THE BADDEST PRINCIPESSA

Chapter Twenty two - Aftermath

ARIA POV

Today is the day I am going to save Derek but unfortunately it means speaking to my family.

Urgh

I woke up and saw them all having breakfast together which was an unfamiliar sight.

"Aria" I was called by Andrea who spoke with relief.

"What?" I replied bluntly.

"Sit please, we have to talk. All we ask is that EVERYONE doesn't yell. This is a civil discussion" Andrea emphasizes the word"Everyone" but simply directs it at Alessandro who is getting daggers across the room. For once it's not just me sending glares.

I slowly sat slumped in my seat. I am regretting this already.

"We want to talk about what happened," Andrea states in a calm voice.

No shit Sherlock. I foolishly thought we were going to talk about rainbows and unicorns.

"Yesterday or when you son of bitches fucking sedated me?!" I snarked with a hint of distaste lingering in my voice.

"Now, let's stay calm and discuss this." he pleaded while running his hands through his hair.

"Fuck this. Fuck you," I spat out.

"Enough Aria watch your language," Alessandro grumbles and Andrea gestures me to sit back down. He wanted me to at least listen to what he had to say.

"We deeply regret how you found out about the mafia and well seeing what you saw," he continued as I slumped back into my seat.

"Do you honestly think that's what I am mad about? I am mad at the fact that you were torturing a kid and I am not mad that I witnessed it. Get your goddamn priorities straight."Throwing my arms up in frustration.

"Okay, we understand that. Can we please explain ourselves?" Andrea sighed.

"Go ahead," I laughed.

Like anything can change what I think about them already.

"Derek betrayed us, and we couldn't have that in case he went to the police. We can handle going to jail but most definitely not leaving you in an orphanage." Andrea explained.

"So killing a kid was the only option?" I narrowed my eyes skeptically.

"When you put it that way it seems quite bad" Matteo glances up in my direction.

"Derek isn't dead. I promise no more hurting kids no matter what. If something does happen to us though how would you feel about us making our uncle your legal guardian? I know you haven't met him, but he will keep you safe."Alessandro answers me after giving a disproving glance.

"I... want... away from this family" I croaked out and aggressively wiped the tears that spilled on my rosy red cheeks.

"You don't mean that," Enzo says.

"But the thing is I do. I can't get the image of Derek in the basement out of my head. I don't think I'll ever trust yous again."

"We just want to protect you." Andrea wipes the tears spilling down his cheeks.

"Protect me from who? Right, the only people I need to be saved from are you all."

Harsh? Maybe a little but they deserve it.

"What can we do to make this better? We understand it might take a while to earn your trust, but we will try our best."

"Let Derek go." I slammed my fist onto the table.

"Done," Andrea agrees.

"Let me keep seeing Mario." 

"Fine. Only friends, though, and one of us has to be there with you." Alessandro peeped in.

"Deal" Andrea raises his hand for me to shake which I hesitantly take.

"WHAT? SHE CANT SEE THAT KID! ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?" Matteo leaps out of his seat.

"Matteo, sit your ass down," Andrea demands.

"Enough with the swearing and yelling. You all are giving me a headache." Alessandro grunts.

"I just thought it was just the grey hairs," Gabriele mumbles under their breath. A smirk arises on my lips, but one look from Alessandro made me and Gabriel stop smirking.


GABRIELE POV


Yesterday

After I left Aria to go for a walk. She needed to get out of the house. If she stayed in the house any longer then she would go insane. I decided to go for a walk as well. I thought It was best to get some fresh air and calm down after how stressful things have been in the house.

Suddenly I get a notification on my phone.

"SOSCROWNROAD" an outgoing message is sent to me and my brothers and all our people in the mafia.

Another notification appears on my phone "22 dead. Unknown injured. Mass casualty. All medical warehouses will be only available for emergencies."Fuck, I need to head there now. Luckily it's only a little walk away from where I am.

As I am walking I saw this woman lying unconscious on the road bleeding from her head and her hands and feet tied up with rope helplessly. As I walk closer, I notice that I've seen this woman before. She's one of ours. I haven't seen her in a long time. I always figured Alessandro just moved her away but from the looks of things she looked like she got taken. Why would they leave her in the middle of the road, though? Why wasn't she more injured or dead already?

I walked over to her. She slightly looked up at me barely acknowledging her surroundings. I carefully lifted her and called one of my drivers to pick us up and take us to our hospital.

