The Mafia Boss Visited His Assistant Unannounced—And What He Saw Made Him Cancel His Wedding

Right now, a raging infection fever made them entirely unfocused.

She blankly stared right at Gabriel.

She absolutely did not scream in fear or even cry.

A ragged, dry breath left her throat as she slowly rested her heavy head back against the cold bathtub again.

"You are actively bringing wet mud inside the apartment."

Her usually strong voice sounded utterly broken.

"Boss."

Gabriel immediately dropped directly to his knees.

The freezing cold rapidly penetrating his expensive wool trousers completely failed to register in his mind.

He reached forward toward her and briefly stopped before gently closing one large hand completely around her delicate wrist.

His strong grip was highly controlled as he carefully removed the sharp needle right from her trembling fingers.

"What exactly happened to you?"

The urgent question came out far too loudly.

His sudden, deep panic had fully transformed itself into explosive anger.

"Who exactly did this to you?"

"Please do not shout at me."

Norah tightly closed her feverish eyes.

"My head already hurts."

"Look at me right now."

Gabriel gently held her bruised chin and carefully raised her pale face.

Her delicate skin literally burned with a raging fever.

"Who exactly shot you?"

A very weak, tiny laugh rapidly became a wet cough.

"Absolutely no one shot me."

Her badly split mouth moved only slightly.

"Do I honestly look that careless to you?"

Norah’s dark eyes slowly fluttered open.

"It was actually a knife."

She swallowed extremely painfully.

"It was a very large and highly unattractive combat knife."

Gabriel carefully pulled the soaked towel completely away from her left thigh.

The horrific wound was incredibly jagged and extremely deep.

Someone had violently dragged the thick blade directly through her leg muscle in a deliberate attempt to permanently disable the limb.

The torn edges had already become highly red and deeply inflamed.

A lethal infection was clearly already actively developing.

"Why on earth did you not immediately call our syndicate physician?"

Gabriel instantly replaced the thick towel and aggressively applied heavy pressure to the wound.

Norah inhaled very sharply through her teeth.

"Why did you not just call me for help?"

"Because the syndicate physician exclusively works for your uncle."

Her pale fingers closed tightly around the lip of the bathtub.

"And your beloved uncle actually secretly works for the Kensingtons."

Gabriel completely stopped moving.

Hot blood rushed incredibly loudly right through his ringing ears.

"What exactly did you just say?"

Norah looked very directly at his face.

The raging fever had definitely not removed the sharp intelligence that made her entirely indispensable to his empire.

Deep pity and total exhaustion fully occupied her damaged expression.

"The upcoming marriage merger is actually a violent hostile takeover."

She breathed incredibly carefully.

"Sloan’s entire family is definitely not joining the Romano organization as equals; they are planning on brutally absorbing it."

Norah bravely continued speaking.

"The primary assassination attack was fully intended to occur during tonight’s massive rehearsal dinner."

Her raspy voice weakened significantly.

"They planned to use poison; it is very clean and incredibly easy to falsely blame on another rival family."

She looked deep into Gabriel's eyes.

"Sloan instantly becomes the tragically grieving widow, and her father seamlessly takes total control of your shipping docks."

Norah swallowed again with immense difficulty.

"I originally discovered the hidden digital trail late on Tuesday."

She pressed her pounding head much more firmly against the cool tub.

"Your treacherous uncle personally transferred the bribe payment directly to the event caterers."

Her frantic breathing became increasingly shallow.

"I successfully intercepted the enemy courier who was actively carrying the physical evidence."

Norah gestured very faintly toward her ruined leg and her severely bruised face.

"He unfortunately turned out to be a massive Kensington enforcer."

A small, genuine trace of deep irritation entered her feverish eyes.

"He physically moved much faster than I originally expected."

Her shaking hand fell uselessly to the floor.

"But I successfully obtained the evidence, and it is fully secured on the hard drive sitting right out inside the living room."

Gabriel just stared blankly at her.

The tiny, bloody bathroom instantly became oppressively quiet.

