Alessandro handed me the cup. "Drink."
His tone was commanding, devoid of any warmth.
I took the cup, the hot tea warming my fingers and seeping into my heart.
I sipped slowly, the spicy flavor spreading through my mouth.
It was different from Leo's tea.
His was sweeter; this was sharper.
"How did you…"
"The Marcello family doctor isn't just for show," he said flatly.
I lowered my head, falling silent.
The air felt strange.
A ruthless crime lord caring for a woman during her period?
Who would believe it?
After the bath, the pain eased significantly.
The doctor arrived, gave me a painkiller shot, and prescribed some medication.
Alessandro stayed by my side until I fell asleep.
In a half-dream state, I thought I felt someone gently wiping the cold sweat from my forehead with a warm cloth.
The touch was soft, tender.
When I woke the next morning, Alessandro was gone.
On the bedside table sat a cup of warm brown sugar water and a breakfast tray.
The next few days passed quietly.
Alessandro was busy, and I rarely saw him.
He gave me surprising freedom to roam the estate, except for the front gate.
I spent most of my time in the art studio.
The studio was vast, stocked with supplies surpassing any gallery I'd ever seen.
I picked up my paintbrush again.
Painting let me escape my troubles, if only for a while.
That day, I was painting the roses from the garden.
A maid entered. "Madam, a Miss Isabella Fuller is here to see you."
My hand paused, a drop of red paint splashing onto the canvas like a bead of blood.
Why was she here?
I set down the brush and went to the sitting room.
Isabella sat on the sofa in a white dress, looking delicate and pitiful.
When she saw me, she stood, her eyes red. "Miss Hudson."
"What do you want?" My tone was curt.
"I'm here to beg you… to give Leo back to me." Tears spilled from her eyes as she spoke.
I frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Leo… he's losing it." She sobbed. "Since you left, he's changed. He's searching for you everywhere, neglecting work, drinking every night… He says he can't live without you. Miss Hudson, I know I was wrong before. I shouldn't have come between you. But we truly love each other. Please, talk to Alessandro. Ask him to let you go. Leo needs you, and… I need him."
She moved to kneel before me.
I stepped back.
Her tear-streaked face only struck me as ridiculous.
They had pushed me into this abyss together.
Now she came begging me to help them?
Was anything ever that easy?
"Miss Fuller," I said, each word deliberate, "first, Leo and I are done. Second, I'm Mrs. Marcello now. This isn't a place you can just waltz into."
"And finally," I smiled, "stop disgusting me with your nonsense. Your love story has nothing to do with me."
Isabella's face turned ashen.
She hadn't expected the docile Ava to speak like this.
"You… how can you be so heartless?" Her voice trembled. "Leo loves you so much…"
"Loves me?" I laughed as if I'd heard the greatest joke. "He loves me, so he sent me to a bloodthirsty maniac? Isabella, do you think everyone's as foolish as you?"
"I…" She was speechless.
At that moment, a cold voice came from the doorway. "When did my wife become someone others can lecture?"
Alessandro stepped inside.
