My Mafia Husband And Son Always Picked My Best Friend Over Me

When I returned to the estate, I saw Dante kneeling on the floor.

He gently picked shards of broken glass out of the sole of her foot with tweezers.

My son Luca stood beside him, holding cotton pads and disinfectant.

“ What are you two doing? ”

Lena quickly pulled her foot back when she saw me. Her face went stiff.

“ Seraphina, you’re back. ”

Before she finished, Dante shot to his feet.

“ Why are you so late? Do you have any idea Lena stepped on broken glass trying to pull you out of the way? She has a national tour next week. How is she supposed to perform with a hurt foot? Can you take responsibility for that? ”

Luca pushed me hard.

“ It’s all your fault. Aunt Lena got hurt because of you! ”

I stumbled back into the corner of the cabinet.

The platinum pendant around my collarbone fell to the floor.

The deep scar underneath was exposed to the air.

It was the scar from the bullet I took for Dante during the dock shootout years ago.

Back then, Dante sat by my hospital bed, eyes red and raw.

He ordered his men to wipe out the rival family’s entire dock operation.

He said he would never let me get hurt again.

Lena even canceled her show at the Grand Opera House when she heard I was hurt.

She flew back overnight and slapped Dante hard across the face.

“ You useless piece of shit. This is how you protect Seraphina?! ”

After that, they flew in dermatologists from all over the world to make sure I didn’t scar.

But the scar stayed. So they had this custom platinum pendant made to cover it perfectly.

Things were so good back then.

But today, I finally realized.

Somewhere along the way, I had gone from the most cherished person in their lives to the most unwanted outsider.

Lena noticed the tension.

She quickly picked up the pendant and put it back around my neck.

“ Seraphina, don’t be mad at them. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have let them leave you behind at the winery. ”

For the first time, I shook her off hard.

I spoke with a bitter laugh.

“ Do you two ever realize how disgusting this is? ”

Lena froze. Her eyes welled up instantly.

“ Seraphina, what is that supposed to mean? ”

“ I was trying to keep you from getting hit. I stepped on the glass and didn’t say a word. And you think that of me? ”

Tears rolled down her face, like she was the wronged one.

Dante’s face darkened immediately.

“ Seraphina, that’s enough. You couldn’t even dodge a falling wine rack, and now you’re taking it out on everyone else? ”

“ You know damn well you wouldn’t have survived all these years if Lena and I hadn’t watched your back. ”

Yeah. I had always known that.

When I got shot and the infection spiked a fever, I would have died without them.

That’s why when I caught him kissing her in the wine cellar, I told myself I was drunk and seeing things.

When I found her lipstick on his collar, I told myself it was just a brush from a business dinner.

I thought if I looked the other way, things would stay as steady as they used to be.

But I forgot. A heart can only take so much cold before it breaks.

Ten years of history had been eaten hollow by lies and betrayal.

I had barely enough strength left to fight.

Saying “ Dante, let’s get a divorce ” was the last shred of dignity I had left for this relationship.

I went back to our room and fell into a heavy sleep.

Half-asleep, I dreamed of the old days.

I dreamed of Dante, who always stood between me and danger no matter how bad the shootout got.

I dreamed of Lena, who cried at our wedding and wished me a lifetime of peace and happiness.

I dreamed of Luca, chubby-faced, saying he would protect me when he grew up.

Tears slid from the corner of my eye into the pillow.

Too bad. The past was gone forever.