He suddenly remembered Sloan standing inside the fancy boutique, casually discussing wedding flowers while secretly preparing his imminent death.

He bitterly remembered his uncle warmly kissing his cheek during the recent Christmas holidays.

Then he looked right down at Norah, actively bleeding to death inside an entirely empty apartment all while fiercely protecting him.

"Why do all this?"

The whispered word held absolutely no commanding authority.

It was simply a desperate question from a blind man suddenly discovering that the solid ground beneath his feet had entirely disappeared.

"Why did you not just instantly bring this critical information directly to me?"

He quickly looked around the squalid bathroom.

"And why on earth are you living in a place like here?"

Norah slowly turned her bruised face directly toward him.

A highly tired, utterly exhausted smile lightly crossed her badly damaged mouth.

"Because you were far too busy happily choosing wedding suits."

Her raspy voice was actually almost gentle.

"You deeply wanted the corporate merger so badly that you entirely stopped bothering to examine the dark shadows."

Norah looked away toward the violently peeling wall paint.

"If I ever approached you completely without concrete proof, you simply would have believed I was actively attempting to selfishly sabotage the wedding."

She gently closed her heavy eyes.

"I choose to live down here because my sick mother’s private medical facility strictly costs $8,000 each and every month."

Her exhausted voice became even quieter.

"It is a very good facility, and they actually have beautiful gardens for her to enjoy."

A very hard, painful knot instantly formed deep in Gabriel’s throat.

His generous salary had definitely been large enough to fully pay for her mother’s extensive care and still provide Norah with absolute comfort.

Instead, she secretly used nearly everything she earned to protect her ailing mother, and willfully lived in extreme poverty simply because she completely refused to ever appear vulnerable.

"Just remain completely still for me."

Gabriel quickly removed his $3,000 tailored suit jacket and aggressively rolled up his silk sleeves.

The tiny plastic medical kit resting on the toilet seat was almost completely empty.

He thankfully found a dusty bottle of rubbing alcohol.

"This is going to heavily burn you."

"Just proceed."

Norah tightly took the hard edge of the porcelain bathtub with both of her hands.

Gabriel mercilessly poured the harsh alcohol directly over the open wound.

Her entire body arched violently in agony.

A highly strangled, painful sound viciously tore right from her tight throat.

She brutally bit directly into her own shoulder just to forcefully prevent a loud scream.

Every single violent tremor effortlessly traveled right through Gabriel’s strong hands.

His handsome jaw became incredibly rigid with pure tension.

He carefully threaded the small needle with absolute mechanical precision.

Gabriel had personally closed the bloody wounds of his loyal men inside dark basements and filthy alleys before.

However, this specific situation was entirely different.

Every single time the sharp needle deeply entered Norah’s pale skin, it felt exactly like damning evidence of his own personal blindness.

"You are absolutely not a gentle man."

Cold sweat entirely covered her pale forehead.

"You really should have just released the enemy courier."

Gabriel sharply pulled the black nylon tight.

"You strictly manage office administration, as you are absolutely not a trained enforcer."

"I fiercely protect my own desk."

Her stubborn reply totally lacked its normal, biting strength.

"You are supposed to safely sit completely behind it."

"You very easily could have died doing this."

"But I currently remain alive."

Norah heavily exhaled a shaky breath.

"Please stop complaining about my work."

Gabriel successfully tied off the final stitch and quickly cut the thread with the small, rusted scissors.

He tightly wrapped the entire leg with medical gauze, carefully applying enough heavy pressure to safely control the bleeding without causing any additional pain.

While diligently working, he suddenly noticed several other old injuries.

A highly faded, pale scar sharply crossed her delicate collarbone.

A nasty burn heavily marked her thin wrist, which was ordinarily concealed completely beneath her long sleeves.

Her small body was a literal physical record of extreme, quiet violence.

Norah selflessly absorbed the immense damage fully intended for his entire organization, and yet she still delivered his morning coffee completely without complaint.

Gabriel finally finished securing the tight bandage.

