Blush (24 page)

“Where the fuck were you?“ she yells at
him.

“Sera—“

“Don't you try to placate me you son of a
bitch. Where were you when security was all up Jesse's ass but
leaving Lucy wide fucking open? One security guard out back with
mobs of fans along the barricades? Are you fucking stupid?“ She
shoves him, hard.

He looks at me.

“Dude. Better not…“ Ethan warns.

Cage looks at Damian. “What the fuck
happened? Where was her detail?“

“Mike said they were there when she went on
stage and when she came off the only one still there was him. Gio
was at the bus with Misty but the others were fucking gone, man,“
Damian explains with barely checked rage.

“Who.“ It's neither a question or a statement
but rather a threat.

Damian stares at Cage and Cage nods.

“They fucked up. This is going to be a
massacre when I get off the phone with Giovanni Russo,“ Cage says
with a cold smile.

I have no idea what they're talking about but
Sera tenses up.

“What are they talking about?“ I ask.

She shakes her head. “Not here.“

“Where better?“ I ask. “The fucking
morgue?“

She flinches but meets my gaze. “The
Manzini's.“

“What?“

“The motherfuckers who killed my parents,“
she whispers. “They saw we were on tour and were making threats.
Cage, Damian, and Grandpa Russo arranged for more security.
Apparently some of the security wasn't really security.“

I run a hand through my hair. “Jesus fucking
Christ.“ What the fuck is going on? Is this shit real? “Shit like
this only happens in movies,“ I murmur aloud.

“No, Jesse. Shit like this happens in our
family. It happens all the time. It just hasn't been this close to
us because we haven't been this exposed,“ she corrects.

“Whoa,“ Xander whispers.

I look around the room. It's empty except for
all of us. Someone cleared out the strangers.

Cage meets my gaze. “I've got a phone call to
make.“ He doesn't look away.

My jaw hardens, my fists clench. “Tell Mr.
Russo I'd really like it if he could come to Denver.“

Cage nods once, hits his speed dial.
“Giovanni,“ he bites out as he turns and walks out the double
doors.

“So, wait,“ I say. “Cage and Damian,“ I look
at him now and he nods. He lifts his shirt sleeve to show me an R
tattoo encased in what looks to be an E.

“What does that mean?“

Sera looks at Damian who nods once. “He's a
Russo enforcer.“

I let out an incredulous laugh. “Does shit
like this really happen?“

“Yes,“ Sera deadpans.

I swallow hard, again, and nod. “Fuck. How do
I keep her safe from this shit?“

“You don't,“ Cage says, walking back in. “We
do. Giovanni's plane is being fueled up as we speak. He'll be here
in a few hours.“

Cage's phone rings and he answers, listening,
scowling.

“Excuse me for saying but you were supposed
to keep her safe before and you fucked the pooch on that one, Cage
dude,“ Xander tells him. “How do you fucking figure you can keep
her safe now? Is she even fucking safe back there? What if one of
the staff is in with those Manzini motherfuckers?“ he all but
shouts.

Cage hangs up.

“Names were checked by Damian. We've got
security in there with her and the detail we had assigned to her,
they found their bodies in a storage closet,“ Cage tells us
straight up, as if this were any ordinary piece of information. Oh
sure, dead bodies in the closet. No big deal.

“Does Lucy know?“

“No,“ Sera tells me.

“Don't you think this is something you should
fill her in on so she can, oh, I don't know, look out for herself
and keep her eyes open for fucked up motherfuckers who want to kill
her?“ Xander seethes.

Cage steps forward. “It's not Sera's
doing.“

“Yours?“ he bites out.

“No. Her grandfather. The threats weren't
toward her but rather toward Sera but we still took every
precaution we could against this happening. I don't know how they
got through, but you can bet your ass I'm going to find out and
when I do, I'll be taking care of the problem personally,“ Cage
tells me, deadly calm, but rage burning in his eyes.

I nod and wonder just how deep he is in with
the Russo…cartel? Clan? Mob? Mafia? Shit, I have no idea what to
even call them.

“Mr. Kingston?“

I run over to the nurse. “How is she? How's
Lucy?“

“She's critical but stable. We're
transferring her to ICU. With the hit to the head, she would have
been… well, not okay, but not critical. It was the fall that hurt
her so much. According to the gentleman that accompanied her in the
ambulance, she fell onto her injured hand and when she landed on
the other hand, it fell right onto a piece of glass from a glass
your wife was drinking from.“

“Jesus,“ I whisper, running my hands through
my hair.

“When her hands gave out she tried to twist
and did a good job of not falling on her face, but she hit the side
of her head and when it hit, it bounced two or three times. Mr.
Grimaldi—“

“Who?“ I ask.

“Mike,“ Sera tells me.

“Mr. Grimaldi wasn't sure about the number of
times her head bounced off the pavement. Now, there is a gap
between your brain and your skull, very small but it's there. So
imagine when your head goes forward quickly, your brain follows the
gravitational pull and goes backward, hitting the back of the
skull.“

“Oh my God,“ Sera cries. I wrap an arm around
her and pull her to me. I need her as much as she needs me right
now because this doesn't sound good. This doesn't sound fucking
good at all.

“There's swelling of Luciana's brain and
we're monitoring a small area of bleeding. If it doesn't stop or
increases, we'll have to do emergency surgery to stop it
immediately. As it is, she's had two seizures since she's been
admitted. We're monitoring her very closely and medicating her as
best as we can. In addition to that—“

“As if that wasn't enough,“ Xander
murmurs.

The nurse nods. “Indeed. Luciana lost a lot
of blood. Head wounds bleed more than any other wound on the body.
We've already begun transfusing her.“

“I'm a match with her,“ Sera tells the nurse.
“Can I donate directly to her?“

“Of course. Luciana's blood type is rare so
that'd be appreciated.“

“I'll donate if I match,“ Xander steps
up.

