He Let Our Daughter Die, Now I’ll Ruin Him

Sophias Pov

Admit what youve done, or watch your bastard daughter die!

The words hit like a bullet to the spine. I stared at the open ramp of the private jet, heart pounding, breath caught in my throat.

There she wasAriellamy baby girl. Clutched in Lorenzos arms, her tiny chest rising in short, panicked gasps. Her oxygen mask was gone.

Her lips were already turning blue. Her little hands curled, clawing at the air like she was trying to breathe in the sky.

No no Lorenzo, pleaseshe needs the oxygen! I choked, my throat closing up.

He stood just feet from the edge of the hatch, calm and detached, like he wasnt dangling a six-year-old over a crocodile-infested river thousands of feet below.

Nine minutes, he said.

I dropped to my knees. My fingers trembled against the cold floor of the aircraft as I looked up at himat the man who used to cradle me like I was made of glass.

His face was now made of stone. Not a flicker of mercy.

He used to promise me the world. Now he promised to rip my heart out of it.

Please, Lorenzo, I dont know what youre talking about, I sobbed.

You kidnapped Renata! he thundered.

Her name hit harder than a slap.

Of course, it had to be about her.

Renata. The woman whod dug her claws into his bed and his heart. His mistress, his obsessionthe one who poisoned my home.

I didnt, I whispered, voice cracking. I swear to youI didnt touch her.

He gave me a chilly smile, making my blood freeze.

Eight minutes. Tell me where Renata is!

Shes your daughter too! I screamed, desperation clawing at my lungs.

Thats when he laughed like it was a joke.

Shes not mine, he said, voice like venom. And Ive got the DNA test to prove it. Youre such a filthy whore, you dont even know who her father is.

My eyes snapped to Ariella. Her lips were purple. Her chest stuttered, struggling to rise. Her legs kicked weakly. Her fingers reached for the oxygen mask swinging in his other hand.

I dropped loweronto my knees, forehead nearly to the floor. My voice trembled.

I swear I don't know where Renata is. Please, just save my daughter, I cried, barely able to breathe. Please

Lorenzo moved then. Stepped forward and grabbed my arm in a vice grip, jerking me upright.

You are pathetic and a terrible liar, he spat.

And then the slap landed.

Blinding and sharp. My vision burst into stars. My left ear rang, then went numb.

Theres enough evidence to bury you in concrete, he hissed.

I looked up at him, my skin burning, my soul barely holding together.

You were the last person Renata texted, he continued. The hotel camera footage shows someone in your jacket dragging her by the wrist. Her bracelet? Found near your bedroom. Her blood? On a scarf in your closet.

He stepped closer, his face inches from mine.

Theres a threatening voice note from you a few hours before she went missing!

I shook my head violently, tears spilling fast.

I didntnone of thats trueI didnt even see her

Seven minutes.

Mommy! Ariella whimpered. The sound gutted me.

I looked at her, struggling in his grip, the blue deepening around her mouth, and the oxygen mask just out of reach.

She was wearing the little pink dress he bought herback when he still called her princess.

Shes not mine, he muttered again, eyes dark with fury.

She looks nothing like me. Renata showed me the real test. The one you switched. Shes a bastard just like her whore mother.

I let out a broken sob and sank lower.

This couldnt be happening.

I remembered the day I surprised him with plane tickets for our anniversary.

A trip to Japan. I planned every detail. The same hotel from our honeymoon. A private chef. The garden suite with the view of Mount Fuji. I spent two months organizing it.

But he never showed up.

I waited in that dress all night. When I called the airline, they told me the tickets had already been used.

He took Renata.

I remembered Ariella, two weeks later, standing in front of the door in her tiny Disneyland princess dress, waiting. She was so excitedhed promised.

He never came.

I spent the evening wiping her tears and hiding mine. Lorenzo didnt call.

He was with her again.

He used to love me. Nohe used to worship me.

He once sat beside my hospital bed for two weeks after I got hit by a car.

The cold and ruthless mafia Don who showed no mercy to anyone had once begged for mine. He proposed. Apologized publicly. Promised me the world.

