Chapter 41: Shattered Lines
The silence after Lorenzo’s words was unbearable.
Not even the machines dared to beep.
Raymond’s grip on my wrist tightened, his pulse hammering against my skin. His voice dropped, low and trembling.
“Tell me he’s lying, Isla.”
My heart stuttered. “Raymond…”
“Tell me!” he snapped, stepping closer, eyes wild with disbelief. “You’re not his… you wouldn’t…”
“I knew it… You knew each other after all. You know how dangerous he is right?”
Lorenzo shifted on the hospital bed, a pained smirk cutting across his face even as blood seeped through his fresh bandage. “You’re wasting your breath, doctor boy. She already made her choice.”
“Shut up,” Raymond snarled, his fists trembling. He turned to me, his voice cracking. “You wouldn’t choose him. He’s the reason for everything… the fear, the danger…” He stopped, shaking his head as if the truth itself burned. “What have you gotten yourself into?.”
His words pierced through me like glass. I wanted to defend myself, but I couldn’t find the right pieces to form an answer. My chest ached under the weight of two truths: the one I lived in, and the one I couldn’t escape.
Lorenzo’s voice cut through, softer but deadly.
“She didn’t turn into anything. She finally woke up.”
Raymond whirled on him, fury sparking like a live wire. “You think this is love? You’re poisoning her. You’re dragging her into your hell.”
Lorenzo’s eyes darkened, his tone calm but lethal. “You think I need to explain myself to you? You came here, uninvited, into my room, into our moment.”
“Your moment?” Raymond barked a laugh that was anything but amused. “You’re bleeding all over her life, and you call it love.”
My stomach twisted as the words collided in the air, sharp and heavy. The hospital room felt smaller with every heartbeat, the air electric with danger.
I finally tore my hand from Raymond’s grip. “Stop it! Both of you!”
They both froze, two storms halted mid-clash.
I took a shaky step back, breathing hard. “You’re both acting like I don’t have a choice. Like I’m some prize you get to fight over. I’m not. And stop saying things like I love him!”
Raymond’s anger cracked into sorrow. “Then why does it feel like I already lost you?”
Lorenzo’s eyes flicked toward me, blue and burning, but there was something softer there, a fracture beneath the arrogance. I knew he wasn't just an ordinary friend. He's in love with her.
“Because you did,” he said quietly. Raymond lunged before I could move.
He didn’t hit him, not yet, but his fist gripped Lorenzo’s collar, slamming him back against the pillow. The monitor beside the bed beeped wildly.
“Try saying that again,” Raymond hissed through his teeth. “You’ll never have her, you'll only put her in danger with your many enemies.”
Lorenzo didn’t flinch. Even wounded, his stare was ice-cold, merciless. “You can’t protect her from what’s already inside her heart.”
What are they even saying! It sounds like I'm having a secret relationship that just got exposed. It's the other way round. Something in me broke. “Stop it, both of you!” I shouted, grabbing Raymond’s arm, pulling him back with all my strength. “You’re going to kill each other!”
He turned to me, breath ragged. “And you’re going to let him ruin you?”
The question shattered something deep inside. My lips parted, but no sound came. My throat burned with everything I wanted to say, that I hated Lorenzo, that I loved him, that I didn’t even know which truth was real anymore.
Then a voice from the doorway interrupted, cold, firm, authoritative.
“Enough.”
We all turned.
Matteo stood there, suit immaculate, expression unreadable, his sharp gaze taking in the chaos, the blood, the tension, the mess we’d made of truth and pride.
“Doctor Raymond,” he said smoothly, “I suggest you leave before the next word you say gets you buried under a De Luca problem.”
Raymond stiffened, his eyes narrowing. “You think I’m scared of you?”
Matteo’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. “You should be.”
I stepped forward, trembling. “Please, just… stop this.”
“I'm not leaving without her,” Raymond said.
“Come with me,” Raymond added, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the door.
But Lorenzo was already standing.
He moved faster than he should have.
his hand shot out, gripping my wrist, yanking me back until my spine hit his chest.
Did he not realize he’d been shot?
Didn’t he feel the pain?
“I’m not done talking to her.”
His tone had changed, colder than before, edged with danger.
It was the same voice he used when he beat those men.
He sounded like he wanted to kill someone.
“Let go of her,” Raymond snapped, still clutching my other hand.
“Why don’t you decide, Isla?” Lorenzo’s mouth brushed close to my ear, his breath hot against my skin. “You know how it’ll end if you walk out with him.”
His words froze the air in my lungs.
The thought of losing Raymond…
I couldn’t bear it.
“It’s okay,” I whispered, forcing my voice steady. “I’ll come once I’m done talking with him.”
Then, softer, “Please, just go, Raymond.”
He stared at me like I’d just betrayed him. “Are you mad? Can’t you see he’s manipulating you?”
“Please!… please, Raymond,” I shouted, the plea tearing out of me.
The look that crossed his face broke me.
“So you… really are involved with him,” he said quietly, his voice raw.
But the war was already bleeding through the walls. I could feel it, the lines had been crossed, loyalties shattered. There was no going back to the quiet before this storm.
He released my hand like it burned him.
“I tried not to believe it,” Raymond murmured, then turned and walked out, the sound of the door closing behind him heavier than any gunshot.
Raymond looked at me one last time, pain hollowing his voice. “When you finally see what he really is, I hope it’s not too late.”
Then he walked out, the door slamming behind him like the final beat of a broken heart.
The silence left in his wake was deafening.
My chest felt hollow. The air was too heavy to breathe. Raymond’s absence was like a weight pressing against my ribs, squeezing out every trace of calm I had left.
Lorenzo didn’t move.
He stood behind me, his hand still gripping my wrist, his breath brushing the side of my neck.
“Why did you stop him?” His voice was low, dangerous, but there was something buried underneath, a tremor he couldn’t quite hide.
“Because I didn’t want him to get hurt or killed.” I whispered, my throat tight. “And I’m tired of all this.”
He turned me around, slow and deliberate, until I was facing him. His eyes were darker than I’d ever seen, storm clouds over blue fire. Then he just let go of me and walked back to the bed.
Lorenzo leaned back, wincing, his chest rising and falling with shallow breaths. “He’s going to be a problem,” he murmured.
I stared at him, my vision blurring with tears I refused to let fall. “You already are.”
Our eyes met, fire and frost, two broken worlds colliding on the edge of truth.
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