G A B I ' S P.O.V
I'm lying on the bed, again wasting away the day. I wanted to call my little girl but she wasn't answering. Her phone was going straight to voicemail.
My entire body felt weak from lack of eating. I just couldn't stomach anything, not knowing where my baby was. Ryder was slowly coming doing to the idea of allowing Kiara back into our lives, but the problem was that he shouldn't be coming around to it.
He doesn't get to decide when my baby is allowed back into her home. It's the typical male ego. He's stubborn, used to getting his own way in the business world and now he thinks he can control his family too.
I hate the fact that he practically turned Kieron into a carbon copy of him. Kalen was a little better and I know he's dating someone, who? I wasn't quite sure yet, but I would figure it out soon.
Kai was...well Kai. Outgoing, abrupt, fun. I don't know where he got his crude humour from but I'm glad he has it. It's what makes him different.
Then there's Kiara, with her attitude and confidence that make me proud of the young woman I raised.
I love all my children and I know Ryder does too, he just has difficulty expressing it.
Enough was enough though. Our baby girl was coming home today.
I got up and stormed out of my new room, heading straight to his office. All three of my sons were sat on the couch, my husband seated opposite then, a glass of scotch in his hand.
"Gabi, what are you..."
"Kiara is coming home." I stated, cutting him off. My sons sat up a little straightener, tensing up, and Ryder, clenched his jaw, setting down the glass.
"Gabi, I'm not ready yet."
"I don't care." He stood up, his face matching my equally furious expression. "You are acting like stubborn toddler, worse actually, because even a child would eventually give up on a stupid grudge."
"This is my house. What I say goes." A humourless laugh left my mouth. I shouldn't be doing this in-front of my sons, I know that.
No matter how old your children are, you should never perform your martial disputes in-front of them but Ryder needed to know that I mean business.
No more second chances, this was it.
"Ryder Romano, if you don't allow our baby girl back into our house then...I want a divorce." Everyone in the room drilled, even my heart stopped as I uttered the word.
A divorce for Ryder and I was something I could had never even considered of in all our blissful years of marriage. We were that couple that were going to be together forever, or at least that's what I thought.
Now though, everything had changed.
Ryder had hurt my baby, and no-one, not even my husband could tell me that I can't see my own child.
"Divorce? Gabi, tell me this is some kind of sick joke?" A desperate plea. It was exactly what I wanted. Ryder needed to see the error of his ways and by leaving my home, just for a short while, it would help him see that.
"It's not. I want Kiara back home and I want you to treat her as you always have...with love, and care. She needs her family and I need my little girl back so I'm leaving."
"Mum!" Kieron exclaimed, but I motioned for him to stay quiet. This was between me and Ryder.
"Where will you go?"
"I don't know, but I'm leaving and I'll find Kiara. I need to know that she's safe and I can't stay here anymore. Everything just reminds me of what we have lost. Our marriage isn't a marriage anymore. We are not equals, you think your say outweighs mine because why...I'm a housewife, a woman?"
"No, no! Baby, you're my entire world. You and the kids. Kiara hurt me..." I placed my hands on his face, gripping his cheeks.
"You hurt her first. All she did was tell the truth, even though she knew what was risking. Our sons are afraid to show their emotions. None of them have ever brought home a girl, or talked about someone special in their lives. The mafia isn't everything Ryder. You're honestly telling me that if Kiara was with anyone else...a doctor, a teacher...someone who has no ties with the mafia, someone other than Aaron, you would really be this angry? You would go to these extreme lengths in order to punish her?"
"He's my enemy."
"He doesn't have to be. You chose to make him that. I've actually talked to Aaron, I gave him my blessing because I know that he made Kiara happy. All she wants is for her dad to accept him too, couldn't you at least for her?"
The daunting silence was enough for me to know that it was time to leave. Hopefully, by the time I returned, he would have seen the error of his ways.
I was about to walk out when the door suddenly burst open. There was a blur of bodies as two of our men, tackled the person to the ground, forcing him face flat against the floor.
"What the hell is going on?" Ryder boomed, staring at the huddle by my feet.
"He just ran in boss, straight up here. He was trying to find Mrs Romano." I saw a flash of green eyes.
"Tristan..." I exclaimed, pushing the men away from him. My body was hauled back, as Ryder pushed me behind him, but I was done being the submissive mafia wife.
"Let me go Ryder, Tristan's hurt. They're making it worse." Ryder gave me a hard glare, before waving the men away, leaving the five of us alone with him.
"Why the fuck are you back here? I told you never to return because I would put a bullet in your skull." Ryder cocked his gun. "Want me to make good on that promise?"
