Chapter 1

"Elena, this is our 19th wedding. I promise: this time will be the last."

Giovanni Rossi's voice on the phone was as gentle as ever.

"Put on your gown and wait for me at the church. I'll go pick up your mother's veil, and then I'll come."

I stood quietly on the cold stone steps outside the church, just as I had on the previous 18 occasions.

Thirty minutes passed. Giovanni did not show.

Then the church bells rang, and Lina Davinci's video call popped up.

"Hah… hah…"

Crude panting and the sound of barking burst from the phone.

On the screen was my mother's veil, the one she had sewn by hand, the only thing she left me after she died. It was now pinned beneath a rutting toy poodle.

Sticky, obscene sounds. Filthy paw prints. The violent tearing of fabric.

All of it drowned in Lina's shrill, unrestrained laughter.

"Bella! Tear it apart! This piece of trash suits you perfectly!"

The camera tilted.

Giovanni's bare back filled the frame as he buried his face in Lina's neck.

"Don't make trouble," he said hoarsely, his voice lazy with satisfaction. "Once I calm Elena down, I'll come back to keep you company."

I gagged.

A metallic sweetness surged up my throat. I dug my nails into my palm until the skin broke.

I thought I would cry.

I thought I would collapse.

However, I did not.

I simply turned around, expressionless.

My phone vibrated again; a voice message from Lina, dripping with mockery.

"Elena, don't be mad. Bella ruined yours, so I'll just buy you a new veil, okay?

"Oh, and I forgot to tell you. We've slept on every inch of the floor in your new house.

"Your man is very…useful."

This was the man I had loved for seven years.

This was the price of giving up my pride, my ambitions, and my life; it was all for him.

Giovanni called again, his voice urgent.

"Baby, Lina has a fever. I just took her to the hospital. The wedding will have to be postponed again… Don't sulk. We'll do it another day. Be good…"

"Giovanni." I cut him off. My voice was cold, like the winter sea off Sicily.

"What is it?"

"That veil doesn't need replacing. Give it to Lina to be buried in. She deserves something that's filthy."

I hung up.

Then, I dialed a number I had not called since a violent argument seven years ago.

The call was answered after the very first ring. It was as if the person on the other end had been waiting in the dark for centuries.

"Rafael Bellini."

I spoke the name that made the entire mafia world tremble.

"Elena." His voice was deep, magnetic, and restrained. Yet, it sounded like it was burning beneath the surface. "So…you've changed your mind?"

"Does your proposal still stand?" I asked calmly.

A low, pleased laugh came through the line: unhurried, confident, and absolute.

"I've waited a long time to hear that. So, what are your terms?"

I looked at my pale reflection, at the fire blazing in my own eyes, and said each word clearly, "Giovanni destroyed my mother's veil. I want you to give me a crown."

Two seconds of silence.

Then he laughed, not politely, but with genuine delight.

"As you wish," he said softly. "My queen."

Finalizing the political marriage with Rafael took less than ten minutes.

The moment I hung up, my phone exploded with notifications.

Giovanni had called nearly 30 times. His last message could not hide his panic.

"What do you mean by this? Stop being childish! Answer the phone! Now!"

I scoffed and blocked him without hesitation.

As soon as I arrived at the airport, a new post from Giovanni popped up.

A photo of empty church pews. There was a caption accompanying it.

[Some people never learn how to wait or how to be considerate. Leave the safest harbor, and the storm outside won't show you mercy. Take care of yourself.]

The comments were full of sympathy for him and ridicule for me.

I snapped my SIM card in half.

Lifting the hem of my wedding dress, I boarded the plane, heading toward the wedding that truly belonged to me.