Page 38 of All Your Lies (All or Nothing #2)
thirty
Gage
M y eyes open slightly as I hear a beep accompanied by a searing pain in my abdomen. A dim light hangs above my uncomfortable bed, and the smell of antiseptic makes me nauseous.
I attempt to move, but my right arm feels weighed down.
I gaze that way and notice a full head of shiny dark hair I’d recognize anywhere.
My lips pull into a smirk as I take my right hand, which sports an IV tube running through the back of it, and touch her soft hair.
The movement makes me wince as I feel a pinch in my abdomen, but I still seize the opportunity to smell her.
Why am I here, and why is my stomach so fucking sore?
I push the thin white sheet and blanket that sits mid-chest down, then pull up the white and blue hospital gown. A large incision runs down the right side of my abdomen. It fucked up the skull tattoo Vic inked onto my body.
Memories swirl in my mind, creating a disorganized puzzle as I attempt to piece together how I ended up in this situation.
We had a meeting, found out Marco had valid reasons for his actions when we were younger, no matter how fucked up they were.
Alexa and I went to Rosie and Vic’s. She’s fucking pregnant.
I still can’t believe that asshole got her pregnant before they got married.
Jenna’s the fucking assassin. I always felt something was off about her.
My mind then moves on to every glorious detail of Alexa and me in the club. Thank fuck for remembering that.
I close my eyes for a minute, and then it all hits. That stupid motherfucker shot me while declaring his love for my girl, and then pain. So much fucking pain.
I grab onto the metal bed rail and try to pull myself up, but I just fall back into the pillows with a thud. The exertion has me huffing and panting in pain. I despise being weak, and now I have someone who needs to die immediately. This won’t do.
“Easy, baby bro. It’s the first time you’ve been awake in almost a week. Take it easy.”
I turn my gaze to see Marco sitting in a chair in the room’s corner. His hair sticks out in all different directions, and dark circles surround his eyes.
“You look like shit,” I rasp.
“Not as bad as you,” he says as he rises from his chair and hands me a cup with a straw. “Here.”
“Where the fuck is he, and why wasn’t I woken up sooner?”
“He’s dead, and you had complications on your way here and in surgery. Your body needed time to heal.”
“You know I would’ve wanted to end him myself.”
“It wasn’t my call,” Marco says with a shrug.
“Whose was it, then?”
He nods his head over to Alexa, who’s still lightly snoring on my side.
“She made the call?”
Marco nods. “And carried out the execution.”
My eyes widen as I glance back at my girl. The thought of her taking care of him fills me with pride.
“They said the second you wake up to let them know; I’ll be back.”
“Thank you,” I murmur, hoping this will be the beginning of a mend between us.
Alexa startles from the click of the door closing and her big blue eyes gaze up at me. “You’re awake!”
“Or dreaming,” I say as I caress her cheek. “If I knew all it took was a hospital stay to get you laying by my side, I would’ve gotten hurt sooner.”
“Don’t you dare make jokes. I almost lost you,” she says with a hitch in her voice as she wipes the sleeve of her gray sweatshirt across her glassy eyes.
“Even in death, I’ll never leave you, Lex,” I say as I grab her face and pull her toward me. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Gage,” she says as her lips meet mine.