He simply remained completely on his knees with both of his large hands resting very lightly against her cold shins.

His expensive dress shirt was fully marked with her red blood.

The harsh scents of rubbing alcohol and cold sweat heavily filled the tiny room.

A cellular telephone suddenly vibrated loudly out in the entirely empty living area.

It was Gabriel’s secure burner phone.

Exactly three people in the world possessed that specific number.

He absolutely did not move to answer it immediately.

Norah weakly looked toward him while visibly struggling for each and every breath.

"You should answer it."

Her heavy eyelids fluttered and lowered.

"It is almost exactly noon, meaning she will definitely want to urgently discuss the wedding seating plan."

Gabriel slowly removed the vibrating telephone from his pocket.

Sloan’s typed name brightly illuminated the small screen.

He calmly accepted the incoming call completely without looking away from Norah's pale face.

"Where exactly are you right now?"

Sloan’s demanding voice was incredibly sharp and highly impatient.

"Liam rudely told me that you actually went down to the filthy South Side."

She arrogantly continued speaking long before he ever answered.

"The expensive caterer is literally threatening to leave simply because we still have not selected between the truffle risotto or the wild mushroom."

Gabriel quietly examined the dark blood actively drying between his long fingers.

He darkly thought of his traitorous uncle and the deadly poison.

"Sloan, listen to me."

His deep voice became incredibly, unnaturally calm.

It was the exact, deadly tone that always directly preceded a massive fire.

"What is it?"

Her immense irritation noticeably sharpened over the line.

"Do not ever use that condescending tone with me, as I am aggressively attempting to hold this massive event together while you foolishly search for a missing assistant."

"I need you to listen to me very carefully."

Gabriel quietly watched Norah’s dark eyes flutter wildly beneath the intense fever.

"There will absolutely be no risotto tonight."

He spoke incredibly slowly.

"There will definitely be no rehearsal dinner either."

His handsome expression completely hardened into pure stone.

"The entire wedding is fully canceled."

Absolute, stunned silence instantly filled the telephone line.

"You simply cannot cancel the entire wedding."

Sloan’s icy composure completely fractured into pieces.

"Do you actually understand what my powerful father will do, considering this is a massive merger?"

"It is actually a highly hostile takeover."

Gabriel’s deep voice remained terrifyingly quiet.

"Your arrogant father will very soon discover that all the Romano ports are permanently closed to his business."

He briefly looked toward the encrypted drive resting out in the living room.

"Tell him that the armed courier he sent on Tuesday was incredibly careless."

A long, tense pause followed the statement.

"Also tell him that my highly capable assistant sends her warmest regards."

"Gabriel, wait—"

"Do not ever call this number again."

His cold tone became absolutely final.

"If your treacherous father or my traitorous uncle remains anywhere inside this city after nightfall, I will personally place them both firmly at the bottom of the deep harbor."

Gabriel abruptly ended the call.

The plastic telephone instantly broke loudly right beneath his crushing hand.

Deep cracks rapidly spread through the glass screen before he violently threw it directly into the empty bathtub.

Norah was actually smiling.

The smile was entirely exhausted and heavily stained with blood, but it was absolutely genuine.

"You totally ruined the expensive suit."

Her dark eyes finally began completely closing.

"I highly disliked the suit anyway."

Gabriel smoothly slid one strong arm beneath her knees and tucked the other securely behind her small back.

He completely ignored her incredibly weak protest and effortlessly lifted her right off the bloody linoleum.

She literally weighed almost absolutely nothing.

That specific knowledge deeply enraged his soul.

Norah had literally carried the massive weight of his entire world while cruelly denying herself absolutely everything.

"Where exactly are we going now?"

Her feverish head weakly rested against his broad chest.

"We are going to my secure house."

Gabriel carefully carried her right through the empty apartment and directly past the violently broken front door.

"My personal physician will immediately examine you."

He cautiously entered the rapidly decaying stairwell.

"Then you will thoroughly explain to me exactly how we successfully dismantle the entire Kensington syndicate."

Norah simply did not offer an answer.

