Page 128 of King Of Order

The older, salt-and-pepper-haired woman didn’t say anything at first—only tightening her lips and giving a nod to me in acknowledgment.

She’d seen my family through all its storms, all its battles. This wasn’t new to her.

Relief, sharp and sudden, washed over me.

Mrs. Venetio would be my ally in caring for Chiara.

I jerked my chin at her as I swept past. Still holding my woman as I carried her up to my suite, into my bedroom, laying her down with care on the bed.

Mrs Venetio watched on, her face full of compassion.

‘Signore Rio,’ she announced, serene but edged with concern. ‘I’ll take charge of her meals, baths, and toilet breaks. You handle her mind and encourage her to move, eat, and rest. Together, we’ll keep a close eye on her.’

‘Grazie,’ I murmured, my rumble tight with emotion. ‘Let’s make sure she’s comfortable. She’s been through enough.’

Mrs. Venetio offered a brief nod, understanding in her eyes as she took over, tucking a throw over Chiara with a calm that I hadn’t been able to muster yet in my panic.

I sat beside her in a love chair, eyes fixed on the slow rise and fall of her chest as she breathed.

Chiara’s eyes were unfocused, dilated, and canted to the view outside the ceiling-to-floor windows.

Her hand tucked under her chin, her body in a coil of self-protection.

Still, she showed no sign of acknowledging me, and I had never felt so helpless.

Every instinct wanted to fight, fix, and make this right.

Yet all I could do was be by her side, and I hoped that somehow, some way, she would return to me.

‘Chiara,’ I whispered, brushing a strand of hair from her face. ‘I’m so sorry. I never meant for this to happen.’

She didn’t respond, didn’t blink, didn’t even stir.

I vowed to stay for as long as she needed to get her better.

Watching over her and praying that she would let me into her soul again one day.

Not as the man who caused her pain but as someone who wanted to make things right.

I leaned back, running a hand over my face, the exhaustion starting to hit me.

But I had zero time to rest. Not yet.

Pulling my phone from my pocket, I moved to the patio’s edge, where the sea stretched.

The dark, churning expanse mirrored the turmoil in my chest.

I called my brothers, needing to update them—on everything.

On the business, on the situation in Naples, on Chiara.

When my brother Alessio answered, I caught the tension in his voice. ‘How is she?’ he asked without preamble.

‘Not good,’ I growled. ‘She’s not herself. The doctor prescribed some meds, but she’s still not responding. Mrs. Venetio is with her now.Fotto! It’s driving me mad.’

A pause fell on the line, then a soft chuckle from Lorenzo in the background. ‘This girl, she must be one of a kind, huh?Donna molto bella. Rio doesn’t go out of his way like this for just anyone.’

‘Stai zitto!’ I snapped, my tone harsher than intended. ‘This isn’t funny. She’s—’ I stopped, biting back the frustration gnawing at me all day. ‘She’s important to me, OK? I can’t let anything happen to her.’

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