Chapter 27: Chapter 27: NO

I groaned as my head started to pound. I tried to hold it when I felt a sharp pain on my wrist, making me hiss.

I slowly opened my eyes and looked around the dim room. My heart started to pound in my chest as I realized I was in a basement.

I looked down at my hands and bit my lip hard to keep my tears in as I realized I was tied down.

“Leo?” I croaked, trying to look behind me. My breathing quickened as I looked around for him.

“LEO!” I screamed, panicking.

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” a voice screamed from the other side of the door.

The door opened and I squinted against the light. I recognized his voice from the accident, but I didn’t know his face.

“Where’s my son?” I asked.

“Your son?” a voice growled. I tensed as I recognized it as Johnathan’s and had to force myself to remember to breathe.

“Where’s Leo?” I pleaded.

“In his room,” Johnathan growled.

“He doesn’t have a room. Just give me my son. Johnathan, give me my son please,” I begged, doing my best not to sob.

“He’s my son too and you had no problem taking him from me,” he said, taking my face in his hand.

“Johnathan, please,” I sobbed.

His eyes darkened even more with anger and I gasped as his fist made contact with my cheek.

“YOU FUCKING LEFT KNOWING YOU WERE CARRYING MY SON!” he yelled. He pulled out a knife and cut the ropes before forcing me to my feet.

“WHY WOULD I TELL YOU? SO YOU COULD KEEP ME HOSTAGE? SO YOU COULD HIT HIM ANY CHANCE YOU GOT MAD? FUCK YOU, JOHNATHAN.

“I DON’T OWE YOU SHIT. YOU FUCKING RAPED ME AND THEN SHOT ME IN MY FUCKING STOMACH!” I screamed, pounding against his chest.

“HE’S MY SON!” Johnathan yelled, smacking me and making me fall.

“Mom?” Leo said softly.

Johnathan froze and turned to look at him. “What are you doing here?” Johnathan asked, walking up to him.

“I wanted to see Mom. I’m sorry,” Leo said, letting Johnathan pick him up.

Johnathan smiled and whispered something in his ear, making Leo laugh.

“Give me my son,” I said weakly.

Johnathan’s eyes darkened again and Leo hugged him in a way to calm him down. I turned my head away from them and covered my face as I did my best to keep my sobs quiet.

“Mommy will come see you later. Go finish playing with Uncle Viktor,” Johnathan said softly.

I turned to look at them as Leo nodded his head. Leo smiled and blew me a kiss before running off.

Johnathan stuck his head out of the doorway as if to make sure Leo really left before closing the door. He walked up to me and kicked me in my stomach.

“YOU TOOK HIM FROM ME!” he screamed, kicking me again.

“He was never yours,” I whimpered.

“YOU MADE ME MISS EVERYTHING. HIS FIRST WORD, HIS FIRST STEP—EVERYTHING,” he yelled, kicking me repeatedly.

“You raped me,” I sobbed weakly, looking up at him.

His foot halted for a second before he swung harder. I heard a crack and I knew he just cracked my ribs. He punched me in my face once before turning his attention back to my stomach.

“I FUCKING LOVE YOU! WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME? WHY?” he screamed, kicking me harder.

I whimpered as everything started to go black. He screamed something, but I was already out.

***

I sobbed as my body started to hurt.

“Shh, shh, it’s okay,” a voice said softly before I started to feel a hand stroke my hair.

“L-Leo,” I croaked.

“Shh, don’t try to talk,” the voice responded.

I heard heels clacking away from me before they came back. There was a beeping in the background like from a hospital and I felt the bed start to lean forward.

“You can open your eyes. I dimmed the lights,” the voice said.

I slowly opened my eyes to see the same lady doctor from before. I opened my mouth to ask for Leo again and she frowned at me. She walked away again and came back with a glass of water.

“Here,” she said, putting the water to my lips. She gave me two more cups before running tests on me.

“Where’s Leo?” I asked softly.

“I—what do you remember?” she asked.

“I-I don’t know,” I said, closing my eyes.

“Okay. It’s okay. I’ll go get Alex,” she said softly.

I opened my eyes just as she left the room and waited a couple of minutes before pulling the IV out of my arm. I weakly threw my legs over the side of the bed and stood up.

My legs started to shake and I gasped as I started to fall.

“LUNA!” Alex screamed as he ran up to me and caught me before I could come into contact with the ground.

“Where’s Leo?” I sobbed.

He sat me back on the bed and took a step back. “You were in a car accident with Leo. We knew something was wrong when you didn’t call or come back the next day.

“So we went to the house to look for you, but you weren’t there, so Giovanni suggested that maybe you took the long way because you liked looking out the window at everything.

“So we doubled back and took that way and that’s when we saw your car.” Alex cut himself off and released a shaky breath.

“The look on Giovanni’s face when he saw the car. He thought you were dead—we all did,” Bebe said, taking over for Alex.

I looked back at Alex just in time to see tears running down his cheeks. I weakly stood up again and wrapped my arms around him.

He released a shallow breath like he couldn’t believe I was hugging him and slowly wrapped his arms around me. He pulled away from me and I wiped the tears off his cheeks.

