Page 123 of When She Falls (The Fallen)
“I don’t know. I’ll figure it out. But you’re never going to be alone with your father again. Ever.”
She gives me a wary look, like she thinks that’s impossible, but she doesn’t argue.
I give her shoulder a squeeze, shut the door, and climb into the driver’s seat.
Yes, the next time I see Garzolo, I’m going to kill him. Rage burns beneath my flesh as I imagine all the ways I’d like to disfigure that motherfucker before he takes his last breath.
Watching him kick Gemma while she was curled up on the ground woke something primal inside of me. I heard the commotion from where I was waiting in the living room, and I immediately ran to the office, but I was seconds too late.
And in those seconds, he managed to knock her to the ground and land a few hits.
My hands strangle the wheel.
I should have never let her go into his office without me.
“Peaches, how are you doing?” I ask, trying to keep my voice calm for her sake.
“My side hurts badly when I breathe in.” She prods her ribs, wincing as she does it. “I don’t think anything’s broken though.”
My teeth grind against each other. “How often has he done this to you?”
A long while passes before she answers. “Until recently, it was only every few months. Whenever he was in a bad mood and had no one else to take it out on. But after Vale ran, he started doing it more.”
“Fucking unbelievable,” I growl. How dare he? It’s bad enough that he’s been hitting her, but the fact that he’s been doing that while planning to use her to save his own hide makes it even more perverse. Does he even view her as a human being? Or is she just a fucking object? “And your sisters didn’t know?”
“I’ve always hidden it. In the past, he rarely hit me hard enough to leave a bruise, so it was easy.”
“But in Ibiza, he didn’t hold back. How did Cleo not see anything?”
Her fingertips lift to her cheek. “I wore an eye mask in bed to make sure she wouldn’t notice. She’s not big on details anyway.”
Yeah, she sure isn’t. When Vale asked her about it, she was clueless.
Gemma’s been protecting her and Vale all this time by keeping this secret to herself. She’s been carrying the burden of her father’s anger and violence. There was nothing her sisters could have done when they were younger, but why not say something to Vale in Ibiza? Why not ask for help?
I stop at a red light and glance at her. “Why didn’t you say anything to me? Or Vale?”
“If I’d told Vale, she would have done everything she could to get me out of here, and Papà wouldn’t give me up easily. That’s a fact. I didn’t want to be responsible for more violence. Especially with my family on both sides of the fight. Plus, he stopped when you arrived. I thought maybe it was over, but then I fucked up. I told him what I thought of him for the first time. I didn’t hold anything back.” Her voice wavers. “It was stupid. I provoked him.”
The fact that she thinks this is somehow her fault lights a fire inside of me. “Gemma, you did nothing to deserve this.” I take her hand, pulling her attention to me. “Do you hear me?”
Her eyes are filled with tears. It takes all my willpower not to drag her over the center console and press her against my chest.
“Yes,” she whispers.
We drive for another ten minutes before we get to the emergency clinic.
Inside, it smells like antiseptic and something medicinal. My arm is wrapped securely around Gemma’s waist, and she’s holding my handkerchief to her lip as we approach the counter.
“We need to see a doctor right away,” I bark at the male receptionist sitting behind the counter.
He slides a clipboard over to us without looking up. “Please fill this out.”
I’m about to tell him to fuck off with the damn form when Gemma nudges me. “I need to list my medications and previous health issues, just in case.”
I grab a nearby pen and lead her to a chair. It’s not too busy. There are just a few other people waiting around. A security guard wanders in, says something to a nurse, and then walks out the front door. I see him light up a smoke.
Once Gemma finishes filling out the form, I bring it back to the receptionist.
