On the day I was trying on my engagement gown, a woman burst into the VIP dressing room.

She tore at my gown like a wild animal, her face a mask of fury. "A whore like you has no right to wear this gown!"

Then, she pulled out a thin-bladed dagger coated in lye and lunged at me.

The blade sank into my abdomen, lye searing my flesh. I collapsed in agony, the pristine white fabric staining a deep crimson.

She grabbed my hair, slapped me hard across the face, and roared, "Jonas promised to make me his queen! You're just a bitch in his way!"

Blood spread across the floor, and the truth hit me like a bullet. The man I had been with for seven years had been deceiving me all along.

"You still dare to glare at me?" she sneered. "My man owns this city's underworld. If I kill you, who's going to touch me?"

Trembling, I pulled out my phone with a blood-slicked hand and dialed my brother. "Felix, bring some men. Owen's bridal shop. And tell Papa the engagement is off."

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1

I hung up the phone. Excruciating pain wracked my body.

My mind felt thick, sluggish, wading through a haze of pain as the only sound was the frantic pounding of my own heart.

The wound in my abdomen felt like it had been seared with a branding iron. Every breath sent a fresh wave of agony ripping through me.

I trembled, grabbing a clothes rack for support. Scarlett Novak loomed over me, her eyes venomous.

"What, calling for backup?" she sneered, her voice shrill.

The shop assistants watched in horrified silence, too terrified to move. Hushed whispers filled the air, each word a shard of ice in my veins.

"That's what a homewrecker gets."

"That dress? She must have slept her way into it."

Poised on her heels, Scarlett viciously kicked my shin, sending me sprawling. "Who do you think you are? Who else is coming for you? Your precious Jonas?"

She grabbed my gown and sliced it open with the dagger. The blood-stained fabric scattered like withered petals. "Wearing my clothes, stealing my man? Let everyone see what a slut you are! I'm the real Mrs. Jonas Owen. You're just a piece of trash he's done with. Did you really think you could replace me?"

I jerked my head up. A sharp pain shot through my chest, but my gaze didn't waver.

I had been with Jonas Owen for seven years.

He used to stay with me late into the night in my art studio, gently wiping paint from my face. He had promised me, countless times, a future no one else could give me.

But now, this supposed wife of his had just stabbed me, calling me a bitch in her way. All his love and promises were nothing more than an elaborate lie.

The whispers buzzed around me like flies. I met Scarlett's gaze, and though my voice was weak, it held a core of steel. "I am not some plaything. Listen carefully. My name is Aurelia Delgado, the Principessa of the Delgado family."

Laughter erupted in the shop. Even Scarlett giggled. "Delgado? Don't make me laugh. A Principessa, lying here like a dog? Jonas said you're just a gold digger trying to climb the social ladder."

The tearing pain from the knife wound made me flinch. The lye was eating away at the tissue around it, and every breath felt like a sharp blade churning inside me.

Before I could retort, she roared, "Still giving me that look?" Her heel slammed into my abdomen, right on the wound.

Agony seized me, and I curled into a ball on the floor. But she wasn't finished. She grabbed my hair and slammed my head against the nearby mirror. "Still not convinced? I'm his woman. Killing you would be letting you off easy."

A bitter laugh escaped me, followed by a cough that brought up a mouthful of blood.

Seven years. A complete and utter lie. His "territory expansion"? Just a cover for his other woman. The future he promised was never meant for me.

It was over.

"If I die here, the wrath of the Delgado family will burn this city to the ground," I said hoarsely, using my last ounce of strength. "Jonas will be the first to burn. And to save his own skin, he'll let you take the fall."

Scarlett laughed, finding my threat ridiculous. "Who do you think you are? You think I'm scared? Jonas would never hurt me for a piece of trash like you!"

She raised the dagger again, her eyes filled with murderous intent. I was too weak to dodge, able only to stare at the cold, gleaming blade.

Just then, the screech of tires echoed from outside. My brother, Felix Delgado, had arrived.