She had entirely lost all consciousness against his warm shoulder.

Her dark blood easily entered the fine silk of his expensive shirt.

Gabriel rapidly descended through the incredibly dark building and forcefully kicked broken glass safely away from his direct path.

He was gladly leaving his entire fake wedding fully behind him.

He was actively entering a brutal war.

For the very first time in months, while securely carrying the brave woman who willingly bled just to keep him completely alive, Gabriel felt absolutely, completely awake.

The long drive back to the private estate passed in utterly suffocating silence.

The heavy SUV rapidly moved through the rain-covered streets at a high speed that repeatedly threw Norah’s totally unconscious body directly against Gabriel.

He absolutely did not attempt to reposition her away from him.

His strong arm protectively tightened around her fragile shoulders, and his jaw remained tightly clenched until his back molars actually physically hurt.

The massive iron estate gates smoothly opened.

Liam quickly stopped the car beneath the stone portico long before the vehicle had even fully settled onto its suspension.

"Go get Victor right now."

Gabriel aggressively forced open the passenger door.

"I specifically want him waiting inside the east-wing guest room within exactly three minutes."

Liam immediately ran full speed directly toward the security building.

Gabriel swiftly carried Norah right through the massive foyer.

His completely wet leather boots heavily marked the expensive imported marble floors.

The highly controlled, flawless perfection of the entire house actually made him feel incredibly nauseated.

Beeswax polish and heavily filtered air fully filled rooms that currently felt utterly sterile and completely dead.

He rapidly climbed the grand staircase with Norah’s limp head resting perfectly against his heavily bloodstained shirt.

The harsh metallic smell of copper blood completely overwhelmed the faint scent of lemon polish.

Gabriel forcefully opened the heavy door to the east-wing suite with his boot.

He very gently placed Norah directly in the exact center of the massive king-sized bed.

Bright blood almost immediately spread deeply into the pristine white duvet straight from the highly temporary dressing wrapped around her thigh.

Victor breathlessly arrived approximately two minutes later securely carrying a heavy leather medical bag.

The distinct smells of clear gin and fresh mint clung very faintly to his clothes.

"Gabriel, what on earth—"

He abruptly stopped dead right at the foot of the massive bed.

His trained eyes rapidly moved directly across the horrific blood, the severe bruising, and the highly emaciated woman lying there.

"Is that actually Ms. Quinn?"

"You need to save her."

Gabriel slowly stepped backwards away from the mattress.

His large hands hung completely uselessly down at his sides.

The raging adrenaline was actively fading away and rapidly leaving something incredibly sharp and deeply hollow directly in his chest.

Victor quickly removed his suit jacket, snapped on sterile gloves, and immediately began intensely working.

Gabriel silently stood near the large arched window and quietly listened to the freezing rain violently hitting against the thick glass.

He actively forced himself to intensely watch while Victor carefully cut away the completely soaked shirt and the crude temporary bandages.

"Her internal temperature is currently sitting at 103 degrees."

Victor quickly connected a fluid IV bag and expertly found a viable vein right inside her thin arm.

"She is massively dehydrated and very severely exhausted."

He closely examined the brutal leg injury.

"The thigh wound is incredibly serious, as whoever actually used the combat knife violently twisted the steel blade right before finally pulling it free."

Victor immediately began deeply cleaning the jagged opening with a harsh liquid antiseptic that entirely filled the quiet room with a highly chemical smell.

"You successfully controlled the massive bleeding, but the dangerous infection has unfortunately already fully entered her bloodstream."

"Will she be able to actually keep the damaged leg?"

"Yes she will, unless the raging fever unfortunately causes her weakened heart to entirely fail."

Norah did not physically react at all to the painful cleaning process.

She remained completely and entirely unconscious.

"When exactly did she actually last eat food?"

Victor briefly looked back over his shoulder.

"Her thin ribs are visibly pressing directly against the pale skin."

His medical expression became highly severe.

"Her natural immune system is entirely depleted, as she has practically survived solely on pure exhaustion and black coffee for approximately one full year."