Chapter 1 - The Nurse Nobody Could Control
A nurse walked out of a mansion with tears in her eyes, whispering: "I hope that man never wakes up again."
When Agostino Costello's assistant checked the remaining list of private nurses, only one name was left.
BRIELLE EDWARDS, RN.
But written across her rejected applications were three words: "Too difficult to control."
Agostino Costello had finally met someone who did not fear him.
The fourth nurse lasted fourteen hours.
Darwin Myers watched her leave through the massive front entrance of the Costello estate, one hand covering her mouth and the other clutching her medical bag.
She did not look back.
None of them ever did.
Behind the closed doors of the master suite, Agostino Costello had a reputation that reached far beyond the walls of his mansion.
People knew his name.
They knew his power.
They knew what happened when someone crossed him.
But lately, they also knew something else.
The most feared man in the city had become a patient.
And nobody wanted the job.
Darwin looked down at the clipboard in his hands.
Three nurses had quit in one week.
One lasted two days.
Another lasted one night.
The last one had lasted fourteen hours.
Fourteen hours was considered an achievement.
He sighed as he looked at the final name.
Brielle Edwards.
A registered nurse with six years of psychiatric night-shift experience.
No private mafia clients.
No luxury hospital background.
No history of working with wealthy families.
Just a long list of difficult patients and one strange note from her previous employer.
"Highly skilled. Refuses to remain silent when mistakes are made."
Darwin almost smiled.
That sentence alone explained why she had been hired.
Agostino did not need another nurse who would bow every time he entered a room.
He needed someone who could keep him alive.
And apparently, nobody else was willing to try.
Brielle Edwards sat beneath the expensive chandelier in the Costello foyer, looking completely out of place.
The mansion around her screamed wealth.
Marble floors.
Hand-painted artwork.
Furniture that probably cost more than her entire apartment.
She ignored all of it.
She sat with her medical bag on her lap, reviewing Agostino's medical records.
Gunshot wounds.
Fractured rib.
Damaged shoulder.
Surgical repair after severe internal bleeding.
Complications from refusing proper rest.
The last sentence made her eyebrows rise.
"Patient demonstrates aggressive resistance toward medical instructions."
She quietly closed the file.
"Of course he does."
Darwin, standing nearby, looked at her.
"You are still willing to do this?"
Brielle looked up.
"Do I look like I changed my mind?"
"No."
"Then why ask?"
Darwin studied her for a moment.
Most people became nervous when they heard Agostino Costello's name.
Brielle seemed annoyed.
Not scared.
Just annoyed.
"My employer is difficult," Darwin said carefully.
Brielle picked up her bag.
"I've worked with psychiatric patients who threw chairs at me."
Darwin remained silent.
"I've worked with people who screamed for twelve hours straight."
She stood.
"I've been punched, bitten, scratched, and insulted."
She adjusted the strap on her bag.
"Your employer is not special."
Darwin almost reacted.
Almost.
Because everyone else who entered this house treated Agostino like something dangerous.
Brielle treated him like a medical problem.
And somehow, that felt more dangerous.
"One warning," Darwin said.
Brielle waited.
"He does not like being told what to do."
She looked at him.
"Neither do most patients."
"He is not most patients."
Brielle nodded.
"Then he should have paid more attention to staying healthy."
Darwin stared.
For the first time that day, he almost laughed.
Almost.
"Follow me."
The master bedroom doors opened.
The atmosphere changed immediately.
Brielle noticed everything.
The security camera in the corner.
The armed guard outside.
The medical equipment beside the bed.
The silence.
A room where everyone was afraid to breathe too loudly.
Agostino Costello lay against the pillows.
Even injured, he looked powerful.
His black shirt was open around his chest, revealing thick bandages covering his wounds.
His dark hair was pushed back.
His sharp green eyes immediately locked onto Brielle.
And within seconds, his expression changed.
Disappointment.
Then amusement.
Then something colder.
"No."
Darwin stopped.
Brielle looked at him.
Agostino looked directly at Darwin.
"Absolutely not."
"Mr. Costello—"
"You brought me a nurse?"
His eyes moved toward Brielle.
Then slowly back.
"This is your solution?"
The room became quiet.
Brielle placed her medical bag on the table.
"Hello, Mr. Costello."
Agostino ignored her greeting.
"The hospital sent someone?"
"No."
"Then who made this decision?"
"I did."
That answer surprised him.
Agostino looked at Darwin.
"Remove her."
Brielle did not move.
Darwin hesitated.
"Mr. Costello—"
"I said remove her."
Brielle opened her medical bag.
Agostino watched her.
"You are ignoring me?"
"No."
She removed a blood pressure cuff.
"I'm preparing to check your vitals."
His eyes narrowed.
"Do you understand who I am?"
Brielle finally looked at him.
"Yes."
A pause.
"You're Agostino Costello."
"Then you understand what happens when people disrespect me."
Brielle nodded.
"I understand what happens when injured men with poor pain management become difficult."
Darwin looked away.
The guards froze.
Nobody spoke to Agostino like that.
Nobody.
Agostino stared at her.
"You think you are funny?"
"No."
She walked closer.
"I think you have a fever."
The room became silent.
Brielle looked at his face.
"The sweating."
She pointed.
"The increased breathing."
She glanced at the monitor.
"Your heart rate."
Then she looked back at him.
"You are either developing an infection or your body is exhausted from fighting against recovery."
Agostino watched her carefully.
"You diagnosed me from across the room?"
"No."
She held up the cuff.
"I observed you from across the room."
A small pause.
"Diagnosis costs extra."
For a second, nobody reacted.
Then Darwin almost smiled.
Almost.
Agostino noticed.
His eyes moved toward him.
Darwin immediately returned to a serious expression.
Brielle stepped beside the bed.
"Arm."
Agostino stared.
"What?"
"Your arm."
She held out the cuff.
"I need your blood pressure."
A dangerous silence filled the room.
The guards looked uncomfortable.
Darwin looked frozen.
Because everyone understood what had just happened.
Brielle Edwards had given Agostino Costello an order.
Agostino slowly leaned back.
"You give commands in my house?"
"When you are my patient."
"You should be afraid."
"I've heard that before."
"From who?"
Brielle looked at him.
"Patients who thought intimidation would lower their blood pressure."
The corner of Agostino's mouth moved slightly.
Not a smile.
Something else.
Curiosity.
He had spent years surrounding himself with people who feared him.
People who agreed with him.
People who never challenged him.
But this woman looked at him like he was simply a man who needed medical attention.
And somehow, that bothered him more than fear.
Brielle lifted the cuff.
"Roll up your sleeve."
Nobody moved.
Not Darwin.
Not the guards.
Not even Agostino.
Five seconds passed.
Then ten.
The entire room waited.
Because nobody had ever ordered Agostino Costello to do anything.
His eyes stayed fixed on Brielle.
Searching for fear.
Searching for hesitation.
He found neither.
Slowly...
Agostino lifted his arm.
Darwin quietly closed the bedroom door.
But as Brielle carefully moved the edge of his bandage aside, she stopped.
Her fingers froze.
A scar was visible beneath the dressing.
A scar she had seen before.
A scar connected to a night she had spent years trying to forget.
And before she could hide her reaction, Agostino noticed.
"Why do you know that scar?"
Brielle looked up.
Neither of them moved.
Then her phone suddenly vibrated inside her medical bag.
One message appeared on the screen.
May you like
A name she had not seen in twelve years.
"Brielle... you finally found him."
