Chapter 4

Luca assumed I was refusing to sign, and his expression darkened at once.

“Elena, don’t be ungrateful. Your mother has no name, no standing, no place in this world. Vivian is capable and has a future ahead of her. Are you really going to destroy the most trusted person at the Don’s side over a dead woman?”

Isabella frowned and spoke in agreement.

“Exactly. Your mother was a burden to the Valenti family even when she was alive.”

“Vivian removed someone who should never have been inside the estate. She was protecting the family’s rules.”

“And instead of showing gratitude, you want to use your title as Donna to turn this into leverage?”

I answered calmly.

“You’ve misunderstood.”

I looked at Luca.

“The woman who died was your mother.”

“Which means this statement can only be signed by you.”

Isabella’s expression changed instantly.

“Elena, are you insane?”

“This is my mother’s welcome dinner, and you dare say something like that in a Valenti estate?”

Luca’s anger finally broke through.

“I have been too lenient with you.”

“So lenient that you’ve forgotten the basic limits of being a Donna.”

“My mother is the most important person in my life.”

“I will not allow anyone to disrespect her.”

He held my gaze, his voice cold enough to cut.

“Not even my wife.”

Then he turned to the security guards.

“Remove the body.”

One of them hesitated and glanced at me.

“Don, that may not be appropriate.”

Luca’s tone turned sharp.

“She refuses to sign and keeps dragging my mother into this.”

“Then today she can learn what happens when someone shows disrespect on Valenti ground.”

“Do as I said. I’ll take responsibility.”

Once Luca lost his temper, no one argued. The guards moved at once toward the corner.

The guests looked at me with growing contempt, and the whispers spread.

“She finally crossed the Don’s line.”

“Everyone knows Mr. Valenti lost his father early. Mrs. Valenti raised him and Isabella alone. She is the one he cares about most.”

“And she says something like that at her welcome dinner. She must be out of her mind.”

“Even as Donna, she should know better than this.”

“No wonder her mother ended up like that. With a daughter who has no sense of boundaries, what kind of outcome could she expect?”

Their voices were sharp, but I no longer cared.

I ignored them all and looked only at Luca.

“Luca, are you certain you want to take this this far?”

He looked down at me, his gaze cold.

“Elena, you brought this on yourself.”

“Your mother died because she had no dignity and wanted what was never hers.”

“You should not have used this matter again and again to say such things at my mother’s welcome dinner.”

He paused, his tone filled with contempt.

“If anything, your mother’s real misfortune was having a daughter like you, someone who understands neither gratitude nor the rules.”

At that moment, a familiar voice came from the entrance.

“Who died?”

My mother walked into the estate with her suitcase and looked at Luca in confusion.