Prisioner In Your Arms

Hours later, the doctor emerged from the operating room, and everyone gathered around to hear the news. They could tell by his expression that it wasn’t good.

“How is my son?” Rina asked desperately. Something inside her heart indicated that things were not going well. She felt a strong pressure in her chest.

“We managed to stabilize him. Unfortunately, the bullets did not exit his body, so we had to remove them. Internal organs have been compromised, so we’ll have to wait and see how he responds in the next few hours. He’s a young and strong man, so perhaps a miracle will happen. He will be transferred to a room, and in a few hours, he will wake up. Only one person at a time can visit him, only the closest ones, please. It’s important not to exhaust him. He keeps mentioning a name, Nicole, repeatedly in his unconscious state.”

The women cried inconsolably, especially Nicole and Rina.

“Even near death, he thinks of me all the time. I can’t handle this, really, I can’t,” Nicole said, inconsolable. She now remembered perfectly well what they had experienced, how tender he was with her and his beautiful smile. Leandro had to recover; he didn’t deserve to die in that way.

Bruno approached and embraced her. There was nothing he could say to console her, so he remained silent. He knew that Leandro was a very important part of her life, and it pained him to see her suffer.

Shelsy arrived with her mother at that moment, and Dante and Sophie arrived almost simultaneously. They had left Danna with Sara at Leandro’s house; Bruno and Nicole needed them at that moment.

“Where is he? I need to see him,” the girl cried inconsolably. Leandro was a very good man, and her son needed him. She had to know about his existence.

Shelsy was wearing clothing that clearly displayed her pregnancy; her belly had grown to a size that was impossible to hide.

Everyone’s gaze fixed on her belly, especially Rina. Could that baby be her grandchild?

“Please, I need to see him. He doesn’t know that I’m expecting his child,” she pleaded through her tears.

Rina approached, took her hand, and led her to the room where Leandro was.

“He’s still asleep. You can be with him for a few minutes, but please remember that he can’t be disturbed. His health is very delicate.”

Rina felt terrible seeing her son in that state, lying in bed connected to all those machines.

She leaned in and planted a gentle kiss on his forehead. Then she turned around and left to give Shelsy some privacy. Perhaps it would help Leandro to know that he would become a father. The blonde approached him, sobbing uncontrollably.

She took his hand and placed it on her belly.

“You have to live. I’m pregnant. This little one growing inside me is your child.”

At that moment, Leandro struggled to open his eyes. He weakly smiled; he had heard every word she said.

“A child, my child,” he said in a barely audible voice. Tears streamed down his cheeks, and then he began to cough.

“If I’m not here, tell him about me. Tell him that I loved him from the moment of his existence. Take care of him and raise him to be a good person.”

The machine to which he was connected began beeping persistently. The doctors rushed in, asking Shelsy to leave immediately. She left, consumed by tears.

“What happened? How is my son?” she asked desperately.

“I don’t know. He became agitated, and the machine started making a loud sound.”

“Did you manage to tell him he’ll be a father?”

The girl nodded her head.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“God, this can’t be happening. Leandro is strong, he has to recover.”

When the doctors stabilized him, they left the room.

“We managed to stabilize him, but his condition is very delicate. I’ll be honest, he may not make it through the night.”

They walked away, leaving them devastated. Shelsy had to sit down; she felt like she was going to collapse. Nicole felt the same way.

In a nearby room, Sergio had better luck. The bullets hadn’t hit any vital organs, but there wasn’t a single person who cared about him. Although his condition was serious, he had a chance of survival. He was handcuffed to the bed, and as soon as he woke up, he started asking for Leandro.

“My son, where is my son?”

The nurse who was with him at that moment gave him a look of disdain. The news had spread that he had shot his own son. She turned away from him and left the room.

“Damn it! I want to see my son.”

The nurse returned and administered a sedative. Despite being a monster, he had to do her job.

Shortly after, Rina entered to see Leandro. His complexion was very pale; he had received several blood transfusions because he had lost a lot of blood.

