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There was no reply, only the sound of an eruption and she let out a full shout of panicked agonizing pain.
“Hailey, oh darling what’s wrong?” Elena gasped moving over to the bed to gather her into her arms as she sobbed.
“Stefano…” was the only word that would come, and Elena brushed a hand down her head trying to calm her.
“He will be home soon, my darling. Shh…”
Hailey shook her head no knowing he wouldn’t be and showed her the message on the phone as Theo arrived with Karl. She vaguely heard the heartbroken cry come from Elena’s throat before she was pulled tighter into his mother’s arms, her tears falling. Theo saw the message and looked stricken, falling into a chair while Karl went to find information for them.
Sleep didn’t return to her that night as she laid on the bed, her face buried in Stefano’s pillow, his scent lingering despite being away for over a week. She refused to get out of bed when her mother arrived, her soft words like spears straight to her heart.
“Oh, my sweet, sweet girl, Stefano would not want you making yourself sick. You still have your precious little ones to think of Hailey. You must eat something,” Leann said but it simply brought more tears to her eyes and Thomas led her from the room and downstairs to see if there was any additional information for them.
“Where is Hailey?” Olympia asked as she and Xavier arrived with the dreaded confirmation from the coast guard that they had indeed found the Zeno plane’s wreckage.
“She’s in the bedroom. She won’t come out or eat,” Leann said as Thomas held her tightly to him. “I cannot believe life would be this cruel to them. For her to only have a year with him…not even a full one at that…it can’t be true.”
“It was the Zeno plane that went down,” Xavier stated holding onto Olympia’s hand tightly as her tears fell knowing of her friend’s pain. “A mechanical failure in the engine caused a hole in the cabin, bringing it down into the ocean. They are searching the wreckage, but a portion was still burning hotly.”
“Oh, my sweet boy,” Elena gasped, tears falling as Theo held onto her.
“There are far too many things to ensure are taken care of at the moment to fall apart my dear daughter,” Theo stated calming her. “All that Stefano owns is now Hailey’s and their sons and we must ensure that she and they are safely guarded. I will need to arrange to take over the trusts once more…see to the business so it does not plummet into despair as we are want to do.”
“Would you mind if I went up to see Hailey?” Olympia asked the group. “She knows how much this is hurting all of you and I dare say she’s trying to hold in her own so not to overwhelm yours. Let me take care of her for now.”
“I think that is a wise idea,” Thomas said, and Olympia gave Xavier a kiss, letting him sit down with Theo to discuss business, while she hurried up to see Hailey.
“Oh Hailey, I know,” Olympia said moving onto the bed pulling Hailey over into a hug as she held onto Stefano’s pillow, her face despondent. “I know…it’s alright to let it out, it’s alright to cry over it.”
“How can he be gone?” Hailey asked much later as she sat gathered in Olympia’s gentle hold. “How can the last thing he spoke to me be that he missed me too, but it wouldn’t be for long? The last words from him be nothing more than a goodbye? He didn’t even say he loved me…”
“Oh sweetie, you know he did. He loved you more than his own life. You were the center of his world and he would never have wanted to leave you like this,” Olympia said gently but it didn’t matter, nothing would replace not having those words to cherish.
As much as she ached to keep the faith that it was true, she now knew for certain, that despite how much he cared for her, he did not love her. If he had, his last words at facing death would surely have been them. Hers would be to him and it filled her heart with even more pain than the thought of never seeing him again did.
It was not fair for her to face raising their sons alone, all the while knowing that their father never genuinely loved her. He’d desired her but never once had the love been true. It was only a ruse as he’d once suggested their engagement be and she wished Stefano had never returned to her life. If only she could hate him as she once had. If only her heart wasn’t filled with love that was never and now would never be returned, and only contained that anger she’d always felt while thinking of him. She was a convenient cover meant to show the world that he was more than just a harsh person. She was a way to keep his mother happy and their children an extension of that.
Hailey covered her stomach as the pain seared from her heart wrapping around her body. She would ensure their sons knew they were loved by her, that they had been created from the purest of love possible, at least on her side. Theo’s thoughts of the Zeno firstborn would have to hold the place of her answer if they asked her if their father loved her as much as she loved them, for she would never be able to utter the words of truth to them.
They were now her only piece of Stefano, just as he had been for his mother, but unlike Stefano, they would never know a father’s love. Nothing in this world would convince her to marry again. She would not allow a man to come into her life and become jealous over her love for her sons. They were too precious to her and she would ensure they were safe, starting now.
“Olympia, could you see if Norma can arrange something light to eat?” she asked her friend who seemed fully relieved by the request.
“Of course, why don’t you shower, clear your eyes and I will bring it up to you,” Olympia suggested, and she gave her a nod before moving into the bathroom to see the extent of damage her tears had caused her complexion.
Olympia saw the anxious faces as she reached the first floor and gave them a soft smile. “She’s taking a shower and asked for something light to eat.”
“She knows she has to take care of those babies,” Theo said as the group relaxed the tiniest bit. “We will take care of the rest. She is to focus on their sons.”
“Father, please just refer to them as their children for now. I fear if we speak of them as boys and they do turn out to be girls that it will hurt sweet Hailey even more,” Elena warned. “She and Stefano had adopted the stance although they did not know but to put that much hope into her that she will have his sons to look forward to…”
“They are boys. Stefano has loved her for far too long for them to be anything but boys,” Theo argued. “But for now, I will make that concession. I will not dare hurt her heart more than it already is hurting.”
“Thank you and if they are boys then we will all rejoice, but if they are girls, we will love them all the same,” Elena stated, and Theo nodded letting Olympia move to get the food to keep Hailey and the babies nourished.
Chapter 22
Hailey moved into the office, her heart tightening seeing the desk clear and went over to it, pulling the chair out to sit, feel Stefano closer to her. She slipped out of the house early this morning while the others slept and drove herself here. She wanted to spend a few more moments here before it was cleared to allow someone else to take over the space. She wouldn’t be able to bear seeing that and simply wanted to take a few minutes to herself without the others fearing she would dissolve into a puddle of tears as she had last night when the news of Stefano’s death hit the airwaves.
