LVI *NOT EDITED*

Vincenzo

"It's been three days you need to eat Mi Amore" I sigh moving the hair out of Karma's face, she's either been curled up in bed all day or laying in the shower for hours at a time, and even then I have to move her because her body doesn't have the strength to do anything, "I need help, I just can't keep living this way" She crys burying her head into the pillow. My hearts broken for her, to watch her in pain and not be able to do anything about it absolutely kills me. "I know leonessa, the doctor is coming today, he's going to help you" I try to reassure but I'm positive it's not making a difference to her. I've never seen someone withdrawal from something before, at least not as bad as this, sure I've seen the guys withdrawal after a few days of partying but it's nothing more than being agitated and sweaty, but Karma? She cant sleep, she's been vomiting on and off constantly, sweating like it's 110 degrees inside, body aches, and hot and cold flushes to name a few things.

My phone begins to ring so I get up from bed and walk outside of the room to answer it, "Hello" I speak peaking my head into the room to keep an eye on my wife, "Ace, the doctor will be there in an hour. Had some trouble getting everything he needed but it's all sorted out now" Iggy replies and I feel a small weight lifted off of my shoulders, "Can I come see her?" He asks and I dont know what to say, I don't think he realises the state that she's in and the last thing I want to do is upset either of them, it was hard enough to convince Karma to have me around her to keep an eye on her. "Give me a second brother" I basically whisper before putting the phone on mute, I slowly walk back into the room and crouch down next to her, I caress her face and watch as her body shakes "Leonessa?" I ask quietly, "Mmmmm" She groans as tears fall down her face "Iggy wants to come see you".

She stays quiet for awhile before slowly nodding, I plant a small kiss on her sweaty face before standing up and going back out of the room. "All good brother, just a heads up she's not in a good space" I warn, "I know" Is all he replies before hanging up the call. I walk back into he room and crouch down next to her again "The doctor will be here in an hour, do you want to stay in bed and wait?", I just want her to be completely comfortable with what's going on I imagine everything is overwhelming, "No, can I get out of here?" She questions slowly lifting her head from the pillow beneath her. I nod my head yes and begin to slowly help her sit up, once she's sitting up right I stay quiet and wait for her next move "I'll need help walking" She speaks, her voice hoarse.

"I can carry you" I reply with a small smile but she shakes her head no, "I need to do this, I just need help", Damn I knew she was strong but I don't think I realised just how strong she is. I lend her my arm and help her to her feet, she links her arm with mine and slowly step by step we begin to make our way out of the bedroom, "I forgot how pretty the house is" She hums, I look to her and she has a small smile on her face, the first time in a while I've seen that smile. "Iggy's going to be excited to see you" I chuckle "He hasn't stopped asking about you". She looks to me and nods before looking back in front of her "What about the others?" She questions as we enter the loungeroom "Gio and Lukas are glad you're back and safe, they said they will wait until you're better to come see you" I answer as we get to the couch.

She chooses a spot to sit and I help her slowly lower her body onto the soft fabric, her skin breaks out in goosebumps so I grab the closest blanket and wrap it around her body to try and keep her warm, "What about Stefano?". I don't know how to answer her question without hurting her, truth is Stefano has lost his absolute shit, once he found out he took a job of ours on the otherside of the country and has only communicated with Lukas. "Hes' uhhh... He's upset" Is all I can tell her, I watch as she drops her head and stares down at her lap "Okay" She mumbles back.

"I'm going to get you something to drink I'll be right back" I reassure before heading to the kitchen, I hear the front door open and can tell It's Iggy by the way he's walking down the hallway followed by the pitter patter of Hade's paws. He comes into the kitchen and the first thing to leave his mouth is "Where is she?", I point to the loungeroom as I get a bottle of water out of the fridge, I follow him but keep a distance so he can say hello to her somewhat by himself. They whisper to eachother as Hade's lays down by her feet whining while resting his head on her foot, Karma points to something out of the window "Can you see that?" She questions looking Iggy and then to me, "See what?" Iggy asks looking to where she's pointing, "That right there! It's huge how can you not see it?" She replies still pointing at nothing in the distance, I read online that some people hallucinate when withdrawling so that's all I can put it down to.

