Victor Dane had disappeared.
She had recovered in the hospital, a rehab facility, and then was moved into a house her family had rented, where she had been put on lockdown as they hoped for a sign of Victor. Her family’s unwavering support brought tears to her eyes, knowing that she should have been able to tell them everything, anything, and it was her fault that she had left them in the dark over the weird fans she had accumulated over the years. She had never mentioned a thing.
Bella’s family and friends had taken turns staying with her, never leaving her alone during those months of recovery. Liz had come to live with and take care of her, quitting her job when they had refused to give her the time off. She didn’t need it anyways since her parents had died years ago, leaving her their fortune.
Bella’s brother Tony, who was a computer genius, had relocated to be with her since he could write his software programs anywhere. He never left her alone as if afraid something would happen to her again if he so much as blinked.
Bella had told Danny to go back home since he had the bar to take care of, but Mama and Papa said they would alternate with him so someone could stay at Moretti’s and the others could come be with her as often as they could. Her family had stayed with her in that house while she recovered, until she was strong enough to move back to Chicago. The only family member not around was Salvatore, her oldest brother. He had joined the Army Rangers years ago, and it had been almost two years since any of them had spoken to him. All they had been told was that he was “on assignment,” and they received the occasional letter from him, with no return address.
Bella made the rest of her family swear that they would allow her to tell him once he was home and stopped them from trying to find him. Bella dreaded telling him since Sal had the worst temper out of the three brothers. All of her brothers were big, frightening men, but not to her. Their massive frames gave her comfort and made her feel protected like she needed, surrounding her with love and security.
Silent tears streaked down her face as the memories assailed her.
“I’m okay…I’m okay…” she whispered over and over again, repeating the words like a mantra, trying to calm herself.
A furious pounding on her door broke her out of her frightened daze, forcing her back to reality.
“Bella, open up,” Tony’s deep harsh voice demanded. “Bells, sweetheart, you know the rule, right, hon? If you don’t answer me, I am going to come in, in ten seconds. One, two, three—”
“I’m coming!”
Bella scurried off the bed, struggling on pants and an oversized sweatshirt as she flew to the door. She undid the locks and the alarm and wrenched open the door as Tony’s imposing form bounded into the room. Bella threw herself into his waiting arms as he picked her up. Cradling her in his arms, he moved silently to the couch in her living room.
Gently, he stroked her hair and crooned soft words to her as he held her shaking body close to him. Although Bella was close to all her brothers, she and Tony had always had a special bond. Being the youngest of the brothers, Tony was closest to her in age, only being three years older than her, but that was not what had made them close.
Over the years people had jokingly said that they were like twins, knowing more about each other than anyone could understand. He was her best friend. They could read each other’s face as well as their own, feel the depths of each other’s emotions, and Bella knew that her terror and pain had cut him to the bone. Growing up, they had always known if something was wrong with one another, even at a distance.
When she had moved to France for school and then to New York to live, she had hurt Tony by leaving even though he understood. When she had opened her eyes in the hospital, Bella had met Tony’s pain-filled eyes and knew that he hurt for her as deeply as anyone possibly could. It was all there in his face. He thought he had failed her, was terrified that he almost lost her. Tony had been in California for work when Victor had attacked her. Unexplainably, before any of his family had been able to reach him, he was already on a plane heading to New York, praying that he wasn’t too late.
As Bella lay in the hospital, Tony had quietly purchased the three-story brick condo building in Chicago’s Gold Coast area where they now lived. He had the condo on the third floor furnished for her, moving his stuff into the unit on the second floor, reconstructing the first floor as a common area for both of their use. He had gotten an old friend of his to install the best security system money could buy, along with a few bits and pieces that were not available to the public, some of which he himself had created.