Chapter 12 - A Midnight Hospital Vigil Where Cold Hearts Break
At 3:00 a.m., Dominic entered the master bedroom suite. He had refused to let
Clara and Sophie stay in the servants’ quarters ever again. They were placed in
the grandest room of the estate, surrounded by silk sheets, roaring fireplaces,
and 24-hour guard protection.
Sophie was fast asleep in the center of the king-sized bed, clutching her
patched-up rabbit tightly against her chest.
Clara sat propped up against the pillows, bandages wrapped around her ribs and
forehead, watching the fireplace.
Dominic quietly pulled up a chair beside the bed and sat down.
“You should be sleeping,” he whispered gently.
Clara turned her gaze toward him. Her brown eyes were filled with an
overwhelming mix of vulnerability and sorrow.
“I kept expecting to wake up in that warehouse,” Clara admitted, her voice
hoarse. “Why did you bring us up here, Dominic? This isn't where we belong.”
Dominic reached out, taking Clara’s cold, bruised hand into his warm palms.
“Four years ago, I thought I was protecting you by pretending not to know,”
Dominic confessed, his deep voice thick with emotion. “I thought my world was
too dark, too bloody for you and Sophie. I convinced myself that giving you a
safe roof and keeping my distance was enough.”
Tears welled in Clara’s eyes. “I never wanted your money or your empire,
Dominic. I just wanted my daughter to grow up near a father who was strong
enough to keep the monsters away.”
Dominic leaned forward, gently brushing a stray lock of hair from Clara’s
forehead.
May you like
“The monsters are dead, Clara. And I am never letting you walk out of my sight
again.”
