Aria Graice - 44. Chapter 44

Julianna was down, with Aria sitting on her chest and Jay’s foot on her neck. As Drew stepped out into the corridor, Julianna started to thrash and scream, while Amara tried weakly to pull Aria away.

“Come away. Please. She’ll hurt you. Please.”

Aria didn’t hear, or at least didn’t listen. He was screaming as loudly as Julianna, yelling at her incoherently and punching her wherever he could get a fist to land. Jay, on the other hand, appeared entirely impassive as he pressed down coolly with his foot.

Julianna made a strangled sound and stopped thrashing. Instead, she tried to pull Jay’s foot away, but they were planted solidly. Drew had realized long ago that Jay was stronger and had more weight to them than they seemed, but he was still impressed.

He plucked a kicking and screaming Aria off his mother and held him until he calmed, then handed him over to Amara. The twins huddled against the wall, holding each other as Drew had Jay move back, once Jeff had taken the gun from Julianna. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her firmly but as gently as he could, not that he wouldn’t have loved to crush the life out of her, but he was mindful of her pregnancy.

“Find something to tie her.” Jeff nodded and disappeared back through the door.

“You won’t get a step away from the door up there,” Julianna spat.

“Really?” Jay said, their voice barely shaking. “You’ve made enough noise down here. I’d imagine if there was anyone standing near the door they would have been down here by now, don’t you think?”

“Stupid boy,” she growled. “They know how to take orders.”

“And they clearly value obeying those orders over the wellbeing of their boss. I’d think about that if I were you. You’ll have plenty of time in that small cell all alone—or not. A pretty little thing like you all alone in a big, big prison full of big, big women.” They snarled at her, a burning light in their eyes Drew hadn’t seen before. “And while you’re all getting cosy and acquainted think about this bitch. You have the best sons any mother could wish for and you’re too stupid and selfish and narcissistic to see it. I hope you rot in hell for it and if I believed in God I’d pray that poor baby girl I taken away the moment she’s free of you because she’ll be way better off without you.”

Julianna started to laugh manically. “Idiot. I’m never going to prison. They don’t send people like me there. I’m a star. Don’t you understand? I’m Julianna Graice and I can do anything I like.” Her voice rose until it was a shriek and she threw herself around in Drew’s hold, kicking and screaming.

“Maman please,” Aria sobbed. “Please stop. Please.”

“Shut up, you little bastard. You’re just like your father. Please. Please. Don’t be so angry. Don’t be so sad. Please don’t hurt me. Please love me. Please think of the boys. Well this time I did. I did think of the boys. I did think of you. I thought of you screaming. I thought of you bleeding. I thought of you begging. Why aren’t you begging? Why aren’t you begging me to love you? You’re always begging me to love you.” She put her hands to her head. “You’re like an insect buzzing around in my head. Love me. Love me. Love me. I don’t love you. I never loved you. I hate you. You’re not what I wanted. You’re ugly and dirty and you love each other more than me.” She screamed in anger and frustration, spittle flying from the corners of her mouth. Drew couldn’t imagine what the boys were thinking because he was shocked by the depth of her anger and madness.

He was in for another shock when Aria pulled free from Amara and slapped her across the face as hard as he could. Julianna froze, her hand to her cheek.

“You…you…hit me.”

“You’re hysterical. Stop screaming. Just stop it. You’re a grown up and you’re supposed to be a mother. How can you be a mother to anyone when you act like this? What do you think your little girl would think of you if she saw you now? What will she think when she finds out what you did? Did you think you could keep it a secret? Did you think she’d never find out about us? What happened to us?”

“I don’t care,” Julianna spat back. The madness had left her for a short time. “I don’t care if she finds out because by then she’ll have everything I can give her. She’ll have all the love in the world and will never believe I could be cruel to anyone. No one will believe it. No one will believe you.”

“I think they’ll believe three shot men, mother. One of them was shot in the head with your gun.” Aria paused, looking sick. He took a deep breath, and in the pause, Julianna spat in his face.

“Go to hell, devil spawn. Even if I do get arrested. Even if the police take me away at least I won’t ever have to hear your voice in my head again. You’re going to die. Your brother is going to die. You’re all going to die. No one is ever going to know what happened down here. I’m going to tell them you attacked me because I tried to tell you about the two sick freaks you call friend and…lover. But I shouldn’t be surprised, should I? You’re sick too. Both of you. I know you fuck each other. I know you…”

Another slap stopped the words but kicked in the hysteria again.

Jeff arrived with a curtain cord and Drew was more than happy to let him expertly truss Julianna and hold her against the wall while he took a sobbing and shaking Aria into his arms.

“You’re so brave,” he whispered. “So brave.”