For a year, he pursued me with relentless devotion.

I refused him at first. I didnt want the bloodstained world of the Mafia. But he swore hed changepromised to leave it all behind.

He saved me once, too. Outside the city, when two men tried to drag me into a van Lorenzo arrived and nearly killed them with his bare hands.

As an orphan, Id never had anyone. But Lorenzo?

He became everything.

He gave me luxury, security, and love. Our wedding was a fairytale. And when I got pregnant, he treated me like I was made of porcelain.

When the doctors diagnosed Ariella of having a weak heart and needing constant oxygen hed held us both and consoled us.

Ill never let anything happen to Ariella, he once told me.

And for a time, he kept that promise.

Until Renata arrived.

She didnt just seduce him. She destroyed me piece by piece.

She faked DNA results. Told him Ariella wasnt his.

She doctored messagesmade it look like I was feeding information to his enemies.

She even forged documents blaming me for the death of Lorenzos younger brother.

And somehow somehow, he believed her.

He didnt divorce me.

Nohe vowed to ruin me.

I remember our last anniversary.

He gave me a pearl necklace. I thought it was an apology. I thought hed finally seen the truth.

But when he clasped it around my neck, he pulled until it cut my skin.

Youll pay with blood for every humiliation, Sophia, he whispered. You and your bastard daughter.

He locked me outside that nightbleeding and crying.

And while I shivered against the cold tile, I heard him and Renata on the patio as they had sex.

He made sure I could hear every breath. Every moan. Every reminder that I was nothing.

By the time I realized Ariella was struggling to breathe inside, it was too late.

She was rushed to the hospital, barely alive. Shes been on oxygen ever since.

Because he was too busy punishing me to notice our daughter was dying.

The sound of a phone rang through the cockpit.

One of his men answered, then passed it to him. Lorenzo pressed it to his ear.

His expression froze.

His grip around Ariella tightened.

Then his jaw clenched.

His entire body began to tremble.

Shes been found, Boss, the voice on the other end said. In the trunk of Sophias old car. She almost died of suffocation.

His eyes slowly lifted to mine.

They were filled with pure rage.

You put her in that trunk, he said quietly. You tried to kill her. Now Ill return the favor.

Lorenzo, noNO! Please! I didnt

He stepped toward the open ramp and slammed it shut.

Youre a filthy liar! he hissed at me then turned to his men, Land this jet!

The plane touched down with a screech of wheels and a scream trapped in my throat.

Lorenzo didnt even look at us as he stepped over Ariellas trembling body.

He crushed her oxygen mask beneath his shoe like it was made of plastic and not her lifeline.

He walked out onto the tarmactoward a waiting car.

Im going to rescue Renata, have an apology waiting for her by the time I get back, he stated coldly.

I grabbed my daughter, pressed her close, and ran to my car.

With shaky fingers, I started the car and drove to the hospital.

Hang in there baby, I said, whimpering as I stared at her blue lips.

I grabbed my phone and dialed a number. My fingers were shaking so hard I almost dropped the phone.

Sophia, whats wrong? a worried voice asked on the other end of the line.

Grandpa, I need your help, I said in a shaky voice.

Six months ago, I saved a man who almost collapsed on the highway. Later, the man traced me using the beauty mark on my cheeks and found out I was his granddaughter.

He asked me to return and claim my inheritance but I refused. Back then Lorenzo hadn't gotten this bad, he was with Renata but he told me she was just a fling, he'd get over it. Other men in the mafia had mistresses.

Youre the one I love, Lorenzo would always say.

And like a fool I believed him. Instead of going home I had asked my grandfather to help me boost my husbands company.

But after what he's pulled today, its very clear he's not the man I married again.

Ask anything, Sophia, Ill do it, my grandfather said.

I need to cancel our identities, I whispered. Mine and my daughters. I want us erased. Thats the condition I have to return and inherit the familys properties.

There was a pause.

Itll be done in seven days.

I ended the call and looked down at my little girl in the car. Her lips were pale. Her body weak.

I kissed her forehead and whispered into her hair, Seven more days, baby. Seven days and our nightmare ends.

