Fragile.
“You know I didn’t mean it...”
Her fingers tightened slightly against his sleeve.
“The doctors... they say I don’t have much time. Please... stay with me until my very last breath.”
Vincenzo paused.
Looked down at her. Not immediately responding.
For a moment, the world seemed to hold still again.
Then—
“I left my wife standing alone in the garage just to come to you,” he said quietly.
“I don’t even know if she can drive... or if she even remembers the way home.”
His gaze stayed on Violet, but something had shifted.
“I have to make sure she’s safe. Take care of yourself, Violet.”
The sentence landed differently this time.
Less like devotion. More like... duty.
“I’ll come back later... if I have time.”
And then—
He turned.
And walked away.
Toward me.
My body reacted before my mind could catch up.
I ducked behind the heavy privacy curtain just outside the ward, pressing myself into the narrow space between fabric and wall.
My heart slammed violently against my ribs, each beat louder than the last, threatening to give me away.
Footsteps approached.
Steady. Unhurried.
But still—
Purposeful.
I held my breath.
Through the narrow gap in the curtain, I watched him pass.
Shoulders tense.
Jaw locked. Eyes forward.
