All Chapters of I Endured Her Moans Until I Couldn’t: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

Alessio's POVAmbulance sirens tore through the night.I sat in the back like a zombie, watching Aurelia on the stretcher.Her face was chalk white. Blood was still seeping from under her dress."Hurry!" my mother yelled at the driver. "Faster!"I felt nothing.Numb. Completely numb.Thea was gone. Now Aurelia was miscarrying. Everything was ruined.The emergency room of the family's private hospital was a blur of lights.Doctors swarmed around Aurelia. My father was anxiously questioning them."How is she?""She's lost a lot of blood. Needs surgery immediately." The head doctor frowned. "But...""But what?""If we lose this baby, she might not be able to have another."My mother's face grew even paler."You have to save the baby!""We'll do our best."The doors to the operating room swung shut. The red light came on.I sat on a bench in the hallway, staring at that door.But I wasn't thinking about Aurelia. I was thinking about Thea, somewhere out there.Where is she now?Is she safe?

Alessio's POVMy mother went wild, grabbing a water glass from the nightstand and smashing it on the floor."Liar!" she shrieked. "Bastard child!"Glass shattered everywhere. Aurelia and her mother cowered in fear."Mrs. Santoro, please, calm down—" Aurelia's mother tried to reason with her.CRACK!My mother slapped her, too."Calm down?" My mother's eyes were murderous. "You used a bastard to poison our family's bloodline, and you tell me to be calm?"She grabbed a vase and hurled it against the wall."Two years! Two whole years!" my mother roared. "I treated a fraud like a daughter-in-law!"Aurelia slid off the bed and knelt in front of me.Her face was swollen from the slaps, her eyes filled with desperation."Alessio, please, let me explain," she begged, clutching my pant leg. "I love you! I did all of this because I love you so much!"I looked down at her without a trace of pity."Love?" I laughed, a dead, empty sound. "You call mutilating your own child love?""I... I just wanted

Thea's POVAutumn sunlight streamed through the blinds, striping the botanical prints on my desk with light and shadow.I gently traced a finger over a 1920s edition of Wild Flowers of North America, feeling the yellowed paper.It was quiet here.So quiet I could almost forget the nightmares of the past.This little Vermont town was called Maple Creek, surrounded by rolling green mountains, like a sanctuary cut off from the world.I’d been here for eight months.For the first time in a long time, I was sleeping through the night."Thea, what are you looking at?" Margaret, the shop owner, came over with a cup of hot tea."A 1920s wildflower guide," I said, taking the cup. "The illustrations are beautiful."Margaret was a kind woman in her sixties, her silver hair always neatly coiffed.She'd taken me in, a stranger with no past, given me a job and a place to stay."You've always had a feeling for plants," she smiled. "No wonder the children love your floral art class."The floral art cl

Alessio's POVThe next day, the negotiations went smoothly.Emma laid out the foundation's projects in detail, and I generously committed to the funding amount."Mr. Santoro, you're too kind," Emma beamed. "The children will be so happy.""I have a strong interest in children's education," I probed. "Especially in the arts. When will your floral art teacher be back?"Emma's smile stiffened slightly. "Oh, Sarah... it might be a few more days. The botanical exhibition is very important.""She must be very talented," I pressed. "You can see it in the children's work.""Yes, she has a gift," Emma said, quickly changing the subject. "We have some other programs I'd like to show you."I knew she was hiding something, but I didn't push.At three in the afternoon, I was preparing to leave Maple Creek.Just then, the sky turned dark."Boss, the weather service just issued a blizzard warning," Marco said, looking at his phone. "They're advising all vehicles to stay off the roads."I looked up at

Thea's POV"Someone's over here!"A faint voice pierced through the thick layer of snow.I held tight to an unconscious Alessio, feeling his breathing grow weaker and weaker."Here! We're here!" I screamed with all my might.The sound of shovels digging grew closer.Ten minutes later, the blinding light of a flashlight shone in."Found them!" a rescuer yelled. "One male, one female! Male is seriously injured!"More people rushed to dig.When they finally pulled us out of the snow, Alessio's face was completely drained of color."Hurry! Faint heartbeat!" a medic said, checking his pulse. "Get him to a hospital now!"The sound of a helicopter's rotors tore through the silent night.I was put on a stretcher next to Alessio.An oxygen mask covered his face. The monitors beeped urgently."He's going to be okay, right?" I grabbed the medic's arm."He's badly injured," the medic said, his face serious. "Possible spinal damage."Spinal damage.Those two words made my heart stop.The helicopter