جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 330

Two days had passed.Max still had not opened his eyes.Daphne slipped into the room, balancing a paper cup in each hand. “Okay, I come bearing caffeine,” she announced softly, her tone light. She crossed to the bed, placing one cup on the small table beside Suzi. “Decaf for you, because I am a responsible sister in law and Valerie would murder me otherwise.”Suzi managed the smallest curve of a smile but did not lift her gaze from Max’s face.Daphne perched on the edge of the chair near the bed. “You know, I once saw Max sleep through an entire thunderstorm, three missed calls from Landon, and Alma vacuuming right next to him. You’re just dealing with his most stubborn nap yet.”A faint huff of air left Suzi’s lips. It was half sigh, half reluctant laugh.“That’s better,” Daphne said, her smile widening. “If I can get you to laugh twice today, I’m buying myself a crown.”Suzi shook her head. “I do not feel like laughing.”“That’s exactly why I’m here,” Daphne replied. She leaned forw

The dining room smelled like coffee, toast, and something sweet baking in the kitchen.Antonio sat at the head, while Valerie poured herself coffee. Landon leaned back in his chair with a mug in hand, Daphne across from him, coaxing Ella to take another bite of pancake.Suzi sat quietly for a while, her fork pushing scrambled eggs across her plate. Max’s absence was an ache she couldn’t quite swallow, no matter how warm and bright the room felt.Finally, she set her fork down. “I’ve been thinking…”Five pairs of eyes turned to her. Even Ella paused mid-chew.“I want Max to be moved to the new house,” she said softly. “The one he bought for me.”Valerie’s brow furrowed. “Sweetheart, the doctor said it’s best not to move him too much right now.”“I know,” Suzi said quickly, her voice gentle but steady. “But he bought that house for us. For me. It’s our home now, and when he wakes up…I want him to be there. Not somewhere temporary.”Landon set down his mug, studying her. “You’re sure? It

Later in the day, Valerie was busy in the kitchen so Suzi decided to walk to the garden alone.The gravel crunched softly under her shoes as she wandered toward the stone bench by the rose bushes. That was when she noticed him, one of Antonio’s guards, standing near the iron gate at the far edge of the property. He was speaking into his radio, his posture tight, eyes scanning the tree line beyond the fence.Suzi slowed, almost instinctively moving behind the shadow of a hedge. The guard’s voice was low but urgent. “No, not yet… just outside the perimeter. Two minutes, maybe less. Hold position until I confirm.”Her pulse quickened. She didn’t know who he was talking about, but the way his free hand rested on the grip of his weapon told her enough.He turned slightly, glancing back toward the house. When he spotted her, he straightened, quickly ending the call. “Mrs. Costello,” he said with a polite nod, but his tone was clipped. “You should be inside.”Suzi hesitated, glancing toward

One week later…Another week had passed. Seven long days of silence where Max remained unmoving, tethered to life but not to her. Each morning Suzi woke with the same fragile hope, and each night she folded herself back into sheets that smelled faintly of him, whispering promises to a man who could not hear her.The Villa never slept. Men moved through its halls like shadows, speaking in clipped Italian, rifles slung across their shoulders. Landon’s orders were sharp and constant. Ricci’s name hung in the air like smoke, always present, always choking.And Suzi tried to survive through it all.That afternoon, Daphne brought Suzi outside. The courtyard behind the villa had been converted into a temporary range. A line of bottles on a side wall were placed. A few men watched from the shade, amused but respectful, as their boss’s wife led the quiet girl into the open.Suzi’s palms sweated. She kept glancing at the heavy pistol Daphne pressed into her hand. It felt wrong. Alien. A cold p

Daphne’s hand pressed against Suzi’s back, urging her forward. Suzi hesitated at the threshold, her throat dry.Landon didn’t even glance at Daphne. His eyes pinned Suzi the instant she entered. “Sit.”The single word held no room for refusal. She obeyed, sinking into the chair across from him, her knees tucked close, fingers twisting together.He leaned forward, arms braced on the desk, his face carved from stone. “Ricci will be at a party tomorrow night. A gala. Too many people, too many eyes. That’s where we’ll move.”Her heart stuttered. She nodded, unsure if it was permission to breathe.“You want to help?” His tone was clipped, dangerous. “Then you’ll do it my way. You’ll listen to every word I give you. No improvising. No heroics. One slip, and you don’t just kill yourself, you kill us.”“Yes,” she whispered.His gaze sharpened. “Louder.”“Yes.” The word came out steadier this time.“Good,” he said.“Once you find him, you approach him,” Landon said. “Act naïve. Shy. Wounded. H