Chapter 2

Early the next morning, I arrived at the estate with the only Council representative in the area—Anthony Conti, the Council secretary.

The guards clearly recognized him and immediately let us through.

I never thought I'd need someone to escort me into my own home. I couldn't help but smile bitterly at the thought.

I pushed open the front door. The moment Luca saw me, he frowned.

He hurried over and lowered his voice. "I told you I'd only be here for a few days. Why can't you just let it go?"

After last night, I had no interest in arguing with him anymore.

I gave him a cold look and walked straight into the main hall.

Two middle-aged people were sitting in the dining room, and they looked a lot like Bianca. They had to be her parents. They were calmly eating breakfast as if they belonged there.

And they were eating from the antique set my grandfather had left me. We only used that set for special family occasions.

Now two complete strangers were using it for breakfast.

As they drank, the Moretti crest at the bottom of each cup occasionally showed through the milk.

Four huge suitcases lay open in the hallway, stuffed with clothes for every season.

They clearly weren't planning to leave anytime soon.

I hurried further into the house. In the servants' quarters, I found three open cardboard boxes stacked against the wall.

My clothes and personal belongings had been thrown inside them like junk.

I turned and glared at Luca. "This is your idea of five days?"

Before he could answer, the middle-aged woman at the table slammed down her fork and stood up. It was Bianca's mother, Elena Orsini.

"So you're Luca's ex-girlfriend? A girl should have some self-respect. Luca's about to get married, and you're still coming to the home he's preparing for his future wife. Don't you have any shame?"

I stared at her in disbelief. "What did you just call this place? Their future home?"

"That's right. My daughter is about to marry Luca and become part of the Moretti family. Naturally, they'll live here after the wedding."

Since when did my estate belong to Luca?

He was only a captain in the family's security team. How did that make him part of my family?

"Ma'am," a workman called out to Elena. "Where do you want these hung?"

A ladder leaned against the archway. Next to the family crest on the wall, someone had already nailed up a new plaque.

Luca and Bianca's names were written across it in fancy letters, with a large wreath between them.

The wreath covered half of the eagle's talon on the family crest, making it look as though someone had stepped all over it.

Elena pointed toward the east wall. "Take those photos down. They're old, dusty, and ugly. Put the engagement photos there instead."

A row of old black-and-white photographs hung on that wall.

There was my grandfather, the former head of the Moretti family. Beside him was my father, Vittorio Moretti. Then there was my mother at nineteen, standing in profile in the rose garden.

"Ma'am." Anthony's voice stopped her.

Anthony stepped forward and gave Elena a small nod. "Under the temporary management rules of the Moretti family trust, nothing inside this estate may be changed or removed until ownership and access have been verified."

Elena raised her eyebrows. "Says who?"

Anthony stood a little straighter. "Family law."

Bianca walked slowly down the long staircase in high heels. She placed a hand on her mother's arm and smiled at Anthony. "Does family law also say the lady of the house isn't allowed to rearrange her own home?"

Anthony paused and glanced at me, not sure how much he was allowed to reveal.

Bianca smiled and continued. "My father is the Don of the Orsini family, and I'm his only daughter.

"Once Luca and I are married, I'll become a Moretti. So you're standing in what will soon be my property. Are you trying to enforce rules for a woman who isn't even registered in the system?"

Anthony's expression hardened. "Ma'am, I only recognize the people officially named as beneficiaries of the trust."

"Good," Bianca said, turning toward me with a smug smile. "Because in a few days, I'll decide whose faces deserve to stay on these walls."

My jaw tightened with anger. "I'm warning you. Touch those photos, and you'll regret it."

Bianca's father, Carlo Orsini, finally walked over.

A cold smile spread across his face. He looked at me like I was some maid who had wandered into a room where she didn't belong.

He pointed at the photos. "Take every one of them down. Burn them. Let's see who has the nerve to stop me."

Carlo hadn't been a Don for long enough to recognize my father.

He probably thought the people in those photos were nothing more than my relatives.

A few workmen immediately reached for the frames. I rushed forward to stop them, but Carlo's guards grabbed me and held me back.

As I struggled against them, Luca appeared at the top of the stairs. An obsidian ring gleamed on his finger.

I froze. That was my father's ring—the symbol worn by the head of the Moretti family.

I had kept it locked inside a hidden safe in the study. Luca had broken in and stolen it.

When Bianca saw me staring, she grabbed Luca's hand and raised it in front of me, making sure I got a good look at the ring.

"See? This belongs to the owner of this estate."

I stared at the ring as fury burned through me.

A second later, I charged forward, grabbed Luca's hand, and squeezed his fingers hard.

"Take it off. Now!"