The first time Gabriel cheated, he dragged his mistress before me and told me to do with her as I pleased.

Because I loved him, so I chose to forgive him.

The second time, I sent that woman to Europe and told her never to come back.

On the night of the family gathering, he pressed a blade to my skin.

"Where is she?" he seethed, his eyes wild. "Serena. She's carrying my child."

"This is my fault. I couldn't keep my dick in my pants. Hate me. But she's innocent. Let the baby be born, I'm begging you."

Then he smiled, a cruel, twisted thing.

"You've always hated pain, haven't you, my Principessa?"

The blade bit deeper. Blood bloomed on my sleeve.

"Let this one live. Our child. It will only ever know you as its mother. I swear it."

I looked into his eyes. And I smiled.

I told him exactly where to find her. The door slammed shut.

My hands trembled as I pulled out a burner phone.

"You were right," I whispered.

"I need your help one last time."

————————

1

On the other end of the line, the man cursed under his breath, his voice heavy with resignation.

“Why didn’t you say so earlier? I’m already in Sicily. How the hell am I supposed to help you?”

“For Christ’s sake, Sophia Vance. You’re supposed to be the smart one in the Five Families. How could you fall for the same man’s bullshit twice? Has he fucked you stupid?”

I pressed down on the gash in my arm, my voice laced with bitterness.

“Sorry. I owe you one. Thirty percent of the west-side territory business. Is that enough?”

There was a sharp intake of breath on the other end. I had his full attention.

“Time and place. Send them to me. I’ll be there.”

“Next time you’ve got a deal this sweet, you call me first. You know I’m good for it.”

I sent the complete wedding plan to Henry “Hank” Russo.

He replied instantly with an OK emoji.

Our old safe house had been trashed by Gabe. A complete wreck. Just like me.

I treated the wound myself and stumbled out of the villa.

I had just checked into a hotel when Gabe’s call came through.

The roar of the private jet’s engine was loud, but I could still hear the fury simmering beneath his words.

“Sophia, I’m on a plane to Europe, so I can’t be with you tonight. Get some rest. I’m sorry, I got too emotional. I didn't mean to hurt you.”

“Is the wound bad? Should I have the family doctor come see you?”

“No need.”

I cut him off, my voice ice.

Gabe’s tone instantly darkened.

“Sophia Vance, didn’t I tell you? Serena and I were a mistake. I was drugged; I thought she was you. Now there’s a child. I have to find her. Are we supposed to let Costa blood just wander the streets, unprotected?”

“You forgave me last time, didn’t you? Why are you blowing this up now? Our wedding is in a week. You need to calm your shit down.”

I stared at my chat history with Hank on the screen and said coldly, “Don’t bother. I'm not marrying you.”

“Gabe, I told you. I don’t tolerate betrayal.”

Before I could hang up, he exploded.

“Not marrying me? What the fuck are you talking about? All of New York knows the Vances and the Costas are uniting. You pull this now? Are you threatening me with our families’ alliance?”

“Sophia, we grew up together. I know you better than anyone. If I hadn’t been set up, I would never have betrayed you!”

“It’s two strikes, Sophia, not three. Once the baby is born, Serena will be gone. I swear she’ll never cross your path again. Isn’t that enough?”

Tears streamed down my face, a bitter smile twisting my lips.

“And what? I’m supposed to look at the bastard child you had with another woman every single day, a living reminder of your betrayal?”

“Gabe, I can’t. I’m sorry.”

As the words left my mouth, his roar ripped through the phone.

“Fine. Remember what you said today. Don’t you dare fucking regret it.”

“For men like us, who doesn’t have a woman on the side? I already told you to handle Serena however you wanted; what more could I do? So either you get on board, or you get the hell out. I don't give a fuck which.”

The call ended. The floor-to-ceiling window reflected my pathetic silhouette.

Suite 13520. It used to be his favorite place for us.

He said it was filled with our memories.

Valentine’s Day, birthdays, anniversaries.

This room had become our private world.

But now, I was the only one left who remembered.

Gabe leaked the news of our broken engagement to my parents. Their call was immediate.

“Sophia, what’s going on? Gabe is saying you’re calling off the wedding?”

“This isn’t a joke, my daughter. Don’t be foolish.”

I burrowed deeper under the covers, my voice tight.

“His mistress is pregnant.”

“What man doesn’t make mistakes? Just get rid of it—”

“I’m not calling off the wedding. I’m just marrying someone else. You know him. Henry ‘Hank’ Russo.”

My Father’s lecture died in his throat.

My Madre was stunned into silence.

“Hank Russo? Aren’t you two mortal enemies? Did you forget he nearly set your hair on fire when you were children?”

I managed a small laugh, trying to keep my voice light.

“That’s why I’m marrying him. To make his life a living hell.”

I tossed and turned all night, the wound on my arm throbbing, denying me sleep.

First thing in the morning, I called a real estate agent and listed the safe house.

When I returned to pack, Gabe’s private jet was still parked on the lawn.

I pushed open the door and froze. The wall was covered in photographs.

The woman in them wasn’t me. It was Serena.

The glaciers of the Arctic, the Eiffel Tower, the fire-scarred Notre Dame.

Every place we had ever gone together, he had taken her.

He always said he hated having his picture taken.

As the family’s Underboss, he couldn’t risk a photo falling into the hands of a rival family or the FBI.

No matter how much I begged, we never took a single picture together.

But for Serena, he’d made an exception.

And there they were, standing right beneath the photo wall. Serena was caressing her barely visible baby bump, a saccharine smile on her face.