He kissed Aria’s head, then lifted his eyes to Amara. It was the first time he’d had a clear view of him since he’d burst into the hallway. He’d expected to meet Amara’s gaze, but Amara had his eyes closed and was hunched to the side. Drew’s heart jumped. Damnit, he hadn’t thought for a moment about Amara’s hurt ribs. If he’d been hit or kicked with any force he’d be in agony, or worse, a cracked rib could have snapped.

“Aria, can you stay here with Jay while I check on Amara. It looks like his ribs are hurt.”

“Mara?” Aria looked confused, then his eyes widened. “No.”

“Wait with Jay. He’ll be fine, but don’t crowd him, okay? I’ll take him back inside and you can come after us, but just give me a minute to get him moving.”

“Okay,” Aria whispered. Drew could barely hear him over Julianna’s ranting.

“Hey.” Drew stroked Amara’s hair out of his face. It was damp. Amara was trembling, soaked in a cold sweat. “Did you get hit in the ribs? Can you straighten up?”

Amara raised his head and gazed at Drew as if he wasn’t sure who he was. His lips moved but no sound came. He licked them and swallowed thickly.

Drew stroked his hair. “It’s okay. Come back inside and rest. Once this is sorted out you can—”

Amara cut him off by grabbing his arm. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. He licked his lips again. “It wasn’t his fault. Don’t let him think it was his…fault.”

“What? Whose fault? What was…”

Amara struggled to smile. “Help me,” he whispered, then collapsed, a dead weight in Drew’s arms. Drew staggered but easily supported him. He swept Amara up in his arms, and that’s when he saw the blood. He glanced around, assessing the situation.

Ceriann and Jeff had Julianna well and truly subdued, Jay was clearly angry but staying back, and Aria… Well Aria just seemed lost, staring at Amara and then at Drew with such trust it twisted a knife in Drew’s heart. If only he could persuade Aria to go somewhere, anywhere, with Jay while he…did what?

“Jeff,” he called urgently. “Take her into the bedroom and make sure she can’t make any more trouble. Then get back here as soon as you can. I need you.”

Their eyes met, and Jeff’s narrowed. He glanced at Amara and nodded, then dragged Julianna to her feet.

“What’s happening?” Aria asked, panic edging his voice. As Drew turned toward the door, Aria must have noticed the blood because he screamed, “No. No he couldn’t… I didn’t… I didn’t mean…”

“Aria, it’s okay. It’s going to be okay.”

“No, no, no, no, no. I didn’t… I can’t… I can’t be on my own Drew. I didn’t…”

“You’re not going to be on your own, and this wasn’t your fault.”

Aria blinked. “My fault? I know. I didn’t have the gun…” The lost expression dropped away leaving one so cold it hit Drew like a fist. Aria spun. “She did,” he spat and before anyone could stop him, he was on her. “You bitch. How could you? How could you do that? You killed ‘Mara and I’m going to kill you.” His nails raked at her face and he somehow managed to evade Jay and Jeff who both tried to pull him away.

Julianna cackled with laughter as Aria kicked and punched her to the ground, screaming. He grabbed her hair and yanked back her head and god knows what he might have done if Jeff hadn’t finally managed to get a good hold and pin him against the wall. Julianna continued to laugh, blood running down her face. She looked as crazy as she clearly was.

“One down, one to go,” she cackled.

Aria tried to go for her again, struggling in Jeff’s hold.

“Jay, can you and Ceriann get her into a bedroom. Tie her to the bed or something. Don’t hurt her too much.”

“Can’t promise that,” Ceriann ground out. She met Drew’s gaze and there was so much fierce compassion in her gaze he had to turn away. Why had he let his connection with his family fray so thin? He took a breath. Well, he had a new family now and before he started planning to bring them all together, he’d better focus on making sure they stayed intact.

As Drew passed through the doorway into the living area, stepping over one of the fallen criminals whose weak groans indicated he was still alive—despite more pressing concerns, he made a mental note that he needed to be restrained—he could hear Jeff speaking urgently to Aria in a voice too low for him to be able to make out any words.

With only a fleeting thought about what blood might do to the creamy leather, Drew laid Amara on the sofa and pulled up his t-shirt. Blood was welling from a small hole in his left side. A quick examination revealed another hole in the back. The sluggish flow of the blood could either have been a very good or a very bad thing. Either the bullet had gone straight through without hitting anything important, or Amara was bleeding out on the inside.

He did a quick assessment, treating Amara as one of the battle-field casualties he’d been trained to treat in emergency situations. The symptoms Amara was exhibiting—sweating, cool skin, rapid heartbeat and shallow breathing—could be symptoms of shock, or internal bleeding, however none of them had progressed far enough for imminent concern. There was no external sign of severe abdominal bleeding and Amara was so slender any significant accumulation of blood would be likely to show. The first thing to do, therefore was to stop the blood on the outside.

