Chapter 3 - The Matriarch’s Judgment
An hour later, after a quiet, efficient doctor had cleaned, medicated, and bandaged her blistered hands, the heavy doors opened once more.
This time, it wasn't a guard or Dominic.
An elderly woman stepped into the room. She wore a deep emerald silk robe, her white hair neatly coiffed, though her face still bore the pale, drawn look of someone who had narrowly cheated death. It was Rosa Castile.
Sadie froze, instinctively standing up from the edge of the oversized bed.
Rosa stopped, her sharp, dark eyes—so much like Dominic’s—raking over Sadie from head to toe. She walked forward with a measured, dignified pace, leaning slightly on an ivory-handled cane.
“So,” Rosa said, her voice raspy but carrying an unmistakable authority. “You’re the girl who crawled through hell to drag an old woman out.”
“I... yes, ma’am,” Sadie stammered, feeling completely out of her depth.
Rosa reached out, her frail hand gently capturing Sadie’s freshly bandaged fingers. She didn't squeeze, but the touch sent a shiver through Sadie.
“My son is a brute,” Rosa said softly, a faint, wry smile touching the corners of her mouth. “He treats the world like a chessboard and everyone in it like a pawn. He brought you here because he thinks you’re a liability.”
“He made that pretty clear,” Sadie muttered.
“He is wrong,” Rosa stated firmly. “You aren't a liability. You are the only reason I am alive to breathe this air today. Dominic may be blind to many things, but he is not ungrateful.”
Just then, the door opened again, and Dominic strode into the room. His eyes darted immediately to his mother, assessing her posture, her color, and her proximity to Sadie.
“Mother, you should be resting,” Dominic said, stepping forward. “The doctor said—”
“The doctor talks too much, just like you,” Rosa interrupted sharply, waving her hand dismissively. “I am fine, Dominic. Because of her.”
Dominic looked at Sadie, his expression unreadable. “How are your hands?”
“Better than yours would look if you dragged someone out of a burning building,” Sadie shot back, unable to filter the exhaustion and frustration bleeding into her voice.
Dominic’s jaw tightened. For a second, Carmine—who stood quietly in the doorway—looked as though he expected the sky to fall. But Dominic only let out a slow, measured breath.
“You have spirit, Miss Brooks,” Dominic observed quietly. “Most people shake in my presence. You talk back.”
“Most people don't kidnap me and lock me in a fortress,” Sadie retorted.
May you like
“You are not a prisoner,” Dominic replied, though his tone brooked no argument. “You are a guest under protection. Until the Moretti problem is permanently resolved, you are safer inside these walls than anywhere else in this city.”
Rosa patted Sadie’s hand. “Listen to him, child. My son is terrifying, but he keeps his promises. You saved my life. Now, let him save yours.”
