Page 17 of Unfettered

“Doc believes he’ll make a full recovery, but we’re keeping him under for a few days to heal.”

I collapse, and it’s only Lio catching me that saves me from hitting the floor. “Thank you,” I whisper in a choked voice. “Thank you.”

“When can we see him?” Carter asks as I’m crying too hard now to speak.

“They’re cleaning him up, and then you can. Though Doc said only Roman will be allowed in tonight. Everyone else will have to wait until tomorrow.”

“Fuck that,” Carter spits out. “I don’t have to stay, but I want to see him. I need to support my son. And when Sandro gets back, he’s going to need to see him. Doc can’t put limitations on us.”

Soren’s expression hardens. “He is still very critical. We’re confident he’ll recover, but we need to be cautious until he’s out of the woods. No outside stress or unresolved feelings that will only hinder his progress. I don’t care if you’re on the Council, you know better than to try to steamroll the issue.”

“Carter is right,” Tennant says. “I don’t want Roman to be alone, so even if Carter doesn’t stay, someone needs to be in there with him. If you’re not going to let it be one of us,” he gestures to himself and my other lovers, “then it’ll be Sandro.”

The nurse doesn’t budge, standing firm. “No one will see him tonight if you keep arguing.”

The two Daddies stare at one another, the tension thick, until Doc walks out of the surgical room. The exhaustion seems to pour off him as he steps into the hall, but when he sees what’s happening, he straightens to his full height, his eyes narrowing.

“No,” he says firmly. “We’re not doing this. You’re going to respect my medical decisions, or I swear to fuck, I will drug every single one of you. I do not have the patience for this bullshit.”

“Doc…” Tennant warns.

“No.” He looks from Tennant to me to Carter. “Roman can go in. Tennant or Carter can go with him. You can switch later if you want, but you three are the only ones allowed in that room unless I say so.”

“Sandro—” Tennant tries to say.

Doc curses. “You fuckers need to stop hooking up with one another. I can’t fucking keep up. Fine. Roman and the three of you. But only two at a time. If I hear any of you assholes try to disobey my rules, I will make your life a fucking nightmare.”

“Thank you,” Carter tells him, trying to defuse the tension.

Doc waves him off. “Where’s Sarah? I need to debrief with her.”

Keegan steps forward with Marcus. “We should go into your office. Sarah…is currently at the police station.”

Doc stills, before running a hand through his hair. He sighs. “Fucking hell. I wasn’t in surgery that long. Fine, let’s go.”

Doc reaches for his Daddy’s hand and drags him along, leading Marcus, Keegan, Jude, Nicolo, and Antonio into his office. I…have no idea if that many people will actually fit in the office Doc claimed, but that’s not my problem. Right now, all I can focus on is the door I’ve spent countless hours staring at. Now, I get to go in, but I can’t bring myself to move.

“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Ignacio tells me. “You heard Soren, he’ll be okay. You can go rest now.”

I shake my head. “I can’t… I need to do this. I…”

“Come here, Figlio.” Carter holds out his hand. “We can do this together.”

I look at my dad as tears fill my eyes. “I…are you sure? I know you and him…”

“I still care for him.” Carter smiles softly. “My love for him has changed, and parts of me are still hurt and angry, but he’s your father, and for that, he’ll always hold a piece of my heart. You’re not alone, Figilo. Not if you don’t want to be. Of course, if you’d prefer Ten…”

“No!” I look to Lio and Ignacio, kissing them both quickly. “Thank you. I love you.”

“Always, Little One. I’ll wait for you.”

Lio leans forward and kisses me softly again. “Love you too. I’ll be here.”

Tennant and Hollis kiss me next, and Benjamin gives me another hug, though he looks unsure. We’re going to need to talk…eventually. There’s a lot of things that have to be repaired, and our relationship is one of them. So much has happened…but it’ll have to wait until after I see Cristian. And maybe after I take a nap.

Taking a deep breath, I draw as much strength as I can from my lovers, before I follow Carter into the surgical room.

Carter wraps an arm around me as soon as we cross the threshold. The sight of Cristian lying so still on the hospital bed, looking so lifeless, even though the monitors show he’s fighting…it breaks me.