He opened his eyes to the plain white ceiling and the irritating sound of a beeping machine. He automatically grabbed his side but felt the excruciating pain, like someone just punched him hard on his stomach or probably worse.
He rotated his eyes and head around the room, trying to figure out his whereabouts. He saw some kind of fluid being drifted into his bloodstream, then machines connected to his chest, monitoring his heartbeat.
He concluded that he was in a hospital, suddenly recalling the incident that put him there. He remembered the wedding and then the ambush.
"Anybody out there." He shouted, knowing quite well that someone would be standing by outside his door. One of his men would never leave his side.
He did not want to press the emergency button, not wanting to alert the nurse or a doctor that he was already awake. He had to talk to his men first in private.