"There's nothing there Karma" Iggy sighs rubbing her shoulder, I give her the water and sit down next to her. "Do you need help opening it?" Iggy asks as she shakes uncontrollably trying to open it herself, "No, I need to do it. But I am glad to see my handsome boy here" She smiles at Hade's before putting all of her focus and energy into opening the bottle, this is painful to watch but I know she will lose her shit if someone tries to do it for her. She battles with the bottle for another 5 minuets before it slips out of her hands and onto the floor, "Why cant I do anything?" She begins to cry, "You've just gotta get your strength back and then you'll be fine" Iggy trys to cheer her up, the doorbell rings and it distracts her enough for me to pick up the bottle and losen the lid of it.

Iggy answeres the door and I hand her the water again, this time she opens it with ease "I did it" She smiles again, "You did Mi Amore". The doctor hurrys in quickly greeting me before going to Karma, "Hello Mrs Moretti, I'm Dr Romano and I'm here to help you today. Now, your husband has explained the situation to me but I'd like to talk to you about a few things just to be sure so I can prescribe you the correct medication. Is it okay if your husband as his friend leave the room while we chat?" He asks solely focusing on her, she nervously looks to me before returing her attention to him, "Yeah it's okay" She agrees. Iggy gets up and goes to the kitchen, I stand up, give Karma a kiss and head to the kitchen too, "How have you been brother?" He asks helping himself to the stockpile of food "Been better" I admit rubbing the back of my head.

"How have you actually been?" He questions putting the food down, now he's serious. "Part of me wants to rip into her about being so stupid but the other part understands it. I haven't asked any questions yet, I don't want to upset her anymore than she already is but this shits eating away at me" I admit leaning on the kitchen counter, "I just wish I understood why, why she keeps going back to it, why she thinks she needs shit like that, just why?", Iggy stares at me for a few seconds before taking a deep breath "Stress is the most basic reason for addiction relapse. An addict consumes alcohol or drugs to medicate themselves and handle stress. The stress issue can be caused by daily tasks like handling relationships with spouses, paying bills and hard work in the office and shit. In this case I assume the whole move might have triggered something? But at the end of the day, she's an addict, she's going to do what she knows best when hard situations arise, unfortunately, it's just what they do".

"My question to you Ace is, if she continues to relapse for the rest of her life and it's just this vicous cycle of being off her head on pills and then withdrawling, will you still be with her? Will you still love her? Will you still stay by her side? This could continue for another 60 years brother, can you do it for the rest of your lives if it comes down to it? Or will you two grow to hate eachother and be stuck in this marriage?" His question hits harder than I'd like it to, I don't want to imagine the rest of our lives like this but he does raise some serious points. "Look, I pray that this is the last time she touches the shit, that this is the wake up call she needed. But at the end of the day I don't know what the future brings. I don't know how I would react if she keeps these games up, but what I do know is that I'll be there for her, no matter what. This marriage may be bound by contract but when I said my vows to her I meant every word, and when we both said till death do us part I meant every word of that too. I'm going to do my best to help her and I hope that's enough, plus with the therapist I think it will help her even more, we've just gotta keep positive, for her sake".

Someone clears their throat behind us, I turn around and see Dr Romano standing there "Yous can come back in". I follow him in while he beings to explain what's going on, "I checked her blood pressure, it's a little high but that's expected, as well as her heart rate being high, it should come down shortly. Now, I've taken some blood to send off for testing to make sure all of her bloodwork is alright, I've also prescribed her methadone, it will help with the pain and the withdrawl symptoms. Once every 24 hours to keep ontop of it, all she has to do is take a pill or dissolve it in water and drink it, whatever works better for her. I have given her the first dose already so she wont need anymore until tomorrow, her symptoms should begin to simmer down within the next hour, keep an eye out for side effects, you can find them on the pamphlet here" He points to the paper in Karma's shaking hands "If you have any concerns give me a call and I'll come over straight away. Otherwise I wish the best for you two and I'll be back in a week or so to check out her levels again and see how she's feeling".

"And her appetite?" I ask, I'm mostly nervous she wont eat a damn thing, I know she's sick and probably doesnt feel like eating but she wont get any better if she doesnt. "It should be back within a few hours, I'm leaving some drinks to help with the hydration too. Start off with small meals and slowly work your way up, not much junk food, keep to food that's going to help her body improve and get stronger. Once her energy is somewhat back I recommend going on small walks or going out to do something for the day, the fresh air and sunshine will do her good" He turns to Karma and softly smiles, "It's been a pleasure Mrs Moretti, I hope our next encounter is on a good note"

He says his goodbyes and Iggy shows him to the front door leaving Karma, Hades and I alone. I sit down next to Karma and take her hand in mine rubbing my thumb over her skin softly "Are you sure you still love me?" She asks breaking the silence, "Of course I still love you leonessa, till death do us part".