Sleeping With the Enemy

Sequel: Chapter Two

"Can we do anything to help mom? I can go to the hotel and get your bag and bring it back if you want?" James offered.

"That's okay, sweetie. You guys need to go home and get some rest. I'll be fine tonight and we'll deal with all of that in the morning." I assured him. "I know tonight was scary. Are you guys doing okay?"

They all nodded.

"Just glad everything is okay." Gemma said. "Will you tell we love him?"

"Of course, I will." I hugged her tight. "Try to get some rest tonight, okay? Your dad and I love you guys so much."

"I love you, too, mom."

"Bye mom!"

I walked out with the kids and waved from the entrance as they drove off with Stephen and Lorraine. That was the safest possible place they could be tonight, and I felt a little bit of relief. Once I was sure they were okay, I went back into the hospital and found my way to Brandon's room.

It was dark when I opened the door, and Brandon was laying in the hospital bed. He was still, and a little bit pale, but other than that, he looked completely normal.

Even as I sat down, I couldn't stop staring, so relieved and thankful that he was alive. I reached for his hand, and right as I grabbed it, he lurched back and shrieked as if he was in pain, but a sneaky smirk pulled at his lips.

"I was wondering when you were going to get here."

"Jesus, Brandon." I gasped, trying to clam myself back down. "You scared me."

"Sorry, babe. Just trying to lighten the mood." His sleepy smile was so damn adorable.

"How are you feeling?" I grabbed his hand, sweeping my thumb across the back of it.

"Tired and sore. And like I could use a double shot of whiskey." He chuckled, amused with himself.

"Please don't every do that again, okay?" I fought back my tears.

"Joke around with you?" He arched an eyebrow at me.

"No." I shook my head. "Don't try to be a hero and put yourself between me and a gun. You could have died."

Brandon rolled his eyes. "Sadie, I will always take a bullet for you. You know that. You or any of the kids. Speaking of which, how are they?"

"They're fine. They went home with your parents." I said. "No one else was hit, thank goodness."

Brandon was silent.

"Do you think this was a hit?" I was almost afraid to know the answer. If someone put a hit out on Brandon, this wouldn't be the end of it.

"Is Alex still here?" He ignored my question.

"Yes, he and Eli are in the waiting room still." I frowned. "Why? What's going on?"

"I need to talk to Alex, Sadie. We need to get some things in place."

"No, you were just shot and had major surgery. What you need to do is rest, and let other people handle things for a little while." I said pointedly. The man couldn't even stop working long enough to recover from a nearly fatal incident.

Brandon chewed on his cheek, holding something back. There was more he wanted to say, but he was hesitant.

"Sadie, it was hit. Someone knew we were going to be there, and came for a specific reason. But I wasn't target." He said.

"What do you mean?"

"Our daughter was." He said, holding back his rage. "They were after Gemma."

"Wh-what?" I stuttered.

"I recognized one of the guys. He's with a street gang down in Jersey. We got a few threats lately, but nothing credible enough to..."

"You knew about this?" My eyes widened. "You knew someone was after her and you didn't tell me?"

"Babe, you've got to calm down. Nothing mentioned her directly, but they have a problem with women being in charge. I've had extra security on Gemma for months, I just haven't told either of you about it because I didn't want to worry you until I knew how serious it all was. It didn't make sense until I saw the man tonight before he shot me."

"Is she in danger now?" I asked, the fear and anxiety from earlier bubbling up.

"I need to talk to Alex."

His avoidance of my question told me everything I needed to know.

A few minutes later, Alex joined us.

"How you holding up, boss?" He grinned.

"I've been better, that's for sure." Brandon said. "It was Diego. I saw one of his men."

Alex nodded. "I figured as much. He's already taking responsibility for it, but the details aren't out there. No one knows who was hit or how bad. What do you want me to do?"

Brandon took a deep breath, and I could see the thoughts swirling in his mind. "Get word out that I'm fine. Just a flesh wound. Make sure everyone knows it was a totally botched hit."

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Alex asked. "That seems like poking the bear."

"I know. It's the only way to get Diego himself out in the open."

"And how do you intend to keep your daughter safe while you're antagonizing this guy?" I narrowed my eyes at him, still irritated he had some prior knowledge about all of this.

Alex glanced at Brandon waiting for some kind of answer, too.

"I don't want her to know anything is off." He insisted. "Let's get a bodyguard with her and pass it off as just amped up security all around. She won't think anything of it. How about Anthony? Angelo's son from Luca's group?"

"You're going to lie to her?" I said.

"I don't want her to think any of this is her fault, Sadie. I just want her safe." He said. "Anthony is sharp. She'll be in the very best of hands."

He and Alex started hammering out more details, but I was still unsettled about all of this. My emotions had been on a rollercoaster tonight. Fear for my husband, fear for my daughter, for my entire family. This was everything I had been afraid of my entire life, and now I had no choice but to stare it right in the face.