At last, Vicenzo could no longer sit still.

“Eva! Let go of Mr. Mario right now! You’ll get us killed!

“If you hurt him, the Carlini family will wipe out our entire family!”

Elena shrieked as well. “You crazy woman! If you want to die, don’t drag us down with you! Luca is still so young!”

Luca rushed at me, kicking and hitting with all his strength.

“Let Uncle go! You bad woman! I’m going to call the police and have you arrested!”

Watching the three of them turn red in the face, I only found it amusing.

I released my grip and, with one kick, sent Mario flying three meters away.

He slammed into the wall and coughed up a mouthful of blood, looking in a sorry state.

He glared at me with venom in his eyes, yet because Vicenzo had given no order, he did not dare move again.

“Get out.”

I said only one word.

Mario scrambled to his feet and bolted for the door. However, before leaving, he spat out a vicious threat.

“Just you wait! Tomorrow I’ll bring more men!”

After the door shut, Vicenzo stared at me, his face dark.

“Eva, you were too reckless. Do you even understand how much trouble you’ve caused?”

I poured myself a glass of water and slowly wet my dry throat.

“Trouble? If I want to, in this city, no one can make trouble for me.”

Elena let out a mocking laugh. “Oh, please. You must’ve been punched in the head too many years to think you’re still somebody.

“Eva, know your place. You’re nothing more than a brute who sells her life.

“If they bring guns tomorrow, what are you going to do? Stop bullets with your body?”

I turned to look at Vicenzo.

“If they really bring guns tomorrow, will you protect me and Luca?”

He avoided my gaze and sighed.

“I’m just a useless husband. How could I protect anyone? Eva, for Luca’s sake, go apologize to Mr. Mario.

“As long as you apologize, maybe this will pass.”

My heart went completely cold.

This was the man who slept beside me.

For the sake of testing me, for so-called family interests, he had sent me to fight in illegal rings, and now he wanted me to kneel to his own subordinate.

“Fine.” I set down the glass and curved my lips into a cold smile.

“Since you say so, tomorrow we’ll settle this.”

Before leaving, I looked at him one last time and asked, “Vicenzo, if I told you I could settle this debt, and that I hold more power than Mario, would you believe me?”

He reacted as if he had heard the greatest joke in the world, breaking into a contemptuous laugh.

“Eva, have you lost your mind?”

That night, the master bedroom door was locked.

Vicenzo stood outside holding a pillow, his face arranged into a show of reluctant concern.

“Eva, the smell of medicine on you is too strong. Luca can’t sleep with it.”

He pointed toward the guest room piled high with storage boxes. “Stay there tonight. Don’t make this difficult.”

I looked at the man who had shared my bed for seven years.

There wasn’t a single word of concern in his eyes, only disgust.

Without saying anything, I turned and walked into the room with no heating.

In the middle of the night, I heard Elena’s coy laughter drifting from the master bedroom next door, mixed with Luca’s excited shouts.

They were playing horse and rider, laughing together, as if they were the family of three.

I leaned against the cold wall, pulled out the dagger I had long hidden in my boot, then slid it back in.

Not yet.

I’d wait until the moment they were most proud of everything they had and then watch it collapse.

Early the next morning, Vicenzo got up before dawn, a rare occurrence.

He took off the old jacket, washed pale from wear, and put on a sharply tailored dark suit.

It was a custom piece from one of Nafles’ top tailors, with subtle embroidery at the cuffs.

When I had asked where he got it, he told me it was an old suit discarded by the library owner.

Now it was clear that this was the attire of the second-in-command of the Carlini family.

“Eva, go change,” Vicenzo urged impatiently. “Today we’re taking you to apologize to Mr. Mario.”

Luca wore the formal outfit Elena had bought him, looking like a proud little prince.

As he passed me, he pinched his nose and made a face.

“You stink. Stay away from us.”

I said nothing. I simply pulled on my wrinkled trench coat and covered the bandages on my arm.

Elena linked her arm through Vicenzo’s and shot me a provocative glance.

