Chapter 49 Sorry for Interrupting

Nighttimes at the hilltop estate always felt heavier than anywhere else. Alessandro was in the middle of dinner when the call came. On the other end was Elena, crying in sheer panic, her words breaking apart between sobs. She said something about flames, explosions, and begged him not to leave her. He hung up as his brows tightened. He grabbed his coat off the chair and headed for the door. Across from him, Lucia let out a dry, cold laugh. "Heading over again?" Alessandro paused. He turned his head and looked at her face under the dining room lights. She had been unnervingly calm lately. She hadn't been clinging to him or throwing tantrums over his visits to Elena. Yet somehow, her silence gnawed at him and made him feel restless. "She's in bad shape," he said in a clipped tone. "The doctors say she's having severe stress reactions, and she's been having nightmares." "So that means you have to go sleep beside her?" "Watch your tone," he warned, his voice low and sharp. "She's