Sophias Pov

Mommy! Ariella whimpered softly.

Ariella, I called her, Just hang in there baby.

She smiled at me weakly. Her eyes looked weak and her lips were pale.

Mommy, Im fine I I love you, she stuttered.

Her body was freezing. When I got to the hospital I screamed like a mad woman.

Get out of the way! I yelled.

The nurses ran toward me immediately with a stretcher as they wheeled her away.

I tried to join them in the emergency room but they stopped me.

Please wait outside, Miss, they said to me.

Those forty-five minutes were the longest of my life. I paced, sat, stood, cried, prayedthen did it all again.

Eventually, the doctors stepped outside with the nurse.

Weve stabilized her, they said to me.

Hows she? Can I see her? I asked, trying not to panic.

Shes been stressed and without oxygen today. She needs to rest. I also advise you to do the same before you collapse. You can come back tomorrow, shell be better by then, the doctor answered me.

Better? I wasnt sure anything would ever be again.

But still I nodded, Alright. Ill come check on her tonight.

The doctor told me to rest. To come back tomorrow.

But the moment I stepped out of the hospital, I didnt go home to rest. I didnt even realize I was still running on fear.

I just knew Ariella would want Mr. Snugglesher stuffed rabbit. And her music box. And her pink blanket that smelled like home.

I had to get those for her. I had to feel useful. I had to feel like her mother again.

I drove to the mansion, too shaken to think. Still aching in every joint from the fall.

I pushed the doors open quietly, expecting silence.

But when I walked up the stairs and into Ariellas room

I stopped breathing.

The room was empty.

The walls were bare. The bed was gone. The shelves were cleared. Her toys, her books, the butterfly lamp, the unicorn ruggone.

The sound of a crackling fire pulled my eyes to the window. Outside, at the edge of the garden smoke was rising.

I stumbled down the hallway, down the stairs, and out through the glass doors to the back lawn

And saw her things burning.

A pile of dolls, blankets, books, and drawingsAriellas world turned to ash.

No no what is this? I whispered.

A soft voice came from behind me.

Oh, I hope you dont mind

I turned aroundand there she was.

Renata. Standing in Ariellas room with a tape measure in her hand and paint swatches on the floor.

Shes been in the hospital so long, Renata said sweetly, tilting her head. It made sense to start preparing the nursery.

I blinked, stunned.

Nursery?

She smiled wider and rubbed her stomach.

Lorenzo and I are having a baby.

Her words were a gut punch.

I felt my stomach twist, but I refused to let her see the pain.

There are dozens of rooms in this mansion, I said, voice trembling. Why use my daughters?

Renata gave me that sickening, innocent shrug.

Because everyone knows the miserable little bastards going to die soon anyway.

The words struck like lightning.

I slapped her. Hard.

Her head snapped to the side. She gasped, then slowly looked back at me with a glint in her eye.

And she smiled.

Youll regret that, she said.

Then, in one fluid motion, she threw herself back and slammed her head on the wall.

Blood started dripping from her forehead.

I stood frozen.

What are you?

She screamed. A long, piercing, fake shriek.

STOP! SOPHIA, PLEASE! I didnt tell anyone to burn Ariellas thingsDONT HURT ME!

What?

Stop! Please!

The door burst open.

And Lorenzo stormed in.

His eyes landed on Renatableeding, crying, cowering.

What the hell did you do to her?!

He didnt wait.

The slap sent me to the floor.

My cheek burned. My lip split open.

Lorenzo, I didntshe hit herselfI swear

SHUT UP! he bellowed. I told you if you touched her again

He grabbed my wrist and dragged me to our room.

I tried to explain but he wasnt listening.

He opened my closet. Yanked every gown, every shoe, every gift, every memory we ever shared.

He ripped the framed wedding photos off the wall. Tore the letters I wrote him to pieces. He dumped it all in a pile and set it on fire.

Everything I ever gave you, everything we ever sharedburn it all, he spat. You hurt Renata because of your bastard daughter, you don't deserve anything I've ever given you!

I watched our history go up in flames. I didnt cry, I couldn't move.

He turned to the guards.

