The Yakuza’s Mute Bride novel Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Chapter 53

(Back to Naomi Point of View)**

“He killed everyone…”

The whisper drifted above me, thin and trembling, brushing across my consciousness like a cold hand pressed to my cheek.

“Oh God… Tadashi-sama has gone mad?”

“He punished everyone who hurt her.”

The voices blurred together, layered with fear, awe, and something dangerously close to reverence. I could not see them, not yet. My eyelids felt as though they were weighted with stones. But sound… sound slipped through the fog in my mind as though I were underwater, drifting close enough to catch fragments of the surface.

“He even refused to get checked.”

“What? He was wounded too, was he not?”

“Yes. Some people said he was shot, but he simply washed the blood off and kept going. He did not let anyone treat him.”

A sharp pang spiraled through my chest – not from my injuries, but from the ache of their words.

Tadashi… Ignoring his wounds and pain…For me.

Because I was hurt while he was beside me.

I wanted to tell them to stop.

To tell them he was not a monster.

To tell them he was acting out of terror, not cruelty.

But my own voice was locked somewhere deep, tangled in exhaustion and lingering medication.

Then I exhaled, too loudly.

A small, involuntary groan slipped from my lips.

Everyone stopped speaking at once the collective gasp filled the room before footsteps.

The rustle of clothing.

Hands hovering but afraid to touch.

“She’s waking!”

“Call the doctor!”

“Get Yuka!”

Light pushed against my eyelids, too bright, too sudden. With effort – slow, painful effort – I forced them open.

And I froze…

What…. This was not the hospital.

Chapter 53

This was nothing like the cramped white room I expected.

I lay in a chamber that looked as though it belonged to a noble household, not a modern city mansion. The ceiling rose high above me, lined with carved wooden beams. The walls were dressed in soft gold and deep burgundy. A chandelier of delicate crystal hung overhead, scattering warm light like falling stars.

The bed beneath me was enormous – draped in silk sheets, piled with plush pillows embroidered by hand, smelling faintly of cedar and lavender. A thick carpet cushioned the polished floor. A grand fireplace burned in the corner, sending shadows dancing across the room in graceful arcs.

This place…

This room… It felt like a sanctuary built for a queen.

No built for someone he feared losing.

“Naomi!”

I turned weakly toward the voices.

Ai and Yuka appeared at the foot of the bed, breathless, tears glistening at the corners of their eyes. Ai immediately pressed a hand to her chest.

“We are so relieved-”

“Oh, Naomi…” Yuka whispered, her voice thick with emotion.

Their smiles washed warmth over me, and instinctively, I returned one – small, soft, grateful.

Strangely… I did not feel the stabbing pain I expected to feel. My body ached, yes-heavy and sore – and my limbs felt drained, like wilted branches after a storm. But the harsh pain was muted, smoothed away by medication.

Ai looked at her phone, which had just lit up with a message. Her eyes widened.

“Tadashi-sama is on his way here.”

The air seemed to tighten around me.

My heart stumbled in my chest to know he was coming.

He would walk into this room and look at me.

And I knew one truth with devastating clarity-if he saw me lying weak and fragile in a bed, he would break all over again.

No, I could not let that happen.

“Yuka… I need…” My voice cracked, the sound ugly and broken, but I forced the words out. “Yuka… help me sit on the couch…

there.”

She blinked rapidly, shocked. “Naomi-san, you should not-”

I cut her off, speaking again despite how much it scraped my throat: “Let… Tadashi see I am okay. Please… let him breathe again.”

Understanding dawned in her eyes.

Yuka looked to the doctor standing nearby, silently asking permission. The doctor hesitated, then gave a short, reluctant

nod.

12:50 Mon, Jan 12

Chapter 53

It took four people – Yuka, the doctor, and two guards – to help me rise, wash my face, change the hospital-like gown into

a soft robe, and brush my hair so I did not look as though I had just escaped death.

They moved quickly but gently, sensing the importance of what I asked.

Not vanity. Not pride. But love.

Because Tadashi had drowned the city in his fury and I needed to show him he no longer had to burn.

They settled me on the large couch facing the fireplace. My legs trembled, but I sat upright, stealing strength from the crackling warmth before me. Yuka placed a blanket around my shoulders. Someone tucked a novel into my hands, and I opened it pretending to read so I would look peaceful when he arrived, not anxious or fragile.

Then…

–

Footsteps was heard. It was the kind that carried weight, authority, and desperation all at once then the door opened.

I looked up and there he was.

Tadashi stopped in the doorway as if he had been struck. His chest rose sharply. His eyes widened. For a heartbeat trembling heartbeat – he did not move, staring at me with disbelief so raw it made my throat tighten.

—

a long,

“Naomi…”

The relief in his voice shattered every wall he had built.

He crossed the room – no, he nearly ran – until he dropped to his knees in front of me, his hands reaching for me with a gentleness that contrasted violently with the blood on his coat and the exhaustion carved into his features.

He hugged me then pressed his forehead to my collarbone. I could feel him trembled when kissed me.

I heard a soft click the quiet sound of someone closing the door and leaving us alone.

–

“Tadashi…” I whispered softly, barely able to lift my hand to touch his hair.

He cupped my face then, turning it toward him, searching my eyes as though confirming again and again that I was truly awake, truly breathing, truly here.

“Why are you not in your bed?” he asked, voice tender but strained.

Before I could answer, he kissed me again – softer this time, lingering, reverent.

Then he shifted onto the couch beside me and pulled me into his arms as though my body was the only place he knew how

to rest.

“God,” he breathed into my hair, “I missed you, love. I thought…” His voice cracked. “I thought I was losing you.”

His arms tightened around me, and I melted into him, letting his warmth and desperation and trembling devotion surround me completely.

“Oh, Naomi…” he whispered again, his lips brushing my temple. I am so glad you are safe.”

Mon,

Chapter 51