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He dropped to his knees next to the bed, both of his hands taking mine in a careful hold. “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”
“What am I doing here?” I asked.
He hung his head, taking an audible breath in. “Jude found you in Aleksándr’s basement. You were chained to the ceiling. I wish I hadn’t made his end so swift. He deserved to suffer.”
“It’s over?” I couldn’t believe it. This sounded too good to be true.
“Yes,anghele mou, it’s really over. Aleksándr can never hurt you again.”
I blinked at the ceiling, wondering what this meant for me. The threat of punishment had hung over my head my whole life. Even though I’d felt comfortable and even safe when I’d been with Gabriel, the thought of Aleksándr coming back for me had always been there.
The shackles had finally slipped off. But I didn’t know what to do with the freedom I’d gained.
“Casper and Marina.” Their names passed my lips in a gasp. “They helped me. Are they okay? Caspar was with me when we had a car accident. I think Leonid crashed into us.”
“Jude got them out as well. But I don’t know what happened to them or how badly they were hurt. All I cared about was getting you to the hospital.”
Gabriel placed a kiss on the back of my hand. “The doctor said if you continue to improve, you can go home in a few days. But you’ll be on bed rest for a while.”
Where would I even go? I no longer knew where home was.
He brushed my hair out of my face, and I met his concerned gaze. “You don’t look happy. Don’t you want to get out of here?”
God, I’d never tire of looking into his eyes. “Of course.”
“Then why do you sound like I just told you they’d keep you here for the next month?”
Maybe that wouldn’t be a bad thing. At least then I’d have somewhere to stay.
“I can’t go back to Aleksándr’s.”
Technically, the house and all his money were now mine. But there was no way I’d ever return to the place that had brought me so much pain.
Gabriel recoiled, his hand that had been playing with a strand of my hair dropping to the bed. “You’re never going back there again. You’re coming back to our house.”
“Gabriel.” His name sounded like a prayer on my lips. “I’m so sorry for what I’ve done. I never wanted to betray you. And I tried to make it right. But—"
He shushed me, putting his hand on mine. “We can talk later.”
I needed to clear the air around us, not for him to put me in cotton wool. “I don’t need your pity.”
I wanted to take the words back as soon as I’d spoken them. But it was too late, Gabriel’s face losing all of its warmth. Hurt flashed over his features before there was no emotion at all.
He immediately released me, the loss of his hand holding mine making me flinch. “My pity?” His voice rose. “My fuckingpity? I think you’re one of the bravest people I know. And you’re coming back with me, whether you want to or not.”
He stormed out, and I stared at the closed door.
I chewed on a few more ice chips, and then the nurse returned, putting more painkillers in my drip. It didn’t make me pass out again this time, and I was flicking through the channels on the television mounted to the wall when Freya poked her head in.
“You up for a visit?”
Grateful for the distraction, I waved her inside. “Of course. Come in.”
She pushed the door open with a huge grin, holding a large bag in each hand. “I brought you clothes and food.” She placed one bag on the ground, then pulled containers of food out of the other one. “Mom made way too much. Don’t worry about not finishing anything. I’ll take back whatever you and Gabriel don’t eat.”
She handed me a fork and helped me sit up, then rolled the tray table in front of me. “Where’s Gabriel? Did he finally go home to get some rest? And a shower?” She winked at me at the last part.
“We had a disagreement, and he stormed out.”
