The Heiress' Revenge

Chapter 182: I Was Alone

Dante’s POV

I paced back and forth in the wiring room... as the surgery went on...my footsteps echoed on the tile floor.

Each step was heavier than the last.

Ares was sitting in the corner.

His head was in his hands.

Ares, Daniel, and Elena were all with me in the waiting room... the surgery had been going on for hours.

Too many hours.

Every minute felt like a year.

Every second felt like a lifetime.

I thought about this morning.

The way she looked at me.

The way she kissed me and said I love you that she’ll be back.

I held onto that... that she would be back and I’d wait for her while she fought for us.

The door opened. Dr. Matthews walked out with scrubs that were wrinkled, and his face was pale.

He looked defeated.

He looked like a man who had just lost a battle.

My heart stopped.

My legs went weak as my hands began shaking.

Dr. Matthews walked toward us with his steps slow.

Heavy.

Each one took an eternity.

"I’m sorry," he said.

His voice was quiet. "I’m so sorry. We tried everything we could. But her heart... we couldn’t save her. She’s gone."

The world ended.

The walls crumbled.

I couldn’t feel anything but the pain.

The crushing, suffocating, endless pain.

"No." The word came out of my mouth I didn’t know I had said it. "No. No. No. That’s not possible, she can’t be gone... can’t be. You’re lying, you have to be lying."

Dr. Matthews shook his head. "Dante, I’m so sorry."

I grabbed him by his scrubs and pulled him close, my fists shaking as well as my whole body. "You didn’t try hard enough. You didn’t do enough. You could have saved her. You should have saved her and trusted you. I trusted you, and you let her die."

Dr. Matthews didn’t fight back.

He didn’t push me away.

He just stood there letting me yell and blame him for something that wasn’t his fault.

"I’m sorry," he said again. "I’m so sorry."

Ares was behind me.

His hands were on my shoulders. Trying to pull me back. "Dante. Dante let him go. It’s not his fault."

I let go, stumbling back.

My legs gave out.

I fell to my knees. The tile was cold.

No!

Ariana, you can’t do this to me... I broke into great sobs

Elena was crying; her sobs were loud in the quiet room. Daniel was holding her, and his face was wet.

Ares was standing beside me.

His hand was on my back.

He wasn’t saying anything; there was nothing to say.

No words could fix this.

No words could bring her back.

No words could make the pain stop.

I looked up at Dr. Matthews. "Can I see her? Please, I need to see her."

Dr. Matthews nodded.

He led me down the hallway and into the operating room.

Dr. Matthews opened it. I walked inside.

The room was too bright. The lights were blinding, but I spotted her

Ariana was lying on the table with her eyes closed.

Her face was pale.

Her lips were blue, and there was blood everywhere on the sheets and the floor, so much blood.

I walked to her with my legs shaking.

My hands were shaking.

My whole body was shaking.

I reached out and touched her face. Her skin was cold.

"No," I whispered. "No, Ariana. No. You can’t be gone. You can’t leave me like this, not now. You promised me my love, you promised you’d come back to me."

I grabbed her hand.

It was limp.

Lifeless.

Her fingers didn’t curl around mine.

Her palm didn’t press against my palm.

She was gone.

Really gone.

Truly gone.

I fell on her chest and put my head on her heart, the place where her heart used to beat.

"Wake up," I begged. "Please, Ariana, wake up and come back to me. Don’t leave me alone, I can’t do this without you. I can’t live without you... please"

The tears were pouring down my face.

"I love you," I said. "I love you so much.

Please, Ariana, I’m so sorry. I’ll do better if you just come back to me... please, I’m begging you.

I kissed her forehead with my lips and cheeks. Her hands.

"Please don’t leave me. Please don’t go out, children need you; they need their mother. They won’t survive it, nor will I."

"You can’t leave me. You can’t. I can’t do this without you... I can’t."

Dr. Matthews interfered, "It’s time to leave, Dante."

I ignored him and held her tighter, pressing my face against her chest.

"I love you," I whispered. "I’ll be a better husband if you just come back to me, I promise you, my love... We’ll make things right."

Ares walked in and tried to pull me away. He held me as I cried and fell apart.

And in that moment, I knew.

Nothing would ever be the same.

The light had gone out of my life.

And I was alone.

Completely, utterly, hopelessly alone.