Page 8 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

Orazio stared at his father, his vision still fuzzy around the edges but clear enough to see the worry etched into the older man’s features. He could tell his dad was stressed. The least Orazio could do was not add to those worries.

“Alright,” he finally whispered, letting his head fall back onto the pillow.

He didn’t have much of a choice, not with his body betraying him like this. Just as he relaxed against the bed, ready to let sleep claim him again, a sudden memory pierced through the fog in his mind, making his heart ache.

Monique.My Rosa.

Leo had called him just before the wreck, telling him she’d been kidnapped from her home. His chest tightened with worry and anger, his hands balling into fists. Some motherfucker wanted to die a painful death. He’d grant that bitch’s wish soon.

“Where’s Leo?” Orazio demanded, pushing himself up and gritting his teeth against the pain that radiated through his body. He shoved his father’s hand away when the don tried to push him back down.

“Orazio, lie down!”

“Tell me where Leo is!” Orazio insisted, ignoring the pain.

“He stepped out a few minutes ago. He went to get something to drink,” his father answered. “Now lie back down. You need to rest and recover.”

Rest? While Monique was missing? Impossible. The door to the hospital room swung open, and Leo strode in with a steaming cup of coffee clenched tightly in his hand. The bags under his eyes hinted at exhaustion, and his jaw was set in a grim line.

“Leo,” Orazio called out hoarsely, immediately drawing his attention. “Get over here. I need to talk to you.”

Leo approached the bed, but the guard didn’t meet Orazio’s gaze. Instead, he took a slow sip of his coffee as he slowly inchedcloser. Orazio gritted his teeth, impatience simmering beneath his bruised skin.

“What’s the news on Monique?” Orazio demanded. “Have you found out who took her?”

A flicker of hesitation danced across Leo’s face, and for the briefest moment, the guard’s eyes darted toward Don Cattaneo. Orazio didn’t miss the strange look that passed between them before Leo turned back to him, his expression carefully schooled into a look void of emotion.

“Orazio, we’re doing everything we can...” Leo started.

“Who. Took. Her?” Orazio repeated, his voice like the crack of a whip.

“Enough,” Don Cattaneo interjected, his tone ice-cold. “You’ve got stitches in your head, side, and leg. You need to focus on your recovery, not some woman.”

“Some woman?” Raz snapped. “Monique isn’t some fucking woman! She’s my life. Recovery can wait. She can’t. I need answers, and I need them now, damn it!”

“Orazio,” Leo muttered, voice low, distant... different. “We’re still trying to piece together what happened. We don’t have a solid lead yet, but I promise you, we will find Monique.”

“Give me something,” Orazio pleaded, his heart pounding fiercely against his battered ribs. “Anything. A direction the car went. The car’s make and model. Just give me something.”

“Once we have more information, we’ll share it with you,” Don Cattaneo told him. “For now, you need to rest.”

“Rest?” Orazio scoffed, a bitter laugh escaping his lips. “How can I rest when the woman I love is in danger?”

“There’s nothing you can do for her right now, Raz,” Leo told him.

Orazio’s eyes narrowed as he studied Leo’s face, searching for any sign of deception. This didn’t sound like Leo. The guard knew something but wasn’t sharing it.

“Tell me what you know,” Raz ordered.

“We’ve been searching for her non-stop, but we haven’t found her yet.”

“Damn it, Leo,” Orazio hissed, the rage boiling inside him like molten lava. “How could you not find shit in two days? Two fucking days!”

“We won’t stop until we find her and her friends,” Leo promised.

She was really missing. His Rosa was really gone, and he had no fucking leads. The hospital room seemed to close in on Orazio, suffocating him within its sterile, lifeless walls. He wanted to leap out of bed and join the search himself, but his battered body betrayed him, refusing to obey his commands.

Suddenly, Leo’s phone rang, a jarring sound that sliced through the tense atmosphere. Orazio noticed the way Leo flinched as he pulled the phone from his pocket. Leo’s leather jacket parted when he moved, and Orazio caught sight of a blood stain on the guard’s white shirt.

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