Drew quickly removed his own t-shirt and balled it up, stuffing it under Amara’s back, then yelled for Jeff to take off his t-shirt, leaning hard on the bullet wound with the heel of his hand. Jeff was at his side moment later, handing him his shirt.

“How bad is it?”

“It doesn’t look too bad. Straight in and out. There could be internal bleeding but I think he lucked out and it missed anything vital. He’s got some symptoms of shock, but they’re not severe enough for a major bleed and if that bullet caught anything in that area, there’d be a major bleed.”

Jeff examined the wound when Drew took his hand away to make way for the t-shirt. “I think you’re right, but we need to get him out of here as soon as we can. You know as well as I do that things can go downhill damn fast and the kid’s no soldier.”

“You’re telling me. Where’s Aria?” With Amara at least somewhat stable, Drew’s attention swung back to Aria. He glanced toward the door to find Aria framed in the doorway, watching them like a doe caught in headlights. “Come on over,” he said. “It’s okay. I promise.”

When Aria didn’t move, Drew handed over Amara’s care to Jeff and reached out his arms. As if it broke a spell Aria ran into them.

“I can’t do it,” Aria sobbed. “I can’t live without him. I can’t do it.”

“Ssh, you silly thing. You won’t have to. He’s going to be fine.”

“He…he is?” Aria raised his face from where it had been pressed against Drew. Cautious hope lightened his eyes.

“Yes.”

“But…but he was… He was…shot.”

“Not everyone who’s shot dies, love. We need to get him to hospital as soon as we can, but I’m confident that—”

“Confident. Not sure?”

“It’s never possible to be sure, Aria. In any situation. He could have died when he broke his ribs? Either of you could have died from the drugs you took. Life’s a gamble.”

“I know,” Aria whispered, “but I can’t gamble with him.”

Taking Drew by surprise, Aria pulled out of his arms and ran.

“Aria.”

Drew was on the point of launching himself after Aria, when Amara stirred and cried out his name. For a heartrending moment he was torn in half, but Amara was in good hands and Aria was… Shit. He had no idea what Aria was doing, what he was thinking. He was terrified that Aria would try to run out into the hall. He had no idea what was going on up there, and what Aria would find when he cleared to door. He was confused for a moment when he entered an empty hall, then heard Aria’s voice from behind one of the doors, yell at his mother to be quiet. Julianna, as was becoming usual, screamed abuse at him, laughing hysterically and taunting that he was nothing on his own and he would never survive without Amara. Surprisingly, Aria ignored her, as he reappeared into the corridor. He slammed the door on his mother’s cries and sagged, with his back against it. Drew noticed he had a piece of technology in his hand and was surprised when he recognized it as a two-way radio.

Taking a deep breath, Aria drew himself up, pushing away from the door. He raised his gaze to Drew and held his eyes as he fitted the earpiece and tapped the radio. “Status report,” he barked in a voice that was practically indistinguishable from Julianna’s. Drew felt his eyes widen in surprise. Aria smiled and winked at him. Yet another shock. They were coming fast today.

They paused, waiting for a response, but there was none. Aria checked the radio and tried again. When there was still no response, Aria handed the receiver to Drew. “Am I doing it right?”

Drew checked the receiver. He was familiar with the technology and made sure it was broadcasting to all units. “Try again.”

Aria did so without apparent success. Then, his face lit up.

“Understood. There’s a derelict cottage in the wood just off the road, about quarter of a mile from the gates. You’ll see a faint path from the road. Regroup there. I’ll send Ben down to you as soon as I can. We’re secure for the moment but if no one comes in an hour, disperse.”

As soon as he’d finished speaking, Aria tore the earpiece from his ear and threw it onto the floor. He gazed at in, anger and hatred in every line of his body. He looked as if he wanted to stamp on it.

“Don’t do that,” Drew said gently. “We might need it.” He pulled Aria into a rough embrace. “That was amazing,” he said. “I had no idea you could do that.”

“We do it all the time—her and father. Sometimes we do other people like Alicia and Mason and…” He gazed up with a coy smiled. “And you.”

“You keep surprising me.” He kissed Aria briefly. “When this is over the two of you will have to put on a show for me.”

A shadow passed over Aria’s features, but he straightened himself and nodded. “We will. Both of us. But we need to get out of here. The police are here, and all her guys have run away.” He frowned. “I don’t understand why the police haven’t come down yet.”

“There are protocols for this kind of thing. As far as they know, this is a hostage situation and they’ll discuss a plan before they do anything. They’ll probably be talking to your grandmother. You should try to call her. I would think that whatever they did to jam the telephones has been resolved by now.”

