Chapter 1 - The Nurse Who Walked Into The Lion’s Den
Six nurses had quit before I touched Dominic Rossi’s blood-soaked sheets.
“Please… don’t leave me here.”
The dying mafia boss opened his eyes as I found a broken medical badge beside his bed.
But four words were scratched into the back:
“HE KNOWS THE TRUTH.”
I suddenly realized this was not just a nursing job.
My name was Clara Bennett, and three days earlier, I had never even heard Dominic Rossi’s name.
That changed when my phone rang at 2:17 in the morning.
I was sitting on the floor of my tiny apartment, surrounded by overdue bills, an empty refrigerator, and a bank account that had less money than the cost of a single dinner at one of the restaurants where Dominic Rossi’s people were rumored to do business.
The number was unknown.
Normally, I would have ignored it.
But desperation makes people answer calls they would usually fear.
“Ms. Bennett?”
The voice belonged to an older man.
“Yes?”
“My employer requires a private nurse.”
“I’m not available for home visits.”
There was silence.
Then the man said something that made my fingers tighten around my phone.
“Six nurses said the same thing.”
I looked at the unpaid electricity notice sitting beside me.
“Who is the patient?”
Another pause.
“Dominic Rossi.”
The name meant nothing to me at first.
Then I searched it.
My entire body went cold.
Dominic Rossi was not a celebrity.
He was not a businessman.
Not officially.
But everyone knew the rumors.
A man who controlled half the underground operations across three states.
A man people feared more than they respected.
A man who had survived attacks that would have killed anyone else.
And now he needed a nurse.
“Why did the others quit?” I asked.
The man on the phone lowered his voice.
“They said he wanted to die.”
I almost laughed.
Almost.
Because that sounded impossible.
People like Dominic Rossi didn’t give up.
They destroyed things.
They didn’t let themselves be destroyed.
“I’m not a therapist,” I said.
“You won’t need to be.”
“Then what do you need me to do?”
“Keep him alive.”
I stared at the ceiling.
My rent was due Monday.
My savings were gone.
My last job had disappeared after the private clinic I worked at closed unexpectedly.
I hated admitting it.
But fear had become something I could no longer afford.
“Where?”
The man gave me an address.
The Rossi estate.
I arrived two hours later.
The mansion looked like something built for kings and criminals.
Tall iron gates.
Security cameras.
Guards watching every movement.
My old sedan looked ridiculous parked beside expensive cars worth more than my entire life.
A man in a black suit opened the door.
“You’re the nurse?”
I nodded.
He studied me.
“You’re not afraid?”
I looked at him.
“I am.”
That surprised him.
“But I’m here anyway.”
He said nothing after that.
Inside, the mansion was silent.
Not peaceful.
Silent like everyone was waiting for something terrible.
A woman passing by whispered:
“Another one.”
Another man replied:
“She won’t last the night.”
I ignored them.
I followed the instructions upstairs.
Then I opened Dominic Rossi’s bedroom door.
And everything changed.
The man lying on the bed looked nothing like the stories.
He was still intimidating.
Even injured.
Even weak.
His dark hair was messy.
His face was covered with exhaustion.
His tattooed arms rested beside him.
Blood had soaked through the bandages wrapped around his chest.
But his eyes were awake.
Sharp.
Watching me.
“You’re new.”
His voice was rough.
“Yes.”
“The others ran.”
“I noticed.”
A faint smile appeared.
Not a friendly one.
A dangerous one.
“You should too.”
I walked closer.
“No.”
His eyes narrowed.
“No?”
“No.”
For the first time, Dominic Rossi looked surprised.
“You have no idea who I am.”
“I know exactly who you are.”
“And you’re still here?”
I opened my medical bag.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
I prepared the supplies.
Then I answered honestly.
“Because I need the money.”
Something changed in his expression.
Not anger.
Not amusement.
Something else.
Like he understood.
I removed the old bandages carefully.
The injury was worse than I expected.
Someone had tried to kill him.
And whoever did it had almost succeeded.
“You lost a lot of blood,” I said.
“I’ve lost more.”
“That doesn’t make this normal.”
“It does for me.”
I looked at him.
“That’s the problem.”
His eyes locked onto mine.
Nobody spoke to him like that.
I could tell.
Everyone around him probably feared every word they said.
But I wasn’t trying to challenge him.
I was trying to keep him alive.
For the next hour, I cleaned his wounds.
Changed his bandages.
Checked his condition.
And slowly, something strange happened.
The terrifying mafia boss everyone described began looking less like a monster.
And more like a man who had been carrying pain alone for far too long.
When I finished, I stepped back.
“You need rest.”
He looked away.
“I don’t sleep.”
“Then start.”
A quiet laugh escaped him.
“You’re either brave or stupid.”
“Maybe both.”
For a moment, the room became strangely quiet.
Then his expression changed.
His eyes moved toward the door.
I noticed immediately.
“What?”
He didn’t answer.
His hand moved slightly toward the weapon hidden beneath the pillow.
Someone was outside.
I froze.
A shadow moved beneath the door.
Dominic’s voice became cold.
“Turn off the lights.”
“Why?”
“Because whoever is outside…”
He stared at the door.
“…is not supposed to be here.”
I reached for the lamp switch.
The room went dark.
May you like
The handle slowly moved.
And then someone whispered Dominic Rossi’s name from the other side of the door.