I hauled myself to my feet, leaning against the wall and clutching my bleeding abdomen. I stared at Scarlett, enunciating each word. "I told you. I'm Aurelia Delgado. Are you ready to pay your debt?"

A flash of panic crossed her face, and for a moment, the satisfaction eclipsed my pain. Her assault and Jonas's betrayal would not be forgiven. Debts to the Delgado family are always paid in blood.

The door was thrown open, and a familiar figure rushed in.

But I was fading fast. Blood loss sent black spots swimming in my vision. My blood-stained hand was pressed tightly against my abdomen, where the dark red stain bloomed on my white gown like a wilting rose.

"Felix," I choked out, my voice cracking. "Help me."

Felix rushed toward me. Scarlett's gaze shifted to him, clearly intimidated by the sheer menace rolling off him.

"Brother or lover?" she sneered, feigning bravado. "This is Jonas Owen's territory. No one in Chicago touches me."

Felix ignored her, rushing to my side and shielding me with his body. His hands trembled with rage, but his touch was gentle. "I'm Felix Delgado," he growled, his voice heavy with the quiet lethality of a man who had killed before. "Who hurt my sister?" His cold gaze swept the room like the barrel of a gun.

The noise in the shop instantly died, leaving only my suppressed groans in the dead silence.

Scarlett flinched but quickly puffed out her chest. "I did. So what? My man is Jonas Owen. You touch me, he'll make your whole family pay!"

I coughed, and blood spattered onto Felix's shirt, a stark stain on the white fabric. I asked weakly, "You didn't bring anyone?"

The pain was unbearable, my consciousness beginning to drift. "Her dagger wasn't clean. I don't think I can hold on."

His voice softened for me, but when he turned to Scarlett, it was razor-sharp. "I was close, so I came alone. Papa's on his way with his men. He'll be here in ten."

His gaze fixated on my wound, his expression turning lethal. "Who the fuck gave you the balls to touch a Delgado Principessa?" He advanced on Scarlett, each step a hammer blow to her nerves. "Jonas Owen, right? You're the stray he keeps on the side?"

"I'm his wife!" she shrieked, whipping out her phone. "Who do you think you are? I'm calling Jonas right now to come break your legs."

I grabbed Felix's sleeve and shook my head. I wanted to see, when it came down to life and death, if Jonas would choose his lover or his own life.

"Hospital first," I whispered, my voice barely audible.

Scarlett blocked our path, her voice a syrupy whine into her phone. "Darling, some asshole named Felix Delgado is here, saying I hurt his sister. He's trying to kill me! You have to get here now!"

Jonas's voice crackled through the phone. "Who the fuck is bold enough to cause trouble on my territory? Where are you?"

"In the shop you set up for me," Scarlett replied, a venomous glint in her eyes. "He said he's going to make the Owen family pay the price."

Jonas paused. "Who? Felix Delgado?"

"Yes," Scarlett said, lifting her chin. "He's with that bitch Aurelia, and he said..."

"Impossible!" Jonas's voice was sharp with fear. "You tangled with Felix? Are you sure it's him?"

I smiled bitterly. The stabbing pain in my abdomen was nothing compared to the ice in my heart. He hadn't mentioned me once. He was only afraid of the power the name Felix Delgado represented.

Our relationship was a joke. It weighed less than one of Papa's business cards.

My body went limp, and I nearly slipped from Felix's arms. He swept me up into a bridal carry and roared into the phone, "Jonas, your bitch stabbed my sister. Now, get your ass over here!"

Scarlett stared in horror at the now-disconnected call. "This is impossible... Why would Jonas be afraid of you?"

She waved a hand, a pre-arranged signal. A hidden door behind the VIP room swung open, and a dozen thugs armed with iron pipes and knives swarmed us. "Even if you are from the Delgado family, you're not walking out of here today!"

A desperate madness flickered in Scarlett's eyes. "As long as I kill you both and get rid of the bodies, Jonas can clean up the rest!"

Felix, holding me, looked at them with contempt. "With this trash?"

But I knew Felix was alone and had to protect me. I struggled to stand, grabbing a sharp shard from the shattered mirror on the floor.

