Chapter 3 - Blood on the Mint
Two weeks passed, filled with relentless routine and small, miraculous breakthroughs.
Every morning, Lily met Ethan in the heated greenhouse. She soaked his feet in hot herbal infusions, worked through painful fascia release techniques, and taught him breathing exercises to overcome the phantom spasms that plagued his lower back.
On a cold Tuesday afternoon, it happened.
Ethan was sitting on a padded table, his hands gripping the edges, sweat dripping down his pale forehead as Lily gently pressed against the sole of his left foot.
"Push back against my hand, Ethan," Lily encouraged softly. "Don't think about your spine. Think about kicking a ball into the grass."
Ethan gritted his teeth, his face turning red with effort. "I can't... it's empty..."
"It’s not empty. It's just quiet," Lily insisted, her voice steady and full of unshakeable faith. "Try again."
Beside the table, Alessandro stood perfectly still, his breath held in his chest, his hands clenched into tight fists inside his suit pockets.
Ethan let out a sharp cry of exertion—and his left foot flexed forward, pressing firmly against Lily’s palm.
The room went dead silent.
Ethan stared at his foot in total shock. "I... I felt it. It felt like cold water running down my calf!"
"You did it," Lily breathed, a radiant, beautiful smile breaking across her face as she looked up at the boy. "You did it, Ethan!"
Ethan let out a breathless, sobbing laugh, throwing his small arms around Lily’s neck. Lily wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly as the boy wept tears of pure joy against her shoulder.
Over the boy’s head, Lily’s eyes met Alessandro’s.
The terrifying mafia king was motionless. A single tear tracked down his carved cheek before he quickly wiped it away with the back of his hand. His amber eyes burned with a raw, overwhelming emotion that made Lily’s chest ache. He walked to the table, wrapping his massive arms around both his son and Lily, holding them close against his chest.
For a long moment, the three of them stood locked together in the quiet greenhouse, the boundary between boss, employee, and family completely dissolving.
CRACK!
The sound of shattering glass tore through the warmth.
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A bullet slammed through the upper greenhouse roof, showering glass shards onto the flagstone floor.
"DOWN!" Alessandro roared, instantly shoving Lily and Ethan beneath the heavy oak potting table, shielding their bodies with his own massive frame.
