Claim Me Captain! I'm Addicted to You!-Chapter 407: Bigger Network

Georgia’s POV

Since I couldn’t drink champagne, I slipped away early while everyone was still in the living room, laughing, retelling stories, and replaying Ella’s dramatic meltdown-turned-engagement. It felt like a warm bubble of happiness, but something in me tugged, whispering that I needed rest.

Turned out that little voice was right.

Before the sun even thought of rising, Oliver called.

Nick jolted awake beside me, grabbed his phone, and his tone sharpened instantly. The shift alone made my eyes snap open.

By the time he got off the call, he was already getting out of bed. "Where are you going?" I asked, pushing myself up.

Nick paused, turned to me, and sat on the edge of the bed. His hand gently swept the stray hair from my cheek, his expression soft but tense—too tense.

"The person assigned to watch Irene took her to the hospital," Nick said quietly. "She’s bleeding. Ollie and I are heading there now. Go back to sleep, babe. I’ll update you as soon as we get there."

A cold wave ran through me. Bleeding? Why?

I threw the blanket aside and stood. "I’m coming with you."

Nick frowned, worried. "Are you sure you don’t want to sleep a little more? I don’t want you or our baby stressed."

"I slept early last night, remember? And there is no way I’m staying in this house while Irene’s baby could be fighting for its life." My voice cracked slightly, but I steadied it. "I’m going."

He nodded in defeat. "Alright... shall we shower together?"

I gave him a long, suspicious stare, narrowing my eyes. He knew exactly what he was doing.

Nick burst into a low laugh and pinched my cheek. "Haha! I know that look! Don’t worry, it’ll be a real shower. Ollie’s waiting for us, I won’t try anything."

"Good. Because we’re in a hurry." I pointed at him sternly. "Hands to yourself."

I spun around and bolted straight to the bathroom before he could say another word.

His laughter followed me inside, but beneath it, I felt something else lingering in the air...

A tension. A warning.

A heaviness that whispered that this hospital trip wasn’t just about Irene’s pregnancy.

Irene’s bodyguards were both women, and one of them was already waiting for us in the hospital lobby when we arrived.

Her expression was unreadable—flat, controlled, the kind of face that told me whatever she knew wasn’t good.

Oliver stepped forward urgently. "How is she?"

"She lost the baby," the woman—Heidi—said quietly. "She’s in the delivery room now... they’re helping her push the baby out. There was no heartbeat when we got here."

My breath caught. I placed my hands over my mouth as the words hit me like a cold wave. "Oh my God... Irene."

Nick put a hand on my back, as if grounding me.

Oliver turned to the bodyguard again, all business despite the sadness shadowing his eyes. "Have you eaten?"

She shook her head.

"Alright. Come with us to the cafeteria. Let’s get you something, and grab extra for your partner too."

We bought orange juice for me and coffee and bread for them, and settled at a table. Before any of us could take a sip, the second bodyguard—Ria—joined us, her steps tense, shoulders stiff.

"She’s in the recovery room now," Ria reported. "They’ll keep her there for four hours. If the bleeding stops, they’ll transfer her to a ward."

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "How... how did it even get this bad?"

Heidi and Ria exchanged a heavy look, one that made my stomach tighten.

"When she arrived yesterday, she had bruises on her arms," Heidi said. "Our team leader wanted her checked immediately because of the pregnancy, but she was terrified. She told us..." Her voice faltered slightly. "...She told us Dante Gambino killed her husband. And now he’s after her."

A chill slid down my spine.

Nick and Oliver exchanged sharp glances. That name was not thrown around lightly.

"But she didn’t want to see a doctor right away," Heidi continued. "She was exhausted. She said nothing hurt, so she assumed the baby was fine. She claimed the bruises were from the day before."

Ria leaned forward, voice lower, trembling just slightly as she relived it. "We sleep in one room—two bunk beds. I’m a light sleeper. I heard her moaning in the middle of the night. At first, I thought it was just a nightmare, but something felt off..."

She took a breath.

"When I checked on her, she was drenched in sweat... curled in on herself, holding her stomach like she was trying to keep something inside."

My heart squeezed painfully.

Ria’s voice softened to a whisper. "Then I smelled blood. That metallic smell... I knew. I pulled the blanket back, and the mattress was soaked through. I yelled for Heidi, grabbed a bathrobe, wrapped Irene up, and we rushed her here."

Silence fell over the table.

"Dante Gambino?" I repeated, the name rolling off my tongue with a cold weight.

Oliver nodded. "He’s Jay Gambino’s older brother. A businessman on paper... but from what my team uncovered, Jay’s entire group operated under Dante’s bigger network."

A bigger network...

Great. Because one criminal wasn’t enough.

"So why is he after Irene and Frank?" I asked, unable to hide the confusion—no, the fear—sharpening my voice.

Heidi spoke next, her tone steady but grim. "Irene said her husband was involved with Jay’s group. She only found out after the wedding. When Jay fell, Dante started hunting down every single person connected to his brother’s downfall. Frank included. And Frank... he gathered evidence. Proof of the Gambinos’ illegal operations."

My heart thudded hard.

Nick crossed his arms, jaw tight.

Oliver leaned forward, hands clasped together, eyes focused like he was piecing together a puzzle with deadly consequences.

The air around us shifted.

Heavy.

Serious.

Dangerous.

"Are we safe?" The question slipped out before I could stop it. My voice sounded small, almost fragile, scared.

Nick turned to me immediately. "I will make sure everyone in our family is safe."

But the way he said it, the quiet steel in his voice, told me he knew this wasn’t some small-time threat we could hide from.

Oliver exhaled slowly. "Irene wouldn’t run to us unless she had something to offer, a plan, and information we can use. And if she really has the information Frank collected, then we have leverage. Hard evidence against the Gambinos. Enough to protect us... if we can expose it."

A chill crawled down my spine.

If...

A single word that suddenly felt enormous. I held my still small stomach, fearing for the life of the little one growing in me.

Because whoever brought down Frank wouldn’t hesitate to finish what they started. And Irene was the only loose end left.

Whatever was coming next... I could feel it. And it was far from over.

*******

Thanks for the Golden Tickets!

Kake_Tak

Iyb

Edna_R2679