I sat back now and ran my fingers through my hair.

“We walked up to the car and the only thing we saw was Oreo in the back seat. There was blood on the driver’s seat and in the back seat but no bodies.

“We figured Johnathan knew you were home and he took you and Leo, so we decided to regroup come up with a plan to find you.

“The next day we suited up and were on our way to come and get you guys when a van pulled up. The driver was some guy that they paid to drop you off. Y-you—”

Alex cut himself off and shut his eyes tightly.

“You were strapped to a gurney, and—and you were beaten so badly. I don’t think I’d ever seen Giovanni so angry. He stayed by your side the entire time—we all did.

“Your ribs were cracked, your face was busted—it all looked so bad and nobody knew if you were going to make it or not.

“But the whole time—the whole time you were saying Leo’s name,” Bebe said, holding back tears.

The memories started to come back and I nodded my head. I looked down and lifted my shirt to look at the bandages wrapped tightly around my stomach.

Alex stared at the bandages as if I’d just stabbed myself over and over and he couldn’t do anything to stop me. I dropped my shirt and held my hand out for him to take.

He hesitated before taking it and sat down beside me.

“But where’s Leo?” I asked, looking between him and Bebe.

“We-we couldn’t find him,” Bebe said softly. She shook her head as tears started to run down her cheeks.

My breathing picked up and I stood up. “He-he’s with Johnathan?” I croaked.

“We think so,” Bebe said, nodding her head.

“No, no, no,” I sobbed.

“Luna,” Alex said softly.

“NO! I CAME HOME FOR YOU AND LOOK WHAT HAPPENED! HE HAS MY SON!” I sobbed.

Alex flinched like I slapped him and reached for me. “Luna, I’m so sorry,” he said as his eyes filled with tears.

“Don’t,” I said, shaking my head. I held my stomach as I limped out of the room. I leaned against the wall as I walked down the wall.

“Where are you going?” Giovanni asked, stopping in front of me. His eyes were red like he’d been crying, and his hair was a mess.

He had bags under his eyes like he hadn’t slept in days and was wearing the same clothes he was wearing when I last saw him.

“To find Leo,” I said, trying to walk around him. My body started to scream for me to lie down.

“Luna, you need to lie down,” he said, taking a step toward me.

I shook my head and stepped away from him.

“No, Giovanni, I ~need~ to find my son,” I said, shaking my head.

“We’ll find him,” he said softly.

“No. I want my son now,” I said, using the wall as support.

“Luna—”

“Giovanni, please,” I begged.

He shut his eyes tightly and nodded his head. “Fine,” he said before picking me up.

“What are you doing? I can walk,” I said as he started to walk toward the stairs.

“No, you can’t. You think I didn’t see you using the wall as support?” he asked, looking down at me.

I rolled my eyes at him before placing my head on his chest.

He walked into his office and put me on his couch before closing the door.

“Why haven’t you been sleeping?” I asked as I watched him walk up to his desk.

He hesitated and grabbed some papers before walking up to me. “I’ve been worried,” he said simply.

“About what?” I asked, watching him closely.

He sat down beside me and handed me the papers. “You,” he said, catching me off-guard.

“Me?” I asked, turning to look at him.

“So far, all we’ve got is a few ideas of where he might be. That driver that brought you here doesn’t know anything. All we know is he was paid six hundred dollars to bring you here.

“You were already in the van when he got it, and he drove you here from a gas station about two miles from here.

“He couldn’t see their faces because they had on masks, but he knew they were Russian from their accents,” he said instead of answering my question.

I opened the file and started to flip through the papers. I hesitated on one with addresses as I recognized one.

“What do you see?” Giovanni asked.

“This one. This is the warehouse we went to before,” I said, pointing at it.

He looked at me like he was about to ask if I was sure but decided against it. He nodded his head and took the paper before leaving the room.

I waited a couple of minutes before leaving myself and going to where I remembered he kept all the weapons. I grabbed the book that opened the bookshelf and stepped inside.

I took off the hospital shirt and pants and pulled on a black matching tank top and leggings. I hid the clothes farther into the room before grabbing two guns and knives.

I snuck up to Giovanni’s room and grabbed a pair of my boots before sliding the knives inside. I left the room and snuck into the garage without being seen.

“Where are we going?” Giovanni asked, making me jump.

“I’m going to get my son,” I said, walking up to one of the cars.

“Luna, we’re going to get him. You need to stay here,” he said, following me.

“How long did it take for me to wake up?” I asked, climbing into the car.

“Three days,” he said, getting into the passenger seat.

“That’s how long you had to find him and save him,” I said, opening the visor and grabbing the keys.

“Don’t do that,” he said, taking my hand in his.

“Did you look?” I asked as my voice wavered.

“I haven’t been just worried about you. I’ve been up for the past three nights by your bedside doing everything I could to find Leo.

“I understand you’re worried and freaking out, but don’t shit on everybody here, especially when all they want is to help you,” he said, letting my hand go and turning his head out the window.

I bit my lip and put my head on the steering wheel. “I’m sorry,” I croaked as tears ran down my cheeks.

