Page 63 of The Devil's Heir

Liliana

There are voices in my head. They're saying my name, but then everything goes quiet. Fluttering in my stomach wakes me a few times but then settles, and I find sleep again. Each time I become conscious, it's fleeting, and then I'm dragged back down into the darkness, and I sleep some more.

There are no dreams or memories, only utter darkness—and silence. I'm not sure what's put me in this state. Am I sleeping? Have I been drugged and taken yet again? It's too exhausting to think about, so I sleep some more.

Beeping close by stirs me and I'm startled when my eyes actually open. There's no more darkness or silence, but it's not all that bright either. My lids flutter as my eyes try to focus on what's in front of me.

I'm lying on my back, so the first thing that comes into view is an unfamiliar ceiling. I'm toasty warm—a little too warm—unlike the last time I was taken. When I try to move my hand, I'm surprised to find that it's not restrained.

A sigh of relief escapes my lips, and I jerk when I hear a gasp from somewhere nearby. Turning my head in the direction of the sound, I find an unfamiliar woman sitting beside the bed I'm on.

"Miss Sumner, you're awake! Let me call the doctor," the woman exclaims.

She stands, and I notice she's in scrubs—a nurse.

"Where am I?" My voice cracks when I speak.

"Let me go get someone who can explain everything to you, dear." The nurse smiles then leaves the room as she brings her phone to her ear .

My stomach flutters, and my hands fly to the large mound protruding out.

I'm confused at first, but it all starts returning to me.

I'm pregnant with Jarek Falcon's child! Another sigh escapes when I realize the baby is okay after whatever ordeal I went through.

I can't quite remember what happened to put me here—wherever here is.

The sound of rushing footsteps down the corridor reaches my ears, and my pulse races as they approach. Is it Jarek? Excitement streaks through me at the thought. I need to see a familiar face, so I know that I'm safe and that my baby is safe.

A looming form in the doorway has me gasping as I gaze at the tall figure. They stare at me, a look of relief passing over their expression before a smile graces their lips.

"Joey?" I ask.

"Lily! Thank God you're awake!"

"Yeah, I guess I am. What happened? Where am I?"

"You don't remember anything?" Joey asks curiously.

I shake my head as I try to think back. "No. The last thing I remember vividly is taking care of Heath. I thought maybe I had been drugged and retaken." I glance at my stomach, noticing how much bigger it is than I remember. "Joey, how long was I out for?"

The young capo furrows his brows and looks down as he fiddles with his fingers. I wait until he's ready to speak again, and when he lifts his head to meet my eyes, I swear I stop breathing. Something about the way he's acting isn't right. He's worried about telling me, but why?

"Joey?"

"You've been in a coma for two months, Lily."

I gasp. "What? How…I mean, why?"

"I'll have Jackson come visit you because he can tell you why you were there, but there was an incident at the bank.

An explosion happened, and you got knocked out.

" Joey nods and looks at my head. "You split your head open in the process, and we almost lost you.

The baby is fine. Dr. Owens comes to check on you daily. "

There's something he's not telling me. Where am I exactly, and why is he here and not Jarek? Dread begins to fill me as I try to remember the event that Joey is speaking of, but the only thing I get is a slight throbbing in my head .

"Joey—where is Jarek?"

He sighs and comes into the room further, taking the chair the nurse had occupied just moments ago. I don't like the look on his face. Something is seriously wrong.

Joey runs his hand down his face, and now that he's sitting this close, I can see the exhaustion by the dark circles under his eyes. Not only that, but his cheekbones are more pronounced like he hasn't been eating much.

"You need to try and remain calm, Lily. You must think of the baby, okay?" he starts, and when I begin to retort, he hurries up and adds, "Getting worked up can be harmful to the baby, is all I mean. This has been stressful enough for the little guy."

"Just tell me what's going on, Joey!"

"Jarek is missing," he blurts out.

"What do you mean missing?" My voice raises just a hair.

"If you don't remain calm, I won't finish telling you," Joey states sternly, and I immediately close my mouth. "Good girl. Now, as I was saying, Jarek is missing. He has been since the day of the explosion. We believe it was all a hoax to get to him. They used you to draw him out."

"Who's they?" I ask.

"Rossi, but he had help…"

I wait for Joey to continue, but when he doesn't, I become annoyed.

"Joey!"

He sighs. "We believe Greco helped."

"What? Carmen's uncle?"

"Yes. He's been eyeing the Falcon fortune for a long time. When your abduction didn't pan out, they went straight for the main source, it seems."

"Oh, my God. You think Jarek is—dead!"

Joey nods once.

Tears threaten to spill, but I hold them back. I need to remain calm, just like Joey said. I rub my tummy and then harden my resolve.

"But I'm carrying his heir. They still can't get their hands on his inheritance."

Joey smiles at me sadly. "They think you didn't survive the explosion."

"What?! "

"You were rushed to the hospital right away, and with Dr. Owens' help, we made the announcement that neither you nor the baby survived," Joey explains, confusing me even more.

"Why would you do that? If Jarek is dead, our child has the right to the Falcon inheritance!" I try sitting up, but I get dizzy immediately, and the beeping picks up pace.

"You need to stay calm, Lily! I will explain it to you if you would just listen."

"Fine," I huff.

"They would have come after you had we not done so. We have you in hiding. The only people who know you're alive are my father and I, the doctor and nurse, and Jackson. That fucker wouldn't leave your side for anything."

I smile slightly at hearing that. I don't know Joey very well, and with Jarek gone, I'm going to need a friend.

"What about Heidi and Fran?"

