ABSOLUTE INSANITY: A forbidden bond-Chapter 184: Not suffocating

Chapter 184

KATYA POV

The morning light attacked me as I opened my eyes.I didn’t wake up screaming this time. The exhaustion had been so deep, so absolute, that it had acted like a sedative, pinning me to the mattress until my mind slowly drifted back to the surface.

I stayed still for a long time, my head feeling heavy, and my back was a landscape of stiff, pulling pain.

But for the first time in weeks, the crushing weight on my chest—the feeling of being hunted—had settled into a cautious, numbing silence.

I was still in his bed. I looked down at the dark silk of the shirt. It was wrinkled now, smelling faintly of me and the lavender soap Nonna had used.

It felt strange to be surrounded by so much luxury while feeling so fundamentally broken. The insecurities began to seep in, cold and persistent.

Why am I still here?

Did he let me stay out of pity, or is this just a different kind of cage?

Where is Marina? The thought of her made my stomach flip, but before the panic could take root, the sound of the heavy door creaking open drew my attention.

I didn’t flinch. I just turned my head slowly, my heart rate picking up only a fraction. Nonna wheeled herself in, her expression serene, her eyes searching mine the moment she crossed the threshold.

Behind her was Miss Stella, she was pushing a silver trolley that rattled softly with the sound of fine china and clinking crystal. "Good morning, piccola," Nonna said, her voice like warm honey.

"You slept around the clock. We were starting to think you were trying to hibernate." Miss Stella laughed lightly, pushing the trolley closer to the bed near me.

The scent of the food hit me all at once, making my mouth water painfully.It wasn’t just a meal,it was a feast. Freshly baked cornetti dusted with powdered sugar.

A bowl of dark, glistening berries. Soft-boiled eggs and thin slices of prosciutto. A pot of herbal tea that smelled of chamomile and honey.

A small glass of freshly squeezed orange juice.

"I... I can’t eat all of this," I whispered, my voice sounding small in the vastness of the room.

"You will eat what you can," Nonna commanded gently, gesturing for Miss Stella to help me sit up.

Miss Stella moved with practiced efficiency. She didn’t look at my bandages with disgust or at the oversized shirt with judgment.

She simply fluffed the pillows behind me and helped me lean back, her touch professional and surprisingly light.

"The Don has requested that you be kept on a high-protein diet for the healing." Miss stella said. shocking me.

The Don? Romeo. My fingers brushed the edge of the silver tray. He had ordered this? The man who had watched me bleed in a hallway was now worried about my protein intake?

The inconsistency of it made my head spin more than the concussion did. "Where is he?" I asked, looking at Nonna.

Nonna’s eyes twinkled with something I couldn’t quite read—a mix of satisfaction and something darker.

"He is... occupied. Business that required his full attention. He spent the night in the study."

She reached out, patting my hand. "Eat, Katya. The world looks very different when you aren’t starving."

I picked up a piece of fruit, my hand only trembling slightly. As I ate, I looked around the room.

It didn’t feel like the lion’s den this morning. It felt like a fortress. And for the first time, I wondered if the walls were meant to keep me in—or to keep everyone else out.

"Nonna," I said after a few bites of the egg. "Aren’t you going to join me? You too miss Stella?"

Both women smiled at me. "We already at but why not?" Nonna’s smile didn’t falter, as she looked back at Miss Stella who began filling both her plate and nonna with food.

Miss Stella set Nonna’s tray carefully on the small table beside her wheelchair, adjusting the napkin on her lap with quiet reverence.

Then she took her own plate and moved to the couch near the window, settling there with an ease.

The room felt... occupied. Not crowded, just watched over.

I ate slowly, forcing myself to take small bites even as my body protested the unfamiliar fullness.

Each swallow grounded me a little more, pulling me out of the fog. The warmth of the tea soothed my throat, the sweetness of the berries almost overwhelming after so long without anything gentle.

Still, the question gnawed at me.

"Nonna," I said quietly, setting my fork down. "Where is um..Mr Salvatore?"

The name felt heavy in my mouth, like it didn’t quite belong there.

"And shouldn’t we... shouldn’t we leave his room?" I gestured vaguely around me, at the bed, the walls, the space that still smelled unmistakably like him. "This is his—"

Nonna waved a hand dismissively, already cutting me off. "That boy hasn’t shown his face here since yesterday," she said, her tone sharp with irritation.

"If he had any sense, he knew better than to disturb you." She took a sip of her tea, eyes narrowing slightly. "So do not worry about him."

I hesitated. "But—"

"And as for the room," she continued firmly, fixing me with a look that allowed no argument, "yours is being taken care of."

My chest tightened. "My room?"

Nonna’s mouth thinned, displeasure flashing openly now. "After what that evil woman did to it, I would not allow you back there without it being cleansed properly. Every sheet burned. Every surface scrubbed. It will be made safe again."

Miss Stella’s fork paused midair on the couch, her jaw tightening just a fraction before she resumed eating.

I swallowed hard. The image of my ruined room rose unbidden but the new information I got that it was a room meant for Romeo future wife didn’t sit right to me.

"Oh," was all I managed, I didn’t have the strength to ask about that or I didn’t just want to go into that conversation.

"For now," Nonna said more gently, reaching out to rest her hand over mine, "you stay where I can see you. Where no one can touch you without answering to me."

Her grip was warm. Certain.

I nodded, my throat suddenly too tight for words. I took another bite of food, smaller this time, my gaze drifting back around the room. The fortress feeling returned, heavier now.

But not suffocating. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

††

Merry Christmas