Chapter 4

I bolted from the clinic, stumbling through the parking lot.

The rain was coming down harder now, cold and blinding, mixing with my tears.

As I reached the edge of the lot, several men in black suits stepped out of the shadows.

Valkov's men.

"Well, well. If it isn't the high-and-mighty Donna of the Thorne family," the leader sneered. "Look at you now. Like a stray dog."

"Get out of my way!" I tried to push past them. "My father is dying!"

"Dying?" another one laughed. "You think you're still the Thorne Donna? That the Family still has your back?"

They circled me, trapping me.

"Heard you got kicked out of the Thorne family."

"Your own man faked his death just to get away from you. You got any shame left?"

"Please!" I fell to my knees in the rain. "Let me go to the hospital! My father is sick!"

"Hahaha!" They roared with laughter. "Look at the former Donna, begging on her knees like a dog!"

A steel-toed boot came down, crushing my phone under its heel.

The screen spiderwebbed into a thousand pieces.

"Five million dollars. Not a penny less," the leader said, squatting down and grabbing my chin. "Without Axel Thorne to protect you, how are you gonna pay?"

"I have money!" I pulled the check from my coat with a trembling hand. "Ten million! Take it all!"

They paused for a second, then burst out laughing again.

"Is that your pity money? Looks like the new Donna wanted to make sure you were thoroughly humiliated."

Just then, a hospital security guard appeared.

"What are you doing? Get out of here!"

The Valkovs looked at each other, then backed away with a smirk.

"This ain't over."

I scrambled to my feet and ran for the hospital.

The elevator was too slow. I took the stairs.

Twelve flights.

My legs felt like lead. Every step was a struggle.

I finally burst onto my father's floor.

The door to his room was open. There was a figure on the bed, covered with a white sheet.

"No..."

I stumbled over and ripped the sheet back.

It was my father's pale, peaceful face.

"Doctor! Doctor!" I screamed hysterically.

His doctor walked in, his face full of regret.

"Miss Sterling, we did everything we could."

"How..." I collapsed to the floor. "You said he was stable."

A nurse standing nearby spoke in a low voice. "About a half hour ago, a woman calling herself Mrs. Thorne came to visit."

My head snapped up.

"She was arguing with him, shouting things like 'your daughter betrayed our family' and 'she'll do anything for money'."

The nurse glanced at my face, then continued. "The old man became extremely agitated. His heart just gave out."

My own heart felt like it was being torn in two.

"And..." the nurse hesitated. "The top cardiac specialist Mr. Thorne had arranged... his surgery was suddenly canceled by his office at the last minute. They said it was a 'scheduling conflict'."

I understood.

This was Seraphina.

She didn't just provoke my father's heart attack. She cut off his only chance of survival.

And Axel... he knew how evil she was. And he let her do it.

I held my father's cold hand, tears streaming down my face.

"Papa... I'm so sorry..."

The person who loved me most in this world was gone.

Because of me. Because I was stupid. Because I loved the wrong man.

For the next three days, I handled everything alone.

No one came to pay their respects. No one called.

I was a ghost. Nothing left to hold onto in this world.

On the day of the funeral, I stood alone at his grave.

It was still raining.

I looked at my father's kind smile on the headstone, and my heart turned to ash.

"Papa," I whispered to the gray sky. "I'm coming home."

At dusk, I dragged my empty body to the Brooklyn Bridge.

The sun was setting, the river glittering below.

I took out my backup phone and started recording a voice memo.

"My name is Aria Sterling. If you are hearing this, it means I'm dead."

"Six years ago, Axel Thorne didn't die. The yacht explosion was a carefully planned hoax..."

I told them everything.

Axel's betrayal. Seraphina's poison. How they destroyed my life, piece by piece.

When the recording was done, I set it to send on a timer.

Then I walked slowly to the edge of the bridge.

The wind was strong, whipping my hair across my face.

I closed my eyes, thinking of the warm days with my father.

"Papa, we'll be together soon."

Then I jumped, and the world went dark.

---

Meanwhile, in the Miami penthouse.

Seraphina was clinging to Axel.

"Honey, my tummy hurts... I think our baby is being naughty," she cooed. "Can you stay with me?"

Axel frowned, his mind elsewhere.

He hadn't been able to shake a feeling of dread since Aria left.

"You're probably just tired. Get some rest," he said, distracted.

"Nooo," Seraphina whined, grabbing his arm. "I'm scared to be alone..."

Just then, Axel's phone rang.

It was Marco, his voice panicked and rushed.

"Boss, it's bad," Marco's voice was panicked. "It's the Donna—I mean, Miss Sterling. She... she jumped from the Brooklyn Bridge."