Chapter 4

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That night, I fled back to my apartment on an empty stomach, the counterfeit bills stuffed inside my bag.

The moment the café opened the next morning, I stormed inside and threw the envelope onto the counter.

“Why did you pay me with fake money?”

My manager barely flinched.

“I didn’t.”

“What?”

“Your mother came in yesterday with two Bellini soldiers. She collected your wages and left that envelope in their place.”

The room seemed to tilt beneath me.

“You gave my paycheck to her?”

“She’s the wife of Don Bellini.” His mouth twisted bitterly. “What exactly did you expect me to do?”

I grabbed the counter to steady myself.

“She said you needed to learn that earning money wasn’t as easy as you thought,” he added. “And that once you ran into trouble, you would remember who you were supposed to depend on.”

I had no money left for a cab.

I took the train north, then rode a bus as close to the Bellini estate as the route allowed. From there, I walked almost a mile beneath the afternoon sun.

The guards stopped me at the iron gates.

One of them studied my face before calling the main house to confirm that Don Bellini’s daughter was allowed inside.

Mother was drinking coffee in the sitting room when I found her.

“Did you take my wages?”

Mother didn’t look guilty. If anything, she seemed pleased that her lesson had worked.

“They were prop bills,” Mother said.

“You didn’t honestly think working at a café meant you could support yourself, did you? I needed you to understand that without this family’s protection, you have nothing.”

She stepped closer, her expression softening.

“Listen to me, Valentina. When you’re in trouble, you come to your father or me. And if you can’t reach us, you call Luca.”

My whole body shook .

Did she really think I had never tried?

When the heat failed in January, Mother said the apartment had passed inspection and I needed to stop looking for reasons to return home.

When my fever climbed so high I could barely stand, I called Dante and begged him to come. He accused me of faking it just to get back onto the Bellini estate, then hung up.

When the building lost power after midnight, Luca told me to lock the door and stay calm because I was still in Bellini territory. Then he stopped replying because Bianca needed help with her college application.

And when two armed men tried to force their way into my apartment, no one answered my call.

Every time I reached for my family, they found a reason I didn’t truly need them.

“Give it back,” I said, my voice breaking. “That money is mine. I earned it.”

Father entered before Mother could answer. The room changed the moment he appeared.

“What is going on?”

“Valentina came here shouting at me over a paycheck,” Mother said.

His gaze settled on me.

“The money isn’t the issue,” he said quietly. “Your disrespect is.”

“I worked for that money.”

“And you are standing in the home of Don Bellini, accusing his wife.”

He didn’t need to raise his voice. Men had been killed for ignoring that tone.

For one moment, however, I was too angry to be afraid.

“This is my home too.”

“Then behave like a Bellini,” he said coldly. “And show your mother some respect.”

Father’s gaze hardened, disappointment plain in his eyes.

“You lied about your sister taking your money, then took a job at a café to make us look cruel. Your mother tried to teach you a lesson instead of punishing you. You should be thanking her, not standing here raising your voice.”

Nothing I said would make them believe me. They had already decided Bianca was innocent and I was lying.

But I needed that money. I had almost nothing left for food.

I crossed the room and reached for the envelope in Mother’s hand.

Before my fingers could touch it, Father stepped between us, fury darkening his face.

“Enough.”

He signaled to the guard beside the door.

“Escort Valentina outside. She may return when she is ready to apologize.”

Father watched as the guard seized my arm and dragged me from the room.

By the time they released me in the foyer, tears were burning my eyes.

The front doors opened before I reached them.

Dante, Luca, and Bianca had returned.

Bianca held up a diamond hair clip that glittered beneath the chandelier.

“I still can’t believe something this small cost thirty thousand dollars.”

Dante laughed. “If you love it, the price doesn’t matter.”

“Besides,” Luca added, “your mother gave you the black card for your college wardrobe. You’re supposed to use it.”

Thirty thousand dollars.

More than I could earn in months of working at the café.

To Bianca, it was a hair accessory she wasn’t sure she should keep.

To me, a single paycheck had been turned into a lesson about obedience.

I stepped behind one of the marble columns before they noticed me, then slipped out through the service entrance.

This time, I didn’t cry until I reached the road.

After that day, none of them contacted me. They were waiting for my apology.

I used the silence to leave.

MIT had offered me a place in an early summer research program, allowing me to arrive before the rest of the freshman class.

The night before my flight, I packed the last of my belongings and made myself pasta and a small chocolate cake.

Then I placed the four LEGO figures around the table one final time.

“I guess this is my college send-off,” I told them.

“And our last dinner together.”

Their painted faces smiled back at me.

I smiled too.

“You don’t have to keep me company anymore.”

From now on, I would walk alone.

The next morning, I boarded my flight to Boston.

As the plane prepared for takeoff, the Bellini family group chat suddenly came alive.

Mother posted a photo of Bianca wearing a UCLA sweatshirt.

Bianca officially committed to UCLA! Valentina, you accepted Cornell, didn’t you? We’ll hold a joint college send-off dinner tomorrow.

Dante replied immediately.

Stop sulking before then. The entire family is expected to attend.

Then Luca sent me a private message:

I’ll pick you up myself.

I stared at their messages for a long moment.

Then I left the group chat and blocked every one of them.

The plane lifted from the runway, and New York disappeared beneath the clouds.

None of them knew I was already gone.