Joey shakes his head. "I'm sorry, Lily. It was too dangerous for them to know. Besides, the grieving they went through over your death made it look all the more real."

"Oh, God." The heartache they must have gone through. "Where are they now? Are they still at the estate?"

"No. Carmen seized the estate, saying it was now rightfully hers since you were both dead." Joey scowls as he tells me this.

"That fucking bitch! When can we come forward? I don't want to hide forever, and I will not allow that cunt to take what rightfully belongs to Jarek's son!" Something he said replays in my head, and I add, "You said you both were dead. Why wouldn't she say all three of us were dead?"

"I don't know," Joey replies, shrugging. "Maybe because she didn't want to give herself away."

"Or maybe she knows Jarek isn't dead. Perhaps she has other plans for him…" I say more to myself.

"What do you mean?" Joey asks with a furrowed brow.

I study him for a moment, thinking back to conversations I've had with the bitch. "I think she's had a thing for Jarek. She's commented that she's still young enough to give him an heir. "

"Wouldn't it have been easier to just kill him? As the only living kin to Jarek's uncle, she would inherit everything," Joey states.

"Yes, but I think she was obsessed with Jarek."

"Hm, this is new information. I will make sure my father looks into it."

"Why don't you?" I ask, my tone edged with frustration. "You're his best friend, are you not?"

"Yes, I am," he replies. "And that is exactly why I'm focusing all of my energy on you. You are the love of his life, and you're carrying his child. That makes you my priority—because I know that's what he would want."

Joey's response shuts me up instantly. The love of Jarek's life?

"Look," he continues, adding, "You may not believe me, but Jarek is like a brother to me.

I know his feelings towards women, but you have always held a special spot in his heart.

He was ruthless after he lost you for those four years and then again after you were taken.

I've never seen him treat a woman as he treats you. "

"I-I don't know what to say…"

"You don't need to say anything. Just know that if Jarek is alive, we will find him, and people will pay. We can't take out the ones responsible yet because they're the only ones who know what happened to him. Don't think we're letting them get away with anything."

There are more footsteps just outside the door, and Dr. Owens walks in with Jackson behind him. I smile when I see my friend, and it causes the floodgates to open. Jackson rushes forward, and I hold my arms out. My friend hugs me tightly.

"I'm so happy you're awake, Lily. You had me so worried," Jackson states softly.

A throat clears, and I look over my friend's shoulder to see Joey frowning. I scowl at the capo and continue hugging Jackson for a moment longer. He pulls away first but continues holding my hand.

"How's everyone else?" I ask, not needing to say their names.

"Fran and Heidi are doing well. Mr. Lonzo put them up in one of his apartments for now, but they miss you and visit your grave often."

A chill passes through me at the thought of a grave site with my name on it. I gaze into my friend's eyes and see how much my absence has affected him.

"I'm so sorry I scared you."

"It's okay. As long as you don't pull that shit again…"

"What shit? What exactly happened?"

Dr. Owens steps up to the other side of the bed. "Don't mind me. I just want to check you and baby out; make sure you're both still in good shape."

Jackson proceeds to tell me what happened that fateful day—why I was at the bank—or at least, why he thinks I was at the bank.

"Jarek cheated on me with Lucinda?" I gasp.

"It sure looked that way, but after everything happened, and we went in to look at the video feed, it seemed we had it all wrong.

He walked into his office to find Lucinda getting it on with some guy.

Jarek beat the shit out of him, then lectured Lucinda before firing her.

What we saw when she walked out was because of another man… " Jackson explains.

"You know," Joey chimes in and says, "It's pretty low of you to think that Jarek would do something like that to you after everything he's done for you."

I know Joey's words are true, and yet they anger me.

"I may not remember that day, but trust me when I say that if I had doubts, it was because of what he had done in the past. Don't judge me for thinking the worst when I've had Jarek mistreat me."

"Try and stay calm, Lily," the doctor says softly. "You're not quite out of the woods yet."

"Joey?" A female voice reaches us, and we turn to see a beautiful woman standing in the doorway.

"Zita, come in. I want you to meet Liliana," Joey rushes to the woman.

Confusion passes through me, and then anger replaces it when I remember that this woman is Rossi's daughter—the same Rossi who caused all of this.

"What is she still doing here, and why isn't she locked up?"

"Lily!" Jackson hisses.

"No. This is all her father's doing! If he retaliated, why isn't she back where she belongs?"

The machine beside me starts beeping faster, and I faintly hear Dr. Owens trying to get me to calm down. I continue to glare at the woman, who now stares at me guiltily.

"Where is Jarek?" I ask her, but all she does is look at Joey .

"Lily, Zita did not approve of what her father pulled with you. She's disowned him, and she's no longer in her cell because she's with me now." Joey states, wrapping his arm around her waist.

"So, my friends can't know I'm alive, but our enemy's daughter can? That's a little fucked up!" I know I don't know this woman, but I won't trust her until I have Jarek back home or know what has happened to him. "Get her out of my sight!"

"You're not the boss around here, Lily," Joey states angrily.

"Oh, no? Last I checked, I'm the one carrying the future boss, so it falls on me until he can make the decisions! Now, get her out of here…"

I don't know what's come over me or why, but suddenly, I feel the need to take a stand—something I've never done before. Given the circumstance, I have only one priority: keeping Jarek's and my son safe until the threat has passed.

Zita is a Rossi. That name alone is the reason why I've missed two months of my life, why my memory is full of holes, and why Jarek is missing. Right now, I trust no one—especially not anyone Jarek himself, wouldn't trust. That includes his best friend's little girlfriend.