I pushed the gun down, and took a careful step forward. "Oh my god," I mumbled, noting the numerous amount of bruises tattered across his face. "Boys, help me." Kai and Kalen rushed forward, helping Tristan stand up.
He was limping slightly, and with one swollen eye and another black, I was wondering how the hell he managed to break into this fortress?
"Tristan, what happened? Are you okay?" He stumbled towards Ryder's desk, and leant against the sturdy oak.
"I'm fine. Gabi, it's Kiara. The Serpents found her, lured her into a trap. At first I thought Aaron was the one to kidnap her."
"Why the hell would Aaron kidnap his own girlfriend?" Kai blurted out.
"She's not his girlfriend, he dumped her I guess." Ryder's body went entirely still besides mine and I felt my heart stop.
My baby got her heart broken again, and this time, she had no-one.
"He didn't but he managed to track her to the abandoned factory. We went to save her but the mission went wrong." Something was wrong, I could tell by the way Tristan grimaced. "Kiara was stabbed, twice. Aaron's men came though and we rushed her to the hospital. She's still in a critical condition and I know that you're still angry at her Ryder but she's your daughter. She's needs her dad, her mum and her family when she wakes up."
"Oh my god, my baby. She's...oh Kieron, get the car we need to go to the hospital right now. Kalen, Kai help Tristan to the car. Your sister needs us more than ever." I got the boys moving and out of the room, before I let myself break down.
Tears, that I didn't even notice had fallen, began streaming down my cheeks, and I was suddenly struggling to breathe. My chest hurt, my lungs felt like they were about to collapse at any moment and my heart was breaking.
Suddenly, a pair of strong arms wrapped around me from behind. Ryder pulled me into his chest, allowing me to slump back. I was one moment away from falling completely.
Ryder was my rock though. He had the ability to make my whole body relax with one soothing touch. I needed him, my husband, the man I married and love to tell me that our baby was going to be fine because if she wasn't...there was no telling what it would do to me.
"She's okay, she's okay. She has to be." Ryder seemed as though he was trying to reassure himself more than anything but I repeated his words in my head.
My baby was fine. She had to be.
I turned in his arms, tears soaking his white shirt. "Ryder, I need you. I need my husband right now because I'm so scared."
"I'm here baby." He swept me up in one fluid motion and carried me out to the cars.
***
The moment we reached the hospital, I immediately asked the nurse about Kiara but was given the dreaded answer that everyone hated.
Sorry I can not disclose any information right now. Thankfully for me, I had three gangsters for sons and a mafia don husband.
Kalen managed to find out that Kiara was currently still in surgery and had lost a lot of blood. She was in desperate need for a donor, and I had never been so thankful to have four perfect children with the same blood type.
They all volunteered, which warmed my broken heart, but ultimately Kieron went in with the doctor. The rest of us rushed up to the ICU.
As the elevator doors swung open, our eyes all met with a pair of blue ones, filled with complete and utter anguish. Aaron froze upon seeing us all, and then Tristan's words flooded into my head.
He dumped her. No-one dumped my baby.
Before I could march over to him, Ryder was already storming ahead. His fists bawled up at his sides and rage written all over his face.
Oh no.
Aaron didn't move, he stood completely still, as my husband punched him straight in the face. "That was for having sex with my daughter." He growled, pulling back his fist, before launching it at Aaron again.
"That was for dating my daughter." Aaron spat blood onto the floor but still refused to fight back. Ryder punched again.
"And that was for breaking my daughter's heart." The last one should have knocked him cold, but Aaron was resilient. He merely hauled himself off the floor, and stumbled into one of the empty hospital chairs.
Tristan sighed, and limped over to him, slumping into the seat besides him. I knew Aaron was hurting, I could see how much he cared for my daughter but that didn't excuse the fact that he dumped her. That he broke her heart even after I entrusted him with it.
Ryder sat down besides me, gripping the metal arm seat so hard I thought it would break. I was still angry at him, furious in fact but our baby was in the hospital. We needed each other now, more than ever.
I reached over and held his hand. Gently squeezing it, he gave me a soft smile, as I leant my head against his shoulder and let the tears fall.
Please god, let my little girl be alright.
***
Ryder was getting coffee. It had been an hour since we had arrived and everyone was exhausted. Kieron was slumped in the chair opposite me, resting his eyes, after giving blood. Kai was next to him, sleeping, and Kalen had gone to pick up Tessa from the airport since she had rushed home after finding out about Kiara.
Ryder still hadn't come round to Kiara dating and sleeping with guys, so having her only two boyfriends in the same room as him caused some unwanted tension.
I had forced Tristan to get treated, and attempted with Aaron, but he gruffly refused and I didn't press the matter anymore.
He hadn't moved from his seat, simply staring at the door where my daughter lay fighting for her life.
