Chapter 4

My mother's cross was the last piece of her I had in this world.

Maximo's fingers tightened around the chain. All he had to do was let go, and it would fall into the fire pit nearby.

"I'll count to three," he said, looming over me.

"Three."

"Two."

I was shaking, my nails digging into my palms, drawing blood.

"One."

"Stop!" The word tore from my throat. "I'll do it! I'll go change!"

Maximo smiled, satisfied. He put the cross back in his pocket. He reached out and patted my cheek, a gentle-seeming touch that was full of a victor's arrogance.

"That's my girl. Now hurry up. Gia is waiting for you to serve her."

The changing room was lit by a single, dim bulb. I looked at my pathetic reflection in the mirror. Hair plastered to my face, sweater clinging to my body, lips purple. A drowned rat.

Five years. I, the secret Queen of Chicago’s underworld, had paved his path to power. I thought I was raising a king. Instead, I’d raised a dog that was now biting the hand that fed it.

For every shred of humiliation you forced on me tonight, Maximo, I will burn the Gallo family to the ground.

I picked up the cheap red maid's outfit. I studied its revealing design, its shoddy fabric.

Then I threw it in the trash.

Enough. The game was over.

Still in my wet clothes, I pushed open the door and walked straight into the party.

The music screeched to a halt. Every head turned. I heard the whispers.

"My God, who is that?"

"Why is she dressed like that?"

The second Maximo saw me, his face turned to stone. He rushed over, hissing in a low, furious voice. "What the hell are you doing? I told you to wear the dress!"

Gia, clinging to his other arm, whined, "Maximo, she's ruining the party. The guests are all staring."

I ignored them and walked toward the exit.

"Grab her!" Maximo shouted, forgetting all decorum.

Two bodyguards rushed me. One of them kicked the back of my knee. A bolt of pain shot through my leg, and I collapsed onto the marble floor in front of everyone. I could feel the tearing pain, the warm blood soaking through my jeans.

The hall erupted in gasps.

Maximo walked over to me, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear. "My apologies, everyone." He shook his head with feigned regret. "This young lady is a... rather obsessed admirer of mine. She has delusional ideas about me and snuck in tonight to try and ruin things for me and Gia. She's a little unstable. Please, pay her no mind."

"Get her out of here," Maximo waved his hand. "Don't let her spoil the mood."

The room was buzzing. Hundreds of eyes watched me kneeling on the floor. He was trying to destroy my dignity.

The guards grabbed me roughly, dragging me toward the blizzard outside.

Maximo wrapped his arm around Gia's waist and looked down at me. "This is what happens when you don't listen, Oriana. Go sleep it off on the street."

I was thrown into a snowdrift outside the casino's back door. The snow landed on my hair and face, melting instantly. Through the glass, I could see Maximo and Gia accepting congratulations from their guests. She was radiant. He was the picture of success.

I pulled the burner phone from my jeans pocket, my fingers shaking as I dialed a number.

It was Raphael's private line.

Raphael. The true king of Chicago's mafia. The only partner who stood by my side as I built my underground financial empire. For five years, he had willingly stayed in the shadows, managing my vast network for me. Time and again, he had begged me to end what he called my 'game,' his eyes dark with a possessiveness I always pushed away. I always refused, stubbornly clinging to the idea of a normal, stable love.

Today, I finally saw the light. Some dogs don't deserve loyalty.

The call connected.

"It's me."

"The game's over. Cut all funds to the Gallo family. Freeze their accounts."

"And one more thing..." I closed my eyes, letting the cold snow hit my face. When I opened them again, there was only ice.

"Raphael, come get me. By tomorrow, I want Maximo and the Gallo family erased from Chicago."

There was a moment of silence. Then, a man's voice, deep and raw with long-suppressed pain and killing intent.

"Fifteen minutes. I’m coming. And Maximo will pay for touching what’s mine."

I hung up. From the lounge, I could still hear Maximo and Gia laughing, still thinking of new ways to grind me into the dirt.

They had no idea their world was about to end.