Take her to the dungeon. She can rot there tonight until she learns her damn place.

Nono, please, LorenzoI have to see Ariella! Let me see my daughter!

But they were already dragging me.

And he knew. He knew I was claustrophobic!

I screamed, fought, clawed, but the iron door slammed shut.

The room was small. Tight, airless, no windows, no lights and the smell hit me instantly.

Jasmine. Hundreds of them. Scattered, hanging. Pressed into every surface.

My throat tightened. My eyes burned. I couldnt breathe.

Hed filled the room with jasmine flowers. The one thing I was deathly allergic to.

No please

I banged on the door. Scratched at it. My chest was caving in.

Let me out! My daughtershe needs me!

My throat was closing. My lungs were seizing. I fell to the ground.

AriellaAriella

The world swam in and out of focus.

Please I have to see her

And then

Everything went black.

The last thought on my mind was how they'd kill me before I could leave.

Sophias Pov

When I opened my eyes everything was white. The ceiling, the lights, the sheets.

Even the dull ache in my chest felt whiteempty and lifeless.

I blinked slowly, my eyes still swollen. My throat burned like someone had poured acid down it. My head throbbed, pulsing with the rhythm of my heartbeat.

Youre awake, a voice said gently.

I turned my head toward the figure in the white coat. It was a doctor with kind eyes and a tired face.

You were severely allergic to something in the air jasmine, I believe? he said, flipping through his chart. Youre lucky someone found you when they did.

I didnt feel lucky. I felt hollow.

How are you feeling? he asked.

Like Im still dying, I rasped.

He gave me a small nod. Youve suffered quite a bit of trauma, but thats not all.

I frowned. What do you mean?

He looked at me carefullylike he didnt know where to begin.

Youre three weeks pregnant, Mrs. Moretti.

The room swayed.

Pregnant? My lips parted, but no sound came out.

How could I be pregnant?

The memory hit me like a slap.

That night. The stench of alcohol on his breath. The way he stumbled into the room, calling me Renata. The way he pinned me down, too drunk to see the difference. I had screamed, begged, tried to push him off

But hed already made up his mind.

I want to terminate it, I said.

The words were quiet, but sharp.

The doctor looked taken aback. Are you sure?

Yes.

His eyes softened with pity. Youre still recovering from the allergic reaction. Youll need to wait a few more daysthree, at most. Then we can proceed.

I nodded once. I had made my decision, Lorenzo was a monster, I wasn't going to bring another child into the world for him to torment.

Hows my daughter? I asked, clearing my throat.

He hesitated. That split second of hesitation nearly stopped my heart.

Didnt your husband tell you? he asked, brow furrowing.

My blood turned to ice.

I sat upignoring the pain tearing through my skull.

Tell me what?

He shifted awkwardly, searching for the right words. There were none.

There was a brain hemorrhage. Caused by the lack of oxygen.

My breath caught in my lungs.

Last night we tried to operate. But we needed parental consent.

He paused.

We couldnt reach you. And your husband he said

He swallowed hard.

He said he didnt care if the bastard died. That shes been a pain in the ass since she was born.

I couldnt breathe. The walls closed in. His voice kept speaking but it felt like it was coming from underwater.

Im sorry your daughter didnt make it.

My ears rang.

Ariella. My sweet innocent baby girl.

I surged off the bed and grabbed the doctor by his coat.

Where is she?! Where is my daughter?!

Tears blurred my vision as I screamed in his face.

WHERE IS SHE?!

He tried to steady me. PleaseMrs. MorettiSophiaRenata came earlier this morning. She she claimed the body.

I didnt hear the rest.

I tore out of that hospital like a woman possessed.

The mansion gates were open. As if they were welcoming the devil back home.

I ran through the front doors, my throat raw from screaming, my chest caving in with every breath.

She was lounging on the couch like a queen. Legs crossed. A glass of wine in one hand. A wicked smile on her lips.

Where is my daughter?! I shouted.

Renata didnt even flinch. She pressed the remote.

The television turned on.

A video began to play.

The screen showed a tiny, frail bodyAriellagasping for air. Her lips were blue. Her chest heaving.