“We all will,“ I say as everyone steps
forward.

The nurse smiles. “Well, let's get you all
typed then while they get Luciana set up in ICU. Oh, and by the
way, Giovanni Russo has taken steps to keep the media at bay.“

“How do you know my grandpa?“ Sera asks.

“Let's just say he saved my ass when it
needed saving.“

Sera nods.

“Alright,“ nurse, I strain my neck to look,
nurse Sandy Baker, says, “let's get set up for typing.“

“Generosity is giving
more than you can and pride is taking less than you need.“

—KHALIL GIBRAN

I COULD SEE the light, I just couldn't reach it.
It's so dark, like being in a tunnel. I see myself, my hair matted
to my head with blood, wearing a hospital gown, running barefoot
through the tunnel toward the opening.

“
Lucy, you don't want to go that way,“ a familiar
feminine voice calls out. “You can't get to where you need to go
from there.“

I slow my running and turn around.

“
I'm dreaming?“ I ask.

With a soft smile, Lily Manzini tells me, “No, not
dreaming, Lucy, but if you keep going toward the light, you won't
be able to get back to the people who need you.“

“
I tried,“ I cry out, lungs burning with exertion,
frustration, and exhaustion. “I can't get out over there.“

“
You can,“ she tells me, running her hand over my
hair after I drop to my knees. “You just have to be patient,
something I know you're not good at.“

I give her a wry grin. “That's an
understatement.“

She nods. “You need to rest for just a little
longer, Lucy, before you can go back. You've been through a
terrible trauma and your body and your little ones,“ she tells me,
kneeling before me and pressing her hand to my abdomen, “they need
a little longer to recover.“

“
But they need me,“ I begin to panic. “I can hear
them calling my name, Aunt Lily. I can't stay here while they
suffer.“

“
You can and you will.“

“
But—“

“
Lucy, you have given to everyone all of your
life, now it's time to give to yourself.“

“
What do you mean?“

“
Give yourself time. Time to heal. Time to adjust
to all the changes going on inside your body and in your life.“ She
smiles that soft smile again. “I know you're having a difficult
time with this touring business and with the Blush Baby title, but
it will work out. Take this time to center yourself. Focus in your
mind on what needs to be done to get where you need to go and then
set a reasonable pace to get there. No rushing. No forcing things.
Everything happens in its own time and it happens that way for a
reason.“

“
What reason?“ I ask, totally baffled that Sera's
mom is standing before me, touching me, when she'd been murdered so
many years ago. She seems so at peace, serene, happy.

She shakes her head and cups my cheek. “We never
know the answers. Even now I don't understand why things happened
the way they did, why we had to leave Serafina behind. I'm only
thankful she survived.“

“
She's not whole anymore, Aunt Lily.“

“
She's far better than she was and that thanks
goes to you and your parents. And she'll be whole again
soon.“

I don't realize I'm crying until she wipes my
cheeks.

“
She would love to see you. So much.“

“
She does,“ she tells me. “I meet her in her
dreams along with her father. We do what we can and you've done
what you can, but now, with your continued support, she needs to
find her way. Her soulmate awaits her.“

“
Who?“ I ask, more than a little curious.

She smiles wider this time. “You know I can't tell
you that but rest assured he is her 'one' and he is everything she
needs. He already is, even if she doesn't know it yet.“

“
Well, when has anything been easy when it comes
to Sera?“ I snicker.

“
That's the truth, but when has anything been easy
with you, as well?“

A little more than confused I open my mouth, then
close it.

“
You've sacrificed for everyone but yourself,
Lucy. Take the time now to rest, recover, and become whole again.
Do it for yourself and do it for your bambina.“

My head jerks up from where her hand still rests on
my abdomen.

“
A baby girl?“ A lone tear falls down my
cheek.

She merely smiles, neither confirming nor
denying.

“
You need to walk back, Lucy. Let their voices and
the light of their love guide you, but take your time getting
there. Don't strain and don't rush. Do it in your time, not theirs.
They'll still be there when you awaken. I promise,“ she tells me,
helping me stand.

“
Will she believe me if I tell her I saw you?“ I
ask.

“
She will. And now I must go.“ She looks to the
light. “Remember, Lucy. Patience.“

She starts to pull away, her hand slipping from
mine. I reach out to her.

“
I'll visit you in your dreams, Luciana.“

“
Ti amo, bella mia Lily.“

“
Ti amo, cuore tenero.“

She walks toward the light, her essence becoming
more and more translucent until she vanishes.

“
Tender heart“ she called me, and I admit that I
am. I sigh as I look away from the light and into the darkness.
Patience, she said. Hell. I don't have any but apparently I need to
find some and quick like, so now I'm going to take my time moseying
on back to wherever it is I need to go. I'm pretty sure it's where
that glow of red is in the sky, but I'm tired now, so
tired.

A shooting pain splits through my head and I fall
backwards, landing on a plush sofa that wasn't there a second ago.
The pain, it feels like someone is inside my brain zapping it with
a Taser then stabbing it with an ice pick. I cradle my head in my
hands as foreign hands pull me gently back to lie on the sofa. All
I see is a pinpoint of piercing light surrounded by blackness so I
close my eyes. A hand rests on my forehead, gently brushing my hair
back. So relaxing. The pain begins to ebb and eases into a dull
throb.

I take a deep breath and the warmth of the blanket
surrounds me. I have no idea where I am or how these things keep
happening, but I need to listen to Aunt Lily. I can't go back to
where I need to go. Not yet. I don't have the strength to get
there.