Fabio stared at Leah, who still lay weak and motionless, then turned his gaze back to Robert as if demanding a second confirmation.
"She is... truly pregnant?" Fabio asked again. This time his voice shifted, faltering slightly. Slowly, a broad smile that he could not suppress began to spread across his face.
"It is true, sir," Robert answered firmly.
Seeing Fabio's reaction, Robert smiled as well and gave his boss a respectful, light pat on the shoulder. "I know this girl must be very special to you. Congratulations, sir. You are going to be a father."
"Leah. She is pregnant. My child." Fabio spoke the words as if he still could not believe the information he had just received.
"Is it really possible, Robert?" Fabio's voice trembled, caught between faith and disbelief.
"Extremely possible, sir," Robert replied with a steady nod. "Even though you suffered a severe spinal injury, the fertility therapy you have undergone for the past two years has shown incredible results. You succeeded."
Fabio's usually harsh face suddenly broke into a wide grin. "I am going to have a child! I am going to have a child! Hahahaha!" He shouted, his voice filling the room. His laughter exploded, a celebration of the victory he had craved most of all.
Immediately, a bitter memory from two years ago surged into his mind. He remembered lying near death after a bloody clash with the Moretti Crime Family.
Flashback: Two Years Ago.
"Sir, there is a possibility that you will be... sterile," Robert had delivered the news in a low, cautious voice.
Fabio lay helpless in his private secret hospital. His body was covered in bandages and stitches. At that moment, the door to the room swung open violently. Armando Casso, the Big Boss of The Casso Group, stepped inside. There was no hug or look of concern on his father's face, only a cold, piercing stare.
"Father," Fabio whispered weakly, enduring the agonizing pain that racked his entire body.
"Quiet. Do not move. Your body is already destroyed with so many wounds," Armando replied coldly, stopping right beside his son's bed.
Armando looked at Fabio as if he were looking at damaged goods. "I have heard from the doctor. It will be difficult for you to have an heir. You know what the consequences are, don't you?"
Fabio closed his eyes. The guilt was more painful than his physical injuries. "Yes, Father. Forgive me."
"The ancestral rules of the Casso Family never change," Armando hissed sharply. "The throne of the organization will only be given to those who have descendants, especially a son. Whatever it takes, you must have a child. If not, all of this power will fall into the hands of your cousin!"
Without offering a single word of encouragement, Armando turned and walked away, leaving Fabio in a haunting silence.
***
In an overflow of joy, Fabio pulled Robert into a warm embrace. "Thank you, Robert. All of this is thanks to your help," Fabio said, his voice thick with emotion. However, the embrace broke when his eye caught a small movement. Leah's head began to stir against the pillow.
Instantly, Fabio's attention shifted completely. He rushed to the bedside and, with total tenderness, grasped Leah's cold fingers.
"Leah. Honey." Fabio whispered, watching intently as Leah's eyelids slowly began to flutter open.
"Dad. Where is Dad? Dad." Leah's voice sounded hoarse, barely audible, calling out for the person she sought most as her consciousness remained hazy.
Fabio's body suddenly went rigid. His throat tightened, unable to produce a single word to explain the bitter reality.
Suddenly, Leah winced in pain while clutching her head. Along with a stabbing headache, the dark memory hit her like a wave. She remembered finding her father lying lifeless on the floor drenched in blood.
That realization ignited a fire of hatred in her eyes as she looked at Fabio.
"Get out of here!" Leah screamed with what little strength she had left. Her voice broke with sobs and rage.
"Murderer!" Leah hissed, staring at Fabio with a look full of vengeance.
Leah rebelled violently. In a rage of despair, she ripped the IV line from the back of her hand, causing fresh blood to splatter. Fabio lunged forward quickly, catching Leah's body in a tight embrace, trying to restrain her hysterical movements.
"Do not touch me, Murderer! Let go!" Leah screamed. She exerted every ounce of strength she possessed, her voice cracking with deep-seated hatred.
"Leah, calm down! Calm down!" Fabio shouted amidst the struggle. His sharp eyes immediately turned to Robert, signaling without words for the doctor to act.
Robert hesitated for a moment, weighing the risks of the medication against the fetus in Leah's womb. However, seeing Leah grow increasingly uncontrollable, he finally moved fast. He prepared a syringe with a dose of sedative that was safest for a pregnant woman. Very carefully, Robert approached, finding a gap between Leah's wild arm movements.
Thump. Robert successfully injected the medicine into Leah's back.
"Go away! Do not touch me!" Leah moaned. She continued to claw and strike at Fabio's back, though her strength was beginning to fade.
Slowly, Leah's voice lowered to an incoherent murmur. Her brutal movements gradually slowed as the drug began to flow through her veins. Finally, Leah went limp, falling completely unconscious in Fabio's arms.
"I think we have to tie her hands to the bed, sir," Robert suggested in a low voice, looking at the blood remaining on Leah's hand. "If she wakes up later, she will surely try to pull out her IV line again. That will endanger her and the fetus."
Fabio did not answer immediately. He fell silent, his eyes fixed on Leah's fragile wrists. A flash of sorrow crossed his face. It was as if the idea of shackling the woman he loved was an insult to his own soul. The room was suddenly heavy with silence.
"Just do it," Fabio said finally, his voice sounding heavy and resigned. He turned his face away. "But do it very carefully. Do not let it hurt her."
In the silence of the room, one of Fabio's trusted men appeared in the doorway. He stepped closer with a cautious gesture, then leaned in to whisper something directly into his master's ear. His voice was so low it was almost a hiss.
Fabio's eyes widened. He stood frozen for a moment, then turned sharply toward his subordinate. "Are you sure?" Fabio asked in a low tone laden with shock.