Page 18 of Cara

My screams tell me I can’t.

“You… You need rest.” The family physician blows out a sharp breath while assessing the damage. Piero Angioletti has always presented himself as a discreet man equipped to deal with injuries of an unnatural nature. And yet he’s here, gaping at what’s left of my mutilated body, sputtering his words. “I’m sure you know this will be a long recovery.”

My uninterested gaze remains on the drawn curtains.

Bo escorts the Doc out, exuding all the courtesy I fail to summon. My body is patched up, covered in bandages, but the scars inside are still raw… bloody…excruciating. There aren’t anesthetics strong enough to dull this ache. As soon as their voices fade, I'm climbing out of the bed, walking to the closet. Grabbing a pair of slacks and a black sweater, I dress in silence, hating these walls.

I need to leave.

“Where are you going?”

“I need to see my mother.”

“Visit her tomorrow?—”

I turn to him, my eyes wide enough to reveal that waiting isn’t an option. “Let me go, Bo.”

The lines on his forehead deepen as he blocks my path, lacing his arms over his chest. “You can’t let this break you, man. You’ve got an empire to run. Hundreds of men from both families, thousands of associates. Vito was just run out. People are saying he took off to Miami. His men are also flocking to you as Sophie’s husband.”

Buckling my belt, ignoring how it hangs, now a size too large, I nod, no fool to this game. “I know what I have to do. I went into this knowing what would be expected.”

He breathes in, transparent in his relief.

Walking to the ottoman, I sit, sliding on polished shoes. “We need to talk about something.”

“What?”

“You aren’t getting a title. Not Dante or Zeke either. Not only would the family never allow it, but I won’t. I willnotlet you damn yourselves for me.”

“Xavier—”

“No, listen. You guys have kept my head above water since we were kids. When my father pushed me past my limits, you brought me back.”

“It wasn’t just us, X. When Ma died, you did everything for us. The funeral. You watched us drink ourselves to death that night. You helped us out when we had nothing.”

“I gave you money.”

“No, you did more, and you know it. We wouldn’t be here if we weren’t brothers.We—me, Bo, Zeke,Sophie—are your family. Not these fuckers all around you. You expect me to sit back while they turn on you?”

Time drags on as we sear holes through each other, neither one of us willing to concede.

“You saw what I did,” I grind out through clenched teeth. “You saw how low I’ve fallen. As much as you all have tried, I’m beyond help now. I’ll be forced to do worse to keep this position, to keep my head on my shoulders. If you think for a second I’ll let you or Zeke or Dante see that, you’re out of your fucking mind.”

“Then just get on a plane. Get out of here.”

I stand, turning, hands on my hips. “And gowhere?”

“Spain!”

He shouts the word passionately enough that my mouth snaps closed.

My heart. God, it breaks.

“Bo.”

“You would go to Spain.”

My eyes close.Damn him for telling me. “Stop.”