"Anyone who takes another step closer dies!"

I pointed the shard of glass at Scarlett. Blood dripped from my hand, but I felt no pain. My heart pounded, my eyes burning with hatred. "You want me dead? Then I'll drag you to hell with me!"

I lunged forward, slashing the sharp glass across her cheek.

A deep gash tore open her cheek, from the corner of her eye to her chin.

Scarlett's bloodcurdling scream tore through the shop.

Scarlett's scream was piercing. Blood gushed from between her fingers, staining her white dress.

"My face! You bitch! You ruined my face?" she shrieked hysterically, her hair in disarray. "Get them! Kill them! I'll give every one of you fifty thousand dollars!"

I wanted to lunge at her again, but one of the thugs kicked me, his boot connecting squarely with the lye-seared wound. My insides felt like they were rupturing as I crashed into a nearby mannequin. The impact tore the wound wide open. My vision swam with black spots, and I almost passed out.

Felix lunged to protect me, but he was outnumbered and distracted. Another thug's knife bit deep into his arm. Blood sprayed out, soaking his shirt.

"Felix!" I screamed.

Scarlett clutched her face, pointed at us, and yelled, "Cripple them! Chop them up and throw them in Lake Michigan! My man is Jonas Owen! He can fix anything!"

Another knife bit deep into Felix's back. He grunted, dropping to one knee but still shielding me. The coppery scent of his blood filled the air as it splattered onto my skin. A thug swung an iron pipe, smashing it brutally against his head.

Felix collapsed on top of me, a dead weight. His blood blurred my vision, my cries mingling with the thugs' shouts.

"Felix! Wake up!" I sobbed, trying to shake him awake.

A thug kicked me hard in the back. I fell beside Felix, my consciousness slipping away.

When I woke up, I was in a shipping container at an abandoned dock. The summer sun beat down on the metal, turning the inside into a furnace.

My skin felt scorched, a hard crust of sweat and blood caked to my body. My limbs were bound with ropes, a rag stuffed in my mouth.

"Awake?" Scarlett loomed over me, her face swathed in gauze, only her venomous eyes visible. "Too bad I couldn't finish you at the shop. It just means you get to suffer a little longer."

I made a muffled sound, the rag in my mouth soaked with blood. In my peripheral vision, I saw Felix lying nearby, motionless, the blood on the ground already a dark, sticky brown.

"Felix!" I tried to scream, tears evaporating on my scorching cheeks as soon as they fell.

"Stop screaming. He's not quite dead yet, but he's close," Scarlett said, kicking Felix's leg as if it were a sack of garbage. "Jonas called. He's on his way to clean up this mess."

She squatted down, looking at me like I was an insect. "What do you think he'll do when he finds out you scarred my face? I bet he'll kill you with his own hands just to make me happy."

She waved to her men. They approached with several cans of gasoline, the pungent smell filling the air. "Jonas said to make it clean. Let me warm you two up, so the road to hell isn't too cold."

They poured gasoline around us, some of it splashing onto my ruined gown. The temperature inside the steel container soared, and the reek of gasoline choked me. I coughed violently, blood and bile rising in my throat. I struggled desperately, but the ropes only tightened, cutting into my wrists and drawing blood.

Just then, my phone, which had been knocked to the floor, rang. Jonas's name lit up the screen.

I glared at the phone, writhing to reach it. With my hands tied, I could only use my cheek to slide the screen, finally managing to press the answer button.

I wanted to scream at him, to tell him I was done, to demand he come save me. But the rag in my mouth turned my voice into a desperate whimper.

Scarlett noticed, her face contorting. "Who told you to answer that phone?"

She lunged to grab the phone, but I pressed it tightly to my chest. The heat from the evaporating gasoline washed over me. My body was severely dehydrated, and my eyelids grew heavy.

Only rage kept me going. Pushing the rag aside with my tongue, I finally rasped, "Jonas, you better pray we walk out of here alive. Because if we don't, you and Scarlett are going straight to hell."