Doctors rushed around her, trying to revive her.

And then they stopped.

The line on the monitor went flat.

I screamed. Covered my mouth. Collapsed to the floor.

You bitch, I sobbed. You heartless bitch

Renata turned up the volume.

I looked up at her on the screen as Renata roughly dragged her lifeless body and tossed it into a big iron can and set it ablaze.

This is your brats last moment on earth, she said with a smile. Touching, isnt it?

My heart broke into a million pieces as I stared at the horrific scene on the screen. The only thought running through my mind was how I had failed my daughter.

How could you how could you burn her without asking me? I stuttered, my voice breaking.

Oh, is this so heart breaking? Does it make you want to scream and hit me? Renata laughed mockingly, Wait till you hear what happened last night when the doctor called.

I narrowed my eyes at her, dread already forming in the pit of my stomach like I knew what she wanted to say.

What did you do? I queried.

Renata giggled like a maniac, The doctor called and I picked the call. I'm pregnant, Sophia, you don't expect me to save your brat, do the maths.

You had my daughter killed for some petty reasons? How could you?! I yelled, fury radiating off me.

She shrugged. Because I can.

I stood up, ready to lunge at her when from behind her, she lifted a small glass jar.

These are her ashes, she said sweetly. If you want whats left of your brat hit your head on the floor ten times.

I stared at her. Surely she was bluffing.

But the look in her eyes told me she wasnt.

I dropped to my knees.

One Two Three, she counted, giggling like a maniac.

By the fourth time, blood was running down my face. My vision was blurring. My ears were ringing.

Seven Eight.

I was swaying now. Barely conscious.

Ten! She clapped mockingly.

What a devoted little mother you are, she said, stepping forward with the jar.

I reached out to take it, hands trembling, heart pounding.

But then

She let go.

The jar hit the floor.

It shattered and my daughters ashes were scattered everywhere.

Sophias Pov

I didnt move. I couldnt.

I just stared at the floor where my daughters ashes had scattered like dust.

The glass shards from the broken jar glinted under the chandelier light, mixing with what little remained of her.

My baby. My Ariella. Gone againthis time for good.

Oops, Renata giggled, clapping her hands like a child at a birthday party.

Well, whats left of that brat is now trash. Just like her mother.

Something inside me snapped.

I lunged. You bitch!

I slapped her so hard her head jerked sideways, her wine glass crashing to the floor.

She screamed.

I grabbed her hair and yanked with everything in me, dragging her to the ground.

She clawed at my arms as I pinned her, my nails sinking into her scalp. All I could see was redashes, blood, pain.

You evil, disgusting monster!

GET HER OFF ME! Renata shrieked.

Two of Lorenzos guards burst into the room and ripped me off her.

My legs kicked. My nails were still full of her hair.

She scrambled behind the couch, sobbing and shrieking like she hadnt just shattered the last thing I had left.

Lorenzo stormed in seconds later, eyes wide as he rushed to Renatas side.

Renata? Baby, what happened?!

She buried her face in his chest, wailing.

Shes gone mad! She attacked me, Lorenzoshe said shed kill me!

Shes lying! I yelled, Pleasejust listen to me for once

I tried to speak, but the moment I opened my mouth

A heavy slap landed on my left cheeks that sent me reeling back with shock.

Then another, and another, and another until I lost count and all I could taste in my mouth was blood.

My ears rang. My cheek was swollen. My knees buckled as he kept slapping me until I couldnt hear anything but the rush of my own pulse in my head.

Tears streamed down my face. I looked up at the man I once loved, the man who used to kiss my hands and promise to protect me forever.

You never learn, he muttered, It seems I will stop paying your bastards hospital bills since you're so stubborn.

You can stop paying her hospital bills, I whispered through cracked lips. You dont need to anymore.

His face darkened as he spat, How do you intend to afford it, huh? By your continuous whoring around?

Shes dead, Lorenzo, I said, the words tearing out of me like knives. Ariellas gone.

He froze. For a split secondhe hesitated.

Renata pulled away from his chest and gasped, her voice thick with fake shock.

