Chapter 80 Say My Name
❦ Rosalind ❦
I stood naked in the bathroom, cool water running over my face.
If someone asked me to define my relationship with Viktor, I wouldn’t know where to start.
It was a one-sided emotional attraction at best. The physical attraction and intimacy went both ways, obviously.
But I guess my biggest fear was surrendering so easily that he would have gotten bored of the chase.
I’d wanted him to keep on chasing even while I erected those walls of distrust toward him, indecisiveness, and loyalty to my family name.
I’d wanted him to give me a reason to sacrifice my father’s wrath, even in death, to choose him. To choose us, whatever we were.
I guess my wish came true in the end.
He had no recollection of me.
All the possessiveness and hate. All the rage-fueled fucks and the occasional joviality I treasured.
Gone.
He saw the wedding band and knew I was his wife. But he didn’t know me, not anymore.
I twisted the diamond ring on my finger.
I should have been ecstatic. Relieved.
But I felt as though a heavy dark cloud had come to rest permanently on my shoulders.
I quite literally had no one else, save my cousin and my aunt.
Viktor had crawled into my heart, argument by argument, tryst by tryst. With each graze of his gaze and each lick of his tongue.
I decided I didn’t like him not knowing me anymore.
Adrian had forced me away to go take a much-needed shower back at the house, escorted by four soldatos to prevent an escape that was non-existent in my mind.
My scattered feelings aside, someone had tried to kill Viktor.
And now that he had no memories of the last decade, he was in danger.
I was in danger by extension.
My fists clenched.
His attempted murderer could walk past him and he wouldn’t even know.
I couldn’t leave him like that.
To the best of my knowledge, he was just as reserved as I was and had few trusted friends apart from Adrian. I came right after on the list, even with our volatile relationship.
First, I needed to get Adrian to trust me. He couldn’t do this alone and neither could Viktor. They both needed me.
On my way out of the house, Enza approached me, worry etched on her face.
“How is he?” the elderly woman asked, eyes wide with hope.
I smiled wide and hoped it didn’t betray the tension in my every heartbeat. “He’s conscious and already doing better. He’ll be home soon.”
Isa, her red-haired assistant, stood off to the side, no less worried but still too shy to make herself noticed.
I just smiled at her, and she returned a shaky one of her own.
I slid into the car, sandwiched in the middle of two large bodyguards like a pebble between mountains.
I could only hope Viktor regains his memories before Adrian chews me up.
At the hospital, Viktor was in a deep sleep, more than twelve hours after he’d been conscious.
The doctor drew in a steady breath, his expression grave as he adjusted the chart.
“Mr. Marino sustained a traumatic brain injury. The good news is his cognitive functions, speech, reasoning, and coordination are intact. He’s himself. But…” The doctor’s eyes flicked between me and Adrian. “He’s experiencing retrograde amnesia. That means he’s lost memories from after a certain point in his life.”
Adrian leaned forward, his voice sharp. “How far back?”
The doctor hesitated. “Seventeen. His memory cuts off the year his brother died. Everything after that, his business, even his marriage, it’s gone. He can still form new memories, but the last decade simply isn’t there.”
My breath hitched. “So he doesn’t… he doesn’t remember the last ten years?”
“He knows who he is,” the doctor said carefully. “But for him, the world stopped years ago. You’ll need to be cautious. Forcing him to remember could do more harm than good. Let the memories return naturally, if they do at all.”
“How soon can he be discharged?” Adrian ground out.
“If he wakes up on his own again, and shows no signs of cognitive issues, he can leave.” The doctor confirmed.
After a few more exchanges, the doctor left. Adrian, the bald-headed soldato, and I remained.
The steady beeping of the machines punctuated the tense silence.
Viktor’s hand in mine twitched, and I glanced at him sharply.
But his face was blank, his breathing so slow it was almost unnoticeable.
He gripped my hand so tightly, my fingers grinded against each other.
But I swallowed the pain. Taking my hand away could disturb his sleep, and I didn’t want that.
“Adrian,” I called tentatively.
He said nothing, but his cold gaze slid to me, suspicion thick behind his eyes.
“I need you to know, that while you have eyes on me, the real enemy is out there. I have no reason to kill Viktor. He agreed to the divorce before the accident.”
Adrian barked a laugh. “He agreed? Did he sign it?”
“Well, no. He agreed verbally.”
“You will mention nothing of a divorce to him.”
“What?”
“He just had a traumatic experience that sent him back to his last traumatic experience. He lost everyone in his life, and even though the marriage was one of convenience, don’t you think it’s a little cruel to bring it up now?”
Adrian’s lips split into a devious grin. “You just said you have no desire to hurt him. Prove it.”
I didn’t bother correcting him that there was another reason for my eagerness to be here.
I loved his stupid Don.
I swallowed, unsure of his reaction to my next question.
“What happened to Paulo, Adrian?”
The shift was immediate.
His shoulders froze, hunched slightly as if he’d been struck. He stood as still as a statue.
After what seemed to be an eternity, he spoke.
“That’s his story to tell.”
I wanted to ask another, more direct question. Had Viktor really killed his elder brother? But I decided against it.
I was walking on thin ice as it was.
I slid my gaze to Viktor, his lashes feathering his bruised cheeks, my heart ached for him, my lips itched to taste his, to reassure him that I was here. And he hadn’t lost me.
Maybe this was a chance for us to start over.
Maybe now, without the enmity and hotel hovering over us, it would be different. Maybe this time, he would choose me.
I brushed his palm softly with my finger.
His hand closed like a vice, crushing mine.
“Ah…” I hissed.
Adrian moved closer at once, his eyes glinting expectantly.
Viktor’s lips twitched. Once. Twice.
“Rosa,” he grumbled in his sleep.
I froze, my heart igniting into a thousand flickering flames.