Once I arrived at the hospital, I carried her bridal style and sat her down in one of the hospital beds, and asked one of the nurses to get Andrea before I blew her brains out. She quickly scurried out to page Andrea to the room. I sat waiting for half an hour as the woman lay unconscious on the bed while the nurse put an IV in her arm.

Andrea came in panic and started looking around the room before spotting me. He looked me up and down scanning me for visible injuries. "Are you okay? Is it Aria or one of our brothers? What's up? The nurse said it was an emergency."

"No-no-no. Calm down. We are all fine but this woman" I pointed to her and a look of confusion was plastered over his face.

"I found her unconscious in the middle of the road. Do you recognize her?"

"Yes, she's one of ours. Alessandro sent her away for something. I haven't seen her in years,"

"I think she was held hostage and she's been unconscious for a while. She also hit her head."

"I'll send her up for a CT and check her out but Gabriel there are bigger emergencies here and we are under-resourced here."

"I know, but you should've seen her there."

"Do not tell me you have feelings for her. Your fucking 17 and she's 24. Plus she's in...Urgh, forget it. I am too busy for this shit."

"I know. What can I do to help?"

"Come with me" I quickly followed him and left the woman alone with the nurse tending to her wounds."

ANDREA POV

I didn't have enough time to deal with Gabriele but I did need extra hands and they were my only option here.

"Gabriele, I need you to put pressure on that guy's wound just until the OR is free and I can take the bullet out."

I then ran off to the next set of patients coming fast through the door on stretchers. This guy was still breathing despite him a bullet hole in his head. It was amazing he had survived but he was going to be dying soon. I guided the paramedics to the section where our patients were reluctantly sent to be made to be comfortable. I couldn't save him, but I could spare him the extra pain and prolonged suffering if I even tried to save him.

I quickly moved on to the next guy who was shot through the stomach. I put pressure on the wound until I found a free nurse to take over. I checked on the status of the ORs so we could more people up into surgery. I also went to make a few calls on the way up as we needed everyone even the ones who had just finished the night shift.

It was better than nothing I had to try something, anything.

I managed to get a few people to come in but not many and I called in our allies to use their hospitals. They managed to agree to let us use their space and send some people to come and work at our hospital.

I walked over to Gabriele and informed them an OR was free. I asked them to go with the nurses up to the OR while I stayed down in the trauma wing.

Seconds after I asked. Gabriele's patients started crashing and so did another so I talked Gabriele through CPR while the nurses bagged him. Currently, they were one doctor and one nurse for each patient. Gabriel in that situation was the doctor, and I was being a doctor to my patient and a teacher to my sibling who was frantically trying to save another dying patient.

I don't believe in god, but I need him right now.

Gabriele did everything they could, but I told them they had to call it. I heard them announce "Time of death 15.30," I continued CPR and watched Gabriele collapse to the floor in floods of tears. The nurse opposite looked at me with pleading eyes as I was preparing to shock my patient another time. That's when I stopped and announced it and moved on to the next patient as the nurse took his body away.

It was hours later before I could finally rest my eyes as there were no longer patients barging through the doors. Most patients were in the recovery room or surgery.

Just as I almost fell asleep, the buzzer on my pager went off and I tiredly walked over to the woman Gabriele brought in. She told me her name was Maria and she was doing undercover work for Alessandro and her cover was blown. I immediately called Enzo once I heard she could locate where one of the men who attacked the warehouse was hiding. I was unsure about letting her leave with Enzo but I wanted the bastards to pay for all of those who died tonight. Also for the families who have left a piece of their hearts missing.

Later on, I found out that the guy who came in with a bullet wound in his head had survived. He also had a daughter as young as 9 months. He was a miracle. I wasn't going to be letting it go to waste so he is currently in the OR fighting. I have a feeling he is going to pull through for his daughter. 

That's one strong man and his daughter is one lucky little girl. I also found out that after I sent the paramedics away with him he fought every nurse who tried to give him something to make him comfortable. He begged them to save him, and the devoted nurses and doctors spent countless hours until the OR was free. He was given CPR multiple times in the hours but each time he came back just as stubborn as ever. God was forbidden to take him away today. 

He was too stubborn to go before he walked his daughter down the Isle and the graduation of his son the next year. The son was planning on coming here after Med school. From the looks of things, his son was graduating with the highest honors out of his whole class. 

AUTHOR NOTE: Remember  I am not a doctor or part of the mafia so the information In this book will not always be accurate. Everything is pure fiction.