Page 6 of Silver Or Lead

It was twenty hours later when Angela finally felt comfortable enough to leave her patient. As she suspected, Luca had been bleeding internally thanks to a nasty laceration to his liver. There was some other soft tissue damage as well, but it was the lacerated liver causing him to be critical.

It was a common enough injury to sustain from a gunshot wound, and one she had dealt with many times as a trauma surgeon. Often, minor lacerations required no treatment other than close monitoring, but Luca’s was large. The liver was highly vascular, and nearly all the blood in the body had to flow through the liver at some point after being pumped from the heart. A lot of Luca’s blood vessels were pulverized from the trajectory of the bullet, and it took her six hours to be satisfied she had stopped the bleeding. Although the liver couldn’t be sutured in the same way other organs and skin could be, it could be embolized. And that is exactly what she had done.

He was damn lucky she had access to a fully equipped OR, including ultrasound and x-ray machines, and typed blood for transfusions. She shook her head, gazing around the clinic in wonder. It was precisely the set-up she wanted to have at the shelter she volunteered at. Unfortunately, that would take millions. She shook the useless thoughts away, checking Luca’s vitals one last time. Performing an impromptu surgery after being kidnapped had not been on her list of things to do after her twelve-hour shift. But she couldn’t deny being pleased with the outcome. She was a doctor to her core, and Luca would make a full recovery.

“You did good work, Doc,” Abel praised from beside her.

“Yeah, yeah,” Angela muttered. She barely spared the man a glance. She was absolutely exhausted.

Sometime during the long night and day, her primary kidnapper had introduced himself as Abel. Despite not wanting anyone else in the room when she performed surgery, Abel and Salvatore both insisted. She acquiesced after watching them clean their hands and arms meticulously and don a fresh pair of scrubs each. She also took the time needed to sterilize her own hands before tossing on a gown and gloves and getting to work on Luca. It was tricky to monitor his vitals as well as perform the surgery, but she’d worked with far less in the past.

“He’s really going to be okay?”

Angela looked up, finding Salvatore clutching Luca’s hand, his bloodshot eyes on her. Now, this man, she gave her full attention to. Salvatore hadn’t left his lover’s side the whole time. He had murmured sweet words and made promises, never faltering. She could respect that kind of dedication. She could also see the love he had for the man lying as still as death between them. “He has a lot of healing to do. But I’m confident Luca is going to make a full recovery,” she assured him.

Salvatore jerked to his feet and rushed around the bed. He all but threw himself into her arms, squeezing her tightly. Angela patted him on the back, not having energy for much else.

“Thank you. Thank you so much,” he said gratefully.

When he pulled back, Angela noted the moisture in his eyes. She summoned a small smile for the man. “I’d like to say it was my pleasure, but...”

Salvatore barked out a laugh, scrubbing his face vigorously. “You’re all right, you know that?”

“Thanks,” she told him dryly. “Now, Luca needs to stay on IV fluids to ensure he doesn’t get dehydrated and to increase his blood flow to his major organs. It needs to be switched out every four hours. He also has a catheter in so he can urinate freely without getting up. I want him in bed for forty-eight hours at least.”

“I can handle all that,” Salvatore stated.

Angela wasn’t convinced. She looked worriedly at the man who had only regained consciousness very briefly just an hour ago. She wanted to stay and make sure his medical care was followed up adequately. But she also wanted to get the hell out of Dodge.

Her doubt must have shown on her face because Salvatore chuckled, saying, “Seriously, Doc. I know I haven’t been a shining example of competence, but that was because of my sheer terror over losing Luca. I’m a Vet—ten years Marine Corps. I wasn’t a field medic, but I’m more medically qualified than a civilian. I have administered IVs in the field, as well as sutures. Now that I know I’m not going to lose him, I got him. I promise you.”

The information surprised her, and she gave him a shrewd look. She had assumed she was dealing with a bunch of criminals. He definitely had a military bearing, she mused, noting the closely cropped hair and the straight back. Perhaps she would make it out of there alive, after all.

“Now, don’t look at me like that, Doc,” Salvatore said, catching her gaze. “I’m no saint. I wasn’t before I joined the Marines nor during active duty. And I’m certainly not now. But you have nothing to fear from me. And never will.” He held out his hand, and Angela took it, shaking it firmly. “If you ever need anything, come find me.”

“How about letting me go right now?” she asked, after dropping his calloused hand. “Do that, and I’ll call it even.”

Salvatore smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Not my call.”

Angela grimaced. “Of course not.”

“I may owe you, Doc. But I’m Roman’s man,” Salvatore said seriously.

Angela watched him brush the hair back from Luca’s face, placing a gentle kiss on his forehead, and wondered how many lives those hands had taken. No more than Vincenzo Romano, she thought, turning away to wash her hands at the nearby sink.

Roman had been in and out over the last day, staying only long enough to ensure she wasn’t killing his brother. But even when he wasn’t around, she could feel his gaze on her. She couldn’t explain it, but she knew he was watching her. Always. As the hairs stood up on the back of her arms, Angela looked up, noting the security camera in the corner of the room. The little red light was blinking. To her chagrin, her nipples pebbled, and she swore silently. Oh, yeah. My body knows when he’s watching, all right, she thought. It pissed her off.

Her body, which responded to very few men even in the best of circumstances, had no business coming to life around a man like Roman. She wanted to flip him off but managed to restrain herself. Thoughts of him returning to check on Luca for the first time, covered in blood splatter and what she knew was arterial spray, was a good incentive to play nice.

With her hands clean and no other way to stall, she squared her shoulders and turned around. “Now what?” she asked.

Abel stood nearby with his arms crossed in front of his broad chest. “That depends on you,” he said. “I’d really hate to kill you. You saved Luca. He’s very important to all of us.”

“I’d hate for you to kill me too. So, we’re on the same page. Great. I’ll just be on my way then,” Angela informed him. She walked across the room, but her shakily confident exit was ruined when two men with guns stepped into her path, blocking the door. Swallowing, she turned and raised her eyebrows at Abel. “Want to tell your boys to move?”

Abel shook his head. “Not just yet. You need to answer a question first.”

“What question?” she asked warily.

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