Thats a lie! Shes lying! II visited Ariella this morning! Thats why she attacked me! She told me never to go near her daughter!

You liar! You didnt go near that hospital I tried to speak again but Lorenzo interrupted me.

You have a wicked heart, Lorenzo snarled, eyes burning. How dare you say that? Youll say anything just to make her look bad.

Her ashes are right there on the floor! I screamed, pointing at the shattered remains near the couch. Thats our daughterYOUR daughter!

Renata held up her hand. A small, pathetic burn on her wrist.

She burned me. She even burned papers and said they were Ariellas ashes!

You lying bitch

But it was too late.

Lorenzos fury snapped again.

Maids! Sweep it up. Throw it out. I dont want to see that filth on my floors.

My world crumbled.

NoNO! Please! Dont touch it! Thats my baby! Thats my daughter! I screamed, thrashing against the guards. Please dont sweep her awayPLEASE!

I broke free for a second and crawled toward the ashes, my fingers reaching. But Lorenzo grabbed me by the hair and dragged me backwards, toward the kitchen.

You really dont learn, do you?

Lorenzo, noPLEASE!

He yanked my hand and slammed it onto the hot stove.

The scream that ripped from my throat didnt sound human. I writhed and kicked, but he pressed harder until the skin sizzled and the pain exploded like lightning through my spine.

I crumpled to the floor, gasping, shaking.

But just as I saw the maids sweeping up my daughters ashes, I ignored the pain and ran toward them.

Stop it! I yelled, trying to grab their broom.

Hold her down, she's truly gone crazy! Renata cried.

The guards held me as I thrashed in their arms sobbing profusely as the maids gathered my daughters ashes and emptied them in the trash.

No! I cried, my heart shattering.

I was going to let you off this time but since you insist on continuing your charade I will teach you a lesson, Lorenzo said.

But I wasn't looking at him, I was crumpled on the floor massaging my burnt hand as I stared into space.

Beat her up! Lorenzo ordered.

Suddenly, I recalled the doctors words.

Im pregnant! I screamed. Im pregnant, Lorenzopleasedont

He stared at me for a second. Then

He laughed.

Ive never touched you, he spat. So you cant be. And if you are? Another bastard? Ill make sure it doesnt make it out.

Noplease Please, not again.

But he was already moving.

His foot slammed into my stomach.

I screamed so loud the windows shouldve shattered.

Another kick and more followed as I curled up into a ball on the floor.

I tasted blood. I felt something rupture inside me.

StoppleaseSTOP I sobbed.

You think Im stupid? You think Id raise another bastard?! he roared.

Another kick.

Lorenzo I whimpered.

Blood soaked through my dress. Down my thighs. Pooling on the cold tile.

He stood over me, chest heaving.

I stared up at him through blurry eyes. His face, once my salvation, now looked like hell itself.

You killed her, I thought.

And now youve killed the only piece of me I had left.

The pain swelled. My vision spun.

And then Darkness.

Sophias Pov

When I opened my eyes, I wasnt sure if I was alive.

I felt nothing. And yet, I felt everything.

Pain pulsed beneath every inch of my skinmy abdomen throbbed like something had been ripped from it.

My head pounded against the tightness of fresh bandages, and my hand God, my hand felt like it was still on the stove.

I turned my face slightly, blinking against the white light flooding the hospital room.

I recognized the dull scent of antiseptic, the steady beep of machines, the weight of grief settling into my bones before the words were even spoken.

The doctor was already there, standing by the window, clipboard in hand.

His expression was tight, unreadable at firstuntil his eyes met mine. And I saw it Pity.

Mrs. Moretti Im sorry.

He didnt have to finish the sentence.

I already knew.

The baby was gone.

I didnt cry. I didnt ask for details. I didnt even flinch.

Can I be discharged? I asked, my voice hoarse.

He blinked, surprised. You just came out of a second trauma. You need time to heal. The burns on your hand still

I said I want to leave.

He hesitated and looked down at his clipboard. Then finally nodded.

By the time I walked out of that hospital, I was limping slightly, and every step sent another wave of fire through my ribs and legs.

