voice.“No boss, we haven't gone in yet. There's no movement from the building yet.”“Don't wait. Find
“We need to find my wife. Now!” I roared to Mathias, rushing into my car. He jumped into the passenger seat as I was reversing out of the area. It wasn't hard to locate where Marco and the others were because the fire in the building was still very much flaming. I was out the door before the car even halted to a stop. I grabbed Gabriel off the floor by his collar. “Where is Nazlynn?” I asked him with a growl. My whole body was shaking in what could have been mistaken for anger. It was fear, raw fear.He opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out. I took a quick glance around me. The other men were giving me subtle looks of pity. I pushed him, and he stumbled over, landing on his ass. “Nazlynn,” I yelled, rushing towards the burning house. The flames had started to reduce, but I didn't care. I just wanted my wife in my arms.“Wait, Luca, no,” Mathias said, appearing from nowhere and attempting to hold me back. I growled at him, flinging his hand away. As I made a move to
NAZLYNN’S POVI winced as the cotton swab ran over the open wound on my face. The liquid burned at my flesh. Maria, who could barely look me in the eye without tearing up, had helped me take a bath and change into a fresh set of clothes while the doctor waited outside my room. “Just a minute more, we're almost done cleaning your wounds,” the doctor, Dr Martin, said. I had completely expected Dr. Martin to be a man, but instead, I was greeted with a beautiful redhead in a lazy attire. Her hair colour reminded me of mine when it's not dyed into some new shade.I made sure not to turn my head to my left, where I knew a very angry looking Luca stood. “Okay, we might have to put a splint on your left arm, but let's run the other tests first. Is that okay?” she asked me. I nodded with a forced smile.My mind kept replaying the moment when the bullet flew into Dee’s neck. The way blood gushed out of her splintered vein like a leaking faucet. I kept staring at her body on the floor unti
Dr. Martin's mouth dropped open, she looked from him to me. Luca stood up abruptly, storming out the door and closing it behind him with a loud bang.It was just the doctor and I left in the room, although I was very much aware of the men outside the door. She cleared her throat in discomfort before turning to address me. “I need to assess for any signs of internal bleeding and then, we'll….” I stopped listening after that and was just nodding. She wouldn't do anything to kill me anyway.It took some time, but she finally stopped probing and touching me at the most random places.I started feeling very sleepy halfway through her assessment, but I kept forcing myself to stay awake. At one point, I wondered if I had been given any sedatives, but I hadn't been given any drugs except painkillers.The moment she readjusted the head of the bed, I drifted off. In my half sleep state, I could hear the distant conversation she was having with Luca outside the door.I couldn't hear much of it,
I shot up from the table so fast that the equipment tray beside me almost toppled over.Pain shot up my arm, but it was nothing compared to the internal pain that was spreading around my body at her words.“What do you mean by that? Is my baby…?” I trailed off, holding a hand to my mouth to choke back a sob that was threatening to break out.Dr. Martin looked horrified. “Oh no! I'm so sorry that came out wrong. I meant to ask if you knew you were pregnant before you were taken,” she explained.I let out a sigh in relief, taking deep breaths to steady my breathing. “I thought you were trying to say that my child had died,” I managed to say. She shook her head apologetically. “It was a miscommunication on my part, I'm really sorry.”When I opened my mouth to speak again, no words came out. My throat felt like it was lodged with something. I felt like I needed to cry out, and so I did. I cried like a child. Dr. Martin must have been confused on what to do to comfort me because she wen
Avoiding Luca for the next couple of days was surprisingly easier than I thought. I guess a part of me was hoping he would incessantly try to get me to talk to him.After the day I went to the clinic to get the examinations done, I spent most of the time in my day with Maria or in the kitchen with Nora. Maria didn't ask anything about my pregnancy even though I was sure she wanted to.Luca was hardly in the house. He was always at work. Or somewhere. It's not like I even care. “Maria, where are my stockings? I do not like the way my feet feel against the carpet,” I said to her.“Uh…. Signora, I believe they are all in the master's bedroom,” she responded. “Would you like me to go get them for you?” I sighed. From what Maria told me, Luca has still not slept in our, or rather, his bedroom since the time he confined me in it. He has been staying in one of the other bedrooms and I have been staying in my former bedroom.“No, that's okay, I'll get it myself,” I said, standing up.Gabri