The car sped all the way to a heavily guarded estate. This was one of the Carlini family’s strongholds.

Two broad-shouldered soldati stood at the entrance.

When they saw us step out, one of them gave a cold glance and urged impatiently, “Go in. They’re all waiting.”

The display of force seemed to rattle Vicenzo. His body trembled almost imperceptibly, and he instinctively tightened his grip around my wrist.

“Eva, don’t be afraid. Just apologize properly, and it’ll be fine…” His voice shook, as though he were convincing himself, and he pulled me quickly toward the doors.

Elena followed with Luca in hand, her face openly eager for a spectacle.

Inside, the hall was lavish and glittering, with two rows of soldati standing solemnly on either side.

Mario, whom I had injured the night before, now sat boldly on a leather sofa in the center.

An arrogant smile twisted across his face, and when he saw us enter, he even crossed his legs in exaggerated confidence.

Vicenzo suddenly stopped walking and turned to face me.

The usual cowardice in his eyes was gone. All that remained was a cold command.

“Eva, kneel.”

I lifted my head and looked at him calmly.

Vicenzo pointed at Mario, who was lounging on the sofa.

“Yesterday, you injured Mr. Mario. That’s a capital offense.

“But I couldn’t bear to see you die, so I begged for a long time on your behalf.”

He stepped behind me and placed both hands on my shoulders.

“Get down on your knees, lick Mr. Mario’s shoes clean, and he might spare your life.”

Mario swung his leg smugly and grabbed a handful of nuts from the table, tossing them at my feet.

“Kneel, b*tch. Weren’t you impressive last night?”

Elena covered her mouth and laughed softly, her eyes gleaming with malice.

“Eva, don’t be ungrateful. Vicenzo went to great lengths to protect you.”

Luca stuffed delicate pastries into his mouth and mumbled through them, “Hurry up and kneel. If you don’t, I’ll tell Dad to throw you out!”

At six years old, he was already capable of the cruelest words.

This was the son I had nearly died to save.

Vicenzo’s grip tightened, fingers digging into my injured shoulder.

A wave of sharp pain shot through me, and fresh blood quickly soaked through the bandages.

He was forcing me to submit, savoring the thrill of breaking something wild.

“Eva, be good.”

His voice brushed against my ear, cold and low.

“For this family, what’s wrong with sacrificing a little pride?

“Or do you want to watch Luca die because of you?”

I felt the bone in my shoulder grind under the pressure.

If I were still the Eva who lived only for her family, I would already have knelt for my son.

However, the woman standing here now was the principessa of the Moretti family, who had already died once.

I drew in a slow breath, then drove my shoulder backward, instantly knocking Vicenzo’s hands away.

In the same motion, I spun around, snatched the pistol from the nearest soldato’s waist, and with a crisp click, chambered a round.

“Bang!”

The shot struck the floor in front of Mario’s feet, sparks bursting upward.

Mario shrieked and rolled off the sofa in terror.

“Tell Stefano to come see me.”

“She’s insane! She’s completely insane!”

Vicenzo’s face turned ashen as he roared at me. “You dare call Don Carlini by his name? You dare fire a gun in here?”

Elena screamed as well. “You crazy b*tch! If you want to die, don’t drag us down with you!”

Mario pointed at me and shouted at the soldati, “Kill her! She’s trying to assassinate Don Carlini!”

Just as the soldati raised their guns and aimed at me…

A cold, commanding voice came from upstairs.

“I’d like to see who dares.”

I lifted my head, my gaze cutting past the armed men and fixing on the carved railing of the second floor.

A tall figure stood there.

He wore a black shirt, collar slightly open.

It was the don of the Carlini family.

And once, my fiancé.

Vicenzo rushed toward me, reaching for my hair. “You crazy woman! Do you have a death wish?”

I laughed.

The sound echoed through the hall, with slight bitterness, edged with ridicule.

Then I looked up at the man above and spoke softly.

“Stefano, long time no see.”