“ISABELLA!” Lorenzo’s voice tore through the chaos, causing everything else; the gunfire, the shouting, even the world itself all seemed to fade away.
She was on the ground, her sides where bleeding, heavily. Matteo knelt beside her, shaking and crying, trying to hold her up with hands too small for something this big.
“M-Mom… stay with me…please..” he sobbed.
Isabella winced, her hand pressing against her side as blood seeped through her fingers. Her breathing was uneven and shallow but her eyes were still open.
Still fighting.
“I’m okay…” she whispered, though it was clearly a lie.
Lorenzo reached them in seconds, dropping to his knees as one of his hand held her while the other was still holding his gun. He was torn between two instincts; to protect or two destroy.
“Look at me,”
