Chapter 6 - A Dangerous Hope
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Sebastian’s face changed so abruptly that Clare understood the cruelty in his voice had been guarding something much more fragile and frightened.
“If this is false hope,” he whispered, his eyes locking onto hers with terrifying intensity, “I’ll have Gabriel put you in the lake.”
Clare kept her hands still. She didn't flinch. “Then don’t ask me for a promise.”
He looked at her, his breathing shallow. “Ask me what we need to verify.”
For the next hour, Clare worked in absolute silence. She tested reflexes, manipulated joints, and charted his responses. There was significant nerve damage from a gunshot wound years ago, but the spinal cord wasn't entirely severed. The scar tissue had formed a suffocating cage around the nerves.
When she finally packed her bag, she was sweating.
“You need aggressive, daily therapy,” Clare said, zipping her bag. “Deep tissue mobilization. We have to break down the fascial adhesions blocking the nerve pathways. It will be excruciating.”
Sebastian sat up, pulling his shirt over his broad chest. “Gabriel will bring you here every night at eight.”
“I can’t,” Clare said.
Gabriel stepped forward, a warning in his posture.
“I have a son,” Clare continued, refusing to back down. “He’s sick. I can’t leave him alone with a neighbor every single night. I won't do it.”
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Sebastian stared at her. Women threw themselves at his wealth and power daily. He had rejected every woman who tried to enter his life because they only saw the mafia boss or the broken man in the chair. This woman, in her cheap scrubs, was denying him because she loved her child more than she feared him.
“Gabriel,” Sebastian said smoothly. “Take Ms. Bennett home. We will revisit this tomorrow.”