“Okay.” Aria raised his wrist and fiddled with his watch. He’d bought Drew a smartwatch and tried to teach him how to use it. It was still in the London house somewhere. Aria, however, was more than proficient and in moments was speaking to his grandmother.

The call was cut short when a bloodcurdling scream had both Aria and Drew flying back into the living room. Amara was thrashing, fighting Jeff who was trying to hold him still and maintain pressure on the wound. The sofa was to soft, allowing too much movement. Drew had a brief flash of irritation that he hadn’t put Amara on the table, but he’d wanted him to be comfortable.

Drew dropped to his knees and caught Amara’s wrists, holding them tight to his chest. “Amara, look at me. It’s Drew. Look at me.”

Whether Amara could hear him or not, his words made no impression. If anything, Amara fought harder to free himself and his screams broke Drew’s heart. He’d been in this situation more times than he should have been with soldiers in the field. Some of them had been his brothers-in-arms and he’d thought they were as close as family. Back then, he’d had no idea what family really was.

Drew could practically hear Jeff’s voice telling him to keep Amara still, to stop the thrashing that was making fresh blood pool on the fabric of the sofa that would never be the same again.

“Amara, please. I know it hurts, but you have to be still, or you’ll hurt yourself. You’re bleeding, love and I know it hurts but Jeff has to push down on it to stop you bleeding to death. Please, just try to lie still. Help’s coming.”

Amara completely ignored him, and his screams only grew louder, piercing Drew’s heart, over and over.

Drew started when someone laid their hands over his and tugged them away from Amara. He turned his head to find Aria smiling at him. There was so much pain in his expression, but also love and…understanding. Sweet, little Aria. Gentle, kind and trusting Aria. Aria whose world just got torn to shreds. His Aria was smiling and nodding, comforting him.

“I can do it,” Aria said. “Wait by the door.”

For a moment Aria’s words didn’t register. “I…”

“Let me in,” Aria said smoothly and slipped his hands under Drew’s. “’Mara,” he crooned, “It’s me. You know it’s me and you know what I’m going to tell you. Just calm down. Listen to me. You’ve got to stop all this nonsense.” Aria’s voice took on a firmer and more commanding tone. “Will you please stop before you hit me in the nose, or something?”

Amazingly, Amara seemed to respond to his words. In wonder, Drew slowly withdrew his hands, and as if by magic, as soon as Aria’s replaced them, Amara quieted. His screams turned to sobs and he grasped Aria’s hands so hard it had to hurt, but Aria didn’t flinch.

“A-A-Aria. H-h-hurts.”

“I know it does. You’ve been shot, you idiot, of course it hurts.”

“But…but…”

“You’ve been shot. You’ve got a hole in you, but you’re not going to die. Drew said so.”

“D-Drew?”

“Yes.”

“Okay?”

“Yes.”

“But it h-hurts.”

“Don’t make me tell you again. You’ve been shot, so of course it hurts. Tell me something I don’t know.”

Amara blinked hard and gave Aria a weak smile. “You snore.”

“I do not.”

“Denial.” Amara coughed weakly and groaned, but he seemed much calmer. His gaze wandered away from Aria to find Drew, and he smiled.

“’m be ‘k?”

“You’ll be fine. Help’s on the way. Once they get you to hospital they’ll fix you up in no time. You might even be home by this time tomorrow.”

Amara nodded.

“I need to leave you for a little while, just to—”

He broke off when the door flew open. Why was he not surprised that it was Lady Jane who swept in first, with a rather bemused-looking officer in a SWAT uniform following on her heels, only just in front of Robert who looked murderous.

“Where is she?” Lady Jane demanded.

“In the bedroom.”

Lady Jane glared at the police officer, who to be fair didn’t flinch…much. “I can’t trust myself near the woman. Deal with her. Robert, please show the paramedics down here as soon as possible. Make sure the ambulance driver knows which hospital.”

“What do you mean?” Aria snapped, glaring at his grandmother. “What hospital? Where do you want them to take him?”

“King Edward VII of course,” Lady Jane snapped. “As if I’d let either of you be treated anywhere else. They’re the best hospital in the country and have more than enough experience of dealing with the press.”

Aria visibly relaxed. “Oh. Yes. Of course.”

Drew wasn’t convinced. “Why that particular hospital? Why not just the closest?”

“If the paramedics tell me it would be dangerous to move him too far, then of course they can take him to the closest hospital, but the rest of you will have to deal with the fallout when the press descends. King Edward’s is the best private hospital in London. They treat the Royal Family and they know how to deal with reporters. They have their own staff who will work with us on press releases and arranging interviews with the police and the press. This has to be managed properly.”

“Reputation again?” Drew asked, unable to keep the hard edge from his voice.

“Do you remember why you came here, Mr Chance? Do you not think that what you are about to face will be a hundred times worse?”

She had him there.