He took my face in his hands and smiled sadly. “It’s okay,” he said softly as he wiped the tears off my cheeks. He started to lean into me and froze as if he realized what he was doing.

He pulled away from me and reached in his pockets before handing me a bottle of painkillers. I took two from the bottle and he handed me a bottle of water, making me smile.

“Thanks,” I mumbled after I’d finished taking the pills.

He nodded his head and I typed the address in before opening the garage. Lorenzo and Dimitri were leaning against an SUV and stood up straight when they noticed us.

“Ready when you are,” Dimitri said before he and Lorenzo got into the car.

There were four more cars and the windows were tinted, so I couldn’t see if Alex was there.

I bit my lip before driving off. I stopped a block away from the warehouse and parked. Giovanni and I got out of the car.

“Pop the trunk,” he said, closing his door.

I pressed the button to open the trunk and followed him to the back of the car. He pulled out a gun and cocked it before tucking it into his jeans.

I grabbed a machine gun and strapped it before cocking the guns I’d taken earlier.

“When did you get those?” Giovanni asked, watching me intently.

“Earlier,” I mumbled.

Everybody joined us in a circle when they were done strapping up themselves.

“We need to go in quietly. Only increase the volume if you have to. Find Leo—that’s our priority,” Giovanni said softly.

Everybody nodded their heads before splitting up. My eyes landed on Alex and I cautiously walked up to him.

“I’m sorry for what I said earlier,” I said softly.

He shook his head and turned to look at the building. “You were right,” he said before walking away.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before joining the team that was going in through the front door. They stood there debating the best way to go in quietly.

I clenched my jaw as I did my best not to get mad at them.

“The kid,” Giovanni growled, catching their attention.

I reached down and pulled two of the knives from my boot before walking up to the two guards who were guarding the door.

The first one slowly looked me up and down, letting his eyes pause over my breasts. He looked at his friend and gave him a sly smirk before walking up to me.

“Привет, красавица,” he said, smirking. (Hello, beautiful.)

“Спокойной ночи,” I said before slashing his throat. (Good night.)

His partner’s eyes widened and he reached for his gun, but I had already thrown the knife, hitting him directly between his eyes before he could.

“~Merda~,” Giovanni mumbled, walking up to me.

“~Linguaggio~,” I responded while picking the lock. (Language.)

The door opened and I went inside before he could respond.

“Where do you think he is?” Giovanni asked as I took the room in.

The outside made it look like it was a warehouse, but Johnathan changed the inside so it looked like a house.

There was a chandelier in the middle of the room and stairs on either side of the hallway. He’d even put up paintings and had painted the walls so they weren’t bland.

“He kept me in the basement and he wouldn’t want Leo to hear what he was doing to me, so upstairs,” I said, pointing toward the stairs.

He nodded his head and turned to tell the others.

I walked toward the stairs, making sure to stay in the dark spots, and threw my knives at the guards. They both looked at each other as they started to fall.

They fell with a thud and I rolled my eyes, knowing we were about to get company.

“You couldn’t wait?” Giovanni growled from behind me.

I turned around to look at him and shook my head.

He opened his mouth to respond, but I kissed him before he could. I pulled away from him and shushed him quietly.

I turned around just as a guard turned the corner where I was hiding, and I stabbed him in his eye. He screamed in pain and Giovanni shot him.

“You kissed me to shut me up?” he asked, catching my attention.

I rolled my eyes and pulled him into me before kissing him again. “I kissed you because I love you. There are other ways to shut you up,” I said, pulling away from him.

He frowned in confusion and I gave him a sad smile before stepping out.

I counted the number of guards and held my hands up like I was surrendering and threw the machine gun on the ground toward them.

The guards looked to one guy and he nodded his head. Two of the guards started to walk toward me and I grabbed my gun before shooting the boss.

Everybody hesitated as they watched the boss’s body drop.

Giovanni and the rest of the guys stepped out as they started to fire shots at everybody. I looked back at them and nodded once before running up the stairs.

I took a deep breath before opening one of the doors. There was nobody inside, but it looked like a game room. I checked all the rooms, only for them to be empty.

There was only one room left and I said a silent prayer as I walked up to it. I turned the doorknob, only for it to be locked.

I shot the doorknob, making it break, and walked into the room. I walked further into the room as I tried to see if Leo was in it.

The lights turned on and I felt a kick in my back, making me fall forward. I gasped in pain as I felt a hand painfully pull my hair.

“Вы пришли, чтобы убить меня?” Johnathan asked, laughing in my ear. (Have you come to kill me?)

I threw my head back, hitting him in his nose and making him let my hair go. I stood up quickly and got in my fighting stance.

“Я был вашей сукой в ​​течение многих лет. Теперь ваша очередь, чтобы увидеть, что это такое,” I growled. (I’ve been your bitch for years; now it’s your turn.)

He looked up at me and the anger was evident in his eyes. He started to run toward me and I roundhouse kicked him, making him fall.

“Похоже, я научил тебя хорошо лепесток,” he said, smirking. (Looks like I taught you well petal.)

He stood up and got in his own stance.

“Where’s my son? Where’s Leo?” I asked, watching him.

“I killed him,” he said without missing a beat.