Chapter 2

The iron gates of the De Luca Estate slid open with a low mechanical groan.

For seven years, this fortress had been my home.

Today, it felt like enemy territory.

The guards lowered their heads respectfully as I walked past them, but none dared meet my eyes. Rumors traveled faster than bullets within a mafia family. They all knew their Don had spent the day with another woman while his wife lay bleeding in a hospital.

The moment I stepped into the grand hall, the scent of expensive incense mixed with soft laughter.

My footsteps stopped.

There, seated on the black leather sofa reserved only for the De Luca family's inner circle…

It was Selena Johnson.

She looked perfectly at home. She wore a silk dress worth more than most people earned in a year, emerald jewelry sparkling against her skin. One hand rested protectively over her growing stomach while the other gently rocked the little boy curled in her lap.

Beside her sat my mother-in-law, Tessa De Luca. The old matriarch smiled with genuine warmth as she kissed the little boy's forehead.

"My precious grandson," she whispered proudly. "One day you'll inherit everything your father built."

The words struck like a knife.

That title...

Grandson.

Heir.

They had once belonged to my daughter.

Before I could even greet them, Selena turned toward Tessa with practiced innocence.

"Madam De Luca," she asked softly, "are you sure Lady Sophia won't mind me staying here?

After all... she's still Don Alessandro's wife."

The warmth vanished from Tessa's face.

"Wife?" she scoffed. "Don't insult the title."

"That woman gave this family nothing but tragedy.

A sick child who couldn't survive and endless disgrace."

"If Alessandro hadn't insisted on keeping her, I would've thrown her out years ago."

She gently pinched the little boy's cheek before smiling proudly at Selena.

"You gave our family an heir."

"You should be the Lady of the De Luca Syndicate."

"As for that woman..." "She can leave."

Selena lowered her eyes shyly, hiding the satisfaction dancing within them.

I didn't react. There was no point.

I had long since realized Tessa had never accepted me.

Despite the Morentti Mafia saving the De Luca Syndicate from destruction seven years ago...

Despite my father's money, weapons, and soldiers rebuilding their empire...

She still believed I had trapped her son into marriage.

To her, I would always be an outsider.

The daughter of another mafia family.

A political alliance. Nothing more.

Ever since Selena returned to the city, Tessa had done everything possible to bring her back into Alessandro's life.

Alessandro once told me...

"I would never forgive a woman who abandoned me." I had believed him.

Yet the little boy sitting comfortably in this mansion was already four years old.

Old enough to prove one thing.

Alessandro had gone back to Selena far earlier than I had ever imagined.

The realization no longer hurts. There was simply nothing left inside me to break.

I walked silently toward the staircase.

"Sophia." Tessa's sharp voice echoed through the mansion.

"So this is how the Lady of the De Luca family behaves?"

"You enter my home without greeting your elders?" She rose slowly, eyes burning with contempt.

"No wonder your weak little daughter died."

"It was karma."

"You disrespected this family, so heaven punished you through your own child."

Everything became still. My fingers tightened around the stair railing.

Slowly...

I turned. Our eyes met.

"The only reason my daughter died..."

"My daughter," I repeated, each word colder than ice,

"...is because she had a snake for a father."

Silence swallowed the room. Isabella's face turned crimson.

"How dare you!"

"What does my son have to do with that?"

"The child he has with Selena is—"

"Mother."

A deep voice cut through the tension. Don Alessandro De Luca.

He walked into the hall wearing a black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled to his forearms. In one hand was a porcelain bowl of herbal soup prepared especially for pregnant women.

He didn't bring it to me.

He carefully placed it in front of Selena.

His movements were gentle. Protective. The same way he had once cared for me.

Only after making sure Selena was comfortable did he finally look at me.

Disappointment filled his eyes.

"Don't take my mother's words seriously," he said evenly.

"She spoke out of anger." Then his expression hardened.

"But you crossed the line." "You owe Mother an apology." "And Selena too."

I stared at him.

This was the same man who had promised me on our wedding night...

"As long as I breathe, no one in this family will ever make you cry."

What a beautiful lie. "I won't apologize." My voice was calm.

"And you know very well..." "I'm the one who's been wronged."

Without waiting for his answer, I turned toward the second floor.

Behind me, I heard hurried footsteps.

Alessandro.

For a brief second... He followed.

"S…Sandro..."

Selena suddenly cried out, clutching her stomach.

"My belly..." "It hurts..." "I think the baby got frightened..."

His footsteps stopped instantly.

He spun around without another glance in my direction.

"Selena!"

Within seconds, he was kneeling beside her. His hand trembled as he supported her waist.

He immediately ordered one of the family doctors to come to the estate.

Selena leaned weakly against his chest.

"You should... check on Lady Sophia," she whispered.

"I'm worried she's upset."

Alessandro frowned. "Forget about her."

His voice was indifferent. "She's only throwing another tantrum." "She'll calm down."

He lifted the bowl and carefully blew on the soup before feeding Selena one spoonful at a time.

"Drink." "It's good for our baby."

Standing outside our bedroom upstairs...

I heard every word.

The man who now treasured another woman's pregnancy...

Didn't even know that his own wife no longer carried his child.

No one had noticed. Not him. Not his mother. Not even the servants.

I entered our bedroom. The walls were covered with photographs from happier days.

Our wedding. Our honeymoon. Our daughter's first birthday.

One by one... I took them down. The largest frame hung above our bed.

Alessandro stood behind me in that photograph, smiling as if I were the most precious person in his world. I pulled it off the wall. The glass shattered against the floor. The sound echoed through the empty room.

If Selena wanted this mansion... She could have it. She could have the title. She could even have Don Alessandro De Luca. I wanted none of it anymore.

The sound of laughter drifted upstairs throughout the afternoon. It wasn't until long after sunset that Alessandro finally entered our room.

He paused at the doorway.

The room looked strangely empty.

"My things are gone."

He frowned. "Where are your belongings?"

"I don't need them anymore."

He barely reacted. The possibility that I might actually leave him never crossed his mind.

Instead, he sighed impatiently.

"Sophia."

"You embarrassed Mother today."

"She only allowed Selena to stay because she misses having a grandchild in this house."

"For our daughter's sake..." "Can't you let this go?"

I looked into his eyes. He was still using our daughter's memory... To defend the people responsible for her death.

Then he continued. "Selena is pregnant." "You were pregnant too."

"Why can't you be understanding and let her stay until she gives birth?"

Understanding. The word almost made me laugh.

Not once...

Not once since I walked through those doors... Had he realized my stomach was flat.

Not once had he asked about the baby. Perhaps he truly didn't notice.

Or perhaps... He didn't care.

"I don't want her living here." I met his gaze without fear.

Every word I spoke carried the quiet certainty of a woman who had already decided to leave.

"And this time, Alessandro..."

"I'm not asking."