We had gotten an update around their minutes ago...Kiara's surgery was a success but had yet to awake. I had seen her through the glass in her door, there were tubes sticking out of her and one stuffed down her throat to help her breathe.
It was horrible, seeing your baby helpless and vulnerable, lying in a hospital bed. I couldn't do anything to help her.
Actually, there was one thing.
"Aaron, tell me what happened." I demanded, turning to face the silent man. His eyes were void of emotion, as he continued staring at her door.
Tristan was still getting treated in a spare room , Ryder was getting coffee and the boys were pretty much knocked out so it was just him and I, and I wasn't leaving until I got the truth.
"Did she hurt you?" No reply. "Did you hurt her?" He flinched slightly, but still gave me no reply. His reaction was enough.
"Do you know how me and Ryder met? It was a forced marriage. I didn't even know such things as the mafia existed, nevertheless that my father ran the biggest gang in England. It took a while to accept my fate. Ryder wasn't much help at the start. He was damaged, misunderstand and scared. You remind of him." I laughed a little as I reminisced the past. "He tried to hurt me once, I mean physically hurt me. I just remember the sheer terror I felt, the horror as I stared at the monster looming over me. I know now though that he wasn't my Ryder, not my husband, not the man I fell for. People change Aaron, Ryder...although he doesn't seem it now is the most loving, caring and thoughtful father and husband. You can be that too. Kiara sees it, that's why she sacrificed everything for you and no matter what you did, I'm sure she can find it in her heart to forgive you."
Aaron let out a breath, causing his whole body to shudder. "I can't be with her. I break things, damage them. I broke Kiara's heart and damaged her soul. Now, she's fighting for her life because of me."
"No, Kane wanted to hurt Kiara because of her family ties to the mafia. Even if you weren't in the picture, she would be in danger." He scoffed, running one of his hands through his hair.
Dried blood tainted his hands, making me grimace, but I knew a shower was the last thing on his mind. "I'm danger. I'm evil. I'm the monster you should be protecting Kiara from."
"If you're such a monster, then why are you here?" I knew I had him and my lips lifted up slightly when he turned away. "A monster doesn't care, a monster wouldn't stay, even for the girl he loves."
Shooting up, his body tensed. Shit, I mentioned the forbidden L-word. Mobsters and gangsters didn't really like to be afflicted with love. They viewed it as a weakness, when in reality love was strength. Love was power.
I made Ryder see that, now, I just had to make Aaron see it too. Because my baby deserved to be the with the love of her life, just like me.
Fuck, Ryder. I missed him, I missed us. I wanted him to hold me in his arms until I fall asleep again and complain when I force him to watch my cringy movies. I want to kiss him, and cuddle him, and make love to him.
"Oh uh, Mrs Romano, are you okay?" I glanced down, only to see tears splashing onto my blue jeans, and turning them dark.
"Yes, I'm fine. I was just thinking of my husband. Love is scary Aaron. I know that more than anyone. If you just admit it yourself first, then saying it allowed will be so much easier." I wiped my tears, just as he looked up at me.
A look of total anguish fell over him, and his eyes began to well up with a wave of painful tears. "What if I'm not enough for her? A year ago she was completely in love with Tristan. What if he's the 'one' for her? I don't want to hold her back when she could finally be happy with him."
Reaching over, I placed my hand on top of his, avoiding the prominent blood stains. "If she loved Tristan more than you, if they were destined soulmates, she would have told us about them. She would have exhausted every possible way of them being together but she didn't. For you though, she sacrificed everything just to give you a chance. That means something, Aaron. When my daughter wakes up, I need you to end it or tell her the truth you're too scared to admit. Because my family is falling apart, and I can't let that happen for nothing."
He gave me a sharp nod. "I understand. I'm sorry for any pain I may have caused you."
"You didn't cause me any pain, my idiotic husband did. Now, go have a shower." He was about to refuse. "At least wash your hands." With a small smile, he stood up and started to walk away, but turned and hesitated.
"Was it worth it?" I raised my eyebrow. "Love? Was it worth all the pain?"
"Every single drop. I wouldn't trade all the tears and anguish for anything, not if meant I still had my family." He gave me a lingering smile, that made my heart warm.
My baby would be happy with him. If only he accepted his feelings. If only he could move forward.
I truly hope he could.
"Would you trade me?" I turned quickly, only to find Ryder standing there. A grim look crossed over his otherwise perfect face. "Would you trade me if it meant your pain would leave?"
I didn't even need to deliberate the thought. Ryder was my home. My children were my home. I would never be happy without one or the other, and for all his faults...Ryder was my soulmate. "Never.
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A/N: Gabi P.O.V finally!! It's been too long!
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