Learning to Love

Chapter 4

Valerie was still in a haze. When she woke up in a beautiful room with her son Gio in the next bed to hers, she thought she died and went to heaven. The doctors however weren't supposed to be here with her. She had managed to ask about Elena but she hadn't gotten any answers. She was grateful that her son was there and seemed to be alive but she wanted to see her baby girl too.

She forced herself to get off the bed. Her whole body felt stiff and it felt like forever since she took a bath. Her hair was a mess and her breath stank. She dragged her feet towards Gio's bed. She suddenly felt lightheaded and her feet couldn't hold her up. She went crumbling on the floor. She felt the tears sting her wounded cheeks. Right now she needed all the strength she could muster but her body was failing her miserably.

Quiet voices and footsteps approached.. She wanted to get up and face whatever was on the other side but she couldn't. She wiped her tears and lay still hoping if they were here to do anything harmful, she'd be able to do something.

The door cracked open and Elena shrieked. "Mommy is on the floor!!"

An older woman rushed to help her and ordered someone she couldn't see to get the doctor. Why was she being kind to her? That's all Valerie could think of. What did she want? Since her mother died, she couldn't remember anyone who was kind to her without wanting anything from her. Well, apart from Gio and Elena.

When she got on the bed, the older woman picked Elena up and placed her on the bed. She hugged her baby tightly and felt more tears fall. The sting on her cheeks was nothing compared to the joy of having her baby in her arms. She raised her eyes and found the woman looking at them with kindness in her eyes. She wanted to say thank you but her throat was dry. As if reading her mind, the woman smiled and patted her her head.

"Mommy," Gio's hoarse voice called. Isabella moved towards the little boy. She held his hand. Soon as he opened his eyes, she felt herself go numb. Brown eyes with a beautiful speck in them had always bean Dean's signature look. It was like she was staring at a younger version of her dead husband. She quickly let his hand go and left the room.

Valerie observed the kind woman leave. She seemed a bit upset but then, she wasn't feeling well. Maybe she imagined it. Before she could analyze it, Elena started telling her about the beautiful house and the nice people in it. She was quick to add nobody had even hit her which made Valerie heart break. She didn't understand how she got to the point that she couldn't defend her kids.

Dante wheeled himself followed by doctor Keith. He had been out for his breakfast and the nurse wasn't in. How that happened, Dante would find out later . For now, he had to see what made his grandmother so sad. Even from a distance, he could see something had upset her.

"Make sure they're taken care of. I'll have Luca hire another nurse so they can be taken care of 24/7." The doctor nodded and quickly walked into the room.

"Nana," He called out his grandmother.

Instead of answering him, she reached out and hugged him.

"Your nana is going crazy Dante," she whispered. Dante wanted to make fun of her and say she had always been crazy but he could feel this was a serious issue.

"Why? What happened?" He asked gently.

" The girl has your mom's eyes. The boy has your grandfather's eyes,"She replied.

"Could it be you're actually going crazy?"Dante replied making her smile.

"D! Would you please be serious for a moment! "She admonished half-heartedly.

"He has the speck that your grandfather had. Big brown eyes. Have you seen that on anyone else?" She asked.

"Nana, I've not met everyone in the world," He replied.

She rolled her eyes but at least she was smiling.

"Look nana, it's said everyone has a look alike out there. Maybe it's grandpa's turn," Dante joked.

" Okay. I'll have your brain scanned. Maybe it got damaged in the accident," she replied.

He hollered at her comment and she smiled. In her mind though, she needed to speak to Luca immediately. She'd find out if her husband was cheating on her or if he had any other family members that he never told her about.

The door opened and Elena came running towards them. She hugged Isabella tightly.

"What was that for?" She asked her.

"For saving my mum and my twin brother ma'am. I'm sorry for getting too excited. It won't happen again,"she replied innocently making Isabella's heart break.

She kneeled before the girl and drew her into a hug. Holding her shoulders she looked into her eyes and asked her to never apologize for hugging her.

"My grandmother hates when i hug her," She replied with tears in her eyes.

"Well, i am Nana not grandmother. Nanas love to be hugged. Can i tell you a little secret?" The girl nodded. Isabella whispered something into her ear and she giggled then turned to look at Dante shyly.

"Hey you two, you can't whisper around when i am watching you," Dante pretended to be offended. Isabella felt the girl freeze and she held on her hand tightly.

She looked at her and she actually looked scared.

"Why are you scared Elena?" She asked.

"I don't want to make him angry," she replied in a small voice. Dante's eyes widened.

"Hey little miss. I am not angry. I am teasing you," He told her.

" What is teasing?" she asked.

Isabella smiled. "Yeah Dante, what is teasing?" she added.

Dante shot daggers at his grandmother. How was he to explain teasing?

"I need to speak to the doctor Elena. Will you be okay with Dante for a few minutes?"

"I guess," she replied sounding unsure.

Isabella knelt and whispered to her ear, "If he tries something stupid, run. He is on a wheelchair. That means he can't run as fast as you. Run towards me. I can kick his ass."

With that, the girl looked a bit more at ease.