The Underboss's Seven Day Ruin

It was by sheer chance that I overheard my husband, Dante, the Underboss of the Moretti family, speaking in hushed tones with his mistress, Sofia.

I heard Sofia say to Dante:

"So you're really going to stage an assassination, all just to replace her with me?"

Dante smiled, kissing the top of her head.

"It's nothing, my love. Just a scratch. A little staged accident, that's all."

My steps faltered, but I didn't let on that I'd heard.

The next day, at the long family meeting table, Dante, his head wrapped in bandages, began his performance right on cue.

He slammed his hand on the table, declaring Sofia was his one and only woman, demanding that I be expelled from the Moretti family and stripped of all my financial authority.

All the Made Men stared at me, waiting for me to start a war to defend my place.

But I didn't fight back. I just calmly handed over the ledgers and account keys—the very lifeblood of the family's fortune.

What he didn't know, however, was that the deadline for our deal with the Russians was just seven days away.

And the Ghost, the contact who holds our entire future in his hands…only talks to me.

————————

1

"You can walk, but the Rossi Gallery and that sat phone? They stay. They're family assets now."

I was about to leave the family headquarters when Dante's mistress, Sofia, blocked my path.

Having managed the family's finances for years, I knew perfectly well the gallery was my private property and the phone was my secure line to the outside world. This was a blatant power grab.

I turned to face my husband, Dante.

"Is this what you want, too?"

Dante stared at me, a brief flicker of conflict in his eyes before he gave a cold nod.

If I handed these over, any chance of a comeback would be gone for good.

He was certain I wouldn't be willing to part with the financial empire we had built together, which was why he was so unyielding.

It wasn't surprising he thought that way.

Together, he and I had built the Moretti family's considerable wealth from the ground up.

I cherished it all as if it were my own child.

I worked day and night finding safe havens for the family's black money—a diligent, meticulous task where there was zero room for error.

Last week, at a meeting, he had proposed fast-tracking Sofia into the heart of the family's finances.

The old Capos of the family all deferred to him, offering a few reluctant words of praise for Sofia, ready to let the matter slide.

Only I, after confirming that Sofia couldn't even read a ledger, disregarded Dante's pride and used my veto.

He knew I would never allow him to be so reckless with the family.

So this time, to get Sofia what she wanted, he'd resorted to this whole charade of an assassination and amnesia, all to force my hand.

Sensing the standoff, a Capo stepped in to mediate.

"Easy, Isabella. The man's injured. You're his wife—show some understanding while he's vulnerable."

Emboldened, Dante declared sternly:

"In the Moretti family, anyone who opposes my woman opposes me!"

A few Soldati let out low chuckles, jerking their chins in my direction.

"See? The Underboss is still crazy about you. He's just... scrambled right now. Thinks she's you."

Feeling their gazes, a mixture of pity and amusement, I couldn't bring myself to smile.

They couldn't have been more wrong.

Dante and I were husband and wife, a power couple to the outside world, but whenever a conflict arose, he always forced me to be the one to compromise.

Regardless of who was right or wrong, regardless of the occasion, he always stood against me.

I had argued with him about it countless times.

But he always said that I was his family; we could fight in public but always make up at home.

Outsiders were different. You burn that bridge, it's gone for good.

Though it left a bitter taste, I'd heard it so often I'd come to accept his logic.

But now, seeing him abandon all principles for Sofia, I finally understood.

When you truly love someone, your first instinct when they're wronged is to draw your gun, not to start calculating the odds.

As I was mulling this over, Sofia swept the cigar box from the table in front of me, sending it crashing to the floor.

"Isabella Rossi, you shameless bitch! I'm his woman now! You dare look at him like that again, and I'll claw your eyes out!"

She pointed a finger at me, cursing as if I were the interloper.

And Dante, witnessing it all, said nothing. He just stood silently behind Sofia, his silence her shield.

A cold smirk played on my lips.

"Fine. I'll destroy it right now."

As the words left my mouth, I pulled out the sat phone and raised it, ready to smash it against the marble floor.

Realizing I was serious, Dante panicked and rushed to stop me.