Chapter 78

“Did you hear that, Luis? My brother is safe!” I told him and pulled him into a hug.

“I’m so happy.” Luis smiled and rested his head against my stomach. “It’s hard to hug you.” He giggled.

I had my doubts whether Isobel would manage to free him or not, but she actually did it. Not having to worry about Beau had removed the suffocating feeling I had for these past days.

“I have to find out where she’s taking him!” I reached out to grab my phone again but got light-headed in the process. “Serena, you have to sit down!” Luis told me and grabbed my hand.

“Your brother is safe for now, so please rest—please.” He pouted as he squeezed my hand. “For the baby.”

For the baby, he was right—I had been so caught up in everything that I had forgotten about the baby.

“Beau is safe, that’s enough for now—you should take a nap because you have not closed a single eye since I’ve been here...”

“No, sweetheart it’s not because of you!” I reassured Luis and squeezed both sides of his cheeks. I was supposed to be taking care of him, but at the moment he was taking care of me—and I felt horrible.

He released himself from my grip and ran over to the mini-fridge to grab a bottle of water. “Drink!” He spoke as he pushed the bottle into my hands.

“Thanks, Luis.” I chuckled. For someone willing to fight for my baby’s life, I had barely thought about the consequences of me not taking care of myself. Instead, I was doing everything Ramiro had told me not to.

“Luis? You telling me about Beau, it won’t put you in any trouble right?” I asked for the first time. Only after the damage had already been done, I was ready to deal with the consequences—and guilt was eating me alive. “Tell me, who knew about it?”

“The guards, Vince—Fabio and I,” Luis mumbled as he tried to avoid my gaze. I felt an awful pit in my stomach and knew it was guilt. Because of my nagging, I had forced Luis into helping me free Beau, while he came to me for help.

“Don’t worry, I need you to rest.” Luis gave me a warm smile and grabbed the covers with his tiny hands to pull them over me. “Can I touch your belly again?” He asked with hopeful eyes. “Yes, sure!” I smiled.

He placed his hand on my belly and looked at me with sparkling eyes. “Wow.” He gasped as he rubbed circles over my belly. I looked at him with a warm smile and admired how he was completely immersed by my belly.

“I like Christian, I still think we could've asked him to save Beau.” He suddenly spoke. Everyone seemed to have so much confidence in him, but I remained skeptical.

My biggest fear was for him to send Luis back to that place and I did not want that.

I did not want to deal with him calling me stupid, not smart enough, not good enough—and all the other words which would’ve probably left his mouth. I was not in the mood to argue.

“You know, Vince once told Beau that Christian is willing to sell his soul for you and that he would walk through fire for you, so I believe he will do what’s right,” Luis told me. I smiled as I did not doubt that. Over the past few months, he had shown me how much he cared and that was definitely not the issue—but this was about something a bit more serious.

“I would never do that for a girl, girls are scary.” Luis pulled a disgusting look. “Do you think I’m scary?” I laughed and ruffled my hand through his hair. He wasn’t exactly wrong, because the way how I had put my own brother’s life before his and everyone else’s was indeed scary.

Christian had told me that the war would be a week from now, but I knew very well that saving Beau might’ve ruined things.

“No, you are nice and pretty—but I still don’t understand.” Luis smiled at me. It seemed crazy to me how he did not understand how brave he was. “Luis, you’ve not even noticed how you’ve risked your life in helping me safe Beau, that’s the same as walking through fire for someone.”

“It is, isn’t it?” Luis giggled with a shy look on his face. I bet he didn’t get that many compliments. “Vince once said that he would walk through fire for me.” Luis’s smile had slowly disappeared from his face. There was no doubt about it, he missed his brother.

“And I’m sure he still will.” I grabbed his hand. “What happened between the two of you?” I asked him, knowing there had to be more behind it. The two were always together and were known as two peas in a pod.

“Luis? Come on, tell me.” I pushed him to talk after seeing the dull look on his face. “He yelled at Beau, and when I told him to stop he pushed me...hard,” Luis whispered the last word as tears were threatening to spill from his eyes.

“He didn’t even notice and he didn’t even apologize, but Beau did.” He looked up at me. “He was becoming just like Fabio and it scared me. I don’t want him to be like Fabio.”

“Your brother is just stressed out, because...” I tried to convince him, knowing there was no point in doing so. He went too far when he had put his hands on Luis and there was no defending that.

“Because he’s just like Fabio and wants to hurt you because of the baby?” Luis finished my sentence.

“I know Fabio hurt mommy, Vincenzo told me and he promised he wouldn’t be like him.” Luis spoke. Hearing Fabio possibly got rid of Luis’s mother was neither a shock or surprising to me. Fabio was a heartless man, and I had already found that out on my own.

“Your brother is a good person, he’s just lost.” I rubbed my hand on his back. No matter what anyone, including Christian would say—I still had faith in Vince. In the time I had spent with him I got to know him as an ambitious, kind soul—who was always ready to help anyone.

He defended me when I spilled champagne over his suit.

He cheered me up when I was too scared to buy a pregnancy test.

He got me a job while I was completely unqualified because he knew I needed it.

He paid for my lunch because he knew I needed it.

He made time for me when my bond with Christian was rocky because he knew I needed it.

So I did not doubt that he would come back to his senses and end up doing what’s right, the only question was when. All I could hope for was that it’d be in time before it’s too late.

“I know he’s a good person—I just don’t want to be around him right now.” Luis sighed. “Vince had once told me that a short break can heal a broken relationship, he told me there is no point in forcing it to glue it back together if the glue is not going to hold.”

“I don’t think that’s the relationship he was talking about.” I laughed at Luis’s explanation.

“I don’t think it matters. If I’d stayed there, he would’ve apologized—but I would’ve still hated him and I don’t want to hate him. We just need a break.” Luis told me. He was right, they needed a break—we all needed a break. “I will go back and be at his side when he realizes what he’s missing.”

“You know Luis, you’re really wise for your age,” I told him and pushed him down so I could tuck him in. He must’ve been tired from everything, and he was still holding on. “It’s because of the video games.” He yawned.

“Maybe it is.” I chuckled, giving myself a mental note to never stop my baby from playing video games.

“Come on, let’s go to sleep for now—I think we both need it.” I kissed Luis on his forehead and patiently waited until he fell asleep. Only after knowing he was asleep I was able to close my eyes.

After a two-hour nap, I had opened my eyes again and immediately reached for my phone.

How could I even think about sleep, when I had screwed up everyone’s plans by saving Beau?

I gasped when I realized that Isobel had called me three times. I was asleep when she had called me, and anything could’ve happened in that time.

What if Christian found out? What if Fabio found out?

“Isobel?” I called out as I was eagerly waiting for an answer, but the moment I heard my brother’s voice instead—it felt as if my world had stopped.

“Serena?”