𝐎𝐜𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐞

Chapter Fifty-Two

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Imani stayed in the same hotel as Rom and Bruno. She was grateful because it was near the hospital where Matthew still lay unconscious. Although the doctors, with conviction, said he was out of danger, she was worried, and she wasn't the only one; Rom and Bruno were too. They hovered around the bed as if their presence could infuse their strength into him.

According to the police, the shooter had not been apprehended, which meant the investigation was still in progress. Rom cautioned Pete and the employees involved in carrying out Imani's background check against breathing a word to anyone, including the police, about that particular investigation. Rom intended to protect her as much as he could because it's what Matt would have wanted.

Imani visited the hospital every day. She left Jamie with either Matteo or Devonni. She would cry privately while watching him, begging him to wake up. She lost the number of times she told him it was a mistake, that she loved him when she left and still loved him, but Matt remained motionless.

Getting through days Matt was unconscious wasn't easy for either her or the guys; when he eventually woke up, Imani saw the relief in their eyes, like exhaling after surviving a terrifying ordeal. The doctors rushed beside his bed, checking his vitals, testing his memories by asking whether he could recognize those around him.

He gave a painful smile while naming all three, but he hesitated when his gaze settled on Imani as if wondering why she was there

She didn't know how he felt about finding her beside him, but Imani found out later that week.

He had already been discharged and staying at his home while the guys continued investigating the shooting.

Imani could feel the distance between them. She knew he didn't want her around him; everything she came close to him, his expression closed up, making her feel unwanted.

She couldn't blame him. He had given her two opportunities to choose him, but she decided to leave. There was no way to take away that decision. However, she hoped Matthew would give her one more.

While she could have wanted to stay by his side, Imani opted to stay away and only see him when other people were in the room because she was afraid he would throw her out of his house if they were alone. She wanted to give him time to get used to seeing her around. It worked until one day; he asked Matteo to call her.

Luckily, Rom and Bruno entered first with the news that the person responsible for shooting him wasn't Donovan, as they had guessed but Benjamin Abbortt.

Matthew let out a bitter laugh, one that was filled with rage, bitterness and loneliness. It was as if he felt like people wanted him for what they could get out of him rather than for who she was—a human being with feelings

"What do you want us to do?"

"Let that son of a bitch go to jail." Matthew knew the implication of that decision. Benjamin would probably never work again, his reputation shredded into little pieces and his family destroyed.

Bruno would have liked to do more than hand him over to the authorities, but Matt was running this show, so he respected the call he made.

"That means it wasn't Donovan?" Imani asked in a surprised tone as she walked into the room. She was happy that her biological father wasn't the culprit.

"No. He is still in jail. Also, his debilitating state could not give the order to his gang affiliates. He is like a lion with no teeth."

Imani felt at peace when she heard that. When the guys left, she was left alone with Matthew; it was the time of reckoning. He looked at her for so long that she started to fidget.