But I didnt stop. I hailed a cab and gave the address I had memorized on my phone.

The law office was quiet. The kind of place where people walked in broken and walked out freeor at least with a settlement.

I didnt want money, I didn't want to just erase my identity, I wanted to cut all ties with him and that started from an official divorce.

I want to file for a divorce, I told the man behind the polished desk. I need the documents to sign. Now.

The lawyer looked at me with faint curiosity, like I was just another woman in a long line of desperate clients. He asked me my name. My husbands.

I gave them to him.

He typed for a moment. Then frowned.

Mrs. Moretti he began slowly. According to the civil record you and Mr. Lorenzo Moretti have been divorced. For two years.

My heart stilled.

Thats not possible.

It is because Mr. Lorenzo Moretti is currently married to Renata Giordano.

He turned his screen. The scanned document stared back at me.

There was my signature. My full name and his details.

And the date? Two years ago.

Right around the time he had coaxed me into signing what he said were joint account papers. I had trusted him. I was still his wife. We were still something.

He had lied to me. Deceived me. Kept me under his control like a prisoner with no idea I was free to run.

He had married Renata. And I I had been nothing more than a shadow woman in my own life.

My breath hitched.

I stood up, but the floor seemed to tilt beneath my feet. My legs buckled slightly and the lawyer rushed to help me, but I waved him off.

Thank you, I whispered. I need I need to leave.

As I walked out, I was glad to finally be rid of him even though he had done it deceitfully.

The sun was already setting when I stepped out of the cab, my mind numb, my body screaming, and my soul hanging on by a single thread.

The mansion was quiet when I stepped in, but not for long.

I walked through the front doors with the divorce certificate in my hand, still warm from the printer. I didnt hide it. I wanted him to know that I've found out about his deception.

Lorenzo was in the living room, glass of whiskey in hand.

He looked up.

Where have you been? he asked me.

I know everything, I said, lifting the paper. You divorced me two years ago. You lied. Youve tortured me under a marriage that didnt exist.

His face darkened.

So you have the guts to go see a lawyer, he said coldly. Thats what today was about?

Dont change the subject! I snapped.

You think you can leave me? he said, standing now. Thats why you went there? You actually think youre free?

I didnt blink. Why wont you just let me go? I have the divorce papers, I can leave whenever I want.

His voice was calm.

You can't leave because Im not done with you yet. You want to leave? Itll be in a coffin.

He turned, grabbed something off the coucha black velvet dress. He threw it at me.

Put that on. Were attending the mafia gala tonight. And bring your bastard child. People will ask.

I stared at him coldly.

My daughter isnt obligated to come. Shes not yours, remember?

He stared at me with a shocked look on his face. I didn't wait for him to reply, I walked away.

In my bedroom, I shut the door and pulled out my phone. My hand still trembled from the pain. But my voice didnt.

The line rang once before someone answered.

Its me, I said quietly.

Have you changed your mind?

I looked in the mirror. I looked like a ghost of the woman I used to be.

Yes, Grandpa. Make the arrangements.

When?

Tomorrow, that's when Ill disappear. I can't wait anymore.

Sophias Pov

The air at the Moretti gala was thick with perfume, pride, and blood money.

Crystal chandeliers hung like swords above our heads.

Waiters moved like shadows, balancing trays of gold-rimmed champagne glasses.

The women were dressed in diamonds and silk. The men reeked of cologne and power.

And I stood among thempainted, bruised, and hollow.

The black velvet dress Lorenzo forced me into clung to my body like a second skin.

Every step reminded me of the burns under my sleeve, the pain in my abdomen, the bruises beneath the makeup.

Renata walked beside him, radiant and round with pregnancy, her hand resting proudly on his arm as though shed earned the right to shine.

The whispers started as soon as we entered.

Is that his wife?

Didnt she betray him?

I thought she was dead.

NoRenatas his wife now.

I didnt react. My silence was my armor.

Lorenzos grip on my waist was iron. His lips never stopped smiling, but his nails dug into my ribs with every stepjust in case I forgot who was in control.