“Gabe, when the baby is born, can we bring him here too?”

“He’ll love these places. Oh, feel! He’s kicking me!”

The sound of the door startled them.

They turned and saw me.

Serena dropped to her knees with a thud, clutching my legs and pleading.

“Sophia, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have broken my promise to stay away. Please don’t be mad at me, okay?”

“I just love Gabe so much… I swear, I’ll leave as soon as the baby is born. I won’t get in your way…”

Before I could utter a word, Gabe let out a cold laugh.

“You don’t have to apologize to her. You were drugged when you met me. If anything, I owe you.”

He looked up, his gaze fixing on me.

“Sophia, I found the people who drugged us. That little family will be gone from New York within a month.”

“Serena is an innocent victim in this. She was forced. You shouldn’t blame her. I’m willing to let this go, but you need to apologize. Then we can put this behind us.”

I stared back at him, my gaze pure ice.

The absurdity of it all was suffocating.

“Me? Apologize? Gabe, have you lost your mind?”

The next second, the hand on my leg tightened, her nails digging into the wound from last night.

I gasped, and a cold sweat broke out across my back.

On instinct, I pushed her away.

I hadn’t used much force, but Serena shrieked and threw herself backward, crashing into a nearby cabinet.

“What the hell are you doing?”

Gabe shoved me, hard. My forehead slammed into the doorframe.

Blood trickled down my face.

“I think you’re the one who’s lost her mind!”

“Serena has already humbled herself before you, and I’ve explained everything. What more do you want?”

“Apologize. Or else.”

I gritted my teeth, swallowing the bitter humiliation, and enunciated each word.

“Not. A. Chance.”

“Apologize to your mistress? In your dreams, Gabe.”

“You asked for this!”

Gabe’s eyes were wild with fury. He swept Serena into his arms and carried her into the master bedroom.

When he re-emerged, he summoned every Soldato in the villa.

“Where are the chains? Get them.”

“The Principessa is hysterical. Take her to the courtyard and make her kneel. Let her cool off.”

“She doesn’t get up until I say so!”

Rage burned in my eyes as I stared at him in disbelief.

“Gabe, you’re insane! She’s a mistress! How dare you do this to me?”

“This is my house!”

“But I am the man of this house.”

Gabe shot me a cold glance and fell silent.

Two Soldato grabbed me and dragged me outside.

A trail of my blood smeared across the floor.

The moment the villa door slammed shut, thunder cracked across the clear sky.

Then, the heavens opened up in a torrential downpour.

The rain soaked me to the bone in seconds.

I knelt in the deluge, the wounds on my forehead and arm burning.

My consciousness began to fray at the edges.

I looked at the Soldato supervising me from the doorway, my voice a ragged whisper.

“Let me go… Get Gabe. I’m begging you…”

The man stood under the eaves, watching me with mocking amusement.

“Save it. I’ve seen this damsel-in-distress act before.”

“The Underboss just called for the doctor. He’s a little busy having Miss Serena checked out.”

I forced my eyes open, looking up at the second-floor balcony. I could vaguely make out two figures.

The next second, my vision tunneled to black, and I collapsed.

As I drifted into unconsciousness, I heard frantic shouting.

“Shit, the Principessa fainted!”

“She’s bleeding everywhere! Get the doctor out here, now!”

Familiar footsteps crunched on the gravel, and an umbrella appeared over my head.

Gabe’s voice was arctic cold.

“Are you done with your performance?”

“To hear you carry on, anyone would think you’re the pregnant one.”

“Sophia, it’s time that temper of yours was broken. I’m doing this for your own good.”

His footsteps receded. He and Serena stood under the eaves, wrapped in an embrace as they looked out at me.

Serena snuggled weakly into his arms, her voice laced with false concern.

“Gabe, I don’t think Sophia is faking it. Are we being too cruel?”

“She is your fiancée. If the Vance family finds out…”

Gabe’s face hardened.

“The Costa family doesn’t answer to the Vances.”

“She was the one who was unreasonable. You’ve got eight months to go; you can’t let her bully you the whole time. We need to break that temper of hers.”

A flash of triumph flickered in Serena’s eyes before she hid it behind a mask of innocence.

“I hear these alliance marriages are loveless. Is that how it is with you and Sophia?”

The relentless storm pounded down, washing over my pale face.

For a moment, I thought my heart had stopped.

The next second, Gabe’s emotionless voice cut through the rain.

“To wear the crown, you have to bear the weight. I was born a Costa; an alliance marriage was my destiny. I didn't have a choice, so I accepted it.”

“Sophia is beautiful and innocent. Compared to the other arrogant heiresses, she was already the best choice.”

Tears leaked from the corners of my eyes, mixing with the mud on the ground.

Gabe looked down at Serena, a flicker of genuine emotion finally showing in his gaze.

“I thought that was all my life would be. Your arrival… you were a gift from God.”

“Thank you, Serena.”

The words were like daggers, piercing my heart one by one.

I couldn’t tell what hurt more, my body or my soul.

The memories of our childhood, our supposed love, dissolved into a sick haze.

What I thought was a sacred bond, a profound love, was just a lie.

How laughable. For twenty years, my only wish had been to marry him.

To help him secure his position, to stand by his side when he became the next Don.

The boy who wove me a crown from a willow branch was well and truly dead.

The last thread of my sanity snapped. Blood gushed anew from the wound on my arm.

Gabe finally noticed something was wrong and roared at the Soldato beside him.

“What the fuck are you waiting for? Check on her!”

“If anything happens to the Principessa, you’ll all be sleeping with the fishes!”