“I…I can't,” I croaked out, standing up to leave.Luca held my hand to stop me from leaving. I internally wished I hadn't taken the splint off yet. He wouldn't have held my hand then. “Don’t walk away from me like this,” he said gently.I softened at his touch, sitting back down, but this time, I looked straight ahead, even though I was well aware of his intense gaze at the side of my head.“They didn't feed me. I had no food for days,” I started. “All I got was stale bread that I couldn't eat. I felt like I was going to die for the first two days. My wounds were not healing. I was in so much pain, Luca.”He sucked in a deep breath. “I promise you, those bastards will pay, I'll make them…”“That doesn't change anything. It doesn't change what happened. It doesn't change the way I feel,” I cut him off with a shake of my head.Turning to him, I said. “Is this how it's going to be all the time? I would not be able to live my life because I'm scared of the next time I'll be kidnapped?” I
“I don't think you can…”“What? You don't think I can handle that? Don't you want to find out?” I asked slowly, coming to straddle him.Luca's eyes darkened, and he let out a low growl.He stood up and walked towards the bed with my small frame still wrapped around his body. His hand was on my ass to help hold me in place. My skin burned from his touch. I couldn't wait for him to touch me, to do with me as he pleased. He sat by the edge on the bed in such a way that I was still sitting on him. I could feel the curve of his dick pressing into my thighs. “Strip. Now!” He said in a deep voice. I swallowed, untangling myself from him so I was standing. I hadn't started showing yet, so there was no way Luca could have guessed I was pregnant. I pulled the sweatshirt over my head in one swift motion, throwing it to the side. My shorts went off next, landing in the small heap with the sweatshirt.The cool air came in contact with my skin, and my nipples tightened even more until they wer
I had just finished washing my hands and was back to where my men stood over Alice's body when I saw a ball of colours approaching me with speed from a distance. My face softened when the ball of colours got closer to me. Nazlynn threw herself into my arms, almost knocking us both off balance. I hugged her tight, breathing in her calming scent and presence. She ran her hand up and down the nape of my neck, and I involuntarily relaxed into it. She squeezed me tighter in her arms, like she was scared to let go.I attempted pulling away to see her face but she shook her head and held on firmly to me. Chuckling, I pulled her closer in my arms, placing a kiss into her hair. When she pulled away, she raked her eyes over my body, running her hand over it at the same time. “Are you hurt anywhere? Did you get… Oh my God, you're bleeding,” she said fearfully, as her hand touched a wet patch on my shirt.“No baby, hey, relax. It's water, I just washed my arms. I'm okay, I promise.”She nodded.
Elena ducked just in time for Enzo to aim for Alice's hand. The bullet went through her flesh, making her drop the gun and release her hold on Elena. She had pulled the trigger as her gun clattered to the ground.Alice glared at me, then looked at the door behind her through the corner of her eyes. I fired a shot as she pushed back into the door and into the library. I heard her groan that indicated my bullet had hit her but not enough to take her down.“I need someone in the rooms beneath and above the library. The rest of you secure this building in case there's a way outside of it. Gabriel, Enzo, with me,” I instructed before following behind her with my gun raised.Gabriel and Enzo walked silently behind me. When we got in, all the lights were turned off, making the library extremely dark. “You don't peg me as the ready type Alice. You can't exactly hide in there forever,” I called out as I walked further into the library.I silently cursed whoever had the idea of making a home
Enzo shot bullets after, but she was no longer in sight. “Go!” I barked at my men who were staring at the place where she stood in shock. “Don't kill her,” I said as they passed by me. “That's for me.”If anything, I was glad we left that floor and were going back to the ground.“I don't know who's sloppier, you or your men,” I heard her call out, cackling. “You have a lot of guts, talking when that would only help us find you faster,” I said, nodding to my men to follow the sound of her voice.“What makes you think that's not what I want?” She asked in a cunning tone. I halted my men, clenching my jaw.Her words were suggestive. The only thing I could think of was that she may be setting up a bomb inside, or she may have already done it within the few minutes she had earlier. She seems to like playing with explosives.She was behind a door, and we had the door surrounded from a safe distance. I knew my men were waiting for me to give a go ahead so they could march in, but everybod
I pulled Hailey out of her crib and into my arms, cradling her shakily. My eyes darted from Alice’s face to the door and back.Alice took a step towards me, and I scooted back on the floor, ignoring the stab of pain as my skin dragged across the shards of glass. “What's wrong? Waiting for hubby, or should I say your prince charming to save the day again?” She let out a menacing laugh. “Lucky for me, it's currently an all girl’s house.”“Please don't hurt my baby, I beg you, Alice,” I pleaded just as Hailey started to cry from the noise she had heard. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the door to the bathroom open slightly, and Enzo peeked into the room.He gave me a small nod. Once I saw him raise his gun, I ducked, covering Hailey with my entire body. Alice was faster than him, but unfortunately, she managed to dodge the bullets that Enzo rained down on her until she ran out through the door and into the main house.“Fuck,” he swore loudly, rushing to my side.“Are you okay? Did
