Chapter 1

I woke up from the nightmare of my stillbirth only to find a new one waiting. In the hallway, I heard my husband, Don Massimo, plotting with the doctor.

"Boss, the baby's dead. What if the Donna suspects something?" Valenti, the doctor, added nervously.

Pain ripped through my stomach, but I had to hear the rest of his twisted plan.

"She won't," his voice was terrifyingly calm. "I'll bring her Bianca's son. I'll tell her he's ours. As for the other one, the dead one… wipe the records clean."

"He was my son, too. But he's dead. Find a decent plot and bury him," his voice cracked for a fraction of a second. Then the ice returned.

"And one more thing. That new sterilization drug the hospital has? Give it to Arabella."

Dr. Valenti's voice trembled. "Boss, that drug… the Donna just delivered a stillborn. Her body is extremely weak. She'll be barren. Permanently."

"Do it," Massimo's voice was ice. "I promised Bianca her son would be my only heir. Arabella can't have any more children. No loose ends. A single shot is kinder than making her suffer through one 'accident' after another. You get me, Dr. Valenti?"

I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood, fighting the urge to scream.

"Jewels, money, a goddamn mansion… I'll give her anything she wants. It'll make up for it."

No jewel in the world was worth more than my child.

I controlled my shaking body and hid in a stairwell, forcing myself to stay silent.

But when Massimo's deputy, Alex, arrived, my world shattered completely.

"Boss, we looked into it… The Moretti family's attack… it looks like an inside job. Our guys at the east gate were pulled away by a forged transfer order. And the order was signed right around the time you were… with Miss Bianca."

Massimo was silent for a long time. When he finally spoke, his tone was casual, almost light. "Let's just go with it. The Morettis gave me the perfect excuse, didn't they? I was looking for a way for Arabella to 'lose' our child without it being on me."

My world didn't just crumble. It turned to ash.

Silent tears slid down my cheeks. I pressed my trembling hand to my mouth, terrified of making a sound.

My baby was dead.

Because he was sleeping with Bianca—the orphaned daughter of his mother's best friend.

Because he pulled security to please his mistress.

He chose to save Bianca, and let our son die.

And I never even got to see his face.

The pain was so immense it felt like my heart was being torn from my chest.

After Massimo left, I used my last ounce of strength to get back to my room and collapse onto the bed. Chained to this wheelchair, I was too weak to get revenge.

My only option now was to endure. To wait for my chance to strike back.

I closed my eyes, letting tears soak the pillow.

When I opened them again, Massimo was sitting by my bed, holding a swaddled infant.

He had the smile of a proud father, looking down at the baby with pure love.

"Arabella, you're awake," he looked up, his eyes full of joy. "Come and see our beautiful boy."

Our beautiful boy?

A bitter laugh almost escaped my lips.

That was Bianca's son.

"I'm so happy you gave me this treasure," Massimo stood and carefully passed the baby to me. "He'll be loved by all of us. He'll be the heir to our family."

I took the baby robotically, staring at the unfamiliar little face.

This wasn't my baby.

A tidal wave of rage crashed over me, but my weak body couldn't handle it.

Suddenly, a sharp, tearing pain shot through my stomach.

"Ah—" I doubled over as blood began to soak through the sheets.

"Arabella!" Massimo yelled. "Get a doctor! Now!"

Dr. Valenti rushed in, saw the blood, and started barking orders.

"Postpartum hemorrhage! We need to move, now!"

My consciousness was fading, but I could still hear Massimo's voice, cold and clear.

"Do it now. Inject the drug."

The drug that would make me barren forever.

I wanted to fight, to scream, but my body wouldn't obey.

A needle pierced the skin of my arm.

Darkness swallowed me whole.

When I woke up, Massimo was sitting by the bed, his eyes red-rimmed.

"Arabella, you scared the hell out of me," he gripped my hand, his voice choked with emotion. "The doctors… they said because of the difficult birth and the blood loss, your uterus suffered irreversible damage. You… you can't have any more children."

A tear rolled down his cheek. "It's those bastards, the Morettis! If it wasn't for their attack, none of this would have happened. I'll make them pay with their lives!"

What an actor.

If I didn't know the truth, I might have actually been moved.

"Thank God we already have our heir," Massimo stroked my cheek. "Otherwise, I think I'd go insane."

I closed my eyes. I couldn't look at his lying face.

"I'll go get you some soup," Massimo stood. "I'm sending the baby home with my mother for now. You need to rest."

I thought he would leave.

But after sending the baby off, he didn't call for a nurse. He came back himself, holding a bowl.

"Here, open up."

He fed me spoon by spoon, his movements gentle and careful.

The Don himself, waiting on me hand and foot. It was something I never would have dreamed of.

"I had the chef make a broth. The old recipe. It's good for you."

If I didn't know the truth, I would have thought he was a loving husband.

But he wasn't. He was my enemy.

Massimo took care of me for seven days straight, but it did nothing to cool the hatred in my heart.

On the seventh night, he fell asleep in the chair next to my bed, exhausted.

With a trembling hand, I reached into his suit jacket and found an encrypted phone I'd never seen before.

I tried our anniversary. Our son's due date. Nothing.

On a bitter impulse, I typed in Bianca's birthday. It unlocked.