Adriano spun on me, eyes blazing.

"Cassie, that was outta line! How could you go at Sofia like that? You're acting spoiled as hell!"

I bit my lip and kept quiet.

"You're impossible!" he snapped. "The wedding's not just on hold—it's postponed. Learn how to act first."

I dropped my gaze, chest hollow.

He added, "You tried to hurt someone and just wrecked yourself. Chi semina vento... raccoglie tempesta."

"I get it," I said flatly.

Adriano looked thrown, not expecting me to just take it. His frown eased.

"It's only postponed, not canceled. Once you learn, we'll move forward."

I lifted my eyes, playing obedient. "I'll change."

Inside, I was empty. Done with him. Wedding or no wedding—didn't matter.

Sofia's smile said it all. She slipped her arm through his, face all fake concern. "Cassie will learn. She just needs a better doctor to speed her recovery."

"You're right," Adriano nodded. "She needs treatment—body and mind."

A sly glint flashed in Sofia's eyes. "I know an excellent doctor. We should transfer her."

"Great idea." Adriano's gaze warmed on her. "Always so thoughtful. Not like her—so vicious."

His eyes cut to me, full of disgust.

I shut my eyes, chest iced over.

Sofia wasn't helping—she just wanted a cleaner way to torture me.

"Then it's settled," Adriano said. "You'll be transferred tomorrow. Get ready."

I didn't answer, just turned to the cold, gray sky.

***

The next day, they moved me.

The room stank of antiseptic, the air heavy and suffocating.

A thin, sallow-faced doctor walked in, eyes dark, demeanor colder.

"I'm Dr. Giacomo Vitale, your attending physician." he said, voice flat.

After the exam, he reported, "Don, she's not pregnant. The hand injury isn't serious. With rest, she'll recover."

Adriano froze, then snapped at me. "Cassie, faking it again for sympathy?"

Bitterness burned my chest. He knew how much I wanted a child—he'd seen the tests. Yet he believed some stranger and branded me a liar.

I dropped my gaze to my bandaged fingers, tears stinging hot.

These hands once created beauty.

Now I knew the truth—I'd never paint again.

"Adriano—" I started, but he cut me off.

"Enough. This is who you are—lying, pathetic. I'm done."

He walked out without a glance back.

I stared after him, my heart tearing in two.

So much for all those vows of love.

Sofia leaned in the doorway, smug as hell.

"Cassie, this is only the beginning," she said, every word a promise of pain. "I'll make you learn what it costs to take a man from me."

***

In the days that followed, Dr. Vitale found new ways to torture me under the guise of "treatment."

When Adriano was around, he played the caring physician.

The second he left, Dr. Vitale withheld my meds, letting my fingers fester and bleed.

"You're so eager to marry Don Ferraro?" he sneered. "Too bad only Sofia's good enough for him. You deserve this."

I clenched my teeth, swallowing the pain and despair.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked quietly.

"For money," he said without blinking. "Sofia promised me a fortune if I made sure she married Don Ferraro."

"You..." My eyes widened. "You're not even a real doctor. You're just a THUG!"

"So what?" He gave a cold laugh. "As long as the money's good, I'll do anything."

I stared at his gloomy face, a chill crawling up my spine.

"You're not afraid I'll tell Adriano?" I glared, but he only smirked.

He burst out laughing. "Don't kid yourself. Don Ferraro will never believe you!"

The memory of his cold back the day I fell off the cliff sliced through me. He was right. Adriano only believed Sofia.

But tomorrow I'd be gone.

And maybe—just maybe—this nightmare, the deceit, the heartbreak, would finally stop being mine to bear.

When Adriano came to see me, the nurse was dabbing medicine on my infected fingers.

The pain was brutal—sharp, deep. My face went pale, cold sweat sliding down my back, but I bit my lip and stayed quiet.

Even when it split and bled, I only frowned and kept enduring.

"She's in pain. Be gentle!"

Adriano frowned, snatched the medicine from the nurse, and started tending my wounds himself, his touch unexpectedly gentle.

"Cassie, if it hurts, say something. Don't force yourself."

His voice was soft, like the man who once loved and spoiled me.

But my heart felt nothing.

I looked up into those deep blue eyes.

Once, they held only me.

Now? Just contempt and impatience.

"I'm fine," I said, voice calm and hollow.

Adriano hesitated. I used to cry over a paper cut. Now...

"You really have changed," he muttered, eyes unreadable.

I dropped my gaze and stayed quiet.

People change—especially when their hearts get crushed.

"If you apologize to Sofia and admit you were wrong, the wedding goes on as planned."

He said it slowly, like he knew he was pushing it.

I froze, then smiled sweetly. "Alright. I'll apologize. I won't upset either of you again."

Adriano nodded, satisfied—but something flickered behind his eyes.

He could tell something was off. He just didn't know what.

Right then, one of his capos—Paolo—pushed in. "Don, your madre's here."

Adriano set the bottle down and stood. "Madre, what are you doing here?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Caterina snapped. "I had to see for myself how that bugiarda, that fake pregnancy con artist, still has the nerve to cling to you!"

My heart clenched. I gripped the sheets, and the pain in my fingers was nothing compared to the stab in my chest.

"Please don't talk about Cassie like that," Adriano said, trying to steady her.

"Enough!" she snapped. "She's a bugiarda! Faking a pregnancy! She humiliated the Family! How is a woman like that worthy of you?"

"Madre..." Adriano's voice dropped. "I know you don't like Cassie, but marrying her was Nonna's dying wish."

"So what if it was?" she shot back. "Are you really gonna throw your future away for a dead woman's wish? If you still consider me your madre, you'll end this engagement. Now."

Adriano said nothing.

I thought he'd agree. He hated me so much, despised me so deeply.

But then he spoke, voice firm. "Madre, I'm sorry. I won't cancel the engagement. Cassie will be my only wife in this lifetime."

Caterina trembled with rage and stormed out.

Adriano stayed at the doorway, his face a mess of emotions.

Sofia strolled in, all fake sweetness, holding a cup of meds. "Cassie, time for your medicine."

My stomach dropped. I knew that cup—hell in liquid form.

"I'm not drinking it," I said, low but firm.

Adriano scowled. "Don't be difficult. It's for your own good."

"I said no!" My voice cracked, panic spiking.

His face turned cold. "What game is this now?"

Sofia stayed soft, still holding the cup like some saint. "Let her be, Adriano. If she doesn't want it, don't push."

"She can't keep this up," he snapped, eyes locking on me. "Apologize to Sofia. Cut the crap."

"I'm not making trouble!" I begged, voice cracking.

He didn't care. Just grabbed my hand and shoved the cup at me.

In the struggle, my bandage slipped, exposing the shredded mess underneath.

Adriano froze, eyes wide. "What... What happened to you?"

Sofia's gasp was sharp and fake. "Oh my God, Cassie. Hurting yourself just for sympathy?"

"Cassie..." Adriano's face went steel-blue. "You've let me down too much."

He ripped his hand from mine and stormed out with Sofia. His voice cut through the hall, ice-cold: "Don't bother with her! If she dies from pain, she deserves it!"

I stared at the closed door, a weird calm settling over me.

Slowly, I climbed onto the windowsill, staring at the drop below. Five stories. One jump. Done.

Outside, Adriano stepped out just in time to see me at the window. His face flipped. "Cassie! What are you doing?!

"Please, don't—"

The face that had always looked at me with disgust was now twisted with panic.

I shut my eyes and jumped.

His scream ripped through the air. "Cassie!"