Hazel stepped forward, her face pale but composed. "I’m his... I’m his friend."

The doctor looked at her. "Are you family?"

Hazel hesitated. Her eyes flickered for just a moment. Then she said, "I’m all he has right now."

The doctor nodded. "Stay here. We’ll do everything we can."

They wheeled Dominique away.

Hazel stood in the hallway, watching the doors swing shut behind him. Her hands were trembling. Her heart was pounding. The doors closed with a soft click, and she was alone.

Bella and Leo arrived moments later, their footsteps echoing through the deserted corridor. The hospital was hushed, with the only discernible sounds being the distant machinery and the gentle beeping of monitors emanating from nearby rooms.

Bella wrapped her arms around Hazel, holding her tight.

"He’s going to be okay," Bella whispered. "He’s strong. He’s going to pull through."

Hazel didn’t answer. She just stood there, her arms wrapped around herself, her eyes fixed on the closed doors. Her shoulders were shaking.

After a long moment, she pulled back, her eyes red, her voice shaking. "Thank you, Bella. For being here."

Bella just nodded her head.

Hazel nodded. Then she pulled out her phone. "I need to inform his mother and the others."

She walked a few steps away and made the calls. Her voice was calm, but Bella could see her hands shaking. She spoke in short, clipped sentences, giving the necessary information before hanging up.

When she returned, her face was pale. "His mother is on her way. The others know."

Bella nodded.

⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹

The surgery took hours.

Leo and Bella sat in the waiting room, their hands clasped together. The chairs were hard and uncomfortable, the metal cold against their backs. Hazel paced back and forth, her arms wrapped around herself, her eyes fixed on the door.

The silence was dense, broken only by the occasional announcement over the intercom. The fluorescent lights hummed overhead, casting pale shadows on the walls. The clock on the wall ticked slowly, each second feeling like an eternity.

Bella watched Hazel pace blankly.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the doors swung open.

A surgeon emerged, his scrubs stained with blood. His face was tired, but there was a calmness in his eyes. He pulled down his mask and looked at them.

Hazel rushed toward him. "How is he?"

The surgeon’s voice was calm. "He’s stable. The glass missed his carotid artery by millimeters. He lost a lot of blood, but we were able to repair the damage."

Hazel’s legs nearly gave out. She grabbed the edge of a nearby chair to steady herself.

"He’s going to be okay?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"He’s going to be okay," the surgeon confirmed. "He’ll need time to recover, but he’s young and strong. He’ll pull through."

Hazel closed her eyes, letting out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding. Her shoulders sagged, the tension finally leaving her body.

Bella rushed forward and hugged her.

"He’s okay," Bella whispered. "He’s okay."

Hazel hugged her back, her arms tight around Bella’s shoulders. "Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you."

Leo stood behind them, his gray eyes fixed on the doors where Dominique was still recovering. His hands were in his pockets, his jaw tight.

He didn’t want to admit it, but he had been feeling scared. Scared of losing him. Scared of losing someone who had become like a brother to him. Dominique was loud and annoying and always in his face, but he was like a... family. He was irreplaceable.

He had never said it out loud. But he had to admit, although Dominique came as Bella’s friend, he had become dear to him and everyone.

Specially Hazel.

He looked at Hazel’s red eyes, the way she stood so still, the way her hands trembled. She hadn’t even looked that sad on her wedding day when she broke up with Nicolas. But now, seeing her like this, he realized how much Dominique meant to her.

Leo looked away, his jaw tightening.

⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹

When Dominique’s mother arrived at the hospital, her aura demanded attention.

She walked through the double doors with the grace of a queen, her dark hair swept back, her face composed into an expression of cold calmness. Her eyes swept the room, taking in the sterile walls, the flickering fluorescent lights, the cluster of anxious faces. She was dressed in a long black coat, elegant and severe and her heels clicked against the floor with rhythmic precision.

She approached Leo, her gaze sharp and unblinking.

She stopped in front of him, her voice cold and hard. "Tell me everything. And don’t leave out any details."

Leo met her gaze evenly. Kaelani was a bit taken aback. Few could handle her aura.

He told her everything.

He didn’t soften the details. He didn’t spare her the brutality. He told her exactly what had happened, his voice flat and cold, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Nicolas Vale wanted to kill him. He would have succeeded if I hadn’t arrived when I did."

Dominique’s mother listened without interruption. Her face remained impassive, but Leo saw something flicker in her eyes. A killing intent.

Her hands clenched at her sides.

Nicolas Vale. A businessman. A nobody. A man who had dared to injure her son.

Just because Dominique had left the royal family didn’t mean he was an orphan. Just because he had chosen a simpler life didn’t mean he was unprotected. Just because he had walked away from the palace didn’t mean he was alone.

She turned away from Leo and walked toward the corner of the waiting room.

She pulled out her phone.

Leo watched her, a cold smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

She dialed a number, her voice low and sharp. "I need to speak with the head of the royal security council. Tell them it’s urgent. Tell them it’s about my son."

Leo’s smirk widened.

What will you do now, Nicolas? he thought. How are you going to deal with a royal family?