Chapter 121 - (Hundred) Twenty: Shot

Becca's eyes shot open as she jerked awake, her mind all cluttered up from the dream she just had. It shouldn't even be called a dream, more like a nightmare. It was a horror show. A grotesque vision, yet it felt so real. Her heart hammered as she struggled to compose her breathing.

She sat up on the bed, wiping her eyes as it kept disgorging tears. Unnerve wasn't a good enough word to describe what Becca was at that moment. Her gaze then flitted across the room before landing on the space beside her on the bed. It was empty. Cold. Leo wasn't back yet.

Her heart banged harder, almost exploding at the force at which it slammed against her ribcage. She whipped her head to the clock that was hung on the wall. Exactly 10:30 pm and her terror shot up. 

Why wasn't he back yet? He was never this late.

After the nerve-wracking dream she just had, staying calm in bed seemed preposterous. It was preposterous. Undoable. Becca lurched out of bed, taking deep calming breaths as she strutted to the door.

Clutching onto her black night robe, Becca descended down the staircase, her phone in her right hand as she tried Leo's number. 

" Pick up, Leo. Where the hell are you?"

The call didn't get forwarded. It didn't even ring, saying the phone was switched off. No response. Becca's heart sank instantly.

Fuck! She dialled his number again, pacing back and forth on the first floor. The thought of going out to look for him crossed her mind as she eyed the entrance door that was just ten feet away from where she stood. But then again, where would she look? What if he returns when she's out looking for him and he gets worried?

Dread stirred in her gut when she was unable to reach his phone again. She faltered a bit as she stared at her phone then at the door, a cloud of distress hovering over her. She couldn't just stand there and do nothing, right?

Becca wasn't the type to put importance into her dreams or try to find their meanings. To her dreams were just dreams. But the one she just had wasn't like the others. It was too vivid. Too real. It was like a vision. A warning. 

She veered towards the staircase, this time trying Martino's number as she climbed back up to grab her car keys but froze when she heard the entrance door being opened and the sound of footsteps coming from behind her. Many footsteps.

The throbbing of Becca's pulse worsened, her legs slightly wobbly as she reeled around to face the door. The anxiety gurgling in her somehow subsided when she saw Leo's bodyguards trooping in.

Leo was home. But why did he take so many bodyguards? Becca had never seen him go out with this many men. Nevertheless, it didn't stop her from wanting to see him. Where was he anyway? All she saw were bodyguards.

Restless, Becca trotted down the stairs once more but stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Leo being held up by his men as they brought him in. He wouldn't even be able to stand straight if it wasn't for the help and support he was receiving.

Becca's face paled immediately. 

She rushed to him. " Leo, what happened to you?"

Tears burnt her eyes as she cupped his face in her hands, feeling his jaw clench as waves of pain jolted through him.

He looked down at her and forced a smile.

" Why are you still awake, my love?"

The heartache that came with seeing tears in her eyes hurt him more than the pain of his wound.

The first teardrop rolled down her cheek, followed by another and another, corroding him with even more agony.

" That wasn't the answer to my question, Leo." Becca blubbed, her mind running in circles when she noticed how heavy— rough— his breathing was getting. Then an arm hauled her to the side— away from Leo.

" Take him up stairs." Martino ordered as he held Becca in place and the two men holding Leo up, did as they were told. One of them flung Leo's right hand over his shoulder, holding him by the waist and the other one did the same with Leo's left side as they both dragged him to a room on the second floor.

Once Leo was out of sight, Becca turned to Martino. 

" What happened to him?" Her wet eyes pleaded him for answers as she stared at him.

Martino heaved a sigh, troubled. " He was shot."

A hard lump formed in Becca's throat. Shot? That can't be.

She swirled in the direction the bodyguards took Leo and her gaze fell on the floor. Drops of blood formed as a clear trail from where Leo stood, only vanishing somewhere on the staircase. Her heart froze.

" W-why did you bring him here? Why didn't you take him to the hospital instead?" She asked, tears almost choking her as she kept staring at the drops of blood on the floor.

" He would have gotten arrested if we took him there."

Becca whipped her head at Martino. " Arrested? What do you mean by "he would have gotten arrested"?"

Martino quickly looked away, unable to meet her eyes. He said too much.

Becca grew impatient with him, the worry and pain in her chest morphing to rage.

" Answer me, Martino. Why did Leo get shot?" She yelled but Martino remained unfazed. He probably anticipated that type of reaction from her.

" It's best you hear it from him once he recovers." If he recovers.

Just then, the entrance door opened once more, letting in a middle-aged man who looked around his fifties, a briefcase in his hand.

" Where is he?" The man asked.

" Second Floor, first room." Martino responded and the man nodded before navigating his way to the exact location he was told.

Confused by the whole situation, Becca looked at Martino then at the man walking up the stairs then at Martino again, her brows knotted.

" Who is he?" 

" A doctor." Martino answered, gazing at the room Leo was taken into. " Hopefully he will work a miracle this time as well."

Hours trudged by so slowly, it hurt. It hurt to be in such a situation but Becca was left with nothing but hope.

Hope. She clutched onto it like never before that night. Martino came to where she sat just in front of the room Leo was taken into, on the floor. He told her not to worry and to try to get some sleep but doing those things simply seemed impossible to her at the moment.

She shook her head stubbornly, bringing her knees closer to her chest as she remained on the floorrr.

Martino, eventually, gave her some space and went outside to get some air so he would rid himself of the tension that night's fiasco inflicted on him and after he left, Becca snagged the chance to approach another bodyguard in order to get answers to her probing questions. If Martino wasn't willing to give her any explanations then she might as well find them elsewhere.

The next bodyguard looked about the same age with Leo but wasn't too packed with bulging muscles. From her analysis, he looked like someone who would snitch if properly poked at the right places. The perfect target. Luckily, Martino wasn't here to wreck her plan with his authoritative stare.

Despite being smaller than he was, Becca still chose a forceful approach, already aware of the bodyguards's immunity to gentle pushes. Just as expected, he sang the song Becca wanted to hear. Only the chorus and not the full track but she was willing to make due with it, for now.

Apparently, a distressed woman at the verge of losing her lover, was one of the scariest thing in existence. That fact was made known that night.

She learned that Leo got shot in the abdomen during a confrontation, and he was currently getting the bullet removed but with the way the man said it, she feared that this might not be the first time such a thing has happened.

For all she knew, it likely wasn't.

She did ask the bodyguard to tell her more but he refused in fear of losing his job and possibly his head. His fear of being mutilated by Leonardo was far stronger than any form of intimidation.

He did drop something else though. A name. Lazzerro Dante. He said to ask Leo about that name once he wakes up if she wishes to get answers. Even better, he told her to ask her mother about it.

Instead of granting her relief, the answers she got only confused her even more. What does Regina have to do with this?

By the time Martino came back inside, Becca had already returned to her spot next to the door, time seeming like an illusion while she waited for it to open. Only God knew when it finally did but it did. The door opened and Becca sprang up to her feet on seeing the doctor.

" Are you by any chance related to Mr Kane? Wife?" 

" G-girlfriend. I'm his girlfriend." She stuttered, hoping Leo was alright.

The doctor stared at her for a second and hummed, gesturing for her to come in. " Finally, now I have someone I can complain about him to."

He led Becca into the room and her gaze settled on Leo as he laid shirtless on the bed, his abdomen bandaged. He was completely still. Unconscious.

Becca turned to the doctor, concern dripping from her. " How is he?"

The man slipped his hands into his pockets. " One thing I can say is that your boyfriend is as stubborn as a mule.. Reckless even but somehow he always comes out alive."