CHAPTER 98 - A SCREAM OF PAIN

Hours later, the doctor comes to update me on her condition.

"Dom, it was a complicated surgery. Miss Mavromatis lost a lot of blood... We managed to control the bleeding at her wound, performed cauterization, and sutures in the area. Unfortunately, it's too early to determine if this will affect future pregnancies. She will need continuous monitoring."

He pauses and looks at me with concern, takes a deep breath, and continues:

"I'm deeply sorry for your loss, Dom. No father deserves this. As the obstetrician had informed, the baby didn't survive. We'll keep Miss Mavromatis under observation for the next three days. Overall, apart from the loss of the baby, her health seems stable, and we're optimistic about her recovery. I'll arrange for a psychologist to speak with her to aid in the grieving process."

I'm left speechless, in a state of shock, hurt, and broken in a way I've never been before.

The doctor moves to my side and places his hand on my shoulder.

"Take care, Dom."

"I want to see her immediately!" - I finally manage to say.

"Please, we've set up a chair beside her bed so you can be with your wife. But before that..." He looks at my wounded arm. - "Let me take care of your injuries."

He nods his head towards my arm.

"I'm fine."

"Please, Dom... Right now, it's crucial for you to be well to support your wife. She'll need you more than ever."

"DO YOU THINK I DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT?" - I shout!

"Let me do my job. I assure you, it'll be quick."

I take a deep breath, realizing he's just trying to look out for me.

"Alright."

I'm led into a sterile operating room, where the doctor removes the bullet from my arm and attends to the wound.

"You were lucky the bullet didn't penetrate deeper into the muscle..."

"Today, I had everything, Doctor... Except luck."

"If you'll allow me to say, Sir, we don't understand why we're afflicted by these evils. However, I believe there's a greater purpose behind all the pain and suffering we go through."

"And what purpose would that be, one that would take away my child?" - I've never quite grasped people's beliefs.

"I can't answer that, Dom... I'm just saying, without faith in something greater, it's hard to survive this."

"The cost of that faith is too high..."

He finishes up and I stand up.

"Now, take me to her!"

He guides me to my beloved's room. She looks worn out, with an IV drip and a breathing tube in her nose.

"I'll leave you two alone."

I sit by her side, holding her hand and resting my head on her lap.

"Forgive me, please... I couldn't protect them. I... I couldn't save them!"

Tears flow like those of a distressed child. The pain is overwhelming. I pour out all the emotions, sobbing uncontrollably, unable to grasp the extent of the loss. Anger, indignation, and sadness swirl in my mind.

"I lost, didn't I? I lost our little piece of life? I couldn't protect or hold on... I couldn't..."

Davina awakens, sits up abruptly in bed, her eyes brimming with tears.

She too breaks down in tears. Since I've known her, I've never seen her shed a single tear. Now, she's as broken and wounded as I am.

I embrace her tightly, trying to soothe her pain, our pain! She lays her head on my shoulder, hugging me back.

"How could I be so weak? How could I not react? I didn't protect our greatest treasure... Adam, do I not deserve to be happy? Do I not deserve to love anything or anyone? Why do I lose everyone I love? Why didn't I die alongside them..." She clings to my shirt tightly, screaming in pain and despair. Her crying is as uncontrollable as mine, and in that moment, we expose ourselves, revealing our shared pain.

There were no more barriers, just the sensation of failure, defeat, and the pain of loss.

"Forgive me, I couldn't protect you and them... It's my fault!" I admit my failure and weakness.

"No, the blame is entirely mine... I wanted to save her, believed that if I were subtle with Angel, she would see how unwell she was, and in the end... I was the one who was unwell! I couldn't control my impulses and fears, didn't prioritize our child, our safety... I should have fled when I had chances. I'm a failure as a mother, as a wife, as a sister, and as a woman! Adam, I don't deserve to live... Please, end my pain!" - Your plea knocks me down. Davina, in despair, holds my hands, looking deep into my eyes.

"Please, don't say that... I wouldn't bear to live without you! We'll overcome this, TOGETHER." - I plead.

"I'm tired of enduring the pain... I can't take it anymore, I can't!"

She cries and trembles. I hug her tightly. I wish I could extract all that pain from her chest and take it onto myself... I want to shield her from such suffering, I want her to understand that the biggest wrong was mine, the man who should have protected her family above all else!

Soon, Yara enters the room with teary eyes.

"Sister, I heard what happened... I feel so much for you!" - She sits on the other side of the bed, embracing Davina. - "It's okay... Let out all that pain, everything will be fine..."

"Aaaaaaaaaa, hunf... Aaaa" - Davina screams and cries. I can't stand seeing her like this. I step out into the hallway. I lean my forehead against the wall, hands on my head, letting the tears fall.

"How could I not protect them?" - Guilt overwhelms me.

She awakens a bit groggy as reality sets in. She rushes over to Micael, who is clearly in pain and anxious. He curses, saying that Adam left without him. Before leaving, Adam had promised to send updates.

She stays home with the guards, growing increasingly restless as she waits. Despite her desire to go along, he didn't allow her. She even attempts to sneak into one of the cars, but she's caught. A wave of self-contempt washes over her; she berates herself for not insisting on being trained like Davina, realizing it would have made her useful. Hours pass with no sign of them, and her anxiety mounts.

"Good Lord, I'm going to go insane sitting here."

One of the guards approaches her and informs her that they need to head to the family hospital urgently. This hospital was exclusively for the Dom family, capos, and their most trusted associates. She grabs her phone frantically, feeling desperation tighten in her chest.