Titi Iku: Until Death (Sequel To Irikuri)

33- Until...Death

The blast knocked me off of my feet, but it clearly was only intended to hurt the people on the stage. I was fine besides a couple scratches and bruises. I dusted myself off and ran towards Ade. Parts of the stage were burning and I knew there was a risk of multiple bombs being present, but the risk was low enough for Ade to be my priority. This was clearly an assassination; they didn't need multiple bombs. I still looked around ensuring that my loved ones were exiting the building as I continued to run. My dress kept interfering and I pulled out my knife, slashing the bottom of the skirt off in frustration. I kicked off my heels and arrived by his side within seconds. Before I even looked at him it was obvious he needed an ambulance, but I realized I had left my phone in my purse on our table.

"HAS ANYONE CALLED 911? HE NEEDS AN AMBULANCE! SOMEONE CALL 911! PLEASE! I DON'T HAVE MY PHONE!" One of the security guards helping people out of the building agreed to call and came to stand by my side. I looked at him skeptically, wondering how the security guards that were supposed to be stationed directly above the stage had disappeared. Something told me it wasn't divine intervention that ensured they weren't standing on the balcony that was now scorched black, but I knew the issue would have to wait. All I could focus on now was Ade's crumpled form on the floor. I hated that I felt the need to take his pulse, but I slowly placed my fingertips on his wrist, fighting back tears when I managed to feel the weak rhythm of a heartbeat that had lulled me to sleep every night for almost a year.

"Mrs. Eesuola..." the security guard spoke in an eerily calm voice, like he knew whatever he said next could set me off.

"What?"

"They're saying we have to move him."

"Huh? Move what? Do you see him? I'm not even sure if any of his bones are intact. What if we move him and his injuries worsen?"

"Unfortunately, that's a risk we'll have to take. The structure may not be sound here. There was an explosion and if the structure starts collapsing, none of us will be safe."

"It won't."

"Excuse me?"

"It won't collapse. If you're scared, feel free to leave as long as the ambulance is on its way, but I'm not moving him unless it's going to help him."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Okay. Since he's flat on his back and there's no external bleeding they say there isn't much else we can do but wait for the ambulance, it should be here in about two minutes."

"Thank you." I turned away from him after hearing confirmation from the 911 operator, signaling that he could leave, and faced Ade. I hadn't wanted to look at him. I knew he wouldn't want me to see him that way, but I couldn't help it. I glanced over his body, the back of his suit slightly scorched by the blast he had so narrowly escaped. Some of his limbs were bent oddly and he clearly had quite a few burns and scrapes, but he was still so beautiful. I took in his face and smiled, laying down next to him.

"You know" I whispered "I hate to stroke your ego, but you don't look half bad for somebody who was just thrown halfway across the room like a ragdoll. Don't be mad at me...I had to break the ice somehow." I chuckled, before glancing at his face and quickly realizing our situation again " I umm...I don't know how bad your injuries are. But I know that you can't leave me. Not like this, okay? I mean damn - they couldn't have done a sharpshooter or sniper or something? At least then I'd have someone to hunt down...this is just undignified. But, we don't need to worry about that because you're going to make it. And when you do, I'm going to do better, I promise. For both of us..." a deep sigh left my mouth.

"I know you're probably wondering 'what more could my amazingly flawless wife have to improve upon?' Well... I haven't been honest with you." His pulse sped up, thumping lightly against the wrist I still held in my hands. I fought the urge to laugh. "I have a feeling you can hear me in there, so before you have a heart attack and actually kill yourself, remember that I would never cheat on you or watch the season finale of our show without you. You can rest assured." his pulse slowed back to normal "I just haven't been honest with you about how I've been feeling. And that's not fair because I know it's important to you. You already understand that I have issues. I don't talk too much about what happened when I was a kid, but the gist is that I was convinced that every trait I had was negative at one of the most formative stages of my life. I know she probably wasn't right, I know she was abusive, and I know that you, my friends, my parents, and maybe even people that don't know me have a much better perception of me than I do. But I still haven't been able to shake it. It's like I'm fighting with myself. I doubt my own thoughts constantly and I'm hypercritical of everything I do. The worst thing about it is every time I'm with you lately or even think about how much I love you, my mind just goes to all the reasons why I don't deserve you. Even right now something about seeing you like this doesn't feel like a shock because I feel like I knew it was going to happen...I couldn't lay in your arms without feeling anxious and waiting for the other shoe to drop because I just knew the universe couldn't let me be as happy as you've made me. It sounds so gross when I say it. Maybe that's part of why it was hard for me to tell you, but the main reason was I was scared it would change what we had. I know that my mental health has been a concern before and I was just scared that if it made you say no to us then, it could make you say no to us now. It still wasn't fair of me to hide it from you, and that's why I need you to survive this. I need to make things right and prove to myself that I can have the happy future I deserve with you." I saw the paramedics hurrying towards us from the corner of my eye. I continued to speak to him as they put him on the stretcher and transported him to the ambulance. There wasn't much more for me to say as I hopped in the back with him, so I just kept repeating the only thing that felt right anymore. "I love you. I love you. I love you. More than you could ever comprehend."

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I paced back and forth in the waiting room. Sayo was with her mother who had just been treated for a few fractured ribs and a broken arm and leg.The doctors assured me that she would make a complete recovery, so my focus was on Ade now. My heart jumped into my throat as his doctor approached me.

"Mrs. Eesuola?"

"That's me."

"Unfortunately I don't have good news. Would you like to sit?"

"I'll stand."

"Okay. Well, we've been running some tests and concluded that your husband is suffering from a traumatic brain injury in addition to internal bleeding, a broken rib, and multiple minor injuries. As a result of the damage to his cerebral hemisphere, he is currently in a coma. The chances of him waking up with the level of damage are slim to none and the possibility of him making a full recovery once he wakes diminishes as more time passes. We will give him as long as possible, especially considering that money isn't an issue for Mr. Eesuola. But..." Everything else the doctor said began to blur into background noise for me.

"Can I see him?" I interrupted him mid sentence

"Yes, but-"

"Take me to him please" I interrupted again. Once we reached the room, I sat by Ade's bedside and looked at him for what felt like hours. I placed my hand in his and tried to find words, but nothing felt right. Words couldn't work for me anymore, only action. I sighed and settled for kissing him on the cheek before slipping out of the door. I didn't see his hand twitch behind me as I exited.

———-

I called in a favor with the most trustworthy security guard I knew and made sure that Ade, his mother, and our family waiting in the hospital would have 24/7 protection. I also called Ade's assistant and ordered him to find the best neurosurgeons and coma experts in the world and fly them to New York to help Ade - no matter the cost.

My next instinct was to take an Uber to my destination, but I couldn't risk being tracked where I wanted to go. I took a taxi to the closest car rental shop and got a car for 3 days. Then, I put my phone on airplane mode so I couldn't be tracked and sped off into the night. Every molecule in my body was begging me to turn around and go back to where I belonged - sitting next to my husband praying for a miracle. But, I forced those thoughts out of my mind. I couldn't turn back. I couldn't stop. I couldn't even cry or feel anything but rage and determination. Everything I was doing was for Ade. If he was awake, he would tell me it was time to execute phase 1 of our plan. I planned on doing just that.