His innocent wife is a dangerous hacker.-Chapter 539

The doctor moved with efficient grace, his focus absolute. He first checked the monitor, noting the elevated but steady heart rate and strong oxygen saturation.

"Leo," he said, his voice clear and calm but not loud. "Can you hear me? If you can, try to squeeze my hand."

He placed his fingers in Leo’s palm. After a brief, delayed moment, Bella saw the subtle flex of his fingers against the doctor’s.

"Good. That’s very good." The doctor nodded, making a note on the chart the nurse handed him. "Now, can you tell me your full name?"

There was a longer pause. His lips moved slightly, but no sound came. He swallowed, and a flicker of frustration crossed his exhausted features.

"Leonardo... Moretti," he finally rasped, the surname barely a whisper.

"Excellent. And do you know where you are?"

His gaze drifted past her, taking in the sterile ceiling, the IV stand, the concerned faces of Bella and Jay hovering just beyond the medical perimeter. "Hospital," he ground out.

"That’s right." The doctor shone a penlight briefly into each of his eyes, watching the pupils contract. "You’ve been through significant trauma, Leo. You’re on strong pain medication and antibiotics. It’s normal to feel disoriented, weak, and for speech to be difficult. Do you understand?"

A slow, almost imperceptible nod.

"The most important thing right now is to stay still. You have extensive sutures on your back. Do you feel pain?"

His eyes closed for a second, a deeper grimace tightening his mouth. "Yes," he breathed.

"On a scale of one to ten?"

"...Seven." The word was strained.

The doctor glanced at the nurse, who made an adjustment to the IV pump. "I’m increasing your analgesia slightly. It will help you rest, which is what you need most. We’re going to run some neurological checks and scan the wound site again now that you’re conscious, but your initial responsiveness is very promising." 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

He finally turned to include Bella and Jay, his demeanor softening just a fraction. "He’s neurologically intact. His cognition is clear. He knows who he is, where he is, and the circumstances. That’s the best news we could hope for at this stage. The road ahead is long. There will be pain, fatigue, and frustration. But he’s turned the corner."

He looked back at Leo, who was watching Bella through heavy-lidded eyes. "Rest now. Your family is here. We’ll monitor you closely."

As the doctor and nurse began their more thorough examination, Bella felt her knees go weak with a relief so profound it was dizzying. Neurologically intact. The words echoed in her mind, sacred, grounding, real.

After the doctor and nurses finished their checks and left the room, a fragile quiet settled over the ward. The others, Jay, Jace, Dom, and Jason, stepped into the hallway to give them a moment.

Leo’s gaze, still heavy but lucid, drifted from the ceiling to Bella. He drew a slow, careful breath, and his arm shifted slightly on the blanket.

"Help me sit up," he murmured, his voice a low, hoarse rasp that scraped against the silence.

Bella, who had just settled back into the chair beside him, leaned forward instantly, her hand hovering. "No, you need to rest. The doctor said..."

"I’ve rested for a week," he interrupted gently, the ghost of a wry smile touching his lips. It was a flicker of the man she knew, and it made her heart clench. "My back is one thing. Every other muscle is screaming from lying still. Please, Bunny. Just... help me... turn," he murmured, his voice raw and strained. "I can’t... stay on my stomach."

Bella was at his side in an instant, her eyes scanning the vulnerable landscape of his bandaged back. Lying prone was putting direct pressure on the wound. "You need to be on your side," she said, her voice low and practical, masking her fear. "Your uninjured side. We have to roll you."

He gave the faintest nod, his jaw already tight with anticipated pain. "Just... get me off it."

"Okay," she whispered. This was a precise two-person maneuver, but she would manage. "I’m going to roll you toward me. Don’t try to help. You have to stay completely limp. Let your body be dead weight."

She positioned herself at the side of the bed he would roll toward. Placing one hand gently on his far shoulder and the other on his hip, she took a steadying breath. "On three. One... two... three."

She pulled with firm, steady pressure, guiding his body in a slow, rigid roll. He could not suppress the sound that escaped him, a sharp, punched gasp that was all the more terrible for its brevity. His face buried into the pillow, his body trembling from the brutal shock to his torn back. Bella’s own muscles strained, her entire focus on keeping the movement smooth and controlled, minimizing the twisting pull on his sutures.

Finally, he was on his side, his injured back now carefully suspended in the air, free from pressure. He was panting, his eyes clenched shut, tears of agony or relief leaking from the corners. Bella acted quickly, stacking pillows snugly against his back to prevent him from rolling backward, and another between his knees for support.

She then gently hooked her arms under his shoulders. "I’m going to lift you just enough to fix the pillows under your head," she whispered. "Ready?"

With a grunt of effort, she lifted his upper body a few crucial inches, enough to slide and arrange the pillows to support his neck and head at an angle where he could see the room. He was now lying on his side, propped up, a fortress of pillows guarding his injury.

They were both breathing heavily, the shared exertion hanging in the air. A fine sheen of sweat coated his pale skin and her own forehead.

Slowly, his eyes opened. They were hazy with pain and medication, but they searched until they found her face hovering close to his. The tension in his face softened, just a fraction.

His hand, lying limp on the sheet between them, twitched. With immense effort, he shifted it, his fingers stretching toward her.

Bella met him halfway, sliding her hand beneath his. His fingers were cold. They closed around hers with weak but desperate pressure.

He looked at her, his storm gray eyes still clouded but intensely focused. His gaze traced the worry in her eyes, the determined set of her mouth, the strand of hair stuck to her cheek.

"There," he breathed, his voice still rough, but now laced with warmth that filled the space between them. "Now I can see you properly."