Ava
My phone buzzes in my pants as soon as I step out of my art history test on Wednesday. I reach for it, my pulse thrumming when I see the unknown number flashing across the screen.I hesitate for only a second before answering, my hand fisting the phone tightly."Hello?""How are you, Ava?"That voice. I knew that voice. I grew up with that voice."Aaron?""The one and only"It's meant to come off as playful but there's a restrained edge to it. He sounds tired somehow and nothing like the boy I grew up with.Whereas that voice was lighter and always playful, this voice sounded older, wearier—like life had taken its toll on him in ways I would never understand.Why was he calling me? Now of all times. He abandoned me and now he's calling me like everything is just peachy between us when it's not. He knows it's not.I open my mouth to tell him he's an asshole for ignoring me for months and then trying to joke it off like nothing happeneAvaI jolt awake and I'm immediately immobilized by the pain spreading throughout my chest and my ribs Fuck. That’s going to leave a mark.My next breath comes in a shallow gasps as the sting sharpens, intensifying from the inside like a lit fuse. I blink against the harsh white blazing light above me, as the room I'm in comes into focus.I’m in a hospital that much I can tell from the beeping noise beside me and the annoying scent of disinfectant.My gaze glides around the room before landing on my husband's figure next to me.Nikolai is seated in the only chair beside the bed, his elbows to his knees, head bowed in his palms. He hasn't realised I'm awake yet I try to sit up but I am immediately pulled back down by the pain and give up.My body feels like shit, the upper part mostly. I feel nothing in the lower section, and that worries me. Did my getting shot somehow leave me paralyzed?God, I hope not.The heart monitor suddenly picks up and it's in that moment Nikolai raises h
AvaWhere am I?I glance around the room, my eyes eagerly scanning my surroundings as I try to figure out what this place is and why it feels so familiar.Had I been here before? Maybe. I'm seventy per cent sure I've seen those walls before.I lift my head. There's a single window nearly touching the ceiling but It's too high for me to reach. Maybe if I climb the walls. I think I see a stone out. If I could balance on it, maybe I could see what's on the other side.The thought is immediately discarded once I realise the walls are far too steep for any type of climbing.My gaze scans the room once more and I'm startled when I see something curled up in a corner.Or rather someone.It's a girl.What is she doing here?The first thing I notice about her is her dark brown hair. It's the same shade as mine except hers is longer and falls past her shoulders and knees as she buries her face in her lap, shoulders shaking.Is she crying?My body moves on instinct. Maybe if I can get her to s
NikolaiI've never been a fan of hospitals.The walls are always too clean. Too sterile. And the place reeks of blood and death. Two things I've never minded until now."Here" I look up from the palm of my hand to meet my brother-in-law and a canned soda from a brand I don't recognise looking down at me.When I don't take it he pushes it towards my face again and goes, "Here."Sighing, I mutter a quiet, “Thanks,” The last thing I want is a drink right now, but Aaron is being a persistent motherfucker, so I take the can but don't open it.We've been here for close to twelve hours now. Usually, I tend to avoid hospitals at all costs, but Ava's injuries were severe, more than what our doctors could handle. Bringing her here was the only shot I had to make sure that I didn't lose her. Her blood still clung to my fingertips, dried now, but the perspiration from the can made my grip slick.How could she have done that? Throwing herself in front of a bullet was beyond stupid, especially for
Hi readers 👋🏾 I understand there's been confusion on where Marcus was shot and that was completely my fault. Him being shot in the head was part of an earlier draft and I forgot to edit it out before I published the chapter. As of now I've edited it out (So no, you're not going crazy if you can't find it again)I'm sorry for the mix up but please note that Marcus wasn't shot in the head (As I don't think anyone can survive being shot in the head) Thank you and please react once you see this message so that I know it's reached enough people ❤️
Ava"Get the fuck away from my wife" Nikolai's voice booms throughout the warehouse. The sound ricocheted off the wall, informing me that his presence wasn't just a figment of my imagination. He was here. He was really here.My Nikolai. My husband. I want to run over to him and throw myself in his arms but the rough scrap of the zip ties against my wrist reminds me of my restraint.My gaze lifts to Antonio. His entire body is still and he looks like he's just seen a ghost. Panicked, he snaps his fingers and when his men don't appear at his side like before, he realises just how done for he really is."Motherfucker," he spits, his voice laced with disbelief and fury. "You took out my men?"Nikolai takes a slow step forward, a dark grin tilting his lips. "I did, but I cannot take all the credit." He glances behind him, just as a familiar figure emerges."Aaron?"My brother steps fully into the light, a gun in one hand and a bruised knuckle on the other. His shirt is bloodstained, thou
Ava This can't be happening. This cannot be happening. My entire life. Everything was a lie. Every. Single. Thing. "Why would you keep this from me until now?" My mother slept with Ricán O'Sullivan, who just so happens to be her first husband and my brother's father. Which meant that Aaron and I were siblings. Biological siblings, which meant that I was a mafia Princess. Oh, but not just any Mafia Princess, an Irish one. Me? My father— Marcus shrugs and slowly rounds my seat once more until he is standing behind me. He places both his hands on my shoulder, a gesture that I'd once found comforting but was now completely repulsed by. "I suppose it's because I've finally decided to collect what I'm owed." "I don't owe you anything," I say, twisting my head to face him. A dark twisted laugh leaves him, grip tightening around my shoulder. "You think that after everything I've given up to be your father, I'd really leave you empty-handed?" Unease twists my stomach and I cl