CHAPTER 247: THE ECHOES WE KEEP

CHAPTER 247: THE ECHOES WE KEEP
“Alex.” Bella giggled beneath him as Alex buried his face against the curve of her neck, breathing in her familiar scent as her fingers slipped into his hair.

He smiled against her skin. “What?”

“You’re tickling me,” she giggled.

“You’re laughing.”

“Because you’re ridiculous.”

He lifted his head and looked at her.

She was smiling.

The morning light spilled across the bedroom, golden and warm, touching her bare shoulders and the loose strands of hair scattered across the pillow.

Everything was perfect.

Too perfect.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Alex knew he was dreaming.

But he couldn’t bring himself to care at the moment.

He wanted to stay. He wanted to feel the warmth of her skin and the scent of vanilla and rain clinging to her skin that was so vivid, so intoxicating, that he fought to stay beneath the surface. 

Bella’s laughter was a low, melodic purr against his ear as shifted beneath him, her fingers tangled in his hair, her skin warm and smooth as he pressed a trail of slow, deliberate kisses along the curve of her throat. 

She giggled, tilting her head back, her dark eyes shining with that fierce, wild spark he knew so well.

"Alex..." she murmured, her voice breathless, so real he could feel the faint brush of her breath against his lips. “Where did your head go?”

God, he missed her. 

He missed the fire in her eyes, the sharp tilt of her chin, the way her body melted into his when they were alone. 

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer, drowning in the warmth.

Then, a low, erratic hum began to vibrate around them and the golden light began to fracture. 

No, Alexandro thought desperately, tightening his grip on her. Stay.

He frowned as Bella’s face began to blur. “Bella?”

Bella’s laughter faded into a sharp, distant static, her warm skin turning translucent beneath his fingertips. 

He reached for her, but she dissolved into a mist, pulled away by a harsh, unrelenting alarm.

Alexandro’s eyes jerked open, his breathing was ragged, his chest heaving as he sat bolt upright at his office desk. 

Standing beside his leather chair, her hand trembling on his shoulder, was his mother.

For one confused second, he didn’t understand why she was shaking him so urgently. 

Then he heard the shrill alarm coming from Bella’s room and his blood turned cold.

He jumped up from his chair.  “What’s happening?” He snapped, his voice rough with sleep as his head snapped toward the corridor.

"I don't know, Alex!" Rosa said, her pale face lined with sheer panic. "I don't know, but I called her medical team! They are on their way up from the fourth floor!"

Alexandro pushed himself out of his chair so fast the heavy leather seat crashed backward against the wall. He caught his mother gently by the arm, guiding her toward the living room. "Stay here, Ma. Stay with the guards."

"I am fine!" Rosa insisted, nudging him forward. "Go attend to your woman! Go!"

Alexandro sprinted down the private corridor, his bare feet slapping against the cold hardwood. Just as he reached the threshold of his master suite, the doors to the private lift chimed open, and Dr. Vance rushed out alongside two nurses carrying crash kits and portable oxygen tanks.

They swept past him, bursting into the dark bedroom.

Alexandro charged in right behind them, his breath catching in his throat. Maria was standing at the foot of the king-sized bed, her face pale, her hands trembling as tears spilled silently down her cheeks.

"What happened?!" Alexandro demanded, his voice a harsh, desperate bark as he closed the distance to Maria. "What the fuck happened?!"

"I was... I was just sitting here holding her hand," Maria sobbed, wiping her face with her sleeve. "She didn't move, and then... then the monitors just went crazy!"

Dr. Vance cursed under his breath, stepping beside the bed. "Her oxygen saturation is plunging! It's down to seventy-two and dropping! She's entering a convulsive state!"

Bella’s body suddenly rigidified under the white sheet. Her spine arched violently, her head thrashing back against the pillows as her hands clenched into tight, bloodless fists.

"Hold her head!" Dr. Vance ordered the nurses, pulling a syringe from his kit. "We need to clear her airway! Administer two milligrams of Lorazepam, now!"

The sight of her helpless, unmoving form suddenly thrashing in violent seizures tore through Alexandro like a jagged blade. He took a step forward, his jaw tight, his hands clenching, but a nurse quickly stepped into his path, placing two hands firmly against his chest.

"Mr. D'Soto, you need to step outside," the nurse pleaded urgently. "Please, give us room to work! Step outside!"

Alexandro wanted to shove the woman aside, wanted to tear the room apart until Bella was quiet again, but Maria grabbed his arm, pulling him backward into the corridor. The heavy bedroom doors clicked shut, locking them out.

They stood in the quiet hallway, listening to the muffled shouting and the chaotic, mechanical chirping of the crash cart.

Maria leaned against the wall, burying her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking violently. Alexandro stood like a statue beside her, his hands jammed into his pockets, his knuckles white, his chest rising and falling in shallow, jagged breaths.

Rosa walked slowly up the corridor, her unseeing eyes filled with silent grief. She reached out, finding Alexandro's arm, and wrapped her left hand around his forearm. She closed her eyes and began to murmur soft, desperate prayers in Italian, her lips moving in a steady, hushed rhythm.

Forty agonizing minutes passed in complete silence.

Finally, the bedroom door swung open. Dr. Vance stepped into the hall, pulling off his latex gloves. His surgical cap was damp with sweat, his face lined with deep exhaustion.

"How is she?!" Alexandro rasped out, stepping into his space instantly. "Tell me!"

Dr. Vance let out a long, heavy breath. "It was touch-and-go for a moment, Mr. D'Soto, but she is stable now."

Alexandro felt a massive, invisible weight lift off his chest, his shoulders dropping slightly. "What caused it? Why did she seize?"

"Her neurological activity spiked suddenly," Dr. Vance explained, wiping his brow. "Her brain was attempting to force its way back toward full consciousness, but her nervous system couldn't handle the metabolic demand. The blood circulation to her brain plummeted, causing severe hypoxia. We've placed her back on high-flow oxygen to ensure her brain tissue remains saturated, and we've sedated her to prevent another seizure."

The doctor gestured to the two nurses, who emerged carrying used IV bags and discarded medical packaging. "Her vitals have leveled out, but we are keeping her under tight observation for the next twenty-four hours."