Nazlynn’s POVAlice was certainly a girl who clearly didn't want to be found. Luca had his contacts pull some strings in the police department to put up a surveillance on her, but nothing has turned up so far. Nothing of essence was discovered at the house that Luca had found me in. Of course, his contacts in the police force had to cover up using some story about a robbery gone wrong. The bodies had already been taken care of by the time they arrived at the scene.I was up to speed at everything that was happening in no time. Elena and Mathias decided to have a small wedding but postponed it until after the whole Alice thing had been dealt with. Luca cleared things up with his father, and they were back to having their weird love-hate father-son thing. Whatever the hell that meant. I was about to convince Luca not to kill my so-called birth father. It's the least I could do since he saved my life.Our mansion was almost completely back on its feet, and we moved back in two days be
“What do you mean you couldn't find her?” I asked shakily. Luca gave me a concerned look.“Luca, what do you mean by that?” I asked again, scooting towards the head of the bed and away from him.“Hey Nazlynn, calm down, baby. I'm right here, and I'm not going to let anyone hurt you, okay?” He said, reaching out to me.I smacked his hand away before it could come in contact with my skin. “No! No, no. She's going to kill me. She's going to kill us all. My baby. Where's my baby?” I asked hysterically. Luca shot up from his position on the chair and approached me carefully. I could see concern for me in his eyes.“Wh..where's Hailey?” I stammered as tears started streaming down my face. “Dr Martin!” Luca said, trying not to shout too loudly but making sure his voice was loud enough. He kept his eyes on me. He edged closer to me until I was cowered up by a corner of the bed. “Gabriel, get Dr. Martin now!” He yelled again.I grabbed his hand tightly, and I could feel my fingernails diggi
Nazlynn’s POVLuca stared at me in shock for over a minute but didn't even give himself some time to answer me before standing up and yelling for Dr. Martin. I had expected to wake up to the pungent smell of a hospital room and the faint beeping of machines that had been working tirelessly to keep me alive but the room I was in looked like the average bedroom. Bright light seeped through the window, casting a glow over the space.As I struggled to sit up, the sharp pain shot through my whole body made me groan. Luca was back by my side in a flash. His gentle hand grasped my shoulder, easing me back onto the pillow.“Take it easy, chica bella. You'll rip your stitches,” he whispered softly. It had been so long since I heard his voice that I wanted to cry at the sound. It felt like music to my ears. Dr. Martin dashed in, greeting me with a smile before she began to do some further checks on me. It was extremely strange to hear someone tell you “welcome back to the living”. It should b
“Baby, can you hear me?” I asked, tightening my grip on her hand so I wouldn't miss any motion.“Gabriel,” I bellowed, and he scrambled in. “Get Dr. Martin here now! Tell her my wife moved,” I said without looking back.I heard no movement after a few seconds, and when I turned, I was met with a wide-eyed Gabriel who was staring at me with shock.Moving closer to her on the bed, I spoke again. “If you can hear me, can you tap me with your finger again?” There was nothing but I stayed put. It was a very uncomfortable position for me, holding Hailey up with one arm while the other was stretched out to her mother, but I was way past the point of caring.It was like Hailey knew something had just happened. She twisted her neck to see what I was doing.“She's here,” Gabriel announced barely five minutes after he had left. I frowned. That was fast.“Hey Luca. I was already on my way here when he called me. What's going on?” Dr Martin said, clearing my confusion as she approached us on the
“You found him?” I asked, shocked to hear it. “How?”Mathias gave me a look. “On my list of ten possible things you would say first, that certainly wasn't a part of it. Is there something else I should know, Luca?”I sighed in resignation. “He's her father Mathias, her birth father, and I think she should have a say in what we do with him,” I said truthfully. “Is he in our custody yet or….” I trailed off.“Not yet. We wanted to receive instructions from you first. I have guys watching and trailing his every move. He's been acting scared as fuck and I don't think it's just you he's afraid of,” he said.“Alice?” He nodded.“That girl must be a total nutcase. I can't help but wonder just what happened there. The only person who can tell us is well, not available,” I said looking at Nazlynn.“She's stronger than you give her credit for, I know she is. She'll pull through,” he said, giving me a pat on the back before standing up. He was almost at the door when he turned. “Come with me.”