Chapter 25

~ Gabrielle ~

Six Years Earlier

I cracked an eyelid and winced at the pain from the bright light. My head throbbed, and my body ached as if I’d survived a hit and run. I swallowed against the cottonmouth sensation and attempted to open my eyes again.

A cool hand touched my arm. “Gabby, baby? I’m here, honey. Mommy’s here, baby.”

I squinted before opening them further, letting my gaze wander the room before settling on my mom, who sat propped up in her chair, looking at me with anticipation. I tried to turn my head, but something constricted me, not allowing the movement.

“It’s okay, honey. Don’t move. The brace is there to help your neck.” She stood, perching on the edge of the bed so she was in my line of vision, and attempted a smile as she smoothed my hair, but it didn’t hide her worry and concern. “What do you need? Do you want water?”

“Yes, please,” I croaked, my voice only a whisper.

I sipped out of the straw my mom held for me and closed my eyes at the pleasant sensation of the cool water sliding down my throat. When I reopened them, she was studying me.

“Do you know where you are?”

I tried to nod, but winced from the pain as soon as I moved. “Yes.”

“Do you remember what happened?”

At the complete distress on my mother’s face, I wished I could keep this from her, but I could not hide the fear and terror that rippled through me as the events replayed in my mind. “Yes.”

“Do you know who did this to you? The police will be back to ask you questions.”

The threat echoed in my head, Terrell’s sinister voice warning me to keep my mouth shut or else he would harm Danny, and a shiver passed through me before I could stop it. I would do whatever needed to protect Danny, even if that meant lying.

“No. It was a group of guys. I’ve never seen them before.”

My mom’s face scrunched as her eyes filled with tears. “Oh my, baby. I’m so sorry. If only I hadn’t been running late, and then I had a flat tire…” She finished on a sob.

“It’s okay, Mom.” I reached out to grab her hand. “It’s not your fault.”

She squeezed my hand tight and shook her head. “Yes, it is. All of this is. Moving here, exposing you to this, being late…everything. All of it is my fault. All of it…I’m so sorry…”

Tears slid down my face. “You were doing what you had to do.”

We wept together and left everything else unspoken. Since we couldn’t change what my father had done, there was no use in going back. Even after the tears had subsided, we sat in silence before I cleared my throat in preparation for hearing the complete story.

“So, what’s broken?”

My mother blew her nose into a tissue and wiped at her eyes. “Well, you most likely have a concussion, along with mild whiplash, and your right knee has a strained ligament since it was hyper-extended. Your left ankle is twisted. Thank God Mrs. Greiger came back when she did, so nothing further happened.” She stopped, as if contemplating how much more to tell me before reaching over to the small table beside the bed and grabbing a mirror.

I gasped at my reflection. The stranger looking back at me had an eye surrounded by a riot of colors in vibrant purples, yellows, and greens. Another dark smudge of purple lined my jaw, and several deep red scratches scored the rest of my face. Fresh tears filled my eyes as I studied myself.

“Everything will heal, honey.” My mom rubbed my arm, trying to comfort me.

“I know.” I leaned back and my eyelids drooped, exhaustion making my whole body heavy. “It’s everything. This.” I pointed at my face. “My audition for Juilliard. There’s no way my knee and ankle will heal in time. The bills for this. How are you going to pay for it?”

“Oh, honey. Everything will be okay. You’ll be able to try out another time.”

“Mom—”

“Let’s focus on getting you out of here first and getting better, and then we’ll figure out what we need to do for Juilliard. Okay, baby? One thing at a time. And don’t you worry about the bills for this. I’ll figure something out. You have nothing to worry about, except getting better.”

Overwhelmed, my head swam and everything throbbed even more. The door opened, and a doctor walked in, putting an end to the conversation.

~ Danny ~

So much guilt and hatred of myself flowed through me at seeing her lying in the bed, battered and bruised, knowing she was here because of me. But I couldn’t stay away either. It was torture to be here, to see her like this, but I had to do it as punishment for my failure.

I watched her until the day turned to night. All the scrapes and scratches that she’d had to endure, the braces that she had to wear on her neck, knee, and ankle seared themselves into my memory. After a while, she opened her eyes. She didn’t notice me at first, but then, sensing my presence, she squinted toward the corner where I stood.

“Danny?”

I stepped out from the shadows, but stopped, rigid and tense, almost afraid to approach her, since I had no words of comfort, and could do nothing to take away her pain.

She tried to smile, which made it worse, and held out a hand. “I know I look scary, but come here.” When I still didn’t move, her bottom lip quivered. “Please, don’t do this, Danny. I need you.”

She crumbled in front of me, and the weight of her emotions pulled me down. I was fucking useless.

“I don’t know what to do,” I whispered.

“You don’t need to do anything. Just be here with me.”

“No! I can’t sit here and do nothing! I can’t sit here while you suffer.”

“What are you saying? Are you saying you can’t be around me?”

