ABSOLUTE INSANITY: A forbidden bond-Chapter 131: Hiding

Chapter 131: Hiding
Chapter 131
KATYA POV
The hours slipped by slower than any I’d ever lived through. The garden was warm, peaceful even, but all I could think about was how long five hours suddenly felt.
How long an hour felt. How long a minute could stretch.Nonna had dozed off for a bit, her breathing soft and steady.
I didn’t move her. I didn’t even shift in my chair too loudly, afraid to wake her.
She needed the rest and I needed this peace, the peace of mind to look around this very pretty garden.
The breeze picked up now and then, carrying the faint smell of the pond water and the sweetness of the flowering trees overhead.
A couple of guards moved in a slow rotation along the path, boots crunching lightly against gravel.
No one spoke to me but no one needed to. The silence around us was its own kind of language.
I leaned back in my chair and tilted my head toward the sky. The sun had risen higher, warming my arms and the top of my hair.
It felt nice. A soft groan came from the wheelchair. I straightened immediately. "Nonna? You okay?"
She blinked slowly, waking in pieces. "Mm... yes, yes." She touched her forehead lightly. "I only closed my eyes."
"You slept for almost an hour." I whispered and her eyebrows lifted.
"An hour?" She looked around the garden, surprised. "It felt like a moment."
I pushed a glass of water toward her. "Drink?" She took a sip, set it aside, then sighed. "Did anyone call?"
The question made something cold settle in my stomach. Right Romeo. I totally forgot that he was the one she was worrying about. "No. Not yet."
Her lips tightened, but she nodded as if she expected that answer. Silence settled between us again, softer this time, like she was easing back into her thoughts instead of wrestling with them.
The wind rustled the leaves above us. A few petals landed in her lap again, delicate, harmless things compared to the storm sitting on both of our shoulders.
A shift in the air made me glance toward the far end of the garden. At first, nothing seemed different—just guards, trees, the quiet hum of the estate.
But then one of the guards near the perimeter straightened sharply, hand pressed to his earpiece.
Another did the same.
A ripple of alertness passed through them, subtle but unmistakable.
I sat up straighter. "Nonna," I whispered, not even sure why, "something’s happening."
She didn’t respond, but she followed my gaze.
From where we sat, we could see the tall iron gates of the estate through the parted hedges.
The heavy gates began to pull open very slow. My pulse kicked up. Guards moved instantly, splitting into organized lines, some heading down the path toward the entrance, others fanning around the edges of the garden.
I stood halfway out of my chair, gripping the armrests. "They’re opening the gates..."
Nonna’s hands tightened in her lap "Sì. I see."
A moment later, the first vehicle glided inside.
A sleek black SUV.
Then another.
Then the third.
All identical with dark polished surface, tinted windows, engines so smooth they barely made a sound.
Behind them rolled a larger black truck, armored-looking, matching the others in color and intimidation.
Four vehicles, moving in perfect formation. The column of vehicles slowed as they curved around the circular driveway, tires whispering against the stone.
The SUVs peeled off toward the main entrance while the truck remained at the back.
The guards were already there, lining up, waiting.
Waiting for whoever—or whatever—was inside. I felt my heartbeat everywhere at once. In my fingers. My throat. My legs.
"Do you think—" I didn’t finish, because a guard suddenly jogged toward us from the path.
"Signora," he called out to Nonna, stopping a respectful distance away. "Please, we need to move you inside."
Nonna’s inhale was sharp. "È Romeo?" she demanded. "Is it him? Tell me."
The guard’s expression didn’t answer anything. It didn’t reassure anything either.
"I’ve been instructed to take you both in immediately," he repeated. Nonna didn’t even let the guard finish.
"No," she said firmly, her voice suddenly sharper than anything I’d heard from her today. She gripped the wheels of her chair. "I am going to the entrance."
"Signora, with all due respect—"
"You can keep your respect," she cut in, already pushing one wheel forward. "Move aside."
The guard stiffened. "It may not be safe out front." Nonna’s head snapped up, eyes blazing with the kind of authority people twice his size wouldn’t dare challenge.
"If you do not move, ragazzo," she said in a low, controlled tone, "I will make one phone call and have you guarding chickens in Sicily by sunset. Do you understand me?"
The guard paled. "S-Signora—"
"Move."
He stepped aside so fast he nearly tripped. I swallowed hard, stood up, and hurried after her. "Nonna, wait—just let me—"
"You are coming," she said without looking back. "If something happens, I want you where I can see you."
Great. Exactly what I was afraid of. Nonna wheeled herself surprisingly quickly down the stone path, her movements confident despite the tension rolling off her in waves.
I stayed close, one hand hovering near the back of the chair in case she hit a bump.
Guards followed us, some trying to subtly position themselves around Nonna without getting yelled at again.
The garden blurred behind us as we crossed into the hallway, the cool air of the estate swallowing us the moment the doors closed.
Inside, everything felt tenser. The air carried that strange heaviness buildings get when too many people hold their breath at once.
Nonna didn’t slow. Her wheels clicked against the polished floor, echoing down the corridor toward the entrance hall where voices and hurried footsteps were gathering.
"Nonna," I whispered, trying not to sound panicked, "maybe we should just wait—"
"We wait?," she said, "Romeo is trying to be sneaky. And I must see what he’s trying to hide with my own eyes."
Honestly... I understood what nonna is saying but if it’s true that he’s hiding something, isn’t it for the best for her not to see?