The ballroom was grand. Glass walls. A grand piano. A low hum of moneyed voices and political promises.

But what caught everyones attention was the screen set up on the stage. And the words etched in gold above it:

The Gallery of Shame.

I froze.

Lorenzo walked up to the stage like a showman, one arm around Renata, the other raising a glass.

Ladies. Gentlemen. Tonight, I present to you a very personal collectionsomething that represents the price of disobedience. Of betrayal.

The screen flickered to life.

And then came the first photo.

A woman curled up on a tile floor, blood on her lips.

Next slide. A hand blistered on a stove burner.

Next, a naked back turned to the wall, head bowed, ropes around her wrists.

Then a blurry image of torn lace. Blood. A broken pearl necklace beside a tipped-over glass.

There was no face.

But I didnt need to see one.

It was me.

Every wound. Every humiliation. Every private moment of torment turned into an exhibit.

I call this my Gallery of Shame, Lorenzo said, sipping casually. A reminder that even the most delicate flowers can be crushed if they forget who planted them.

The room laughed. Applauded. Mafia lords grinned as they raised their hands for the bidding.

Five thousand.

Ten thousand.

Twenty, for the one with the blood.

Each bid made my stomach twist. Each laugh was a dagger.

You monsters, I whispered.

No one heard me. No one cared.

Lorenzo looked directly at me as the screen flashed the last photoone of a woman slumped over a bathtub, makeup smeared, her body limp.

The bidding continued as he came back and sat beside me.

How could you? I whispered quietly.

If you dont learn, he said, his voice low, the next auction will feature nudes. Real ones. Youre a whore, after all. Might as well make you useful.

That broke me but I still didnt cry. The moment I lost my daughter and her ashes, that was the moment I went numb.

The gala continued with toasts and fake laughter. Renata soaked in the attention like the queen she believed she was.

I stood in the corner, a statue wrapped in velvet, shaking with fury beneath my skin.

And then

The world exploded.

At first it was distanta pop, then a crack. Then screaming. A gunshot.

And then chaos.

A grenade tore through the west wall, sending shards of glass raining down like knives. The chandeliers swung.

A second explosion ripped through the floor near the bar, sending bottles flying and people ducking for cover.

Mafia men scrambled for their weapons. Guests screamed, heels snapping as they ran. The floor cracked beneath us as a support beam fell from the ceiling.

I tried to move. I tried to run.

But a third blast sent me flying across the room.

Everything spun. My ears rang. My leg burned from where a piece of glass had torn into my thigh. I crawled toward the stairs, coughing, choking on the thick, black smoke.

Help! Renatas voice cried out through the smoke. Lorenzo!

I saw her crouched behind a marble column, her dress torn, makeup streaked, but untouched. She was calling for him. Wailing like she was the only soul worth saving.

And he came.

Of course he came.

He ran to her, knelt beside her, shielded her with his body.

Lorenzo! I screamed, dragging myself toward him. Help me! Pleasedont leave me here!

His eyes found mine.

But there was no recognition. No mercy.

Youre not pregnant, he said flatly. She is. Find your way out.

He turned away and that was it.

Another grenade exploded near the entrance, blasting through the hallway.

The ceiling cracked. A chandelier came down like a guillotine, shattering near my feet. I screamed as rubble slammed into my back, pinning me.

Smoke poured in like a tidal wave. I couldnt see. Couldnt hear.

My lungs burned. My vision blurred. My ears rang so loud I thought I was already dead.

I coughed. Crawled. Blood smeared behind me like a trail.

Please please dont let me die here, I whispered a silent prayer.

And then

Through the smoke, I saw a figure. Tall and broad as he moved through the chaos with skillful precision.

He knelt beside me and lifted me carefully.

His face was blurred by the smoke, the backlight of flames turning his silhouette into something almost angelic.

Its over now, he said, his voice sounding vaguely familiar, Ive got you.

I tried to speak. Tried to push him away. Hes probably one of the attackers and wanted to kidnap me.

Dont touch me I whispered.

Your grandfather sent me. Theyve been waiting for you. And theyve promised to bring hell to anyone whos ever laid a finger on you.