“My beloved son, I love you. I have loved you since you were in my womb. Despite not being by your side, I have never stopped loving you. Life didn’t give me the chance to be with you, but I hope it will now reward me with the miracle of your survival. I remember when you were born; they placed you on my chest while you were still connected to me by the umbilical cord. You seemed like the most beautiful child in the world.”

Rina couldn’t continue speaking; her voice broke. The pain she was feeling was too much. She stayed by his side, sitting in a chair, watching him the entire time. God had given her a perfect son but had denied her the opportunity to see him grow, to embrace him, to be there when he was sick, to accompany him in his achievements and failures.

Moments later, Leandro woke up.

“Mama, please, water.”

Rina hurried to moisten a cotton ball and passed it over his mouth.

“I want to see Nicole, please, and Mom, whatever happens to me, help Shelsy with my son. Love him as if he were me.”

“I will, son. Now calm down, you shouldn’t get agitated. I’ll call Nicole right away. Try not to speak too much because it agitates you.”

She left to call Nicole, and Shelsy felt saddened. Despite knowing that she carried his child in her womb, he called for Nicole. It had always been her. This made her cry even more, and her mother embraced her.

Nicole nervously entered the room; her heart ached seeing him in that state.

“Hello,” she said as she saw a faint smile on his face upon seeing her.

“Hello, little one.”

“Shhh, you mustn’t talk. You’ll see, you’ll recover soon.” She reached for his hand and brought it closer so he could hold it.

“Do you remember me?”

“Seeing you in this state, I have remembered everything, every detail of the time I spent by your side.”

“How cruel, isn’t it?”

“What?”

“The fate that took me away from your side, despite everything… in my dreams, we were very happy together with Santi.”

“Please, you’re making a great effort to speak.”

“Let me tell you how I feel. Time is running out… even on the other side, I won’t stop loving you, never… forget me, please… keep me alive in your memory, where I’ll be very happy… Could you… give me a… farewell kiss?” he asked with great effort.

Nicole leaned in and placed a kiss on his lips. At that moment, she felt him release a deep sigh. Alarmed, she saw that he had closed his eyes. She shook him to wake him up; perhaps he had fallen asleep. But the sound of the machine alerted her that he had passed away.

“Leandro, nooo, Leandro, please wake up, don’t do this to me,” she began to scream desperately, clinging to his body.

The doctors entered; it was difficult to separate her from his side. They took her out of the room, trying to resuscitate him, but it was in vain.

Rina and the others, seeing her in that state, immediately knew what had happened. Bruno rushed to embrace Nicole, while Rina and Shelsy fainted. The others couldn’t believe what was happening-Leandro had been killed at the hands of his father. Sergio had murdered him.

The doctor came out to confirm what they already knew.

“I’m so sorry. We did everything we could, but the bullets caused severe damage.”

He walked away, leaving them in shock. Bruno feared that Nicole would lose the baby; there was little time left. But what was happening was too much to bear. Later, when they were a little calmer and waiting for the body to be released, Gío and Noah took care of the necessary arrangements.

Bruno asked Emma and Mara to take care of Nicole and Rina. He walked down the hallway, leaving Mara puzzled, not knowing where he was going.

He headed to Sergio’s room; he had already asked about the condition of that murderer. The police allowed him to pass when he told them that he would deliver the news about his son.

He entered and saw Sergio lying there. He stared at him, feeling nothing but contempt for that man.

“What do you want here? Why have you come?”

“I assure you that it’s not to see you, but I considered it necessary for you to find out that you are the worst piece of trash in this world. You have murdered your son, Leandro just died.”

Immediately, Bruno turned around, leaving Sergio there with his eyes wide open. Those words kept echoing in his mind, over and over again he heard, “Leandro just died.” Sergio started screaming, completely unhinged. He repeatedly hit his head against the bed, his agonizing screams echoing throughout the hospital. His mind couldn’t bear to hear it- he had murdered his own son.

He had always been harsh and cold with his son, raising him just as his parents had raised him. He failed to realize in time the precious time he had lost to be by his son’s side. Leandro practically grew up alone in a huge, cold, and dark house, longing for his mother’s love, a love that his father had cruelly taken away from him. As he grew older, he went from one boarding school to another. Now, Sergio realized it was too late- Leandro had gone forever.