Chapter 120
I stood abruptly, my hands balling into fists. “I’ll be back,” I muttered, my voice tight. Without waiting for a response, I stepped outside the room and pulled out my phone.
My phone felt heavier than usual in my hand as I scrolled through the contacts. There was only one person I could call someone who could act quickly without wasting time. Alex.
dial bure
pacing the corridor as the phone rang once, twice, before he picked up.
through sharp, laced with concern.
‘ve got a situation,” I said, keeping my voice low but urgent. “I need you to get the kids out of town. Somewhere safe. Somewhere no one knows. Not even Raina.”
There was a
Use. “What’s going on?” Alex asked, his tone measured but pressing.
“No time to explain,” I snapped, frustration bubbling under the surface. “Just listen. Get Liam. Pick Ava up from my house. I’ll let Faith know you’re coming for her.”
Another beat of silence, and then Alex’s response came, steady and certain. “Got it. I’ll handle it.”
I pushed the door open and stepped back into the room. The air felt heavier here, thick with the weight of unspoken fears and impending loss. Raina was by Grandpa’s side, her fingers clutching his frail hand like it was the only thing tethering her to reality. Grandma was seated beside her, her lips moving in silent prayer, her face etched with grief.
I walked over and sank into the chair on the opposite side of the bed. Grandpa’s breathing had changed–it was rapid, shallow, each breath a struggle. The doctor had said it was only a matter of time, but seeing it unfold in front of me was something else entirely.
“Dom,” Raina whispered, her voice breaking. She didn’t look up, her eyes fixed on Grandpa’s face. “He’s leaving us… isn’t he?”
I swallowed hard, my throat tight. What could I say to that? There was no sugarcoating it. No empty platitudes would help here. “He’s fighting,” I managed, though my own voice betrayed the doubt I felt. “But we need to be here for him.”
Raina’s grip on Grandpa’s hand tightened, and she nodded, her shoulders trembling as silent tears slid down her cheeks.
Grandma looked up at me then, her gaze steady despite the sadness in her eyes. “Dominic,” she said softly, her voice trembling with the weight of her words. “He’s always been so proud of you. Of all of you. No matter what happens, remember that.”
I nodded, unable to trust my voice. The man lying on that bed had been our anchor, the one who kept this family grounded through every storm. The thought of losing him felt like the world shifting beneath my feet.
As Grandpa let out a labored exhale, I reached for his other hand, gripping it tightly. “We’re here, Grandpa,” I said, my voice cracking. “We’re not going anywhere.”
His eyelids fluttered, and for a moment, I thought he was trying to say something. But his lips remained still, and the room fell silent except for the sound of his uneven breaths.
Raina leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “We love you,” she whispered, her voice barely audible.
The words hung in the air, a quiet truth that none of us could deny. And as I sat there, holding onto Grandpa’s hand like it was my lifeline, I couldn’t shake the weight of everything still left to do. Nathan, his shadowy accomplice, the poisoned threads woven through our lives–it all had to end.
But for now, all we could do was sit here, together, and hold onto the man who had held us together for so long.
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