“No.” I ran my hands over my hair before clenching my fists in frustration. “No,” I said again, and paced around the room before turning back. “Seeing you laying there makes me want to put my fist through the wall.” I took a step closer. “It makes me want to track down the bastards who did this to you and take them out. Gabby, baby.” My shoulders dropped, and I returned to the side of her bed, grabbing her hand, the only part of her not black and blue. “You have no idea what it was like to see you on the ground, knowing there was nothing I could do for you; that I’d failed you. I can’t forget that. I won’t forget that. This is something I can do.”

“No. Don’t do anything. I know you know who did this, but please, I’m begging you, don’t take it into your own hands. I already told the police I didn’t know who did this. We just need to get past this, and then we can get out of here, just like you always promised.”

“Please don’t ask me to sit back and do nothing. Please, don’t.”

“I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you.”

My eyes widened. “But I’m supposed to stand this? I’m supposed to handle this happening to you?”

She pulled on my hand, bringing me nearer. “I can handle this more than I can handle something happening to you. Please, don’t do anything. I couldn’t bear it. Please.”

A war raged within me—the need to find release for my anger and the desire to do as she wished, simply because she asked it of me. “This is fucked up,” I said as I hung my head. “This isn’t right. You shouldn’t have lied to the cops.”

“I know, I know. Please, Danny, please. Just stay here with me.”

I sighed and pressed my lips to her forehead. “I’m not going anywhere, baby. I’ll be here until they kick me out, and then I’ll be back.”

“Hold me, please?”

I sat on the edge of the bed and waited as she adjusted herself before putting my arms around her, being cautious of everything connected to her, careful not to hurt her. I rested my head on the pillow above hers and let out a deep breath.

“Danny? Is there a reason they keep coming after me?”

A rock lodged itself in my throat. Yes, I wanted to tell her, because of me. Paybacks, I wanted to say, had made you the perfect target, but the words wouldn’t come out, continuing the lie, even though it was destroying me.

I hated myself. I’d promised never to keep anything from her, but the lie had taken on a life of its own, and it was now out of my hands. I’d lost control of everything, and I had no idea what to do anymore.

“I don’t know, baby. I wish I did, but I don’t.”

* * *

“So, how’s your girl?” Dollar asked when he saw me next.

I blew out a breath as I sat in a chair, exhaustion dragging me down. We had planned to meet at the studio to catch up on recording since I’d been spending all my time at the hospital. Big T had yet to arrive.

“She’s okay. She’s home, but she’s still pretty banged up.”

“Was it Terrell and his crew?”

I nodded. A look passed between us before I dropped my head in my hands. “I know what you’re going to say.”

Dollar sank into the seat next to me, the equipment sitting around us forgotten for the time being. “It ain’t gonna stop, D.”

I leaned back and threw my hands up. “So, what am I supposed to do?”

“You know what you need to do.”

I stood and paced. “No. I can’t. I won’t.”

“D, it’s you they’re after. They’re using her to get to you, and it’s working.”

“What do you mean, ‘it’s working’?”

“They want you to come back at them. Give them an opening, start the war, and you sitting here trying to figure out what you gonna do.”

“I can’t let them get away with this. They put her in the fucking hospital!”

“That’s what I’m saying.” He stood in front of me. “They have you exactly where they want you. Terrell still pissed you snubbed him and his boys, and you took away his chance at serious dough; now he’s trying to make sure you don’t get it either. You do what you thinking about doing…then he wins. Look man, you gotta put space between you two; if nothing else, for her safety.”

I blew out a breath and leaned against the low counter. “I can’t.” The thought made me ill. “I can’t.”

“D…dawg…you’ve got to. If you don’t, next time, she won’t be as lucky. You know that, and I know that.”

I continued to shake my head. “Anything but that—”

“Danny.” He dropped the nickname, which he rarely did. “This is what you gotta do. You on the brink of making it big, nothing can interfere with that. If you stay with her, things with Terrell is gonna get ugly, and then what? You end up in jail? No, dawg. You bigger than that. You meant for bigger things.”

“She’s supposed to go with me.” I hated the weakness in my voice as I pleaded with him to understand.

“D, if you stick with her, she ain’t gonna be around to go.”

I stared at him as his words hung in the air between us. Dollar was right, but the thought of her not in my life left a hole the size of a crater in my chest. I couldn’t live without Gabrielle, but that may be what happens if I stay with her. Eventually, I might be able to deal with her not in my life, but a world without G’s bright smile was unacceptable. Dollar was right; I had to get away from her, for her own sake.

I took a shaky breath. “This will kill me, but you’re right. I’ve got to do something.”

He nodded and squeezed my shoulder. “You doing the right thing. It don’t feel like it, but you are.”

I wiped at the moisture in my eyes with a trembling hand, hoping it had gone unnoticed. “What do I do?”

“You make a clean cut and you get out of town. It’s the only way.”

“It’s not going to be that easy. She isn’t going to just let me walk away.” I dropped my head into my hands and rubbed at my temples. The very thought of leaving Gabrielle made my head throb.

“Then you gotta make it clear and give her no choice. You’re gonna hurt her, no doubt.”

The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt her, but it was my only choice.

“It’s better than her being dead.”

“Exactly, my man. Exactly.”