Page 125 of Disgrace

“Marcello.”

The two girls passed looks between one another like that explained everything. Their silent conversations could sometimes be annoying, but in that moment, Siena had other things to focus on.

John, mostly.

Always John.

His hands cupped her face, and he brought her in closer. He pressed a soft kiss to her lips, and a tear escaped the corner of Siena’s eye. He made quick work of wiping it away, though.

“I saw the news,” Siena whispered.

John nodded. “It went well.”

“Could have told me.”

“This wasn’t really my show. More … Andino’s.”

Siena nodded once. “Oh, I see.”

“Your head has one hell of a knot on it, and those scratches look really bad.” John looked her injuries over again. “I don’t like the looks of this—you should go get checked out.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine.”

“I am.”

“Siena, I am taking you to—”

“I can’t leave, John,” she said. “I don’t have an enforcer with me, and it’ll only cause problems. I wanted you here because I was scared.”

A small smile edged at the corner of John’s lips. “You can do whatever the fuck you want to do. Don’t you realize what happened today?”

“A lot happened.”

And she was still trying to figure it all out. She supposed her scrambled head wasn’t really helping her case at the moment.

“Darren is as good as dead, Siena,” John murmured, holding her face so she couldn’t look away from him. “The cops let it slip when they were hounding me—he’s on life support until someone pulls the plug, and he’s not coming out of it. This is almost over. We’re so fucking close, love.”

A small swell of relief threatened to drown Siena.

Reality was a quick bitch, too.

Darren wasn’t dead.

Not entirely.

Not yet …

“Everything is going to change,” John said. “Starting now. I promise.”

• • •

Siena stared down at the prone form resting in the hospital bed. Monitors beeped, displaying heart rate, oxygen levels, and a non-existent brain function. Stiff, white blankets that had been warmed before being brought in were tucked firmly around Darren’s form.

According to the nurse, the blankets were new. Over seventy percent of Darren’s body had suffered severe burns in the blast, and being covered was typically considered a major no-no. However, the lack of brain function, and the stress his body was under meant Darren had not been placed on the burn victim ward.

There was no point.